RU2813732C2 - Aerosol delivery device that provides control of flavoring agents - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: aerosol production.

SUBSTANCE: group of inventions relates to aerosol delivery devices, in particular, to a cartridge for use in an aerosol delivery device and an aerosol delivery device with such a cartridge. The cartridge contains an air flow path passing through the cartridge, a reservoir made with the possibility of containing the composition of the aerosol precursor, a sprayer made with the possibility of vaporizing the composition of the aerosol precursor to form steam entrained by air passing along the air flow path, and a flavoring agent addition unit 520 containing many separate chambers surrounded by an outer shell. Moreover, at least one in the specified set of individual chambers contains a flavoring agent surrounding an internal channel passing through the specified at least one in the specified set of individual chambers. The inner channel is located on the path for the air flow and is formed by a porous tube made with the possibility of transferring the flavoring agent towards the inner channel so that the flavoring agent is carried away by the air passing through the inner channel. In this case, the flavoring agent addition unit 520 can be located both in front of the spray chamber 540 in the direction of flow, and after it. Unit 520 contains a reservoir 522 for a flavoring agent and a mask 524. The reservoir 522 contains a housing 556 and a lid 558, which can be made of polymers, ceramics or metals. The housing 556 can be made in the form of a cassette, which is designed to be removed from the cartridge 500. The reservoir 522 and the mask 524 may form a module that can be easily assembled as part of the cartridge, or alternatively may form a replaceable part of the cartridge. The aerosol delivery device contains a control housing and the above cartridge.

EFFECT: cartridge and the aerosol delivery device with such a cartridge provide the possibility of adding one or more flavor agents to the composition of the aerosol precursor at the request of the user.

23 cl, 9 dwg

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to aerosol delivery devices and, in particular, to an aerosol delivery device comprising a reservoir and an evaporation unit that can use electrical energy to heat an aerosol precursor composition to form an aerosol. The aerosol precursor composition, which may contain materials and/or components made or derived from or otherwise containing tobacco, is heated using a vaporization unit to produce an inhalable substance for human consumption.

BACKGROUND OF THE ART

Over the years, many smoking products have been proposed as improvements to smoking products or alternatives to smoking products that rely on the combustion of tobacco. Exemplary alternatives include devices that burn solid or liquid fuel to provide heat to the tobacco, or that use a chemical reaction to provide such a heat source. Examples include smoking articles described in US Pat. No. 9,078,473 to Worm et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.

The purpose of improved or alternative smoking products has generally been to provide the experience associated with smoking a cigarette, cigar or pipe, but without delivering significant amounts of incomplete combustion and pyrolysis products. To this end, numerous smoking products, flavor generators, and medicinal inhalers have been proposed that use electricity to vaporize or heat a volatile substance or attempt to provide the sensation of smoking a cigarette, cigar, or pipe without significantly burning the tobacco. For example, various known alternative smoking articles, aerosol delivery devices and heat generating sources are described in US Patent No. 7,726,320 to Robinson et al., and US Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0255702 to Griffith Jr. et al. and No. 2014/0096781 by Sears et al., which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. In addition, for example, various types of smoking articles, aerosol delivery devices, and electrical heat generating sources referenced by trademark or trade designation are disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0220232 to Bless et al., which is incorporated herein application via link. Additional types of smoking articles, aerosol delivery devices, and electrical heat generating sources referenced by trademark or trade designation are provided in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0245659 to DePiano et al., which is also incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. . Other exemplary cigarettes or smoking articles that are described and in some cases commercially available are presented in US Pat. No. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al.; Nos. 4922901, 4947874 and 4947875 by Brooks et al.; No. 5060671 by Counts et al.; No. 5249586 by Morgan et al.; No. 5388594 by Counts et al.; No. 5666977 by Higgins et al.; No. 6053176 by Adams et al.; No. 6164287 by White; No. 6196218 by Voges; No. 6810883 by Felter et al.; #6854461 by Nichols; No. 7832410 by Hon; No. 7513253 by Kobayashi; No. 7726320 by Robinson et al.; No. 7896006 by Hamano; No. 6772756 by Shayan; US Patent Application Publication No. 2009/0095311 by Hon; Nos.2006/0196518, 2009/0126745 and 2009/0188490 by Hon; No. 2009/0272379 by Thorens et al.; Nos. 2009/0260641 and 2009/0260642 by Monsees et al.; Nos. 2008/0149118 and 2010/0024834 by Oglesby et al.; No. 2010/0307518 by Wang; and WO 2010/091593 by Hon, which are incorporated herein by reference.

Typical products that share many of the attributes of traditional cigarettes, cigars or pipes are marketed under the ACCORD ^® brand names by Philip Morris Incorporated; ALPHA™, JOYE 510™ and M4™ by InnoVapor LLC; CIRRUS™ and FLING™ by White Cloud Cigarettes; BLU™ by Lorillard Technologies, Inc.; COHITA™, COLIBRI™, ELITE CLASSIC™, MAGNUM™, PHANTOM™ and SENSE™ by EPUFFER ^® International Inc.; DUOPRO™, STORM™ and VAPORKING ^® by Electronic Cigarettes, Inc.; EGAR™ by Egar Australia; eGo-C™ and eGo-T™ by Joyetech; ELUSION™ by Elusion UK Ltd; EONSMOKE ^® by Eonsmoke LLC; FIN™ by FIN Branding Group, LLC; SMOKE ^® by Green Smoke Inc. USA; GREENARETTE™ by Greenarette LLC; HALLIGAN™, HENDU™, JET™, MAXXQ™, PINK™ and PITBULL™ by SMOKE STIK ^® ; HEATBAR™ by Philip Morris International, Inc.; HYDRO IMPERIAL™ and LXE™ by Crown7; LOGIC™ and THE CUBAN™ by LOGIC Technology; LUCI ^® by Luciano Smokes Inc.; METRO ^® by Nicotek, LLC; NJOY ^® and ONEJOY™ by Sottera, Inc.; NO. 7™ by SS Choice LLC; PREMIUM ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE™ by PremiumEstore LLC; RAPP E-MYSTICK™ by Ruyan America, Inc.; RED DRAGON™ by Red Dragon Products, LLC; RUYAN ^® by Ruyan Group (Holdings) Ltd.; SF® by Smoker Friendly International, LLC; GREEN SMART SMOKER® by The Smart Smoking Electronic Cigarette Company Ltd.; SMOKE ASSIST ^® by Coastline Products LLC; SMOKING EVERYWHERE ^® by Smoking Everywhere, Inc.; V2CIGS™ by VMR Products LLC; VAPOR NINE™ by VaporNine LLC; VAPOR4LIFE ^® by Vapor 4 Life, Inc.; VEPPO™ by E-CigaretteDirect, LLC; VUSE ^® by R. J. Reynolds Vapor Company; Mistic Menthol product by Mistic Ecigs; and the Vype product by CN Creative Ltd. Other electrical aerosol delivery devices and in particular so-called electronic cigarettes are marketed under the brand names COOLER VISIONS™; DIRECT E-CIG™; DRAGONFLY™; EMIST™; EVERSMAKE™; ^GAMUCCI® ; HYBRID FLAME™; KNIGHT STICKS™; ROYAL BLUES™; SMOKETIP ^® ; SOUTH BEACH SMOKE™.

Certain available embodiments of aerosol delivery devices include a control housing (ie, a power supply unit) and a cartridge (ie, a reservoir housing). The control housing may house a power source (eg, a battery), and the cartridge may hold and/or store the aerosol precursor composition. It would be desirable to provide a cartridge configured to add one or more flavoring agents to the aerosol precursor composition as desired by the user.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, a cartridge is provided for use in an aerosol delivery device. In one embodiment, the cartridge includes a first reservoir configured to contain the aerosol precursor composition, and a nebulizer comprising a liquid transport element in fluid communication with the first reservoir, and a heating element configured to vaporize the aerosol precursor composition transported by the liquid transport element. In an exemplary embodiment, the cartridge may further comprise a second reservoir containing two or more separate chambers, one of which contains a flavoring agent. The cartridge is configured to provide air flow near the atomizer to entrain particles of the aerosol precursor composition evaporated by the heating element. The cartridge is configured to direct the air flow so that it passes through at least one of the chambers of the second reservoir to entrain the flavoring substance of the corresponding chamber.

In some embodiments, the cartridge may further comprise at least one mask on one side of the second reservoir configured to allow air flow therethrough, wherein the mask and the second reservoir are movable relative to each other such that the mask selectively and alternately directs air flow passing through a selected one or more chambers of the second tank.

In some embodiments, the chamber of the second reservoir includes an outer shell defining an inner surface that surrounds an internal channel formed by a porous tube, wherein the outer shell contains a flavoring agent, and the inner channel is configured to allow air flow through the chamber and entrain the airflow of the flavoring agent with inner surface.

In some embodiments, the cartridge is provided with visual markings to identify the chambers of the second reservoir.

In some embodiments, the chamber includes a feeder for staggered delivery of the flavoring agent. In one example, the chamber further includes an actuator for selectively releasing flavor from the feeder. In one embodiment, the flavoring agent is enclosed in a plurality of capsules. In one embodiment, the actuator is configured to destroy at least one of the capsules to release the flavoring agent. In one exemplary embodiment, the actuator includes a pair of gears. The teeth of the gears may interact such that rotation of the gears may cause the at least one capsule to be released from the feeder and the flavor to be released from the capsule, wherein the flavor is then entrained in the air flow. In one example, the actuator is activated by a mechanical button.

