Custom Imaging Tray Aligning Dental Scan Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current dental imaging technologies, such as tomography and surface scans, face inaccuracies due to image scattering and other issues, making it difficult to accurately align and combine data for precise dental procedure planning, especially for procedures like dental implants and bone grafting.
Innovation Solution
A multifunctional tray with customizable clasping portions and markers that allows for accurate alignment of tomography and surface scan data by providing a stable and secure fit within the mouth, enabling the creation of a combined master data file for more accurate anatomical representation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If tomography scans are used to capture images of structures above and below gum tissue, then internal structures can be visualized, but image scattering occurs when materials such as filings or crowns are present, making scans unreliable and inaccurate
Solution Approach 1:
A custom imaging tray is introduced as an intermediary device that holds positioning markers during scanning. The tray and markers serve as a common reference framework that mediates between tomography scan data and surface scan data, enabling accurate alignment despite the scattering issues in the original imaging modalities
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a physical copy/reference object (the custom imaging tray with markers) that can be detected by both tomography and surface scanning systems. This physical reference copy allows data from different scanning methods to be aligned and merged accurately, compensating for the inaccuracies in each individual scanning method
2Measurement precision
If surface scans are used to capture images of structures in the mouth, then surface structures can be visualized, but structures below gum tissue cannot be accurately depicted
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges data from two different scanning methods (surface scans and tomography scans) by using the custom imaging tray with positioning markers as a common reference. The tray is visible in both scan types, allowing the system to combine surface structure information from surface scans with internal structure information from tomography scans into a single integrated model
Solution Approach 2:
The custom imaging tray serves multiple functions: it acts as a positioning reference for surface scans, a reference object for tomography scans, and a tool for aligning and merging data from both scanning methods. This multi-functional device enables comprehensive oral structure visualization that neither scanning method could achieve alone
3Device complexity
If simple alignment of tomography scan data to surface scan data is performed, then data integration is achieved, but accurate representation of oral structures is not obtained due to scatter and inaccuracies
Solution Approach 1:
The custom imaging tray with positioning markers is placed in the mouth before scanning begins. This preliminary placement establishes a known reference framework that will be captured in both surface and tomography scans, enabling accurate alignment without requiring complex post-processing alignment algorithms
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces complex computational alignment methods with a physical reference system. Instead of using sophisticated software to align scattered and inaccurate data points, the physical tray and markers provide direct geometric references that simplify the alignment process while improving accuracy
Data Source
AI summary
A multifunctional diagnostic tray configured to clasp an oral structure when positioned in a mouth. The tray may be digitally designed from surface scan data of the mouth and manufactured. The tray provides a temporary positioning reference location that may be viewed in a tomography scan data set. The tray may be used to orient and verify the tomography scan data set and the surface scan data set to create a combined master data file that may be used to determine the appropriate location for a dental implant or other dental procedure.