JPH04166147A - Self ligature bracket for dental correction - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable the ligation of an arch wire easily and accurately even without a wing by arranging columnar protruding bodies having no wing outside in a pair on a base through an interval and a retaining spring having a pressing part hanging over a slot. CONSTITUTION:A retaining spring 10 is introduced so as to meet a requirement of forming protruding bodies 2 as such smaller without any wing part. The retaining spring 10 is formed by a twisting of an elastic round wire. When an arch wire A is put on top faces of the protruding bodies 2 and is pushed to the left as indicated by the arrow (r) abutting a pressing part 15 of the retaining spring 10, the retaining spring 10 is opened as indicated by the chain line to release a slot 4. So, if the arch wire is forced into the slot 4 being turned downward as indicated by the arrow (d), the arch wire is held into the slot while the retaining spring 10 returns elastically onto the slot to force down the arch wire by an elastic force. Thus, dimensions of a breacket, especially, the width thereof is made so smaller as to be hard to notice even when it is mounted on a tooth.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a self-ligature bracket for orthodontics. More specifically, the present invention provides that the projecting body of the bracket has a pillar-like shape without wings and appears compact in appearance, and that the archwire is automatically fixed without the need for complicated ligation operations using conventional ligature wires. This relates to a self-ligature bracket that can be used.

[Conventional technology and its problems]

A conventional general orthodontic bracket is shown in FIG. A pair of protrusions P are formed on the base B to be bonded to the tooth surface, each protrusion has a slot S through which an archwire is inserted, and a ligature wire for ligating the archwire is formed in each protrusion. Wings W are provided protruding from both sides as handholds for locking. When such brackets are attached to the teeth, the width T between the outer ends of the wings W is visually impressive, so when the orthodontic patient opens his mouth, there is no possibility of foreign matter adhering to the teeth. The width t of the base of the bracket protrusion, which is undesirable because it gives a feeling of discomfort, is relatively small compared to this, so if the entire portion can be accommodated within this width, the discomfort can be considerably reduced. However, in the conventional method of fixing an archwire to a bracket, it was necessary to run a ligature wire across the archwire inserted into a slot, pass it under the wing W, and tie it up. Wings are indispensable for this, and conventionally no brackets without wings or equivalent protrusions were known.

Furthermore, since the wing W must be formed integrally with the top of the bracket protrusion by cutting, it requires a complicated manufacturing process, but if the wing can be eliminated, the manufacturing technology of the bracket will be simplified. be able to.

Although there are many advantages to eliminating the wings in this way, eliminating the wings requires changing the method of ligating the archwire.

Generally, ligating an archwire with a conventional ligature wire requires precise technique, patience, and considerable skill, and even if a rubber band or the like is used instead of a ligature wire, the complexity remains essentially the same. .

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Therefore, according to the present invention, the wing portion of the bracket protrusion, which has a large width in appearance, is omitted, and the archwire can be easily and reliably ligated even without the wing. The objective is to realize a self-ligating bracket.

A further object of the present invention is to easily manufacture orthodontic brackets using bending and fixing techniques from thin wires, instead of manufacturing brackets by cutting out rod-shaped materials.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention configures the bracket protrusion as a simple columnar shape without the conventional wing part or equivalent widthwise protrusion, and the archwire storage formed in the protrusion in the conventional manner. To provide a self-ligature bracket for orthodontics, which is inherently provided with a presser spring on a bracket base that elastically covers a slot for the teeth.

The columnar protrusion may be formed by cutting it integrally with the bracket base, but it can also be formed by bending a wire into a U-shape (or U-shape), and the bottom (back of the U-shape) is attached to the base. It can also be formed by being fixed thereon by brazing or other methods.

A pair of protrusions are provided on the base with a gap between them, and the lower end of the presser spring is fixed between the gaps. The presser spring extends from the fixing portion along the base of the protrusion on both sides as a twisted portion, rises from the outer end of the twisted portion and rests on the slot, forming a holding portion lying on the slot. The presser spring may be formed by twisting and bending a round wire or a square wire, or may be formed by twisting and bending a closed loop wire cut out or punched from an elastic plate material. Normally, the slot is covered with elastic force, but if pushed away against this elastic force, the slot is released and the archwire can be easily inserted. After the archwire is inserted, the pushing force is removed. For example, since the holding spring elastically returns to the slot and holds down the archwire, the archwire can be fixed simply and quickly, so to speak, automatically, without the need for other ligation means such as conventional ligature wires. I can do it.

〔Example〕

Several embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, FIGS. 1 to 3 show basic embodiments of a self-ligature bracket according to the present invention.

On the base 1 of the bracket there are slots 4 in the middle, respectively.
A pair of protrusions 2, 2' having a diameter of 4' are erected with a gap 3 between them. Each projection 2, 2' is formed as a simple column without conventional wings or other projections on either side.

