KR20240043143A - aerosol generating device - Google Patents

Abstract

The aerosol-generating device includes a receptacle for receiving consumables containing an aerosol substrate; A heating unit for heating the aerosol substrate; and a controller. The controller includes a monitoring unit for monitoring an object indicative of the moisture content of the aerosol substrate during heating of the aerosol substrate; a detection unit for detecting, based on the monitored object, an indication that the moisture content is different from a predetermined moisture content; and a signaling unit for generating a control signal to discontinue operation of the device based on the detected indication. A method and computer program for controlling an aerosol-generating device are also disclosed.

Description

aerosol generating device

Exemplary aspects of the present disclosure relate to aerosol generation from consumables, and particularly to aerosol-generating devices, methods of controlling aerosol-generating devices, and computer programs.

Devices used to heat or warm aerosolizable materials to generate aerosols are known. For example, known types of aerosol-generating devices such as atomizers, vaporizers, electronic cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigarettes, etc. are used to heat aerosolizable substances as a risk-reduction or risk-modification device for conventional tobacco products. .

Commonly available risk-reducing or risk-modifying devices are heated substrate aerosol generating devices or non-combustible heating devices. Devices of this type generate an aerosol or vapor by heating an aerosol substrate, typically containing moist leaf tobacco or other suitable aerosolizable material. Heating the aerosol substrate but not combusting or burning it releases an aerosol that contains the ingredients desired by the user but does not contain the toxic and carcinogenic by-products of combustion and burning.

Typically, the aerosolizable material is provided in an aerosol substrate contained in a consumable, and once the consumable is coupled to the device, the device can heat or warm the substrate to generate an aerosol.

Consumables adapted to such aerosol-generating devices are generally designed for specific usage, for example until the aerosol substrate is depleted. Cigarette sticks are an example of a consumable product designed for limited use or single use, meaning that they must be disposed of once heated.

After intended use, the structural integrity of the consumables can no longer be guaranteed, as the water content of the aerosol substrate decreases, causing at least partial weakening and the risk of the consumables breaking. This may disable the aerosol-generating device or create safety issues, for example if a broken consumable causes an electrical short or spark (e.g. if an electrical short or spark encounters the device's heating element). .

Additionally, in the case of tobacco sticks, the tobacco (which is aerosol based) can dry out and taste bad. Similar problems arise for aerosol substrates that do not contain tobacco.

Accordingly, there is a need to improve the safety and reliability of aerosol-generating devices by preventing the use of already used consumables, thereby preventing them from breaking while coupled to the device and degrading the user experience.

According to a first exemplary aspect disclosed herein, an aerosol-generating device is provided, the aerosol-generating device comprising: a receptacle for receiving a consumable comprising an aerosol substrate; A heating unit for heating the aerosol substrate; and a controller, the controller comprising: a monitoring unit for monitoring an object indicative of the moisture content of the aerosol substrate during heating of the aerosol substrate; a detection unit for detecting, based on the monitored object, an indication that the moisture content is different from a predetermined moisture content; and a signaling unit for generating, based on the detected indication, a control signal to discontinue operation of the device.

Accordingly, the aerosol-generating device can recognize whether the consumable is a new or used consumable based on the moisture content deduced from the observation object, and if the consumable is deemed not to be new, the operation of the device can be stopped, The safety and usability of the device can be improved.

Preferably, the monitoring unit is configured to monitor the object of observation by obtaining the value of the object of observation at each of a plurality of time points during heating of the aerosol substrate.

Preferably, the aerosol generating device further includes a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the heating unit, and the monitoring unit is configured to obtain a signal indicative of the temperature of the heating unit from the temperature sensor.

Preferably, the detection unit is configured to detect an indication based on a deviation of the observed object from a corresponding predetermined profile, wherein the observed object corresponds to the predetermined thermal profile, the predetermined moisture profile, and the predetermined electrical energy profile respectively. comprising at least one of a thermal profile of the device, a moisture profile relating to the aerosol substrate, and an electrical energy profile of the device (i.e., the detection unit determines the deviation of the thermal profile of the device from a predetermined thermal profile, the moisture profile of the predetermined moisture profile). configured to detect an indication based on a deviation of the moisture profile relating to the aerosol substrate from the device, and/or a deviation of the electrical energy profile of the device from a predetermined electrical energy profile.

Preferably, the object of observation includes a thermal profile of the device, wherein the predetermined thermal profile is a temperature change upon heating of the aerosol substrate from a first predetermined value to a second predetermined value over a first predetermined length of time. and a detection unit configured to determine if the monitored thermal profile differs from the predetermined thermal profile by more than a predetermined thermal threshold and if the monitored thermal profile differs from the predetermined thermal profile by less than a reference time length (which may be predetermined), the detection unit detects the first predetermined thermal profile by and detect the indication if at least one of the following occurs: a change from a value to a second predetermined value, wherein the reference time length is less than or equal to the first predetermined time length.

Preferably, the first predetermined value is one of the ambient temperature, the initial temperature of the aerosol substrate, and the initial temperature of the heating element, and the second predetermined value is the temperature of the device at which the aerosol or vapor is generated from the aerosol substrate.

Preferably, the monitoring unit is configured to monitor the thermal profile by obtaining a temperature value representative of the temperature associated with one of the device and the aerosol substrate at each of a plurality of time points during heating of the aerosol substrate, the detection unit comprising at least one of the temperature values. is configured to detect an indication if is different from a corresponding one of the reference values by more than a predetermined thermal threshold, the reference values being determined based on the information of the temperature change.

Preferably, the monitoring unit is configured to obtain, for each temperature value, an associated time measurement between the time heating of the aerosol substrate is initiated and the time the temperature indicated by the temperature value is reached, and the detection unit is configured to: For the value, determine a point in time of a first predetermined length of time based on the associated time measurement, and determine the reference value as the temperature specified by the information regarding the temperature change at the determined point in time.

Preferably, the monitoring unit is configured to monitor the electrical energy profile by measuring values representing the power of the device during heating of the aerosol substrate and accumulating values representing the power during heating of the aerosol substrate. The predetermined electrical energy profile includes information representing a predetermined accumulated power value, and the detection unit is configured to detect an indication if the accumulated value representing the power differs from the predetermined accumulated power value by more than a predetermined electrical energy threshold.

Preferably, the monitoring unit is configured to measure a value indicative of power based on at least one of a current output from a battery coupled to or within the device and a current provided to the heater.

Preferably, the aerosol generating device is configured to control the temperature of the heating unit by controlling at least one switching element using pulse width modulation, and the monitoring unit is configured to control the temperature of the heating unit by controlling the at least one switching element by using pulse width modulation. and monitor the electrical energy profile by calculating the amount of electrical energy used for heating of the aerosol substrate based on the electrical energy profile.

Preferably, the monitoring unit is configured to calculate a cumulative length of time during which at least one switching element is switched on and to calculate the amount of electrical energy based on the cumulative length of time.

According to a second exemplary aspect disclosed herein, a method is provided for controlling an aerosol-generating device comprising a receptacle for receiving a consumable comprising an aerosol substrate and a heating portion for heating the aerosol substrate, the method comprising: Monitoring an object representing the moisture content of the aerosol substrate during heating; Based on the monitored observation, detecting an indication that the moisture content is different from the predetermined moisture content; and based on the detected indication, generating a control signal to discontinue operation of the device.

According to a third exemplary aspect disclosed herein, there is provided a computer program that, when executed by one or more processors, includes instructions that cause the one or more processors to perform a method according to the second exemplary aspect described above.

According to a further exemplary aspect disclosed herein, a non-transitory storage medium storing the computer program of the third exemplary aspect is provided.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the drawings, which are presented for a better understanding of the concept of the invention but should not be considered as limiting the invention.
1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an aerosol generating device and consumables.
Figure 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical components of an aerosol-generating device.
Figure 3 shows an example of a monitored and predetermined thermal profile of a device during heating of an aerosol substrate.
Figure 4A shows an example of a predetermined moisture profile during heating of an aerosol substrate and subsequent use of the consumable.
Figure 4b shows an example of a predetermined electrical energy profile during heating of an aerosol substrate.
Figure 4C shows an example of a predetermined profile during heating of an aerosol substrate.
Figures 5A and 5B show examples of monitored and predetermined thermal profiles during heating of an aerosol substrate.
Figure 6 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical components of an aerosol-generating device.
Figure 7 shows an example of the duty cycle of the signal used to control the temperature of the switching element(s) and heating element during heating of the aerosol substrate.
Figure 8 shows a method of controlling an aerosol-generating device.

Although exemplary embodiments will be described below, it will be apparent that various modifications may be made to these exemplary embodiments without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following description and accompanying drawings should be regarded as illustrative and not restrictive.

In the following description and accompanying drawings, numerous details are set forth to provide an understanding of various exemplary embodiments. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these details.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an aerosol-generating device 100 and consumables 10 used with the aerosol-generating device 100 according to an exemplary embodiment. Consumable 10 includes an aerosol substrate 12. The aerosol generating device 100 includes a receptacle 110 for receiving the consumable product 10, a heating unit 120 for heating the aerosol substrate 12, and a controller 130.

