EP4192297A1

EP4192297A1 - A cleaning tool for cleaning an aerosol generation device

Info

Publication number: EP4192297A1
Application number: EP21755494.8A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Akira Yamaguchi
Original assignee: JT International SA
Current assignee: JT International SA
Priority date: 2020-08-07
Filing date: 2021-08-05
Publication date: 2023-06-14
Also published as: WO2022029259A1; JP2023535875A

Abstract

Present invention relates to a cleaning tool (100) for cleaning an elongated heating chamber (210) of an aerosol generation device (200), for instance the heating chamber (210) comprises an elongated side wall (212), an end wall (214), and a protrusion (216) that protrudes from a central portion of the end wall (214) into the heating chamber (210), wherein the cleaning tool (100) comprises an elongated base (20) and a cleaning head (10), wherein the cleaning head (10) is electrically controlled, functionally connected to the elongated base (20), wherein the cleaning head (10) comprises at least a first-type brush (14) and a second-type brush (12). Present invention also relates to a kit comprising an aerosol generation device (200) and a cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims.

Description

A cleaning tool for cleaning an aerosol generation device

Technical field of the invention

The present invention relates to cleaning tools for use in aerosol generation devices. Aerosol generation devices are designed to heat or bum an aerosol generation substrate, such as tobacco, to generate an aerosol or a vapour. Leftovers or residues are created after use and therefore need to be removed. A cleaning tool is used for this purpose.

Background of the invention

Aerosol generating devices are increasingly popular for consumers as an alternative to conventional tobacco products due to its reduced risk nicotine delivery profile. Examples of such new alternatives are for instance e-cigarettes and tobacco vapour products. Such devices heat an aerosol generating substance in the form of a consumable within a heating chamber to produce a vapour or an aerosol to be inhaled by a user.

Heating chambers generally comprise a heat conductive housing or a shell defining an internal volume to hold a consumable and an opening through which the consumable may be received. A heater may be provided internally or externally of the consumable in order to provide an increased temperature to the heating chamber for the release of the aerosol. Most commonly such heating chambers are heated from the outside, with the conductive shell transferring the heat to the internal volume. One means to heat such heating chamber uses a thin film heater which conforms to a surface of a heating chamber to ensure efficient heating of a consumable received within the chamber.

Patent document CN207479044 relates to a cigarette cleaner, which aims to solve the problems of inconvenient and unhygienic cleaning of the mouthpiece and heating sheet of the electronic cigarette. The mouthpiece cleaning part is provided with a mouthpiece cleaning brush whereas the heating chip cleaning part is provided with heating element cleaning brush through brush fixing portion, where the cleaning of the residues can be carried out smoothly only when the mouthpiece and the cigarette cleaner are perfectly connected.

An alternative cleaning method is through a simple cleaning tool i.e. a cotton swap (e.g. Q-Tip). However, it usually takes more effort to clean the heating chamber with a cotton swap. Moreover, the tobacco residues in the heating chamber cannot be cleaned properly.

A common drawback for current cleaning tool is that tobacco residues at some location of the heating chamber are hard to be cleaned thoroughly and be brought out of the heating chamber. If the tobacco residues are accumulated within the heating chamber, the aerosol generation device may not function optimally. Furthermore, the accumulation of residues would cause bad taste of the tobacco products which generally can be noticed by an experienced user. Moreover, in some cases, due to the fragility of the heating element, said heating element may be destroyed by users while trying to clean up the heating chamber. If this happens, a new heating element needs to be replaced or worse, the entire aerosol generation device needs to be replaced.

An object of the present invention is therefore to propose a cleaning tool for an electronic cigarette system which overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art, in particular for a more effective, trendier and easier to use cleaning tool.

Summary of the invention

The inventors of the present invention have found solutions to the above-discussed problems through the cleaning tool of an aerosol-generating device. A first aspect of the invention is accordingly to provide a cleaning tool for cleaning an elongated heating chamber of an aerosol generation device, wherein for instance the heating chamber comprises an elongated side wall, an end wall, and optionally a protrusion that protrudes from a central portion of the end wall into the heating chamber, wherein the cleaning tool comprises an elongated base and a cleaning head, wherein the cleaning head is electrically controlled, functionally connected to the elongated base, wherein the cleaning head comprises at least a first-type brush and a second-type brush.

A second aspect of the invention relates to a kit comprising an aerosol generation device and a cleaning tool according to the present invention.

The present invention allows the user to clean the aerosol generation device easily and effortlessly due to the fact that the cleaning tool is electronically controlled. Moreover, the two different types of brushes are designed to clean different locations of the heating chamber, namely the end wall and the side wall, and thanks to the arrangement of these brushes, the tobacco residues are brought out automatically from the heating chamber while the cleaning process are ongoing. In addition, an electrically controlled cleaning tool ensures a constant rotating speed of the cleaning head, thereby increasing the efficiency of cleaning while decreasing the risks of damaging the heating chamber, in particular to the heating element of the aerosol generating device.

