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. 08, 2001
Filed:
Sep. 07, 1999
Lindsay W. Brehm, Encinitas, CA (US);
Stephen M. Huff, San Diego, CA (US);
Chhattar S. Kucheria, San Diego, CA (US);
Ortho Organizers, Inc., San Marcos, CA (US);
Abstract
The orthodontic appliance is metal injection molded as a unitary bracket, and is a made of a Stellite cobalt chromium alloy composition formulated to be substantially nickel-free, containing less than 1% nickel, in order to alleviate nickel allergic reactions experienced by a small fraction of the population to nickel. While nickel improved hardness of the bracket, the elements of chromium and molybdenum in the proposed alloy for the bracket also contribute to hardness of the alloy. The orthodontic bracket comprises a unitary metal injection molded body including a bonding base adapted to adhere to a tooth surface, and an archwire slot adapted for receiving an archwire. The preferred composition consists essentially of 59-69% by weight cobalt, 26-30% by weight chromium, 4-8% by weight molybdenum, and 2% or less by weight trace elements. The bonding base has a bottom base pattern in the form of a plurality of rectangular or square pockets that are approximately 0.005 to 0.015 inch in size. In another embodiment, the orthodontic appliance can also have a facebow tube, a primary archwire slot, and an auxiliary archwire slot. In another currently preferred aspect, the primary archwire slot includes an auxiliary archwire slot, and tiewings. The tube can have a round aperture for receiving a cylindrical wire, or a rectangular aperture for receiving an archwire.