Patents by Inventor James D. Clearly

James D. Clearly has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Hand instrument for detaching orthodontic brackets from teeth
    Patent number: 7549860
    Abstract: A hand instrument for debonding an adhesively bonded orthodontic bracket from a patient's tooth includes two jaws, each of which includes a contact pad for engaging opposite sides of the bracket. When the jaws are moved together, at least a majority of the area of each contact pad that contacts the side of the bracket is located beneath the archwire slot of the bracket in a lingual direction in order to facilitate fracture of the adhesive bond and release of the bracket from the tooth surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2009
    Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company
    Inventors: Philip P. Soo, Fay T. Salmon, John A. Verdouw, Ming-Lai Lai, James D. Clearly