All publications and patent applications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference.
The technical field relates to removable palatal expanders, methods of making and methods of using and/or removing palatal expanders.
A variety of orthodontic problems are linked with a narrow palate. In certain circumstances the maxilla of a patient is not sized to accommodate the patient's upper teeth. In other cases there is room for the upper teeth but the palate is so narrow that speech is impaired or made difficult. In other cases the palate is so high that it cuts down on the amount of air that can pass through the nose, so that deep breathing, without opening the mouth, is almost impossible. In all of these cases, palate expansion, including applying forces to separate, widen, and/or spread the maxilla, may be helpful.
While many conventional palatal expanders exist to separate, widen, spread, etc. a patient's maxilla, these appliances are often difficult to remove. As an example, many palatal expanders, when inserted in a patient's palate, exert a significant force on the patient's palate and/or arch. Due to these and other factors, it is often difficult to remove a palatal expander from a patient's mouth. These issues may persist for adult patients, but also apply to pediatric patients, patients who are less coordinated than an ordinary adult patient, or patient's whose palatal expander is removed by a caretaker, such as a parent. In addition, traditional technique of forming attachments on the patient's crowns utilizes thermoformed attachment templates and may be limited on the geometries that can be formed.
Described herein are palatal expander apparatuses (including device and systems) that can be easily removed from a patient's mouth. Also described herein are removal tools that can be used to remove a palatal expander from a patient's mouth. The systems and techniques described herein allow a palatal expander to be easily removed (e.g., dismounted) from a patient's palate even when the palatal expander is attached to one or more attachments on the patient's teeth and/or palate. The implementations described herein may include a palatal expander (and/or series of palatal expanders) that include a breach region. A “breach region,” as used herein, may refer to a region of a structure configured to facilitate breaking, bending, deformation, etc. of the structure through materials, geometry, location, and/or other properties of the breach region. In some implementations, the breach region may comprise a region of materials that are different from the materials used to form the rest of the palatal expander. Materials used to form a breach region may be softer, more brittle, or sufficiently different from materials used to form the rest of a palatal expander so that the palatal expander may be broken, bent, deformed, etc. at the breach region. In some implementations, a breach region may have a different contour or geometry than other regions of the palatal expander so that the palatal expander may be broken, bent, deformed, etc. at the breach region.
A breach region may be strategically placed at locations of a palatal expander that absorb removal forces placed on the palatal expander. As an example, a breach region may be strategically placed on the other side of a fulcrum formed between the breach region and an edge of the palatal expander used to remove the palatal expander from a palate. A breach region may absorb a removal energy generated through a removal force more effectively than other areas of the palatal expander. A break, bend, deformation, etc. of the breach regions may cause a sufficient force to remove the palatal expander from a patient's palate. As noted further herein, the side or edge of the palatal expander may have one or more detachment regions that may include one or more edge geometries that interface with one or more expander removal tools (including fingers, tools with hooks and/or other structures). The edge geometries may facilitate transfer of a removal force to the breach regions through fulcrums and/or other structures. In some implementations, the edge geometries are on the buccal side of any of tooth engagement regions. The removal force may, but need not, comprise a “pulling force,” that is a force moving in a direction away from a patient's dentition. In some implementations, the force may cause the breach region to “predictably” bend, break, deform, etc., or break according to a substantially predictable manner and/or in a substantially predicable arrangement.
Methods of removing a palatal expander having breach regions are disclosed herein. Methods of designing and/or manufacturing a palatal expander with breach regions are also disclosed herein.
In some implementations, the apparatuses (such as devices and systems) are used with progressive expansion of a palate of a patient with a series of palatal expanders. Provided herein are methods and apparatuses (including systems and devices) for progressive palatal expansion. These palatal expanders may be adapted for comfort, efficacy and/or for ease of removal. For example described herein are systems for palatal expansion that may include a series of incremental expanders including a first incremental expander having a geometry selected to expand the palate, one or more intermediate expanders having geometries selected to progressively expand the palate to a target desired breadth.
Typically, palatal expanders have been described as pre-formed devices having a first molar-engaging (or molar/premolar-engaging) region adapted to engage upper molars on a first side of the upper jaw, a second molar-engaging (or molar/premolar-engaging) region adapted to engage upper molars on a second side of the upper jaw and palatal region with a geometry configured to fit adjacent to the shape of the palate while providing lateral force to incrementally expand the palate. The palatal expanders may be referred to as simply “expanders” or “palatal expander apparatuses” for convenience. Each of the palatal expanders in a series of expanders may comprise two molar regions (which may also be configured to include premolars), one on each side, each with one or more cavities, each cavity being adapted to fit over one of the patient's molars (or molars and/or premolars). In an embodiment each molar region may comprise two (or more) cavities that are configured to fit over two (or more) posterior molars or premolars. Each palatal expander may include a palatal region, which separates the two molar regions and fits against the patient's palate. Typically, the distance between the molar regions in the series of expanders is sequentially greater, in the order that they are to be worn.
The palatal region of the device may provide force to stretch or expand the mid-palatal region. Although energy-enhancing features may be placed in this region (e.g., springs and thermally active materials), in addition, this region may include one or more adaptations, such as struts, supports, cross-beams, ribs, gaps/windows, attachments, and the like which may distribute the forces applied in a more nuanced manner than previously described. For example, these devices may be configured so that the forces applied are distributed in a predetermined and/or desired pattern by arranging one or more points of contact between the palatal expander and the patient's mouth (e.g., in the gingiva and/or preferably along an upper or lower lateral portion of the patient's teeth, including their molars). The curvature (e.g., concavity) of the device may also be adjusted, to distribute the forces applied, while allowing clearance between the palate and the device, and/or allowing clearance for the user's tongue.
Any of the palatal expander apparatuses (e.g., devices, systems, etc.) for expanding a patient's palate described herein may include one or more locks. Locks may secure the palatal expander to the patient's teeth by locking the buccal side of the palatal expander to one or more attachments bonded to the teeth, allowing the lateral force from the palatal expander to apply the proper expansion force to the upper palate in the proper region. The locks may be manually unlocked, e.g., by actuating a control (e.g., tab, etc.) or otherwise applying a release force to disengage the lock. Multiple locks may be used, and may operate to keep the lateral force from disengaging the palatal expander until the locks are unlocked.
For example, a palatal expander (e.g., a palatal expander system) may include: a palatal expander having a first tooth engagement region, a second tooth engagement region and a palatal region connecting the first and second tooth engagement regions and configured to apply a lateral force between the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region; a plurality of attachment coupling regions on the buccal sides of the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region; a plurality of locks, wherein each attachment coupling region of the plurality of attachment coupling regions is associated with a lock of the plurality of lock, further wherein each lock is configured to engage with an attachment within the attachment coupling region to lock the palatal expander onto the patient's teeth.
The attachment coupling regions may be recesses, openings, or the like into or through the palatal expander for engaging with one or more attachments bonded to the teeth. For example, the attachment coupling regions may be windows (e.g., attachment windows) through the buccal side of the palatal expander.
The locks may generally include a release control that engages with a stay. The release control may be on the palatal expander and the stay may be on the attachment, or the stay may be on the palatal expander and the release control on the attachment. For example, the lock may include a release control comprising a latch, lever, switch, hook, tab, arm, snap, bar, pin, etc. that engages, through the attachment coupling region with a stay (e.g., a channel, hollow, check, cleat, catch, clasp, hasp, protrusion, etc.).
For example, a palatal expander system for expanding a patient's palate may include: a palatal expander comprising a first tooth engagement region, a second tooth engagement region and a palatal region connecting the first and second tooth engagement regions and configured to apply a lateral force between the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region; a first attachment coupling region on a buccal side of the first tooth engagement region; a first lock on the buccal side of the first tooth engagement region, wherein the first lock comprises a first release control configured to extend into the first attachment coupling region to engage with a stay on a first attachment within the first attachment coupling region to lock the palatal expander onto the patient's teeth until the first lock is released; a second attachment coupling region on a buccal side of the second tooth engagement region; and a second lock on the buccal side of the second tooth engagement region, wherein the second lock comprises a second release control configured to extend into the second attachment coupling region to engage with a stay on an second attachment within the second attachment coupling region to lock the palatal expander onto the patient's teeth. The palatal expander system may also include the attachments, e.g., the first attachment and the second attachment, wherein the first attachment and the second attachment are configured to be bonded to the patient's teeth.
The stay on each of the first attachment and the second attachment may comprise one or more of a: channel, hollow, check, cleat, catch, clasp, and hasp. The first and second release controls may each comprises one or more of a: latch, lever, switch, tab, hook, arm, snap, prong, bar, and pin. For example, the first release control may comprise a latch configured to slide into a channel in the stay of the first attachment. In some examples, the first release control comprises a hook configured to engage the stay of the first attachment. In any of these examples, the first release control may comprise one or more flexible protrusions. The first release control may comprise a locked configuration in which the first release control extends into the first attachment coupling region and an unlocked configuration in which the first release control is retracted from the first attachment coupling region.
The first and second locks may be symmetrically arranged on the palatal expander about a midline through the palatal expander, wherein the palatal expander is symmetrical about the midline
A palatal expander system for expanding a patient's palate may include a palatal expander comprising: a first tooth engagement region, a second tooth engagement region and a palatal region connecting the first and second tooth engagement regions and configured to apply a lateral force between the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region; a plurality of attachment coupling regions on a buccal side of the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region; a plurality of locks on the buccal side of the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region, wherein each lock comprises a release control having a locked configuration in which the release control extends into an attachment coupling region of the plurality of attachment coupling regions and an unlocked configuration in which the release control is retracted from the attachment coupling region; and a plurality of attachments, wherein each attachment in the plurality of attachment comprises a stay configured to engage with the release control in the locked configuration to lock the palatal expander onto the patient's teeth.
A series of palatal expanders as described herein may be configured to expand the patient's palate by a predetermined distance (e.g., the distance between the molar regions of one expander may differ from the distance between the molar regions of the prior expander by not more than 2 mm, by between 0.1 and 2 mm, by between 0.25 and 1 mm, etc.) and/or by a predetermined force (e.g., limiting the force applied to less than 180 Newtons (N), to between 8-200 N, between 8-90 N, between 8-80 N, between 8-70 N, between 8-60 N, between 8-50 N, between 8-40 N, between 8-30 N, between 30-60 N, between 30-70 N, between 40-60 N, between 40-70 N, between 60-200 N, between 70-180 N, between 70-160 N, etc., including any range there between).
In any of the apparatuses described herein (and methods of fabricating them), the expanders may be formed out of a polymeric (e.g., acrylic, thermoplastics, thermosets, etc.) and/or a metal material, including stainless steel, nickel titanium, copper nickel titanium, etc. Any of these apparatuses may be formed by 3D printing and/or by a lamination process, in which the apparatuses are formed for layers of material that may be formed and/or adhered together (e.g., to form a unitary device); different layers may have different mechanical and/or chemical properties, and may include different thicknesses or regions of thickness. For example, an apparatus may include laminated materials that are bonded together.
Also described herein are apparatuses and method of forming them by direct fabrication techniques. For example, an apparatus (including a series of palatal expanders) may be digitally designed and fabricated by a direct printing (e.g., 3D printing); alternatively or additionally the fabrication method may include 3D printing of models of the teeth, gingiva and palate that have been digitally configured to form one or more of the series applying the palatal expansion.
Also described herein are methods of expanding the palate of a patient using any of the apparatuses described herein, which may include positioning each expander in a series of expanders in position to expand the palate, leaving the expander in position for a period of time and replacing the expander with the next expander in the series until the desired palatal expansion has occurred and then applying a palatal expander that is configured to retain the palate in the final position at the target desired breadth.
In general, the palatal expanders described herein may be referred to as palatal expander shell apparatuses. The tooth engagement regions (e.g., the molar or molar/premolar engagement regions) may be configured as shells that fit over the patient's teeth, as described above.
Any of the palatal expanders described herein may be configured or adapted to enhance removal of the palatal expander. For example, a palatal expander (e.g., palatal expander shell apparatus) for expanding a patient's palate that is configured for ease of removal may include: a pair of tooth engagement regions each extending anteriorly to posteriorly, and configured to be worn over the patient's teeth, wherein the tooth engagement regions each comprise an occlusal side and a buccal side; a palatal region connecting the pair of tooth engagement regions, wherein the palatal region is configured to apply a lateral force between the pair of tooth engagement regions when the apparatus is worn by the patient. In any of these palatal expanders may also include a breach region extending anteriorly to posteriorly, the breach region configured to predictably bend or break when a pulling force is applied to the buccal side of either or both of the pair of tooth engagement regions.
The pair of tooth engagement regions may be the molar (and/or molar/premolar) regions configured to hold the patient's teeth within a pocket, hollow, chamber, region or channel, or a series of interconnected pockets, formed by the molar region of the shell apparatus, to hold the patient's molar/premolar teeth on one side of the patient's mouth. The first tooth engagement region, which may be referred to as a first molar (or molar/premolar) engagement region, may extend from an anterior (e.g., towards the front of the patient's mouth when worn), to a posterior (e.g., towards the back of the patient's mouth when worn) configuration. The first molar (or molar/premolar) engagement region may typically extend anteriorly to posteriorly in the patient's mouth when worn.
The tooth engagement region (e.g., the molar or molar/premolar engagement region may generally each include an occlusal side and a buccal side. The buccal side typically faces outward from the mouth when the apparatus is worn by the patient, over the buccal surface of the molars/premolars. The occlusal surface typically lies adjacent to the occlusal (bite) surface of the teeth. As described above, the pair of tooth engagement regions may be connected by a palatal region connecting the pair of tooth engagement regions and configured to span between them and adjacent to the patient's palate when worn by the patient.
In general, the breach region is a region of lower mechanical strength compared to the mechanical strength of regions adjacent to either side of the breach region. Thus, the palatal expander may preferentially bend or break along the breach region. In general, the breach region may be a line, channel, pattern, etc. that extends from a posterior to an anterior direction. The breach region may extend part of the way from the posterior to anterior direction or all of the way from the anterior to posterior direction along the apparatus. The breach region may be continuous (e.g., as a continuous line or curve) or discontinuous (e.g., a series of lower mechanical strength regions arranged in a line or curve, such as a dashed line, perforation, etc.). The mechanical strength of the breach region may be a fraction of the mechanical strength of the region adjacent to it (e.g., less than about 0.95× the strength, less than about 0.9× the strength, less than about 0.85× the strength, less than about 0.8× the strength, less than about 0.75× the strength, less than about 0.7× the strength, less than about 0.65× the strength, less than about 0.6× the strength, less than about 0.55× the strength, less than about 0.5× the strength, less than about 0.45× the strength, etc.). The lower mechanical strength in the breach may allow it to bend, collapse, give, etc. when force is applied, and particularly a force that is a pull force that is directed (or includes a vector component directed) in a laterally outward direction when the palatal expander is worn by the patient.
For example, the breach region may be a perforated region that is formed by regions (holes, pits, dots, islands, etc.) of lower strength regions that are arranged in a linear (straight line or curved line) arrangement along the apparatus. The lower-strength region(s) may be a crease or channel. The lower-strength regions may be one or more voids within the palatal expander shell apparatus.
In any of the apparatuses and methods described herein, the lower-strength breach region(s) may be formed using a multiple material construction. For example, the breach region(s) may be formed of a more elastic material than the adjacent regions. The application of a pre-determined force to the appliance will therefore cause the breach region to bend and allow the appliance to be removed without requiring substantial additional force. Thus, any of these appliances may include a small amount of an elastic material strategically located at the breach (“hinge”) region to assist with the bending. This may be used in addition to, or instead of, using creating a void in the appliance. The apparatus may be configured so that the elastic material in the breach region may return to its original (unbent) shape after bending.
The breach region may be arranged along one or both tooth engagement regions, and/or they may be arranged along the palatal region. More than one breach region may be included, such as a first breach region along the occlusal side of a first tooth engagement region, and/or a second breach region along the occlusal side of a second tooth engagement region and/or a palatal breach region along the palatal region. For example, the breach region may extend across the occlusive side of one of the pair of tooth engagement regions. As mentioned, the breach regions may be arranged in an anterior to posterior (e.g., anteriorly to posteriorly) pattern.
In some variations, the breach region is configured to form a hinge or hinge region. Alternatively or additionally, the breach region may be configured to break when a pulling force of greater than a predetermined breaking value is applied to the buccal side of one of the pair of tooth engagement regions in a laterally outward direction. Thus, in some variations, the breach region may be configured to bend in a hinged manner when a pulling force of greater than a predetermined value (e.g., predetermined bending value) is applied to the buccal side of one of the pair of tooth engagement regions in a laterally outward direction.
The predetermined bending or breaking value may be set to a value that is within the pulling force that may be applied by a human hand/finger, or that may be reasonably applied by a tool for removing the apparatus, as described in greater detail below. For example, the predetermined bending or breaking value may be about 5 N or more, about 6 N or more about 7 N or more about 8 N or more, about 9 N or more about 10 N or more, about 11 N or more, about 12 N or more, about 15 N or more, about 20 N or more, between about 5 N and 100 N, between about 7.5 N and 100 N, between about 10 N and 100 N, etc.
In some variations, the breach region is configured to preferentially break (or break along at least a portion of the length). In other variations, the breach region is configured to preferentially bend along at least a portion of the length. In some variations the breach region may be configured to initially bend at a first predetermined bending value, then to break at a second (e.g., higher) predetermined breaking value.
The breach region may be marked or visible. In some variations the breach region is marked to show the line for bending and/or breakage by a different color, texture, crease, etc. In some variations, the breach region is not visible.
The breach region may extend completely across the length of the palatal expander, or just partially along the length (e.g., the anterior to posterior length) of the palatal expander, e.g., from the front of the patient's mouth toward the back of the patient's mouth. For example, the breach region may extend from an anterior end of the palatal expander shell apparatus to a posterior end of the palatal expander shell apparatus. Alternatively, in some variations, the breach region may along just a portion of the anterior-to-posterior length.
Any of the palatal expanders described herein may include a plurality of attachment regions each configured to couple to an attachment bonded to the patient's teeth. The breach region may extends adjacent to one or more of the attachment regions along an anterior to posterior axis.
Any of the palatal expanders described herein may also include one or more detachment regions, e.g., on the buccal side of at least one of the pair of pair of tooth engagement regions, that is configured to receive the pulling force. The detachment region may be configured as a protrusion, cavity, tab, etc. for engaging with a removal tool and/or the user's finger to apply a pulling force having a laterally outward component for removing the palatal expander, typically by bending or breaking the breach region to disengage the palatal expander from the teeth (including from any attachment on the teeth or between the teeth and the palatal expander), so that the palatal expander can be removed. For example a detachment region may be one or more of a slot, ledge, notch, lip, or gap on or adjacent to a lower edge of the buccal side. The detachment region may be sized to receive the tool and/or finger or fingernail. For example, the detachment region may include a pocket, gap, etc. that is between about 1 mm and 15 mm (e.g., between about 1 mm and 12 mm, between about 1 mm and 10 mm, between about 1 mm and 8 mm, between about 1 mm and 5 mm, etc.).
Any of these apparatuses may include one or more (e.g., a plurality of) vertical slots or slits extending from a bottom of the buccal side toward the breach region. These slots or slits may allow a portion of the buccal side (particularly on either side of one or more attachments) to bend or pull away from the gingiva and teeth and to disengage from the one or more attachments.
For example, a palatal expander shell apparatus may be configured to be easily removed for expanding a patient's palate, the apparatus may comprise: a pair of tooth engagement regions each extending anteriorly to posteriorly, and configured to be worn over the patient's teeth, wherein the tooth engagement regions each comprise an occlusal side and a buccal side; a palatal region connecting the pair of tooth engagement regions, wherein the palatal region is configured to apply a lateral force between the pair of tooth engagement regions when the apparatus is worn by the patient; and a breach region extending anteriorly to posteriorly, the breach region having a mechanical strength that is less than the mechanical strength of regions adjacent to either side of the breach region so that the breach region predictably bends or breaks when a pulling force having a laterally outward component is applied to the buccal side of either or both of the pair of tooth engagement regions.
Any of the apparatuses described herein may be adapted to make removing the palatal expander easier without reducing the retention or the ability of the palatal expander to remain held in position on the patient. For example, any of these palatal expanders may include the breach region. Any of these apparatuses may also or alternatively include a detachment region on one or both buccal side of the palatal expander. As mentioned, the detachment region (which may be referred to as a removal grip, a removal cavity, a removal handle, a removal attachment, removal slot, etc.) may include a gap, slot, opening, etc., on an upward- or downward-facing side that may be adapted to allow a user to insert a fingernail and/or removal tool therein to remove the palatal expander from the teeth. The detachment region may be configured to deform or break the breach region and release the palatal expander from the patient's teeth. The detachment region may be configured as a lip, ledge, or protrusion on the buccal side of the palatal expander. The breach region may therefore form a hinge region; in some variations, this hinge region is between the occlusal surface and the buccal side, so that operating the detachment region may pull the buccal side of the palatal expander away from the patient's teeth and/or off of any attachment so that it may be removed. Any of these palatal expanders may include a slit, slot, gap, etc. that extends upward from the edge of the palatal expander toward the occlusal surface on the buccal side permitting all or a portion of the palatal expander to pull upward and disengage from the teeth.
Also described herein are palatal expanders that are adapted for comfort to have a thickness that varies. For example, in any of these variations, the palatal expander may include an inner bottom surface in the palatal arch portion of the palatal expander that faces the patient' tongue when worn that is smooth or flattened compared to the opposite surface (matching the patient's palate where the palatal expander is worn. This tongue-facing side may have a surface that is rounded and does not include any rapid transitions in topology compared with the patient's actual palate. In any of these examples, the apparatuses described herein may have a different (including variable) thickness. In some variations, the apparatus may include a palatal region that is narrower toward the anterior of the palatal expander apparatus. In any of these variations, the poster portion of the palatal expander may be thinner and/or cut away (removed from) the palatal expander, which may prevent or limit gagging.
The palatal expanders described herein may be removed by applying a force (e.g., a pulling force) to cause the breach region to bend and/or break. For example, described herein are methods of removing a palatal expander shell apparatus from a patient's teeth that may include the steps of: applying a pulling force to a buccal side of the palatal expander shell apparatus while a first tooth engagement region is worn on a first portion of the patient's teeth, a second tooth engagement region is worn on a second portion of the patient's teeth, and while a palatal region extending between the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region is applying a lateral force between the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region, wherein the pulling force causes a breach region of the palatal expander shell apparatus to break or bend along the breach region and to disengage the palatal expander shell apparatus from the first or second set of the patient's teeth; and removing the palatal expander shell apparatus from the patient's oral cavity.
The pulling force may be any appropriate force, as mentioned above. For example, applying the pulling force comprises applying about 100 N, about 90 N, about 80 N, about 70 N, about 60 N, about 50 N, about 40 N, about 30 N, about 20 N, etc. The pulling force applied may be about 5 N or greater, about 7.5 N or greater, about 8 N or greater, about 10 N or greater, about 12 N or greater, about 15 N or greater, etc. (e.g., between about 5-100 N, etc.). The pulling force applied may refer to the laterally outward component of the force. In general, this laterally outward force may also be directed downward or between the laterally outward (e.g., parallel to the plane of the palatal expander, and/or the plane of the patient's upper palate when worn) and downward (e.g., away from the outer occlusal surface, and/or toward the lower jaw when the palatal expander is worn on the upper jaw). In some variations, the force may be applied in a direction that is between the laterally outward and downward directions when the palatal expander is worn. Applying the pulling force may comprise pulling the buccal side of the palatal expander with a force having a laterally outward force component, or a laterally outward force component and a downward component. For example, applying the pulling force may comprise pulling the edge of the buccal side of the palatal expander.
In general, applying the puling force may cause the breach region to bend or break along the breach region so that the palatal expander shell apparatus disengages from the teeth, including disengaging from one or more attachments between the palatal expander shell apparatus and the patient's teeth. Applying the puling force may cause the breach region to bend along the breach region in a hinged manner. Applying the puling force may cause the breach region to break along the breach region.
The pulling force may be applied by the user manually, using their finer or a tool, such as applying the pulling force comprises using a tool to apply a pulling force. The tool may include a long arm and a fulcrum region that leverages against a portion of the palatal expander. In some variations, applying the pulling force comprises using a fingernail to apply a pulling force. Applying the pulling force may comprise pulling on a detachment region on the buccal side of the palatal expander shell apparatus.
