US3816922A

US3816922A - Amalgam dispenser and packer

Info

Publication number: US3816922A
Application number: US00198185A
Authority: US
Inventors: C Thiel; L Michaels
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1962-05-28
Filing date: 1962-05-28
Publication date: 1974-06-18
Anticipated expiration: 1991-06-18

Abstract

18. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, A HOUSING, AN AMALGAM CONTAINING CARTRIDGE MOUNTED ON THE FORWARD END OF SAID HOUSING, A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL RECEIVER CHAMBER REMOVABLY MOUNTED ADJACENT SAID CARTRIDGE, MEANS FOR EXPELLING AMALGAM FROM SAID CARTRIDGE INTO SAID RECEIVER CHAMBER, AND MEANS FOR EJECTING AMALGAM FROM SAID RECEIVER CHAMBER, SAID EJECTING MEANS INCLUDING A PACKER MEMBER REMOVABLY MOUNTED IN SAID RECEIVER CHAMBER AND HAVING A TIP PROJECTABLE BEYOND SAID RECEIVER CHAMBER INTO OPERATIVE POSITION FOR PACKING.

Description

United States Patent [191 June 18, 1974 Thiel et al.

[ AMALGAM DISPENSER AND PACKER [76] Inventors: Charles J. Thiel, 625 Sixth Ave.;

Louis J. Michaels, 1210 Sixth Ave., both of Dayton, Ky. 41074 [22] Filed: May 28, 1962 [21] Appl. No.: 198,185

[52] U.S. Cl 32/51, 32/54, 32/56, 32/60 [51] Int. Cl. A61c 3/08 [58] Field of Search 32/60, 56, 53-54, 32/58, 26, 27, 40, 51; 128/218 P [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 452,665 5/1891 Dibble 32/56 532,720 l/l895 Dennis 32/51 1,326,089 12/1919 Payne 32/51 2,592,381 4/1952 Blackman 128/218 P 2,696,670 12/1954 Thurman 32/60 2,837,824 6/1958 Moller 32/60 3,028,672 4/1962 Zandberg r 32/60 3,088,207 5/1963 Borsuk 32/60 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 309,333 4/1929 Great Britain 32/60 Primary Examinerl.,awrence W. Trapp Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Woocl, Herron & Evans EXEMPLARY CLAIM 18. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing, I an amalgam containing cartridge mounted on the forward end of said housing, a generally cylindrical receiver chamber removably mounted adjacent said cartridge, means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber, and means for ejecting amalgam from said receiver chamber, said ejecting means including a packer member removably mounted in said receiver chamber and having a tip projectable beyond said receiver chamber into operative position for packing.

20 Claims, 13 Drawing Figures INVENTO 1 AMALGAM DISPENSER AND PACKER This invention relates to amalgam dispenser and packer.

In the practice of dentistry one of the most tedious of all the clentists functions is that of filling teeth. The difficulty resides largely in the physical characteristics of the amalgam. The amalgam, by nature, is a very difficult substance with which to work. It is neither fluid nor solid in its working state, but rather is a plastic mixture of silver and mercury, the mixture having one characteristic of setting very rapidly. The rapid setting is important for it would be most undesirable to require a patient to sit for a long period of time with his mouth open while a less rapidly setting material is permitted to set.

The rapid setting of the amalgam however has its disadvantages, for the dentist is given only a short period of time between the mixing of the amalgam and the filling of the tooth to perform the required operations. If he takes too long the amalgam will tend to set and, when introduced to a cavity, will not properly fill the crevices in the tooth and will not properly adhere to amalgam previously introduced.

The speed and facility with which the dentist can fill a tooth has been hindered by a lack of proper equipment. A dentist normally uses an assistant who mixes the mercury and silver to prepare the amalgam and then, using two amalgam dispensers, fills one dispenser while the dentist is discharging the amalgam into the tooth cavity from the second dispenser. When the dentist has put a charge of amalgam into the cavity he uses either a manual packer or mechanically vibrated packer to distribute the amalgam properly into the cavity. A dentist who uses a mechanically vibrating packer may also use a hand packer for certain phases of the filling operation. Having packed a charge of amalgam into the tooth and receives the alternate dispenser, now filled, from his assistant and performs the same operation of filling and packing, with as many as three or four separate instruments being involved.

