Individual mandibular movement registration and reproduction using an optoeletronic jaw movement analyzer and a dedicated robot: a dental technique

Abstract

Background Fully adjustable articulators and pantographs record and reproduce individual mandibular movements. Although these instruments are accurate, they are operator-dependant and time-consuming. Pantographic recording is affected by inter and intra operator variability in the individuation of clinical reference points and afterwards in reading pantographic recording themselves. Finally only border movements can be reproduced. Methods Bionic Jaw Motion system is based on two components: a jaw movement analyzer and a robotic device that accurately reproduces recorded movements. The jaw movement analyzer uses an optoelectronic motion system technology made of a high frequency filming camera that acquires 140frames per second and a custom designed software that recognizes and determines the relative distance at each point in time of markers with known geometries connected to each jaw. Circumferential modified retainers connect markers and do not cover any occlusal surfaces neither obstruct occlusion. The recording process takes 5 to 10 s. Mandibular movement performance requires six degrees of freedom of movement, 3 rotations and 3 translations. Other robots are based on the so-called delta mechanics that use several parallel effectors to perform desired movements in order to decompose a complex trajectory into multiple more simple linear movements. However, each parallel effector introduces mechanical inter-component tolerances and mathematical transformations that are required to transform a recorded movement into the combination of movements to be performed by each effector. Bionic Jaw Motion Robot works differently, owing to three motors that perform translational movements and three other motors that perform rotations as a gyroscope. This configuration requires less mechanical components thus reducing mechanical tolerances and production costs. Both the jaw movement analyzer and the robot quantify the movement of the mandible as a rigid body with six degrees of freedom. This represents an additional advantage as no mathematical transformation is needed for the robot to reproduce recorded movements. Results Based on the described procedure, Bionic Jaw Motion provide accurate recording and reproduction of maxillomandibular relation in static and dynamic conditions. Conclusion This robotic system represents an important advancement compared to available analogical and digital alternatives both in clinical and research contexts for cost reduction, precision and time saving opportunities.

Robotics in Dentistry: A Narrative Review

“…Massimo et al proposed a system consisting of a jaw movement analyzer and a robotic articulator called bionic jaw motion (Bionic Technology, Vercelli, Italy), which could quickly record individual mandibular motions, and analyze the recorded data on the robot. The upper arm reproduces the lower jaw movement, which overcomes many limitations of the traditional pantograph–individual articulator system [ 50 ].…”

Assessment of Occlusal Vertical Dimension Change in Mechanical and Virtual Articulation: A Pilot Study

“…Future studies could include a larger and more diverse patient pool and incorporate 3D or 4D mandibular tracking devices or CBCT into the workflow to assess the vertical dimension change in different skeletal and dental relationships. Recently, a bionic jaw motion system that incorporated an optoelectronic jaw movement analyzer and a robotic device that reproduced the mandibular movement independent of hinge axis were introduced, which could be promising to accurately measure the change in the vertical dimension of occlusion and applied to a part of future study [ 22 ].…”

Robotic Applications in Orthodontics: Changing the Face of Contemporary Clinical Care

“…Simulation of the patient stomatognathic structures including masticatory muscles, tongue, and mandibular and condylar movements in real can help the clinicians to better visualize the problem in 3D, making it easier to reach a correct diagnosis [13,14,72]. Robots for dental articulation can eradicate technical difficulties of duplication positions and motions encountered in the classical articulator, thus saving time and producing more precise occlusal relationships [17].…”

“…Bionic Jaw Motion robots registering and reproducing mandibular movements were investigated. It is based on two components: a jaw movement analyzer and a robotic device that is able to accurately reproduce recorded movements with no mathematical transformations, reducing mechanical tolerances and time as fast as 5 to 10 s [14].…”

“…We are living in an era of complete digital transformation of orthodontic records and 3D simulation of a patient's own problems to reach a correct diagnosis. In the context of robotics, this entails the use of robots for more accurate X-ray imaging and positioning [8,9]; robotic automated 3D cephalometric annotation [10]; bionic robots for simulation of the stomatognathic system including masticatory and swallowing robots [11,12], tongue robots [13], mandibular [14] and condylar movement simulation robots [15,16], and dental articulation robots [17]; and robotic remote control of mandibular advancement appliances in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients in order to efficiently reach the effective target protrusive position [18,19].…”