A DENTAL APPARATUS WITH INSTRUMENT HOSES FOR SELECTIVE CONNECTION WITH DIFFERENT INSTRUMENTS

Abstract: In a dental apparatus with a number of instrument units (1 to 3), each comprising an instrument hose (4 to 6) with an associated connecting piece with which a number of different dental instruments may be selectively connected, each instrument hose (4 to 6) comprises supply ducts (11, 12) for water and air, for use as coolant spray and chip air. For each instrument hose (4 to 6) the water and air supply ducts (11, 12) are connected with a common water duct (17) and a common air duct (18) through proportionally adjustable magnet valve members (20, 21) that are preferably common to all of the instrument units (1 to 3) and receive electric setting signals from a control circuit (14) which from the instruments receives identification codes for the instrument connected with a given selected instrument hose. To generate suitable energizing signals to said common valve members (20, 21) the control circuit (14) includes a memory (23) containing the operational parameters for the individual instruments.

Description: A dental apparatus with instrument hoses for selective connection with different instruments. The invention relates to a dental apparatus with a number of instrument units, each comprising an instrument hose with an associated connecting part with which a number of different dental instruments may be selectively connected, each instrument hose comprising supply ducts for operational media, such as electri¬ city, water and air, inclusive of ducts for water and air for use as coolant spray and chip air. From the accepted DE-B-25 49 177 it is known to provide the instrument hoses of a dental apparatus with connecting pieces by means of which various instruments may be selectively coupled to a specific instrument hose, the instrument hose comprising supply cables and/or ducts for all operational media used for the various instruments, i.e. electric current, light, tur- bine air together with air and water for use as coolant spray and so-called chip air. According to EP Patent No. 0 042 269 it is known with respect to the operation of turbine driven or electrically driven drilling instruments to control the amounts of water and air in the coolant spray used for operating such instruments, but for this control it has so far been necessary to make use of siaple mechanical adjustment valves, e.g. needle valves specifically associated with the individual instruments which according to said prior art are permanently connected with a respective instrument hose. Moreover, US Patent No. 3 673 709 deals with a comparatively complicated valve arrangement for use in controlling the amounts of water and air in a coolant spray, but in this case too, with individual adjustment valves for each respective of the instruments that are fixedly connected with a respective instrument hose. 2 It is the object of the invention to provide a simplified possibility of controlling, irrespective of the selected instrument, the water and air amounts in a coolant spray particularly for use in a dental appara- tus of the above mentioned type, having the possibility of selectively connecting more instruments with one and the same hose. In this respect the dental apparatus according to the invention is characterized in that the water and air supply ducts for each instrument hose for use as coolant spray and chip air are connected with water and air ducts common to the instrument units through pro¬ portionally adjustable magnet valve members receiving electric setting signals from a control circuit which from the instrument connected with the hose is supplied with an instrument identification code and which for generating setting signals for said valve members adapted to the operation of the actual instrument has stored operational parameters for the individual instruments. Through the combined use of proportionally adjustable, electrically controlled magnet valve mem¬ bers for the water and air ducts of each instrument hose and a control circuit receiving identification codes from the instruments coupled to the instrument hoses, a completely individual, controllable composi¬ tion of water and air may be obtained in the coolant spray used in connection with each instrument. Said proportionally adjustable valves may be individually associated with each instrument hose, but in a preferred embodiment of a dental apparatus accord¬ ing to the invention a substantially simplified valve arrangement is obtained in that said proportionally adjustable magnet valve members are common to the water and air supply ducts of all instrument hoses. In this preferred embodiment the separate ducts for driving air accommodated in each of the instrument 3 hoses for an air turbine driven drilling instrument for the operation of which it is known to make use of a proportionally adjustable valve, may advantageously be connected with a proportionally adjustable magnet valve member common to all of the instrument hoses, each of which comprises a separate return air duct. The invention will now be explained in detail with reference to the block diagram of the instrument unit schematically shown in the drawing and associated control and operator devices in a preferred embodiment of the dental apparatus. Each of the instrument units 1, 2 and 3 is provided with an instrument hose 4, 5 and 6, res¬ pectively, with a connecting piece by means of which various dental instruments 7, 8 and 9, respective¬ ly, may be selectively connected with the instrument hose, e.g. air turbine instruments or electric-motor driven drilling instruments, an ultrasonic sealer, a composite hardening lamp etc., such as known per se from the above mentioned DE-B-25 49 177. As only illustrated for instrument hose 4 of the unit, each of hoses 4 to 6 