Patents Assigned to Align Technology, Inc.
  • Patent number: 11744677
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides method, systems, and devices for adjusting an arch of teeth. An appliance includes a removable shell formed of a first material having a number of cavities formed therein, wherein the number of cavities are shaped to receive teeth of a patient, and an arch element extending from the removable shell in a lingual direction and across at least a portion of the arch width of the removable shell, wherein the arch element is designed to expand an arch of the teeth of the patient, wherein the arch element has a width specific to a stage of a treatment plan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Ryan Kimura, John Morton, Richard Shaw, Chunhua Li
  • Patent number: 11744681
    Abstract: In a method of generating a virtual 3D model of a dental site, scan data comprising a plurality of images of a dental site is received during an intraoral scan. An analysis of an image is performed. A representation of a reference object with known properties is identified in the image based on the analysis. A virtual 3D model of the dental site is generated based on the plurality of images. The image and/or the virtual 3D model of the dental site is modified by adding additional data about the reference object to the intraoral image and/or the virtual 3D model based on the one or more known properties of the reference object. If the image is modified, it may be modified prior to generation of the virtual 3D model, and the virtual 3D model may be generated using the modified image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Avi Kopelman, Michael Sabina
  • Patent number: 11737853
    Abstract: Described herein are methods and apparatuses to obtain an image, or a set of images, of a patient's teeth from one or more predetermined viewing angles. These methods and apparatuses may include the use an overlay comprising an outline of teeth for each predetermined viewing angle. The overlay may be used for automatically capturing, focusing and/or illuminating the teeth. Also described herein are methods and apparatuses for using a series of images of the patient's teeth including a set of predetermined views to determine if a patient is a candidate for an orthopedic procedure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2023
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Maurice K. Carrier, Jr., Phillip Thomas Harris, Sergey Vinnichenko, Samuel Blanco, Aleksandr Sergeevich Karsakov, Sebastien Hareng, Leon Rasovsky
  • Patent number: 11737857
    Abstract: A system for correcting class III malocclusions is disclosed. The system may include a maxilla appliance having tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of the maxilla and a first coupling for receiving an elastic. The system may also include a mandibular appliance having tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of the mandible. In some embodiments, the system includes a class III corrective appliance having a first mount shaped to engage with the mandibular arch of the patient and having a second coupling shaped to receive the elastic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2023
    Assignee: ALIGN TECHNOLOGY, INC.
    Inventors: Mitra Derakhshan, Crystal Tjhia, Rohit Tanugula, Yaser Shanjani, Ryan Kimura, Bruce Cam, Eric Yau, Yuxiang Wang, Ken Wu, Peter Webber, Jun Sato, John Y. Morton
  • Patent number: 11737657
    Abstract: Apparatuses, including sleeves, intraoral scanning systems to use these sleeves, and methods of using the sleeve, that authenticate the sleeve for use with an intraoral scanning system. Authentication may include verifying that the sleeve is new (unused) and/or verifying that the sleeve is appropriate and/or intended for use with the intraoral scanning system. Once authenticated, operation parameters of the intraoral scanning system can be automatically set based on information from a scanned identifier on the sleeve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Avi Kopelman, Michael Sabina, Nir Makmel, Adi Levin, Arad Zulti, Arthur Hsieh
  • Patent number: 11737852
    Abstract: A computer-implemented method for modeling a complete tooth of a patient to facilitate dental and/or orthodontic treatment. The method includes generating a first set of digital data representing a clinical crown; generating a second set of digital data representing a plurality of digital tooth models of a particular tooth type each having a first parameterization; processing the second set of digital data to obtain a third set of digital data representing an average tooth model of the particular tooth type having a second parameterization which is less than the first parameterization; fitting the third set of digital data to the first set of digital data to create a set of digital data representing an interim tooth model; and morphing the set of digital data representing the interim tooth model to substantially mimic the anatomical shape of the clinical crown of the first set of digital data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Fedor Chelnokov, Roman A. Roschin, Petr Ushanov
  • Publication number: 20230263599
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides method, computing device readable medium, and devices for dental appliances with repositioning jaw elements. An example of a method can include identifying a misaligned jaw of a patient from a virtual image of the patient’s jaw, providing a treatment plan for the patient including a virtual model of a dental appliance having a first shell and a second shell configured to reposition at least one tooth of the parent, and adjusting the position of the repositioning jaw elements on the first shell and the second shell to comply with a number of constraints.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 9, 2023
    Publication date: August 24, 2023
    Applicant: ALIGN TECHNOLOGY, INC.
