BRACKET FOR AN ORTHODONTIC DEVICE

Abstract

A bracket, for an orthodontic device, the bracket including a bracket base including an attachment surface configured to attach the bracket at an associated surface of a tooth; at least one bracket slot configured to receive at least one arch wire of the orthodontic device, wherein the bracket slot is arranged on a side of the bracket base that is oriented away from the attachment surface; and at least one locking device that is configured to lock at least the bracket slot at least partially so that the arch wire is prevented from moving out of the bracket slot, wherein the bracket is integrally formed in one piece, wherein the bracket is configured with a convex camber at a back side that is oriented away from the attachment surface, wherein the convex camber extends over at least 50% of a height of the bracket that is measured parallel to the vertical axis of the bracket.

Claims

1. A bracket, for an orthodontic device, the bracket comprising: a bracket base including an attachment surface configured to attach the bracket at an associated surface of a tooth; at least one bracket slot configured to receive at least one arch wire of the orthodontic device, wherein the at least one bracket slot is arranged on a side of the bracket base that is oriented away from the attachment surface; and at least one locking device that is configured to lock at least the at least one bracket slot at least partially so that the arch wire is prevented from moving out of the at least one bracket slot, wherein the bracket is integrally formed in one piece, wherein the bracket is configured with a convex camber at a back side that is oriented away from the attachment surface, wherein the convex camber extends over at least 50% of a height of the bracket that is measured parallel to a vertical axis of the bracket.

2. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein the convex camber is configured without a recessed shoulder and without an undercut.

3. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein the convex camber extends over at least 60% or at least 70% or at least 80% of the height of the bracket.

4. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein a maximum thickness of the bracket measured perpendicular to the vertical axis of the bracket is increased in a portion of the camber compared to a mean thickness of the bracket outside of the portion of the convex camber, wherein the maximum thickness in the portion of the convex camber is at least 1.5 times or at least 2 times the amount of a mean thickness outside of the portion of the convex camber.

5. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein an insertion opening of the bracket through which an arch wire is insertable into the at least one bracket slot is arranged at the bracket so that inserting the arch wire into the bracket slot is facilitated in a direction that is at least essentially parallel to the vertical axis of the at least one bracket so that in particular the back side of the bracket is free from insertion openings.

6. The bracket according to claim 5, wherein the bracket is made at least partially from Nitinol or from a thermoplastic synthetic material, or a polyetherketone, or polyetheretherketone, or a thermoplastic Fluor synthetic material, or polyvinylidenfluoride, or polyoxymethylene, or from a polymide, or polyetherimide

7. The bracket according to claim 5, wherein at least a first side surface of the at least one bracket slot is formed by the bracket base and a second side surface that is arranged opposite to the first side surface is formed by at least one interlocking element.

8. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein a cross section of the bracket is constant over an entire width of the bracket that is measured parallel to a longitudinal axis of the at least one bracket slot so that all cross sections through the bracket that extend orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the at least one bracket slot are identical.

9. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein a width of the bracket that is measured parallel to a longitudinal axis of the bracket slot is at least 1.5 mm, or at least 2 mm, or at least 2.5 mm at least in the portion of the at least one bracket slot.

10. The bracket according to claim 1, wherein a support length of the bracket slot along which an arch wire is continuously supportable in the bracket slot is at least 1.5 mm, or at least 2.0 mm, or at least 2.5 mm.

11. An orthodontic device, comprising at least one arch wire; a plurality of brackets configured to receive the arch wire, wherein the brackets are respectively configured to be connected with a surface of a tooth in a force transferring manner, wherein the arch wire is receivable by the brackets so that a force transmitting connection is establishable between the arch wire and the teeth that cooperate with the brackets, wherein the brackets respectively include at least one bracket slot configured to receive the arch wire and the arch wire is fixable in the at least one bracket slot by a locking device so that a movement of the arch wire relative to the bracket slot is blocked at least in a direction perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the arch wire, wherein the bracket slot cooperates with an insertion opening of the bracket, wherein the arch wire (20) is insertable into the bracket slot (4) through the insertion opening, wherein the brackets are respectively integrally configured in one piece, and wherein at least one of the brackets is configured with a convex camber at a back side that is oriented away from the attachment surface, wherein the convex camber extends without a recessed shoulder over at least 50% of an entire height of the bracket that is measured parallel to a vertical axis of the bracket.

