AN IMPROVED MATERIAL FOR THE BASE OF ARTIFICIAL TEETH, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, AND IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF MOULD FOR FORMING DENTAL PLATES
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Newton, of the Office for
Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED MATERIAL FOR THE
BASE OF ARTIFICIAL TEETH, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, AND
IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF MOULD FOR FORMING DENTAL PLATES."—A
communication from abroad by John Alexander MacClelland, of
Louisville, in the State of Kentucky, United States of America.
Sealed the 26th June 1868, and dated the 18th February 1868..
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward
Newton at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 18th February 1868.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery
Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED MATERIAL FOR THE
BASE OF ARTIFICIAL TEETH, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, AND ALSO AN IMPROVED
CONSTRUCTION OF MOULD FOR FORMING DENTAL PLATES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates, first, to the composition and preparation of a
new and improved material for the base of artificial teeth and for other:
purposes in the arts..

page_text: And, secondly, for the construction of a metal mould in sections for
forming dental plates of this improved material. The base of the
improved material is pyroxyline, made of cotton or other vegetable
fibres in the usual way to form collodion in combination with gum
shellac or other suitable resinous substance. The material when in a
plastic condition may be used to form dental plates and other objects
and when hardened may be cut, carved, turned, and polished or
otherwise worked like ivory, amber, ebony, coral, or other hard, tough,
and resilient substances, to make a great variety of useful and
ornamental articles, for which those rare and valuable. substances are
employed. It is also well adapted to supply lost parts of the human
form, as for instance artificial noses, cars, fingers. In preparing the
substance the solution of pyroxyline is reduced to the condition of a
syrup, and a solution in ether and alcohol is also made of gum shellac
or other suitable resins or gums, and added to the collodion or
pyroxyline in any desired proportion, according to the nature, quality,
and purpose of the material to be produced as respects hardness,
toughness, and delicacy of texture, which compound is thoroughly mixed
by agitation. When the solvents have been thoroughly evaporated the
dried residuum in the form of thin sheets or scales is then ready to
produce a solid homogeneous material. The residuum scales or dried
sheets of collodion and its compounds are cut, ground, or otherwise
comminuted into fine particles or powder, which are formed into a
plastic mass by slightly saturating the powder or particles with ether
and alcohol, and in this plastic condition the material is introduced
into the mould to form a dental plate or other suitable moulds for other
purposes as herein-after described. This improved dental plate mould
is constructed of metal sections cast separately within an adjustable
metal flask, cylindrical in its form, so that a perfect dental plate with
a continuous gum surrounding or enclosing the teeth is moulded. An
adjustable cylindrical flask made of thin sheet metal or casting or
other suitable substance is made with one open side or division
provided with flanges opposite each other, to be held together and
adjusted by a set screw in constructing the mould and forming the dental
plate. The sectional mould is made in separate parts successively
within the flask which is first closed tight with the set screw, and
being placed on a plane surface on one end receives an impression of
the gums formed of plaster, the impression is put in the bottom of the
flask and the mould is then cast upon the plaster form by pouring in

page_text: When
some soft fusible metal. This mould constitutes the foundation of the
dental mould to be constructed. The casting or mould. with the
impression is then taken out of the flask, and the casting; being placed
in a reverse position a plaster form of a dental plate is built upon it in
which the porcelain teeth are set in their places. The mould with the
second form is then put into the flask and being screwed up small
wads of clay or putty are introduced on opposite sides of the mould
and between the form and the flask, leaving a space in front which is
filled by casting another section. A wad of clay is also placed behind
the teeth in the form to confine the sectional casting to the front side;
the side pads are then removed and their spaces are filled by casting
the other sections, at the same time a central core may be cast
on the plaster form by placing a clay wad over the cutting
edges of the teeth, or the core may be cast afterward.
these several sections of the mould have been thus formed a cap
piece is cast upon the core by filling the space around the teeth
occupied by the pad. The section mould having been thus constructed
of successive castings of the parts within the flask around the
mould or form the whole is taken out of the flask together after
loosening it. The plaster form is broken up and the metal sections
cleaned of all adhering particles, the teeth are taken out and set aside
in their regular order of arrangement. The metal sections are all
replaced in the flask in their relative positions to each other but upside
down in the flask with the cap piece at the bottom. When the teeth
are all set in their respective cavities in the mould the improved plastic
material is introduced into the mould in sufficient quantity to form
a dental plate corresponding to the plaster form. The casting is then
set upon it and the flask screwed up tight.. A stirrup clamp or other
suitable means of exerting: pressure upon the opposite castings is then
applied and the solvents are squeezed out,. partly by a moderate pressure
at first, and the material is forced into all the interstices between and
around the teeth to form a continuous gum. In the same manner
material formed of the dried residuum of collodion and its compound,.
comminuted or reduced to a powder and made plastic by slight saturation
with proper solvents, may be moulded under pressure to solid blocks or
cakes of any desired size or shape suitable for various useful purposes
as herein-before described..

