Patent Description:
For example, restorative procedures may be designed to implant a dental prosthesis (e.g., a crown, bridge, inlay, onlay, veneer, etc.) intraorally in a patient. Orthodontic procedures may include repositioning misaligned teeth and/or changing bite configurations for improved cosmetic appearance and/or dental function. Orthodontic repositioning can be accomplished, for example, by applying controlled forces to one or more teeth or a jaw of a patient over a period of time.

As an example, orthodontic repositioning may be provided through a dental process that uses positioning appliances for realigning teeth. Such appliances may utilize a shell of material having resilient properties, referred to as an "aligner," that generally conforms to a patient's teeth but is slightly out of alignment with a current tooth configuration.

Placement of such an appliance over the teeth may provide controlled forces in specific locations to gradually move the teeth into a new configuration. Repetition of this process with successive appliances in progressive configurations can move the teeth through a series of intermediate arrangements to a final desired arrangement. Appliances can also be used for other dental conditions, such as application of medications, appliances to help with sleep apnea, and other issues.

Attachments are affixed to the one or more teeth of the patient (typically with an adhesive material, such as an attachment composite material) or directly cured to the tooth. These attachments interact with surfaces on the appliance to impart forces on one or more teeth.

Such systems typically utilize a set of appliances that can be used serially such that, as the teeth move, a new appliance from the set can be implemented to further move the teeth without having to take a new impression of the patient's teeth at every increment of tooth movement in order to make each successive appliance. The same attachments may be utilized with successive appliances or attachments may be added, removed, or replaced with other attachment shapes that may impart different force characteristics than a previous appliance and attachment combination (i.e., appliance and one or more attachments).

Currently, attachments can be formed by hand by a treatment professional (e.g., a doctor or assistant). In this process, a treatment professional selects an attachment material to be used and inserts the material into a well, formed in a sheet of material, to the desired exterior shape of the attachment is provided to the treatment professional and the mixed attachment material is pushed into the well to form the attachment based on the shape of the well.

The attachment is then removed from the well and then put on a tooth and cured. The mixing of the attachment material and amount of attachment composite put into attachment wells on templates are uncontrolled, and therefore errors can occur.

The absolute position of the attachment on the tooth is also subject to user error. When this occurs, the mismatch between the position and/or orientation of the attachment in relation to a contact surface on the appliance, may make using the appliance difficult or impossible and/or make the appliance less effective (reduction of one or more forces being applied by the combination of the attachment and appliance) or provide an incorrect effect (location and/or orientation of the attachment provides different force characteristics than was intended).

Accordingly, the positioning, orientation, and securing of attachments is typically done by a treatment professional at a dentist or orthodontist's office. However, treatment professionals can make one or more errors when mixing, forming, positioning, orienting, or securing one or more of the attachments and as such, the appliance and attachment combination may not fit together correctly or impart the correct one or more forces.

<CIT>) discloses computer-implemented methods of making a transfer tray using rapid prototyping techniques, where the gingival edge of the tray is defined to intersect with at least one receptacle for receiving an orthodontic appliance, the transfer tray being formed with frangible portions.

The present invention relates to a method of forming a dental attachment placement apparatus and to a dental attachment placement apparatus as defined in the appended claims.

The present disclosure provides methods, computing device readable medium, devices, and systems having a dental attachment placement structure. Such solutions should make mixing, forming, positioning, orienting, and securing attachments easier and quicker, and can make the patient's experience better than use of past procedures.

One dental attachment placement apparatus includes a body having an attachment placement surface that is to be placed on an attachment affixing surface of a tooth and wherein the attachment placement surface includes a portion that is shaped to allow placement of an attachment at a particular position on the affixing surface of the tooth and a portion of the body having a contour that is shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface of a tooth and when the contour of the body and the corresponding contour is aligned, the attachment is located at the particular position and can be secured to the affixing surface of the tooth.

In the present disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration how one or more embodiments of the disclosure may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to practice the embodiments of this disclosure.

As used herein, the designators "M", "N", "P", "R", "S", "T", and "V", particularly with respect to reference numerals in the drawings, indicate that any number of the particular feature so designated can be included. As used herein, "a number of" a particular thing can refer to one or more of such things (e.g., a number of teeth can refer to one or more teeth).

The proportion and the relative scale of the elements provided in the figures are intended to illustrate certain embodiments of the present disclosure, and should not be taken in a limiting sense.

<FIG> illustrates a front view of a dental attachment placement structure for placement of an attachment according to a number of embodiments of the present disclosure. In the embodiment of <FIG>, the apparatus <NUM> includes a body <NUM> having at least one surface shaped to conform to one or more of the contours of an exterior surface of a tooth. In the case of the embodiment of <FIG>, the body has multiple surfaces, (inner surfaces of portions <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>), each shaped to conform to the multiple contours of an exterior surface of a tooth, and other surfaces will be discussed in more detail in <FIG>.

The body <NUM> also includes an attachment mounting structure <NUM> including the attachment <NUM>, an aperture <NUM> to allow placement of the attachment <NUM> on the surface of a tooth, and a number of supports <NUM>. The structure illustrated in <FIG>, allows the treatment professional to place the apparatus <NUM> onto the teeth of a patient to provide a more accurate position and orientation for the attachment <NUM>, with respect to the tooth surface, during the securing of the attachment <NUM> to the surface of the tooth than previous techniques.