In one embodiment, one or more electrically controlled drive units are functionally connected to one end of the elongated base to power the rotation of the cleaning head where the brushes are arranged thereon, wherein the first type brush and the second type brush are operated independently by different electrically controlled drive units. This has the advantage that a target specific cleaning of the cleaning tool can be activated separately for cleaning different locations of the heating chamber.

In another embodiment, the first type brush and the second type brush are made of at least partially different materials. For instance, harder materials such as AS resin (Acrylonitrile Styrene resin), ABS resin (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene resin), PP resin, saturated polyester resin, elastomer resin, high-density polyethylene (HDPE) or Polypropylene (PP) which are thermally stable, tough and have high tensile strength are suitable to be provided as the first type brush which reaches the end wall of the heating chamber. Soft materials such as cotton or microfibre are suitable to be provided as the second type brush to clean the blade of the aerosol generation device.

In a further embodiment, the first type brush may be arranged and configured to rotate about a longitudinal axis of the elongated body, wherein the first type brush may be provided substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the elongated body.

Optionally, the second type brush may be arranged and configured to rotate about a longitudinal axis of the elongated body, wherein the second type brush may be arranged spirally on the cleaning head.

Optionally, the second type brush may be arranged substantially oblique to the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool such that tobacco residue is carried out spirally of the heating chamber through the rotation.

Optionally, the second type brush may be arranged at approximately 30 ° to 60 ° from the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool.

In some preferred embodiments, a sensor may be provided to the cleaning head.

In further embodiments, the sensor may be a tactile sensor, a proximity sensor, an infrared sensor or a photoreceptor sensor.

In yet some embodiments, the first type brush may be configured to be activated before the second type brush, preferably after 5 seconds of the activation of the first type brush.

In some other embodiments, the second type brush may be configured to rotate automatically once a sensor provided to the cleaning head is activated, preferably after a few seconds such as 5 or 10 seconds. In one embodiment, the second-type brush forms a distal or free end of the cleaning tool, as this allows the brush to clean the distal end of the heating element which typically accumulates debris or tobacco remaining.

In another embodiment, the first-type brush and second-type brush are arranged adjacent to one another along the longitudinal axis of the elongated base.

Optionally, a means for collecting residues which being removed by the cleaning head may be provided to the cleaning tool.

Optionally, the means for collecting residues may be provided adjacent to the cleaning head or the elongated base.

Optionally, the cleaning head and/or the means for collecting residues may be detachable from the elongated base of the cleaning tool.

Optionally, one or more control buttons for controlling the cleaning head and/or the wipes may be provided to the cleaning body.

By “about” or “approximately” in relation to a given numerical value, it is meant to include numerical values within 10% of the specified value. All values given in the present disclosure are to be understood to be complemented by the word “about”, unless it is clear to the contrary from the context.

The indefinite article “a” or “an” does not exclude a plurality, thus should be treated broadly.

Unless defined otherwise, technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs.

A tobacco-containing substrate can be any compound, mixture, particle matter, material and/or solution that contains and/or carries a constituent of tobacco, either artificially included or naturally contained in tobacco, e.g. tobacco, tobacco particles, tobacco flavor and/or nicotine. In contrast, an example for an artificially added non-tobacco-specific flavor would be menthol or fruit flavour.

As used herein, the term "aerosol-generating article" refers to an aerosol-generating article for producing an aerosol comprising an aerosolgenerating material that is intended to be heated rather than combusted in order to release volatile compounds that can form an aerosol.

As used herein, the term "aerosol-generating" refers to a material, upon heating, capable of releasing volatile compounds, which can form an aerosol. The aerosol generated from aerosol-generating material of aerosolgenerating articles described herein may be visible or invisible and may include vapours (for example, fine particles of substances, which are in a gaseous state, that are ordinarily liquid or solid at room temperature) as well as gases and liquid droplets of condensed vapours.

An aerosol-forming agent can be any compound, mixture and/or solution that is capable of forming an aerosol, e.g. when heated and/or in mixture with a tobacco-containing agent. Well known examples include humectants such as glycerin and propylene glycol, other alcohols, such as ethanol, etc.

An electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) or similar devices like electronic pipes or heat-not-burn devices, as referred to in the present invention, are not particularly limited, and may be used to provide a user with an aerosol to inhale. It can, according to certain embodiments, comprise a mouthpiece, a heater, a receiving portion, e.g. a pod, stick, capsule and a casing.

Drawings of the invention

Figure 1 shows a schematic side (see through) view of a first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 shows a schematic side (see through) view of a second embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 3 shows a schematic side view of a partial cleaning head of the Figure 2, wherein the first type brush area is enlarged.

