Patents by Inventor Eric E. Kuo

Eric E. Kuo has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20150254420
    Abstract: The present disclosure includes methods, systems, and devices for prioritization of three dimensional dental elements. One method for prioritizing three dimensional dental elements includes receiving a virtual initial dental data set (IDDS) of teeth having spatial information regarding the positions of a number of teeth in the virtual IDDS with respect to each other for presentation of the teeth in a virtual three dimensional space to be viewed on a user interface, setting prioritization values of a number of elements of one or more of the number of teeth, and prioritizing the number of elements to be selected by a user based upon their prioritization values.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 19, 2015
    Publication date: September 10, 2015
    Inventors: Eric E. Kuo, Igor Kvasov, Anna Egorova, Sergey Gagarin
  • Publication number: 20150238284
    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, and 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 patient. The virtual model of the dental appliance including repositioning jaw elements on the first shell and the second shell configured to move a position of the misaligned jaw of the patient.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 21, 2014
    Publication date: August 27, 2015
    Applicant: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Ken Wu, Eric E. Kuo, Mitra Derakhshan, Crystal Tjhia, Eric Yau, Allen R. Boronkay, Chunhua Li
  • Publication number: 20150238280
    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 patient, and adjusting the position of the repositioning jaw elements on the first shell and the second shell to comply with a number of constraints. The virtual model of the dental appliance including repositioning jaw elements on the first shell and the second shell configured to move a position of the misaligned jaw of the patient.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 19, 2014
    Publication date: August 27, 2015
    Inventors: Ken Wu, Eric E. Kuo, Mitra Derakhshan, Crystal Tjhia, Eric Yau, Allen R. Boronkay, Chunhua Li, Gleb Krivovyaz
  • Patent number: 9037439
    Abstract: The present disclosure includes methods, systems, and devices for prioritization of three dimensional dental elements. One method for prioritizing three dimensional dental elements includes receiving a virtual initial dental data set (IDDS) of teeth having spatial information regarding the positions of a number of teeth in the virtual IDDS with respect to each other for presentation of the teeth in a virtual three dimensional space to be viewed on a user interface, setting prioritization values of a number of elements of one or more of the number of teeth, and prioritizing the number of elements to be selected by a user based upon their prioritization values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2015
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric E. Kuo, Igor Kvasov, Anna Egorova, Sergey Gagarin
  • Publication number: 20150132708
    Abstract: Method and system including receiving one or more parameters associated with an orthodontic condition, receiving a treatment goal information associated with the orthodontic condition, and providing a predefined template associated with the received treatment goal information, wherein the predefined template includes at least one orthodontic condition related information, are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 28, 2014
    Publication date: May 14, 2015
    Inventor: Eric E. Kuo
  • Publication number: 20150078637
    Abstract: Various methods and systems for designing a restored smile are provided. One method includes receiving scan data of a patient's teeth, developing a digital model of the patient's teeth via a computing device, where the model represents the patient's teeth based upon the scan data, creating a dental treatment plan to restore one or more teeth from an initial condition to a successive condition, and wherein a final condition of the one or more is based on the one or more teeth having at least one planned additional restorative tooth structure provided therewith.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 13, 2013
    Publication date: March 19, 2015
    Applicant: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Michelle Stone-Collonge, Eric E. Kuo, Rick M. Matty, Fabio Pettinati, Thomas Maurer, Dzmitry Sanko
  • Patent number: 8944812
    Abstract: Embodiments are provided for utilizing metallic portions in dental positioning appliances. One embodiment includes a removable dental positioning appliance having a shell having one or more cavities shaped to receive and reposition one or more teeth from a first orientation to a successive orientation and where at least a portion of the shell is formed from a metallic mesh material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Eric E. Kuo
  • Publication number: 20140322662
    Abstract: A dental template to position an object on a patient's tooth includes digitizing the patient's tooth; adding virtual objects to predetermined locations on the digitized tooth; and fabricating the dental template to locate the object on the patient's tooth. The template can be used for etching or for positioning brackets on teeth.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2014
    Publication date: October 30, 2014
    Applicant: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Loc X. Phan, Peter G. Knopp, Eric E. Kuo, Amir Abolfathi, Huafeng Wen
  • Publication number: 20140280376
    Abstract: Personal data file embodiments and methods for creating the same are provided. One personal data file embodiment includes personal information about a subject of the personal data file, provided by a user that controls the personal data file, in at least one of a number of personal information data fields, and an image of the subject including a privacy region, where the privacy region hides a first area of the image and leaves a second area of the image visible. The hidden first area is accessible by a pass code.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 7, 2014
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Eric E. Kuo
  • Patent number: 8788285
    Abstract: Embodiments are provided for a patient data file menu and methods for creating the same. One embodiment includes a number of patient medical information items including a data type label and a position in a data file menu, a sequence of one or more tabs, where each tab represents a stage in a procedure, and where the patient medical information items are associated with the tab corresponding to the stage in the procedure to which the patient medical information item corresponds, treatment professional information in a treatment professional profile section of the file, and patient personal information in a patient profile section of the file.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2014
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Eric E. Kuo
  • Patent number: 8734149
    Abstract: A dental template to position an object on a patient's tooth includes digitizing the patient's tooth; adding virtual objects to predetermined locations on the digitized tooth; and fabricating the dental template to locate the object on the patient's tooth. The template can be used for etching or for positioning brackets on teeth.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2014
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Loc X. Phan, Peter G. Knopp, Eric E. Kuo, Amir Abolfathi, Huafeng Wen
  • Patent number: 8738394
