WO2016050247A1 - Electronic nicotine delivery system - Google Patents

Electronic nicotine delivery system Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2016050247A1
WO2016050247A1 PCT/DK2014/050315 DK2014050315W WO2016050247A1 WO 2016050247 A1 WO2016050247 A1 WO 2016050247A1 DK 2014050315 W DK2014050315 W DK 2014050315W WO 2016050247 A1 WO2016050247 A1 WO 2016050247A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
atomizer
delivery system
nicotine delivery
electronic nicotine
arrangement
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/DK2014/050315
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Bruno Provstgaard Nielsen
Original Assignee
Fertin Pharma A/S
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Fertin Pharma A/S filed Critical Fertin Pharma A/S
Priority to PCT/DK2014/050315 priority Critical patent/WO2016050247A1/en
Publication of WO2016050247A1 publication Critical patent/WO2016050247A1/en

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Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
    • A24F—SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES
    • A24F40/00—Electrically operated smoking devices; Component parts thereof; Manufacture thereof; Maintenance or testing thereof; Charging means specially adapted therefor
    • A24F40/50—Control or monitoring
    • A24F40/53—Monitoring, e.g. fault detection
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
    • A24F—SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES
    • A24F40/00—Electrically operated smoking devices; Component parts thereof; Manufacture thereof; Maintenance or testing thereof; Charging means specially adapted therefor
    • A24F40/10—Devices using liquid inhalable precursors

Definitions

  • the invention relates to an electronic nicotine delivery system according to claim 1.
  • a problem of known e-cigarettes is that the e-cigarettes may be somewhat unpredictable with respect to performance, nicotine consumption and the resulting effect obtained by the user. Different approaches of how to apply some kind of control of the delivery of nicotine has been applied in different applications. A problem of the applied approaches is in general that the known prior art system lacks reproducibility.
  • the invention relates to an electronic nicotine delivery system comprising a container arrangement, a mouth piece, an atomizer arrangement, an electrical control arrangement, and a power supply supplying the atomizer arrangement and the electrical control arrangement with electrical power during an activation time, the atomizer arrangement comprising at least one atomizer producing aerosols containing nicotine, the nicotine being supplied from the container arrangement, wherein the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and/or the activation time.
  • an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer facilitates that the electronic nicotine delivery system may be capable of providing an effective dose.
  • an effective dose refers to the inventive approach of the present invention in relation to control both the supplied dose of nicotine, i.e. amount of nicotine to the user but also to ensure that the provided dose is administered by means of the atomizer in a reproducible way. Reproducibility may thus be obtained in different ways, i.e. by different measures, the overall result being the same, i.e. a reproducible dose and a reproducible and well-determined delivery.
  • the delivered electrical power as well as the activation time, the total amount of delivered energy may be controlled.
  • the total actual dose delivered to the user may correlate directly with the delivered energy, or may even be proportional to the delivered energy.
  • the effective dose may vary for the same actual delivered dose, e.g. due to the degree of effective delivery, which may change e.g. for different aerosol particle sizes.
  • the atomizer arrangement may, in certain embodiments comprise only one atomizer, whereas it in other embodiments may comprise two or more atomizers.
  • the activation time is understood as the time which electrical power is supplied to the atomizer.
  • MMAD mass median aerodynamic diameter
  • the aerodynamic diameter of an irregular particle may be defined as the diameter of a spherical particle with a density of 1000 kg/m 3 (kilos per cubic meter) and the same settling velocity as the irregular particle.
  • aeroF should be understood as a suspension of fine particles in gas, typically a suspension of liquid particles or solid particles in gas, such as air.
  • Individual aerosol components may e.g. be referred to as droplets or particles.
  • aerosols may be associated with certain sizes, however, in the context of the present invention, the term aerosol may refer to particles having a diameter of up to 100 micrometer. General examples of aerosols may be fog or smoke.
  • atomizer should be understood as a device comprising a number of parts, the atomizer being arranged for reducing a liquid to a fine spray of droplets, i.e. a device which transforms a liquid into aerosols.
  • a device which transforms a liquid into aerosols.
  • An atomizer may be a device that forces a liquid out of a very small hole so that it becomes a fine spray.
  • a further example is a device that uses heating, such as resistive heating, to evaporate a liquid that may form aerosol upon condensation.
  • power supply should be understood as any portable power supply, such as batteries, fuel cells etc.
  • the nicotine supplied from the container arrangement may be in the form of a liquid solution.
  • the liquid solution may often, in many embodiments, comprise pharmaceutical acceptable excipients or carriers, examples of which may include e.g. propylene glycol, glycerol, PEG 400, water, or combinations thereof.
  • the liquid solution may in some embodiments comprise further and/or alternative substances.
  • the liquid solution may also in some embodiments comprise pH-controlling agents, such as buffering agents.
  • the liquid solution may also, in some embodiments, comprise flavorings.
  • the invention relates to an electronic nicotine delivery system comprising a container arrangement, a mouth piece, an atomizer arrangement, an electrical control arrangement, and a power supply supplying the atomizer arrangement and the electrical control arrangement with electrical power during an activation time, the atomizer arrangement comprising at least one atomizer producing aerosols containing nicotine, the nicotine being supplied from the container arrangement, wherein the electrical control arrangement adjusts the amount of nicotine delivered from the electronic nicotine delivery system and/or the mass median aerodynamic diameter of the nicotine-containing aerosols on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and/or the activation time.
  • the effective dose may be established with reference to the amount of nicotine delivered from the electronic nicotine delivery system and/or the mass median aerodynamic diameter of the nicotine-containing aerosols.
  • the regulation is performed on the basis of at least one parameter reflecting the aging of the atomizer.
  • the present inventors have surprisingly found that a well-determined delivery may be at least partly obtained through an automatic regulation of the delivery of power to the atomizer.
  • a well-determined delivery may be at least partly obtained through an automatic regulation of the delivery of power to the atomizer.
  • the delivery varies over time. This is in particular the case when applying atomizers where a dose of liquid is heated by means of a heating element, such as a coil. It has turned out that delivery from such systems varies significantly over time even if the objective dose is kept relatively constant. This is at least partly due to the fact that the conversion of liquid into aerosols is not constant, even if the supplied voltage is kept strictly constant.
  • a measure for counteracting such aging with respect to an effective dose may thus be to regulate the supplied power over time, correlated with the aging of the atomizer.
  • the aging may be reflected by different measured parameters or it may e.g. be reflected by pre- established aging profiles e.g. as a function of accumulated activation time of the system.
  • Aging may e.g. include factors such as wear of the atomizer, either mechanical or physical. Such a factor could e.g. include change of resistance of an applied coil of an atomizer.
  • Another type of aging may be that a gradual deposit of nicotine or liquid residue in or on the atomizer gradually changes the performance of the atomizer in such a way that electrical power needed to obtain a desired target value for e.g. aerosols size or density may now be obtained insofar the power supplied during activation of the atomizer is increased when compared to activation of the atomizer earlier in the life-cycle of the atomizer.
  • the regulation is performed at least partly on the basis of an aging emulation of the atomizer pre- established and stored in the electrical control arrangement of the electronic nicotine delivery system.
  • An aging emulation may e.g. reflect a previous study of a specific atomizer or atomizer type used in the delivery system, the emulation reflecting an expected aging of the atomizer e.g. as a function of accumulated activation time of the atomizer and a corresponding output required for automatic compensation of the aging by regulation of the power supplied to the atomizer.
  • a regulation may over time lead to an increased voltage supplied to e.g. a coil of an atomizer.
  • the regulation is performed at least partly on the basis of at least one parameter reflecting the aging of the container arrangement.
  • the effective dose may vary according to the content of the container arrangement, i.e. the effective dose may not be the same when the container arrangement is full and when it is e.g. half full or quarter full. Therefore, in certain embodiments, it may be very important to regulate according to the aging of the container arrangement.
