Abstract: Methods for fabricating orthodontic appliances for expansion of the palate of a patient are provided. Methods may comprise receiving scan data of a patient's upper arch and palate, determining an amount of force to expand the patient's palate in response to the scan data, determining a shape profile of an orthodontic appliance for engaging the patient's teeth, and determining one or more of a force-generating or a resilient structure to provide the force. Methods of generating instructions for and direct fabrication of the orthodontic appliance with the teeth engaging structure and the force generating or resilient structures are also provided.

Abstract: A dental device may include a body having first tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of a first side of an arch of a patient. The dental device may also include second tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of a second side of the arch of the patient and a palatal portion that extends between the first tooth receiving cavities and the second tooth receiving cavities. The palatal portion may be shaped to apply an expansion force to the teeth of the first side of the arch of the patient and the teeth of the second side of the arch of a patient. The palatal portion may also include a plurality of bands that extend between the first tooth receiving cavities and the second tooth receiving cavities. Each respective band may have a respective different thickness.

Abstract: Dental appliances and associated methods are provided herein. In some embodiments, a dental appliance includes an appliance shell formed from a plurality of 3D printed polymer layers. The appliance shell can include a plurality of tooth receiving cavities arranged to receive a dentition and to exert one or more forces on the dentition, and a plurality of variable thickness regions integrally formed with the appliance shell as a single monolithic component. The plurality of variable thickness regions can include an upper thickened region at a first side of a tooth receiving cavity and a lower thickened region at a second side of the tooth receiving cavity opposite the first side. The upper and lower thickened regions can be configured to control movement of a tooth received within the tooth receiving cavity.

Abstract: A method for generating and fabricating a dental device having a body. The body may have a first plurality of tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of a first side of an arch. The body may also have a second plurality of tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of a second side of an arch. A palatal portion may extend between the first plurality of tooth receiving cavities and the second plurality of tooth receiving cavities. The palatal portion may be shaped to apply an expansion force to the teeth of the first side of the arch and the teeth of the second side of the arch. The palatal portion may include a plurality of bands that extend between the first plurality of tooth receiving cavities and the second plurality of tooth receiving cavities, each respective band may have a respective different thickness.

Abstract: Systems and methods for fabricating dental appliances are provided. In some embodiments, a method includes determining an appliance geometry for a dental appliance, where the appliance geometry includes a first region representing a first shell portion having a first set of cavities configured to receive one or more first teeth at a first side of a dental arch of a patient, a second region representing a second shell portion having a second set of cavities configured to receive one or more second teeth at a second side of the dental arch, and a third region representing an integrally formed arch expander configured to exert forces to increase a width of the dental arch. The method can also include generating instructions for fabricating the dental appliance having the appliance geometry via an additive manufacturing process, and using the instructions to instruct a fabrication system to fabricate the dental appliance.

Abstract: Dental appliances for treatment of a patient's dentition are provided. In some embodiments, a dental appliance includes a plurality of 3D printed polymer layers, where the plurality of 3D printed polymer layers includes a plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections. The dental appliance can include an appliance shell formed from the plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections. The appliance shell can include a plurality of tooth receiving cavities formed from the plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections, the plurality of tooth receiving cavities arranged to receive a dentition and to exert one or more forces on the dentition, and a plurality of variable thickness regions formed from the plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections.

Abstract: Intraoral appliances and associated systems are provided. In some embodiments, an intraoral appliance includes a 3D printed body composed of a plurality of additively manufactured layers. The 3D printed body can include a first cellular structure located at one or more first areas of the intraoral appliance, the first cellular structure corresponding to a first stiffness, and a second cellular structure located at one or more remainder areas of the intraoral appliance, the second cellular structure corresponding to a second stiffness less than the first stiffness.

Abstract: A removable arch adjustment appliance includes a removable shell having a plurality of cavities formed therein, wherein the plurality of cavities are shaped to receive at least one posterior tooth of a patient on each side of a patient's jaw. The shell can include an elastic transpalatal element that spans a palate of the patient and provides force to expand at least one of the spaces between the posterior teeth on each side of a patient's jaw or the palate of the patient. The transpalatal element can include a predetermined force characteristic, a number of force control elements to control the force provided by the transpalatal element, and/or a regulating structure to balance and direct the force provided by the transpalatal element, wherein the transpalatal element has a width specific to a stage of a treatment plan.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a series of removable orthodontic aligners may include generating a series of incremental tooth movement stages to move teeth from an initial arrangement towards a final arrangement and determining a tooth movement for a first tooth based on the series of incremental tooth movement stages. The method may include comparing the tooth movement to a threshold of tooth movement and applying a movement optimized attachment to the first tooth. The movement optimized attachment may be applied based on the tooth movement and designed with one or more parameter values based on a force or torque associated with a force system for eliciting the tooth movement. An Appliance may be configured to interact with the movement optimized attachment to move the first tooth from a first position towards a second position.

Abstract: Methods for fabrication of intraoral appliances are provided. In some embodiments, a method includes receiving a digital representation of a patient's dentition; receiving a treatment plan for the patient's dentition; generating a digital model of an intraoral appliance configured to implement at least one treatment stage of the treatment plan, where the intraoral appliance includes a cellular structure including a network of interconnected unit cells; and providing instructions to fabricate the intraoral appliance based on the digital model, where the instructions are configured to cause fabrication of the intraoral appliance from a plurality of additively manufactured layers.

