Grinding or polishing brush

Abstract

A grinding or polishing brush is provided and includes a main body which is rotatable about a central axis and is provided with bristles which extend with their center axes substantially in the direction of the central axis. In order, with such brushes, to permit pin point working, it is proposed that the center axes of the bristles have an inclination in the circumferential direction and/or inward in the radial direction. The effect which can therefore be achieved with the bristles is that they are supported against one another. In order to improve this, the bristles can be provided in an axial portion with film elements connecting them. The film elements may be able to come apart depending on wear.

Claims

1. A dental surface grinding or polishing brush, comprising: a main body which is rotatable about a central axis and is provided with bristles which extend with their center axes in a direction of the central axis, wherein the bristles have an inclination in a circumferential direction relative to the central axis and are tilted inward in the direction of the central axis, and wherein the bristles are made from a plastic material impregnated with grinding particles, wherein the bristles of the brush twist and entangle with each other, and wherein the hardness of the bristles in the range of about 80-100 SHORE A.

2. The grinding or polishing brush as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inclination of the bristles is in a direction of rotation.

3. The grinding or polishing brush as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bristles taper in their extent away from the main body.

4. The grinding or polishing brush as claimed in claim 1, wherein adjacent bristles have separable connections with one another in an axial region.

5. The grinding or polishing brush as claimed in claim 4, wherein the axial region is adjacent to the main body.

6. The grinding or polishing brush as claimed in claim 4, wherein the connections are film elements running in the circumferential direction.

7. The grinding or polishing brush as claimed in claim 4, wherein the connections are film elements running substantially in a radial direction relative to the central axis, wherein the film elements are adhesive elements.

8. The grinding or polishing brush as claimed in claim 1, wherein the grinding particles are configured to cause abrasion to dental enamel during rotation.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 shows the side view of the brush according to the present disclosure;

(2) FIG. 2 shows the top view of a brush according to the present disclosure according to FIG. 1;

(3) FIG. 3 shows the view of adjacent bristles connected in the circumferential direction by a film element; and

(4) FIG. 4 shows the top view of an alternative configuration of bristles connected in the radial direction by a film element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(5) The side view of a grinding or polishing brush is seen in FIG. 1. At its lower end, it has a handle 1 with which it can be inserted into an instrument holder for a rotating tool. Such a tool is customarily used by dentists or dental laboratory technicians. The handle 1 here can if required also be provided at its lower end with a polygon (not illustrated here) or the like in order to transmit force within the instrument holder via a form fit.

(6) A customary diameter for a handle of this type lies in the order of magnitude of 1 to 2 mm.

(7) At its upper end, the handle 1 is provided with a main body 2 in a manner fixed against rotation. The main body 2 and handle 1 can be composed here of different materials (for example steel or plastic) or else of only one material and, in the latter case, can therefore also be produced integrally with each other.

(8) During use of the grinding or polishing brush illustrated here, the main body 2 and the handle 1 are rotatable about a central axis 3. In the case of the brush illustrated here, a direction of rotation is provided in a clockwise revolving direction in top view as per arrow 4.

(9) At a region facing away from the handle 1, the main body 2 is equipped with a multiplicity of bristles 5 which extend substantially parallel to the central axis 3. The diameter of such a grinding or polishing brush is within the range of between approximately 5 and 10 mm.

(10) The bristles 5 of the brush are provided with grinding particles, either by the latter being integrated into the material of the bristles or else bonded thereon, and therefore, by means of application of a force along the central axis 3, the tip 7 of the bristles 5 can be pressed against an element to be polished and can lead here in the desired manner to polishing of said element via abrasion during the rotation provided in the process.

(11) The bristles and the main body are customarily produced integrally with one another. They are composed, for example, of a plastic impregnated with grinding particles, such as, for example, PUR, synthetic rubber, polyamide, silicone or the like.

(12) The hardness of the bristle material therefore lies within a range of approximately 80 to 100 SHORE A.

(13) In the example illustrated here, the bristles 5 are not oriented with their center axes 6 parallel to the central axis 3, but rather an inclination is provided here, wherein the bristles 5 are inclined with their distal ends in the direction of the direction of rotation 4, i.e. precede their base points 8 with their distal ends 7 during rotation. The base points 8 here are the points at which the bristles 5 merge into the main body 2.

(14) Said inclination in the direction of rotation and therefore in the circumferential direction is approximately 3? to 6?.

(15) Furthermore, in the exemplary embodiment illustrated here, the center axes 6 of the bristles 5 have an inclination in the direction of the central axis 3, and therefore the distal ends 7 of the bristles 5 rotate with a smaller radius about the central axis 3 than the base points 8 of the bristles. This can readily be seen in the top view in FIG. 2.

(16) The inclination of the bristles inward in the radial direction is approximately 8? to 12?.

(17) It would also be within the scope of the present disclosure if the bristles 5 only have an inclination in the direction of the central axis 3, but do not have an inclination in the circumferential direction.

(18) The effect brought about by the inclination(s) of the bristles is that, during an appropriate application of force parallel to the direction of the central axis 3, said bristles twist and entangle with one another and thus are supported against one another and therefore stabilize one another.

(19) A further possibility of stabilizing the bristles is illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4.

(20) A side view of two adjacent bristles along the circumferential direction of the brush is seen in FIG. 3. Said bristles 5 are connected at their base point 8 to the main body 2 and extend from the latter with their center axes 6 to their distal ends 7, with said bristles tapering conically.

(21) The two adjacent bristles 5 are connected to each other here in an axial region 9 by a film element 10 which is formed integrally on the bristles 5 and extends in the circumferential direction.

(22) The film element 10 is now configured in such a manner that it can tear open if the forces which are input therein by the distal ends 7 of the bristles 5 that move freely during a polishing operation exceed a certain value. As a result, the size of the axial region 9 in which two adjacent bristles 5 are connected to each other is reduced. At the same time, that portion of the bristles 5 which lies above said axial region 9 is therefore extended, and therefore, in the event of wear of the bristles 5, which is associated with migrating of the bristle tip 7 in the direction of the base point 8, said portion lying above said axial region remains approximately identical in its length or else also increases. Despite the wear-induced shortening of the bristle 5, the free unsupported length of the bristle 5 therefore remains to a certain extent identical and therefore so too does the rigidity thereof which is dependent on said length remaining the same. The polishing properties of the brush therefore also do not change despite progressing wear.

(23) The film elements 10, as can be seen in the cross section shown, are considerably reduced in their thickness in relation to the thickness of the bristles 5 that connects them to one another.

(24) A top view of a brush having a plurality of bristles 5 standing close together is seen in FIG. 4. Said bristles have recesses 12 which are each concave on one side and into which adjacent bristles fit.

(25) In the concave recesses therefore located between two adjacent bristles, film elements 13 which run substantially in the radial direction of the brush and in each case connect two adjacent bristles 5 to each other are provided. In particular, said film elements 13 here are designed as adhesive bonds along which the adjacent bristles can be separated from one another if, as described above, they are shortened because of wear, and therefore the free end of the bristles 5 is stiffened in a length-dependent manner.

(26) In summary, with brushes developed in such a manner not only can more precise polishing results therefore be achieved, but the service life of a corresponding brush can also be extended according to the present disclosure.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(27) 1 Handle 2 Main body 3 Central axis 4 Arrow (direction of rotation) 5 Bristles 6 Center axis 7 Distal ends 8 Base points 9 Axial region 10 Film element 11 Cross section 12 Concave recesses 13 Film elements