  • Relevant parameters reflecting the aging of the container arrangement may comprise the time since installing the container arrangement, the number of activations of the atomizer, the accumulated activation time of the atomizer, etc.
  • the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply.
  • the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the activation time.
  • the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and the activation time.
  • the effective dose may vary for the electrical power supplied to the atomizer, at least partly due to a change in the aerosol particle size.
  • the aerosol particle size may be controlled, at least partly, by controlling the electrical power. In certain setups, it may therefore be necessary to increase the supplied electrical power to compensate for the aerosol particle size change. This, however, may often change the actual dose delivered to the user, and it may therefore be necessary to change the activation time. When the supplied electrical power has been increased, the actual delivered dose may often be kept constant by decreasing the activation time, e.g. to keep the total delivered electrical energy constant.
  • the electrical control arrangement controls the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols to be within a predefined size interval at least partly by regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply.
  • MMAD mass median aerodynamic diameter
  • a regulation of the electrical power to the atomizer may thus facilitate an automatic regulation of the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the aerosols.
  • MMAD mass median aerodynamic diameter
  • An optimum aerosol particle size may be determined for a specific purpose, thereby reducing the overall applied nicotine when comparing with the user obtained relief.
  • the electrical control arrangement controls the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols to be within a predefined size interval at least partly by regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and the activation time.
  • MMAD mass median aerodynamic diameter
  • a change of size of the atomizer-produced aerosols as a result of aging of the atomizer is counteracted wholly or partly by regulating the power supplied to the atomizer by means of said electrical control arrangement.
  • the first mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is below 5 micrometer.
  • the first mass median aerodynamic diameter is 0.01 to 5 micrometer, such as 0.01 to 4 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 3 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 2 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 1 micrometer; or such as 0.1 to 5 micrometers, such as 0.5 to 5 micrometers.
  • the term "mass median aerodynamic diameter ⁇ 4 ⁇ )" is to be understood as the aerodynamic diameter at which 50% of the particles by mass are larger and 50% of the particles by mass are smaller, i.e. the media diameter when evaluating by mass.
  • the aerodynamic diameter of an irregular particle may be defined as the diameter of a spherical particle with a density of 1000 kg/m 3 (kilos per cubic meter) and the same settling velocity as the irregular particle.
  • the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is measured by a method according to the ISO 21501-1 :2009(E) standard.
  • the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is measured on an output of said electronic nicotine delivery system, the output being generated by a method according to the ISO 3308:2012(E) standard.
  • the atomizer comprises a wick fluidly connected to the container arrangement.
  • the atomizer comprises a nozzle.
  • the container arrangement comprises a nicotine solution.
  • the power supply comprises a rechargeable battery
  • the power supply comprises a DC/DC converter.
  • the power supply may in an advantageous embodiment comprise a DC/DC converter for the purpose of obtaining a regulated voltage which is above the voltage level supplied by the battery.
  • the DC/DC converter comprises a buck converter and/or a boost converter.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system further comprises a voltage regulation circuitry.
  • the voltage regulation circuitry may be included in the power supply or in the electronic control arrangement.
  • the electronic control arrangement and the power supply may evidently be merged into one physical unit if need be.
  • the voltage regulation circuitry has an internal voltage reference which may be used for the establishment of predefined voltage potential.
  • a regulation of the power supplied to the atomizer should much preferably during use be resistant to change of the output voltage level of the power supply, in particular when such a power supply involves a battery or even a rechargeable battery.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system comprises an activation arrangement for activating the atomizer arrangement.
  • the activation arrangement facilitates that the user may activate the device.
  • the activation arrangement comprises an activation button.
  • the activation arrangement comprises an air flow sensor for at least partly automatic activation.
  • the activation arrangement is shut-down when the automatic regulation cannot be performed in a current/present state of a power supply.
  • the activation time is controlled by the activation arrangement.
  • the regulation of power supply by means of said electrical control arrangement involves a variable control of the absolute voltage on the electrical terminals of a connected atomizer.
  • a regulation where the algorithms of the electrical control arrangements outputs absolute voltage over the terminals of the atomizers facilitates that a change of e.g. resistance may be counteracted or compensated wholly of partly by a corresponding voltage up-down regulation during the activation of the atomizer. This may for the purpose of counteracting aging of an atomizer e.g. that the voltage is increased during the atomizer life span contrary to the fact that the voltage of the power supply in fact may decrease at the same time.
  • the applied control algorithm and the applied electrical hardware must in such a case be designed to comply with such
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system is comprised in a handheld device.
  • the automatic regulation of the electrical power involves an automatic activation of the atomizer when no nicotine liquid is fed to the atomizer.
  • the automatic regulation involves an activation of the atomizer according to a predetermined activation schedule stored in the electrical control arrangement.
  • the automatic regulation involves an activation of the atomizer if a fault is detected the electrical control arrangement.
  • the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply is within 1 to 100W (watts), such as within 1 to 75 W, such as within 1 to 50W, such as within 1 to 40W, such as within 1 to 30W, such as within 1 to 20 W, such as within 1 to 10W; or such as within 5 to 100W, such as within 5 to 75 W, such as within 5 to 50W, such as within 5 to 40W, such as within 5 to 30W, such as within 5 to 20W, such as within 5 to 10W; or such as within 10 to 100W, such as within 10 to 75W, such as within 10 to 50W, such as within 10 to 40W, such as within 10 to 30W, such as within 10 to 20W.
  • the atomizer comprises a heating element.
  • the impedance of the heating element is within 0.5 to 20 ohm, such as 0.5 to 15 ohm, such as 0.5 to 10 ohm, such as 0.5 to 8 ohm, such as 0.5 to 6 ohm, such as 0.5 to 4 ohm, such as 0.5 to 2 ohm, such as 0.5 to 1 ohm; or such as 1 to 20 ohm, such as 1 to 15 ohm, such as 1 to 10 ohm, such as 1 to 8 ohm, such as 1 to 6 ohm, such as 1 to 4 ohm, such as 1 to 2 ohm; or such as 2 to 20 ohm, such as 2 to 15 ohm, such as 2 to 10 ohm, such as 2 to 8 ohm, such as 2 to 6 ohm, such as 2 to 4 ohm; or such as 4 to 20 ohm,
  • the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply has a voltage between 0.1 and 20V (volts), such as between 0.1 and 15V, such as between 0.1 and 10V, such as between 0.1 and 8V, such as between 0.1 and 6V, such as between 0.1 and 4V, such as between 0.1 and 2V, such as between 0.1 and IV, such as between 0.1 and 0.5V; or such as between 0.5 and 20V, such as between 0.5 and 15V, such as between 0.5 and 10V, such as between 0.5 and 8V, such as between 0.5 and 6V, such as between 0.5 and 4V, such as between 0.5 and 2V, such as between 0.5 and IV; or such as between 1 and 20V, such as between 1 and 15 V, such as between 1 and 10V, such as between 1 and 8V, such as between 1 and 6V, such as between 1 and 4V, such as between 1 and 2V; or such as between 2 and 20V, such as between 2 and 15V, such
  • the activation time is within 1 to 20s (seconds), such as within 1 to 15s, such as within 1 to 10s, such as within 1 to 8s, such as within 1 to 6s, such as within 1 to 4s, such as within 1 to 2s; or such as within 2 to 20s, such as within 2 to 15s, such as within 2 to 10s, such as within 2 to 8s, such as within 2 to 6s, such as within 2 to 4s; or such as within 4 to 20s, such as within 4 to 15 s, such as within 4 to 10s, such as within 4 to 8s, such as within 4 to 6s; or such as within 6 to 20s, such as within 6 to 15 s, such as within 6 to 10s, such as within 6 to 8s; or such as within 8 to 20s, such as within 8 to 15s, such as within 8 to 10s; or such as within 10 to 20s, such as within 10 to 15s.