    Inventors: Ken WU, Eric E. KUO, Mitra DERAKHSHAN, Crystal TJHIA, Eric YAU, Allen R. BORONKAY, Chunhua LI, Gleb KRIVOVYAZ
  • Patent number: 11730574
    Abstract: Methods and systems for post-processing molds are provided. In some embodiments, a method includes using a layer-by-layer build process on a polymeric resin to produce a plurality of aligner molds. The method can include transporting the plurality of aligner molds to a resin removal station. The method can also include applying high pressure air to the plurality of aligner molds to remove residual material from the plurality of aligner molds. The residual material can include excess polymeric resin. The method can further include collecting the excess polymeric resin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Srinivas Kaza, Shiva P. Sambu, Kamesh Tata, Michael J. Doung, Long Phan
  • Patent number: 11730569
    Abstract: A system includes a memory and a processing device operatively coupled to the memory. The processing device generates one or more parametric functions associated with tooth color based on color data for teeth from a first image, wherein each of the one or more parametric functions comprises a first variable for a first image axis and a second variable for a second image axis. The processing device receives image data comprising new contours of the mouth, wherein one or more of the teeth have a different position in the image data than in the first image. The processing device generates a new image based on the image data and the one or more parametric functions, wherein a shape of the teeth is based on the image data and a color of the teeth is based on applying the one or more parametric functions to the image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Christopher E. Cramer, Chad Clayton Brown
  • Patent number: 11723758
    Abstract: A processing device receives images of an oral cavity of a patient generated by an intraoral scanner and subsequently receives an additional image of the oral cavity of the patient. The processing device makes a comparison between the additional image and the previously received images and determines an amount of overlap between the additional image and at least one of the previously received images based on the comparison. The processing device displays image data from at least one of a) the images or b) the additional image. The processing device determines whether or not the amount of overlap meets or exceeds an overlap threshold, and displays one or more visual indicators based on whether or not the amount of overlap meets or exceeds the overlap threshold, wherein the one or more visual indicators indicate whether or not the amount of overlap meets or exceeds the overlap threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Adi Levin
  • Patent number: 11723749
    Abstract: The current document is directed to methods and systems for monitoring a dental patient's progress during a course of treatment. A three-dimensional model of the expected positions of the patient's teeth can be projected, in time, from a three-dimensional model of the patient's teeth prepared prior to beginning the treatment. A digital camera is used to take one or more two-dimensional photographs of the patient's teeth, which are input to a monitoring system. The monitoring system determines virtual-camera parameters for each two-dimensional input image with respect to the time-projected three-dimensional model, uses the determined virtual-camera parameters to generate two-dimensional images from the three-dimensional model, and then compares each input photograph to the corresponding generated two-dimensional image in order to determine how closely the three-dimensional arrangement of the patient's teeth corresponds to the time-projected three-dimensional arrangement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Artem Borovinskih, Mitra Derakhshan, Carina Morik, Eric Meyer, Ekaterina Tolstaya, Yury Brailov
  • Patent number: 11723748
    Abstract: Provided herein are systems and methods for optimizing a 3D model of an individual's teeth. A 3D dental model may be reconstructed from 3D parameters. A differentiable renderer may be used to derive a 2D rendering of the individual's dentition. 2D image(s) of an individual's dentition may be obtained, and features may be extracted from the 2D image(s). Image loss between the 2D rendering and the 2D image(s) can be derived, and back-propagation from the image loss can be used to calculate gradients of the loss to optimize the 3D parameters. A machine learning model can also be trained to predict a 3D dental model from 2D images of an individual's dentition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Guotu Li, Christopher E. Cramer
  • Patent number: 11723753
    Abstract: Methods for generating orthodontic models having bite adjustment structures may include generating orthodontic treatment plan comprising a plurality of stages by positioning a plurality of digital bite adjustment structures on a corresponding plurality of anterior digital teeth of a digital model of a jaw at a first stage of a treatment plan, adjusting the position of the plurality of digital bite adjustment structures on the corresponding plurality of anterior digital teeth of the digital model of the jaw at a second stage of the treatment plan according to changes to the digital model of the jaw between the first stage of the treatment plan and the second stage of the treatment plan, and providing the digital model of the jaw for fabrication of physical models corresponding to the jaw at the first and the second stages of the treatment plan for formation of appliances thereover.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: ALIGN TECHNOLOGY, INC.
