EP4623718A1

EP4623718A1 - System for refilling aerosol provision device, device and method

Info

Publication number: EP4623718A1
Application number: EP24165933.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: David Bishop; Howard ROTHWELL; Ugurhan Yilmaz; Christopher Daniels; Keiann WILLIAMS; Mark HARRIMAN; Andrews OHENE
Original assignee: Nicoventures Trading Ltd
Current assignee: Nicoventures Trading Ltd
Priority date: 2024-03-25
Filing date: 2024-03-25
Publication date: 2025-10-01
Also published as: WO2025202611A1

Abstract

Described is a system including: an aerosol provision device comprising an aerosol-generating material storage portion for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion; and a refilling device configured to receive the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion and arranged to refill the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device with aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of the refilling device. The system comprises a capillary element configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action. Also described is an aerosol provision device, a refilling device and a method of refilling.

Description

Field

The present disclosure relates to systems for providing aerosol to a user including electronic aerosol provision systems such as nicotine delivery systems (e.g. electronic cigarettes and the like).

Background

Electronic aerosol provision systems such as electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are used by some as a replacement or alternative to cigarettes, for example such as those looking to reduce nicotine consumption.
Electronic aerosol provision systems such as electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) generally contain a reservoir of a source liquid containing a formulation, typically including nicotine, from which an aerosol is generated, e.g. through heat vaporisation. An aerosol source for an aerosol provision system may thus comprise a heater having a heating element arranged to receive source liquid from the reservoir, for example through wicking / capillary action. While a user inhales on the device, electrical power is supplied to the heating element to vaporise source liquid in the vicinity of the heating element to generate an aerosol for inhalation by the user. Such devices are usually provided with one or more air inlet holes located away from a mouthpiece end of the system. When a user sucks on a mouthpiece connected to the mouthpiece end of the system, air is drawn in through the inlet holes and past the aerosol source. There is a flow path connecting between the aerosol source and an opening in the mouthpiece so that air drawn past the aerosol source continues along the flow path to the mouthpiece opening, carrying some of the aerosol from the aerosol source with it. The aerosol-carrying air exits the aerosol provision system through the mouthpiece opening for inhalation by the user.
To help reduce material wastage and/or disposal of such electronic aerosol provision systems, some electronic aerosol provision systems are provided with refillable reservoirs, which can be refilled with aerosol-generating material and used for multiple times without disposal. However, the refilling process for such refillable aerosol provision systems may present certain challenges or difficulties that impact user experience when refilling aerosol provision systems. Some aerosol provision systems are configured to allow a user to pour liquid aerosol-generating material into a reservoir, e.g., having a screwcap or the like to allow access to the reservoir. However, the risk of spilling liquid aerosol-generating material during the refilling of such systems is relatively high. Alternative systems for refilling aerosol provision systems provide for some alignment between the aerosol provision system and the refilling system to avoid or reduce the risk of spilling liquid aerosol-generating material.
However, some such systems for refilling require a user to manually actuate a pump or similar component for pumping liquid aerosol-generating material to the aerosol provision system, which can be burdensome for users. Other systems may employ an electrically operated pump or similar which overcomes the above user inconvenient but may require a large battery / motor or the like to be able to power the pump which adds bulk and expense to any refilling device.
Various approaches are described which seek to help address some of these issues.

