TWI840520B - Vaporizer device with vaporizer cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

A cartridge may include a cartridge housing, a reservoir and a wick housing disposed inside the cartridge housing, a heating element, and a wicking element. The cartridge housing may be configured to extend below an open top of a receptacle in the vaporizer device when the cartridge is coupled with the vaporizer device. The reservoir may be configured to contain a vaporizable material. The heating element may include a heating portion disposed at least partially inside the wick housing and a contact portion disposed at least partially outside the wick housing. The contact portion may include cartridge contacts that form an electric coupling with receptacle contacts in the receptacle. The wicking element may be disposed within the wick housing and proximate to the heating portion of the heating element. The wicking element may be configured to draw the vaporizable material to the wick housing for vaporization by the heating element.

Description

Evaporator device with evaporator box

The present subject matter described herein relates generally to evaporator devices, and more particularly to an evaporator device configured to couple with an evaporator cassette.

A vaporizer device, which may also be referred to as a vaporizer, an electronic vaporizer device, or an e-vaporizer device, may be used to deliver an aerosol (or "vapor") containing one or more active ingredients by inhalation of the aerosol by a user of the vaporizer device. For example, electronic cigarettes (which may also be referred to as e-cigarettes) are a type of vaporizer device that are typically battery powered and can be used to simulate the smoking experience without burning tobacco or other substances.

When using a vaporizer device, the user inhales an aerosol, often called vapor, which may be produced by a heating element that vaporizes (which often refers to causing a liquid or solid to at least partially change to the gas phase) a vaporizable material, which may be a liquid, a solution, a solid, a wax, or any other form compatible with use with a particular vaporizer device. The vaporizable material used with a vaporizer may be provided in a cartridge (e.g., a portion of a vaporizer that contains the vaporizable material in a reservoir) that includes a mouthpiece (e.g., for a user to inhale).

To receive the inhalable aerosol generated by a vaporizer device, in some examples, a user may activate the vaporizer device by taking a puff, by pressing a button, or by some other method. The common term (and also used herein) "a puff" refers to the user taking an inhalation so that a certain volume of air is drawn into the vaporizer device, thereby generating the inhalable aerosol from a combination of the vaporized vaporizable material and the air.

A typical method for a vaporizer device to generate an inhalable aerosol from a vaporizable material involves heating the vaporizable material in a vaporizer chamber (or a heater chamber) to convert the vaporizable material into a gas phase (or vapor phase). A vaporizer chamber generally refers to an area or volume in a vaporizer device in which a heat source (e.g., conduction, convection, and/or radiation) heats a vaporizable material to produce a mixture of air and vaporizable material to form a vapor for inhalation by a user of the vaporizer device.

In certain evaporator device embodiments, evaporable material may be drawn outwardly from a reservoir into a evaporation chamber via a wicking element (a wick). This drawing of evaporable material into the evaporation chamber may be due at least in part to capillary action provided by the wick, which draws the evaporable material along the wick in the direction of the evaporation chamber. However, as the evaporable material is drawn out of the reservoir, the pressure inside the reservoir decreases, thereby forming a vacuum and counteracting the capillary action. This may, for example, reduce the effect of the wick drawing the evaporable material into the evaporation chamber when a user draws on the evaporator device, thereby reducing the effect of the evaporator device in evaporating a desired amount of evaporable material. Furthermore, the vacuum formed in the reservoir may ultimately result in a failure to draw all of the evaporable material into the evaporation chamber, thereby wasting the evaporable material. Thus, it is desired to have an improved evaporation device and/or evaporation box that can improve or overcome these problems.

As used herein consistent with the present subject matter, the term "vaporizer device" generally refers to a self-contained device that is portable and convenient for personal use. Typically, such devices are controlled by one or more switches, buttons, touch-sensitive devices, or other user input functionality (generally referred to as controls) on the vaporizer, but more recently, several devices have become available that can communicate wirelessly with an external controller (e.g., a smart phone, a smart watch, other portable electronic devices, etc.). In this context, control generally refers to the ability to affect one or more of various operating parameters, which may include but is not limited to any of the following: turning the heater on and/or off, adjusting a minimum and/or maximum temperature to which the heater is heated during operation, various games or other interactive features that a user can access on a device, and/or other operations.

The cartridge may contain a variety of evaporable materials having various contents and ratios of such contents. For example, some evaporable materials may have a smaller percentage of active ingredient/total evaporable material volume, such as due to a rule requiring certain percentages of active ingredient. Thus, a user may need to evaporate a larger amount of evaporable material (e.g., compared to the total evaporable material volume that can be stored in a cartridge) to achieve a desired effect.

In some aspects of the present subject matter, challenges associated with the presence of liquid evaporable materials in or near susceptible components of an electronic evaporator device can be addressed by incorporating one or more of the features described herein or comparable/equivalent approaches understood by those skilled in the art. In one aspect, a cartridge for an evaporator device is provided. The cassette may include: a cassette housing configured to extend below an open top portion of a socket in the evaporator device when the cassette is coupled to the evaporator device; a reservoir disposed in the cassette housing, the reservoir configured to contain a evaporable material; a core housing disposed in the cassette housing; a heating element including a heating portion disposed at least partially within the core housing and at least partially disposed within the core housing. a contact portion disposed on the exterior of the core shell, the contact portion comprising one or more box contacts, the one or more box contacts being configured to form an electrical coupling with one or more socket contacts in the socket of the evaporator device; and a wicking element disposed within the core shell and proximate the heating portion of the heating element, the wicking element being configured to draw the evaporable material from the reservoir to the core shell for evaporation by the heating element.