    Inventors: Rohit Tanugula, John Morton, Chunhua Li, Bastien Pesenti, Jihua Cheng, Jeeyoung Choi
  • Patent number: 11727607
    Abstract: A method includes determining depth values associated with a first set of pixel locations in a first image of a mouth. One or more function is generated for one or more color channels based on intensities of the one or more color channels at the first set of pixel locations and depth values associated with the first set of pixel locations. Image data comprising a new representation of the teeth is received, wherein the image data comprises a second set of pixel locations and new depth values associated with the second set of pixel locations. A new image is generated based on the image data and the one or more functions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Yun Gao, Yingjie Li, Chao Shi
  • Patent number: 11717384
    Abstract: Embodiments include dental appliances, dental appliance systems, and methods of making and using such appliances. In one embodiment, a dental appliance to implement a stage of a treatment plan includes a number of tooth-receiving cavities configured to receive and resiliently reposition teeth on a first jaw from a first arrangement toward a second arrangement and at least one tab. The at least one tab can include a mesial end coupled to at least one of the number of tooth receiving cavities, a distal end defining a distal end of the dental appliance, an exterior surface configured to mate with an opposing dental appliance on a second jaw or an opposing tooth on the second jaw, the second jaw opposing the first jaw, and an interior surface opposite to the exterior surface, the interior surface configured to receive a coronal surface of an erupting tooth and manage eruption of the erupting tooth during the stage of the treatment plan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Jon F. Moss, Rene M. Sterental
  • Patent number: 11717381
    Abstract: Apparatus, system, and methods for utilizing one or more computing devices to stage the movement of teeth during an alignment treatment are disclosed. The computing device receives an electronic representation of the patient's teeth in their initial position and an electronic representation of the teeth a final position for each tooth. A route each tooth will travel to reach its final position is determined, and the teeth are scheduled to move according to a movement pattern. Moreover, the schedule of movement takes into account a maximum rate of tooth movement for each tooth, the path of movement for each tooth, the distance each tooth needs to move, any needed tooth staggering, any needed round-tripping or tooth movement slowing. The invention also includes techniques for determining an optimum number of stages for the treatment based on the schedule of movement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: ALIGN TECHNOLOGY, INC.
    Inventors: Ian Kitching, Alexander Dmitriev, Alexey Vishnevskiy
  • Patent number: 11718019
    Abstract: A 3D printer comprises a platform, a dispenser and a light source. A heating element heats a material and a nozzle extrudes the heated material onto the platform to form a first layer, having a first shape specified by one or more digital files. The first shape corresponds to a first minimum line width based on a diameter of the nozzle. The light source emits a light beam that is directed onto the first layer according to the one or more digital files to cure a portion of the first layer to create a first cured layer that corresponds to a second shape of a 3D object specified by the one or more digital files. The light beam has a beam diameter that is smaller than the diameter of the nozzle, and the second shape has a second minimum line width that is smaller than the first minimum line width.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Mehdi Mojdeh, Michael Christopher Cole, Peter Dorfinger, Shiva P. Sambu
  • Patent number: 11721417
    Abstract: An example method of managing medical records using multi-dimensional cryptographically-secured datastores comprises: storing digital representations of dental anatomy utilizing a two-dimensional blockchain structure includes: causing, by a computer system, a digital representation of dental anatomy to be stored at an external storage location; appending, to a first data block of an auxiliary blockchain, an identifier of the external storage location; appending, to a current data block of a main blockchain, a reference to a first data block of the auxiliary blockchain; appending, to the current data block of the main blockchain, a data item of the digital representation of dental anatomy; appending, to the current data block of the main blockchain, a reference to a preceding data block of the main blockchain; and broadcasting the current data block of the main blockchain to a plurality of blockchain nodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Sreelakshmi Kolli, Leon Rasovsky
  • Patent number: 11717380
    Abstract: A method may include: receiving an image of a mouth region of a patient's face; extracting teeth contours within the image of the mouth region of the patient's face; locating a mouth opening within the image of the mouth region of the patient's face; extracting the tooth contours from a 3D model of the patient's teeth; and aligning the tooth contours from the 3D model with the tooth contours of the teeth within the image of the mouth region of the patient's face.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Pavel Pokotilov, Dmitry Yurievich Chekh, Dmitriy Konstantinovich Ten, Samuel Blanco, David Patrick Lopes, Jason Ramos, Rene M. Sterental, Evgenii Vladimirovich Karnygin, Vladislav Andreevich Miryaha, Boris Aleksandrovich Vysokanov, Yury A. Brailov, Artem Kuanbekov
  • Patent number: RE49605
    Abstract: A processing device receives an intraoral image of a first intraoral site and determines an identity of the first intraoral site. The processing device then locks the intraoral image and selects a portion of the intraoral image depicting a portion of the first intraoral site based at least in part on the identity of the first intraoral site. The processing device may then generate a model comprising the first intraoral site based at least in part on the locked intraoral image, wherein the portion of the locked intraoral image is used for a first region of the model, and wherein data from one or more additional intraoral images that also depict the portion of the first intraoral site is not used for the first region of the model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Avi Kopelman, Michael Sabina