The securing of the attachment can be accomplished in any suitable manner. For example, the attachment can be cured to the tooth surface, for instance, by use of a light source, such as ultraviolet (UV) light source, which will bond the attachment material directly to the surface of the tooth. In some embodiments, an adhesive material can be applied to the back side of the attachment and the adhesive can be used to secure the attachment to the tooth surface.

In various embodiments, the apparatus can be designed to have one surface shaped to conform to one or more contours of an exterior surface of a tooth (e.g., a surface that conforms to a portion of the front surface of a tooth), such that when the two surfaces are aligned, their contours match, thereby indicating to the treatment professional that the apparatus has been placed correctly.

This correct placement can be with respect to the placement of the apparatus with respect to the tooth in one or more dimensions (e.g., up, down, right, left, rotationally, etc. with respect to the tooth surface upon which the attachment will be applied). If the apparatus is correctly placed, then the attachment will also be correctly placed with respect to the tooth surface.

As used herein, "positioning" is the locating of the attachment at a particular point on the surface of a tooth and "orienting" is the movement of the attachment in a manner that does not change its position on the surface of the tooth (e.g., a rotation of the attachment about an axis or movement of the attachment in one or more directions that does not change its position on the surface of the tooth). For example, an attachment can be positioned at a particular point on the surface of a tooth and then can be oriented by rotating it, for example, parallel to the tooth surface, or along an axis perpendicular to the surface of the tooth. Other angles of rotation can also be used to orient the attachment without changing the attachment's position.

In the embodiment of <FIG>, the apparatus includes many surfaces that are shaped to conform to many contours of many exterior surfaces of multiple teeth (e.g., one or more contours of the front surface, side surfaces, edge surfaces, back surface, etc.).

Generally, the more surfaces used, the more accurate the positioning and/or orientation of the attachment, in relation to the tooth, can be to the desired correct placement. Also, when attaching multiple attachments, these surfaces can be used to accurately position and orient the attachments in relation to each other.

Once an attachment is placed on the tooth, it has to be secured to the tooth and the apparatus has to be removed. In some embodiments, such as that shown in <FIG>, the apparatus can include one or more supports connecting the attachment to the body.

In such embodiments, the one or more supports are made from a material that allows the support material <NUM> to be separated from the material of the attachment <NUM>, the support being made from a material that can be broken at or near the location where the support and attachment are connected, as in the present invention.

In some embodiments, the attachment between the support and the attachment can be released by a release agent, such as a chemical, heat, moisture, or other type of release agent. The release agent may, for example, dissolve a portion of the support and/or attachment in order to release the support and/or attachment from each other.

In the present invention, the support and attachments are fabricated from the same material, and the structure of the support can be broken at a point to disconnect it from the attachment, the support structure including a narrow section a scored section that is conducive to breaking at that location.

In various embodiments, the attachment can be mechanically mounted to the supports such that the attachment can be released from the supports once the attachment is secured to the surface of the tooth. This can be accomplished by any suitable releasable attachment structure. For example, one suitable structure is a groove located on each support and corresponding mating flanges on the attachment surface that can be slid out of the grooves to release the attachment from the supports.

<FIG> illustrates a back view of the dental attachment placement structure of <FIG>. In this view, the back side of the body <NUM> is shown including the back side of the attachment mounting structure <NUM> including the attachment <NUM> and supports <NUM>, and the two inner surfaces of portions <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> of the body <NUM>, each shaped to conform to the multiple contours of an exterior surface of a tooth are shown.

As used herein, a surface that is shaped to conform to a contour of an exterior surface of a tooth (i.e., an alignment surface) can be used to accurately position and/or orient the attachment on the tooth. For example, if surface of the apparatus is shaped to conform to a contour of the front surface of the tooth (e.g., surface <NUM>-<NUM> shown in <FIG>), then when the apparatus is pressed against the front surface of the tooth such that the contours of the tooth and the apparatus correspond to each other, the attachment will be correctly oriented with respect to the angle of the back side of the attachment to the surface of the tooth.

In the view shown in <FIG>, more surfaces shaped to conform to the multiple contours of an exterior surface of a tooth are shown than were visible in the view of <FIG>. As discussed above, if another surface is used, for example, a side surface <NUM>-<NUM>, then the placement of the attachment can be more accurately accomplished with respect to its position and orientation.

For instance, when the side <NUM>-<NUM> is positioned along the corresponding side of the tooth such that their contours align, then the attachment should be the correct distance from the side of the tooth and will be correctly oriented with respect to the angle of the back side of the attachment to the surface of the tooth.

When more surfaces are utilized, the position and/or orientation of the attachment can be further precisioned. For example, the body <NUM> includes side surfaces <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM> of a first tooth, and side surfaces <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> of a second tooth. The body <NUM> also includes surfaces that are shaped to conform to the gingival line on a tooth <NUM>-M and <NUM>-N, and surfaces <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> that conform to the bottom edge of a tooth (and/or the bottom of the front and/or back side of the tooth).

