DCT
0:20-cv-62292
Centre De Recherche Medico Dentaire Am Inc v. Digital Smi
Key Events
Complaint
I. Executive Summary and Procedural Information
- Parties & Counsel:
- Plaintiff: Centre de Recherche Médico Dentaire AM Inc. (Canada)
- Defendant: Digital Smile Design S.L. (Spain), DSD Planning Center S.L. (Spain), and Digital Smile Design Consultoria Odontológica LTDA (Brazil)
- Plaintiff’s Counsel: Carey Rodriguez Milian, LLP; AddyHart P.C.
- Case Identification: 0:20-cv-62292, S.D. Fla., 11/11/2020
- Venue Allegations: Venue is alleged to be proper because Defendants are foreign corporations, which may be sued for patent infringement in any judicial district.
- Core Dispute: Plaintiff alleges that Defendant’s digital dentistry software and related services infringe a patent related to a system and method for designing dental restorations.
- Technical Context: The technology concerns computer-aided systems used by dental professionals to visualize, plan, and design aesthetic smile restorations by manipulating 2D patient images and corresponding 3D dental models.
- Key Procedural History: The complaint does not allege any significant pre-suit procedural history, such as prior litigation between the parties or administrative challenges to the patent’s validity.
Case Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 2010-07-12 | U.S. Patent No. 9,411,910 Priority Date |
| 2016-08-09 | U.S. Patent No. 9,411,910 Issue Date |
| 2020-11-11 | Complaint Filing Date |
II. Technology and Patent(s)-in-Suit Analysis
U.S. Patent No. 9,411,910 - "Dental Analysis Method and System"
- Patent Identification: U.S. Patent No. 9,411,910, “Dental Analysis Method and System,” issued August 9, 2016 (the “’910 Patent”).
The Invention Explained
- Problem Addressed: The patent’s background section notes that traditional aesthetic guides, such as the “Golden Proportion,” have limited utility in dentistry because they do not accurately apply to the proportions of all teeth in a patient's smile, creating a need for a more effective system for planning dental modifications (ʼ910 Patent, col. 1:40-53).
- The Patented Solution: The invention is a computer-based system that addresses this problem by integrating 2D and 3D digital assets. The system receives a 2D image of a patient's smile and allows a user to select a desirable smile from a library of 2D images, where each 2D image is linked to a corresponding 3D dentition model. The user can adjust positioning indicators over the 2D image, and the system uses these adjustments to modify the associated 3D model, ultimately generating a “virtual wax-up” of the proposed dental restoration (ʼ910 Patent, Abstract; col. 2:1-18).
- Technical Importance: This approach seeks to provide a more precise and comprehensive tool for aesthetic dental planning than prior methods by linking manipulable 2D smile visualizations directly to modifiable 3D restoration models (ʼ910 Patent, col. 1:49-59).
Key Claims at a Glance
- The complaint asserts infringement of at least independent claim 1 (Compl. ¶21).
- The essential elements of Claim 1 are:
- An input for providing an image of the patient's smile.
- A memory storing a library of digital images of smiles associated with corresponding 3D dentition models.
- A user interface for selecting a digital smile image from the library to apply to the patient's image.
- A processor for:
- Applying positioning indicators over the patient's smile image to provide adjusted teeth positioning.
- Modifying the 3D dentition model associated with the selected digital smile image based on the positioning indicators.
- Providing a virtual wax-up based on the modified 3D model.
III. The Accused Instrumentality
Product Identification
- The complaint names “NemoDSD software,” “DSD Planning Center Services,” and “DSDApp by Coachman” as the Accused Products and Services (Compl. ¶¶6, 24, 40).
Functionality and Market Context
- The complaint alleges the accused products are software and services for designing dental restorations (Compl. ¶6). Based on screenshots from promotional videos, the functionality involves loading a patient’s photograph, selecting from a library of “predesigned templates,” and using software tools to superimpose and adjust the template over the patient’s image to visualize a new smile (Compl. ¶¶28, 30, 32). This process is alleged to result in a modified 3D model and a "virtual wax-up" of the proposed restoration (Compl. ¶¶36, 38).
- The complaint identifies Defendants as competitors of the Plaintiff in the field of dental restoration design software (Compl. ¶19).