A method of removing a palatal expander shell apparatus from a patient's teeth may include: applying a pulling force to a buccal side of the palatal expander shell apparatus while a first tooth engagement region is worn on a first set of the patient's teeth and a second tooth engagement region is worn on a second set of the patient's teeth, and while a palatal region extending between the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region is applying a lateral force between the first tooth engagement region and the second tooth engagement region, wherein the pulling force causes a breach region of the palatal expander shell apparatus to break or bend at a predetermined location and disengage from the first or second set of the patient's teeth, wherein the breach region extends anteriorly to posteriorly along the palatal expander shell and comprise one or more regions having a mechanical strength that is less than the material strength of the regions of the palatal expander surrounding to the breach region; and removing the palatal expander shell apparatus from the patient's oral cavity.
Also described herein are methods for forming one or a series of palatal expanders and methods of making and using them in which the palatal expander is configured to include one or more gaps or spacing regions between the patient's upper arch and the upper (e.g., palate-facing) surface of the palatal expander. For example, any of these apparatuses may be configured to include a gap or concave channel or region to prevent impingement near the gingival line (e.g., on the buccal and/or on the lingual side of the apparatus. Any of these apparatuses may be configured to include a gap between the upper (e.g., palate-facing) surface of the palatal expander and the palate.
Methods and apparatuses for performing palatal expansion using any of these apparatuses are also described. For example, described herein are methods an apparatuses for scanning a patient's intraoral cavity (including in particular the upper arch) sufficiently so that the palatal expander apparatuses described herein may be formed.
Methods of applying or attaching the palatal expanders described herein are described, including methods for the patient to apply the palatal expander to her/his own teeth. Also described herein are attachments (which may alternatively be referred to as retaining attachments, retaining posts, etc.) and templates for attaching the attachments to a patient's teeth that may be configured to releasably secure the palatal expander to the patient's teeth. Methods of forming the attachment template, and/or attaching the attachments to the teeth are also described.
Also described herein are methods and apparatuses for removing the palatal expanders from a patient's teeth. For example, described herein are removal tools to assist a person (and particularly, but not limited to, the patient) in removing the palatal expander when secured onto the patient's teeth.
Also described herein are methods of making any of the apparatuses described herein.
For example, described herein are palatal expander apparatuses for expanding a patient's palate. A palatal expander apparatus may include: a pair of tooth engagement regions connected by a palatal region and two or more attachment regions each configured to couple to an attachment bonded to the patient's teeth, wherein the palatal region is configured to apply between 8 and 160 N of force between the pair of tooth engagement regions when worn by the patient; wherein the tooth engagement regions each comprise an occlusal side and a buccal side, further wherein the occlusal side is thinner than the palatal region, and the buccal side is thinner than the occlusal side.
The palatal region may be between about 1-5 mm thick (e.g., between 1.5 to 3 mm, between 2 and 2.5 mm thick, etc.). The occlusal side may have a thickness of between about 0.5-2 mm (e.g., between 0.5 to 1.75 mm, between 0.75 to 1.7 mm, etc.). The buccal side may have a thickness of between about 0.25-1 mm (e.g., between 0.35 and 0.85 mm, between about 0.4 and 0.8 mm, etc.).
As mentioned, any of these apparatuses may include a detachment region on a buccal side of the apparatus to help remove the device once attached to the patient's teeth. The forces being applied to widen the palate may make it difficult to easily remove the apparatus. A buccally-located detachment region (e.g., a notch, gap, handle, tab, slot, etc.) may be used to more easily remove the apparatus from the teeth, particularly when attachments are used to hold the apparatus on the teeth. A detachment region may provide a handle or grip region for applying a pulling force to remove the palatal expander. The detachment region may be on or extend from the buccal side(s) and may be spaced from the patient's gingiva by at least 0.25 to 1 mm when the apparatus is being worn and may be near the bottom edge (or extending from the bottom edge, or over the bottom edge) of the buccal side of the apparatus. For example, the bottom edge of the buccal side may be configured as a detachment region extending from the buccal side of the device, along all or a side (e.g., between 1 mm and 5 cm, e.g. 1 mm to 4 cm, 1 mm to 3 cm, 5 mm to 4 cm, etc.) of the buccal region. The extension may be configured to extend below and away from the patient's gingiva, e.g., to form a gap of between about 0.25-1 mm when the apparatus is worn by a patient. Any of these apparatuses may include one or a plurality of vertical slots or slits extending from a bottom of the buccal side toward the occlusal side. In particular, these slots or slits may be on either side of the detachment region.
Any of these apparatuses may be smoothed on the tongue-facing side of the apparatus. For example, the palatal region may comprise an upper convex surface having a first surface curvature comprising a plurality of grooves and ridges that align with grooves and ridges in the patient's palate; further wherein the palatal region comprises a lower, concave surface having a second surface curvature that is smoother than the first surface curvature. Smoother may mean having fewer and/or less extensive (deep, high) grooves and/or ridges.
Also described herein are methods of making a palatal expander apparatus, the method comprising: receiving a model of a patient's upper arch (e.g., a digital model, a manual model, etc.); and forming a palatal expander having a pair of tooth engagement regions connected by a palatal region and one or more breach regions extending anteriorly. The method may also include forming the palatal expander to include two or more attachment regions each configured to couple to an attachment bonded to the patient's teeth, wherein the tooth engagement regions are each configured to fit over the patient's teeth and each comprise an occlusal side and a buccal side, further wherein the occlusal side comprises a detachment region configured to engage with the patient's fingernail to disengage at least one of the attachment regions from an attachment on the patient's teeth. Forming the apparatus may include forming any of the features described herein, including detachment regions, slits/slots, smoothing the tongue-facing side, forming an opening in the apparatus, varying the thickness of the different regions relative to each other and/or within each region, etc. For example, forming may comprise forming the palatal region by smoothing a bottom surface of the palatal region relative to an opposite top surface of the palatal region.
For example, a method of making a palatal expander apparatus may include: receiving a model of a patient's upper arch; forming a palatal expander having a pair of tooth engagement regions connected by a palatal region and two or more attachment regions each configured to couple to an attachment bonded to the patient's teeth; forming a breach region extending anteriorly to posteriorly one or more of the palatal region, the first tooth engagement region (e.g., along the buccal side, the occlusal side, between the buccal and occlusal side, etc.), the second tooth engagement region (along the buccal side, the occlusal side, between the buccal and occlusal side, etc.). The tooth engagement regions may each be configured to fit over the patient's teeth and each comprise an occlusal side and a buccal side. The method may also include forming a detachment region on the buccal side having a gap that is configured to engage with the patient's fingernail or an elongate tool and to disengage at least one of the attachment regions from an attachment on the patient's teeth.
In any of these methods, the tooth engagement region may comprise an extension of the buccal side of the tooth engagement region that extends from the patient's gingiva to form a gap of between about 0.25-1 mm when the apparatus is worn by a patient. The tooth engagement region may comprise a projection extending from the buccal side of the tooth engagement region. The palatal expander may be configured to contact a lingual side of the patient's teeth when worn by the patient and to apply between 8 and 160 N of force between the tooth engagement regions. The palatal expander may be configured not to contact either or both the gingiva adjacent to a lingual side of the patient's teeth when worn by the patient and the midline of the patient's palate.
The apparatus may be formed in any appropriate manner, including forming comprises forming by three-dimensional (3D) printing. For example, receiving a model of the patient's upper arch may comprise receiving a digital model of the patient's teeth, gingiva and palatal region.
In general, any of these palatal expanders may be configured so that all or a portion (e.g., the mid-palatal region, e.g., configured to be positioned opposite of the suture) is spaced apart from the patient's palate when the device is worn, by some minimum distance, e.g., between 0.01 and 5 mm (e.g., 0.02 mm or greater, 0.03 mm or greater, 0.04 mm or greater, than 0.05 mm or greater, 0.06 mm or greater, 0.07 mm or greater, 0.1 mm or greater, 0.15 mm or greater, 0.2 mm or greater, 0.25 mm or greater, etc.) This minimum distance may be determined when forming the palatal expander by modeling (e.g., from a digital model) the patient's dental arch, including the palatal region. Including this minimal distance may be particularly helpful, for example, to prevent sores or irritation of the soft and/or hard palate when wearing the palatal expander(s).
This space between the palatal-facing surface of the palatal region of the palatal expander and the patient's palate may be referred to as clearance. This spacing may be positive (e.g., forming a gap) or, in some areas of the palate region, negative, e.g., impinging on the patient's palate, in order to provide force to expand the palate. Negative clearance may be identified by comparing an actual or predicted (e.g., for later stages of the expansion treatment) model of the patient's palate with the palatal expander outer (palate-facing) surface. Actual or predated models may be digital (virtual) or casts of the patient's dental arch. In later stages of treatment, the clearance may be estimated from a digital model in which the patient's palatal region morphology is predicted by morphing the palatal region r to reflect the treatment progression.
For example, contact with soft palate regions of the patient's palate may be avoided by include positive clearance of greater than some minimum (e.g., see above, such as 0.1 mm, 0.2 mm, etc.) in regions configured to be worn opposite of the soft palatal region). In general, any of these apparatuses may be configured so that the mid palatal regions (e.g., opposite the mid palatal suture) are offset from the patient's palate when worn. In some variations the separation distance may be at a maximum in this mid palatal region. In some variations the separation distance may decrease laterally, and negative clearance (e.g., force-applying contact) may be present laterally. The clearance may vary over a sequence or series of aligners. For example, the initial (early) stages may be configured to have a lower maximum positive clearance than later stages, which may have greater maximum clearance. Any of these apparatuses may have greater positive clearance posterior than anteriorly. In some variations, the maximum positive clearance may taper from a maximum at the mid-palatal region towards the teeth.
For example, in some variations, the palatal region may be configured to have a clearance of greater than 0.1 mm from the patient's mid-palatal region when the device is worn by the patient.
Any of these apparatuses may include two or more attachment regions each configured to couple to an attachment bonded to the patient's teeth. Attachment regions may be openings, pits, slots, channels, or the like for securing to an attachment bonded to the patient's teeth. The attachment regions may be configured to secure to the patient's teeth, but to allow removal of the apparatus from the attachment by flexing a portion (e.g., a detachment region) of the palatal expander, which may be on the buccal side, including extending from the buccal side.
In general, as mentioned above, any of the palatal expanders described herein may include a variable thickness (e.g., transverse thickness perpendicularly between the opposite upper and lower surfaces). For example, the average and/or maximum thickness of the palatal region may be greater than the average or maximum thickness of the occlusal surface (e.g., the side worn against the occlusal surface of the teeth); the average or maximum thickness of the buccal surface (e.g., the side worn against the buccal surface of the teeth) may be less than the average or maximal thickness of the occlusal surface and/or the palatal surface. Alternatively or additionally, in some variations all or a portion of the occlusal surface may be cut away. In general, an anterior portion of the palatal region may have a different average thickness than a posterior portion of the palatal region. For example, the anterior portion of the palatal region may be thinner than a posterior portion of the palatal region; alternatively, the anterior portion of the palatal expander may be thicker than the posterior portion.
As mentioned, any of these apparatuses may include an extension extending from the buccal side of the apparatus, wherein the extension is configured to extend adjacent and away from the patient's gingiva to form a gap of between about 0.25 and 1 mm when the apparatus is worn by a patient. The length of the extension may be determined so that it does not contact the inner cheek surface.
Also described herein are palatal expander systems for expanding a patient's palate. These systems may include any of the palatal expanders described herein. Thus, described herein are systems including any of these apparatuses (and series of these apparatuses). Also described herein are methods of expanding a patient's palate using a series of patient-removable palatal expanders, the method comprising: sequentially wearing each of a plurality of palatal expanders except a last palatal expander from the series of patient-removable palatal expanders in a predetermined sequence of progressively increasing widths, wherein: each palatal expander comprises a pair of tooth engagement regions connected by a palatal region and two or more attachment regions, wherein the tooth engagement regions are worn over the patient's teeth with the attachment regions coupled to attachments on the patient's teeth, wherein at least one of the palatal expanders include a breach region for removal as described herein. Each palatal expander may be worn for between 0.5 and 14 days; and each palatal expander may be removed by applying a pulling force as described herein, to bend or break a breach region to disengage at least one of the attachment regions from the attachment on the patient's teeth. Thus wearing the apparatus may include removing the apparatus for less than some percentage (e.g., 2%, 5%, 7%, 10%, etc.) of the time worn during that period (e.g., for a few minutes to an hour a day, etc.
A method of forming a palatal expander is provided. The method may include: gathering a virtual representation of a palatal surface, the palatal surface having a convex surface geometry, the convex surface geometry configured to mate with a palate of a patient when the palatal expander is inserted into the palate of the patient; gathering a virtual representation of a lingual surface opposite to the palatal surface, the lingual surface having a concave surface geometry configured to provide a gap between a tongue of the patient and the palatal expander when the palatal expander is inserted into the palate; gathering a virtual representation of a plurality of sidewalls surrounding at least a portion of the palatal surface and the lingual surface, the plurality of sidewalls configured to exert a sidewall force against one or more of the palate and a lingual region of teeth of the patient when the palatal expander is inserted into the palate, the plurality of sidewalls having at least one removal structure to receive a removal force; gathering a virtual representation of a body, the body having a first deformation measure corresponding to a substantial first deformation of the body in response to application of a removal force to the removal structure; gathering a virtual representation of one or more breach regions, the one or more breach regions having a second deformation measure corresponding to a substantial second deformation of the one or more breach regions in response to the application of the removal force to the removal structure, the second deformation measure being greater than the first deformation measure; and providing instructions to manufacture the palatal expander using the virtual representation of a palatal surface, the virtual representation of a lingual surface, the virtual representation of the plurality of sidewalls, the virtual representation of the body, and the virtual representation of the one or more breach regions.
Any of the gathering steps may be performed as a single step or as sub-parts of a single step. For example, gathering the virtual representation of the palatal surface, the lingual surface opposite to the palatal surface, and/or the plurality of sidewalls surrounding at least a portion of the palatal surface and the lingual surface may be performed together. Gathering this information may include scanning (e.g., taking a digital scan) of the patient's oral cavity and/or a model (e.g., physical model) of the patient's oral cavity.
A palatal expander may comprise: a palatal surface having a convex surface geometry, the convex surface geometry configured to mate with a palate of a patient when the palatal expander is inserted into the palate of the patient; a lingual surface opposite to the palatal surface, the lingual surface having a concave surface geometry configured to provide a gap between a tongue of the patient and the palatal expander when the palatal expander is inserted into the palate; a plurality of sidewalls surrounding at least a portion of the palatal surface and the lingual surface, the plurality of sidewalls configured to exert a sidewall force against one or more of the palate and a lingual region of teeth of the patient when the palatal expander is inserted into the palate, the plurality of sidewalls having at least one removal structure to receive a removal force; a body having a first deformation measure corresponding to a substantial first deformation of the body in response to application of a removal force to the removal structure; and one or more means for breaching a portion of the palatal expander in response to the removal force, the one or more means for breaching the portion of the palatal expander having a second deformation measure corresponding to a substantial second deformation of the one or more breach regions in response to the application of the removal force to the removal structure, the second deformation measure being greater than the first deformation measure.
Any of the methods of applying and removing the palatal expanders described herein may be configured as a method of applying a palatal expander that includes engaging the palatal expander onto the patient's teeth by placing the one or more attachments into the attachment coupling region(s) and locking the attachments to the palatal expander. The lock may be automatically engaged by driving the attachment into the attachment coupling region, e.g., by driving the release control against the stay; the release control may be biased (e.g., spring loaded) to extend into the attachment coupling region and engage with a stay.
A method of removing a palatal expander shell apparatus from a patient's teeth, wherein the palatal expander shell apparatus comprises a first tooth engagement region, a second tooth engagement region, and a palatal region between the first and second tooth engagement regions applying a lateral force between the first and second tooth engagement regions, may include: unlocking the palatal expander shell apparatus from the first tooth engagement region by disengaging a first lock from a first attachment on the patient's teeth; unlocking the palatal expander shell apparatus from the second tooth engagement region by disengaging a second lock from a second attachment on the patient's teeth; wherein disengaging either or both the first and second locks causes the palatal expander shell apparatus to release from the patient's teeth; and removing the palatal expander shell apparatus from the patient's oral cavity.
Unlocking the palatal expander shell apparatus from the first tooth engagement region may comprise operating a release control on the palatal expander shell to disengage from a stay on the first attachment. For example, operating the release control on the palatal expander shell to disengage from the stay on the first attachment may comprise sliding a latch from one or a channel or cavity in the stay. Operating the release control on the palatal expander shell to disengage from the stay on the first attachment may comprise disengaging a protrusion member from the stay wherein the stay comprises a bracket having a channel.
Disengaging the first lock from a first attachment on the patient's teeth may comprise unsnapping the release control from the stay.
Operating the release control on the palatal expander shell to disengage from the stay on the first attachment may comprise operating a release control comprising one of a: latch, lever, switch, tab, arm, snap, bar, or pin that engages with the stay on the first attachment.
The first lock and the second lock may be disengaged concurrently. Alternatively, the first lock and the second lock may be disengaged separately. The locks may be manually disengaged (e.g., by the patient or caregiver's fingers) and/or using a tool. In some variations disengaging a first lock from a first attachment on the patient's teeth comprises retracting a spring to disengage. Disengaging the first lock from the first attachment on the patient's teeth may comprise applying a disengaging force to the first lock that is less than the lateral force (e.g., less than 30 N, less than 20 N, etc.).
The novel features of the apparatuses and methods described herein are set forth with particularity in the claims that follow. A better understanding of the features and advantages will be obtained by reference to the following detailed description that sets forth illustrative embodiments, in which the principles of the invention are utilized, and the accompanying drawings of which:
The palatal expansion apparatuses (devices and systems, including palatal expanders) described herein are configured to expand a patient's palate and are typically configured to be removed and/or inserted by the patient or a patient's caregiver (e.g., parent, guardian, etc.). A series of expanders may be worn by a patient to expand the patient's palate over time.
Various properties and characteristics of the inventive palatal expanders are described herein both in general and with reference to specific examples. Any of these features and characteristics, including the arrangement of features, may be incorporated into a palatal expander. These palatal expanders, which may be interchangeably referred to as palatal expansion shell apparatuses, may be configured to apply force within the patient's mouth to expand the patient's maxilla. The patients may be any appropriate patient, and particularly (but not limited to) children from ages 7 to 9 years old, e.g., following eruption of the first permanent molars. These apparatuses may be used to expand the patient's palate between 4 and 12 mm or more.
In use, the series of palatal expanders may be applied and/or removed by the patient (or a caregiver, e.g., parent) and may be adapted for securely attaching to the patient's teeth with sufficient strength to move the patient's palate, while being removable without excessive force or difficulty (e.g., using a finger and/or tool to remove). The apparatus may attach over two, three or more off the patient's teeth on either side of the upper arch, e.g., attach to the last three teeth (e.g., attaching over and/or to the first permanent molar and first and second primary molars). In general, the apparatuses described herein create sufficient force to open the patient's suture, e.g., apply between 8 N and 120 N (or greater than 8 N, greater than 9 N, greater than 10 N, greater than 20 N, greater than 30 N, greater than 40 N, greater than 50 N, greater than 60 N, etc.) against either side of the upper palate and/or lingual side of the teeth, yet require substantially less force to remove.
In any of the apparatuses and methods described herein, the apparatus may be configured so that it may be both securely attached to the patient's teeth, either with or without connecting to attachments bonded to the patient's teeth, while still being readily removable by the patient and/or caregiver. Specifically, any of the palatal expanders described herein may include a breach region that is configured to preferentially and controllably bend or break when a removal (e.g., pulling) force is applied; the pulling force may cause the breach region of the palatal expander shell apparatus to break or bend along the breach region and to disengage the palatal expander shell apparatus from the first or second set of the patient's teeth.
Any of the palatal expanders described herein may include an attachment that may be locked onto the patient's teeth by engaging onto an attachment on the patient's teeth. In some variations, the palatal expander may have (e.g., on a lateral side, such as the buccal side of the palatal expander) a lock that engages with an attachment bonded to the patient's teeth, to prevent removal of the palatal expander until the lock is disengaged. In some variations, the lock may be disengaged by manually moving, bending, pulling, pushing, displacing, or otherwise operating a release control. The release control may be a latch, lever, switch, tab, arm, snap, etc. The lock and release control may mechanically engage with each other and/or with the attachment on the patient's tooth/teeth. Alternatively or additionally, the lock, release and/or attachment may magnetically engage with each other.
Any of the apparatuses described herein may be configured so that the upper, convex surface of the palatal region matches the patient's palate, e.g., including any grooves, ridges, troughs, etc. that are present in the patient's particular anatomy. The upper convex surface may match the patient's palate, but may be configured to be separated or offset from it, e.g., by 0.5 mm or more, particularly at the more central region (e.g., opposite from the palatal midline suture). In some variations the apparatus may be offset from the patient's palate, and force may be applied primarily against the lingual sides of the teeth (e.g., molars); alternatively or additionally, the apparatus may be configured to apply force against the lateral side regions of the palate, above the molars; in this case, the upper convex surface of the palatal region may be configured to have a negative offset, e.g., may push against the palate, when worn.
The palatal expanders described herein may be formed of a single, monolithic material (e.g., by an additive, e.g., 3D printing, technique, etc.) or they may be formed in parts, e.g., by layering, thermosetting, etc. The apparatuses (e.g., devices, systems, etc.) may have a uniform or variable thickness. For example, the palatal region may be thinner in more anterior regions (e.g., the anterior half) compared to more posterior regions (e.g., the posterior half). Alternatively, the posterior half of the apparatus may be thinner than the anterior half. The posterior portion may be curved inward (e.g., toward the anterior region), or may include a cutout region in the posterior end.
The shape of the apparatus (e.g., the expander), and therefore the load applied by the apparatus when worn, may be controlled and selected during the fabrication process. It may be particularly advantageous to provide a digital planning process in which a digital model of the patients upper jaw (e.g., teeth, palate and gingiva), and in some cases the subject's lower jaw (e.g., teeth and/or gingiva) may be modified to plan the series of expanders that morph between the patient's initial anatomy to an expanded configuration in which the final expanded configuration is described.
The palatal expanders described herein may include a tooth engagement region for engaging at least a portion of the teeth in the patient's upper jaw, in particular the molars and/or premolars, and a palatal region extending between the tooth engaging region that is configured to be positioned adjacent and opposite from the patient's palate when the device is worn by the patient. For example,
The tooth engagement regions may be formed of the same material(s) as the palatal region, or they may include different materials. In some variations, the breach region may be formed at the junction between the palatal region and the occlusal region, between the occlusal region and the buccal region, etc. The thickness of the tooth engagement regions and the palatal regions may be different or the same. In particular, the palatal region may be thicker than the tooth engagement region. The thickness of the tooth engagement region may be thicker along the lateral (e.g., buccal and/or lingual) sides of the device and thinner (or removed from) across all or a portion of the top of the tooth engagement region. The palatal region may have a non-uniform thickness. For example, the palatal expander may be thicker near the midline of the device. Any of the palatal expanders may include ribs or other supports (e.g., extending transversely between the tooth engagement regions and/or perpendicular to the tooth engagement regions). These ribs may be formed of the same material as the rest of the palatal region (e.g., but be thicker and/or shaped to have a cylindrical cross-sectional profile).
The inner (cavity) portion of the tooth engagement region is typically configured to conform to the outer contour of the patient's teeth, and to rest directly against the teeth and/or a portion of the gingiva (or to avoid the gingiva) to apply force thereto. The upper surface of the palatal region which is positioned adjacent to the palate when worn by the patient may be contoured to match the actual or predicted shape of the patient's palate. As mentioned above, all or a significant portion of the palatal region may be separated or spaced from the patient's palate when worn, which may enhance comfort and minimize disruption of speech.