12. A method for producing a bracket according to claim 1 for an orthodontic device, the method comprising the steps: virtually designing the bracket by a CAD method to generate a virtually designed bracket; producing the virtually designed bracket by a CAM-method wherein the virtually designed bracket is cut from a piece of material so that the bracket is provided integrally in one piece after completion of the cutting and has its final shape that is functional in the orthodontic device.

13. A method for producing a bracket for an orthodontic device, the method comprising the steps: virtually designing a bracket by a CAD method to generate a virtually designed bracket; master forming the virtually designed bracket by a 3-D printing method so that the virtually designed bracket is integrally provided in one piece after completing of the 3-D method and so that the bracket has its final shape that is functional in the orthodontic device.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein a locking device by which at least one bracket slot of the bracket is lockable so that the arch wire is prevented from moving out of the bracket slot is directly integrally configured in one piece at the bracket.

15. The method according to claim 12, further comprising the steps: detecting the teeth to be treated by a scanning device and subsequently generating a digital model of the teeth using scanned data; designing at least one virtual bracket in the digital model wherein the at least one virtual bracket is adapted to a respective tooth of the digital model so that an attachment surface of the virtual bracket is at least essentially shaped according to a corresponding surface of the respective tooth, so that the attachment surface is applicable at least essentially with its entire surface to the surface of the respective tooth; cutting a corresponding real bracket from a piece of material or master forming it by a 3-D printing method based on the virtual bracket so that the real bracket is integrally provided in one piece after the cutting or master forming and is immediately provided in its final shape that is usable in an orthodontic device.

16. The method according to claims 12, wherein the bracket is cut from a piece of nitinol sheet material by a laser or water jet.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0067] The bracket according to the invention is subsequently described based on embodiments with reference to drawing figures, wherein:

[0068] FIG. 1: illustrates a cross-section through a first bracket according to the invention;

[0069] FIG. 2: illustrates a cross-section through a second bracket according to the invention;

[0070] FIG. 3: illustrates a cross-section through a third bracket according to the invention;

[0071] FIG. 4: illustrates a perspective view of a bracket according to the invention;

[0072] FIG. 5: illustrates a perspective view of another bracket according to the invention;

[0073] FIG. 6: illustrates a perspective view of another bracket according to the invention;

[0074] FIG. 7: illustrates a schematic cross-section of a tooth with a prior art bracket arranged thereon; and

[0075] FIG. 8: illustrates a cross-section according to FIG. 7, however, provided with the bracket according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0076] A first embodiment that is illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a bracket 1 according to the invention that includes a bracket base 2 and a locking device 5. The bracket base 2 and the locking device 5 are directly connected with each other by a bar 8. The bracket 1 includes an attachment surface 3 at a surface 28 of a tooth 27 that is not illustrated in FIG. 1 wherein the attachment surface is connected with the respective surface 28 in an inserted condition of the bracket 1 at least indirectly, advantageously directly.

[0077] In order to provide a better interconnection between the bracket 1 and the respective surface 28 of the respective tooth 27 the bracket base 2 includes a plurality of undercuts in a portion oriented towards the surface 28 wherein the undercuts are configured dovetailed in the illustrated embodiment. These undercuts respectively form a filling portion 11 that is configured to receive an attachment medium by which the bracket 1 is attached at the respective tooth 27. In particular, it is typical to attach brackets 1 with a synthetic material at a respective tooth 27. A synthetic material of this type is applied in a liquid condition to a respective surface 28 of the respective tooth 27 and connected with the respective bracket 1. Subsequently the synthetic material cures wherein the hardening either occurs self-acting over time or is initiated/accelerated by a special treatment, e.g., heat treatment. The fill-in portions 11 facilitate for the initially liquid synthetic material to enter into the fill-in portions 11 and then form a particularly durable interconnection between the respective surface 28 and the bracket 1 according to the invention during curing of the synthetic material.

