Dental Attachment Placement Apparatus with Pre-Formed Wells
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current dental attachment placement methods are prone to user errors during mixing, forming, positioning, and securing, leading to incorrect force application and reduced effectiveness of orthodontic appliances due to uncontrolled mixing and potential misalignment of attachments with the tooth surface.
Innovation Solution
A dental attachment placement apparatus with a body having surfaces shaped to conform to tooth contours, allowing precise alignment and securement of attachments, utilizing direct fabrication techniques like 3D printing for accurate positioning and orientation, and a releasable attachment structure for easy detachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If attachments are formed manually by treatment professionals using wells in material sheets, then the process is simple and requires minimal equipment, but the mixing and forming of attachment material is uncontrolled leading to positioning and orientation errors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-forming attachment wells with precise geometries in a material sheet before the attachment material is applied. These pre-formed wells control the mixing, forming, positioning, and orientation of attachments, eliminating manual errors while maintaining process simplicity.
2Reliability
If attachments are positioned and secured manually on tooth surfaces, then the procedure is quick and straightforward, but user errors occur leading to incorrect force application and reduced appliance effectiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary structure - the attachment placement apparatus with pre-formed wells - that mediates between the treatment professional's manual operation and the final attachment positioning. This intermediary controls the attachment material formation and positioning, ensuring accurate force application characteristics while guiding the operator through a simplified process.
3Manufacturing precision
If uncontrolled mixing of attachment composite material is used, then the placement process is faster with less preparation, but errors occur in attachment formation leading to positioning and orientation mismatches
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment wells are pre-formed in the material sheet with controlled geometries that guide the attachment composite material during placement. This preliminary structuring ensures accurate attachment formation without requiring extensive manual preparation, maintaining both precision and productivity.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 1C~1D
Figure 2
AI summary
The present disclosure provides methods, computing device readable medium, devices, and systems having a dental attachment placement structure. One dental attachment placement apparatus includes a body having an attachment placement surface that is to be placed on an attachment affixing surface of a tooth and wherein the attachment placement surface includes a portion that is shaped to allow placement of an attachment at a particular position on the affixing surface of the tooth and a portion of the body having a contour that is shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface of a tooth and when the contour of the body and the corresponding contour is aligned, the attachment is located at the particular position and can be secured to the affixing surface of the tooth.