In some embodiments, the cartridge further includes a window in the feeder allowing the amount of flavor remaining in the feeder to be determined.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, an aerosol delivery device is provided. In one embodiment, the aerosol delivery device includes a control housing and a cartridge. In various embodiments, the cartridge includes a first reservoir configured to contain the aerosol precursor composition, and a nebulizer comprising a liquid transport element in fluid communication with the first reservoir, and a heating element configured to vaporize the aerosol precursor composition transported by the liquid transport element. In an exemplary embodiment, the cartridge may also include a second reservoir containing two or more separate chambers, one of which contains a flavor additive. The cartridge is configured to provide air flow near the atomizer to entrain particles of the aerosol precursor composition evaporated by the heating element. The cartridge is configured to direct the air flow so that it passes through at least one of the chambers of the second reservoir to entrain the flavoring substance of the corresponding chamber.

In some embodiments, the cartridge further includes at least one mask on one side of the second reservoir configured to allow air flow therethrough, the mask and the second reservoir being movable relative to each other such that the mask selectively and alternately directs air flow, passing through a selected one or more chambers of the second tank.

In some embodiments of the aerosol delivery device, the chamber of the second reservoir of the cartridge includes an outer shell defining an inner surface that surrounds an internal channel formed by a porous tube, wherein the outer shell contains a flavoring agent, and the inner channel is configured to allow air to flow through the chamber and entrain the flavoring agent. substances from the inner surface.

In some embodiments of the aerosol delivery device, at least one of the cartridge and control housing is provided with visual markings to identify the chambers of the second reservoir.

In some embodiments of the aerosol delivery device, the chamber of the cartridge contains a feeder for staggered delivery of the flavoring agent. In some embodiments, the chamber further includes an actuator for selectively releasing flavor from the feeder. In some embodiments, the flavoring agent is enclosed in a plurality of capsules. In some embodiments, the actuator is configured to destroy at least one of the capsules to release the flavoring agent. In one embodiment, the actuator comprises a pair of gears, wherein the teeth of the gears interact such that rotation of the gears can cause the at least one capsule to be released from the feeder and the flavor to be released from the capsule, wherein the flavor is then entrained in the air flow. In one example, the actuator is activated by a mechanical button.

In some embodiments of the aerosol delivery device, the cartridge further includes a window in the feeder that allows the amount of flavor remaining in the chamber to be determined.

It should be understood that the Disclosure of the Invention is provided only for the purpose of summarizing certain exemplary embodiments in order to provide a basic understanding of certain aspects of the invention. Thus, it should be understood that the above described exemplary aspects are only examples of certain aspects and should in no way be construed as limiting the scope and spirit of the invention. It should be noted that the scope of the invention covers many potential aspects, some of which are described in more detail below in addition to those given in this section. In addition, other features, aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which show, by way of example, the principles of the described aspects.

The invention includes, without limitation, the following embodiments.

Embodiment 1: A cartridge for use in an aerosol delivery device, comprising: a first reservoir configured to contain an aerosol precursor composition; a sprayer comprising: a liquid transport element in fluid communication with the first reservoir; and a heating element configured to vaporize the aerosol precursor composition transported by the liquid transport element; and a second reservoir containing two or more separate chambers, one of which contains a flavoring agent, wherein the cartridge is configured to provide air flow adjacent to the atomizer to entrain particles of the aerosol precursor composition evaporated by the heating element, and wherein the cartridge is configured to direct the air flow such that it passes through at least one of the chambers of the second reservoir to entrain the flavoring agent of the corresponding chamber.

Embodiment 2: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, further comprising: at least one mask on one side of a second reservoir configured to allow air flow therethrough, the mask and the second reservoir being movable relative to each other, so that the mask selectively and alternately directs a flow of air passing through one or more chambers of the second reservoir.

Embodiment 3: A cartridge according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the chambers of the second reservoir comprise an outer shell defining an inner surface that surrounds an inner channel, the outer shell containing a flavoring agent and the inner channel comprising a porous tube configured to provide passage of air flow through the chamber and entrainment of the flavoring substance from the inner surface.

Embodiment 4: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the cartridge is provided with visual markings to identify the chambers of the second reservoir.

Embodiment 5 of the invention: A cartridge in accordance with any previous embodiment, further comprising a feeder for staggered supply of flavoring substances.

Embodiment 6: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, further comprising an actuator for selectively releasing flavor from the feeder.

Embodiment 7: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the flavoring agent is enclosed in a plurality of capsules.

Embodiment 8: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the actuator is configured to break at least one of the capsules to release the flavoring agent.

Embodiment 9: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the actuator comprises a pair of gears, the teeth of the gears interacting such that rotation of the gears can cause the at least one capsule to be released from the feeder and the flavor to be released from the capsule, wherein the flavoring substance is then carried away by the air flow.

Embodiment 10: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the actuator is activated by a mechanical button.

Embodiment 11: A cartridge according to any preceding embodiment, comprising a window in the feeder allowing the amount of flavor remaining in the feeder to be determined.

Embodiment 12 of the invention: An aerosol delivery device comprising: a control body and a cartridge comprising: a first reservoir configured to contain an aerosol precursor composition; a sprayer comprising: a liquid transport element in fluid communication with the first reservoir; and a heating element configured to evaporate the aerosol precursor composition transported by the liquid transport element; and a second reservoir containing two or more separate chambers, one of which contains a flavoring agent, wherein the cartridge is configured to direct an air flow adjacent to the atomizer to entrain particles of the aerosol precursor composition evaporated by the heating element, and wherein the cartridge is configured to direct the air flow such that it passes through at least one of the chambers of the second reservoir to entrain the flavoring agent of the corresponding chamber.

Embodiment 13: An aerosol delivery device according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the cartridge further comprises: at least one mask on one side of a second reservoir configured to allow air flow therethrough, wherein the mask and the second reservoir are configured to movements relative to each other such that the mask selectively and alternately directs a flow of air passing through one or more chambers of the second reservoir.

Embodiment 14 of the invention: An aerosol delivery device according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the chambers of the second cartridge reservoir comprise an outer shell defining an inner surface that surrounds an inner channel, the outer shell containing a flavoring agent and the inner channel comprising a porous tube configured with the ability to ensure the passage of air flow through the chamber and entrain the flavoring substance from the inner surface.

Embodiment 15: An aerosol delivery device according to any preceding embodiment, wherein at least one of the cartridge and the control body is provided with visual markings to identify the chambers of the second reservoir.

Embodiment 16: An aerosol delivery device according to any of the preceding embodiments, further comprising a feeder for staging the delivery of a flavoring agent.

Embodiment 17: An aerosol delivery device according to any preceding embodiment, further comprising an actuator for selectively releasing flavor from the feeder.

Embodiment 18: An aerosol delivery device according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the flavoring agent is enclosed in a plurality of capsules.

Embodiment 19: An aerosol delivery device according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the actuator is configured to rupture at least one of the capsules to release the flavoring agent.

Embodiment 20: An aerosol delivery device according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the actuator comprises a pair of gears, the teeth of the gears interacting such that rotation of the gears can cause the at least one capsule to be released from the feeder and the flavor to be released from the feeder. capsules, and the flavoring substance is then carried away by the air flow.

Embodiment 21 of the invention: The aerosol delivery device in accordance with any previous embodiment is provided with a mechanical button to start the actuator.

Embodiment 22: An aerosol delivery device according to any preceding embodiment, wherein the cartridge includes a window in the feeder allowing the amount of flavor remaining in the chamber to be determined.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which are briefly described below. The invention includes any combination of two, three, four or more of the embodiments described above, as well as combinations of any two, three, four or more features or elements set forth in the present specification, regardless of whether such features or elements are expressly combined in a particular description of the embodiment presented in this application. This specification is intended to be read in its entirety, such that any separable features or elements of the invention described in any of its various aspects and embodiments are to be considered interchangeable unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING FIGURES

To provide an understanding of aspects of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily to scale and in which like elements are given like reference numerals. The drawings are provided by way of example only and should not be construed as limiting the invention.

In FIG. 1 is a side view of an aerosol delivery device comprising a cartridge and a control housing in an assembled configuration in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

in FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the control housing of FIG. 1, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

in FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the cartridge of FIG. 1, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

in FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a cartridge for use in an aerosol delivery device in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

in FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a flavor addition unit in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the cartridge of FIG. 4;

in FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a flavor reservoir in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the flavor addition assembly of FIG. 5;

in FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a cartridge for use in an aerosol delivery device in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

in FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a flavor adding unit according to an exemplary embodiment of the cartridge of FIG. 7;

in FIG. 9A and 9B show one exemplary embodiment of operating the flavor adding unit of FIG. 8.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to exemplary embodiments. These exemplary embodiments are described in such a manner that the present invention will be presented in a comprehensive and complete manner to fully disclose its scope to one skilled in the art. Of course, the present invention can be implemented in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described in this application; rather, these embodiments are presented in such a way that the present invention satisfies the relevant legal requirements. As used in the specification and in the appended claims, the singular forms include the plural forms unless the context clearly states otherwise.

