Intraoral digital impression scanner based on optical-mechanical system
By integrating the core components of the digital dental impression instrument with the base components, and optimizing the optical path using thermally conductive materials and lens positioning slots, the problem of fogging of the protective window was solved, achieving an efficient and economical solution that improves product assembly efficiency and user experience.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- WO · WO
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- ALLIEDSTAR MEDICAL EQUIPMENT CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2025-12-11
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-09
AI Technical Summary
Existing digital dental impression instruments based on optomechanical systems are prone to fogging at the protective window due to temperature differences, affecting the user experience. Furthermore, existing improvement measures are either costly or ineffective.
The core components and base components are integrated into one design. The base components are made of thermally conductive materials. Through lens positioning grooves and integrated optical path optimization, liquid is prevented from entering the protective window, thus solving the fogging problem caused by temperature difference.
It effectively prevents the protective window from fogging, improves assembly efficiency and product precision and stability, reduces production costs, and enhances user experience.
Smart Images
Figure CN2025141763_09072026_PF_FP_ABST
Abstract
Description
Dental digital impression instrument based on optomechanical system Technical Field
[0001] This application relates to a digital dental impression device, and more particularly to a digital dental impression device based on an optomechanical system. Background Technology
[0002] In recent years, oral health and dental aesthetics have received increasing attention. In the traditional process of dental restoration and denture fabrication, dentists use silicone rubber to take impressions of the patient's teeth, which are then sent to a denture fabrication factory. The factory creates a plaster model from the impression, uses a denture scanner to convert the plaster model into a 3D model, and designs the denture based on this model. The finished denture is then sent back to both the dentist and the patient. This traditional process of silicone rubber impression → plaster model → desktop scanner is time-consuming and inefficient, resulting in a poor patient experience.
[0003] With the long-term development of digitalization in dental laboratories, digital impression instruments are being used more and more in dental clinics. Compared with traditional preparation processes, digital impression instruments are easier to carry and use, and scanning is fast and accurate, significantly saving preparation time.
[0004] The widely used digital dental impression system 1 is an optomechanical system based on the structured light principle. From a manufacturability perspective, this optomechanical system comprises three main components: a core component, an illumination component, and a base component. Figure 1 shows an exploded three-dimensional view of an existing digital dental impression system. As can be seen, the core component 10 houses core components such as the lens 12, sensor, and DMD; the illumination component 20 houses illumination components such as LEDs; and the base component 30 houses external interfaces and prevents material intrusion. As shown in Figure 2, these three components are connected to each other by several fasteners 40 (such as screws). Since the digital dental impression system 1 is a handheld product, its robustness to environmental factors (e.g., temperature and humidity changes) and vibration directly affects its performance and user experience.
[0005] A digital dental impression system 1 based on an optomechanical system typically has a protective window 31 installed in the base component 30. The protective window 31 can prevent foreign objects from entering without affecting the projection and reception of light. As shown in Figure 3, the light emitted from the LED light source of the illumination component 20 is transmitted through several sets of lenses 21 and 11 arranged inside the illumination component 20 and the core component 10 to the lens 12 in the core component 10 adjacent to the base component 30. During the light transmission process, heat from the light source is also dissipated into the internal space of each component, causing the overall temperature to rise.
[0006] Therefore, the inner surface of the protective window 31 is in contact with the warm air inside the optical machine, while the outer surface is in contact with the cool air of the clinic environment. When liquid enters the base component 30 or when there is high humidity due to other reasons, the temperature difference between the inner and outer surfaces of the protective window 31 can easily cause fogging on the inner surface. At this time, the user cannot eliminate the fogging of the protective window 31 by wiping or other means. This fogging is undesirable for the user, as it interrupts the propagation path of the light, rendering the digital impression machine 1 unusable for a period of time and seriously affecting the user experience.
[0007] Those skilled in the art have also attempted to improve the structure of products such as the dental digital impression instrument 1 to solve the problem of fogging inside the protective window, such as sealing the base component 30, but in practice, the results have been found to be unsatisfactory.
[0008] An oral scanner is disclosed in Chinese patent application CN105796046A, entitled "Oral Scanner," filed by Suzhou Qisda Optoelectronics Co., Ltd. on March 25, 2016. The oral scanner includes a scanning head, an all-metal body, a heating element, a metal heat-conducting element, a light source, a detection element, and a processor.