IV. Analysis of Infringement Allegations
’910 Patent Infringement Allegations
| Claim Element (from Independent Claim 1) | Alleged Infringing Functionality | Complaint Citation | Patent Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| [a] an input for providing an image of the patient's smile to the system; | The accused systems work with an input patient photo that includes a smile. The complaint provides a screenshot from a video demonstrating the system displaying an input patient photo (Compl. p. 7). | ¶28 | col. 2:59-61 |
| [b] a memory having stored therein a library of digital images of smiles and of corresponding 3D dentition models wherein, in the library, each digital image of a smile is associated to a corresponding 3D dentition model; | The accused NemoDSD system allegedly includes “predesigned templates” stored in memory that function as the claimed library. The complaint includes a screenshot showing a gallery of smile templates available for selection (Compl. p. 8). | ¶30 | col. 2:6-8 |
| [c] a user interface for selecting a digital image of a smile to be applied to the image of the smile of the patient; | The accused system allegedly provides software tools that function as the user interface for selecting a template from the library and applying it to the patient's smile. | ¶32 | col. 2:8-12 |
| [d] a processor for: applying a set of positioning indicators over the image of the patient's smile, the positioning indicators providing adjusted teeth positioning over the image of the patient's smile, | The NemoDSD processor allegedly applies positioning indicators over the patient's image to allow for adjusted teeth positioning. A screenshot shows graphical overlays on the patient's teeth, alleged to be these indicators (Compl. p. 10). | ¶34 | col. 18:5-9 |
| [e] modifying, based on the positioning indicators, a 3D dentition model associated with the selected digital image of a smile, | The NemoDSD processor allegedly modifies a 3D dentition model based on the adjustments made to the positioning indicators on the 2D image. | ¶36 | col. 18:10-12 |
| [f] providing a virtual wax-up of a dental restoration of the dentition of the patient based on the modified 3D dentition model. | The NemoDSD processor allegedly provides a final virtual wax-up of the dental restoration. A screenshot from a video shows the resulting 3D digital smile design (Compl. p. 12). | ¶38 | col. 18:13-15 |
- Identified Points of Contention:
- Scope Questions: A potential dispute may arise over whether the accused "predesigned templates" (Compl. ¶30) meet the claim requirement of a "library of digital images of smiles and of corresponding 3D dentition models." Specifically, the language "each digital image... is associated to a corresponding 3D dentition model" may raise the question of whether a one-to-one, pre-defined link is required, or if a more dynamic or parametric relationship would suffice.
- Technical Questions: The complaint alleges that graphical overlays in the accused products are "positioning indicators" (Compl. ¶34). A technical question for the court will be whether these overlays function to provide "adjusted teeth positioning" that directly drives the modification of the 3D model, as the claim requires, or if their function is primarily for measurement, alignment, or another purpose distinct from the claimed method.
V. Key Claim Terms for Construction
The Term: "a library of digital images of smiles and of corresponding 3D dentition models"
Context and Importance: This term is central to the invention's architecture. The infringement analysis will depend heavily on whether the Defendants’ "predesigned templates" (Compl. ¶30) are found to constitute such a library. Practitioners may focus on the requirement that "each" 2D image is associated with a "corresponding" 3D model, as this may imply a specific data structure.
Intrinsic Evidence for Interpretation:
- Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The Abstract uses the more general phrase "associated 3D dentition models," which a party might argue supports a more flexible interpretation of the relationship between the 2D and 3D assets (’910 Patent, Abstract).
- Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The explicit language of claim 1, "each digital image of a smile is associated to a corresponding 3D dentition model," could be argued to require a discrete library of paired 2D images and 3D models, rather than a system where 3D models are generated parametrically from adjustable 2D templates. Figure 52, which depicts a "3D SMILE LIBRARY FROM 2D PICTURES" block, may be used to argue for a specific, pre-compiled library structure.
The Term: "positioning indicators"
Context and Importance: This term defines the mechanism by which user input on the 2D image is translated into changes in the 3D model. Whether the accused systems’ graphical overlays and adjustment tools meet this definition is a critical infringement question.
Intrinsic Evidence for Interpretation:
- Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The patent specification refers to "visual indicators" and "positioning lines," suggesting the term could encompass a variety of graphical overlays used to guide the design process (’910 Patent, col. 4:18-19).
- Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The detailed description extensively discusses positioning lines based on a specific "M Proportion," providing numerous figures (e.g., Figs. 4, 9, 10, 20) illustrating this grid-based system. A party could argue that the term "positioning indicators" should be construed in light of this detailed disclosure to require a specific proportional grid system, not just any general-purpose adjustment tool.
VI. Other Allegations
- Indirect Infringement: The complaint alleges that Defendants induce infringement by marketing the accused products and "disseminating product information and other materials providing instructions for infringing use" with the intent to facilitate infringement by others, such as dental professionals (Compl. ¶12).
- Willful Infringement: The complaint requests a finding that infringement was willful and seeks enhanced damages pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 284 (Compl. p. 19, ¶d). The factual allegations do not specify a basis for pre-suit knowledge, such as a notice letter.
VII. Analyst’s Conclusion: Key Questions for the Case
- A core issue will be one of claim construction: how broadly will the court interpret the phrase "a library of digital images of smiles and of corresponding 3D dentition models"? The case may turn on whether the accused system's "predesigned templates" have the specific one-to-one association between 2D images and 3D models that the claim language appears to require.
- A second central question will be factual and technical: do the accused products' graphical overlays and adjustment tools function as "positioning indicators" that provide "adjusted teeth positioning" to modify a 3D model, as recited in claim 1? This will likely require a detailed evidentiary analysis of how the accused software technically operates, compared to the system described and claimed in the ’910 Patent.