Apparatuses, Systems and Methods for Confirming Use of an Oral Appliance

Abstract

An oral appliance constructed with a housing that encloses a recorder and a transceiver. The oral appliance responds to commands received via the transceiver. When so directed, the oral appliance uses one or more sensors alone or in combination to record measurements at periodic intervals. When communicatively coupled to a suitably configured communication device, the oral appliance receives commands that direct the oral appliance to transmit an identifier, the recorded data, or both the identifier and the data. The transmitted data can be used to determine whether the user of the oral appliance has complied with a recommended usage schedule.

1 . An oral appliance, comprising:
 a housing configured for placement within an oral cavity, the housing comprising:
 a power source; 
 a sensor; 
 a recorder powered by the power source, coupled to the sensor and configured to record a measurement responsive to the sensor; and 
 a transceiver coupled to the recorder and configured to communicate the measurement responsive to a command. 
   
   
   
       2 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to temperature. 
   
   
       3 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to humidity. 
   
   
       4 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to motion. 
   
   
       5 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to a concentration of sodium chloride. 
   
   
       6 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to a concentration of a carbohydrate selected from the group consisting of glucose, fructose and sucrose. 
   
   
       7 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to light. 
   
   
       8 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the recorder and the transceiver are implemented on an integrated circuit. 
   
   
       9 . The oral appliance of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 a timer.   
   
   
       10 . The oral appliance of  claim 9 , wherein the transceiver receives a timer command from a communication device. 
   
   
       11 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a controller.   
   
   
       12 . The oral appliance of  claim 11 , wherein the controller directs the transceiver to transmit an identifier responsive to a command received by the transceiver. 
   
   
       13 . The oral appliance of  claim 12 , wherein the command directs the controller to perform one of a start, pause or terminate operation. 
   
   
       14 . The oral appliance of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a memory for storing the measurement at periodic intervals.   
   
   
       15 . The oral appliance of  claim 14 , wherein the memory stores a start time. 
   
   
       16 . The oral appliance of  claim 14 , wherein the memory is erased responsive to an erase command received by the transceiver. 
   
   
       17 . A method for confirming compliant use of an oral appliance, the method comprising:
 providing an oral appliance to a user, the oral appliance configured to record a measurement indicative of placement of the oral appliance in an oral cavity;   directing the oral appliance to transfer the measurement; and   analyzing the measurement.   
   
   
       18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the measurement comprises a temperature reading. 
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the measurement comprises a humidity reading. 
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein directing the oral appliance to transfer the measurement comprises confirming the successful transfer of the measurement to the communication device and directing the oral appliance to erase the measurement. 
   
   
       21 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein directing the oral appliance to transfer the measurement comprises communicatively coupling the oral appliance to a communication device. 
   
   
       22 . The method of  claim 21 , further comprising:
 transmitting a command to the oral appliance.   
   
   
       23 . The method of  claim 21 , further comprising:
 providing the communication device to a medical professional.   
   
   
       24 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein directing the oral appliance to transfer the measurement comprises confirming the successful transfer of the measurement to the communication device and directing the oral appliance to erase the measurement. 
   
   
       25 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein analyzing the measurement comprises communicating information to a computing device. 
   
   
       26 . The method of  claim 17 , further comprising:
 directing the oral appliance to transfer an identifier.   
   
   
       27 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the measurement is responsive to the concentration of hydrogen ions. 
   
   
       28 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the measurement is responsive to a concentration of sodium chloride. 
   
   
       29 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the measurement is responsive to a concentration of a carbohydrate selected from the group consisting of glucose, fructose and sucrose. 
   
   
       30 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the measurement is responsive to light. 
   
   
       31 . An oral system for determining compliant use over time by a patient, comprising:
 an orthodontic appliance;   a sensor integrated with the orthodontic appliance and able to detect a condition in the patient's oral cavity; and   a transceiver integrated within the orthodontic appliance and responsive to a command originating from a communication device.   
   
   
       32 . The oral system of  claim 31 , wherein the orthodontic appliance comprises a retainer. 
   
   
       33 . The oral system of  claim 31 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to temperature. 
   
   
       34 . The oral system of  claim 31 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to humidity. 
   
   
       35 . The oral system of  claim 31 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to pressure. 
   
   
       36 . The oral system of  claim 31 , wherein the sensor is sensitive to a concentration of hydrogen ions. 
   
   
       37 . The oral system of  claim 31 , further comprising:
 a recorder coupled to the sensor and the transceiver, the recorder configured to periodically store at least one measurement received from the sensor.   
   
   
       38 . The oral system of  claim 37 , wherein the recorder transfers stored measurements from two or more sensors with different sensitivities, the stored measurements recorded proximal in time to one another.