The consumable 10 is designed for single use (i.e., it must be heated only once to generate an aerosol substrate). In the example shown in FIG. 1 , consumables 10 include an aerosol substrate 12 and an aerosol substrate 12, such as paper, foil, or other flexible planar material, which can be used to provide additional structural integrity to keep the aerosol substrate in place. It is a tobacco stick that forms a tubular area with an outer layer of material. In this way, the consumable product 10 may be generally similar to a cigarette.

However, the consumable product 10 is not limited to any specific shape, and any shape that allows the consumable product 10 to be accommodated in the receptacle 110 may be used. Additionally, the consumable 10 may be used, for example, if the aerosol substrate 12 can have sufficient structural integrity to be used on its own or if the material embedded in the aerosol substrate 12 has the required level of structural integrity. There is no need to have an outer layer of material if provided. In some designs, filters, vapor collection zones, cooling zones, and other structures may also be included in consumable 10.

The aerosol substrate 12 may be provided as a solid or paste type material in shredded, pelletized, powdered, granulated, strip or sheet form, optionally in combinations thereof. Likewise, aerosol substrates can include fluids (e.g., liquids or gels). Aerosol substrates may include, for example, tobacco in dried or cured form and, in some cases, may contain additional ingredients to flavor or create a smoother or more enjoyable experience. Depending on the materials included in the aerosol substrate, the consumable may be defined as a tobacco stick, or the aerosol substrate may be defined as a flavor release medium. In some examples, aerosol substrate 12, such as tobacco, can be treated with a vaporizing agent. Vaporizing agents can improve vapor generation from aerosol substrates. Vaporizing agents may include, for example, polyols such as glycerol, or glycols such as propylene glycol. In some cases, aerosol substrates may not contain tobacco or even nicotine, but may instead contain ingredients of natural or artificial origin to provide flavor, volatilization, smoothness improvement, and/or other pleasurable effects. Aerosol substrate 12, such as tobacco, may include one or more humectants such as glycol(s) to retain moisture.

Prior to use, the aerosol substrate 12 has a predetermined moisture content that may vary depending on the design, shape, packaging, type, flavor, etc. of the aerosol substrate. As used herein, moisture content refers to the amount of water and any other humectant that may be present in the aerosol substrate 12, and can be measured by mass (e.g., weight moisture content), volume (e.g., volume moisture content), or any other measurable physical quantity of the aerosol base. In practice, the moisture content may differ slightly from the predetermined value, so the expression “predetermined value” can be defined relative to the predetermined value (e.g. ±2% around the predetermined value) or with a lower and upper limit. It can instead be understood as indicating a range. Typically, the moisture content (i.e., predetermined moisture content) of the tobacco stick prior to use is in or near the range of 13% to 14.3%. After use, the moisture content of the tobacco stick typically decreases to values in or near the range of 6% to 8%. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the predetermined moisture content may be higher than 14.3% or lower than 13%.

Receptacle 110 receives consumables 10 to be used (i.e., consumables 10 are placed in/on/near receptacle 110 at a predetermined location/orientation relative to aerosol-generating device 100).

The heating unit 120 is configured to heat the consumable product 10 when the consumable product 10 is received in the receptacle 110 .

In the example shown in FIG. 1 , heater 120 includes a heating chamber 122 (e.g., an oven) defining a space, and receptacle 110 provides an aperture into heating chamber 122. And through this, the consumables 10 are inserted. The receptacle 110 further includes securing means (not shown) to releasably secure the consumable 10 in position, e.g., when the heating chamber and/or heater is configured to secure the consumable in use. It will be understood that separate fixing means may not be necessary.

However, receptacle 110 is not limited to this shape, and receptacle 110 may be any other shape capable of receiving a consumable and holding the consumable in place while the aerosol substrate is heated. For example, the receptacle 110 and the consumable 10 have connectors corresponding to each other (e.g., plug and socket type mechanical connectors, magnets of opposite polarity located on the receptacle 110 and the consumable 10, etc. ) may include.

The heating unit 120, for example, uses a heating element in contact with or close to the aerosol substrate, by heating a thermally conductive element (e.g., a wick) in contact with or close to the aerosol substrate, thereby heating the aerosol substrate (12). ) or by induction heating of a coil or other conductive object of the consumable 10 capable of radiating heat energy to the aerosol substrate, or the like, to heat the aerosol substrate 12. The heating unit 120 is not limited to this example, and any means for heating the aerosol substrate 12 may be used.

In the example shown in FIG. 1 , the heating portion 120 includes a heater 124 including a coil provided on the surface of the heating chamber 122 to heat the heating chamber 122, thereby heating the consumable product contained within the heating chamber 122. The aerosol substrate (12) of (10) is heated. However, it should be understood that other types of heaters may be used and the heaters may be of any other configuration.

It will also be appreciated that the generated aerosol can be used by being directed towards an output, such as a mouthpiece (not shown), which allows a user of the aerosol-generating device to inhale the aerosol. As a non-limiting example, consumable 10 may include an area that serves as a mouthpiece and may protrude from receptacle 110 when consumable 10 is received by receptacle 110 . Alternatively, the aerosol-generating device 100 is coupled to a heating chamber 122 such that the aerosol can be directed toward the mouthpiece (e.g., by inhalation of a user or by the action of a ventilation device within the aerosol-generating device). A separate mouthpiece may be included.

Controller 130 includes a monitoring unit 132, a detection unit 134, and a signaling unit 136.

Monitoring unit 132, detection unit 134, and signaling unit 136 may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination thereof. Specifically, in some examples, controller 130 may include one or more processors (e.g., single/multi-core CPUs, microprocessors, etc.), one or more working memory (e.g., random access memory (RAM), flash memory, etc. etc.), and one or more non-volatile instruction stores storing computer-readable instructions (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), flash memory, etc.), whereby processor(s) executing computer-readable instructions in the instruction storage(s) may include a monitoring unit 132, a detection unit 134, and a signaling unit 136. It functions. In another example, monitoring unit 132, detection unit 134, and signaling unit 136 may each be implemented as hardware components comprising separate circuitry, such as an integrated circuit (IC), in which case each unit Data obtained by can be transmitted to other unit(s) via a communication channel (e.g., a dedicated signal line or bus) by storing the data in a memory that can be accessed by the other units.

In the example shown in FIG. 1 , controller 130 is a microcontroller (MCU) that functions as monitoring unit 132 , detection unit 134 , and signaling unit 136 .

The monitoring unit 132 is for monitoring an observation indicating the moisture content of the aerosol substrate during heating of the aerosol substrate. Here, the object of observation is a physical property that can be sensed/detected through one or more sensors (or derived based on data obtained by the sensor(s)) and indicative of the moisture content of the aerosol substrate.

By way of non-limiting example, observations may include moisture levels measured in the heating chamber 122 using a moisture sensor, dielectric constant measured across a section of the aerosol substrate 12, and temperature of the aerosol substrate at a given point during heating. , the rate of change of temperature of the aerosol substrate during heating, the amount of energy used to heat the aerosol substrate, the apparent load perceived by the induction heating coil in the heating element 120 when the consumable is received by the receptacle, or the aerosol substrate 12 ) may be any other observation object indicating the moisture content of. In some examples, the object of observation may be multiple physical characteristics that can be monitored (eg, a combination of the examples described above).

In the example shown in FIG. 1, the object to be observed includes the temperature of the heating unit 120. Specifically, the heating unit 120 includes a temperature sensor 126 (e.g., a thermistor, thermocouple, resistance-based temperature detector, etc.) communicatively connected to the controller 130, and the monitoring unit 132 is configured to monitor the aerosol and is configured to obtain a temperature from temperature sensor 126 at one or more points during heating of the substrate. Temperature sensor 126 may also be used to control the temperature of heater 124, as described further below. For example, the monitoring unit 132 may obtain temperature values at the start of heating of the aerosol substrate 12 and periodically (e.g., every second) obtain temperature values during heating of the aerosol substrate 12. You can. In another example, the monitoring unit 132 may obtain temperature values at a single point in time (e.g., 7 seconds) for the start of heating of the aerosol substrate 12.

However, it will be appreciated that temperature sensor 126 may be omitted in other examples. For example, the resistance of a heater can be determined (e.g., using voltage and current sensors) and the temperature of the heater can be determined based on a known relationship between resistance and heater temperature. For the sake of brevity, methods for determining the resistance of a heater, or methods for determining the temperature of a heater based on resistance, are known to those skilled in the art, will not be described here.

The detection unit 134 is for detecting indications that the moisture content is different from the predetermined moisture content based on the monitored observations. In other words, the detection unit 134 obtains the value(s) of the observed object monitored by the monitoring unit 132 and detects the indication based on the value(s) of the monitored object.

Detection unit 134 detects a value, for example, if the value of the monitored observable falls outside a predetermined range for the value of the monitored observable (e.g., if the value is less than a first predetermined threshold). It may be detected that the moisture content is different from the predetermined moisture content (if it is not between the first predetermined threshold and the second predetermined threshold, or if the value is greater than the second predetermined threshold). In this example, the predetermined range is defined by a single threshold (i.e., a lower threshold defining the predetermined range as all values above the threshold, and a higher threshold defining the predetermined range as all values below the threshold). It will be understood that it may be defined by or by a lower or higher threshold.