[0009] This type of dental scanner solves the problem of scanning accuracy and precision caused by fogging of the scanning head by adding a temperature detection and control system to ensure that the scanner's internal temperature remains within a predetermined range. However, while the additional temperature detection and control system can prevent fogging, it obviously increases the cost of the dental scanner and reduces the product's market competitiveness. Moreover, for optomechanical digital impression instruments with larger internal temperature variations, temperature control is even more difficult, making it a relatively uneconomical solution.
[0010] Therefore, an improved structure is needed for a dental digital impression instrument based on an optomechanical system, which can solve the problem of fogging of the protective window of the base components in a simple, economical and effective way. Summary of the Invention
[0011] The purpose of this application is to provide a digital dental impression instrument based on an optomechanical system, which can solve the problem of fogging of the protective window of the base component in a simple, economical and effective manner.
[0012] This application relates to a digital dental impression device based on an optomechanical system, comprising:
[0013] Core components;
[0014] A lighting component is located at one end of the core component; and
[0015] The base component, located at the other end of the core component, is equipped with a protective window.
[0016] The core components and the base components are integrated into one unit, forming an integrated structure that prevents the protective window from fogging up.
[0017] In the above technical solution, the term "core component" refers to the component located in the middle main body of the digital impression apparatus, which houses core parts such as lenses, sensors, and DMDs. The term "illumination component" refers to the component located in the proximal part (i.e., the handheld part) of the digital impression apparatus, which houses parts such as illumination light sources. The term "base component" refers to the component located in the distal part of the digital impression apparatus, which carries external interfaces and prevents material intrusion. These components are easily distinguishable to those skilled in the art, and their arrangement is well known in the art.
[0018] In the above technical solution, the term "constituting as a whole" means that adjacent parts are integrally formed without using any fasteners to connect them. This integral forming can be achieved by any technical means known in the art, such as casting, molding, etc.
[0019] In a preferred embodiment, at least a portion of the base component may be made of a thermally conductive material. More preferably, the thermally conductive material may be a metal.
[0020] In the preferred embodiment described above, by changing the material of at least a portion of the base component, such as the housing, from low thermal conductivity plastic to high thermal conductivity metal, even if condensation occurs on the protective window, it will dissipate more quickly under the baking of the base component with better thermal conductivity.
[0021] In another preferred embodiment, the core component may be provided with a lens positioning feature for positioning the lens therein. More preferably, the lens positioning feature may be a lens positioning groove. Particularly preferably, the lens positioning groove may have a generally V-shaped, inverted trapezoidal, or semi-circular cross-sectional shape.
[0022] The term "approximately" means that the shape, size, and other parameters are basically close to a certain standard, and the dimensional tolerances are usually within the range allowed in this technical field.
[0023] In the preferred embodiment described above, to achieve an integrated design between the base component and the core component, it is necessary to change the original mounting path from one side of the core component via the lens positioning hole. Therefore, the lens positioning feature is changed from a cylindrical hole to a slot to meet the manufacturability requirements of the optical engine. On the one hand, since the machining difficulty of a cylindrical hole is linearly related to the hole depth (the deeper the hole, the longer the tool holder, the worse the rigidity, and the greater the tool tip vibration), the machining difficulty of the positioning slot is significantly reduced compared to a cylindrical hole. On the other hand, if the lens positioning feature is still machined from the side of the core component, it not only deviates from the integrated structure but also damages the appearance of the base component. Therefore, using a positioning slot can also change the machining direction and obtain an acceptable appearance.
[0024] In yet another preferred embodiment, the core component and the lighting component can be integrated. Preferably, the lighting component may have an opening for external insertion of parts. More preferably, the parts may include at least one of a lens, a compound eye, and a beam splitter.
[0025] In the preferred embodiment described above, to improve the robustness of the product, the illumination component and the core component are considered to be integrated. In existing optomechanical systems, since the illumination component is manufactured separately, and the compound eyes and lenses have different mounting orientations, similar to the core component, the lenses and compound eyes cannot be assembled in an integrated state between the illumination component and the core component. Therefore, by optimizing the optical path and improving the positioning method of each lens in the illumination component, all lenses are changed to be assembled from outside the illumination component to inside the illumination component. This improves the relative positioning accuracy of the lenses and enhances the rigidity of the optomechanical structure, thereby achieving the manufacturability of the optomechanical system and optimizing its assemblability.
