Patent Publication Number: US-2023157633-A1

Title: Transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system, and more particularly, to a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system using a clear aligner and a sensor installed on the clear aligner. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Various orthodontic methods are used to correct malocclusion. Malocclusion refers to an occlusion with an esthetic or functional problem when the teeth are not aligned or the occlusion between the upper and lower teeth is out of the normal range. In the case of malocclusion, in addition to aesthetic and functional problems, food debris is likely to remain between the teeth because the teeth are not evenly aligned, and thus, it is difficult to keep the teeth clean even with brushing. Accordingly, various dental or gum diseases may be caused due to malocclusion. Orthodontic treatment is to treat such malocclusion. Orthodontic treatment uses the movable property of teeth when subjected to continuous external force. Among the appliance for orthodontic treatment, the most used in these days includes brackets attached to the teeth and a wire connecting the brackets. This appliance corrects malocclusion by continuously moving the teeth using the pulling force of the wire connecting the brackets. However, since the bracket and the wire in this appliance are mounted on the teeth throughout a long treatment time, patients experience discomfort. In addition, since the bracket and the wire are visible to others, it is also a disadvantage in view of aesthetic. 
     In order to solve such drawbacks, an orthodontic method using a clear aligner has been proposed. The transparent orthodontic method using the clear aligner corrects the teeth by sequentially using the clear aligners corresponding to the teeth&#39;s arrangements that change in stages from the state of the teeth before orthodontic treatment to the state after orthodontic treatment. Since the clear aligner can be easily removed by the patient, there is relatively less discomfort compared to other devices, and since the clear aligner is made of transparent plastic, it has an advantage of having an excellent aesthetic property. 
     However, the method of orthodontic treatment using the removable clear aligner is often ineffective because in many cases, patients do not follow a doctor&#39;s instruction for the wearing time of the clear aligner. For example, if a doctor has instructed that the clear aligner be worn for 8 hours or more per day, the patient wears the clear aligner only for a shorter period, and thus, the orthodontic effect is reduced. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Technical Problems 
     The object of the present invention is to provide a system and a method capable of solving the problem of poor or delayed orthodontic results caused by the patient&#39;s non-compliance with a doctor&#39;s instruction for the wearing time of the clear aligner. 
     Summary of the Invention 
     transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system according to one perspective of the present invention, comprises: a clear aligner  100  worn on teeth for orthodontic treatment; a contact sensor module  200  installed inside the clear aligner  100  to detect wearing of the clear aligner  100  on teeth through contact therewith; a user terminal  300  that receives a signal from the contact sensor module  200  and calculates a wearing time of the clear aligner  100  from the received signal using an application, and a server computer  400  for sharing information calculated in the user terminal  300  to a clinic in charge, wherein the clear aligner  100  has a tooth insertion groove  120  into which the teeth are inserted, wherein a mounting groove  140  for mounting the contact sensor module  200  is formed on an inner surface of the tooth insertion groove  120 , wherein the mounting groove  140  is formed to correspond to a tooth of the teeth with the least displacement during the orthodontic treatment. 
     According to one embodiment, the contact sensor module  200  includes a sensor  220  detecting a mechanical stimulus and a flexible encapsulation unit  240  molded to encapsulate the sensor  220  with material having greater elasticity than that of the clear aligner  100 , wherein the encapsulation unit  240  is pressed against the teeth to deform the sensor  220 , and the sensor  220  detects wearing of the clear aligner  100  by the deformation. 
     According to one embodiment, a method of applying the transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system comprises: counting the wearing time of the clear aligner  100  when the contact sensor module  200  detects wearing of the clear aligner  100 ; calculating a time for which the clear aligner  100  is worn once when the clear aligner  100  is separated from the mouth; calculating a daily wearing time of the clear aligner  100  when a day has elapsed from a prestored setting time, and comparing the calculated actual daily wearing time of the clear aligner  100  with a predetermined standard wearing time, and if the actual daily wearing time is less than the standard wearing time, generating an alarm and counting a wearing time of the clear aligner  100  for the next day. 
     Technical Effects of the Invention 
     According to the present invention, it is possible to solve the problem of poor or delayed orthodontic results caused by the patient&#39;s non-compliance with a doctor&#39;s instruction for the wearing time of the clear aligner. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is a diagram for explaining a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG.  2    is a cross-sectional view illustrating a clear aligner provided in the transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system of  FIG.  1    according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG.  3    is a drawing for explaining a method of applying the transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system of  FIGS.  1  and  2    according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG.  4    is a drawing for explaining a position of a mounting groove and a contact sensor module, which is advantageous for a clear aligner and a power aligner to which a bracket and a wire are applied. 
         FIG.  5    is a drawing for explaining another example of a clear aligner and a contact sensor module. 
         FIG.  6    is a diagram for explaining a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     BEST MODE FOR THE INVENTION 
     Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, so that one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains can easily implement them. The present invention may be embodied in several different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. 
     In order to clearly explain the present invention, components or elements irrelevant to the present invention are omitted, and the same reference numbers are used to denote the same or similar components or elements throughout the specification. 
     In addition, in various embodiments, the same components or elements are denoted by using the same reference numbers and described only in the representative embodiment, and in other embodiments, only certain configurations that is different from those in the representative embodiment will be described. 
