Patent Publication Number: US-2021177554-A1

Title: Robotic device for dental surgery

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/170,038, filed Jun. 2, 2015, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/089,580, filed Dec. 9, 2014, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present disclosure relates generally to robotic systems and methods of using the same. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to using a robotic system to (i) automatically perform a variety of dental procedures and/or (ii) monitor a manually performed dental procedure, thereby generating positional data of the robotic system that is usable in creating a modified three-dimensional model for use in developing a final and/or temporary dental prosthesis (e.g., crown, abutment, etc.). 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The dental restoration of a partially or wholly edentulous patient with artificial dentition typically begins with an incision being made through the patient&#39;s gingiva to expose the underlying bone. An artificial tooth root, in the form of a dental implant, is placed in the jawbone for osseointegration. The dental implant generally includes a threaded bore configured to receive a retaining screw for holding mating components (e.g., temporary tooth prosthesis, permanent abutment, permanent crown, etc.) thereon. After the dental implant is placed, the gum tissue overlying the dental implant is sutured and heals as the osseointegration process continues. 
     Once the osseointegration process is complete, the gingival tissue is re-opened to expose an end of the dental implant. A healing component or healing abutment is fastened to the exposed end of the dental implant to allow the gingival tissue to heal therearound. It should be noted that the healing abutment can be placed on the dental implant immediately after the implant has been installed and before osseointegration, thereby, for some situations, combining the osseointegration step and gingival healing step into a one-step process. 
     At some point thereafter, designing of permanent components to be attached to the dental implant begins. The permanent components are typically referred to as a prosthetic tooth (e.g., permanent abutment plus a permanent crown attached thereto in the shape of a tooth). The design and manufacture of these permanent components requires highly skilled individuals working with models of the mouth of the patient to design components that will look good and function properly (e.g., fit between the adjacent teeth, etc.). 
     While the models used to design the permanent components are typically physical models made from impressions of the mouth of the patient, in recent years, the designing of the permanent components to be attached to the manually installed dental implant has involved the use of computers and virtual three-dimensional models of the mouth of the patient. In order to accurately design permanent components that mate with the manually installed dental implant in a planned manner (i.e., with a planned rotational orientation and a planned vertical dimension of occlusion), precise details about the location and rotational orientation of the manually installed dental implant must be known and incorporated in to the virtual three-dimensional model. 
     In order to obtain this information, prior systems have used scanning abutments that replace the healing abutment for a short period of time and require an intraoral scan of the mouth of the patient to obtain the required data to create the virtual three-dimensional model. The replacing of the healing abutment with the scanning abutment, even for a short period of time, has disadvantages, such as, added discomfort to the patient having to have additional procedures performed, disruption to the gingival healing process, etc. 
     However, some other prior systems use coded healing abutments that have scannable features (e.g., markers) thereon that when scanned and interpreted, provide the necessary information about the location and orientation of the underlying dental implant to create the virtual three-dimensional model without the need to remove the healing abutment and place a separate scanning abutment in the mouth of the patient. While these systems do not require the removal of the healing abutment to create the virtual three-dimensional model, they still do require the intraoral scanning step, which requires expensive intraoral scanning equipment. The present disclosure is directed to solving these and other needs. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to some implementations, a robotic system for use during a dental surgical procedure including installation of a dental implant in a mouth of a patient includes a base; a grounding arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the grounding arm being coupled to the base, the second end of the grounding arm being configured to be coupled to a fixed structure within the mouth of the patient for establishing an origin for the robotic system relative to the mouth of the patient, the second end of the grounding arm having at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base; a working arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the working arm extending from the base, the second end of the working arm being configured to be coupled with one or more tools for use during the dental surgical procedure, a portion of the working arm having at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base and being moveable to (i) form an opening in bone within the mouth of the patient and (ii) install the dental implant in the formed opening; and one or more sensors to monitor positions of the grounding arm and the working arm, the one or more sensors generating positional data that is used to create a post-operative virtual three-dimensional implant level model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient. 
     According to some implementations, a robotic system for use during installation of a dental implant in a mouth of a patient includes a base; a grounding arm extending from the base and being configured to be coupled to a fixed structure within the mouth of the patient for establishing an origin for the robotic system relative to the mouth of the patient; a working arm extending from the base and being configured to be coupled with one or more tools for use during the installation of the dental implant, at least a portion of the working arm being movable to install the dental implant in the mouth of the patient; and one or more sensors to monitor positions of the grounding arm and the working arm, the one or more sensors generating positional data that is used to create a virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient. 
     According to some implementations, a method of creating a post-operative virtual model of at least a portion of a mouth of a patient, where the mouth includes a dental implant installed using a robotic system during a dental surgical procedure, includes attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; moving, as part of the dental surgical procedure, at least a portion of a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool to install the dental implant in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the dental surgical procedure, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool relative to the established origin; and creating the post-operative virtual model of the at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model and the generated positional data. 
     According to some implementations, a method of automatically shaving alveolar bone in a mouth of a patient using a robotic system includes attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-shaved virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; developing a plan for automatically moving a bone-cutting tool relative to the established origin to shave a portion of the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient; attaching the bone-cutting tool to a working arm of the robotic system; and executing the developed plan by automatically moving the bone-cutting tool via the working arm of the robotic system, thereby shaving the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient according to the developed plan such that an exposed ridge of the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient is sufficiently widened for drilling and receiving a dental implant therein. 
     According to some implementations, a method of installing a dental implant in a mouth of a patient using a robotic system includes developing a plan for installing the dental implant in the mouth of the patient, the developed plan including (i) a first sub-plan for shaving an exposed portion of bone in the mouth with a first tool, thereby creating a sufficiently widened portion of the bone for receiving the dental implant therein, (ii) a second sub-plan for forming an opening in the sufficiently widened portion of the bone to receive the dental implant with a second tool, and (iii) a third sub-plan for installing the dental implant within the opening with a third tool; establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to a rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; and executing the plan by: (A) coupling the first tool to a working arm of the robotic system and shaving the exposed portion of the bone in the mouth of the patient by moving at least a portion of the working arm according to the first sub-plan; (B) coupling the second tool to the working arm of the robotic system and forming the opening in the bone in the mouth of the patient by moving the at least a portion of the working arm according to the second sub-plan; and (C) coupling the third tool and the dental implant to the working arm of the robotic system and installing the dental implant into the opening in the bone in the mouth of the patient by moving the at least a portion of the working arm according to the third sub-plan. 
     According to some implementations, a method of shaving alveolar bone in a mouth of a patient using a robotic system includes establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to a rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; determining an invisible boundary wall to be established around a pre-determined location in the mouth of the patient; coupling a bone-cutting tool to a working arm of the robotic system; moving at least a portion of the working arm of the robotic system to shave the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient; during the moving, automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall by preventing the working arm of the robotic system from being moved in a manner that would cause the bone-cutting tool to be moved past the determined invisible boundary wall; and monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the bone-cutting tool relative to the established origin. 
     According to some implementations, a method of automatically preparing a tooth in a mouth of a patient to receive a custom crown using a robotic system includes attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-shaped virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; developing a plan for automatically moving one or more tools relative to the established origin to shape the tooth in the mouth of the patient to receive the custom crown; and in response to a working arm of the robotic system being coupled with at least one of the one or more tools, implementing the developed plan by automatically moving at least a portion of the working arm according to the developed plan, thereby shaping the tooth in the mouth of the patient such that the tooth is substantially shaped according to the developed plan. 
     According to some implementations, a method of preparing a tooth in a mouth of a patient to receive a custom crown using a robotic system includes attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-shaped virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; determining an invisible boundary wall to be established around the tooth in the mouth to be shaped; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; in response to a working arm of the robotic system being coupled with a shaping tool, manually moving at least a portion of the working arm to shape the tooth in the mouth of the patient; automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall by preventing the working arm from being moved in a manner that would cause a cutting portion of the shaping tool to move outside of the determined invisible boundary wall; monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the cutting portion of the shaping tool relative to the established origin; and creating a post-shaped virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-shaped virtual model and the generated positional data, the at least a portion of the mouth including the shaped tooth. 
     According to some implementations, a method of preparing a tooth in a mouth of a patient to receive a custom crown using a robotic system includes coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; in response to a working arm of the robotic system being coupled with a shaping tool, manually moving at least a portion of the working arm to shape the tooth in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of a cutting portion of the shaping tool relative to the established origin; and creating a post-shaped virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based at least in part on the generated positional data. 
     According to some implementations, a method of modifying a denture to be coupled with a plurality of dental implants in a mouth of a patient as a hybrid prosthesis using a robotic system includes attaching a first rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient and attaching a second rigid grounding member to the denture; obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the first rigid grounding member and the denture therein; removing the denture, with the second rigid grounding member attached thereto, from the mouth of the patient; establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the first rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool, installing the plurality of dental implants in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the installing, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool relative to the established origin; creating a post-operative virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model and the generated positional data; based at least in part on the post-operative virtual model, developing a plan for automatically modifying the denture such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants; coupling the grounding arm of the robotic system to the second rigid grounding member attached to the denture; and using the working arm of the robotic system coupled to a drill-bit tool, modifying the denture by creating a plurality of holes such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants as the hybrid prosthesis. 
     According to some implementations, a method of modifying a denture into a hybrid prosthesis using a robotic system includes obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the denture therein: removing the denture from the mouth of the patient; installing a plurality of dental implants in the mouth of the patient using a first tool controlled by the robotic system; monitoring, during the installing, a position of the first tool to generate positional data; creating a post-operative virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model and the generated positional data; and based at least in part on the post-operative virtual model, modifying the denture by creating a plurality of holes therein using a second tool controlled by the robotic system such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants as the hybrid prosthesis. 
     According to some implementations, a method of modifying a denture to be coupled with a plurality of dental implants in a mouth of a patient as a hybrid prosthesis using a robotic system includes obtaining a first virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the denture therein; removing the denture from the mouth of the patient; attaching a first rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a second virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the first rigid grounding member therein; attaching a second rigid grounding member to the denture outside of the mouth of the patient; obtaining a third virtual model of the denture with the second rigid grounding member attached thereto; establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the first rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool, installing the plurality of dental implants in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the installing, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool relative to the established origin; creating a fourth virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained second virtual model and the generated positional data; based at least in part on the first, the third, and the fourth virtual models, developing a plan for automatically modifying the denture such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants; coupling the grounding arm of the robotic system to the second rigid grounding member attached to the denture; and using the working arm of the robotic system coupled to a drill-bit tool, modifying the denture by creating a plurality of holes such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants as the hybrid prosthesis. 
     According to some implementations, a method of manufacturing a patient specific temporary prosthesis (PSTP) for use in manufacturing a permanent prosthesis for attachment to a dental implant installed in a mouth of a patient includes establishing an origin for a PSTP blank by coupling a grounding arm of a robotic system to the PSTP blank via a fixture; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a sculpting tool, modifying the PSTP blank such that the PSTP blank is transformed into the PSTP having a tooth-like shape suitable for attachment to the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the modifying, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the sculpting tool relative to the established origin; and based at least in part on the generated positional data, creating a virtual model of at least a portion of the PSTP. 
     According to some implementations, a method of manufacturing a patient specific temporary prosthesis (PSTP) for use in manufacturing a permanent prosthesis for attachment to a dental implant installed in a mouth of a patient includes establishing an origin for a PSTP blank by coupling a grounding arm of a robotic system to the PSTP blank via a fixture; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a sculpting tool, modifying the PSTP blank such that the PSTP blank is transformed into the PSTP having a tooth-like shape suitable for attachment to the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the modifying, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the sculpting tool relative to the established origin; based at least in part on the generated positional data, creating a virtual model of at least a portion of the PSTP; attaching the PSTP to the dental implant in the mouth of the patient; permitting gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP to heal in the mouth of the patient; in response to the healed gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP in the mouth of the patient satisfying a threshold, manufacturing the permanent prosthesis as a replica of the PSTP using the created virtual model; in response to the healed gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP in the mouth of the patient not satisfying the threshold: (i) physically modifying the PSTP; (ii) scanning the modified PSTP to obtain a modified virtual model of at least a portion of the modified PSTP; and (iii) manufacturing the permanent prosthesis as a replica of the modified PSTP using the obtained modified virtual model. 
     A method of using a robotic system to automatically create a socket in a jawbone of a patient for receiving a dental implant therein including attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient. A pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein is obtained. A grounding arm of the robotic system is coupled to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient. A plan for automatically moving two or more of a plurality of surgical tools relative to the established origin is developed to create the socket in the jawbone of the patient. A first one of the plurality of surgical tools is attached to a working arm of the robotic system. A first portion of the developed plan is executed by automatically moving the first one of the plurality of surgical tools via the working arm of the robotic system, thereby starting to create the socket in the jawbone of the patient according to the developed plan. Data is received from one or more sensors of the robotic system indicative of at least one of a torque or a force required to implement the first portion of the developed plan. A second portion of the developed plan is modified based on the received data. The modified second portion of the developed plan is executed by automatically moving a second one of the plurality of surgical tools via the working arm of the robotic system, thereby completing the socket in the jawbone of the patient according to the modified plan. 
