Apparatus and method for curing materials with radiation

摘要

A hand held dental instrument for curing light-curable compounds including a housing with a handle portion and a barrel portion configured for being manipulated for positioning a tip end of the barrel portion proximate to a curing site. A plurality of solid state, light-emitting elements are mounted in a collective array to collectively form a beam of light. The array of elements is operable for collectively emitting a beam of light having wavelengths within a band of wavelengths and at a power to cure a dental compound. The array of elements is positioned proximate to the tip end of the barrel portion and the emitted light beam from the array illuminating a curing site. A radiation focusing device is positioned proximate the array of elements at the tip end of the barrel portion to focus the beam of light before it illuminates the curing site.

主权项

1. A hand held dental instrument for curing light-curable compounds curable in the mouth of a patient comprising:
a housing having a handle portion for being held by a user and a barrel portion, the barrel portion configured for being manipulated for positioning a tip end of the barrel portion proximate to a curing site for curing a light curable compound; a plurality of solid state, light-emitting elements mounted in a collective array on a substrate to collectively form a beam of light, each element including at least one semiconductor junction, the array of elements operable for collectively emitting a beam of light having wavelengths within a band of wavelengths and at a power to cure a dental compound; the array of elements being positioned proximate to the tip end of the barrel portion; a radiation focusing device positioned proximate the array of elements at the tip end of the barrel portion to focus the beam of light, the radiation focusing device including a lens with a continuous material layer formed on the substrate and over the semiconductor junctions of the array of elements to encapsulate the semiconductor junctions, such that the beam of light that comes from the lens directly illuminates the curing site for a more efficient transfer of the light to the curing site.