[0078] It is evident that the attachment surface 3 is configured cambered. An embodiment of this type can be individually adapted to a respective surface 28 of a tooth 27 so that a shorter distance of a respective spot of the attachment surface 3 from the corresponding surface 28 over an entire attachment surface 3 in the inserted condition of the bracket 1 is not more than 0.5 mm, advantageously not more than 0.4, further advantageously not more than 0.3 mm. The individual configuration of the attachment surface 3 as a function of the shape and contour of a respective tooth 27 can be performed in a particularly simple manner by the individual production method wherein the respective tooth 27 is individually detected, e.g., by an interoral scan, and the bracket 1 is designed and eventually fabricated as a function of the captured data. A comparison between the prior art standard bracket and the bracket 1 according to the invention is evident from FIGS. 7 and 8.

[0079] The bracket 1 includes a bracket slot 4 on a side of the bracket base 2 that is oriented away from the attachment surface 3. The bracket slot 4 is configured to receive an arch wire 20 that is not illustrated in FIG. 1 in a form-locking manner. This means that a respective arch wire 20 is insertable into the bracket slot 4 so that it is not easily movable out of the bracket slot 4. In particular, movements of the respective arch wire 20 are prevented which are oriented perpendicular to its longitudinal axis 24, that means they are in the drawing plane of FIG. 1. The fixation of the arch wire 20 within the bracket slot 4 is essentially caused by the locking device 5. The locking device is configured in a shape of a half pincer which extends from a lower portion of the bracket 1 essentially vertically upward parallel to the bracket base 2.

[0080] The bracket 1 according to the invention is integrally provided in one piece, Thus, the locking device 5 and the bracket base 2 are formed directly from the same piece and therefore only designate different portions of the same component. A transition portion between the locking device 5 and the bracket base 2 is designated as a bar 8. The material from which the illustrated bracket 1 is formed is a highly elastic material configured as a shape-memory material, namely a nickel-titanium alloy (Nitinol). This material is among the so-called super-elastic materials that have an unusually pronounced elastic portion and are thus not plastically deformable. The one-piece configuration of the bracket 1 according to the invention made from a highly elastic material of this type facilitates inserting one or several arch wires 20 into the bracket slot 4 repeatedly and retrieving the arch wires again without damaging the material, e.g., by fatigue, In the illustrated embodiment an insertion opening 6 of the bracket slot 4 is arranged above the bracket slot 4. This has the consequence that a respective arch wire 20 is inserted into the bracket slot 4 so to speak in a direction parallel to a surface 28 of a tooth 27 that is oriented towards the bracket. Put differently, an assembly direction of the respective arch wire 20 is oriented at least approximately parallel to a vertical axis 7 of the bracket 1 for the bracket 1 according to the invention as illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0081] When inserting a respective arch wire 20 into the bracket slot 4 the bracket 1 is stretched in the portion of the insertion opening 6, this means that the locking device 5 is moved relative to the bracket base 2 in a direction that is oriented away from the surface 28 of the respective tooth 27 so that the insertion opening 6 expands. This expansion eventually reaches a dimension so that the arch wire 20 can move through the expanded insertion opening 6 into the bracket slot 4. Due to the configuration of the bracket 1 from the highly elastic material the expansion or the relative movement between the locking device 5 and the bracket base 2 occurs without any plastic deformation of the bracket 1. Put differently, the material of the bracket 1 only goes through elastic deformations which are completely reversible without any residual deformation remaining. During the movement of the locking device 5 in a direction away from the bracket base 2 the material of the bracket 1 in the portion of the bar 8 is elastically deformed and stretched. After inserting the respective arch wire 20 into the bracket slot 4 no additional force impacts the locking device 5 so that the material of the bracket 1 can spring back elastically so that the material is eventually provided again in its starting position that is illustrated in FIG. 1 in which the locking device 5 closes the bracket slot 4 and retains the arch wire 20 arranged therein.

