Patent ID: 8398454

Claim:
Apparatus for polishing composite dental material specimen and testing surface conditions of the specimen surface of said composite material comprising: (A) a first surface abrading stand said stand including; (i) a rotationally mounted platen on said first stand for rotational movement about a first axis, said platen including an abrasion surface; (ii) a sample containment device for said specimen mounted on the first stand; (iii) said sample containment device including a drive mechanism mounted on the first stand to drive the containment device in a direction generally normal to the first axis wherein said composite material specimen mounted by the sample containment device may be engaged with said abrasive surface, said drive mechanism further including a driver for independently rotating said sample containment device about an axis generally parallel to said first axis; (B) a second roughness measurement stand, said second stand including: (i) a positioning stage mounted on said second stand by a mounting adjustment mechanism for independent horizontal movement of said positioning stage on said second stand; (ii) a generally vertical mounting post on said second stand including a sample containment device clamping device for mounting a sample containment device, said clamping device rolatably attached to said mounting post and vertically adjustably mounted on said mounting post to maintain said specimen in said sample containment device directed vertically upward; (iii) a profilometer having a generally horizontally projecting shaft with a profile sensing stylus mounted on said shaft; (iv) a mounting platform on said stand for mounting said profilometer, said platform including an adjustment mechanism for moving said stylus over and onto said specimen in said sample containment device; (v) a profilometer drive mechanism for moving said stylus to measure the roughness of the surface of said specimen whereby surface roughness data for said specimen is generated regarding the surface profile of said specimen; and (C) a third polishing device support stand including: (i) a generally vertical dental instrument support post with an upper end section, (ii) a vertically adjustable clamp assembly attached to the upper end section for holding a dental instrument with a dental composite modification element in a fixed position; (iii) a second support post mounted on said third stand with a horizontally and vertically adjustable clamp for a specimen containment device for positioning said specimen in contact with said dental instrument whereby said dental instrument may be operated to polish the surface of said specimen.