Figure 4 shows a schematic side view of an enlarged cleaning head of the Figure 2, wherein the second type brush area is enlarged.

Detailed description of the invention

Figure 1 and Figure 2 illustrate two schematic examples of an aerosol generation device 200 in a cross-sectional view. These devices serve as examples of two types of aerosol generation devices in which the subsequently described cleaning tool may be used. The aerosol generation device 200 in Figure 1 comprises a “cup heater” type of heating chamber 210 where the aerosol-generating substrate is heated externally by an oven-like structure of the heating chamber, whereas the aerosol generation device 200 in the Figure 2 comprises a blade-like heating element 216 capable of piercing through the aerosol-generating substrate such that said substrate is heated internally.

The heating chamber 200 as shown in the Figure 1 comprises a “cup heater” type of heating chamber, where the aerosol-generating substrate can be heated by the surrounding walls. Due to the difference of geometries and locations of the walls (e.g. end wall 214 and side wall 212), different types of brushes are required to clean effectively the heating chamber 210. As the end wall 214 for instance tend to accumulate more tobacco residues than the side wall 212, hence the first type brush 14 may be made of a more robust material. The second type brush 12 of the present invention furthermore ensures that the tobacco residues can be brought out of the heating chamber 210 more effectively due to its brush arrangement.

In Figure 2, the aerosol generation device 200 comprises a heating chamber 210. The heating chamber 210 is a substantially elongated chamber, having an elongated side wall 212 and an end wall 214. The elongated side wall 212 forms the housing of the aerosol generation device 200 which is substantially cylindrical in shape. As can be seen in the Figure 2, a protrusion 216 protruding from the end wall 214 serves usually as a heating element to heat the aerosolgenerating substrate for the release of a vapour.

An aerosol-generating article is typically inserted in the aerosolgenerating device 200, where the tobacco substrate portion is pierced through by the heating element such that the tobacco substrate is heated up to release vapour. After use, while removing the aerosol-generating article from the device 200, a minute quantity of tobacco residues may be left within the heating chamber. If the heating chamber is not regularly cleaned, an accumulation of the tobacco residues may cause foul taste of the tobacco and also the layer of tobacco residues may decrease the efficiency of the aerosol generation device 200.

The cleaning tool 100 according to the present invention comprises a cleaning head 10, an elongated base 20 and a drive unit 30 installed within a body of the cleaning tool 100. The cleaning tool 100 according to the present invention may have a length of approximately between 4 and 15 cm, preferably between 6 and 10 cm.

One end of the elongated base 20 is connected to a drive unit 30 while another end is functionally connected to the cleaning head 10. With such configuration, the cleaning head is controllable and rotatable by the drive unit 30. Two types of brushes are provided on the cleaning head 10. When the drive unit e.g. motor is activated, the cleaning head is agitated or rotated by the rotating movement of the cleaning head 10. Tobacco residues are therefore scrapped or brushed away from the surface of the heating chamber 210.

It is foreseeable that the two different types of brushes 14, 12 are driven separately by different drive unit 30 such that only a specific location can be cleaned, if desired.

Referring to the Figure 3, an enlarged partial view of the cleaning head 10 of the cleaning tool 100 is shown. The cleaning head 10 is provided with a first type brush 14 at one longitudinal end of the cleaning head 10. This usually is located at the top position of the cleaning head 10 where the cleaning head 10 first reaches the end wall 214 of the aerosol generation device 200.

As can be seen in the Figure 3, the first type brush 14 is rotated around the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool 100, wherein the first type brush 14 may be arranged substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool 100. The first type brush 14 may be controlled by a control button such that at least one, two or three rotation speeds of the brush 14 can be electrically controlled through a button, preferably provided on the body of the cleaning tool. The direction of rotation of the first type brush 14 may be clockwise or anti-closewise.

The second type brush 12 is also provided to the cleaning head 10 of the cleaning tool 100, wherein the second type brush 12 can be rotating around the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool 100. The second type brush 12 may be provided spirally around the cleaning head 10, in an oblique manner such that the tobacco residues can be brought out of the house due to the rotation of the cleaning head 10, as shown in the Figure 4.

The second type brush 12 arranged spirally on the cleaning head 10 forms a spiral channel as can be seen in the Figure 4. The three arrow heads up represent the direction of movement of the residues which can be transferred out of the heating chamber 210. The second type brush 12 can be arranged in an angle ranging between approximately 30 ° to 60 ° from the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool 100. Preferably, the second type brush is provided at approximately 45 ° from the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool, arranged in a way that the tobacco residues are brought out of the heating chamber 210 through the rotation of the cleaning head 10.

