Viewfinder with real-time tracking for intraoral scanning

1. A method for guiding scanning of an intraoral cavity of a patient, the method comprising:

capturing, using an image sensor, a first viewfinder image of a first portion of the intraoral cavity of the patient, the first viewfinder image including a field of view of an intraoral scanner;

illuminating the first portion of the intraoral cavity of the patient with light passing through focusing optics,

capturing, using the image sensor, topography data of the first portion of the intraoral cavity and corresponding to the first viewfinder image by measuring one or more characteristics of returning light beams, the returning light beams having passed through the focusing optics and having been reflected off surfaces within the intraoral cavity;

capturing a second viewfinder image of a second portion of the intraoral cavity;

displaying the second viewfinder image; and

displaying one or more visual indicators on the second viewfinder image corresponding to coverage of the topography data.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more visual indicators includes coloring or shading of the coverage of the topography data.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more visual indicators move when a user adjusts the portion of the intraoral cavity within the field of view of the intraoral scanner in order to allow the user to position the field of view of the intraoral scanner.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising scanning the first portion of the intraoral cavity with the one or more visual indicators displayed at one or more locations on a display.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein a third or more viewfinder images are displayed with the one or more visual indicators.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

determining the area of overlap of the second viewfinder image with the first viewfinder image, comprising comparing the first viewfinder image to the second viewfinder image; and

wherein one of the one or more visual indicators indicates the overlap of the first viewfinder image with the second viewfinder image.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein determining the area of overlap of the second viewfinder image with the first viewfinder image includes:

registering the second viewfinder image to the first viewfinder image.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein registering the second viewfinder image to the first viewfinder image comprises identifying one or more features present in both the second viewfinder image and the first viewfinder image.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein registering the second viewfinder image to the first viewfinder image comprises at least one of transforming or deforming the second viewfinder image to increase its similarity to the first viewfinder image.

10. The method of claim 5 , wherein the one or more visual indicators comprise a warning indicator if the area of overlap is smaller than a predetermined amount.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

positioning the intraoral scanner within the intraoral cavity, the positioning being guided at least in part by the one or more visual indicators.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:

recording a viewfinder image corresponding to the topography data while capturing the topography data of the first portion of the intraoral cavity with the intraoral scanner; and

updating the first viewfinder image to include the recorded viewfinder image.

13. A system for guiding scanning of an intraoral cavity of a patient, the system comprising:

an intraoral scanner comprising focusing optics and an illumination unit configured to project incident light through focusing optics to illuminate a first portion of the intraoral cavity, the intraoral scanner configured to capture topography data of the first portion of the intraoral cavity by measuring one or more characteristics of returning light beams, the returning light beams having passed through the focusing optics and having been reflected by surfaces within the intraoral cavity;

a viewfinder having a field of view including a field of view of the intraoral scanner an configured to capture a first viewfinder image;

a display configured to display one or more visual indicators on one or more locations of the display in order to provide guidance for positioning the intraoral scanner; and

a processing unit operatively coupled to the intraoral scanner, the display, and the viewfinder, the processing unit comprising instructions to generate the one or more visual indicators on a second viewfinder image, the one or more visual indicators corresponding to coverage of the topography data.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the intraoral scanner is configured for point-and-shoot scanning.

15. The system of claim 13 , wherein the intraoral scanner is configured for continuous scanning.

16. The system of claim 13 , further comprising instructions to determine an area of overlap and for registering the first viewfinder image to the second viewfinder image.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the instructions for registering the first viewfinder image to the second viewfinder image comprises instructions for identifying one or more features present in both the first viewfinder image and the second viewfinder image.

18. The system of claim 16 , wherein the instructions for registering the first viewfinder image to the second viewfinder image comprises instructions for transforming or deforming the first viewfinder image to increase its similarity the second viewfinder image.

19. The system of claim 13 , wherein the one or more visual indicators comprise a coloring of the coverage of the topography data.

20. The system of claim 13 , wherein the one or more visual indicators comprise a warning indicator if the area of overlap is smaller than a predetermined amount.