In some variations, a portion of the palatal region extending between the opposite tooth engagement regions on either side of the device (e.g., a portion of the palatal region extending approximately z % of the distance between the tooth engagement regions, where z is greater than about 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, etc.) may be flat or straight, rather than curved, so that it does not necessarily follow the contour of the patient's mouth. This portion may be one or more transverse ribs, struts or supports, or it may be the flat sheet. Such a flat or straight portion may provide increase force. Alternatively or additionally, the palatal region (e.g., one or more ribs, the sheet, etc.) may be curved in an arc similar to the arc of the patient's palate, but may have a much larger radius of curvature (appearing as a shallower concavity) than the patient's palate.
Any of the palatal expanders described herein may include one or more attachment regions or sites (also referred to herein as attachment opening, attachment couplers, etc.) for coupling to an attachment connector on the patient's teeth. In particular, it may be helpful to use one or more (e.g., a pair) of attachment regions on each side of the device. Furthermore, the attachment sites may preferably be openings through the expander. An open structure (attachment site) on the orthodontic expander may interact with attachments (attachment connectors) located on teeth to improve the overall retention of the appliance and in some cases may be used to generate advantageous force features for teeth alignment, including limiting or preventing rolling of the teeth buccally as the palate is expanded. Such features may be helpful, in particular, when included as part of a directly fabricated (e.g., 3D printed) device for rapid (e.g., phase 1) palatal expansion. Further, although the attachment connector is typically bonded to one or more teeth and projects into a complimentary opening or cavity on the expander, this configuration may be revered in some or all of these; for example, the protruding attachment connector may be part of the expander which may insert into an opening/cavity bonded to the user's teeth. In some variations, a 3D printer that prints in multiple materials (including more elastic and/or lower strength materials) may be used directly print the apparatuses described herein, including the breach region(s) and/or locks.
Any appropriate attachment region may be used, and in particular any appropriate size and/or shape may be used. As mentioned, the attachment region may be an open structure on the appliance which may improve retention of the appliance over the attachments and possibly include force features for teeth alignment. For example the attachment region may comprise a round, oval, square, rectangular, triangular, etc. opening through the expander (e.g., at a lateral, e.g., buccal, side of the tooth regaining region of the expander. The attachment region may be keyed relative to the attachment connector; in general the attachment connector may be configured to mate with the attachment region in one or a particular orientation.
The exemplary palatal expander 150 in
As mentioned above in the additional detail below, the forces applied by the apparatus to expand a patient's palate may be applied to the teeth (e.g., the lingual side of the D, E or 6 teeth) and/or the palate, and particularly the lateral side of the palate, above gingival line but below the midline, either uniformly along the anterior-to-posterior direction (typically symmetrically on either side of the midline) or at different regions along the anterior-to-posterior direction.
In any of the palatal expanders described herein, openings or holes formed through the palatal expander may be included. For example, in some variations the region of the palatal expander otherwise covering the occlusive surface of the patient's teeth may be removed. For example, allowing a more natural bite. In some variations, the anterior (front region) of the palatal region extending between the opposite sides of the upper arch (e.g., the opposite tooth-receiving portions of the apparatus) may be removed or curved inward, so as to avoid interfering with speech. Alternatively or additionally, the poster (e.g., back) end of the palatal expander may be removed or curved in, anteriorly, to minimize or reduce invoking a gag reflex. In any of these variations the thicknesses may also be adjusted in addition or alternatively. For example, the thickness in the posterior region (e.g., the back 10%, 20% 30%, etc.) of the palatal expander may be thinner than the more anterior regions.
The apparatuses described herein may be configured as a system including attachments and an attachment template for positioning the attachments on the teeth, a series of palatal expanders that progressive expand the patient's palate, and a passive holder (e.g., retainer) to be worn after the series has widened the palate. For example,
Any of the examples described herein may be configured to include, for example: a detachment region (e.g., removal tab, slot, etc.), for example at the gingival edge gap and/or an extension to assist with appliance removal, a palatal expander identification marking (e.g., an expander identification number), etc.
In the exemplary active palatal expanders illustrated in
In general, the methods and apparatuses described herein may avoid the application of removal force on the attachment that is bonded to the patient's teeth, as this force may break and/or remove the attachment from the patient's teeth and may also interfere with the removal effort. Typically, the appliance itself is fairly rigid and resistant to bending, thus, bending may preferentially occur at the breach region(s). A breach region (e.g., bending region) may be formed in an appliance in a size and location so that when applying a force (e.g., pulling force), the appliance, or a region or the appliance typically over the attachments, will deflect in a pre-designed direction to des-engage the appliance from the attachments.
In addition to bending or breaking at a predetermined location and/or with a predetermined force profile, the breach regions described herein may be configured to create a spring effect to help with clasping the teeth when the appliance is mounted on the teeth. For removal, a controlled breakage may provide one way of making the removal easier. Controlled breakage of the breach region may be particularly useful for appliances that are disposable, e.g., single-use or “one time wear” appliances. Under a pre-determined force, the appliance will break in a way that will be easy to remove without additional force being necessary. Any of these apparatuses may be configured so that the broken edge(s) are atraumatic (e.g., not sharp) and/or configured to cleanly break without forming sharp edges, and/or avoiding small fragments. In some variations, a layer of film or coating on the appliance to avoid the spread of debris (or fragments or particles) in the mouth. The breach region may be configured as a breakage feature that permits the apparatus to break under a relatively low force that is applied in a specific location and/or orientation (e.g., a pulling force applied from the buccal side, etc.). The breach region may be configured as a breakage feature and may be combined with a folding feature so that at a lower force threshold the appliance may bend at the breach region, but a higher force may cause the appliance to controllably bend. In some variations the one or more breach regions may include a portion that breaks and a portion that bends, preventing small pieces from being released into the mouth. For example, approximately half of the breach region may break, while the remainder merely bends, releasing the device as a single (albeit broken) piece.
The breach region 467 shown in
Another example of a palatal expander 457 with a breach region 467″″ is shown in
Once the upper arch has been modeled (e.g., scanned, manually modeled, etc.), the palatal expanders may be designed 355. Typically, these designs may be configured to include any of the features described herein, and in particular, the breach region 356. The design process may include planning the final position of the teeth and/or palate, and designing intermediate palatal expanders to achieve the final configuration. The design process may include providing the location of the attachments on the teeth in order to provide both secure attachment as well as to move the teeth, and/or prevent substantial tipping of the teeth during expansion. The design process may be digitally performed using the digital model of the patient's upper arch. The design process may be automated or semi-automated.
In planning the treatment plan, including adding the breach region(s), the apparatus may be configured to include a breach region 356, as discussed above. The breach region may be positioned in different regions of the apparatus, so as to avoid interfering with the forces being applied to expand the subject's palate and/or move the subject's teeth. For example in some apparatuses in the series, the breach region may be located on a first (e.g., left) tooth engagement region, while in some palatal expanders, the breach region may be positioned on the second (e.g., right) tooth engagement region and/or on the palatal region, and/or between the palatal region and a tooth engagement region. The palatal expanders may or alternatively be configured to include one or more detachment regions; during the design process, the location and size of a detachment regions (including a fulcrum portion, if included) may be included. Each patient may need a custom design of the appliance features, such as the breach region and/or detachment regions; the shape, size, and/or location of attachments on the teeth may be configured to best cope with the patient specific dentition and the features, and thus the detachment features such as the breach region, attachment regions, detachment regions and/or base (fulcrum) regions may be adapted accordingly.
Once designed, the series of palatal expanders may be fabricated 357, and the template may be manufactured at the same time. Any appropriate fabrication technique may be used. For example, the method may include 3D printing, and/or lamination. Examples of these methods are provided below. The manufactured palatal expanders may then be sent 359 to the patient and/or to the dental professional who may instruct the patient in applying and removing the palatal expanders. The treatment may then be optionally monitored 361 to track the palatal expansion, including taking periodic (e.g., daily, weekly, bi-weekly, etc.) scans of all or a portion of the upper arch (palate, teeth, gingiva, etc.). The treatment may be adjusted to increase or decrease the rate of expansion, e.g., by redesigning the series of palatal expander and/or refabricating the palatal expanders. Once the sequence of palatal expanders has been worn, the patient may then wear the holder (e.g., retainer) to prevent relapse of the palate; the holder may be worn until the palatal suture has healed. The holder may be provided to the patient with the series of palatal expanders, or it may be (optionally) sent during the treatment or immediately after treatment 363.
At an operation 370, a virtual representation of a palatal surface may be gathered. The palatal surface may have a convex surface geometry with a size and a shape that mates with a palate of a patient. In some implementations, the size, shape, and/or other properties of the palatal surface are formed using impressions of a patient's palate, scans of a patient's palate, and/or incremental estimations of a patient's palate according to an orthodontic treatment plan. In various implementations, the size, shape, and/or other properties of the palatal surface are formed using visualization tools that display a 3D virtual rendering of the palatal surface as part of a 3D model of a palatal expander.
At an operation 372, a virtual representation of a lingual surface opposite to the palatal surface may be gathered. A “lingual surface” of a palatal expander, as used herein, may refer to a portion of a palatal expander that faces a patient's tongue when inserted into the patient's palate. The lingual surface of a palatal expander need not correspond to the lingual surface of teeth. The lingual surface of the palatal expander may have a concave surface geometry and may provide an air gap between the palatal expander and a patient's tongue. In various implementations, size, shape, thickness, contours, etc. of the lingual surface are formed using impressions of a patient's mouth and/or teeth, scans of a patient's mouth and/or teeth, and/or incremental estimations of a patient's mouth and/or teeth according to an orthodontic treatment plan. In various implementations, the size, shape, and/or other properties of the lingual surface are formed using visualization tools that display a 3D virtual rendering of the lingual surface as part of a 3D model of a palatal expander.
At an operation 374, a virtual representation of a plurality of sidewalls surrounding at least a portion of the palatal surface and the lingual surface may be gathered. At an operation 376, a virtual representation of a body may be gathered. The virtual representations of the sidewalls and/or the body may be formed using, again, impressions of a patient's mouth and/or teeth, scans of a patient's mouth and/or teeth, and/or incremental estimations of a patient's mouth and/or teeth according to an orthodontic treatment plan. The virtual representations of the sidewalls and/or the body may be formed using visualization tools that display a 3D virtual rendering of these structures as part of a 3D model of a palatal expander. In some implementations, the virtual representations of the sidewalls and/or the body may provide virtual representations of force(s) that result when the resulting palatal expander has been inserted into a patient's mouth. These forces may be modeled by force system(s) and/or other virtual systems described herein.
At an operation 378, a virtual representation of one or more breach regions may be gathered. In various implementations, breach regions may be identified on the virtual representation of the body of the palatal expander. As examples, a designer and/or an automated agent may identify specific regions of the body that can absorb removal forces and cause the palatal expander to deform when those removal forces are applied. A designer and/or automated agent may identify one or more fulcra to direct removal forces to various breach regions as well. The designer and/or automated agent may identify and/or gather materials, shape(s), etc. that form the basis of breach regions. In some implementations, the breach region(s) are modeled on the 3D virtual representation of the body of the palatal expander.
At an operation 380, instructions to manufacture the palatal expander using the virtual representation of a palatal surface may be provided. In various implementations, a computer-aided design (CAD) file or model is stored, streamed, etc. on a system that can manufacture the palatal expander. At an operation 382, the palatal expander may be formed by three-dimensional (3D) printing using the instructions to manufacture the palatal expander. More specifically, a 3D printer may use the CAD file or model to create various features of a palatal expander that can be removed from a patient's mouth.
As mentioned above, any of these methods and apparatuses may include palatal expanders with one or more removal/release features including a breach region.
In
In
The design (size, shape, prominence and location) of the attachments on the teeth and/or the apparatus may be configured to assist with insertion and still be highly retentive. Similarly, the detachment (release) features may be configured to allow retention until release is manually triggered by the patient.
In general, any of the shell apparatuses described herein may include a breach region that is configured as a hinge region. The breach region may be located on the apparatus before the occlusal surface but above the attachment regions (if present) coupling to one or more tooth attachment(s). The breach region may break of bend to disengage the apparatus from the teeth. For example, a hinge design with a finger access may be included to allow disengaging the device from the retention attachment for easier removal.
In some variations, the release mechanism may include a lock or other region that may require activation (e.g., by deforming, squeezing, etc.) before it can be released. For example, the palatal expander may be squeezed or deformed (e.g., by biting down on the palatal expander first) before pulling at a release on the palatal expander (e.g., using a fingernail) to release the aligner when also releasing the biting down onto the palatal expander. Thus, another part of the device may be modified or deformed begin disengaging the device from the retention attachment.
In
In general, the handles/detachment features may be configured so that it/they do/does not protrude more than a short (e.g., 1-3 mm, e.g., 2-3 mm, 1-2 mm, etc.) distance beyond the distance offset from the buccal aspect of the teeth in the direction of the gums.
In
Devices for removing a dental apparatus, and particularly a palatal expander, must have sufficient stiffness and leverage to apply the desired pulling force in an easy manner and without harming the patient. For example, in some apparatuses, there is a need to apply a significant force on the arch and palate during normal wear of the apparatus; this force may be greater than about 50 Newtons (N). As a result, the removal force (pulling force) may be considerable and the removal of the appliance may otherwise be difficult. As discussed above, the apparatuses described herein may address these issues, for example, by making the appliance easier to remove by including one or more breach regions enhancing bending and controlled breakage. The removal tools described herein may also address this need.
Any of the apparatuses described herein may be configured to interface with one or more customized tools or human finger. Optionally the interface between the removal tool and the appliance may create a force system that will direct all the force to bending in the designated direction of the breach region, thus enabling the removal of the appliance with minimal force.
In
For example,
A removal tool may be configured to be actuated by a control. For example,
In use, any of the apparatuses described herein may be inserted by the patient, and/or by a dental professional. For example, a patient may be provided with instructions for inserting a palatal expander including first brushing and flossing the teeth. The patient may also confirm (e.g., by reading the markings on the palatal expander) that it is the correct device. The palatal expander may then be cleaned, e.g., with a soft bristle toothbrush, water and a small amount of toothpaste) and rinsed (e.g., with cold tap water). As shown in
Similarly, the patient (or a patient's caregiver, parent, etc.) may remove the device, as shown in
Once compressed, the engagement regions of the tool may be inserted securely into a pair of detachment regions on the palatal expander 1709. The handles may then be pulled away from each other (or released so that a bias, such as a spring, may separate them), so that the engagement regions can engage within the detachment regions of the appliance, as shown in
In some variations, the tool may engage securely with the appliance, so that the handles can again be brought closer together, opposing the laterally outward force applied by the appliance, and allowing it to compress; if a breach region is present (e.g., between the attachment sites) on the appliance, the appliance may bend or break at the breach region, making it easier to remove the apparatus.
In
In
Any of the variations the apparatuses described herein may be configured so that the palatal expander is locked onto the patients upper arch when worn, and may be unlocked to facilitate removal from the teeth. For example, the apparatuses described herein may include a lock which may include a release control (e.g., latch, lever, switch, tab, arm, snap, etc.) that engage with a stay to secure the palatal expander to the teeth until the lock is release, e.g., by operating the release control to disengage the lock from the stay. In some variations the lock and/or release control portion of the lock is on or integrated with the palatal expander. For example, the release control may be a latch, bar, pin, tab, snap, arm, switch, lever, etc., that is part of the palatal expander and engages a stay that is formed on and/or from an attachment bonded (or to be bonded) to the patient's teeth. Alternatively or additionally, the release control is part of the attachment bonded to the patient's teeth which engages a stay on the palatal expander. The stay may include a channel, hollow, check, cleat, hook, catch, clasp, hasp, etc., that engages with the release control to secure (or release) the lock.
The apparatuses described herein may generally be configured to provide sufficient retention under the palatal resistive force to prevent the palatal expander from moving, loosening, or accidental removal, but may be further configured to allow for removal with a physiologically-relevant amount of force, e.g., a force that can be easily applied by patient/caregiver, in order to release the device from the retention attachments. As mentioned, the retention attachments may be locking. Thus, the retention features described herein may provide high retention, e.g., when locked, but may have a relatively low force to disengage and/or dislodge the palatal expander from the retention attachments.
Additive manufacturing can make prefabricated attachments with complex geometries and accuracy. Also, complex logging features can be formed on palatal expanders as they are made via additive manufacturing. This disclosure introduces retention features that have the advantage of providing high retention, but requiring low force to dislodge from the retention attachments.
For example, described herein are attachments that may be configured as either the release control of the lock or as the stay to which the release control secures. For example, the attachment may be a stay configured to bond to the teeth and include a channel, hollow, cleat, hook or catch (generically, a stay) forming an opening and/or channel into which the release control on the palatal expander couples to releasably lock the palatal expander to the attachment and therefore to the patient's teeth.
Any of the variations described herein may also aid in removal of the palatal expander by allowing the palatal expander to be, in a relaxed state, biased to uncouple from the patient's palate and/or teeth so that it can be removed readily unless the lock(s) holding the palatal expander to the teeth are disengaged.
For example,
Any of the release controls described herein may be configured as biased release controls. For example, the release control may include a spring, elastic, or other force retaining/releasing element. For example,
In any of the apparatuses described herein, a plurality of locks may be used to secure the palatal expander to the patient's teeth. For example, two or more locks (e.g., each comprising a release control and engaging with a stay) may be used to secure and release the palatal expander from the patient's teeth. The locks may be symmetrically arranged (e.g., one either side of a line of symmetry extending through the midline of the palatal expander). As mentioned, the locks may be configured on the buccal side of the palatal expander and configured to secure the palatal expander to the teeth.
As mentioned above, the palatal expansion apparatuses described herein may be worn as a series of expanders by a patient. Various properties and characteristics of the inventive palatal expanders are described herein both in general and with reference to specific examples. Any of these features and characteristics, including the arrangement of features, may be incorporated into a palatal expander. These palatal expanders, which may be interchangeably referred to as palatal expansion shell apparatuses, may be configured to apply force within the patient's mouth to expand the patient's maxilla. The patients may be any appropriate patient, and particularly children from ages 7 to 9 years old, e.g., following eruption of the first permanent molars. These apparatuses may be used to expand the patient's palate between 4 and 12 mm or more.
The palatal expanders and/or attachments described herein may be formed of a single, monolithic material (e.g., by a 3D printing technique, etc.) or they may be formed in parts, e.g., by layering, thermosetting, etc.
The methods an apparatuses described herein may be used to treat young pre-pubertal subjects when a child's mouth has grown sufficiently to address the structure of the jaw and teeth while the primary teeth are still in the mouth. Palatal expansion may be used prior to aligner treatment; during this treatment, arch development occurs by increasing arch width or depth via dental or palatal expansion to create space for more permanent teeth to erupt. Typically aligners may not produce the required minimum transverse force needed for skeletal palatal expansion.
The palatal expander systems described herein may assist in skeletal and dental arch development. An example system may consist of a series of transpalatal arch feature that is intended to produce palatal expansion. The feature is designed to move/expand the palate by expanding the maxillary arch outwards buccolingually for transverse palatal size increases by exerting force on the maxillary posterior teeth. There will be no planned treatment for lower arch for the early feasibility clinical study. The expander wear time will be full-time. There are a series of expanders that are exchanged daily, with an expansion rate of 0.25 mm/day. The number of expanders is determined by the amount of expansion desired. This also determines the amount of time the expansion will be performed. The device is manufactured after obtaining digital impression scans of the child's teeth and palate. Thus, the palatal expander devices may be removed or replaced during the treatment, and may include any of the features descried herein to enhance removal. Patients are recommended to wear the device for a 24-hour period each day. Each device is recommended to wear for 1 day. The patient is requested to eat with the device as normally would. It is suggested that the patient remove the device before bedtime, brush their teeth before placing the next device.
The potential benefits of this treatment may include expansion of palate and arches, potentially correcting harmful and detrimental malocclusals. Expanding the palate may allow more space for permanent teeth to erupt, due to the space provided. Because the expanders are removable, patient hygiene may be improved. Because the expanders are made to the patient's anatomy, comfort may be improved without requiring the use of metal screws or brackets to irritate the tongue or palate. Expansion of the palate may improve the ability for the patient to breathe, increasing airway in nasal and areas.
The methods of treatment described herein may include a series of doctor-prescribed, custom manufactured, plastic removable orthodontic appliances that are designed for the expansion of the skeletally narrow maxilla (upper jaw, dental arch and/or palate) during early interceptive treatment of malocclusal. These apparatuses may be intended for use to expand the skeletally narrow maxilla (upper jaw, dental arch and/or palate).
Any of the apparatuses described herein may be used with (e.g., in conjunction with) a fixed skeletal expander and/or oral surgery, to correct severe crowding or jaw imbalances. If oral surgery is required, risks associated with anesthesia and proper healing must be taken into account prior to treatment.
Any of the features and methods described herein for palatal expanders may be applied to other removable orthodontic appliances, including in particular dental aligners. For example, the detachment regions, breach (e.g., hinge) regions, slots/slits, removal tools, etc., described herein may be similarly incorporated into a dental aligner or series of dental aligners. Thus, in the description above, unless the context makes it clear otherwise, the term “palatal expander” may be replaced with the term “dental aligner”.
In addition, although the examples described herein are illustrated in the context of palatal expanders for use with one or more attachments on the teeth, these apparatuses and methods may be used for apparatuses that do not include attachments. For example, detachment regions, smoothed lower surfaces, and the like may be used with palatal expanders that do not include attachment regions (for mating with an attachment on a tooth).
When a feature or element is herein referred to as being “on” another feature or element, it can be directly on the other feature or element or intervening features and/or elements may also be present. In contrast, when a feature or element is referred to as being “directly on” another feature or element, there are no intervening features or elements present. It will also be understood that, when a feature or element is referred to as being “connected”, “attached” or “coupled” to another feature or element, it can be directly connected, attached or coupled to the other feature or element or intervening features or elements may be present. In contrast, when a feature or element is referred to as being “directly connected”, “directly attached” or “directly coupled” to another feature or element, there are no intervening features or elements present. Although described or shown with respect to one embodiment, the features and elements so described or shown can apply to other embodiments. It will also be appreciated by those of skill in the art that references to a structure or feature that is disposed “adjacent” another feature may have portions that overlap or underlie the adjacent feature.
Terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. For example, as used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items and may be abbreviated as “/”.
Spatially relative terms, such as “under”, “below”, “lower”, “over”, “upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if a device in the figures is inverted, elements described as “under” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “over” the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “under” can encompass both an orientation of over and under. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly. Similarly, the terms “upwardly”, “downwardly”, “vertical”, “horizontal” and the like are used herein for the purpose of explanation only unless specifically indicated otherwise.
Although the terms “first” and “second” may be used herein to describe various features/elements (including steps), these features/elements should not be limited by these terms, unless the context indicates otherwise. These terms may be used to distinguish one feature/element from another feature/element. Thus, a first feature/element discussed below could be termed a second feature/element, and similarly, a second feature/element discussed below could be termed a first feature/element without departing from the teachings of the present invention.
Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context requires otherwise, the word “comprise”, and variations such as “comprises” and “comprising” means various components can be co-jointly employed in the methods and articles (e.g., compositions and apparatuses including device and methods). For example, the term “comprising” will be understood to imply the inclusion of any stated elements or steps but not the exclusion of any other elements or steps.
In general, any of the apparatuses and methods described herein should be understood to be inclusive, but all or a sub-set of the components and/or steps may alternatively be exclusive, and may be expressed as “consisting of” or alternatively “consisting essentially of” the various components, steps, sub-components or sub-steps.
As used herein in the specification and claims, including as used in the examples and unless otherwise expressly specified, all numbers may be read as if prefaced by the word “about” or “approximately,” even if the term does not expressly appear. The phrase “about” or “approximately” may be used when describing magnitude and/or position to indicate that the value and/or position described is within a reasonable expected range of values and/or positions. For example, a numeric value may have a value that is +/−0.1% of the stated value (or range of values), +/−1% of the stated value (or range of values), +/−2% of the stated value (or range of values), +/−5% of the stated value (or range of values), +/−10% of the stated value (or range of values), etc. Any numerical values given herein should also be understood to include about or approximately that value, unless the context indicates otherwise. For example, if the value “10” is disclosed, then “about 10” is also disclosed. Any numerical range recited herein is intended to include all sub-ranges subsumed therein. It is also understood that when a value is disclosed that “less than or equal to” the value, “greater than or equal to the value” and possible ranges between values are also disclosed, as appropriately understood by the skilled artisan. For example, if the value “X” is disclosed the “less than or equal to X” as well as “greater than or equal to X” (e.g., where X is a numerical value) is also disclosed. It is also understood that the throughout the application, data is provided in a number of different formats, and that this data, represents endpoints and starting points, and ranges for any combination of the data points. For example, if a particular data point “10” and a particular data point “15” are disclosed, it is understood that greater than, greater than or equal to, less than, less than or equal to, and equal to 10 and 15 are considered disclosed as well as between 10 and 15. It is also understood that each unit between two particular units are also disclosed. For example, if 10 and 15 are disclosed, then 11, 12, 13, and 14 are also disclosed.
