Bite force and contact area evaluation in a physical-virtual environment

An integrated physical-virtual methodology for the in-vitro study of the occlusion is proposed. Both the contact area and the bite force are investigated in order to evaluate the functional characteristics of removable complete dentures and its relation to teeth morphology, position and orientation in the dental prosthesis and to relative position between antagonist teeth. The force is experimentally estimated by a 6-axis strain gauges sensor, while the contact areas are virtually identified by reverse engineering techniques. The proposed method is aimed to assist the functional design of artificial teeth for removable complete as well as the prototyping phases of the prosthesis.