The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 05, 2026
Filed:
Apr. 01, 2023
Patrick C. Bell, La Crosse, WI (US);
Michael A. Mathews, Melrose, WI (US);
Thomas J. Arendt, Norwalk, WI (US);
Leo J. Malin, La Crosse, WI (US);
Patrick C. Bell, La Crosse, WI (US);
Michael A. Mathews, Melrose, WI (US);
Thomas J. Arendt, Norwalk, WI (US);
Leo J. Malin, La Crosse, WI (US);
Abstract
Example dental assemblies and methods involve snap-fitting a denture or other dental prosthesis to a patient's jaw. In some examples, an implant is anchored to the jaw, an abutment is screwed to the implant, and a head of the abutment snaps directly into a pocket created in the dental prosthesis. In some examples, a polymeric cap couples the abutment's head to the pocket. Based on coordinate data from a CT or intraoral scanner, the pocket can be created by CNC milling or 3D printing. The method eliminates the need for bonding a metal housing or casing to the dental prosthesis.