Although various illustrative embodiments are described above, any of a number of changes may be made to various embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention as described by the claims. For example, the order in which various described method steps are performed may often be changed in alternative embodiments, and in other alternative embodiments one or more method steps may be skipped altogether. Optional features of various device and system embodiments may be included in some embodiments and not in others. Therefore, the foregoing description is provided primarily for exemplary purposes and should not be interpreted to limit the scope of the invention as it is set forth in the claims.
The examples and illustrations included herein show, by way of illustration and not of limitation, specific embodiments in which the subject matter may be practiced. As mentioned, other embodiments may be utilized and derived there from, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred to herein individually or collectively by the term “invention” merely for convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of this application to any single invention or inventive concept, if more than one is, in fact, disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, any arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments. Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description.
This patent application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/656,289, filed on Apr. 11, 2018, titled “RELEASABLE PALATAL EXPANDERS,” and to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/735,658, filed on Sep. 24, 2018, titled “RELEASABLE PALATAL EXPANDERS,” each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. This patent application may also be related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/831,159, titled “PALATAL EXPANDERS AND METHODS OF EXPANDING A PALATE,” filed on Dec. 4, 2017, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/429,692, filed on Dec. 2, 2016 (titled “METHODS OF FABRICATING PALATAL EXPANDERS”), and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/542,750, filed on Aug. 8, 2017 (titled “PALATAL EXPANDERS AND METHODS OF EXPANDING A PALATE”), each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. This application may be related to US Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0081768 (titled “ARCH EXPANDING APPLIANCE”) and US Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0081769 (titled “ARCH ADJUSTMENT APPLIANCE”), each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
2098867 | Baxter | Nov 1937 | A |
2171695 | Harper | Sep 1939 | A |
2194790 | Jeno et al. | Mar 1940 | A |
2467432 | Kesling | Apr 1949 | A |
2531222 | Kesling | Nov 1950 | A |
2818065 | Freed | Dec 1957 | A |
3089487 | Enicks et al. | May 1963 | A |
3092907 | Traiger | Jun 1963 | A |
3162948 | Gerber | Dec 1964 | A |
3178820 | Kesling | Apr 1965 | A |
3211143 | Grossberg | Oct 1965 | A |
3277892 | Tepper | Oct 1966 | A |
3379193 | Monsghan | Apr 1968 | A |
3385291 | Martin | May 1968 | A |
3407500 | Kesling | Oct 1968 | A |
3478742 | Bohlmann | Nov 1969 | A |
3496936 | Gores | Feb 1970 | A |
3533163 | Kirschenbaum | Oct 1970 | A |
3556093 | Quick | Jan 1971 | A |
3600808 | Reeve | Aug 1971 | A |
3660900 | Andrews | May 1972 | A |
3683502 | Wallshein | Aug 1972 | A |
3724075 | Kesling et al. | Apr 1973 | A |
3738005 | Cohen et al. | Jun 1973 | A |
3797115 | Cohen et al. | Mar 1974 | A |
3860803 | Levine | Jan 1975 | A |
3885310 | Northcutt | May 1975 | A |
3916526 | Schudy | Nov 1975 | A |
3922786 | Lavin | Dec 1975 | A |
3949477 | Cohen et al. | Apr 1976 | A |
3950851 | Bergersen | Apr 1976 | A |
3955282 | Mcnall | May 1976 | A |
3983628 | Acevedo | Oct 1976 | A |
4014096 | Dellinger | Mar 1977 | A |
4055895 | Huge | Nov 1977 | A |
4094068 | Schinhammer | Jun 1978 | A |
4117596 | Wallshein | Oct 1978 | A |
4129946 | Kennedy | Dec 1978 | A |
4134208 | Pearlman | Jan 1979 | A |
4139944 | Bergersen | Feb 1979 | A |
4179811 | Hinz | Dec 1979 | A |
4179812 | White | Dec 1979 | A |
4183141 | Dellinger et al. | Jan 1980 | A |
4195046 | Kesling | Mar 1980 | A |
4204325 | Kaelble | May 1980 | A |
4253828 | Coles | Mar 1981 | A |
4255138 | Frohn | Mar 1981 | A |
4299568 | Crowley | Nov 1981 | A |
4324546 | Heitlinger et al. | Apr 1982 | A |
4324547 | Arcan et al. | Apr 1982 | A |
4348178 | Kurz | Sep 1982 | A |
4368040 | Weissman | Jan 1983 | A |
4419992 | Chorbajian | Dec 1983 | A |
4433956 | Witzig | Feb 1984 | A |
4433960 | Garito et al. | Feb 1984 | A |
4439154 | Mayclin | Mar 1984 | A |
4449928 | Von | May 1984 | A |
4478580 | Barrut | Oct 1984 | A |
4500294 | Lewis | Feb 1985 | A |
4505672 | Kurz | Mar 1985 | A |
4505673 | Yoshii | Mar 1985 | A |
4519386 | Sullivan | May 1985 | A |
4523908 | Drisaldi et al. | Jun 1985 | A |
4526540 | Dellinger | Jul 1985 | A |
4553936 | Wang | Nov 1985 | A |
4575330 | Hull | Mar 1986 | A |
4575805 | Moermann et al. | Mar 1986 | A |
4591341 | Andrews | May 1986 | A |
4592725 | Goshgarian | Jun 1986 | A |
4608021 | Barrett | Aug 1986 | A |
4609349 | Cain | Sep 1986 | A |
4611288 | Duret et al. | Sep 1986 | A |
4629424 | Lauks et al. | Dec 1986 | A |
4638145 | Sakuma et al. | Jan 1987 | A |
4656860 | Orthuber et al. | Apr 1987 | A |
4663720 | Duret et al. | May 1987 | A |
4664626 | Kesling | May 1987 | A |
4665621 | Ackerman et al. | May 1987 | A |
4676747 | Kesling | Jun 1987 | A |
4755139 | Abbatte et al. | Jul 1988 | A |
4757824 | Chaumet | Jul 1988 | A |
4763791 | Halverson et al. | Aug 1988 | A |
4764111 | Knierim | Aug 1988 | A |
4790752 | Cheslak | Dec 1988 | A |
4793803 | Martz | Dec 1988 | A |
4798534 | Breads | Jan 1989 | A |
4830612 | Bergersen | May 1989 | A |
4836778 | Baumrind et al. | Jun 1989 | A |
4837732 | Brandestini et al. | Jun 1989 | A |
4850864 | Diamond | Jul 1989 | A |
4850865 | Napolitano | Jul 1989 | A |
4856991 | Breads et al. | Aug 1989 | A |
4877398 | Kesling | Oct 1989 | A |
4880380 | Martz | Nov 1989 | A |
4886451 | Cetlin | Dec 1989 | A |
4889238 | Batchelor | Dec 1989 | A |
4890608 | Steer | Jan 1990 | A |
4901737 | Toone | Feb 1990 | A |
4932866 | Guis | Jun 1990 | A |
4935635 | O'Harra | Jun 1990 | A |
4936862 | Walker et al. | Jun 1990 | A |
4937392 | Imanari et al. | Jun 1990 | A |
4937928 | van der Zel | Jul 1990 | A |
4941826 | Loran et al. | Jul 1990 | A |
4952928 | Carroll et al. | Aug 1990 | A |
4964770 | Steinbichler et al. | Oct 1990 | A |
4971557 | Martin | Nov 1990 | A |
4975052 | Spencer et al. | Dec 1990 | A |
4976614 | Tepper | Dec 1990 | A |
4983334 | Adell | Jan 1991 | A |
4997369 | Shafir | Mar 1991 | A |
5002485 | Aagesen | Mar 1991 | A |
5011405 | Lemchen | Apr 1991 | A |
5015183 | Fenick | May 1991 | A |
5017133 | Miura | May 1991 | A |
5018969 | Andreiko et al. | May 1991 | A |
5027281 | Rekow et al. | Jun 1991 | A |
5035613 | Breads et al. | Jul 1991 | A |
5037295 | Bergersen | Aug 1991 | A |
5055039 | Abbatte et al. | Oct 1991 | A |
5061839 | Matsuno et al. | Oct 1991 | A |
5083919 | Quach | Jan 1992 | A |
5094614 | Wildman | Mar 1992 | A |
5100316 | Wildman | Mar 1992 | A |
5103838 | Yousif | Apr 1992 | A |
5114339 | Guis | May 1992 | A |
5121333 | Riley et al. | Jun 1992 | A |
5123425 | Shannon et al. | Jun 1992 | A |
5128870 | Erdman et al. | Jul 1992 | A |
5130064 | Smalley et al. | Jul 1992 | A |
5131843 | Hilgers et al. | Jul 1992 | A |
5131844 | Marinaccio et al. | Jul 1992 | A |
5139419 | Andreiko et al. | Aug 1992 | A |
5145364 | Martz et al. | Sep 1992 | A |
5176517 | Truax | Jan 1993 | A |
5194003 | Garay et al. | Mar 1993 | A |
5204670 | Stinton | Apr 1993 | A |
5222499 | Allen et al. | Jun 1993 | A |
5224049 | Mushabac | Jun 1993 | A |
5238404 | Andreiko | Aug 1993 | A |
5242304 | Truax et al. | Sep 1993 | A |
5245592 | Kuemmel et al. | Sep 1993 | A |
5273429 | Rekow et al. | Dec 1993 | A |
5278756 | Lemchen et al. | Jan 1994 | A |
5306144 | Hibst et al. | Apr 1994 | A |
5312247 | Sachdeva et al. | May 1994 | A |
5324186 | Bakanowski | Jun 1994 | A |
5328362 | Watson et al. | Jul 1994 | A |
5335657 | Terry et al. | Aug 1994 | A |
5338198 | Wu et al. | Aug 1994 | A |
5340309 | Robertson | Aug 1994 | A |
5342202 | Deshayes | Aug 1994 | A |
5344315 | Hanson | Sep 1994 | A |
5354201 | Wilson et al. | Oct 1994 | A |
5368478 | Andreiko et al. | Nov 1994 | A |
5372502 | Massen et al. | Dec 1994 | A |
D354355 | Hilgers | Jan 1995 | S |
5382164 | Stern | Jan 1995 | A |
5395238 | Andreiko et al. | Mar 1995 | A |
5415542 | Kesling | May 1995 | A |
5431562 | Andreiko et al. | Jul 1995 | A |
5440326 | Quinn | Aug 1995 | A |
5440496 | Andersson et al. | Aug 1995 | A |
5447432 | Andreiko et al. | Sep 1995 | A |
5449703 | Mitra et al. | Sep 1995 | A |
5452219 | Dehoff et al. | Sep 1995 | A |
5454717 | Andreiko et al. | Oct 1995 | A |
5456600 | Andreiko et al. | Oct 1995 | A |
5474448 | Andreiko et al. | Dec 1995 | A |
5487662 | Kipke et al. | Jan 1996 | A |
RE35169 | Lemchen et al. | Mar 1996 | E |
5499633 | Fenton | Mar 1996 | A |
5522725 | Jordan et al. | Jun 1996 | A |
5528735 | Strasnick et al. | Jun 1996 | A |
5533895 | Andreiko et al. | Jul 1996 | A |
5540732 | Testerman | Jul 1996 | A |
5542842 | Andreiko et al. | Aug 1996 | A |
5543780 | McAuley et al. | Aug 1996 | A |
5549476 | Stern | Aug 1996 | A |
5562448 | Mushabac | Oct 1996 | A |
5570182 | Nathel et al. | Oct 1996 | A |
5575655 | Darnell | Nov 1996 | A |
5583977 | Seidl | Dec 1996 | A |
5587912 | Andersson et al. | Dec 1996 | A |
5588098 | Chen et al. | Dec 1996 | A |
5605459 | Kuroda et al. | Feb 1997 | A |
5607305 | Andersson et al. | Mar 1997 | A |
5614075 | Andre | Mar 1997 | A |
5621648 | Crump | Apr 1997 | A |
5626537 | Danyo et al. | May 1997 | A |
5636736 | Jacobs et al. | Jun 1997 | A |
5645420 | Bergersen | Jul 1997 | A |
5645421 | Slootsky | Jul 1997 | A |
5651671 | Seay et al. | Jul 1997 | A |
5655653 | Chester | Aug 1997 | A |
5659420 | Wakai et al. | Aug 1997 | A |
5683243 | Andreiko et al. | Nov 1997 | A |
5683244 | Truax | Nov 1997 | A |
5691539 | Pfeiffer | Nov 1997 | A |
5692894 | Schwartz et al. | Dec 1997 | A |
5711665 | Adam et al. | Jan 1998 | A |
5711666 | Hanson | Jan 1998 | A |
5725376 | Poirier | Mar 1998 | A |
5725378 | Wang | Mar 1998 | A |
5730151 | Summer et al. | Mar 1998 | A |
5737084 | Ishihara | Apr 1998 | A |
5740267 | Echerer et al. | Apr 1998 | A |
5742700 | Yoon et al. | Apr 1998 | A |
5769631 | Williams | Jun 1998 | A |
5774425 | Ivanov et al. | Jun 1998 | A |
5790242 | Stern et al. | Aug 1998 | A |
5799100 | Clarke et al. | Aug 1998 | A |
5800162 | Shimodaira et al. | Sep 1998 | A |
5800174 | Andersson | Sep 1998 | A |
5813854 | Nikodem | Sep 1998 | A |
5816800 | Brehm et al. | Oct 1998 | A |
5818587 | Devaraj et al. | Oct 1998 | A |
5823778 | Schmitt et al. | Oct 1998 | A |
5848115 | Little et al. | Dec 1998 | A |
5857853 | van Nifterick et al. | Jan 1999 | A |
5866058 | Batchelder et al. | Feb 1999 | A |
5876199 | Bergersen | Mar 1999 | A |
5879158 | Doyle et al. | Mar 1999 | A |
5880961 | Crump | Mar 1999 | A |
5880962 | Andersson et al. | Mar 1999 | A |
5882192 | Bergersen | Mar 1999 | A |
5886702 | Migdal et al. | Mar 1999 | A |
5890896 | Padial | Apr 1999 | A |
5904479 | Staples | May 1999 | A |
5934288 | Avila et al. | Aug 1999 | A |
5957686 | Anthony | Sep 1999 | A |
5964587 | Sato | Oct 1999 | A |
5971754 | Sondhi et al. | Oct 1999 | A |
5975893 | Chishti et al. | Nov 1999 | A |
5975906 | Knutson | Nov 1999 | A |
5980246 | Ramsay et al. | Nov 1999 | A |
5989023 | Summer et al. | Nov 1999 | A |
6002706 | Staver et al. | Dec 1999 | A |
6018713 | Coli et al. | Jan 2000 | A |
6044309 | Honda | Mar 2000 | A |
6049743 | Baba | Apr 2000 | A |
6053731 | Heckenberger | Apr 2000 | A |
6068482 | Snow | May 2000 | A |
6070140 | Tran | May 2000 | A |
6099303 | Gibbs et al. | Aug 2000 | A |
6099314 | Kopelman et al. | Aug 2000 | A |
6102701 | Engeron | Aug 2000 | A |
6120287 | Chen | Sep 2000 | A |
6123544 | Cleary | Sep 2000 | A |
6142780 | Burgio | Nov 2000 | A |
6152731 | Jordan et al. | Nov 2000 | A |
6154676 | Levine | Nov 2000 | A |
6183248 | Chishti et al. | Feb 2001 | B1 |
6183249 | Brennan et al. | Feb 2001 | B1 |
6186780 | Hibst et al. | Feb 2001 | B1 |
6190165 | Andreiko et al. | Feb 2001 | B1 |
6200133 | Kittelsen | Mar 2001 | B1 |
6201880 | Elbaum et al. | Mar 2001 | B1 |
6210162 | Chishti et al. | Apr 2001 | B1 |
6212435 | Lattner et al. | Apr 2001 | B1 |
6213767 | Dixon et al. | Apr 2001 | B1 |
6217334 | Hultgren | Apr 2001 | B1 |
6227850 | Chishti et al. | May 2001 | B1 |
6230142 | Benigno et al. | May 2001 | B1 |
6231338 | De Josselin De Jong et al. | May 2001 | B1 |
6238745 | Morita et al. | May 2001 | B1 |
6239705 | Glen | May 2001 | B1 |
6243601 | Wist | Jun 2001 | B1 |
6263234 | Engelhardt et al. | Jul 2001 | B1 |
6283761 | Joao | Sep 2001 | B1 |
6288138 | Yamamoto et al. | Sep 2001 | B1 |
6299438 | Sahagian et al. | Oct 2001 | B1 |
6299440 | Phan et al. | Oct 2001 | B1 |
6309215 | Phan et al. | Oct 2001 | B1 |
6313432 | Nagata et al. | Nov 2001 | B1 |
6315553 | Sachdeva et al. | Nov 2001 | B1 |
6328745 | Ascherman | Dec 2001 | B1 |
6332774 | Chikami | Dec 2001 | B1 |
6334073 | Levine | Dec 2001 | B1 |
6350120 | Sachdeva et al. | Feb 2002 | B1 |
6364660 | Durbin et al. | Apr 2002 | B1 |
6382975 | Poirier | May 2002 | B1 |
6386878 | Pavlovskaia et al. | May 2002 | B1 |
6394802 | Hahn | May 2002 | B1 |
6402510 | Williams | Jun 2002 | B1 |
6402707 | Ernst | Jun 2002 | B1 |
6405729 | Thornton | Jun 2002 | B1 |
6406292 | Chishti et al. | Jun 2002 | B1 |
6409504 | Jones et al. | Jun 2002 | B1 |
6413086 | Womack | Jul 2002 | B1 |
6414264 | Von Falkenhausen | Jul 2002 | B1 |
6414708 | Carmeli et al. | Jul 2002 | B1 |
6435871 | Inman | Aug 2002 | B1 |
6436058 | Krahner et al. | Aug 2002 | B1 |
6441354 | Seghatol et al. | Aug 2002 | B1 |
6450167 | David et al. | Sep 2002 | B1 |
6450807 | Chishti et al. | Sep 2002 | B1 |
6462301 | Scott et al. | Oct 2002 | B1 |
6470338 | Rizzo et al. | Oct 2002 | B1 |
6471511 | Chishti et al. | Oct 2002 | B1 |
6471512 | Sachdeva | Oct 2002 | B1 |
6471970 | Fanara et al. | Oct 2002 | B1 |
6482002 | Jordan et al. | Nov 2002 | B2 |
6482298 | Bhatnagar | Nov 2002 | B1 |
6496814 | Busche | Dec 2002 | B1 |
6496816 | Thiesson et al. | Dec 2002 | B1 |
6499026 | Rivette et al. | Dec 2002 | B1 |
6499995 | Schwartz | Dec 2002 | B1 |
6507832 | Evans et al. | Jan 2003 | B1 |
6514074 | Chishti et al. | Feb 2003 | B1 |
6515593 | Stark et al. | Feb 2003 | B1 |
6516288 | Bagne | Feb 2003 | B2 |
6516805 | Thornton | Feb 2003 | B1 |
6520772 | Williams | Feb 2003 | B2 |
6523009 | Wilkins | Feb 2003 | B1 |
6523019 | Borthwick | Feb 2003 | B1 |
6524101 | Phan et al. | Feb 2003 | B1 |
6526168 | Ornes et al. | Feb 2003 | B1 |
6526982 | Strong | Mar 2003 | B1 |
6529891 | Heckerman | Mar 2003 | B1 |
6529902 | Kanevsky et al. | Mar 2003 | B1 |
6532455 | Martin et al. | Mar 2003 | B1 |
6535865 | Skaaning et al. | Mar 2003 | B1 |
6540512 | Sachdeva et al. | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6540707 | Stark et al. | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6542593 | Bowman Amuah | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6542881 | Meidan et al. | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6542894 | Lee et al. | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6542903 | Hull et al. | Apr 2003 | B2 |
6551243 | Bocionek et al. | Apr 2003 | B2 |
6554837 | Hauri et al. | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6556659 | Bowman Amuah | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6556977 | Lapointe et al. | Apr 2003 | B1 |
6560592 | Reid et al. | May 2003 | B1 |
6564209 | Dempski et al. | May 2003 | B1 |
6567814 | Bankier et al. | May 2003 | B1 |
6571227 | Agrafiotis et al. | May 2003 | B1 |
6572372 | Phan et al. | Jun 2003 | B1 |
6573998 | Cohen-Sabban | Jun 2003 | B2 |
6574561 | Alexander et al. | Jun 2003 | B2 |
6578003 | Camarda et al. | Jun 2003 | B1 |
6580948 | Haupert et al. | Jun 2003 | B2 |
6587529 | Staszewski et al. | Jul 2003 | B1 |
6587828 | Sachdeva | Jul 2003 | B1 |
6592368 | Weathers, Jr. | Jul 2003 | B1 |
6594539 | Geng | Jul 2003 | B1 |
6595342 | Maritzen et al. | Jul 2003 | B1 |
6597934 | De Jong et al. | Jul 2003 | B1 |
6598043 | Baclawski | Jul 2003 | B1 |
6599250 | Webb et al. | Jul 2003 | B2 |
6602070 | Miller et al. | Aug 2003 | B2 |
6604527 | Palmisano | Aug 2003 | B1 |
6606744 | Mikurak | Aug 2003 | B1 |
6607382 | Kuo et al. | Aug 2003 | B1 |
6611783 | Kelly et al. | Aug 2003 | B2 |
6611867 | Bowman Amuah | Aug 2003 | B1 |
6613001 | Dworkin | Sep 2003 | B1 |
6615158 | Wenzel et al. | Sep 2003 | B2 |
6616447 | Rizoiu et al. | Sep 2003 | B1 |
6616579 | Reinbold et al. | Sep 2003 | B1 |
6621491 | Baumrind et al. | Sep 2003 | B1 |
6623698 | Kuo | Sep 2003 | B2 |
6624752 | Klitsgaard et al. | Sep 2003 | B2 |
6626180 | Kittelsen et al. | Sep 2003 | B1 |
6626569 | Reinstein et al. | Sep 2003 | B2 |
6626669 | Zegarelli | Sep 2003 | B2 |
6633772 | Ford et al. | Oct 2003 | B2 |
6640128 | Vilsmeier et al. | Oct 2003 | B2 |
6643646 | Su et al. | Nov 2003 | B2 |
6647383 | August et al. | Nov 2003 | B1 |
6650944 | Goedeke et al. | Nov 2003 | B2 |
6671818 | Mikurak | Dec 2003 | B1 |
6675104 | Paulse et al. | Jan 2004 | B2 |
6678669 | Lapointe et al. | Jan 2004 | B2 |
6685469 | Chishti et al. | Feb 2004 | B2 |
6689055 | Mullen et al. | Feb 2004 | B1 |
6690761 | Lang et al. | Feb 2004 | B2 |
6691110 | Wang et al. | Feb 2004 | B2 |
6694234 | Lockwood et al. | Feb 2004 | B2 |
6697164 | Babayoff et al. | Feb 2004 | B1 |
6697793 | McGreevy | Feb 2004 | B2 |
6702765 | Robbins et al. | Mar 2004 | B2 |
6702804 | Ritter et al. | Mar 2004 | B1 |
6705863 | Phan et al. | Mar 2004 | B2 |
6729876 | Chishti et al. | May 2004 | B2 |
6733289 | Manemann et al. | May 2004 | B2 |
6736638 | Sachdeva et al. | May 2004 | B1 |
6739869 | Taub et al. | May 2004 | B1 |
6744932 | Rubbert et al. | Jun 2004 | B1 |
6749414 | Hanson et al. | Jun 2004 | B1 |
6769913 | Hurson | Aug 2004 | B2 |
6772026 | Bradbury et al. | Aug 2004 | B2 |
6790036 | Graham | Sep 2004 | B2 |
6802713 | Chishti et al. | Oct 2004 | B1 |
6814574 | Abolfathi et al. | Nov 2004 | B2 |
6830450 | Knopp et al. | Dec 2004 | B2 |
6832912 | Mao | Dec 2004 | B2 |
6832914 | Bonnet et al. | Dec 2004 | B1 |
6843370 | Tuneberg | Jan 2005 | B2 |
6845175 | Kopelman et al. | Jan 2005 | B2 |
6885464 | Pfeiffer et al. | Apr 2005 | B1 |
6890285 | Rahman et al. | May 2005 | B2 |
6951254 | Morrison | Oct 2005 | B2 |
6976841 | Osterwalder | Dec 2005 | B1 |
6978268 | Thomas et al. | Dec 2005 | B2 |
6983752 | Garabadian | Jan 2006 | B2 |
6984128 | Breining et al. | Jan 2006 | B2 |
6988893 | Haywood | Jan 2006 | B2 |
7011518 | DeLuke | Mar 2006 | B2 |
7016952 | Mullen et al. | Mar 2006 | B2 |
7020963 | Cleary et al. | Apr 2006 | B2 |
7036514 | Heck | May 2006 | B2 |
7040896 | Pavlovskaia et al. | May 2006 | B2 |
7106233 | Schroeder et al. | Sep 2006 | B2 |
7112065 | Kopelman et al. | Sep 2006 | B2 |
7121825 | Chishti et al. | Oct 2006 | B2 |
7134874 | Chishti et al. | Nov 2006 | B2 |
7137812 | Cleary et al. | Nov 2006 | B2 |
7138640 | Delgado et al. | Nov 2006 | B1 |
7140877 | Kaza | Nov 2006 | B2 |
7142312 | Quadling et al. | Nov 2006 | B2 |
7155373 | Jordan | Dec 2006 | B2 |
7156655 | Sachdeva et al. | Jan 2007 | B2 |
7156661 | Choi et al. | Jan 2007 | B2 |
7168950 | Cinader, Jr. et al. | Jan 2007 | B2 |
7184150 | Quadling et al. | Feb 2007 | B2 |
7191451 | Nakagawa | Mar 2007 | B2 |
7192273 | McSurdy | Mar 2007 | B2 |
7217131 | Vuillemot | May 2007 | B2 |
7220122 | Chishti | May 2007 | B2 |
7220124 | Taub et al. | May 2007 | B2 |
7229282 | Andreiko et al. | Jun 2007 | B2 |
7234937 | Sachdeva et al. | Jun 2007 | B2 |
7241142 | Abolfathi et al. | Jul 2007 | B2 |
7244230 | Duggirala et al. | Jul 2007 | B2 |
7245753 | Squilla et al. | Jul 2007 | B2 |