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 18th August 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in
the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
:
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighteenth day of February, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Edward -Newton, Her special
licence that I, the said William Edward Newton, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Edward
Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter
during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention
for "AN IMPROVED MATERIAL FOR THE BASE OF ARTIFICIAL TEETH, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES, AND ALSO AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF MOULD FOR FORMING
DENTAL PLATES," being a communication to me from abroad, upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Edward Newton,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be
filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edward Newton, do hereby
'declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the Drawing
'hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that
is to say) :-
This Invention relates, first, to the composition and preparation of
a new and improved material for the base of artificial teeth, and for

page_text: And, secondly. For the construction of a metal mould in sections for
forming dental plates of this improved material in the manner herein
particularly described. The base of the improved material is pyroxyline
made of cotton or other vegetable fibres in the usual way to form
collodion in combination with gum shellac or other suitable résinous.
substance to form compounds for dental purposes.
.
The improvement consists in the mode of preparation and working of
collodion and its compounds necessary to produce a solid homogeneous
material of great strength and tenacity, and remarkable fineness and
beauty in the quality of its texture, and which may be used when in
a plastic condition for moulding in suitable moulds under pressure
into the form of dental plates and other objects. When hardened the
substance may be cut, carved, turned, and polished, or otherwise worked
like ivory, amber, ebony, coral, or other hard, tough, and resilient
substances to make a great variety of useful and ornamental articles,
such as beads, buttons, combs, handles for cutlery and instruments,
pencil cases, pen holders, keys for pianofortes, billiard balls, mouth
pieces for pipes, heads of canes, parasols, and umbrellas, card cases, and
many other objects in the arts for which those rare and valuable
substances are employed. It is also well adapted to supply lost parts
of the human form, as, for instance, artificial noses, ears, fingers, &c.
The solution of pyroxyline made of ether and alcohol in the usual
manner is reduced to the condition of a syrup; and to form a compound
a solution in ether and alcohol is also made of gum shellac or other
suitable resins or gums with the same solvents, and added to the
collodion or pyroxyline in any desired proportion according to the
nature, quality, and purpose of the material to be produced as respects
hardness, toughness, and delicacy of texture, which compound is
thoroughly mixed by agitation. The solution of pyroxyline and its
compounds may be colored to resemble the mucous membrane of the
mouth (for the base of artificial teeth) by the addition of vermillion
or any shade of color, or black or white by adding proper coloring
matter, and the density of the material to be produced may be increased
by mixing metallic oxides with the solution; odours may also be
imparted to it to render the material permanently fragrant, like
ambergris or sandal wood.
The compound solution thus prepared, or
collodion alone, more or less fine, is allowed to stand in a close vessel
until it settles and all the air bubbles are expelled, it is then poured
out upon a flat glass plate or other hard and smooth substance, and

page_text: spread over the surface to form a thin sheet. The solvents are then
evaporated by exposure to a gentle heat, and they may be recovered
for subsequent use by 'performing the operation of evaporation in a
*suitable retort or still connected with condensers. When the solvents
have been thoroughly evaporated the dried residuum in the form of
ithin sheets or scales is then ready for the first mechanical operation in
the treatment and working of pyroxyline and its compounds to produce
a solid homogeneous material, such as has been herein-before described.
Attempts have been hitherto made to prepare and work collodion and
compounds therewith of animal, vegetable, and mineral substances,
and the solutions thereof have been also dried in the form of thin
sheets or scales but the improved solid and homogeneous material
(resulting from the present Invention) possessing the remarkable and
valuable qualities herein-before described has not been heretofore
produced or introduced into the arts. When pyroxyline and its
compounds are simply evaporated to form dried sheets or scales, the
material in this form has but very limited application and value, and
in this well-known stage of the treatment of pyroxyline and its
compounds there is
no novelty. The pyroxyline solution and its
compounds have also been employed in a pulpy condition to form into
a material of more or less body and consistency in moulds, but this is
a crude process from which the improved method of treating and
working pyroxyline and its compounds to produce a solid and homo-
geneous material differs essentially as herein-after explained.
residuum scales or dried sheets of collodion and its compounds are
cut, ground, or otherwise comminuted into fine particles or powder
and are formed into a plastic mass by slightly saturating the powder or
particles with ether and alcohol or other suitable solvent to soften
them and render them adhesive; and in this plastic condition the
material is introduced into the mould to form a dental plate or other
suitable moulds for other purposes as herein-after described.
'
The
In the accompanying Drawing Fig. 1 represents the first operation in
constructing the mould for a dental plate showing therein a central
vertical section of the cylindrical metal adjustable flask A containing a
plaster impression B of the gums and roof of the mouth for receiving
and forming a metal cast or mould C.
.
Fig. 2 represents a metal cast or mould B thus first formed, on which
is built a form D of plaster or other material for the dental plate in
which the teeth are set in place.