Additionally, the embodiment of <FIG> includes a portion that conforms to the back side of the first tooth <NUM> and another portion that conforms to the back side of the second tooth <NUM>. The use of such surfaces in conjunction with other surfaces can also allow for use of the corners of the teeth to be used to aid in positioning and/or orientation of an attachment. For example, the apparatus can be slid onto the tooth until the bottom edge of the tooth contacts the bottom edge <NUM>-<NUM> of the apparatus. When the front surface, the sides, corners, and bottom of the apparatus are aligned with their corresponding tooth surfaces, the attachment can be very precisely placed on its intended tooth surface.

<FIG> illustrates a front view of the dental attachment placement structure of <FIG> positioned on a tooth of a patient. In the view of <FIG>, several teeth and the gingiva of a patient are illustrated, including teeth <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-R. The apparatus <NUM> has been placed on the two of the teeth (<NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>) such that the inner surfaces of portions <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> are placed in contact with tooth surfaces <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, respectively.

<FIG> illustrates a front view of a dental attachment attached to a tooth of a patient utilizing the dental attachment placement structure of <FIG>. The resultant placement has been accomplished via the attachment mounting structure illustrated in <FIG>.

In this manner, the attachment <NUM> has been correctly positioned on the surface <NUM>-<NUM> of tooth <NUM>-<NUM> and oriented such that it can provide the desired force to the teeth of the patient (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-R, and/or other teeth of the patient) when combined with the dental appliance that will attach to the attachment.

In some embodiments, such as that shown in <FIG>, the attachment and/or the dental attachment placement structure, can be fabricated through direct fabrication, such as via a three-dimensional (3D) printer), like in the claimed method of the invention.

This can be beneficial as the treatment profession can print these components at their location rather than at a manufacturing facility. Further, these components do not need to be formed around a mold of teeth when direct printed, this can save in manufacturing costs due to less time, materials, and employee time in creating such models and removing the components from the models.

Direct fabrication also allows for the design to be more easily and readily changed because the design can be altered via a computing device and direct printed from the modified design stored in memory on the computing device or a connected network or memory. Further, direct fabrication allows for creation of components of different material without substantial changes to equipment that may be used at a manufacturing facility, among other benefits.

For example, a dental attachment placement apparatus can be formed by printing, using a three-dimensional printing apparatus, an attachment, out of an attachment material and printing, using a three-dimensional printing apparatus, a dental attachment placement structure, connected to the attachment to hold the attachment in a particular position. In the present invention, the dental attachment placement structure and the attachments are fabricated from the same material. Material, examples include: polymers such as, polyester, a co-polyester, a polycarbonate, a thermoplastic polyurethane, a polypropylene, a polyethylene, a polypropylene and polyethylene copolymer, an acrylic, a cyclic block copolymer, a polyetheretherketone, a polyamide, a polyethylene terephthalate, a polybutylene terephthalate, a polyetherimide, a polyethersulfone, a polytrimethylene terephthalate, or a combination thereof, which can be used to make dental appliances, such as aligners, or curable composite (e.g., a resin material) that can be used to attach orthodontic appliances to teeth or create orthodontic structures.

In some embodiments, not part of the present invention, the dental attachment placement structure can be fabricated out of a second material that is different than the attachment material. For example, the attachment can be fabricated from a composite material and the dental attachment placement structure can be fabricated from a polymer, such as those discussed above. In some embodiments, the attachment and dental attachment placement structure can be constructed such that they are connected to each other. As discussed herein, this connection can be designed to be cut, broken, like in the present invention, or otherwise released to allow the dental attachment placement structure to be removed while the attachment is positioned on the tooth.

As discussed herein, one other benefit to direct fabrication is that one or more surfaces that will be used to attach the attachment to a tooth and/or to position an attachment with respect to one or more teeth can be fabricated with surfaces that will mate with the corresponding surface of the one or more teeth to accomplish these functionalities (attachment and/or positioning of the attachment). This can be accomplished by virtual design of these surfaces and then using these virtual designs to fabricate the attachment and/or the dental attachment placement structure directly.

<FIG> illustrates a front view of a dental attachment placement structure having multiple attachment placement components provided on the structure according to a number of embodiments of the present invention.

In the embodiment of <FIG>, the body <NUM> of apparatus <NUM> has an attachment mounting structure has an aperture <NUM>-<NUM> with an attachment <NUM>-<NUM> placed in the aperture. Through use of the apparatus <NUM>, the attachment is in the desired position and orientation for securing to the surface <NUM>-<NUM> of tooth <NUM>-<NUM>.

Attachments <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-S are also positioned in apertures <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-V on surface <NUM>-<NUM> of tooth <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM> of tooth <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-T of tooth <NUM>-R. In such an embodiment, one or more of the teeth can have multiple attachments affixed thereon.

In order to save fabrication time and materials cost, the apparatus may include multiple attachment locations and only some may be used at any given time. In such applications, the apparatus <NUM> can, for example, be used to affix attachment <NUM>-<NUM> at one point in time and can be reused to attach <NUM>-S at aperture <NUM>-V or an attachment at one or more of the other locations on the apparatus (e.g., apertures <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and/or <NUM>-<NUM>) at a different time.