  • the electrical power supplied to the atom such as within 1 to 10s, such as within 1 to 8s
  • the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply is supplied as AC (alternating current) signal, such as a switch-mode signal.
  • the electrical power supplied to the atomizer is modulated by pulse-width modulation.
  • figure 1 illustrates an electronic nicotine delivery system according to an embodiment
  • figure 2 illustrates an example of change of the mass median aerodynamic diameter due to aging of the atomizer
  • figure 3 and 4 illustrate examples of principle compensation schemes applied for an electric automatic regulation of an atomizer
  • figure 5 illustrates an example embodiment of the invention.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS comprises a casing CAS or housing for covering the individual parts of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS.
  • the casing CAS may be a single part, or may be assembled from two or more parts.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS furthermore comprises a container arrangement CA and an atomizer arrangement AA.
  • the container arrangement CA comprises a nicotine container NC.
  • the container arrangement CA may comprise further containers, such as an additive container AC.
  • the atomizer arrangement AA comprises a first atomizer FA.
  • the atomizer arrangement AA may comprise a second atomizer SA, and, optionally, even further atomizers.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS furthermore comprises a mouth piece MP.
  • the mouth piece MP is adapted for allowing a user of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS to apply a mouth vacuum to the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS via suction at the mouth piece MP, i.e. when the user takes a drag or puff from the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS similar to that from a conventional cigarette.
  • the casing CAS may preferably comprise one or more air inlets AI for supplying air to the atomizers FA, SA.
  • the one or more air inlets AI may be positioned between the power supply PS and the atomizer arrangement AA, or at other positions.
  • the atomizer FA may preferably be positioned in an inner air passage IAP.
  • the inner air passage IAP may preferably provide fluid communication from said one or more air inlets AI to said mouth piece MP through the inside of said electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS.
  • the mouth piece MP comprises an opening into the inner part of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS, that opening being in fluid communication via the inside of said electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS to the air inlet AI, and, optionally, additional air inlets AAI (not shown) through said inner air passage IAP.
  • the nicotine container NC are positioned inside the casing CAS.
  • the nicotine container NC is connected to the first atomizer FA. Thereby, the content of the nicotine container NC is each allowed to move to the first atomizer FA to which it is connected.
  • a power supply PS such as a battery
  • the power supply PS is electrically connected to the first atomizer FA so as to power the first atomizer FA when it is activated.
  • the first atomizer FA is shown comprising a transport element TE being a wick in fluid communication with the nicotine container NC and a heating element HE being a coil for heating and atomizing, when the first atomizer FA is activated.
  • the first atomizer FA may comprise additional and/or alternative elements.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS comprises a further container, such as an additive container AC
  • the additive container AC may preferably be connected to a separate atomizer, e.g. a second atomizer SA.
  • the nicotine container NC and further containers may be connected to the same atomizer FA.
  • the heating element HE may in other embodiments be other than a coil.
  • the transport element TE may in other embodiments be other than a wick.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS comprises an activator button AB for activating the atomizer FA.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS may comprise other arrangements for activating the atomizer.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS may comprise an air flow sensor AFS for detecting when a user applied a mouth generated vacuum to the mouth piece MP.
  • the illustrated embodiment of the invention comprises an electrical control arrangement EC.
  • the electron control arrangement may in the following be referred to as the controller to make the text more readable. It should however be noted that even such a referral to a controller would imply that such a control arrangement is comprised in one housing.
  • the control arrangement may comprise several co-operating different units, it may be comprised in one housing or it may even be integrated into other units, e.g. the power supply.
  • the electronic control arrangement EC is electrically connected to the atomizers and the activation arrangement, such as an activation button and/or an air flow sensor.
  • the electrical control arrangement EC is arranged to controls the effective dose delivered by the atomizer on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer AT by the power supply PS and/or the activation time.
  • the electronic control arrangement EC may in some embodiments with more than one atomizer be adapted to control the activation of the atomizers in a synchronized manner. In some embodiments, electronic control arrangement EC may impose a delay of a predetermined period of time between the activation of the atomizers.
  • the mouth piece MP may in some embodiments be detachable from the rest of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS, e.g. by means of threaded connections.
  • the nicotine container NC and/or further container(s), if any, may in some embodiments be removable and replaceable, preferably as a single cartridge, e.g. by removing the mouth piece MP and sliding the containers out by that end.
  • the one or more atomizers FA, SA is connected to the one or more containers NC, AC and thereby removed together with the containers NC, AC, e.g. as a single cartridge.
  • the containers NC, AC may be removed without the atomizers FA, SA, e.g. as a single cartridge.
  • electronic nicotine delivery systems ENDS according to various embodiments of the invention are illustrated.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery systems ENDS of the following embodiments may comprise one or more elements similar to the elements described above.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery systems ENDS of the following embodiments may comprise one or more elements additional or alternative to the elements described above.
  • the nicotine container NC comprises a pH-controlling agent, such as a buffering agent, for adjusting the pH-value.
  • a pH-controlling agent such as a buffering agent
  • the atomizer FA When activated, a part of the content of the nicotine container NC is atomized and the resulting aerosols are inhaled by the user of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS.
  • a pH-controlling agent such as a buffering agent
  • the part of the nicotine being absorbed in the oral cavity would be buffered by the accompanying pH-controlling agent, whereby the degree of uptake of nicotine from the oral cavity may be increased.
  • the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS may comprise one or more further containers, such as an additive container AC.
  • the nicotine container NC and/or the one or more further containers, such as the additive container AC may comprise a pH-controlling agent, such as a buffering agent, for increasing the nicotine uptake through the oral mucosa.
  • a pH-controlling agent such as a buffering agent
  • an effective dosage should be understood as a delivery dose to the final intended destination, i.e. the lunges.
  • the delivered nicotine aerosols may vary in size, density and mass median aerodynamic diameter relatively rapidly during aging of the applied atomizer and it has be discovered that such aging may seriously affect the final delivery of nicotine to the lungs both due to the fact that aging results in a variation in the objective dose, i.e. the amount of nicotine fed to and processed by the atomizer and also due to the fact that a variation of size, density and mass median aerodynamic diameter of the produced nicotine aerosols may shift the balance between uptake of nicotine in the lungs and the oral cavity.
  • a shift in balance between uptake of nicotine in the lungs and the oral cavity may be at least partly counteracted by automatic regulation of the power feed to the atomizer and/or an automatic regulation of the time over which the activation of the atomizer occurs.
  • the latter regulation may e.g. be performed completely automatic by electrical activation of the atomizer even if the user has not activated the delivery device or the regulation of time may also be performed upon such activation by either automatically decreasing or shutting power of before a user has stopped activating the atomizer or alternatively prolonging the activation of the atomizer after the user has stopped activating the atomizer.
  • This may of cause both be used during completely manual activation by means of a manually operated button or switch or it may be applied during a semiautomatic activation of the delivery system by means of user-induced airflow
  • a simple and very advantageous regulation of the power fed to the atomizer and/or time over which the atomizer is activated, is to regulate the voltage over the input terminals of the applied atomizer.
  • a regulation of voltage may e.g. be attractive if the impedance is known or well-estimated. In other words an increase of power fed to the atomizer may be obtained through an increase in voltage of the terminals.
  • a change of impedance at the terminals of the atomizer may result in a regulation of the voltage on the terminals to keep the power or energy supplied during an activation constant during the life cycle of the atomizer.
  • Figure 2 illustrates one of the significant problems arising when an atomizer ages.
  • the figure illustrates the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols of an electronic nicotine delivery system.
  • the solid line indicates that an atomizer, e.g. a heating element based atomizer, over time gradually produces nicotine aerosols having an increasing mass median aerodynamic diameter.
  • This increase in diameter affects the effective dose delivered to the user's lung, and affects the balance between uptake of nicotine in the lungs and the oral cavity.