The present invention relates to aerosol delivery devices. Aerosol delivery devices can use electrical energy to heat a material to produce an inhalable substance; however, such products may be compact enough to be considered “portable” devices. The aerosol delivery device may provide some or all of the sensations (eg, inhalation and exhalation rituals, types of tastes or aromas, organoleptic effects, physical sensation, usage rituals, visual stimuli such as those created by a visible aerosol, etc.) of smoking a cigarette, cigar or tube without actually burning to any significant extent any of the components of that article or device. An aerosol delivery device may not produce smoke in the sense that the aerosol is the result of by-products of combustion or pyrolysis of tobacco, but rather the article or device may produce vapors (including vapors in aerosols that may be considered visible aerosols and may be described as smoke-like) that resulting from the volatilization or evaporation of certain components of an article or device, although in other embodiments the aerosol may not be visible. In some embodiments, aerosol delivery devices may contain tobacco and/or tobacco-derived components. Thus, the aerosol delivery device may be characterized as an electronic smoking product such as an electronic cigarette.

While systems generally are described herein with respect to embodiments of the invention associated with aerosol delivery devices such as electronic cigarettes, it should be noted that the mechanisms, components, elements and methods can be implemented in many different forms and are associated with various products. For example, the disclosure provided herein may be used in combination with embodiments of traditional smoking products (e.g., cigarettes, cigars, pipes, etc.), cigarettes that use heating rather than combustion of tobacco, and related packaging for any of the products described in this application. In addition, it should be noted that the description of the mechanisms, components, elements and methods disclosed in this application are presented in relation to embodiments of the invention related to aerosol delivery devices by way of example only and may be implemented and used in various other products and methods.

The aerosol delivery devices of the present invention can also be characterized as vapor generating products or drug delivery products. Thus, such articles or devices may be adapted to deliver one or more substances (eg, flavoring agents and/or pharmaceutically active ingredients) in an inhalable form or state. For example, inhalable substances may be substantially in the form of a vapor (ie, a substance in the gas phase at a temperature that is lower than its critical point). In an alternative embodiment, the inhalable substances may be in the form of an aerosol (ie, a suspension of fine solid particles or liquid droplets in a gas). For the sake of simplicity, as used herein, the term "aerosol" is intended to refer to vapors, gases and aerosols of a form or type suitable for human inhalation, whether or not visible and whether or not in a form that can be considered "like smoke."

The aerosol delivery devices of the invention may, when in use, be subject to various physical impacts caused by a person using a traditional type of smoking product (for example, a cigarette, cigar or pipe that is consumed by lighting and inhaling tobacco). For example, a user of an aerosol delivery device of the present invention may hold the article in a manner similar to a traditional type of smoking article, take a puff from one end of the article to inhale the aerosol produced by the article, take puffs at selected time intervals, and the like.

The aerosol delivery devices of the invention typically comprise a number of components located within an outer housing or shell. The overall design of the outer housing or shell may vary, and the format or configuration of the outer housing, which may define the overall size and shape of the aerosol delivery device, may also vary. Typically, an elongated body, shaped like a cigarette or cigar, can be made from a single solid shell; or the elongated body may be formed from two or more separable components. For example, the aerosol delivery device may comprise an elongated casing or body, which may be substantially tubular in shape and suitably similar in shape to a conventional cigarette or cigar. However, in other embodiments of the invention, various other shapes and configurations (eg, rectangular or keychain shape) may be used.

In one exemplary embodiment, all components of the aerosol delivery device are located within a single outer housing or shell. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the aerosol delivery device may comprise two or more shells that are connected to each other and are removable. For example, at one end of the aerosol delivery device there may be a control housing that contains an enclosure containing one or more reusable components (for example, a rechargeable battery and various electronics for controlling the operation of the product), and at the other end of the device there may be a shell containing a replaceable part (for example, a replaceable cartridge containing flavoring additives) is attached with the possibility of detachment. More specific formats, configurations and arrangements of components in an integral shell or in a removable multi-component shell will become apparent in light of the further disclosure of the invention presented in this application. In addition, various aerosol delivery device designs and component arrangements can be understood upon consideration of commercially available electronic aerosol delivery devices.

Aerosol delivery devices of the present invention may comprise some combination of a power source (i.e., a power source), at least one control component (e.g., means for actuating, controlling, regulating, and/or stopping power to generate heat for example, by controlling electrical current flowing from a power source to other components of the aerosol delivery device), a heater or heat generating component (e.g., an electrical resistive or inductive heating element or component commonly referred to as a "nebulizer" portion), and an aerosol precursor composition (e.g., typically a liquid capable of producing an aerosol when subjected to sufficient heat, such as the ingredients commonly referred to as "smoking juice," "e-liquid," and "e-juice"), and an area or end of a mouthpiece to provide the ability to puff from the aerosol delivery device for the purpose of inhaling the aerosol (eg, a predetermined path for air flow through the product such that the generated aerosol can be extracted through it when puffed).

The alignment of components within the proposed aerosol delivery device may vary. In specific embodiments of the invention, the aerosol precursor composition may be located near the end of the aerosol delivery device, which may be configured to be positioned near the user's mouth so as to maximize delivery of the aerosol to the user. However, other configurations are not excluded. Typically, the heating element may be located sufficiently close to the aerosol precursor composition so that heat from the heating element can vaporize the aerosol precursor (which may itself contain one or more flavors, drugs, or other additives) and form an aerosol for delivery to the user. When the heating element heats the aerosol precursor composition, an aerosol is formed, released, or formed in a physical form suitable for inhalation by the consumer. It should be noted that the above terms should be considered interchangeable, so that forms of the above term such as “release, release, releases or released” include forms such as “form or create, formation or creation, forms or creates and formed or created." In particular, the inhalable substance is released in the form of a vapor or aerosol, or a mixture thereof, such terms also being used interchangeably in this application except where otherwise indicated.

As discussed above, the aerosol delivery device may include a battery and/or other power source (e.g., a capacitor) to supply sufficient electrical current to provide various functionality of the aerosol delivery device, such as powering a heater, powering control systems, powering indicators, etc. P. The power supply may be configured in accordance with various embodiments. In one example, the power supply is configured to supply sufficient energy to rapidly heat the heating element to generate an aerosol and power the aerosol delivery device for use for the required period of time. The power source may be sized to fit comfortably within the aerosol delivery device so that the aerosol delivery device can be conveniently used. In addition, in one embodiment, the power source is lightweight enough to not interfere with the smoking process.

More specific formats, configurations and arrangements of components within an aerosol delivery device in accordance with the present invention will become apparent in light of the further disclosure of the invention presented below. In addition, the selection of various components of the aerosol delivery device can be understood after considering commercially available aerosol delivery devices. In addition, the arrangement of components in the aerosol delivery device may also be understood by consideration of commercially available electronic aerosol delivery devices. Examples of commercially available products for which components thereof, methods of their operation, materials included therein, and/or other attributes thereof may be included in devices in accordance with the present invention, as well as manufacturers, developers and/or patent holders of components and related technologies that can be used in an aerosol delivery device in accordance with the present invention are described in US patent application No. 15/222615, filed July 28, 2016, by Watson et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

One exemplary embodiment of an aerosol delivery device 100 is depicted in FIG. 1. In particular, in FIG. 1 depicts an aerosol delivery device 100 including a control housing 200 and a cartridge 300. The control housing 200 and cartridge 300 may be permanently aligned or removably aligned during operation. The cartridge 300 may be connected to the control housing 200 through various mechanisms, including threaded interaction, press fit interaction, interference fit, magnetic interaction, and the like. The aerosol delivery device 100 may be substantially rod-shaped, substantially tubular, or substantially cylindrical in some embodiments when the cartridge 300 and control housing 200 are in an assembled state. However, as noted above, in other embodiments of the invention, various other configurations may be used, such as a rectangular configuration or a keychain configuration. In addition, although aerosol delivery devices are generally described herein as having the size and shape of a traditional smoking article, other embodiments may use different configurations and larger capacity reservoirs, which may be referred to as "canisters."

In specific embodiments of the invention, the cartridge 300 and/or the control body 200 may be disposable or reusable. For example, the control housing 200 may contain a replaceable battery or a rechargeable battery and/or a capacitor and thus may be combined with any type of charger, including a connection to a wall charger, a connection to a vehicle charger (i.e., a cigarette lighter receptacle) ) and connection to a computer, such as via a universal serial bus (USB) cable or connector (e.g. USB 2.0, 3.0, 3.1, USB Type-C), connection to a photovoltaic cell (sometimes called a solar photovoltaic cell), or a solar photovoltaic panel, or with a wireless charger, such as a charger using inductive wireless charging (including, for example, wireless charging in accordance with the Qi wireless charging standard from the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC)) or with a wireless radio frequency charger. An exemplary inductive wireless charging system is described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0112196 to Sur et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Additionally, in some embodiments, the cartridge 300 may comprise a disposable cartridge, as described in US Pat. No. 8,910,639 to Chang et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. For example, cartridge 300 may contain a limited amount of an aerosol precursor composition to provide many of the experiences (e.g., inhalation and exhalation rituals, types of flavors or aromas, organoleptic effects, etc.) of smoking a certain amount of traditional type smoking products (e.g., cigarettes, cigars) , tubes, etc.). In some aspects, cartridge 300 may contain an amount of the aerosol precursor composition equivalent to the number of conventional types of smoking products that could be consumed to obtain the smoking experience of a typical number of conventional types of smoking products (e.g., a typical pack of cigarettes - i.e., twenty (20) ) cigarettes).

In FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the control housing 200 of the aerosol delivery device 100 (see FIG. 1) in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the drawing, the control housing 200 may include a sleeve 202, an outer housing 204, a sealing element 206, an adhesive element 208 (for example, KAPTON® tape), a flow sensor 210 (for example, a puff sensor or a pressure switch), a control component 212, a spacer a sleeve 214, a power source 216 (e.g., a capacitor and/or a battery that may be rechargeable), a circuit board with at least one indicator 218, such as a light emitting diode (LED) that can communicate to the consumer the status of the battery, the flavor, liquids and/or combinations thereof using various types of sensors (pressure, resistance, humidity, etc.), connecting circuit 220 and end cap 222. Examples of power supplies are described in US Patent No. 9,484,155 by Peckerar et al., which is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.

