Patent ID: 8882498

Claim:
A coordinated metal and ceramic orthodontic bracket system configured for interchangeable placement of individual orthodontic brackets into a bracket system for placement on a single dental arch, comprising: a ceramic orthodontic bracket system comprising a plurality of orthodontic bracket bodies formed of ceramic, each ceramic orthodontic bracket being configured for placement on a selected tooth of a dental arch, each ceramic orthodontic bracket including: a ceramic bracket bonding pad; a ceramic bracket body fixedly attached to and extending labially away from the bonding pad; and an arch wire slot formed within the ceramic bracket body; wherein the ceramic orthodontic bracket has a buccal-lingual slot floor cross-sectional thickness defined from a tooth attachment surface of the ceramic bracket bonding pad to a lingual floor of the arch wire slot; and a metal orthodontic bracket system comprising a plurality of orthodontic brackets formed of metal, each metal orthodontic bracket being configured for placement on a selected tooth of the dental arch, each metal orthodontic bracket including: a metal bracket bonding pad; a metal bracket body fixedly attached to and extending labially from the metal bracket bonding pad; and an arch wire slot formed within the metal bracket body; wherein a buccal-lingual slot floor cross-sectional thickness of each metal orthodontic bracket defined from a tooth attachment surface of the metal bracket bonding pad to a lingual floor of the arch wire slot is substantially equal to the buccal-lingual slot floor cross-sectional thickness of a corresponding ceramic orthodontic bracket configured for placement on a same tooth as the corresponding metal orthodontic bracket so that an entire ceramic orthodontic bracket is interchangeable with an entire corresponding metal orthodontic bracket.