Implant Analogs: Digital vs Conventional Workflows for the Working Model
Updated Jul 21, 2026
Every implant-supported restoration fabricated outside the mouth stands or falls on one question: does the working model reproduce the intraoral position of the implant — its depth, its angulation and the rotational orientation of the connection — accurately enough for the prosthesis to seat passively? Two routes lead to that model. The conventional route captures the implant position with an impression coping (transfer), carries it into an elastomeric impression and rebuilds it in stone around an implant analog. The digital route captures it with a scan body and an intraoral scanner, then rebuilds it in a 3D-printed model that receives a digital analog. The components look similar in the catalog, but they are not interchangeable — a stone analog and a digital analog solve the same problem with different geometry, different fixation and different error sources. This guide compares the two workflows component by component and shows which factors actually decide positional accuracy in each.
This guide is written for licensed dental professionals — dentists, implantologists and dental-lab technicians. It describes components and techniques at a general level; always follow the manufacturer's instructions for use (IFU) and your own clinical judgment.
The conventional workflow: impression copings and stone analogs
In the conventional workflow an impression coping is screwed onto the implant — or onto the multi-unit abutment in abutment-level cases — and an elastomeric impression is taken. Chairside or in the lab, an implant analog, a machined replica of the implant's prosthetic connection, is attached to the coping, and the impression is poured in type IV stone. When the model is separated, the analog sits embedded in stone exactly where the implant sits in bone. Two mechanical events decide everything downstream: the coping must seat fully on the implant platform intraorally, and the coping–analog assembly must not move while the stone sets.
Open-tray (pick-up) impression copings
An open-tray coping is held by a long guide screw that protrudes through a window in a perforated or custom tray. After the material sets, the screws are loosened through the window and the copings are lifted out inside the impression, without ever being re-seated by hand. Because nothing is repositioned, the pick-up technique is generally indicated when positional error is least affordable: multiple implants, clearly divergent axes (each coping is freed by its screw, so there is no common path-of-removal conflict), deeper platforms and full-arch cases destined for rigid frameworks. Its demands are practical: the long screw needs vertical clearance and access, which can be difficult with limited mouth opening, reduced interarch space or far posterior sites.
Closed-tray (transfer) impression copings
A closed-tray coping uses a short screw and stays on the implant when the impression is removed. It is then unscrewed, joined to the analog outside the mouth, and the coping–analog assembly is repositioned into its own imprint before pouring. This is the technique of choice when the open tray is impractical: limited interarch space, a pronounced gag reflex that calls for a fast standard-tray impression, or single posterior units with awkward access. Its weak point is exactly the step the open tray avoids — manual repositioning — which becomes progressively less reliable as the number and divergence of implants increase.
Splinting and pouring
For multiple implants, many labs splint open-tray copings together with autopolymerizing resin — often sectioned and rejoined to control polymerization shrinkage — so the copings cannot displace relative to each other during removal and pouring. At the bench, a gingival mask is placed around the coping necks, the analogs are checked for full seating at the coping–analog junction, and the impression is poured in type IV stone while the assemblies are kept still. Coping and analog screws are tightened by hand only; controlled torque values belong to the definitive prosthetic screws of the system, not to transfer components.
The digital workflow: scan bodies and digital analogs
In the digital workflow the impression coping's job is done by a scan body: a component with a deliberately asymmetric scan geometry that is screwed onto the implant or the multi-unit abutment to hand-tight per the IFU. The intraoral scanner captures the scan body, and the CAD software superimposes the matching library file to compute the exact three-dimensional position and rotational orientation of the connection underneath. From that point the technician designs the restoration — typically on a Ti-base or a CAD/CAM interface — and, when a physical model is needed, designs the model itself with a precisely dimensioned socket at each implant position and prints it.
This is where the digital analog differs fundamentally from its stone counterpart. A conventional analog is a smooth-bodied cylinder meant to be locked into stone as it sets. A digital analog is engineered for a socket that already exists: its body carries retention ribs, flats and stop surfaces that engage the printed socket with a defined friction or snap fit, usually inserted from the basal side of the model, and it can be removed and reinserted without losing position. Because the socket is generated by the CAD software, the analog must correspond to the exact model-analog library used in the design — an analog from a different library will be loose, high or misoriented even if the prosthetic connection is identical. Handled correctly, a digital analog is reusable across models and cases, which offsets its higher unit cost against the conventional analog that is recovered only by breaking the model.
