Align Technology, Inc.

Tal Verker

Avi Kopelman

Yossef Atiya

Ofer Saphier

Adi Levin

Nir Makmel

Maayan Moshe

Tal Levy

Erez Lampert

Arkady Rudnitsky

Sergei Ozerov

Gilad Furst

Eliran Dafna

Raphael Levy

Gal Peleg

Eran Ishay

Roee Gorfinkel

Ariel Shalev

Zakhar Ginzburg

Matthew Durban

Eran Green

Shai Ayal

A system includes an intraoral scanner and a computing device operatively connected to the intraoral scanner. The intraoral scanner generates three-dimensional scan data of a tooth and further generates color data of the tooth under multi-chromatic light. The computing device receives the three-dimensional scan data and the color data of the tooth during a first mode of operation. The computing device invokes a second mode of operation, and presents, in a graphical user interface (GUI), an image of the tooth. The computing device further presents, in the GUI, data indicating a plurality of color zones of the tooth and further indicating, for at least one color zone of the plurality of color zones, that insufficient color data has been received, wherein each color zone indicates a separate region of the tooth that is expected to have approximately uniform color.

User interface for intraoral scanning with tooth color detection

An intraoral scanner includes a probe with a sensing face, patterned light sources that are coupled to the probe, un-patterned light sources coupled to the probe, near infrared (NIR) light sources couple to the probe, cameras coupled to the probe, and a processing device coupled to the probe. The processing device is configured to control an operation of the patterned light sources, the un-patterned light sources, and the NIR light sources.

Intraoral scanner with illumination sequencing and controlled polarization

A dental scanning system comprises an intraoral scanner and one or more processors. The intraoral scanner comprises one or more light projectors configured to project a pattern (comprising a plurality of pattern features) on a surface of a dental object, and two or more cameras configured to acquire one or more sets of images, wherein each set of images comprises at least one image from each camera, and wherein each image includes at least a portion of the projected pattern. The processors are configured to determine one or more image features within each set of images, solve a correspondence problem within each set of images such that points in 3D space are determined based on the image features, wherein said points form a solution to the correspondence problem, and wherein the correspondence problem is solved for groups of pattern features, and generate a digital 3D representation of the dental object using the solution to the correspondence problem.

Intraoral 3D scanning system using structured light projection

An intraoral scanning system comprises an elongate handheld wand with a probe at a distal end, a structured light projector configured to project a uniform structured light pattern onto an object, a plurality of cameras configured to capture points of the uniform structured light pattern projected onto the object by the structured light projector, and one or more processors. The one or more processors are configured to determine a correspondence between projected points in the uniform structured light pattern generated by the structured light projector and captured points of the uniform structured light pattern captured by the plurality of cameras viewing the uniform structured light pattern projected onto the object, and to use triangulation and the determined correspondence to determine three-dimensional points in space associated with the captured points of the uniform structured light pattern captured by the plurality of cameras.

Intraoral 3D scanning system using uniform structured light projection

An intraoral scanner comprises a housing, a light source for generating light, an optics system for focusing the light, a detector for detecting returning light reflected off an intraoral object, and a focus shifting mechanism configured to shift a focal plane of the optics system. The optics system is configured such that, after having passed through the optics system, an outermost chief ray of the light with respect to an optical axis of the optics system is divergent to the optical axis and an outermost marginal ray of the light with respect to the optical axis is parallel or divergent to the optical axis.

Compact intraoral scanner

Removable barrier devices for covering an intraoral scanner. The barrier device includes a cover that is adapted to fit over a probe of the scanner. The cover includes a distal portion having walls defining an internal cavity for accommodating a distal end of the probe and formed of a first material, wherein at least one of the walls includes at least one window for allowing transmission of an optical signal between the probe and an external environment. The cover also includes a proximal portion coupled to the distal portion. The barrier device also includes a flexible sleeve adapted to cover a handle of the scanner, the flexible sleeve coupled to the proximal portion of the cover at an interface region configured to prevent fluid from passing through the barrier device between the cover and the sleeve.

Full-scanner barrier for an intra-oral device

In embodiments, a system for scanning an intraoral cavity comprises an intraoral scanner to generate topographical scan data of the intraoral cavity and 2D image data of the intraoral cavity, and a processing unit operatively connected to the intraoral scanner. The processing unit is to: receive the topographical scan data and the 2D image data from the intraoral scanner; generate a 3D digital model of the intraoral cavity using the intraoral scan data; output the 3D digital model to a display; determine which portions of the intraoral cavity have been scanned; generate a visual indicator that provides guidance for positioning and orienting the field of view of the intraoral scanner; and output the visual indicator to the display.

