Dental bite block for 2D imaging

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11701071-B2
Application number	US-202017076343-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 21, 2020
Priority date	Jun 25, 2014
Publication date	Jul 18, 2023
Grant date	Jul 18, 2023

Abstract

Dental radiographic imaging systems and/or methods for using the same can provide panoramic 2D dental radio-graphic images. Providing improved panoramic 2D image quality can depend on imaging a desired/selected focal trough, which is itself based on a correct positioning of the patient's head inside the panoramic dental imaging system. Exemplary dental radiographic imaging systems and/or methods for using the same can provide a patient positioning device (e.g., bite stick embodiments) that can position or urge patients to get the right positioning (such as head tilt) to increase probabilities of the improved/best panoramic image reconstruction. Further, certain exemplary bite stick embodiments can repeatedly, consistently and/or correctly position patient after patient for panoramic imaging.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A dental imaging apparatus for obtaining a radiographic image of teeth of a patient, said apparatus comprising:
a movable mount comprising a radiation source and a digital imaging sensor;
an actuator that is energizable to move said movable mount in a horizontal scanning plane in a scan pattern about an imaging area;
a computer in signal communication with said digital imaging sensor and configured to acquire one or more two-dimensional images via said digital imaging sensor positioned relative to said radiation source in the scan pattern; and
a patient support structure comprising a horse-shoe shaped flat bite piece that is non-pivotably mounted to the patient support structure and configured to orient the occlusal plane of the patient in the imaging area when said flat bite piece is held between the occlusal surfaces of the upper and lower teeth of the patient, wherein said flat bite piece forms a fixed, 6 degree to 10 degree angle with respect to the horizontal scanning plane.

2. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , comprising one or more flanges on an upper side and a lower side of said flat bite piece, respectively, for positioning the patient's front teeth when such teeth are leaned against said flanges.

3. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 2 , wherein said flanges on said upper side and said lower side of said flat bite piece are offset relative to each other to form a horizontal distance therebetween, wherein said horizontal distance is related to a width dimension of said flat bite piece to locate upper and lower incisors within a focal trough of said radiation source and said digital imaging sensor.

4. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 3 , wherein said horizontal distance and said width are related by the following relationship:
Delta X >=sin( a 0 )* W,

wherein DeltaX is said horizontal distance between said flanges, a° is the angle of a bite plane of said flat bite piece relative to said horizontal scanning plane, and W is the width of said flat bite piece.

5. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said flat bite piece is configured to orient the occlusal plane of the patient such that the occlusal plane forms a fixed, 7 degree to 8 degree angle with respect to said horizontal scanning plane.

6. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said patient support structure further comprises (i) a chin rest or (ii) a chin rest and a head support.

7. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said flat bite piece is connected to a chin rest, and wherein said chin rest forms a prescribed relationship relative to said movable mount.

8. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the radiographic image includes a dental panoramic image of at least a portion of a dental arch.

9. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said dental imaging apparatus further comprises at least one of (i) a panoramic dental imaging apparatus, and (ii) a combined dental imaging apparatus including a panoramic dental imaging device and at least one of a computed tomography dental imaging device, a cephalometric dental imaging device, an ultrasonic dental imaging device, or an ENT radiographic imaging device.

10. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a set of said flat bite pieces, wherein the 6 degree to 10 degree angle varies amongst said flat bite pieces within said set so as to position the root apex of upper teeth and the root apex of lower teeth within a focal plane of a panoramic image of said teeth.

11. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said patient support structure further comprises a bite stick comprising said flat bite piece, said bite stick being slidable in a chin rest and a head support, wherein said head support is connected to said movable mount.

12. The dental imaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said patient support structure is configured to position the root apex of upper teeth and the root apex of lower teeth within a focal trough of said radiation source and said digital imaging sensor.

13. A method of positioning a patient for dental radiographic imaging, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a bitable horse-shoe shaped flat bite piece that is non-pivotably mounted to a patient support structure, wherein said flat bite piece includes opposing surfaces that are configured to define a plane forming a prescribed, fixed angle having a measure of between 6 degrees and 10 degrees with respect to a horizontal scanning plane; and
positioning said opposing surfaces of said flat bite piece between at least some upper teeth and one or more lower teeth of the patient to align a Frankfort plane of the patient parallel to said horizontal scanning plane.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein said flat bite piece is configured to orient the occlusal plane of the patient such that the occlusal plane forms a fixed, 7 degree to 8 degree angle with respect to said horizontal scanning plane.

15. The method of claim 13 , wherein providing the bitable horse-shoe shaped flat bite piece comprises selecting, from a set of said flat bite pieces, wherein the 6 degree to 10 degree angle varies amongst said flat bite pieces within said set, one of said bite pieces so as to position the root apex of upper teeth and the root apex of lower teeth within a focal plane of a panoramic image of said teeth.

16. The method of claim 13 , wherein said patient support structure further comprises a bite stick comprising said flat bite piece, said bite stick being slidable in a chin rest of the patient support structure, and the step of:
adjusting a height of said flat bite piece with respect to said chin rest by sliding said bite stick in said chin rest.

Assignees

• Trophy

Inventors

• Alric Stephane
• Vlachomitrou Anna-Sesilia

Classifications

• A61B6/145 Primary

  Human Necessities · mapped topic

• A61B6/032 Primary

  Transmission computed tomography [CT] · CPC title

• A61B6/04

  Positioning of patients; Tiltable beds or the like · CPC title

• A61B6/14

  Human Necessities · mapped topic

• A61B8/0875

  for diagnosis of bone · CPC title