Abstract: A method for the making of a tooth mold which includes the steps of scanning the surface of a model of a tooth to obtain data on the three-dimensional surface locations of the model, processing the data in a CAD/CAM computer, and using the processed data to fabricate a tooth mold. The scanning step involves subjecting a rotating tooth model to radiant energy from a laser beam, receiving and translating reflections of the radiant energy into electronic signals, and digitizing the signals into data of the three-dimensional surface locations of the tooth model. The processing step involves translating the data, editing the data, creating a three-dimensional surface pattern of the tooth model, evaluating the surface pattern by visual analysis and comparison to known geometric values of the tooth model, and creating a tooth path program.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
March 29, 1994
Date of Patent:
September 19, 1995
Assignee:
Dentsply Research & Development Corp.
Inventors:
Barry D. Dehoff, Carlton L. Grim, Andrew T. C. Liu, Jeffrey E. McGraw