With respect to the flow sensor 210, corresponding current control components and other current control components, including various microcontrollers, sensors and switches, for aerosol delivery devices are described in US Pat. No. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al., No. 24922901 to Brooks et al., No. 4,947,874 to by Brooks et al., #4947875 by Brooks et al., #5372148 by McCafferty et al., #6040560 by Fleischhauer et al., #7040314 by Nguyen et al., and #8205622 by Pan, who are in full incorporated herein by reference. In addition, control circuits are described in US Patent No. 9,423,152 to Ampolini et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In one embodiment, indicator 218 may include one or more light-emitting diodes. Indicator 218 may be communicatively coupled to control component 212 via interconnect circuit 220 and may illuminate, for example, when a user takes a puff through a cartridge coupled to coupling 202, which may be detected by flow sensor 210. End cap 222 may be configured to provide visibility of the glow produced by the indicator 218 underneath. Accordingly, the indicator 218 may glow during use of the aerosol delivery device 100 to simulate the burning end of a smoking article. However, in other embodiments of the invention, the indicator 218 may be present in a different number, may have other shapes, and may even be an opening in the outer housing (such as to allow sound release when such indicators are present).

Other additional components may be used in the aerosol delivery device of the present invention. For example, US Pat. No. 5,154,192 to Sprinkel et al. describes indicators for smoking articles; in US patent No. 5261424 by Sprinkel Jr. piezoelectric sensors are described that can be coupled to the mouth end of the device to detect puff-related lip activity of a user and then trigger heating; US Pat. No. 2,5372,148 to McCafferty et al. describes a puff sensor for controlling the flow of energy into a heating load matrix in response to a drop in mouthpiece pressure; US Pat. No. 5,967,148 to Harris et al. describes receptacles in a smoking device that include an identifier that detects a discontinuity in the infrared transmittance of an inserted component and a controller that executes a detection routine when said component is inserted into the receptacle; US Pat. No. 6,040,560 to Fieischhauer et al. describes a predetermined executable power on/off cycle with multiple different phases; US Pat. No. 5,934,289 by Watkins et al. describes photonic-optocoupler components; US Pat. No. 5,954,979 to Counts et al. describes a means for varying the resistance to draw through a smoking device; US Pat. No. 6,803,545 to Biake et al. describes specific battery configurations for use in smoking devices; US Pat. No. 7,293,565 to Griffen et al. describes various charging systems for use with smoking devices; US Pat. No. 8,402,976 to Fernando et al. describes a computer interface means for smoking devices to facilitate charging and enable computer control of smoking devices; US Pat. No. 8,689,804 to Fernando et al. describes identification systems for smoking devices; and WO 2010/003480 by Flick describes a system for detecting fluid flow indicating puffiness in an aerosol generation system; all of the above inventions are incorporated by reference in their entirety into this application. Additional examples of components related to aerosol delivery electronic products and materials or components that may be used in the product are provided in US Pat. Nos. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,586 to Morgan et al., and U.S. Patent No. 5,666,977 to Higgins et al.; No. 6053176 by Adams et al.; No. 6164287 by White; No. 6196218 by Voges; No. 6810883 by Felter et al.; #6854461 by Nichols; No. 7832410 by Hon; No. 7513253 by Kobayashi; No. 7896006 by Hamano; No. 6772756 by Shayan; No. 8156944 and No. 8375957 by Hon; No. 8794231 by Thorens et al., No. 8851083 by Oglesby et al., No. 8915254 and No. 8925555 by Monsees et al.; and No. 9220302 by DePiano et al.; US Patent Application Publications No. 2006/0196518 and No. 2009/0188490 by Hon, No. 2010/0024834 by Ogiesby et al., No. 2010/0307518 by Wang, WO 2010/091593 by Hon, and WO 2013/089551 by Foo, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Various materials described in the above-mentioned documents may be included in the present devices according to various embodiments, and all of the above descriptions are incorporated by reference in their entirety herein.

In FIG. 3 shows the cartridge 300 of the aerosol delivery device 100 (see FIG. 1) in disassembled form. As shown in the drawing, the cartridge 300 may include a base 302, a control component output 304, an electronic component 306, a flow direction device 308, an atomizer 310, a reservoir 312 (e.g., a fluid cartridge or reservoir substrate), an outer housing 314, a mouthpiece 316, and a label. 318 and first and second heating terminals 320, 321 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Label 318 or outer housing 314 may be marked 330 to provide the user with indications of internal components or functionality, such as flavor reservoirs, as described below.

In some embodiments, the first and second heating terminals 320, 321 may be incorporated into or otherwise connected to the flow direction device 308. For example, the first and second heating leads 320, 321 may be molded with an insert in the flow direction device 308. Accordingly, the flow direction device 308 and the first and second heating terminals are collectively referred to herein as the flow direction device assembly 322. Additional description of the first and second heating terminals 320, 321 and the flow direction device 308 is presented in US Patent Publication No. 2015/0335071 to Brinkiey et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The atomizer 310 in accordance with the illustrated embodiment may include a fluid transport element 324 and a heating element 326. The cartridge may further include a base transport plug interacting with the base and/or a mouthpiece transport plug interacting with the mouthpiece to protect the base and mouthpiece and prevent entry into them contaminants before use, as described, for example, in US patent N? 9,220,302 by Depiano et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The base 302 may be coupled to a first end of the outer housing 314, and the mouthpiece 316 may be coupled to an opposing second end of the outer housing to substantially or completely enclose other components of the cartridge 300 located therein. For example, a control component lead 304, an electronic component 306, a device 308 flow directions, atomizer 310, and reservoir 312 may be substantially or entirely located within the outer housing 314. A label 318 may at least partially surround the outer housing 314 and optionally the base 302 and include information such as a product identifier printed thereon. The base 302 may be configured to interact with the clutch 202 of the control housing 200 (see, for example, FIG. 2). In some embodiments, the base 302 may include anti-rotation elements that substantially prevent relative rotation between the cartridge and the control housing, as described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0261495 to Novak et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. .

Reservoir 312 may be configured to hold the aerosol precursor composition. In addition, certain typical aerosol precursor components and compositions are presented and characterized in US Pat. No. 7,726,320 to Robinson et al., US Pat. No. 8,881,737 to Collett et al., and US Pat. No. 9,254,002 to Chong et al.; publications of US patent applications No. 2013/0008457 by Zheng et al., No. 2015/0020823 by Lipowicz et al. and No. 2015/0020830 by Koller, and WO 2014/182736 by Bowen et al., contents which are incorporated herein by reference. Other aerosol precursors that can be used in an aerosol delivery device include the aerosol precursors included in R.J.'s VUSE® product. Reynoids Vapor Company, BLU product from Lorillard Technoiogies, MISTIC MENTHOL product from Mistic Ecigs and VYPE product from CN Creative Ltd. Also desirable are the so-called "smoking juices" for electronic cigarettes manufactured by Johnson Creek Enterprises LLC. Embodiments of effervescent materials that can be used with an aerosol precursor are described by way of example in US Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0055494 to Hunt et al., the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. In addition, the use of effervescent materials is described, for example, in US patents No. 4639368 to Niazi et al., No. 5178878 to Wehling et al., No. 5223264 to Wehhng et al., No. 6974590 to Pather et al., no. 7381667 by Bergquist et al., No. 8424541 by Crawford et al., No. 8627828 by Strickland et al., and No. 9307787 by Sun et al.; as well as US Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0018539 to Brinkley et al. and PCT International Application Publication WO 97/06786 to Johnson et al., which are incorporated herein by reference. Additional description of embodiments of aerosol precursor compositions, including a description of tobacco or tobacco-derived components, is provided in US Patent Application Publications No. 15/216582 and US Pat. No. 15/216590, filed July 21, 2016, by Davis et al., which are in full incorporated herein by reference.

The reservoir 312 may contain multiple layers of nonwoven fibers formed into a tube surrounding the interior of the outer housing 314 of the cartridge 300. Thus, the reservoir 312 may sorptionally retain, for example, liquid components. Reservoir 312 is fluidly connected to fluid transport element 324. Thus, liquid transport element 324 may be configured to transport liquid from reservoir 312 to heating element 326 through capillary forces or other liquid transport mechanisms. The reservoir 312 is not limited to the type of absorption layer reservoir substrate. Reservoir 312 may include a housing or canister that holds the aerosol precursor as a free-flowing liquid. Reservoir 312 may or may not be refillable.

As shown, fluid transport element 324 may be in direct contact with heating element 326. As further shown in FIG. 3, the heating element 326 may include a wire forming a plurality of turns wound around the fluid transport element 324. In some embodiments, heating element 326 may be formed by winding wire around fluid transport element 324, as described in US Pat. No. 9,210,738 to Ward et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Additionally, in some embodiments, the wire may form variable pitch turns, as described in US Pat. No. 9,277,770 to DePiano et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Various embodiments of materials configured to generate heat when electrical current is passed through may be used to form the heating element 326. Examples of materials from which the wire coil may be formed include kanthal (FeCrAl); nichrome; molybdenum disilicide (MoSi ₂ ); molybdenum silicide (MoSi); molybdenum disilicide doped with aluminum (Mo(Si,Al) ₂ ); graphite and graphite-based materials; and ceramics (for example, ceramics with a positive or negative coefficient of thermal expansion).

