DENTAL RESTORATION SYSTEM AND METHOD OF BUILDING A RESTORATION

Abstract

A dental restoration system (1) for restoring a tooth at least during healing of an implant construction (5) being set into a jaw of a patient comprises a crown abutment (3) and a locking member (2). The crown abutment (2) is configured to be positioned on a gingiva former (4) mounted to the implant construction (5). The locking member (2) has a contact face (212) and a fixing structure (24) configured to be fixed to the gingiva former (4). The crown abutment (3) has a through hole (31) configured to receive the locking member (2) such that the contact face (212) of the locking member (2) contacts the crown abutment (3) and the fixing structure (24) at least partially extends out of the crown abutment (3). The crown abutment (3) is made of an abutment material configured to bond with a crown material used to build a crown (6).

Claims

1. A dental restoration system for restoring a tooth at least during healing of an implant construction being set into a jaw of a patient, comprising: a crown abutment configured to be positioned on a gingiva former mounted to the implant construction; and a locking member having a contact face and a fixing structure configured to be fixed to the gingiva former, wherein the crown abutment has a through hole configured to receive the locking member such that the contact face of the locking member contacts the crown abutment and the fixing structure at least partially extends out of the crown abutment, and wherein the crown abutment is made of an abutment material configured to bond with a crown material used to build a crown.

2. The dental restoration system of claim 1, comprising a pin, wherein the pin has a fixing structure corresponding to the fixing structure of the locking member, and wherein the pin is configured to extend through the through hole of the crown abutment and to project above the crown abutment when the crown abutment is positioned on the gingiva former and the fixing structure of the pin engages the gingiva former.

3. The dental restoration system of claim 2, wherein the pin is made of a pin material configured not to bond with the crown material used to build the crown.

4. The dental restoration system of claim 3, comprising the crown material to build-up the crown, wherein the pin material is configured not to bond with the crown material and the abutment material is configured to bond with the crown material when building the crown.

5. The dental restoration system of claim 4, wherein the crown material is a composite material.

6. The dental restoration system of claim 1, claims, wherein the locking member has a breaking structure configured to break upon a predefined threshold load applied to the crown abutment when the locking member fixes the crown abutment to the gingiva former.

7. The dental restoration system of claim 6, wherein the locking member has a mounting tool geometry configured to be connected to a mounting tool for fixing the locking member to the gingiva former, wherein the mounting tool geometry is located on a first side of the breaking structure, wherein the locking member has an auxiliary tool geometry configured to be connected to a demounting tool for demounting the locking member from the gingiva former when the breaking structure is broken, and wherein the auxiliary tool geometry is located on a second side of the breaking structure opposite to the first side of the breaking structure.

8. The dental restoration system of claim 7, wherein the locking member is arranged such that the breaking structure is located apically from the mounting tool geometry, the auxiliary tool geometry is located apically from the breaking structure, and the fixing structure is located apically from the auxiliary tool geometry.

9. The dental restoration system of claim 6, wherein the breaking structure of the locking member comprises a weakened section having a reduced diameter compared to other sections of the locking member.

10. The dental restoration system of claim 6, wherein the breaking structure of the locking member is made of a weaker material compared to other sections of the locking member.

11. The dental restoration system of claim 1, comprising a gingiva former having an implant structure configured to arrange the gingiva former on the implant construction set into the jaw of the patient, and an emergence profile portion configured to be positioned within a gingiva of the patient when the gingiva former is mounted to the implant construction.

12. The dental restoration system of claim 11, wherein the gingiva former has a mounting structure corresponding to the fixing structure of the locking member.

13. A method of building a restoration on an implant construction set into a jaw of a patient, comprising: mounting a gingiva former to the implant construction; positioning a crown abutment on the gingiva former, wherein the crown abutment has a through hole configured to receive a locking member such that the contact face of the locking member contacts the crown abutment and a fixing structure of the locking member at least partially extends out of the crown abutment to the gingiva former; arranging a pin with a fixing structure corresponding to the fixing structure of the locking member into the though hole of the crown abutment such that the pin extends through the through hole of the crown abutment, the fixing structure of the pin engages the gingiva former, and the pin projects above the crown abutment; building-up a crown with a crown material bonding with the crown abutment and not bonding with the pin; removing the pin such that a through hole is provided in the crown; and fixing the crown to the gingiva former by means of a locking member having a contact face and a fixing structure configured to be fixed to the gingiva former, wherein the locking member is received in the through hole of the crown abutment such that the contact face of the locking member contacts the crown abutment and the fixing structure engages the gingiva former.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the locking member has a breaking structure configured to break upon a predefined threshold load applied to the crown when the locking member fixes the crown to the gingiva former.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the crown is build-up at a smaller dimension as a tooth to be temporarily replaced by the crown.

