Align Technology, Inc.

Inphase Technologies, Inc.

University of Colorado

Other

Bayer Materialscience Ag

Fizoos, Ltd.

Symdent, Inc.

Michael Christopher Cole

Peter Dorfinger

Mehdi Mojdeh

Jun Sato

Umesh Upendra Choudhary

John Y Morton

Shiva Prasad Sambu

Sriram Venkatasanthanam

Ramin Heydarpour

Jeremy Riley

Jennifer Chavez

Timothy J Trentler

Prashanth Vanchy

Natalia Lysaya Powers

Sibel Narin

Robert R McLeod

Viswanath Meenakshisundaram

Blaine Carter

Yan Chen

Adam Urness

Eric Moore

William L Wilson

Fredric R Askham

Lance Robert Pickens

Avi Kopelman

Chunhua Li

Friedrich-Karl Bruder

Mark R Ayres

Allen R Boronkay

Peter Webber

Crystal Tjhia

Neil Brian Cramer

Xuan Thanh Phan

Yuxiang Wang

Andrew Jang

Siobhan O'leary

Zachary Earl Conrad

Lisa Dhar

Melinda Lamont Schnoes

Songvit Setthachayanon

Mark David Michaels

Sean Quirin

Nicolas Stöckel

Vladimir Krneta

David Schoenfeld

Nicolas Stoeckel

Huizhong Li

Matthew Durban

Jessica Kalay Su

Charles Couch

Marianela Trujillo-Lemon

Sam Miller

Marianela T Lemon

Frederic R Askham

Peter A Whiteside

Whitney Foley

Kristeen Church

William Matthew Foley

Laurel Rae Leslie-Martin

Timothy John Trentler

Songvit Settachayanon

Samuel John Miller

Materials and additively manufactured objects including mechanically interlocking elements are provided. In some embodiments, a dental appliance includes an appliance body made at least partially out of a composite material. The composite material can include an interlocking structure having a plurality of interlocking elements. The interlocking structure can have a first mechanical property. The composite material can also include a matrix surrounding at least a portion of the interlocking structure. The matrix can have a second mechanical property different from the first mechanical property.

Materials and additively manufactured objects with mechanically interlocking elements

This disclosure provides low-viscosity resins for producing polymers with properties suitable for use in various mechanical appliances, such as orthodontic appliances (e.g., aligners). The low-viscosity resins may be photo-curable and can be used with direct fabrication methods and equipment. In various embodiments, the polymeric materials produced from the low-viscosity resins described herein have high toughness while remaining resistant to stress relaxation. Low-viscosity, photo-curable resins described herein have reduced hydrogen bonding in comparison to traditional materials (e.g., materials having high urethane content) used in orthodontic appliances.

Low viscosity photo-curable resins for the direct fabrication of orthodontic appliances

A system includes a build platform configured to support an object that is being formed from layers of resin. The system further includes one or more blades configured to provide the layers of resin to form the object on the build platform. At least a first blade of the one or more blades is configured to vibrate to reduce viscosity of the layers of resin.

Recoating system including moving blade

A method of three-dimensional (3D) printing includes heating a photo-curable material and extruding the photo-curable material from a nozzle to form a first layer of an object according to a digital file, wherein the first layer has a first shape specified by the digital file, and wherein the first shape has a first minimum line width based on a diameter of the nozzle. The method further includes directing a light beam onto the first layer according to the digital file or an additional digital file to cure a portion of the first layer, wherein the cured portion of the first layer has a second shape, wherein the second shape may comprise features that are smaller than the first shape.

Hybrid 3d printing techniques

Systems for fabricating orthodontic appliances are provided. In some embodiments, a system includes a build platform configured to receive a polymerizable composition, the polymerizable composition including a first polymerizable component and a second polymerizable component, the polymerizable composition characterized by an initial ratio of the first polymerizable component to the second polymerizable component. The system can also include a light source configured to form a portion of an orthodontic appliance from the polymerizable composition by: forming a first region by exposing the polymerizable composition to radiation, where the first region includes a first ratio of the first polymerizable component to the second polymerizable component, the first ratio being different from the initial ratio; and forming a second region, where the second region includes a second ratio of the first polymerizable component to the second polymerizable component, the second ratio being different from the initial ratio and the first ratio.

Systems for fabricating appliances from polymerizable compositions

Methods for manufacturing objects are provided herein. In some embodiments, a method includes receiving a dental appliance formed using an additive manufacturing process, the dental appliance including a plurality of appliance portions. The method can include identifying, based on sensor data, a location of a subset of the appliance portions on the dental appliance. The method can further include applying energy to a subset of the appliance portions to selectively modify one or more material properties of the subset of the appliance portions.

