Mandibular Advancement Appliance Hinge Wedge Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing snoring treatments are often uncomfortable and inconvenient, leading to poor patient compliance due to lack of effectiveness in maintaining an open airway during sleep, which is crucial for preventing snoring and associated sleep apnea.
Innovation Solution
A customizable orthodontic appliance with a hinge between upper and lower shells and wedges to maintain the lower jaw in a forward position, ensuring an open airway by attaching to the teeth and providing resistance against mouth closure, thereby encouraging oral breathing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional snoring treatments (such as placing a ball on the back, spraying throat, or using suction cup on tongue) are used to open the airway, then the airway opening effect is achieved, but patient comfort deteriorates and compliance decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an orthodontic appliance as an intermediary device that attaches to the teeth and jaw structure. This appliance serves as a mediator between the patient's anatomy and the airway opening function, using the jaw advancement mechanism to indirectly open the airway through skeletal positioning rather than direct throat intervention, thereby improving comfort while maintaining effectiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The appliance is divided into separate upper and lower jaw components with independent positioning capabilities. This segmentation allows for customized fitting to individual patient anatomy, improving comfort while the coordinated action of segments maintains the therapeutic jaw advancement effect for airway opening
2Reliability
If the lower jaw is advanced to maintain an open airway position, then snoring prevention is improved, but the complexity of the appliance increases due to need for hinge mechanisms and position maintenance structures
Solution Approach 1:
The appliance incorporates a hinge mechanism that allows dynamic adjustment and movement of the lower jaw component. This dynamic structure enables the appliance to adapt to different jaw positions and maintain the therapeutic advancement through controlled movement rather than rigid fixation, achieving effective snoring prevention while managing structural complexity through functional design
Solution Approach 2:
The appliance utilizes wedges and hinge geometry to transform small positional changes at the attachment points into larger jaw advancement distances. By changing the geometric parameters of the hinge and wedge structures, the system achieves significant airway opening effect with relatively simple component dimensions, managing complexity through mechanical advantage
3Manufacturing precision
If a custom-made orthodontic appliance is manufactured to fit specific patient dentition, then treatment precision and comfort are improved, but manufacturing time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The appliance design incorporates pre-formed components and standardized hinge mechanisms that can be manufactured in advance. The customization process focuses only on the specific fitting surfaces that contact the patient's teeth, while the functional components (hinge, wedges, connectors) are prepared beforehand, reducing overall manufacturing time while maintaining precision where needed
Solution Approach 2:
The appliance uses universal hinge designs and standardized connector components that can be used across different patient cases. This universality allows the majority of the appliance to be manufactured using standardized processes, while only the patient-specific portions require custom fabrication, thereby reducing manufacturing time and cost while maintaining precise fit through selective customization
Data Source
AI summary
An appliance, a system and a method prevent snoring of a patient. The appliance opens an airway of the patient by advancing a lower jaw of the patient. A slot is formed on an upper shell and/or a lower shell of the appliance to receive teeth of the patient for wearing the appliance. A hinge connects the upper shell to the lower shell and resists the closing of the mouth of the patient to maintain the open airway of the patient. Wedges protrude from the hinge between the upper shell and the lower shell to further resist the closing of the mouth of the patient. Stiffer material of the hinge and/or the wedges relative to material of the upper shell and the lower shell requires more force to close the mouth of the patient and maintains the open airway of the patient during sleep. Extended margins may receive liner material to secure the appliance to the dentition. Lingual extensions on the lower arch help to maintain the lower jaw in a forward position relative to the upper jaw.