Another feature of the embodiment of <FIG>, is that in order to save fabrication time and materials cost, an apparatus with less material can be used. In such embodiments, the apparatus can be designed such that a reduced amount or minimized amount of material is used in order to properly position the attachment at a desired location.

Further, in prior concepts, treatment professionals may only have had access to a few, standardized attachment shapes. In this manner, the options for treatment may have been restricted based on the limited forces that could be provided by the standardized attachments. If any other attachment shape was desired, the treatment professional could file or grind the attachment surfaces to change its shape, but a treatment plan would not take these modifications into account and therefore the actual result would be different than the treatment plan result. This resulted in additional time spent in getting the proper shape, misshapen attachments that did not fit or function correctly, and other issues.

Although embodiments of the present disclosure can be used to form such standardized attachments, since the apparatus can be fabricated to be used with a specific patient's teeth positioning, specialized attachments can also be designed and can be made available to a treatment professional.

Such specialization can also, for example, include the size of the attachment, shape of the attachment, and other suitable specialized characteristics. Accordingly, the patient will be able to get a more customized treatment based on use of such embodiments. This can allow the apparatus to be specialized to the patient, but not be onerous on the treatment professional who, for example, may not have attachment design skills or capabilities.

In some embodiments, the treatment professional may also select one or more attachment materials or attachment types and/or select the location upon which they should be applied. Such embodiments can allow further customization of the apparatus and can be taken into account when the manufacture of the attachment templates are created. Further, in various embodiments, this customization can be made for each appliance (or for multiple appliances) in a set of appliances of a treatment plan.

In some embodiments, a computing device (such as that described in relation to <FIG> below) can be used to create a treatment plan to move the teeth of a patient in an incremental manner to improve their position within the patient's mouth. Other dental appliances can be created to aid patients with sleep apnea or medication delivery, among other types of appliances.

A computing device can be used to create such devices or molds to fabricate such dental appliances, attachments, and/or attachment placement structures. In some embodiments, a computing device can be used to virtually model such dental appliances, attachments, and/or attachment placement structures.

For example, through use of a treatment plan and/or virtual modeling, a dental appliance (e.g., an aligner for aligning teeth or jaws of a patient) or attachment placement structure can be made, for example, by thermal-forming a sheet of plastic over a physical dental mold. The physical dental mold, for instance, can represent an incremental position to which a patient's teeth are to be moved and can include attachment shapes formed in the mold.

In this manner, one or more surfaces of the dental appliance can engage with one or more surfaces of the one or more attachments (when the finished dental appliance is placed in the patient's mouth with the actual attachments). By having the attachments on the mold, the dental appliance is formed with the surfaces that will interact with the attachments.

The physical dental mold can be manufactured, for example, by downloading a computer-aided design (CAD) virtual dental model to a rapid prototyping process, such as, for example, a computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) milling, stereolithography, and/or photolithography process.

The dental mold (e.g., set of molded teeth and/or jaw) can be created from a virtual model of a number of teeth and/or jaw of a patient. A virtual model, for example, can include an initial virtual dental model and/or intermediate virtual dental model (wherein the teeth of the patient have been moved with respect to their actual physical position). A dental mold can be formed in accordance with a unique treatment file that, for example, identifies a patient, a stage of a treatment plan, the virtual model of the number of teeth and/or jaw, and/or whether the dental mold is of the upper and/or lower dental arch.

In some computing device system processes, a treatment file can be accessed by a rapid prototyping apparatus machine or direct fabrication device, such as a SLA or 3D printing machine, to form and/or create the dental mold. As discussed above, the result of the dental mold can include a set of molded teeth.

The set of molded teeth can include at least a replica of a number of teeth of the patient, but can also include other features such as gingival and jaw structures, among others. The dental mold can be used to make a dental appliance, for example, by creating a negative impression of the dental mold using polymeric sheets of material and vacuum forming the sheets over the dental mold, as discussed above.

For instance, a dental appliance or attachment placement structure can be formed by layering a thermoformable sheet of material and/or multiple sheets of one or more materials over the dental mold. The materials can include a polymeric material, for instance.

Generally, the dental appliance or attachment placement structure is produced and/or formed by heating the polymeric thermoformable sheet and vacuum or pressure forming the sheet over the dental mold (e.g., a number of molded teeth). A dental appliance or attachment placement structure can, for example, include a negative impression of the dental mold. Such molding techniques can be used to create the dental appliances and attachment placement structures.

<FIG> illustrate another apparatus embodiment that can be used in the placement of an attachment on the surface of a tooth. <FIG> illustrates a front view of a dental attachment placement structure for etching a tooth according to a number of embodiments of the present disclosure. <FIG> illustrates a back view of the dental attachment placement structure of <FIG>.

In some instances, it may be beneficial to prepare the surface of the tooth for adhering of a dental attachment thereto. It is ideal if the preparation of the surface of the tooth takes place only at the area in which the attachment is to be attached.