Conventional analog vs digital analog at a glance
| Analog type | Model type | Fixation | Positional accuracy depends on | Reusability | When preferred |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conventional implant analog | Type IV stone model poured from an elastomeric impression | Embedded while the stone sets — fixed once the model separates | Full coping seating, impression material stability, splinting of multiple copings, stone setting expansion (commonly reported around 0.05–0.10%) | Recovered only by breaking the model; one pour per model | Conventional impressions, cast or removable-die workflows, verification models |
| Digital analog | 3D-printed resin model designed in CAD (layer thicknesses of 25–50 µm are commonly used) | Friction/snap fit in a library-designed socket — removable and repositionable | Scan strategy and span, exact library match, printer calibration and socket tolerance | Reusable across models and cases | Intraoral-scan workflows, printed models, Ti-base and CAD/CAM restorations |
Where positional accuracy is won or lost
Neither route is inherently exact; each has its own error chain, and the honest comparison is between error chains, not between labels.
- Seating. A coping or scan body that is not fully seated shifts the recorded platform by the size of the gap. When seating is in doubt — deep platforms, tight soft tissue — verify radiographically before the impression or scan.
- Splinted vs unsplinted copings. For multiple implants, splinted open-tray impressions are commonly reported in the literature to reduce cross-arch error compared with unsplinted techniques; for single units and short spans the difference is commonly reported to be small.
- Depth and angulation. Deeper implants lengthen the unsupported lever of the coping, and strong angulations complicate both closed-tray repositioning and complete scan-body capture — the two workflows share this sensitivity.
- Scan span. Intraoral scans accumulate stitching error across the arch; short spans are commonly reported to be clinically comparable to conventional impressions, while complete-arch scanning remains the more demanding scenario.
- Printer tolerance. A printed model adds the printer's own calibration, resin shrinkage compensation and socket tolerance to the chain. A digital analog must seat fully to its stop surfaces — a socket printed too tight or too loose shows up later as a prosthesis that does not seat the same way in the mouth.
- Screws and torque. Transfer and scan-body screws are hand-tightened only. Definitive prosthetic screws for Dental Solutions Internal Hex 2.42 components follow our IFU, in line with commonly published literature ranges of roughly 15–35 Ncm for prosthetic screws.
Analogs, transfers and scan bodies for Internal Hex 2.42 and multi-unit level
Dental Solutions manufactures the complete position-transfer chain for its Internal Hex 2.42 mm platform under ISO 13485 — at implant level and at multi-unit level, for both workflows. On the conventional side: the Transfer Open Tray (Long Screw) Impression Coping - Internal Hex 2.42 and the Transfer Close Tray (Short Screw) Impression Coping - Internal Hex 2.42, plus a transfer clip in 9 and 13 mm and Slim Ø3.0 open-tray transfers for the 2.1 mm narrow-platform line. They pair with the Implant Analog Regular Platform - Internal Hex 2.42, also available in slim and wide platforms. On the digital side: the Scan-Body For Implant + Screw, the Digital Analog For Implant Regular Platform - Internal Hex 2.42 and, for full-arch abutment-level cases, the Digital Analog For Multi Units alongside MUA scan bodies and technical analogs. We also machine analogs and open-tray transfers mechanically compatible with NEODENT® GM platforms.
Browse the full ranges in the implant analogs, digital analogs, impression copings & transfers and scan bodies categories. If you first need to confirm which platform you are restoring, start with our guide to implant connection types; for abutment-level full-arch planning, the multi-unit abutment guide covers the MUA side of the same chain. Analogs start at $4.60, shipping is a flat $50 worldwide and free over $350, transit time is confirmed for the destination and service at checkout, and new, unopened products can be returned within 10 days.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use a digital analog in a stone model?
No — as a rule a digital analog belongs in a printed model. Its retention ribs and stop surfaces are dimensioned for a CAD-designed socket, not for being embedded in setting stone, where a conventional analog's geometry holds position reliably. Use the conventional analog for pours and the digital analog for printed models, and follow the IFU of the specific component.
Which is more accurate: an open-tray or a closed-tray coping?
For single units and short spans both techniques are commonly reported to deliver clinically acceptable accuracy. For multiple implants — especially divergent or deep ones — the open-tray (pick-up) technique with splinted copings is the commonly recommended choice, because it eliminates the manual repositioning step.
Do I need different analogs for implant level and multi-unit level?
Yes. An implant-level analog replicates the implant's own connection — the Internal Hex 2.42 in our system — while a multi-unit analog replicates the prosthetic interface of the MUA sitting on top of it. The model must reproduce the interface your restoration actually seats on.
Will any digital analog fit my printed model?
Only if the model was designed with the matching model-analog library. The socket in the print is generated from a specific analog geometry; an analog from another library may be loose, sit high or rotate even when the prosthetic connection matches. Confirm the library before designing the model.
NEODENT® is a registered trademark of JJGC Indústria e Comércio de Materiais Dentários S.A. (Straumann Group). Brand names are trademarks of their respective owners; Dental Solutions is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by them. Compatibility refers to mechanical fit with the referenced connection platform.