     A method of using a robotic system includes developing a plan for automatically moving one or more of a plurality of surgical tools relative to an established origin of the robotic system to perform a surgical procedure in a mouth of a patient. A first one of the plurality of surgical tools is attached to a working arm of the robotic system. A first portion of the developed plan is executed. During the execution of the first portion of the developed plan, data is received from one or more sensors of the robotic system. A second portion of the developed plan is modified based on the received data. 
     Additional aspects of the present disclosure will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of various implementations, which is made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided below. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The foregoing and other advantages of the disclosure will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings. 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a robotic system having a working arm and a grounding arm according to some implementations of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a portion of the working arm of the robotic system of  FIG. 1  coupled with a surgical tool; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a portion of the grounding arm of the robotic system of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a rigid grounding member to be coupled with a mouth of a patient for use with the robotic system of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5 . is a perspective view of the rigid grounding member of  FIG. 4  being coupled to a mouth of a patient and a scanner for scanning the mouth of the patient; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the grounding arm of the robotic system of  FIG. 1  being coupled with the rigid grounding member that was coupled to the mouth of the patient; 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the working arm and coupled surgical tool being used to perform a procedure in the mouth of the patient; 
         FIG. 8A  is an illustrative perspective view of the surgical tool coupled to the working arm of the robotic system bumping into an invisible barrier wall according to some implementations of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 8B  is the illustrative perspective view of  FIG. 8A  overlaid on top of the perspective view of  FIG. 7  illustrating a use of the invisible barrier wall during the manual performance of a surgical procedure according to some implementations of the present disclosure; and 
         FIG. 9  illustrates a modified or post-operative virtual three-dimensional model of a mouth of a patient displayed on a display device of the robotic system of  FIG. 1  according to some implementations of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     While the present disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the present disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. 
     DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , a robotic system  100  of the present disclosure can be used in a variety of manners to perform a variety of surgical and/or non-surgical procedures. Once the robotic system  100  is registered to a patient  10  and loaded with a pre-determined surgical plan, the robotic system  100  is ready to automatically carry out one or more surgical procedures or portions thereof. By automatically, it is meant that the robotic system can, without interruption or input from a human (e.g., other than registering the robotic system  100 , loading the pre-determined surgical plan, and in some implementations hitting a start button), perform a surgical procedure or portion thereof. 
     Additionally, the robotic system  100  can be manually manipulated by, for example, an oral surgeon to be used in performing one or more surgical procedures. Manually performing a surgical procedure using the robotic system  100  aids the surgeon as compared to performing a manually procedure without the robotic system  100  as the robotic system  100  supports the weight of the tools (e.g., tool  155  and surgical tool-bits  132  coupled thereto) used by the surgeon during the often lengthy surgery. Further, the robotic system  100  can be configured to aid the surgeon by preventing the surgeon from moving a surgical tool-bit  132  of the robotic system  100  in a manner that is inconsistent with a general plan or outline for the procedure. For example, an invisible barrier wall (e.g., invisible barrier wall  450  shown in  FIGS. 8A and 8B ) and/or area can be established prior to a procedure being conducted such that the robotic system  100  prevents manual manipulation of the tool  155  and tool-bit  132  coupled thereto in a manner that would cause the surgical tool-bit  132  to move past the invisible barrier wall/area  450  (e.g., and into a nerve, the wrong tooth, the palate of the mouth of the patient, the cheek of the patient, etc.). Further, the robotic system  100  can implement haptic feedback to indicate to a manual user  400  ( FIGS. 7, 8A, 8B ) of the robotic system  100  that the user  400  (e.g., the surgeon) is attempting to move the surgical tool outside of the accepted working space (e.g., past the invisible barrier wall/area  450 ). For example, the robotic system  100  can vibrate the tool  155  and/or make an audible noise to indicate that the surgeon  400  is attempting to move the tool  155  and surgical tool-bit  132  coupled thereto past the predefined limits for the particular procedure (see  FIGS. 8A and 8B ). Further, the robotic system  100  can improve a surgeon&#39;s fidelity by increasing the resolution with which the surgeon can operate as compared to a surgeon not using the robotic system  100 . That is, using the robotic system  100 , the surgeon is able to move surgical tools coupled thereto with a higher degree of accuracy and in relatively smaller increments (i.e., higher resolution) as compared to the accuracy and increment size the surgeon can move surgical tools without using the robotic system  100 . 
     Further, during manual manipulation of the robotic system  100 , the robotic system  100  can monitor movements of the robotic system  100  and develop a positional data set indicative of the performed procedure. That is, the robotic system  100  can trace/follow a path taken by the tool  155  and/or by the surgical tool-bit  132  coupled thereto (or at least a tip portion of the surgical tool-bit  132 ) and record data indicative of that traced path. As such, with knowledge of the geometry of the used surgical tool-bit(s)  132  and an established origin, O, (see  FIGS. 4 and 8B ) for the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and/or of the robotic system  100 , the final patient situation can be determined (e.g., a post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  as modified during the procedure as shown in  FIG. 9 ). For example, if the robotic system  100  is used to remove bone, the positional data collected by the robotic system  100  would be indicative of where the bone removal tool-bit  132  physically traveled/went relative to the established origin, O, of the mouth during the procedure (e.g., which is related to the bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 ) and can thereby be used to develop a post-operative virtual three-dimensional model (similar to the post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  shown in  FIG. 9 ) of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  illustrating the removed bone. This virtual three-dimensional model is thus created without having to take a post-operational intraoral scan of the patient  10 —sparing the patient  10  this added scanning step. 
     Additional details on the robotic system  100  and uses of the robotic system  100  are described below in various Sections herein. While the disclosure is broken into these Sections including various implementations having described elements, any portion and/or any element contained in any Section and/or any implementation can be combined and/or modified with any portion and/or any element in any other Section and/or any other implementation described herein. 
     Components and General Operation Robotic System  100   
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , the robotic system  100  includes a base  120 , a working arm  140 , and a grounding arm  160 . The base  120  can also be referred to as a cabinet for housing a multitude of elements therein, where at least some of the elements housed therein are coupled together to perform one or more functions/operations. The base  120  rests on a ground surface  105  (e.g., a floor of a dental surgical room). The base  120  can be fixed to the ground surface  105  or moveable with respect to the ground surface  105 . In the implementations when the base  120  is moveable with respect to the ground surface  105 , a bottom side of the base  120  includes one or more casters or rollers (not shown). Alternatively or additionally to the base  120  resting on and/or being coupled to the ground surface  105 , the base can be coupled to a wall surface  107  (e.g., a wall of the dental surgical room). Preferably, the base  120  is mounted to the ground surface  105  and/or the wall  107  to aid in preventing the robotic system  100  from tipping over during use thereof. 
     The base  120  houses and/or is coupled to/associated with a computer  121 , a display device  122 , input devices  124   a ,  124   b , a surgical tool tray  130 , and storage drawers  135 . The computer  121  is communicatively connected with the display device  122 , the input devices  124   a ,  124   b , the working arm  140  and the grounding arm  160 . The computer  121  can include controllers, processors, memory devices, communication devices (e.g., wireless, wired, etc.), etc. configured to run/execute one or more software programs (e.g., robotic system control software programs, dental surgical planning software programs, abutment design software programs, crown design software programs, etc.). The computer  121  is specially programmed and improved for controlling and/or tracking/tracing the working arm  140  and/or the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100 . Alternatively, the computer  121  can be a general purpose computer capable of executing specific software to control and/or track the working arm  140  and/or the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100 . 
     The input devices  124   a ,  124   b  are shown as being a keyboard and a mouse for use in operating the computer  121 . Additional input devices can be used such as, for example, a joystick, a wireless or wired electronic pen, a touch screen overlaid on the display device  122 , a foot pedal, etc. 
     The surgical tool tray  130  stores a multitude of surgical tools or surgical tool-bits  132  therein for use in a variety of procedures (e.g., creation of an osteotomy, implant placement, bone shaving, tooth-crown prepping, probing/mechanical sensing, denture modification, provisional restoration shaping, abutment shaping, etc.). While only four surgical tool-bits  132  are shown, any number of surgical tool-bits  132  can be included in the surgical tool tray  130  (e.g., one surgical tool-bit, two surgical tool-bits, ten surgical tool-bits, thirty surgical tool-bits, etc.). The surgical tool-bits  132  can include drill-bit tools (e.g., to create sockets and/or openings in bone), tapping tools (e.g., to create threads in bone sockets/openings), dental-implant-driving tools, rotating mill tools, saw tools, probe tools, mechanical sensing tool-bits, scalpel/knife tools, or any combination thereof. In some implementations, the base  120  stores a multitude of surgical tool trays  130  in one of the storage drawers  135 . In such implementations, depending on the procedure being conducted using the robotic system  100 , a user (e.g., oral surgeon, clinician, dental assistant, etc.) connects the proper one of the surgical tool trays  130  to the base  120  and puts any extra surgical tool trays  130  back into the storage drawer  135  for future use and/or cleaning. The surgical tools  132  on the surgical tool tray  130  are arranged in a known manner such that the robotic system  100  can cause the working arm  140  to automatically move and pick-up a desired one of the surgical tool-bits  132 . In some implementations, to avoid the robotic system  100  picking-up the wrong surgical tool-bit  132 , the surgical tool tray  130  is designed such that the surgical tool tray  130  can only connect with the base  120  in one orientation. Further, in some implementations, each surgical tool-bit  132  is designed to only be coupled with one known location on the surgical tool tray  130 . Yet in other implementations, an operator of the robotic system  100  manually couples the working arm  140  with a desired one of the surgical tool-bits  132 . 
     The working arm  140  has a first end  141   a  that extends from the base  120  and a second opposing end  141   b  that is configured to be coupled with one of the surgical tool-bits  132  via a tool  155  to be used in performing a procedure. Between the first and the second ends  141   a,b , the working arm  140  includes a multitude of rigid arm members  145  coupled together by a multitude of flexible joint members  150 . Each of the rigid arm members  145  can have a fixed length or be capable of having a variable length, such as, for example, having a telescoping configuration (not shown). Such a telescoping configuration provides added flexibility for the robotic system  100  to reach further from the base  120  during the performance of a procedure. As shown, the working arm  140  is directly coupled to the base  120  via one of the flexible joint members  150 , although the working arm  140  can be directly coupled to the base  120  via one of the rigid arm members  145  instead. The rigid arm members  145  can be made of a variety of materials such as, for example, titanium, plastic, steel, of any combination thereof. 
     Each of the flexible joint members  150  is configured to mate one of the rigid arm members  145  to another one of the rigid arm members  145  or to the base  120 . Each of the flexible joint members  150  includes one or more motors therein for causing relative movement of the ones of the rigid arm members  145  mated to the flexible joint member  150 . For example, each of the flexible joint members  150  includes an electric servo motor, an electric rotary motor, etc. As such, in response to a command from the computer  121 , for example, automatically executing a preplanned surgical procedure, the flexible joint member  150  can cause one of the rigid arm members  145  to rotate/pivot relative to another one of the rigid arm members  145  coupled to the same flexible joint member  150 . Depending on the number and/or type of motor(s) in the flexible joint member  150 , the relative rotating/pivoting can be one dimensional, two dimensional, or three dimensional. That is, one of the rigid arm members  145  can be caused to rotate/pivot forward and backward relative to the other one of the rigid arm members  145  (e.g., pitching), rotate/pivot left and right relative to the other one of the rigid arm members  145  (e.g., swaying), and/or rotate/pivot side-to-side relative to the other one of the rigid arm members  145  (e.g., rolling). 
     As shown, the working arm  140  includes four rigid arm members  145  and four flexible joint members  150 . With the ability for each of the four flexible joint members  150  to rotate/pivot the rigid arm members  145  mated thereto as described above, the second end  141   b  of the working arm  140  and/or the tool  155  is able to move with at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base  120  (e.g., three degrees of rotational freedom and three degrees of translational freedom). It is contemplated that the number of rigid arm members  145  and flexible joint members  150  included in the working arm  140  can vary. As the number of the rigid arm members  145  and flexible joint members  150  decreases, so does the flexibility of the working arm  140 . Similarly, as the number of the rigid arm members  145  and flexible joint members  150  increases, so does the flexibility of the working arm  140 . For example, additional fine-tuning-flexible joint members  150  can be included that have a relatively smaller range of motion to precisely place the tool  155  and the surgical tool-bits  132  coupled thereto in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  in a desired location. Specifically, in some implementations, the surgical tool-bits  132  can be placed with less than a 0.5 millimeter margin of error from a desired target placement. In some other implementations, the surgical tool-bits  132  can be placed with less than a 0.1 millimeter margin of error from a desired target placement. 