In the example shown in FIG. 1 , the detection unit 134 determines the moisture content of the aerosol substrate 12 if the temperature value obtained by the monitoring unit 132 at a time of less than 13 seconds from the start of heating of the aerosol substrate 12 is 120° C. or higher. It is configured to detect indications that the moisture content is different from the predetermined moisture content. As explained in more detail with reference to Figure 3 below, this indicates that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate 12 is different (in this case less) than the predetermined moisture content.

However, it should be understood that this is only an example of indication detection and the present invention is not limited to this example. This exemplary embodiment can be used with any other detection described herein or derivable from the present disclosure, especially the detection described with respect to FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C, 5A and 5B below.

The signaling unit 136 is for generating a control signal for stopping the operation of the aerosol-generating device 100 based on the detected indication. In other words, the signaling unit 136 obtains a notification when the detection unit 134 detects an indication that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate 12 is different from the predetermined moisture content, and the notification causes the signaling unit to generate a control signal. do.

For example, the generated control signal can be sent to the heater 120 to indicate that heating of the aerosol substrate 12 should be stopped, a signal to deactivate the heater 120, and a signal to disable the heater 120. There is a signal to the power source 140 to stop the power supply, or a signal to the power source 140 to completely deactivate the power supply to the aerosol generating device 100. The control signal may interrupt operation, for example, by tripping a circuit breaker or diverting power from a component to be deactivated (e.g., by shorting the component). Although the term control signal is used in the singular, it should be understood to refer to at least one control signal capable of controlling the operation of the various components of the aerosol-generating device.

In each of these cases, the generation of a control signal interrupts the heating of the aerosol substrate.

In the example shown in FIG. 1 , the signal unit generates a first control signal to disconnect the heater 124 , thereby causing the heater 124 to stop heating the aerosol substrate 12 . If the aerosol-generating device includes a display screen, the signaling unit may generate a second control signal to control the display screen to display a message notifying the user of the aerosol-generating device that the consumable product does not have the required moisture content. there is. However, it will be appreciated that other usage notification means, such as haptic feedback, may be used instead of or in addition to message display.

This prevents heating of consumables with inadequate moisture content and improves the safety/reliability of the aerosol-generating device.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, the aerosol generating device 100 is a power source integrated in the aerosol generating device or a connection to an external power source, for controlling the power supply from the power source to the controller 130 and/or the heating unit 120. Control circuitry, a frame for holding the various components together, a display screen to notify the user of the aerosol-generating device of information pertaining to the device or consumable, and buttons or other controls to enable the user to turn the aerosol-generating device on or off or to control it. It will be understood that additional components may be included, such as the like.

An example of the electrical components of the aerosol generating device 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 2.

In the example shown in FIG. 2 , the aerosol generating device 100 includes a heating unit 120, a controller 130 (e.g., MCU), a power source 140, and a charging unit 150.

Power source 140 supplies power to other components of aerosol-generating device 100, including controller 130 and heater 120.

In the example shown in FIG. 2 , power source 140 includes battery 142 (e.g., a secondary battery such as lithium ion, nickel-metal hybrid, or non-rechargeable battery) and battery protection circuit 144. However, in some cases, the battery protection circuit 144 may be omitted (e.g., for batteries that do not require a protection circuit), or instead the power source 140 may be connected to a power source external to the aerosol-generating device 100 (e.g. It will be understood that the connector can be coupled to a main power source, DC 5V power source, etc.) and transmits power from an external power source to the components of the aerosol generating device 100.

The charging unit 150 is used to supply power to recharge the battery 142 from a power source electrically coupled to the aerosol generating device. However, it will be appreciated that if the power source 140 does not include a rechargeable element (e.g., the battery 142 is not rechargeable or is omitted), the charging unit 150 may be omitted.

In the example shown in FIG. 2, the charging unit 150 includes a connector 152 coupleable to an external power source and a charging IC 154 for controlling power supply from the external power source to the battery 142. Optionally includes a transformer to convert the voltage/current characteristics of the power supplied by the power supply.

In the example shown in FIG. 2 , the heater 120 includes a transducer 128 , a heater 124 , a temperature sensor 126 , and a switching element 129 .

Converter 128 is configured to convert power received from power source 140 into power suitable for heating the aerosol substrate. For example, the converter may be a booster circuit for increasing the voltage of power received from the power source 140 to a higher level voltage. However, it will be appreciated that in some cases the power output by the power source may not need to be converted to heat the aerosol substrate, in which case converter 128 may be omitted.

In the example shown in FIG. 2 , converter 128 converts the 3.3 V voltage output by power source 140 to a voltage in the range of 3.8 V to 4.3 V controllable by the user of aerosol generating device 100 via a button. It is a booster that increases. As shown in FIG. 2 , the booster can be activated or deactivated by the controller 130 to controllably provide boosted power to the heater 124 (if activated). However, it will be understood that the voltage levels or ranges described herein are exemplary and the booster is not limited as to the voltage received from power source 140 or the voltage/voltage range output by the booster (transducer 128). .

Heater 124 is configured to heat a heating chamber (not shown). In the example shown in Figure 2, heater 124 is a coil. However, it will be understood that the heater is not limited to this type and may be any other type of heater, whether conduction based (eg, coil-wick combination) or convection based.

Temperature sensor 126 provides the temperature of heating chamber 122 to controller 130 as described above with reference to FIG. 1 .

Switching element 129 allows controller 130 to control the temperature of the heating chamber. The switching element 129 may be a field effect transistor (FET) (e.g., Si MOSFET, GaN MOSFET, SiC MOSFET, etc.), a bipolar junction transistor (BJT), an insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT), a thyristor, or other known It may be a type of switching element. Switching element 129 is referred to as a single switching element, but may include more than one switching element arranged in series and/or cascade, such that a reference to switching element 129 is a reference to at least one switching element. It should be interpreted as.

In the example shown in Figure 2, the switching element 129 is a MOSFET arranged in series between the heater and the terminal of the power source, so that the power loop (and the heater 120, such as the converter 128) is controlled by controlling the state of the MOSFET. (including other components) may be controllably formed between the power source and the heater. Specifically, in the example shown in FIG. 2 , controller 130 obtains temperature from temperature sensor 126 . The sensed temperature is input to a proportional integral derivative (PID) control loop implemented in controller 130, and the PID control loop outputs a value based on the difference between the sensed temperature and the target temperature. The output is compared to a pulse signal and converted to a pulse width modulated (PWM) signal to control the state of MOSFET 129 (i.e., the PWM signal is applied to the gate of MOSFET 129).

For the sake of brevity, further details of the control loop and control of the switching elements 129 known to those skilled in the art are omitted. However, the controller is not limited to using a PID control loop and/or controlling switching elements with PWM signals, and may instead use PI- or P- control loops for controlling the switching elements, or other known types of control loops containing signals. You need to understand that it can be implemented.

Figure 3 shows exemplary temperatures of the heater 120, particularly the heating chamber 122, during heating of an aerosol substrate. In Figure 3, heating of an aerosol substrate with a predetermined moisture content (e.g., a new consumable) is shown as a solid line, and heating of an aerosol substrate with little or no moisture content (e.g., a previously used consumable) is shown as a solid line. It is shown as a dotted line.

Heating portion 120 is configured to heat the aerosol substrate 12 from an initial (e.g., ambient) temperature to a higher temperature, typically in the range of 150° C. to 300° C. During heating of an aerosol substrate, the aerosol is generally not substantially released until higher temperatures are reached.

Heating the aerosol substrate to higher temperatures causes particles in the substrate to volatilize, atomize, and/or vaporize, releasing the aerosol. In the example shown in Figure 3, the aerosol substrate is heated to a temperature of approximately 230° C., however this is a non-limiting example and any temperature that allows an aerosol to emerge from the substrate may instead be used.

The aerosol substrate, once heated, can be maintained at or near the desired temperature if aerosol generation continues. In some cases, this second phase may last for a predetermined amount of time (e.g., until a predetermined time is reached, such as 5 seconds), or for an amount of time that ends when an event occurs (e.g., when the user generates an aerosol). (until use of the device is discontinued, until the aerosol substrate is depleted, etc.) However, the aerosol substrate need not be maintained at a higher temperature, for example if only small amounts of aerosol are required.

Figure 3 shows only the beginning of the heating of the aerosol substrate and the use of the consumable (also called a session) during which the user can inhale the generated aerosol. Although not shown in Figure 3, it will be appreciated that the consumables, once heated, may be maintained at higher temperatures for several minutes (eg, 4 to 5 minutes). Typically, the heater is turned off near the end of the session (e.g., 270 seconds from the start of heating of the aerosol substrate) and the session ends shortly thereafter (e.g., 290 seconds from the start of heating of the aerosol substrate). Once the session is over, the consumables can be removed from the aerosol-generating device and discarded.

