Ormco Corporation

Mark A Payne

Craig A Andreiko

Eric Chapoulaud

Eric Chapouland

A method by which an orthodontic appliance is automatically designed and manufactured from digital lower jaw and tooth shape data of a patient provides for the scanning of the mouth of a patient to produce a three-dimensional digitized model of the shapes of the patient's teeth and their positions in the patient's mouth. The appliance is automatically designed according to the final design, which also can be interactively modified and approved by the orthodontist, with the computer recalculating the effects on the treatment as a result of the doctor's changes. Brackets are fabricated as an integrated set, either by cutting slots therein or by building the brackets in layers. Three-dimensional custom jigs are automatically made to exactly position the brackets on a patient's teeth.

Custom orthodontic appliance forming method and apparatus

An orthodontic appliance is automatically designed and manufactured from digital lower jaw and tooth shape data of a patient. A computer calculates the post-treatment positions of the teeth and produces three-dimensional images of the teeth, individually and in their calculated positions. The appliance is automatically designed according to the final design, which also can be interactively modified and approved by the orthodontist, with the computer recalculating the effects on the treatment as a result of the doctor's changes. Brackets are fabricated as an integrated set, either by cutting slots therein or by building the brackets in layers by, for example, stereo lithography. Three-dimensional custom jigs are automatically made to exactly position the brackets on a patient's teeth.

A system () and method by which an orthodontic appliance () is automatically designed and manufactured from digital lower jaw and tooth shape data of a patient provides for the scanning of the mouth of a patient (), preferably from a model () of the patient's mouth, to produce a three-dimensional digitized model () of the shapes of the patient's teeth and their positions in the patient's mouth. Then a computer () calculates the post-treatment positions of the teeth and produces three-dimensional images of the teeth, individually and in their calculated positions. An interactive computer link between the doctor's office () and the appliance manufacturing facility () allows an orthodontist () to control the patient's archform and to modify the suggested computer-determined positions and orientations of the teeth in six degrees of freedom, and to experiment with new positions, extractions, over-corrections and other variations, with the computer recalculating the tooth positions with high precision for the approval of the orthodontist. The appliance is automatically designed according to the final design, which also can be interactively modified and approved by the orthodontist, with the computer recalculating the effects on the treatment as a result of the doctor's changes. Brackets () are fabricated as an integrated set, either by cutting slots therein or by building the brackets in layers by, for example, stereo lithography. Three-dimensional custom jigs () are automatically made to exactly position the brackets on a patient's teeth.

A system and method by which an orthodontic appliance is automatically designed and manufactured from digital lower jaw and tooth shape data of a patient provides for preferably scanning a model of the patient's mouth to produce two or three dimensional images and digitizing contours and selected points. A computer may be programmed to construct archforms and/or to calculate finish positions of the teeth, then to design an appliance to move the teeth to the calculated positions. The appliance may include archwires and brackets. Machine code is generated and appliances are automatically produced that will straighten the teeth of the patient. Custom placement jigs may also be automatically designed and fabricated and are provided with the custom appliance to position the appliance on the patient's teeth.

A system and method by which an orthodontic appliance is automatically designed and manufactured from digital lower jaw and tooth shape data of a patient provides for preferably scanning a model of the patient's mouth to produce two or three dimensional images and digitizing contours and selected points. A computer is programmed to construct archforms and calculate finish positions of the teeth, then to design an appliance, preferably including archwires and brackets, to move the teeth to the calculated positions. The lower teeth are positioned at their roots on an arch defined by the lower jaw bone, and the arch is modified to best fit the tooth tips on a smooth curve. Upper archforms are constructed for the upper teeth. Then, machine code is generated and appliances are automatically produced that will straighten the teeth of the patient. Custom placement jigs are also automatically designed and fabricated and are provided with the custom appliance to position the appliance on the patient's teeth.

An apparatus for automatically designing and manufacturing a custom orthodontic appliance from anatomical shape data preferably of the lower jaw and teeth of a patient includes a scanner to produce images in three dimensions, a computer that constructs archforms and calculates finish tooth positions, then automatically designs an appliance, preferably including archwires and brackets, to move the teeth to the calculated positions and jigs to place the brackets on the teeth of the patient, and program controlled machines for making the brackets, wires and jigs to the appliance design driven by commands derived from digitized tooth and jaw shape data.

Custom orthodontic appliance forming apparatus

An orthodontic bracket and ligature are provided in which the bracket, in the preferred embodiment, includes a cylindrical post, spaced from a bracket base to extend horizontally parallel thereto, and having an archwire slot therein. A spring material ligature band, naturally coiled and secured to a plastic installation strip, is pulled around the post of the bracket until a hooked trailing terminal end of the band catches on the bracket, pulling it loose from the strip, and allowing it to snap around the post to hold and confine the archwire in the slot. Different width ligatures seat to different positions on the post to allow the wire to be held to selected tightnesses in the slot by selection of the ligature.

