EUROORTODONCIA

EuroOrtodoncia (EO) is a Spanish SME company located in Alcorcón (Madrid), devoted to orthodontic and dental market. EO is the only European company manufacturing transparent self-ligating brackets, which makes EO a leader in aesthetical orthodontic solutions. EO, besides producing and commercializing its own orthodontic products, also trains orthodontic specialists. This unique structure allows EO to have a direct feedback from sector professionals and their patients and this way, be able to answer accordingly evolving in a continuous improvement. Defined test-cases In the case of EuroOrtodoncia (EO) the industrial test case, provided to MIDEMMA project, is the Chameleon self-ligating bracket cap. The caps clamp to the bracket bases, which are glued to patients' teeth and tighten the wire. The bracket cap has some critical features in the clip area having sizes around 100µm, especially concerning the clamping of the bracket cap. The proper replication of those micro-sized features is critical to ensure a correct orthodontic treatment, since the force transmission from the wire to the teeth is by means of the correct clamping of the cap to the bracket base. Due to the nature of the micro-injection process, several difficulties (unfilled/flashed parts, stuck mould, cavity erosion,…) are faced for the manufacturing of flawless caps, appropriate for their use in orthodontic treatments. Related to this test-case, different working groups have been assembled in order to define and develop solutions for the different problems defined by the industrial end-user. Next, the different tasks related to the solution of the test-case are exposed briefly. Figure 38 shows a poster summarizing visually the technical work carried out during the project related to the test-cases from EuroOrtodoncia. Test-case: Self-ligating bracket cap micro-injection New mould concept: KUL+Sarix Injection mould sensorization and process behaviour analysis: IK4-Tekniker Image capture and machine monitoring integration on quality chain: EuroOrtodoncia Process evolution analysis and smart decision making tool: Leuphana