     In addition to each of the flexible joint members  150  including one or more motors therein, each of the flexible joint members  150  includes one or more sensors for sensing the relative positional relationship between the rigid arm member(s)  145  coupled thereto. That is, for example, each one of the flexible joint members  150  includes one or more sensors that can determine the relative angular positional relationship between the two of the rigid arm members  145  coupled thereto relative to an X-Y-Z space having its origin at the center of the flexible joint member  150 . Thus, in response to a user of the robotic system  100  moving one of the rigid arm members  145 , the one or more sensors in the flexible joint member  150  coupled to the manually moved rigid arm member  145  are configured to sense that movement and generate data representative of the new location of the rigid arm member  145  relative to an origin of the flexible joint member  150  and/or relative to the origin, O, of the robotic system  100  and/or of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Such data is transmitted (wirelessly and/or via a wire) to the computer  121  for processing. For another example, in response to an operator  400  ( FIG. 7 ) manually moving the second end  141   b  and/or the tool  155  of the working arm  140  such that some or all of the rigid arm members  145  are moved relative to the base  120 , each of the flexible joint members  150  generates data that is transmitted to the computer  121  for processing. The computer  121  is configured to execute a tracing software program and/or algorithm that is able process the data from each of the flexible joint members  150  to determine the location of the second end  141   b  of the working arm  140  (or any portion of any tool  155  and/or surgical tool-bit  132  coupled thereto) relative one or more established origins, O, for the robotic system  100  and/or for the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . As such, the robotic system  100  is capable of tracking movement of the working arm  140 . 
     The grounding arm  160  has a first end  161   a  that extends from the base  120  and a second opposing end  161   b  that is configured to be coupled with a rigid grounding member  200  ( FIG. 4 ) to establish the origin, O, for the robotic system  100  and/or for the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Between the first and the second ends  161   a,b , the grounding arm  160  includes a multitude of rigid arm members  165  coupled together by a multitude of flexible joint members  170 . The rigid arm members  165  are the same as, or similar to, the rigid arm members  145  and the flexible joint members  170  are the same as, or similar to, the flexible joint members  150  described herein. 
     Now referring to  FIG. 2 , the second end  141   b  of the working arm  140  is shown in detail. Specifically, a portion of two rigid arm members  145   a,b  coupled by a flexible joint member  150  is shown. The rigid arm member  145   b  has a first end  146   a  coupled with the flexible joint member  150  and a second end  146   b  that is coupled with a coupler  147 . The coupler  147  is rigidly attached to the second end  146   b  of the rigid arm member  145   b  and designed to removably receive a portion of the tool  155  therein. As shown in  FIG. 2 , the tool  155  is a drill or driving tool for rotating a surgical tool-bit  132   a . Coupling the tool  155  to the coupler  147  can be purely mechanical and/or electrical. That is, the coupling of the tool  155  with the coupler  147  can include supplying power to the tool  155  through the coupler  147  or the tool  155  can be self-powered (e.g., via one or more disposable and/or rechargeable batteries). The connection between the coupler  147  and the tool  155  can be a press fit connection, a snap-in connection, a threaded connection, a magnetic connection, a friction connection, a tongue and groove connection, or any combination thereof such that the tool  155  is removably and securely coupled to the coupler  147  in a known and repeatable manner. In some implementations, the coupling of the tool  155  with the working arm  140  creates a communicative connection where the tool  155  is able to talk with the computer  121  through the working arm  140 , such that the identity of the tool  155  is disclosed to the computer  121 . As such, the computer learns the identity and size and shape of the tool  155  which is needed to precisely trace the movements of the tool  155  and any surgical tool-bit  132  coupled thereto. Alternatively, the working arm  140  is designed to only connect with a single tool  155  such that identification of the tool  155  is unnecessary. Yet in further alternative implementations, the robotic system  100  runs a check prior to conducting a procedure to confirm that the correct tool  155  is coupled to the working arm  140 . 
     In some implementations, the tool  155  includes a multitude of buttons  156 . The buttons  156  can be preprogrammed and/or programmable to start operation of the tool  155  (e.g., a start/ON button), to end operation of the tool  155  (e.g., a stop/OFF button), to reverse rotation of the tool  155  (e.g., forward, backward rotation), etc. One or more lights (e.g., LEDs) can be included in the tool  155  and positioned adjacent to each button  156  to indicate whether the button  156  is activated or not. In some implementations, the tool  155  includes a release button or mechanism  157  for use in aiding in the removal of the surgical tool-bit  132   a  from the tool  155 . In other implementations, the surgical tool-bit  132   a  can simply be pulled out of the tool  155  without having to press the release button  157 . 
     Now referring to  FIG. 3 , the second end  161   b  of the grounding arm  160  is shown in detail. Specifically, a portion of a rigid arm member  165   a  is coupled by a flexible joint member  170  to a grounding probe  180 . The grounding probe  180  has a first end  180   a  coupled with the flexible joint member  170  and a second end  180   b  designed to couple with the rigid grounding member  200  ( FIG. 4 ) in a removable and repeatable fashion. As shown in  FIG. 3 , the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180  includes a pair of biased locking bearings  182   a,b . The locking bearings  182   a,b  are biased outward away from a central axis, YC, of the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180 . As such, the locking bearings  182   a,b  can be forced inward toward the central axis, YC, to allow the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180  to be slid into a receiving bore  222  of the rigid grounding member  200  ( FIG. 4 ) in a removable and repeatable fashion. 
     Registering the Robotic System  100  to the Mouth  12  of the Patient  10  Using the Rigid Grounding Member  200   
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , the rigid grounding member  200  is shown as including a body  205  and a coupling post  220 . The body  205  includes a first leg  207   a  and a second leg  207   b  coupled together by a base  209  therebetween. The base has an upper surface  209   a  and a bottom surface  209   b . Protruding generally upward from the upper surface  209   a  of the base  209  is the coupling post  220 . The body  205  and the coupling post  220  can be two separate and distinct parts that are attached together or they can be integrally formed as a monolithic component. The coupling post  220  includes the receiving bore  222  therein for receiving the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180  therethrough when grounding the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the mouth  12  of the patient  10  (e.g., when the rigid grounding member  200  is installed in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 ). The receiving bore  222  has a central axis, XC, along which the origin, O, for the robotic system  100  and/or the mouth  12  of the patient  10  can be established. In some implementations, the origin, O, is established at a center of the receiving bore along the central axis, XC. In some alternative implementations, the origin, O, is established at any point along the central axis, XC, for example, at either end opening of the receiving bore  222 . 
     The first leg  207   a  includes a threaded throughbore  208  that receives a fastener  230  (e.g., surgical dental screw, dental bolt, etc.). While not shown, the second leg  207   b  can also include a threaded throughbore the same as, or similar to, the threaded throughbore  208  for receiving the fastener  230  therein and/or another fastener (not shown). While the rigid grounding member  200  is shown as having a specific shape and size, various other shapes, sizes, and arrangements for the rigid grounding member  200  are contemplated, such that the rigid grounding member  200  can be attached to the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and provide a means for coupling the grounding probe  180  thereto in a removable and repeatable fashion. 
     According to some implementations, in order to register the robotic system  100  to the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and establish the origin, O, for use during a procedure using the robotic system  100 , the rigid grounding member  200  is installed into the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , the mouth  12  of the patient  10  includes teeth  14 , a jawbone  16 , and soft tissue  18  (e.g., gingival tissue), where tooth  14   a  is selected to be coupled with the rigid grounding member  200 . As shown in  FIG. 6 , the mouth  12  further includes a surgical site  20  (e.g., location to receive a dental implant, permanent abutment, and permanent crown), where teeth  14   b  and  14   c  are positioned adjacent to the surgical site  20 . 
     While the rigid grounding member  200  is attached to the tooth  14   a , the rigid grounding member  200  can be attached to any of the other teeth  14  in the mouth  12  and/or to the jawbone  16  of the patient  10 . To attach the rigid grounding member  200  to the tooth  14   a , the rigid grounding member  200  is placed on the tooth  14   a . Specifically, for example, the rigid grounding member  200  is positioned in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  such that (i) the bottom surface  209   b  of the base  209  is positioned generally adjacent to an occlusal surface of the tooth  14   a , (ii) the first leg  207   a  is positioned generally adjacent to a lingual surface of the tooth  14   a , and (iii) the second leg  207   b  is positioned generally adjacent to a buccal surface of the tooth  14   a , as shown in  FIG. 5 . With the rigid grounding member  200  so positioned, the fastener  230  is threaded into the threaded throughbore  208  of the first leg  207   a  to rigidly lock the rigid grounding member  200  in place against the tooth  14   a . In some implementations, the fastener  230  is tightened such that the fastener  230  does not penetrate the tooth  14   a , the soft tissue  18 , and/or the jawbone  16 . However, in some alternative implementations, the fastener  230  does penetrate the tooth  14   a , the soft tissue  18 , the jawbone  16 , or any combination thereof. 
     With the rigid grounding member  200  attached to the tooth  14   a , a scan of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  is taken using a scanner/camera  300  as shown in  FIG. 5 . Depending on the type of procedure being planned for implementation using the robotic system  100 , the scan of the mouth  12  can be an intraoral surface scan using an intraoral scanner, a CT scan using a CT scanner (such as, for example, a cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scanner also known as a dental CBCT scanner), or a combination thereof. The scanning of the mouth  12  with the rigid grounding member  200  therein, allows for the generation of the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  ( FIG. 1 ) of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to be generated. Such a virtual model can be used for developing a surgical plan and/or for designing components to be mated on a dental implant installed in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Specifically, the virtual model  325  includes a virtual rigid grounding member  200 ′ ( FIG. 1 ) that is used to establish the origin, O, of a coordinate system to be used by the robotic system  100  when conducting a procedure. 
     After the scanning of the mouth  12 , the robotic system  100  is grounded to the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Specifically, the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180  is mated with the rigid grounding member  200  by positioning and/or sliding the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180  into the receiving bore  222  of the coupling post  220  of the rigid grounding member  200 . The second end  180   b  is slid until the locking bearings  182   a,b  are slid through and outside of the receiving bore  222  and biased outward away from the central axis, YC, ( FIG. 3 ) such that the grounding probe  180  cannot readily be removed from the receiving bore  222 . In some implementations, tactile feedback is used to indicate that the grounding probe  180  is fully engaged with the rigid grounding member  200  and properly positioned therein. For example, when the grounding probe  180  is fully engaged, the locking bearings  182   a,b  can snap into place making an audible sound and/or a vibrating click. 
     By readily be removed, it is meant that to remove the grounding probe  180  from its engagement with the rigid grounding member  200 , the locking bearings  182   a,b  need to be actuated by being pressed inward towards the central axis, YC, to allow the grounding probe  180  to be slid out of the receiving bore  222 . Alternatively, the grounding probe  180  can be removed from its engagement with the rigid grounding member  200  by pulling the grounding probe  180  with a sufficient amount of force to overcome the biasing force of the locking bearings  182   a,b , thereby causing the locking bearings  182   a,b  to be forced inward towards the central axis, YC, and allow the removal of the grounding probe  180  from engagement with the rigid grounding member  200 . 
     As best shown in  FIG. 6 , a length, L 180   b , of the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180  is designed such that once the grounding probe  180  is properly engaged with the coupling post  220  of the rigid grounding member  200 , the grounding probe  180  does not have any or very little translational play therein. That means that the grounding probe  180  cannot slide and/or move laterally (e.g., translation) along the central axis, YC, when the grounding probe  180  is engaged with the rigid grounding member  200 . However, the grounding probe  180  is allowed to rotate within the receiving bore  222  about the central axis, YC. Such a connection between the grounding probe  180  and the rigid grounding member  200  aids the robotic system  100  in maintaining the known origin, O, based on the location of the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . 
     With the robotic system  100  grounded to the mouth  12  of the patient  10  via the rigid grounding member  200  and the grounding probe  180  (coupled to the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100 ), the robotic system  100  is ready to automatically implement a preplanned procedure and/or to allow an operator  400  to perform a manual and/or a semi-manual procedure that is tracked/traced by the robotic system  100 . In the case of using the robotic system  100  to automatically implement/conduct a preplanned procedure, the preplanned procedure must first be planned, for example, using a dental surgical planning software program, as described in the following Section. 