Orthodontic bracket and ligature and method of ligating archwire to

A method and apparatus for accurately positioning and orienting an orthodontic appliance relative to individual teeth of a patient is provided, preferably in the form of a pivot action jig, preferably of two parts pivotally linked together. Preferably, one part releasably engages an orthodontic bracket relative to a pivot axis at which the two parts are connected, preferably by fitting between spaced vertical tie wings of the bracket with a blade fitting in a bracket slot. The second jig part []includes a tooth-engaging surface configured to the shape of the crown of the tooth. Where the bracket itself is configured to pivotally attach to the jig, the jig may be formed of only the tooth engaging part. Preferably, the tooth-engaging surface uniquely fits over the occlusal end of the crown and includes a slight over center end, opposite the pivot connection, and may include a three-dimensional cap. A bracket is positioned in the jig, the assembly of the jig and the bracket is brought against the labial or lingual side of the crown of the tooth, and the tooth engaging part of the jig is pivoted to move the tooth-engaging surface gingivally into a unique position and orientation against the crown. This uniquely positions the bracket in a position where it is bonded to the tooth. When the bond has hardened, the tooth engaging part is pivoted occlusally away from the tooth and the jig is disconnected from the bracket.

Bracket placement jig assembly and method of placing orthodontic

A computerized method of designing custom orthodontic appliances based on the individual anatomy of the individual patient is used in a further method of statistically processing the appliance design parameters to produce standardized appliances, particularly orthodontic brackets, for patient groups or classes of patients that share certain features of dental anatomy, common treatment problems or similar preferred treatment goals. Standardized brackets are provided in various combinations for patients of racial or other anthropological groups, including bracket combinations and bracket sets for Asian patients and for Caucasian patients. Methods for treating patients and providing group specific appliances to patients are also provided.

Orthodontic appliance and group standardized brackets therefor and

A low profile orthodontic appliance and method of designing custom and standard low profile orthodontic appliances are provided. The archwire of the appliance is not parallel to the dental archform but converges toward the archform preferably in the vicinity of the incisors. Slotted brackets on either the laterals, the cuspids or the first bicuspids have mesially rotated slots to support the archwire in sloped relation to the teeth. For standardized appliances, the slot rotation may be provided only in brackets for the upper laterals and the lower cuspids. For Caucasians, the preferred rotation angles are 4.5 and 6 degrees respectively. For Asians, the rotation angles are preferably distributed over brackets for the laterals, cuspids and first bicuspids. Tooth to archwire spacing is not more than 0.05 inches for all teeth but the upper laterals. The archwire shape is designed in custom appliances by digitizing tooth shape of a patient, calculating ideal finish tooth positions and ideal bracket positioning, designing an optimally smooth archwire spaced optimally close to the teeth and manufacturing brackets with calculated slot rotations in most of the brackets. For standardized appliances, statistically average anatomy or appliance designs follow the custom appliance design method, except that only the most significant slot rotation angles are fabricated.

Low profile orthodontic appliance

An orthodontic bracket, preferably in the form of a buccal tube, is provided for connecting an orthodontic archwire to each mandibular first molar of a patient. The bracket has an archwire groove oriented to maintain the archwire at a positive rotation angle relative to the point on the surface of the molar at which the bracket is connected. The rotation angle is preferably approximately 2.degree. for Caucasian patients and approximately 4.degree. for Asian patients. The groove, while inclined to a positive (distal) rotation angle of greater than zero, may additionally be inclined mesially relative to the wire to account for smaller cross-sectional dimensions of the wire relative to the groove. In making a custom orthodontic appliance, a computer designs such buccal tubes with the grooves rotated to an angle optimally calculated for the patient. In the custom method, based on digitized tooth shape date for the patient, the embrasure of the upper first molars are placed perpendicular to an archform to occupy the least space on the arch, and the mesial buccal cusp and disto lingual cusp of each lower first molar is placed on a line coinciding with a line through the mesial marginal ridge and disto lingual groove of the upper first molar.

Orthodontic appliance providing for mesial rotation of molars

Coordinated orthodontic archwires are provided based on a method of designing custom orthodontic appliances based in individual patient anatomy and, based on a plurality of such custom designs, designing and manufacturing a standardized appliance for patients of average dental anatomy. From such method, a relationship is established for coordinating one archwire to another of any given design. The coordinated archwires so provided include an upper archwire that is an expansion of a lower archwire, and in addition, when the shapes of the archwires are superimposed, are spaced apart more in the vicinity of the cuspids and first bicuspids than in the vicinity of the incisors and, preferably, also the second bicuspids. The spacing difference is at least 0.005 inches, particularly for an appliance with low profile brackets, and is up to 0.025 or 0.035 inches for an appliance with the more conventional brackets. The spacings are determined as a function of the length of the wire from the midline of the wire.

Coordinated orthodontic archwires and method of making same

Custom orthodontic brackets are provided for supporting an orthodontic archwire at custom positions and inclinations on the teeth of a patient. The preferred brackets each include a bracket base mountable on a tooth and a support extending therefrom for supporting an archwire, preferably in a slot of the custom inclination, depth and preferably curvature with respect to the mounting surface of the bracket base to the tooth. In the preferred embodiment, the brackets are formed by mounting blanks on an inclinable holder, positioning a cutter blade and inclining the holder to cut a custom slot in an archwire plane through the support on the bracket. The cutting tool and bracket holder are computer controlled and driven by signals produced from digitized data relating to the individual patient's anatomy, and preferably to tooth finish positions and bracket and archwire geometry calculated from digitized data taken from the patient's mouth or model thereof.

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Whittier, CA, United States of America

Mark A Payne