However, various other embodiments of methods may be used to form the heating element 326, and various other embodiments of heating elements may be used in the atomizer 310. For example, the atomizer may use a stamped heating element, as described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0270729 to DePiano et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In addition to the above, additional typical heating elements and materials for use in these elements are described in US Pat. No. 5,060,671 to Counts et al., No. 5,093,894 to Deevi et al.); No. 5224498 by Deevi et al., No. 5228460 by Sprinkel Jr. et al., No. 5322075 by Deevi et al., No. 5353813 by Deevi et al., No. 5468936 by Deevi et al., No. 5498850 by Das, No. 5659656 by Das, No. 5498855 by Deevi et al. ., No. 5530225 by Hajaligol, No. 5665262 by Hajaligol, No. 5573692 by Das et al., and No. 5591368 by Fieischhauer et al., which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Additionally, in other embodiments of the invention, chemical heating may be used. Various additional examples of heaters and materials used to form the heaters are described in US Pat. No. 8,881,737 to Collett et al., which is incorporated herein by reference as stated above.

Various heater components may be used in the present aerosol delivery device. In various embodiments, one or more microheaters or similar solid-state heaters may be used. Microheaters and atomizers containing microheaters suitable for use in the devices of the present invention are disclosed in US Pat. No. 8,881,737 to Collett et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The first heating terminal 320 and the second heating terminal 321 (e.g., positive and negative heating terminals) are configured to interact with opposite ends of the heating element 326 and to form an electrical connection with the control housing 200 (see, for example, FIG. 2) when the cartridge 300 is connected to it. In addition, when the control housing 200 is connected to the cartridge 300, the electronic component 306 may form an electrical connection with the control housing through the control component terminal 304. The control housing 200 may thus use the electronic control component 212 (see FIG. 2) to determine the authenticity of the cartridge 300 and/or perform other functions. In addition, various examples of electronic control components and the functions performed by these components are described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0096781 to Sears et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

During use, the user may puff through the mouthpiece 316 of the cartridge 300 of the aerosol delivery device 100 (see FIG. 1). This may cause air to pass through an opening in the control housing 200 (see, for example, FIG. 2) or in the cartridge 300. For example, in one embodiment, an opening may be provided between the sleeve 202 and the outer housing 204 of the control housing 200 (see eg, FIG. 2), as described in US Pat. No. 9,220,302 to DePiano et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. However, in other embodiments of the invention, air flow may be received through other parts of the aerosol delivery device 100. As discussed above, in some embodiments, the cartridge 300 may include a flow direction device 308. The flow direction device 308 may be configured to direct the flow of air received from the control housing 200 to the heating element 326 of the atomizer 310.

A sensor in the aerosol delivery device 100 (eg, flow sensor 210 in the control housing 200; see FIG. 2) may detect the puff. When a puff is detected, control housing 200 may direct electrical current to heating element 326 through circuitry comprising first heating terminal 320 and second heating terminal 321. Accordingly, heating element 326 may vaporize an aerosol precursor composition directed to the aerosol generation zone from reservoir 312 by transport element 324 liquids. Thus, the mouthpiece 326 may allow air and entrained vapor (ie, the components of the aerosol precursor composition in a respirable form) to pass through it from the cartridge 300 to the user taking a puff through the mouthpiece.

Various other details regarding components that may be contained in the cartridge 300 are provided, for example, in US Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0261495 to DePiano et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Additional components that may be included in the cartridge 300 and details regarding them are set forth, for example, in US Patent Publication No. 2015/0335071 to Brinkley et al., filed May 23, 2014, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The various components of the aerosol delivery device of the present invention may be selected from the known and commercially available components described. For example, reference is made to a reservoir and heater system for controlled delivery of various atomized materials in an electronic smoking article described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0000638 to Sebastian et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In another embodiment, substantially the entire cartridge may be made of one or more carbon materials, which may provide biodegradability and wire-free benefits. In this regard, the heating element may comprise carbon foam, the reservoir may comprise carbonized fabric, and the graphite may be used to form an electrical connection to the power source and control component. An exemplary embodiment of a carbon-based cartridge is described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0255702 to Griffith et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

However, in some embodiments, it may be desirable to provide aerosol delivery devices and, in particular, cartridges for use in aerosol delivery devices with alternative configurations. In this regard, in FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a cartridge 500 for use in an aerosol delivery device in accordance with a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Unless otherwise described and/or depicted, the components of the aerosol delivery device, and in particular the control housing for use with the illustrated cartridge, may be substantially the same as or the same as the corresponding components described above.

As shown in FIG. 4-6, and as described in more detail below, the cartridge 500 of the illustrated embodiment includes the following components: a mouthpiece 504, a main reservoir 508, an atomizer 510 (which contains a liquid transport element 512 and a heating element 514), a flavor addition unit 520 that contains a flavor reservoir 522, and a flavor switch in the form of a mask 524 that forms a control device for the air flow path, and a cartridge base 530 configured to provide a mechanical and electrical connection between the cartridge and the control housing. As is clear from the above description, the cartridge 500 shown in FIG. 4-6 may be configured to releasably engage with the control housing by means of the cartridge base 530 so as to form an aerosol delivery device. In various embodiments, the control housing may be similar to or the same as the control housing 200 described above (see FIG. 2), and therefore the description thereof will not be repeated. However, it should be noted that in other embodiments, the control housing may differ from that described above. Additionally, in some embodiments, the control housing of the aerosol delivery device may be shaped differently than described above, such as a portable control housing in the form of a key fob.

In various embodiments, the main reservoir 508 may be a balloon-type reservoir made from one or more of a variety of materials, including, for example, a metal material, a glass material, a ceramic material, and/or a plastic material, such as, for example, an acrylic material (eg for example, polymethyl methacrylate, polyethylene, polyester, etc.). In some embodiments, the main reservoir 508 may contain a translucent or transparent material so that the user can see the amount of aerosol precursor composition remaining therein. In one embodiment, the main reservoir 508 is made of polycarbonate, polypropylene, or Tritan™. In some embodiments, the main reservoir 508 is configured as a canister for containing the liquid aerosol precursor composition as a free-flowing liquid. In alternative embodiments, the main reservoir 508 may include a porous material for containing the aerosol precursor composition, as described above with respect to the reservoir 312 (FIG. 3).

The base 530 of the cartridge 500 and the corresponding connector of the control body 200 (FIG. 2) are designed in such a way that when connected to each other, the base of the cartridge and the control body are difficult to move relative to each other. It should be noted that such a connection can be created using any suitable connecting means as described above. For example, in some embodiments, the cartridge base and the control body may be connected via a threaded connection, a magnetic connection, a snap connection, and/or a bayonet connection, wherein the cartridge base (or control body) may include one or more pins and the control body (or base cartridge) may contain one or more corresponding L-shaped slots.

As described above, one aspect of the cartridge base 530 may be to provide an electrical connection to the power supply 216 of the control housing 200 (FIG. 2) so that electrical current can be selectively applied to the atomizer 510 and, in particular, to the heating element 514.

In various embodiments, the fluid transport element 512 may comprise a porous monolith. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the liquid transport element 512 may comprise a ceramic material such that an aerosol precursor composition supplied to the liquid transport element 512 can be absorbed therein to form an aerosol. In another example, the transport element 512 may be made of quartz fiber, cotton, mesh, other porous metals, or other cellulose-based materials. In one embodiment, a precisely shaped ceramic fluid transport element can be manufactured using additive manufacturing or 3D printing technologies. The fluid transport element 512 may be secured directly to the openings created in the main reservoir 508. Alternatively, an additional sponge disk, such as a porous pad made of polymers, ceramics, or the like, may be positioned between the fluid transport element 512 and the main reservoir 508. . with high absorbent capacity. In various embodiments, the heating element 514 may be wrapped or wound around the fluid transport element 512, as shown in the drawing. In some embodiments, the heating element wire 514 may contain titanium, kanthal (FeCrAl), nichrome, nickel, stainless steel, molybdenum disilicide ( _MoSi2 ), molybdenum silicide (MoSi), aluminum alloyed molybdenum disilicide (Mo(Si,Al) ₂ ), graphite and graphite-based materials; ceramics (eg, positive or negative temperature coefficient ceramics), tungsten and tungsten-based alloys, or any other suitable materials such as those specified elsewhere herein. Tungsten and tungsten-based alloys may be useful in that these materials may determine an expansion coefficient suitable for use with many ceramic materials that may be used in fluid transport element 512.

As noted, in accordance with some embodiments, the atomizer 510 may be formed by winding a wire around the fluid transport element 324, as described in US Pat. No. 9,210,738 to Ward et al., which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. However, various other methods may be used to form the atomizer 510, and various other heating element embodiments may be used in the atomizer. For example, a metal mesh may be positioned around a cylindrical wick, or a ribbon-shaped metal mesh may be located on a band-like or sheet-like wick. For example, the heating element may be configured to heat an aerosol precursor composition located within the fluid transport element by radiation heating, as described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0020193, filed December 3, 2015, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by links. In other embodiments, the heating element 514 may be configured to heat the aerosol precursor composition by induction heating, as described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0127722, filed November 6, 2015, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Various heater components may be used in the present aerosol delivery device. In various embodiments, one or more microheaters or similar solid-state heaters may be used. Microheaters and atomizers containing microheaters suitable for use in the devices of the present invention are disclosed in US Pat. No. 8,881,737 to Collett et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Although not depicted as such, in some embodiments, the wire of the heating element 514 may be at least partially embedded in the fluid transport element 512. In this regard, in the case of the ceramic liquid transport element 512, the wire of the heating element 514 may be embedded in the liquid transport element 512 before the liquid transport element 512 is fired in a high temperature furnace known as a kiln. For example, wire may be wound around a long section of the base material from which the ceramic is made before firing the material. Examples of such base materials used to form the ceramics in the fluid transport element 512 may include clays, oxides, non-oxides, and composites. Thus, the wire can be at least partially embedded in the base material when wound around it. The base material and wire can then be fired in a kiln. The product can then be divided into individual sprays of the required length using a saw or other cutting device. In another embodiment, the heating element may be placed at least partially within the wick after firing of the ceramic, wherein the heating element in the channels in the ceramic is formed using additive manufacturing or 3D printing technology.

