Aligner manufacturing system

A system configured to manufacture an aligner, the system comprising:

• a heating section configured to heat a sheet of plastic to generate a heated sheet of plastic;
• a plate configured to secure a mold associated with a dental arch of a patient, the plate comprising a locking mechanism and a pin, wherein the pin has a first circular perimeter, wherein the mold comprises a first feature configured to interface with the locking mechanism and a second feature configured to interface with the pin, wherein the second feature is a recess formed in a lower surface of the mold without extending to an upper surface of the mold, wherein the first feature is a hole formed from the upper surface to the lower surface of the mold, and wherein the locking mechanism is configured to extend through the hole and overlap the upper surface of the mold to lock the mold in a z-direction that is orthogonal to a plane defined by the plate;
• a thermoforming chamber configured to thermoform the heated sheet of plastic to the mold that is secured to the plate to generate a thermoformed sheet of plastic;
• and
• a cutting tool configured to trim the aligner from the thermoformed sheet of plastic.

A system configured to manufacture an aligner, the system comprising:

• a heating section configured to heat a sheet of plastic to generate a heated sheet of plastic;
• a plate configured to secure a mold associated with a dental arch of a patient, the plate comprising at least three plate features, wherein the mold comprises at least three mold features, wherein the at least three mold features are each configured to interface with a corresponding plate feature of the at least three plate features, wherein the at least three plate features comprises a first plate feature that is configured to extend through the mold and overlap an upper surface of the mold to lock the mold in a z-direction that is orthogonal to a plane defined by the plate;
• a thermoforming chamber configured to thermoform the heated sheet of plastic to the mold that is secured to the plate via each corresponding interface of each of the at least three mold features with the corresponding plate feature of the plate to generate a thermoformed sheet of plastic;
• and
• a cutting tool configured to trim the aligner from the thermoformed sheet of plastic.