Summary

According to a first aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a system including: an aerosol provision device comprising an aerosol-generating material storage portion for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion; and a refilling device configured to receive the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion and arranged to refill the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device with aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of the refilling device. The system comprises a capillary element configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action.
In some examples, the capillary element is positioned between the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device and the reservoir of the refilling device.
In some examples, the capillary element extends into the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device and/or the reservoir of the refilling device.
In some examples, the capillary element is configured such that, in the direction from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device, the capillary forces exerted on aerosol-generating material in the capillary element increases.
In some examples, the capillary element comprises at least one of a porous material, a fibrous material, and one or more microfluidic capillary tubes.
In some examples, the pores, interstices, or capillaries decrease in size in a direction from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device.
In some examples, the capillary element comprises a first capillary element provided in the aerosol provision device and a second capillary element provided in the refilling device, and wherein when the aerosol provision device is engaged with the refilling device, a surface of the first capillary element and a surface of the second capillary element abut one another.
In some examples, the first capillary element comprises pores, interstices or capillaries of a first dimension perpendicular to the direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material in the first capillary element, and wherein the second capillary element comprises pores, interstices or capillaries of a second dimension perpendicular to the direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material in the second capillary element, wherein the first dimension is smaller than the second dimension.
In some examples, the aerosol provision device comprises a hatch moveable between a first position and a second position, and an opening in fluid communication with the aerosol-generating material storage portion, wherein when the hatch is in the first position the opening to the aerosol-generating material storage portion is covered by the hatch, and when the hatch is in the second position the opening to the aerosol-generating material storage portion is exposed, wherein optionally the, or a part of the, capillary element is provided in the opening to the aerosol-generating material storage portion.
In some examples, the refilling device is configured such that when the aerosol provision device is received in the aerosol provision device receiving portion, the hatch is moved to the second position.
In some examples, the system further comprises an energising mechanism arranged to provide energy to the capillary element during a refilling operation to facilitate or improve the transfer of aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device, wherein optionally, the energising mechanism is configured to supply energy to the capillary element in the form of at least one of: heat energy and vibrational energy.
According to a second aspect of certain embodiments there is provided an aerosol provision device comprising an aerosol-generating material storage portion for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion, wherein the aerosol provision device further includes: a capillary element extending from the aerosol-generating material storage portion to an opening in a housing of the aerosol provision device and configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of a refilling device configured to receive the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action.
According to a third aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a refilling device configured to receive an aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion and arranged to refill an aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device with aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of the refilling device, the refilling device including: a capillary element extending from the reservoir to an opening in the aerosol provision device receiving portion and configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action when the aerosol provision device is received in the aerosol provision device receiving portion.
According to a fourth aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a method of refilling an aerosol-generating material storage portion of an aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion, the method including: locating the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion of the refilling device, and providing a capillary element arranged so as to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action.
According to a fifth aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a system including: aerosol provision means comprising aerosol-generating material storage means for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision means arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage means; and refilling means configured to receive the aerosol provision means in an aerosol provision device receiving means and arranged to refill the aerosol-generating material storage means of the aerosol provision means with aerosol-generating material from reservoir means of the refilling means. The system comprises capillary means configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir means of the refilling means to the aerosol-generating material storage means of the aerosol provision means using capillary action.
It will be appreciated that features and aspects of the invention described above in relation to the first and other aspects of the invention are equally applicable to, and may be combined with, embodiments of the invention according to other aspects of the invention as appropriate, and not just in the specific combinations described above.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 schematically shows a system for providing an aerosol to a user, including an aerosol provision device, an aerosol modifying agent release component, and a refill and recharge device according to an aspect of the present disclosure;
Figure 2 schematically shows, in cross-section, the aerosol provision device of the system of Figure 1 in more detail wherein the aerosol provision device is provided with a capillary element fluidly coupled to the reservoir thereof for refilling the reservoir of the aerosol provision device in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure;
Figure 3 schematically shows, in cross-section, the consumable of the system of Figure 1 in more detail;
Figure 4 schematically shows, in cross-section, the refill and recharge device of the system of Figure 1 in more detail, wherein the refill and recharge device is provided with a capillary element fluidly coupled to the reservoir thereof for refilling the reservoir of the aerosol provision device located in the receptacle of the refill and recharge device in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure;
Figure 5 schematically shows, in cross-section, a section of the refill and recharge device of Figure 4 showing a modification of the refill mechanism, wherein the reservoir of the aerosol provision device comprises a capillary element, in accordance with the present disclosure;
Figure 6 schematically shows, in cross-section, a section of the refill and recharge device of Figure 4 showing a modification of the refill mechanism, wherein the reservoir of the refill and recharge device comprises a capillary element, in accordance with the present disclosure;
Figure 7 schematically shows, in cross-section, a section of the refill and recharge device of Figure 4 showing a modification of the refill mechanism, wherein the refill and recharge device is provided with an energising mechanism for energising the aerosol-generating material, in accordance with the present disclosure;
Figure 8 schematically shows, in cross-section, a modification of the refill and recharge device of the system of Figure 1 in more detail, where the refill and recharge device comprises a lid; and
Figure 9 shows a flow chart depicting a method for refilling and/or recharging an aerosol provision device using a refill and recharge device according to an aspect of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Aspects and features of certain examples and embodiments are discussed / described herein. Some aspects and features of certain examples and embodiments may be implemented conventionally and these are not discussed / described in detail in the interests of brevity. It will thus be appreciated that aspects and features of apparatus and methods discussed herein which are not described in detail may be implemented in accordance with any conventional techniques for implementing such aspects and features.
According to the present disclosure, a "non-combustible" aerosol provision system is one where a constituent aerosol-generating material of the aerosol provision system (or component thereof) is not combusted or burned in order to facilitate delivery of at least one substance to a user.
In some embodiments, the delivery system is a non-combustible aerosol provision system, such as a powered non-combustible aerosol provision system.
In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is an electronic cigarette, also known as a vaping device or electronic nicotine delivery system (END), although it is noted that the presence of nicotine in the aerosol-generating material is not a requirement.
In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is a hybrid system to generate aerosol using a combination of aerosol-generating materials, one or a plurality of which may be heated. Each of the aerosol-generating materials may be, for example, in the form of a solid, liquid or gel and may or may not contain nicotine. In some embodiments, the hybrid system comprises a liquid or gel aerosol-generating material and a solid aerosol-generating material. The solid aerosol-generating material may comprise, for example, tobacco or a non-tobacco product.
Typically, the non-combustible aerosol provision system may comprise a non-combustible aerosol provision device and a consumable for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device.
In some embodiments, the disclosure relates to consumables comprising aerosol-generating material and configured to be used with non-combustible aerosol provision devices. These consumables are sometimes referred to as articles throughout the disclosure.
In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system, such as a non-combustible aerosol provision device thereof, may comprise a power source and a controller. The power source may, for example, be an electric power source.
In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system may comprise an area for receiving the consumable, an aerosol generator, an aerosol generation area, a housing, a mouthpiece, a filter and/or an aerosol-modifying agent.
In some embodiments, the consumable for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device may comprise aerosol-generating material, an aerosol-generating material storage area, an aerosol-generating material transfer component, an aerosol generation area, a housing, a wrapper, a filter, a mouthpiece, and/or an aerosol-modifying agent.
In some embodiments, the substance to be delivered may be an aerosol-generating material. As appropriate, either material may comprise one or more active constituents, one or more flavours, one or more aerosol-former materials, and/or one or more other functional materials.
Aerosol-generating material is a material that is capable of generating aerosol, for example when heated, irradiated or energized in any other way. Aerosol-generating material may, for example, be in the form of a solid, liquid or gel which may or may not contain an active substance and/or flavourants. In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material may comprise an "amorphous solid", which may alternatively be referred to as a "monolithic solid" (i.e. non-fibrous). In some embodiments, the amorphous solid may be a dried gel. The amorphous solid is a solid material that may retain some fluid, such as liquid, within it. In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material may for example comprise from about 50wt%, 60wt% or 70wt% of amorphous solid, to about 90wt%, 95wt% or 100wt% of amorphous solid.
The aerosol-generating material may comprise one or more active substances and/or flavours, one or more aerosol-former materials, and optionally one or more other functional material.
An aerosol-modifying agent is a substance, typically located downstream of the aerosol generation area, that is configured to modify the aerosol generated, for example by changing the taste, flavour, acidity or another characteristic of the aerosol. The aerosol-modifying agent may be provided in an aerosol-modifying agent release component, that is operable to selectively release the aerosol-modifying agent. The aerosol-modifying agent may, for example, be an additive or a sorbent. The aerosol-modifying agent may, for example, comprise one or more of an active substance, a flavourant, a colourant, water, and a carbon adsorbent. The aerosol-modifying agent may, for example, be a solid, a liquid, or a gel. The aerosol-modifying agent may be in powder, thread or granule form. The aerosol-modifying agent may be free from filtration material.
The aerosol-former material may comprise one or more constituents capable of forming an aerosol. In some embodiments, the aerosol-former material may comprise one or more of glycerol, propylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, tetraethylene glycol, 1,3-butylene glycol, erythritol, meso-Erythritol, ethyl vanillate, ethyl laurate, a diethyl suberate, triethyl citrate, triacetin, a diacetin mixture, benzyl benzoate, benzyl phenyl acetate, tributyrin, lauryl acetate, lauric acid, myristic acid, and propylene carbonate.
In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material and/or the aerosol-modifying agent comprises an active substance.
The active substance as used herein may be a physiologically active material, which is a material intended to achieve or enhance a physiological response. The active substance may for example be selected from nutraceuticals, nootropics, psychoactives. The active substance may be naturally occurring or synthetically obtained. The active substance may comprise for example nicotine, caffeine, taurine, theine, vitamins such as B6 or B12 or C, melatonin, cannabinoids, or constituents, derivatives, or combinations thereof. The active substance may comprise one or more constituents, derivatives or extracts of tobacco, cannabis or another botanical.
In some embodiments, the active substance comprises nicotine. In some embodiments, the active substance comprises caffeine, melatonin or vitamin B12.
As noted herein, the active substance may comprise one or more constituents, derivatives or extracts of cannabis, such as one or more cannabinoids or terpenes.
As noted herein, the active substance may comprise or be derived from one or more botanicals or constituents, derivatives or extracts thereof. As used herein, the term "botanical" includes any material derived from plants including, but not limited to, extracts, leaves, bark, fibres, stems, roots, seeds, flowers, fruits, pollen, husk, shells or the like. Alternatively, the material may comprise an active compound naturally existing in a botanical, obtained synthetically. The material may be in the form of liquid, gas, solid, powder, dust, crushed particles, granules, pellets, shreds, strips, sheets, or the like. Example botanicals are tobacco, eucalyptus, star anise, hemp, cocoa, cannabis, fennel, lemongrass, peppermint, spearmint, rooibos, chamomile, flax, ginger, ginkgo biloba, hazel, hibiscus, laurel, licorice (liquorice), matcha, mate, orange skin, papaya, rose, sage, tea such as green tea or black tea, thyme, clove, cinnamon, coffee, aniseed (anise), basil, bay leaves, cardamom, coriander, cumin, nutmeg, oregano, paprika, rosemary, saffron, lavender, lemon peel, mint, juniper, elderflower, vanilla, wintergreen, beefsteak plant, curcuma, turmeric, sandalwood, cilantro, bergamot, orange blossom, myrtle, cassis, valerian, pimento, mace, damien, marjoram, olive, lemon balm, lemon basil, chive, carvi, verbena, tarragon, geranium, mulberry, ginseng, theanine, theacrine, maca, ashwagandha, damiana, guarana, chlorophyll, baobab or any combination thereof. The mint may be chosen from the following mint varieties: Mentha Arventis, Mentha c.v.,Mentha niliaca, Mentha piperita, Mentha piperita citrata c.v.,Mentha piperita c.v, Mentha spicata crispa, Mentha cardifolia, Memtha longifolia, Mentha suaveolens variegata, Mentha pulegium, Mentha spicata c.v. and Mentha suaveolens
In some embodiments, the active substance comprises or is derived from one or more botanicals or constituents, derivatives or extracts thereof and the botanical is tobacco.
In some embodiments, the active substance comprises or derived from one or more botanicals or constituents, derivatives or extracts thereof and the botanical is selected from eucalyptus, star anise, cocoa and hemp.
In some embodiments, the active substance comprises or derived from one or more botanicals or constituents, derivatives or extracts thereof and the botanical is selected from rooibos and fennel.
In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material and/or aerosol-modifying agent comprises a flavour.
As used herein, the terms "flavour" and "flavourant" refer to materials which, where local regulations permit, may be used to create a desired taste, aroma or other somatosensorial sensation in a product for adult consumers. They may include naturally occurring flavour materials, botanicals, extracts of botanicals, synthetically obtained materials, or combinations thereof (e.g., tobacco, cannabis, licorice (liquorice), hydrangea, eugenol, Japanese white bark magnolia leaf, chamomile, fenugreek, clove, maple, matcha, menthol, Japanese mint, aniseed (anise), cinnamon, turmeric, Indian spices, Asian spices, herb, wintergreen, cherry, berry, red berry, cranberry, peach, apple, orange, mango, clementine, lemon, lime, tropical fruit, papaya, rhubarb, grape, durian, dragon fruit, cucumber, blueberry, mulberry, citrus fruits, Drambuie, bourbon, scotch, whiskey, gin, tequila, rum, spearmint, peppermint, lavender, aloe vera, cardamom, celery, cascarilla, nutmeg, sandalwood, bergamot, geranium, khat, naswar, betel, shisha, pine, honey essence, rose oil, vanilla, lemon oil, orange oil, orange blossom, cherry blossom, cassia, caraway, cognac, jasmine, ylang-ylang, sage, fennel, wasabi, piment, ginger, coriander, coffee, hemp, a mint oil from any species of the genus Mentha, eucalyptus, star anise, cocoa, lemongrass, rooibos, flax, ginkgo biloba, hazel, hibiscus, laurel, mate, orange skin, rose, tea such as green tea or black tea, thyme, juniper, elderflower, basil, bay leaves, cumin, oregano, paprika, rosemary, saffron, lemon peel, mint, beefsteak plant, curcuma, cilantro, myrtle, cassis, valerian, pimento, mace, damien, marjoram, olive, lemon balm, lemon basil, chive, carvi, verbena, tarragon, limonene, thymol, camphene), flavour enhancers, bitterness receptor site blockers, sensorial receptor site activators or stimulators, sugars and/or sugar substitutes (e.g., sucralose, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, saccharine, cyclamates, lactose, sucrose, glucose, fructose, sorbitol, or mannitol), and other additives such as charcoal, chlorophyll, minerals, botanicals, or breath freshening agents. They may be imitation, synthetic or natural ingredients or blends thereof. They may be in any suitable form, for example, liquid such as an oil, solid such as a powder, or gas.