[0026] The dental digital impression device based on an optomechanical system according to this application has the following advantages:
[0027] (i) By adopting an optomechanical integrated design scheme, the possibility of liquid entering the internal cavity of the protective window from the base components and core components is fundamentally eliminated, so as to solve the problem of fogging of the protective window when the humidity changes;
[0028] (ii) Due to the reduced number of structural components, assembly efficiency and yield are improved, and product precision and stability are increased; and
[0029] (iii) No additional temperature detection and control system is required, which reduces production costs. Attached Figure Description
[0030] To further illustrate the technical effects of the dental digital impression apparatus based on an optomechanical system according to this application, the application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments, wherein:
[0031] Figure 1 is a three-dimensional exploded view of an existing digital dental impression instrument;
[0032] Figure 2 is a perspective view of the digital dental impression apparatus shown in Figure 1, in which the various components are connected together by means of fasteners such as screws.
[0033] Figure 3 is a perspective view of the dental digital impression device according to this application, wherein the core component and the lighting component are partially cut out to show the layout of the parts therein;
[0034] Figure 4 is an end view of the base assembly, in which the lens mounted in the core assembly is partially shown;
[0035] Figure 5A shows the lens positioning slot opened inside the core component;
[0036] Figure 5B is a cross-sectional view taken along line MM in Figure 5A;
[0037] Figure 5C shows a lens positioning hole formed inside a core component in the prior art;
[0038] Figure 5D is a cross-sectional view taken along line NN in Figure 5C;
[0039] Figure 6 is a top view of the digital dental impression instrument shown in Figure 3, in which the core components and lighting components are partially illustrated to show the layout of the lens, compound eye and beam splitter in the digital dental impression instrument.
[0040] Figure 6A is a left view of an existing lighting component, which mainly shows the layout of the beam splitter in the lighting component;
[0041] Figure 6B is a sectional view of the lens taken along its transverse axis, which mainly shows the lens's layout within the illumination component; and
[0042] Figure 6C is a right view of an existing lighting component, which mainly shows the layout of the compound eyes in the lighting component.
[0043] Figure 1: Digital Impression Unit; 10: Core Component; 11: First Lens Group; 12: Lens; 13: Lens Pressure Plate; 14: Lens Wall; 15: Lens Positioning Groove; 15': Lens Positioning Hole; 20: Illumination Component; 21: Second Lens Group; 22: Lens; 23: Compound Eye; 24: Beam Spectrometer; 30: Base Component; 31: Protective Window; 40: Fasteners Detailed Implementation
[0044] The following description, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrates the structure and technical effects of the dental digital impression device based on an optomechanical system according to this application.
[0045] It should be understood that the embodiments described in this specification cover only a portion of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments described in this specification without inventive effort are within the scope of protection of this application.
[0046] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used in this application have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application pertains. The terminology used in this application's specification is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application. The terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. The singular forms "a," "described," and "the" as used in the embodiments of this application and the appended claims are also intended to include the plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
[0047] Based on the same orientational understanding, in the description of this application, the terms "internal", "external", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this application.
[0048] For example, in the specification of this invention, the terms "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish the same devices or elements, and do not indicate or imply that the devices or elements referred to must have a specific arrangement order, or must be arranged and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this invention. In fact, if the names of the aforementioned devices or elements are interchanged, it will not create any undesirable limitation on the scope of protection of this invention.
[0049] Figure 3 is a perspective view of the dental digital impression device 1 based on an optomechanical system according to the present application, wherein the core component 10 and the illumination component 20 are partially cut out to show the layout of the parts therein.
[0050] As shown in Figure 3, this dental digital impression instrument 1 based on an optomechanical system consists of a core component 10, an illumination component 20 disposed at the first end of the core component 10, and a base component 30 disposed at the second end of the core component 10 opposite to the first end. The end face of the base component 30 is equipped with a protective window 31 to prevent foreign objects from entering without affecting the projection and reception of the light path.