As can be seen in Figure 3, the water level in the new consumables leads to a period in which the temperature reaches approximately 100°C, during which time the temperature does not increase substantially while the water evaporates (i.e., "stable" ( plateau state). Therefore, consumables with lower moisture content do not have the same steady state and reach temperatures above 100°C more quickly. Although an example of water is shown in Figure 3, it should be understood that detection unit 134 is not limited to detecting the absence of water. For example, if the aerosol substrate 12 includes a humectant or other evaporable material, heating the aerosol substrate 12 results in an additional period of time during which the temperature does not substantially increase near the boiling point of the humectant/evaporable material; (For example, if the aerosol substrate 12 includes propylene glycol, the temperature is maintained for a time at about 188° C., the boiling point of propylene glycol), and the reduced level or absence of humectant/evaporative agent may cause the temperature to increase. It can be detected based on the differential rate of rise, or the time required for the temperature to rise by a certain amount.

Therefore, during heating of the aerosol substrate it is possible to detect whether the consumable is new or used based on measured information indicating the moisture content of the aerosol substrate.

In an exemplary embodiment, the object of observation includes at least one of the thermal profile of the device, the moisture profile associated with the aerosol substrate, and the electrical energy profile of the device. Monitoring unit 132 is configured to monitor at least one of the thermal profile, moisture profile, and electrical energy profile of the device during heating of the aerosol substrate. In other words, the thermal profile, moisture profile, and electrical energy profile of the device are profiles for heating the aerosol substrate.

As used herein, the term profile includes observed values at one or more time points during heating of the aerosol substrate. Time may be defined in terms of the start of heating of the aerosol substrate, or in terms of the time at which the object of observation reaches a particular value (e.g., the time at which the heater 120 or the aerosol substrate 12 reaches a particular temperature). Accordingly, a profile containing the value of an observed object at two or more time points defines the change in the value of the observed object over the period between the two time points. In some cases, the profile may define a function of temperature over time during heating of the aerosol substrate.

For example, the thermal profile may include the temperature of the aerosol substrate 12 itself, the temperature of the components of the aerosol-generating device 100 (e.g., as described above with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3 ) and the temperature of the aerosol substrate 100 . It may include temperature values for the aerosol substrate 12 obtained at one or more points in time during heating of the aerosol substrate 12, such as the temperature of the heating chamber 122.

The moisture profile is a value (e.g., For example, moisture level in heating chamber 122).

The electrical energy profile of the device includes values representative of the electrical energy used during heating of the aerosol substrate 12, obtained at one or more times during heating of the aerosol substrate 12. This may represent, for example, the electrical energy used by heater 120 or heater 124 to heat the aerosol substrate, or alternatively by more or all of the components of the device during heating of the aerosol substrate. It can represent the electrical energy used. The value can be obtained by measuring the energy output from the power source 140 (or an external power source), or (e.g., by a shunt resistor connected in series with the heater 124 and a current measurement circuit connected in parallel with the shunt resistor). ) The energy provided to the heater 124 can be measured. The values obtained by monitoring unit 132 may represent the electrical energy used at a point in time (e.g., instantaneous energy), or over a period of time (e.g., from the start of heating of the aerosol substrate 12). It can indicate the cumulative amount of electrical energy used up to the point in time.

Detection unit 134 is configured to detect an indication based on a deviation of the observed object from a corresponding predetermined profile. The predetermined profile may define a predetermined value of the observed value during one or more points during heating of the aerosol substrate 12 that is expected when the aerosol substrate 12 has substantially a predetermined moisture content. The predetermined profile may be defined, for example, as a function of the observed object over time. The predetermined profile may be stored, for example, in a memory on the aerosol-generating device 100 accessible to the detection unit 134.

The detection unit 134 is configured to detect the indication based on a comparison of the observed value obtained by the monitoring unit 132 with the observed value derived from the predetermined profile.

For example, the detection unit 134 may determine that the difference between the value(s) obtained by the monitoring unit 132 and the corresponding value(s) of the predetermined profile may be the same for all time points or may be different for each time point. It may be configured to detect an indication when it is above a predetermined threshold that may be set.

With reference to FIGS. 3, 4A, 4B and 4C, examples of predetermined profiles according to the present embodiment will be described.

The solid line shown in FIG. 3 is an example of a predetermined thermal profile that defines the temperature change in the heating chamber 122 during heating of the aerosol substrate 12. However, the predetermined thermal profile may be determined by the temperature of the aerosol substrate 12 itself, the temperature of the consumable 10, or the temperature of the aerosol substrate 12, such as the heating element 120 or other components of the aerosol generating device 100. It will be understood that the temperature is not limited thereto, as it may be any temperature representing .

FIG. 4A shows an example of a predetermined moisture profile defining a predetermined moisture level in the heating chamber 122 during heating of the aerosol substrate 12 and subsequent use of the consumable. However, the present invention is not limited to a predetermined moisture profile defining the moisture level in the heating chamber. Instead, a predetermined moisture profile (e.g., corresponding to the moisture level expected to be measured by a moisture sensor in contact with the aerosol substrate 12 when the consumable is received by the receptacle 110) is determined by the aerosol substrate 12. ) You can define your own moisture level.

As shown in Figure 4A, the moisture level starts from an initial value (e.g., about 13%) and increases as the water, any humectants, and other materials within the aerosol substrate 12 evaporate during heating of the aerosol substrate. It is predetermined to be reduced to a low value (eg, 10%). After the aerosol substrate 12 is heated to a higher temperature at which aerosols are generated, the moisture level continues to decrease during use of the consumable.

4B shows an example of a predetermined electrical energy profile that defines the cumulative amount of energy used during heating of the aerosol substrate 12. In the example shown in Figure 4B, the cumulative amount of energy output from power source 140 is predetermined to increase at a substantially constant rate to a value of about 180 Joules during the first 10 seconds of heating and then at a relatively low rate. . As mentioned above, the predetermined electrical energy profile is not limited to defining the cumulative electrical energy output from power source 140, but may instead be instantaneous energy provided to heater 124 at different times, etc.

In this exemplary embodiment, monitoring unit 132 monitors one or more of the heat profile as shown in FIG. 3, the moisture profile as shown in FIG. 4A, and the electrical energy profile as shown in FIG. 4B. It can be configured to do so. The detection unit 134 is configured to detect an indication based on a deviation present in one of these profiles from a corresponding predetermined profile, or an indication if the respective deviation is present in two or both of the monitored profiles. and a deviation detected in each profile indicates that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate is different from the predetermined moisture content.

For example, if monitoring unit 132 is configured to monitor the thermal profile shown in FIG. 3 , it may detect an indication if the monitored temperature is substantially greater than 130° C. at t=100 s, and monitoring unit 132 ) is configured to monitor the moisture profile shown in FIG. 4A , it is possible to detect an indication if the monitored moisture content at t=0 s is less than 10%, and/or the monitoring unit 132 is configured to monitor the moisture profile shown in FIG. 4B When configured to monitor the electrical energy profile, if the monitored cumulative energy at t=10 s is less than 160 J (no/less energy would have been used to evaporate the water and/or other moisturizers in the aerosol substrate 12). (indicating that it is) can be detected.

Alternatively, the predetermined profile may instead include one or more associations, where each association is between a point in time and a predetermined value of the observed object at that point in time, as shown, for example, in Figure 4C.

In this case, the detection unit 134 is configured to compare the value obtained by the monitoring unit 132 at each time point with an associated predetermined value.

Figure 4C shows the predetermined profiles in tabular form; however, it will be understood that the tabular form is for illustrative purposes only and the associations may be in any other suitable form.

In the example shown in Figure 4C, the predetermined temperature profile is a first association between a time point t=5 s and a predetermined value of 100°C for temperature, and a second association between a time point t=8 s and a predetermined value of 150°C. , a third association between the time point t=13 s and the predetermined value of 230°C, and a connection between each of the time points t=100 s, 150 s, 200 s, 270 S and 290 s and the predetermined value of 230°C. Similarly, the predetermined moisture profile is defined by the correlation between the time point and the predetermined value for the moisture level (time point T=0 s and 13%; time point T=5 s and 12%; time point T=8 s and 11%; time point T=8 s and 11%). T=13 s and 10%; Time T=100 s and 9%; Time T=150 s and 8%; Time T=200 s and 7%; Time T=270 s and 6%; Time T=290 s and 6%) is defined. The predetermined electrical energy profile is an association between a time point and a predetermined value for electrical energy (time point t=0 s and 0 J; time point t=5 s and 90 J; time point t=8 s and 150 J; time point t=13 s and 185 J; point t=100 s and 405 J; point t=150 s and 530 J; point t=200 s and 660 J; point t=270 s and 840 J; point t=290 s and 840 J) Define.

Although each predetermined profile in the example shown in Figure 4C defines a plurality of associations, it will be appreciated that one or more predetermined profiles may instead include only one association. For example, a predetermined electrical energy profile may define a single association between a time point and a predetermined electrical energy, such as t=13 s and 185 J. Additionally, although two or more of the predetermined profiles may define an association to the same time point, as in the example shown in Figure 4C, each predetermined profile may instead define one or more associations with mutually exclusive time point(s). (e.g., a first predetermined profile may define an association using a time point t=t1, and a second predetermined profile may define an association using a second time point t=t2, where t2 is different from t1). can be used to define associations).

