Dental assistants dread having a patient in the chair and being unable to acquire xray images because of IT problems. It’s uncomfortable for the patient, awkward for the hygienist, and slows patient care down. In some cases, computer and imaging glitches can cause payment issues with dental insurance providers.

What to do if the sensor or computer starts malfunctioning during a dental exam?

Xray Sensor Error Codes

From an IT point of view, sensors can be hard to troubleshoot because they will fail without generating an error code, leaving you to make an educated guess. In other cases, oral xray sensors fail with a “behavior” which is much harder to document. When this happens, you’ll need to sort out the error manually.

3 Steps to Find the Source of the Problem

To help you streamline the xray sensor troubleshooting process, we pulled data from an entire year of dental IT service tickets and error codes. This is how our technicians diagnose whether there is a problem with the Intra-oral Sensor itself, the USB cables, or the computer.

Diagnose Sensor Issues

• Check if the sensor is powering on and functioning properly.
• Inspect the physical condition of the sensor for any damage.
• Test the sensor on a different computer to see if it works.

Check USB Cables

• Test the USB cables with a different device to ensure they are functioning properly.
• Try using different USB ports on the computer to see if the issue is related to a specific port.
• Check for physical damage or fraying on the USB cables.

Inspect Computer Hardware

• Test other USB devices on the computer to confirm if the USB ports are functioning.
• Check for any error messages or notifications related to USB connectivity in the computer’s system logs.
• Update the USB drivers on the computer to ensure they are up to date.
• Check for any hardware or software issues on the computer that could be affecting USB connectivity.

By systematically testing each component in this order, our Dental IT Technicians narrow down where the issue may lie.