Patent ID: 11877907
Assignee: nan
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 21:
22. A method for moving a lower dental arch relative to an upper dental arch while simultaneously moving malpositioned teeth relative to the upper and lower dental arches, comprising:
releasably attaching individual orthodontic brackets to a multiplicity of teeth which form the respective upper and lower dental arches of the patient, and wherein the lower and upper dental arches form an occlusal plane when the respective dental arches are closed;
providing a pair of individual archwires each having a longitudinal axis, an anterior facing surface, a posterior facing surface and which are individually releasably attached to the individual orthodontic brackets, and initiating movement of the malpositioned teeth with the respective archwires;
after the step of releasably attaching the individual archwires, the method further comprises providing a first and second archwire coupler, each of the first and second archwire couplers having a main body having a first end portion and a second end portion and each main body defining an internal cavity with a first passageway and a second passageway, and a recess/void axially aligned with the first passageway and opposite the first end portion of the main body, and the recess/void is positioned between two spaced apart archwire support ends;
attaching the first archwire coupler in a predetermined position on the archwire which is located on the upper dental arch of the patient, and attaching a second archwire coupler in a predetermined position on the archwire which is located on the lower dental arch of the patient, by placing the respective archwires within the internal cavity of the respective archwire coupler without detaching the individual archwires from the individual orthodontic brackets adhered to the teeth forming the upper and lower dental arches of the patient undergoing orthodontic treatment;
providing first and second fasteners which individually releasably cooperate with the first passageway defined by the first and second archwire coupler, and orienting the respective fasteners so that a distal end portion of each fastener forcibly frictionally engages the anterior facing surface of the archwire carried within the second passageway of the respective first and second archwire couplers, and the engagement of the distal end of the fastener with the archwire causes an inward dimpling of the archwire on the anterior facing surface and creates an outward protruding deformation on the posterior facing surface of the archwire, and the outward protruding deformation extends at least partially into the void/recess defined in the archwire coupler internal cavity;
providing an outer, cylindrically shaped tube having opposite, first and second ends, and which further defines an internal cavity which extends between the first and second ends thereof;
providing a first attachment member defining an aperture, and which is made integral with the outer, cylindrically shaped tube, and passing the first fastener through the aperture defined by the first attachment member, and rendering the first attachment member, and the outer, cylindrically shaped tube freely rotatable about the first fastener;
providing a first, intermediate tube which has opposite, first and second ends, and an internal cavity which extends between the first and second ends thereof, and telescopingly positioning the first intermediate tube within the internal cavity defined by the outer, cylindrically shaped tube;
providing a second, intermediate tube which has opposite, first and second ends, and an internal cavity extending between the first and second ends thereof, and telescopingly positioning the second, intermediate tube within the internal cavity of the first, intermediate tube;
providing an inner, elongated rod which has opposite, first and second ends, and telescopingly positioning the inner, elongated rod within the internal cavity of the second, intermediate tube;
providing a second attachment member defining an aperture, and affixing the second attachment member to the second end of the inner elongated rod, and passing the second fastener through the aperture defined by the second attachment member, and wherein the second fastener cooperates with the second archwire coupler which is affixed to the archwire, and which is located along the lower dental arch of the patient, and wherein the second fastener renders the second attachment member, and the inner, elongated rod freely rotatable about the second fastener;
providing a compression spring and orienting the compression spring, at least in part within the internal cavity of the outer, cylindrically shaped tube; and
moving the lower dental arch from an open position, where the lower dental arch is spaced, and in a non-parallel relationship relative to the upper dental arch, to a closed position, and where the lower dental arch is located in a closely adjacent, and substantially parallel orientation relative to the upper dental arch, and along an occlusal plane, and wherein the movement of the lower dental arch, by the patient, from the open position to the closed position is effective in imparting telescoping, reciprocal movement, along a course of travel, to the respective inner elongated rod, and first and second intermediate tubes relative to the outer, cylindrically shaped tube, from a first, extended position, and where the inner elongated rod, and first and second intermediate tubes are extended longitudinally outwardly relative to the outer, cylindrically shaped tube, and in a distally displaced orientation relative to the outer, cylindrically shaped tube; and to a second, retracted position, and where the inner elongated rod, and first and second intermediate tubes are telescopingly received, and enclosed within, the internal cavity which is defined by the outer, cylindrically shaped tube, and wherein a preponderance of the telescoping, reciprocal motion of the inner, elongated rod, and first and second intermediate tubes relative to the outer, cylindrically shaped tube, and between the first extended position, and the second, retracted position is caused without a biasing force being imparted by the compression spring to effect the telescoping, reciprocal movement, and wherein the biasing force exerted by the compression spring is effective, when the dental arches of the patient are in a closed position, to move the upper dental arch in a rearward direction while simultaneously causing the lower arch to move in a forward direction, and without simultaneously interfering with the movement of the malpositioned teeth in the upper and lower dental arches and which is caused by the presence of the upper and lower archwires.