includes for this purpose supply ducts for all operational sources necessary for energizing the various instruments. For the sake of clearness all ducts for the operational sources, water and air, are shown in solid lines while the dashed lines indicate the conducting paths of the electric control and energizing signals. In the illustrated embodiment hose 4 thus includes an air duct 10 for turbine driving air, an air duct 11 for spray and chip air for use in coolant spray used in connection with drilling instruments as well as for pure air blow and a water duct 12 for spray water besides a conduit, not shown, for electric current for an electric motor driven drilling instru¬ ment. 4 Moreover, hose 4 includes a signal trans¬ mitting cable 13 forming part of an instrument iden- tification system by means of which the central control circuit 14 of the dental apparatus receives infor- mation about the instrument actually connected with hose 4. A lifting-off signal generator which over a signal transmitting cable 15 transmits a lifting-off signal to the control circuit 14 upon lifting off the actual instrument from its holder is, moreover, in a manner known per se connected with the instrument carrier. Moreover, the dental apparatus Bay in a known manner be provided with a blocking coupling ensuring that only one instrument at a time is energized by means of the operator device 16 connected with the control circuit 14 and which is typically a pedal switch, e.g. a multi-function switch of the type disclosed in the above mentioned EP-C-0 042 269 and EP-C-0 042 268. In the illustrated embodiment the individual control of the air and water amounts supplied to ducts 10 to 12 in instrument hoses 4 to 6 is obtained in that the supply ducts 12 for all of hoses 4 to 6 are connected with a common water duct 17 and supply ducts 10 and 11 with a common air duct 18 through proportionally adjustable magnet valve members 19, 20 and 21 for turbine air, spray air and spray water. Valves 19, 20 and 21 that are thus common to instruments units 1, 2 and 3 in the illustrated embodiment are supplied with electric setting signals from control circuit 14 through a digital-to-analog converter 22 in dependence on the identification code transmitted for each instrument unit through signal transmitting cable 13 for the instrument coupled to the instrument hose, an operational parameter memory 5 23 for control circuit 14 being connected to gener¬ ate setting signals for valves 19 to 21 suitable for energizing the actual instrument. In series with the proportionally adjustable valves 19 to 21 each of the instrument units 1 to 3 in the illustrated embodiment includes a valve 24 selectively actuated by selection of the actual instru¬ ment on the basis of the lifting-off signal transmitted through the signal transmitting cable 15, said valve being illustrated in the drawing as a simple pneumatic¬ ally operable ON/OFF valve actuated from the common air duct 18 via a magnet valve 25 controlled from control circuit 14. Each of the instrument hoses 4 to 6 further includes a return air duct 26 which in practice may be constituted by the part of the hose cross-section encircling the remaining ducts. Return air duct 26 is in a known manner utilized for recycling air by making use of a turbine driven drilling instrument and may discharge into a common air outlet in connection with an oil sump. An air escape valve 27 common to instru¬ ment units 1 to 3 is further connected with the chip air duct 11 and is controlled alternatingly with valve 20 so that it is open when valve 20 is closed, thereby serving to a quick ventilation and pressure equalizing of air duct 11 after each chip air blow. This arrangement of the valve system of the dental apparatus provides particularly for obtaining that pre-programmed operational parameter values for spray water and spray and chip air may be stored in the operational parameter storage 22 for each of the possible dental instruments to be used in each of units 1 to 3. Said operational parameters may be adjusted by means of operator device 16, e.g. as described in the above EP-C-0 042 269. Control circuit 14 which may be constituted by a microprocessor includes at any tine the identifica- 6 tion codes keyed for the instruments coupled to their respective instrument hose. When a determined instrument hose with asso¬ ciated instrument is lifted off for use, valve 24 is actuated and control circuit 14 outputs the actual operational parameter values from storage 22 for the selected instrument. When operator device 16 is then actuated control circuit 14 emits through digital-to- analog converter 22 the relevant electric setting signals for valves 19 to 21. In comparison with prior art dental apparatuses, e.g. as disclosed in the above EP Patent No. 0 042 26j), according to which each instrument unit necessitates separate valve members from all of the operational parameters, the invention provides for obtaining a completely individually controllable adjustment of water and air amounts in a dental apparatus, in which various instruments may be coupled to the individual instrument hoses, and in the illustrated embodiment also for a simplified structure of the valve system. In view of the fact that each instrument hose besides water and air ducts also accommodates electric conduits, control circuit 14 may according to a particular feature of the invention be designed so that the connecting piece of the hose upon each change of instrument is automatically cleaned of water droplets by a selective air blow through one of the air ducts, preferably the turbine driven air duct 10. Control circuit 14 and the operational para- meter storage 22 may be designed so that more sets of operational parameter values may be stored, e.g. indi¬ vidually pre-programmed values in a multi-user system.

