Abstract:
The present invention relates to an illuminated dental prop for holding a patient&#39;s mouth open during dental procedures. The illuminated dental prop is completely disposed within the patient&#39;s mouth during use and includes a body portion and a lighting assembly that is selectively detachable from the body to allow for intense sterilization of the components after use. Under certain embodiments of the invention, the body portion and/or the lighting assembly will be disposable after a single use.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/862,660, filed on Oct. 24, 2006. The disclosure of the above application is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention generally relates to illuminated dental props for holding the mouth open during dental procedures. Dental props, per se, are known to come in a variety of shapes and sizes such as wedge-shaped props and C-shaped props by way of non-limiting example. Generally the props are placed between the upper and lower teeth, opposite the side of the mouth which needs to be accessed by a dental practitioner. However, with regard to accessing and viewing the target area by the dental practitioner, currently available dental props do nothing to enhance the visibility within the oral cavity to carryout the necessary procedure. 
     Further, while various light sources are available to assist in illuminating the oral cavity, such devices are positioned outside of the oral cavity with the light source directed at the target area. However, external light sources tend to be somewhat ineffective. Thus, the present invention relates to the incorporation of a light assembly with a dental prop of desired size and shape. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Relatively recently a handful of patents and patent applications directed to the general concept of combining a light source with a dental prop have surfaced. One such patent is U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,776 which issued Dec. 6, 2001 to Martin et al. According to one embodiment disclosed, a unitary body formed to include a first cavity having an inclined reflective surface is disclosed. Light projecting from a light source connected to a light conducting cable is projected upon the reflective surface to emit light within the patient&#39;s mouth. Under a second embodiment, a dental prop is constructed including a cavity which hosts the lighting elements including a primary induction coil connected to a secondary induction coil. Under all embodiments disclosed, there does not appear to be any teaching or disclosure of a light assembly which is conveniently detachable from the body of the dental prop. 
     Alternatively, US Patent Publication No. US/2005/0239018 discloses a lighted dental prop wherein the light source is integrated in a permanently fixed relationship with the body of the bite block. Under this scenario, either the entire construction would be discarded after a single use or the product as a whole is sterilized for reuse. There does not appear to be any disclosure as to replacement of the light source if need be which is another apparent design flaw. 
     A perceived problem with each of the above-referenced teachings is that the light source is not readily removable from the bite block such that the bite block portion can be sterilized or discarded after a single use. Further, the light assembly is either integral with the bite block portion or requires extreme work to detach the same from the bite block. 
     SUMMARY 
     The present invention provides for an illuminated dental prop for holding the dental patient&#39;s mouth open during dental procedures which incorporates a selectively removable light source. In addition to providing much needed light to the oral cavity of a patient, a significant advantage over the above noted references is the ability to readily remove the light assembly from the bite block to facilitate sterilization of the light assembly and, under certain embodiments, discarding of the bite block portion. The dental props of the present invention are designed to be of a size and geometry to be fully contained within the patient&#39;s mouth, i.e., without wires extending out of the mouth, to ensure clearance in the oral cavity of the patient such that the practitioner can access the target area with the necessary dental instruments. 
    
    
     
       DRAWINGS 
       The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way. 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the illuminated dental prop assembly; 
         FIG. 2  is a blown apart perspective view of the illuminated dental prop of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the illuminated dental prop assembly of  FIGS. 1 and 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a sectional view of an alternative illuminated dental prop featuring a different lighting assembly; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of an alternate illuminated dental prop; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an alternative illuminated dental prop wherein the light assembly is retro-fit to an existing convention dental prop; 
         FIG. 7  is an alternative illuminated dental prop assembly including a lighted sleeve disposable over the body of a dental prop; 
         FIG. 8  is an alternative illuminated dental prop assembly including a lighted pliable attachment disposable over the body of a dental prop; and 
         FIG. 9  is an alternative illuminated dental prop assembly including a lighted band disposable over the body of a dental prop. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application, or uses. It should be understood that throughout the drawings, corresponding reference numerals indicate like or corresponding parts and features. 
     The first illuminated dental prop in accordance with the teachings of the present invention is shown with reference to  FIGS. 1-3 . Initially, referring to  FIG. 1 , there is shown the illuminated dental prop  10  which includes a body  12  which forms the bite block portion of the assembly and a light assembly  16  which is mounted through an aperture  14  of the body  12 . The body  12  can be in many shapes or configurations and is shown according to the first embodiment as a wedge-shaped bite block having upper and lower teeth engaging surfaces  13  and  13 A and first and second substantially perpendicular sidewalls  15  and  15 A. The light assembly  16  which is selectively detachable from the body of the bite block generally includes a housing  18  and a light source  40 . The housing  18  includes a sleeve  20  including a longitudinally central bore  22  for hosting the light source  40 . The sleeve  20  includes in inwardly extending lip  28  at one end and a threaded interior lead-in portion  30  along the opposite end of lip  28 . The housing  18  also includes an integral outwardly extending flange disposed along the end opposite lip  28  which may optionally include one or more posts  26  which seat into the body  12  of the bite block to assist in securing the lighting assembly. 