[0082] In order to provide the locking device 5 with some flexibility, it is particularly advantageous when the bar 8 between the locking device 5 and the bracket base 2 is not configured too thick or too wide. In the illustrated embodiment the height 9 of the bar 8 is less than half of an entire height 10 of the bracket 1. It is appreciated that the bracket 1 overall and thus also the locking device 5 become much stiffer with the bar of the bracket 1 having a greater height 9. The greater stiffness of the bracket 1 would also have the effect that the locking device 5 is not moved in the same way relative to the bracket base 2 so that the insertion opening 6 could be expanded. Thus, it is particularly advantageous for he illustrated embodiment of the bracket 1 according to the invention.

[0083] According to the invention the bracket 1 has a camber 12 at a backside 30 that is oriented away from the attachment surface 3 wherein the camber extends in an associated portion 17 of the bracket 1. Thus, the camber 12 has only a secondary relevance for the function of the bracket 1 as an attachment element for transmitting forces between the respective tooth 27 and the respective arch wire 20. Primarily the camber 12 is used for moving the bracket 1 according to the invention after completion of a treatment step in which the respective teeth to be treated are moved by one or plural arch wires 20 and thus to reuse the bracket 1 during another treatment step using tooth rails. Tooth rails of this type are placed over the teeth to be treated wherein a respective tooth rail is sized so that it cannot be slid over the teeth to be treated precisely fitted. A pressure that forms between the tooth rails and the teeth and that occurs due to a lack of fit between both components has the consequence that the teeth are moved relative to each other. It is appreciated that these exact movements of the teeth which are advantageous for the treatment process can be caused when the tooth rail is configured accordingly.

[0084] In order to generate a better force transmission between a respective tooth and a tooth rail, typically so-called attachments are used. The attachments are applied to a respective tooth surface and are used, so to speak, as a contact element for the respective tooth rail. In order to achieve this result, the attachments are typically configured so that a contact surface that shall be in a direct contact with the respective tooth rail is at least arranged at a particular distance from a respective tooth surface of the tooth to be treated. Thus, it is appreciated that an attachment is less useful the smaller the distance between the actual tooth surface and the contact surface of the respective attachment. In an extreme case, no attachment is required at all but the tooth surface itself suffices as a contact surface for the respective tooth rail.

[0085] The camber 12 of the bracket 1 according to the invention is advantageous in that the bracket 1 according to the invention can be reused after completion of the arch wire treatment to form a transmission element or attachment. The camber 12 thus has the effect of providing a contact surface 22 as a stop for a respective tooth rail.

[0086] In order to function as an attachment while being reused the bracket 1 has a maximum thickness 13 in the portion 17 of the camber 12 wherein the maximum thickness has approximately 1.5 times the size of an average thickness 19 of the bracket 1 outside of the portion 17 of the camber 12. The respective thickness 13, 19 of the bracket 1 is thus measured in a direction perpendicular to the vertical axis 7, wherein a tangent 18 that is oriented parallel to the vertical axis 7 on a side of the bracket 1 that is oriented towards the tooth to be treated is used as a reference line. Furthermore, the camber 12 extends in the illustrated embodiment overall over a heights which corresponds to approximately 60% of the height 10 of the bracket 1. Furthermore, the illustrated bracket 1 has a distinct advantage in that its backside 30 is configured entirely without a recessed shoulder. This way a respective tooth rail has no ability to recede into the recessed portion which would make it much more difficult and potentially impossible to remove the tooth rail.