It has been an objective of the present invention to provide a combined dispenser and packer which may be loaded with a charge of amalgam prepared in accor' dance with our co-pending application Ser. No. 145,878 filed Oct. 18, 1961 and now US. Pat. No. 3,222,037. In accordance with the present invention, once the amalgam has been placed in the dispenser packer of the present invention, all of the operations required in the fill of the tooth may be performed by the same tool which never leaves the dentists hand.

The advantages of the invention are many. Obviously, the time consumed in filling a tooth can be greatly reduced which not only lightens the burden on the dentist, but more important, greatly shortens the period of discomfort of the patient. Additionally, the likelihood of contamination by saliva, blood or breath is greatly reduced because of the speed with which the tooth can be filled. Further, the dental assistant is no longer required to be present during the filling operation.

It should be pointed out that more perfect restorations are formed when small portions of amalgam are introduced into the tooth and packed as compared to restorations formed by the introduction of large amounts of amalgam. Because of the nature of the amalgam, when large portions are inserted and packed,

the top layers become condensed without filling and packing the underlining areas. Consequently voids remain in the tooth. On the other hand, when small portions are introduced and packed the amalgam is properly distributed in the cavity and the residual mercury comes to the top of the filling and is removed by the packer. This results in a harder restoration and one which is free of undesirable voids.

It has been another objective of the invention to provide a combined dispenser and packer having a single operating lever the depressing of which instigates three principal operations. In the first stage, depressing the lever expels a predetermined amount of amalgam from a tubular cartridge into a receiving tube. In the second stage an ejector packer which is slidable in the receiving tube ejects the amalgam into the tube while simultaneously wiping the receiving tube clean. In the third stage of the operation, a vibratory motor is energized to permit semi-automatic packing of the tooth. Preferably the vibratory motor is pneumatically operated to take advantage of the supply of air under pressure normally found with dental equipment. The motor can be rendered inoperative and the dispenser packer-used as a manual packer.

It has been still another objective of the invention to provide an ejector-packer element found at its tip by a rubber cylinder surrounding a metallic core. The metallic core provides the packing action while the resilient or flow characteristics of the rubber operate to enclose amalgam within the cavity during the packing operation. The rubber cylinder or sleeve also aids in carrying the amalgam to the tooth and cleaning the receiver as the amalgam is discharged into the tooth.

These and other objectives of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the invention;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are elevational views partly in section of the forward and rearward halves respectively of the invention showing the invention in its rest condition prior to operation;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view taken along lines 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view taken along lines 5-5 of FIG. 3;

FIGS. 6 and 7 are elevational views partly in section of the invention of the forward and rearward portions respectively of the invention illustrating the first stage of the operation;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are elevational views partly in section of the rearward and forward endls respectively of the invention illustrating the second stage of operation;

FIG. 10 is an elevational view partly in section of the forward end of the invention illustrating the operation of the motor;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary elevational view of an ad justing knob for the motor; and

FIGS. 12 and 13 are elevational views of alternative forms of the amalgam receiver.

Referring to FIG. 1 a dispenser 15 is illustrated having a rearward tubular housing portion 16 forming a handle and a forward housing portion 17 which encloses a pneumatic motor. The forward portion 17 has an opening 18 at the bottom thereof to receive a cartridge 19 of the type described in our copending application Ser. No. 145,878 filed Oct. 18, 1961 and now US. Pat. No. 3,22,037. The cartridge is secured to the housing by a bifurcated spring clamp 20. The opening 18 also permits the manipulation of a control member on the motor to be described below.

At the forward end of the dispenser packer is a amalgam receiver 21 from which amalgam is discharged into a tooth. Intermediate the ends of the dispenser packer is an operating lever 22 which is pivotally mounted on a pin 23 to a flange 24 depending from the tubular portion 16. The dispenser packer has a fitting 25 at the rearward end thereof to which is connected a hose 26, the other end of the hose being connected to a source of air under a pressure of to 40 psi, for example. A valve 27 seated in the fitting controls the admission of air into the motor. It should be understood that the valve 27 does not necessarily have to be on the dispenser packer itself but rather could be at the source of air pressure or could be a foot pedal operated device.