     Planning a Surgical Plan for Automatic Implementation by the Robotic System  100   
     As discussed above, the mouth  12  of the patient  10  is scanned with the rigid grounding member  200  therein. The scan data generated from that scan (e.g., intraoral surface scan, CT scan, dental CBCT scan, X-ray scan, a combination thereof, etc.) is imported and/or sent to the computer  121 , or another computer, that executes and/or runs a dental surgical planning software program. As shown in  FIG. 1 , the surgical planning software program is designed to display on the display device  122  the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model of the virtual mouth  12 ′ includes virtual teeth  14 ′, virtual soft tissue  18 ′, a virtual surgical site  20 ′, a virtual rigid grounding member  200 ′, and in some implementations where a dental CBCT scan and/or X-ray scan is taken, virtual bone  16 ′(e.g., jawbone), which correspond with the teeth  14 , the soft tissue  18 , the surgical site  20 , the rigid grounding member  200 , and the bone  16  in the actual mouth  12  of the patient  10 . 
     Depending on the type of procedure that is to be conducted in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , the dental surgical planning software program is designed to automatically and/or with some input from an operator (e.g., operator  400  shown in  FIG. 7 ), develop a surgical plan for conducting the desired procedure automatically using one or more of the surgical tool-bits  132  attached to the tool  155  of the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100 . Specifically, the dental surgical planning software program is designed to develop a set of instructions and/or movements for the working arm  140  to make relative to the grounding arm  160  (e.g., relative to the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180 ), which is positioned at a known location relative to the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  (e.g., the established origin, O along the central axis, XC, shown in  FIG. 4 ). The developed set of instructions includes directions as to what type and/or size of tool or tools to be used during the surgical procedure. The developed set of instructions also includes an order for using the tools when multiple tools are to be used. For example, if the desired procedure is an osteotomy, the developed instructions include which surgical drill-bit tool or tools  132  to use. Specifically, in an exemplary osteotomy, the instructions may direct the robotic system  100  to first use a first surgical drill-bit tool  132  having a first diameter and a first length to start the procedure (e.g., to create an initial socket/opening in the jawbone), followed by an instruction for the robotic system  100  to switch to a second surgical drill-bit tool  132  having a second (e.g., relatively larger) diameter and a second length (e.g., the same as or different than the first length) to continue the procedure (e.g., to enlarge a diameter of the created socket/opening in the jawbone), etc. A subsequent instruction may include for the robotic system  100  to switch to a surgical tapping tool  132  to tap (e.g., create threads) the previously created socket/opening in the jawbone. In some implementations, the surgical system  100  automatically and without operator input switches the surgical tool-bits  132  to the tool  155 ; and in some alternative implementations, an operator manually attaches and detaches the surgical tool-bits  132  to the tool  155 . 
     The development of the surgical plan by the dental surgical planning software program can be completely autonomous after receipt of the scan data (e.g., pre-operative virtual three-dimensional model  325 ), or the development can involve some input from an operator. For example, the dental surgical planning software program may require an input from the operator such as the type of procedure to be planned (e.g., creation of an osteotomy, implant placement, bone shaving, etc.), the location and orientation for a desired central axis of the implant to be placed (e.g., to avoid a nerve in the mouth  12  and/or to avoid an area of low density bone in the mouth  12 ), the manufacturer of the implant to be placed, the size of the implant to be placed, etc. 
     Once the surgical plan is developed using the dental surgical planning software program, the robotic system  100  is ready to conduct/implement the surgical plan using one or more of the surgical tool-bits  132 . In some implementations, the computer  121  that controls the working arm  140  and the grounding arm  160  also executes and runs the surgical planning software program. In such implementations, the developed surgical plan is automatically loaded and ready to be automatically implemented by the robotic system  100 , for example, in response to an operator clicking a start button on the display device  122 . In alternative implementations where a different computer executes/runs the dental surgical planning software program, the developed surgical plan needs to be sent to and/or loaded into the robotic system  100 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , after the surgical plan is initiated, the working arm  140  moves into place (e.g., at least partially into the mouth  12  of the patient  10 ) relative to the grounding arm  160  and starts to perform the procedure automatically at the surgical site  20  using one or more of the surgical tool-bits  132 . 
     Defining the Invisible Barrier Wall/Area  450  for Confining Movement of the Robotic System  100   
     As discussed herein, instead of having the robotic system  100  conduct a surgical procedure automatically, the robotic system  100  can be used manually such that the operator  400  ( FIGS. 7, 8A, 8B ) causes the working arm  140  and the attached surgical tool-bit  132  to move relative to the patient  10 . In such implementations, the invisible barrier wall/area  450  can be established prior to conducting the procedure. As shown in  FIG. 8A , the invisible barrier wall/area  450  is shown without the mouth  12  of the patient  10  for illustrative purposes, whereas  FIG. 8B  illustrates the same invisible barrier wall/area  450  overlaid in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . 
     The invisible barrier wall/area  450  can be established and/or developed using the surgical planning software program described herein as part of a surgical plan. In such implementations, for a semi-manual procedure to be conducted by an operator using (e.g., manually manipulating) the robotic system  100 , the invisible barrier wall/area  450  establishes a boundary for the working arm  140 , and specifically the surgical tool-bit  132  coupled thereto, when the surgical tool-bit  132  is near the patient  10  and/or positioned inside of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . As such, the invisible barrier wall/area  450  can aid in preventing the operator (e.g., oral surgeon) from moving the tool  155  in a manner that would cause the surgical tool-bit  132  and/or any portion of the working arm  140  (e.g., including the tool  155 ) to interfere with the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . 
     By interfere, it is meant, for example, that working arm  140  is bumped into teeth  14  of the patient  10  not being addressed by the procedure being conducted. For another example, by interfere, it is meant that the surgical tool-bit  132  is moved (e.g., vertically up and/or down, side-to-side, etc.) too far into the jawbone  16  of the patient  10  when, for example, the robotic system  100  is being used to perform a semi-manual procedure, such as, for example, creation of an osteotomy. As such, when the operator  400  is manually creating the osteotomy by manually moving the working arm  140 , the robotic system  100  implementing the invisible barrier wall/area  450  allows the operator  400  to move the surgical tool-bit  132  as desired (e.g., vertically up and/or down, side-to-side, etc.) within the bounds of the invisible barrier wall/area  450 , but if the operator  400  attempts to move the surgical tool-bit  132  outside of and/or past the invisible barrier wall/area  450 , then the robotic system  100  actively prevents such a movement using, for example, the motors in the flexible joint members  150 . For example, as illustrated in  FIGS. 8A and 8B , the operator  400  is attempting to cause the surgical tool-bit  132  to be moved in the direction of arrow A (e.g., downward relative to the orientation of  FIG. 8B ) through the invisible barrier wall/area  450 . However, because the surgical system  100  is actively enforcing the invisible barrier wall/area  450 , the surgical system  100  causes the working arm  140 , the tool  155 , the surgical tool-bit  132 , or any combination thereof, to vibrate (e.g., tactile feedback) indicating that the operator is attempting to move the surgical tool  132  past the invisible barrier wall/area  450 , which is not allowed. Use of such an invisible barrier wall/area  450  can be used, for example, to allow an operator (e.g., dental surgeon) to perform a free-form-shaped osteotomy where the operator is permitted to sculpt the osteotomy (e.g., move a surgical rotating mill tool  132  vertically up and/or down and side-to-side)—as opposed to using a set of stepped drill bits that are only moved vertically along a single central axis. As such, the operator can in real-time manually modify/update a surgical plan based on the received tactile feedback and/or other information (e.g., a level of torque needed to maintain a desired or preset drill speed during the procedure, a level of force needed to advance the surgical tool-bit  132  during the procedure, etc.). 
     While the invisible barrier wall/area  450  is shown as having an open top, alternative invisible barrier wall/areas can have invisible walls/invisible surfaces on all sides such that at least a portion of the working arm  140  (e.g., a tip of the surgical tool-bit  132 ) is completely enclosed within the invisible barrier wall/area during the entire procedure being performed using the robotic system  100 . As such, the invisible barrier wall/area can extend outside of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Such an invisible barrier wall/area can aid in preventing a portion of the working arm  140  from being bumped into the face or head or chest of the patient  10 , among other things. 
     The invisible barrier wall/area  450  is shown in  FIGS. 8A and 8B  in dashed lines to indicate that the invisible barrier wall/area  450  is not actually visible to the operator of the robotic system  100  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  during the procedure. However, in some implementations, a virtual representation of the invisible barrier wall/area  450  can be displayed on the display device  122  and/or on another display device during the procedure. For example, a virtual representation of the invisible barrier wall/area  450  can be displayed relative to a virtual model (e.g., the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325 ) of the mouth  12  of the patient. For another example, a virtual representation of the invisible barrier wall/area  450  can be displayed relative to a live video feed of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . For yet another example, a virtual representation of the invisible barrier wall/area  450  can be displayed relative to a picture of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The displaying of a virtual representation of the invisible barrier wall/area  450  allows the operator to visualize the invisible barrier wall/area  450  relative to the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , which can aid in the operator conducting and/or monitoring/supervising the procedure. 
     Monitoring/Tracing a Semi-Manual Procedure Using the Robotic System  100   
     The robotic system  100  can be used to perform a semi-manual procedure. By semi-manual it is meant that the robotic system  100  allows the operator  400  ( FIGS. 7, 8A, 8B ) of the robotic system  100  to manually manipulate/move the working arm  140  relative to the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to perform a procedure while at the same time maintain a level of control. For example, the robotic system  100  maintains control of the working arm  140  and the grounding arm  160  by supporting its own weight and/or monitoring/sensing the positions of the working arm  140  and the grounding arm  160  relative to the established origin, O ( FIG. 8B ). 
     As discussed herein, the working arm  140  includes a multitude of flexible joint members  150  and the grounding arm  160  includes a multitude of flexible joint members  170 , where each of the flexible joint members  150 ,  170  includes one or more sensors for use in determining a position of at least a portion of the working arm  140  (e.g., a tip of the surgical tool-bit  132 , etc.) and/or the grounding arm  160  (e.g., a tip of the grounding probe  180 ). For example, as the operator  400  moves the tool  155  ( FIG. 8B ), the sensors in the flexible joint members  150 ,  170  record data that is transmitted to the computer  121  for processing. The computer  121  runs/executes robotic control software that receives the data from the sensors and processes that data to determine a location of at least a portion of the working arm  140  (e.g., a tip of the surgical tool-bit  132 ) relative to the established origin, O ( FIG. 8B ). 
     For example, as shown in  FIG. 8B , the origin, O, for the robotic system  100  is established as a central point along the central axis, XC, of the receiving bore  222  of the coupling post  220  and along the central axis, YC, of the second end  180   b  of the grounding probe  180 . Alternatively, the origin, O, can be established at any location relative to the rigid grounding member  200 , as the rigid grounding member  200  is fixed relative to the rest of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  in a known and recorded fashion (e.g., known and recorded during the scanning of the mouth  12  with the rigid grounding member  200  therein as described herein) when installed in the mouth  12 . 
     As the operator  400  conducts a semi-manual procedure, with the robotic system  100  tracking/tracing every movement of the working arm  140  (e.g., specifically tracing every move of a tip of the surgical tool-bit  132 ) using the sensors in the flexible joint members  150 ,  170 , data about the location of the working arm  140  (and the surgical tool-bit  132 ) is generated and stored in the computer  121  or another computer and/or memory device. The computer  121  can execute and/or run three-dimensional modeling software (e.g., that is the same as the dental surgical planning software program described elsewhere herein or a different software program) that is programmed to create a modified or post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  ( FIG. 9 ) of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  is based on (i) the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  ( FIG. 1 ) of the mouth  12  and (ii) the data collected regarding the positions of the working arm  140  during the procedure. Specifically, the three-dimensional modeling software is designed to take the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and to modify the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  based on the procedure conducted using the robotic system  100 . As such, the post-operative three-dimensional virtual model  326  of the at least a portion of the virtual mouth  12 ′ includes the virtual teeth  14 ′, the virtual soft tissue  18 ′, the virtual surgical site  20 ′, the virtual rigid grounding member  200 ′, and in some implementations that took a CT scan (e.g., a dental CBCT scan), virtual bone  16 ′ (e.g., jawbone), which are in the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325 . However, depending on the procedure and the data collected during the same, the post-operative three-dimensional virtual model  326  also includes modifications at the surgical site  20 ′. 
     For example, as shown in  FIG. 9 , if the operator  400  creates an osteotomy using a surgical drill-bit tool  132  while the robotic system  100  tracked the procedure, the tracking of the positions of the working arm  140  produces data indicative of the location of the surgical drill-bit tool  132  used during the procedure relative to the soft tissue  18  and jawbone  16  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  relative to the rigid grounding member  200  (and thus the established origin, O). As such, the three-dimensional modeling software is able to identify how the surgical drill-bit tool or tools  132  interfered with the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  and update the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  by removing portions thereof based on the interference to result in the post-operative three-dimensional virtual model  326  including a virtual opening or socket  25 ′ in the soft tissue  18 ′ and/or in the bone  16 ′. That is, the interference of the surgical drill-bit tool or tools  132  indicates that the surgical drill-bit tool or tools  132  were used to drill and/or remove material resulting in the illustrated virtual opening or socket  25 ′. As such, the three-dimensional modeling software is able to modify the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  by removing the material that corresponds to the material that was actually removed from the mouth  12  of the patient  10  during the procedure. The result is the modified or post-operative three-dimensional virtual model  326  of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , which depicts the post-operative situation in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  (e.g., with the removed soft tissue and/or jawbone material). Thus, it is not necessary for the operator  400  to take a post-operative scan of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to acquire the post-operative patient situation. The patient  10  is spared this extra scanning step. 
