Flexible batteries a highlight for smart dental aids
Redesigned lithium-ion batteries could help improve the efficiency of orthodontic devices.
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Smart 3D-printed braces that incorporate nontoxic batteries and lights could reduce the time and costs involved in realigning and straightening teeth.
The orthodontic system, conceptualized by researchers at KAUST, involves placing two near-infrared light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and one lithium-ion battery on every tooth in a semitransparent, 3D-printed dental brace.
The batteries provide energy to turn the near-infrared LEDs on and off, depending on how they are programmed by a dentist, to provide localized light therapy according to the needs of each tooth. Phototherapy enhances bone regeneration and can reduce the time and costs involved in corrective orthodontics. The brace would be removable to allow the batteries to be recharged.
“We started embedding flexible LEDs inside 3D-printed braces, but they needed a reliable power supply,” explains Muhammad Hussain who led the study together with PhD student Arwa Kutbee. “After the incidents with the Samsung Galaxy 7 batteries exploding, we realized that traditional batteries in their current form and encapsulation don’t serve our purpose. So we redesigned the state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery technology into a flexible battery, followed by biosafe encapsulation within the braces to make a smart dental brace.”
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