[0051] Similar to existing digital impression instruments, the core component 10 of the digital impression instrument 1 according to this application includes at least a first set of lenses 11, a lens 12, and a lens retainer 13 for holding the lens 12. The illumination component 20 of the digital impression instrument 1 includes at least a light source and a second set of lenses 21. Light from the light source passes through the first set of lenses 11 and the second set of lenses 21 to form an optical path. Since the structure and use of the above-mentioned components are well known to those skilled in the art and are not related to the technical points of this application, they will not be described in detail here.
[0052] As previously described, core component 10 typically houses core components such as lenses, sensors, and DMDs; illumination component 20 typically houses components such as lenses, compound eyes, beam splitters, and illumination light sources; and base component 30 carries external interfaces and prevents material intrusion. However, the division of these components is not solely dependent on the distribution of the aforementioned components; those skilled in the art can also modify the layout of these components within each component according to the actual propagation of the optical path.
[0053] During the use of existing digital dental impression instruments, the inner surface of the protective window 31 is exposed to the warm air inside the optical mechanism, while the outer surface is exposed to the cool air of the clinic environment. When liquid enters the base component 30 or when humidity is high for other reasons, the temperature difference between the inner and outer surfaces of the protective window 31 can easily cause fogging on its inner surface. To address this, after repeated experiments, the inventors discovered that the core component 10 and the base component 30 can be integrated into a single structure, such as through integral casting. This integrated optical-mechanical design fundamentally eliminates the possibility of liquid entering the internal cavity of the protective window 31 from the base component 30 and the core component 10, thus solving the problem of fogging of the protective window 31 when humidity changes.
[0054] Figure 4 is an end view of the base component 30, while Figures 5A-5B and 5C-5D show the lens positioning groove 15 of the dental digital impression instrument 1 of this application and the lens positioning hole 15' of a conventional dental digital impression instrument, respectively.
[0055] The base component 30 includes a first end adjacent to the core component 10 and a second end away from the core component 10. In Figure 4, since the protective window 31 has been removed, the second end of the base component 30 is open, making the base component 30 a generally elliptical cylindrical part. Through the second end of the base component 30, the lens 12 arranged inside the core component 10 and the lens wall 14 arranged coaxially with and surrounding the lens 12 can be seen.
[0056] Referring again to Figures 5A and 5B, in order to achieve an integrated design between the base component 30 and the core component 10, it is necessary to change the original path of mounting and positioning the lens 12 from the side of the core component 10 adjacent to the base component 30 via a lens positioning feature such as a lens positioning hole. To this end, the inventors of this application, through repeated experiments, have fabricated the lens positioning feature as a lens positioning groove 15 to meet the manufacturability requirements of the optical mechanism. On the one hand, compared with a traditional lens positioning hole, since the machining difficulty of a cylindrical hole is linearly related to the hole depth, the machining difficulty of the lens positioning groove 15 is significantly reduced. On the other hand, if the lens positioning feature is still machined from the side of the core component 10, it not only deviates from the integrated structure but also damages the appearance of the base component 30. Therefore, using a lens positioning groove 15 changes the machining direction and obtains an acceptable appearance.
[0057] As shown in Figure 5A, the core component 10 has at least one, preferably a pair, lens positioning slots 15 arranged along its extension direction adjacent to the base component 30. Depending on the size of the lens 12, the pair of lens positioning slots 15 can have the same length, width, and depth, or they can have different lengths, widths, and depths. As shown in Figure 5B, a cross-sectional view obtained by cutting along line MM in Figure 5A, the lens positioning slot 15 has a generally V-shaped, inverted trapezoidal, or semi-circular cross-sectional shape, on which the lens 12 is positioned. This cross-sectional shape facilitates accurate insertion of the lens 12 and maximizes the positioning stability of the lens 12. Of course, the cross-sectional shape of the lens positioning slot 15 is not limited to this. Those skilled in the art should understand that the lens positioning slot 15 can also have other shapes that facilitate lens insertion, as long as the shape ensures the positioning stability of the lens 12. These variations should all fall within the scope of protection of this application.