As the first type brush 14 is the only portion of the cleaning tool 100 that reaches the end wall 214 of the heating chamber 210, the materials suitable for the first type brush 14 are for instance AS resin (Acrylonitrile Styrene resin), ABS resin (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene resin), PP resin, saturated polyester resin, elastomer resin, high-density polyethylene (HDPE) or Polypropylene (PP) which are thermally stable, tough and have high tensile strength. Such materials are especially suitable when the region near to the end wall 214 of the heating chamber 210 has an uneven surface. This usually leads to the higher accumulation of tobacco residues. Moreover, this region may have higher temperature, therefore these materials are suitable to be provided as the first type brush. However, if the region close to the end wall 214 of the heating chamber 210 has an even surface, soft materials such as cotton material or microfibre may be used for the first type brush 14. These soft materials (cotton, microfibre) are suitable to be provided as the second type brush 12 because the side wall 212 or the protrusion 216 (such as heating element) is fragile and may be easily destroyed or dented by the cleaning tool while cleaning the heating chamber 210.

These brush 12, 14 may be made up of bristles that are of straight natural hair, oriented to outwardly project the tip ends, and to contain the root ends within the bore of ferrule. At this point, it is disclosed that in some preferred embodiments, in quality brushes, which employ natural bristle such as pony hair, squirrel or sable, the brush bundles may be assembled to a nose piece or ferrule, with the root ends of the hairs glued to each other and to the bore of the ferrule, the feed-through passage being generated by drilling the glued assembly from a pomade-supply end. These natural bristles are excellent soft materials due to its soft surface.

To this end, in one embodiment of the invention, a means for collecting residues that has been brought out from the heating chamber 210 can be provided, preferably located adjacent to the cleaning head 10 or the elongated base 20. The means for collecting residues can be a vacuum bag-like element so that the residues are collected within the bag. The means for collecting residues can be detachable. It is foreseen that the bag can be reusable or can be a single use bag.

According to some other particularly contemplated embodiments, one or more sensors can be provided to the cleaning head. The sensor may be a tactile sensor, a proximity sensor, an infrared sensor or a photoreceptor sensor.

The sensor may start the cleaning tool 100 automatically when it touches or is very close to the end wall 214. In this connection, it is foreseeable for example that the first type brush 14 may be configured to be activated before the second type brush 12, preferably after 5 seconds of the activation of the first type brush 14. This set up will render the cleaning tool 100 to act as a smart gadget without the need to contemplate how to operate the cleaning tool 100.

Claims

1. A cleaning tool (100) for cleaning an elongated heating chamber (210) of an aerosol generation device (200), wherein the cleaning tool (100) comprises an elongated base (20) and a cleaning head (10), wherein the cleaning head (10) is electrically controlled, functionally connected to the elongated base (20), wherein the cleaning head (10) comprises at least a first-type brush (14) and a second-type brush (12).

2. The cleaning tool (100) according to claim 1 , wherein one or more electrically controlled drive units (30) are functionally connected to one end of the elongated base (20) to power the rotation of the cleaning head (10) where the brushes are arranged thereon, wherein the first type brush (14) and the second type brush (12) are operated independently by different electrically controlled drive unit (30).

3. The cleaning tool (100) according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first type brush (14) and the second type brush (12) are made of at least partially different materials.

4. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first type brush (14) is arranged and configured to rotate about a longitudinal axis of the elongated body (20), wherein the first type brush (14) is provided substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the elongated body (20).

5. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second type brush (12) is arranged and configured to rotate about a longitudinal axis of the elongated body (20), wherein the second type brush (12) is arranged spirally on the cleaning head (10).

6. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second type brush (12) is arranged substantially oblique to the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool (100) such that tobacco residue is carried out spirally of the heating chamber (210) through the rotation.

7. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second type brush (12) is arranged at approximately 30 ° to 60 ° from the longitudinal axis of the cleaning tool (100).

8. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a sensor is provided to the cleaning head (10).

9. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sensor is a tactile sensor, a proximity sensor, an infrared sensor or a photoreceptor sensor.

10. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first type brush (14) is configured to be activated before the second type brush (12), preferably after 5 seconds of the activation of the first type brush (14).

11. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second type brush (12) is configured to rotate automatically once a sensor provided to the cleaning head (10) is activated, preferably after a few seconds such as 5 or 10 seconds.

12. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a means for collecting residues which being removed by the cleaning head (10) is provided to the cleaning tool (100).

13. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the means for collecting residues is provided adjacent to the cleaning head (10) or the elongated base (20).

14. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cleaning head (10) and/or the means for collecting residues is detachable from the elongated base (20) of the cleaning tool (100).

15. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein second-type brush (12) forms a distal or free end of the cleaning tool (100).

16. The cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first-type brush (14) and second-type brush (12) are arranged adjacent one another along the longitudinal axis of the elongated base (20).

17. A kit comprising an aerosol generation device (200) and a cleaning tool (100) according to any one of the preceding claims.