  • uptake of nicotine will gradually be switched to uptake in the mouth of the user, thereby reducing the effective relief.
  • a window PSI of acceptable mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols has been determined.
  • MMAD mass median aerodynamic diameter
  • Figure 3 illustrates a specific compensation scheme applied for an automatic regulation of activation time of an atomizer.
  • the illustrated atomizer is a heater based atomizer, e.g. a coil/wick configuration.
  • the atomizer is automatically activated at time tl and t2 by the electrical control arrangement EC by applying a certain voltage.
  • the user activation is not illustrated in the figure, but it is preferred that the automatic activation of the atomizer is performed at times where a user is not activating the system. In other words, according to a preferred embodiment, the illustrated activations at time tl and t2 should not happen when the users is using the delivery system.
  • the illustrated automatic activation of the atomizer may be performed under strict control of the electrical control arrangement EC to ensure that the temperature of the heater does not exceed a level where the heater, the wick or other parts of the delivery system in damaged due to excess of heat.
  • the function of the automatic activation of the heater is to perform a cleaning of the wick/heater by burning or evaporation of substances deposited on/in the wick or on the heating element.
  • the atomizer life-span may be increased as illustrated in figure 2.
  • the effect may be measured automatically on a run-time basis and/or simply estimated and included in the automatic regulation of the system.
  • Figure 4 illustrates a further example of an aging compensation in a nicotine delivery device based having an atomizer based on a heating element.
  • a user activates the delivery device at the times tl, t2 and t3. It should be noted that the interval between activation and the duration of the activation are illustrative, only.
  • a certain terminal voltage i.e. voltage between the terminals of the atomizer, is applied.
  • the automatic compensation counteract that the atomizer decreases in efficiency over time, e.g. due to depositing of chemical components on the heating element and/or the wick, thereby requiring an increased voltage, and thereby electrical power, keep the produced aerosols within a certain size interval.
  • the voltage at time tl is Vstart, whereas the voltage at time t3 has increased to Vend.
  • FIG. 5 illustrates an example of an atomizer AT and the connections of such an atomizer AT.
  • the atomizer AT comprises a first and a second connection terminals Tl, T2.
  • the atomizer AT receives a substance to be aerosolized, such as a nicotine solution, from a container arrangement CA.
  • the aerosols are delivered to the mouth piece MP.
  • the atomizer AT is activated and controlled by setting a voltage over the terminals Tl, T2.
  • the voltage between the terminals Tl, T2 may be controlled by an electronic control arrangement EC.
  • the output of the atomizer AT may be controlled, at least to some degree. Thereby, it may typically, for many atomizers AT, be possible to control the amount of aerosols and/or the particle size of the aerosols, i.e. it may be possible to control the effective dose delivered to a user of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS.

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Abstract

An electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) is disclosed, the electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) comprising a container arrangement (CA), a mouth piece (MP), an atomizer arrangement (AA), an electrical control arrangement (EC), and a power supply (PS) supplying the atomizer arrangement (AA) and the electrical control arrangement (EC) with electrical power during an activation time, the atomizer arrangement (AA) comprising at least one atomizer (AT) producing aerosols containing nicotine, the nicotine being supplied from the container arrangement (CA), wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) and/or the activation time.

Description

ELECTRONIC NICOTINE DELIVERY SYSTEM
Field of invention
The invention relates to an electronic nicotine delivery system according to claim 1.
Background of the invention
A problem of known e-cigarettes is that the e-cigarettes may be somewhat unpredictable with respect to performance, nicotine consumption and the resulting effect obtained by the user. Different approaches of how to apply some kind of control of the delivery of nicotine has been applied in different applications. A problem of the applied approaches is in general that the known prior art system lacks reproducibility.
Summary of the invention
The invention relates to an electronic nicotine delivery system comprising a container arrangement, a mouth piece, an atomizer arrangement, an electrical control arrangement, and a power supply supplying the atomizer arrangement and the electrical control arrangement with electrical power during an activation time, the atomizer arrangement comprising at least one atomizer producing aerosols containing nicotine, the nicotine being supplied from the container arrangement, wherein the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and/or the activation time.
An automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer facilitates that the electronic nicotine delivery system may be capable of providing an effective dose. In the present context, an effective dose refers to the inventive approach of the present invention in relation to control both the supplied dose of nicotine, i.e. amount of nicotine to the user but also to ensure that the provided dose is administered by means of the atomizer in a reproducible way. Reproducibility may thus be obtained in different ways, i.e. by different measures, the overall result being the same, i.e. a reproducible dose and a reproducible and well-determined delivery. By regulating the delivered electrical power as well as the activation time, the total amount of delivered energy may be controlled. In certain setups, the total actual dose delivered to the user may correlate directly with the delivered energy, or may even be proportional to the delivered energy. It should, however, be understood that the effective dose may vary for the same actual delivered dose, e.g. due to the degree of effective delivery, which may change e.g. for different aerosol particle sizes. These dependencies may vary for different atomizer designs, and the specific regulation algorithm may therefore be adapted to the particular design to control the effective dose. In the present context, the atomizer arrangement may, in certain embodiments comprise only one atomizer, whereas it in other embodiments may comprise two or more atomizers.
In the present context, the activation time is understood as the time which electrical power is supplied to the atomizer.
In the context of the present invention the term "mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) " is to be understood as the aerodynamic diameter at which 50% of the particles by mass are larger and 50% of the particles by mass are smaller, i.e. the media diameter when evaluating by mass. The aerodynamic diameter of an irregular particle may be defined as the diameter of a spherical particle with a density of 1000 kg/m3 (kilos per cubic meter) and the same settling velocity as the irregular particle.
In the context of the present invention the term "aerosoF should be understood as a suspension of fine particles in gas, typically a suspension of liquid particles or solid particles in gas, such as air. Individual aerosol components may e.g. be referred to as droplets or particles. Typically, aerosols may be associated with certain sizes, however, in the context of the present invention, the term aerosol may refer to particles having a diameter of up to 100 micrometer. General examples of aerosols may be fog or smoke.
In the context of the present invention the term "atomizer" should be understood as a device comprising a number of parts, the atomizer being arranged for reducing a liquid to a fine spray of droplets, i.e. a device which transforms a liquid into aerosols. One example of an atomizer may be a device that forces a liquid out of a very small hole so that it becomes a fine spray. A further example is a device that uses heating, such as resistive heating, to evaporate a liquid that may form aerosol upon condensation.
In the context of the present invention the term "power supply" should be understood as any portable power supply, such as batteries, fuel cells etc.
Typically, in many embodiments, the nicotine supplied from the container arrangement may be in the form of a liquid solution. The liquid solution may often, in many embodiments, comprise pharmaceutical acceptable excipients or carriers, examples of which may include e.g. propylene glycol, glycerol, PEG 400, water, or combinations thereof. The liquid solution may in some embodiments comprise further and/or alternative substances.
The liquid solution may also in some embodiments comprise pH-controlling agents, such as buffering agents.
The liquid solution may also, in some embodiments, comprise flavorings.
Moreover, the invention relates to an electronic nicotine delivery system comprising a container arrangement, a mouth piece, an atomizer arrangement, an electrical control arrangement, and a power supply supplying the atomizer arrangement and the electrical control arrangement with electrical power during an activation time, the atomizer arrangement comprising at least one atomizer producing aerosols containing nicotine, the nicotine being supplied from the container arrangement, wherein the electrical control arrangement adjusts the amount of nicotine delivered from the electronic nicotine delivery system and/or the mass median aerodynamic diameter of the nicotine-containing aerosols on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and/or the activation time.