16. The dental restoration system of claim 5, wherein the composite material is a resin-based composite material.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0046] The dental restoration system according to the invention and the method of building a restoration on an implant construction according to the invention are described in more detail herein below by way of exemplary embodiments and with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

[0047] FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of an embodiment of dental restoration system according to the invention;

[0048] FIG. 2 shows a side view of the dental restoration system of FIG. 1 in a partly assembled state;

[0049] FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the dental restoration system of FIG. 1 in a fully assembled state;

[0050] FIG. 4 shows a side view of the dental restoration system of FIG. 1 with a pin;

[0051] FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of FIG. 4; and

[0052] FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of FIG. 4.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0053] In the following description certain terms are used for reasons of convenience and are not intended to limit the invention. The terms “right”, “left”, “up”, “down”, “under” and “above” refer to directions in the figures. The terminology comprises the explicitly mentioned terms as well as their derivations and terms with a similar meaning. Also, spatially relative terms, such as “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, “above”, “upper”, “proximal”, “distal”, and the like, may be used to describe one element's or feature's relationship to another element or feature as illustrated in the figures. These spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different positions and orientations of the devices in use or operation in addition to the position and orientation shown in the figures. For example, if a device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be “above” or “over” the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “below” can encompass both positions and orientations of above and below. The devices may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations), and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly. Likewise, descriptions of movement along and around various axes includes various special device positions and orientations.

[0054] To avoid repetition in the figures and the descriptions of the various aspects and illustrative embodiments, it should be understood that many features are common to many aspects and embodiments. Omission of an aspect from a description or figure does not imply that the aspect is missing from embodiments that incorporate that aspect. Instead, the aspect may have been omitted for clarity and to avoid prolix description. In this context, the following applies to the rest of this description: If, in order to clarify the drawings, a figure contains reference signs which are not explained in the directly associated part of the description, then it is referred to previous or following description sections. Further, for reason of lucidity, if in a drawing not all features of a part are provided with reference signs it is referred to other drawings showing the same part. Like numbers in two or more figures represent the same or similar elements.

[0055] FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of an embodiment of a dental restoration system 1 for restoring a tooth during healing of an implant 5 set into a jaw of a patient. The dental restoration system 1 comprises a healing abutment 4 as gingiva former, a temporary crown abutment 3 and a crown screw 2 as locking member. The healing abutment 4 is formed with an emergence profile 43 for soft tissue conditioning or shaping a gingiva. More specifically, the emergence profile 43 of the gingiva former is configured to prepare and form the gingiva during healing of the implant 5 into the jaw after being set into the jaw. The healing abutment 4 is mounted to the implant 5, which is schematically depicted in the Figs. as a block.

[0056] At its top or occlusal end, the healing abutment 4 has a flat abutment platform 42 for supporting a body 32 of the temporary crown abutment 3. From the abutment platform 42 an indexing knob 41 occlusally or upwardly projects. The indexing knob 41 is configured to define an orientation and location of the crown abutment 3 when being mounted to the healing abutment 4 as described in more detail below.

[0057] The crown screw 2 has—top down—a screw head 21, a breaking post 22 as weakened section of a breaking structure, a hex head 23 as auxiliary tool geometry and a thread portion 24 as fixing structure. The breaking post 22 is shaped as a cylinder with a reduced diameter compared to the other portions of the crown screw 2. It is located in between the screw head 21 and the hex head 23. By having the reduced diameter, the breaking post 22 is less resistant to a load or force applied to the crown screw 2. Thus, the breaking post 22 defines a maximum load or threshold the crown screw 2 can resist. If the crown screw 2 is exposed to a load exceeding the threshold, the breaking post 22 will break apart. Thereby, the hex head 23 is exposed such that it is accessible to a hex screw tool. The thread portion 24 is embodied as a cylinder having a larger diameter than the breaking post 22. The outer circumference of the cylinder of the thread portion 24 is equipped with an outer thread.

[0058] In FIG. 2, the dental restoration system 1 is shown, with the crown abutment 3 being positioned on the healing abutment 4 such that its flat lower end abuts the abutment platform 42 of the healing abutment 4. Thereby, the indexing knob 41 together with a corresponding cavity of the crown abutment 3 ensures a correct positioning of the crown abutment 3 on the abutment platform 42 and a correct rotational orientation of the crown abutment 3 relative to the healing abutment 4 and the implant 5.

[0059] FIG. 3 show a cross sectional view of the dental restoration system 1 in an assembled state. Thereby, it can be seen that the gingiva former 3 is fixed to the implant 5 by means of an implant screw 7 having a top head with a lower pressure applying conus 71 and a bottom thread portion 72. The implant 5 has a central vertical blind hole with a gingiva former socket section 51 at the top and a screw socket section 52 at the bottom.

[0060] The healing abutment 4 is seated in the blind hole of the implant 5 such that a lower end of the healing abutment 4 is located in the gingiva former socket section 51 of the implant 5.