7257136 | Mori et al. | Aug 2007 | B2 |
7286954 | Kopelman et al. | Oct 2007 | B2 |
7292759 | Boutoussov et al. | Nov 2007 | B2 |
7294141 | Bergersen | Nov 2007 | B2 |
7302842 | Biester et al. | Dec 2007 | B2 |
7320592 | Chishti et al. | Jan 2008 | B2 |
7328706 | Bardach et al. | Feb 2008 | B2 |
7329122 | Scott | Feb 2008 | B1 |
7338327 | Sticker et al. | Mar 2008 | B2 |
D565509 | Fechner et al. | Apr 2008 | S |
7351116 | Dold | Apr 2008 | B2 |
7354270 | Abolfathi et al. | Apr 2008 | B2 |
7357637 | Liechtung | Apr 2008 | B2 |
7435083 | Chishti et al. | Oct 2008 | B2 |
7450231 | Johs et al. | Nov 2008 | B2 |
7458810 | Bergersen | Dec 2008 | B2 |
7460230 | Johs et al. | Dec 2008 | B2 |
7462076 | Walter et al. | Dec 2008 | B2 |
7463929 | Simmons | Dec 2008 | B2 |
7476100 | Kuo | Jan 2009 | B2 |
7500851 | Williams | Mar 2009 | B2 |
D594413 | Palka et al. | Jun 2009 | S |
7543511 | Kimura et al. | Jun 2009 | B2 |
7544103 | Walter et al. | Jun 2009 | B2 |
7553157 | Abolfathi et al. | Jun 2009 | B2 |
7561273 | Stautmeister et al. | Jul 2009 | B2 |
7577284 | Wong et al. | Aug 2009 | B2 |
7596253 | Wong et al. | Sep 2009 | B2 |
7597594 | Stadler et al. | Oct 2009 | B2 |
7609875 | Liu et al. | Oct 2009 | B2 |
D603796 | Sticker et al. | Nov 2009 | S |
7616319 | Woollam et al. | Nov 2009 | B1 |
7626705 | Altendorf | Dec 2009 | B2 |
7632216 | Rahman et al. | Dec 2009 | B2 |
7633625 | Woollam et al. | Dec 2009 | B1 |
7637262 | Bailey | Dec 2009 | B2 |
7637740 | Knopp | Dec 2009 | B2 |
7641473 | Sporbert et al. | Jan 2010 | B2 |
7668355 | Wong et al. | Feb 2010 | B2 |
7670179 | Muller | Mar 2010 | B2 |
7695327 | Bauerle et al. | Apr 2010 | B2 |
7698068 | Babayoff | Apr 2010 | B2 |
7711447 | Lu et al. | May 2010 | B2 |
7724378 | Babayoff | May 2010 | B2 |
D618619 | Walter | Jun 2010 | S |
7728848 | Petrov et al. | Jun 2010 | B2 |
7731508 | Borst | Jun 2010 | B2 |
7735217 | Borst | Jun 2010 | B2 |
7740476 | Rubbert et al. | Jun 2010 | B2 |
7744369 | Imgrund et al. | Jun 2010 | B2 |
7746339 | Matov et al. | Jun 2010 | B2 |
7780460 | Walter | Aug 2010 | B2 |
7787132 | Korner et al. | Aug 2010 | B2 |
7791810 | Powell | Sep 2010 | B2 |
7796243 | Choo-Smith et al. | Sep 2010 | B2 |
7806687 | Minagi et al. | Oct 2010 | B2 |
7806727 | Dold et al. | Oct 2010 | B2 |
7813787 | De Josselin De Jong et al. | Oct 2010 | B2 |
7828601 | Pyczak | Nov 2010 | B2 |
7841464 | Cinader, Jr. et al. | Nov 2010 | B2 |
7845969 | Stadler et al. | Dec 2010 | B2 |
7854609 | Chen et al. | Dec 2010 | B2 |
7862336 | Kopelman et al. | Jan 2011 | B2 |
7869983 | Raby et al. | Jan 2011 | B2 |
7872760 | Ertl | Jan 2011 | B2 |
7874836 | McSurdy | Jan 2011 | B2 |
7874849 | Sticker et al. | Jan 2011 | B2 |
7878801 | Abolfathi et al. | Feb 2011 | B2 |
7878805 | Moss et al. | Feb 2011 | B2 |
7880751 | Kuo et al. | Feb 2011 | B2 |
7892474 | Shkolnik et al. | Feb 2011 | B2 |
7904308 | Arnone et al. | Mar 2011 | B2 |
7907280 | Johs et al. | Mar 2011 | B2 |
7929151 | Liang et al. | Apr 2011 | B2 |
7930189 | Kuo | Apr 2011 | B2 |
7947508 | Tricca et al. | May 2011 | B2 |
7959308 | Freeman et al. | Jun 2011 | B2 |
7963766 | Cronauer | Jun 2011 | B2 |
7985414 | Knaack et al. | Jul 2011 | B2 |
7986415 | Thiel et al. | Jul 2011 | B2 |
7987099 | Kuo et al. | Jul 2011 | B2 |
7991485 | Zakim | Aug 2011 | B2 |
8017891 | Nevin | Sep 2011 | B2 |
8026916 | Wen | Sep 2011 | B2 |
8027709 | Arnone et al. | Sep 2011 | B2 |
8029277 | Imgrund et al. | Oct 2011 | B2 |
8038444 | Kitching et al. | Oct 2011 | B2 |
8045772 | Kosuge et al. | Oct 2011 | B2 |
8054556 | Chen et al. | Nov 2011 | B2 |
8070490 | Roetzer et al. | Dec 2011 | B1 |
8075306 | Kitching et al. | Dec 2011 | B2 |
8077949 | Liang et al. | Dec 2011 | B2 |
8083556 | Stadler et al. | Dec 2011 | B2 |
D652799 | Mueller | Jan 2012 | S |
8092215 | Stone-Collonge et al. | Jan 2012 | B2 |
8099268 | Kitching et al. | Jan 2012 | B2 |
8108189 | Chelnokov et al. | Jan 2012 | B2 |
8118592 | Tortorici | Feb 2012 | B2 |
8126025 | Takeda | Feb 2012 | B2 |
8136529 | Kelly | Mar 2012 | B2 |
8144954 | Quadling et al. | Mar 2012 | B2 |
8152518 | Kuo | Apr 2012 | B2 |
8160334 | Thiel et al. | Apr 2012 | B2 |
8172569 | Matty et al. | May 2012 | B2 |
8197252 | Harrison, III | Jun 2012 | B1 |
8201560 | Dembro | Jun 2012 | B2 |
8215312 | Garabadian et al. | Jul 2012 | B2 |
8240018 | Walter et al. | Aug 2012 | B2 |
8272866 | Chun et al. | Sep 2012 | B2 |
8275180 | Kuo | Sep 2012 | B2 |
8279450 | Oota et al. | Oct 2012 | B2 |
8292617 | Brandt et al. | Oct 2012 | B2 |
8294657 | Kim et al. | Oct 2012 | B2 |
8296952 | Greenberg | Oct 2012 | B2 |
8297286 | Smernoff | Oct 2012 | B2 |
8303302 | Teasdale | Nov 2012 | B2 |
8306608 | Mandelis et al. | Nov 2012 | B2 |
8314764 | Kim et al. | Nov 2012 | B2 |
8332015 | Ertl | Dec 2012 | B2 |
8354588 | Sticker et al. | Jan 2013 | B2 |
8366479 | Borst et al. | Feb 2013 | B2 |
8401826 | Cheng et al. | Mar 2013 | B2 |
8419428 | Lawrence | Apr 2013 | B2 |
8433083 | Abolfathi et al. | Apr 2013 | B2 |
8439672 | Matov et al. | May 2013 | B2 |
8465280 | Sachdeva et al. | Jun 2013 | B2 |
8477320 | Stock et al. | Jul 2013 | B2 |
8488113 | Thiel et al. | Jul 2013 | B2 |
8517726 | Kakavand et al. | Aug 2013 | B2 |
8520922 | Wang et al. | Aug 2013 | B2 |
8520925 | Duret | Aug 2013 | B2 |
8556625 | Lovely | Oct 2013 | B2 |
8570530 | Liang | Oct 2013 | B2 |
8573224 | Thornton | Nov 2013 | B2 |
8577212 | Thiel | Nov 2013 | B2 |
8601925 | Coto | Dec 2013 | B1 |
8650586 | Lee et al. | Feb 2014 | B2 |
8675706 | Seurin et al. | Mar 2014 | B2 |
8723029 | Pyczak et al. | May 2014 | B2 |
8738394 | Kuo | May 2014 | B2 |
8743923 | Geske et al. | Jun 2014 | B2 |
8753114 | Vuillemot | Jun 2014 | B2 |
8767270 | Curry et al. | Jul 2014 | B2 |
8768016 | Pan et al. | Jul 2014 | B2 |
8771149 | Rahman et al. | Jul 2014 | B2 |
8839476 | Adachi | Sep 2014 | B2 |
8843381 | Kuo et al. | Sep 2014 | B2 |
8856053 | Mah | Oct 2014 | B2 |
8870566 | Bergersen | Oct 2014 | B2 |
8874452 | Kuo | Oct 2014 | B2 |
8878905 | Fisker et al. | Nov 2014 | B2 |
8886702 | Hering et al. | Nov 2014 | B2 |
8896592 | Boltunov et al. | Nov 2014 | B2 |
8899976 | Chen et al. | Dec 2014 | B2 |
8936463 | Mason et al. | Jan 2015 | B2 |
8948482 | Levin | Feb 2015 | B2 |
8956058 | Rosch | Feb 2015 | B2 |
8992216 | Karazivan | Mar 2015 | B2 |
9022792 | Sticker et al. | May 2015 | B2 |
9039418 | Rubbert | May 2015 | B1 |
9084535 | Girkin et al. | Jul 2015 | B2 |
9108338 | Sirovskiy et al. | Aug 2015 | B2 |
9144512 | Wagner | Sep 2015 | B2 |
9192305 | Levin | Nov 2015 | B2 |
9204952 | Lampalzer | Dec 2015 | B2 |
9211166 | Kuo et al. | Dec 2015 | B2 |
9220580 | Borovinskih et al. | Dec 2015 | B2 |
9241774 | Li et al. | Jan 2016 | B2 |
9242118 | Brawn | Jan 2016 | B2 |
9261358 | Atiya et al. | Feb 2016 | B2 |
9336336 | Deichmann et al. | May 2016 | B2 |
9351810 | Moon | May 2016 | B2 |
9375300 | Matov et al. | Jun 2016 | B2 |
9381810 | Nelson et al. | Jul 2016 | B2 |
9403238 | Culp | Aug 2016 | B2 |
9408743 | Wagner | Aug 2016 | B1 |
9414897 | Wu et al. | Aug 2016 | B2 |
9433476 | Khardekar et al. | Sep 2016 | B2 |
9439568 | Atiya et al. | Sep 2016 | B2 |
9444981 | Bellis et al. | Sep 2016 | B2 |
9463287 | Lorberbaum et al. | Oct 2016 | B1 |
9492243 | Kuo | Nov 2016 | B2 |
9500635 | Islam | Nov 2016 | B2 |
9506808 | Jeon et al. | Nov 2016 | B2 |
9510918 | Sanchez | Dec 2016 | B2 |
9545331 | Ingemarsson-Matzen | Jan 2017 | B2 |
9584771 | Mandelis et al. | Feb 2017 | B2 |
9610141 | Kopelman et al. | Apr 2017 | B2 |
9675427 | Kopelman | Jun 2017 | B2 |
9675430 | Verker et al. | Jun 2017 | B2 |
9693839 | Atiya et al. | Jul 2017 | B2 |
9730769 | Chen et al. | Aug 2017 | B2 |
9744006 | Ross | Aug 2017 | B2 |
9795461 | Kopelman et al. | Oct 2017 | B2 |
9848985 | Yang et al. | Dec 2017 | B2 |
9861451 | Davis | Jan 2018 | B1 |
9936186 | Jesenko et al. | Apr 2018 | B2 |
10123706 | Elbaz et al. | Nov 2018 | B2 |
10130445 | Kopelman et al. | Nov 2018 | B2 |
10154889 | Chen et al. | Dec 2018 | B2 |
10159541 | Bindayel | Dec 2018 | B2 |
10231801 | Korytov et al. | Mar 2019 | B2 |
10248883 | Borovinskih et al. | Apr 2019 | B2 |
10258432 | Webber | Apr 2019 | B2 |
10390913 | Sabina et al. | Aug 2019 | B2 |
10449016 | Kimura et al. | Oct 2019 | B2 |
10470847 | Shanjani et al. | Nov 2019 | B2 |
10504386 | Levin et al. | Dec 2019 | B2 |
10517482 | Sato et al. | Dec 2019 | B2 |
10585958 | Elbaz et al. | Mar 2020 | B2 |
10595966 | Carrier, Jr. et al. | Mar 2020 | B2 |
10606911 | Elbaz et al. | Mar 2020 | B2 |
10613515 | Cramer et al. | Apr 2020 | B2 |
10639134 | Shanjani et al. | May 2020 | B2 |
10813727 | Sabina et al. | Oct 2020 | B2 |
10980613 | Shanjani et al. | Apr 2021 | B2 |
10993783 | Wu et al. | May 2021 | B2 |
20010002310 | Chishti et al. | May 2001 | A1 |
20010032100 | Mahmud et al. | Oct 2001 | A1 |
20010038705 | Rubbert et al. | Nov 2001 | A1 |
20010041320 | Phan et al. | Nov 2001 | A1 |
20010054231 | Miller et al. | Dec 2001 | A1 |
20020004727 | Knaus et al. | Jan 2002 | A1 |
20020007284 | Schurenberg et al. | Jan 2002 | A1 |
20020010568 | Rubbert et al. | Jan 2002 | A1 |
20020015934 | Rubbert et al. | Feb 2002 | A1 |
20020025503 | Chapoulaud et al. | Feb 2002 | A1 |
20020026105 | Drazen | Feb 2002 | A1 |
20020028417 | Chapoulaud et al. | Mar 2002 | A1 |
20020035572 | Takatori et al. | Mar 2002 | A1 |
20020064752 | Durbin et al. | May 2002 | A1 |
20020064759 | Durbin et al. | May 2002 | A1 |
20020087551 | Hickey et al. | Jul 2002 | A1 |
20020107853 | Hofmann et al. | Aug 2002 | A1 |
20020188478 | Breeland et al. | Dec 2002 | A1 |
20020192617 | Phan et al. | Dec 2002 | A1 |
20030000927 | Kanaya et al. | Jan 2003 | A1 |
20030009252 | Pavlovskaia et al. | Jan 2003 | A1 |
20030019848 | Nicholas et al. | Jan 2003 | A1 |
20030021453 | Weise et al. | Jan 2003 | A1 |
20030035061 | Iwaki et al. | Feb 2003 | A1 |
20030049581 | Deluke | Mar 2003 | A1 |
20030057192 | Patel | Mar 2003 | A1 |
20030059736 | Lai et al. | Mar 2003 | A1 |
20030060532 | Subelka et al. | Mar 2003 | A1 |
20030068598 | Vallittu et al. | Apr 2003 | A1 |
20030095697 | Wood et al. | May 2003 | A1 |
20030101079 | McLaughlin | May 2003 | A1 |
20030103060 | Anderson et al. | Jun 2003 | A1 |
20030120517 | Eida et al. | Jun 2003 | A1 |
20030139834 | Nikolskiy et al. | Jul 2003 | A1 |
20030144886 | Taira | Jul 2003 | A1 |
20030172043 | Guyon et al. | Sep 2003 | A1 |
20030190575 | Hilliard | Oct 2003 | A1 |
20030192867 | Yamazaki et al. | Oct 2003 | A1 |
20030207224 | Lotte | Nov 2003 | A1 |
20030215764 | Kopelman et al. | Nov 2003 | A1 |
20030224311 | Cronauer | Dec 2003 | A1 |
20030224313 | Bergersen | Dec 2003 | A1 |
20030224314 | Bergersen | Dec 2003 | A1 |
20040002873 | Sachdeva | Jan 2004 | A1 |
20040009449 | Mah et al. | Jan 2004 | A1 |
20040013994 | Goldberg et al. | Jan 2004 | A1 |
20040013996 | Sapian | Jan 2004 | A1 |
20040019262 | Perelgut | Jan 2004 | A1 |
20040029078 | Marshall | Feb 2004 | A1 |
20040038168 | Choi et al. | Feb 2004 | A1 |
20040054304 | Raby | Mar 2004 | A1 |
20040054358 | Cox et al. | Mar 2004 | A1 |
20040058295 | Bergersen | Mar 2004 | A1 |
20040068199 | Echauz et al. | Apr 2004 | A1 |
20040078222 | Khan et al. | Apr 2004 | A1 |
20040080621 | Fisher et al. | Apr 2004 | A1 |
20040094165 | Cook | May 2004 | A1 |
20040107118 | Harnsberger et al. | Jun 2004 | A1 |
20040133083 | Comaniciu et al. | Jul 2004 | A1 |
20040152036 | Abolfathi | Aug 2004 | A1 |
20040158194 | Wolff et al. | Aug 2004 | A1 |
20040166463 | Wen et al. | Aug 2004 | A1 |
20040167646 | Jelonek et al. | Aug 2004 | A1 |
20040193036 | Zhou et al. | Sep 2004 | A1 |
20040197728 | Abolfathi et al. | Oct 2004 | A1 |
20040214128 | Sachdeva et al. | Oct 2004 | A1 |
20040219479 | Malin et al. | Nov 2004 | A1 |
20040220691 | Hofmeister et al. | Nov 2004 | A1 |
20040229185 | Knopp | Nov 2004 | A1 |
20040259049 | Kopelman et al. | Dec 2004 | A1 |
20050003318 | Choi et al. | Jan 2005 | A1 |
20050023356 | Wiklof et al. | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050031196 | Moghaddam et al. | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050037312 | Uchida | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050038669 | Sachdeva et al. | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050040551 | Biegler et al. | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050042569 | Phan et al. | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050042577 | Kvitrud et al. | Feb 2005 | A1 |
20050048433 | Hilliard | Mar 2005 | A1 |
20050074717 | Cleary et al. | Apr 2005 | A1 |
20050089822 | Geng | Apr 2005 | A1 |
20050100333 | Kerschbaumer et al. | May 2005 | A1 |
20050108052 | Omaboe | May 2005 | A1 |
20050131738 | Morris | Jun 2005 | A1 |
20050144150 | Ramamurthy et al. | Jun 2005 | A1 |
20050171594 | Machan et al. | Aug 2005 | A1 |
20050171630 | Dinauer et al. | Aug 2005 | A1 |
20050181333 | Karazivan et al. | Aug 2005 | A1 |
20050186524 | Abolfathi et al. | Aug 2005 | A1 |
20050186526 | Stewart et al. | Aug 2005 | A1 |
20050216314 | Secor | Sep 2005 | A1 |
20050233276 | Kopelman et al. | Oct 2005 | A1 |
20050239013 | Sachdeva | Oct 2005 | A1 |
20050244781 | Abels et al. | Nov 2005 | A1 |
20050244791 | Davis et al. | Nov 2005 | A1 |
20050271996 | Sporbert et al. | Dec 2005 | A1 |
20060056670 | Hamadeh | Mar 2006 | A1 |
20060057533 | McGann | Mar 2006 | A1 |
20060063135 | Mehl | Mar 2006 | A1 |
20060078842 | Sachdeva et al. | Apr 2006 | A1 |
20060084024 | Farrell | Apr 2006 | A1 |
20060093982 | Wen | May 2006 | A1 |
20060098007 | Rouet et al. | May 2006 | A1 |
20060099545 | Lai et al. | May 2006 | A1 |
20060099546 | Bergersen | May 2006 | A1 |
20060110698 | Robson | May 2006 | A1 |
20060111631 | Kelliher et al. | May 2006 | A1 |
20060115785 | Li et al. | Jun 2006 | A1 |
20060137813 | Robrecht et al. | Jun 2006 | A1 |
20060147872 | Andreiko | Jul 2006 | A1 |
20060154198 | Durbin et al. | Jul 2006 | A1 |
20060154207 | Kuo | Jul 2006 | A1 |
20060173715 | Wang | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20060183082 | Quadling et al. | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20060188834 | Hilliard | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20060188848 | Tricca et al. | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20060194163 | Tricca et al. | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20060199153 | Liu et al. | Sep 2006 | A1 |
20060204078 | Orth et al. | Sep 2006 | A1 |
20060223022 | Solomon | Oct 2006 | A1 |
20060223023 | Lai et al. | Oct 2006 | A1 |
20060223032 | Fried et al. | Oct 2006 | A1 |
20060223342 | Borst et al. | Oct 2006 | A1 |
20060234179 | Wen et al. | Oct 2006 | A1 |
20060257815 | De Dominicis | Nov 2006 | A1 |
20060275729 | Fornoff | Dec 2006 | A1 |
20060275731 | Wen et al. | Dec 2006 | A1 |
20060275736 | Wen et al. | Dec 2006 | A1 |
20060277075 | Salwan | Dec 2006 | A1 |
20060290693 | Zhou et al. | Dec 2006 | A1 |
20060292520 | Dillon et al. | Dec 2006 | A1 |
20070031775 | Andreiko | Feb 2007 | A1 |
20070037111 | Mailyn | Feb 2007 | A1 |
20070037112 | Mailyn | Feb 2007 | A1 |
20070046865 | Umeda et al. | Mar 2007 | A1 |
20070053048 | Kumar et al. | Mar 2007 | A1 |
20070054237 | Neuschafer | Mar 2007 | A1 |
20070065768 | Nadav | Mar 2007 | A1 |
20070087300 | Willison et al. | Apr 2007 | A1 |
20070087302 | Reising et al. | Apr 2007 | A1 |
20070106138 | Beiski et al. | May 2007 | A1 |
20070122592 | Anderson et al. | May 2007 | A1 |
20070141525 | Cinader, Jr. | Jun 2007 | A1 |
20070141526 | Eisenberg et al. | Jun 2007 | A1 |
20070143135 | Lindquist et al. | Jun 2007 | A1 |
20070168152 | Matov et al. | Jul 2007 | A1 |
20070172112 | Paley et al. | Jul 2007 | A1 |
20070172291 | Yokoyama | Jul 2007 | A1 |
20070178420 | Keski-Nisula et al. | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070183633 | Hoffmann | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070184402 | Boutoussov et al. | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070185732 | Hicks et al. | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070192137 | Ombrellaro | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070199929 | Rippl et al. | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070215582 | Roeper et al. | Sep 2007 | A1 |
20070218422 | Ehrenfeld | Sep 2007 | A1 |
20070231765 | Phan et al. | Oct 2007 | A1 |
20070238065 | Sherwood et al. | Oct 2007 | A1 |
20070239488 | Derosso | Oct 2007 | A1 |
20070263226 | Kurtz et al. | Nov 2007 | A1 |
20080013727 | Uemura | Jan 2008 | A1 |
20080020350 | Matov et al. | Jan 2008 | A1 |
20080045053 | Stadler et al. | Feb 2008 | A1 |
20080057461 | Cheng et al. | Mar 2008 | A1 |
20080057467 | Gittelson | Mar 2008 | A1 |
20080057479 | Grenness | Mar 2008 | A1 |
20080059238 | Park et al. | Mar 2008 | A1 |
20080062429 | Liang et al. | Mar 2008 | A1 |
20080090208 | Rubbert | Apr 2008 | A1 |
20080094389 | Rouet et al. | Apr 2008 | A1 |
20080113317 | Kemp et al. | May 2008 | A1 |
20080115791 | Heine | May 2008 | A1 |
20080118882 | Su | May 2008 | A1 |
20080118886 | Liang et al. | May 2008 | A1 |
20080141534 | Hilliard | Jun 2008 | A1 |
20080169122 | Shiraishi et al. | Jul 2008 | A1 |
20080171934 | Greenan et al. | Jul 2008 | A1 |
20080176448 | Muller et al. | Jul 2008 | A1 |
20080182220 | Chishti et al. | Jul 2008 | A1 |
20080233530 | Cinader | Sep 2008 | A1 |
20080242144 | Dietz | Oct 2008 | A1 |
20080254402 | Hilliard | Oct 2008 | A1 |
20080254403 | Hilliard | Oct 2008 | A1 |
20080268400 | Moss et al. | Oct 2008 | A1 |
20080306724 | Kitching et al. | Dec 2008 | A1 |
20090029310 | Pumphrey et al. | Jan 2009 | A1 |
20090030290 | Kozuch et al. | Jan 2009 | A1 |
20090030347 | Cao | Jan 2009 | A1 |
20090040740 | Muller et al. | Feb 2009 | A1 |
20090061379 | Yamamoto et al. | Mar 2009 | A1 |
20090061381 | Durbin et al. | Mar 2009 | A1 |
20090075228 | Kumada et al. | Mar 2009 | A1 |
20090087050 | Gandyra | Apr 2009 | A1 |
20090098502 | Andreiko | Apr 2009 | A1 |
20090099445 | Burger | Apr 2009 | A1 |
20090103579 | Ushimaru et al. | Apr 2009 | A1 |
20090105523 | Kass et al. | Apr 2009 | A1 |
20090130620 | Yazdi et al. | May 2009 | A1 |
20090136890 | Kang et al. | May 2009 | A1 |
20090136893 | Zegarelli | May 2009 | A1 |
20090148809 | Kuo et al. | Jun 2009 | A1 |
20090170050 | Marcus | Jul 2009 | A1 |
20090181346 | Orth | Jul 2009 | A1 |
20090191502 | Cao et al. | Jul 2009 | A1 |
20090208897 | Kuo | Aug 2009 | A1 |
20090210032 | Beiski et al. | Aug 2009 | A1 |
20090218514 | Klunder et al. | Sep 2009 | A1 |
20090280450 | Kuo | Nov 2009 | A1 |
20090281433 | Saadat et al. | Nov 2009 | A1 |
20090286195 | Sears et al. | Nov 2009 | A1 |
20090298017 | Boerjes et al. | Dec 2009 | A1 |
20090305540 | Stadler et al. | Dec 2009 | A1 |
20090316966 | Marshall et al. | Dec 2009 | A1 |
20090317757 | Lemchen | Dec 2009 | A1 |
20100015565 | Carrillo et al. | Jan 2010 | A1 |
20100019170 | Hart et al. | Jan 2010 | A1 |
20100028825 | Lemchen | Feb 2010 | A1 |
20100045902 | Ikeda et al. | Feb 2010 | A1 |
20100047732 | Park | Feb 2010 | A1 |
20100062394 | Jones et al. | Mar 2010 | A1 |
20100068676 | Mason et al. | Mar 2010 | A1 |
20100075268 | Duran Von Arx | Mar 2010 | A1 |
20100138025 | Morton et al. | Jun 2010 | A1 |
20100142789 | Chang et al. | Jun 2010 | A1 |
20100145664 | Hultgren et al. | Jun 2010 | A1 |
20100145898 | Malfliet et al. | Jun 2010 | A1 |
20100152599 | Duhamel et al. | Jun 2010 | A1 |
20100165275 | Tsukamoto et al. | Jul 2010 | A1 |
20100167225 | Kuo | Jul 2010 | A1 |
20100179789 | Sachdeva et al. | Jul 2010 | A1 |
20100193482 | Ow et al. | Aug 2010 | A1 |
20100196837 | Farrell | Aug 2010 | A1 |
20100216085 | Kopelman | Aug 2010 | A1 |
20100217130 | Weinlaender | Aug 2010 | A1 |
20100231577 | Kim et al. | Sep 2010 | A1 |
20100268363 | Karim et al. | Oct 2010 | A1 |
20100268515 | Vogt et al. | Oct 2010 | A1 |
20100279243 | Cinader, Jr. et al. | Nov 2010 | A1 |
20100279245 | Navarro | Nov 2010 | A1 |
20100280798 | Pattijn et al. | Nov 2010 | A1 |
