Dental positioning appliance having metallic portion
Embodiments are provided for utilizing metallic portions in dental positioning appliances. One embodiment includes a removable dental positioning appliance having a shell having one or more cavities shaped to receive and reposition one or more teeth from a first orientation to a successive orientation and where at least a portion of the shell is formed from a metallic mesh material.
1. A removable dental positioning appliance comprising:
a shell having a plurality of cavities each shaped to receive and reposition one or more teeth from a first orientation to a successive orientation;
where a first portion of the shell consists of a non-metallic material;
where a second portion of the shell consists of a metallic mesh material; and
where the first and the second portions of the shell are each shaped as at least one of the plurality of cavities and are each configured to contact a surface of the one or more teeth when the one or more teeth are received in the shell.
2. The appliance of claim 1 , where the metallic mesh material is formed to provide a resilient functionality sufficient to move at least one tooth.
3. The appliance of claim 1 , where the metallic material is a shape memory material.
4. The appliance of claim 1 , where the metallic material includes one or more materials selected from the group: nickel, titanium, copper, aluminum, and zinc.
5. The appliance of claim 1 , where the metallic mesh is formed from one wire woven to create the mesh.
6. The appliance of claim 1 , where the metallic mesh is formed from multiple wires woven to create the mesh.
7. The appliance of claim 1 , where the mesh includes a number of junctions where two or more wires cross and where the wires at these junctions are bonded together.
8. The appliance of claim 1 , where the mesh includes a number of junctions where two or more wires cross and where the wires at these junctions are frictionally held together.
9. The appliance of claim 1 , where the first portion comprises a polymeric material.
10. The appliance of claim 1 , where the second portion of the shell is formed to be placed over a number of adjacent teeth in a region of a mouth of a patient.
11. The appliance of claim 1 , where one or more portions of the shell formed from a metallic mesh material are formed to be placed over a plurality of teeth to be moved during a treatment period.
12. The appliance of claim 1 , further comprising at least one additional cavity formed from a metallic mesh material and formed to be placed over a number of teeth to be stabilized during a treatment period.