Patents Assigned to Align Technologies, Inc.
  • Patent number: 12171640
    Abstract: A first computing device receives a command to associate the first computing device with an intraoral scanner, the command comprising an identifier. The first computing device wirelessly connects with a second computing device, and sends the identifier to the second computing device. The second computing device wirelessly connects to the intraoral scanner and associates the first computing device with the intraoral scanner. Subsequently, intraoral scan data generated by the first intraoral scanner is sent to the second computing device, the intraoral scan data is processed by the second computing device to generate a three-dimensional surface of a dental site, the three-dimensional surface or a view of the three-dimensional surface of the dental site is sent to the first computing device, and the three-dimensional surface or the view of the three-dimensional surface of the dental site is displayed by the first computing device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Edi Fridman, Adi Levin, Abraham Albert Burbea, Ofer Sagi, Shai Farkash, Ran Katz
  • Patent number: 12171627
    Abstract: A dental articulator includes a first arm hingedly joined to a second arm about a pivot axis, where each one of the first arm and the second arm are configured to mount a dental model comprising at least one measurement element, and an inspection tool capable of checking the at least one measurable element against allowable tolerances. Each arm includes a mounting bracket having a distal portion adapted to mount the respective dental model and having a proximal portion. Each arm further has a base member having a distal portion adapted to hingedly join the first arm and the second arm about the pivot axis. The inspection tool comprises a first measurement device and a second measurement device. The first measurement device is coupled to the first arm or second arm and the second measurement device is coupled to the first arm or second arm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Leon Rasovsky, Avi Kopelman, Nir Makmel
  • Patent number: 12169832
    Abstract: Methods and apparatuses for interactive ordering of dental appliances. These methods generally include coordination of a dental appliance laboratory coordinating in the pre-approval process for financing the dental appliances, a financing server, and a dental practitioner (e.g., dentist, orthodontist, etc.).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Matthew Todd Miller, Douglas Fedich, Leela Parvathaneni
  • Patent number: 12156714
    Abstract: Methods and systems for imaging removable dental appliances. Image data taken while a removable dental appliance was worn on a patient's teeth may be used to identify one or more locations of undesirable contact between the removable dental appliance and the patient's teeth and/or one or more attachments on the patient's teeth. The one or more locations of undesirable contact can correlate with undesirable tooth movement compared to expected tooth movement according to a treatment plan. A three-dimensional (3D) model of the removable dental appliance and the patient's teeth may be displayed on a user interface, with the identified one or more locations of undesirable contact highlighted in the 3D model. An alert of the identified one or more locations of undesirable contact may be emitted via the user interface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Jun Sato, Allen Boronkay, Yaser Shanjani, Reza Shirazi Aghjari, Avi Kopelman, Andrew Jang, Jihua Cheng, Eric Kuo, Vladimir Shelbakh, Bastien Pesenti
  • Patent number: 12156785
    Abstract: An apparatus for determining surface topography of a patient's teeth comprises a probe sized to be at least partially inserted into an intraoral cavity of the patient, a light source to output light; and a light focusing assembly. The light focusing assembly comprises a first lens, a second lens and a focus changing assembly comprising one or more additional lenses that shares an optical axis with the first lens and the second lens and being configured to focus the light to a plurality of external focal planes to illuminate the patient's teeth, wherein the focus changing assembly has a movement gain factor, and wherein as a result of the movement gain factor a change in separation between lenses of the focus changing assembly by a first distance results in a change in a focus setting by a second distance that is 2-10 times greater than the first distance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Yossef Atiya, Tal Verker
  • Patent number: 12150830
    Abstract: Systems and methods for orthodontic treatment progress tracking. Information based on an orthodontic treatment plan prescribed for a patient undergoing orthodontic treatment may be received. The orthodontic treatment plan specifies planned tooth movements according to a series of treatment stages. An orthodontic progress tracking schedule for the patient based on one or more particular tooth movements of the planned tooth movements may be generated. The orthodontic progress tracking schedule may prescribe a timing schedule for acquiring images of the patient's teeth to track progress of the orthodontic treatment. Images of teeth arrangements of the patient according to the orthodontic progress tracking schedule may be received. Results based on the tracked orthodontic treatment progress may be provided, for example, on a display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2023
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Ian Kitching, Rene Sterental, Eric Kuo, Maia Singer
  • Patent number: 12152092
    Abstract: Provided herein are photopolymerizable monomers, optionally for use as reactive diluents in a high temperature lithography-based photopolymerization process, a method of producing polymers using said photopolymerizable monomers, the polymers thus produced, and orthodontic appliances comprising the polymers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Robert Liska, Christian Gorsche, Markus Kury, Yan Chen, Chunhua Li, Srinivas Kaza