Guidance for positioning and orienting field of view of intraoral scanning

Calibrating an intraoral scanner includes obtaining reference data of a reference three-dimensional (3D) representation of a calibration object and obtaining, based on the intraoral scanner being used by a user to scan the 3D calibration object, and from one or more device to real-world coordinate transformations of two-dimensional (2D) images of the 3D calibration object, measurement data. Calibrating the intraoral scanner further includes aligning the measurement data to the reference data to obtain alignment data and updating, based on the alignment data, said one or more transformations.

Thermal calibration of scanning system

A dental scanning system comprises an intraoral scanner and one or more processors. The intraoral scanner comprises one or more light projectors configured to project a pattern (comprising a plurality of pattern features) on a dental object, and two or more cameras configured to acquire sets of images, each comprising at least one image from each camera. The processor(s) are configured to determine a correspondence between pattern features in the pattern of light and image features in each set of images by determining intersections of projector rays corresponding to one or more of the plurality of pattern features and camera rays corresponding to the one or more image features in three-dimensional (3D) space based on calibration data that associates the camera rays corresponding to pixels on the camera sensor of each of the two or more cameras to the projector rays.

Dental scanning system with structured light projection

An apparatus for determining surface topography of a patient's teeth comprises a probe sized to be at least partially inserted into an intraoral cavity of the patient, a light source to output light; and a light focusing assembly. The light focusing assembly comprises a first lens, a second lens and a focus changing assembly comprising one or more additional lenses that shares an optical axis with the first lens and the second lens and being configured to focus the light to a plurality of external focal planes to illuminate the patient's teeth, wherein the focus changing assembly has a movement gain factor, and wherein as a result of the movement gain factor a change in separation between lenses of the focus changing assembly by a first distance results in a change in a focus setting by a second distance that is 2-10 times greater than the first distance. The apparatus further comprises a detector configured to measure one or more characteristics of incident light returning from the illuminated patient's teeth and a processor coupled to the detector and configured to generate data representative of a topography of the patient's teeth based on the one or more measured characteristics of the incident light returning from the illuminated patient's teeth.

Compact intraoral 3D scanner

An intraoral scanner comprises one or more structured light projectors and two or more cameras, where each structured light projector projects a pattern of light onto an intraoral three-dimensional (3D) surface and the two or more cameras capture one or more sets of images, wherein each image includes at least a portion of the projected pattern of light. A processor solves a correspondence problem within a set of images of the one or more sets of images such that points in 3D space are determined based on correspondence of captured features in the set of images to projected features of at least the portion of the projected pattern, wherein said points in 3D space form a solution to the correspondence problem. The processor calibrates the intraoral scanner by performing an adjustment to stored calibration data associated with the intraoral scanner based on the solution to the correspondence problem.

Automatic calibration of intraoral 3D scanner

An apparatus for intraoral three-dimensional (3D) scanning comprises a light source, a spatial pattern, a beam splitter, an optical system comprising fewer than 10 lenses, a mirror, an image sensor, and a depth scanning module. The depth scanning module is configured to axially translate one or more lenses of the optical system in the optical axis to change a focus setting of the optical system, wherein the depth scanning module is configured to axially translate the one or more lenses by 0.1-5 mm to achieve a depth scanning range of 5-40 mm at a scan speed of about 5-50 scans per second.

An intraoral scanner comprises a light source for generating light, an optics system for focusing the light, and a light-guiding part having an entrance and an exit. The light source, the optics system and the light-guiding part are arranged such that the light passes through the optics system, enters the light-guiding part via the entrance, and exits the light-guiding part via the exit. The optics system is configured such that, upon entering the light-guiding part, an outermost chief ray of the light with respect to an optical axis of the optics system is divergent to the optical axis and an outermost marginal ray of the light with respect to the optical axis is parallel or divergent to the optical axis.

Intraoral scanner with improved ray footprint

Scanning system and calibration thereof

An intraoral scanning system comprises and intraoral scanner and a processor. The intraoral scanner comprises one or more cameras and one or more structured light projectors, the intraoral scanner to generate a series of images using the one or more cameras, each image including at least a portion of a pattern projected by the one or more structured light projectors onto an intraoral three-dimensional surface. The processor runs a correspondence algorithm to compute respective three-dimensional positions of a plurality of features of the pattern on the intraoral three-dimensional surface, as captured in the series of images. The processor identifies the computed three-dimensional position of a detected feature of the pattern as corresponding to a particular projector ray r, in at least a subset of the series of images. The processor tracks the particular projector ray r across one or more additional images of the series of images.

Growing community of inventors

Ofra, Israel

Tal Verker