Abstract: A template for positioning a door edge guard on a vehicle is disclosed. The template includes a main body, an edge, which can form a cutout, which aligns with an item of known fixed position on the vehicle, such as a door handle, and a stop extending from the main body of the template to position one end of the door edge guard. The template is taped onto the vehicle or an easily removed adhesive is used or the template is magnetic. A method for positioning a door edge guard on a vehicle, includes the steps of creating a template having a main body, a cutout formed in the main body to fit over an item of known fixed position on the vehicle, and a stop extending from the main body, positioning the template so that the cutout fits over the item of known fixed position on the vehicle and the stop extends to the edge of the door, which is to receive the door edge guard, and positioning the door edge guard on the edge of the door so the one end of the door edge guard abuts the stop.

Abstract: A door edge guard for protecting the trailing edge of a door having a seam covered by sealant on the interior of the door includes a metal body having an internal portion facing the trailing edge and an exterior portion, a curved base adapted to fit over the trailing edge, an exterior leg extending from the base to fit against the exterior of the door, an interior leg to fit against that part of the interior of the door extending from the base to near the sealant, and an insulating cover coextruded or laminated onto the metal body to prevent contact between the metal body and metal in the door. The end of the leg of the metal body on the exterior of the door is folded to form a bead, but the interior leg is straight. The interior leg is also shorter than the exterior leg, the length of the interior leg typically being the length of the exterior leg to the folded end of the bead.

Abstract: An apparatus is disclosed for disinfecting or sanitizing a handle or a handrail. A sanitizer substantially surrounds a portion of a handle or handrail that would come into contact with a user of the handle or handrail, and the sanitizer and handle or handrail are moved with respect to each other so that the sanitizer sanitizes substantially the entire portion of the handle or handrail that would come into contact with a user of the handle or handrail. In one arrangement, an absorbent applicator substantially surrounds a longitudinal portion of the handle or handrail, a disinfectant is in the absorbent applicator, and a gripper holds the absorbent applicator in contact with the handle or handrail. The gripper is capable of sliding longitudinally with respect to the handle or handrail, thereby distributing the disinfectant onto the handle or handrail.

Abstract: A method for making a dental appliance is disclosed, including affixing a first blank piece of material to a second blank piece of material forming a combined blank. The first blank piece of material is substantially softer than the second blank piece of material. The combined blank is then placed over a dental cast with the first blank piece of material faces the dental cast, and a dental appliance is formed by using a thermal form suck-down of the combined blank over the dental cast with the first blank piece of material in contact with the teeth of the dental cast. Finally, the dental appliance is removed from the dental cast. The dental appliance can be trimmed while it is on the dental cast or after it is removed.

Abstract: A dental arch bite registration device in the form of a thin disk having a plan shape corresponding to that portion of opposing dental arches whose registration is to be taken. The disk has an outer perimeter frame of polymeric material. Polymeric bite registration material occupies space bounded by the outer perimeter frame, and is joined with and supported by the outer perimeter frame. The device may be made by injection molding the outer perimeter frame, and then injection molding the bite registration material onto the frame. It may also be made extruding bite registration material in a shape corresponding to the plan shape of the bite registration material, applying frame material to the perimeter of the extruded bite registration material, and then slicing a device of desired thickness from the framed bite registration material.

Abstract: An intra-oral appliance that is associated with a pair of dental arches and has an attaching strap extending from a mesial region thereof for attachment to an article that is worn by the user of the appliance, characterized in that the attaching strap includes multiple layers.

Abstract: A multi-laminar impression material is supported in a tray to form an impression tray assembly. The impression material comprises two lamina that are bonded together. One lamina is relatively softer than the other. The one lamina faces the arch while the other lamina is disposed against the tray. The impression material may also be bonded to the tray. In a specific preferred embodiment, the tray and both lamina of the impression material are ethylene vinyl acetate.

Abstract: A dental arch bite registration device in the form of a thin disk having a plan shape corresponding to that portion of opposing dental arches whose registration is to be taken. The disk has an outer perimeter frame of polymeric material for peripherally bounding, as viewed in plan, an open space where that portion of opposing dental arches whose registration is to be taken will register. Polymeric bite registration material is joined with, and supported by, the outer perimeter frame, extending across and filling the open space, so that when the device is used to take a bite registration, that portion of opposing dental arches whose registration is being taken will create a bite registration in only the bite registration material, and not in the outer perimeter frame.

Abstract: A mouthguard that has an integral tethering strap is packaged by forming a loop at the distal end of the strap and then folding the strap back over the front of the U-shaped mouthguard body so as to nest the loop within the U-shaped body. The mouthguard is then ensealed in a transparent plastic clamshell enclosure. The enclosure is assembled to a paperboard carrier which contains cut-outs that are symmetrical about a line of folding for a flap portion of the carrier. When the flap is folded back onto the carrier, the margin of the clamshell is trapped. A second flap opposite the first one is also folded back onto the same side of the carrier as the first flap. The opposing faces of this second flap and the carrier contain a warranty card and a warranty certificate.