In some embodiments, the flavour comprises menthol, spearmint and/or peppermint. In some embodiments, the flavour comprises flavour components of cucumber, blueberry, citrus fruits and/or redberry. In some embodiments, the flavour comprises eugenol. In some embodiments, the flavour comprises flavour components extracted from tobacco.
In some embodiments, the flavour comprises flavour components extracted from cannabis.
In some embodiments, the flavour may comprise a sensate, which is intended to achieve a somatosensorial sensation which are usually chemically induced and perceived by the stimulation of the fifth cranial nerve (trigeminal nerve), in addition to or in place of aroma or taste nerves, and these may include agents providing heating, cooling, tingling, numbing effect. A suitable heat effect agent may be, but is not limited to, vanillyl ethyl ether and a suitable cooling agent may be, but not limited to eucolyptol, WS-3.
In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material and/or aerosol-modifying agent comprises an aerosol-former material. Examples of aerosol-former materials are provided above. In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material and/or aerosol-modifying agent comprises one or more other functional materials, which may comprise one or more of pH regulators, colouring agents, preservatives, binders, fillers, stabilizers, and/or antioxidants.
An aerosol generator is an apparatus configured to cause aerosol to be generated from the aerosol-generating material. In some embodiments, the aerosol generator is a heater configured to subject the aerosol-generating material to heat energy, so as to release one or more volatiles from the aerosol-generating material to form an aerosol. In some embodiments, the aerosol generator is configured to cause an aerosol to be generated from the aerosol-generating material without heating. For example, the aerosol generator may be configured to subject the aerosol-generating material to one or more of vibration, increased pressure, or electrostatic energy.
A susceptor is a material that is heatable by penetration with a varying magnetic field, such as an alternating magnetic field. The susceptor may be an electrically-conductive material, so that penetration thereof with a varying magnetic field causes induction heating of the heating material. The heating material may be magnetic material, so that penetration thereof with a varying magnetic field causes magnetic hysteresis heating of the heating material. The susceptor may be both electrically-conductive and magnetic, so that the susceptor is heatable by both heating mechanisms. The device that is configured to generate the varying magnetic field is referred to as a magnetic field generator, herein.
In accordance with the present disclosure, a system comprising a refilling device (or refill pack) for refilling the reservoir of an aerosol provision device and the aerosol provision device is provided. The system comprises a capillary element configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the reservoir of the aerosol provision device using capillary action. The refilling of the reservoir of the aerosol provision device is capable of being performed without any active control or power, thereby providing an easy to use refilling device.
Figure 1 schematically shows a system 1 for providing an aerosol to a user in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The system 1 comprises a refill and recharge device 10 (sometimes referred to herein as a refill/recharge pack 10), an aerosol provision device 20, and an aerosol modifying agent release component 30 (sometimes referred to herein as a consumable or article).
Figure 1 schematically shows each of these components separated from one another. Each of these components will be described in more detail below. However, by way of summary, the aerosol provision device 20 is arranged to engage with the consumable 30 (for example, the aerosol provision device 20 may comprise a receptacle 21 for receiving at least a part of the consumable 30), with the consumable 30 and aerosol provision device 20 together being operable to deliver aerosol to a user. The combination of the aerosol provision device 20 and consumable 30 may be referred to herein as an aerosol provision system. The refill/recharge pack 10 is arranged to engage with the aerosol provision device 20 (for example, the refill/recharge pack 10 may comprise a receptacle 11 for receiving at least a part of the aerosol provision device 20), with the refill/recharge pack 10 being operable to recharge and/or refill the aerosol provision device 20 when the aerosol provision device 20 is engaged with the refill/recharge pack 10.
Figure 2 schematically shows the aerosol provision device 20 in more detail, along with a schematic representation of the consumable 30, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. It should be appreciated that Figure 2 is not shown to any particular scale and the various components are only schematically shown. In addition, it should be appreciated that certain features of the aerosol provision device 20 are omitted from Figure 2, such as the various wiring and electrical connections between certain components, for example.
The aerosol provision device 20 comprises a housing 20a, the receptacle 21 (which in this example is formed by the housing 20a), a power source 22, control circuitry 23, an aerosol-generating material storage area (or herein referred to as a reservoir) 24, an aerosol-generating material transport element 25, an aerosol generator 26, an airflow path formed of an air inlet 27a, a vapour generation chamber 27b, air passage 27c, and outlet 27d, a reservoir access mechanism formed of a hatch 28a, an opening 28b on the side of the reservoir 24 and an opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a, a capillary element 15a, and electrical contacts 29a and 29b.
In the described example, the aerosol provision system (i.e., the combination of the consumable 30 and the aerosol provision device 20) is configured to have the shape and dimensions of a cigarette. That is, the aerosol provision system may be broadly cylindrical and have a total dimension in the length direction L (i.e., along a longitudinal axis thereof) of between 13 cm and 6 cm, or between 12 cm and 7 cm, or between 9 cm and 8 cm and a total width dimension W (i.e., perpendicular to the longitudinal axis) of between 5 to 10 mm, or between 7 to 9 mm. However, it should be appreciated that in other implementations, the size and/or shape of the aerosol provision system may be different.
With reference to Figure 2, it can be seen that the width of consumable 30 is less than the width of the aerosol provision device 20, thereby providing a stepped profile at the relevant end of the aerosol provision system where the consumable 30 protrudes from the receptacle 21. In some implementations, the consumable 30 may be configured such that the protruding section has a similar width to the aerosol provision device 20. When the two are engaged, the protruding section of the consumable 30 protruding from the receptacle 21 forms a flush outer surface with the outer surface of the aerosol provision device 20. In other implementations, the consumable 30 may couple to the aerosol provision device 20 in a different manner, and may have a width dimension the same as the width dimension of the aerosol provision device 20 (for example, when the consumable 30 is attached at an end of the aerosol provision device 20).
In the described example, the aerosol provision system is intended to be held by a user during use and used in a similar manner to a cigarette. In this regard, providing the aerosol provision system with similar dimensions to a cigarette increases familiarity to users transitioning from cigarettes to electronic aerosol provision systems, which therefore may help ease such a transition. In some implementations, the aerosol provision system may also have a similar weight to a cigarette, for broadly similar reasons.
The outer housing 20a in the described implementation has an overall cylindrical shape. The outer housing 20a defines a proximal or mouth end 20b at which the receptacle 21 and consumable 30 (when present) are located and a distal end 20c, opposite the proximal end 20b. The outer housing 20a may be formed, for example, from a plastics or metallic material. In some implementations, the outer housing 20a may be circumscribed, at least partly, by a paper material or cellulose material. Within the outer housing 20a is located the various components of the aerosol provision device 20, such as the power source 22, control circuitry 23, etc.
The power source 22 in this implementation is a battery 22. The battery 22 is rechargeable and may be, for example, of the kind normally used in aerosol provision systems and other applications requiring provision of relatively high currents over relatively short periods. The battery 22 may be, for example, a lithium ion battery, although other battery chemistries may also be considered. The battery 22 is capable of being recharged via an external source (such as the refill/recharge pack 10, described later). In the present example, the aerosol provision device 20 includes a first electrical contact 29a at the distal end 20c of the outer housing 20a and a second electrical contact 29b at the proximal end 20b of the outer housing 20, positioned at an inner surface of the receptacle 21. The first and second electrical contacts 29a, 29b may be annular and extend around the outer surface of the outer housing 20a and the inner surface of the receptacle 21, accordingly. Broadly, the first electrical contact 29a is configured to couple to a positive terminal of an external power source (or alternatively a negative terminal) and the second electrical contact 29b is configured to couple to a negative terminal of an external power source (or alternatively a positive terminal). The electrical contacts 29a, 29b are electrically coupled to the terminals of the battery 22 (either directly or via suitable recharging circuitry) and can facilitate recharging of the battery 22. However, in other implementations, the electrical contacts 29a, 29b may be arranged differently (for example, at the same end of the housing 20a), or may be omitted if, for example, the battery 22 is to be recharged inductively using suitable wireless recharging circuitry provided in the housing 20a.
The control circuitry 23 is suitably configured / programmed to control the operations of the aerosol provision system. The control circuitry 23 may be considered to logically comprise various sub-units / circuitry elements associated with different aspects of the aerosol provision system's operation and may be implemented by provision of a (micro)controller, processor, ASIC or similar form of control chip. The control circuitry 23 may be arranged to control any functionality associated with the aerosol provision system. By way of non-limiting examples only, the functionality may include the charging or re-charging of the battery 22, the discharging of the battery 22 (e.g., for providing power to the aerosol generator 26), in addition to other functionality such as controlling visual indicators (e.g., LEDs) / displays, communication functionality for communicating with external devices, etc. The control circuitry 23 may be mounted to a printed circuit board (PCB). Note also that the functionality provided by the control circuitry 23 may be split across multiple circuit boards and / or across components which are not mounted to a PCB, and these additional components and / or PCBs can be located as appropriate within the aerosol provision device 20. For example, functionality of the control circuitry 23 for controlling the (re)charging functionality of the battery 23 may be provided separately (e.g. on a different PCB) from the functionality for controlling the discharge of the battery 22.
In the described implementation, the reservoir 24 (which is an example of an aerosol-generating material storage area) is provided as part of the aerosol provision device 20, for example, within housing 20a. In the described implementation, the reservoir 24 may be integrally formed with the aerosol provision device 20. The reservoir 24 may be unable to be removed from the aerosol provision device 20. However, in other implementations, the reservoir 24 may be removable from the aerosol provision device 20 (e.g., provided as a separate but connectable component of the aerosol provision device 20). The reservoir 24 may comprise one or more walls that define a volume, within which an aerosol generating material is capable of being stored. In the present example, the reservoir 24 is configured to store a liquid aerosol-generating material, and may therefore be configured so as to reduce or prevent leakage of the aerosol-generating material out of the reservoir 24. The reservoir 24 may take any suitable shape, such as a cylindrical shape.
In the present example, at one end of the reservoir 24 (e.g., an end closest to the distal end 20c of the housing 20a), the reservoir 24 is provided in fluid communication with an aerosol-generating material transport element 25 and an aerosol generator 26. For example, the reservoir 24 may comprising an opening, within which the aerosol-generating material transport element 25 is located or extends.
The aerosol-generating material transport element 25 is configured to transport the aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 24 to the aerosol generator 26. The specific mechanism underlying how the aerosol-generating material transport element 25 functions may depend on the aerosol-generating material stored in the reservoir 24. In some implementations, where the aerosol-generating material is a liquid or other material capable of flowing, the aerosol-generating material transport element 25 may be configured to transport aerosol-generating material via capillary action. In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material transport element 25 may comprise a porous material (e.g., ceramic) or a bundle of fibres (e.g., glass or cotton fibres) which define a plurality of pores or interstices capable of drawing liquid from the reservoir 24 to be provided to the aerosol generator 26. Any suitable aerosol-generating material transport element 25 may be utilised having regard to the specific aerosol-generating material stored in the reservoir 24 and/or the type of aerosol generator 26 used.
The aerosol generator 26 is an apparatus configured to cause aerosol to be generated from the aerosol-generating material. In the described implementations, the aerosol generator 26 is a heater or heating element. The heating element is configured to subject the aerosol-generating material to heat energy, so as to release one or more volatiles from the aerosol-generating material to form an aerosol. The form of the heating element is not particularly limited. In some implementations, the heating element may be a planar structure. By way of example, the heating element may take the form of an electrically conductive plate or sheet, for example of titanium or other electrically resistive material such as NiChrome. However, in other implementations, the heating element may take other forms, such as an electrically resistive wire or trace or the like. The precise form of the heating element is not specific to the present disclosure; however, it is noted that some technologies may, currently, be more suited to implementation in the aerosol provision device 20 having the size requirements specified above. In some implementations, the heating element is electrically connected to the control circuitry 23 and battery 22, and heating of the heating element is achieved by passing an electrical current between locations on the heating element. In other implementations, the heating element may be a susceptor element which is intended to generate heat upon exposure to an alternating magnetic field (generated by a suitable magnetic field generator located in the aerosol provision device 20 and controlled by the control circuitry 23).
In the described implementation, the aerosol generator 26 is a heating element. However, in yet other implementations, the aerosol generator 26 may be configured to cause an aerosol to be generated from the aerosol-generating material without heating. For example, the aerosol generator 26 may be configured to subject the aerosol-generating material to one or more of vibration, increased pressure, or electrostatic energy.
In the described implementation, the aerosol generator 26 is integrally formed with the aerosol provision device 20. However, in other implementations, the aerosol generator 26 and/or the aerosol-generating material transport element 25 may be removable from the aerosol provision device 20. In implementations where the reservoir 24 is removable, the aerosol generator 26 and aerosol-generating material transport element 25 may be removable with the reservoir 24 (for example, the reservoir 24, aerosol-generating material transport element 25, and aerosol generator 26 may form a single component that is replaceable).
In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material transport component 25 may be integrated with the aerosol generator 26 to form a combined aerosol generator and aerosol-generating material transport component. For example, in some implementations, the aerosol generator 26 may comprise a porous, conductive plate or a plurality of sintered steel fibres forming a planar structure.
In other implementations, the aerosol-generating material transport component 25 may be omitted; for example, in configurations where the aerosol-generating material in the reservoir 24 is capable of being transported to the aerosol generator 26 without the aerosol-generating material transport component 25. However, it should also be acknowledged that the aerosol-generating material transport component 25 may be provided not only to facilitate transport of aerosol-generating material to the aerosol generator 26, but also to regulate the transport of aerosol-generating material to the aerosol generator 26 (e.g., to provide a defined flow of aerosol-generating material).
The aerosol provision device 20 further comprises an airflow path formed of an air inlet 27a, a vapour generation chamber 27b, air passage 27c, and outlet 27d. Optionally, a pressure sensor 27e (or other suitable sensor) is provided in the airflow path. The air inlet 27a comprises one or more openings provided in the outer housing 20a. The air inlet 27a is provided in fluid communication with a vapour generation chamber 27b, which is a region around the aerosol generator 26 where vapour is initially generated and aerosol initially formed. In Figure 2, the vapour generation chamber 27b is shown as region extending the width of the reservoir 24, but it should be appreciated the vapour generation chamber 27b may take any suitable size or shape. The vapour generation chamber 27b is provided in fluid communication with the aerosol generator 26 such that it is capable of receiving generated vapour from the aerosol generator 26. The vapour generation chamber 27b is further provided in fluid communication with air passage 27c. The air passage 27c extends in the region between the reservoir 24 and the outer housing 20a, and passes either side of the reservoir 24, up to the outlet 27d provided at the base of the receptacle 21. Hence, it should be understood that the air pathway in the aerosol provision device 20 extends from the air inlet 27a to the outlet 27d at the base of the receptacle 21, via the vapour generation chamber 27b.
During use of the aerosol provision system, when a user inhales at a mouthpiece end of the aerosol provision system (for example a mouthpiece end of the consumable 30 / proximal end 20b of the housing 20a), air is drawn into the aerosol provision device 20 via the air inlet 27a, passes through the vapour generation chamber 27b where vaporised aerosol-generating material is entrained in the air, before being passed through the air passage 27c and to the air outlet 27d. As will be discussed in more detail below, the aerosol is then passed through the consumable 30 to impart at least one of a flavour and an active substance (e.g., nicotine) to the aerosol before being delivered to the user.