In the illustrated embodiment, a nebulizer chamber 540 is formed around the nebulizer 510. The atomizer chamber 540 is in fluid communication with an aerosol channel 546 that extends through the main reservoir 508 and ends at an opening 548 extending through the mouthpiece 504 of the cartridge 500.

In FIG. 5 shows a more detailed view of the flavor adding assembly 520 in an exploded perspective view. In the illustrated embodiment, the flavor addition unit 520 is located upstream of the atomizer chamber 540 in the direction of flow. In other embodiments, the flavor addition unit 520 may be located downstream of the atomizer chamber 540 in the direction of flow. The flavor addition unit 520 includes a flavor reservoir 522 and a mask 524. The flavor reservoir 522 may include a housing 556 and a cap 558. The housing 556 and cap 558 may be made of polymers (acetate, polyethylene, polypropylene, silicone, polyester, polyurethane etc.), ceramics (eg alumina) or metals (eg aluminum). Housing 556 may be configured as a cartridge that is removable from cartridge 500. Flavor reservoir 522 and mask 524 may form a module that can be readily assembled as part of cartridge 500, or alternatively may form a replaceable portion of the cartridge.

In the illustrated embodiment, the flavor reservoir 522 is divided into four separate chambers or flavor sections 560. The present invention is not limited to four flavor sections 560, but may have fewer or more such sections. Each of the flavor sections 560 is configured to stage-feed a flavor that can be selectively added to the aerosol exiting an opening 548 in the mouthpiece 504. Each flavor section 560 may contain a flavor, although one flavor section 560 of the flavor reservoir 522 may be is intentionally left empty so that the user can receive an aerosol containing only the aerosol precursor composition located in the main reservoir 508. The empty flavor section 560 may be referred to as a bypass section of the flavor reservoir 522.

Each aroma section 560 may form its own reservoir. In one example, a user can create their own unique combination of flavor sections 560, including the ability to select the same flavoring agent for each flavor section.

In some embodiments, flavor section 560 may include a flavor reservoir section 522 that contains flavor. The flavoring agent may be provided in the form of a liquid, solid or gel, which may be present in the form of individual droplets or particles. In other embodiments, flavor section 560 may include a support or other material in which a flavoring agent is absorbed or otherwise contained. For example, in some embodiments, the aromatic section 560 may comprise carbon materials, ceramics, polymers, composites, metals, cellulose, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 6, the flavor section 560 may include an outer shell 562 formed by the housing 556 and defining an inner surface that surrounds the inner channel 566. The outer shell 562 is configured to contain a flavoring agent. The inner passage 566 is configured to allow intake air to pass through the flavoring flavor section 560 and entrain the air from the flavoring agent from the inner surface. The inner surface may be defined by a wick 570, particularly a tubular shaped wick that provides an interface between the inner channel 566 and the contents of the outer shell 562. The wick 570 may be a nanoporous, microporous and/or macroporous tube made of polymeric materials (such as polyethylene or polyester fibers, etc.) or ceramic materials (such as alumina, silica, zirconia, etc.) that absorbs a flavoring agent, such as a liquid flavoring agent, from the outer shell 562 and bringing said liquid flavoring agent the substance by capillary action into contact with the internal channel 566, where particles of the flavoring substance can be entrained by the drawn air passing through the internal channel. The material of the wick 570 is not particularly limited and may include any of the materials suitable for the liquid transport element 324 (FIG. 3) as described above.

In various embodiments, the aerosol precursor composition located in the main reservoir 508 may comprise an unflavored aerosol precursor composition, although a flavored aerosol precursor composition (i.e., an aerosol precursor composition containing one or more flavoring agents) is also provided. In this case, the flavor sections 560 contain one or more flavoring agents, which themselves may be formulated with aerosol precursor components. As used herein, the term “flavorant” refers to compounds or components that can be sprayed and delivered to the user and that convey sensory sensations in terms of taste and/or aroma. Examples of flavoring agents include, but are not limited to, vanillin, ethyl vanillin, creamer, tea, coffee, fruit (for example, apple, cherry, strawberry, peach and citrus flavors, including lime and lemon), maple, menthol, mint, peppermint, spearmint, wintergreen, nutmeg, cloves, lavender, cardamom, ginger, honey, anise, sage, rosemary, hibiscus, rosehip, yerbu mate, guayusa, honeybush, rooibos, yerbu santo, bacopa monnieri, ginkgo biloba, withania somnifera, cinnamon , sandalwood, jasmine, cascarrolle, cocoa, licorice, as well as flavoring substances of the type and nature that are traditionally used to flavor cigarette, cigar and pipe tobacco. You can also use syrups such as high fructose corn syrup. Exemplary compositions derived from plants that may be suitable are described in US Patent No. 9107453 and US Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0152265 to Dube et al., the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. The selection of such additional components varies based on factors such as sensory characteristics that are desired in a smoking article, and the present invention covers any such additional components that are apparent to those skilled in the art of tobacco and tobacco-related or tobacco-derived products. See, for example, "Tobacco Flavors and Methods," Noyes Data Corp., 1972 by Gutcho, and "Tobacco Flavors for Smoking Products," 1972 by Leffingwell et al., the descriptions of which are incorporated herein in their entirety. application via link. It should be noted that reference to a flavoring agent need not be limited to any one flavoring agent as described above, and may in fact be a combination of one or more flavoring agents.

Returning to FIG. 5, mask 524 may be made of polymers, ceramics, or metals. The mask 524 acts as an air flow regulator to direct the flow of air, which may be coupled to a user's draw on the mouthpiece 504 (FIG. 4), selectively through the internal passage 566 of one or more flavor sections 560 such that the flavor is entrained in the flow. air before it enters the atomizer chamber 540 (FIG. 4). In one embodiment, the air flow begins at an opening in the cartridge 300 between the base 530 and the mask 524 and enters the mask inlet 574. In another embodiment, the air flow path may begin at an opening in the sleeve 202 of the control housing 200 (FIG. 2). Air flow can then exit the mask 524 through an outlet 578 (FIG. 4). In the illustrated example, the inlet 574 and the outlet are located directly opposite each other on opposite sides of the disk-shaped mask 524. In another embodiment (not shown), the inlet can be located centrally on the first side of the disk-shaped mask. The outlet may be located on the second, opposite side of the mask at an off-center location. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the resulting mask 524 may be substantially hollow or otherwise provide a passage from the inlet 574 to the outlet. The location of the inlet 574 and the outlet of the mask 524 is not particularly limited, as long as the at least one inlet 574 can receive air flow regardless of the position of the mask 524 relative to the fluid reservoir 522. In addition, the outlet arrangement is configured to selectively direct air flow through or past one or more aroma sections 560.

In another embodiment, the mask 524 may be located downstream of the flavor reservoir 522 in the direction of flow. In this embodiment, rather than allowing direct passage into the desired aroma section 560, the mask may only allow air flow to exit the desired aroma section.

In another embodiment (not shown), a second mask may be installed between the flavor reservoir 522 and the atomizer chamber 540. The second mask may rotate with the mask 525 to prevent unintentional release of flavor particles from the flavor sections 560 into the atomizer chamber 540.

In another example (not shown), the mask 524 may be in the form of a ring that surrounds the cartridge 500. The air flow may begin at an inlet 574 of the mask 524, and the outlet 578 of the mask 524 may be selectively positioned relative to a plurality of openings in the cartridge body, each opening promotes air flow to and through the internal channel 566 of the selected one of the aromatic sections 560.

In various embodiments, the mask 524 may be configured to be attached to a flavor reservoir 522 and rotatably relative to said reservoir. During operation (as shown in FIG. 4), the cartridge 500 is releasably attached to the control housing 200 via a cartridge base 530. The mask 524 is assembled with the cartridge 500 in such a way that it is adjustable, such as by rotating, relative to the flavor reservoir 522 to selectively direct the air flow F through a desired flavor section 560 or a bypass section of the flavor reservoir. Thus, the consumer can selectively align the outlet 578 of the mask 524 with the selected flavor section 560 by positioning the mask relative to the flavor reservoir 522. In one example, the flavor reservoir 522 is fixed to the cartridge 500. In this case, the mask 524 can either be fixed relative to the control body 200 or rotatable relative to the control body 200. Thus, the mask 524 can rotate independently, or the selection of the flavor section 560 may occur by rotating the control housing 200 relative to the cartridge 500.