Abstract: An intra-oral appliance that is associated with a pair of dental arches having a trough for receiving an upper dental arch. A second layer in a covering relation to the first layer opposite the trough, the second layer being relatively harder than the first layer. A third layer in covering relation to the second layer opposite the first layer. The third layer is relatively harder that the second layer.

Abstract: A method of making a mouthguard by fabricating a relatively more rigid main body of a material, such as ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer for example, and directly molding onto the troughs of the main body a liner which is of a relatively less rigid material, such as ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer for example, that bonds directly to the material of the main body to form a mouthguard in which the trough liner is tooth-impressionable after having been so bonded. The mouthguard has a tri-laminar occlusal wall composed of the lower durometer liner sandwiching the higher durometer main body material, and the mouthguard exhibits surprising impact-absorbing characteristics that are helpful in protecting certain cranio-facial bone structure in response to certain impacts.

Abstract: A face bow wherein injection-molded plastic is used to form the joint between an outer bow and an inner arch. The outer bow also contains a plastic coating that provides a desired color other than that of bare metal which it covers. A clear-coat layer may also be applied over the colored layer. The plastic coating of the outer bow and the injection-molded plastic that forms the joint may have the same color.

Abstract: Multi-laminar bite registration devices are fabricated from ethylene vinyl acetate. Injection molding is used to bond one lamina to another without the use of separate adhesive. The lamina have different durometers. In one embodiment, two relatively low durometer lamina are injection molded onto opposite surfaces of a relatively higher durometer lamina. In another, a relatively lower durometer lamina is injection molded onto a relatively higher durometer lamina.

Abstract: A container for a mouthguard has two closed positions. In one of these, there is an opening between confronting margins of the top and bottom halves of the container that allows an integral attaching strap of the mouthguard to pass through. Intra-oral devices such as mouthguards can be customized by using a manually operated electric gun to progressively melt a stick of pharmaceutical hot melt material and dispense the melted material onto a device, such as to fill a space in a trough of a mouthguard. Such a gun may have two barrels for melting sticks of different durometer, or a single barrel for melting a dual-durometer stick. The gun also has a quick-attach, quick-release mechanism for interchanging different dispensing nozzles.

Abstract: A mouthguard that possesses a number of unique features including: a two part main body in which the two parts are exactly identical so that they can be fabricated by the same mold; the main body has internal pockets that provide for the placement of a lower durometer material within the main body, particularly the molar regions; the main body is constructed in two parts to provide for the inclusion of air/saliva ducts and the attachment of a separate attaching strap; the relative thicknesses of the liner material and the main body material can be varied in particular ways at the occlusal wall; the buccal wall has pocketry containing different durometer material; a bite locator is provided; and the liner forms a significant portion of the buccal wall as a smooth rounded edge.

Abstract: A mouthguard that has an integral tethering strap is packaged by forming a loop at the distal end of the strap and then folding the strap back over the front of the U-shaped mouthguard body so as to nest the loop within the U-shaped body. The mouthguard is then ensealed in a transparent plastic clamshell enclosure. The enclosure is assembled to a paperboard carrier which contains cut-outs that are symmetrical about a line of folding for a flap portion of the carrier. When the flap is folded back onto the carrier, the margin of the clamshell is trapped. A second flap opposite the first one is also folded back onto the same side of the carrier as the first flap. The opposing faces of this second flap and the carrier contain a warranty card and a warranty certificate.

Abstract: A metallic orthodontic wire is coated with a layer of tooth color material and a clear layer of material covers the tooth color material to allow the tooth color material to be seen through the layer of clear material. A preferred material for the tooth color layer is a plastic such as polyethylene or polyurethane. A preferred material for the clear layer is a silicone elastomer.

Abstract: A method of making a dental appliance made of an elasticized acrylic containing embedded nylon fibers including the steps of heating the thermoplastic material, forming it onto a dental cast, and cooling it to a rigid state. The fibers may be arranged in various patterns within the elasticized acrylic and it is the fibers which act on the arch through the elasticized acrylic. The appliance may be used as a tooth positioner, a retainer, a splint, or a base plate.

Abstract: A mouthguard that has a body having upper and lower troughs conforming generally to the upper and lower arches. Liners of impression material are disposed in the respective troughs for conformance to the actual impressions of the teeth of the arches. The body has an occlusal wall that contains a series of spaced-apart air/saliva ducts extending in a lingual/buccal sense to establish lingual/buccal fluid communication. The liners are mechanically interlocked to the mouthguard body by interlocking material that extend along the edges of the respective troughs and also by integral connections which extend through the occlusal wall between the two troughs in bridging portions of the occlusal wall that separate the air/saliva ducts.

Abstract: A metallic orthodontic wire is coated with a layer of tooth color material and a clear layer of material covers the tooth color material to allow the tooth color material to be seen through the layer of clear material. A preferred material for the tooth color layer is a plastic such as polyethylene or polyurethane. A preferred material for the clear layer is a silicone elastomer. Several processes for fabricating various embodiments of coated metal orthodontic wires are also disclosed.