[0061] The healing abutment 4 has a vertical central bore 44 which extends through the complete healing abutment 4 and which is equipped with a pressure receiving conus 411. The implant screw 7 is positioned in the healing abutment 4 such that the head is located inside the bore 44 and the thread portion 72 extends out of the healing abutment 4. More specifically, the implant screw 7 is screwed into the blind hole of the implant 5, wherein the thread portion 72 engages the screw socket section 52. Thereby, the pressure applying conus 71 of the implant screw 7 is pressed against the pressure receiving section 411 of the healing abutment 4 such that the healing abutment 4 is rigidly fixed to the implant 5.

[0062] The crown abutment 3 has a through hole 31 configured to receive the locking screw 2. The locking screw 2 is located in the though hole 31 such that a bottom face 211 of its head 21 abuts the crown abutment 3, thereby forming a contact face. The thread portion 24 downwardly projects out of the crown abutment 3 and extends into the bore 44 of the healing abutment 4. More specifically, the thread portion 24 engages a corresponding internal thread formed in the bore 44. Thereby, the bottom face 211 of the head 21 is pressed to the crown abutment 3 such that the crown abutment 3 is safely fixed to the healing abutment 4. On top of the crown abutment 3 a crown 6 is formed in accordance with an embodiment of the method according to the invention as follows:

[0063] The healing abutment 4 is mounted to the implant 5 and the crown abutment 3 is positioned on the healing abutment 4 as described above. However, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, before inserting the locking screw 2, a pin 102 having a fixing structure 124 corresponding to the thread portion 24 of the locking screw 2 is provided into the though hole 31 of the crown abutment 3 such that it extends through the through hole 31 and engages the healing abutment 4. Thereby, the pin 102 projects above the crown abutment 2.

[0064] Then, a resin based composite material is obtained as crown material. The crown abutment 3 is made of an abutment material which is configured to bond with the resin based composite material. In contrast, the pin 102 is made of a pin material which is configured not to bond with the resin based composite material.

[0065] By building-up layer by layer of the composite material onto the crown abutment 3, the crown 6 is formed in accordance with a natural tooth to be restored. Thereby, the crown material bonds with the composite material such that crown abutment 3 and crown 6 are monolithically formed as one single piece. Compared to the natural tooth to be restored, the crown 6 is undersized a little.

[0066] After building-up the crown 6, the pin 102 is removed from the healing abutment 4 such that a through hole is provided into the crown 6 through which the through hole 31 of the crown abutment 3 is accessible.

[0067] FIGS. 4 and 5 show the pin 102 being arranged in the through hole 31 of the crown abutment 31 which in turn is set on the healing abutment 4. The pin 102 has a rod element 104 that extends through the through hole 31. The rod element 104 serves as a place holder or mould for forming the through hole in the crown 6 such that a continuous through hole through the crown 6, the crown abutment 3 as well as the healing abutment 4 is established. The pin 102 further has a handle 103 that can be used to mount the pin 102 and to adjust the position and orientation of the pin 102, thereby facilitating the arrangement of the pin 102 and increasing accuracy of when forming the through hole.

[0068] FIG. 6 shows that the pin 102 has the fixing structure 124 in the same form as the thread portion 24 of the locking screw 2. After forming of the through hole, the pin 102 is removed. Since the pin 102 is made of a pin material that does not bond with the crown material, there is no residue when removing the pin 102 and a properly dimensioned and oriented through hole is created in the crown 6. Hence, the through hole in the crown 6 can be formed with a comparably higher accuracy.

[0069] This description and the accompanying drawings that illustrate aspects and embodiments of the present invention should not be taken as limiting-the claims defining the protected invention. In other words, while the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive. Various mechanical, compositional, structural, electrical, and operational changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of this description and the claims. In some instances, well-known circuits, structures and techniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure the invention. Thus, it will be understood that changes and modifications may be made by those of ordinary skill within the scope and spirit of the following claims. In particular, the present invention covers further embodiments with any combination of features from different embodiments described above and below.

[0070] The disclosure also covers all further features shown in the Figs. individually although they may not have been described in the afore or following description. Also, single alternatives of the embodiments described in the figures and the description and single alternatives of features thereof can be disclaimed from the subject matter of the invention or from disclosed subject matter. The disclosure comprises subject matter consisting of the features defined in the claims or the exemplary embodiments as well as subject matter comprising said features.

[0071] Furthermore, in the claims the word “comprising” does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article “a” or “an” does not exclude a plurality. A single unit or step may fulfil the functions of several features recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. The terms “essentially”, “about”, “approximately” and the like in connection with an attribute or a value particularly also define exactly the attribute or exactly the value, respectively. The term “about” in the context of a given numerate value or range refers to a value or range that is, e.g., within 20%, within 10%, within 5%, or within 2% of the given value or range. Components described as coupled or connected may be electrically or mechanically directly coupled, or they may be indirectly coupled via one or more intermediate components. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.