The design and use of dental articulators in the United States from 1840 to 1970

Abstract

Gathered from United States Patent records, dental literature and personal communication are many bits of information concerning dental articulator use and design which have been put into this single source. It developes a new classification of dental articulators into eighteen types. This classification is based upon a sorting of mandibular movements recognized by the dental profession during one hundred thirty years of history from 1840-1970. Each classified type demonstrates how different designers of dental articulators tried to duplicate these jaw movements within mechanical devices. This investigation should be of interest to future designers of dental articulators since history proves that many designs are repeated several years after previous investigators have shown earlier like designs to be valueless. Also of interest is the magnitude of effort and thought by the many dental investigators of the past toward understanding mandibular movement and constructing mechanical devices to duplicate these movements. 235 United States Patent Letters applicable to dental articulators are reviewed in this thesis.