July 9, 2024

Smart Denture Conversions Announces Patent Infringment Action Against Straumann USA

Smart Denture Conversions, LLC Announces Patent Infringement Action Against Straumann USA, LLC.

Smart Denture Conversions, LLC (“SDC”), a family-run company that sells an innovative technology to convert removable dentures into fixed prostheses, today announced that it has filed a lawsuit to hold Straumann USA, LLC liable for patent infringement.

SDC’s technology allows for more efficient conversion of removable dentures than conventional procedures. While a conventional conversion procedure typically requires more than two hours, conversions using SDC’s technology can be done in 30 minutes. The result is a win-win for patients, who experience less time and discomfort in the dental chair, and practitioners, who are able to serve more patients. The technology also results in a stronger prosthesis by allowing smaller holes to be drilled than in a conventional conversion procedure. The resulting prosthesis will last longer and be less likely to fracture, delivering long-term value to patients. The technology also allows practitioners to better position the denture in the mouth as compared to a conventional conversion procedure, resulting in a more functional, more comfortable, and better-looking end result.

The technology was invented by Dr. Brandon Kofford, a prosthodontist in Cary, North Carolina, and Charles Albert Rudisill, an engineer and a former patient of Dr. Kofford’s, and is protected by U.S. Patent Nos. 11,937,992 and 11,311,354. SDC holds the rights to the patents under an assignment.

Straumann USA, LLC is the U.S. affiliate of Straumann Group, which sells an infringing version of SDC’s technology under the brand name Neodent. The lawsuit alleges that Straumann infringes SDC’s U.S. Patent No. 11,937,992 and that Straumann has used its considerable resources to take advantage of SDC’s innovation and undercut SDC’s position in the market.

“We are proud of the contributions that SDC has made to the dental field and our patients. We will protect our patented innovations so that we and others are able to continually improve our patients’ quality of life,” says Dr. Kofford.

The case is Smart Denture Conversions, LLC v. Straumann USA, LLC, No. 24-504-MN, pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.

SDC is represented by Kelsey I. Nix and Hope Garber from Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan, LLP in Raleigh, North Carolina and Frederick L. Cottrell, III, Jason J. Rawnsley and Jessica E. Blau from Richards Layton & Finger, P.A. in Wilmington, Delaware.