     The light source  40  according to the first embodiment  10  generally includes a lens  42  disposed against the inwardly extending lip  28  of the housing  18 , a lighting element  44 , an electrical contact  46 , a battery  48 , and a threaded end cap  50 . As should be understood by those skilled in the art, as the threaded end cap  50  is rotated to an extent such that the battery is in sufficient electrical contact with the lighting element through electrical contact  46 , the lighting element  44  becomes illuminated and remains illuminated until such time that the threaded end cap is sufficiently backed away. According to this embodiment, the lighting element  44  is in the form of a miniature light bulb; however, as will be described in further detail below, alternative lighting means may be utilized. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , there is shown a first alternative illuminated dental prop embodiment  10 A wherein the lighting element  44 A is activated by the threaded end cap  50 A which is in the form of an induction element. As should be understood by those skilled in the art, the induction element  50 A is activated by another induction coil (not shown) via electromagnetic energy. 
     In addition to the dental props shown in  FIGS. 1-3  and  4 , respectively, it should be understood that the lighting assembly may be employed with those or other dental prop bodies. For example, the lighting assembly may be an LED light package including an LED light source and a battery. This assembly may be two separate components or may be in the form of a self-contained assembly which is attached to the dental prop body. Whatever light assembly is employed, it is envisioned the light assembly will have a useful life which affords the end user the option of reusing the light assembly after appropriate sterilization by inserting it into a fresh dental prop body. Thus, a kit having at least one selectably reusable light assembly along with a plurality of disposable dental props may be provided commercially. 
     Alternately, a reusable dental prop with a plurality of detachable, disposable light assemblies is also envisioned. 
     Regardless of the dental prop body design, generally the upper and lower teeth will sit in a stable position on the respective upper and lower teeth engaging surface. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , there is yet another alternative embodiment  10 B which includes a lighting assembly  16 B disposed within an operative along a central portion of the body  12 B of the bite block assembly. As can be seen from  FIG. 5 , the body is substantially C-shaped such that the bite block provides sufficient clearance so that it does not interfere with the dental practioner during a dental procedure. Thus, the C-shaped body is defined by first and second forward projecting portions which are engaged by the teeth  13  and  13 B (teeth engaging surfaces), a central body portion  17 B which is positioned toward the back of the mouth and sidewalls  15  and  15 B. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , yet another alternative embodiment  10 C is depicted. The body  12 C also generally has a C-shaped body and the lighting assembly  16 C, rather than being embedded within the body, is in the form of a selectively detachable unit which is mounted within the concave recess along the interior wall of the body  12 C. The body includes teeth engaging surfaces  13  and  13 C, a central body portion  17 C and first and second sidewalls  15  and  15 C on opposite sides of the body. This embodiment is considered to be an option for retro-fitting currently commercially available bite blocks. The lighting assembly  16 C may be mechanically attached via a male and female coupling with the body or adhesively attached within the recess. 
     Referring to the embodiment of  FIG. 7  referenced by the numeral  10 D, the bite block body  12 D fits within a pliable sheath. The sheath serves as the housing  18 D and hosts the lighting assembly  16 D. 
     Referring to  FIG. 8 , another embodiment  10 E is depicted wherein the body  12 E includes a plurality of openings for receiving the platform-type housing  18 E having mounted thereto a light assembly  16 E. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , another embodiment  10 F is shown as including a housing  18 F in the form of a band having attached thereto a light assembly  16 F. The band can be formed from various materials including elastic by way of non-limiting example. This type of structure would be ideal for retro-fitting commercially available bite blocks including wedges as well as C-shaped bite blocks with lighting to illuminate the oral cavity. 
     The illuminated dental props of  FIGS. 6-9 , preferably employ a self contained LED light as the light source. As should be understood by those skilled in the art, the LED lighting should illuminate the oral cavity to an appreciably extent but, should not generate light that falls within the light range that would promote undesired curing of any materials employed in the dental procedure being carried out. Additionally, the lighting assembly shall not generate as unacceptable level of heat which could be uncomfortable to a patient. 
     The body  12 C which is generally formed from a moldable thermoplastic or elastomeric material may include a slot (not shown) along the concave recess into which the lighting assembly  16 C is press fit. The slot may include a locking mechanism such that when the lighting assembly is disposed therein the battery will be activated. 
     The description of the invention is merely exemplary in nature and, thus, variations that do not depart from the gist of the invention are intended to be within the scope of the invention. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention.