Dental tool

Claim 1

A dental tool for use with a dental handpiece and having multiple spaced apart working members comprising: a. a shank for engaging a chuck of a dental handpiece; b. a post extending axially of said shank; c. a plurality of coaxial circular working members sequentially disposed along said post, said working members being in spaced apart relation relative to each other; and d. an abrasive covering at least a portion of the surfaces of said circular working members, wherein adjacent ones of said circular working members define annular voids therebetween, with the circular members on opposite sides of the annular voids having surfaces that are undercut between said post and peripheral surfaces of the members such that the axial distance across each said annular void between opposite undercut surfaces decreases from a maximum at the post to a minimum at an associated said peripheral surface, wherein said abrasive appears on all exposed working surfaces of the circular members, wherein there are a sufficient number of said circular members so that there are provided at least three said peripheral surfaces, and wherein said three peripheral surfaces and the undercut surfaces respectively comprise means whereby the tool may be used to first grind into a tooth in at least three spaced apart locations determined by the spaced apart peripheral surfaces of the working members, leaving at least a plurality of intermediate tooth portions, and then be used to chip away the controlled tooth amount comprising the plurality of intermediate tooth portions, by axial movement of the tool in a back-and-forth motion for said undercut surfaces of the working members to engage and undercut the intermediate tooth portions under conditions of controlled chipping.

Claim 14

A method of removing tooth material comprising the steps of: a. selecting a dental handpiece fitted with a tool having a plurality of spaced apart circular working members, spaced along a post and with the members haVing undercut surfaces between their peripheral surfaces and the post that are more greatly undercut nearer the post, and each having abrasive on its surfaces; b. utilizing the tool to grind a plurality of at least three grooves of a preselected depth in said tooth material, thereby creating at least two intermediate ridges in said tooth material; and c. utilizing said tool to chip away with controlled chipping the intermediate ridges in the tooth material remaining between said grooves by exerting transverse forces on the sides of said grooves, and moving the tool axially in a back-and-forth motion, thereby effecting the removal of the intermediate tooth material.

Claim 15

A method of removing tooth material comprising the steps of: a. selecting a dental handpiece fitted with a tool having a plurality of spaced apart circular working members, spaced along a post and with the members haVing undercut surfaces between their peripheral surfaces and the post that are more greatly undercut nearer the post, and each having abrasive on its surfaces; b. utilizing the tool to grind a plurality of at least three grooves of a preselected depth in said tooth material, thereby creating at least two intermediate ridges in said tooth material; and c. utilizing said tool to chip away with controlled chipping the intermediate ridges in the tooth material remaining between said grooves by exerting transverse forces on the sides of said grooves, and moving the tool axially in a back-and-forth motion, thereby effecting the removal of the intermediate tooth material.