20100281370 | Rohaly et al. | Nov 2010 | A1 |
20100303316 | Bullis et al. | Dec 2010 | A1 |
20100312484 | Duhamel et al. | Dec 2010 | A1 |
20100327461 | Co et al. | Dec 2010 | A1 |
20110007920 | Abolfathi et al. | Jan 2011 | A1 |
20110012901 | Kaplanyan | Jan 2011 | A1 |
20110020761 | Kalili | Jan 2011 | A1 |
20110027743 | Cinader, Jr. et al. | Feb 2011 | A1 |
20110045428 | Boltunov et al. | Feb 2011 | A1 |
20110056350 | Gale et al. | Mar 2011 | A1 |
20110065060 | Teixeira et al. | Mar 2011 | A1 |
20110081625 | Fuh | Apr 2011 | A1 |
20110091832 | Kim et al. | Apr 2011 | A1 |
20110102549 | Takahashi | May 2011 | A1 |
20110102566 | Zakian et al. | May 2011 | A1 |
20110104630 | Matov et al. | May 2011 | A1 |
20110136072 | Li et al. | Jun 2011 | A1 |
20110136090 | Kazemi | Jun 2011 | A1 |
20110143300 | Villaalba | Jun 2011 | A1 |
20110143673 | Landesman et al. | Jun 2011 | A1 |
20110159452 | Huang | Jun 2011 | A1 |
20110164810 | Zang et al. | Jul 2011 | A1 |
20110207072 | Schiemann | Aug 2011 | A1 |
20110212420 | Vuillemot | Sep 2011 | A1 |
20110220623 | Beutler | Sep 2011 | A1 |
20110235045 | Koerner et al. | Sep 2011 | A1 |
20110240064 | Wales et al. | Oct 2011 | A1 |
20110262881 | Mauclaire | Oct 2011 | A1 |
20110269092 | Kuo et al. | Nov 2011 | A1 |
20110316994 | Lemchen | Dec 2011 | A1 |
20120028210 | Hegyi et al. | Feb 2012 | A1 |
20120029883 | Heinz et al. | Feb 2012 | A1 |
20120040311 | Nilsson | Feb 2012 | A1 |
20120064477 | Schmitt | Mar 2012 | A1 |
20120081786 | Mizu et al. | Apr 2012 | A1 |
20120086681 | Kim et al. | Apr 2012 | A1 |
20120115107 | Adams | May 2012 | A1 |
20120129117 | McCance | May 2012 | A1 |
20120147912 | Moench et al. | Jun 2012 | A1 |
20120150494 | Anderson et al. | Jun 2012 | A1 |
20120172678 | Logan et al. | Jul 2012 | A1 |
20120281293 | Gronenborn et al. | Nov 2012 | A1 |
20120295216 | Dykes et al. | Nov 2012 | A1 |
20120322025 | Ozawa et al. | Dec 2012 | A1 |
20130029284 | Teasdale | Jan 2013 | A1 |
20130081272 | Johnson et al. | Apr 2013 | A1 |
20130089828 | Borovinskih et al. | Apr 2013 | A1 |
20130095446 | Andreiko et al. | Apr 2013 | A1 |
20130103176 | Kopelman et al. | Apr 2013 | A1 |
20130110469 | Kopelman | May 2013 | A1 |
20130150689 | Shaw-Klein | Jun 2013 | A1 |
20130163627 | Seurin et al. | Jun 2013 | A1 |
20130201488 | Ishihara | Aug 2013 | A1 |
20130204599 | Matov et al. | Aug 2013 | A1 |
20130209952 | Kuo et al. | Aug 2013 | A1 |
20130235165 | Gharib et al. | Sep 2013 | A1 |
20130252195 | Popat | Sep 2013 | A1 |
20130266326 | Joseph et al. | Oct 2013 | A1 |
20130278396 | Kimmel | Oct 2013 | A1 |
20130280671 | Brawn et al. | Oct 2013 | A1 |
20130286114 | Ito et al. | Oct 2013 | A1 |
20130286174 | Urakabe | Oct 2013 | A1 |
20130293824 | Yoneyama et al. | Nov 2013 | A1 |
20130323664 | Parker | Dec 2013 | A1 |
20130323671 | Dillon et al. | Dec 2013 | A1 |
20130323674 | Hakomori et al. | Dec 2013 | A1 |
20130325431 | See et al. | Dec 2013 | A1 |
20130337412 | Kwon | Dec 2013 | A1 |
20140061974 | Tyler | Mar 2014 | A1 |
20140081091 | Abolfathi et al. | Mar 2014 | A1 |
20140093160 | Porikli et al. | Apr 2014 | A1 |
20140100495 | Haseley | Apr 2014 | A1 |
20140106289 | Kozlowski | Apr 2014 | A1 |
20140122027 | Andreiko et al. | May 2014 | A1 |
20140142902 | Chelnokov et al. | May 2014 | A1 |
20140170591 | El-Siblani | Jun 2014 | A1 |
20140178829 | Kim | Jun 2014 | A1 |
20140186794 | Deichmann et al. | Jul 2014 | A1 |
20140220520 | Salamini | Aug 2014 | A1 |
20140265034 | Dudley | Sep 2014 | A1 |
20140272774 | Dillon et al. | Sep 2014 | A1 |
20140294273 | Jaisson | Oct 2014 | A1 |
20140313299 | Gebhardt et al. | Oct 2014 | A1 |
20140329194 | Sachdeva et al. | Nov 2014 | A1 |
20140342299 | Jung | Nov 2014 | A1 |
20140342301 | Fleer et al. | Nov 2014 | A1 |
20140350354 | Stenzler et al. | Nov 2014 | A1 |
20140363778 | Parker | Dec 2014 | A1 |
20150002649 | Nowak et al. | Jan 2015 | A1 |
20150004553 | Li et al. | Jan 2015 | A1 |
20150021210 | Kesling | Jan 2015 | A1 |
20150031940 | Floyd | Jan 2015 | A1 |
20150079530 | Bergersen | Mar 2015 | A1 |
20150079531 | Heine | Mar 2015 | A1 |
20150094564 | Tashman et al. | Apr 2015 | A1 |
20150097315 | DeSimone et al. | Apr 2015 | A1 |
20150097316 | DeSimone et al. | Apr 2015 | A1 |
20150102532 | DeSimone et al. | Apr 2015 | A1 |
20150140502 | Brawn et al. | May 2015 | A1 |
20150150501 | George et al. | Jun 2015 | A1 |
20150164335 | Van Der Poel et al. | Jun 2015 | A1 |
20150173856 | Iowe et al. | Jun 2015 | A1 |
20150182303 | Abraham et al. | Jul 2015 | A1 |
20150216626 | Ranjbar | Aug 2015 | A1 |
20150216716 | Anitua | Aug 2015 | A1 |
20150230885 | Wucher | Aug 2015 | A1 |
20150238280 | Wu et al. | Aug 2015 | A1 |
20150238283 | Tanugula et al. | Aug 2015 | A1 |
20150257856 | Martz et al. | Sep 2015 | A1 |
20150306486 | Logan et al. | Oct 2015 | A1 |
20150320320 | Kopelman et al. | Nov 2015 | A1 |
20150325044 | Lebovitz | Nov 2015 | A1 |
20150338209 | Knüttel | Nov 2015 | A1 |
20150351638 | Amato | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150366637 | Kopelman | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150374469 | Konno et al. | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20160000332 | Atiya et al. | Jan 2016 | A1 |
20160003610 | Lampert et al. | Jan 2016 | A1 |
20160022185 | Agarwal et al. | Jan 2016 | A1 |
20160042509 | Andreiko et al. | Feb 2016 | A1 |
20160051345 | Levin | Feb 2016 | A1 |
20160064898 | Atiya et al. | Mar 2016 | A1 |
20160135924 | Choi et al. | May 2016 | A1 |
20160135925 | Mason et al. | May 2016 | A1 |
20160157962 | Kim et al. | Jun 2016 | A1 |
20160163115 | Furst | Jun 2016 | A1 |
20160193014 | Morton et al. | Jul 2016 | A1 |
20160217708 | Levin et al. | Jul 2016 | A1 |
20160220105 | Duret | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160220200 | Sandholm et al. | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160225151 | Cocco et al. | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160228213 | Tod et al. | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160242811 | Sadiq et al. | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160242871 | Morton et al. | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160246936 | Kahn | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160287358 | Nowak et al. | Oct 2016 | A1 |
20160296303 | Parker | Oct 2016 | A1 |
20160328843 | Graham et al. | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160346063 | Schulhof et al. | Dec 2016 | A1 |
20160367188 | Malik et al. | Dec 2016 | A1 |
20170007365 | Kopelman et al. | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170007366 | Kopelman et al. | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170007367 | Li et al. | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170007368 | Boronkay | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170049326 | Alfano et al. | Feb 2017 | A1 |
20170056131 | Alauddin et al. | Mar 2017 | A1 |
20170079747 | Graf et al. | Mar 2017 | A1 |
20170086943 | Mah | Mar 2017 | A1 |
20170100209 | Wen | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170100212 | Sherwood et al. | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170100213 | Kuo | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170100214 | Wen | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170105815 | Matov et al. | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170105816 | Ward | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170105817 | Chun et al. | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170135792 | Webber | May 2017 | A1 |
20170135793 | Webber et al. | May 2017 | A1 |
20170165032 | Webber et al. | Jun 2017 | A1 |
20170215739 | Miyasato | Aug 2017 | A1 |
20170231722 | Boronkay et al. | Aug 2017 | A1 |
20170251954 | Lotan et al. | Sep 2017 | A1 |
20170265967 | Hong | Sep 2017 | A1 |
20170319054 | Miller et al. | Nov 2017 | A1 |
20170319296 | Webber et al. | Nov 2017 | A1 |
20170325690 | Salah et al. | Nov 2017 | A1 |
20170340411 | Akselrod | Nov 2017 | A1 |
20180000563 | Shanjani et al. | Jan 2018 | A1 |
20180000565 | Shanjani et al. | Jan 2018 | A1 |
20180028064 | Elbaz et al. | Feb 2018 | A1 |
20180071054 | Ha | Mar 2018 | A1 |
20180085059 | Lee | Mar 2018 | A1 |
20180125610 | Carrier, Jr. et al. | May 2018 | A1 |
20180153648 | Shanjani | Jun 2018 | A1 |
20180153649 | Wu et al. | Jun 2018 | A1 |
20180153733 | Kuo | Jun 2018 | A1 |
20180168776 | Webber | Jun 2018 | A1 |
20180168788 | Fernie | Jun 2018 | A1 |
20180192877 | Atiya et al. | Jul 2018 | A1 |
20180200031 | Webber | Jul 2018 | A1 |
20180228359 | Meyer et al. | Aug 2018 | A1 |
20180280118 | Cramer | Oct 2018 | A1 |
20180280125 | Longley et al. | Oct 2018 | A1 |
20180284727 | Cramer et al. | Oct 2018 | A1 |
20180318042 | Baek et al. | Nov 2018 | A1 |
20180325626 | Huang | Nov 2018 | A1 |
20180353264 | Riley et al. | Dec 2018 | A1 |
20180360567 | Xue et al. | Dec 2018 | A1 |
20180368944 | Sato | Dec 2018 | A1 |
20190019187 | Miller et al. | Jan 2019 | A1 |
20190021817 | Sato et al. | Jan 2019 | A1 |
20190026599 | Salah et al. | Jan 2019 | A1 |
20190029784 | Moalem et al. | Jan 2019 | A1 |
20190046296 | Kopelman et al. | Feb 2019 | A1 |
20190046297 | Kopelman et al. | Feb 2019 | A1 |
20190069975 | Cam et al. | Mar 2019 | A1 |
20190076214 | Nyukhtikov et al. | Mar 2019 | A1 |
20190076216 | Moss et al. | Mar 2019 | A1 |
20190090983 | Webber et al. | Mar 2019 | A1 |
20190099129 | Kopelman et al. | Apr 2019 | A1 |
20190105130 | Grove et al. | Apr 2019 | A1 |
20190125494 | Li et al. | May 2019 | A1 |
20190152152 | O'Leary et al. | May 2019 | A1 |
20190171618 | Kuo | Jun 2019 | A1 |
20190175303 | Akopov et al. | Jun 2019 | A1 |
20190175304 | Morton et al. | Jun 2019 | A1 |
20190192259 | Kopelman et al. | Jun 2019 | A1 |
20190231477 | Shanjani et al. | Aug 2019 | A1 |
20190231492 | Sabina et al. | Aug 2019 | A1 |
20190338067 | Liska et al. | Nov 2019 | A1 |
20190343606 | Wu et al. | Nov 2019 | A1 |
20200046463 | Kimura et al. | Feb 2020 | A1 |
20200405451 | Lemchen | Dec 2020 | A1 |
20210068926 | Wu et al. | Mar 2021 | A1 |
20210259812 | O'Leary et al. | Aug 2021 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
517102 | Nov 1977 | AU |
3031677 | Nov 1977 | AU |
1121955 | Apr 1982 | CA |
201101586 | Aug 2008 | CN |
101426449 | May 2009 | CN |
101442953 | May 2009 | CN |
101677842 | Mar 2010 | CN |
201609421 | Oct 2010 | CN |
203369975 | Jan 2014 | CN |
103889364 | Jun 2014 | CN |
104000662 | Aug 2014 | CN |
204092220 | Jan 2015 | CN |
104379087 | Feb 2015 | CN |
204863317 | Dec 2015 | CN |
105266907 | Jan 2016 | CN |
105496575 | Apr 2016 | CN |
105997274 | Oct 2016 | CN |
106667594 | May 2017 | CN |
2749802 | May 1978 | DE |
3526198 | Feb 1986 | DE |
4207169 | Sep 1993 | DE |
69327661 | Jul 2000 | DE |
102005043627 | Mar 2007 | DE |
102009023357 | Dec 2010 | DE |
202010017014 | Mar 2011 | DE |
102011051443 | Jan 2013 | DE |
202012011899 | Jan 2013 | DE |
102014225457 | Jun 2016 | DE |
0428152 | May 1991 | EP |
490848 | Jun 1992 | EP |
541500 | May 1993 | EP |
714632 | May 1997 | EP |
774933 | Dec 2000 | EP |
731673 | May 2001 | EP |
1941843 | Jul 2008 | EP |
2211753 | Aug 2010 | EP |
2437027 | Apr 2012 | EP |
2447754 | May 2012 | EP |
1989764 | Jul 2012 | EP |
2332221 | Nov 2012 | EP |
2596553 | Dec 2013 | EP |
2612300 | Feb 2015 | EP |
463897 | Jan 1980 | ES |
2455066 | Apr 2014 | ES |
2369828 | Jun 1978 | FR |
2867377 | Sep 2005 | FR |
2930334 | Oct 2009 | FR |
1550777 | Aug 1979 | GB |
53-058191 | May 1978 | JP |
04-028359 | Jan 1992 | JP |
08-508174 | Sep 1996 | JP |
H0919443 | Jan 1997 | JP |
2000339468 | Dec 2000 | JP |
2003245289 | Sep 2003 | JP |
2006043121 | Feb 2006 | JP |
2007151614 | Jun 2007 | JP |
2007260158 | Oct 2007 | JP |
2007537824 | Dec 2007 | JP |
2008067732 | Mar 2008 | JP |
2008523370 | Jul 2008 | JP |
04184427 | Nov 2008 | JP |
2009000412 | Jan 2009 | JP |
2009018173 | Jan 2009 | JP |
2009205330 | Sep 2009 | JP |
2010017726 | Jan 2010 | JP |
2011087733 | May 2011 | JP |
2012045143 | Mar 2012 | JP |
2013007645 | Jan 2013 | JP |
2013192865 | Sep 2013 | JP |
201735173 | Feb 2017 | JP |
20020062793 | Jul 2002 | KR |
20070108019 | Nov 2007 | KR |
20090065778 | Jun 2009 | KR |
101266966 | May 2013 | KR |
20160041632 | Apr 2016 | KR |
20160071127 | Jun 2016 | KR |
101675089 | Nov 2016 | KR |
20160133921 | Nov 2016 | KR |
480166 | Mar 2002 | TW |
WO91004713 | Apr 1991 | WO |
WO-9203102 | Mar 1992 | WO |
WO94010935 | May 1994 | WO |
WO9623452 | Aug 1996 | WO |
WO98032394 | Jul 1998 | WO |
WO98044865 | Oct 1998 | WO |
WO-0108592 | Feb 2001 | WO |
WO-0180762 | Nov 2001 | WO |
WO-0185047 | Nov 2001 | WO |
WO-0217776 | Mar 2002 | WO |
WO-02062252 | Aug 2002 | WO |
WO-02095475 | Nov 2002 | WO |
WO03003932 | Jan 2003 | WO |
WO2006096558 | Sep 2006 | WO |
WO2006100700 | Sep 2006 | WO |
WO-2006133548 | Dec 2006 | WO |
WO-2007019709 | Feb 2007 | WO |
WO-2007071341 | Jun 2007 | WO |
WO-2007103377 | Sep 2007 | WO |
WO-2008115654 | Sep 2008 | WO |
WO-2009016645 | Feb 2009 | WO |
WO-2009085752 | Jul 2009 | WO |
WO-2009146788 | Dec 2009 | WO |
WO-2009146789 | Dec 2009 | WO |
WO2010123892 | Oct 2010 | WO |
WO-2012007003 | Jan 2012 | WO |
WO-2012042547 | Apr 2012 | WO |
WO-2012064684 | May 2012 | WO |
WO-2012074304 | Jun 2012 | WO |
WO-2012078980 | Jun 2012 | WO |
WO-2012083968 | Jun 2012 | WO |
WO-2012140021 | Oct 2012 | WO |
WO2013058879 | Apr 2013 | WO |
WO2013176444 | Nov 2013 | WO |
WO2014068107 | May 2014 | WO |
WO-2014091865 | Jun 2014 | WO |
WO-2014143911 | Sep 2014 | WO |
WO-2015015289 | Feb 2015 | WO |
WO-2015063032 | May 2015 | WO |
WO-2015112638 | Jul 2015 | WO |
WO-2015176004 | Nov 2015 | WO |
WO-2016004415 | Jan 2016 | WO |
WO2016028106 | Feb 2016 | WO |
WO-2016042393 | Mar 2016 | WO |
WO-2016042396 | Mar 2016 | WO |
WO-2016061279 | Apr 2016 | WO |
WO-2016084066 | Jun 2016 | WO |
WO-2016099471 | Jun 2016 | WO |
WO-2016113745 | Jul 2016 | WO |
WO-2016116874 | Jul 2016 | WO |
WO2016149007 | Sep 2016 | WO |
WO-2016200177 | Dec 2016 | WO |
WO2017006176 | Jan 2017 | WO |
WO-2017182654 | Oct 2017 | WO |
WO-2018057547 | Mar 2018 | WO |
WO-2018085718 | May 2018 | WO |
Entry |
---|
US 8,553,966 B1, 10/2013, Alpern et al. (withdrawn) |
3 Shape Trios 3, Insane speed-scanning with 3shape trios 3 intracral canner, (Screenshot), 2 pages, retrieved from the internet at You Tube (https//www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5CviUZ5DpQ&feature=youtu.be, available as of Sep. 18, 2015. |
Alves R.C., et al., “New Trends In Food Allergens Detection: Toward Biosensing Strategies”, Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, Mar. 2015, 18 pages. |
Arakawa et al., Mouthguard biosensor with telemetry system for monitoring of saliva glucose: A novel cavitas sensor, Biosensors and Bioelectronics, Oct. 2016, 84, pp. 106-111. |
Bandodkar et al., Allprinted magnetically selfhealing electrochemical devices, Science Advances, Nov. 2016, 2(11), 11 pages, e1601465. |
Bandodkar et al., Self-healing inks for autonomous repair of printable electrochemical devices, Advanced Electronic Materials, Dec. 2015, 1(12), 5 pages, 1500289. |
Bandodkar et al., Wearable biofuel cells: a review; Electroanalysis, Jun. 2016, 28 (6), pp. 1188-1200. |
Bandodkar et al., Wearable chemical sensors: present challenges and future prospects; Acs Sensors, May 11, 2016, 1(5), pp. 464-482. |
Berland, The use of smile libraries for cosmetic dentistry, Dental Tribunne: Asia pacfic Edition, Mar. 29, 2006, p. 16 18. |
Bernabe et al., Are the lower incisors the best predictors for the unerupted canine and premolars sums? An analysis of peruvian sample, The Angle Orthodontist, Mar. 2005, 75(2), pp. 202-207. |
Bookstein, Principal warps: Thin-plate splines and decomposition of deformations, IEEE Transactions on pattern analysis and machine intelligence, Jun. 1989, 11 (6), pp. 567-585. |
Cadent Inc., OrthoCAD ABO user guide, 38 pages, Dec. 21, 2005. |
Cadent Inc., Reviewing and modifying an orthoCAD case, 4 pages, Feb. 14, 2005. |
Collins English Dictionary, Teeth (definition), 9 pages, retrieved from the internet (https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/teeth) on May 13, 2019. |
Daniels et al., The development of the index of complexity outcome and need (ICON), British Journal of Orthodontics, Jun. 2000, 27(2), pp. 149-162. |
Dental Monitoring, “Basics: How to put your Cheek Retractor? (Dental Monitoring Tutorial)”, https:/lwww.youtube.com/watch?v=6K1HXw4Kq3c, May 27, 2016. |
Dental Monitoring, Dental monitoring tutdrial, 1 page (Screenshot), retrieved from the internet (https:www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dbe3ud0f9_c), Mar. 18, 2015. |
Dentrix, “Dentrix G3, New Features”. http://www.dentrix.com/g3/new_features/index.asp, accessed Jun. 6, 2008, 2 pgs. |
Di Giacomo et al., Clinical application of sterolithographic surgical guides for implant placement: Preliminary results, Journal Periodontolgy, Apr. 2005, 76(4), pp. 503-507. |
DICOM to surgical guides; (Screenshot); 1 page; retrieved from the internet at YouTube (https://youtu.be/47KtOmCEFQk); Published Apr. 4, 2016. |
dictionary.com, Plural (definition), 6 pages, retrieved from the internet (https://www.dictionary.eom/browse/plural#) on May 13, 2019. |
dictionary.com, Quadrant (definition), 6 pages, retrieved from the internet (https://www.dictionary.com/browse/quadrant?s=t) on May 13, 2019. |
Doruk et al., The role of the headgear timer in extraoral co-operation, European Journal of Orthodontics, Jun. 1, 2004, 26, pp. 289-291. |
Dummer et al., Computed Radiography Imaging Based on High-Density 670 nm VCSEL Arrays, International Society for Optics and Photonics, Feb. 24, 2010., vol. 7557, p. 75570H, 7 pages, (Author Manuscript). |
Eclinger Selfie, Change your smile, 1 page (screenshot), retrieved from the internet https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=parkelict.ecligner), on Feb. 13, 2018. |
Farooq et al., Relationship between tooth dimensions and malocclusion, JPMA: The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, 64(6), pp. 670-674, Jun. 2014. |
Friedrich et al., “Measuring system for in vivo recording of force systems in orthodontic treatment-concept and analysis of accuracy”, J. Biomech., 32(1), pp. 81-85, (Abstract only) Jan. 1999. |
Geomagic, Dental reconstruction, 1 page, retrieved from the internet (http://geomagic.com/en/solutions/industry/detal_desc.php) on Jun. 6, 2008. |
Gim Alldent Deutschland, “Das DUX System: Die Technik,” 2 pages total (2002). |
Gottschalk et al., “OBBTree: A hierarchical structure for rapid interference detection” (http://www.cs.unc.edu/?geom/OBB/OBBT.html); relieved from the internet (https://www.cse.iitk.ac.in/users/amiUcourses/RMP/presentations/dslamba/presentation/sig96.pdf) on Apr. 25, 2019,12 pages. |
gpsdentaire.com, Get a realistic smile simulation in 4 steps with GPS, a smile management software, 10 pages, retrieved from the internet (http://www.gpsdentaire.com/en/preview/) on Jun. 6, 2008. |
Grest, Daniel, Marker-Free Human Motion Capture in Dynamic Cluttered Environments from a Single View-Point:, PhD Thesis, 171 pages, 2007, Kiel, Germany, XP055320155. [retrieved on Nov. 16, 2016] Retrieved from the Internet: [http://www.grest.org/publications/thesisDanielGrest.pdf]. |
Hou H.M., et al., “The Uses of Orthodontic Study Models in Diagnosis and Treatment Planning”, Hong Kong Dental Journal, Dec. 2006, vol. 3(2), pp. 107-115. |
Imani et al., Awearable chemical-electrophysiological hybrid biosensing system for real-time health and fitness monitoring, Nature Communications, 7, 11650. doi 1038/ncomms11650, 7 pages, May 23, 2016. |
Invisalign., You were made to move. There's never been a better time to straighten your teeth with the most advanced clear aligner in the world', Product webpage, 2 pages, retrieved from the internet (www.invisalign.com/) on Dec. 28, 2017. |