In certain variations, one or more of the features disclosed herein, including the following features, may be included in any feasible combination as appropriate. The contact portion may be further configured to form a mechanical coupling with the socket of the evaporator device. The mechanical coupling may secure the cartridge in the socket of the evaporator device.

In some variations, the socket may be a first portion of a body of the evaporator device, the first portion having a smaller cross-sectional dimension than a second portion of the body of the evaporator device. When the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device, a recessed area may be formed between the cartridge housing and the second portion of the body of the evaporator device.

In certain variations, the socket may include one or more air inlets that form a fluid coupling with one or more grooves in a bottom of the core shell when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device. The one or more grooves may be configured to allow air to enter the one or more air inlets to further enter the core shell. The one or more air inlets may be disposed in the recessed area. The one or more air inlets may have a diameter between about 0.6 mm and 1.0 mm.

In certain variations, an inner side of each of the one or more grooves may include at least one step, the at least one step being formed by an inner dimension of the one or more grooves being smaller than a dimension of the one or more grooves at the bottom of the core shell. The at least one step may provide a contraction point at which a meniscus is formed to prevent the evaporable material in the core shell from flowing out of the one or more grooves. The dimension of the one or more grooves at the bottom of the core shell may be approximately 12 mm long x 0.5 mm wide. The inner dimension of the one or more grooves may be approximately 1.0 mm long x 0.30 mm wide.

In some variations, the heating portion of the heating element and the contact portion of the heating element may be formed by folding a substrate material. The substrate material may be cut to include one or more prongs for forming the heating portion of the heating element. The substrate material may further be cut to include one or more legs for forming the contact portion of the heating element.

In some variations, the contact portion of the heating element may be formed by folding each of the one or more legs to form at least a first joint, a second joint, and a third joint. The first joint may be disposed between the second joint and the third joint. The second joint may be disposed between a tip of each of the one or more legs and the first joint.

In some variations, the one or more cartridge contacts may be positioned at the second joint. The heating element may be secured to the cartridge body by a first mechanical coupling between an outer side of the cartridge body and a portion of each of the one or more legs between the first joint and the third joint. The cartridge may be secured to the socket of the evaporator device by a second mechanical coupling between the second joint and the socket of the evaporator device.

In some variations, the one or more cartridge contacts may be disposed at the first connection. The heating element may be secured to the cartridge body by a first mechanical coupling between an outer side of the cartridge body and a portion of each of the one or more legs between the tip and the second connection. The cartridge may be secured to the socket of the evaporator device by a second mechanical coupling between the first connection and the socket of the evaporator device.

In some variations, the reservoir may include a storage chamber and a collector. The collector may include an overflow channel configured to hold a volume of the evaporable material in fluid contact with the storage chamber. One or more microfluidic features may be disposed along a length of the overflow channel. Each of the one or more microfluidic features may be configured to provide a constriction point at which a meniscus is formed to prevent air entering the reservoir from passing through the evaporable material in the overflow channel.

In certain variations, the housing may include an airflow passage leading to an outlet for an aerosol formed by evaporating the evaporable material by the heating element. The collector may include a central tunnel in fluid communication with the airflow passage. A bottom surface of the collector includes a flow controller configured to mix the aerosol generated by evaporating the evaporable material by the heating element.

In certain variations, an inner surface of the airflow passageway includes one or more channels extending from the outlet to the wicking element. The one or more channels may be configured to collect a condensate formed from the aerosol and direct at least a portion of the collected condensate toward the wicking element.

In some variations, the flow controller may include a first channel and a second channel. The first channel may be offset from the second channel. A first inner surface of the first channel may be inclined in a direction different from a second inner surface of the second channel to guide the aerosol through the first channel into a first column of the central tunnel in a direction different from the aerosol through the second channel into a second column of the central tunnel.

In certain variations, the bottom surface of the controller may further include one or more wick interfaces. The one or more wick interfaces may be in fluid communication with one or more wick feeders in the collector. The one or more wick feeders may be configured to deliver at least a portion of the evaporable material contained in the storage chamber to the wicking element disposed in the wick housing.

In certain variations, the core housing may be at least partially disposed within the socket of the evaporator device when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device. A flange is disposed at least partially around an upper periphery of the core housing. The flange may extend over at least a portion of an edge of the cartridge socket.

In another embodiment, an evaporator device is provided. The evaporator cartridge may include: a socket including a first portion of a body of the evaporator device, the socket including one or more socket contacts, the socket configured to receive a core shell of a cartridge containing a vaporizable material when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device, a shell of the cartridge extending below an open top of the socket when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device, the one or more socket contacts configured to form an electrical coupling with one or more cartridge contacts including a contact portion of a heating element in the cartridge The evaporator device comprises a housing, the contact portion being at least partially disposed outside the wick housing; a power source being at least partially disposed within a second portion of the main body of the evaporator device; and a controller being configured to control a current from the power source to discharge to one of the heating elements contained in the housing when the housing is coupled to the evaporator device, the current being discharged to the heating element to evaporate at least a portion of the evaporable material saturating a wicking element disposed within the wick housing and proximate to a heating portion of the heating element.