Therefore, the width t at the top of the protrusion is the same as the width at the base 5°5', and when viewed from the front (plane), it looks much smaller than the conventional bracket (Fig. 8) and is less conspicuous. Become.

One of the base parts 5, 5' of each protrusion is provided with a latching groove 6, 6' horizontally along the base. This is to accommodate the twisted portion of the presser spring (10), which will be described later.

The presser spring 10 has been introduced according to the present invention in response to the fact that the protrusion is formed with a small width without wing portions. The presser spring 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 can be formed by twisting and bending an elastic round wire, and has parallel fixed parts 11 and 11 at both ends, and the inner ends of each fixed part are in the same plane. The outer ends of each twisted portion are bent outward in a plane different from that of the fixing portion 11 and the twisted portion 12 to form a rising portion 13 .
13, and in the area where the rising portion 13 touches one edge 2e on the slot side of the protrusion, it becomes a flat portion 14.14 via the bending point 13a, and this flat portion 14.
A holding part 15 bridging between the projections 14 is arranged near the other edge 2e of the protrusion along the slots 4, 4'.

The fixing portion 11 of the presser spring 10 is inserted into the space 3 between the protrusions 2 and 2', and is fixed to the base 1 by spot welding or bonding. For fixation, it is sufficient to fix not the entire length of the fixing part 11 but, for example, the length of the range F shown in FIG. The torsion part 12 exerts an elastic force that attempts to return to its original state, but the torsion part 12
is not lifted off the base.

As can be seen from FIG. 3, the holding part 15 is set so that the negative part enters into the slot 4.

However, it is necessary to set the holding part 15 so that at least half, preferably about two-thirds, of the circular cross-sectional area protrudes outside the slot for the self-ligature action described below. It is.

To explain the action, when the archwire A is placed on the top surface of the protrusion 2 as shown by the chain line in FIG. , the presser spring 10 opens as shown by the chain line to release the slot 4. Then, when the archwire is pushed into the slot 4 in the direction of the downward arrow d, the holding spring 10 elastically returns to the top of the slot at the same time as the archwire fits into the slot, and presses the archwire with elastic force. The archwire is naturally bound, that is, self-ligated, without the need for complicated ligation operations using ligature wires or rubber bands, and the work of fixing the archwire can be easily and quickly completed. When removing the archwire.

The archwire can be immediately removed from the slot by pushing the retainer 15 away in the direction of the chain line in FIG. 3 using a tool such as tweezers, which is also much easier and faster than conventional operations.

The protrusions 2, 2' shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 can be manufactured by cutting out a rod-shaped material with a quadrangular cross section as integral parts with the base 1, but the present invention requires the conventional wing part. In connection with this elimination, the bracket protrusion can now be manufactured using a simpler method. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a bracket manufactured by such a simple method. The pair of protrusions 22 and 22' are made by bending an elastic wire rod with a square or round cross section into a U-shape.

In the case of a round wire, the bottom portion 25, 25' is preferably ground slightly flat and fixed on the base 21 by brazing or other methods. Each protrusion is.

Slot 24.24' for receiving archwire A in the center
A latching groove 26 (only one is shown in the figure) for receiving the twisted portion of the presser spring is formed on one side of the base, and is erected with a gap 23 in between. 1 to 3 within this interval 23
Fixing part 11.11 of the same presser spring as shown in the figure
is fixed, and the holding part 15 is laid down on the slot via the rising part 13. The self-ligature bracket of the present invention shown in Fig. 4 can be manufactured easily and inexpensively compared to those formed by a cutting process, and the automatic ligation effect is similar to that shown in Figs. 1 to 3. Excellent.

According to the present invention, the bracket protrusion can be formed without side protrusions such as wing parts, so when it is attached to the tooth, it looks smaller and less uncomfortable. However, depending on the stage of orthodontic treatment, it may be necessary to place traction rubber bands or springs between the teeth. FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of the self-ligature bracket of the present invention that deals with such a case. base 31
A pair of protrusions 32 are provided on the top, and although not shown in the figure, a spacing similar to 3 in FIG. 1 or 23 in FIG. 4 is provided between the protrusions and another protrusion. . At this interval, a presser spring 1 similar to that shown in Figs. 1 and 4 is applied.
The fixing part 11 of 0 is fixed, the twisted part 12, the rising part 13, the bending point 13a pass through the flat part 14, and the pressing part 15 is formed on the slot 34. Base of protrusion 3
5 is formed into a so-called trapezoidal shape by widening from the top, and a latching groove 36 in which the twisted portion 12 is accommodated is formed at one of the bases. Such a protrusion 32 may be fabricated integrally with the base 31 by cutting, or may be separately fabricated and fixed to the base 31. Near the other base, a hook 37 for hanging a traction material may be protruded as appropriate. The bracket of the present invention shown in FIG. 5 has a wide base and a hook 3.
7 is provided, but since the wing part does not protrude horizontally near the top of the protrusion 32 like in the past, the impression of the appearance is mainly concentrated near the top of the protrusion 32, and the overall appearance is It has a smaller appearance than the conventional one.

