3D Dental Epicenter Mapping for Multi-Condition Severity Detection

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current dental diagnostic tools only allow visualization of one dental condition at a time on a 3D model, dispersing information about the overall health status and making it challenging for practitioners to identify multiple affected areas, leading to potential missed problem areas and ineffective communication with patients.

Innovation Solution

A computer-implemented method that determines an epicenter of dental conditions by estimating the presence and aggregated severity levels of multiple dental conditions using a 3D model, associating data points with locations, and rendering a graphical representation to highlight areas requiring attention.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If multiple dental conditions are visualized separately on the 3D model, then each condition can be examined in detail, but information about the overall health status is dispersed and diagnostic efficiency decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedetection accuracy of individual dental conditionsVSAvoiddiagnostic efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple separate visualizations of different dental conditions into a single integrated epicenter map. Instead of displaying separate heatmaps for caries, cracks, wear, and other conditions, the system merges them into one comprehensive visualization that shows aggregated severity levels across all conditions, allowing practitioners to assess overall dental health status efficiently in a single view.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The epicenter map serves multiple functions simultaneously: it visualizes the location and severity of multiple different dental conditions, identifies priority treatment areas, provides an overview of overall dental health status, and guides clinical examination. This multi-functional visualization replaces the need for multiple separate condition-specific displays.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Adaptability or versatility

If practitioners manually switch between different dental condition visualizations, then they can examine each condition, but problem areas may be missed and the process becomes time-consuming

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to examine multiple dental conditionsVSAvoidtime required for examination

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system pre-calculates and displays aggregated severity levels for all dental conditions simultaneously before the practitioner begins examination. The epicenter map is generated in advance, showing all problem areas and their relative severities, so practitioners don't need to manually switch between different condition visualizations during the examination process.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses a color-coded heatmap visualization where different colors represent different severity levels of aggregated dental conditions. The epicenter areas with highest severity are highlighted with distinct colors, allowing practitioners to quickly identify priority treatment areas without manually examining each condition separately.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #32Color changes

3Loss of information

If separate visualizations of different dental conditions are displayed, then each condition can be assessed, but clear communication with patients about overall health status becomes difficult

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinformation completeness about dental conditionsVSAvoidcommunication effectiveness with patients

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the most critical information from multiple separate condition visualizations and presents it in a simplified, patient-friendly format. The epicenter map identifies and highlights only the most severe problem areas that require immediate attention, removing unnecessary detail while preserving essential diagnostic information for effective patient communication.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentEP4704104A1Method for determining an epicenter of dental conditions

Publication Date: 2026.03.04 3SHAPE AS

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AI summary

This disclosure relates to a computer-implemented method comprising the steps of obtaining a three-dimensional (3D) model of a dental site, the 3D model comprising a plurality of data points describing a surface of the dental site in 3D space; estimating a presence of one or more dental conditions defining one or more inspection sites in the 3D model, wherein each inspection site comprises one or more of the plurality of data points; determining an aggregated severity level of the one or more dental conditions for each of the one or more of the plurality of data points, thereby determining one or more aggregated severity levels for each inspection site; and determining an epicenter of the one or more aggregated severity levels of each inspection site by determining a maximum aggregated severity level of each inspection site and associating the one or more data points of the maximum aggregated severity level with a location of the epicenter.