Jeerapan et al., Stretchable biofuel cells as wearable textile-based self-powered sensors, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 4(47), pp. 18342-18353, Dec. 21, 2016. |
Karaman et al., A practical method of fabricating a lingual retainer, Am. Journal of Orthodontic and Dentofacial Orthopedics, Sep. 2003, 124(3), pp. 327-330. |
Kim et al., A wearable fingernail chemical sensing platform: pH sensing at your fingertips, Taianta, 150, pp. 622-628, Apr. 2016. |
Kim et al., Advanced materials for printed wearable electrochemical devices: A review, Advanced Electronic Materials, 3(1), 15 pages, 1600260, Jan. 2017. |
Kim et al., Noninvasive alcohol monitoring using a wearable tatto-based iontophoretic-biosensing system, Acs Sensors, 1(8), pp. 1011-1019, Jul. 22, 2016. |
Kim et al., Wearable salivary uric acid mouthguard biosensor with integrated wireless electronics, Biosensors and Bioelectronics, 74, pp. 1061-1068 (Author Manuscript), Dec. 2015. |
Kumar et al., All-printed, stretchable Zn—Ag2o rechargeable battery via, hyperelastic binder for self-powering wearable electronics, Advanced Energy Materials, Apr. 2017, 7(8), 8 pages, 1602096. |
Kumar et al., Rapid maxillary expansion: A unique treatment modality in dentistry, J. Clin. Diagn. Res., 5(4 ), pp. 906-911, Aug. 2011. |
Mantzikos et al., Case report: Forced eruption and implant site development, The Angle Orthodontist, 68(2), pp. 179-186, Apr. 1998. |
Martinelli et al., Prediction of lower permanent canine and premolars width by correlation methods, The Angle Orthodontist, 75(5), pp. 805-808, Sep. 2005. |
Methot; Get the picture with a gps for smile design in 3 steps; Spectrum; 5(4); pp. 100-105; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 2006. |
Nedelcu, Robert G., et al., “Scanning Accuracy and Precision in 4 Intraoral Scanners: An In Vitro Comparison Based on 3-Dimensional Analysis,” The Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry, vol. 112, Issue 6, Dec. 1, 2014, pp. 1461-1471. |
Newcombe, R., et al., DTAM: Dense Tracking and Mapping in Real-Time, Retrieved from https://www.doc.ic.ac.uk/?ajd/Publications/newcombe_etal_iccv2011.pdf, Dec. 2011, 8 pgs. |
Nourallah et al., New regression equations for prediciting the size of unerupted canines and premolars in a contemporary population, The Angle Orthodontist, 72(3), pp. 216-221, Jun. 2002. |
ormco.com: Increasing clinical performance with 3D interactive treatment planning and patient-specific appliances; retrieved from the internet (http://www. konsident.com/wp-contenVfiles mf/1295385693http armco. com _index_ cmsfilesystemaction fileOrmcoPDFwhitepapers. pdf) on Feb. 27, 2019, 8 Pages. |
OrthoCAD downloads, retrieved Jun. 27, 2012 from the internet (www.orthocad.com/download/downloads.asp), 2 pages, Feb. 14, 2005. |
Paredes et al., A new, accurate and fast digital method to predict unerupted tooth size, The Angle Orthodontist, 76(1 ), pp. 14-19, Jan. 2006. |
Parrilla et al., A textile-based stretchable multi-ion potentiometric sensor, Advanced Healthcare Materials, 5(9), pp. 996-1001, May 2016. |
Patterson Dental, “Cosmetic Imaging”. http://patterson.eaglesoft.net/cnt_di_cosimg.html, accessed Jun. 6, 2008, 2 pgs. |
Rose T.P., et al., “The Role of Orthodontics in Implant Dentistry”, British Dental Journal, vol. 201, No. 12, Dec. 23, 2006, pp. 753-764. |
Rubin et al., Stress analysis of the human tooth using a three-dimensional finite element model, Journal of Dental Research, 62(2), pp. 82-86, Feb. 1983. |
Sahm et al., “Micro-Electronic Monitoring Of Functional Appliance Wear”, Eur J Orthod., 12(3), pp. 297-301, Aug. 1990. |
Sahm, “Presentation of a wear timer for the clarification of scientific questions in orthodontic orthopedics”, Fortschritte der Kieferorthopadie, 51 (4), pp. 243-247, (Translation Included) Jul. 1990. |
Sarment et al., “Accuracy of implant placement with a stereolithographic surgical guide”, Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Implants, 118(4), pp. 571-577, Jul. 2003. |
Schafer, et al. Quantifying patient adherence during active orthodontic treatment with removable appliances using microelectronic wear-time documentation. European Journal of Orthodontics. 2014, 1-8. doi: 10.1 093/ejo/cju012, Jul. 3, 2014. |
Smalley; “Implants for tooth movement Determining implant location and orientation,” Journal of Esthetic and Restorative Dentistry; Mar. 1995, vol. 7(2); pp. 62-72. |
Smart Technology; Smile library II; 1 page; retrieved from the internet;< http://smart-technology.net/> on Jun. 6, 2008. |
Smile-Vision; “The smile-vision cosmetic imaging system”; 2 pages; Retrieved from the internet< http://www.smile-vision.net/cos_imaging.php> on Jun. 6, 2008. |
Sobral De A Gular et al., The Gingival Crevicular Fluid as a Source of Biomarkers to Enhance Efficiency of Orthodontic and Functional Treatment of Growing Patients, Bio. Med. Research International, 2017, 7 Pages, Article ID 3257235, 2017. |
Szeliski, Richard, “Introduction to Computer Vision: Structure from Motion”, Retrieved from internet< http://robots.stanford.edu/cs223b05/notes/CS%20223-B%20L10%20structurefro-mmotion1b.ppt> Feb. 3, 2005, 64 pgs. |
Thera Mon; “Microsensor”; 2 pages; retrieved from the internet (www.english.thera-mon.com/the-product/transponder/index.html); on Sep. 19, 2016. |
Vevin et al.; “Pose estimation of teeth through crown-shape matching; In Medical Imaging”;: Image Processing of International Society of Optics and Photonics;May 9, 2002, vol. 4684; pp. 955-965. |
Virtual Orthodontics, Our innovative software,2005, 2 Pages. (http://www.virtualorthodontics.com/innovativesoftware.html), retrieved from the internet (https://web.archive.org/web/20070518085145/http://www.virtualorthodontics.com/innovativesoftware.html); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date). |
Wiedmann; “According to the laws of harmony to find the right tooth shape with assistance of the computer”; Digital Dental News; Apr. 2008, 2nd Vol.; pp. 0005-0008. |
Wikipedia; Palatal expansion; 3 pages; retrieved from the internet< https: en.wikipedia.org=“” wiki=“” palatal_expansion=“”> on Mar. 5, 2018</https:>. |
Wireless Sensor Networks Magazine, “Embedded Teeth for Oral Activity Recognition”, Jul. 29, 2013, 2 pages; retrieved on Sep. 19, 2016 from the internet www.wsnmagazine.com/embedded-teeth/>. |
Witt et al., “The wear-timing measuring device in orthodontics-cui bono? Reflections on the state-of-the-art in wear-timing measurement and compliance research in orthodontics”; Fortschr Kieferothop; Jun. 1991, vol. 52(3); pp. 117-125. |
Wong et al., “Computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing surgical guidance for placement of dental implants”: Case report; Implant Dentistry; Sep. 2007, vol. 16(2); pp. 123-130. |
Yaltara Software; Visual planner; 1 page; retrieved from the internet(http://yaltara.com/vp/) on Jun. 6, 2008. |
Yamada et al.; Simulation of fan-beam type optical computed-tomography imaging of strongly scattering and weakly absorbing media; Applied Optics; 32(25); pp. 4808-4814; Sep. 1, 1993. |
Zhang et al., “Visual Speech Features Extraction for Improved Speech Recognition”, 2002 IEEE International conference on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing, May 13-17, 2002, vol. 2, 4 pages. |
AADR. American Association for Dental Research; Summary of Activities; Los Angeles, CA; p. 195; Mar. 20-23,(year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1980. |
Alcaniz et al.; An Advanced System for the Simulation and Planning of Orthodontic Treatments; Karl Heinz Hohne and Ron Kikinis (eds.); Visualization in Biomedical Computing, 4th Intl. Conf, VBC '96, Hamburg, Germany; Springer-Verlag; pp. 511-520; Sep. 22-25, 1996. |
Alexander et al.; The DigiGraph Work Station Part 2 Clinical Management; J. Clin. Orthod.; pp. 402-407; (Author Manuscript); Jul. 1990. |
Align Technology; Align technology announces new teen solution with introduction of invisalign teen with mandibular advancement; 2 pages; retrieved from the internet (http://investor.aligntech.com/static-files/eb4fa6bb-3e62-404f-b74d-32059366a01b); Mar. 6, 2017. |
Allesee Orthodontic Appliance: Important Tip About Wearing the Red White & Blue Active Clear Retainer System; Ailesee Orthodontic Appliances—Pro Lab; 1 page; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date); 1998. |
Allesee Orthodontic Appliances: DuraClearTM; Product information; 1 page; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1997. |
Allesee Orthodontic Appliances; The Choice Is Clear: Red, White & Blue . . . The Simple, Affordable, No-Braces Treatment; ( product information for doctors); retrieved from the internet (http://ormco.com/aoa/appliancesservices/RWB/doctorhtml); 5 pages on May 19, 2003. |
Allesee Orthodontic Appliances; The Choice Is Clear: Red, White & Blue . . . The Simple, Affordable, No-Braces Treatment; (product information), 6 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 2003. |
Allesee Orthodontic Appliances; The Choice is Clear: Red, White & Blue . . . The Simple, Affordable, No-Braces Treatment;(Patient Information); retrieved from the internet (http://ormco.com/aoa/appliancesservices/RWB/patients.html); 2 pages on May 19, 2003. |
Allesee Orthodontic Appliances; The Red, White & Blue Way to Improve Your Smile; (information for patients), 2 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1992. |
Allesee Orthodontic Appliances; You may be a candidate for this invisible no-braces treatment; product information for patients; 2 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 2002. |
Altschuler et al.; Analysis of 3-D Data for Comparative 3-D Serial Growth Pattern Studies of Oral-Facial Structures; AADR Abstracts, Program and Abstracts of Papers, 57th General Session, IADR Annual Session, Mar. 29, 1979-Apr. 1, 1979, New Orleans Marriot; Journal of Dental Research; vol. 58, Special Issue A, p. 221; Jan. 1979. |
Altschuler et al.; Laser Electro-Optic System for Rapid Three-Dimensional (3D) Topographic Mapping of Surfaces; Optical Engineering; 20(6); pp. 953-961; Dec. 1981. |
Altschuler et al.; Measuring Surfaces Space-Coded by a Laser-Projected Dot Matrix; SPIE Imaging q Applications for Automated Industrial Inspection and Assembly; vol. 182; pp. 187-191; Oct. 10, 1979. |
Altschuler; 3D Mapping of Maxillo-Facial Prosthesis; AADR Abstract #607; 2 pages total, (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1980. |
Andersson et al.; Clinical Results with Titanium Crowns Fabricated with Machine Duplication and Spark Erosion; Acta Odontologica Scandinavica; 47(5); pp. 279-286; Oct. 1989. |
Andrews, The Six Keys to Optimal Occlusion Straight Wire, Chapter 3, L.A. Wells; pp. 13-24; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1989. |
Barone et al.; Creation of 3D multi-body orthodontic models by using independent imaging sensors; Sensors; 13(2); pp. 2033-2050; Feb. 5, 2013. |
Bartels et al.; An Introduction to Splines for Use in Computer Graphics and Geometric Modeling; Morgan Kaufmann Publishers; pp. 422-425 Jan. 1, 1987. |
Baumrind et al, “Mapping the Skull in 3-D,” reprinted from J. Calif. Dent. Assoc, 48(2), 11 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) Fall Issue 1972. |
Baumrind et al.; A Stereophotogrammetric System for the Detection of Prosthesis Loosening in Total Hip Arthroplasty; NATO Symposium on Applications of Human Biostereometrics; SPIE; vol. 166; pp. 112-123; Jul. 9-13, 1978. |
Baumrind; A System for Cranio facial Mapping Through the Integration of Data from Stereo X-Ray Films and Stereo Photographs; an invited paper submitted to the 1975 American Society of Photogram Symposium on Close-Range Photogram Systems; University of Illinois; pp. 142-166; Aug. 26-30, 1975. |
Baumrind; Integrated Three-Dimensional Craniofacial Mapping: Background, Principles, and Perspectives; Seminars in Orthodontics; 7(4); pp. 223-232; Dec. 2001. |
beautyworlds.com; Virtual plastic surgery—beautysurge.com announces launch of cosmetic surgery digital imaging services; 5 pages; retrieved from the internet (http://www.beautyworlds.com/cosmossurgdigitalimagning.htm); Mar. 2004. |
Begole et al.; A Computer System for the Analysis of Dental Casts; The Angle Orthodontist; 51(3); pp. 252-258; Jul. 1981. |
Bernard et al.; Computerized Diagnosis in Orthodontics for Epidemiological Studies: A ProgressReport; (Abstract Only), J. Dental Res. Special Issue, vol. 67, p. 169, paper presented at International Association for Dental Research 66th General Session, Montreal Canada; Mar. 9-13, 1988. |
Bhatia et al.; A Computer-Aided Design for Orthognathic Surgery; British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery; 22(4); pp. 237-253; Aug. 1, 1984. |
Biggerstaff et al.; Computerized Analysis of Occlusion in the Postcanine Dentition; American Journal of Orthodontics; 61(3); pp. 245-254; Mar. 1972. |
Biggerstaff; Computerized Diagnostic Setups and Simulations; Angle Orthodontist; 40(I); pp. 28-36; Jan. 1970. |
Biostar Operation & Training Manual. Great Lakes Orthodontics, Ltd. 199 Fire Tower Drive,Tonawanda, New York. 14150-5890, 20 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1990. |
Blu et al.; Linear interpolation revitalized; IEEE Transactions on Image Processing; 13(5); pp. 710-719; May 2004. |
Bourke, Coordinate System Transformation; 1 page; retrived from the internet (http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/' pbourke/prolection/coords) on Nov. 5, 2004; Jun. 1996. |
Boyd et al.; Three Dimensional Diagnosis and Orthodontic Treatment of Complex Malocclusions With the Invisalipn Appliance; Seminars in Orthodontics; 7(4); pp. 274-293; Dec. 2001. |
Brandestini et al.; Computer Machined Ceramic Inlays: In Vitro Marginal Adaptation; J. Dent. Res. Special Issue; (Abstract 305); vol. 64; p. 208; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1985. |
Brook et al.; An Image Analysis System for the Determination of Tooth Dimensions from Study Casts: Comparison with Manual Measurements of Mesio-distal Diameter; Journal of Dental Research; 65(3); pp. 428-431; Mar. 1986. |
Burstone et al.; Precision Adjustment of the Transpalatal Lingual Arch: Computer Arch Form Predetermination; American Journal of Orthodontics; 79(2);pp. 115-133; Feb. 1981. |
Burstone; Dr. Charles J. Burstone on The Uses of the Computer in Orthodontic Practice (Part 1); Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 13(7); pp. 442-453; (interview); Jul. 1979. |
Burstone; Dr. Charles J. Burstone on The Uses of the Computer in Orthodontic Practice (Part 2); journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 13(8); pp. 539-551 (interview); Aug. 1979. |
Cardinal Industrial Finishes; Powder Coatings; 6 pages; retrieved from the internet (http://www.cardinalpaint.com) on Aug. 25, 2000. |
Carnaghan, An Alternative to Holograms for the Portrayal of Human Teeth; 4th Int'l. Conf. on Holographic Systems, Components and Applications; pp. 228-231; Sep. 15, 1993. |
Chaconas et al,; The DigiGraph Work Station, Part 1, Basic Concepts; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 24(6); pp. 360-367; (Author Manuscript); Jun. 1990. |
Chafetz et al.; Subsidence of the Femoral Prosthesis, A Stereophotogrammetric Evaluation; Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research; No. 201; pp. 60-67; Dec. 1985. |
Chiappone; Constructing the Gnathologic Setup and Positioner; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 14(2); pp. 121-133; Feb. 1980. |
Chishti et al.; U.S. Appl. No. 60/050,342 entitled “Procedure for moving teeth using a seires of retainers,” filed Jun. 20, 1997. |
Cottingham; Gnathologic Clear Plastic Positioner; American Journal of Orthodontics; 55(1); pp. 23-31; Jan. 1969. |
Crawford; CAD/CAM in the Dental Office: Does It Work?; Canadian Dental Journal; 57(2); pp. 121-123 Feb. 1991. |
Crawford; Computers in Dentistry: Part 1: CAD/CAM: The Computer Moves Chairside, Part 2: F. Duret A Man With A Vision, Part 3: The Computer Gives New Vision—Literally, Part 4: Bytes 'N Bites The Computer Moves From The Front Desk To The Operatory; Canadian Dental Journal; 54(9); pp. 661-666 Sep. 1988. |
Crooks; CAD/CAM Comes to USC; USC Dentistry; pp. 14-17; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) Spring 1990. |
CSI Computerized Scanning and Imaging Facility; What is a maximum/minimum intensity projection (MIP/MinIP); 1 page; retrived from the internet (http://csi.whoi.edu/content/what-maximumminimum-intensity-projection-mipminip); Jan. 4, 2010. |
CURETON; Correcting Maialigned Mandibular Incisors with Removable Retainers; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 30(7); pp. 390-395; Jul. 1996. |
Curry et al.; Integrated Three-Dimensional Craniofacial Mapping at the Craniofacial Research InstrumentationLaboratory/University of the Pacific; Seminars in Orthodontics; 7(4); pp. 258-265; Dec. 2001. |
Cutting et al.; Three-Dimensional Computer-Assisted Design of Craniofacial Surgical Procedures; Optimization and Interaction with Cephalometric and CT-Based Models; Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery; 77(6); pp. 877-885; Jun. 1986. |
DCS Dental AG; The CAD/CAM 'DCS Titan System' for Production of Crowns/Bridges; DSC Production; pp. 1-7; Jan. 1992. |
Defranco et al.; Three-Dimensional Large Displacement Analysis of Orthodontic Appliances; Journal of Biomechanics; 9(12); pp. 793-801; Jan. 1976. |
Dental Institute University of Zurich Switzerland; Program for International Symposium on Computer Restorations: State of the Art of the CEREC-Method; 2 pages; May 1991. |
Dentrac Corporation; Dentrac document; pp. 4-13; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1992. |
DENT-X; Dentsim . . . Dent-x's virtual reality 3-D training simulator . . . A revolution in dental education; 6 pages; retrieved from the internet (http://www.dent-x.com/DentSim.htm); on Sep. 24, 1998. |
Di Muzio et al.; Minimum intensity projection (MinIP); 6 pages; retrieved from the internet (https://radiopaedia.org/articles/minimum-intensity-projection-minip) on Sep. 6, 2018. |
Doyle; Digital Dentistry; Computer Graphics World; pp. 50-52 andp. 54; Oct. 2000. |
Duret et al.; CAD/CAM Imaging in Dentistry; Current Opinion in Dentistry; 1(2); pp. 150-154; Apr. 1991. |
Duret et al.; CAD-CAM in Dentistry; Journal of the American Dental Association; 117(6); pp. 715-720; Nov. 1988. |
Duret; The Dental CAD/CAM, General Description of the Project; Hennson International Product Brochure, 18 pages; Jan. 1986. |
Duret; Vers Une Prosthese Informatisee; Tonus; 75(15); pp. 55-57; (English translation attached); 23 pages; Nov. 15, 1985. |
Economides; The Microcomputer in the Orthodontic Office; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 13(11); pp. 767-772; Nov. 1979. |
Ellias et al.; Proteomic analysis of saliva identifies potential biomarkers for orthodontic tooth movement; The Scientific World Journal; vol. 2012; Article ID 647240; dio:10.1100/2012/647240; 7 pages; Jul. 2012. |
Elsasser; Some Observations on the History and Uses of the Kesling Positioner; American Journal of Orthodontics; 36(5); pp. 368-374; May 1, 1950. |
English translation of Japanese Laid-Open Publication No. 63-11148 to inventor T. Ozukuri (Laid-Open on Jan. 18, 1998) pp. 1-7. |
Faber et al.; Computerized Interactive Orthodontic Treatment Planning; American Journal of Orthodontics; 73(1); pp. 36-46; Jan. 1978. |
Felton et al.; A Computerized Analysis of the Shape and Stability of Mandibular Arch Form; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 92(6); pp. 478-483; Dec. 1987. |
Florez-Moreno; Time-related changes in salivary levels of the osteotropic factors sRANKL and OPG through orthodontic tooth movement; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 143(1); pp. 92-100; Jan. 2013. |