[0058] In contrast, Figures 5C and 5D illustrate the lens positioning feature, namely the lens positioning hole 15', in existing digital dental impression systems. In conventional digital dental impression systems, since the core component 10 and the base component 30 are two independent components, the lens 12 can be installed and positioned from the side of the core component 10 adjacent to the base component 30 via the lens positioning hole 15', without considering the integration of the base component 30 and the core component 10. As shown in the cross-sectional view along line NN in Figure 5C, as shown in Figure 5D, the lens positioning hole 15' is a cylindrical hole extending from the side of the core component 10 near the base component 30 towards the side of the core component 10 near the illumination component 20. Figure 5D shows a pair of lens positioning holes 15', the depth of which is adapted to the size of the lens 12. However, the deeper the positioning hole, the longer the tool holder required to open it, the worse the rigidity, and the greater the tool tip vibration. In other words, the machining difficulty of the cylindrical hole is linearly related to the hole depth.
[0059] Figure 6 shows a cross-sectional view of the digital dental impression apparatus 1 according to this application, illustrating the layout of the various components in the illumination component 20. Accordingly, Figures 6A, 6B, and 6C show the layout of the beam splitter 24, lens 22, and compound eye 23 in the illumination component 20 of a conventional digital dental impression apparatus, respectively. As shown in Figures 3 and 6, the core component 10 and the illumination component 20 can be integrated. That is, in a preferred embodiment, the core component 10, the illumination component 20, and the base component 30 can be configured as an integrated structure. The illumination component 20 has openings for externally inserted parts, typically at least one, preferably all, of the lens 22, compound eye 23, and beam splitter 24, which can be assembled into the illumination component 20 from top to bottom to accommodate the integrated structure of the digital dental impression apparatus 1.
[0060] As shown in Figures 6A to 6C, since the illumination component 20 is manufactured separately, the mounting directions of the lenses 22 and compound eyes 23 are also different. Similar to the core component 10, the lenses 22 and compound eyes 23 cannot be assembled into the illumination component 20 while it is integrated with the core component 10. Therefore, by optimizing the optical path and improving the positioning method of the second set of lenses 21 in the illumination component 20, all lenses in the second set of lenses 21 can be changed to be assembled from outside the illumination component 20 to inside the illumination component 20. This improves the relative positioning accuracy of the lenses and enhances the rigidity of the optomechanical structure, thereby achieving the manufacturability of the optomechanical system and optimizing its assemblability.
[0061] In summary, the dental digital impression device based on an optomechanical system according to this application has the following advantages:
[0062] (i) By adopting an optomechanical integrated design scheme, the possibility of liquid entering the internal cavity of the protective window from the base components and core components is fundamentally eliminated, so as to solve the problem of fogging of the protective window when the humidity changes;
[0063] (ii) Due to the reduced number of structural components, assembly efficiency and yield are improved, and product precision and stability are increased; and
[0064] (iii) No additional temperature detection and control system is required, which reduces production costs.
[0065] While the construction and advantages of the optomechanical system-based digital dental impression apparatus according to this application have been described above in conjunction with preferred embodiments and accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art should recognize that the above examples are merely illustrative and should not be construed as limiting the scope of this application. Therefore, modifications and variations can be made to this application within the spirit and scope of the claims, and such modifications and variations will fall within the scope claimed by the claims of this application.
Claims
1. A digital dental impression device (1) based on an optomechanical system, comprising: Core component (10); A lighting component (20) is disposed at one end of the core component (10); as well as A base component (30) is located at the other end of the core component (10), and the base component (30) is equipped with a protective window (31). The core component (10) and the base component (30) are integrated into one unit.
2. The dental digital impression device (1) as described in claim 1, characterized in that, At least a portion of the base component (30) is made of a thermally conductive material.
3. The dental digital impression device (1) as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The thermally conductive material is a metal.
4. The dental digital impression device (1) as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The core component (10) is provided with lens positioning features for positioning the lens (12) therein.
5. The dental digital impression device (1) as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The lens positioning feature is a lens positioning groove (15).
6. The dental digital impression apparatus (1) as described in claim 5, characterized in that, The lens positioning groove (15) has a roughly V-shaped, inverted trapezoidal, or semi-circular cross-sectional shape.
7. The dental digital impression device (1) as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The core component (10) and the lighting component (20) are integrated into one unit.
8. The dental digital impression device (1) as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The lighting component (20) has an opening for inserting parts from the outside.
9. The dental digital impression device (1) as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The component includes at least one of a lens (22), a compound eye (23), and a beam splitter (24).