In various embodiments, the cartridge 500 and/or control housing may include one or more indicators to assist the user in determining the location of rotation. For example, in some embodiments, visual indicators, such as a plurality of markings 330 (FIG. 3), may be located on the cartridge 500 and/or control housing to indicate the locations of the various flavor sections of the flavor reservoir 522. Alternatively or additionally, one or more audible or tactile indicators may be located on the cartridge 500 and/or control housing, such as, for example, a series of latches (which in some embodiments may also be configured to provide an audible signal) that indicate location of different aromatic sections. For example, detents may be provided to ensure proper alignment between the outlet 578 of the mask 524 and the aroma section 560. In the case where there are four aroma sections 560, the markings 330 and detents may be spaced evenly at 90 degrees around the circumference of the cartridge 300 to ensure a given degree rotations for each flavor section. It should be noted that in some embodiments, one or more of the components described above are movable relative to the others without affecting the operation of the device.

The electrical connection between the control housing 200 (FIG. 1) and the atomizer 510 (FIG. 5) through the two ends of the heating element 514, for example, containing an electrical connector passing through the mask 524, allows the control housing 200 to direct electrical current to the atomizer 510, for example, when activated by the user (eg, using a button) and/or when a puff is detected on the aerosol delivery device. Tightening can be detected by a change in the electrical resistance of the material, which can be folded or bent by the air flow F drawn in by the consumer. When a user draws from the mouthpiece 504 of the cartridge 500, an air flow F (see FIG. 4) may be directed from the environment through one or more air intake holes in the cartridge base 530. The air flow F drawn through the air intake opening(s) may then be drawn through one or more internal passages 566 of one or more flavor sections 560 of the flavor reservoir 522, assisted by the mask 524.

At the same time, a flow sensor (see, for example, FIG. 2) can detect the puff. Thus, the control housing 200 may direct electrical current through the heating element 514 to heat the atomizer 510. When the atomizer 510 is heated, the aerosol precursor composition from the main reservoir 508 may be vaporized in the atomizer 510 directly or by heating the liquid transport element 512. Accordingly, the resulting vapor or aerosol A may be generated in the atomizer chamber 540, mixed with the entrained flavor material entrained in the air flow F passing through the internal channel 566 of the selected aroma section 560, and then transferred through the aerosol channel 546 and out of the mouthpiece opening 548 to to the user.

Use of the cartridge 500 together with the control body 200 (FIG. 2) may be characterized by a method of generating an aerosol for consumption by a user in accordance with one or more of the following steps. Providing a cartridge that includes a main reservoir 508 containing the aerosol precursor composition, a mask 524, and a flavor reservoir 522 containing a plurality of flavor sections 560. The method may also include adjusting the mask 524 relative to the flavor reservoir 522 to select one or more flavor sections 560 In some embodiments, adjusting the mask may include aligning the outlet 578 in the mask 524 with the internal channel 566 of the selected flavor section 560 of the flavor reservoir 522. The method may further include directing air flow F through the selected aroma section 560 and to the atomizer chamber 540. Incorporating the flavoring agent into the air stream F as the drawn air passes through the internal passage 566. The method further includes adding particles of the aerosol precursor composition from the main reservoir 508, evaporated by the atomizer 510, to the air stream F. Vaporization of the aerosol precursor composition may include directing an electrical current from the control housing 200 to the nebulizer 510 to cause the aerosol precursor composition to be in an aerosol state. In various embodiments, rendering the aerosol precursor composition into an aerosol state may include heating a heating coil 514 that heats a fluid transport element 512 containing the aerosol precursor composition so as to vaporize the aerosol precursor composition.

In another embodiment of the cartridge in FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a cartridge 700 for use in an aerosol delivery device in accordance with a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 7-9, and as described in more detail below, the cartridge 700 of the illustrated embodiment includes the following components: a mouthpiece 704, a main reservoir 708, an atomizer 710 (which contains a fluid transport element 712 and a heating element 714), a cartridge base 718, and one or more blocks Flavor Addition 720 Flavor add units 720 may be considered to provide functionality similar to the flavor sections 560 of cartridge 500 (FIG. 4), where a plurality of flavor add units 720 may combine to form a flavor reservoir that selectively includes flavoring agent into an aerosol drawn from the mouthpiece 704. Represented in FIG. 7 embodiment shows two flavor adding blocks 720, but it should be understood that additional blocks may be possible.

As is clear from the above description, the cartridge 700 shown in FIG. 7-9 may be releasably coupled to control housing 200 (FIG. 2) by cartridge base 718 so as to form an aerosol delivery device. In various embodiments, the control housing may be similar to or the same as the control housing 200 described above (see FIG. 2), and therefore the description thereof will not be repeated. However, it should be noted that in other embodiments, the control housing may differ from that described above. Additionally, in some embodiments, the control housing of the aerosol delivery device may be shaped differently than described above, such as a portable control housing in the form of a key fob.

In principle, cartridge 700 follows the same operating principles as cartridge 500 (FIG. 4). Specifically, the aerosol precursor composition located in the main reservoir 708 is absorbed by the liquid transport element 712 and delivered to the area of the heating element 714. Upon activation of the heating element, the aerosol precursor particles evaporate into the atomizer chamber 724, where the particles are mixed with air drawn into the cartridge 700 and a spray chamber 724. Additionally, as in cartridge 500, air D drawn through cartridge 700 may also selectively entrain flavor T from the flavor reservoir or flavor addition units 720, particularly when the flavor particles have not been thermally evaporated from the atomizer 710. Flavor addition units 720 may be located upstream of the atomizer chamber 724 in the direction of flow, as shown in FIG. 7 to receive the air stream before capturing the aerosol precursor. In an alternative embodiment, flavor addition units 720 may be positioned downstream of the atomizer chamber to face an air stream that already contains aerosol precursor particles. In FIG. 8 is a detailed schematic view of a flavor adding unit 720 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The flavor adding unit 720 may include a housing 730 with an air inlet 732 and an air outlet 734 defining a chamber through which air can flow. In other embodiments, the air flow may pass not through, but adjacent to the selected flavor adding unit 720 from which the flavor is released. In the illustrated embodiment, air outlet 734 may lead to an atomizer chamber 724. In another embodiment (not shown), air inlet 732 may be configured to communicate with an aerosol channel 738 that extends from nebulizer chamber 724 through main reservoir 708 and terminates at air inlet 732. In this case, air outlet 734 may be in communication with orifice 740 in a mouthpiece 704 through which the consumer receives an aerosol containing air D, particles of the aerosol precursor composition and, optionally, particles of flavor T.

The flavor adding unit 720 functions as a reservoir for the flavoring agent by incrementally adding a flavoring agent that can be selectively added to the air stream D passing through the cartridge 700. The illustrated embodiment of the flavoring agent adding unit 720 may be very suitable for use with a flavoring agent, presented in encapsulated form, for example, a flavoring substance that is microencapsulated inside a burst shell.

A typical embodiment of a microcapsule has an outer coating, shell, or coating that surrounds a liquid or solid core region, and in some embodiments, the microcapsule may have a generally spherical shape. The core region or "payload," such as flavor, is typically released when the outer casing undergoes some form of physical disruption, rupture, or other loss of physical integrity (e.g., by dispersing, softening, crushing, applying pressure, etc.) .

Exemplary methods for providing encapsulated materials, such as microencapsulated flavors, are set forth in Microcapsules and Microencapsulation Techniques, by Gutcho, 1976, and Microcapsules and Other Capsules: Advances Since 1975. (Gutcho, Microcapsules and Other Capsules Advances Since 1975), by Gutcho, 1979. Exemplary types of microcapsules may have a diameter of less than 100 microns and often may have outer shells based on gelatin, cyclodextrin, or the like. Microcapsules are commercially available, and exemplary types of microcapsule manufacturing technologies are of the type described in Microcapsule Processing and Technology by Kondo, 1979; AAPS Pharm Journal. Sci. Tech. 2002 3(3): Article 25 by Iwamoto et al.; and US Patents No. 3,550,598 to McGlumphy and No. 6,117,455 to Takada et al.

Suitable larger capsule sizes are available from Mane Aromatic Flavors, Nice, France, as gelatin-encapsulated mixtures of medium chain triglycerides and flavoring agents.

The outer shell of the capsule can be made of a polymer or edible gelatin obtained from beef, fish or pork material. A wide variety of gelatins can be used, and the choice of gelatin for the outer surface of the capsule is a matter of design choice for those skilled in the art. See Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, Kirk-Othmer, 4th ed. 12, 406-416, 1994, which is incorporated herein by reference. The type of gelatin used to create the outer shell of the capsule provides the capsule with the ability to be exposed to triacetin (a common plasticizer used in the manufacture of cigarette filters) or 1,2-propylene glycol (a common component of tobacco cartridges) for a relatively long time without causing unwanted interactions (eg , dissolving gelatin in them). Because the types of gelatin used in some embodiments may dissolve in water over an extended period of time, it is desirable to use substantially anhydrous payloads (or payloads containing very little water) with capsules having a gelatin outer coating.

In one embodiment, the beneficial charge is a mixture of flavor and diluent. The diluent may be a triglyceride, such as a medium chain triglyceride, and more particularly, a nutritional mixture of medium chain triglycerides. See, for example, Porim Bulletin, 39, 33-38, 1999 by Radzuan et al. The exemplary beneficial charge flavoring agent is described above.

The amount of flavor and diluent in the capsule may vary. In some cases, the diluent may be completely eliminated, and the entire beneficial charge may consist of the flavoring agent. In an alternative embodiment, the payload may consist almost entirely of diluent and contain only a very small amount of relatively potent flavoring agent. In one embodiment, in which a capsule is used, for example, with a diameter of about 3.5 mm, the weight of the liquid payload (e.g., flavor and diluent) can range from about 15 mg to about 25 mg and can range from about 20 mg to approximately 22 mg. One exemplary composition of the flavor and diluent mixture is in the range of about 5 percent to about 25 percent flavorant and possibly in the range of about 10 to about 15 percent flavorant by weight based on the total weight of the payload, with the remainder being diluent.