     Further, for another example, as shown in  FIG. 9 , if the operator  400  placed a dental implant using an implant driving tool  132  while the robotic system  100  tracked the procedure, the tracking of the positions of the working arm  140  produces data indicative of the location of the implant driving tool (and thus the position of the dental implant coupled thereto) relative to the rigid grounding member  200  (and thus the established origin, O). As such, the three-dimensional modeling software is able to identify how the implant driving tool (and the dental implant coupled thereto) interfered with and/or moved relative to the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  and update the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  based on the interference to result in the post-operative three-dimensional virtual model  326  including a virtual dental implant  30 ′ placed in the virtual opening or socket  25 ′ at a location and orientation that corresponds with the placement and orientation of the actual dental implant installed in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  using the robotic system  100 . Thus, it is not necessary for the operator  400  to take a post-operative scan of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to acquire the post-operative patient situation including the location and orientation of the dental implant installed therein. The patient  10  is spared this extra scanning step. 
     The tracking/monitoring of the position of the working arm  140  and/or grounding arm  160  during a semi-manual and/or manual procedure conducted using the robotic system  100  can be used to create a variety of modified or post-operative virtual three-dimensional models of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  in addition to the ones described herein and shown in  FIG. 9 . For example, modified or post-operative virtual three-dimensional models can be automatically generated by, for example, the computer  121  running the three-dimensional modeling software after a conventional dentistry tooth-prep is performed using the robotic system, after a temporary prosthesis is shaped using the robotic system  100 , after a denture is modified using the robotic system  100 , etc. Various other manual/semi-manual procedures, such as the procedures described elsewhere herein, can be tracked/monitored as described above for generating positional data for use in generating modified or post-operative virtual three-dimensional models, thereby avoiding post-operative scans (e.g., post-operative intraoral surface scans, post-operative dental CBCT scan, etc.). 
     Exemplary Uses of the Robotic System  100   
     The robotic system  100  of the present disclosure can be used to conduct a variety of procedures automatically, manually, or a combination thereof. One example of a procedure performable by the robotic system  100  is the creating of an osteotomy. The creating of the osteotomy is performed using one or more surgical drill-bit tools  132  coupled to the robotic system  100  to form a socket and/or opening in a jawbone  16  of a patient  10  that is suitable for receiving a dental implant therein. Additionally, in some implementations, the performing of the osteotomy also uses one or more surgical tapping tools  132  coupled to the robotic system  100  to form threads in the previously formed socket/opening in the jawbone  16  of the patient  10  that is suitable for receiving the dental implant therein. A second example of a procedure performable by the robotic system  100  is the installing of a dental implant. The installing of the dental implant is performed using an implant driving tool  132  coupled to the robotic system  100  to install the dental implant in an opening in a jawbone  16  of a patient  10 . A third example of a procedure performable by the robotic system  100  is the performing of an alveolectomy. The alveolectomy is performed using a bone shaving/removal tool  132  coupled to the robotic system  100  to removal bone material from a jawbone  16  of a patient  10 . A fourth example of a procedure performable by the robotic system  100  is the performing of an alveoloplasty. The alveoloplasty is performed using a surgical bone contouring tool  132  coupled to the robotic system  100  to contour a portion of a jawbone  16  of a patient  10 . A fifth example of a procedure performable by the robotic system  100  is the developing of a tooth-crown-prep. The development of a tooth-crown-prep is performed using one or more surgical dental drill-bit tools  132  and/or dental shaver tool-bits  132  to remove portions of a tooth (e.g., occlusal portions) such that the tooth is suitable for receiving a custom crown thereon. A sixth example of a procedure performable by the robotic system  100  is the modifying of a denture for use as part of a hybrid prosthesis. A hybrid prosthesis includes a modified denture bonded with one or more abutments or cylinders. Typically, the modified denture is coupled to the dental implants via the one or more abutments or cylinders, which attach to respective ones of the dental implants. The robotic system  100  can be used to aid in the creation of the modified denture by precisely drilling holes in the denture in locations that directly correspond with central axes of the dental implants installed in the mouth of a patient  10 , which were installed using the robotic system  100 . As such, when the one or more abutments or cylinders are attached to the dental implants, the drilled holes in the denture match up with (i.e., are aligned with) the abutments or cylinders and can be bonded thereto to create the hybrid prosthesis. A seventh example of a procedure performable by the robotic system  100  is the creating of a provisional restoration. The creating of the provisional restoration is performed using one or more shaver and/or sculpting tool-bits  132  to remove portions of a tooth blank such that the tooth blank is sculpted to have an anatomical tooth shape for attachment to an installed dental implant. 
     It is contemplated that any of the above seven examples and any of the following disclosed implementations, can be performed automatically by the robotic system  100  loaded with a surgical plan with no or little input from an operator (e.g., except for selecting of a start procedure button), or performed manually and/or semi-manually by an operator  400  that manually manipulates the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  that is either constrained by or free from an invisible barrier wall/area  450 . It is further contemplated that any element and/or step from any of the following implementations can be removed and/or replaced with any other disclosed element in any of the other disclosed implementations. 
     According to a first implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, the robotic system  100  is used to install a dental implant in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The robotic system  100  includes the base  120 , the grounding arm  160 , the working arm  140 , and one or more sensors. The grounding arm  160  has a first end  161   a  and a second end  161   b . The first end  161   a  of the grounding arm  160  is coupled to the base  120  and the second end  161   b  of the grounding arm  160  is configured to be coupled to a fixed structure in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  for establishing the origin, O, for the robotic system  100  relative to the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . In such implementations, the second end  161   b  of the grounding arm  160  has at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base  120 . The working arm  140  has a first end  141   a  and a second end  141   b . The first end  141   a  of the working arm  140  extends from the base  120  and the second end  141   b  of the working arm  140  is configured to be coupled with one or more of the surgical tools  132  for use during installation of the dental implant in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . A portion of the working arm  140  has at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base  120  and is moveable to (i) form an opening in the bone  16  within the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and (ii) install the dental implant in the formed opening. The one or more sensors (e.g., the sensors in the flexible joint members  150 ,  170 ) monitor the positions of the grounding arm  160  and the working arm  140  and generate positional data that is used to create a post-operative virtual three-dimensional implant level model (e.g., model  326  of  FIG. 9 ) of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . 
     In the first implementation, the post-operative virtual three-dimensional implant level model is created without use of a scanning abutment coupled to the dental implant installed in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Further, the moveable portion of the working arm  140  is (i) manually-movable by the operator  400  of the robotic system  100 , (ii) automatically moveable by one or more motors (e.g., motors in the flexible joint members  150 ,  170 ) of the robotic system  100 , or (iii) both. The fixed structure in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  is one or more teeth, jawbone, the rigid grounding member  200 , or any combination thereof. 
     According to a second implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of creating the post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  ( FIG. 9 ) of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , where the mouth  12  includes a dental implant installed using the robotic system  100  during a dental surgical procedure, includes attaching the rigid grounding member  200  to a fixed position within the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method also includes obtaining the pre-operative virtual three-dimensional model  325  ( FIG. 1 ) of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  with the rigid grounding member  200  therein. The method further includes, coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , thereby establishing the origin, O, ( FIG. 8B ) for the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method also includes moving (e.g., automatically or manually, or a combination of both), as part of the dental surgical procedure, at least a portion of the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  coupled to the dental-implant-driving tool  132  to install the dental implant in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method also includes monitoring, during the dental surgical procedure, a position of the grounding arm  160  and the working arm  140  to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool  132  relative to the established origin, O and creating the post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  ( FIG. 9 ) of the at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  based on the obtained pre-operative virtual three-dimensional model  325  ( FIG. 1 ) and the generated positional data. 
     In the second implementation, the creating the post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  ( FIG. 9 ) occurs without use of a scanning abutment coupled to the installed dental implant. Further, the creating includes modifying the pre-operative virtual three-dimensional model  325  of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to include at least a portion of a virtual model of the dental implant (e.g., virtual dental implant  30 ′ shown in  FIG. 9 ) installed in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . In some versions of the second implementation, the method further includes prior to the moving, determining the invisible boundary wall/area  450  ( FIGS. 8A and 8B ) to be established around a pre-determined location (e.g., the surgical site  20  shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 ) for the dental implant to be installed in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and during the moving, automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall/area  450  by preventing the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  from being moved in a manner that would cause the dental implant to be installed outside of the determined invisible boundary wall/area  450 . 
     According to a third implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of automatically shaving alveolar bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  using the robotic system  100  includes attaching the rigid grounding member  200  to a fixed position (e.g., tooth  14   a  shown in  FIG. 6 ) within the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes obtaining a pre-shaved virtual model (e.g., the same as, or similar to, the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325  shown in  FIG. 1 ) of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  with the rigid grounding member  200  therein. The method further includes coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , thereby establishing the origin, O, ( FIG. 8B ) for the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes developing a plan for automatically moving a bone-cutting tool  132  relative to the established origin, O, to shave a portion of the alveolar bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes attaching the bone-cutting tool  132  to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  and executing the developed plan by automatically moving the bone-cutting tool  132  via the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100 , thereby shaving the alveolar bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  according to the developed plan such that an exposed ridge of the alveolar bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  is sufficiently widened for drilling and receiving a dental implant therein. 
     According to a fourth implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of installing a dental implant in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  using the robotic system  100  includes developing a plan for installing the dental implant in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The developed plan includes (i) a first sub-plan for shaving an exposed portion of bone in the mouth  12  with a first tool  132  (e.g., a surgical bone shaver), thereby creating a sufficiently widened portion of the bone for receiving the dental implant therein, (ii) a second sub-plan for forming an opening or socket in the sufficiently widened portion of the bone to receive the dental implant with a second tool  132  (e.g., a surgical drill-bit tool), and (iii) a third sub-plan for installing the dental implant within the opening with a third tool  132  (e.g., an implant driving tool). The method further includes establishing the origin, O, ( FIG. 8B ) for the mouth  12  of the patient  10  by coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Then the plan is executed by (1) coupling the first tool  132  to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  and shaving the exposed portion of the bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  by moving at least a portion of the working arm  140  (e.g., by moving the tool  155  shown in  FIG. 2 ) according to the first sub-plan, (2) coupling the second tool  132  to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  and forming the opening in the bone  16  ( FIG. 7 ) in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  by moving the at least a portion of the working arm  140  according to the second sub-plan, and (3) coupling the third tool  132  and the dental implant to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  and installing the dental implant into the opening in the bone  16  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  by moving the at least a portion of the working arm  140  according to the third sub-plan. 
     In the fourth implementation, the method can further include monitoring, during the installing the dental implant, a position of the grounding arm  160  and the working arm  140  to generate positional data related to (i) the location of the dental implant relative to the established origin, O, (ii) the location of the third tool  132  relative to the established origin, O, or (iii) both (i) and (ii). Further, the method can further include creating a post-operative virtual three-dimensional model (e.g., the same as, or similar to, the modified or post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  shown in  FIG. 9 ) of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model  325  and the generated positional data, where the at least a portion of the mouth  12  includes the dental implant. In the fourth implementation, the creating the post-operative virtual three-dimensional model occurs without use of a scanning abutment coupled to the installed dental implant. 
     According to a fifth implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of shaving alveolar bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  using the robotic system  100  includes establishing the origin, O, ( FIG. 8B ) for the mouth  12  of the patient  10  by coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes determining the invisible boundary wall/area  450  to be established around a pre-determined location (e.g., the surgical site  20  shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 ) in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes coupling a bone-cutting tool  132  to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  and moving (e.g., manually moving) at least a portion of the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  to shave the alveolar bone in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . During the moving, the method further includes automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall/area  450  by preventing the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  from being moved in a manner that would cause the bone-cutting tool  132  to be moved past the determined invisible boundary wall/area  450 . The method further includes monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm  160  and/or the working arm  140  to generate positional data related to the location of the bone-cutting tool  132  relative to the established origin, O. 
     According to a sixth implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of automatically preparing a tooth in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to receive a custom crown using the robotic system  100  includes attaching the rigid grounding member  200  to a fixed position (e.g., tooth  14   a  shown in  FIG. 5 ) within the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and obtaining a pre-shaped virtual three-dimensional model (e.g., the same as, or similar to, the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325 ) of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  with the rigid grounding member  200 . The method further includes coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , thereby establishing the origin, O, ( FIG. 8B ) for the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes developing a plan for automatically moving one or more tools  132  relative to the established origin, O, to shape the tooth in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to receive the custom crown. In response to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  being coupled with at least one of the one or more tools  132 , the method further includes implementing the developed plan by automatically moving at least a portion of the working arm  140  (e.g., the tool  155  best shown in  FIG. 2 ) according to the developed plan, thereby shaping the tooth in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  such that the tooth is substantially shaped according to the developed plan. 