A retracting lug 30 projects from the tubular portion 16 to withdraw a plunger by which amalgam is expelled into the receiver 21, as described below.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3 the details of the operating mechanism are shown in their rest condition, that is the condition which they normally assume when the device is not in use. When in its proper position the cartridge 19 is axially aligned with the tubular portion 16 in order to receive a co-axial plunger 32 which is movable in a forward direction to expel amalgam from the cartridge into the receiver 21. At its rearward end the plunger 32 is enlarged to approximately the same diameter as the inside diameter of the tubular portion 16, the enlarged portion of the plunger being indicated at 33. The upper surface of the enlarged plunger portion 33 is notched to provide ratchet teeth 34 which cooperate with a pawl 35.

The pawl 35 is pivotally mounted on a pin 36 on the upper end of a discharge lever 37 (one lever being mounted on each side of the device) the lower end of the discharge lever being pivoted as on a pin 38 to the flange 24. A spring 39 is fixed at one end 40 to the flange 24 and has its other end 41 bearing against the discharge lever to urge it in a clockwise direction. As best shown in FIG. 5, a torsion spring 42 is mounted around the pivot pin 36 and fixed thereto at one end 43. The other end 44 of the torsion spring bears against the pawl 35 to force it against ratchet teeth 34. As can be observed from FIG. 5 the pawl 35 is channel shaped to receive the end 44 of the torsion spring.

An operating lever return spring 45 is secured to the operating lever pivot pin 23 and has one end 46 fixed to the flange 24, the other end 47 bearing against a pin 48 in the operating lever to urge the operating lever in a clockwise direction. The discharge lever 37 has an upper discharge cam surface 50 and a lower dwell surface 51. These surfaces cooperate with rollers 52 rotatably mounted on the operating lever 22 (see also FIG.

An ejector lever 55 on each side of the device is pivoted on a pin 56 fixed to a flange 24. A spring 57 is fixed at one end 58 to the flange 24 and has its other end 59 bearing against the ejector lever to urge it in a clockwise direction. The upper end of the ejector lever is connected by a pivot pin 60 to a rod 61 which operates an ejector packer 62 which is slidably mounted in the receiver 21. A cam roller 63 mounted intermediate the ends of the ejector lever cooperates with cam plates 64 (also shown in FIG. 4) mounted on the operating lever 22. The cam plate 64 has an ejector cam surface 65 and a dwell cam surface 66 which are movable into engagement with the roller 63.

The rod 61 is connected to the ejector packer 62 through a pneumatic motor 70 and a ball crank lever 71. The rod 61 is threaded into the rearward end 72 of the pneumatic motor housing 73. A piston rod 74 projects from the other end of the motor housing and is connected by a pivot pin 75 to one leg of the bell crank lever. Another leg of the bell crank lever 76 is pivoted by a pin 77 to the forward portion 17. The bell crank lever has a forward leg 78 which projects into a recess 79 in the ejector packer. Forward movement of the rod 61 causes the bell crank lever to pivot counterclockwise thereby swinging the forward leg 78 downwardly. The leg 78 carries with it the ejector packer until the ejector packer projects below the receiver 21 into an operative, packing position.

The pneumatic motor is connected to air under pressure by a flexible hose 80 which is connected at its forward end 81 to a fitting 82, the fitting 82 being fixed in the motor housing 73 in alignment with an inlet passageway 84. The other end 85 of the hose is connected to a tube 86 which is mounted in a recess 87 (see also FIG. 4) in the flange 24. The tube 86 is secured at its rearward end 88 to a fitting 89 forming a part of an inlet passageway 90 at the rearward end of the dispenser packer. The inlet passageway 90 is in communication with a longitudinal bore 91 in the fitting 25 which is controlled by the on-off valve 27.

The pneumatic motor includes a piston 95 having an axial bore 96 in communication with a power section 97 of a cylinder 98 formed by the motor housing. The axial bore 96 is connected to radial bores 100. The housing 70 has a pair of exhaust ports 101 which, when aligned with radial bores permit the exhaust of air from the power section 97 of the cylinder 98.

The piston is urged toward the right as viewed in FIG. 2 by a compression spring 102 which bears at one end against a shoulder 103 on the piston. The other end of the spring bears against a nose piece 104 which is threaded into the motor housing 73 at 105. The inner annular edge of the nose piece 104 forms a valve seat 106, the valve seat being engageable by a valve anvil 107 which is connected to the rod 74 by a pin 108. The nose piece 104 has an axial bore 109 which is connected by a radial bore or passageway 110 to atmosphere. There is a considerable clearance between the walls of the bore 109 and the rod 74 which passes therethrough. This clearance permits the passage of air to atmosphere between the rod 74 and the wall of the cylinder 98.