Friede et al.; Accuracy of Cephalometric Prediction in Orthognathic Surgery; Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery; 45(9); pp. 754-760; Sep. 1987. |
Futterling et al.; Automated Finite Element Modeling of a Human Mandible with Dental Implants; JS WSCG '98-Conference Program; 8 pages; retrieved from the Internet (https://dspace5.zcu.ez/bitstream/11025/15851/1/Strasser_98.pdf); on Aug. 21, 2018. |
Gansky; Dental data mining: potential pitfalls and practical issues; Advances in Dental Research; 17(1); pp. 109-114; Dec. 2003. |
Gao et al.; 3-D element Generation for Multi-Connected Complex Dental and Mandibular Structure; IEEE Proceedings International Workshop in Medical Imaging and Augmented Reality; pp. 267-271; Jun. 12, 2001. |
Gim-Alldent Deutschland, “Das DUX System: Die Technik,” 3 pages; (English Translation Included); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date); 2002. |
Gottleib et al.; JCO Interviews Dr. James A. McNamura, Jr., on the Frankel Appliance: Part 2: Clinical 1-1 Management; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 16(6); pp. 390-407; retrieved from the internet (http://www.jco-online.com/archive/print_article.asp?Year=1982&Month=06&ArticleNum+); 21 pages; Jun. 1982. |
Grayson; New Methods for Three Dimensional Analysis of Craniofacial Deformity, Symposium: Computerized Facial Imaging in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery; American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons; 48(8) suppl 1; pp. 5-6; Sep. 13, 1990. |
Guess et al.; Computer Treatment Estimates In Orthodontics and Orthognathic Surgery; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 23(4); pp. 262-268; 11 pages; (Author Manuscript); Apr. 1989. |
Heaven et al.; Computer-Based Image Analysis of Artificial Root Surface Caries; Abstracts of Papers #2094; Journal of Dental Research; 70:528; (Abstract Only); Apr. 17-21, 1991. |
Highbeam Research: Simulating stress put on jaw. (ANSYS Inc.'s finite element analysis software); 2 pages; retrieved from the Internet (http://static.highbeam.eom/t/toolingampproduction/november011996/simulatingstressputonfa . . . ); on Nov. 5, 2004. |
Hikage; Integrated Orthodontic Management System for Virtual Three-Dimensional Computer Graphic Simulation and Optical Video Image Database for Diagnosis and Treatment Planning; Journal of Japan KA Orthodontic Society; 46(2); pp. 248-269; 56 pages; (English Translation Included); Feb. 1987. |
Hoffmann et al.; Role of Cephalometry for Planning of Jaw Orthopedics and Jaw Surgery Procedures; Informatbnen, pp. 375-396; (English Abstract Included); Mar. 1991. |
Hojjatie et al.; Three-Dimensional Finite Element Analysis of Glass-Ceramic Dental Crowns; Journal of Biomechanics; 23(11); pp. 1157-1166; Jan. 1990. |
Huckins; CAD-CAM Generated Mandibular Model Prototype from MRI Data; AAOMS, p. 96: (Abstract Only); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1999. |
JCO Interviews; Craig Andreiko , DDS, MS on the Elan and Orthos Systems; Interview by Dr. Larry W. White; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 28(8); pp. 459-468; 14 pages; (Author Manuscript); Aug. 1994. |
JCO Interviews; Dr. Homer W. Phillips on Computers in Orthodontic Practice, Part 2; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 17(12); pp. 819-831; 19 pages; (Author Manuscript); Dec. 1983. |
Jerrold; The Problem, Electronic Data Transmission and the Law; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 113(4); pp. 478-479; 5 pages; (Author Manuscript); Apr. 1998. |
Jia et al.; Epidermal biofuel cells: energy harvesting from human perspiration; Angewandle Chemie International Edition; 52(28); pp. 7233-7236; Jul. 8, 2013. |
Jia et al.; Wearable textile biofuel cells for powering electronics; Journal of Materials Chemistry A; 2(43); pp. 18184-18189; Oct. 14, 2014. |
Jones et al.; An Assessment of the Fit of a Parabolic Curve to Pre- and Post-Treatment Dental Arches; British Journal of Orthodontics; 16(2); pp. 85-93; May 1989. |
Kamada et.al.; Case Reports On Tooth Positioners Using LTV Vinyl Silicone Rubber; J. Nihon University School of Dentistry; 26(1); pp. 11-29; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1984. |
Kamada et.al.; Construction of Tooth Positioners with LTV Vinyl Silicone Rubber and Some Case KJ Reports; J. Nihon University School of Dentistry; 24(1); pp. 1-27; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1982. |
Kanazawa et al.; Three-Dimensional Measurements of the Occlusal Surfaces of Upper Molars in a Dutch Population; Journal of Dental Research; 63(11); pp. 1298-1301; Nov. 1984. |
Kesling et al.; The Philosophy of the Tooth Positioning Appliance; American Journal of Orthodontics and Oral surgery; 31(6); pp. 297-304; Jun. 1945. |
Kesling; Coordinating the Predetermined Pattern and Tooth Positioner with Conventional Treatment; American Journal of Orthodontics and Oral Surgery; 32(5); pp. 285-293; May 1946. |
Kim et al.; Non-invasive mouthguard biosensor for continuous salivary monitoring of metabolites; Analyst; 139(7); pp. 1632-1636; Apr. 7, 2014. |
Kleeman et al.; The Speed Positioner; J. Clin. Orthod.; 30(12); pp. 673-680; Dec. 1996. |
Kochanek; Interpolating Splines with Local Tension, Continuity and Bias Control; Computer Graphics; 18(3); pp. 33-41; Jan. 1, 1984. |
Kumar et al.; Biomarkers in orthodontic tooth movement; Journal of Pharmacy Bioallied Sciences; 7(Suppl 2); pp. S325-S330; 12 pages; (Author Manuscript); Aug. 2015. |
Kunii et al.; Articulation Simulation for an Intelligent Dental Care System; Displays; 15(3); pp. 181-188; Jul. 1994. |
Kuroda et al.; Three-Dimensional Dental Cast Analyzing System Using Laser Scanning; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 110(4); pp. 365-369; Oct. 1996. |
Laurendeau et al.; A Computer-Vision Technique for the Acquisition and Processing of 3-D Profiles of 7 Dental Imprints: An Application in Orthodontics; IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging; 10(3); pp. 453-461; Sep. 1991. |
Leinfelder et al.; A New Method for Generating Ceramic Restorations: a CAD-CAM System; Journal of the American Dental Association; 118(6); pp. 703-707; Jun. 1989. |
Manetti et al.; Computer-Aided Cefalometry and New Mechanics in Orthodontics; Fortschr Kieferorthop; 44; pp. 370-376; 8 pages; (English Article Summary Included); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1983. |
McCann; Inside the ADA; J. Amer. Dent. Assoc, 118:286-294; Mar. 1989. |
McNamara et al.; Invisible Retainers; J. Clin Orthod.; pp. 570-578; 11 pages; (Author Manuscript); Aug. 1985. |
McNamara et al.; Orthodontic and Orthopedic Treatment in the Mixed Dentition; Needham Press; pp. 347-353; Jan. 1993. |
Moermann et al., Computer Machined Adhesive Porcelain Inlays: Margin Adaptation after Fatigue Stress; IADR Abstract 339; J. Dent. Res.; 66(a):763; (Abstract Only); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1987. |
Moles; Correcting Mild Malalignments—As Easy As One, Two, Three; AOA/Pro Corner; 11(2); 2 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 2002. |
Mormann et al.; Marginale Adaptation von adhasuven Porzellaninlays in vitro; Separatdruck aus:Schweiz. Mschr. Zahnmed.; 95; pp. 1118-1129; 8 pages; (Machine Translated English Abstract); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date); 1985. |
Nahoum; The Vacuum Formed Dental Contour Appliance; N. Y. State Dent. J.; 30(9); pp. 385-390; Nov. 1964. |
Nash; CEREC CAD/CAM Inlays: Aesthetics and Durability in a Single Appointment; Dentistry Today; 9(8); pp. 20, 22-23 and 54; Oct. 1990. |
Nishiyama et al.; A New Construction of Tooth Repositioner by LTV Vinyl Silicone Rubber; The Journal of Nihon University School of Dentistry; 19(2); pp. 93-102 (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1977. |
Ogawa et al.; Mapping, profiling and clustering of pressure pain threshold (PPT) in edentulous oral muscosa; Journal of Dentistry; 32(3); pp. 219-228; Mar. 2004. |
Ogimoto et al.; Pressure-pain threshold determination in the oral mucosa; Journal of Oral Rehabilitation; 29(7); pp. 620-626; Jul. 2002. |
Page et al.; Validity and accuracy of a risk calculator in predicting periodontal disease; Journal of the American Dental Association; 133(5); pp. 569-576; May 2002. |
Paul et al.; Digital Documentation of Individual Human Jaw and Tooth Forms for Applications in Orthodontics; Oral Surgery and Forensic Medicine Proc. of the 24th Annual Conf. of the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society (IECON '98); vol. 4; pp. 2415-2418; Sep. 4, 1998. |
Pinkham; Foolish Concept Propels Technology; Dentist, 3 pages , Jan./Feb. 1989. |
Pinkham; Inventor's CAD/CAM May Transform Dentistry; Dentist; pp. 1 and 35, Sep. 1990. |
Ponitz; Invisible retainers; Am. J. Orthod.; 59(3); pp. 266-272; Mar. 1971. |
Procera Research Projects; Procera Research Projects 1993 {grave over ( )} Abstract Collection; 23 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1993. |
Proffit et al.; The first stage of comprehensive treatment alignment and leveling; Contemporary Orthodontics, 3rd Ed.; Chapter 16; Mosby Inc.; pp. 534-537; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 2000. |
Proffit et al.; The first stage of comprehensive treatment: alignment and leveling; Contemporary Orthodontics; (Second Ed.); Chapter 15, MosbyYear Book; St. Louis, Missouri; pp. 470-533 Oct. 1993. |
Raintree Essix & ARS Materials, Inc., Raintree Essix, Technical Magazine Table of contents and Essix Appliances, 7 pages; retrieved from the internet (http://www.essix.com/magazine/defaulthtml) on Aug. 13, 1997. |
Redmond et al.; Clinical Implications of Digital Orthodontics; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 117(2); pp. 240-242; Feb. 2000. |
Rekow et al.; CAD/CAM for Dental Restorations—Some of the Curious Challenges; IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering; 38(4); pp. 314-318; Apr. 1991. |
Rekow et al.; Comparison of Three Data Acquisition Techniques for 3-D Tooth Surface Mapping; Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society; 13(1); pp. 344-345 (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1991. |
Rekow; A Review of the Developments in Dental CAD/CAM Systems; Current Opinion in Dentistry; 2; pp. 25-33; Jun. 1992. |
Rekow; CAD/CAM in Dentistry: A Historical Perspective and View of the Future; Journal Canadian Dental Association; 58(4); pp. 283, 287-288; Apr. 1992. |
Rekow; Computer-Aided Design and Manufacturing in Dentistry: A Review of the State of the Art; Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry; 58(4); pp. 512-516; Dec. 1987. |
Rekow; Dental CAD-CAM Systems: What is the State of the Art?; The Journal of the American Dental Association; 122(12); pp. 43-48; Dec. 1991. |
Rekow; Feasibility of an Automated System for Production of Dental Restorations, Ph.D. Thesis; Univ. of Minnesota, 250 pages, Nov. 1988. |
Richmond et al.; The Development of the PAR Index (Peer Assessment Rating): Reliability and Validity.; The European Journal of Orthodontics; 14(2); pp. 125-139; Apr. 1992. |
Richmond et al.; The Development of a 3D Cast Analysis System; British Journal of Orthodontics; 13(1); pp. 53-54; Jan. 1986. |
Richmond; Recording The Dental Cast In Three Dimensions; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 92(3); pp. 199-206; Sep. 1987. |
Rudge; Dental Arch Analysis: Arch Form, A Review of the Literature; The European Journal of Orthodontics; 3(4); pp. 279-284; Jan. 1981. |
Sakuda et al.; Integrated Information-Processing System In Clinical Orthodontics: An Approach with Use of a Computer Network System; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 101(3); pp. 210-220; 20 pages; (Author Manuscript) Mar. 1992. |
Schellhas et al.; Three-Dimensional Computed Tomography in Maxillofacial Surgical Planning; Archives of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery; 114(4); pp. 438-442; Apr. 1988. |
Schroeder et al.; Eds. The Visual Toolkit, Prentice Hall PTR, New Jersey; Chapters 6, 8 & 9, (pp. 153-210,309-354, and 355-428; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1998. |
Shilliday; Minimizing finishing problems with the mini-positioner; American Journal of Orthodontics; 59(6); pp. 596-599; Jun. 1971. |
Shimada et al.; Application of optical coherence tomography (OCT) for diagnosis of caries, cracks, and defects of restorations; Current Oral Health Reports; 2(2); pp. 73-80; Jun. 2015. |
Siemens; CEREC—Computer-Reconstruction, High Tech in der Zahnmedizin; 15 pagesl; (Includes Machine Translation); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date); 2004. |
Sinclair; The Readers' Corner; Journal of Clinical Orthodontics; 26(6); pp. 369-372; 5 pages; retrived from the internet (http://www.jco-online.com/archive/print_article.asp?Year=1992&Month=06&ArticleNum=); Jun. 1992. |
Sirona Dental Systems GmbH, CEREC 3D, Manuel utiiisateur, Version 2.0X (in French); 114 pages; (English translation of table of contents included); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date); 2003. |
Stoll et al.; Computer-aided Technologies in Dentistry; Dtsch Zahna'rzti Z 45, pp. 314-322; (English Abstract Included); (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1990. |
Sturman; Interactive Keyframe Animation of 3-D Articulated Models; Proceedings Graphics Interface '84; vol. 86; pp. 35-40; May-Jun. 1984. |
The American Heritage, Stedman's Medical Dictionary; Gingiva; 3 pages; retrieved from the interent (http://reference.com/search/search?q=gingiva) on Nov. 5, 2004. |
The Dental Company Sirona: Cerc omnicam and cerec bluecam brochure: The first choice in every case; 8 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 2014. |
THORLABS; Pellin broca prisms; 1 page; retrieved from the internet (www.thorlabs.com); Nov. 30, 2012. |
Tiziani et al.; Confocal principle for macro and microscopic surface and defect analysis; Optical Engineering; 39(1); pp. 32-39; Jan. 1, 2000. |
Truax; Truax Clasp-Less(TM) Appliance System; The Functional Orthodontist; 9(5); pp. 22-24, 26-28; Sep.-Oct. 1992. |
Tru-Tatn Orthodontic & Dental Supplies, Product Brochure, Rochester, Minnesota 55902, 16 pages; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date) 1996. |
U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service, Holodontography: An Introduction to Dental Laser Holography; School of Aerospace Medicine Brooks AFB Tex; Mar. 1973, 40 pages; Mar. 1973. |
U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service; Automated Crown Replication Using Solid Photography SM; Solid Photography Inc., Melville NY,; 20 pages; Oct. 1977. |
Vadapalli: Minimum intensity projection (MinIP) is a data visualization; 7 pages; retrieved from the internet (https://prezi.com/tdmttnmv2knw/minimum-intensity-projection-minip-is-a-data-visualization/) on Sep. 6, 2018. |
Van Der Linden et al.; Three-Dimensional Analysis of Dental Casts by Means of the Optocom; Journal of Dental Research; 51(4); p. 1100; Jul.-Aug. 1972. |
Van Der Linden; A New Method to Determine Tooth Positions and Dental Arch Dimensions; Journal of Dental Research; 51(4); p. 1104; Jul.-Aug. 1972. |
Van Der Zel; Ceramic-Fused-to-Metal Restorations with a New CAD/CAM System; Quintessence International; 24(A); pp. 769-778; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date); 1993. |
Van Hilsen et al.; Comparing potential early caries assessment methods for teledentistry; BMC Oral Health; 13(16); doi: 10.1186/1472-6831-13-16; 9 pages; Mar. 2013. |
Varady et al.; Reverse Engineering Of Geometric Models'An Introduction; Computer-Aided Design; 29(4); pp. 255-268; 20 pages; (Author Manuscript); Apr. 1997. |
Verstreken et al.; An Image-Guided Planning System for Endosseous Oral Implants; IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging; 17(5); pp. 842-852; Oct. 1998. |
Warunek et al.; Physical and Mechanical Properties of Elastomers in Orthodonic Positioners; American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; 95(5); pp. 388-400; 21 pages; (Author Manuscript); May 1989. |
Warunek et.al.; Clinical Use of Silicone Elastomer Applicances; JCO; 23(10); pp. 694-700; Oct. 1989. |
Watson et al.; Pressures recorded at te denture base-mucosal surface interface in complete denture wearers; Journal of Oral Rehabilitation 14(6); pp. 575-589; Nov. 1987. |
Wells; Application of the Positioner Appliance in Orthodontic Treatment; American Journal of Orthodontics; 58(4); pp. 351-366; Oct. 1970. |
Williams; Dentistry and CAD/CAM: Another French Revolution; J. Dent. Practice Admin.; 4(1); pp. 2-5 Jan./Mar. 1987. |
Williams; The Switzerland and Minnesota Developments in CAD/CAM; Journal of Dental Practice Administration; 4(2); pp. 50-55; Apr./Jun. 1987. |
Windmiller et al.; Wearable electrochemical sensors and biosensors: a review; Electroanalysis; 25(1); pp. 29-46; Jan. 2013. |
Wishan; New Advances in Personal Computer Applications for Cephalometric Analysis, Growth Prediction, Surgical Treatment Planning and Imaging Processing; Symposium: Computerized Facial Imaging in Oral and Maxilofacial Surgery; p. 5; Presented on Sep. 13, 1990. |
Wolf; Three-dimensional structure determination of semi-transparent objects from holographic data; Optics Communications; 1(4); pp. 153-156; Sep. 1969. |
WSCG'98—Conference Program, The Sixth International Conference in Central Europe on Computer Graphics and Visualization '98; pp. 1-7; retrieved from the Internet on Nov. 5, 2004, (http://wscg.zcu.cz/wscg98/wscg98.htm); Feb. 9-13, 1998. |
Xia et al.; Three-Dimensional Virtual-Reality Surgical Planning and Soft-Tissue Prediction for Orthognathic Surgery; IEEE Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine; 5(2); pp. 97-107; Jun. 2001. |
Yamamoto et al.; Optical Measurement of Dental Cast Profile and Application to Analysis of Three-Dimensional Tooth Movement in Orthodontics; Front. Med. Bioi. Eng., 1(2); pp. 119-130; (year of pub. sufficiently earlier than effective US filing date and any foreign priority date); 1988. |
Yamamoto et al.; Three-Dimensional Measurement of Dental Cast Profiles and Its Applications to Orthodontics; Conf. Proc. IEEE Eng. Med. Biol. Soc.; 12(5); pp. 2052-2053; Nov. 1990. |
Yamany et al.; A System for Human Jaw Modeling Using Intra-Oral Images; Proc. of the 20th Annual Conf. of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society; vol. 2; pp. 563-566; Oct. 1998. |
Yoshii; Research on a New Orthodontic Appliance; The Dynamic Positioner (D.P.); 111. The General Concept of the D.P. Method and Its Therapeutic Effect, Part 1, Dental and Functional Reversed Occlusion Case Reports; Nippon Dental Review; 457; pp. 146-164: 43 pages; (Author Manuscript); Nov. 1980. |
Yoshii; Research on a New Orthodontic Appliance: The Dynamic Positioner (D.P.); I. The D.P. Concept and Implementation of Transparent Silicone Resin (Orthocon); Nippon Dental Review; 452; pp. 61-74; 32 pages; (Author Manuscript); Jun. 1980. |
Yoshii; Research on a New Orthodontic Appliance: The Dynamic Positioner (D.P.); II. The D.P. Manufacturing Procedure and Clinical Applications; Nippon Dental Review; 454; pp. 107-130; 48 pages; (Author Manuscript); Aug. 1980. |
Yoshii; Research on a New Orthodontic Appliance: The Dynamic Positioner (D.P.); III—The General Concept of the D.P. Method and Its Therapeutic Effect, Part 2. Skeletal Reversed Occlusion Case Reports; Nippon Dental Review; 458; pp. 112-129; 40 pages; (Author Manuscript); Dec. 1980. |
Zhou et al.; Biofuel cells for self-powered electrochemical biosensing and logic biosensing: A review; Electroanalysis; 24(2); pp. 197-209; Feb. 2012. |
Zhou et al.; Bio-logic analysis of injury biomarker patterns in human serum samples; Talanta; 83(3); pp. 955-959; Jan. 15, 2011. |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20190314119 A1 | Oct 2019 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
62656289 | Apr 2018 | US | |
62735658 | Sep 2018 | US |