Dental Tools Wear Characterization

Tool wear is a fundamental phenomenon, that must be characterized to optimally plan machining operations. In the field of microtools used to prepare the bone for dental implants, an uncontrolled tool wear can generate a local increase of the temperature that can cause bone necrosis. The proposed contribution aims at showing preliminary results on the three-dimensional geometric characterization of the wear of dental tools. An experimental campaign has been run, including 3D scans of the unworn tools and after the use. The comparison between the scans allows a preliminary identification of the wear mechanisms. The final aims of the research project include an extensive experimental campaign on dental tool wear to characterize the link between the bone temperature, the cutting force and torque, and the wear condition, the development of automatic algorithms for the 3D characterization of the wear, and the proposal of guidelines on the maximum wear admissible for dental tools.