The exemplary predetermined profile shown in FIG. 4C includes associations for times during heating of the aerosol substrate and during subsequent use of the consumable (while maintaining the aerosol substrate at the temperature at which it is generated). However, it will be appreciated that the predetermined profile need not include any relationship to the point in time past which the aerosol substrate reaches a higher temperature. For example, the aerosol substrate is expected to reach a temperature of 230°C at t=13 s, so the associations defined in the predetermined profiles for the time points t=100 s, 150 s, 200 s, 270 s and 290 s. This can be omitted.

Optionally, detection unit 134 may, when monitoring unit 132 obtains a value for a time point that does not have an associated predetermined value, by means of regression analysis (e.g., interpolation/extrapolation), curve fitting, etc. It may be configured to determine a corresponding value based on an association defined in a predetermined profile.

Accordingly, an indication that the aerosol substrate 12 does not have a predetermined moisture content can be detected more accurately while reducing the resources required to maintain the predetermined profile.

In an exemplary embodiment, the object of observation includes the thermal profile of the device. Accordingly, monitoring unit 132 is configured to monitor the thermal profile of the device. The object of observation may optionally also include a moisture profile and/or an electrical energy profile described herein.

In this exemplary embodiment, the predetermined thermal profile includes information regarding a change in temperature for heating the aerosol substrate from a first predetermined value to a second predetermined value over a first predetermined length of time. The first predetermined value may be, for example, the ambient temperature (i.e., the environmental temperature around the aerosol-generating device 100), the initial temperature of the aerosol substrate, or the temperature of the heating element 120 (e.g., the heating chamber 122 ) or the initial temperature of the heater 124. The second predetermined value may, for example, be the temperature at which an aerosol or vapor is generated from the aerosol substrate. Alternatively, the first predetermined value may be a value higher than the typical ambient temperature (e.g., 50° C.), thus reducing the impact of variations due to different ambient/initial temperatures of the aerosol substrate. Similarly, the second predetermined value may be lower than the temperature at which an aerosol or vapor is generated from the aerosol substrate (e.g., 170° C.), thereby reducing the risk of the consumable 10 losing structural integrity due to heating. .

In this exemplary embodiment, detection unit 134 is configured to detect if the monitored thermal profile differs from the predetermined thermal profile by more than a predetermined thermal threshold and/or if the monitored thermal profile differs from the predetermined thermal profile by less than a predetermined reference length of time. and configured to detect the indication when there is a change from the first value to a second predetermined value, wherein the predetermined reference length of time is less than or equal to the first predetermined length of time.

In other words, if the difference between one or more values obtained by monitoring unit 132 and the corresponding value(s) defined in the predetermined profile is greater than a predetermined thermal threshold, detection unit 134 detects an indication. Here, the predetermined threshold may be a number of angles (e.g., 2°C, 3.5°C, 5°C, etc.) or a percentage of the predetermined value (e.g., 1.0%, 3%, 5.5%).

However, it will be clear that the detection unit 134 may be configured to detect an indication if at least two of the values obtained from the monitored thermal profile differ from corresponding values derived from the predetermined thermal profile. By relying on more comparisons, the risk of inaccurate detection that the aerosol substrate 12 does not contain a predetermined moisture content can be reduced. Likewise, if the individual value(s) on either side of the monitored thermal profile is substantially different from the corresponding value in the predetermined thermal profile (i.e., corresponds to more than the predetermined thermal threshold), the change in the monitored thermal profile is greater than the predetermined threshold profile. By requiring this to occur much faster (i.e., shorter than the corresponding reference time length), inaccurate detection that the aerosol substrate 12 does not contain a predetermined moisture content can be avoided.

Additionally or alternatively, the monitoring unit 132 determines that the difference between the temperature value obtained at the first time point and the temperature value obtained at the second time point is greater than or equal to the difference between the second predetermined value and the first predetermined value, and Upon determining that the length of time between the second time points is less than or equal to a predetermined reference length of time, detection unit 134 detects an indication that aerosol substrate 12 does not have a predetermined moisture content.

An example of a predetermined thermal profile and a monitored thermal profile (based on values obtained by monitoring unit 132) according to this exemplary embodiment will now be described with reference to FIG. 5A.

In the example shown in Figure 5A, the predetermined thermal profile has four associations: t=0 s and 20°C; t=6 s and 100°C; t=9 s and 102°C; Define t=18 s and 230°C. Additionally, the predetermined thermal profile defines a reference time length of 15.5 s for an interval of 0 s to 18 s defined by the first and final time points of the predetermined thermal profile.

However, the number and time points/values of associations defined in the predetermined thermal profile are exemplary, and the predetermined thermal profile may define any number of associations (e.g., 1, 3, 10, or more). . Additionally, instead of a single reference time length defined for the entire interval spanning the predetermined thermal profile, the predetermined thermal profile can each be defined for one or more subintervals defined by pairs of time points with associated values of the predetermined thermal profile. A predetermined reference time length of can instead be defined. For example, the following reference time lengths could instead be defined: a reference time length of 7 s for the interval 0 s to 9 s, a reference time length of 2 s for the interval 6 s to 9 s, and a reference time length of 7 s for the interval 6 s to 9 s. Base time length 10 s for 18 s.

In the example of Figure 5A, the predetermined thermal profile includes information regarding the change in temperature to heat the aerosol substrate from a predetermined value of 20°C to a predetermined value of 90°C over a predetermined length of time of 7 seconds. The predetermined thermal profile shown in Figure 5A also includes information regarding the temperature change to heat the aerosol substrate from a predetermined value of 20°C to a predetermined value of 230°C over a predetermined time length of 18 seconds. In a second example, the first predetermined value (20°C) is the predetermined initial temperature of the heating chamber 122 and the second predetermined value (230°C) is the temperature of the device when the aerosol or vapor is generated from the aerosol substrate. am.

Although not shown in Figure 5A, in this example the predetermined threshold is set to 5.5°C.

The rightmost column of FIG. 5A shows exemplary temperature values obtained by the monitoring unit 132 at 3 second intervals from the start of heating of the aerosol substrate 12.

Accordingly, in the example of Figure 5A, the detection unit 134 detects an indication that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate 12 differs from the predetermined moisture content because of:

i) the value obtained is 135°C at t=9 s, which differs from the predetermined value of 102°C by more than 5°C the predetermined thermal threshold;

ii) the monitored thermal profile changes from a value of 20°C to a value of 230°C (in fact, it is a larger change from 19°C to 230°C) in less than a reference time length of 15.5 s (the difference between time points is only 15 s) .

Accordingly, the detection unit 134 notifies the signaling unit 136, which generates a control signal to stop the operation of the aerosol-generating device 100.

In the above description, the same threshold (5°C) is used for all time points, but one or more of the predetermined values may each have a predetermined thermal threshold. Additionally, the lower threshold and upper threshold may be set differently relative to one or more of the predetermined values to define a range of acceptable values (i.e., the thresholds define minimum and maximum values around the predetermined value). do).

An example of the threshold values defined for the predetermined and monitored thermal profiles according to the modification is now described with reference to Figure 5b.

As shown in Figure 5b, a threshold of 10°C is set for the time t=0 s, and the minimum and maximum temperature values are between 10°C and 30°C. A minimum of 88°C and a maximum of 93°C are set for time t=7 s (note that this is equivalent to setting thresholds of -2°C and +3°C for a value of 90°C). Likewise, for time point t=7 s A minimum/maximum of 125°C/135°C for t=12 s and 228°C/135°C for time t=17 s is set.

Accordingly, in the example of Figure 5b, detection unit 134 detects an indication if the value obtained by monitoring unit 132 at t=7 is below 88°C or above 93°C.

Therefore, detection can be performed more accurately.

Once the minimum and maximum values are set, the detection unit 134 determines whether the monitored value falls within the range defined by the minimum and maximum values, so that the corresponding predetermined temperature value (20° C. shown in the second column, It will be appreciated that 90°C, 130°C and 230°C) may be omitted.

In an exemplary embodiment, the monitoring unit 132 obtains a temperature value representative of the temperature associated with one of the aerosol-generating device 100 and the aerosol substrate 12 at each of a plurality of time points during heating of the aerosol substrate 12. It is configured to monitor the thermal profile.

The detection unit 134 is configured to detect an indication if at least one of the temperature values differs from a corresponding one of the reference values by more than a predetermined thermal threshold, the reference value being determined based on the information of the temperature change.

More specifically, the detection unit 134 is configured to determine, for one or more temperature values obtained by the monitoring unit 132, a respective reference value based on information about the temperature change included in a predetermined threshold profile. . The reference value may be determined for any point in time at which the monitoring unit 132 obtains a value and the predetermined thermal profile does not define the predetermined value. Reference values can be determined using, for example, regression analysis or curve fitting.

