RaPiD (Computer Aided Partial Denture Design) is a knowledge-based system for designing Removable Partial Dentures (RPD).

It helps busy practitioners to quickly design metal-based removable partial dentures, and then prints out a high quality design prescription for the lab to follow. A RPD is a prosthetics for replacing missing teeth and related tissue. It restores the patient’s appearance, improves speech, assists mastication and maintains a healthy, stable relationship between the remaining natural teeth. RPDs remain a major treatment modality for oral rehabilitation in partially dental patients who form a large proportion of the adult population.(40–60 % in Europe). Practitioners regularly using RaPiD produce designs within three minutes. The system uses techniques from logic databases, declarative graphics and critiquing, together with expert design knowledge to provide a CAD style graphical interface for both instructional and professional use, the latter offers some design automation. RaPiD can automatically position rests and connectors in their ideal positions, and can use its expert database to advise on enhancements to the design during the procedure.

RaPiD for Windows
RaPiD for Macintosh
On-line ressources available at:
http://www.eastman.ucl.ac.uk/~dmi/pages/rapid.html.

RaPiD was developed by John Davenport and Peter Hammond between 1991 and 1994 and has been used for some years on Mac Computers at Birmingham School of Dentistry, UK. They have recently converted it to Windows 95 as a Teaching Company Scheme Project in conjunction with Team Management Systems Ltd