It should be appreciated that the specific form / arrangement of the airflow path is not specific to the principles of the present disclosure, and any suitable arrangement of the airflow path relative to the reservoir 24 may be utilised. For example, the air inlet 27a may be arranged at a different location than that shown in Figure 2, for instance at the distal end 20c of the housing 20a. In other implementations, the reservoir 24 may be an annular chamber having a central opening through which a singular air passage 27c passes, for example.
In accordance with the present disclosure, the aerosol provision device 20 further comprises a reservoir access mechanism. The reservoir access mechanism is formed from a hatch 28a, an opening 28b on the side of the reservoir 24, and an opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a. The reservoir access mechanism is arranged to selectively provide access to the reservoir 24 and is configured to allow the reservoir 24 to be refilled with aerosol-generating material, for example from the refill/recharge pack 10. The openings 28b and 28c define ends or openings of a channel that passes from the housing 20a to the reservoir 24. This channel provides fluid communication between the internal volume of the reservoir 24 and the external environment (i.e., external to the housing 20a). The openings 28b, 28c may take any suitable form and shape, for example having a square, rectangular or circular cross-section. The opening 28c on the housing side 20a may be the same or different (e.g., in both shape and/or size) to the opening 28b on the side of the reservoir 24.
The hatch 28a is moveably mounted to the housing 20a. The hatch 28a is configured to selectively allow access to the inner volume of the reservoir 24 by covering or exposing the opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a. That is to say, the hatch 28a is moveable between a first position in which the opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a is covered by the hatch 28a, thereby preventing access to the reservoir 24 via the channel defined between opening 28c and 28b, to a second position in which the opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a is no longer covered by the hatch 28a (i.e., the opening 28c is exposed or uncovered), thereby allowing access to the reservoir 24 via the channel defined between opening 28c and 28b. Figure 2 shows the hatch 28a in the first or covered position. In the example implementation of Figure 2, the hatch 28a is able to move (slide) along the surface of the housing 20a parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aerosol provision device 20 in the direction shown by the arrow. Suitable mechanisms (such as rails or the like) are provided to allow the hatch 28a to be moved in this way. In other implementations, the hatch 28a may be configured to move relative to the housing 20a in a different manner, for example, via a hinged action. In other implementations, the hatch 28a may be removable from the aerosol provision device 20 (for example, such as a screw cap or the like).
Regardless, when the hatch 28a is in the closed position, the hatch 28a is configured to prevent or reduce aerosol-generating material exiting the reservoir 24 via opening 28c and/or to prevent or reduce other material (e.g., such as contaminants) entering the reservoir 24 via opening 28c. The hatch 28a may be provided with suitable sealing elements, for example an O-ring or the like arranged around the perimeter of the hatch 28a, to increasing ability of the hatch 28a to prevent the passage of material into / out of the reservoir 24.
In the described example, the hatch 28a is biased to the closed position, for example via a biasing element such as a spring or the like. In other implementations, the hatch 28a may not be biased to a particular position but may instead be configured to be retained, at least to some extent, in the open or closed position (for example, by using a groove or notch in the housing 20a into which a projection of the hatch 28a may be received and which requires a certain force to overcome to move the projection of the hatch 28a out of the groove or notch in the housing 20a, or by providing a relative stiff hatch 28a that requires some force to move between the open and closed positions).
In the example shown in Figure 2, the channel defined between the opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a and the opening 28b on the side of the reservoir 24 is provided with a capillary element 15a.
The capillary element 15a is an element that is capable of transporting aerosol-generating material (e.g., a liquid aerosol-generating material or aerosol-generating material capable of flowing) through the capillary element 15a via capillary action (e.g., via exerting capillary forces). The capillary element 15a may be formed in any suitable way so as to provide the capillary action. For example, in some implementations, the capillary element 15a may be a porous element, such as a porous ceramic or the like, comprising a plurality of interconnected pores defining pathways through the capillary element 15a. In other implementations, the capillary element 15a may comprise a fibrous material (such as glass or cotton fibres) that define a plurality of interstices or channels between the fibres to define pathways through the capillary element 15a. In yet other implementations, the capillary element 15a may comprise one or more microfluidic tubes (for example, a solid substrate having one or more microfluidic tubes carved or drilled into the substrate). The above represents a non-exhaustive list of examples of suitable capillary elements 15a; however, it should be appreciated that other types of capillary materials not explicitly listed above may be used in other implementations. In addition, it should be appreciated that the capillary element 15a may be configured for use with a particular aerosol-generating material. For example, the pore size, average size of the interstices, or diameter of the microfluidic tubes may be set so as to exert a suitable capillary force on the aerosol-generating material to be stored in the reservoir 24.
In the described implementation, the capillary element 15a extends from the opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a to the opening 28b on the side of the reservoir 24. As will be explained below in more detail, the capillary element 15a is configured to receive aerosol-generating material at the opening 28c and transport the aerosol-generating material through the capillary element 15a to the opening 28b on the side of the reservoir 24 and into the reservoir 24. In this way, the reservoir 24 is capable of being refilled with aerosol-generating material that is then able to be supplied to the aerosol generator 26 for aerosolisation as described above.
During use, as the aerosol generator 26 is activated, some of the aerosol-generating material in the reservoir 24 is used up. The reservoir access mechanism therefore allows the reservoir 24 to be refilled with aerosol-generating material as described above. Refilling the reservoir 24 with aerosol-generating material allows the aerosol provision device 20 to be used multiple times, therefore improving the longevity of the aerosol provision device 20 and reducing material waste.
Broadly speaking, it should be appreciated that the aerosol provision device 20 of Figure 2 represents an example aerosol provision device 20. The exact arrangement of the components within the housing 20a, such as the aerosol generator 26, reservoir 24, air pathway, etc. may vary from implementation to implementation.
Figure 3 schematically shows the consumable 30 in more detail, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure.
The consumable 30 comprises a housing 30a, a first, distal end retaining element 31, a second, proximal end retaining element 32, and an aerosol modifying agent 33.
The housing 30a of the consumable 30 may take any suitable shape, but in the present example is a cylindrical shape. The consumable 30 is sized so as to be received, at least partly, within the receptacle 21 of the aerosol provision device 20, and hence in this example, the receptacle 21 is also similarly cylindrical in shape. The housing 30a may be formed of any suitable material, for example a plastic material. In some implementations, the housing 30a may be formed from paper or a similar material such as card. Forming the housing 30a from paper or card may reduce the manufacturing cost of the consumable 30.
The housing 30a of Figure 3 is shown as being a tubular with openings at either ends thereof. At each end, a retaining element 31, 32 is provided. The retaining elements 31, 32 are positioned to extend across the openings of the tubular housing 30a. Accordingly, the retaining elements 31, 32 and the housing 30a define a volume therebetween. Within the volume is located the aerosol modifying agent 33. Accordingly, it should be understood that the retaining elements 31, 32 help to retain the aerosol modifying agent 33 within the consumable 30. In addition, the retaining elements 31, 32 are configured to allow air (and aerosol from the aerosol provision device 20) to pass through the retaining elements 31, 32. Hence, the retaining elements 31, 32 may take any suitable configuration that allows the retaining elements 31, 32 to both retain the aerosol modifying agent in the volume between the retaining elements 31, 32 and to allow air to pass therethrough. For example, in some implementations, the retaining elements 31, 32 comprise a planar mesh or a porous substrate. In some implementations, the retaining elements 31, 32, and in particular the retaining element 32 at the proximal end of the housing 30a, may be formed from a filter material, for example cellulose acetate. In such implementations, the retaining elements 31, 32 may also act as a filter for filtering certain constituents from the air flow that passes through the retaining elements 31, 32.
The aerosol modifying agent 33 may be any suitable aerosol modifying agent, for example any of the aerosol modifying agents listed above. In broad terms, the aerosol modifying agent 33 is configured to modify one or more properties of the aerosol that passes by or through the aerosol modifying agent 33. In accordance with certain aspects of the disclosure, the aerosol modifying agent 33 comprises an active substance. For example, in one implementation, the aerosol modifying agent 33 comprises nicotine. In accordance with certain aspects of the disclosure, the aerosol modifying agent 33 comprises a flavour or flavourant. For example, in one implementation, the aerosol modifying agent 33 comprises a tobacco flavouring.
In the described implementation, the aerosol modifying agent 33 is or comprises tobacco, for example, cut-rag tobacco, tobacco derivatives, expanded tobacco, reconstituted tobacco, and/or treated tobacco. By using tobacco as the aerosol modifying agent 33, tobacco flavouring and nicotine may be imparted to aerosol passing through the consumable 30 and the aerosol modifying agent 33. In addition, the aerosol that is generated and modified by such a tobacco aerosol modifying agent 33 has similar flavours/tastes to smoke generated by cigarettes, thereby helping to facilitate switching of cigarette users to aerosol provision systems by improving the familiarity of the aerosol provision system to such cigarette users.
With reference to Figures 2 and 3, when the consumable 30 is engaged with the aerosol provision device 20, specifically when the consumable 30 is inserted into receptacle 21, the consumable 30 is inserted such that the distal end (i.e., the end comprising retaining element 31) is inserted first into the receptacle 21. That is, when the consumable 30 is inserted into the receptacle 21, the first, distal retaining element 31 is closest to the distal end 20c of the aerosol provision system 20.
During use of the aerosol provision system (i.e., the combination of the consumable 30 and the aerosol provision device 20), a user places their mouth at the proximal end of the consumable 30 containing the retaining element 32. When the user inhales, air is drawn into the aerosol provision device 20 through the air inlet 27a. In some implementations, the aerosol provision device 20 comprises the pressure sensor 27e (or a similar sensor, such as a flow sensor) which is capable of sensing reduce pressure or air flow through the airflow path as a result of a user inhalation. When the pressure sensor 27e senses air flow (for example, a drop in pressure) resulting from a user inhalation, the control circuitry 23 detects such a drop and subsequently supplies power to the aerosol generator 26 (from battery 22) to cause the aerosol generator 26 to activate, i.e., heat, and generate vapour. In other implementations, the aerosol provision device 20 may comprise a user input mechanism, such as a button (not shown), on the housing 20a of the aerosol provision device 20 which is able to be actuated by a user to cause activation of the aerosol generator 26. When the aerosol generator 26 is activated, aerosol-generating material supplied to the aerosol generator is vaporised / aerosolised and released into the vapour generation chamber 27b. As described above, the vapour is entrained into the airflow and forms an aerosol before being passed along the air passage 27c and out via the outlet 27d. Once the aerosol exits the outlet 27d, the aerosol passes through the retaining element 31 of the consumable 30, through or past the aerosol modifying agent 33, and out of the consumable 30 via the retaining element 32 to be delivered to the user's mouth.
Hence, it should be understood that the aerosol modifying agent 33 acts to modify at least one property of the aerosol that is generated by the aerosol generator 26. In the described implementation, the properties include at least one of: the flavour and the presence of an active substance (such as nicotine). However, it should be appreciated that other properties, for example temperature of the aerosol, may also be affected by the aerosol modifying agent 33.
The consumable 30 is separable from the aerosol provision device 20. In use, when the aerosol modifying agent in the consumable 30 is exhausted (in that it no longer imparts flavour and/or nicotine to the aerosol to an acceptable level), the consumable 30 may be removed from the aerosol provision device 20 and a replacement consumable 30 attached to the device 20 in its place. Provided the reservoir 24 contains sufficient aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision system can continue to generate aerosol via the aerosol generator 26. In the event that insufficient aerosol-generating material is present in the reservoir 24, the reservoir 24 may be refilled with aerosol-generating material, via the reservoir refill mechanism 28. Therefore, it should be understood that the aerosol provision device 20 is generally regarded as reusable, and usable with multiple (e.g., sequential) consumables 30 which may be regarded as disposable.
The aerosol-generating material may be any suitable aerosol-generating material, as described above. For example, the aerosol-generating material may be a liquid aerosol-generating material, which may be referred to herein as a source liquid, e-liquid or liquid. The source liquid may be broadly conventional, and may contain nicotine and / or other active ingredients, and / or one or more flavours, as described above. In some implementations, the source liquid may contain no nicotine.
In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material stored in the reservoir 24 is free from active ingredients (such as nicotine) and / or flavourants. Without wishing to be bound by theory, when the aerosol-generating material is heated, aerosol-forming material is vaporised / aerosolised and this acts as a transport medium for components such as the active ingredients and / or flavourants which may, in some implementations, not be directly vaporised by the aerosol generator 26 in use. While it is expected that some of the active ingredients and / or flavourants are transported from the aerosol generator 26 by the vaporised aerosol-former material, it has been found that some of the active ingredients / flavourants can be left in contact with the aerosol generator 26. This can lead to residues forming on the aerosol generator 26. These residues can build up on the aerosol generator 26 over time and may subsequently impact the performance of the aerosol generator 26 to provide aerosol to the user. By using an aerosol-generating material that is free from active ingredients (such as nicotine) and/or flavourants, when the aerosol-generating material is aerosolised by the aerosol generator 26 (e.g., via heating), it has been found that a relatively lower amount of residues of the aerosol-generating material are left behind on the aerosol generator 26 (e.g., after vaporisation), therefore prolonging the operational lifetime of the aerosol generator 26. For example, it has been found that in systems that aerosolise an aerosol-generating material that comprises nicotine, for example, the performance of the aerosol generator 26 (e.g., in terms of the mass of aerosol produced for a given puff) starts to decrease after around 5,000 puffs (or discrete activations of the aerosol generator 26). Conversely, in systems that aerosolise an aerosol-generating material that is free of nicotine, for example, the performance of the aerosol generator 26 may not start to decrease until around 20,000 puffs. Accordingly, the lifetime of the aerosol generator 26, and hence of the aerosol provision device 20, may be relatively increased by using such an aerosol-generating material.
In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material is free from any active ingredients and/or flavourants. "Free from" as used herein means that the aerosol-generating material does not contain any active ingredients and/or flavourants or contains no greater than negligible or trace amount of the active ingredients and/or flavourants. More concretely, the aerosol-generating material comprises an active ingredient in an amount of no greater than 0.01 wt.% based on the weight of the aerosol-generating material (such as a liquid aerosol-generating material) and/or the aerosol-generating material comprises one or more flavourants in an amount of no greater than 0.01 wt.% based on the weight of the aerosol-generating material (such as a liquid aerosol-generating material).
In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material comprises, consists of, or essentially consists of an aerosol-former material. As described above, the aerosol-former material may comprise one or more constituents capable of forming an aerosol. In some implementations, the aerosol-former material may comprise one or more of glycerol, propylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, tetraethylene glycol, 1 ,3-butylene glycol, erythritol, meso-Erythritol, ethyl vanillate, ethyl laurate, a diethyl suberate, triethyl citrate, triacetin, a diacetin mixture, benzyl benzoate, benzyl phenyl acetate, tributyrin, lauryl acetate, lauric acid, myristic acid, and propylene carbonate. In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material may comprise water.
In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material selected from the group comprising, or consisting of: propylene glycol, (vegetable) glycerol, and water. The aerosol-generating material may comprise or consist of any one or combination of the above. In the aerosol provision device 20 of the described implementation, the aerosol generator 26 is provided as an integral part of the aerosol provision device 20. As noted above, the aerosol provision device 20 is intended to be used with multiple consumables 30 and thus the aerosol generator 26 is intended to be used multiple times over a prolonged period of use. In addition, the aerosol generator 26 may be used for a longer period than aerosol provision systems that have a disposable, integrated reservoir and heater (for example, in the form of a disposable cartomiser). Hence, the aerosol generator 26 integrally provided with the aerosol provision device 20 may be more prone to build-up of residue over time which may affect performance if used with an aerosol-generating material having other constituents, such as a flavour or an active substance, for example. Therefore, by using an aerosol-generating material that is free from active ingredients and / or flavourants, the aerosol generator 26 can be used for a longer period of time with relatively lower levels of residual build-up, thereby maintaining acceptable performance for longer.