In certain variations, one or more of the features disclosed herein, including the following features, may be included in any feasible combination as appropriate. The socket may be further configured to form a mechanical coupling with the contact portion of the heating element, and wherein the mechanical coupling secures the cartridge in the socket of the evaporator device.

In certain variations, the first portion of the body of the evaporator device may have a smaller cross-sectional dimension than the second portion of the body of the evaporator device. When the cassette is coupled to the evaporator device, a recessed area may be formed between the second portion of the body of the evaporator device and the cassette housing.

In certain variations, the socket may include one or more air inlets that form a fluid coupling with one or more grooves in a bottom of the core shell when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device. The one or more grooves may be configured to allow air to enter the one or more air inlets to further enter the core shell. The one or more air inlets may be disposed in the recessed area. The one or more air inlets may have a diameter between about 0.6 mm and 1.0 mm.

In certain variations, the socket may be disposed within the first portion of the body of the evaporator device such that a top edge of the socket is substantially flush with a top edge of the first portion of the body of the evaporator device.

In certain variations, the socket may be configured to receive a portion of the core housing such that a flange disposed at least partially around an upper periphery of the core housing extends over at least a portion of the top edge of the cartridge socket and/or the top edge of the first portion of the body of the evaporator device. The socket may be approximately 4.54 mm deep.

The details of one or more variations of the subject matter described herein are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features and advantages of the subject matter described herein will become apparent from the description and drawings and from the scope of the claims.

