Direct manufacture of customized labial and lingual orthodontic brackets
AssigneeLightForce Orthodontics, Inc.
InventorAlfred Charles Griffin, III
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method of manufacturing customized ceramic labial/lingual orthodontic brackets by digital light processing, said method comprises measuring dentition data of a profile of teeth of a patient, wherein measuring dentition data is performed using a CT scanner or intra-oral scanner, based on the dentition data, creating a three dimensional computer-assisted design (3D CAD) model of the patient's teeth using reverse engineering, and saving the 3D CAD model on a computer, designing a 3D CAD bracket structure model for a single labial or lingual bracket structure, importing the 3D CAD bracket structure model into a Digital Light Processing (DLP) machine, directly producing the bracket by layer manufacturing
Claims24
(canceled)
A method of manufacturing a customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket by additive manufacturing, the method comprising:
- accessing data in an additive manufacturing (AM) machine, the data related to a three dimensional (3D) computer-assisted design (CAD) bracket structure model for the customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket;
- and
- directly producing the customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket in the AM machine by layer manufacturing, wherein a manufacturing accuracy is achieved using between layer additive error compensation, and wherein a thickness of manufactured layers is in a range from 5 to 100 micrometers (μm) based on resolution requirements associated with the customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket.
A customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket produced by additive manufacturing, the orthodontic bracket comprising:
- a plurality of layers directly produced in an additive manufacturing (AM) machine by layer manufacturing, a shape of each layer consistent with a three dimensional computer-assisted design bracket structure model for the customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket;
- wherein a manufacturing accuracy of the orthodontic bracket is achieved using between layer additive error compensation, and wherein a thickness of the manufactured layers is in a range from 5 to 100 micrometers (μm) based on resolution requirements of the customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket.
At least one non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more hardware processors of a computing device, cause the one or more hardware processors to at least:
- access data related to a three dimensional computer-assisted design bracket structure model for a customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket in a light-polymerizable material-based additive manufacturing (AM) machine;
- and
- cause direct production of the customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket in the AM machine by layer manufacturing, wherein a manufacturing accuracy is achieved using between layer additive error compensation, and wherein a thickness of manufactured layers is in a range from 5 to 100 micrometers (μm) based on resolution requirements associated with the customized labial/lingual orthodontic bracket.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.