Abstract: A wire twister designed for ordinary one-handed use which provides improved positive gripping action to the wire. A rotatable shaft having a wire clenching tip portion is rotatably mounted on a frame. The tip portion includes an open slot for receiving the wire ends, a scored seat region and a spring biased tapered scored plug. A rod attached to the rear of the plug extends lengthwise of the rotatable shaft to the rear of the frame, where it is connected to a thumb operated lever pivotably mounted on the frame for retracting the plug away from the seat region when installing the wire ends. The shaft is rotatable by a conventional transmission mechanism operated by a trigger located forward of a handle portion secured to the frame. The wire clenching tip is relatively small so that the object being secured by the wire is not obscured from view.

Abstract: A surgical wire guide for facilitating the installation of surgical wire around structures to form a ligature. A curved guide has a groove extending along the length thereof and terminates in either a blind, undercut tip portion or an apertured tip portion. A surgical wire is received in the groove and is retained in the tip portion by either the blind undercut or the wall surrounding the aperture. The other end of the guide from the tip end is configured so that the adjacent portion of the surgical wire in the groove can be clamped to the body of the guide by a hand held clamping device. The guide provides a relatively rigid carrier for enabling the surgical wire to be maneuvered through the soft tissue without tearing the tissue and around the structures to be wired.

Abstract: A wire twister designed for ordinary one-handed use which provides improved positive gripping action to the wire. A rotatable shaft having a wire clenching tip portion is rotatably mounted on a frame. The tip portion includes an open slot for receiving the wire ends, a scored seat region and a spring biased tapered scored plug. A rod attached to the rear of the plug extends lengthwise of the rotatable shaft to the rear of the frame, where it is connected to a thumb operated lever pivotably mounted on the frame for retracting the plug away from the seat region when installing the wire ends. The shaft is rotatable by a conventional transmission mechanism operated by a trigger located forward of a handle portion secured to the frame. The wire clenching tip is relatively small so that the object being secured by the wire is not obscured from view.

Abstract: A dental tool for facilitating gingival retraction.A shank coupled to a handle terminates in a working end member having a curved edge shaped to generally conform to the curvature of the root surface of a tooth at the gingival level and also to the contour of the marginal gingiva. The exact shape of the curved edge varies with the type of tooth for which the tool is designed.The tool can also be used for shielding the gingiva from a cutting tool working close to the gingiva, and as an aid in installing a rubber dental dam.

Abstract: A dental tool for assisting in cavity repair in two adjacent teeth by facilitating removal of matrix bands therefrom after installation of filler restoration material.The tool includes a shank terminating in a bifurcated end portion, each branch of the bifurcated end portion terminating in a working surface having an inner edge. The inner edges of the working surfaces are separated by a gap having a width sufficiently large to accommodate a dental matrix band and sufficiently narrow to enable the working surfaces to maintain tight common interproximal contact with the filler restoration material in adjacent teeth.

Abstract: A signaling device consists of single or multiple rows or banks of lights extending the entire width of both the front (FIG. 13) and rear (FIG. 14) of a vehicle that are alternately turned on and off in such a precise, timed, sequential manner (FIGS. 1-7) so as to give the visual effect of a row of lights moving or traveling in either the right or left direction, moving sign style, depending on which direction the driver of the vehicle indicates. The system also consists of a slowing or stopping warning feature whereas the rear row or rows of lights (112), upon activation of the brake pedal, divides its traveling or running effect from the centerline toward both the right and left sides simultaneously (FIGS. 10-12), giving the visual effect of the rear bank of lights coming toward the observer. With the use of multiple rows of lights (FIGS. 9-12 and 14), the patterns of lights may be staggered or sequenced to create vertical bars (FIG. 9), chevron-shaped arrows (FIG. 10), or diagonal bars (FIGS.

Abstract: A simple one-piece brace (20) provides rigidity to the vertical back of a director's chair (10). The brace consists of a curved length of heavy steel wire with a loop (22) on each end. Brace (20) is made long enough so that each of its end loops (22) fits over the respective two round uprights (12) of the chair. The brace is installed by removing the canvas backpiece (14) of the chair and fitting the end loops of the brace over the respective uprights and then re-installing the backpiece. The brace is curved so that it does not interfere with the back of a person sitting in the chair.