     In the sixth implementation, the method can further include designing the custom crown based on the developed plan, fabricating the designed custom crown using a fabrication machine, and attaching the fabricated custom crown to the prepared tooth. 
     According to a seventh implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of preparing a tooth in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to receive a custom crown using the robotic system  100  includes attaching the rigid grounding member  200  to a fixed position (e.g., tooth  14   a  shown in  FIG. 5 ) within the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and obtaining a pre-shaped virtual three-dimensional model (e.g., the same as, or similar to, the pre-operative three-dimensional virtual model  325 ) of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  with the rigid grounding member  200  therein. The method further includes determining the invisible boundary wall/area  450  to be established around the tooth in the mouth  12  to be shaped. The method further includes coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the rigid grounding member  200  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , thereby establishing the origin, O, for the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . In response to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  being coupled with a shaping tool  132 , the method further includes manually moving at least a portion of the working arm  140  (e.g., the tool  155  best shown in  FIG. 2 ) to shape the tooth in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall/area  450  by preventing the working arm  140  from being moved in a manner that would cause a cutting portion of the shaping tool  132  to move outside of the determined invisible boundary wall/area  450 . The method further includes monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm  160  and/or the working arm  140  to generate positional data related to the location of the cutting portion of the shaping tool  132  relative to the established origin, O. The method further includes creating a post-shaped virtual three-dimensional model (e.g., similar to the post-operative virtual three-dimensional model  326  shown in  FIG. 9 ) of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  based on the obtained pre-shaped virtual model and the generated positional data, wherein the at least a portion of the mouth  12  includes the shaped tooth. 
     In the seventh implementation, the creating the post-shaped virtual model occurs without scanning the mouth after the manually moving. Further, the determined invisible boundary wall/area  450  allows for the manual moving of the at least a portion of the working arm  140  to shape the tooth while maintaining a convergent axial wall angulation of the tooth and allowing manual up and down movements along a long axis of the tooth to allow creation of a crown margin that follows a gingival margin contour in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Further, the pre-shaped virtual three-dimensional model can be derived from scan data generated during a CT scan, scan data generated during an intraoral surface scan, scan data generated during a surface scan of an impression of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient, scan data generated during a surface scan of a physical model of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 , or any combination thereof. 
     According to an eighth implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of modifying a denture to be coupled with a plurality of dental implants in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  (e.g., via abutments or cylinders bonded to the modified denture) as a hybrid prosthesis using the robotic system  100  includes obtaining a first virtual model of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  with the denture therein. The method further includes removing the denture from the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and attaching a first rigid grounding member (e.g., the rigid grounding member  200 ) to a fixed position (e.g., the tooth  14   c  shown in  FIG. 5 ) within the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes obtaining a second virtual model of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  with the first rigid grounding member therein and attaching a second rigid grounding member to the denture outside of the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes obtaining a third virtual model of the denture with the second rigid grounding member attached thereto. The method further includes establishing the origin, O, ( FIG. 8B ) for the mouth  12  of the patient  10  by coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the first rigid grounding member (e.g., the rigid grounding member  200 ) in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes using the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool  132  to install the plurality of dental implants in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  and monitoring, during the installing, a position of the grounding arm  160  and/or the working arm  140  to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool  132  relative to the established origin, O. The method further includes creating a fourth virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth  12  of the patient  10  based on the obtained second virtual model and the generated positional data. Based at least in part on the first, the third, and the fourth virtual models, the method includes developing a plan for automatically modifying the denture such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants (e.g., via a plurality of abutments or cylinders bonded to the modified denture that mate with the installed dental implants). The method further includes coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the second rigid grounding member attached to the denture. The method further includes using the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100 , coupled to a drill-bit tool  132 , to modify the denture by creating a plurality of holes therein. The holes are created in the denture at specific positions such that abutments or cylinders attached to the dental implants align with the holes such that the modified denture can be bonded to the abutments or cylinders and form the hybrid prosthesis. Additional details on hybrid prostheses, dentures, and the modification of dentures to be used in/as a hybrid prosthesis can be found in U.S. Published Patent Application No. 2014-0272797, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     According to a ninth implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, a method of manufacturing a patient specific temporary prosthesis (PSTP) for use in manufacturing a permanent prosthesis for attachment to a dental implant installed in a mouth of a patient includes establishing an origin for a PSTP blank by coupling the grounding arm  160  of the robotic system  100  to the PSTP blank via a fixture. The method further includes using the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  coupled to a sculpting tool  132  to modify the PSTP blank such that the PSTP blank is transformed into the PSTP having a tooth-like shape suitable for attachment to the dental implant installed in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes monitoring, during the modifying, a position of the grounding arm  160  and/or the working arm  140  to generate positional data related to the location of the sculpting tool  132  relative to the established origin. Based at least in part on the generated positional data, the method further includes creating a virtual three-dimensional model of at least a portion of the PSTP and attaching the PSTP to the dental implant in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The method further includes permitting gingival tissue (e.g., soft tissue  18  shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 ) surrounding the PSTP to heal in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . In response to the healed gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  satisfying a threshold, the method further include manufacturing the permanent prosthesis as a replica of the PSTP using the created virtual model. However, in response to the healed gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  not satisfying the threshold, the method further includes (i) physically modifying the PSTP, (ii) scanning the modified PSTP to obtain a modified virtual model of at least a portion of the modified PSTP, and (iii) manufacturing the permanent prosthesis as a replica of the modified PSTP using the obtained modified virtual model. Additional details on PSTPs, fixtures, and the use of PSTPs for creating and/or designing permanent components can be found in U.S. Published Patent Application Nos. 2014-0080095 and 2014-0080092, which are both hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. 
     According to a tenth implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, the robotic system  100  is used to section (e.g., remove and/or cut) soft tissue (e.g., gingival tissue) in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . The sectioning involves the coupling of a cutting tool  132  (e.g., scalpel tool) to the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100 . Using the robotic system to automatically section the soft tissue  18  can be result in soft tissue modification that is more predictable and/or more reliable than free-handing an incision using, for example, a tissue punch or a freehand scalpel. Further, the use of the robotic system  100  coupled to a scalpel tool  132  to section soft tissue can result in accelerated and/or mom aesthetic healing of the soft tissue as compared to free-handing an incision. In some implementations, the soft tissue can be carved out using the robotic system  100  to create a location to place a dental implant. In some implementations, soft tissue can be carved out using the robotic system  100  for use in other areas in the mouth (e.g., for use in a tissue graft). 
     According to an eleventh implementation of the disclosed concepts of the present disclosure, after registering the robotic system  100  to a mouth of a patient using a rigid grounding member as described herein, the robotic system  100  is used to track the location of drilled sockets/openings (e.g., during the creation of an osteotomy) in the jawbone  16  ( FIG. 5 ) that are then filled with idealized bone grafting materials. The grafting materials are allowed to osseointegrate with the jawbone material and the patient is allowed to heal (e.g., for six months). After a sufficient amount of healing has occurred, the patient can return for the installation of dental implants at the locations of the grafting materials. The robotic system  100  is then reregistered to the mouth of the patient by, for example, reattaching a rigid grounding member to the mouth of the patient in the same exact location as previously installed. Alternatively, the rigid grounding member is left in the mouth of the patient during the healing phase. In such an alternative implementation, the rigid grounding member may have a size and shape such that the rigid grounding member does not interfere with the patient&#39;s mastication function. For example, such a rigid grounding member may be a surgical screw that partially protrudes from a jawbone of the patient in a manner that does not significantly impact the patient&#39;s mastication functions. As the robotic system  100  was used to create the sockets/openings that were filled with the grafting materials, the robotic system  100  knows the locations of the idealized bone grafting materials (e.g., by tracking the movements of the working arm  140  during the original drilling relative to an established origin in the mouth of the patient) and can be preprogrammed to automatically drill the location of the idealized bone grafting materials to place the dental implants therein. As it is desirable to install the dental implants into the idealized bone graft materials and not the relatively soft jawbone material therearound, this eleventh implementation aids the operator in placement of the dental implants without having to take a CT scan of the mouth of the patient after the bone grafts are performed. 
     Portions of the present disclosure describe that a post-operative virtual model of a portion of a mouth of a patient can be created without taking a post-operative scan of the mouth of the patient. However, in some alternative implementations, a post-operative intraoral surface scan can be taken without a scan member (e.g., scannable healing abutment, scan cap, etc.) attached to an installed implant to capture soft tissue information. This surface scan can be merged with a pre-operative CT scan of the mouth of the patient as modified by data obtained the tracing of the procedure as described herein to create a post-operative virtual model. That is, the post-operative virtual models described herein can further be modified by merging with a port-operative intraoral surface scan to, for example, improve the accuracy of the soft tissue in the post-operative virtual model. Additional details on creating a virtual model with bone/hard tissue information and soft tissue information can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 8,651,858, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     Portions of the present disclosure describe using the robotic system  100  to shave or sculpt portions of a jawbone  16  in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . It is important to note that such sculpting occurs in three dimensions as the bone can be removed in an X-Y plane and/or in the Z-axis direction. A non-limiting example of when bone may be removed is to remove a narrow ridge of bone where it is desired to place a dental implant. The removing of such bone will result in a wider ridge (e.g., an adequate amount of restorative space) that is better for drilling to receive the dental implant as compared to a narrow ridge. Further, the shaving or sculpting of bone can be used to manipulate a vertical dimension of occlusion (VDO) in the mouth  12  of the patient  10  to provide an adequate amount of restorative space in light of the stack up height of the designed/desired restorative components (e.g., dental implant, abutment, crown, etc.) that will be installed in the mouth of the patient. Thus, in some implementations, the robotic system  100  is used to shave bone (e.g., alveolar ridge bone) such that the VDO is manipulated such that the installed components (e.g., dental implant, abutment, crown, etc.) fit properly within the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Specifically, such that the occlusal surface of the installed crown mates with the occlusal surface of the opposing tooth/teeth in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . 
     Portions of the present disclosure describe various surgical tools  132 . In addition to the described tools  132 , various other tools  132  can be coupled with the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  and used in the same, or similar, fashion as described herein. For example, a probe tool  132  (e.g., a tool with a metal ball or hook) can be coupled to the working arm  140  for use in checking for pockets between teeth and gingival tissue. The robotic system  100  can use the probe tool  132  to determine a length and/or depth of such pockets. Further, the probe tool  132  can be used as a mechanical sensing probe to find the location of structures (e.g., the rigid grounding member  200 , teeth, gingival tissue, palate, etc.) in the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . Such a use of the robotic system  100  can be used when, for example, an oral surgeon performs a manual procedure without using the working arm  140  of the robotic system  100  and then wants to use the robotic system  100  to digitally capture any modifications made to the mouth  12  of the patient  10 . In such a scenario, the operator (e.g., oral surgeon) can use the robotic system  100  with a mechanical sensing probe coupled to the working arm  140  to sense any changes in the mouth  12 . Further, the mechanical sensing can be used to determine hard structures in the mouth  12  like teeth and bone and/or the mechanical sensing can be used to determine soft tissue contours and/or depths of soft tissue at a particular site. 
     Portions of the present disclosure describe using the robotic system  100  to create an osteotomy in the jawbone  16  of the patient  10 . It is important to note that the surgical plan implemented by the robotic system  100  to perform an osteotomy procedure is based, at least in part, on information regarding the quality (e.g., density) of the jawbone  16  in the patient  10  at the surgical site  20 , which is typically derived from a CT scan (e.g., a dental CBCT scan) and/or an X-ray scan. This determination can be performed automatically by the dental surgical planning software program and/or manually by an operator and inputted into the dental surgical planning software program. The bone quality at a surgical site  20  is typically categorized as one or more of four types of bone including Type I, Type II, Type III, or Type IV bone, where Type I is the most dense and Type IV is the least dense. Thus, in a patient  10  determined to need a dental implant in a surgical site  20  having Type I bone, the surgical plan may include instructions for the robotic system  100  to create a right-size socket/opening in the jawbone  16  and then to tap the socket/opening with a surgical tapping tool  132 . By right-size socket/opening it is meant that the diameter of the created socket/opening and/or of the final drill-bit tool  132  used to create the osteotomy is about equal to a minor diameter of the dental implant to be installed therein. For another example, in a patient  10  determined to need a dental implant in a surgical site  20  having Type IV bone, the surgical plan may include instructions for the robotic system  100  to create an under-size socket/opening in the jawbone  16  without tapping the socket/opening. By under-size socket/opening it is meant that the diameter of the created socket/opening and/or of the final drill-bit tool  132  used to create the osteotomy is smaller than a minor diameter of the dental implant to be installed therein. 