Similarly, as an extension of the idea of the wingless protrusion according to the present invention, a self-ligature bracket having the shape shown in FIG. 6 can also be manufactured. The presser spring 10 is the same as that of the previous example, and the wingless protrusion 42 is formed to have a slightly larger width on the left side 42L than on the right side 42R in the figure, and a round horizontal hole 47 is formed through this wide portion 42L. This horizontal hole 47 functions as a torsional force source, either by assisting the archwire inserted into the slot 44 or by itself, when it is necessary to apply torsional force to a specific tooth in orthodontic treatment. This is for inserting or hooking members such as wires. Projection body 42 and base 41
They may be integral with each other, or they may be combined by being fixed together.

In the above examples, the presser spring was explained as being made by bending an elastic round wire, but a spring wire with a square cross section may be used instead of the round wire. Further, instead of bending the wire, the presser spring can also be manufactured by cutting or punching an elastic plate material, preferably a thin plate of stainless steel, into a desired closed loop shape and bending the same. FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of such a presser spring 50 made of an elastic plate material. The fixing part 51 is cut out as a single plate-shaped part, and the pair of twisted parts 52 following this are cut out into the latching grooves (6, 26°, 36, 4) at the base of the protrusion.
6, etc.), a rising portion 53 is formed by twisting from each outer end, and a holding portion 55 facing the slot of the bracket is formed at the end of a flat portion 54 via a bent portion 53a. Since the holding part 55, the rising part 53, and the fixing part 51 were originally on the same plane and were twisted and bent, the holding part 55 always exerts a downward elastic return force as shown by the arrow. , fixed part 5
1 is fixed within the space between the protrusions of the bracket base as in the previous examples, the archwire is strongly and elastically held by this elastic force. The presser spring 50 shown in FIG. 7 has the advantage that it can be manufactured more easily than by bending round or square wire, and that it can easily accommodate changes in the dimensions of the bracket.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, the protruding body of the bracket can be manufactured as a slim column without any laterally protruding wings or other protrusions, so that the dimensions, especially the width, of the bracket can be made smaller than conventional ones. It has the effect of being smaller and less noticeable when attached to the teeth. Further, since the protrusion is a simple pillar-shaped protrusion, it has the advantage that it can be manufactured by a relatively simple manufacturing method of bending a wire into a U-shape and fixing it to the bracket base.

Eliminating wings and therefore the traditional ligature wire, the bracket of the present invention has its own self-ligating hold-down spring that automatically wraps over the slot, thereby eliminating the need for archwires. The work of fixing the ligament to the bracket is significantly easier than before, and it has the effect of eliminating individual differences in ligation skill among practitioners, and also reduces the pain of patients undergoing orthodontic treatment by shortening the treatment time. There is an effect that can be done.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a basic embodiment of a self-ligature bracket for orthodontics according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a plan view of a presser spring that exerts a self-ligature action according to the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a basic example. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the self-ligature bracket of the second embodiment of the present invention; FIGS. 5 and 6 are respectively FIG. 7 is a side view showing the self-ligature brackets of the third and fourth embodiments, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the self-ligature presser spring according to the present invention. FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a conventional general bracket with wings. Shisooka No. 1, 21.31.41...Base 2, 22.32.42...Protrusion 3.23...Distance 4, 24.34.44...Slot 6, 26.3
6.46... Latching grooves 10, 50... Presser springs 11, 51... Fixed parts 12, 52... Twisted parts 13, 53... Rising parts 14, 54... Extends flatly Portions 15, 55... Presser section 25... Bottom section 35... Base section 47... Horizontal hole patent applicant Yoneo Kanno

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A pair of pillar-shaped protrusions having a slot in the middle for accommodating an archwire and no wings on the outside are provided on the base with a gap between them, and the base is attached to the base of the protrusions. a fixing part that forms a hook groove along the base and is fixed on the base within the interval, a twisted part that extends laterally from the fixing part and fits into the hook groove, and an outer end of the twisted part. 1. A self-ligature bracket for orthodontics, characterized in that a presser spring has a rising portion that stands up from the top of the bracket, and a holding portion that rests on the slot through a portion that extends substantially flat from the rising portion. 2. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is formed by machining integrally with the base. 3. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is formed by bending a wire material into a U-shape and brazing the bottom part to the base. 4. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein the holding portion of the holding spring partially enters and stops in the slot of the protrusion. 5. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein the presser spring is formed by cutting out and bending an elastic plate. 6. Claim 1, wherein the protrusion has a base wider than a top.
Bracket as described in. 7. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein a through hole is formed in the widened portion of the protrusion.