The detection unit 134 is then configured to compare each value obtained by the monitoring unit 132 with a corresponding reference value that has been determined. If the difference between the compared values is greater than or equal to a predetermined thermal threshold for any value obtained by monitoring unit 132, the detection unit detects an indication that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate 12 is different from the predetermined moisture content.

Detection unit 134 may be configured to detect an indication only when more than one of the values obtained in the monitored thermal profile differs from corresponding reference values, as described above. This can reduce the risk of false detection. Additionally or alternatively, the predetermined thermal threshold need not be set the same for all time points as described above.

Accordingly, detection can be made more accurately while reducing the resources required to maintain the predetermined profile(s).

An example of this exemplary embodiment will now be described with reference to FIG. 5A.

In this example, the monitoring unit 132 obtains values of 50°C for time t=3 s, 175°C for time t=12 s, and 230°C for time t=15 s. Since the predetermined thermal threshold does not define predetermined values for these time points, the detection unit 134 determines reference values for time points t=3 s, 12 s and 15 s.

The detection unit 134 determines the reference value using linear regression of the predetermined values for the time points t=0 s and t=6 s, i.e. before and after the time t=3 s, at which the predetermined value is defined. .

Accordingly, the detection unit 134 determines the reference value of (3 s-0 s)/(6 s-0 s)*(98°C-20°C)+20°C=59°C. Accordingly, the detection unit 134 detects an indication if the 50° C. value of the monitored thermal profile differs from the reference value of 59° C. by more than a predetermined thermal threshold set at time t=3 s.

For the time points t=12 s and 15 s, the detection unit 134 is configured to obtain reference values using quadratic interpolation based on predetermined values of the time points t=6 s, 9 s and 18 s, which are expressed in the equation (where t is the time point and T is the reference value for temperature). Accordingly, the detection unit 134 for time t=12 s Determine the reference value of and determine the reference value of 168°C for time t=15 s. The detection unit 134 then detects if the value of 175°C of the monitored thermal profile differs from the reference value of 125.33°C by an amount exceeding a predetermined thermal threshold set at time t=12 s and/or of 230°C of the monitored thermal profile. An indication is detected if the value of differs from the reference value of 168°C by more than a predetermined thermal threshold set at time t=15 s.

It will be appreciated that the detection unit 134 need not determine a reference value corresponding to each value obtained by the monitoring unit 132. Some of the values obtained by monitoring unit 132 may not be compared to a reference value, but may still be used to determine whether changes in the monitored thermal profile are occurring substantially faster than in the predetermined thermal profile. For example, continuing the previous example, there is no need to determine a reference value for the time point t=15 s, as the change from 20°C to 230°C in the monitored thermal profile occurs much faster than in the predetermined thermal profile. This is because it can trigger detection of the indication itself.

In an exemplary embodiment, monitoring unit 132 monitors, for each temperature value (i.e., for more than one temperature value), between the time heating of the aerosol substrate is initiated and the time the temperature indicated by the temperature value is reached. It is configured to obtain an associated time measurement of .

In other words, when the monitoring unit 132 obtains a temperature value, the monitoring unit 132 also obtains a measurement of the time elapsed since heating of the aerosol substrate began and relates this measurement of time to the obtained temperature value. It is constructed to build.

As a first example, the monitoring unit 132 starts a timer when heating of the aerosol substrate 12 is initiated and obtains the elapsed time indicated by the timer as the associated time measurement each time a temperature value is obtained. It can be configured as follows.

As a second example, the monitoring unit 132 may be configured to obtain temperature values at regular intervals (eg, each 0.5 s) starting when heating of the aerosol substrate 12 begins. In this case, the monitoring unit 132 determines that the first temperature value obtained when heating of the aerosol substrate is initiated is set to zero. Then, for each subsequent temperature value, monitoring unit 132 obtains the associated time measurement by incrementing the value by 0.5 seconds.

In this exemplary embodiment, detection unit 134 determines, for each temperature value, a point in time for a first predetermined length of time based on the associated time measurement, and determines a reference value regarding the temperature change at the determined point in time. It is configured to determine the temperature specified by the information.

For the exemplary predetermined thermal profile shown in solid line in FIG. 3 , detection unit 134 determines, for temporal measurements obtained by monitoring unit 132, a temperature for the predetermined thermal profile corresponding to the temporal measurements. It may be configured to determine the value as a reference value.

For example, if monitoring unit 132 obtains a temperature value of 105°C and an associated time measurement of 8 seconds, detection unit 134 may determine that the temperature value corresponding to 8 seconds in the predetermined thermal profile is 102°C as a reference value. decide Although the example of Figure 3 showing a predetermined thermal profile as a continuous function has been described, it should be understood that detection unit 134 could instead use a predetermined thermal profile with a number of discrete values, for example as associations described above.

In an exemplary embodiment, monitoring unit 132 is configured to measure values representative of the power of aerosol-generating device 100 during heating of the aerosol substrate.

For example, the monitoring unit 132 may, through one or more sensors, determine the value of the instantaneous power output by the power source, the value of the current flowing through the aerosol-generating device 100, certain components of the aerosol-generating device (e.g. For example, it may be configured to measure the value of the current provided to the heating unit 120.

In this exemplary embodiment, the monitoring unit 132 is configured to monitor the electrical energy profile by accumulating values representing the power during heating of the aerosol substrate 12.

In other words, the monitoring unit 132 sums the values representing the power obtained at multiple time points during heating of the aerosol substrate to obtain a cumulative power value (i.e., from the time the first value representing the power is obtained, e.g. a value representing the amount of power generated or used from the start of heating of the substrate 12).

In this exemplary embodiment, the predetermined electrical energy profile includes information representing a predetermined accumulated power value, and the detection unit 134 determines that the accumulated value representing the power is greater than the predetermined accumulated power value and the predetermined electrical energy threshold. It is configured to detect the indication if it differs by the above amount.

An example of the electrical components of the aerosol-generating device 100 according to this exemplary embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 6 .

For the sake of brevity, a description of the electrical components 120 to 150 is omitted here since they have already been described with respect to FIG. 2 .

In the example shown in FIG. 6 , the aerosol generating device 100 includes a current measuring unit 160 for measuring the current provided to the heating unit 120. The current measuring unit 160 is a shunt resistor disposed in series with the heating unit 120 (specifically, between the node B coupled to the positive terminal of the battery 142 and the controller 130 and the converter 128). Includes (162). The current measuring unit 160 also includes a current measuring element 164 in parallel with the shunt resistor 162, and the current measuring element 164 is configured to detect the value of the current flowing through the shunt resistor 162. Specifically, current measurement element 164 is configured to measure the voltage across the terminals of shunt resistor 162.

In the example shown in Figure 6, the monitoring unit 132 obtains the value of the voltage measured across the shunt resistor 162 by the current measuring element 164 and, based on the resistance value of the shunt resistor 162, It is configured to derive the value of the current flowing through the resistor 162. Then, based on the value of the current flowing through the shunt resistor 162 , the monitoring unit 132 is configured to obtain a value representative of the power provided to the heater 120 . For example, the monitoring unit 132 may use a predetermined equivalent resistance value of the heater 120 or a predetermined equivalent resistance value of the heater 124 and calculate the power provided to the heater 120 accordingly. there is.

The monitoring unit 132 is configured to accumulate values representing the power during heating of the aerosol substrate 12 . For example, the monitoring unit 132 may obtain a first value at the start of heating of the aerosol substrate 12 and then obtain a second value during heating of the aerosol substrate. The monitoring unit 132 may add the first value and the second value as an accumulated power value representing the power provided to the heating unit 120 between the time the first value is obtained and the time the second value is obtained. Then, each time monitoring unit 132 obtains a new value, monitoring unit 132 adds the new value to the accumulated power value.

Continuing in the example shown in FIG. 6 , detection unit 134 obtains accumulated power values from monitoring unit 132 . The detection unit 134 determines a corresponding predetermined accumulated power value based on information included in the predetermined electrical energy profile and compares the accumulated power value with the predetermined accumulated power value. If the compared values are different (e.g., different by more than a predetermined threshold), detection unit 134 detects an indication that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate 12 is different from the predetermined moisture content.

Although the specific configuration of the aerosol generating device 100 with the current measuring portion has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this specific configuration, and other configurations and/or current measuring portions of the current measuring portion 160 of the circuit shown in FIG. 6 It will be appreciated that other arrangements of portion 160 are possible. For example, a current measuring unit (of the same or different configuration) may be placed in series with the power source 140 and measure the current output from the power source 140 or between the nodes labeled A and B in FIG. 6. It is possible to measure the current provided to both the controller 130 and the heating unit 120. Other positions for the current measurement unit 160 are also possible, allowing the monitoring unit 132 to obtain values indicative of the power generated and/or used by the aerosol-generating device 100 during heating of the aerosol substrate 12. The point will be understood.

Additionally, more than one current measuring unit (of the same or different configuration) may be provided in the aerosol-generating device 100, and the invention is not limited to this aspect. For example, a first configuration may be provided to measure the current output from a battery coupled to or within the device, and a second configuration may be provided to measure the current provided to the heater 120. .

