WHAT IS THE DIGITAL WORKFLOW?
There is a popular misconception circulating that a 3d printer makes dentures, provisionals, splints or surgical guides. That is not exactly the whole truth. A 3D printer plays a part in making a dental appliance but it is part of a system or workflow that allows for the creation of that dental appliance.
Irrespective of using traditional techniques or digital technology to fabricate an appliance, there are a series of steps starting with data acquisition and ending when the appliance is inserted into the patient. This series of steps is the workflow used to create a dental appliance. These steps along with the equipment, software, and raw materials is your workflow solution to making an appliance. To simplify this, whether using a traditional or digital workflow, there are the same basic steps to the workflow.
- Data Acquisition
- Prepare Data
- Case Design
- Prepare Design for Manufacturing
- Manufacture
- Polish and prepare for insert
The 2 processes are similar but uses different “raw materials and equipment” to get to a similar result. Let’s look at a real-world situation with a side by side comparison between traditional and digital to better understand this concept.
Let’s assume for this example we are making a splint.
TRADITIONAL WORKFLOW
| DATA ACQUISITION | TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Goopy impressions of Upper and Lower arches with a bite registration | 30 minutes |
DIGITAL WORKFLOW
| DATA ACQUISITION | TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Scanned impressions of Upper and Lower arches with a bite registration. | 10 minutes |
TRADITIONAL WORKFLOW
| DATA PREPARATION | TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Impressions are poured in stone, trimmed, and mounted on an articulator using the bite registration. Working model is duplicated and mounted for use during design and manufacturing | 90 minutes |
DIGITAL WORKFLOW
| DATA PREPARATION | TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Stl files are imported into dental CAD software, trimmed, and virtually aligned. | 5 minutes |
TRADITIONAL WORKFLOW
| DESIGN "MOCKUP" |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Wax is manually shaped on the duplicate model using the articulation to create a design replica of the splint. | 20 minutes |
DIGITAL WORKFLOW
| DESIGN "MOCKUP" |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
| A computer-generated replica of the final appliance is created using software to design instead of raw materials. | 5 minutes |
TRADITIONAL WORKFLOW
| DESIGN PREPARATION |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
| The wax replica and duplicate model will be flasked in a mold to prepare for processing. The wax will then be boiled out of the mold and separator is applied to the mold. | 45 minutes |
DIGITAL WORKFLOW
| DESIGN PREPARATION |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
| “Nesting” software is used to prepare and place the computer-generated design into a file for printer to produce the appliance directly without any additional steps or materials. | 5 minutes |
TRADITIONAL WORKFLOW
| PRODUCTION |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Acrylic is added to the mold using the lost wax injection molding technique to create the appliance. | 60 minutes |
DIGITAL WORKFLOW
| PRODUCTION |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Nested splint is sent to the printer for 3D printing splint. | 45 minutes |
TRADITIONAL WORKFLOW
| FINISH |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
| Break out acrylic from the mold. Remove all stone from the model. Trim and fit splint on the articulated model. Polish on the lathe to a high shine. | 60 minutes |
DIGITAL WORKFLOW
| FINISH |
TIME TO COMPLETE |
Remove splint from the printer build plate.
|
25 minutes |