    Abstract: Clinical data file embodiments and methods for creating the same are provided. One embodiment includes treatment professional information in at least one of a number of treatment professional information data fields in a treatment professional section of the file, patient personal information in at least one of a number of patient personal information data fields in a patient profile section of the file, a number of patient medical information items, and an indicator associated with at least one of the treatment professional information data fields, at least one of the patient personal information data fields, and at least one of the patient medical information items, where the treatment professional information, patient personal information, and patient medical information items associated with an enabled indicator are hidden.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2014
    Inventor: Eric E. Kuo
  • Publication number: 20140142897
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides computing device implemented methods, computing device readable medium, and molds for filling undercut areas of teeth relative to an axis of placement. Filling undercut areas of teeth relative to an axis of placement can include calculating an undercut area of a tooth relative to an axis of placement of part of a dental appliance over a number of teeth and a height of contour that is defined based on the axis of placement. Filling undercut areas of teeth relative to an axis of placement can also include filling in a part of the undercut area of the tooth with a virtual filler wherein the undercut is filled to within a threshold distance from the tooth that is defined relative to the axis of placement and the height of contour.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 19, 2012
    Publication date: May 22, 2014
    Applicant: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Eric E. Kuo
  • Patent number: 8731280
    Abstract: Virtual cephalometric imaging includes creating a first 3D virtual model and a second 3D virtual model of a patient's dentition. The first 3D virtual model is based on a first impression taken of the patient's dentition at a first time. The second 3D virtual model is based on a second impression taken of the patient's dentition at a second time. The first and the second 3D virtual models are correlated. A 2D image is generated including a first outline representing a position of at least one tooth of the patient's dentition according to the first 3D virtual model and a second outline representing a position of the at least one tooth according to the second 3D virtual model. Generating the 2D image includes positioning the first outline relative to the second outline according to the correlation of the first and the second 3D virtual models.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2014
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric E. Kuo, Fabio Pettinati, Sherri Wilson
  • Patent number: 8545221
    Abstract: Various methods and systems for designing a restored smile are provided. One method includes receiving scan data of a patient's teeth, developing a digital model of the patient's teeth via a computing device, where the model represents the patient's teeth based upon the scan data, creating a dental treatment plan to restore one or more teeth from an initial condition to a successive condition, and wherein a final condition of the one or more is based on the one or more teeth having at least one planned additional restorative tooth structure provided therewith.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2013
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Michelle Stone-Collonge, Eric E. Kuo, Rick M. Matty, Fabio Pettinati, Thomas Maurer, Dzmitry Sanko
  • Patent number: 8439674
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for intra-oral delivery of drugs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2013
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Chunhua Li, Wenda C. Carlyle, Philippe De Smedt, Amir Abolfathi, Eric E. Kuo, Robert E. Tricca, Jennifer C. Chen, Benjamin M. Wu
  • Publication number: 20130058547
    Abstract: Virtual cephalometric imaging includes creating a first 3D virtual model and a second 3D virtual model of a patient's dentition. The first 3D virtual model is based on a first impression taken of the patient's dentition at a first time. The second 3D virtual model is based on a second impression taken of the patient's dentition at a second time. The first and the second 3D virtual models are correlated. A 2D image is generated including a first outline representing a position of at least one tooth of the patient's dentition according to the first 3D virtual model and a second outline representing a position of the at least one tooth according to the second 3D virtual model. Generating the 2D image includes positioning the first outline relative to the second outline according to the correlation of the first and the second 3D virtual models.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 14, 2012
    Publication date: March 7, 2013
    Applicant: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric E. Kuo, Fabio Pettinati, Sherri Wilson
  • Publication number: 20120290269
    Abstract: The present disclosure includes methods, systems, and devices for prioritization of three dimensional dental elements. One method for prioritizing three dimensional dental elements includes receiving a virtual initial dental data set (IDDS) of teeth having spatial information regarding the positions of a number of teeth in the virtual IDDS with respect to each other for presentation of the teeth in a virtual three dimensional space to be viewed on a user interface, setting prioritization values of a number of elements of one or more of the number of teeth, and prioritizing the number of elements to be selected by a user based upon their prioritization values.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 1, 2012
    Publication date: November 15, 2012
    Applicant: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric E. Kuo, Igor Kvasov, Anna Egorova, Sergey Gagarin
  • Patent number: 8275180
    Abstract: Embodiments are provided for accurately characterizing a tooth's movement. One method embodiment includes associating an abnormal tooth shape with a model tooth shape from a reference library of model tooth shapes, mapping a predefined dental reference from the model tooth shape onto at least a portion of the abnormal tooth shape, and adding a location of the predefined dental reference to the abnormal tooth shape based on the mapped predefined dental reference from the model tooth shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 25, 2012
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventor: Eric E. Kuo
  • Patent number: 8244028
    Abstract: Virtual cephalometric imaging includes creating a first 3D virtual model and a second 3D virtual model of a patient's dentition. The first 3D virtual model is based on a first impression taken of the patient's dentition at a first time. The second 3D virtual model is based on a second impression taken of the patient's dentition at a second time. The first and the second 3D virtual models are correlated. A 2D image is generated including a first outline representing a position of at least one tooth of the patient's dentition according to the first 3D virtual model and a second outline representing a position of the at least one tooth according to the second 3D virtual model. Generating the 2D image includes positioning the first outline relative to the second outline according to the correlation of the first and the second 3D virtual models.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: Align Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric E. Kuo, Fabio Pettinati, Sherri Wilson