Such preparation can include etching of the surface of the tooth which improves the adhesion between the tooth surface and the attachment or adhesive material used to adhere the attachment to the tooth. In embodiments such as that illustrated in <FIG>, and <FIG>, the dental attachment placement structure can be utilized as an etch mask that allows the etching to occur in the area to which the attachment is to be placed without etching other surfaces not at the attachment area.

Similar to the apparatus of <FIG>, in the embodiment of <FIG>, the apparatus <NUM> includes a body <NUM> having at least one surface shaped to conform to one or more of the contours of an exterior surface of a tooth. The body has multiple surfaces, <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, each shaped to conform to the multiple contours of an exterior surface of a tooth, and other surfaces will be discussed in more detail in <FIG>.

In the embodiment of <FIG>, the body <NUM> includes an aperture <NUM> formed in portion <NUM>-<NUM>. The aperture <NUM> has a specific shape <NUM> that, when the apparatus <NUM> is placed correctly on the tooth, will allow the attachment area (i.e., the area at which the attachment will be attached) to be etched without etching other areas of the tooth. The structure illustrated in <FIG>, allows the treatment professional to place the apparatus <NUM> onto the teeth of a patient to provide a mask for purposes of etching in a more accurate position and orientation for placement of an attachment (e.g., the shape of aperture <NUM> would be appropriate for an attachment such as that illustrated in <FIG> (<NUM>)), with respect to the tooth surface, than previous techniques.

Similar to <FIG>, the embodiment illustrated in <FIG> includes multiple surfaces that can be used to assist in the alignment of the etch mask with respect to the intended surface of the tooth to which the attachment is to be secured. For example, one or more of surfaces: <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-M, <NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-N, <NUM>, and/or inner surfaces of portions <NUM>-<NUM> and/or <NUM>-<NUM> can be utilized in various embodiments of the present disclosure.

In such an embodiment, the surface of the tooth can be etched with an etching material that can, for example be brushed onto the surface of the tooth by the treatment professional through the aperture <NUM>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, the shape <NUM> of the aperture <NUM> is sized and shaped to be as large or slightly larger or smaller than the attachment that is to be placed on the tooth. However, in some embodiments, the size and/or shape of the aperture may be different than the surface of the attachment that is to be placed in the tooth.

When shaped like the surface of the attachment that is to be placed in the tooth the treatment professional can align the shape of the attachment with the shape of the etched area such that the attachment is at the correct location and in the correct orientation with respect to the surface of the tooth. Although a particular attachment shape and aperture shape are illustrated, any suitable attachment shape and corresponding aperture shape can be utilized in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

The present example also includes a portion of the body (e.g., surfaces <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-M and/or the inner surface <NUM>-<NUM>) having a contour that is shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface of a tooth (e.g., front surface, back surface, side surface, edge surface, etc.) and when the contour of the body and the corresponding contour is aligned, the etching area is located at the particular position.

In another example embodiment, a dental attachment placement apparatus includes a body that has an attachment mounting structure. The body also includes a surface (e.g., surfaces <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-M and/or the inner surface <NUM>-<NUM>) having a contour that is shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface (e.g., front surface, back surface, side surface, edge surface, etc.) of a tooth and when the contour of the body and the corresponding contour of the tooth are aligned, a dental attachment, when placed in the attachment mounting structure, is located at the particular position with respect to an exterior surface of the tooth.

In some embodiments, the body includes at least a second surface (e.g., inner surface of <NUM>-<NUM>) shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface of a second tooth. Further, the body can include a second attachment mounting structure (e.g., as shown in <FIG>, <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-P) for attaching a second dental attachment to an exterior surface of the second tooth (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM>).

Another example embodiment provides a dental attachment placement apparatus having a body that includes an attachment mounting structure having an aperture that allows an attachment to be placed through the body and onto an exterior surface of the tooth. The body also includes a surface having a contour that is shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface of a tooth and when the contour of the body and the corresponding contour of the tooth are aligned, a dental attachment, when placed in the aperture, is located at the particular position with respect to an exterior surface of the tooth.

As illustrated in <FIG> and 2B, in some embodiments, the body includes multiple surfaces having contours that are shaped to correspond with contours of multiple alignment surfaces of a tooth. In some such embodiments, when the contours of the body and the corresponding contours of the tooth are aligned, they frictionally hold the apparatus in place against the tooth during securement of the attachment. For example, the inner surface of <NUM>-<NUM> and inner surface <NUM> can engage the corresponding surfaces of the tooth to hold the apparatus in place while the attachment is being placed and/or secured. This can be beneficial as it, for example, can allow the treatment professional to use both hands to address other tasks while the attachment is in position to be secured or is being secured.

In some embodiments, the body can include multiple attachment mounting structures each having an aperture that allows an attachment to be placed through the body and onto an exterior surface of the tooth. For example, in the embodiment shown in <FIG>, the apparatus <NUM> includes multiple attachment mounting structures each having apertures (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-V) that allows an attachment (<NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-S) to be placed through the body and onto the exterior surface <NUM>-T of tooth <NUM>-R. <FIG> illustrates a front view of an etched area of a tooth of a patient that has been etched utilizing the dental attachment placement structure of <FIG>. The resultant etched area <NUM> has been accomplished via the attachment mounting structure illustrated in <FIG>.

