Orametrix, Inc.

Dentsply Sirona Inc.

Friedrich Riemeier

Rohit Sachdeva

Thomas Weise

Werner Butscher

Rüdger Rubbert

Frank Witte

Peer Sporbert

Andrew Cordell

Christoph Radinger

R&uuml;dger Rubbert

Hans Imgrund

Stephan Maetzel

Peter See

Dimitrij Kouzian

Mario Leichner

Lutz Pfeil

Hans-Florian Geerdes

Jens Troeger

Phillip Getto

Ron Jennings

Matthew Johnson

Gary Sadow

David M Schaller

Michael Placke

Mathew Johnson

Nancy Butcher

Gregg Cohen

In a preferred embodiment of the disclosure, tooth attachment placement (TAP) device or for assisting a user in placing one or more appliances or attachments on one or more teeth is disclosed. The TAP device comprises single tooth jigs connected through splines. The geometry of the device is automatically designed in the treatment planning unified workstation, thereby generating a digital STL file. Then the device is created from a non-flexible biocompatible material by a 3D printer in accordance with the digital STL file. Appliance, for example, may be a bracket or a bracket shim; and the attachment may be an aligner attachment or a pad. Different embodiments of the TAP device are disclosed. Methods for verifying the accuracy of the placements of the brackets on the teeth using the TAP device are disclosed.

Tooth attachment placement device

An apparatus and method for bending or shaping orthodontic archwires or other medical devices into a complex, patient individual shape is described. The apparatus comprises of two moveable, compact, manipulators with, in total, at least three revolute joints defining three rotation axes and at least three prismatic joints defining at least three translation axes. Gripping tools are provided on the manipulators. The two manipulators are arranged to allow a relative movement in six degrees of freedom. A reduced complexity embodiment is also described having only one or two revolute joints.

Apparatus and method for customized shaping of orthodontic archwires and other medical devices

Method for calibration of manipulator utilized in apparatus and method for customized shaping of orthodontic archwires and other medical devices

Interactive, computer based orthodontist treatment planning, appliance design and appliance manufacturing is described. A scanner is described which acquires images of the dentition which are converted to three-dimensional frames of data. The data from the several frames are registered to each other to provide a complete three-dimensional virtual model of the dentition. Individual tooth objects are obtained from the virtual model. A computer-interactive software program provides for treatment planning, diagnosis and appliance from the virtual tooth models. A desired occlusion for the patient is obtained from the treatment planning software. The virtual model of the desired occlusion and the virtual model of the original dentition provide a base of information for custom manufacture of an orthodontic appliance. A variety of possible appliance and appliance manufacturing systems are contemplated, including customized archwires and customized devices for placement of off-the shelf brackets on the archwires, and removable orthodontic appliances.

Interactive orthodontic care system based on intra-oral scanning of teeth

A robotic bending apparatus for bending archwires and other types of elongate, bendable medical devices into a desired configuration includes a first gripping tool and a moveable gripping tool. The first gripping tool can be either fixed with respect to a base or table for the robot or positioned at the end of robot am. The moveable gripping tool is mounted to the end of a moveable robot arm having a proximal portion also mounted to the base. The robot preferably comprises a six axis bending robot, in which the distal end of the moveable arm can move relative to the fixed gripping tool about three translational axes and three rotational axes. The gripping tools preferably incorporate force sensors which are used to determine overbends needed to get the desired final shape of the archwire. The robot may also include a resistive heating system in which current flows through the wire while the wire is held in a bent condition to heat the wire and thereby retain the bent shape of the wire. A magazine for holding a plurality of straight archwires needing to be bent and a conveyor system for receiving the wires after the bending process is complete are also described. The robot bending system is able to form archwires with any required second and third order bends quickly and with high precision. As such, it is highly suitable for use in a precision appliance-manufacturing center manufacturing a large number of archwires (or other medical devices or appliances) for a distributed base of clinics.

Robot and method for bending orthodontic archwires and other medical devices

A robotic bending apparatus for bending archwires and other types of elongate, bendable medical devices into a desired configuration includes a first gripping tool and a moveable gripping tool. The first gripping tool can be either fixed with respect to a base or table for the robot or positioned at the end of robot am. The moveable gripping tool is mounted to the end of a moveable robot arm having a proximal portion also mounted to the base. The robot preferably comprises a six axis bending robot, in which the distal end of the moveable arm can move relative to the fixed gripping tool about three translational axes and three rotational axes. The robot bending system is able to form archwires with any required second and third order bends quickly and with high precision.

A method and apparatus for generating a orthodontic template that assists in the placement of an orthodontic apparatus includes processing that begins by obtaining a digital model of an orthodontic structure of an orthodontic patient. The processing continues by obtaining a selection of one of a plurality of orthodontic apparatuses for the orthodontic structure to produce a selected orthodontic apparatus. The processing then continues by obtaining a digital model of placement of the selected orthodontic apparatus on the digital model of the orthodontic structure. The processing then continues by retrieving a digital image of a tooth mounting apparatus (e.g., a bracket, a band, a headgear tube, etc.) of the selected apparatus for a given tooth. The processing then continues by generating a orthodontic template for holding a physical embodiment of the tooth mounting apparatus based on the digital image of the tooth mounting apparatus, the digital model of the placement, and at least a portion of the digital model of the orthodontic structure.

Method and apparatus for generating an orthodontic template that assists in placement of orthodontic apparatus

A method and apparatus for arch wire receptacle (e.g., brackets, bands, headgear tubes, etc.) optimization includes processing that begins by obtaining a digital model of an orthodontic structure of an orthodontic patient. The processing then continues by retrieving a digital model of an initial arch wire receptacle that was selected from a plurality of digital models of arch wire receptacles. The processing then continues by digitally placing the digital model of the initial arch wire receptacle on a given tooth of the digital model of the orthodontic structure to provide a digital arch wire receptacle placement. The process then proceeds by retrieving a digital model of an arch wire. For the given tooth, the processing continues by digitally modeling a force system on the tooth based on the digital model of the initial arch wire receptacle, the digital arch wire receptacle placement, and the digital model of the arch wire. Having done this, when the force system is not optimal, the force system is modified to achieve an optimal forced system.

Method and apparatus for orthodontic appliance optimization

Growing community of inventors

Berlin, Germany

Friedrich Riemeier