The flow of air can be regulated by a rotary throttle valve 112 which is held in position on the nose piece by a ring 113. The throttle valve 112 which is best shown in FIG. 11 has a bias cut edge 114 normally overlying the radial bore 110. By rotating the valve 112 the orifice formed at the edge of the radial bore 110 can be increased or decreased in size thereby regulating the flow of air therethrough.

The valve anvil 107 is normally urged toward the left as viewed in FIG. 2 by a compression spring 115 located in a recess 116 in the forward end of the nose piece 104. The forward end of the spring bears against a shoulder 117 on the rod 74 while the rearward end of the spring 115 bears against the bottom of the recess 116.

A plastic piston insert 118 on the forward end of the piston 95 reduces the wear on the impacting surface of the piston and anvil valve respectively.

The ejector-packer may be formed in several different ways. Preferably the element has a metallic upper end which is engaged by the bell crank lever 71. The lower end of the element which forms a packer tip has a metallic core 125 surrounded by a rubber sleeve 126. The bore 125 is part of a pin which is threaded as at 127 in the metallic upper end portion. It should be noted that the ejector-packer element 62 is easily removable and can be replaced by another element having a solid rubber lower end or a metallic lower end depending upon the choice of the particular dentist.

The receiver 21 into which the ejector-packer is mounted may be secured to the forward portion 17 of the dispenser 15 by a pivot pin 130. The upper end of the ejector-packer is engageable by a bifurcated spring catch 131 which grips around the outside surface of the upper end of the receiver 21 to hold it in the position shown in FIG. 1. The ejector-packer element may be enclosed in the receiver 21 by a cap 132.

Alternatively, the receiver 21 may be mounted by means of a bayonet slot 135 FIG. 13, which cooperates with a pin 136 fixed in a pair of ears 137 on the receiver. The bifurcated spring catch 131 holds the receiver 21 in the proper position as before. The receiver is placed in position by first bringing it to the position in broken lines shown at 138 so that the pin 136 is received in the slot 135. Thereafter by pivoting the receiver 22 clockwise, the upper end is brought into retaining engagement with the spring catch 131.

MOTOR OPERATION It should be understood that while a pneumatic motor has been shown and described in the preferred form of the invention, other types of motors may be employed. The pneumatic motor is preferred because of its economy of construction and because of the availability of a source of air pressure and the convenience of connecting that source of pressure to the instrument.

In the operation of the pneumatic motor the elements are normally maintained in the condition shown in FIG. after the amalgam has been discharged into the cavity of the patient. In this static condition the compression spring 102 has been compressed and urges the piston 95 toward the power section 97 of the cylinder 98. The piston is prevented from moving in that direction by the vacuum created in the cylinder 98 at the forward end of the piston. The vacuum is maintained as long as the anvil valve 107 remains seated on valve seat 106 to prevent the ingress of atmospheric air into the cylinder.

The application of a slight pressure on the lower end of ejector-packer element 62 by forcing it against the deposited amalgam in the cavity of the tooth causes the bell crank lever 71 to pivot slightly in a clockwise direction. Clockwise movement of the bell crank lever forces the rod 74 rearwardly carrying with it the anvil valve 107 thereby venting the forward end of the cylinder 98 to atmosphere through the axial bore 109 and the radial bore 110. The energy of the spring 102 is re leased to drive the piston 95 rearwardly. When radial passageways 100 in the piston move into alignment with inlet passageway 84, air from the pressure source passes through the radial passageways 100, the longitudinal bore 96 and into the power section 97. The incoming air is at a sufficient pressure level to overcome the resistance of compression spring 102 and drives the piston in a forward direction until it strikes the anvil valve 107. Upon striking the anvil valve 107 the energy of the piston is transmitted to the rod 74 through the bell crank lever 71 to the ejector-packer element 62. As the piston strikes the anvil valve, its radial bores are aligned with exhaust ports 101. The air pressure in power section 97 is thereupon reduced to atmospheric. Since spring 102 can overcome such a low pressure it again drives the piston into the power section. This cycle of operations is repeated with great rapidity to provide the vibratory motion of the packer.

The vibratory force of the packer can be damped through the operation of the rotary control valve 112. That valve is accessible through the opening 18 in the forward portion 17 of the dispenser. Wheen the valve is rotated to close down the volume of air passing through the passageway 110, the piston will move less rapidly in both forward and rearward directions for the speed of the movement of the piston depends directly on the ability of the passageway 110 to accommodate the flow of air to and from the forward end of cylinder 98.

