A 3D printed toothbrush for all your teeth

[stephengillie]

Wow, what's with all of the hate? Someone uses a new technology to create a device that could be a more efficient way of solving a current problem, and the best comments that anyone can write are complaints about how it's a bad idea or solving the wrong problem because they personally don't have this problem? What an awful way to encourage inventive people to follow their dreams and build new products for everyone. These attitudes kill entrepreneurship.

[gohrt]

Well there's this:

    > What about clinical studies?
    > Clinical studies will be published soon, showing the same
    > dramatic improvements in plaque-removal and overall oral
    >  hygiene that our inhouse testing and usage by 
    > our first customers have already been showing.

That's not quite how science works.

But it's nice to see engineering geeks getting into the medical quackery business.

Also:

> It lasts 1 year - you receive a refurbished one (professionally cleaned and all bristles brandnew) for 89.

So it's even more expensive to maintain than an electric toothbrush, which can also be shared among multiple users with different bristle heads.

[pdx]

I'm very excited about this. The 6 second thing would be a Godsend for my 5 year old, who I spend 90 seconds every night brushing his teeth for him, trying to stave off more tooth decay on his teeth (bad teeth run in my family). I feel guilty about only doing 90 seconds, and he hates that we even do that long. This would be huge for our evening routine, and maybe for his long term tooth health (baby tooth health can effect adult tooth health)

I'm disappointed at the $500/person price tag. ($300 plus dental impressions), but I'm still really thinking about this for him and for me.

[bnegreve]

> What an awful way to encourage inventive people to follow their dreams and build new products for everyone. These attitudes kill entrepreneurship.

How to provide useful feedback is a very serious problem. On the one hand, I agree that we are usually biased toward negative criticism, on the other hand overly positive feedback is exactly 0% useful.

If people on HN have this kind of reaction, it's very likely that other people out there will also have this kind of reaction so as an entrepreneur, you really want to know real people's reaction so you can improve your pitch.

So let's make sure that we provide constructive and encouraging feedback but let's also not refrain emotional reactions just because we want to encourage inventive people to follow their dreams and build new products for everyone. Otherwise, it's not feedback anymore.

[gnarbarian]

They act like that on almost every article. It's like an Entrepreneur's version of the "Player Haters Ball" Dave Chappelle sketch.

[samstave]

this is perfect for small children who cannot brush their teeth that well.

[donpdonp]

It looks impossible to change the angle of the brush, meaning only the major face of each tooth gets touched by the bristles. This seems more to do with 3D printing, than dentistry.

What is interesting is the change from mass produced to 'mass customization' where things are made with efficiencies of scale, yet each one can be unique (within limits).

[zdw]

While it obviously appears to shorten the brushing time, it also looks like it would be much harder to keep the device itself clean - everyone who has had a retainer or other removable dental device could likely attest to this. I'd imagine it would also require more toothpaste.

Seeing as toothbrushes in bulk are about less than $1 each, a $300 ($150 refurbished, but ewwwwww...), hard to clean device seems somewhat difficult to argue for.

[brd]

Lets put aside the cleaning argument and discuss cost for a minute here.

Its recommended you brush your teeth for ~2 minutes. Lets say with this thing you shorten it to 30 seconds. That means you save 3 minutes per day every day on brushing, assuming you brush twice daily. This works out to about 18 hours a year. If your time is more valuable than 17/hr it's arguably worth it.

Time and time again I see people complain about the cost of daily use items but when you factor in how much you actually use them and the potential benefit you can get out of a them it quickly becomes worthwhile.

edit: there is a huge difference between being maximizing productivity and measuring opportunity cost, I'm arguing the latter. I don't expect you to get paid another 18 hours a year. I'm simply pointing out that depending on how YOU value YOUR time spending $300 on a fancy toothbrush is entirely worth it.

[fooqux]

There's nothing wrong with a refurbished device like this, provided it's been cleaned. I don't understand why people always have problems with things like this.

Or do you have a problem with the cleaning tools the dental hygienist uses? Those were in someone else's mouth the previous day, after all.

I agree with your other points, although if the device cleans your teeth better, that may be worth it to some people.

[r0h1n]

How can a product that is "tailor-made to fit into a person's mouth using 3D scanning and 3D printing" be sold refurbished?

[Groxx]

Specifically to retainer cleaning, there is a huge difference between something that's in your mouth for 6 seconds daily and something that's in there for 16 hours. Retainers need constant cleaning to not smell like death. Your toothbrush does not, though it's in your mouth for longer than this one would be (seriously, go smell it. it's probably fine.).

[Theriac25]

Maybe they should make custom cleaning brushes that are tailored to each tooth-brush they produce.

[ginko]

Maybe you can put it in a cleaning fluid after brushing.

[toki5]

This is the wrong problem to try and solve. Toothbrushes are a solved problem.