[0087] The bracket slot 4 of the bracket 1 according to the invention is formed in the illustrated embodiment at one of its side surfaces 31 by the bracket base 2 and at the opposite side surface 32 by the locking device 5.

[0088] A second embodiment that is illustrated in FIG. 2 includes a bracket 1 according to the invention. The bracket 1 according to the second embodiment differs from the bracket 1 according to the first embodiment in particular in that an assembly direction of an arch wire that is to be inserted into the bracket slot 4 of the bracket 1 is not at least oriented essentially parallel to the vertical axis 7 of the bracket 1 like in the bracket 1 according to the first embodiment but essentially perpendicular thereto. Accordingly the insertion opening 6 of the bracket 1 is arranged at a backside 30 of the bracket 1 according to the second embodiment. This creates at least a risk that the backside 30 is not configured without recessed shoulder. This creates at least a risk that a respective tooth rail moves into the recessed shoulder that is formed by the insertion opening 6 which could render removing the tooth rail more difficult.

[0089] The second bracket 1 has two locking devices 5 that respectively define a side of the bracket slot 4. The locking devices 5 are respectively connected by a bar 8 with the bracket base 2. Differently from the bracket 1 according to the first embodiment the bracket slot 4 is not jointly defined by the locking device 5 and the bracket base 2 but defined by two locking devices 5. The bracket base 2 therefore does not come in direct contact with a respective arch wire that is inserted in the bracket slot 4 in the illustrated embodiment.

[0090] Furthermore, the function of the second bracket 1 according to the invention is comparable to the function of the bracket 1, in particular the bracket 1 according to the invention has a camber 12. The bars 8 of the locking device 5 have a height 9 which facilitates elastically moving the locking devices 5 relative to the bracket base 2, in particular moving them relative to each other so that a respective arch wire 20 is insertable into the bracket slot 4 by expanding the insertion opening 6. Due to the elasticity of the material it is easily possible to remove the respective arch wire 20 from the bracket slot again and to insert, e.g., another arch wire 20. Put differently, the bracket 1 can be reused at will.

[0091] In a manner that is comparable to the first bracket 1 according to the invention, the second bracket 1 according to the invention also has the camber 12 according to the invention that is configured at the locking devices 5. In a portion 17 of the camber 12 a maximum thickness 13 of the bracket 1 is approximately 1.5 times the size as a thickness 19 outside of the portion 17 of the recess 12. The camber 12 is also facilitates to be able to use bracket 1 according to the invention in a treatment step using a tooth rail functioning as a transmission element or attachment,

[0092] On a side of the bracket 1 that is oriented away from the bracket slot 4 the bracket base includes an attachment section 25 at which the attachment surface 3 of the bracket 1 is configured. The attachment section 25 is in turn connected by a bar 23 with the remaining bracket base 2 so that a certain amount of elastic deformation is possible between the attachment section 25 and the remaining bracket base 2. This is advantageous in that the attachment section 25 including its attachment surface 3 can be formed particularly well according to a natural contour of the tooth that is to be treated.

[0093] A third embodiment that is shown in FIG. 3 illustrates another bracket 1 according to the invention. In this bracket the associated bracket slot 4 is defined on one side by the locking device 5 which is comparable to the first embodiment and defined on the other side by the bracket base 2. The functionality of the illustrated bracket 1 is comparable to the functionality of the two previously recited embodiments wherein an arch wire 20 is inserted into the bracket slot 4 in a vertical direction that is parallel to the vertical axis 7 of the bracket 1 according to the first embodiment. The third embodiment shows in particular that the individual design of a respective bracket according to the invention can be quite different without losing the technical advantages of the claimed material combination. The camber 12 according to the invention extends over approximately 50% of a height 10 of the bracket 1.