1a: First point

1b: The fourth point

2a: The third point

2b: Second point

100: Evaporator

104: Controller

105: Communication hardware

108:Memory

110: Evaporator body

112: Power supply

113:Sensor

116: Input device

117: Output

118: Box socket

124: Charging contact/box contact/contact

125: socket contacts

125A: socket contact/box socket contact/heater contact

125B: socket contact/box socket contact/heater contact

130: Mouth

140: Memory

141: Atomizer/Atomizer assembly

150: Elastic seal/seal

160: Shell

168: Lugs

170:Incision

174: Identification chip

176:Supporting parts

180: Retainer part

180a: Tip

180A: Tip part

293:Touch point

307: Cyst cavity ID contact

307A: Cyst cavity ID contact

307B: Cyst cavity ID contact

307C: Cyst cavity ID contact

308: Cavity ID overmolded part

309: Cyst cavity ID contact

318: Box socket

334: Air duct with internal groove/air duct

338: Air flow path

342: Evaporation chamber

346: Core shell

360: Condensate recirculator system

362: First end of air duct

363: Second end of air duct

364: Air duct groove

365: Chamber groove

366: First diameter

368: Second diameter

402: Second side

404: First side

407: Location

408: Protective components

415: Cyst cavity retention characteristics

502: Fork Teeth

502A: Outermost fork teeth

503: Flat or square outer edge/rounded outer edge/outer edge

504: Heating part

506: Legs

507: Folding line

508: Transition Zone

510: Electrical contact area

511: Deflection zone

516: Positioning features

518: Heat shielding parts

518A: Heat shielding parts

520: Folding line

522: Folding line

523: Folding line

524: Platform fork teeth part

526: Side teeth part

526A: First side fork part

526B: Second side fork part

534a: First joint

534b: Second connector

534c: Third connector

550: External coating material/coating material

570: The first pair

572: The second pair

578: Outer Zone

580: Lugs

585: Bridge piece

592: Concave part

593: Open mouth

594: Internal volume

596: Slot

598: Capillary characteristics

599:Liquid Path

710: Male connector

712: Recessed connector

910: Core shell area

920: discharge hole

1100: Central Tunnel

1102: Gate

1104: Overflow channel/secondary passage

1106: Air exchange port

1110: Compression ribs

1111a: Contraction point/C-shaped contraction point

1111b: Contraction point

1201: End cover

1203:Printed circuit board assembly

1122:Pinch point

1190: Labyrinth structure/deep trench structure

1211: Skeleton

1212:Battery

1213: Charging shield

1215:LED guard plate

1217: Antenna

1219: Decorative sheath

1220: Shell/Assembled evaporator main shell/Evaporator main shell

1302: Liquid evaporable material/evaporable material

1313: Collector

1315: Core shell

1318: Air exhaust hole

1320: Evaporator box

1326: Contact/plate

1330: Mouth or mouth area

1338: Air flow path/air passage

1340: Storage

1342: Storage room

1344: Overflow volume

1350: Heating element

1362: Wicking element

1368: Core feed delivery

1368a: Droplet-shaped contraction point/first core feeder

1368b: Drop-shaped contraction point/second core feeder

1382: Main access road

1384: Second channel/secondary aisle

1387: Ridge

1390: Receiving cavity

1395: Recessed area

1602: Pressure sensor path

1605: Air inlet

1607: Cyst ID shell

2102: Flat ribs

2104: Sealing bead profile

3201: Condensate collector

3204: Condensate recirculation channel

4390: Lugs

5210a: First coupling mechanism

5210b: Second coupling mechanism

5220:Flow controller

5225a: First channel

5225b: Second channel

5230a: First core interface

5230b: Second core interface

C: Fifth point

D: Point 6

i: current

V: Voltage

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate some aspects of the subject matter disclosed herein and, together with the description, help explain some of the principles associated with the disclosed embodiments. In the drawings: FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of an evaporator consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 2A is a plan view of an example of a box having a storage chamber and an overflow volume consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 2B is a plan view of an example of a box having a storage chamber and an overflow volume consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a box having an example of a connector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 3B is a perspective view of another example of a box having a connector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 3C is a plan view of an example of a box having a connector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 3D is a perspective view of another example of a box having a connector consistent with the present subject matter. FIG. 3E is a perspective cross-sectional view of a box having an example of a connector consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 3F is a plan view of a box having an example of a connector consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 4A is a closed perspective view of an example of a box consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 4B is an exploded perspective view of an example of a box consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 4C is another closed perspective view of an example of a box consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 4D is a closed side view of an example of a box consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 5A is a side plan view of an example of a collector consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 5B is a diagram of a box including an example of a collector consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 5C shows a perspective view and a side plan view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5D shows a perspective view and a side plan view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5E shows a perspective view and a side plan view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5F shows a side view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5G shows a front view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5H shows a perspective view of a portion of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5I shows a top perspective view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5J shows a front view of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5K shows a perspective view of a portion of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5L shows an example of a fluid flow management mechanism in a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5M shows an example of a fluid flow management mechanism in a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 5N shows an example of a fluid flow management mechanism in a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 6A shows a side view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 6B shows a side view of another example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 7 shows a perspective view, a front view, a side view, and an exploded view of an example of a box consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. FIG8A shows a perspective view, a front view, a side view, a bottom view, and a top view of an example of a collector consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG8B shows a perspective view and a cross-sectional view of an example of a collector consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG8C shows a perspective view and a cross-sectional view of an example of a collector consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG8D shows an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 8E is a top plan view of an example of a core feeding mechanism consistent with the implementation scheme of the present subject matter; FIG. 8F is a top plan view of an example of a core feeding mechanism consistent with the implementation scheme of the present subject matter; FIG. 9A is a perspective view of an example of a box consistent with the implementation scheme of the present subject matter; FIG. 9B is a perspective view of an example of an implementation scheme of the present subject matter; FIG. 9C is a front view of an example of a box having a condensate recirculation system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 10A is a front view of a box having an example of a condensate recirculation system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 10B is a top view of a box having an example of a condensate recirculation system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 10C is a top view of an example of a box having a condensate recirculation system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 10D is another front view of a box having an example of a condensate recycling system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 10E is another top view of a box having an example of a condensate recycling system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 11A is another top view of a box having an example of a condensate recycling system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 11B shows a front view of a box having an example of an external airflow path consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 12A shows a perspective view, a top view, a bottom view, and various side views of an example of a core shell consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 12B shows a collector and a core shell consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 13A is a perspective view of an example of a box consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 13B is a perspective view of a box consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 13C is a perspective view of a box consistent with the present subject matter; FIG. 14 is a perspective view of a heating element used in an evaporator device consistent with the present subject matter. FIG15 is a schematic diagram of a heating element used in an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG16 is a schematic diagram of a heating element used in an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG17 is a schematic diagram of a heating element positioned in an evaporator box used in an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG18A is a perspective view of a heating element consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG18B is a side view of a heating element consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG18C is a front view of a heating element consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG18D is a perspective view of a heating element and a wicking element consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG18E is a schematic diagram of a heating element positioned in an evaporator box used in an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 19 is a perspective view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 20 is a side view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 21 is a top view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 22 is a front view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 24 is a top view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 25A is a front view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter FIG. 25B is a perspective view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 26 is a side view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 27 is a top view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 28 is a front view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 29A is a perspective view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 29B is a perspective view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 30A is a top view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 30B is a front view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with the present embodiment of the subject matter; FIG. 31 shows a top view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with an embodiment of the previous subject matter; FIG. 32 shows a bottom view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 33 shows an exploded perspective view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 34A shows an exploded perspective view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 34B is a side cross-sectional view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 34B is another side cross-sectional view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 35 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a heating element consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 36 is a perspective view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 37 is a perspective view of a heating element consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 38 depicts a perspective view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 39 depicts a side view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 40 depicts a top view of a substrate material with a heating element consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 41 depicts a perspective view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 42 depicts a perspective view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 44 depicts a perspective view of a heating element in a bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 1 shows a top view of a heating element in a non-bent position consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 42A shows a top perspective view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 42B shows a close-up view of a portion of a core shell of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 43 shows a bottom perspective view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter FIG. 44 shows an exploded perspective view of an atomizer assembly consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 45A shows a side cross-sectional view of an example of a condensate recirculator system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 45B shows a first perspective view of an example of a condensate recirculator system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 45C shows a condensate recirculator system consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 46 shows an exploded view of an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 47A shows an example of a socket contact consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 47B shows another example of a socket contact consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 47C shows another example of a socket contact consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 47D shows FIG47E shows a perspective view of an example of a box socket consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG48A shows a side cross-sectional view of a box placed in a box socket consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG48B shows another side cross-sectional view of a box placed in a box socket consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG48C shows a partial view of one side of an evaporator box coupled to an evaporator body consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG48D shows another partial view of one side of an evaporator box coupled to an evaporator body consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG48E shows a user's finger covering a portion of the recessed area formed between the evaporator box and the evaporator body; FIG48F FIG. 49A is a top perspective view of an example of an evaporator main shell consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 49B is a cross-sectional view of an example of an assembled evaporator main shell consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 50A is a cross-sectional view of an example of an assembled evaporator main shell consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 50 ... FIG. 50B is a cross-sectional view of a core shell body consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 51A is a perspective view of another example of a heating element consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 51B is a side view of another example of a heating element consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter; FIG. 51C is a side view of another example of a heating element consistent with the embodiment of the present subject matter. FIG. 51D shows a top view of another example of a heating element consistent with the present subject matter embodiment; FIG. 52A shows a bottom view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter embodiment; FIG. 52B shows a front cross-sectional view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter embodiment; FIG. 52C shows another front cross-sectional view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter embodiment; FIG. 52D shows a side cross-sectional view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter embodiment; FIG. 52E shows a perspective view of an example of a collector consistent with the present subject matter embodiment; FIG. 52F shows an example of laminar flow and an example of turbulent flow through the central tunnel and airflow passage; and FIG. 53 shows a resistance measurement of an example of a heating element consistent with the present subject matter embodiment.

