I-Corps: Anti-Fogging Dental Mirror

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是改进牙镜的开发。这些镜子是牙科行业中使用的关键工具，用于从常规清洁到诊断再到外科准备的一系列目的。在口腔内保持良好的能见度对这些目的至关重要。镜口和镜面之间的温差会导致雾化。这项技术通过防雾牙镜提高患者龋齿的可见度，改善口腔健康。这个项目有可能通过让学生接触到各种各样的以患者为导向的研究来提高他们的临床研究技能。该项目可以提供与患者为中心的研究相关的各种教学学习机会和内部案例演示。这个i-Corps项目基于牙镜设计的开发，该设计具有加热牙镜表面的加热元件和用于在高压灭菌后保持可操作性的设备，这对口腔内应用至关重要。加热元件由一个带有镍铬合金加热元件的反射镜和一个热敏电阻组成。气流净化机构使用空气调节器和空气压缩机来产生受控的气流和压力，将水分从镜子表面吹走。旋转诱导清洁使用高速旋转机制将冷凝推向镜子的边缘。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of modified dental mirrors. These mirrors are a critical tool used in the dental industry and are used for a range of purposes from routine cleaning to diagnosis to surgical preparation. Maintaining good visibility within the mouth is critical for these purposes. The temperature difference between the mouth and the mirror surface leads to fogging. This technology improves the visibility of tooth decay in patients to improve oral health through an anti-fogging dental mirror. This project has the potential to enhance student clinical research skills by exposing them to a wide variety of patient-oriented research. This project could offer a variety of didactic learning opportunities and in-house case presentations that are relevant to patient-oriented research.This I-Corps project is based on the development of a dental mirror design with a heating element to heat the surface of the dental mirror and a device to maintain operability after autoclave sterilization, critical for an intraoral application. The heating element consists of a mirror with the nichrome heating element, and a thermistor. The air flow cleansing mechanism uses an air regulator and air compressor to create controlled air flow and pressure to blow moisture away from the mirror surface. Rotation-induced cleansing uses a high-speed rotating mechanism to push condensation towards the edges of the mirror.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.