[0094] Perspective views of brackets 1 according to the invention can be furthermore derived from FIGS. 4-6. From these views it is evident in particular that the individual brackets 1 respectively have a width 15 that extends in a direction parallel to a longitudinal axis 24 of a respective arch wire. The width 15 of a respective bracket 1 typically correlates directly with a support length 16 along which a respective arch wire 20 is supported in the bracket slot 4 of the respective bracket 1. In the illustrated embodiments the width 15 of the illustrated bracket 1 and the support length 16 of the respective arch wire 20 are sized identical, The embodiments according to FIGS. 4 6 illustrate various options for a respective assembly direction of a bracket 20 that is illustrated by an arrow 21 in the drawing figures. Furthermore it is evident that the bracket 1 is as a matter of principle independent from a geometry or cross sectional shape of a respective arch wire.

[0095] The bracket 1 according to the invention according to FIG. 6 is particular since it has an unusually large width 15. This width is approximately 2.5 mm. Accordingly also the support length 16 of the associated bracket 1 is 2.5 mm. A support length 16 with that size is particularly well suited to reliably support a respective arch wire 20 and to establish good force transmission between the arch wire 20 and the respective bracket 1 in this manner.

[0096] It is appreciated that a width 15 of a bracket according to the invention is as a matter of principle independent from other features of a respective bracket 1. This also applies as a matter of principle for the remaining features of the brackets 1 according to the invention illustrated herein.

[0097] Last not least two brackets 1 are compared in FIGS. 7 and 8 wherein FIG, 7 illustrates a known bracket 26 according to the prior art and FIG. 8 illustrates a bracket 1 according to the invention. The illustrations, however, are purely schematic and only serve to emphasize the advantage of the individual configuration options of the attachment surface 3 of a bracket 1. In the prior art a bracket 26 has to be adapted by a comparatively thick attachment layer 29 to an associated tooth 27 or its surface. The attachment surface 3 of the known bracket 26 is configured according to the standard and straight in the illustrated embodiment. In order to achieve an adaptation to the surface 28 of the tooth 27 the attachment surface 3 is shaped according to the surface 28 of the tooth 27 by an attachment surface 29. As a result the bracket 26 is rather far away from the tooth 27 and therefore exposed to rather large forces, in particular chewing forces. This often causes a bracket 26 to the torn off from a surface 28 of the tooth 27.

[0098] In a bracket 1 according to the invention that is schematically illustrated in FIG. 8 the attachment surface 3, however, can be individually adapted to the surface 28 of the tooth 27. As a result the bracket 1 according to the invention is very close to the surface 28 since the attachment layer 29 is configured very thin. Thus, the bracket 1 according to the invention protrudes into the oral cavity by a much lesser amount and is more comfortable during chewing. Furthermore the bracket 1 feels much more comfortable than a prior art bracket since it feels less like a foreign object.

[0099] Individual features of the embodiments illustrated herein can be practiced independently from the other features of the respective embodiment. A mandatory concatenation of individual features therefore only exist when a bracket 1 according to the invention is otherwise not practicable.

REFERENCE NUMERALS AND DESIGNATIONS

[0100] 1 bracket

[0101] 2 bracket base

[0102] 3 attachment surface

[0103] 4 bracket slot

[0104] 5 locking device

[0105] 6 insertion opening

[0106] 7 vertical axis

[0107] 8 bar

[0108] 9 height of bar

[0109] 10 height of bracket

[0110] 11 fill in portion

[0111] 12 camber

[0112] 18 maximum thickness of bracket

[0113] 14 longitudinal axis of bracket slot

[0114] 15 width of bracket

[0115] 16 support length

[0116] 17 portion of camber

[0117] 18 tangent

[0118] 19 mean thickness of bracket

[0119] 20 arch wire

[0120] 21 arrow

[0121] 22 contact surface

[0122] 23 bar

[0123] 24 longitudinal axis of arch wire

[0124] 25 attachment section

[0125] 26 prior art bracket

[0126] 27 tooth

[0127] 28 tooth surface

[0128] 29 attachment layer

[0129] 30 backside of bracket

[0130] 31 first side surface of bracket slot

[0131] 32 second side surface of bracket slot.