  • Patent number: 12144661
    Abstract: Apparatuses (e.g., systems, devices, etc.) and method for scanning both a subject's intraoral cavity as well as detecting, using the same scanner, e.g., wand, finger gestures and executing command controls based on these detected finger gestures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Ofer Saphier, Eliran Dafna, Tal Levy
  • Patent number: 12144701
    Abstract: Provided herein are orthodontic systems and methods for automatically segmenting a person's teeth. Systems, methods and processes are provided to properly segment the teeth of a person's teeth from an image of the person's face showing at least some of the person's teeth (e.g., dental arch). Methods and systems are provided to automatically detect dental edges after a dental scan. Also described herein are methods and systems for generating a simulated image of the person's face from the final segmentation of the person's teeth in which the segmented teeth have been moved from their original position, including a new position based on an orthodontic treatment plan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2023
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Chao Shi, Yingjie Li, Vladislav Andreevich Miryaha, Boris Aleksandrovich Vysokanov, Andrey Bushev
  • Patent number: 12144704
    Abstract: Aligner systems and methods including a sequence of aligners having energy-delivering elements. For example, first and second aligners of the sequence of aligners may include first and second polymer shells that have shapes for applying respective first and second local forces to first and second regions of a dental arch to move one or more first teeth and one or more second teeth, respectively. The first and second aligners may also include corresponding first and second heating elements that are arranged to heat first and second target regions of the dental arch associated with moving the one or more first teeth and one or more second teeth, respectively. Heat energy from the first and second heating elements may improve an outcome of respective first and second stages of a treatment plan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Bruce Cam, Yaser Shanjani, Jun Sato
  • Patent number: 12143558
    Abstract: An intraoral scanner comprises one or more structured light projectors and two or more cameras, where each structured light projector projects a pattern of light onto an intraoral three-dimensional (3D) surface and the two or more cameras capture one or more sets of images, wherein each image includes at least a portion of the projected pattern of light. A processor solves a correspondence problem within a set of images of the one or more sets of images such that points in 3D space are determined based on correspondence of captured features in the set of images to projected features of at least the portion of the projected pattern, wherein said points in 3D space form a solution to the correspondence problem. The processor calibrates the intraoral scanner by performing an adjustment to stored calibration data associated with the intraoral scanner based on the solution to the correspondence problem.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2024
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Ofer Saphier, Tal Levy, Gal Peleg, Eliran Dafna, Sergei Ozerov, Tal Verker, Nir Makmel, Yossef Atiya
  • Patent number: 12138137
    Abstract: A method for determining tooth numbers of teeth within a dental arch includes receiving a digital scan of a patient's dentition, detecting a cusp associated with at least one tooth in the digital scan, where the cusp is detected based at least in part on a radius of a surface of the cusp, matching a molar shape of the at least one tooth, and identifying the patient's molar tooth based on the molar shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2023
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Roman A. Roschin, Evgenii Vladimirovich Karnygin, Sergey Grebenkin, Dmitry Guskov, Dmitrii Ischeykin, Ivan Potapenko, Denis Durdin, Roman Gudchenko, Vasily Paraketsov, Mikhail Gorodilov, Roman Solovyev, Alexey Vladykin, Alexander Beliaev, Alexander Vovchenko
  • Patent number: 12138013
    Abstract: A processing device may receive a plurality of intraoral scans of the patient that were generated by an intraoral scanner, determine a three-dimensional surface of at least a portion of one or more dental arch of the patient using the plurality of intraoral scans, automatically determine whether a restorative dental object is represented in at least one of the three-dimensional surface or one or more intraoral scans of the plurality of intraoral scans, and automatically generate a prescription for treating the one or more teeth based at least in part on at least one of a) a presence or absence of a restorative dental object in at least one of the three-dimensional surface or the one or more intraoral scans or b) a location of the restorative dental object in the one or more dental arch of the patient.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Ofer Saphier, Pavel Agniashvili, Moti Ben-Dov, Ran Katz, Avi Kopelman, Maxim Volgin, Doron Malka, Avraham Zulti, Pavel Veryovkin, Maayan Moshe, Ido Tishel, Adi Levin, Shai Farkash, Inna Karapetyan, Dina Bova, Edi Fridman, Jonathan Coslovsky
  • Patent number: 12133783
    Abstract: Embodiments may include: receiving a facial image comprising a 2D depiction of a person's teeth at a first arrangement; receiving a tooth model comprising a 3D depiction of the person's teeth at a second arrangement; obtaining color information from the facial image, wherein the color information represents a color scheme of the person's teeth at the first arrangement; and generating a photo-realistic two-dimensional depiction of the person's teeth at the second arrangement using the 3D depiction of the person's teeth at the second arrangement and the color information obtained from the facial image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2023