It might be noted that the control knob 112 could be enlarged to project through a slot in the forward portion 117 of the dispenser packer so as to be accessible without removal of the cartridge, the control knob would be accessible for fingertip control and could be employed to stop the operation of the pneumatic motor altogether for those instances wherein the dentist wishes to switch to a completely manual packing operation.

It should also be understood that the pneumatic motor could be eliminated completely and rod 61 could be extended from the ejector lever 55 to the bell crank lever 71. Such an instrument could be provided for the dentist who does not care to use the vibrating feature of the invention but who desires the several other advantageous features including dispensing and manual packing with one instrument.

OPERATION GENERALLY The first step in the operation is to mix up a charge of amalgam preferably with the amalgam mixer disclosed in our co-pending application Ser. No. 145,878 filed Oct. 18, 1961 and now U.S. Pat. No. 3,222,037. There we have disclosed a straight tube into which the amalgam is discharged from the mixer, the straight tube forming a cartridge to be mounted in a breech loading dispenser. Such a cartridge as illustrated at 19 is snapped into position and the air pressure is turned on. Now the dentist is ready to begin the filling operation. In the first stage of the filling operation lever 22 is depressed through a first angle. The downward or counterclockwise movement of the lever as viewed in FIG. 3 brings the rollers 52 secured to the lever into operative engagement with the discharge cam surface 50 of discharge levers 37. The movement of the rollers 52 against that surface forces the discharge levers to swing counterclockwise carrying the pawl 35 in a forward direction. Because the torsion spring 42 forces the pawl into engagement with the ratchet teeth, the forward movement of the pawl will drive the plunger 32 a distance equal to the length of one tooth.

While the rollers 52 are acting on the discharge levers 37, the cam plates 64 on the operating lever are in engagement with the rollers 63 of the ejector levers. However, the surface with which each roller 63 is engaged is the dwell surface 66. The dwell surface is an arc whose radius is the distance between the surface and the pivot axis of the operating lever 22 and as a consequence it exerts no forward pressure on the ejector lever.

Thus, in the first stage of the operation, the plunger 32 has been moved forwardly to force a charge of amalgam into the receiver 21 but since the ejector lever has not moved, the ejector-packer 62 has not moved downwardly to interfere with the introduction of the charge of amalgam.

It is a characteristic of the amalgam that the particles from which it is formed cohere. The charge therefore will adhere to the supply and will not inadvertently drop from the receiver 21.

The device is now in condition for the second stage of the operation. As the lever 22 is depressed through the remainder of its angular movement, the rollers 52 move into engagement with the dwell surface 51 of each discharge lever 37. The dwell surface is the arc of a circle having its radius at the pivot axis of the lever 22. Consequently, the roller 52 can exert no further pressure on the discharge lever 37 so that the discharge lever is held in a fixed position against the roller by the spring 39 and no additional amalgam is discharged into the receiver 21. The movement of the operating lever 22 through this second angle brings the ejector cam surfaces 65 of the plate 64 into engagement with the rollers 63 on the ejector levers. The cam surface 65 forces the ejector lever in a counterclockwise direction driving the rod and motor forwardly. The forward movement in turn pivots the bell crank lever 71 in a counterclockwise direction. The leg 78 of the bell crank lever drives the ejector-packer element 62 from the position shown in FIG. 2 to the position shown in FIG. 10. The movement of the element 62 slices off the projecting charge of amalgam and drops it into the cavity of the tooth while at the same time wiping clean the internal surface of the receiver 21.

When the tip of the element 62 is pressed against the amalgam, the element moves a slight distance into the receiver 21 to pivot the bell crank lever 71 which in turn initiates the operation of the motor as described above.

If desired, at this stage or any other stage, the motor can be turned off by the manipulation of the valve 27 or by rotating rotary control valve 112 to close the passageway 110. As suggested above, the control of the air supply could also be by means of a foot pedal not shown taking the place of the valve 27.

When the charge of amalgam has been adequately packed, the lever 22 is released by the operator and spring 45 forces it to pivot from the position shown in FIG. 8 to the rest position shown in FIG. 3. As the lever moves toward the rest position, the

springs

39 and 57 on the discharge and ejector levers respectively cause those levers to return to their normal positions shown in FIG. 3. In moving to the rest position, the discharge lever 37 carries its pawl 35 over the tooth on which it was seated into position on the next succeeding rearward tooth. Thus the dispenser packer is brought into condition to repeat the operation.

