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Nov 6, 2017 | By Tess

3D printing has had a big impact on the dental industry and is being used for a number of applications in the field, ranging from customized teeth aligners to custom dental implants. What we never expected, however, was for 3D printing to revolutionize the chore of flossing.

Blizzident, a dental 3D printing company has developed a patent-pending device that could do just that. Called the “3D-Flosser,” this new 3D printed device reportedly enables users to floss all their teeth “with just one bite.”

Blizzident claims its 3D printed flossing device is custom designed to the user’s mouth so that when he or she bites down, the floss is inserted between the teeth as per a dentist’s recommendations.

As the company explains, “The 3D-Flosser design prevents you from biting into the floss too deep. It just lets you bite until the floss is ca. 2 mm deep into the region between gums and teeth (the "Gingival Sulcus"): exactly how it is recommended by dentists.”

While we’re not sure if the 3D printed device will really convince non-flossers to pick up the habit—even though it would be significantly faster than traditional tooth-by-tooth flossing—the 3D-Flosser will surely appeal to those who follow dental hygiene trends closely.

The 3D-Flosser concept is pretty straightforward: clients send a 3D scan or impression of their mouths to Blizzident, which then customizes a plastic 3D printed frame for the flossing device. Two wheels of floss can then be inserted into the device and floss can be strung through the frame. The user would then simply have to bit into the device to floss.

“The tailored 3D-Flosser positions floss exactly where it needs to be between all your teeth,” says Blizzident. “By biting into it the floss moves between all your teeth until the gumline is reached, thus removing a lot of dirt already. Grinding left/right and forward/backwards a bit now moves all the rest out.”

The 3D printed flossing device is a follow-up to the company’s controversial 3D-Toothbrush, which it released in 2013 and which it claimed could brush a user’s teeth in just six seconds. This contraption, which also resembled something from a torture museum, uses a similar concept in that it is essentially a 3D printed mold based off the user’s mouth which integrates about 800 bristles.

Blizzident's 3D-Toothbrush

Blizzident is offering its custom 3D printed flossing solution through its website for the price of $199 and €199. The company claims the 3D-Flosser can be used about 500 times before the floss rolls need replacing and that the plastic frame should last “many years”.

If you’re doing the mental math now, it probably doesn’t quite add up, considering you can buy rolls of old school manual floss for about a dollar, but again, if you’re someone who is up-to-date on all new dental trends and tricks, the 3D-Flosser might be of interest.

 

 

Posted in 3D Printing Application

 

 

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