Robot and method for bending orthodontic archwires and other medical devices
A robotic bending apparatus for bending archwires and other types of elongate, bendable medical devices into a desired configuration includes a first gripping tool and a moveable gripping tool. The first gripping tool can be either fixed with respect to a base or table for the robot or positioned at the end of robot am. The moveable gripping tool is mounted to the end of a moveable robot arm having a proximal portion also mounted to the base. The robot preferably comprises a six axis bending robot, in which the distal end of the moveable arm can move relative to the fixed gripping tool about three translational axes and three rotational axes. The gripping tools preferably incorporate force sensors which are used to determine overbends needed to get the desired final shape of the archwire. The robot may also include a resistive heating system in which current flows through the wire while the wire is held in a bent condition to heat the wire and thereby retain the bent shape of the wire. A magazine for holding a plurality of straight archwires needing to be bent and a conveyor system for receiving the wires after the bending process is complete are also described. The robot bending system is able to form archwires with any required second and third order bends quickly and with high precision. As such, it is highly suitable for use in a precision appliance-manufacturing center manufacturing a large number of archwires (or other medical devices or appliances) for a distributed base of clinics.
1 . A manufactured orthodontic archwire, comprising:
a wire,
wherein the wire, in a relaxed state, has a generally arcuate configuration corresponding to an archform for a particular patient to receive the wire;
wherein the wire further comprises a series of straight slot segments having precision lengths, each of the segments for placement into a slot of a bracket bonded to a tooth of the particular patient and, as needed, to allow for sliding of the bracket along such straight segments, the straight slot segments connected to each other by curved segments, comprising bends and/or twists, each forming a precision geometrical relationship between adjacent straight segments of the wire; and
wherein at least one pair of adjacent straight slot segments are connected to each other by a curved segment comprising a combination of a bend and a twist forming a precision geometrical relationship between the adjacent straight segments in the wire.
2 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire comprises a material having a rectangular cross-section.
3 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire comprises a material having a round cross-section.
4 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire comprises a material having a square cross-section.
5 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire is made from a shape-memory alloy.
6 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire is made from stainless steel.
7 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of clam 1 , wherein the wire is made from a polymeric or plastic material.
8 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire is made from a titanium molybdenum alloy.
9 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire is made from polymeric or plastic material.
10 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 9 , wherein the polymeric or plastic material is selected from the group consisting of thermoplastics, duroplastics, polyacrylic plastics, epoxy plastics and fiber reinforced composites.
11 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire is made from glass fiber materials.
12 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein the wire further comprises a loop in the wire.
13 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein a stop is welded to the wire.
14 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , further comprising a marking in the wire.
15 . The manufactured orthodontic archwire of claim 1 , wherein a plurality of adjacent straight slot segments are connected to each other by a single curved segment comprising a combination of a bend and a twist forming a precision geometrical relationship between the adjacent straight segments in the wire.
16 . A robotic wire bending system comprising a bending robot and a robot controller, the bending robot producing a multitude of customized archwires for a multitude of patients, each of the archwires comprising an archwire as recited in claim 1 .
17 . The robotic wire bending system of claim 16 , wherein the bending robot comprises at least one gripping tool for gripping the wire, the system further comprising a heating element, to heat the gripping tool, and a controller for controlling the heating element.