     Throughout the specification, when a part, component, or element is described to be “connected” to another part, component, or element, it includes not only configurations where they are “directly connected,” but also where they are “indirectly connected” with another member interposed therebetween. In addition, when it is described that a part “includes” a certain component or element, this may mean that the part further includes other components or elements rather than excluding other components or elements unless otherwise stated. 
       FIG.  1    is a diagram for explaining a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.  FIG.  2    is a cross-sectional view illustrating a clear aligner provided in the transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system of  FIG.  1    according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     As shown in  FIGS.  1  and  2   , a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a clear aligner  100  worn on teeth for orthodontic treatment; a contact sensor module  200  installed inside the clear aligner  100  to detect wearing of the clear aligner  100  on teeth through contact therewith; a user terminal  300  that receives a signal from the contact sensor module  200  and calculates a wearing time of the clear aligner  100  based on the received signal using an application, and a server computer  400  for sharing information calculated in the user terminal  300  to a clinic in charge. 
     The clear aligner  100  is formed by molding a transparent resin material to include a shape corresponding to each of the teeth. The clear aligner  100  has a tooth insertion groove  120  into which the patient&#39;s upper or lower teeth are inserted. In addition, a mounting groove  140  for mounting the contact sensor module  200  is formed on the inner surface of the tooth insertion groove  120  of the clear aligner  100 . The mounting groove  140  is formed to correspond to the height of contour of a tooth that has no displacement or the least displacement between before and after orthodontic treatment based on orthodontic treatment plan. By installing the contact sensor module  200  to correspond to the tooth with little displacement between before and after orthodontic treatment, it is possible to solve the problem that the contact sensor module  200  cannot detect the teeth due to the displacement of the tooth being in contact with the contact sensor module  200 . 
     The contact sensor module  200  includes a sensor  220  detecting a mechanical stimulus and a flexible encapsulation unit  240  molded to encapsulate the sensor  220 . It is desired that the sensor  220  is a thin film sensor with minimal external change. In addition, the sensor  220  may include a wireless communication unit for wireless communication with the user terminal  300 . The wireless communication unit may use, for example, a method of a short-range wireless communication or a near-field communication (NFC). In addition, the sensor  220  may include a wirelessly rechargeable battery. The encapsulation unit  240  may be formed of a material, such as silicone material, that is softer and has greater viscosity and elasticity compared to the material of the clear aligner  100 . The encapsulation unit  240  has a front convex surface  242 , and other portions other than the front convex surface  242  are completely accommodated in the mounting groove  140 . When the patient&#39;s teeth are inserted into the tooth insertion groove  120  of the clear aligner  100 , the front convex surface  242  is pressed and retracted backward. Accordingly, the front convex surface  242  is deformed, and thus, the sensor  220  is pressed backward. The sensor  220  detects this pressing force and provides a signal indicating that the clear aligner  100  is mounted on the patient&#39;s teeth, to the user terminal  300 . As mentioned above, the mounting groove  140  is formed to correspond to the height of contour of the tooth that has no displacement or the least displacement between before and after orthodontic treatment based on orthodontic treatment plan. The contact sensor module  200  is inserted and installed in the mounting groove  140  and is pressed by the height of contour of the most stable tooth. More preferably, the mounting groove  140  is formed to correspond to the lingual side of the height of contour, and the contact sensor module  200  is arranged to contact the lingual side of the height of contour of the most stable tooth. 
     In this embodiment, the clear aligner  100  may be applied together with a lingual wire orthodontic appliance in which a bracket and an orthodontic wire are installed on the lingual side of the teeth. An orthodontic appliance including such wire orthodontic appliance and the clear aligner  100  is defined as a “Power Cligner.” When the power cligner is applied, since the wire orthodontic appliance is applied to the lingual side, it is advantageous to form a mounting groove to correspond to the tip of the tooth and to install the contact sensor module  200  in the mounting groove as shown in  FIG.  4   . 
     It is desired that the user terminal  300  is a mobile communication terminal such as a smartphone or tablet PC. The user terminal  300  receives a signal from the contact sensor module  200  and calculates the patient&#39;s wearing time of the clear aligner  100 . The calculation of the wearing time includes a daily wearing time and a cumulative wearing time from the patient&#39;s visit to the clinic to the next visit. 
     The patient&#39;s wearing time of the clear aligner  100  is calculated and stored through the application of the user terminal  300  and transmitted to the computer  400  of the clinic. The doctor in the clinic compares a minimum wearing time, which is a standard cumulative wearing time, of the clear aligner  100  instructed by the doctor with an actual cumulative wearing time that the patient wears the clear aligner  100 . The doctor provides the information to the patient and utilizes the information for orthodontic treatment. In addition, the user terminal  300  compares an actual daily wearing time of the patient with a standard daily wearing time instructed by the doctor through the application, and when the actual daily wearing time is less than the standard daily wearing time, the user terminal  300  generates a visual or auditory alarm sound. 
     In addition, the user terminal  300  compares and shows the daily wearing time of the previous day and the standard daily wearing time instructed by the doctor on one screen through the display unit. In addition, the user terminal  300  compares the cumulative wearing time up to now with the standard cumulative wearing time through the display unit and displays it on one screen. The user terminal  300  share the wearing time information, which is processed, stored, and displayed in the user terminal  300 , with the external computer  400  of the clinic. Accordingly, the external computer  400  displays the daily wearing time and the cumulative wearing time of the patient through a display unit. In this case, the standard daily wearing time and the standard cumulative wearing time instructed to the patient are also displayed. 
     The contact sensor module  200  and the user terminal  300  may exchange signals through wireless communication such as Bluetooth communication. Accordingly, sensor displacement information, information on whether the clear aligner  100  is worn, measured by the contact sensor module  200  is provided to the user terminal  300  in real time. The user terminal  300  calculates the daily wearing time and the cumulative wearing time of the clear aligner  100  based on the information provided by the contact sensor module  200 , and stores and displays the calculated information. The information is transmitted to the computer  400  of the clinic in a remote location. 
     