In this manner, the surface of the tooth can be etched at an area that is large enough to secure an attachment, but not un-necessarily large. Also, in this manner, an attachment can be correctly positioned on the surface of tooth <NUM>-<NUM> and oriented such that it can provide the desired force to the teeth of the patient (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-R, and/or other teeth of the patient) when combined with the dental appliance that will attach to the attachment.

<FIG> illustrates a front view of a dental attachment placement structure having multiple attachment placement components provided on the structure according to a number of embodiments of the present disclosure. In the embodiment of <FIG>, the body <NUM> of apparatus <NUM> has an attachment mounting structure that includes multiple apertures <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-V that can be used to etch portions of teeth <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-R on surfaces <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-T.

In order to save fabrication time and materials cost, the apparatus may include multiple etch locations and only some may be used at any given time. In such applications, the apparatus <NUM> can, for example, be used to etch a location on a tooth at one point in time and can be reused to etch another location on a tooth at another point in time.

Similar to the embodiment of <FIG>, another feature of the embodiment of <FIG>, is that in order to save fabrication time and materials cost, an apparatus with less material can be used. In such embodiments, the apparatus can be designed such that a reduced amount or minimized amount of material is used in order to properly etch a surface of a tooth at a desired location.

<FIG> illustrates a front view of another dental attachment placement structure for etching a tooth according to a number of embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiment of <FIG> is similar to that of <FIG>.

In the embodiment of <FIG>, the apparatus <NUM> includes a body <NUM> having at least one surface shaped to conform to one or more of the contours of an exterior surface of a tooth. The body has multiple surfaces, <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, each shaped to conform to the multiple contours of an exterior surface of a tooth. Some embodiments may have one or more other surfaces similar to those shown in <FIG> to aid in the alignment of the dental attachment placement structure with the tooth. In the example of <FIG>, the surface <NUM>-<NUM> is positioned on tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM> and surface <NUM>-<NUM> is positioned on tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM>.

In the embodiment illustrated in <FIG>, the dental attachment placement structure allows for the surface of the tooth to be etched through the aperture. The etched area is illustrated at <NUM>. Adjacent to the aperture is a releasable portion <NUM>.

The releasable portion can be released by any suitable release mechanism. For example, a series of perforations can be cut into the body <NUM> to allow the portion <NUM> to be torn away from the rest of the body <NUM>. This can allow the dental attachment placement structure to also be used as a guide for the placement of an attachment to be placed in the correct position.

For example, once the area is etched as shown in <FIG>, an attachment can be secured to the etched area. If an attachment has a surface that is shaped to correspond to the shape of the aperture, then the edges of the aperture can be used as a guide to the correct positioning of the attachment. Once secured, the releasable portion <NUM> can be removed and the rest of the body <NUM> can be removed from the teeth while the attachment remains attached to the tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates front view of a dental attachment attached to a tooth of a patient utilizing the dental attachment placement structure of <FIG>. This figure includes a tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM> of a first tooth and a tooth surface of a second tooth <NUM>-<NUM>, and an attachment <NUM> mounted on the surface <NUM>-<NUM>.

As can be seen from this figure, the attachment <NUM> is positioned and oriented on the surface of the tooth <NUM>-<NUM> in the same position and orientation as the etched area <NUM>, thereby allowing better adhesion of the attachment <NUM> to the surface of the tooth <NUM>-<NUM>. This is because the attachment was placed in the aperture of body <NUM> while it was positioned on tooth surfaces <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, then removed after the attachment <NUM> was adhered to etched area <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates a front view of another dental attachment placement structure for etching a tooth according to a number of embodiments of the present disclosure. <FIG> illustrates an embodiment wherein the body <NUM> of the dental attachment placement structure has apertures that do not fully surround the area to be etched. In such embodiments, the body can be used as a guide for what area is to be etched (e.g., areas <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>), and as a guide to placement of one or more attachments (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>), but also allows for removal of the body <NUM>, once the attachment has been secured to the surface of the tooth (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM> and/or <NUM>-<NUM>).

For instance, <FIG> illustrates front view of multiple dental attachments attached to multiple teeth of a patient utilizing the dental attachment placement structure of <FIG>. This figure includes a tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM> of a first tooth and a tooth surface of a second tooth <NUM>-<NUM>, and attachments <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> mounted on the surfaces <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, respectively.

As can be seen from <FIG>, the attachments <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> are positioned and oriented on the surface of the teeth <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> in the same position and orientation as the etched areas <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, thereby allowing better adhesion of the attachments <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> to the surface of the teeth <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>. This is because the attachment was placed in the apertures of body <NUM> while it was positioned on tooth surfaces <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, then removed after the attachments <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> were adhered to etched areas <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>.

In the embodiment of <FIG>, the apparatus <NUM> includes a body <NUM> having at least one surface shaped to conform to one or more of the contours of an exterior surface of a tooth. The body has multiple surfaces, <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, each shaped to conform to the multiple contours of an exterior surface of a tooth.