In an exemplary embodiment, the controller is configured to control the temperature of the heater by controlling at least one switching element using pulse width modulation.

For example, the controller 130 may be configured to determine the current temperature of the heater (which may be obtained from the resistance of the heater 124 or via one or more temperature sensors, such as temperature sensor 126 described with respect to FIG. 1 ) and the heater 130 . Based on the desired temperature, it may be configured to determine whether the temperature of the heating element should be increased, decreased, or maintained at the current level. Based on the determination, controller 130 may determine the duty cycle of the at least one switching element to increase, decrease, or maintain the temperature of the heater, and use a pulse width modulation technique to change the respective states of the at least one switching element. One or more control signals to control can be generated.

When at least one switching element is controlled to turn on, current is allowed to flow through the heating element, and when at least one switching element is controlled to turn off, current is prevented from flowing through the heating element. Accordingly, when at least one switching element is controlled to turn off, electrical energy is not provided to the heating unit 120. Accordingly, the state of the at least one switching element can be used to determine the amount of electrical energy used during heating of the aerosol substrate. In other words, the duty cycle of the control signal(s) used to control the switching element(s) is proportional to the electrical energy used to heat the aerosol substrate.

Each switching element may be any known type of switching element (e.g., the type described with respect to Figure 2 above), and the invention is not limited to this aspect.

The controller may be configured to control the temperature using any type of control (e.g., PID, PI or P control loop) such as that described with respect to FIG. 2, and the invention is not limited to this aspect. .

In this exemplary embodiment, the monitoring unit 132 determines the electrical energy profile by calculating the amount of electrical energy used for heating the aerosol substrate based on the length of time during which the at least one switching element is turned on by pulse width modulation. It is configured to monitor.

For example, the monitoring unit 132 may obtain control signal(s) generated to control the state of at least one switching element, by means of a heating element, during the portion of the cycle in which the at least one switching element is turned on. You can determine the amount of electrical energy to be used. The amount of electrical energy used during heating of the aerosol substrate 12 (e.g., during the entire period of heating or during a portion of the heating) can then be obtained by accumulating a determined amount of electrical energy during each cycle.

Accordingly, the controller of this exemplary embodiment can detect an indication that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate is different from the predetermined moisture content and can detect the aerosol substrate without requiring additional sensing/measurement components such as current measurement 160. A signal can be generated to stop the operation of the generating device.

Now, an example of the aerosol generating device 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 7.

As shown in Figure 2, the heater 120 includes a switching element 129, which in this example is a MOSFET, but more than one switching element may be provided to improve safety in the event of a switching element failure. It will be understood that the types of switching elements described herein are exemplary as various types of switching element(s) may instead be provided.

In this exemplary embodiment, controller 130 generates a pulse width modulated control signal that is provided to the gate of MOSFET 129. The control signal has a high voltage level that causes MOSFET 129 to allow current to flow between the drain and source of MOSFET 129 and a low voltage level that causes MOSFET 129 to stop current flowing between the drain and source of MOSFET 129. Controlled to vary between levels. For brevity, detailed description of the state control of MOSFET 129, which will be familiar to those skilled in the art, is omitted for clarity.

As the MOSFET 129 is connected in series with the heater 124 (specifically, the drain and source terminals of the MOSFET 129 are connected in series with the heater 124), the controller 130 operates with the MOSFET 129. By controlling the state of , one can control whether or not current is allowed to flow through the heater 124.

7 shows an example of the duty cycle determined by the controller 130 used to generate control signals to control the temperature of the heater 124 and the state of the MOSFET 129 during heating of the aerosol substrate 12. shows.

As shown in Figure 7, to begin heating the aerosol substrate 12, MOSFET 129 increases the temperature of heater 124 to a desired temperature (e.g., in the range of 200°C to 300°C). In order to do so, it is controlled to turn on at a duty cycle of approximately 100%. As the temperature of the heater approaches around 150° C., controller 130 determines that the rate at which the temperature of the heater rises should be reduced, and reduces the duty cycle accordingly. As a result, as shown in Figure 7, the duty cycle is lowered after 9 seconds and the temperature of the heater increases at a lower rate. Controller 130 then adjusts the temperature of the heater by controlling the duty cycle of MOSFET 129 to be in a desired range where aerosol or vapor can be generated.

Accordingly, if, for example, the moisture content of the aerosol substrate 12 is less than a predetermined moisture content, then electrical energy is required to heat the aerosol substrate (e.g., if the content of water or other humectant is less than a predetermined amount). You will need less. This difference in the electrical energy used to heat the aerosol substrate 12 can be detected as an indication that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate is less than the predetermined moisture content.

Although controller 130 has been described as controlling at least one switching element to control the temperature of heater 120, alternatively, a second controller (not shown in FIG. 6) separate from controller 130 may be used to control the temperature of heater 120. It may instead be configured to control the temperature of unit 120. In this case, the monitoring unit 132 provides a value representing the temperature of the heating element 120, a value representing the duty cycle determined for control of the at least one switching element, or a value representing the state of the switching element(s). and may be configured to obtain a value representative of control signal(s) generated by the second controller.

Accordingly, the aerosol-generating device 100 may include a second controller configured to control the temperature of the heating portion by controlling the at least one switching element using pulse width modulation, and the monitoring unit may be configured to turn the at least one switching element on. and monitor the electrical energy profile by calculating the amount of electrical energy used to heat the aerosol substrate based on the length of time pulse width modulation is used by the second controller to control the state.

The monitoring unit has been described as being configured to calculate the cumulative length of time during which the at least one switching element is switched on and to calculate the amount of electrical energy based on the cumulative length of time, but alternatively, the monitoring unit can be configured to: Calculate an average (arithmetic average, weighted average, etc.) amount of electrical energy used and, if the calculated average amount is different from the predetermined average amount, determine that the moisture content of the aerosol substrate is different from the predetermined moisture content. Other combinations of values representing the duty cycle of the control signal used to control the state of the switching element can be calculated, such as combinations involving the product of two or more values instead of the average, combinations involving the ratio of two or more values, etc. there is.

It will be understood from the above description that certain exemplary embodiments perform a method of controlling an aerosol-generating device including a heating portion for heating the aerosol substrate and a receptacle for receiving a consumable comprising an aerosol substrate.

Referring to Figure 8, in step 802, the aerosol generating device monitors an object indicative of the moisture content of the aerosol substrate during heating of the aerosol substrate.

At step 804, the aerosol-generating device detects an indication that the moisture content is different from the predetermined moisture content based on the monitored observations.

At step 806, the aerosol-generating device generates a control signal to discontinue operation of the device based on the detected indication.

Variation

Many modifications and variations can be made to the example embodiments described above.

In the exemplary embodiment described above, the monitoring unit 132 monitors the object from the start of heating of the aerosol substrate 12. However, the monitoring unit 132 may also be configured to monitor (e.g., moisture level, temperature, instantaneous power, or any other type of observation) before the consumable is received by the receptacle or before heating of the aerosol substrate is initiated. You can get the value of target). For example, the monitoring unit 132 may be configured to obtain a value of the observation when a predetermined event occurs prior to heating of the aerosol substrate 12, such as inserting a consumable or detecting that the aerosol substrate needs to be heated.

This value of the observation object can then be used as a reference value representing the environment of the aerosol generating device 100. The detection unit 134 can obtain these environmental reference values, for example, by increasing or decreasing the expected observed value during heating of the aerosol substrate, by changing the time point associated with the observed value, etc. , a predetermined profile can be adjusted based on environmental reference values.

For example, if the monitoring unit 132 detects that the ambient temperature is 30° C., while the predetermined thermal profile is If storing a value in °C, detection unit 134 may increase the value in 50 °C (e.g., to 55 °C) and/or reduce the associated measurement time (e.g., to 2.7 s). It can be taken into account that the environment is different from that indicated in the predetermined thermal profile. Similarly, the moisture level in the receptacle 110 before the consumables are received can be obtained as an environmental reference value and/or the instantaneous power used in the device before heating the aerosol substrate can be obtained. It will be appreciated that the same acquisition and use of environmental reference values may be used for any other type of observation.

In the exemplary embodiment described above, monitoring unit 132 obtains values of the observed object at one or more points in time during heating of the aerosol substrate, and detection unit 134 obtains respective values of the observed object from monitoring unit 132. . However, the monitoring unit 132 may alternatively detect only values that indicate that the observed object has changed by more than a certain amount, which may be absolute or relative to the previous output value (e.g., a change of at least 2% of the previous output value). It may be configured to provide to unit 134. Accordingly, the detection unit 134 may assume that the value of the observed object has not substantially changed until a new value is output, thereby reducing processing in the detection unit 134.

Of course, those skilled in the art will recognize that modifications other than those described above may be made.

In particular, it will be appreciated that the above-described exemplary embodiments may be combined.

In the foregoing description, example embodiments have been described with reference to several example embodiments. Accordingly, the specification is to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. Similarly, the drawings that illustrate features and advantages of example embodiments are presented for illustrative purposes only. The architecture of the example embodiments is sufficiently flexible and configurable to allow them to be used in ways other than those shown in the accompanying drawings.