However, in such implementations, while use of the aerosol-generating material that is free from active ingredients and / or flavourants has certain advantages, the aerosol generated therefrom is typically unflavoured and does not contain an active substance (such as nicotine). Particularly for consumers who are transitioning from cigarettes or the like to aerosol provision systems, the presence of flavour and/or active substance may be qualities in an aerosol that these consumers are looking to be provided with, and the absence of these qualities may lead to such users reverting back to cigarettes or the like. Therefore, as described above, the consumable 30 comprises an aerosol modifying agent 33, which is positioned along the airflow path (e.g., at the air outlet 27d of the aerosol provision device 20) such that the aerosol generated by the aerosol generator 26 passes to or through the aerosol modifying agent 33 to modify a characteristic of the aerosol. In the described implementation, the aerosol modifying agent 33 is capable of imparting a (tobacco) flavour and/or active substance (nicotine) to the aerosol generated by the aerosol generator 26 as the aerosol passes to or through the aerosol modifying agent 33 (which, as noted above, may be or comprise a tobacco or tobacco based substance). In this way, despite the aerosol-generating material not containing any flavour (at least beyond any flavour of the propylene glycol / (vegetable) glycerol) and/or active substance, the aerosol modifying agent 33 is capable of providing flavour and/or an active substance to the aerosol that is delivered to the user.
It should be appreciated, however, that in other implementations the aerosol-generating material may contain an active substance and/or flavour. In such implementations, the consumable 30 may be configured to modify additional or alternative characteristics of the aerosol generated from the aerosol-generating material. For example, the consumable 30 may impart an additional flavour, and/or reduce the temperature of the aerosol, and/or impart an additional active substance.
In the above example, the receptacle 21 provides a location where the consumable 30 couples or otherwise engages with the aerosol provision device 20. In the above example, the consumable 30 is held in place in the receptacle 21 by friction-fit. That is, the diameter of the receptacle 21 may be the same size as (or slightly smaller than, e.g., 0.1 or less of a mm) the diameter of the consumable 30. However, in other implementations, the consumable 30 may be engaged with the receptacle 21 in other ways, for example based around a screw thread, latch mechanism, bayonet fixing or magnetic coupling. In addition, it should be appreciated that the receptacle 21 represents only an example of a suitable interface for interfacing with and engaging the consumable 30. In other implementations, the consumable 30 may be engaged with the aerosol provision device 20 in any suitable way.
In the described example, in use, the user places their mouth on the outer housing 30a of the consumable 30 (at the proximal end thereof). However, it should be appreciated that in some implementations, the consumable 30 may be completely contained within the aerosol provision device 20. Accordingly, a part of the housing 20a (for example, a removable cover that provides access to the receptacle 21) may alternatively form the mouthpiece for the aerosol provision system.
In other implementations, the consumable 30 may be omitted and instead the aerosol provision device 20 is provided with a mouthpiece through which the aerosol generated by the aerosol generator 26 from the aerosol-generating material in the reservoir 24 is capable of being delivered to a user.
Figure 4 schematically shows the refill/recharge pack 10 in more detail, along with a schematic representation of the aerosol provision device 20, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. It should be appreciated that Figure 4 is not shown to any particular scale and the various components are only schematically shown. In addition, it should be appreciated that certain features of the refill/recharge pack 10 are omitted from Figure 4, such as the various wiring and electrical connections between certain components, for example.
The refill/recharge pack 10 comprises a housing 10a, receptacle 11 for receiving the aerosol provision device 20, power source 12, control circuitry 13, reservoir 14, capillary element 15b, , aerosol provision device engagement mechanism 17, electrical contacts 18a, 18b, and a reservoir access mechanism comprising opening 19b on the side of the reservoir 14 and an opening 19c on the side of the housing 10a / receptacle 11.
The refill/recharge pack 10 is configured to have the shape and dimensions of a cigarette pack. That is, the refill/recharge pack 10 may be broadly cuboidal and have a dimension in the length direction L (i.e., along a longitudinal axis thereof) of between 14 cm and 6 cm, or between 13 cm and 7 cm, or between 10 cm and 8 cm, a total width dimension W (i.e., perpendicular to the longitudinal axis) of between 8 cm and 5 cm, or between 7 cm and 5.5 cm, and a total depth dimension (not shown in Figure 4, but perpendicular to both the longitudinal axis and width direction) of between 3 cm and 1 cm, or between 2.5 cm and 1.5 cm. The dimension in the length direction L may be dependent on the length of the aerosol provision device 20.
In the example of Figure 4, the refill/recharge pack 10 comprises the receptacle 11 which is sized so as to receive the aerosol provision device 20. For example, the receptacle 11 may define a cylindrical recess having a similar width / diameter and length as the aerosol provision device 20. The receptacle 11 has a longitudinal axis that is parallel with the length dimension of the refill/recharge pack 10. In Figure 4, the distal end of the aerosol provision device 20 protrudes out of the receptacle 11 when the aerosol provision device 20 is fully inserted. This may aid in allowing a user to remove the aerosol provision device 20 from the refill/recharge pack 10 by providing a region of the aerosol provision device 20 for the user to grip (e.g., with their thumb and forefinger). In some implementations, the aerosol provision device 20 may be fully enclosed within the receptacle 11. In such implementations, a mechanism may be implemented to help lift the aerosol provision device 20 from the receptacle 11 for removal from the refill/recharge pack 10.
The refill/recharge pack 10 is intended to receive the aerosol provision device 20 between uses of the aerosol provision device 20 / system, to recharge the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20 and to refill the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20. When the user removes the aerosol provision device 20 from the refill/recharge pack 10 after recharging and refilling is complete, the action is similar to removing a cigarette from a cigarette packet. In this regard, providing the refill/recharge pack 10 with similar dimensions to a cigarette pack increases familiarity to users transitioning from cigarettes to electronic aerosol provision systems, which therefore may help ease such a transition. In some implementations, the refill/recharge pack 10 may also have a similar weight to a cigarette pack, for broadly similar reasons.
The outer housing 10a in the described implementation has an overall cuboidal shape having a top surface (through which the receptacle 11 is accessible), a bottom surface opposite the top surface, and one or more side surfaces extending therebetween and perpendicular thereto. The outer housing 10a may be formed, for example, from a plastics or metallic material. In some implementations, the outer housing 10a may be circumscribed, at least partly, by a paper material or cellulose material. Within the outer housing 10a is located the various components of the refill/recharge pack 10, such as the power source 12, control circuitry 13, etc.
The power source 12 in this implementation is a battery 12. The battery 12 may be rechargeable, for example a lithium ion battery, although other battery chemistries may also be considered. The battery 12 is capable of being recharged via an external source (such as via a connection to mains power through a suitable cable, not shown, or via inductive charging). In some implementations, the battery 12 may not be rechargeable. In such implementations, the outer housing 10a may comprise a door or hatch that allows for the battery 12 to be replaced with a fresh (i.e., charged) battery 12. The battery 12 is intended to be used to recharge the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20, and thus has a capacity at least equal to the capacity of the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20. However, in some implementations, the capacity of the battery 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10 may be greater, for example 5 or more, 10 or more, or 20 or more times greater than the capacity of the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20. This means that the refill/recharge pack 10 is capable of recharging the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20 multiple times on a single charge.
The control circuitry 13 is suitably configured / programmed to control the operations of the refill/recharge pack 10. The control circuitry 13 may be considered to logically comprise various sub-units / circuitry elements associated with different aspects of the refill/recharge pack's operation and may be implemented by provision of a (micro)controller, processor, ASIC or similar form of control chip. The control circuitry 13 may be arranged to control any functionality associated with the refill/recharge pack 10. By way of non-limiting examples only, the functionality may include the charging or re-charging of the battery 12 (e.g., from the external source), and the discharging of the battery 12 (e.g., for recharging the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20). In some examples, other functionality such as controlling visual indicators (e.g., LEDs) / displays of the refill/recharge pack 10, communication functionality for communicating with external devices, etc. may also be controlled by the control circuitry 13. The control circuitry 13 may be mounted to a printed circuit board (PCB). Note also that the functionality provided by the control circuitry 13 may be split across multiple circuit boards and / or across components which are not mounted to a PCB, and these additional components and / or PCBs can be located as appropriate within the refill/recharge pack 10.
The refill/recharge pack 10 further comprises a reservoir 14 configured to store aerosol-generating material. In the present example, the reservoir 14 is configured to store a liquid aerosol-generating material, and may therefore be configured so as to reduce or prevent leakage of the aerosol-generating material out of the reservoir 14. The reservoir 14 may take any suitable shape, such as a cuboidal shape.
The aerosol-generating material in the reservoir 14 is intended to be transferred to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 when the aerosol provision device 20 is installed in the receptacle 11. The reservoir 14 is intended to be used to refill the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20, and thus in some implementations has a volume at least equal to the volume of the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20. However, in some implementations, the volume of the reservoir 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10 may be greater, for example 5 or more, 10 or more, or 20 or more times greater than the volume of the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20. This means that the refill/recharge pack 10 is capable of refilling the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 multiple times from the reservoir 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10.
In some implementations, the reservoir 14 may be integrally formed with the refill/recharge pack 10, and may or may not be refillable. However, in other implementations, the reservoir 14 may be removable from the refill/recharge pack 10. In these implementations, once the reservoir 14 is depleted, the reservoir 14 may be removed and replaced with a new (full) reservoir 14.
In the present implementation, at the base of the receptacle 11 of the refill/recharge pack 10, an aerosol provision device engagement mechanism 17 for engaging with the aerosol provision device 20 is provided. The engagement mechanism 17 is sized so as to be received in the receptacle 21 of the aerosol provision device 20. That is, the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted into the receptacle 11, proximal end 20b first such that as the aerosol provision device 20 is lowered into the receptacle 11, the engagement mechanism 17 aligns with and engages the receptacle 21 of the aerosol provision device 20. The engagement mechanism 17 may be implemented to help align or retain the aerosol provision device 20 in the receptacle 11. In some implementations, the engagement mechanism 17 may be omitted.
As seen in Figure 4, the refill/recharge pack 10 comprises a reservoir access mechanism comprising opening 19b on the side of the reservoir 14 and an opening 19c on the side of the housing 10a / receptacle 11. The reservoir access mechanism is arranged to provide access to the reservoir 14 and is configured to allow aerosol-generating material stored in the reservoir 14 to exit the reservoir 14. The openings 19b and 19c define ends or openings of a channel that passes from the wall of the receptacle 11 to the reservoir 14. This channel provides fluid communication between the internal volume of the reservoir 14 and the volume of the receptacle 11. It should be appreciated that the openings 19b, 19c are similar to the openings 28b, 28c of the aerosol provision device 20, and thus the channels therebetween are also similar. Similarly, the openings 19b, 19c may take any suitable form and shape, for example having a square, rectangular or circular cross-section. The opening 19c on the side of the receptacle 11 may be the same or different (e.g., in both shape and/or size) to the opening 19b on the side of the reservoir 14. In some implementations, the opening 19c on the side of the receptacle 11 may be the same (e.g., in both shape and/or size) to the opening 28c on the side of the housing 20a of the aerosol provision device 20.
As with the aerosol provision device 20 of Figure 2, the channel defined between the opening 19c on the side of the receptacle 11 and the opening 19b on the side of the reservoir 14 is provided with a capillary element 15b. The capillary element 15b is the same as capillary element 15a in that capillary element 15b is also capable of transporting aerosol-generating material (e.g., a liquid aerosol-generating material or aerosol-generating material capable of flowing) through the capillary element 15b via capillary action (e.g., via exerting capillary forces). The capillary element 15b may be formed in any suitable way so as to provide the capillary action. In particular, the capillary element 15b may be a porous element, a fibrous material or comprise one or more microfluidic tubes as described above in respect of the capillary element 15a. Similarly, the capillary element 15b may be configured for use with a particular aerosol-generating material. However, it should be appreciated that capillary element 15b may be the same or different to the capillary element 15a (e.g., they may be formed from different materials, or have different characteristics).
In the described implementation, the capillary element 15b is provided in the channel from opening 19c on the side of the receptacle 11 to the opening 19b on the side of the reservoir 14, but in this implementation, also extends partially into the receptacle 11 (shown schematically in Figure 4). In use, the capillary element 15b is capable of receiving aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 14 at the opening 19bc on the side of the reservoir 14 and transporting the aerosol-generating material through the capillary element 15b to end of the capillary element 15b extending beyond the opening 19b on the side of the reservoir 14. In this way, aerosol-generating material that is stored in the reservoir 14 is capable of being supplied to (at least) the end of the capillary element 15b that protrudes into the receptacle 11.
As can be seen from Figure 4, when the aerosol provision device 20 is located / received in the receptacle 11, the capillary element 15a of the aerosol provision device 20 and the capillary element 15b of the refill/recharge pack 10 are brought into contact with one another. More specifically, the surface of the capillary element 15a that is provided at opening 28c of the aerosol provision device 20 is brought into contact with (and thereby fluidly connected to) the surface of the capillary element 15b that protrudes through opening 19c of the refill/recharge pack 10. In this way, there exists a fluid pathway between the reservoir 14 of the refill/regard pack 10 and the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 via the capillary elements 15a, 15b. In Figure 4, the relative surfaces of the capillary elements 15a, 15b that are brought into contact are of similar dimensions / area. That is, the exposed surface of capillary element 15a at opening 28c is similar in size and shape to the exposed surface of the capillary element 15b that protrudes through opening 19c. However, it should be appreciated that this need not be the case in all implementations, and the sizes and shapes of the exposed surfaces of the capillary elements 15a, 15b may be different. However, when the aerosol provision device 20 is installed in the receptacle 11, the exposed surfaces of the capillary elements 15a, 15b should at least partially overlap and contact one another.
Note that in the described implementation the capillary material 15b protrudes from the opening 19c in order to bridge any gap between the wall of the receptacle 11 and the housing 20a of the aerosol provision device 20 in order to form the fluid connection between the capillary elements 15a, 15b. In other implementations, however, the capillary element 15a may additionally or alternatively protrude from the opening 28c of the aerosol provision device 20. In yet further implementations, one or both of the capillary elements 15a, 15b may be configured to move (i.e., in the direction towards the other of the capillary elements 15a, 15b) in order to be brought into contact with one another.
In the implementation of Figure 4, the refill/recharge pack 10 is configured to automatically cause the hatch 28a of the aerosol provision device 20 to move to the exposed or uncovered position as the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted into the receptacle 11. For example, the receptacle 11 may include a protrusion 11a or the like that protrudes into the volume defined by the receptacle 11 from the inner wall of the receptacle 11. The protrusion 11a is arranged so as abut an edge of the hatch 28a as the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted into the receptacle 11. As the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted further into the receptacle 11, the hatch 28a is, in effect, pushed towards the open position by the relative movement of the aerosol provision device 20 to the projection 11a. Figure 4 shows the hatch 28a in the open position with a leading edge of the hatch 28a abutted against the projection 11a. The projection 11a in this instance is located at a position along the longitudinal axis of the receptacle 11 so as to cause the hatch 28a to be fully moved to the open position when the aerosol provision device 20 is fully inserted into the receptacle 11. It should be appreciated that other mechanisms may be employed to cause the hatch 28a to automatically open when the aerosol provision device 20 is being inserted into the receptacle 11, or when the aerosol provision device 20 is fully inserted into the receptacle 11. In other implementations, the user may be required to move the hatch 28a to the open position before inserting the aerosol provision device 20 into the receptacle 11.
