Abstract: A portable dental apparatus for treating patients or animals in remote locations comprises a dental drill driven by an air turbine; a pressurized air supply for driving the turbine and for pressurizing a water supply; and connections and valving for operating the drill and cooling it with a stream of water from the water supply and for squirting air or water from the air and water supplies with a squirt nozzle. Tile pressurized air supply derives its air from manual pumping, preferably with a double-action pump and a check valve to minimize fluctuations in the air flow rate. Such a pump either forms part of the air supply or is used to fill an inflatable container. The air supply may consist of the inflatable container alone, or of one or two double-action pumps, or of the container and one pump.

Abstract: A pair of parallel flexible beams, here illustrated as flat steel springs, extend forwardly from a handle. One end of one spring beam is formed at a right angle to provide a laterally-extending tissue-engageable indentor which passes through, and extends beyond a forked opening in the end of the other spring beam. Separate strain gages are mounted on the spring beams. When the indentor is pressed into tissue, deflection of the indentor beam is determined by change in electrical characteristics of the corresponding strain gage through a bridge circuit and is indicated in a digital read-out display on the handle. When the indentor beam deflects sufficiently for the end of the forked beam to contact the tissue, and begin to deflect, the resulting change in electrical characteristics of the strain gage on the forked beam generates a lock signal which "freezes" or locks the reading in the read-out display as of the time of initial deflection of the forked beam.