ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 6 -- United States Patent no. 12,376,945, issued on Aug. 5, was assigned to Align Technology Inc. (San Jose, Calif.).
"Orthodontic appliances with discontinuities and elastics" was invented by Avi Kopelman (Palo Alto, Calif.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "Orthodontic appliances are provided. In some embodiments, an orthodontic appliance includes a polymeric shell having a plurality of teeth-receiving cavities. The polymeric shell can include a discontinuity that is configured to deform when the orthodontic appliance is worn on a patient's teeth. The orthodontic appliance can also include an elastic member having a first portion directly coupled to a first location on the...