新型可攜式多通道咬合力量測系統

A Novel Multi-channel System for Portable Occlusal Force Measurement

咬合力主要是由咀嚼肌所產生，經由各個牙齒傳遞到牙周組織，再傳遞到頜骨而分散，是咀嚼功能很好的判斷依據。傳統咬合力量測是將單一感測器放在上下齒列間，在咬合中測得單一最大咬合力值；然而近年許多研究顯示，個別牙冠上的咬合力，與牙體本身、牙周組織與所對應的咀嚼肌有直接的關係，可作為植牙體的骨整合評估指標。有鑑於此，本研究利用薄膜型壓力感測器實現一新型可攜式多通道的咬合力量測器，有別於市面上單一咬合力或高價的陣列咬合力量測方式，本系統提供8個可移動的壓力量測點，讓使用者可以任意調整所需量測的位置，以簡單的方式就可掌握咬合力在全口與個別牙齒的分佈情況，提供臨床診斷、矯正治療更客觀的指標。實驗結果中發現，本系統可以正確測量出多點的咬合力值，並可實際運用於人體，提供診所或患者居家自我評估。

Occlusal force is produced by masticatory muscles and passes though each tooth to the periodontal tissue then transfers to the jaw. Measurement of maximum occlusal forces of teeth has been used for evaluating masticatory function. Only a single force while biting was considered in traditional measurement. However, many recent studies show that occlusal force from an individual dental crown could provide more information about the status of osseointegration in oral implants. In this study, we utilized thin-film pressure sensors (TFPS) to implement a multi-channel system for portable occlusal force measurement. Unlike traditional single occlusal force measurement, or expensive devices with array measurement, the proposed device has eight adjustable sensors for users to place position of interest. The results indicate that the proposed system could measure multiple points of occlusal force correctly and easily for clinical evaluation. It has high potential as an assessment tool for clinic and homecare applications.