Patent ID: 9226805
Filing Date: 2016-01-05
CPC Classification: A61C

Claim Text:
1. An abutment for connecting a prosthesis to a dental implant in a stable manner that provides multiple discrete orientations about a vertical axis of the dental implant and compensates for angular misalignment between said prosthesis and said dental implant comprising: a member having the same vertical axis as the dental implant, attachable distally to the prosthesis whose vertical axis is at an angular offset from the vertical axis of the member, the member comprising distally a semi-spherical element extending from and surrounding a top of an angular arm integral with the member, the angular arm and the semi-spherical element extending beyond the circumference of an upper surface of the member from which the angular arm extends and distally from the vertical axis and inclined at an angle relative to the vertical axis and away from the vertical axis, the semi-spherical element arranged to contact the prosthesis at a single external point of contact on the prosthesis at one end, at an angle relative to the vertical axis of the dental implant, and the member is arranged to be attached to the dental implant at a lower surface of the member, the lower surface having a chamfer around its periphery and the angular arm is collinear with the chamfer of the lower surface, wherein said member can rotate about said vertical axis of the member relative to the dental implant, thus providing multiple discrete orientations about the vertical axis of the member; wherein said semi-spherical element externally constrains said prosthesis by imposing a force on the single external point of contact and simultaneously adjusts for angular misalignment, wherein said providing multiple discrete orientations enables defining the angular position of said semi-spherical element; and a fixation element to be anchored within the dental implant and to clamp said member into the dental implant, wherein geometry of the abutment imparts stability to an interface between said prosthesis and said dental implant.