Diagnostic intraoral methods and apparatuses
Methods and apparatuses for taking, using and displaying three-dimensional (3D) volumetric models of a patient's dental arch. A 3D volumetric model may include surface (e.g., color) information as well as information on internal structure, such as near-infrared (near-IR) transparency values for internal structures including enamel and dentin.
1. A method of displaying images from a three-dimensional (3D) volumetric model of a patient's dental arch, the method comprising:
forming the 3D volumetric model of the subject's dental arch based on a plurality of near-infrared (near-IR) images of the subject's dental arch taken with one or more cameras of an intraoral scanner and based on a location and orientation of the one or more cameras relative to the subject's dental arch for each of the plurality of near-IR images, wherein the 3D volumetric model includes near-IR transparency values for internal structures within the dental arch;
generating a two-dimensional (2D) view into the 3D volumetric model including the patient's dental arch including the near-IR transparency; and
displaying the 2D view.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising scanning the patient's dental arch with the intraoral scanner.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating the 2D view comprises sectioning the 3D volumetric model in a plane through the 3D volumetric model.
4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising selecting, by a user, a section though the 3D volumetric model to display.
5. The method of claim 4 , wherein selecting comprises continuously selecting sections through the 3D volumetric model as the user scans through the 3D model and continuously displaying the 2D views corresponding to each section.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating the 2D view comprises selecting, by a user, an orientation of the 2D view.
7. The method of claim 6 , wherein generating the 2D view comprises selecting, by a user, an orientation of the 2D view.
8. A method of displaying images from a three-dimensional (3D) volumetric model of a patient's dental arch, the method comprising:
forming the 3D volumetric model of the subject's dental arch based on a plurality of near-infrared (near-IR) images of the subject's dental arch taken with one or more cameras of an intraoral scanner and on a determined location and orientation of the one or more cameras relative to the subject's teeth for each of the plurality of near-IR images, wherein the 3D volumetric model includes surface values and near-infrared (near-IR) transparency values for internal structures within the dental arch;
generating a two-dimensional (2D) view into the 3D volumetric model including the patient's dental arch including both surface values and the near-IR transparency values of the internal structures; and
displaying the 2D view.
9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the surface values comprise surface color values.
10. The method of claim 8 , wherein generating the two-dimensional (2D) view through the 3D volumetric comprises including in the 2D view a weighted portion of the surface values and a weighted portion of the near-IR transparency of the internal structures.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the weighted portion of the surface values comprises a percentage of the full value of the surface values, and the weighted portion of the near-IR transparency of the internal structures comprises a percentage of the full value of the near-IR transparency of the internal structures, wherein the percentage of the full value of the surface values and the percentage of the full value of the near-IR transparency of the internal structures adds up to 100%.
12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising adjusting, by a user, the weighted portion of one or more of the surface values and the near-IR transparency of the internal structures.
13. The method of claim 8 , further comprising scanning the patient's dental arch with an intraoral scanner.
14. The method of claim 8 , wherein generating the 2D view comprises sectioning the 3D volumetric model in a plane through the 3D volumetric model.
15. The method of claim 8 , further comprising selecting, by a user, a section though the 3D volumetric model to display.
16. The method of claim 15 , wherein selecting comprises continuously selecting sections through the 3D volumetric model as the user scans through the 3D model and continuously displaying the 2D views corresponding to each section.
17. A method of displaying images from a three-dimensional (3D) volumetric model of a patient's dental arch, the method comprising:
forming the 3D volumetric model of the subject's dental arch based on a plurality of near-infrared (near-IR) images of the subject's dental arch taken with one or more cameras of an intraoral scanner and on a determined location and orientation of the one or more cameras relative to the subject's teeth for each of the plurality of IR images, wherein the 3D volumetric model includes surface values and near-infrared (near-IR) transparency values for internal structures within the dental arch;
selecting, by a user, an orientation of a view of the 3D volumetric model to display;
generating a two-dimensional (2D) view into the 3D volumetric using the selected orientation, including the patient's dental arch including a weighted portion of surface features using the surface values and a weighted portion of internal structures using the near-IR transparency values; and
displaying the 2D view.
18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the weighted portion of the surface color values comprises a percentage of the full value of the surface color values, and the weighted portion of the near-IR transparency of the internal structures comprises a percentage of the full value of the near-IR transparency of the internal structures, wherein the percentage of the full value of the surface color values and the percentage of the full value of the near-IR transparency of the internal structures adds up to 100%.
19. The method of claim 17 , further comprising adjust, by the user, the weighted portion of the surface color values and/or the near-IR transparency of the internal structures.
20. The method of claim 17 , further comprising scanning the patient's dental arch with an intraoral scanner.
21. The method of claim 17 , wherein generating the 2D view comprises sectioning the 3D volumetric model in a plane through the 3D volumetric model.
22. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating the 2D view includes: generating a first 2D view with a first weighted ratio of surface values relative to near-IR transparency values; and generating a second 2D view with a second weighted ratio of surface values relative to near-IR transparency values, wherein the first weighted ratio is different than the second weighted ratio.