Orthodontic Splint with Rigid Bar Anchorage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional orthodontic devices fail to provide effective anchorage for molar teeth, leading to tilting and enamel stripping issues, and require surgical procedures for temporary anchorage devices, which are invasive and risky.
Innovation Solution
A unitary orthodontic splint with a flexible mould and a rigid rod is applied to adjacent teeth, using settable material to create projections and secure the rod, providing stable anchorage without the need for surgery, and allowing for flexible positioning and angulation to resist mesial tipping.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional metallic brackets and wires are used for orthodontic anchorage, then the treatment can be applied to multiple teeth, but the molars tilt and rotate to the mesial instead of moving forward, causing loss of anchorage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple molars into a single functional unit by rigidly connecting them with a bar structure. This merging of separate teeth into one anchored unit prevents individual molar tilting and rotation, as the connected structure distributes and stabilizes the anchorage forces across all connected teeth.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs curved or angled bars that can be contoured to match the specific anatomical arrangement of molars. These curved connectors provide optimal angular relationships between adjacent molars, ensuring rigid stabilization while adapting to the natural curvature of the dental arch.
2Productivity
If enamel is stripped between anterior teeth to create space for realignment, then crooked teeth can be straightened, but the stripped enamel is wasted when molars tilt and rotate, requiring additional enamel removal
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies anchorage stabilization measures (rigid bar connection) before the main orthodontic treatment begins. By pre-preventing molar tilting and rotation through rigid connection, the treatment ensures that enamel stripping performed earlier is not wasted, thereby protecting the invested effort and material.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs enamel stripping and space creation as preliminary actions before applying the rigid anchorage system. By establishing the space-making phase first, then securing the anchorage, the treatment sequence ensures that subsequent molar stabilization prevents loss of the previously created space.
3Reliability
If temporary anchorage devices (TADs) are used to prevent molar tilting, then anchorage is improved, but surgery is required which carries risks of hitting tooth roots and causing ankylosis
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a rigid bar as an intermediary structure that connects molars together, serving as a mechanical mediator to provide anchorage stability. This intermediary approach replaces the need for direct surgical intervention (TADs) by using a non-invasive connection system that achieves similar stabilization without penetrating the bone or risking root damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the surgical mechanical system (TADs requiring bone drilling and screw insertion) with a non-surgical mechanical system (adhesive-bonded rigid bars). This substitution eliminates the need for invasive procedures while maintaining the mechanical function of preventing molar tilting and providing stable anchorage.
4Ease of operation
If plastic aligner trays are used without rigid molar connection, then treatment is non-invasive, but molars can move, swivel and tilt to the mesial easily inside the aligner
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple molar units into one rigid structure that resists movement within the aligner tray. By connecting molars with a rigid bar, the combined unit cannot individually swivel or tilt as easily, providing stable anchorage while maintaining the non-invasive nature of clear aligner treatment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite anchorage system combining the flexible plastic aligner tray with a rigid bar structure. The rigid bar provides structural stability and anchorage resistance, while the plastic tray maintains ease of operation and non-invasive characteristics. This composite approach integrates materials with complementary properties to solve the contradiction between invasiveness and stability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively stabilizes molar teeth, reducing enamel stripping and eliminating the need for surgical anchorage devices, enabling efficient and precise tooth movement without compromising periodontal health.
Implementation Method 1
The at least one cavity is to receive a settable material to provide a projection, the projection to be fixed to a respective one of the teeth
Data Source
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AI summary
An orthodontic mould to be applied to one or more of a patient's teeth, the mould having: at least one cavity configured to be positioned adjacent a respective tooth of the patient, with the at least one cavity to receive a settable material to provide a projection, the projection to be fixed to a respective one of the teeth; and a rod or stint mounted in the mould and extending from the at least one cavity so as to be secured to the projection when the settable material is set.