Align Technology Patent Grants

Recovery of monomeric and oligomeric building blocks from polymeric materials

Granted: March 26, 2024
Patent Number: 11939287
The present disclosure provides methods and processes for the recovery of compounds (e.g., pendant groups) from polymeric materials, as well as methods for recycling and reusing such compounds by synthetically converting a recovered compound to building blocks that can be used in, e.g., curable resins for the fabrication of new devices, such as medical devices (e.g., orthodontic appliances).

Face capture and intraoral scanner and methods of use

Granted: March 26, 2024
Patent Number: 11937996
Apparatuses (e.g., systems, devices, etc.) and method for scanning both a subject's face as well as the subject's intra oral cavity to provide two-dimensional (2D) and/or three dimensional (3D) data that may be subsequently used in prosthodontic and orthodontic procedures, including smile planning (e.g., designing or modifying a subject's overall smile or facial aesthetics).

Dental attachment placement structure

Granted: March 26, 2024
Patent Number: 11937991
Aligner attachment placement devices including a frame configured to extend over at least a portion of a dental arch, an attachment support extending from a first side of the frame, an aligner attachment frangibly connected to the attachment support, a first and second registration anchor, and a retention support extending from a second side of the frame. In some cases, a gap portion of the frame between the first and second registration anchors may be configured to suspend over one or…

Cellular architecture for controlled focal stiffness across intraoral appliances

Granted: March 19, 2024
Patent Number: 11931223
Described herein are intraoral appliances with adaptive cellular materials and structures to provide enhanced mechanical properties and orthodontic functionality, and related methods. The described appliances may have higher Young's modulus and elongation rate than appliances made from conventional materials. Further, the described appliances may have desirable non-linear force/strain profiles. Additionally, the control provided by using cellular structures allow for increased…

Dental attachment formation structures

Granted: March 19, 2024
Patent Number: 11931222
The present disclosure provides methods, computing device readable medium, devices, and systems having a dental attachment formation structures. One dental appliance includes a body having a first surface shaped to abut an exterior surface of a tooth and a well portion of the first surface shaped to form an attachment that is to be attached to the exterior surface of the tooth, a release layer formed over a surface of the well to allow the attachment to be removed from the well, and an…

Ray tracking for intraoral 3D scanner

Granted: March 12, 2024
Patent Number: 11930154
An intraoral scanning system comprises and intraoral scanner and a processor. The intraoral scanner comprises one or more cameras and one or more structured light projectors, the intraoral scanner to generate a series of images using the one or more cameras, each image including at least a portion of a pattern projected by the one or more structured light projectors onto an intraoral three-dimensional surface. The processor runs a correspondence algorithm to compute respective…

Intraoral scanning system that removes excessive materials from intraoral scans

Granted: March 12, 2024
Patent Number: 11928832
An intraoral scanning system comprises an intraoral scanner and a computing device. The computing device receives intraoral scans of a dental site from the intraoral scanner, the intraoral scans comprising at least a first intraoral scan and a second intraoral scan. The computing device determines, for each point in the second intraoral scan based on a first comparison of the first intraoral scan to the second intraoral scan, whether the point is a back-face point or an uncovered point.…

Three-dimensional visualization of clinical dentition incorporating view state and modified clinical data

Granted: March 12, 2024
Patent Number: 11925525
Methods of representing user edits or modifications of a treatment plan for a dental apparatus (e.g., one or a series of aligners) by managing an original clinical data set and a set of modifications of the clinical data set. Also described herein are methods of displaying, condensing, storing and reconstructing collision regions between two or more teeth.

Intraoral scanning systems

Granted: February 27, 2024
Patent Number: 11911240
Intraoral scanning systems for displaying 3D models of a patient's dental arch and near-IR images from the dental arch. These systems may include a wand with one or more image sensors and processors for processing the 3D models and near-IR information. The 3D models may include surface (e.g., color) information and the near-IR images may include information on internal structures, including enamel and dentin.

