US 11,813,140 B2
Fixed hybrid dental attachment assembly and methods of use
Richard Robert Allen, Oceanside, CA (US); Christopher Michael Gervais, San Marcos, CA (US); and James Irwin Johnson, Temecula, CA (US)
Assigned to ZEST IP HOLDINGS, LLC, Carlsbad, CA (US)
Filed by ZEST IP HOLDINGS, LLC, Carlsbad, CA (US)
Filed on Oct. 22, 2020, as Appl. No. 17/078,045.
Application 17/078,045 is a division of application No. 15/904,249, filed on Feb. 23, 2018, granted, now 10,842,597.
Application 15/904,249 is a continuation of application No. 15/009,713, filed on Jan. 28, 2016, granted, now 9,931,181, issued on Apr. 3, 2018.
Application 15/009,713 is a continuation in part of application No. 14/806,616, filed on Jul. 22, 2015, granted, now 9,827,074, issued on Nov. 28, 2017.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/028,314, filed on Jul. 23, 2014.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/027,780, filed on Jul. 22, 2014.
Prior Publication US 2021/0038348 A1, Feb. 11, 2021
Int. Cl. A61C 8/00 (2006.01); A61C 13/20 (2006.01); A61C 3/16 (2006.01)
CPC A61C 8/0053 (2013.01) [A61C 3/168 (2013.01); A61C 8/006 (2013.01); A61C 8/0062 (2013.01); A61C 8/0068 (2013.01); A61C 13/20 (2013.01)] 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of attaching a dental appliance in a patient's mouth, comprising:
securing a plurality of abutments to spaced implants or tooth roots in a patient's mouth, each abutment having an outer opening and a socket extending inward from the outer opening, the socket having an annular inward projection forming a barb;
securing a plurality of denture attachment housings in the dental appliance at predetermined spaced intervals corresponding to the respective spacings between respective abutments secured in the patient's mouth, each denture attachment housing having an open end and an inner cavity extending inward from the open end and having an inner end wall; and
engaging convex curved surfaces of compressible heads of a plurality of retention members into the sockets of respective aligned abutments, each retention member having a first end secured in the inner end wall of a respective denture attachment housing, and frictionally engaging the convex curved surface portion of each compressible head with the annular inward projection of the respective abutment socket to form a frictional fit, whereby the barbs of the respective abutment sockets bite into the compressible material of the convex curved surface portions of the compressible heads in an attached configuration to resist removal of the retention members from the sockets.