When all of the amalgam has been discharged, the plunger can be returned to its original position as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 by pulling on the retracting lug 30. First, however, the pawl 35 must be lifted out of the path of the ratchet teeth 34. To this end the pawl has a tripping lip 31 which rides on a corresponding tripping abutment formed by the edge corner of the tubular portion 16 of the dispenser packer. When the lever is in its uppermost or rest position, the tripping lip 31 rides over the tripping abutment the pawl is cammed out of the way of the ratchet teeth 34.

I claim:

1. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing,

an amalgam cartridge removably mounted on said housing,

a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said cartridge,

means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber,

a packer element in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer element having a packing tip,

and means for moving said packer element with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam, and

a single lever pivoted to said housing for sequentially operating said expelling means and said packer element.

2. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing,

means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam,

a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply,

means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber,

a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber,

said packer having a packing tip,

a motor mounted in said housing and connected to said packer to vibrate said packer,

and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said chamber while ejecting said amalgam.

3. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing,

means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam,

a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply,

means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber,

said packer having a packing tip,

and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said chamber while ejecting said amalgam, said motor being energizable upon application of pressure on said packing tip. 4. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means on said handle for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, means for vibrating said packer, and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam. 5. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing, means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said said chamber while ejecting said amalgam, a pneumatic motor in said housing and connected to said packer to vibrate said packer, said pneumatic motor including a piston slidably movable in a cylinder, said piston having a port connecting said cylinder to atmosphere, and valve means for varying the size of said port to vary the vibratory rate of said motor. 6. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing, means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, a pneumatic motor in said housing and connected to said packer to vibrate said packer, means for connecting said motor to a source of air under pressure, means for moving said packer with respect to said re ceiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said chamber while ejecting said amalgam, said motor being energizable upon application of pressure on said packing tip,

and means for selectively shutting off the supply of air to said motor.

7. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a handle,

means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said handle,

a plunger insertable into said cartridge for expelling amalgam from one end thereof,

an amalgam receiver having a discharge end from which amalgam is ejected from the dispenser and packer,

an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver and projectable beyond the discharge end of said receiver,

means mounting said receiver generally transversely of said cartridge at the discharge end thereof,

and means including a single operating lever for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver.

8. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing,

means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said housing,

an amalgam receiver,

an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver,

and means for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver,

said operating means including a bell crank lever pivotally mounted in said housing,

said bell crank lever having a leg projecting into a recess in said packer,

and longitudinally movable rod means connected to said bell crank lever to pivot said bell crank lever thereby moving said ejector packer.

9. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a handle,

means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said handle,

said plunger having ratchet teeth on a portion of the surface thereof,

said operating means including a discharge lever,

a pawl pivotally mounted on said lever and spring urged toward said ratchet teeth,

means normally holding said pawl out of engagement with said ratchet teeth,

and means for pulling said plunger away from said cartridge after amalgam has been expelled.

10. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a handle,

means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said handle,

an amalgam receiver,

an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver,

means mounting said receiver generally transversely of said cartridge at the discharge end thereof, and single lever means for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver and project said packer beyond said receiver, means including a vibratory motor connecting said operating member to said packer. 11. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing, means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said housing, a plunger insertable into said cartridge for expelling amalgam from one end thereof, an amalgam receiver, an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver,

said operating means including a bell crank lever pivotally mounted in said housing, I

said bell crank lever having a leg connected to sai packer,

and longitudinally movable rod means connected to said bell crank lever to pivot said bell crank lever thereby moving said ejector packer,

and a pneumatic motor forming a portion of said rod means.

12. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a handle,

means on said handle for receiving a supply of amalgam,

a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply and having a discharge end,

meand including a discharge cam lever pivoted on said handle for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber,

a packer element slidably mounted in said receiver chamber,

means including an ejector cam lever pivoted on said handle for moving said packer element at least to the discharge end of said receiver chamber to eject said amalgam,

and an operating lever pivoted on said handle and having two cam operators for operating said discharge lever and said ejector lever sequentially. 13. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means on said handle for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply and having a discharge end,

means including a discharge cam lever pivoted on said handle for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber,

a packer element slidably mounted in said receiver chamber,

an operating lever pivoted on said handle for operating said discharge lever and said ejector lever sequentially,

a pair of elements on said operating lever in engagement respectively with said discharge lever and said ejector lever,

said elements and levers having cooperating cam surfaces which, upon pivoting said operating lever effect the following sequence:

a. pivot discharge lever b. pivot ejector lever while holding said discharge lever.

