Telescopic Stick For Paralytics

Abstract

A telescopic mouth-held stick for paralytics consists of a mouthpiece for retention in the mouth and covering the clinical crowns of all of the teeth and supporting a telescopically extensible stick and an actuating mechanism therefor. Control means for extending or retracting the telescopic portion of the stick are incorporated in the mouthpiece and/or on the actuating mechanism so that patients using the device may conveniently adjust the length thereof for typing, controlling wheel chair switches, turning pages of books, operating switches of lights, radio, TV, or the like.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to sticks used by paralytics for actuating various devices including electrical switches, typewriters, etc.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Prior structures of this type have included various sticks directly held by the patient's teeth and sticks attached to mouthpieces which could be conveniently held in a patient's mouth. A description of such devices may be found in The American Journal of Occupational Therapy of December 1958 on pages 23 through 25 thereof.

This invention provides a simple light weight, easily manipulated telescopic stick which enables a patient to extend or retract the stick and thereby vary the effective length thereof at will greatly improving the operation of the stick as it can be readily adjusted lengthwise to reach the various articles to be activated or moved thereby.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A telescopic mouth-held stick for paralytics consists of a mouthpiece having an actuating mechanism carried thereby which in turn mounts a fixed tubular stick which in turn is provided with a telescopically arranged tubular extension. An elongated screw rod extends axially of the fixed tubular stick and into the telescopic extension where it is engaged by a follower which is secured to the extension. An electric motor is mounted in the actuating mechanism along with batteries and microswitches for controlling the motor, and these in turn are actuated by members extending through the mouthpiece into the proximity of the patient's tongue for actuation thereby. Alternately the switch means may have exterior controls .

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top plan view with parts broken away and parts in cross section illustrating the telescopic mouth-held stick.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation with parts broken away and parts in cross section.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In the form of the invention chosen for illustration the telescopic mouth-held stick for paralytics comprises a mouthpiece and which is made to fit the patient's mouth and tooth pattern as by a dentist taking an open bite impression in a heated wax block, the block being chilled to retain the desired impression and subsequently shaped, invested, and removed from the investment whereupon a duplicate mouthpiece can be cast in the investment from a suitable material such as methyl methacrylate.

The mouthpiece end as illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawings has the impressions of the patient's teeth therein as indicated by the numeral 11, and it is of a shortened Y shape defining an area for the patient's tongue which may be used to actuate push rods 12 which in turn extend through an opening 13 in the mouthpiece and communicate with an actuating mechanism housing 14 and more specifically with a pair of microswitches 15 therein. Housing 14 includes a battery chamber 16 in which a plurality of batteries 17 may be positioned together with contact members 18 engaging the same. Housing 14 also mounts an electric motor 19, the drive shaft 20 of which is directly connected to or takes the form of a threaded rod 21. It is supported adjacent the motor by a bearing block 22 and a mounting block 23 is positioned in the housing 14 and secures an elongated tubular stick 24 which extends outwardly therefrom on the axial center line of the housing 14 of the motor 19. A tubular extension 25 is slidably mounted within the tubular stick 24 so as to form a desirable and usable extension thereof and it in turn is provided at its outermost end with a resiliant tip 26. A follower 27 is positioned within the tubular extension 25 adjacent its innermost end and secured thereto and it threadably engages the threaded rod 21 which extends therethrough. It will thus be seen that rotation of the threaded rod 21 as by the motor 19 will cause the follower 27 and the tubular extension 25 to move in one direction or the other depending upon the direction of rotation of the drive shaft 20 of the motor 19. The motor 19 is reversible and circuit wires are connected with the microswitches 15 and the batteries 17 so that it may be operated in either directional rotation and thereby move the telescopic extension 25 outwardly so as to extend the effective length of the mouth-held stick or shorten the same as desired.

In FIGS. 1 and 2 drawings the battery compartment is shown with a plurality of disc-type batteries 17 therein and it will occur to those skilled in the art that the energy source for the motor 19 may comprise different batteries which are preferrably rechargeable. In FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings a recharging connection plug 28 is shown connected into the electrical circuits in the actuating mechanism so that the battery 17 may be recharged from an exterior source not shown. Still other modifications can mount the batteries externally of the device or provide a power cord to a remotely located power source. In the form of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings the telescopic extension 25 is controlled by the tongue of the patient by engaging enlarged end portions on the push rods 12 which are located in the patient's mouth and operable by the patient's tongue. Push rods 12 as herein and before described actuate the microswitches 15 which in turn control the actuation of and the direction of rotation of the drive shaft 20 of the motor 19.

Those skilled in the art will thus observe that a telescopic mouth-held stick for paralytics has been disclosed which may be readily held and actuated by the paralytic so as to change the effective length of the stick at will.

Although but two embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention, and having thus described my invention what I claim is.

Claims

I claim:

1. A mouth-held telescopic stick consisting of a mouthpiece, for retention in the mouth of a user and covering the clinical crowns of all the teeth, an actuating mechanism secured thereto, and an elongated tubular stick extending outwardly therefrom, a telescopic extension slidably engaging said elongated tubular stick, said actuating mechanism including means for moving said telescopic extension inwardly and outwardly of said elongated tubular stick and means in said mouthpiece for controlling said actuating mechanism.

2. The mouth-held telescopic stick set forth in claim 1 and wherein said actuating mechanism includes a power source, an electric motor, switch means for controlling the same, and circuit wires connecting said power source, switch means, and motor, said means for controlling said actuating mechanism including actuating members extending from said switch means through said mouthpiece.

3. The mouth-held telescopic stick set forth in claim 1 and wherein said actuating means includes a source of rotary motion, a follower secured in said telescopic extension, a threaded rod in said elongated tubular stick engaging said follower and connected to said source of rotary motion.

4. The mouth-held telescopic stick set forth in claim 1 and wherein the means for controlling said actuating mechanism includes push rods extending through said mouthpiece.

5. The mouth-held telescopic stick of claim 1 in which the mouthpiece is shaped for full dentition coverage.

6. The mouth-held telescopic stick of claim 1 wherein the means for controlling said actuating mechanism includes control members extending outwardly of said actuating mechanism through openings in said mouthpiece and terminating within the area of said mouthpiece.