US 12,419,723 B2
Automated process for intermediate orthodontic digital setup reuse due to treatment plan modifications
Alexandra R. Cunliffe, St. Paul, MN (US); Guruprasad Somasundaram, Woodbury, MN (US); Benjamin D. Zimmer, Hudson, WI (US); Nitsan Ben-Gal Nguyen, Apple Valley, MN (US); Vera Shuman, St. Paul, MN (US); Nancy M. Amato, Champaign, IL (US); and Shawna L. Thomas, College Station, TX (US)
Assigned to Solventum Intellectual Properties Company, Maplewood, MN (US)
Appl. No. 17/441,331
Filed by Solventum Intellectual Properties Company, Maplewood, MN (US)
PCT Filed Mar. 31, 2020, PCT No. PCT/IB2020/053060
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 21, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/202009, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 8, 2020.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/829,065, filed on Apr. 4, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0160469 A1, May 26, 2022
Int. Cl. A61C 7/00 (2006.01); G06T 5/70 (2024.01); G16H 20/40 (2018.01); G16H 30/40 (2018.01)
CPC A61C 7/002 (2013.01) [G06T 5/70 (2024.01); G16H 20/40 (2018.01); G16H 30/40 (2018.01); G06T 2207/30036 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for generating and reusing setups for an orthodontic treatment path using a system, the method comprising, comprising steps of:
receiving a digital 3D model of teeth;
receiving a plurality of successively increasing resolutions, wherein lower resolutions specify larger tooth movement step sizes in a treatment path and higher resolutions specify smaller tooth movement step sizes in a treatment path;
generating an initial treatment path with stages including an initial setup, a final setup, and a plurality of intermediate setups;
for each resolution in the plurality of successively increasing resolutions,
dividing the initial treatment path into steps of feasible motion of the teeth within a step size specified by the resolution resulting in a modified treatment path with setups corresponding with the steps of feasible motion;
computing new steps of feasible motion of the teeth for only a portion of the initial treatment path within the step size specified by the resolution;
updating the initial treatment path based at least on the modified treatment path or by adding the computed new steps to the initial treatment path within the step size specified by the resolution;
generating a final treatment path based on iteratively processing the initial treatment path at each resolution in the plurality of successively increasing resolutions; and
manufacturing one or more orthodontic aligners using a 3D printer coupled to the system, based on a final digital setup corresponding to the final treatment path.