In practice, similar component symbols represent similar structures, features, or components.

Cross-references to related applications

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/913,135, entitled “HEATING ELEMENT” and filed on October 9, 2019, U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/812,148, entitled “RESERVOIR OVERFLOW CONTROL WITH CONSTRICTION POINTS” and filed on February 28, 2019, U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/812,161, entitled “CARTRIDGE FOR A VAPORIZER DEVICE” and filed on February 28, 2019, U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/915,005, entitled “CARTRIDGE FOR A VAPORIZER DEVICE” and filed on October 14, 2019, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/916,006, entitled “VAPORIZER U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/930,508, filed on November 4, 2019, entitled “DEVICE”, U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/947,496, filed on December 12, 2019, entitled “VAPORIZER DEVICE WITH VAPORIZER CARTRIDGE”, U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/981,498, filed on February 25, 2020, entitled “VAPORIZER DEVICE WITH VAPORIZER CARTRIDGE”, U.S. Patent Application No. 16/653,455, filed on October 15, 2019, entitled “HEATING ELEMENT”, and U.S. Patent Application No. 16/653,455, filed on October 15, 2019, entitled “CARTRIDGE FOR A VAPORIZER DEVICE" and U.S. Patent Application No. 16/656,360 filed on October 17, 2019. The disclosure of the aforementioned application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Embodiments of the present subject matter include devices related to vaporizing one or more materials for inhalation by a user. In the following description, the term "vaporizer" is generally used to refer to a vaporizer device. Examples of vaporizers consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter include electronic vaporizers, electronic cigarettes, e-cigarettes, etc. Such vaporizers are generally portable handheld devices that heat a vaporizable material to provide an inhalable dose of the material.

The evaporable material used with an evaporator may optionally be disposed in a cartridge (e.g., a portion of an evaporator that can hold the evaporable material in a reservoir or other container and can be refilled when empty or discarded in favor of a new cartridge that holds additional evaporable material of the same or a different type). An evaporator may be a cartridge-using evaporator that can be used with or without a cartridge, a cartridgeless evaporator, or a multi-purpose evaporator. For example, a multi-purpose evaporator may include a heating chamber (e.g., a furnace) configured to receive a evaporable material directly in the heating chamber and also receive a cartridge or other replaceable device having a reservoir, a volume, etc. for at least partially holding the usable amount of evaporable material.

In various embodiments, a vaporizer may be configured for use with a liquid vaporizable material (e.g., a carrier solution in which an active and/or inactive ingredient is suspended or maintained as a solution of the vaporizable material itself or in a pure liquid form) or a solid vaporizable material. A solid vaporizable material may include a plant material that emits a portion of the plant material as vaporizable material (e.g., so that after the vaporizable material is emitted for inhalation by a user, a portion of the plant material is referred to as waste), or may optionally be a solid formed from the vaporizable material itself (e.g., a "wax") so that all of the solid material may eventually be vaporized for inhalation. A liquid vaporizable material may likewise be capable of being completely vaporized, or may include a portion of the liquid material that remains after all of the material suitable for inhalation has been consumed.

In certain embodiments, leakage of liquid evaporable material from the evaporator housing and/or other portions of an evaporator may occur. Additionally, during scaling and/or automated manufacturing processes, consistent manufacturing quality of the evaporator's heating elements may be particularly important. Furthermore, evaporator use may be operated with special power requirements that may result in shorter battery run times, shorter run times at lower temperatures, faster battery aging, and may affect battery performance.

Implementations of the present subject matter may also provide advantages and benefits with respect to these problems. For example, various features for controlling airflow and evaporable material flow are described herein, which may provide advantages and improvements over prior methods while also introducing the additional benefits described herein. The evaporator apparatus and/or cassettes described herein include one or more features that control and improve airflow within the evaporator apparatus and/or cassettes, thereby improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the evaporator apparatus in evaporating liquid evaporable material without introducing additional features that may cause leakage of the liquid evaporable material or accumulation of condensate that collects along internal passages and outlets.

For example, a heating element may be stamped from a sheet of material and may be bent to conform to a shape of at least a portion of a wicking element. The configuration of the heating element may allow for the manufacture of more consistent and higher quality heating elements and may help reduce tolerance issues that may arise during the manufacturing process when assembling a heating element having multiple components. The heating element may also improve the accuracy of measurements taken from the heating element (e.g., a resistance, a current, a temperature, etc.), at least in part due to the improved consistency of the heating element in terms of manufacturability with reduced tolerance issues. A stamped and shaped heating element may be expected to help minimize heat loss and help ensure that the heating element is heated to the proper temperature as intended.