As with other embodiments discussed herein, some embodiments may have one or more other surfaces similar to those shown in <FIG> to aid in the alignment of the dental attachment placement structure with the tooth. In the example of <FIG>, the surface <NUM>-<NUM> is positioned on tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM> and surface <NUM>-<NUM> is positioned on tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM> to aid in positioning and/or orientation of the dental attachment placement structure with respect to the tooth to which an attachment is to be attached and thereby the positioning and/or orientation of the attachment to the tooth.

In the embodiment illustrated in <FIG>, the dental attachment placement structure allows for the surface of the tooth to be etched through the aperture. The etched area is illustrated at <NUM>. Adjacent to the aperture is a removable portion <NUM>.

The removable portion can be held in place by any suitable mechanism. For example, the removable portion can be shaped like a puzzle piece that mates with the rest of the body <NUM> in a particular orientation based on the removable portion <NUM> having an irregular shape. As used herein, an irregular shape is a shape that can only be positioned in one way with the rest of the body <NUM> such that the aperture has a desired shape for etching and/or positioning of an attachment therein. This can allow the dental attachment placement structure to be used for etching of the surface of a tooth and/or to be used as a guide for the placement of an attachment to be placed in the correct position.

For example, once the area is etched as shown in <FIG>, an attachment can be secured to the etched area. If an attachment has a surface that is shaped to correspond to the shape of the aperture, then the edges of the aperture can be used as a guide to the correct positioning of the attachment. Once secured, the removable portion <NUM> can be removed and the rest of the body <NUM> can be removed from the teeth while the attachment remains attached to the tooth surface <NUM>-<NUM>.

In some embodiments, the edges of the removable portion and the edges on the body that correspond to the edges of the removable portion can be slanted such that when the removable portion is positioned into the rest of the body, it can be held in place. This can allow the treatment professional the ability to use their hands to do other things without having to hold the removable portion in place.

Also, in embodiments such as that shown in <FIG>, the apparatus can be positioned to accomplish etching (with the removable portion in place). The removable portion can be removed once the etch material and has been applied. Then, the removable portion can be repositioned with the rest of the body for securing of an attachment to the tooth. Once the attachment is secured to the tooth, the removable portion can be removed again to allow for removal of the apparatus for the patient's mouth without having to pull a portion of the apparatus over the attachment.

As illustrated in this figure, the attachment <NUM> is positioned and oriented on the surface of the tooth <NUM>-<NUM> in the same position and orientation as the etched area <NUM>, thereby allowing better adhesion of the attachment <NUM> to the surface of the tooth <NUM>-<NUM>. As with the embodiment of <FIG>, this is because the attachment was placed in the aperture of body <NUM> while it was positioned on tooth surfaces <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, then removed after the attachment <NUM> was adhered to etched area <NUM>.

As can be appreciated by the discussion of these different embodiments, in can be noted that each of these types of attachment mounting structures can provide an accurate mechanism for positioning and orienting the attachment with respect to the surface of the tooth to which the attachment is to be secured, but one type may have benefits over another in some applications based on one or more characteristics (e.g., whether etching is desired, space available for placement of the attachment, number of attachments to be placed on a single tooth, type of securement that will be used, etc.).

<FIG> illustrates a computing device that can be utilized according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. For instance, a computing device <NUM> can have a number of components coupled thereto.

The computing device <NUM> can include a processor <NUM> and a memory <NUM>. The memory <NUM> can have various types of information including data <NUM> and executable instructions <NUM>, as discussed herein.

The processor <NUM> can execute instructions <NUM> that are stored on an internal or external non-transitory computer device readable medium (CRM). A non-transitory CRM, as used herein, can include volatile and/or non-volatile memory.

Volatile memory can include memory that depends upon power to store information, such as various types of dynamic random access memory (DRAM), among others. Non-volatile memory can include memory that does not depend upon power to store information.

Memory <NUM> and/or the processor <NUM> may be located on the computing device <NUM> or off of the computing device <NUM>, in some embodiments. As such, as illustrated in the embodiment of <FIG>, the computing device <NUM> can include a network interface <NUM>. Such an interface <NUM> can allow for processing on another networked computing device, can be used to obtain information about the patient, and/or can be used to obtain data and/or executable instructions for use with various embodiments provided herein.

As illustrated in the embodiment of <FIG>, the computing device <NUM> can include one or more input and/or output interfaces <NUM>. Such interfaces <NUM> can be used to connect the computing device <NUM> with one or more input and/or output devices <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>.

For example, in the embodiment illustrated in <FIG>, the input and/or output devices can include a scanning device <NUM>, a camera dock <NUM>, an input device <NUM> (e.g., a mouse, a keyboard, etc.), a display device <NUM> (e.g., a monitor), a printer <NUM>, and/or one or more other input devices. The input/output interfaces <NUM> can receive executable instructions and/or data, storable in the data storage device (e.g., memory), representing a virtual dental model of a patient's dentition.

In some embodiments, the scanning device <NUM> can be configured to scan one or more physical dental molds of a patient's dentition. In one or more embodiments, the scanning device <NUM> can be configured to scan the patient's dentition, a dental appliance, and/or attachment placement structure directly. The scanning device <NUM> can be configured to input data into the computing device <NUM>.