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Dmitry Yurievich Chekh, Samuel Blanco, Vladislav Andreevich Miryaha, Boris Aleksandrovich Vysokanov, Chad Clayton Brown, Christopher E. Cramer
  • Patent number: 12133710
    Abstract: A method of generating a 3D model includes: determining a 3D surface comprising a preparation tooth using a first plurality of intraoral scans generated by an intraoral scanner at a first time; receiving one or more additional intraoral scans of the preparation tooth that were generated by the intraoral scanner at a second time; determining a change to one or more portions of the preparation tooth between the three-dimensional surface and the one or more additional intraoral scans; determining, based at least in part on the change to the preparation tooth, whether to use a) the 3D surface, b) data from the one or more additional intraoral scans or c) a combination of the 3D surface and the data from the one or more additional intraoral scans to depict one or more portions of the preparation tooth; and generating the 3D model comprising the preparation tooth.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Ofer Saphier, Pavel Agniashvili, Moti Ben-Dov, Ran Katz, Avi Kopelman, Maxim Volgin, Doron Malka, Avraham Zulti, Pavel Veryovkin, Maayan Moshe, Ido Tishel, Adi Levin, Shai Farkash, Inna Karapetyan, Dina Bova, Edi Fridman, Jonathan Coslovsky
  • Patent number: 12127814
    Abstract: A method includes receiving intraoral scan data of an intraoral cavity of a patient; processing the intraoral scan data to determine, for each dental condition of a plurality of dental conditions, whether the dental condition is detected for the patient and a severity of the dental condition; and presenting indications of the plurality of dental conditions together in a graphical user interface (GUI), wherein the indications show, for each dental condition of the plurality of dental conditions, whether the dental condition was detected for the patient and the severity of the dental condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Gilad Elbaz, Michael Sabina, Ran Katz, Avi Kopelman, Eric Kuo, Leon Rasovsky
  • Patent number: 12121412
    Abstract: Systems for orthodontic treatments are provided. In some embodiments, a system includes an attachment configured to be coupled to a tooth of a patient, the attachment having a first elasticity. The system can also include an orthodontic appliance having a shell with a plurality of teeth-receiving cavities shaped to reposition the patient's teeth from a first arrangement toward a second arrangement. The shell can have a second elasticity less than the first elasticity. The orthodontic appliance can include an attachment-receiving well formed in the shell. When the orthodontic appliance is worn on the patient's teeth, the attachment-receiving well can engage the attachment to effect a movement of at least one tooth of the patient.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Chunhua Li, Jennifer Chen, John Morton, Jon Moss, Clark Kaufhardt, Heng Cao
  • Patent number: 12125581
    Abstract: Apparatuses and computer-implemented methods for compression and extraction of three-dimensional (3D) volumetric imaging data, including in particular medical and dental imaging data, that may receive the 3D volumetric image data and preparing compressed 3D volumetric image data for compression by analyzing a relevant region of the 3D volumetric image data. The method may further include compressing, into compressed 3D volumetric image data, the pre-processed static 3D volumetric image data using a video compression scheme. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Yury Slynko, Vitaliy Vladimirovich Chernov, Ilya Baryshnikov
  • Patent number: 12109091
    Abstract: A method of cryptographically secured digital dental treatment planning comprises: receiving, at an intraoral scanning system, an intraoral scan of a patient's dentition, wherein the intraoral scan comprises a three-dimensional (3D) surface representing the patient's dentition at a first arrangement; encrypting, at the intraoral scanning system, the intraoral scan to create a cryptographically secured dental record of the patient's dentition; decrypting, at a treatment planning system, the cryptographically secured dental record; determining a target arrangement for the patient's dentition; determining a digital treatment plan for the patient's dentition, wherein the digital treatment plan comprises a series of intermediate arrangements for a series of aligners to move the patient's dentition from the first arrangement toward the target arrangement; adding the digital treatment plan to the cryptographically secured dental record of the patient's dentition; and sending the cryptographically secured dental reco
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Sreelakshmi Kolli, Leon Rasovsky
  • Patent number: 12109089
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and non-transitory computing device readable media for determining an individualized orthodontic treatment index. One embodiment includes generating a target dental model by modifying an initial dental model, graphically marking dental references on the target dental model including assigning contact points between adjacent first and second teeth of the target dental model, generating a treatment outcome dental model representing the patient's dentition after at least a portion of the orthodontic treatment has been completed, mapping the dental references marked on the target dental model to the treatment outcome dental model, and calculating an individualized treatment index score for the treatment outcome dental model according to one or more differences between the target dental model and the treatment outcome dental model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2024
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric E. Kuo, Vadim Matov, Larry Lai, Fuming Wu, Jihua Cheng