With the hatch 28a in the open position, as described above the capillary element 15a and the capillary element 15b are brought into contact with one another, thereby forming a fluid pathway along which aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 14 may flow, via capillary action, to the reservoir 24 to thereby refill the reservoir 24 with the aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 14. Aerosol-generating material that is transported through the capillary element 15b of the refill/recharge pack 10 from the reservoir 14 via capillary action is capable of passing to the capillary element 15a of the aerosol provision device 20 also via capillary action at the interface between the two capillary elements 15a, 15b, and subsequently into the reservoir 24.
In some implementations, the capillary elements 15a, 15b may exert the same capillary force on the aerosol-generating material. Aerosol-generating material is capable of flowing from the reservoir 14 to the reservoir 24 across the capillary elements 15a, 15b but may be equally capable of flowing from the reservoir 24 to the reservoir 14. The direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material in such implementations may be dictated by the relative amounts of aerosol-generating material located in the reservoirs 14, 24 and thus any external influences (such as gravity / the mass of aerosol-generating material in the reservoirs 14, 24 above the capillary elements 15a, 15b) may be the determining factor in the direction of flow of aerosol-generating material. In other implementations, the reservoirs 14, 24 may be pressure regulated to create a pressure gradient between the two reservoirs 14, 24 that drives the capillary action in one direction or another.
In other implementations, the capillary elements 15a, 15b may be configured to help facilitate the transfer of aerosol-generating material in the direction from the reservoir 14 to the reservoir 24. In some implementations the capillary elements 15a, 15b may be configured such that there is a difference in the capillary force exerted on a given aerosol-generating material by each of the capillary elements 15a, 15b. For example, capillary element 15a of the aerosol provision device 20 may be configured to exert a greater capillary force on the aerosol-generating material than capillary element 15b of the refill/recharge pack 10, such that aerosol-generating material in the capillary element 15b is drawn into the capillary element 15a by virtue of the greater capillary force exerted by capillary element 15a. The capillary force exerted by the capillary elements 15a, 15b may be configured based on the properties of the capillary elements (e.g., pore / interstice / channel size, surface energy of the material forming the capillary element, etc). Hence, by way of example only, considering a porous capillary element 15a, 15b, the pore size of a porous capillary element 15a may be smaller than the pore size of a porous capillary element 15b. More generally, the (average) pore size, (average) interstice size or (average) capillary size in a direction perpendicular to the direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material through the capillary element 15a is smaller than the average) pore size, (average) interstice size or (average) capillary size in a direction perpendicular to the direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material in the capillary element 15b.
In some implementations, the capillary elements 15a, 15b are each configured such that the capillary force exerted by each on a given aerosol-generating material is on average constant over the extent of the capillary element 15a, 15b. That is, for example, from the side of a porous capillary element 15a at opening 28b to the side of capillary element 15a at opening 28c the average pore size (and thus average capillary force) is approximately constant, although the pore sizes may be different for each of the capillary elements 15a, 15b as described above. In other implementations, one or both of the capillary elements 15a, 15b is configured such that there is a gradient in the capillary force exerted by the capillary element 15a, 15b in the direction from the reservoir 14 to the reservoir 24. In other words, a given capillary element 15a, 15b may exert a greater capillary force on one side of the capillary element 15a, 15b than the other. Generally, in such implementations, the greater capillary force is exerted on the side of the capillary element 15a, 15b closest to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 (e.g., the side of capillary element 15b protruding through opening 19b or the side of capillary element 15a at opening 28b). By way of example only, again considering porous capillary elements 15a, 15b, the average pore size may decrease from the side of the capillary element 15a at opening 28c or the side of the capillary element 15b at opening 19b towards the side of the capillary element 15a at opening 28b or the side of the capillary element 15b at opening 19c.
Overall, in either implementation, in order to help facilitate flow of the aerosol-generating material in the direction from the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10 to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20, there may generally be an increase in capillary force provided across the capillary elements 15a, 15b from opening 19b on the side of reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10 to opening 28b on the side of the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20. This may be a gradual change or a step-wise change as described above.
Therefore, when the aerosol provision device 20 is provided in the receptacle 11, capillary elements 15a, 15b are brought into contact to form a fluid pathway that allows aerosol-generating material stored in the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10 to be transferred to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 in order to refill the reservoir 24 with aerosol-generating material. The capillary elements 15a, 15b allow for the transfer of aerosol-generating material as soon as they are brought into contact with one another, and hence the refilling of the reservoir 24 naturally takes place. That is, refilling of the reservoir 24 does not require any active control or power in order to cause refilling.
In the described implementation, the capillary element 15a is arranged such that aerosol-generating material is capable of passing out of the capillary element 15a into the reservoir 24 (e.g., from the surface of the capillary element 15a at opening 28c). That is, the combination of the aerosol-generating material and the capillary element 15a is such that the surface tension of the aerosol-generating material is not sufficient to retain the aerosol-generating material in the capillary element 15a.
However, in other implementations, the reservoir 24 may be provided with a further capillary element 15c. Figure 5 schematically represents a section of the refill/recharge pack 10 and aerosol provision device 20 of Figure 4; namely the section focusing on the capillary elements 15a, 15b, reservoir 24 and reservoir 14. Other features of Figure 4 are omitted form Figure 5 for clarity, however Figure 5 will be broadly understood from Figure 4.
The arrangement of the capillary elements 15a, 15b and reservoirs 14, 24 in Figure 5 is broadly the same as that shown in respect of Figure 4, except in the implementation of Figure 5, the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 comprises a further capillary element referred to herein as the reservoir capillary element 15c. The form of the reservoir capillary element 15c may be any of those forms described above with respect to capillary elements 15a, 15b (e.g., porous element, fibrous element, etc.). In the described implementation, the reservoir capillary element 15c is a separate capillary element to the capillary element 15a provided in the channel between openings 28b, 28c. However, in other implementations, the reservoir capillary element 15c and the capillary element 15a may be a single capillary element having parts provided in both the reservoir 24 and the channel between openings 28b, 28c.
The reservoir capillary element 15c extends into and occupies a volume of the reservoir 24. In Figure 5, the reservoir capillary element 15c is shown occupying the majority of the volume of the reservoir 24. A region of the reservoir 24 opposite the aerosol generator 26 is left empty of the reservoir capillary material 15c; however, in other implementations, the reservoir capillary element 15c extend up to this surface of the reservoir 24 thereby filling the entire volume of the reservoir 24.
The reservoir capillary element 15c is configured to receive aerosol-generating material from the capillary element 15a. The reservoir capillary element 15c may be provided to help draw aerosol-generating material into the reservoir 24. The reservoir capillary element 15c may be provided to occupy a volume of the reservoir 24 and act as an extension of the capillary element 15a to help ensure the aerosol-generating material is delivered to the inner volume of the reservoir 24. In the described implementation, the reservoir capillary element 15c is provided in fluid communication with the aerosol generator 26 (via the optional aerosol-generating material transport element 25). Accordingly, the reservoir capillary element 15c may be said to provide a fluid pathway between the capillary element 15a and the aerosol generator 26. Accordingly, the capillary element 15c can help direct aerosol-generating material to the aerosol generator 26. In some implementations, the reservoir capillary element 15c may be arranged so as to have a gradient in the capillary force exerted on aerosol-generating material that increases along a direction towards the aerosol generator 26 (e.g., in a similar manner as described above). This may help in the context of supplying aerosol-generating material to the aerosol generator 26 and/or in the refilling of the reservoir 24 by drawing aerosol-generating material further into the reservoir 24 and allowing the capillary element 15a to continue to supply aerosol generating material to the reservoir 24.
It should be appreciated that a further capillary element may additionally or alternatively be provided to the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10. Figure 6 schematically represents a section of the refill/recharge pack 10 and aerosol provision device 20 of Figure 4 (similarly to Figure 5). Other features of Figure 4 are omitted form Figure 6 for clarity, however Figure 6 will be broadly understood from Figure 4.
The arrangement of the capillary elements 15a, 15b and reservoirs 14, 24 in Figure 6 is broadly the same as that shown in respect of Figure 4, except in the implementation of Figure 6, the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack comprises a further capillary element referred to herein as the reservoir capillary element 15d. The form of the reservoir capillary element 15d may be any of those forms described above with respect to capillary elements 15a, 15b (e.g., porous element, fibrous element, etc.). In the described implementation, the reservoir capillary element 15d is a separate capillary element to the capillary element 15b provided in the channel between openings 19b, 19c. However, in other implementations, the reservoir capillary element 15d and the capillary element 15b may be a single capillary element having parts provided in both the reservoir 14 and the channel between openings 19b, 19c.
In the example implementation of Figure 6, the reservoir capillary element 15d is provided to help facilitate the transfer of aerosol-generating material in the reservoir 14 to the capillary element 15b (for transfer to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20). In particular, the reservoir capillary element 15d is arranged to be in fluid communication with both the capillary element 15b and the base (or lower) surface of the reservoir 14. The reservoir capillary element 15d therefore provides a fluid pathway between the base of the reservoir 14 and the capillary element 15b and is configured so as to cause aerosol-generating material to flow, via capillary action, from the base of the reservoir 14 to the opening 19b and the capillary element 15b. This may particularly be useful in situations where the opening 19b of the reservoir 14 is provided at an elevated position to the base of the reservoir 14 (e.g., as shown in Figure 4).
The reservoir capillary element 15d in Figure 6 is shown taking the form of an L-shaped structure having a section that is provided along and parallel to the base of the reservoir 14 and a section that is perpendicular and arranged parallel to the side wall of the reservoir 14 and extending to the opening 19b and the surface of the capillary element 15b. However, it should be appreciated that the reservoir capillary element 15d may take any suitable form, and may, for example, be a cuboidal shape provided at the lower part of the reservoir 14 and arranged to extend to at least the opening 19b of the reservoir 14.
In a similar manner to the reservoir capillary element 15c, the reservoir capillary element 15d may be arranged so as to have a gradient in the capillary force exerted on aerosol-generating material that increases along a direction towards the opening 19b (e.g., in a similar manner as described above). This may help in the context of supplying aerosol-generating material to the opening 19c / capillary material 15b. Accordingly, when using the reservoir capillary element 15d, a greater proportion of the aerosol-generating material provided in the reservoir 14 may be able to be extracted therefrom and provided to the capillary element 15b (and hence to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20).
Figures 5 and 6 show different examples of capillary elements being provided inside the reservoirs 14, 24. It should be appreciated that any combination of the capillary elements 15a and 15b with reservoir capillary elements 15c and 15d may be implemented in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. In implementations where the reservoir capillary elements 15c, 15d are implemented, the reservoir capillary elements 15c, 15d may be configured to exert a constant capillary force on a given aerosol-generating material across the spatial extent of the reservoir capillary elements 15c, 15d, or a gradient in the exerted capillary force across the spatial extent of the reservoir capillary elements 15c, 15d. In general, in implementations where a gradient in capillary force is implemented, the capillary force generally increases in the direction from the reservoir capillary element 15d to the reservoir capillary element 15c.
Although Figure 4 above describes a plurality of capillary elements 15a, 15b being brought into contact with one another to form a fluid connection between the reservoirs 14 and 24, in other implementations, it should be appreciated that only a single capillary element may be implemented. For example, the capillary element 15a may be omitted such that capillary element 15b of the refill/recharge pack 10 is provided in fluid communication with the opening 28c of the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20. In other implementations, a single capillary element may be provided on either of the refill/recharge pack 10 or the aerosol provision device 20 that is arranged to extend (for example move) into and through the opening 19c or 28c respectively.
In some implementations, the hatch 28a of the aerosol provision device 20 may be omitted. This may be the case where aerosol-generating material stored in the reservoir 24 may be unable (or easily able) to exit the reservoir 24 via opening 28c due to some other mechanism, for example such as the capillary material 15a being arranged to direct the aerosol-generating into the reservoir 24 (e.g., via a suitable capillary force gradient, as described above).
In broad summary, the above disclosure provides a capillary element (which may be formed form a single element or a plurality of elements) that is positioned between the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 and the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10. The capillary element is capable of causing aerosol-generating material held in the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10 to be transferred to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20. This process occurs naturally as a result of the capillary forces exerted by the capillary element on the aerosol-generating material. As a result, there is no necessity to provide any power or control in respect of causing the aerosol-generating material to be transferred, and thus from the perspective of a user, the transfer of the aerosol-generating material occurs seamlessly.
It should be appreciated that, in some implementations, the transfer of the aerosol-generating material through the capillary element(s) may be a relatively slow process as it is dependent, in part, on the properties of the aerosol-generating material (e.g., such as viscosity or surface tension). Therefore, in some implementations, the aerosol provision device 20 and/or the refill/recharge pack 10 may be provided with an energisation mechanism configured to impart energy to the aerosol-generating material in the reservoir 14 and/or capillary element(s) to cause the transfer of aerosol-generating material to quicken. In other implementations, it may be that the properties of the aerosol-generating material do not permit the transfer of aerosol-generating material via capillary action using the capillary elements (e.g., because the average pore size, average interstices size, etc. is too small relative to the surface tension/viscosity of the aerosol-generating material). In such implementations, the energising mechanism may be used to enable the transfer of such aerosol-generating material to occur.
Figure 7 schematically represents an example of the refill/recharge pack 10 comprising an energisation mechanism 40 for facilitating / quickening the transfer of aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 14 to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20. Figure 7 is similar to, and will be understood from Figures 5 and 6. That is, Figure 7 schematically represents a section of the refill/recharge pack 10 and aerosol provision device 20 of Figure 4; namely the section focusing on the capillary elements 15a, 15b, reservoir 24 and reservoir 14. Other features of Figure 4 are omitted from Figure 7 for clarity, however Figure 7 will be broadly understood from Figure 4.
In Figure 7, the refill/recharge pack 10 includes an energising mechanism 40. The energising mechanism 40 is schematically shown as an annular element surrounding a part of the outer surface of the capillary element 15b. That is, the capillary element 15b protrudes through the opening of the annular energising mechanism 40. The energising mechanism 40 is configured to provide energy to the capillary element 15b during a refilling operation of the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 to facilitate or improve the transfer of aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10 to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20.
In the present example, the energising mechanism 40 is a heater or the like configured to supply heat energy to the capillary element 15b and the aerosol-generating material therein. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that the energising mechanism 40 is configured to supply heat energy to the aerosol-generating material thereby having an effect on the properties of the aerosol-generating material (e.g., decreasing viscosity, decreasing surface tension). In this way, the energisation mechanism 40 is capable of changing the properties of the aerosol-generating material and thereby facilitating or quickening the refilling process by virtue of altering the relative capillary forces experienced by the aerosol-generating material.
The precise degree of heat energy required to change the properties of the aerosol-generating material to cause a noticeable effect on the refilling rate may vary depending on the implementation at hand. However, typically, the amount of heat energy is typically less (and typically significantly less) than the energy required to vaporise the aerosol-generating material.
