Shape Memory Alloy Dental Screwdriver Shaft for Angled Channels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional screwdrivers for securing screw-retained dental restorations are inflexible, difficult to use, costly, and not manufacturer-agnostic, leading to inefficiencies and potential mechanical failures, especially when dealing with angled or curved screw channels, which can result in improper torque application and aesthetic issues.
Innovation Solution
A dental screwdriver with a shaft made of a smart alloy that bends easily without imparting torqueing forces, featuring a drive tip designed to interface with screws, and optionally magnetized, with a handle that can couple to a torque measuring tool, allowing for flexible use and accommodation of different manufacturer screw heads, and capable of bending through tortuous paths without strain localization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a non-bendable screwdriver shaft is used, then the screwdriver is simple in structure and easy to manufacture, but it cannot reach angled or curved screw channels and causes improper torque application
Solution Approach 1:
The screwdriver shaft is made from shape memory alloy material that changes its physical state between bent and straight configurations. The shaft can be bent into the required angle to reach curved screw channels, then automatically returns to its original straight shape when the bending force is removed, providing both flexibility and structural simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The screwdriver shaft transitions from a static rigid structure to a dynamic structure that can change its shape on demand. The shape memory alloy allows the shaft to be bent during insertion into curved channels and then automatically straighten during the screwing operation, adapting its configuration to the task requirements.
2Ease of operation
If a bendable screwdriver shaft is used, then the screwdriver can reach curved screw channels, but the shaft may deform permanently under torque and lose its shape
Solution Approach 1:
The shape memory alloy shaft utilizes temperature-dependent phase transformation to recover its original shape. When the bent shaft is exposed to body temperature or ambient heat, the material undergoes a phase change that automatically returns the shaft to its original straight configuration, ensuring reliable shape retention without permanent deformation.
Solution Approach 2:
The screwdriver shaft is self-healing through the shape memory alloy property. When deformed during insertion into curved channels, the shaft automatically recovers its original shape without external intervention, eliminating the need for manual straightening or risking permanent deformation through improper handling.
3Ease of operation
If a segmented shaft design is used, then the shaft is more flexible and easier to bend, but it is more complex to manufacture and may have torque loss at joints
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using multiple segmented parts that require assembly, the invention uses a single piece of shape memory alloy that inherently provides flexibility through its material properties. The alloy's ability to bend and recover its shape eliminates the need for segmentation, simplifying manufacturing while maintaining flexibility.
4Reliability
If manufacturer-specific screwdriver tips are used, then the screwdriver works reliably with that manufacturer's screws, but it increases device complexity and cost
Solution Approach 1:
The screwdriver incorporates a universal drive tip design that can interface with screws from multiple manufacturers. The tip geometry is engineered to be compatible with various screw head types and configurations, allowing a single screwdriver to perform multiple functions across different restoration systems without requiring multiple specialized tools.
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 screwdriver provides efficient, accurate, and versatile screwing and unscrewing capabilities, reducing the risk of mechanical failures and peri-implantitis, while being cost-effective and easy to use, with improved hygiene and reduced manufacturing costs compared to existing designs.
Implementation Method 1
a shaft made of a smart alloy that bends easily without imparting torqueing forces
Implementation Method 2
with at least a distal front end portion of the shaft made of a smart alloy material and/or magnetized
Data Source
AI summary
A shaft for a dental screwdriver configured to be inserted into a bore cavity of a dental prosthetic. The shaft has a drive tip for driving a dental screw used to fix the dental prosthetic to the dental implant when the shaft is inserted into the bore cavity of the dental prosthetic. The drive tip is made of a shape memory smart alloy. The shaft also has an axial shaft portion made of a shape memory smart alloy with different material characteristics than the shape memory smart alloy of the drive tip. The axial shaft portion is configured to elastically bend from an original shape to a bent shape along the axial shaft portion without imparting a bending action and torqueing forces along the drive tip when the dental screwdriver is inserted into the bore cavity of the dental prosthetic.