page_text: Fig. 3 represents the next operation in constructing the moulds
showing the plastic form D on the base cast or mould B placed within
the flask A and the front sectional cast or mould E.
Fig. 4 represents the next operation, showing the casts or moulds of
other sections; Fig. 5 represents the whole sectional dental mould when
completed having one side section F removed; Fig. 6 represents one
of the side sections F detached, and Fig. 7 represents the last operation
of forming the dental plate in the mould.
This improved dental plate mould is constructed of metal sections
cast separately within an adjustable metal flask, cylindrical in its form,
and built and employed in such a manner that a perfect dental plate
with a continuous gum surrounding or enclosing the teeth is moulded
of the improved plastic material under pressure. An adjustable
cylindrical flask A made of thin sheet metal or casting or other suitable
substance is made with one open side or division provided with flanges
b, b, opposite each other, to be held together and adjusted by a set
screw a in constructing the mould and forming the dental plate. The
sectional mould is made in separate parts successively within the flask A
which is first closed tight with a set screw a and being placed on a
plane surface on one end receives an impression of the gums B formed
of plaster in the usual manner. The impression B is put in the bottom
of the flask, as shown in Fig. 1, and the mould G is then cast upon the
plaster form B by pouring in some soft fusible metal; this mould C
constitutes the foundation of the dental mould to be constructed. The
casting or mould C with the impression B is then taken out of the
flask (which is loosened for the purpose) and the casting being. placed
in a reverse position, as shown in Fig. 2, a plaster form D of a dental
plate is built upon it in which the porcelain teeth are set in their places.
The mould C with the form D is then put into the flask, as shown in
Fig. 3, and being screwed up small wads of clay or putty c, c, are
introduced on opposite sides of the mould and between the form D and
the flask leaving a space in front which is filled by casting another
section E. A wad of clay is also placed behind or on the inside of the
teeth in the form D to confine the sectional casting E to the front side.
The side pads c, c, are then removed and their spaces are filled by
casting the sections F, F, Fig. 4. At the same time a central core G
may be cast on the plaster form D by placing a clay wad d over the
cutting edges of the teeth, or the core G may be cast afterward. When
these several sections of the mould have been thus formed the wad d is

page_text: removed and a cap picce H is cast upon a core G by filling the space
around the teeth occupied by the pad d and forming a perfect metal
mould thereof as shewn in Fig. 5. The section mould having been
thus constructed of successive castings of the parts within the flask
around the mould or form D, the whole is taken out of the flask together
(after loosening it), the plaster form D is broken up .and the metal
sections cleaned of all adhering particles, the teeth are taken out and
set aside in their regular order of arrangement. The metal sections
(except the section C) are all replaced in the flask in their relative
positions to each other (but up side down) with the cap piece H at the
bottom as shewn in Fig. 7. The teeth are all set in their respective
cavities in the mould, and the plastic material prepared as before
described is introduced into the mould in sufficient quantity to form a
dental plate corresponding to the plaster form D. The casting O is
then set upon it and the flask A is screwed up tight and a stirrup clamp
or other suitable means of exerting pressure upon the opposite castings
C, H, is then applied and the solvents are squeezed out partly by a
moderate pressure at first, the material being at the same time forced
into all the interstices between and around the teeth to form a
continuous gum. The mould and material in it are then subjected to
a moderate degree of heat to cure and dry the dental plate, commencing
with an application of about one hundred degrees Fahrenheit and
gradually raising the temperature to about one hundred and fifty degrees
within twenty-four hours, during which time the pressure upon the
material in the mould is renewed and increased from time to time until
all traces of the solvents are dispelled and the material is hardened
and solidified as desired. The plate may then be taken from the
mould and after being polished is completed and ready for use.
In the same manner the improved material (formed of the dried
residuum of. collodion and its compound comminuted or. reduced to
a powder and made plastic by slight saturation with proper solvents)
may be moulded under pressure to solid blocks or cakes of any desired
size or shape suitable for various useful purposes in the arts as herein-.
before mentioned.
Having now described the Invention, that has been communicated to
me as aforesaid, and having explained the manner of, carrying the
same into effect, I claim as the Invention secured to me by Letters

page_text: First. The method herein set forth of preparing and working
pyroxyline and its compounds to form an improved solid and
homogeneous material for dental plates and other purposes.
Second. Forming dental plates of the improved material prepared
by working pyroxyline and its compounds in the manner herein
described.
Third. I claim forming dental plate moulds of sectional castings
within a cylindrical adjustable flask as specified.
Fourth. I claim the use of a clamping adjustable flask for forming
a dental plate mould in sections within it constructed and operating as
described.
Fifth. I claim forming a dental plate of plastic material within a
sectional mould under pressure as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Newton, have
hercunto set my hand and seal, the Seventeenth day of August,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-
eight.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
W. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)