       
     
     A method of applying the transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system described above is as shown in  FIG.  3   . 
     Referring to  FIGS.  1  and  3    together, while the contact sensor module  200  is in operation, when the clear aligner  100  is worn on the teeth, the contact sensor module  200  detects wearing of the clear aligner  100 , and the user terminal  300 , which can communicate with the contact sensor module  200  through wireless communication, counts the wearing time of the clear aligner  100 . When the patient separates the clear aligner  100  from the mouth, the user terminal  300  receives a signal from the contact sensor module  200  to determine the separation and calculates a time for which the patient wears the clear aligner  100  once. In this way, each time the patient puts on and separates the clear aligner  100 , the wearing time is calculated. In addition, the user terminal  300  determines whether a day has elapsed from a setting time prestored through the application. When a day has elapsed, the user terminal  300  calculates a daily wearing time of the clear aligner  100 , which is a total cumulative wearing time for which the patient has worn the clear aligner  100  during the day. The calculated actual wearing time of the clear aligner  100  is compared with the standard wearing time. When the actual daily wearing time is less than the standard daily wearing time, an alarm is generated, and the wearing time for the second day is counted with the alarm. In this case, the display unit of the user terminal  300  displays the comparison between the actual daily wearing time and the standard daily wearing time. On the other hand, if the actual daily wearing time day is equal to or greater than the standard daily wearing time, the wearing time for the second day is counted without generating an alarm. Alarms may be provided by periodically generating sounds and/or vibrations. In addition, in the next visit to the clinic, the user terminal  300  compares the actual total cumulative wearing time with the standard cumulative wearing time, and the comparison result is displayed through the monitor of the computer  400  in the clinic. 
     