I an embodiment of the invention, the effective dose may be established with reference to the amount of nicotine delivered from the electronic nicotine delivery system and/or the mass median aerodynamic diameter of the nicotine-containing aerosols.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the regulation is performed on the basis of at least one parameter reflecting the aging of the atomizer. The present inventors have surprisingly found that a well-determined delivery may be at least partly obtained through an automatic regulation of the delivery of power to the atomizer. Depending on the specific atomizer type, i.e. type of delivery system, it has been established that the delivery varies over time. This is in particular the case when applying atomizers where a dose of liquid is heated by means of a heating element, such as a coil. It has turned out that delivery from such systems varies significantly over time even if the objective dose is kept relatively constant. This is at least partly due to the fact that the conversion of liquid into aerosols is not constant, even if the supplied voltage is kept strictly constant. A measure for counteracting such aging with respect to an effective dose may thus be to regulate the supplied power over time, correlated with the aging of the atomizer. The aging may be reflected by different measured parameters or it may e.g. be reflected by pre- established aging profiles e.g. as a function of accumulated activation time of the system.
Aging may e.g. include factors such as wear of the atomizer, either mechanical or physical. Such a factor could e.g. include change of resistance of an applied coil of an atomizer. Another type of aging may be that a gradual deposit of nicotine or liquid residue in or on the atomizer gradually changes the performance of the atomizer in such a way that electrical power needed to obtain a desired target value for e.g. aerosols size or density may now be obtained insofar the power supplied during activation of the atomizer is increased when compared to activation of the atomizer earlier in the life-cycle of the atomizer.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the regulation is performed at least partly on the basis of an aging emulation of the atomizer pre- established and stored in the electrical control arrangement of the electronic nicotine delivery system.
An aging emulation may e.g. reflect a previous study of a specific atomizer or atomizer type used in the delivery system, the emulation reflecting an expected aging of the atomizer e.g. as a function of accumulated activation time of the atomizer and a corresponding output required for automatic compensation of the aging by regulation of the power supplied to the atomizer. In a specific embodiment, such a regulation may over time lead to an increased voltage supplied to e.g. a coil of an atomizer.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the regulation is performed at least partly on the basis of at least one parameter reflecting the aging of the container arrangement. For some setups, the effective dose may vary according to the content of the container arrangement, i.e. the effective dose may not be the same when the container arrangement is full and when it is e.g. half full or quarter full. Therefore, in certain embodiments, it may be very important to regulate according to the aging of the container arrangement. Relevant parameters reflecting the aging of the container arrangement may comprise the time since installing the container arrangement, the number of activations of the atomizer, the accumulated activation time of the atomizer, etc.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the activation time.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical control arrangement controls the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and the activation time.
The present inventor have discovered that for certain atomizer setups the effective dose may vary for the electrical power supplied to the atomizer, at least partly due to a change in the aerosol particle size. Furthermore, the present inventor has discovered that the aerosol particle size may be controlled, at least partly, by controlling the electrical power. In certain setups, it may therefore be necessary to increase the supplied electrical power to compensate for the aerosol particle size change. This, however, may often change the actual dose delivered to the user, and it may therefore be necessary to change the activation time. When the supplied electrical power has been increased, the actual delivered dose may often be kept constant by decreasing the activation time, e.g. to keep the total delivered electrical energy constant. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical control arrangement controls the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols to be within a predefined size interval at least partly by regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply.
A regulation of the electrical power to the atomizer may thus facilitate an automatic regulation of the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the aerosols. An optimum aerosol particle size may be determined for a specific purpose, thereby reducing the overall applied nicotine when comparing with the user obtained relief.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical control arrangement controls the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols to be within a predefined size interval at least partly by regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply and the activation time.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, a change of size of the atomizer-produced aerosols as a result of aging of the atomizer is counteracted wholly or partly by regulating the power supplied to the atomizer by means of said electrical control arrangement.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is below 5 micrometer.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is 0.01 to 5 micrometer, such as 0.01 to 4 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 3 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 2 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 1 micrometer; or such as 0.1 to 5 micrometers, such as 0.5 to 5 micrometers.
In the context of the present invention the term "mass median aerodynamic diameter β4ΜΑΟ) " is to be understood as the aerodynamic diameter at which 50% of the particles by mass are larger and 50% of the particles by mass are smaller, i.e. the media diameter when evaluating by mass. The aerodynamic diameter of an irregular particle may be defined as the diameter of a spherical particle with a density of 1000 kg/m3 (kilos per cubic meter) and the same settling velocity as the irregular particle.
Generally, the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is measured by a method according to the ISO 21501-1 :2009(E) standard. Generally, the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is measured on an output of said electronic nicotine delivery system, the output being generated by a method according to the ISO 3308:2012(E) standard.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the atomizer comprises a wick fluidly connected to the container arrangement.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the atomizer comprises a nozzle. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the container arrangement comprises a nicotine solution.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the power supply comprises a rechargeable battery
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the power supply comprises a DC/DC converter.
The power supply may in an advantageous embodiment comprise a DC/DC converter for the purpose of obtaining a regulated voltage which is above the voltage level supplied by the battery. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the DC/DC converter comprises a buck converter and/or a boost converter. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electronic nicotine delivery system further comprises a voltage regulation circuitry.
The voltage regulation circuitry may be included in the power supply or in the electronic control arrangement. The electronic control arrangement and the power supply may evidently be merged into one physical unit if need be.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the voltage regulation circuitry has an internal voltage reference which may be used for the establishment of predefined voltage potential.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, a regulation of the power supplied to the atomizer should much preferably during use be resistant to change of the output voltage level of the power supply, in particular when such a power supply involves a battery or even a rechargeable battery.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electronic nicotine delivery system comprises an activation arrangement for activating the atomizer arrangement. The activation arrangement facilitates that the user may activate the device.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the activation arrangement comprises an activation button. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the activation arrangement comprises an air flow sensor for at least partly automatic activation. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the activation arrangement is shut-down when the automatic regulation cannot be performed in a current/present state of a power supply.
The activation of an atomizer should thus be controlled with respect to an absolute reference contrary to a current state of a battery.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the activation time is controlled by the activation arrangement.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the regulation of power supply by means of said electrical control arrangement involves a variable control of the absolute voltage on the electrical terminals of a connected atomizer.