The example software embodiments presented herein may be incorporated into an article of manufacture, such as a machine-accessible or machine-readable medium, an instruction store, or a computer-readable storage device, each of which may be non-transitory, in one exemplary embodiment. It may be provided as a computer program or software, such as one or more programs having stored instructions or sequences of instructions. A program or instructions residing on a non-transitory machine-accessible medium, machine-readable medium, instruction storage, or computer-readable storage device may be used to program a computer system or other electronic device. The techniques described herein are not limited to any software configuration. These technologies can be applied to any computing or processing environment. As used herein, the terms “computer-readable,” “machine-accessible medium,” “machine-readable medium,” “instruction storage,” and “computer-readable storage device” refer to It will include any medium capable of storing, encoding, or transmitting an instruction or sequence of instructions to be executed and causing a machine/computer/computer processor to perform any one of the methods described herein. Additionally, it is common in the art to say that software in one form or another (e.g., a program, procedure, process, application, module, unit, logic, etc.) takes an action or causes a result. This expression simply states that the execution of software by a processing system causes the processor to perform tasks that produce a result.

Some embodiments may also be implemented by preparing custom integrated circuits, field-programmable gate arrays, or interconnecting suitable networks of conventional component circuits.

Some embodiments include computer program products. A computer program product may include a storage medium or media, instruction store(s), storing instructions that can be used to control or cause a computer or computer processor to perform any of the procedures of the example embodiments described herein. ), or it may be storage device(s). Storage media/instruction storage/storage devices include, for example, optical disks, ROM, RAM, EPROM, EEPROM, DRAM, VRAM, flash memory, flash cards, magnetic cards, optical cards, nanosystems, molecular memory integrated circuits, RAID. , remote data storage/archives/warehousing, and/or any other type of device suitable for storage of instructions and/or data.

Some implementations may control hardware of an aerosol-generating device according to example embodiments described herein, stored in any one of a computer-readable medium or media, instruction store(s), or storage device(s). and also includes software to enable the aerosol-generating device or microprocessor to operate. Such software may include, but is not limited to, device drivers, operating systems, and user applications. Ultimately, such computer-readable medium or storage device(s) further include software for carrying out exemplary aspects of the invention as described above.

The programming and/or software of the aerosol-generating device includes software modules for implementing the procedures described herein. In some example embodiments herein, the modules include software, while in other example embodiments herein the modules include hardware, or a combination of hardware and software.

Although various exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they are presented by way of example and not limitation. It will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art(s) that various changes in form and detail may be made. Accordingly, the present invention should not be limited by any of the exemplary embodiments described above, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents.

Additionally, the purpose of the summary is to enable the Patent Office and the general public, especially scientists, engineers, and practitioners in the field who are not familiar with patents or legal terms or phraseology, to quickly determine the nature and essence of the technical disclosure area of the application through a cursory examination. It's about being able to do it. The summary is not intended to limit the scope of the exemplary embodiments presented herein in any way. Additionally, it should be understood that any procedures recited in the claims do not need to be performed in the order in which they are presented.

Although this specification contains details of many specific embodiments, this should not be construed as a limitation on the scope of any invention or what may be claimed, but rather as a description of specific features of the specific embodiments described herein. must be interpreted. Certain features described herein in the context of separate embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment may be implemented in multiple embodiments individually or in any suitable sub-combination. Additionally, although features may be described above and initially asserted as operating in certain combinations, one or more features from a claimed combination may in some cases be deleted from the combination, and the claimed combination may be a sub-combination or sub-combination. It can be specified as a variation of the combination.

In certain situations, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Additionally, the separation of various components in the above-described embodiments should not be construed as requiring such separation in all embodiments.

Although some exemplary embodiments and embodiments have now been described, it is clear that the foregoing is presented by way of example and not limitation. In particular, although many of the examples presented herein include specific combinations of device or software elements, such elements may be combined in other ways to achieve the same purpose. Acts, elements, and features discussed only in connection with one embodiment are not intended to be excluded from a similar role in other embodiments or embodiments.

The devices described herein may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from their characteristics. Accordingly, the scope of the devices described herein is indicated by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description, and includes changes that are equivalent to the meaning and scope of the claims.

10: Consumables
12: Aerosol base
100: Aerosol generating device
110: receptacle
120: heating unit
122: heating chamber
124: heater (e.g. coil)
126: temperature sensor
128: converter
129: switching element(s) (e.g. MOSFET)
130: Controller (e.g., MCU)
132: monitoring unit
134: detection unit
136: signaling unit
140: power
142: battery
144: Battery protection circuit
150: Charging part
152: Connector (e.g. USB connector)
154: charging IC
160: Current measuring unit
162: shunt resistor
164: Current measurement element

Claims (14)

An aerosol generating device, comprising:
a receptacle for receiving consumables containing an aerosol substrate;
a heating unit for heating the aerosol substrate; and
A controller comprising:
a monitoring unit for monitoring an object indicating the moisture content of the aerosol substrate during heating of the aerosol substrate;
a detection unit for detecting, based on the monitored object, an indication that the moisture content is different from a predetermined moisture content; and
An aerosol-generating device, comprising a signaling unit for generating, based on the detected indication, a control signal for stopping operation of the device. The aerosol-generating device according to claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit is configured to monitor the object of observation by obtaining a value of the object of observation at each of a plurality of time points during heating of the aerosol substrate. The method of claim 1 or 2, further comprising a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the heating unit,
wherein the monitoring unit is configured to obtain a signal indicative of the temperature of the heating unit from the temperature sensor. 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the detection unit is configured to detect the indication based on a deviation of the object of observation from a corresponding predetermined profile,
The object of observation is at least one of a thermal profile of the device, a moisture profile associated with the aerosol substrate, and an electrical energy profile of the device, respectively corresponding to the predetermined thermal profile, the predetermined moisture profile, and the predetermined electrical energy profile. An aerosol generating device comprising: 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the object of observation comprises a thermal profile of the device, wherein the predetermined thermal profile changes the aerosol substrate from a first predetermined value to a second predetermined value over a first predetermined length of time. Contains information about temperature changes for heating,
The detection unit is,
the monitored thermal profile differs from the predetermined thermal profile by more than a predetermined thermal threshold; and
the monitored thermal profile changes from the first predetermined value to the second predetermined value for a period of time that is less than a reference time length, and the reference time length is greater than or equal to the first predetermined time length;
An aerosol-generating device, configured to detect the indication if at least one of the aerosol-generating devices is present. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first predetermined value is one of an ambient temperature, an initial temperature of the aerosol substrate, and an initial temperature of the heater,
wherein the second predetermined value is a temperature of the device at which an aerosol or vapor is generated from the aerosol substrate. 7. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein the monitoring unit is configured to monitor the thermal profile by obtaining temperature values representative of the temperature associated with the device and one of the aerosol substrate at each of a plurality of time points during heating of the aerosol substrate. composed,
The detection unit is configured to detect the indication if at least one of the temperature values differs from a corresponding one of the reference values by more than the predetermined thermal threshold, the reference values being based on the information of the temperature change. Aerosol-generating device, as determined. 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the monitoring unit is configured to obtain, for each temperature value, an associated time measurement between the time heating of the aerosol substrate begins and the time the temperature indicated by the temperature value is reached,
The detection unit determines, for each temperature value, a point in time of the first predetermined length of time based on the associated time measurement, and sets the reference value to a temperature specified by information about the temperature change at the determined point in time. An aerosol-generating device configured to determine as. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 8, wherein the monitoring unit:
Measure a value representing the power in the device during heating of the aerosol substrate,
configured to monitor the electrical energy profile by accumulating a value representative of the power during heating of the aerosol substrate,
The predetermined electrical energy profile includes information representing a predetermined cumulative power value,
wherein the detection unit is configured to detect the indication if the cumulative value representing the power differs from the predetermined cumulative power value by more than a predetermined electrical energy threshold. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the monitoring unit is configured to measure a value indicative of the power based on at least one of a current output from a battery coupled to or within the device and a current provided to the heater. Generating device. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 10, wherein the aerosol generating device is configured to control the temperature of the heating unit by controlling at least one switching element using pulse width modulation,
wherein the monitoring unit is configured to monitor the electrical energy profile of the aerosol substrate by calculating the amount of electrical energy used for heating the aerosol substrate based on the length of time during which the at least one switching element is turned on by the pulse width modulation. Generating device. 12. An aerosol-generating device according to claim 11, wherein the monitoring unit is configured to calculate a cumulative length of time during which the at least one switching element is on and calculate an amount of electrical energy based on the cumulative length of time. A method of controlling an aerosol-generating device comprising a receptacle for receiving a consumable containing an aerosol substrate and a heating portion for heating the aerosol substrate, comprising:
monitoring an object indicative of moisture content of the aerosol substrate during heating of the aerosol substrate;
based on the monitored observation, detecting an indication that the moisture content is different from a predetermined moisture content; and
Based on the detected indication, generating a control signal to discontinue operation of the device. A computer program comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the method of claim 13.