Figure 8 shows the energisation mechanism 40 positioned at a location around the capillary element 15b. However, it should be appreciated that the energisation mechanism 40 may be located at any suitable position within the refill/recharge pack 10 capable of influencing the properties of the aerosol-generating material. For example, the energisation mechanism 40 may be located in, or in proximity of, the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10 and configured to heat (or energise) the aerosol-generating material in the reservoir 14. The energisation mechanism 40 may be controlled by the control circuitry 13, and supplied with power from the power source 12, of the refill/recharge pack 10. In addition, the control circuitry 13 may be configured to cause the energisation mechanism 40 to energise the aerosol-generating material when it is detected that the aerosol provision device 20 is installed in the receptacle 11 (for example, via a suitable mechanical pressure sensor or the like located in the receptacle 11).
Additionally, while not shown, the energisation mechanism 40 may additionally or alternatively be provided in the aerosol provision device 20 (e.g., around the capillary element 15a). The energisation mechanism 40 may similarly be controlled by the control circuitry 23, and supplied with power from the power source 22, of the aerosol provision device 20. In addition, the control circuitry 23 may be configured to cause the energisation mechanism 40 to energise the aerosol-generating material when it is detected that the aerosol provision device 20 is installed in the receptacle 11 (for example, via a suitable mechanical pressure sensor or the like located on the aerosol provision device 20).
Further, while the energisation mechanism 40 is described above as being a heating element or heater, it should be appreciated that the energising mechanism 40 may comprise any suitable mechanism capable of imparting energy to the aerosol-generating material and effecting a change in the properties of the aerosol-generating material. For example, the energisation mechanism 40 may be a vibrator or vibrational mechanism configured to impart vibrational energy to the aerosol-generating material (e.g., for influencing the surface tension).
Hence, in general, the refill/recharge pack 10 is configured to cause aerosol-generating material provided in the reservoir 14 to pass to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 when the aerosol provision device 20 is located in the receptacle 11. Accordingly, the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 is capable of being refilled with aerosol-generating material by the refill/recharge pack 10.
With reference back to Figure 4, the refill/recharge pack 10 of the present disclosure further comprises electrical contacts 18a and 18b. The electrical contacts 18a, 18b are arranged in the refill/recharge pack 10 such that they are able to be brought into electrical connection with the electrical contacts 29a, 29b of the aerosol provision device 20 when the aerosol provision device 20 is located in the receptacle 11. More specifically, a first electrical contact 18a of the refill/recharge pack 10 is arranged so as to electrically connect with the first electrical contact 29a of the aerosol provision device 20, and a second electrical contact 18b is arranged so as to electrically connect with the second electrical contact 29b of the aerosol provision device 20.
In Figure 4, the first electrical contact 18a of the refill/recharge pack 10 is provided at a location toward the opening of the receptacle 11 such that when the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted into the receptacle 11, the first electrical contact 29a at the distal end 20c of the aerosol provision device 20 is capable of being bought into electrical connection with the first electrical contact 18a of the refill/recharge pack 10. The first electrical contact 18a may take any suitable form; for example, the electrical contact 18a may be an annular ring provided extending, coaxially, with the axis of the receptacle 11. In other implementations, the electrical contact 18a may comprise one or more contact pads provided at a surface of the receptacle 11. In some implementations, the radial extent of the first electrical contact 29a of the aerosol provision device 20 about the longitudinal axis of the aerosol provision 20 and the radial extent of the first electrical contact 18a of the refill/recharge pack 10 about the longitudinal axis of the receptacle 11 is such that the aerosol provision device 20 can be inserted at any rotational position about the longitudinal axis of the aerosol provision device 20 relative to the receptacle 11 and still provide electrical contact between the first electrical contacts 18a, 29a. For example, the electrical contact 29a may extend 360° around the longitudinal axis of the aerosol provision device 20, and the electrical contact 18a may extend between 1° to 360° around the longitudinal axis of the receptacle 11.
In Figure 4, the second electrical contact 18b of the refill/recharge pack 10 is provided at a location on the outer surface of the engagement mechanism 17. In this case, when the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted into the receptacle 11, the second electrical contact 29b located within the receptacle 21 of the aerosol provision device 20 is capable of being bought into electrical connection with the second electrical contact 18b of the refill/recharge pack 10 when the engagement mechanism 17 engages with the receptacle 21. The second electrical contact 18b may take any suitable form; for example, the electrical contact 18b may be an annular ring provided extending, coaxially, with the axis of the engagement mechanism 17. In other implementations, the electrical contact 18b may comprise one or more contact pads provided at a surface of the engagement mechanism 17. In some implementations, the radial extent of the second electrical contact 29b of the aerosol provision device 20 about the longitudinal axis of the receptacle 21 and the radial extent of the second electrical contact 18a of the refill/recharge pack 10 about the longitudinal axis of the engagement mechanism 17 is such that the aerosol provision device 20 can be inserted at any rotational position about the longitudinal axis of the aerosol provision device 20 relative to the receptacle 11 and still provide electrical contact between the second electrical contacts 18b, 29b. For example, the electrical contact 29b may extend 360° around the longitudinal axis of the receptacle 21, and the electrical contact 18b may extend between 1° to 360° around the longitudinal axis of the engagement mechanism 17.
When the aerosol provision device 20 is installed in the receptacle 11 of the refill/recharge pack 10, the refill/recharge pack 10 is configured to recharge the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20. The battery 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10 is electrically connected (potentially via recharging circuitry of the control circuitry 13) to the first electrical contact 18a and the second electrical contact 18b. When the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted into the receptacle 11, and the first electrical contact 29a of the aerosol provision device 20 bought into electrical connection with the first electrical contact 18a of the refill/recharge pack 10 and the second electrical contact 29b of the aerosol provision device 20 bought into electrical connection with the second electrical contact 18b of the refill/recharge pack 10, the refill/recharge pack 10 is configured to cause recharging of the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20 by applying suitable power from the battery 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10. Although not shown in Figure 4, the refill/recharge pack 10 and/or the aerosol provision device 20 may have suitable circuitry to control and/or monitor the recharging of the battery 24 of the aerosol provision device 20, for example to help ensure the recharging is performed safely and accurately.
Hence, in this example, the refill/recharge pack 10 is also configured to cause electrical power provided in the battery 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10 to pass to the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20 when the aerosol provision device 20 is located in the receptacle 11. Accordingly, the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20 is capable of being recharged with electrical power by the refill/recharge pack 10.
In some implementations, in order to ensure that the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted into the receptacle 11 in the appropriate orientation such that the opening 28c of the aerosol provision device 20 can be aligned with the opening 19c of the refill/recharge pack 10, the aerosol provision device 20 may be provided with a keying feature (such as a protrusion) which is configured to be received by a corresponding receiving feature in the receptacle 11 (such as a groove running longitudinally along the axis of the receptacle 11) adapted to receive the keying feature. The keying feature may take any suitable form that allows this function to be performed. In addition, it should be appreciated that the receptacle 11 may alternatively have the keying feature while the aerosol provision device 20 has a suitable receiving feature. Accordingly, in such implementations, the aerosol provision device 20 may be inserted into the receptacle 11 in a particular orientation to help ensure alignment of the openings 9c and 28c (and hence, in some implementations, overlap of the exposed surfaces of capillary elements 15a, 15b).
In the described implementation, the refill/recharge pack 10 is configured to both refill the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 and to recharge the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20. However, in some implementations, the refill/recharge pack 10 may be configured to refill the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 only. That is, the recharging circuitry and electrical contacts 29a, 29b may be omitted. Additionally, depending on whether the refill/recharge pack 10 requires further electrical power to operate or not, the battery 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10 may be omitted. In implementations where the refill/recharge pack 10 is only configured to refill the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20, the refill/recharge pack 10 may be referred to as a refill pack 10 or refilling device 10.
The configuration of the refill/recharge pack 10 as shown in Figure 4 is to be understood as an example of the refill/recharge pack 10; however, in other implementations, the refill/recharge pack 10 may be configured differently. For example, the position of the electrical contacts 18a, 18b may be different from what is shown in Figure 4. Various aspects of the refill/recharge pack 10 may also depend on the configuration of the aerosol provision device 20 (or vice versa).
In the example shown in Figure 4, the aerosol provision device 20 is inserted with the distal end 20c protruding from the receptacle 11 (or otherwise arranged near the opening of the receptacle 11). In this orientation, if one assumes that the surface of the refill/recharge pack 10 comprising the opening to the receptacle 11 is a top surface, the aerosol generator 26 is provided at the upper most side of the reservoir 24 (when the refill/recharge pack 10 is held in the orientation shown in Figure 4). During refilling, when aerosol-generating material is passed into the reservoir 24, any air that is located in the reservoir 24 may be displaced by the aerosol-generating material from the refill/recharge pack 10 via the aerosol generator 26 / aerosol-generating material transport element 25. That is to say, the displaced air may exit the reservoir 24 by following a similar pathway that the aerosol-generating material would otherwise follow in normal operation from the reservoir 24 to the aerosol generator 26. This configuration means that the pressure within the reservoir 24 can be equalised and refilling can be performed uninhibited without provision of a separate air release valve or the like provided in the reservoir 24.
However, it should be appreciated that in other implementations, the refill/recharge pack 10 and/or aerosol provision device 20 may be configured differently. In some implementations, the reservoir 24 may be provided with an air release valve.
Figure 8 schematically shows a modification of the refill/recharge pack 10 of Figure 4. Figure 8 will be understood from Figure 4, and like components are provided with like reference signs. A description thereof is omitted for conscience.
In Figure 8, the refill/recharge pack 10 comprises a lid 10b which selectively allows access to receptacle 11 when the lid 10b is opened or removed. In some implementations, the lid 10b is a separately component to the housing 10a, that may be removed and coupled to the housing 10a. In other implementations, the lid 10b is movably mounted to the housing 10a of the refill/recharge pack 10. In particular implementations, the lid 10b is arranged to rotate about an axis parallel to the width direction in a hinge-like manner. The lid 10b is capable of moving between a closed position in which the opening of the receptacle 11 is obscured by the lid 10b, and an open position in which the opening of the receptacle 11 is exposed and an aerosol provision device 20 is able to be inserted therein. Cigarette packs often comprise a lid, and thus providing lid 10b on the refill/recharge pack 10 provides increased familiarity to users transitioning to non-combustible aerosol provision systems. As seen in Figure 8, when lid 10b is present, the overall length dimension of the refill/recharge pack 10 includes the extent of the lid 10b in the longitudinal direction.
Figure 9 is a flow diagram representing an example method of refilling an aerosol provision device 20 in accordance with the present disclosure.
The method starts at step S1, where the aerosol provision device 20 is coupled to refill/recharge pack 10. With reference to Figures 1 to 4, this step may include ensuring that the receptacle 21 is free of a consumable 30, inserting the aerosol provision device 20 into the receptacle of the refill/recharge pack 10, and engaging the engagement mechanism 17 with the receptacle 21. This step may include actuating the hatch 28a prior to insertion or as a result of the insertion of the aerosol provision device 20 (as described above). Once the aerosol provision device 20 is located in the receptacle 11, it should be appreciated that the reservoir 14 is fluidly coupled to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 (via the capillary elements 15a, 15b), and the electrical contacts 18a, 18b are electrically coupled to electrical contacts 29a, 29b.
At step S2, the method comprises refilling the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 with aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 14 of the refill/recharge pack 10. As described above, aerosol-generating material is capable of passing from the reservoir 14 to the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 by virtue of the capillary forces imparted on the aerosol-generating material by capillary elements 15a, 15b. The refilling process is performed until the reservoir 24 is filled with aerosol-generating material. The extent to which the reservoir 24 of the aerosol provision device 20 is filled with aerosol generating material may depend, in part, on the time the aerosol provision device 20 is stored in the receptacle 11.
At step S3, which may be performed simultaneously with step S2, the method may optionally comprise recharging the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20 with power from the battery 12 of the refill/recharge pack 10. As described above, electrical power is capable of passing from the battery 12 to the battery 22 of the aerosol provision device 20 via the electrical contacts 18a, 18b on the refill/recharge pack 10 and electrical contacts 29a, 29b on the aerosol provision device 10. In some implementations, the recharging process starts automatically upon detection of the aerosol provision device 20 in the receptacle 11. In other implementations, the recharging process starts upon receipt of an instruction to do so, e.g., from a user. The recharging process is performed until the battery 22 is recharged, or until the reservoir 24 is refilled with aerosol-generating material.
After step S3, the aerosol provision device 20 is ready to be removed from the refill/recharge pack 10. The user may choose to remove the aerosol provision device 20 as soon as the refill (and recharge operation) is complete, or leave the aerosol provision device 20 in the refill/recharge pack 10 until a later time. Once the aerosol provision device 20 is removed from the refill/recharge pack 10, the user inserts a consumable 30 into the receptacle 24 to form the aerosol provision system and the aerosol provision system is then ready for use. When the aerosol provision devices requires refilling and/or recharging, the user performs the method of Figure 9 once again.
In accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, there is also provided a system including: aerosol provision means (including aerosol provision device 20) comprising aerosol-generating material storage means (including reservoir 24) for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision means arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage means; and refilling means (including refill/recharge pack 10) configured to receive the aerosol provision means in an aerosol provision device receiving means (including receptacle 11) and arranged to refill the aerosol-generating material storage means of the aerosol provision means with aerosol-generating material from reservoir means (including reservoir 14) of the refilling means. The system comprises capillary means (including capillary elements 15a, 15b) configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir means of the refilling means to the aerosol-generating material storage means of the aerosol provision means using capillary action.
Thus, there has been described a system including: an aerosol provision device comprising an aerosol-generating material storage portion for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion; and a refilling device configured to receive the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion and arranged to refill the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device with aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of the refilling device. The system comprises a capillary element configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action. Also described is an aerosol provision device, a refilling device and a method of refilling.
While the above described embodiments have in some respects focussed on some specific example aerosol provision systems, it will be appreciated the same principles can be applied for aerosol provision systems using other technologies. That is to say, the specific manner in which various aspects of the aerosol provision system function are not directly relevant to the principles underlying the examples described herein.
The various embodiments described herein are presented only to assist in understanding and teaching the claimed features. These embodiments are provided as a representative sample of embodiments only, and are not exhaustive and/or exclusive. It is to be understood that advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures, and/or other aspects described herein are not to be considered limitations on the scope of the invention as defined by the claims or limitations on equivalents to the claims, and that other embodiments may be utilised and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. Various embodiments of the invention may suitably comprise, consist of, or consist essentially of, appropriate combinations of the disclosed elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc, other than those specifically described herein. In addition, this disclosure may include other inventions not presently claimed, but which may be claimed in future.

