Tooth color approximating system

Abstract

A dental color matching system. A series of translucent films are printed with a variety of colors that closely approximate the colors found in human teeth. The films, or sections of the films, may be reversibly self-adhesive for ease in placing on and removing from a template, or on top of one another, in a sequence until the desired or matching color is obtained. The color is communicated among dental professionals and patient, for example, by indicia that encode the different colors found in a shade system used by dental professionals or in the tooth itself. By using the invention, a dental professional can thus economically and efficiently prepare a dental prosthesis with a color that closely matches that of a patient's natural tooth.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A system to approximate a distribution of at least one color property in a tooth, said system comprising a plurality of colored, translucent films, each of said films having at least one color property found in a tooth and having indicium for said color property.  
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said films are selected from the group consisting of self-adhering films, partially self-adhering films, non-self-adhering, and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said color property is selected from the group consisting of chroma, hue, value, opalescence, hypocalcifications, and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said films contain dividers selected from the group consisting of perforations, creases, markings, and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said films are organized in a form selected from the group consisting of a bundle, a booklet, a wheel, and a palette.  
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said films have a shape selected from the group consisting of strips, circles, rectangles, triangles, tooth-shaped, squares, sheets, and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         7 . A dental color system that approximates at least one color of a tooth comprising a plurality of colored translucent films, each of said films having an indicium for said color.  
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7  wherein said indicium indicates a dental porcelain powder color.  
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 7  wherein said dental porcelain powder color is printed on said films.  
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 7  wherein said indicium is selected from the group consisting of bar codes, letters, numbers, and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         11 . A method to convey color distribution in at least one tooth area to a dental professional comprising 
 providing a plurality of translucent films in a plurality of colors capable of layering to achieve a color approximating that of a tooth area, the films having an indicium for the color,    layering the films to approximate color of the area of the tooth,    determining the indicium for the layered films,    conveying the indicium to a dental professional to approximate the color of the tooth area.    
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  wherein the layered films comprise film sequence and tooth area.  
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11  wherein the films are layered on a template.  
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11  wherein the films are printed or copied with inks in a plurality of colors assessed from a dental color scale.  
     
     
         15 . A tooth color approximating apparatus comprising a plurality of translucent films, each of said films printed with a color that, in layered sequence order, is capable of approximating at least one of hue, chroma, or value of a tooth, and instructions for use.  
     
     
         16 . The apparatus of  claim 15  further comprising indicium for conveying the layered sequence.  
     
     
         17 . The apparatus of  claim 15  further comprising a template for locating an area of the tooth for color approximation.