Patent ID: 8118592

Claim:
An orthodontic appliance that controls positioning of a patient's teeth comprising: at least one thermoplastic dental encasing component formed to overlay at least one of the patient's teeth and at least a portion of a palate of the patient, the at least one dental encasing component having a lingual surface and a labial surface; and at least one rigid acrylic, component fused to the at least one thermoplastic dental encasing component and extending from an entire length of the lingual surface of the at least one thermoplastic dental encasing component in a direction toward the palate of the patient and completely covering the at least a portion of the palate of the patient; wherein only the at least one thermoplastic dental encasing component fully overlays the at least one of the patient's teeth and all portions of the palate overlayed by the at least one thermoplastic dental encasing component are also overlayed by the at least one rigid acrylic component, wherein the at least one rigid acrylic component has a higher rigidity than the at least one thermoplastic dental encasing component, and wherein the at least one rigid acrylic component increases a rigidity of an entire arch defined by the at least one thermoplastic dental encasing component without fully overlaying the at least one of the patient's teeth in order to control positioning of the patient's teeth.