Claims

A system comprising:
an aerosol provision device comprising an aerosol-generating material storage portion for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion; and

a refilling device configured to receive the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion and arranged to refill the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device with aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of the refilling device, wherein

the system comprises a capillary element configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action.
The system of claim 1, wherein the capillary element is positioned between the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device and the reservoir of the refilling device.
The system of claim 1 or 2, wherein the capillary element extends into the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device and/or the reservoir of the refilling device.
The system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the capillary element is configured such that, in the direction from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device, the capillary forces exerted on aerosol-generating material in the capillary element increases.
The system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the capillary element comprises at least one of a porous material, a fibrous material, and one or more microfluidic capillary tubes.
The system of claim 5, wherein the pores, interstices, or capillaries decrease in size in a direction from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device.
The system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the capillary element comprises a first capillary element provided in the aerosol provision device and a second capillary element provided in the refilling device, and wherein when the aerosol provision device is engaged with the refilling device, a surface of the first capillary element and a surface of the second capillary element abut one another.
The system of claim 7, wherein the first capillary element comprises pores, interstices or capillaries of a first dimension perpendicular to the direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material in the first capillary element, and wherein the second capillary element comprises pores, interstices or capillaries of a second dimension perpendicular to the direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material in the second capillary element, wherein the first dimension is smaller than the second dimension.
The system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the aerosol provision device comprises a hatch moveable between a first position and a second position, and an opening in fluid communication with the aerosol-generating material storage portion, wherein when the hatch is in the first position the opening to the aerosol-generating material storage portion is covered by the hatch, and when the hatch is in the second position the opening to the aerosol-generating material storage portion is exposed, wherein optionally the, or a part of the, capillary element is provided in the opening to the aerosol-generating material storage portion.
The system of claim 9, wherein the refilling device is configured such that when the aerosol provision device is received in the aerosol provision device receiving portion, the hatch is moved to the second position.
The system of any of the preceding claims, wherein the system further comprises an energising mechanism arranged to provide energy to the capillary element during a refilling operation to facilitate or improve the transfer of aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device, wherein optionally, the energising mechanism is configured to supply energy to the capillary element in the form of at least one of: heat energy and vibrational energy.
An aerosol provision device comprising an aerosol-generating material storage portion for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion, wherein the aerosol provision device further comprises:
a capillary element extending from the aerosol-generating material storage portion to an opening in a housing of the aerosol provision device and configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of a refilling device configured to receive the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action.
A refilling device configured to receive an aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion and arranged to refill an aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device with aerosol-generating material from a reservoir of the refilling device, the refilling device comprising:
a capillary element extending from the reservoir to an opening in the aerosol provision device receiving portion and configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action when the aerosol provision device is received in the aerosol provision device receiving portion.
A method of refilling an aerosol-generating material storage portion of an aerosol provision device arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage portion, the method comprising:
locating the aerosol provision device in an aerosol provision device receiving portion of the refilling device, and

providing a capillary element arranged so as to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir of the refilling device to the aerosol-generating material storage portion of the aerosol provision device using capillary action.
A system comprising:
aerosol provision means comprising aerosol-generating material storage means for storing an aerosol-generating material, the aerosol provision means arranged to aerosolise aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage means; and

refilling means configured to receive the aerosol provision means in an aerosol provision device receiving means and arranged to refill the aerosol-generating material storage means of the aerosol provision means with aerosol-generating material from reservoir means of the refilling means, wherein

the system comprises capillary means configured to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir means of the refilling means to the aerosol-generating material storage means of the aerosol provision means using capillary action.