Flat Dental Bracket with Segmented Engaging Unit
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional orthodontic brackets face challenges with tooth decay and foreign body sensation due to the uneven outline of self-ligating braces, which makes them difficult to clean and irritates the mouth.
Innovation Solution
A dental bracket design featuring a base with engaged and limiting protrusions and an engaging unit with a flat surface and channels for archwire insertion, reducing food debris accumulation and irritation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a conventional self-ligating brace with uneven outline is used, then the assembly process is simplified, but food debris easily sticks to the brace body making it hard to clean and increasing the chance of tooth decay
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using an uneven outline to achieve self-ligation, the patent inverts the approach by using a flat outline that resists food debris accumulation, while achieving the self-ligation function through a different mechanism (the engaging unit with engaging arms that clamp the archwire)
Solution Approach 2:
The brace body is segmented into distinct functional parts: the base with flat outline for hygiene, and the separate engaging unit with engaging arms for wire fixation. This segmentation allows each part to optimize its specific function without compromising the other
2Ease of manufacture
If a conventional self-ligating brace with uneven outline is used, then the assembly process is simplified, but the uneven outline continually rubs the interior of the mouth causing a foreign body sensation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional approach by adopting a flat outline that eliminates the foreign body sensation problem, while achieving self-ligation through the engaging unit mechanism rather than relying on an uneven profile
3Reliability
If a traditional orthodontics bracket with elastomeric ligature is used, then the archwire can be fixed, but the elastomeric ligature is difficult to mount on and around the bracket body in the oral cavity
Solution Approach 1:
The engaging unit with its engaging arms provides a self-ligating mechanism that automatically clamps the archwire without requiring manual manipulation of elastomeric ligatures by the orthodontist in the oral cavity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and eliminates the elastomeric ligature component entirely, replacing it with an integrated engaging unit that performs the wire fixation function through mechanical engagement of the engaging arms with the archwire
Data Source
AI summary
A dental bracket has a base and an engaging unit. The base has two engaged protrusions and two limiting protrusions. The engaging unit is mounted on the base and forms a space between the base and the engaging unit. The engaging unit has a plate, two engaging arms, and a blocking protrusion. The plate has a first surface and a second surface being flat and opposite the first surface. The two engaging arms are formed on the first surface of the plate and respectively engaged with the two engaged protrusions of the base. The blocking protrusion is formed on the first surface of the plate, is arranged between the two limiting protrusions of the base, and divides the space into two channels for inserting an archwire. The second surface of the engaging unit is flat and is able to decrease the foreign body sensation in the mouth.