Device and system for dental applications and method relating thereto

Abstract

The present invention relates to various devices, systems, kits and methods having dental applications. For instance, a dental tray is provided for use in taking an impression of a person's teeth. A dental shade chart is also provided and includes a shade sticker for use in determining the shade of a person's tooth. Further, the dental tray and/or the shade chart can be included in a kit.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A device for use in determining the shade of a person's tooth, which has a front surface, said device comprising a substrate; and a plurality of discrete stickers, each of which is removably placed on said substrate; each of said stickers having a single predetermined shade, which is different from the shade of each other one of said stickers, each of said stickers having a size smaller than the tooth and configured so as to be removably attached to the front surface of the tooth such that a selected one of said stickers can be superimposed directly on the front surface of the tooth. 
     
     
         2 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein each of said plurality of stickers is adapted to be peeled off said substrate. 
     
     
         3 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein each of said plurality of stickers has a substantially planar construction. 
     
     
         4 . The device of  claim 3 , wherein each of said plurality of stickers has a thickness within the range of from about 0.005 mm to about 0.5 mm. 
     
     
         5 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein each of said plurality of stickers has a translucency that is comparable to a translucency of an enamel layer of a conventional tooth. 
     
     
         6 . The device of  claim 5 , wherein each of said translucencies of said plurality of stickers is within a range of from about 50% to about 95%. 
     
     
         7 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein each of said plurality of stickers is sized and shaped so as to be removably attached to the front surface of the tooth such that each of said plurality of stickers can be superimposed directly on the front surface of the tooth. 
     
     
         8 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein each of said plurality of stickers includes a handle so as to facilitate the handling of said plurality of stickers. 
     
     
         9 . A method for determining the shade of a person's tooth using a shade sticker having a size smaller than a size of the tooth and having a predetermined shade and a surface, said method comprising the steps of removably attaching the sticker to a front surface of the tooth such that the sticker is superimposed directly on the front surface of the tooth; and comparing the shade of the tooth to the shade of the sticker attached thereto so as to determine the shade of the tooth. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising the step of applying a liquid substance having an adhesive property to at least one of the surface of the sticker and the front surface of the sticker prior to the performance of said attaching step so as to removably attach the sticker the front surface of the tooth. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the liquid substance includes the person's saliva, said applying step includes the step of licking at least one of the surface of the sticker and the front surface of the tooth such that the sticker is removably attached to the front surface of the tooth by the adhesive property of the saliva. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising the steps of removing the sticker from the tooth if the shade of the sticker does not match with the shade of the tooth; applying another shade sticker to the front surface of the tooth, the another sticker having a predetermined shade, which is different from the shade of the sticker, and a size, which is smaller than the size of the tooth such that the another sticker is superimposed directly on the front surface of the tooth; and comparing the shade of the tooth to the shade of the another sticker attached thereto so as to determine the shade of the tooth. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising the step of ordering a dental product having a shade that corresponds to the shade of the sticker if the shade of the sticker matches with the shade of the tooth. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the dental product includes at least one of a flipper, a sports mouthguard, a dental night guard, a whitening tray, a novelty costume tooth, a tray for providing a temporary preview of a person's teeth, an orthodontic tray and an orthodontic retainer. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising the step of whitening the teeth, said attaching step being performed prior to or subsequent to the performance of said whitening step. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein said comparing step includes the steps of taking a photograph of the tooth with the sticker attached thereto; transmitting the photograph to a computerized processor; and comparing the shade of the tooth to the shade of the sticker, the shade of the sticker being used as a reference shade.