14. A device for packing amalgam in a tooth comprising a handle, a packing tip projecting from said han- 35 dle, said packing tip including a metallic portion terminating in a metallic core, and a resilient sleeve mounted on said core to surround said core and to expose one end thereof.

15. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing,

an amalgam cartridge removably mounted on said housing,

a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said cartridge,

means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber,

said packer having a packing tip,

and means, including a lever projecting transversely into the side of said receiver chamber for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packer tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam,

and a single lever pivoted to said housing for sequentially operating said expelling means and said packer moving means.

16. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing,

an amalgam cartridge removably mounted onn said 65 housing,

a receiver chamber pivotally mounted on said housing for receiving a charge of amalgam from said cartridge,

means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber,

said packer having a packing tip,

and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packer tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam,

means for ejecting amalgam from said receiver chamber, said ejecting means including a packer member removably mounted in said receiver chamber and having a tip projectable beyond said receiver chamber into operative position for packing. 19. A dispenser and packer according to claim 1 in which said packing tip comprises a metallic core and a resilient sleeve mounted on said core to surround said and a single lever pivoted to said housing for sequencore and expose one end of said core.

tially operating said expelling means and said packer moving means.

17. A dispenser and packer according to claim 16 in which said packer is removably mounted in said receiver.

18. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising,

a housing,

an amalgam containing cartridge mounted on the forward end of said housing,

a generally cylindrical receiver chamber removably mounted adjacent said cartridge, means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber, and

vibrator means for vibrating said packer element.

Patent No.

June 18, 1974 3,816,922 Dated Inventor(s) Charles J. Thiel, Louis J. Michaels It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column Column Column Column Column Column (SEAL) A ttest' MCCOY M. GIBSON JR.

Attesting Officer 6, line 20,

9., line 36, after "said," delete said 11, line 59, "meand" should be means l2,"line 63, "onn". should be on Signed and sealed this 1st day of October 1974.

C. MARSHALL DANN Commissioner of Eatents 1, patent No. 3,22,037 should be 3,222,03'

Claims

1. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, an amalgam cartridge removably mounted on said housing, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said cartridge, means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber, a packer element in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer element having a packing tip, and means for moving said packer element with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam, and a single lever pivoted to said housing for sequentially operating said expelling means and said packer element.

2. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, a motor mounted in said housing and connected to said packer to vibrate said packer, and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said chamber while ejecting said amalgam.

3. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, a motor mounted in said housing and connected to said packer to vibrate said packer, and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said chamber while ejecting said amalgam, said motor being energizablE upon application of pressure on said packing tip.

4. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means on said handle for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, means for vibrating said packer, and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam.

5. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said said chamber while ejecting said amalgam, a pneumatic motor in said housing and connected to said packer to vibrate said packer, said pneumatic motor including a piston slidably movable in a cylinder, said piston having a port connecting said cylinder to atmosphere, and valve means for varying the size of said port to vary the vibratory rate of said motor.

6. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, means on said housing for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, a pneumatic motor in said housing and connected to said packer to vibrate said packer, means for connecting said motor to a source of air under pressure, means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said chamber while ejecting said amalgam, said motor being energizable upon application of pressure on said packing tip, and means for selectively shutting off the supply of air to said motor.

7. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said handle, a plunger insertable into said cartridge for expelling amalgam from one end thereof, an amalgam receiver having a discharge end from which amalgam is ejected from the dispenser and packer, an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver and projectable beyond the discharge end of said receiver, means mounting said receiver generally transversely of said cartridge at the discharge end thereof, and means including a single operating lever for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver.

8. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said housing, a plunger insertable into said cartridge for expelling amalgam from one end thereof, an amalgam receiver, an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver, means mounting said receiver generally transversely of said cartridge at the discharge end thereof, and means for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver, said operating means including a bell crank lever pivotally mounted in said housing, said bell crank lever having a leg projecting into a recess in said packer, and longitudinally movable rod means connected to said bell crank lever to pivot said bell crank lever thereby moving said ejector packer.

9. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said handle, a plunger insertable into said cartridge for expelling amalgam from one end thereof, said plunger having ratchet teeth on a portion of the surface thereof, an amalgam receiver having a discharge end from which amalgam is ejected from the dispenser and packer, an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver and projectable beyond the discharge end of said receiver, means mounting said receiver generally transversely of said cartridge at the discharge end thereof, and means for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver, said operating means including a discharge lever, a pawl pivotally mounted on said lever and spring urged toward said ratchet teeth, means normally holding said pawl out of engagement with said ratchet teeth, and means for pulling said plunger away from said cartridge after amalgam has been expelled.

10. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said handle, a plunger insertable into said cartridge for expelling amalgam from one end thereof, an amalgam receiver, an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver, means mounting said receiver generally transversely of said cartridge at the discharge end thereof, and single lever means for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver and project said packer beyond said receiver, means including a vibratory motor connecting said operating member to said packer.

11. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, means for mounting an elongated amalgam containing cartridge on said housing, a plunger insertable into said cartridge for expelling amalgam from one end thereof, an amalgam receiver, an ejector packer slidably mounted in said receiver, means mounting said receiver generally transversely of said cartridge at the discharge end thereof, and means for operating said plunger and packer sequentially to expel amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver and then to eject said amalgam from said receiver, said operating means including a bell crank lever pivotally mounted in said housing, said bell crank lever having a leg connected to said packer, and longitudinally movable rod means connected to said bell crank lever to pivot said bell crank lever thereby moving said ejector packer, and a pneumatic motor forming a portion of said rod means.

12. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means on said handle for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supply and having a discharge end, meand including a discharge cam lever pivoted on said handle for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer element slidably mounted in said receiver chamber, means including an ejector cam lever pivoted on said handle for moving said packer element at least to the discharge end of said receiver chamber to eject said amalgam, and an operating lever pivoted on said handle and having two cam operators for operating said discharge lever and said ejector lever sequentially.

13. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a handle, means on said handle for receiving a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said supPly and having a discharge end, means including a discharge cam lever pivoted on said handle for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber, a packer element slidably mounted in said receiver chamber, means including an ejector cam lever pivoted on said handle for moving said packer element at least to the discharge end of said receiver chamber to eject said amalgam, an operating lever pivoted on said handle for operating said discharge lever and said ejector lever sequentially, a pair of elements on said operating lever in engagement respectively with said discharge lever and said ejector lever, said elements and levers having cooperating cam surfaces which, upon pivoting said operating lever effect the following sequence: a. pivot discharge lever b. pivot ejector lever while holding said discharge lever.

14. A device for packing amalgam in a tooth comprising a handle, a packing tip projecting from said handle, said packing tip including a metallic portion terminating in a metallic core, and a resilient sleeve mounted on said core to surround said core and to expose one end thereof.

15. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, an amalgam cartridge removably mounted on said housing, a receiver chamber for receiving a charge of amalgam from said cartridge, means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, and means, including a lever projecting transversely into the side of said receiver chamber for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packer tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam, and a single lever pivoted to said housing for sequentially operating said expelling means and said packer moving means.

16. A combined dispenser and packer for amalgam comprising, a housing, an amalgam cartridge removably mounted onn said housing, a receiver chamber pivotally mounted on said housing for receiving a charge of amalgam from said cartridge, means for expelling amalgam from said cartridge into said receiver chamber, a packer in said receiver chamber for ejecting said amalgam from said receiver chamber, said packer having a packing tip, and means for moving said packer with respect to said receiver chamber to project said packer tip beyond said chamber into operative position for packing while ejecting said amalgam, and a single lever pivoted to said housing for sequentially operating said expelling means and said packer moving means.

19. A dispenser and packer according to claim 1 in which said packing tip comprises a metallic core and a resilient sleeve mounted on said core to surround said core and expose one end of said core.

20. A dental instrument comprising, a housing, supply means on said housing for holding a supply of amalgam, a receiver chamber on said housing, means for expelling amalgam into said receiver chamber from said supply means, a packer element having a packing tip in said receiver chamber, means for moving said packer element with respect to said reCeiver chamber to project said packing tip into operative position beyond said receiver chamber while ejecting said amalgam, and vibrator means for vibrating said packer element.