Printers?

Is anyone using the Codonics printer for their i-CAT reports? I'm looking into getting one as the first step toward going 100% digital. I'm curious how the reports compare to ink jet, how much each print costs, how they look on paper compared to clear, stuff like that.

I am currently using an Epson inkjet printer and am happy with the quality of the output but not happy with the speed of the printer or the drying time of the ink. Any suggestions?

Mrs. Smith, I think we may have found the cause of your paresthesia.

2006 Dolphin Meeting

If you want to save $50, the early registration for the Dolphin Meeting in Arizona ends November 30. Go to www.dolphinimaging.com and obtain a registration form. Dr. Mah will be speaking on 3D Imaging and Modeling in the orthodontic office and Dr. Hatcher is presenting on 3D surface and Volumetric Imaging. Dr. Cates lecture is about using Dolphin's cephalometric module. Learn how to utilize AnyWhere Dolphin to send your records electronically encrypted to meet HIPPA regulations.

If your referring orthodontists are considering going digital, they will most likely be at this meeting. It would be a great opportunity for you to explain to your doctors how you can transfer patient records electronically the same day as their imaging appointment! Do not get caught off guard, be proactive in keeping your current orthodontic referral base happy.

Chair Upgrade/Denver in February

We also consider the chair upgrade worthwhile! I have not hit any shoulders either - HOWEVER - I have hit the chin cup!! Every once in a while I still use the chin cup on a wiggle worm patient - or the implant case on an 80 year old patient with tremors I had the other day. I forgot to remove the chin cup and holder and the tube head hit it. I does not make the i-CAT very happy when you do that!!

Is anyone using the .3 voxel 20 second scan for implants & TMJ? I am using the .4 for TMJ and .3 for implants. I did not see alot of difference between the 2 for TMJ cases.

We would volunteer one our offices in Denver for the users meeting. How about Denver in February? Skiing is great at that time of year!

Vickie

i-CAT Users Meeting in Santa Barbara-Cancelled!

Dr. Arnett's wonderful manager, Michaele, valiantly attempted to accommodate our request to hold a concurrent i-CAT meeting at the same hotel and during the same time as Dr. Arnett's Advanced Orthognathic Surgery Foundation Meeting and unfortunately it did not work out. The other reason was the lack of sufficient interest from the i-CAT users. It also seemed like it was just bad timing as many of you already had prior commitments for that weekend.

Arun said that he is willing to fly out (again) just to attend our meeting. Therefore, we can schedule the i-CAT users meeting for another day that would accommodate more people. Please indicate on the comments section (next to my name) what days you are available in January or Febuary. If we have the meeting at someone's office, it would eliminate the costs of the hotel meeting room, AV equipment, food and drinks. Any volunteers?

Reconstructing Raw data

Sorry, I didn't intend to be "missing in action" for the last week or so. However, a trip to Florida and a steep increase in tech support calls directed my way due to Samantha's maternity leave caused a major backlog in my e-mail.

To answer Matt's question, 0.4 mm and 0.3 mm scans can be interchangeably reconstructed, and so can the 0.2 & 0.25 scans. However, the boundary between these 2 groups should not be crossed. Although the system might permit it, there would be no gain in "real" resolution, in fact there likely would be a loss.

Yris was reconstructing across this boundary for the specific purpose of minimizing halo/circumference artifacts.

Arun

i-CAT Users Meeting

Dr. Arnett's Advanced Orthognathic Surgery Foundation is having their annual meeting at the Andalucia Hotel in Santa Barbara, January 19-21, 2006. The featured speakers will be Dr. Arnett, Chester (Dolphin Imaging), Arun (ISI i-CAT), 3dMD, & Dr. Binder. This"advanced" course is for past attendees of Dr. Arnett's beginning course. The two Keynote speakers and additional nine speakers have presentations designed for orthodontists.

Chester suggested that we hold our i-CAT users Meeting at the same hotel since Arun, Dr. Gunson and Chester will already be in the same building and all three will present to our group on Saturday. I will check if 3dMD would give us a short presentation too. We would also be allowed to enter the vendors room to view their displays. Michaele Carnahan is Dr. Arnett's office manager and she will give us a tour of Dr. Arnett's facility.

I have reserved an available meeting room at Hotel Andalucia on Saturday, January 21 that will fit 30 people (clasroom style-tables & chairs) with AV equipment. The hotel requires us to post a deposit very soon or else they will release the room. The cost of the room, continental breakfast, lunch and equipment rental will be approximately $100 per person, based on 30 attendees. I will need to collect those funds in advance as the hotel requires full payment before the event date. If we eliminate the tables and only have chairs, we can fit more people so the cost can be lowered. I have to know right now who will be able to attend so I can confirm the reservation & speakers. All of this is tentative and we all need to decide what is best for all the i-CAT Users. Please response immediately in the comments area next to my name.

Kathleen, if we do not get enough quick reponses, do you have room at your office to hold a meeting? How far is your office from Dr. Arnett's and Hotel Andalucia? How many people can you accomodate for a meeting?

Thank you!

Reconstruct raw data

Hey! Someone from ISI (Ida?) recently spent a bunch of time working on my computer and was reconstructing data from a .3mm scan into .4mm AND .25mm. My question is, if I do a 20 sec scan @.4mm and I reconstruct at .25mm, do I get any more information than I had at .4mm? It seems to me that one can reconstruct down (.3 to .4) but not up (.4 to .3). Any comments?

From the Colorado Connection

Marcelle, Vickie, Peggy and Laura are all ready to add our 2 cents in ( would that be 8 cents with all of us?). Love the tips and techniques idea, Matt. Sometimes its the little things that make our job a little easier each day! We have a booth at the Mid-Winter Dental Convention in Denver Jan 18-21 - so we are not sure who will be able to make it out to Santa Barbara. This is a real cool way to keep in touch with everyone!

Vickie

With You

Thanks for the opportunity to continue in this dialogue....really helps keep me grounded in this new exciting adventure. I will try to contribute problems and fixes.....

All the best from the Northwest...

Tips & Tricks Subsection

I'm wondering if we should have a "Tips & Tricks" section where people can post little shortcuts and things that make life easier. For example, the "Shift-F11" shortcut that toggles from the report window to the patient scan data window is one I use regularly and new users should be aware of this.

So I need to visit here regularly?

Do I get an email telling me there are new postings or do I need to check here daily? I guess I could check here as often as I check Ebay, which is at least once per day.

I think I'll set up my own blog. I'll let you know when I do so that you can peek inside my complex and often confused mind.

Thanks

Glad to see this site! Thank you all for setting it up. I look forward to exchanging ideas and thoughts on the I-CAT.

Craig

Thanks, Eric & Chester

Thanks, Eric & Chester, for your suggestion and taking the plunge to create this forum utilizing this web based framework provided by Google. It should turn out to be a tremendous advantage to capitalize on Google's enormous resources and knowhow, making its access free & simple, as opposed to a "home grown solution" subject to computing infrastructure & firewall issues if hosted within our facility.

For those who wish to join, is an invitation necessary, or is there another way for them to register? How do we keep unwanted and disruptive elements out? I am sure I can find the answers within this tool, but Chester or others might have simplified answers/guidelines.

Arun

i-CAT study group Subsection

Hi Everyone!

I took Chester's suggestion and created this blog for our i-CAT study group.

It would appear that January 22 (Sunday) would probably be the best day to have our next meeting since Arun will already be in Santa Barbara. Chester, please ask Dr. Gunson if he is available on that day to give us a presentation and if he would give our group a tour of their facility using i-CAT/3DMD/Dolphin.

How many of you would be able to attend on January 22?

Eric