If you want to disrupt at-home dentistry, solve flossing instead. That one's still a pain in the ass that comes back to bite (heh) a huge amount of people down their roads.

[josefresco]

Floss picks. They mostly solved my flossing reluctance. That and my dentist threatening a more invasive cleaning process if my gum health didn't improve.

They seem like a waste (mine are recyclable) but I found for myself and kids they are 100 times easier than traditional floss.

/I do not own stock or a website selling floss picks

[cstross]

"And you can floss your tongue simultaneously" -- way to trigger my gag reflex.

No, seriously. I'm sure this will work for some people, but for those of us with a strong gag reflex this is a nightmare device. (I know whereof I speak; I've had to have dental imprints taken for prosthodontic work several times, and I always come close to throwing up -- when having my jaws packed with something not dissimilar in size and shape).

[jlgreco]

I agree, this device looks neat but I fear it would be very difficult for me to use. I could probably get use to it eventually, but it would almost certainly have me throwing the first few times and just gagging long after that.

[matthewbaker]

A lot of negativity in the comments, I'm surprised. Electric toothbrushes aren't more effective than traditional (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_toothbrush), but have huge sales numbers.

Packaging is a problem right now, but put that thing in something unapologetically plastic and shiny and there may just be a market.

[pdonis]

Electric toothbrushes aren't more effective than traditional

There's a key qualifier: "assuming that the person using the manual toothbrush will brush effectively". I have a huge amount of trouble brushing effectively with a manual toothbrush; with an electric I can just let the toothbrush do the work.

[daigoba66]

A dentist (unverified) offers an opinion on the product: http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/1ni570/the_world...

[tilsammans]

What I really want is nanobots that live in my mouth and discard of bacteria the moment they appear. Every night I'd put some fresh nanobots on my tongue and they will last a day. I'd even splurge for the nanobots deluxe, they directly remineralize the calcium in my teeth. They extract the calcium from the bacteria they kill!

[lotyrin]

What I want is a seed batch of probiotic flora (possibly even GMOs) that compete with S. mutans for nutrients and are better houseguests.

[asmosoinio]

I have been told by a dentist that the reason for "you must brush your teeth for 2 minutes" is mostly because the tooth paste should have time to work on the teeth. I.e. Not to remove physical "dirt". In which case you should keep the paste on for two minutes even with this device.

Disclaimer: I never checked on the 2 min fact, but do think a dentist would know.

[aestra]

Nope, it is to make sure you do a "good job" brushing. Increasing time increases plaque removal.

http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/6479/do-i-have-t...

[tantalor]

> One of the great advantages of 3D Printing is the ability to design and create customized versions of everyday objects.

This is not a customized version of an everyday object. This is a completely new object nobody has ever made before. Calling it a toothbrush is like calling an automobile a "horseless carriage".

[gcb0]

Anyone with half a brain knows no self respecting density will sell this.

The number one they teaches kids is that you don't brush food into the gum... So any magic brush that works by biting will push the food to where? Hint: it's not away from the gum.

Would love if they worked around this problem though...

[zallarak]

This is interesting but a pointless optimization. I use a cheap brush and have no dental issues to date. Also, for those of you like me who will criticize this -- make sure your small business isn't a virtual analogue of this.

[avalaunch]

You're making a weird assumption that because you have no dental issues nobody does. Or that because a cheap brush is good enough for you it's good enough for everyone.

33% of Americans have untreated tooth decay (CDC). An optimization may be just what the average American needs.

[standeven]

My dentist told me that the most important part of brushing wasn't the technique or type of brush, but the time. The two minutes of fluoride contact is the most important part of the process, and this product removes that.

[bdickason]

Interesting, they're using 3DSystems' Visijet material which is approved for use in 'guides.' I wonder if they're safe to put in your mouth every day?

Very few 3D Printing materials are actually safe for consumption.

[dameyawn]

Now just give it some rigidity and attach it to a Sonicare handle. The high frequency vibration and resultant cavitation kill bacteria (or so says some papers on it).

[speedyrev]

This is technology fixing a problem that doesn't exist.

[brianobush]

have you ever been to the denist and they ask you to focus on some area of the mouth? for perfect brushing, yes, this is a solved problem. however, I don't think everyone is a perfect brusher.

[wellboy]

It's not about how much absolute time this brush saves, it's how much it saves relatively in comparison to the status quo and in that way it is just 30 times better. If you deduct the higher costs and whatever you might lose some of that, but you will still be above the magic "10 times better" threshold that a product needs to be to beat competition.

[notthemessiah]

Seems a lot like the razor for all of your facial hair: http://www.shavingstuff.com/archives/011601.php

[WalterSear]

As nice as this sounds, it's going to take me a while to get used to using a >refurbished< toothbrush.

[pron]

Great idea. Will probably do well on late-night shopping channel shows.