In some embodiments, the camera dock <NUM> can receive an input from an imaging device (e.g., a 2D or 3D imaging device) such as a digital camera, a printed photograph scanner, and/or other suitable imaging device. The input from the imaging device can, for example, be stored in memory <NUM>.

The processor <NUM> can execute instructions to provide a visual indication of a treatment plan, a dental appliance, and/or a one or more attachments on the display <NUM>. The computing device <NUM> can be configured to allow a treatment professional or other user to input treatment goals. Input received can be sent to the processor <NUM> as data <NUM> and/or can be stored in memory <NUM>.

Such connectivity can allow for the input and/or output of data and/or instructions among other types of information. Some embodiments may be distributed among various computing devices within one or more networks, and such systems as illustrated in <FIG> can be beneficial in allowing for the capture, calculation, and/or analysis of information discussed herein.

The processor <NUM>, in association with the data storage device (e.g., memory <NUM>), can be associated with the data <NUM>. The processor <NUM>, in association with the memory <NUM>, can store and/or utilize data <NUM> and/or execute instructions <NUM> for creating and/or modeling interactions between an attachment and a tooth; interactions between an attachment and an appliance; and/or combinations of interactions between one or more attachments, one or more teeth and/or other structure in the mouth of the patient, and/or one or more appliances for moving teeth.

The processor <NUM>, in association with the memory <NUM> can, in addition to or alternatively, store and/or utilize data <NUM> and/or execute instructions <NUM> for creating and/or modeling attachment placement structures and/or attachments, and/or adhesive and/or releasable materials, as well as a virtual modeling of such items with or without an appliance for moving teeth, and/or one or more teeth. The virtual model of the attachment placement structure and/or attachments to attach a dental appliance to the teeth of a patient can be used to create a physical dental appliance, attachment placement structure and/or attachments, for instance, as discussed further herein.

The processor <NUM> coupled to the memory <NUM> can, for example, include instructions to cause the computing device <NUM> to perform a method including, for example, creating a treatment plan based on a virtual model of a jaw of a patient, wherein the treatment plan includes use of an attachment.

In some embodiments, the processor <NUM> coupled to the memory <NUM> can cause the computing device <NUM> to perform the method comprising modeling a virtual dental attachment based on the treatment plan, wherein the virtual dental attachment is constructed to provide one or more forces desired by the treatment plan.

In various embodiments, the processor <NUM> coupled to the memory <NUM> can cause the computing device <NUM> to perform the method comprising creating a virtual dental attachment placement apparatus that includes a body having an attachment mounting structure and including a surface having a contour that is shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface of a tooth such that when the contour of the body and the corresponding contour of the tooth are aligned, the dental attachment is placed in the attachment mounting structure, the dental attachment is located at a particular position with respect to an exterior surface of the tooth.

Such analysis can be accomplished one or more times for a treatment plan. For example, if a treatment plan has <NUM> stages, it would be possible to have different attachments for each stage or possibly more, if desired. However, in many instances the attachment type, position, and/or orientation may be changed a few times during the treatment plan.

Through use of virtual modeling, attachments can be virtually tested and the best attachment type, shape, position, and/or orientation can be selected without inconveniencing the patient with trial and error of attachments during treatment. Additionally, use of virtual modeling can also allow for custom design of attachment shapes that will be suitable for a specific patient's needs and/or a specific function within an area of a patient's mouth. From such analysis, different physical dental attachment placement apparatuses can be created from the virtual dental attachment placement apparatus data that would be utilized to create the attachments needed for the different stages.

Further, the specialized nature of the design of such attachments can also allow the attachments to be made from different materials. In this manner, attachments during a treatment plan or even during one stage can be of a different material that may provide more specialized force distribution than was possible with standard attachments.

In some embodiments, the printer <NUM> can be a three dimensional or direct fabrication device that can create a dental appliance directly from instructions from the computing device <NUM>. Embodiments of the present disclosure utilizing such technology can be particularly beneficial for a variety of reasons. For example, such direct manufacture allows for less waste of materials due to less processing steps and increased specialization of the attachment placement structure, attachment materials, and/or other components of the appliances described herein.

In some embodiments, the attachment placement structure can be formed and one or more attachments formed with the attachment placement structure. Such technologies can be particularly useful in some such embodiments as the two can be fabricated during the same process.

Claim 1:
A method of forming a dental attachment placement apparatus customized to a patient, the method comprising:
printing, using a three-dimensional printing apparatus, a plurality of attachments (<NUM>, <NUM>) having different shapes suitable for a specific function within an area of the patient's mouth; and
printing a dental attachment placement structure comprising a body (<NUM>, <NUM>) that includes a plurality of attachment mounting structures (<NUM>), at least one of the attachment mounting structures (<NUM>) having one or more supports (<NUM>) connected between the body and the attachment (<NUM>, <NUM>), the attachments (<NUM>, <NUM>) being placed in the attachment mounting structures (<NUM>), the body including a surface having a contour that is shaped to correspond with a contour of an alignment surface of a tooth, wherein the one or more supports (<NUM>) include a narrow or scored section that is conducive to breaking at that location, further wherein the dental attachment placement structure and the attachments (<NUM>, <NUM>) are fabricated from the same material.