A regulation, where the algorithms of the electrical control arrangements outputs absolute voltage over the terminals of the atomizers facilitates that a change of e.g. resistance may be counteracted or compensated wholly of partly by a corresponding voltage up-down regulation during the activation of the atomizer. This may for the purpose of counteracting aging of an atomizer e.g. that the voltage is increased during the atomizer life span contrary to the fact that the voltage of the power supply in fact may decrease at the same time. The applied control algorithm and the applied electrical hardware must in such a case be designed to comply with such
requirements to effectively compensate aging completely or partly.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electronic nicotine delivery system is comprised in a handheld device.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the automatic regulation of the electrical power involves an automatic activation of the atomizer when no nicotine liquid is fed to the atomizer. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the automatic regulation involves an activation of the atomizer according to a predetermined activation schedule stored in the electrical control arrangement.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the automatic regulation involves an activation of the atomizer if a fault is detected the electrical control arrangement. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply is within 1 to 100W (watts), such as within 1 to 75 W, such as within 1 to 50W, such as within 1 to 40W, such as within 1 to 30W, such as within 1 to 20 W, such as within 1 to 10W; or such as within 5 to 100W, such as within 5 to 75 W, such as within 5 to 50W, such as within 5 to 40W, such as within 5 to 30W, such as within 5 to 20W, such as within 5 to 10W; or such as within 10 to 100W, such as within 10 to 75W, such as within 10 to 50W, such as within 10 to 40W, such as within 10 to 30W, such as within 10 to 20W.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the atomizer comprises a heating element.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the impedance of the heating element, such as a coil, is within 0.5 to 20 ohm, such as 0.5 to 15 ohm, such as 0.5 to 10 ohm, such as 0.5 to 8 ohm, such as 0.5 to 6 ohm, such as 0.5 to 4 ohm, such as 0.5 to 2 ohm, such as 0.5 to 1 ohm; or such as 1 to 20 ohm, such as 1 to 15 ohm, such as 1 to 10 ohm, such as 1 to 8 ohm, such as 1 to 6 ohm, such as 1 to 4 ohm, such as 1 to 2 ohm; or such as 2 to 20 ohm, such as 2 to 15 ohm, such as 2 to 10 ohm, such as 2 to 8 ohm, such as 2 to 6 ohm, such as 2 to 4 ohm; or such as 4 to 20 ohm, such as 4 to 15 ohm, such as 4 to 10 ohm, such as 4 to 8 ohm, such as 4 to 6 ohm. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply has a voltage between 0.1 and 20V (volts), such as between 0.1 and 15V, such as between 0.1 and 10V, such as between 0.1 and 8V, such as between 0.1 and 6V, such as between 0.1 and 4V, such as between 0.1 and 2V, such as between 0.1 and IV, such as between 0.1 and 0.5V; or such as between 0.5 and 20V, such as between 0.5 and 15V, such as between 0.5 and 10V, such as between 0.5 and 8V, such as between 0.5 and 6V, such as between 0.5 and 4V, such as between 0.5 and 2V, such as between 0.5 and IV; or such as between 1 and 20V, such as between 1 and 15 V, such as between 1 and 10V, such as between 1 and 8V, such as between 1 and 6V, such as between 1 and 4V, such as between 1 and 2V; or such as between 2 and 20V, such as between 2 and 15V, such as between 2 and 10V, such as between 2 and 8V, such as between 2 and 6V, such as between 2 and 4V; or such as between 4 and 20V, such as between 4 and 15V, such as between 4 and 10V, such as between 4 and 8V, such as between 4 and 6V; or such as between 6 and 20V, such as between 6 and 15V, such as between 6 and 10V, such as between 6 and 8V; or such as between 8 and 20V, such as between 8 and 15V, such as between 8 and 10V; or such as between 10 and 20V, such as between 10 and 15V; or such as between 15 and 20V. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the activation time is within 1 to 20s (seconds), such as within 1 to 15s, such as within 1 to 10s, such as within 1 to 8s, such as within 1 to 6s, such as within 1 to 4s, such as within 1 to 2s; or such as within 2 to 20s, such as within 2 to 15s, such as within 2 to 10s, such as within 2 to 8s, such as within 2 to 6s, such as within 2 to 4s; or such as within 4 to 20s, such as within 4 to 15 s, such as within 4 to 10s, such as within 4 to 8s, such as within 4 to 6s; or such as within 6 to 20s, such as within 6 to 15 s, such as within 6 to 10s, such as within 6 to 8s; or such as within 8 to 20s, such as within 8 to 15s, such as within 8 to 10s; or such as within 10 to 20s, such as within 10 to 15s. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply is supplied as DC (direct current) signal.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply is supplied as AC (alternating current) signal, such as a switch-mode signal.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electrical power supplied to the atomizer is modulated by pulse-width modulation.
Figures
The invention will be described in the following with reference to the figures in which
figure 1 illustrates an electronic nicotine delivery system according to an embodiment,
figure 2 illustrates an example of change of the mass median aerodynamic diameter due to aging of the atomizer,
figure 3 and 4 illustrate examples of principle compensation schemes applied for an electric automatic regulation of an atomizer, and
figure 5 illustrates an example embodiment of the invention.
Detailed description
Referring to figure 1, an electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS is illustrated according to an embodiment of the invention. The electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS comprises a casing CAS or housing for covering the individual parts of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS.
The casing CAS may be a single part, or may be assembled from two or more parts.
The electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS furthermore comprises a container arrangement CA and an atomizer arrangement AA.
In the present embodiments, the container arrangement CA comprises a nicotine container NC. In some embodiments, the container arrangement CA may comprise further containers, such as an additive container AC.
The atomizer arrangement AA comprises a first atomizer FA. In some embodiments, the atomizer arrangement AA may comprise a second atomizer SA, and, optionally, even further atomizers.
The electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS furthermore comprises a mouth piece MP. The mouth piece MP is adapted for allowing a user of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS to apply a mouth vacuum to the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS via suction at the mouth piece MP, i.e. when the user takes a drag or puff from the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS similar to that from a conventional cigarette.
The casing CAS may preferably comprise one or more air inlets AI for supplying air to the atomizers FA, SA. The one or more air inlets AI may be positioned between the power supply PS and the atomizer arrangement AA, or at other positions. The atomizer FA may preferably be positioned in an inner air passage IAP. The inner air passage IAP may preferably provide fluid communication from said one or more air inlets AI to said mouth piece MP through the inside of said electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS.
The mouth piece MP comprises an opening into the inner part of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS, that opening being in fluid communication via the inside of said electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS to the air inlet AI, and, optionally, additional air inlets AAI (not shown) through said inner air passage IAP.
The nicotine container NC are positioned inside the casing CAS.
The nicotine container NC is connected to the first atomizer FA. Thereby, the content of the nicotine container NC is each allowed to move to the first atomizer FA to which it is connected.
Inside the casing CAS, a power supply PS, such as a battery, is arranged. The power supply PS is electrically connected to the first atomizer FA so as to power the first atomizer FA when it is activated. In this embodiment the first atomizer FA is shown comprising a transport element TE being a wick in fluid communication with the nicotine container NC and a heating element HE being a coil for heating and atomizing, when the first atomizer FA is activated. In alternative embodiments the first atomizer FA may comprise additional and/or alternative elements.
In embodiments where the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS comprises a further container, such as an additive container AC, the additive container AC may preferably be connected to a separate atomizer, e.g. a second atomizer SA. However, in some embodiments, the nicotine container NC and further containers may be connected to the same atomizer FA. The heating element HE may in other embodiments be other than a coil.
The transport element TE may in other embodiments be other than a wick. In this embodiments the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS comprises an activator button AB for activating the atomizer FA. However, in alternative embodiments, the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS may comprise other arrangements for activating the atomizer. For example, the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS may comprise an air flow sensor AFS for detecting when a user applied a mouth generated vacuum to the mouth piece MP.
Furthermore, the illustrated embodiment of the invention comprises an electrical control arrangement EC. The electron control arrangement may in the following be referred to as the controller to make the text more readable. It should however be noted that even such a referral to a controller would imply that such a control arrangement is comprised in one housing. The control arrangement may comprise several co-operating different units, it may be comprised in one housing or it may even be integrated into other units, e.g. the power supply. The electronic control arrangement EC is electrically connected to the atomizers and the activation arrangement, such as an activation button and/or an air flow sensor.
The electrical control arrangement EC is arranged to controls the effective dose delivered by the atomizer on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer AT by the power supply PS and/or the activation time.
Furthermore, the electronic control arrangement EC may in some embodiments with more than one atomizer be adapted to control the activation of the atomizers in a synchronized manner. In some embodiments, electronic control arrangement EC may impose a delay of a predetermined period of time between the activation of the atomizers. Returning to figure 1, the mouth piece MP may in some embodiments be detachable from the rest of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS, e.g. by means of threaded connections.
The nicotine container NC and/or further container(s), if any, may in some embodiments be removable and replaceable, preferably as a single cartridge, e.g. by removing the mouth piece MP and sliding the containers out by that end. In some embodiments the one or more atomizers FA, SA is connected to the one or more containers NC, AC and thereby removed together with the containers NC, AC, e.g. as a single cartridge. However, in other embodiments, the containers NC, AC may be removed without the atomizers FA, SA, e.g. as a single cartridge. In the following, electronic nicotine delivery systems ENDS according to various embodiments of the invention are illustrated. The electronic nicotine delivery systems ENDS of the following embodiments may comprise one or more elements similar to the elements described above. The electronic nicotine delivery systems ENDS of the following embodiments may comprise one or more elements additional or alternative to the elements described above.