As shown in the illustrated embodiment, flavor capsules 746 may be located in a portion of flavor addition unit 720, which may be referred to as feeder 750. Feeder 750 may be formed by baffles 754 that are angled to direct movement of capsules 746 to one or more outlets. 756. The baffles 754 may be made of a porous material, such as porous polyethylene, polyester fibers, or porous ceramics, the pores of which are small enough to be suitable for holding capsules 746. In addition, the pores in the baffles 754 may minimize restriction of air flow from the inlet 732 to outlet 734.

Each flavor addition unit 720 may include an actuator 760. Alternatively, one actuator 760 may be operably coupled to more than one flavor addition unit 720. An actuator 760 may be provided to selectively release flavor from the feeder 750. In the illustrated embodiment, the actuator 760 releases the capsules 746 from the feeder 750. The actuator 760 then releases the flavor by applying pressure to rupture the coating of the capsule 746. In one embodiment, the actuator 760 releases the flavor by applying pressure to rupture the coating of the capsule 746. mechanism 760 includes one or more pairs of gears 766. Because the gears 766 of a pair rotate in opposite directions, as shown by the arrows in FIG. 8, one or more capsules 746 may be retracted or dropped into the area between the gears. In this case, the teeth 770 of the gears 766 may work together to apply a destructive force to the capsule 746 and thereby release its useful charge for absorption by the porous partitions 754.

Capsules 746 and their payload may be configured to contain a flavoring agent having the intended strength and duration of aroma included in the air stream. For example, the flavor addition unit may be configured such that the release of the payload of one capsule upon single use of the actuator 760 provides enough flavor to saturate a plurality of puffs through the aerosol delivery device, such as the number of puffs associated with a conventional cigarette. In other embodiments, capsules 746 may be designed such that the user operates an actuator 760 to release a small amount of flavor before or during a puff through the device. One skilled in the art will appreciate that a user can increase the intensity of the aroma included in the aerosol by repeatedly actuating the actuator 760 to release the payload of a plurality of capsules 746. Likewise, the actuator 760 and capsules 746 may be designed in such a manner that that each actuation of the actuator releases a useful charge from the required number of capsules.

The flavor addition unit 720 may further comprise one or more containers 776 configured to receive and contain the outer coating material of the capsules 746 after the flavor is released therefrom. The boundary of container 776 may be formed, at least in part, by porous walls 780. Like baffles 754, walls 780 may contain pores that are too small to allow passage of capsule coating material. However, the pores of the walls 780 must be large enough to allow the passage of air flow, as well as the passage of flavor particles entrained by the air flow D passing through the flavor adding unit 720. In addition, the porous walls 780 may act as a secondary structure to absorb flavor released by the capsules 746 that would otherwise pass by the baffles 754.

In FIG. 9A and 9B depict one example of rotating the gears 766. A mechanical button 782 may protrude from the flavor adding unit 720 (FIG. 8) to a position accessible to the user. The button 782 may be mechanically coupled to at least one of the gears 766 such that pressing the button causes the gears to rotate. In FIG. 9A shows the initial position of the system, and FIG. 9B shows the position of the system when the button is pressed. Driving one gear 766 of a pair of gears may cause the other gear of the pair to rotate in the opposite direction as a result of the interaction between their respective teeth 770. If more than one pair of gears 766 are provided as part of the actuator 760, the pairs may be operably coupled through additional gears , drive belt or other known motion transmission element or elements.

The button 782 may be mechanically coupled to at least one gear 766 through a drive rod 784 configured to convert the translational motion of the button 782 into a rotational movement of the gear 766. The drive rod 784 may be terminated by a plunger 786. A spring 788 may be provided that acts on the plunger 786 and helps return the button 782 to its original position.

As shown in FIG. 7, in one embodiment, the air flow D may be configured to simultaneously pass through each of the flavor adding units 720, wherein the flavor entrained by the air D primarily includes the flavor that was released by the actuator 760 itself. the last one. However, this approach may result in undesirable residual flavor when the user switches between units. In another embodiment, an air flow regulator 789 may be used to direct air flow only through or past the desired flavor addition unit 720. The air flow controller 789 may be in the form of a flap or damper that can be controlled by various actuators, such as a mechanical button. In other embodiments, the air flow controller 789 may be configured as a mask, such as a rotating mask, as described above with respect to FIG. 4-6.

As shown in FIG. 7, the body of the flavor addition unit 720 and the cartridge 700 may be formed at least in part from a transparent or translucent material, for example, at least in the area corresponding to the feeder 750, to provide a window 790 in the feeder allowing the number of capsules 746 to be determined. remaining in the feeder.

The foregoing description of use of the device may be applied to the various embodiments described herein with minor modifications as may be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the additional description provided herein. However, the above description of use does not limit the use of the product, but is presented to satisfy all necessary requirements of the description of the present invention.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the present invention may become apparent to one skilled in the art upon examination of the present invention as set forth in the foregoing descriptions and accompanying drawings. Thus, it should be noted that the present invention is not intended to be limited to the specific embodiments described herein, and that modifications and other embodiments are included within the scope of protection of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. Although specific terms are used herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.

Claims (39)

1. A cartridge for use in an aerosol delivery device, comprising: - path for air flow passing through the cartridge; - a reservoir configured to contain an aerosol precursor composition; - a nebulizer configured to evaporate the aerosol precursor composition to form vapor entrained by air passing along the air flow path; And - a flavor adding unit comprising a plurality of individual chambers surrounded by an outer shell, wherein at least one of said plurality of individual chambers contains a flavoring agent surrounding an internal channel passing through said at least one of said plurality of individual chambers, wherein the internal channel is located in the path of the air flow and is formed by a porous tube configured to carry the flavoring agent towards the internal channel, so that the flavoring agent is entrained by the air passing through the internal channel. 2. Cartridge according to claim 1, additionally containing: at least one mask configured to move relative to the flavor adding unit to selectively and alternately pass air through the internal channel of said at least one of said plurality of separate chambers. 3. The cartridge of claim 1, which is provided with visual markings to identify said plurality of individual reservoir chambers. 4. The cartridge according to claim 1, additionally containing a feeder for stepwise supply of a flavoring substance. 5. The cartridge according to claim 4, further comprising an actuator for selectively releasing the flavoring substance from the feeder. 6. The cartridge according to claim 5, in which the flavoring substance is enclosed in a plurality of capsules. 7. The cartridge according to claim 6, in which the actuator is configured to destroy at least one of the capsules to release the flavoring substance. 8. The cartridge according to claim 7, in which the actuator contains a pair of gears, wherein the teeth of the gears interact in such a way that rotation of the gears occurs with the possibility of releasing at least one capsule from the feeder and releasing the flavoring substance from the capsule, wherein the flavoring substance is then carried away by the air flow. 9. The cartridge according to claim 5, in which the activation of the actuator is ensured using a mechanical button. 10. The cartridge according to claim 4, containing a window in the feeder, which makes it possible to determine the amount of flavoring substance remaining in the feeder. 11. The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the porous tube is nanoporous or microporous. 12. The cartridge according to claim 1, in which the porous tube is configured to transfer the flavoring substance due to the action of capillary forces. 13. The cartridge according to claim 2, in which the mask is configured to pass air flow simultaneously through only one of a plurality of separate chambers. 14. An aerosol delivery device containing: management body and cartridge containing: - path for air flow passing through the cartridge; - a reservoir configured to contain an aerosol precursor composition; - a nebulizer configured to evaporate the aerosol precursor composition to form vapor entrained by air passing along the air flow path; And - a flavor adding unit comprising a plurality of individual chambers surrounded by an outer shell, wherein at least one of said plurality of individual chambers contains a flavoring agent surrounding an internal channel passing through said at least one of said plurality of individual chambers, wherein the internal channel is located on path for air flow and is formed by a porous tube configured to carry the flavoring agent towards the internal channel, so that the flavoring agent is entrained by air passing through the internal channel. 15. An aerosol delivery device according to claim 14, in which the cartridge additionally contains: at least one mask configured to move relative to the flavor adding unit to selectively and alternately pass air through the internal channel of said at least one of said plurality of separate chambers. 16. The aerosol delivery device of claim 14, wherein at least one of the cartridge and the control housing is provided with visual markings to identify said plurality of individual reservoir chambers. 17. The aerosol delivery device according to claim 14, additionally containing a feeder for stepwise supply of a flavoring substance. 18. The aerosol delivery device of claim 17, further comprising an actuator for selectively releasing the flavoring agent from the feeder. 19. The aerosol delivery device according to claim 18, wherein the flavoring agent is enclosed in a plurality of capsules. 20. The aerosol delivery device of claim 19, wherein the actuator is configured to rupture at least one of the capsules to release the flavoring agent. 21. The aerosol delivery device according to claim 20, in which the actuator contains a pair of gears, wherein the teeth of the gears interact in such a way that rotation of the gears occurs with the possibility of releasing at least one capsule from the feeder and releasing the flavoring substance from the capsule, wherein the flavoring substance is then carried away by the air flow. 22. The aerosol delivery device according to claim 18, in which the actuator is launched using a mechanical button. 23. The aerosol delivery device according to claim 17, in which the cartridge contains a window in the feeder that makes it possible to determine the amount of flavor remaining in the chamber.