       
     
       FIG.  5    is a drawing for explaining another example of a clear aligner and a contact sensor module. 
     Referring to  FIG.  5   , a clear aligner  100  includes a first wall  102 , or an anterior wall, and a second wall  104 , or a posterior wall, facing each other to define a tooth insertion groove  120 . A mounting groove  140  for mounting a sensor module is formed on the inner surface of the second wall  102 . 
     The contact sensor module  200  includes a sensor  220  detecting a mechanical stimulus and a flexible encapsulation unit  240  molded to encapsulate the sensor  220 . It is desired that the sensor  220  is a thin film sensor with minimal external change. In addition, the sensor  220  may include a wireless communication unit for wireless communication with the user terminal  300 . The wireless communication unit may use, for example, a method of a short-range wireless communication or a near-field communication (NFC). In addition, the sensor  220  may include a wirelessly rechargeable battery. The encapsulation unit  240  may be formed of a material, such as silicone material, that is softer and has greater viscosity and elasticity compared to the material of the clear aligner  100 . The encapsulation unit  240  has a front convex surface  242 , and other portions other than the front convex surface  242  are completely accommodated in the mounting groove  140 . When the patient&#39;s teeth are inserted into the tooth insertion groove  120  of the clear aligner  100 , the front convex surface  242  is pressed and retracted backward. Accordingly, the front convex surface  242  is deformed, and thus, the sensor  220  is pressed backward. The sensor  220  detects this pressing force and provides a signal indicating that the clear aligner  100  is mounted on the patient&#39;s teeth, to the user terminal  300 . As mentioned above, the mounting groove  140  is formed to correspond to the height of contour of the tooth that has no displacement or the least displacement between before and after orthodontic treatment based on orthodontic treatment plan. The contact sensor module  200  is inserted and installed in the mounting groove  140  and is pressed by the height of contour of the most stable tooth. 
     Meanwhile, a pinhole  150  is formed in the second wall  104  of the clear aligner  100  to be connected to the mounting groove  140  from the outside of the tooth insertion groove  120 . The pinhole  150  is blocked by a blocking member  160  of soft resin material that is easily removed by inserting a pin. For replacement or wireless charging of the contact sensor module  200 , it is necessary to separate the contact sensor module  200  from the clear aligner  100 . In this case, by inserting a rigid pin capable of penetrating the blocking member  160  into the pinhole  150 , the blocking member  160  is penetrated and the pin is further advanced to push the contact sensor module  200  out of the mounting groove  140 . 
     
       
     
       FIG.  6    is a diagram for explaining a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
     As shown in  FIG.  6   , a transparent orthodontic appliance remote monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a clear aligner  100  worn on teeth for orthodontic treatment; a contact sensor module  200  installed inside the clear aligner  100  to detect wearing of the clear aligner  100  on teeth through contact therewith; a displacement measuring sensor module  200 ′ detecting displacement of a specific tooth among the teeth on which the clear aligner  100  is mounted; a user terminal  300  that receives a signal from the contact sensor module  200  and a signal from the displacement measuring sensor module  200 ′ and calculates a wearing time of the clear aligner  100  and displacement of the specific tooth based on the received signals using an application, and a server computer  400  for sharing information calculated in the user terminal  300  to a clinic in charge. 
     As described in the previous embodiment, the clear aligner  100  is formed to include a shape corresponding to the upper or lower teeth to be corrected. The clear aligner  100  is molded with a transparent resin material to include a shape corresponding to each of the teeth therein. The clear aligner  100  includes a tooth insertion groove into which the patient&#39;s upper or lower teeth are inserted. A first mounting groove and a second mounting groove are formed on the inner surface of the clear aligner  100 . The contact sensor module  200  is inserted and mounted in the first mounting groove, and the displacement measuring sensor module  200 ′ is inserted and mounted in the second mounting groove. The displacement measuring sensor module  200 ′ is installed at a position corresponding to a tooth that has the largest displacement between before and after orthodontic treatment. The user terminal  300  can calculate a tooth displacement amount per wearing time of the clear aligner  100  through the application. 
     The present invention is not limited by the embodiments described above and can be embodied as various modifications.