For further illustration, FIG. 1 shows a block diagram illustrating an example of an evaporator 100. As shown in FIG. 1, the evaporator 100 may include a power source 112 (e.g., a non-rechargeable primary battery, a rechargeable secondary battery, a fuel cell, etc.) and a controller 104 (e.g., a processor capable of executing logic, circuit system, etc.). The controller 104 may be configured to control the delivery of heat to the atomizer 141 to convert the evaporable material from a condensed form (e.g., a solid, a liquid, a solution, a suspension, a portion of at least a portion of unprocessed plant material, etc.) to a gas phase. For example, the controller 104 may control the delivery of heat to the atomizer 141 by at least controlling a release of current from the power source 112 to the atomizer 141. Controller 104 may be part of one or more printed circuit boards (PCBs) consistent with some embodiments of the present subject matter.

After converting the evaporable material to the gas phase and depending on the type of evaporator, the physical and chemical properties of the evaporable material, and/or other factors, at least some of the gas phase evaporable material may condense to form particulate matter in at least a partial local equilibrium manner, wherein the gas phase is part of an aerosol. The evaporable material in a local equilibrium of at least a portion of the condensed phase (e.g., particulate matter) and the gas phase evaporable material may form some or all of an inhalable dose provided by the evaporator 100 for a given puff or draw on the evaporator 100. It should be understood that the interaction between vaporizable material in the gas phase and vaporizable material in the condensed phase in an aerosol produced by vaporizer 100 can be complex and dynamic, as many factors (e.g., ambient temperature, relative humidity, chemicals, flow conditions in the airflow path (inside the vaporizer and in the airway of a person or other animal), mixing of vaporizable material in the gas phase or aerosol phase with other airflows, etc.) may affect one or more physical parameters of an aerosol. In some vaporizers, and particularly for vaporizers used to deliver more volatile vaporizable materials, the inhalable dose may be primarily in the gas phase (i.e., the formation of condensed phase particles may be very limited).

To enable the evaporator 100 to be used with liquid evaporable materials (e.g., pure liquids, suspensions, solutions, mixtures, etc.), the atomizer 141 may include a wicking element (also referred to herein as a wick) formed of one or more materials capable of moving fluids by capillary pressure. The wicking element may transport a quantity of the liquid evaporable material to a portion of the atomizer 141 that includes a heating element (also not shown in FIG. 1 ). Typically, the wicking element is configured to draw the liquid evaporable material from a reservoir that is configured to hold (and may hold during use) the liquid evaporable material so that the liquid evaporable material may be evaporated by the heat generated by the heating element. The wicking element may also optionally allow air to enter the reservoir to replace the volume of liquid removed. In other words, capillary action can draw the liquid evaporable material to the wicking element for evaporation by the heating element (described below), and in certain embodiments of the present subject matter air can return to the reservoir through the wick to at least partially equalize the pressure in the reservoir. Other methods of allowing air to return to the reservoir to equalize the pressure are also within the scope of the present subject matter, as discussed in more detail below.

The heating element may be or include one or more of a conductive heater, a radiation heater, and a convection heater. One type of heating element is a resistive heating element, which may be constructed of, or at least include, a material (e.g., a metal or alloy, such as a nickel-chromium alloy or a non-metallic resistor) configured to dissipate electricity as heat when current flows through one or more resistive segments of the heating element. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, an atomizer may include a heating element including a resistive coil or other heating element wrapped around a wick element, positioned within the wick element, integrated into a block shape of the wick element, pressed into thermal contact with the wick element, or otherwise configured to transfer heat to the wick element so that a liquid evaporable material drawn from a reservoir by the wick element is evaporated for subsequent inhalation by a user in a gas phase and/or a condensed phase (e.g., aerosol particles or droplets). Other wicking element, heating element, and/or atomizer assembly configurations may also exist, as further discussed below.

Alternatively and/or in addition, the evaporator 100 may be configured to form an inhalable dose of a vapor and/or aerosol phase evaporable material by heating a non-liquid evaporable material such as a solid phase evaporable material (e.g., a wax, etc.) or a plant material containing a evaporable material (e.g., tobacco leaves and/or portions of tobacco leaves). Thus, one or more heating elements may be part of a furnace or other heating chamber in which the non-liquid evaporable material is placed or otherwise incorporated into or in thermal contact with the walls of the furnace or other heating chamber. Alternatively, one or more heating elements may be used to heat air passing through or over the non-liquid evaporable material to convectively heat the non-liquid evaporable material. In still other examples, one or more resistive heating elements may be positioned in close contact with the plant material so that direct conduction heating of the plant material occurs from within the bulk of the plant material (as opposed to conduction inward from the walls of a furnace, for example).

The heating element may be activated (e.g., a controller, optionally part of a vaporizer body discussed below, which may cause current to pass from a power source through a circuit including a resistive heating element, optionally part of a vaporizer cartridge discussed below), which in conjunction with a user's suction (e.g., drawing, inhaling, etc.) on a mouthpiece 130 of the vaporizer causes air to flow from an air inlet along an airflow path through an atomizer (e.g., wicking element and heating element), optionally through one or more condensation regions or chambers, to an air outlet in the mouthpiece. Incoming air passing along the airflow path passes over, through, etc., the atomizer, wherein the air has vaporizable material entrained therein in a gas phase. As described above, the entrained vapor-phase evaporable material may condense as it passes through the remainder of the airflow path so that an inhalable dose of the evaporable material in the form of an aerosol may be delivered from the air outlet (e.g., in a mouthpiece 130 for inhalation by a user).