Claims: P A T E N T C L A I M S 1. A dental apparatus with a number of instru¬ ment units (1 to 3), each comprising an instrument hose (4 to 6) with an associated connecting piece with which a number of different dental instruments (7 to 9) may be selectively connected, each instrument hose com¬ prising supply ducts (10 to 12) for operational media, such as electricity, water and air, inclusive of ducts for water and air for use as coolant spray and chip air, characterized in that the water and air supply ducts (11, 12) for each instrument hose (1 to 3) for use as coolant spray and chip air are connected with water and air ducts (17, 18) through proportionally adjustable magnet valve members (20, 21) receiving electric setting signals from a control circuit (14) which from the instrument connected with the hose is supplied with an instrument identification code and which for generating setting signals for said valve members adapted to the operation of the actual instru¬ ment has stored operational parameters for the ind- vidiual instruments. 2. A dental apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said proportionally adjustable magnet valve members (20, 21) are common to the water and air supply ducts (11, 12) of all instrument hoses (4 to 6) . 3. A dental apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that in association with each instru¬ ment hose (4 to 6) there is further provided a valve member (24) operated by selection of the actual instru- ment (7 to 9) in series with the common proportionally adjustable valve members (20, 21). 4. A dental apparatus as claimed in claims 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the operational parameters stored in the control circuit (14) are adjustable by means of a pedal switch (16) used for operating the instruments. 8 5. A dental apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the control circuit (14) comprises a microprocessor storing for each instrument working programs containing said opera- tional parameters. 6. A dental apparatus as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that the microprocessor (14) for at least one instrument includes several stored processing programs of different operational parameter values and that a determined working program for a given instrument is selected by means of a monitoring and operator display associated with the microprocessor. 7. A dental apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the propor- tionally adjustable valve for the air duct (11) of each instrument hose is used for controlling the air amount both in a coolant spray applied during working of a selected instrument and in an automatically or selec¬ tively activated chip air blow. 8,, A dental apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that also separate ducts (10) for driving air accommodated in each of the instrument hoses for an air turbine driven drilling instrument are connected with a proportionally adjustable magnet valve member (19) common to all of the instrument hoses (4 to 6) , each of which comprises a separate return air duct (26). 9. A dental apparatus as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that the spray and chip air supply duct (11) for all of the instrument hoses is connected with an air escape valve (27) common to the instrument units and activated alternatingly with the proportion¬ ally adjustable valve (20) for said supply duct. 10. A dental apparatus as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that for changing the instrument (7 to 9) coupled to an instrument hose (4 to 6) the control circuit is arranged to selectively actuate the valve ( 1 9 , 2 0) connected with the air ducts ( 1 0 , 11 ) of the hose to generate a cleaning air blow through said d uct to the return duct (26 ) .

Inventors: HANSEN FLEMMING ALLAN, SOERENSEN KIM, HANSEN, FLEMMING, ALLAN, SOERENSEN, KIM
Applicants: DEN FLEX AS, DEN-FLEX A/S
Application year: 1990
Main classification: A61C19
IPC codes: A61C1, A61C19