Smart brackets
Can you imagine sensors like this in each of your teeth? If all goes as planned, that is how the braces of the future will be like. The Institute of Microsystem Technology (IMTEK) at the University of Freiburg has been developing smart brackets to address the need for monitoring movement of teeth. Smart brackets are orthodontic brackets with a microchip fitted with stress sensors that measure the forces applied to the bracket. Researchers have been working on the size of the stress sensor chip and its wireless energy and data transmission capabilities so that it can applied to the patient.
Image from www.imtek.de