The heating element may be activated in response to detecting a puff and/or determining that a puff is imminent. For example, puff detection may be performed based on one or more of the signals generated by one or more sensors 113 included in the vaporizer 100 (such as one or more pressure sensors (e.g., configured to measure pressure relative to ambient pressure along an airflow path, measure changes in absolute pressure, etc.), motion sensors, flow sensors, capacitive sensors (e.g., configured to detect contact between one of the user's lips and the vaporizer 100)). Alternatively and/or in addition, a puff (or an upcoming puff) may be detected in response to detecting a user interacting with one or more input devices 116 included in the vaporizer 100 (e.g., buttons or other tactile controls of the vaporizer 100), receiving a signal from a computing device in communication with the vaporizer 100, etc. It will be appreciated that puff detection, including determining that a puff is about to occur, may be performed using a variety of techniques.

In some embodiments of the present subject matter, the evaporator 100 can be configured to connect (e.g., wirelessly or via a wired connection) to a computing device (or two or more devices, as the case may be) that communicates with the evaporator. To this end, the controller 104 can include communication hardware 105. The controller 104 can also include a memory 108. A computing device can be a component of an evaporator system that also includes the evaporator 100, and can include its own communication hardware that can establish a wireless communication channel with the communication hardware 105 of the evaporator 100. For example, a computing device used as part of an evaporator system may include a general purpose computing device (e.g., a smartphone, a tablet, a personal computer, some other portable device such as a smart watch, etc.) that executes software to generate a user interface that enables a device user to interact with an evaporator. In other embodiments of the present subject matter, such a device used as part of an evaporator system may be a dedicated hardware such as a remote control or other wireless or wired device having one or more physical or soft (e.g., configurable on a screen or other display device and selectable via user interaction with a touch screen or some other input device such as a mouse, pointer, trackball, cursor buttons, etc.) interface controls. The evaporator may also include one or more output 117 features or devices for providing information to a user.

A computing device as part of a vaporizer system as defined above may be used for any of one or more functions, such as controlling dosage (e.g., dosage monitoring, dosage setting, dosage limiting, user tracking, etc.), controlling session scheduling (e.g., session monitoring, session setting, session limiting, user tracking, etc.), controlling nicotine delivery (e.g., switching between nicotine vaporizable material and non-nicotine vaporizable material, adjusting an amount of nicotine delivered, etc.), obtaining position location information (e.g., the location of other users, the location of the retailer/business premises, the location of the vape, the relative or absolute location of the vaporizer itself, etc.), vaporizer personalization (e.g., naming the vaporizer, locking/password protecting the vaporizer, adjusting one or more parental controls, associating the vaporizer with a user group, registering the vaporizer with a manufacturer or warranty maintenance organization, etc.), participating in community activities with other users (e.g., social media communications, interacting with one or more groups, etc.). The terms "session schedule", "session", "vaporizer session" or "vapor session" may be used to refer to a period of dedicated use of the vaporizer. The period may include a time period, a number of doses, an amount of vaporizable material, etc.

In instances where a computing device provides signals associated with activation of a heating element, or in other instances where a computing device is coupled to a vaporizer 100 for implementing various control or other functions, the computing device executes one or more computer instruction sets to provide a user interface and basic data processing. In one example, detection of user interaction with one or more user interface elements by the computing device may cause the computing device to signal the vaporizer 100 to activate the heating element, or to reach a fully operational temperature to form an inhalable amount of vapor/aerosol. Other functions of the vaporizer may be controlled by a user interacting with a user interface on a computing device in communication with the vaporizer 100.

The temperature of a heating element of a vaporizer may depend on several factors, including the amount of power delivered to the heating element and/or a duty cycle of the delivered power, conductive heat transfer to other parts of the electronic vaporizer and/or to the environment, latent heat losses due to evaporation of a vaporizable material from the wicking element and/or atomizer in general, and convective heat losses due to airflow (e.g., the movement of air across the heating element or atomizer in general when a user inhales on the electronic vaporizer). As described above, to reliably activate the heating element or heat the heating element to a desired temperature, in certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the vaporizer 100 may utilize a signal from a pressure sensor to determine when a user inhales. The pressure sensor may be positioned in the airflow path or may be connected (e.g., by a passage or other path) to an airflow path connecting an inlet of the air intake device and an outlet through which the user inhales the resulting vapor and/or aerosol, so that the pressure sensor senses the pressure change simultaneously as the air passes from the air inlet through the vaporizer to the air outlet. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the heating element may be activated in association with a user's puff (e.g., by automatically detecting the puff, such as by the pressure sensor detecting a pressure change in the airflow path).