Systems for thermal forming an object

Granted: February 27, 2024
Patent Number: 11911929
Systems for thermal forming an object are provided. In some embodiments, a system for thermal forming an object using a mold includes one or more processors, and memory including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the system to perform the following operations: receiving a mold identifier identifying the mold; determining mold process information for forming the object based on the mold identifier; inserting a material into a heating area, the material…

Digital dental tray for dental arch model generation

Granted: February 20, 2024
Patent Number: 11903794
A system comprises a dental tray comprising an array of cameras, wherein each camera of the first array of cameras has a fixed position and orientation relative to one or more other camera of the array of cameras. The system further comprises a processing device to receive a plurality of images generated by the array of cameras, stitch the plurality of images together based on calibration data specifying predetermined image stitching parameters for combining the plurality of images,…

Machine learning dental segmentation methods using sparse voxel representations

Granted: February 20, 2024
Patent Number: 11903793
Methods for automatically segmenting a 3D model of a patient's teeth may include scanning a patient's dentition and converting the scan data into a 3D model, including a sparse voxel representation of the 3D model. Features can be extracted from the sparse voxel representation of the 3D model and input into a machine learning model to train the machine learning model to segment the 3D model into individual dental components.

Multifaceted registration of intraoral scans

Granted: February 20, 2024
Patent Number: 11903788
A system includes an intraoral scanner that generates a plurality of intraoral images of a dental site and a computing device. The computing device generates a first surface of a first region of the dental site based on a first intraoral image and generates a second surface of a second region of the dental site based on a second intraoral image. The computing device determines relative positions of the first surface and the second surface, wherein overlap between the first region of the…

Visual prosthetic and orthodontic treatment planning

Granted: February 13, 2024
Patent Number: 11896456
Systems and methods for improved visual prosthetic and orthodontic treatment planning are provided herein. In some aspects, a method for preparing a tooth of a patient is disclosed. The method may comprise building a model of a dentition of the patient including a model of the initial shape of tooth. The method may also include determining a final prepared shape of the tooth. In some aspects, the method may also include generating a treatment plan comprising a plurality of steps to…

Dynamic thermoforming of dental appliances

Granted: February 13, 2024
Patent Number: 11897181
A method includes identifying first geometry of a first mold associated with a first dental arch and a second geometry of a second mold associated with a second dental arch. The method further includes determining, based on the first geometry and the second geometry that the first mold and the second mold are to be used for simultaneous forming of a first dental appliance and a second dental appliance on a plate in a dental appliance manufacturing system. The method further includes…

Intraoral 3D scanner employing multiple miniature cameras and multiple miniature pattern projectors

Granted: February 13, 2024
Patent Number: 11896461
An apparatus for intraoral scanning includes an elongate handheld wand that has a probe. One or more light projectors and two or more cameras are disposed within the probe. The light projectors each has a pattern generating optical element, which may use diffraction or refraction to form a light pattern. Each camera may be configured to focus between 1 mm and 30 mm from a lens that is farthest from the camera sensor. Other applications are also described.

Visual prosthetic and orthodontic treatment planning

Granted: February 13, 2024
Patent Number: 11896456
Systems and methods for improved visual prosthetic and orthodontic treatment planning are provided herein. In some aspects, a method for preparing a tooth of a patient is disclosed. The method may comprise building a model of a dentition of the patient including a model of the initial shape of tooth. The method may also include determining a final prepared shape of the tooth. In some aspects, the method may also include generating a treatment plan comprising a plurality of steps to…

Dynamic thermoforming of dental appliances

Granted: February 13, 2024
Patent Number: 11897181
A method includes identifying first geometry of a first mold associated with a first dental arch and a second geometry of a second mold associated with a second dental arch. The method further includes determining, based on the first geometry and the second geometry that the first mold and the second mold are to be used for simultaneous forming of a first dental appliance and a second dental appliance on a plate in a dental appliance manufacturing system. The method further includes…

Intraoral 3D scanner employing multiple miniature cameras and multiple miniature pattern projectors

Granted: February 13, 2024
Patent Number: 11896461
An apparatus for intraoral scanning includes an elongate handheld wand that has a probe. One or more light projectors and two or more cameras are disposed within the probe. The light projectors each has a pattern generating optical element, which may use diffraction or refraction to form a light pattern. Each camera may be configured to focus between 1 mm and 30 mm from a lens that is farthest from the camera sensor. Other applications are also described.

Systems and methods for fabrication of orthodontic aligners

Granted: February 13, 2024
Patent Number: 11896457
Orthodontic positioning devices, and related methods and systems, are disclosed for use with one or more orthodontic elastic members. The disclosed methods may comprise determining the geometries for a pair of orthodontic aligners for use as part of an orthodontic treatment plan. The geometries for the pair of orthodontic aligners may include an upper aligner with a first marking and a lower aligner with a second marking. The first marking may correspond to a position of a first hook,…