     In some implementations, the robotic system  100  includes one or more sensors that generate data during the performance of a desired procedure (e.g., osteotomy) that is used in modifying/updating the surgical plan in real-time (e.g., after the procedure is already underway—has already started to be implemented). The sensors can include the sensors described elsewhere herein (e.g., the sensors in the flexible joint member  150  coupled to the rigid arm members  145 ), one or more torque sensors coupled to the tool  155 , one or more force sensors coupled to the tool  155 , one or more speed sensors coupled to the tool  155 , etc. When performing a surgical plan for an osteotomy, the robotic system  100  initially uses a first surgical drill-bit tool  132  having a first diameter to start the socket/opening in the jawbone  16 . The robotic system  100 , as it drills the jawbone  16  with the first surgical drill-bit tool  132 , monitors the data generated by the sensors to determine if the jawbone  16  is more or less dense than initially determined. Based on the data and/or the determination during the procedure (e.g., during the drilling using the first surgical drill-bit tool  132 ), the surgical plan can be automatically modified/updated in real-time by the robotic system  100  and/or an operator can be prompted to permit a suggested modification. For example, if the robotic system  100  determines that the data from the sensors (e.g., torque sensors, force sensors, etc.) indicates that the required torque to spin the first surgical drill-bit tool  132  at the planned rate (e.g., 2000 RPMs) and/or the required force to advance the first surgical drill-bit tool  132  into the jawbone  16  is less than anticipated (e.g., based on the previously determined Type I bone), the robotic system  100  may alter or propose to alter the surgical plan because the actual dental situation appears to be different than initially determined. That is, the required less than anticipated torque/force indicates that the jawbone  16  being drilled is not Type I bone, but rather, type II bone. In such a situation, the surgical plan can be changed by, for example, not tapping the created socket/opening and/or by changing the final surgical drill-bit tool  132  to create an under-sized socket/opening as opposed to a right-sized socket/opening as originally planned for the Type I jawbone. The modification of the surgical plan can also include a change in the number of stepped surgical drill-bit tools  132  used in the creation of the osteotomy. For example, if the original surgical plan instructions called for three separate stepped surgical drill-bit tools  132  to be used for drilling Type IV bone, and during the procedure the robotic system  100  determines that the patient actually has Type 11 bone (e.g., based on the data from the torque and force sensors, etc.), the surgical system  100  can automatically on the fly in real-time modify/update the surgical plan to add a fourth intermediate surgical drill-bit tool  132 . Various other modifications can be made to the surgical plan based on the monitored data from the torque and force sensors and/or other sensors. In summary, the robotic system  100  can modify/update a preplanned surgical plan based on real-time data with or without operator input. Examples of such modifications include (1) changing a preplanned amount of torque (e.g., applied to a surgical drill-bit tool, a surgical tapping tool, etc.) to be used by the robotic system when executing the developed plan; (2) changing a preplanned rotational speed (e.g., applied to a surgical drill-bit tool, a surgical tapping tool, etc.) to be used by the robotic system when executing the developed plan; (3) changing a preplanned amount of force (e.g., applied to a surgical drill-bit tool, a surgical tapping tool, etc.) to be used by the robotic system when executing the developed plan; (4) changing a preplanned number of the plurality of surgical tools (e.g., four surgical drill-bit tools instead of two surgical drill-bit tools) to be used by the robotic system when executing the developed plan. Such modifications are intended to increase the relative initial stability (e.g., resistance to motion from mastication forces) in installed dental implants, and this may promote increased reliability and overall survivability for the dental implants and the implant-borne prostheses. 
     While the present disclosure has been described with reference to one or more particular embodiments and implementations, those skilled in the art will recognize that many changes may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Each of these embodiments and implementations and obvious variations thereof is contemplated as falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention, which is set forth in the claims that follow. 
     Alternative Implementations 
     Implementation 1. A robotic system for use during a dental surgical procedure including installation of a dental implant in a mouth of a patient, the robotic system comprising: a base; a grounding arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the grounding arm being coupled to the base, the second end of the grounding arm being configured to be coupled to a fixed structure within the mouth of the patient for establishing an origin for the robotic system relative to the mouth of the patient, the second end of the grounding arm having at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base; a working arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the working arm extending from the base, the second end of the working arm being configured to be coupled with one or more tools for use during the dental surgical procedure, a portion of the working arm having at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base and being moveable to (i) form an opening in bone within the mouth of the patient and (ii) install the dental implant in the formed opening; and one or more sensors to monitor positions of the grounding arm and the working arm, the one or more sensors generating positional data that is used to create a post-operative virtual three-dimensional implant level model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 2. The robotic system of implementation 1, wherein the post-operative virtual three-dimensional implant level model is created without use of a scanning abutment coupled to the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 3. The robotic system of implementation 1, wherein the generated positional data is used to modify a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient to include at least a portion of a virtual three-dimensional model of a dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient during the dental surgical procedure. 
     Implementation 4. The robotic system of implementation 1, wherein the one or more tools include a drill-bit tool, a dental-implant-driving tool, a rotating mill tool, a saw tool, a probe tool, a scalpel tool, or any combination thereof. 
     Implementation 5. The robotic system of implementation 1, wherein the one or more sensors are electrically coupled to one or more processors of the robotic system and physically mounted to the grounding arm, the working arm, or both. 
     Implementation 6. The robotic system of implementation 1, wherein the moveable portion of the working arm is (i) manually-movable by an operator of the robotic system, (ii) automatically moveable by one or more motors of the robotic system, or (iii) both. 
     Implementation 7. The robotic system of implementation 1, wherein the fixed structure within the mouth of the patient is one or more teeth, jaw bone, or both. 
     Implementation 8. A robotic system for use during installation of a dental implant in a mouth of a patient, the robotic system comprising: a base; a grounding arm extending from the base and being configured to be coupled to a fixed structure within the mouth of the patient for establishing an origin for the robotic system relative to the mouth of the patient; a working arm extending from the base and being configured to be coupled with one or more tools for use during the installation of the dental implant, at least a portion of the working arm being movable to install the dental implant in the mouth of the patient; and one or more sensors to monitor positions of the grounding arm and the working arm, the one or more sensors generating positional data that is used to create a virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 9. The robotic system of implementation 8, wherein the virtual model is created without use of a scanning abutment coupled to the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 10. The robotic system of implementation 8, wherein the generated positional data is used by one or more processors to modify a virtual model of the mouth of the patient to include at least a portion of a virtual model of the installed dental implant. 
     Implementation 11. The robotic system of implementation 8, wherein in response to the working arm being coupled with a drill-bit tool, the at least a portion of the working arm is further moveable to form an opening in bone within the mouth of the patient to receive the dental implant therein. 
     Implementation 12. The robotic system of implementation 8, wherein one or more processors of the robotic system are configured to control movement of the working arm to automatically install the dental implant in the mouth of the patient according to a pre-planned installation procedure, wherein the working arm is coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool during the automatic installation. 
     Implementation 13. The robotic system of implementation 12, wherein at least one of the one or more processors is configured to control movement of the working arm to automatically remove a portion of a jaw bone of the patient, thereby forming a socket for receiving the dental implant, according to the pre-planned installation procedure, wherein the working arm is coupled to a drill-bit tool during the removal. 
     Implementation 14. The robotic system of implementation 8, wherein a tip of the grounding arm has at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base and wherein a tip of the one or more tools coupled to the working arm has at least six degrees of freedom relative to the base. 
     Implementation 15. The robotic system of implementation 8, wherein the at least a portion of the working arm is automatically moveable by one or more processors of the robotic system. 
     Implementation 16. The robotic system of implementation 8, wherein the one or more tools include a drill-bit tool, a dental-implant-driving tool, a rotating mill tool, a saw tool, a probe tool, a scalpel tool, or any combination thereof. 
     Implementation 17. A method of creating a post-operative virtual model of at least a portion of a mouth of a patient, the mouth including a dental implant installed using a robotic system during a dental surgical procedure, the method comprising: attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; moving, as part of the dental surgical procedure, at least a portion of a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool to install the dental implant in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the dental surgical procedure, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool relative to the established origin; and creating the post-operative virtual model of the at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model and the generated positional data. 
     Implementation 18. The method of implementation 17, wherein the creating the post-operative virtual model occurs without use of a scanning abutment coupled to the installed dental implant. 
     Implementation 19. The robotic system of implementation 17, wherein the creating includes modifying the pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient to include at least a portion of a virtual model of the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 20. The method of implementation 17, wherein the working arm is coupled to the grounding arm. 
     Implementation 21. The method of implementation 17, wherein the working arm and the grounding arm are both electronically coupled to one or more processors of the robotic system. 
     Implementation 22. The method of implementation 17, further comprising: prior to the moving, determining an invisible boundary wall to be established around a pre-determined location for the dental implant to be installed in the mouth of the patient; and during the moving, automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall by preventing the working arm of the robotic system to be moved in a manner that would cause the dental implant to be installed outside of the determined invisible boundary wall. 
     Implementation 23. A method of automatically shaving alveolar bone in a mouth of a patient using a robotic system, the method comprising: attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-shaved virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; developing a plan for automatically moving a bone-cutting tool relative to the established origin to shave a portion of the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient; attaching the bone-cutting tool to a working arm of the robotic system; and executing the developed plan by automatically moving the bone-cutting tool via the working arm of the robotic system, thereby shaving the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient according to the developed plan such that an exposed ridge of the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient is sufficiently widened for drilling and receiving a dental implant therein. 
     Implementation 24. A method of installing a dental implant in a mouth of a patient using a robotic system, the method comprising: developing a plan for installing the dental implant in the mouth of the patient, the developed plan including (i) a first sub-plan for shaving an exposed portion of bone in the mouth with a first tool, thereby creating a sufficiently widened portion of the bone for receiving the dental implant therein, (ii) a second sub-plan for forming an opening in the sufficiently widened portion of the bone to receive the dental implant with a second tool, and (iii) a third sub-plan for installing the dental implant within the opening with a third tool; establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to a rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; and executing the plan by: coupling the first tool to a working arm of the robotic system and shaving the exposed portion of the bone in the mouth of the patient by moving at least a portion of the working arm according to the first sub-plan; coupling the second tool to the working arm of the robotic system and forming the opening in the bone in the mouth of the patient by moving the at least a portion of the working arm according to the second sub-plan; and coupling the third tool and the dental implant to the working arm of the robotic system and installing the dental implant into the opening in the bone in the mouth of the patient by moving the at least a portion of the working arm according to the third sub-plan. 
     Implementation 25. The method of implementation 24, further comprising monitoring, during the installing the dental implant, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to (i) the location of the dental implant relative to the established origin, (ii) the location of the third tool relative to the established origin, or (iii) both (i) and (ii). 
     Implementation 26. The method of implementation 25, further comprising creating a post-operative virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model and the generated positional data, the at least a portion of the mouth including the dental implant. 
     Implementation 27. The method of implementation 26, wherein the creating the post-operative virtual model occurs without use of a scanning abutment coupled to the installed dental implant. 
     Implementation 28. The method of implementation 26, wherein the creating includes modifying the pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient to include at least a portion of a virtual model of the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 29. The method of implementation 24, wherein the coupling of the first tool, the second tool, and the third tool are automatically performed by the robotic system without intervention by an operator. 
     Implementation 30. The method of implementation 24, wherein the shaving, the forming, and the installing are automatically performed by the robotic system without intervention by an operator. 
     Implementation 31. The method of implementation 24, wherein one or more of (i) the moving the at least a portion of the working arm according to the first sub-plan, (ii) the moving the at least a portion of the working arm according to the second sub-plan, and (iii) the moving the at least a portion of the working arm according to the third sub-plan involves manually moving the at least a portion of the working arm. 
     Implementation 32. The method of implementation 24, further comprising prior to the developing: attaching the rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; and obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein. 
     Implementation 33. A method of shaving alveolar bone in a mouth of a patient using a robotic system, the method comprising: establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to a rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; determining an invisible boundary wall to be established around a pre-determined location in the mouth of the patient; coupling a bone-cutting tool to a working arm of the robotic system; moving at least a portion of the working arm of the robotic system to shave the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient; during the moving, automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall by preventing the working arm of the robotic system from being moved in a manner that would cause the bone-cutting tool to be moved past the determined invisible boundary wall; and monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the bone-cutting tool relative to the established origin. 
     Implementation 34. The method of implementation 33, further comprising creating a virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the generated positional data. 
     Implementation 35. The method of implementation 33, wherein the alveolar bone is shaved such that an exposed ridge of the alveolar bone in the mouth of the patient is sufficiently widened for drilling and receiving a dental implant therein. 
     Implementation 36. The method of implementation 33, further comprising attaching the rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 37. The method of implementation 33, further comprising receiving a first virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein. 