Abstract: Devices, systems, and methods for expanding a patient's palate are provided. In some embodiments, a system for designing a dental system for expanding a palate of a patient includes one or more processors configured to perform operations including: accessing patient data representing one or more characteristics of the patient; accessing dental system data representing a palatal expander and a dental auxiliary for the patient, where the dental auxiliary is configured to be coupled to a tooth and to retain the palatal expander on a dental arch of the patient; determining whether a force applied to the dental auxiliary during placement or removal of the palatal expander is likely to cause detachment of the dental auxiliary from the tooth; modifying the dental system data to reduce the applied force; and generating one or more of a digital representation of the palatal expander or a digital representation of the dental auxiliary.

Abstract: Methods of fabricating orthodontic alignment devices. First forces may be applied to teeth of a digital model to simulate movement of the teeth from one stage of an ordered sequence of stages to a next stage. The first forces may include one or more unwanted forces that move one or more teeth of the digital model in an unwanted direction. One or more forces may be applied to the palate of the digital model that results in second forces applied to the teeth of the digital model to replace or offset the one or more unwanted forces. A shape for the orthodontic alignment device may be determined based on the first and second forces applied to the teeth and in combination with the one or more forces applied to the palate of the digital model. An orthodontic alignment device may be fabricated based on the determined shape.

Abstract: Methods and apparatuses (e.g., devices, system, etc., including software, hardware and firmware) including convertible dental auxiliary devices and methods of making and using them. The convertible dental auxiliary devices described herein may convert between two or more different stable configurations that may be useful to engage with one or more patient-removable dental appliances and/or one or more orthodontic force accessories.

Abstract: Dental appliances for treatment of a patient's dentition are provided. In some embodiments, a dental appliance includes a plurality of 3D printed polymer layers, where the plurality of 3D printed polymer layers includes a plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections. The dental appliance can include an appliance shell formed from the plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections. The appliance shell can include a plurality of tooth receiving cavities formed from the plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections, the plurality of tooth receiving cavities arranged to receive a dentition and to exert one or more forces on the dentition, and a plurality of variable thickness regions formed from the plurality of sequentially polymerized appliance cross-sections.

Abstract: A method for monitoring palatal expansion is provided. The method includes accessing a treatment plan for a patient comprising a series of sequential treatment stages, each treatment stage associated with a particular palatal expander in a series of palatal expanders, receiving 2D images of an oral cavity of the patient during a treatment stage of the treatment plan, determining, via processing of the 2D images, one or more observations progress indicators associated with the treatment plan, determining, based on the one or more observations progress indicators, a level of progress associated with the treatment plan, and providing a representation of progress corresponding to the determined level of progress.

Abstract: Dental appliances with shaped material components and methods of forming the same. Methods may include forming a shell to have one or more cavities that are configured to receive a patient's dentition. The shell may be configured to reposition one or more teeth of the patient's dentition toward a new configuration. One or more flaps of material may be folded to form a specialized feature of the dental appliance. The specialized feature may be configured to impart one or more specialized forces to one or more specific locations of the patient's dentition or dental arch.

Abstract: A system for correcting malocclusions may include a maxillary appliance having tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of a maxilla and a first elastic coupling at gingival line of the maxillary appliance. The first elastic coupling may be configured for receiving an elastic. The system may also include mandibular appliance having tooth receiving cavities shaped to receive teeth of a mandible. The system may also include a corrective appliance having a first coupling configured to be coupled to the mandibular appliance at a first location on a first side of incisors of a patient and a second coupling configured to be coupled to the mandibular appliance on a second side of the incisors, and having an arm extending from the corrective appliance towards the gingival line of the maxillary appliance and being shaped to receive the elastic.

Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices for producing appliances for expansion of the palate of a patient are provided. A palate expanding orthodontic appliance comprises a teeth engagement portion comprising a plurality of teeth engagement structures and a force generating portion coupled to the teeth engagement portion and configured to apply force to cause the patient's palate to expand. The orthodontic appliances can be designed according to the specifications provided herein and manufactured using direct fabrication methods.

Abstract: An orthodontic alignment device can have a palatal contour anchorage (PCA) feature that generally matches the shape of the patient's hard pallet. This PCA feature may be built slightly off-set to deliberately push against the patient's palate and/or gingiva to provide anchorage support of staged translation of the teeth. By transferring the required anchorage away from the teeth and onto the palate, through the PCA feature, the adjacent teeth are no longer subjected to unwanted side effects of reaction forces.

Abstract: A series of patient-customized orthodontic aligners may be produced by a process including receiving a digital model of a patient's tooth, determining a force system for eliciting a tooth movement, and designing a patient-customized attachment configured to engage at least one of the series of patient-customized orthodontic aligners when worn by a patient and apply a repositioning force to the patient's tooth corresponding to the force system. The process may also include designing the at least one of the patient-customized orthodontic aligners to engage the patient-customized attachment when worn by the patient, the at least one of the patient-customized orthodontic aligners having a shape customized responsive to the attachment, the digital model and the force system. The process may also include fabricating the series of patient-customized orthodontic aligners including the at least one of the patient-customized orthodontic aligners.