The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 21, 2004
Filed:
Dec. 17, 2001
Alan C. Morris, Salt Lake City, UT (US);
Craig A. Mabrito, Bellaire, TX (US);
Matthew R. Roberts, Idaho Falls, ID (US);
DenTech, L.L.C., Salt Lake City, UT (US);
Abstract
A method of making a patient's dental prosthesis (e.g., a prosthesis tooth, crown, veneer, or bridge) by acquiring an image of the patient's teeth that contain black and white normalization references. These references are black and white porcelain, for example, that allow software of the invention to determine absolute black and absolute white within the color image. The acquired color image is then normalized in accordance with the normalization references, which corrects the image for variations in lighting conditions and image source. The normalized image is then standardized by matching the pixels of the normalized image to selected shade standards. The dental prosthesis can then be manufactured by a lab technician by referring to the standardized image. The tooth shade analysis and matching system is also applicable to direct restorations of natural teeth, such as repair of chipped or broken teeth. Methods of whitening teeth are also disclosed.