Methods for selective post-curing of additively manufactured objects

A method for forming dental appliance having an ornamental indicia carrier may include forming a polymeric shell, forming a first adhesive layer configured to be adhered to the polymeric shell, the first adhesive layer including a pressure sensitive adhesive layer, forming a first adhesion layer over the first adhesive layer, and applying a colorant between the first adhesion layer and the pressure sensitive adhesive layer.

Indicia for dental appliances

An appliance comprises a passive component and an active force generating component, in which the active force generating component is configured to react to a stimulus and generate tooth movement forces. In some embodiments, the passive component is configured to deflect when placed on one or more teeth and generate tooth movement forces, which are combined with tooth movement forces of the force generating component. In some embodiments, the passive component comprises a polymer which is less reactive to the stimulus than the force generating component. The force generating component can be configured to increase force to one or more teeth at an appropriate time.

Direct fabrication of orthodontic appliances with 4D printing

This disclosure provides polymeric materials comprising polymer crystals, methods and resins for making the same, and objects and appliances made from said polymeric materials. Polymeric materials having polymer crystals provide favorable properties, such as enhanced durability and rigidity. This disclosure also provides polymeric materials comprising a crystalline phase comprising at least one polymer crystal, as well as an amorphous phase comprising at least one amorphous polymer. The crystalline phase can confer rigidity to the polymeric material, while the amorphous phase can confer elasticity and flexibility.

Crystallizable resins

A system includes a partial enclosure configured to hold resin. The system further includes one or more structures configured to at least partially cover the resin. The one or more structures are configured to prevent evaporation of the resin. The system further includes a build platform configured to support an object that is being formed from layers of the resin. A first blade is configured to provide the layers of the resin to form the object on the build platform.

Recoating system with reduced resin evaporation

Provided herein are methods of obtaining good photocured-ink adhesion to low surface energy materials. The methods have greatly improved adhesion of photocured ink on low surface energy materials, including those that are subjected to high humidity or wet environments. The methods take into account the glass transition temperature (T) of the materials and the onset for the glass transition temperature, including ink applied to an exposed surface of the material at an elevated temperature that is close to the Tof the material. The ink is allowed to sit briefly or soak, such as for more than 1 second, before the ink is cured. The ink may be photocured. Furthermore, the methods do not require solvents or surface treatment, including plasma or corona treatments, to obtain good ink adhesion.

Method of inkjet printing onto aligners

Strategies that reduce shrinkage and ultimately warping of parts that are directly fabricated from photopolymer resins. This increases the accuracy of directly fabricated parts, which is essential for patient specific applications. Implementing these strategies can reduce the need for directly fabricated parts to have supporting structures, which can reduce pre-processing and post-processing steps and facilitate an easier route for production level scale of additive manufacturing.

Systems and method for additive manufacturing of dental devices using photopolymer resins

The present disclosure provides methods, systems, devices, and kits for creating composite materials from a single resin, the composite materials having multiple continuous phases. The disclosure includes a process to three-dimensionally print objects (e.g., orthodontic appliances) with composite properties. In some aspects, the composite properties are formed from a single formulation with components that, when processed, have hard and soft continuous phases. In some aspects, the composite properties are formed by separately processing the hard phase components and the soft phase components. In some aspects, the composite materials and devices are three-dimensionally printed using the processed material.

3D printed composites from phase separated materials

A method of 3D printing comprises extruding one or more photo-curable materials from a nozzle to form a first layer that has a first shape specified by the one or more digital files, wherein the first shape corresponds to a first minimum line width that is based on, and narrower than, a diameter of the nozzle. The method further includes directing a light beam onto the first layer according to the one or more digital files to cure a portion of the first layer to create a first cured layer, wherein the first cured layer corresponds to a second shape of a first layer of a 3D printed orthodontic aligner, wherein the light beam has a beam diameter that is smaller than the diameter of the nozzle, and wherein the second shape has a second minimum line width that is smaller than the first minimum line width.

Hybrid 3D printing with photo-curable materials

A system includes a carrier film including an outer surface and an inner surface. The inner surface is configured to contact rollers. The system further includes a first blade configured to form a layer of resin on the outer surface of the carrier film. The system further includes a second blade configured to prevent printed features from contacting the first blade. The system further includes a build platform. A portion of the layer of resin is to be added to an object being formed on the build platform.

Recoating system including multiple blades

Growing community of inventors

Longmont, CO, United States of America

Michael Christopher Cole