Antagonistic Tooth Position Correction via Digital Occlusion Markings
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current dental technologies face challenges in precisely matching a patient's natural occlusion when determining measures for dental restoration elements like crowns or bridges, as they struggle to accurately position antagonistic teeth in three-dimensional digital models, due to factors such as flexibility in the mandibular jawbone and the periodontal ligament's role in tooth positioning.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method that uses three-dimensional digital models of the maxillary and mandibular teeth, marked with surface contact sections, to correct the relative positions of antagonistic teeth in occlusion by identifying and pairing contact sections, and adjusting their positions to match natural occlusion through movements along tooth axes and rotations, ensuring accurate contact establishment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If three-dimensional digital models are used to determine dental restoration measures, then productivity and efficiency are improved, but manufacturing precision deteriorates due to inability to accurately match natural occlusion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-marking the occlusal surfaces of teeth with articulating paper before scanning to identify contact sections. This pre-marking allows the digital model to capture accurate occlusion information that would otherwise be lost, enabling precise matching of natural occlusion in the virtual environment while maintaining high productivity through digital workflows.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses articulating paper as an intermediary substance to transfer occlusion information from the physical domain to the digital domain. The markings created by the articulating paper serve as a mediator that bridges the gap between actual tooth contact and digital representation, allowing accurate occlusion matching without requiring complex mechanical occlusion devices.
2Ease of operation
If digital models are created with patient's mouth open for scanning, then ease of operation is improved, but measurement precision deteriorates due to tooth position changes during occlusion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by marking the occlusal surfaces with articulating paper while the patient's mouth is open and teeth are in their scanned position. This pre-marking captures the tooth geometry and surface features before occlusion occurs, allowing the digital model to retain accurate positional information even though the actual occlusal contact will occur later when the mouth is closed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a digital copy of the tooth surfaces including the articulating paper markings. This digital copy preserves the tooth position and geometry as captured during scanning, while the markings on the copy serve as reference points for establishing accurate occlusal relationships when the models are brought into virtual occlusion, effectively separating the scanning process from the occlusion measurement.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a method for correcting relative tooth positions of antagonistic teeth in occlusion for matching a natural occlusion. A three-dimensional digital maxillary teeth model of a first set of teeth comprising first markings and a three-dimensional digital mandibular teeth model of a second set of teeth comprising second markings are received. First and second surface contact sections are identified using the first and second markings. The identified first and second surface contact sections are paired. The three-dimensional digital maxillary teeth model and the three-dimensional digital mandibular teeth model are arranged in occlusion. For one or more pairs of antagonistic teeth positions of the antagonistic teeth are corrected. The correcting comprises establishing contacts between the first surface contact sections and second surface contact sections of the antagonistic teeth.