Electrical connections are shown in the figures for illustrative purposes and may for practical purposes be arranged and positioned differently. According to one embodiment of the invention, the nicotine container NC comprises a pH-controlling agent, such as a buffering agent, for adjusting the pH-value. When the atomizer FA is activated, a part of the content of the nicotine container NC is atomized and the resulting aerosols are inhaled by the user of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS. By including a pH-controlling agent, such as a buffering agent, in the nicotine container, along with nicotine, the part of the nicotine being absorbed in the oral cavity would be buffered by the accompanying pH-controlling agent, whereby the degree of uptake of nicotine from the oral cavity may be increased.
In some other embodiments, the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS may comprise one or more further containers, such as an additive container AC. In such embodiments, the nicotine container NC and/or the one or more further containers, such as the additive container AC, may comprise a pH-controlling agent, such as a buffering agent, for increasing the nicotine uptake through the oral mucosa. It should also be noted that the above illustrated embodiment illustrates a specific type of atomizer, i.e. a heating element based atomizer. The invention may also be used with great benefits with other types of atomizers, e.g. with electrically activated nozzle system. The overall important realization is that a strict control of dosage as such does not render the delivery system reproducible, due to the fact that the amount of nicotine delivered must be correlated with the way and form, the nicotine is delivered in. In this context, an effective dosage should be understood as a delivery dose to the final intended destination, i.e. the lunges. It has been discovered by the inventors that the delivered nicotine aerosols may vary in size, density and mass median aerodynamic diameter relatively rapidly during aging of the applied atomizer and it has be discovered that such aging may seriously affect the final delivery of nicotine to the lungs both due to the fact that aging results in a variation in the objective dose, i.e. the amount of nicotine fed to and processed by the atomizer and also due to the fact that a variation of size, density and mass median aerodynamic diameter of the produced nicotine aerosols may shift the balance between uptake of nicotine in the lungs and the oral cavity.
It has also been surprisingly discovered that a shift in balance between uptake of nicotine in the lungs and the oral cavity may be at least partly counteracted by automatic regulation of the power feed to the atomizer and/or an automatic regulation of the time over which the activation of the atomizer occurs. The latter regulation may e.g. be performed completely automatic by electrical activation of the atomizer even if the user has not activated the delivery device or the regulation of time may also be performed upon such activation by either automatically decreasing or shutting power of before a user has stopped activating the atomizer or alternatively prolonging the activation of the atomizer after the user has stopped activating the atomizer. This may of cause both be used during completely manual activation by means of a manually operated button or switch or it may be applied during a semiautomatic activation of the delivery system by means of user-induced airflow
A simple and very advantageous regulation of the power fed to the atomizer and/or time over which the atomizer is activated, is to regulate the voltage over the input terminals of the applied atomizer. A regulation of voltage may e.g. be attractive if the impedance is known or well-estimated. In other words an increase of power fed to the atomizer may be obtained through an increase in voltage of the terminals.
Alternatively, a change of impedance at the terminals of the atomizer may result in a regulation of the voltage on the terminals to keep the power or energy supplied during an activation constant during the life cycle of the atomizer.
Figure 2 illustrates one of the significant problems arising when an atomizer ages. The figure illustrates the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols of an electronic nicotine delivery system. The solid line indicates that an atomizer, e.g. a heating element based atomizer, over time gradually produces nicotine aerosols having an increasing mass median aerodynamic diameter. This increase in diameter affects the effective dose delivered to the user's lung, and affects the balance between uptake of nicotine in the lungs and the oral cavity. In the illustrated aging process, uptake of nicotine will gradually be switched to uptake in the mouth of the user, thereby reducing the effective relief. To determine a desired acceptable effective dose in the present embodiment, a window PSI of acceptable mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols has been determined. When uncompensated, the illustrated system will reach an unacceptable effective dose at the time tl . When compensation by an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer AT and/or the activation time of the atomizer, the unacceptable effective dose is reached at the time t2. It should be remembered that such compensation may be reached simply by a proper electrical regulation contrary to pure mechanical or chemical regulation.
It should of course be noted that the electrical compensation according to the invention may be supplemented e.g. by the aforementioned mechanical regulation or chemical regulation.
Figure 3 illustrates a specific compensation scheme applied for an automatic regulation of activation time of an atomizer. The illustrated atomizer is a heater based atomizer, e.g. a coil/wick configuration. The atomizer is automatically activated at time tl and t2 by the electrical control arrangement EC by applying a certain voltage. The user activation is not illustrated in the figure, but it is preferred that the automatic activation of the atomizer is performed at times where a user is not activating the system. In other words, according to a preferred embodiment, the illustrated activations at time tl and t2 should not happen when the users is using the delivery system.
The illustrated automatic activation of the atomizer may be performed under strict control of the electrical control arrangement EC to ensure that the temperature of the heater does not exceed a level where the heater, the wick or other parts of the delivery system in damaged due to excess of heat.
The function of the automatic activation of the heater is to perform a cleaning of the wick/heater by burning or evaporation of substances deposited on/in the wick or on the heating element.
Depending on the effect on the applied atomizer type, the atomizer life-span may be increased as illustrated in figure 2. The effect may be measured automatically on a run-time basis and/or simply estimated and included in the automatic regulation of the system.
Figure 4 illustrates a further example of an aging compensation in a nicotine delivery device based having an atomizer based on a heating element.
In the present illustrated embodiment, a user activates the delivery device at the times tl, t2 and t3. It should be noted that the interval between activation and the duration of the activation are illustrative, only.
At each time tl, t2, t3, a certain terminal voltage, i.e. voltage between the terminals of the atomizer, is applied.
In the present embodiment, the automatic compensation counteract that the atomizer decreases in efficiency over time, e.g. due to depositing of chemical components on the heating element and/or the wick, thereby requiring an increased voltage, and thereby electrical power, keep the produced aerosols within a certain size interval. As illustrated, the voltage at time tl is Vstart, whereas the voltage at time t3 has increased to Vend.
It should be noted that the above mentioned regulations in principle also may increase the life cycle of a nozzle based atomizer.
Figure 5 illustrates an example of an atomizer AT and the connections of such an atomizer AT. The atomizer AT comprises a first and a second connection terminals Tl, T2.
As indicated, the atomizer AT receives a substance to be aerosolized, such as a nicotine solution, from a container arrangement CA. The aerosols are delivered to the mouth piece MP. The atomizer AT is activated and controlled by setting a voltage over the terminals Tl, T2. Typically, the voltage between the terminals Tl, T2 may be controlled by an electronic control arrangement EC.
By controlling the voltage between the terminals Tl, T2, the output of the atomizer AT may be controlled, at least to some degree. Thereby, it may typically, for many atomizers AT, be possible to control the amount of aerosols and/or the particle size of the aerosols, i.e. it may be possible to control the effective dose delivered to a user of the electronic nicotine delivery system ENDS.
List of figure references
ENDS. Electronic nicotine delivery system
AB. Activation button
CA. Container arrangement
NC. Nicotine container
MP. Mouth piece
PS. Power supply
CAS. Casing
AI. Air inlet
EC. Electronic control arrangement
AA. Atomizer arrangement
FA. First atomizer
AFS. Air flow sensor
MMAD. Mass median aerodynamic diameter
PSI. Predefined size interval
AGE. Aging
CAGE. Compensated aging
AT. Atomizer
Ti. First connection terminal
T2. Second connection terminal
V. Terminal voltage
Vstart. Start terminal voltage
Vend. End terminal voltage
ΔΤ 1. First activation time
ΔΤ2. Second activation time

Claims

Patent claims
1. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) comprising a container arrangement (CA), a mouth piece (MP), an atomizer arrangement (AA), an electrical control arrangement (EC), and a power supply (PS) supplying the atomizer arrangement (AA) and the electrical control arrangement (EC) with electrical power during an activation time, the atomizer arrangement (AA) comprising at least one atomizer (AT) producing aerosols containing nicotine, the nicotine being supplied from the container arrangement (C A), wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) adjusts the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) and/or the activation time.
2. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) comprising a container arrangement (CA), a mouth piece (MP), an atomizer arrangement (AA), an electrical control arrangement (EC), and a power supply (PS) supplying the atomizer arrangement (AA) and the electrical control arrangement (EC) with electrical power during an activation time, the atomizer arrangement (AA) comprising at least one atomizer (AT) producing aerosols containing nicotine, the nicotine being supplied from the container arrangement (CA), wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) adjusts the amount of nicotine delivered from the electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) and/or the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the nicotine-containing aerosols on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) and/or the activation time.
3. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the regulation is performed on the basis of at least one parameter reflecting the aging of the atomizer (AT).
4. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the regulation is performed at least partly on the basis of an aging emulation (AE) of the atomizer (AT) pre-established and stored in the electrical control arrangement (EC) of the electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS).
5. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the regulation is performed at least partly on the basis of at least one parameter reflecting the aging of the container arrangement (CA).
6. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) adjusts the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS).
7. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) adjusts the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the activation time.
8. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) adjusts the effective dose on the basis of an automatic regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) and the activation time.
9. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) adjusts the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols to be within a predefined size interval (PSI) at least partly by regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply (PS).
10. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical control arrangement (EC) adjusts the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of the produced aerosols to be within a predefined size interval (PSI) at least partly by regulation of the electrical power supplied to the atomizer by the power supply (PS) and the activation time.
11. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a change of size of the atomizer-produced aerosols as a result of aging of the atomizer (AT) is counteracted wholly or partly by regulating the power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by means of said electrical control arrangement (EC).
12. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the first mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is below 5 micrometer.
13. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the first mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) is 0.01 to 5 micrometer, such as 0.01 to 4 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 3 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 2 micrometers, such as 0.01 to 1 micrometer; or such as 0.1 to 5 micrometers, such as 0.5 to 5 micrometers.
14. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the atomizer (AT) comprises a wick fluidly connected to the container arrangement (CA).
15. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the atomizer (AT) comprises a nozzle.
16. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the container arrangement (CA) comprises a nicotine solution.
17. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the power supply (PS) comprises a rechargeable battery
18. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the power supply (PS) comprises a DC/DC converter.
19. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to claim 18, wherein the DC/DC converter comprises a buck converter and/or a boost converter.
20. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) further comprises a voltage regulation circuitry.
21. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to claim 20, wherein the voltage regulation circuitry has an internal voltage reference which may be used for the establishment of predefined voltage potential.
22. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) comprises an activation arrangement (ACT) for activating the atomizer arrangement (AA).
23. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to claim 22, wherein the activation arrangement (ACT) comprises an activation button (AB).
24. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to claim 22 or 23, wherein the activation arrangement (ACT) comprises an air flow sensor (AFS) for at least partly automatic activation.
25. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of claims 22-24, wherein the activation arrangement (ACT) is shut-down when the automatic regulation cannot be performed in a current/present state of a power supply (PS).
26. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of claims 22-25, wherein the activation time is controlled by the activation arrangement (ACT).
27. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the regulation of power supply (PS) by means of said electrical control arrangement (EC) involves a variable control of the absolute voltage on the electrical terminals of a connected atomizer.
28. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) is comprised in a handheld device.
29. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the automatic regulation of the electrical power involves an automatic activation of the atomizer when no nicotine liquid is fed to the atomizer.
30. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the automatic regulation involves an activation of the atomizer according to a predetermined activation schedule stored in the electrical control arrangement (EC).
31. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the automatic regulation involves an activation of the atomizer if a fault is detected the electrical control arrangement (EC).
32. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) is within 1 to 100W (watts), such as within 1 to 75W, such as within 1 to 50W, such as within 1 to 40W, such as within 1 to 30W, such as within 1 to 20 W, such as within 1 to 10W; or such as within 5 to 100W, such as within 5 to 75 W, such as within 5 to 50W, such as within 5 to 40W, such as within 5 to 30W, such as within 5 to 20W, such as within 5 to 10W; or such as within 10 to 100W, such as within 10 to 75W, such as within 10 to 50W, such as within 10 to 40W, such as within 10 to 30W, such as within 10 to 20W.
33. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the atomizer (AT) comprises a heating element (HE).
34. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the impedance of the heating element (HE), such as a coil, is within 0.5 to 20 ohm, such as 0.5 to 15 ohm, such as 0.5 to 10 ohm, such as 0.5 to 8 ohm, such as 0.5 to 6 ohm, such as 0.5 to 4 ohm, such as 0.5 to 2 ohm, such as 0.5 to 1 ohm; or such as 1 to 20 ohm, such as 1 to 15 ohm, such as 1 to 10 ohm, such as 1 to 8 ohm, such as 1 to 6 ohm, such as 1 to 4 ohm, such as 1 to 2 ohm; or such as 2 to 20 ohm, such as 2 to 15 ohm, such as 2 to 10 ohm, such as 2 to 8 ohm, such as 2 to 6 ohm, such as 2 to 4 ohm; or such as 4 to 20 ohm, such as 4 to 15 ohm, such as 4 to 10 ohm, such as 4 to 8 ohm, such as 4 to 6 ohm.
35. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) has a voltage between 0.1 and 20V (volts), such as between 0.1 and 15V, such as between 0.1 and 10V, such as between 0.1 and 8V, such as between 0.1 and 6V, such as between 0.1 and 4V, such as between 0.1 and 2V, such as between 0.1 and IV, such as between 0.1 and 0.5V; or such as between 0.5 and 20V, such as between 0.5 and 15V, such as between 0.5 and 10V, such as between 0.5 and 8V, such as between 0.5 and 6V, such as between 0.5 and 4V, such as between 0.5 and 2V, such as between 0.5 and IV; or such as between 1 and 20V, such as between 1 and 15V, such as between 1 and 10V, such as between 1 and 8V, such as between 1 and 6V, such as between 1 and 4V, such as between 1 and 2V; or such as between 2 and 20V, such as between 2 and 15 V, such as between 2 and 10V, such as between 2 and 8V, such as between 2 and 6V, such as between 2 and 4V; or such as between 4 and 20V, such as between 4 and 15 V, such as between 4 and 10V, such as between 4 and 8V, such as between 4 and 6V; or such as between 6 and 20V, such as between 6 and 15 V, such as between 6 and 10V, such as between 6 and 8V; or such as between 8 and 20V, such as between 8 and 15V, such as between 8 and 10V; or such as between 10 and 20V, such as between 10 and 15 V; or such as between 15 and 20V.
36. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the activation time is within 1 to 20s (seconds), such as within 1 to 15s, such as within 1 to 10s, such as within 1 to 8s, such as within 1 to 6s, such as within 1 to 4s, such as within 1 to 2s; or such as within 2 to 20s, such as within 2 to 15s, such as within 2 to 10s, such as within 2 to 8s, such as within 2 to 6s, such as within 2 to 4s; or such as within 4 to 20s, such as within 4 to 15 s, such as within 4 to 10s, such as within 4 to 8s, such as within 4 to 6s; or such as within 6 to 20s, such as within 6 to 15s, such as within 6 to 10s, such as within 6 to 8s; or such as within 8 to 20s, such as within 8 to 15s, such as within 8 to 10s; or such as within 10 to 20s, such as within 10 to 15s.
37. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) is supplied as DC (direct current) signal.
38. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) by the power supply (PS) is supplied as AC (alternating current) signal, such as a switch-mode signal.
39. Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the electrical power supplied to the atomizer (AT) is modulated by pulse-width modulation (PWM).
PCT/DK2014/050315 2014-10-03 2014-10-03 Electronic nicotine delivery system WO2016050247A1 (en)

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