     Implementation 38. A method of automatically preparing a tooth in a mouth of a patient to receive a custom crown using a robotic system, the method comprising: attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-shaped virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; developing a plan for automatically moving one or more tools relative to the established origin to shape the tooth in the mouth of the patient to receive the custom crown; and in response to a working arm of the robotic system being coupled with at least one of the one or more tools, implementing the developed plan by automatically moving at least a portion of the working arm according to the developed plan, thereby shaping the tooth in the mouth of the patient such that the tooth is substantially shaped according to the developed plan. 
     Implementation 39. The method of implementation 38, further comprising designing the custom crown based on the developed plan. 
     Implementation 40. The method of implementation 39, further comprising fabricating the designed custom crown using a fabrication machine. 
     Implementation 41. The method of implementation 40, further comprising attaching the fabricated custom crown to the prepared tooth. 
     Implementation 42. The method of implementation 39, wherein the designing occurs prior to the implementing. 
     Implementation 43. The method of implementation 38, further comprising, monitoring, during the implementing, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the at least one of the one or more tools relative to the established origin. 
     Implementation 44. The method of implementation 43, further comprising creating a post-shaped virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-shaped virtual model and the generated positional data, the at least a portion of the mouth including the shaped tooth. 
     Implementation 45. The method of implementation 44, further comprising designing the custom crown based on the post-shaped virtual model of the at least a portion of the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 46. The method of implementation 45, further comprising fabricating the designed custom crown using a fabrication machine. 
     Implementation 47. The method of implementation 46, further comprising attaching the fabricated custom crown to the prepared tooth. 
     Implementation 48. The method of implementation 44, wherein the creating the post-shaped virtual model occurs without scanning the mouth after the implementing. 
     Implementation 49. A method of preparing a tooth in a mouth of a patient to receive a custom crown using a robotic system, the method comprising: attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-shaped virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; determining an invisible boundary wall to be established around the tooth in the mouth to be shaped; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; in response to a working arm of the robotic system being coupled with a shaping tool, manually moving at least a portion of the working arm to shape the tooth in the mouth of the patient; automatically enforcing the determined invisible boundary wall by preventing the working arm from being moved in a manner that would cause a cutting portion of the shaping tool to move outside of the determined invisible boundary wall; monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the cutting portion of the shaping tool relative to the established origin; and creating a post-shaped virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-shaped virtual model and the generated positional data, the at least a portion of the mouth including the shaped tooth. 
     Implementation 50. The method of implementation 49, wherein the creating the post-shaped virtual model occurs without scanning the mouth after the manually moving. 
     Implementation 51. The method of implementation 49, wherein the determined invisible boundary wall allows for the manual moving of the at least a portion of the working arm to shape the tooth while maintaining a convergent axial wall angulation of the tooth and allowing manual up and down movements along a long axis of the tooth to allow creation of a crown margin that follows a gingival margin contour in the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 52. The method of implementation 49, wherein the pre-shaped virtual model is derived from scan data generated during a dental CBCT scan, scan data generated during an intraoral surface scan, scan data generated during a surface scan of an impression of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient, scan data generated during a surface scan of a physical model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient, or any combination thereof. 
     Implementation 53. A method of preparing a tooth in a mouth of a patient to receive a custom crown using a robotic system, the method comprising: coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; in response to a working arm of the robotic system being coupled with a shaping tool, manually moving at least a portion of the working arm to shape the tooth in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the moving, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of a cutting portion of the shaping tool relative to the established origin; and creating a post-shaped virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based at least in part on the generated positional data. 
     Implementation 54. The method of implementation 53, wherein the creating the post-shaped virtual model occurs without scanning the mouth after the manually moving. 
     Implementation 55. The method of implementation 53, further comprising receiving a pre-shaped virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein, the post-shaped virtual model of the at least a portion of the mouth of the patient further being based on the received pre-shaped virtual model of the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 56. A method of modifying a denture to be coupled with a plurality of dental implants in a mouth of a patient using a robotic system, the method comprising: attaching a first rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient and attaching a second rigid grounding member to the denture; obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the first rigid grounding member and the denture therein; removing the denture, with the second rigid grounding member attached thereto, from the mouth of the patient; establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the first rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool, installing the plurality of dental implants in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the installing, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool relative to the established origin; creating a post-operative virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model and the generated positional data; based at least in part on the post-operative virtual model, developing a plan for automatically modifying the denture such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants; coupling the grounding arm of the robotic system to the second rigid grounding member attached to the denture; and using the working arm of the robotic system coupled to a drill-bit tool, modifying the denture by creating a plurality of holes therein such that each of the plurality of holes is aligned with a central axis of a corresponding one of the installed plurality of dental implants. 
     Implementation 57. The method of implementation 56, further comprising attaching a cylinder to each of the installed dental implants, the cylinders extending from the dental implants such that in response to the modified denture being positioned in the mouth of the patient, a portion of each cylinder protrudes through a respective one of the plurality of holes in the denture. 
     Implementation 58. The method of implementation 57, further comprising bonding the modified denture to the cylinders, thereby creating a hybrid prosthesis, wherein a diameter of each of the plurality of holes is sized such that each of the cylinders tightly fits in the respective one of the plurality of holes in response to the modified denture being installed in the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 59. A method of modifying a denture into a hybrid prosthesis using a robotic system, the method comprising: obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the denture therein; removing the denture from the mouth of the patient; installing a plurality of dental implants in the mouth of the patient using a first tool controlled by the robotic system; monitoring, during the installing, a position of the first tool to generate positional data; creating a post-operative virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained pre-operative virtual model and the generated positional data; and based at least in part on the post-operative virtual model, modifying the denture by creating a plurality of holes therein using a second tool controlled by the robotic system such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants as the hybrid prosthesis. 
     Implementation 60. The method of implementation 59, wherein the first tool is a dental-implant-driving tool and wherein the second tool is a drill-bit tool. 
     Implementation 61. A method of modifying a denture to be coupled with a plurality of dental implants in a mouth of a patient as a hybrid prosthesis using a robotic system, the method comprising: obtaining a first virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the denture therein; removing the denture from the mouth of the patient; attaching a first rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a second virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the first rigid grounding member therein; attaching a second rigid grounding member to the denture outside of the mouth of the patient; obtaining a third virtual model of the denture with the second rigid grounding member attached thereto; establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient by coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the first rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a dental-implant-driving tool, installing the plurality of dental implants in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the installing, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the dental-implant-driving tool relative to the established origin; creating a fourth virtual model of at least a portion of the mouth of the patient based on the obtained second virtual model and the generated positional data; based at least in part on the first, the third, and the fourth virtual models, developing a plan for automatically modifying the denture such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants; coupling the grounding arm of the robotic system to the second rigid grounding member attached to the denture; and using the working arm of the robotic system coupled to a drill-bit tool, modifying the denture by creating a plurality of holes such that the denture can be coupled with the installed plurality of dental implants as the hybrid prosthesis. 
     Implementation 62. A method of manufacturing a patient specific temporary prosthesis (PSTP) for use in manufacturing a permanent prosthesis for attachment to a dental implant installed in a mouth of a patient, the method comprising: establishing an origin for a PSTP blank by coupling a grounding arm of a robotic system to the PSTP blank via a fixture; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a sculpting tool, modifying the PSTP blank such that the PSTP blank is transformed into the PSTP having a tooth-like shape suitable for attachment to the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the modifying, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the sculpting tool relative to the established origin; and based at least in part on the generated positional data, creating a virtual model of at least a portion of the PSTP. 
     Implementation 63. The method of implementation 62, further comprising, designing the permanent prosthesis based at least in part on the created virtual model of the at least a portion of the PSTP. 
     Implementation 64. The method of implementation 62, wherein the fixture includes a non-rotational feature that couples with a corresponding non-rotational feature of the PSTP blank. 
     Implementation 65. A method of manufacturing a patient specific temporary prosthesis (PSTP) for use in manufacturing a permanent prosthesis for attachment to a dental implant installed in a mouth of a patient, the method comprising: establishing an origin for a PSTP blank by coupling a grounding arm of a robotic system to the PSTP blank via a fixture; using a working arm of the robotic system coupled to a sculpting tool, modifying the PSTP blank such that the PSTP blank is transformed into the PSTP having a tooth-like shape suitable for attachment to the dental implant installed in the mouth of the patient; monitoring, during the modifying, a position of the grounding arm and the working arm to generate positional data related to the location of the sculpting tool relative to the established origin; based at least in part on the generated positional data, creating a virtual model of at least a portion of the PSTP; attaching the PSTP to the dental implant in the mouth of the patient; permitting gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP to heal in the mouth of the patient; in response to the healed gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP in the mouth of the patient satisfying a threshold, manufacturing the permanent prosthesis as a replica of the PSTP using the created virtual model; in response to the healed gingival tissue surrounding the PSTP in the mouth of the patient not satisfying the threshold: (i) physically modifying the PSTP; (ii) scanning the modified PSTP to obtain a modified virtual model of at least a portion of the modified PSTP; and (iii) manufacturing the permanent prosthesis as a replica of the modified PSTP using the obtained modified virtual model. 
     Implementation 66. A method of using a robotic system to automatically create a socket in a jawbone of a patient for receiving a dental implant therein, the method comprising: attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing an origin for the mouth of the patient; developing a plan for automatically moving two or more of a plurality of surgical tools relative to the established origin to create the socket in the jawbone of the patient; attaching a first one of the plurality of surgical tools to a working arm of the robotic system; executing a first portion of the developed plan by automatically moving the first one of the plurality of surgical tools via the working arm of the robotic system, thereby starting to create the socket in the jawbone of the patient according to the developed plan; receiving data from one or more sensors of the robotic system indicative of at least one of a torque or a force required to implement the first portion of the developed plan; modifying a second portion of the developed plan based on the received data; executing the modified second portion of the developed plan by automatically moving a second one of the plurality of surgical tools via the working arm of the robotic system, thereby completing the socket in the jawbone of the patient according to the modified plan. 
     Implementation 67. The method of implementation 66, wherein the first one of the plurality of surgical tools is a first surgical drill-bit tool having a first diameter and the second one of the plurality of surgical tools is a second surgical drill-bit tool having a second diameter that is larger than the first diameter. 
     Implementation 68. The method of implementation 66, wherein the first one of the plurality of surgical tools is a surgical drill-bit tool and the second one of the plurality of surgical tools is a surgical tapping tool. 
     Implementation 69. A method of using a robotic system comprising: developing a plan for automatically moving one or more of a plurality of surgical tools relative to an established origin of the robotic system to perform a surgical procedure in a mouth of a patient; attaching a first one of the plurality of surgical tools to a working arm of the robotic system; executing a first portion of the developed plan; during the execution of the first portion of the developed plan, receiving data from one or more sensors of the robotic system; and modifying a second portion of the developed plan based on the received data. 
     Implementation 70. The method of implementation 69, further comprising: attaching a rigid grounding member to a fixed position within the mouth of the patient; obtaining a pre-operative virtual model of the mouth of the patient with the rigid grounding member therein; and coupling a grounding arm of the robotic system to the rigid grounding member in the mouth of the patient, thereby establishing the origin for the mouth of the patient. 
     Implementation 71. The method of implementation 69, wherein the executing the first portion of the developed plan includes automatically moving the first one of the plurality of surgical tools via the working arm of the robotic system. 
     Implementation 72. The method of implementation 69, wherein the received data is indicative of at least one of a torque or a force imparted on the first one of the plurality of surgical tools required to implement the first portion of the developed plan. 
     Implementation 73. The method of implementation 69, further comprising executing the modified second portion of the developed plan. 
     Implementation 74. The method of implementation 73, wherein the executing the modified second portion of the developed plan includes automatically moving a second one of the plurality of surgical tools via the working arm of the robotic system. 
     Implementation 75. The method of implementation 74, wherein the first one of the plurality of surgical tools is a first surgical drill-bit tool having a first diameter and the second one of the plurality of surgical tools is a second surgical drill-bit tool having a second diameter that is larger than the first diameter. 
     Implementation 76. The method of implementation 69, wherein the modifying occurs in real-time during execution of the developed plan. 
     Implementation 77. The method of implementation 69, wherein the modifying includes changing a preplanned amount of torque to be used by the robotic system when executing the second portion of the developed plan. 
     Implementation 78. The method of implementation 69, wherein the modifying includes changing a preplanned rotational speed of one of the plurality of surgical tools to be used by the robotic system when executing the second portion of the developed plan. 
     Implementation 79. The method of implementation 69, wherein the modifying includes changing a preplanned amount of force to be used by the robotic system when executing the second portion of the developed plan. 
     Implementation 80. The method of implementation 69, wherein the modifying includes changing a preplanned number of the plurality of surgical tools to be used by the robotic system when executing the developed plan.