Typically, the pressure sensor (and any other sensors 113) may be located on or coupled (e.g., electrically or electronically connected, physically or via a wireless connection) to the controller 104 (e.g., a printed circuit board assembly or other type of circuit board). To accurately measure and maintain the durability of the evaporator 100, a resilient seal 150 may optionally separate an airflow path from other portions of the evaporator 100. The seal 150 may be a gasket that may be configured to at least partially surround the pressure sensor so that the pressure sensor is isolated from connections to the internal circuit system of the evaporator and a portion of the pressure sensor exposed to the airflow path. In an example of a cartridge-based evaporator, the seal 150 may also separate one or more portions of an electrical connection between an evaporator body 110 and an evaporator cartridge 1320 (not shown in FIG. 1 ) from one or more other portions of the evaporator body 110. Such placement of the seal 150 in the evaporator 100 may help mitigate potential damaging effects on evaporator components caused by interaction with environmental factors (e.g., water in vapor or liquid phase, other fluids such as evaporable materials), and/or reduce the escape of air from designed airflow paths in the evaporator. Unwanted air, liquids, or other fluids passing through and/or contacting the evaporator's circuitry can cause various undesirable effects (such as altered pressure readings) and/or can cause undesirable materials (such as moisture/evaporable materials, etc.) to accumulate in portions of the evaporator, which can result in weak pressure signals, degradation of pressure sensors or other components, and/or shortened evaporator life. Leaking seal 150 can also cause a user to inhale air that has passed over portions of the evaporator device that contain or are constructed of materials that are undesirable to be inhaled.

As described, the vaporizer 100 can be a cartridge-based vaporizer. Thus, in addition to the controller 104, the power source 112 (e.g., a battery), one or more sensors 113, one or more charging contacts 124, and the seal 150, FIG. 1 also shows the vaporizer body 110 of the vaporizer 100 as including a cartridge receptacle 118, which is configured to receive at least a portion of the vaporizer cartridge 1320 to couple with the vaporizer body 110 through one or more of various attachment structures. In some examples, the vaporizer cartridge 1320 can include a reservoir 140 for containing a liquid vaporizable material and a mouth 130 for delivering an inhalable dose to a user. An atomizer 141 including, for example, a wicking element and a heating element can be at least partially disposed within the vaporizer cartridge 1320. Optionally, the heating element and/or wicking element may be disposed within the evaporator cartridge 1320 such that the wall surrounding the cartridge receptacle 118 surrounds all or at least a portion of the heating element and/or wicking element when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is fully connected to the evaporator body 110. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320 that is inserted into the cartridge receptacle 118 of the evaporator body 110 may be positioned within another portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320. For example, the insertable portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320 may be at least partially surrounded by some other portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320, such as a housing.

Alternatively, at least a portion of the atomizer 141 (e.g., one or both of the wicking element and the heating element) may be disposed in the evaporator body 110 of the evaporator 100. In embodiments where a portion of the atomizer 141 (e.g., the heating element and/or the wicking element) is a portion of the evaporator body 110, the evaporator 100 may be configured to deliver liquid evaporator material from the reservoir 140 in the evaporator cartridge 1320 to the atomizer portion contained in the evaporator body 110.

As mentioned above, the removal of the evaporable material 1302 from the reservoir 140 (e.g., via capillary draw of the wicking element) can create at least a partial vacuum in the reservoir 140 relative to the ambient air pressure (e.g., a reduced pressure formed in a portion of the reservoir that has been emptied due to the consumption of the liquid evaporable material), and this vacuum can interfere with the capillary action provided by the wicking element. In some examples, the magnitude of this reduced pressure can be sufficient to reduce the effectiveness of the wicking element in drawing the liquid evaporable material 1302, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the evaporator 100 in evaporating a desired amount of evaporable material 1302, such as when a user draws a puff on the evaporator 100. In extreme cases, a vacuum formed in the reservoir 140 may result in a failure to extract all of the evaporable material 1302 from the reservoir 140, thereby resulting in incomplete use of the evaporable material 1302. One or more venting features may be included in association with an evaporator reservoir 140 (whether the reservoir 140 is located in an evaporator cassette 1320 or elsewhere in an evaporator) to allow at least partial equalization (optionally complete equalization) between the pressure in the reservoir 140 and the ambient pressure (e.g., the pressure of the ambient air outside the reservoir 140) to alleviate this problem.

In some cases, while allowing pressure equalization within the reservoir 140 will improve the efficiency of delivering the liquid evaporable material to the atomizer 141, this may be accomplished by using air to fill an otherwise empty void volume within the reservoir 140 (e.g., the space evacuated with the liquid evaporable material 1302). As discussed in more detail below, this air-filled void volume may subsequently experience a change in pressure relative to the surrounding air, which may, under some conditions, cause the liquid evaporable material 1302 to leak out of the reservoir 140 and ultimately outside of the evaporator cassette 1320 and/or other portions of an evaporator housing the reservoir 140. For example, various environmental factors (e.g., a change in ambient temperature, altitude, and/or volume of evaporator box 1320) may trigger a negative pressure event in which the pressure inside evaporator box 1320 is high enough to expel at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 in reservoir 140. Implementations of the present subject matter may also eliminate or at least minimize leakage of evaporable material 1302.

2A-2B illustrate a planar cross-sectional view of an example of an evaporator cartridge 1320 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. As shown in FIG. 2A-2B, the evaporator cartridge 1320 may include a mouth or mouth region 1330, a reservoir 1340 for containing a vaporizable material 1302, and an atomizer (not shown separately). The atomizer may include a heating element 1350 and a wicking element 1362, the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 being together or separated depending on the embodiment, so that the wicking element 1362 is thermally or thermodynamically coupled to the heating element 1350 to achieve the purpose of vaporizing a vaporizable material 1302 drawn from or stored in the wicking element 1362.

In one embodiment, contacts 1326 may be included to provide an electrical connection between a heating element 1350 and a power source (e.g., power source 112 shown in FIG. 1 ). An airflow passage 1338 defined through or on a side of reservoir 1340 may connect an area of a vaporizer cartridge 1320 housing wicking element 1362 (e.g., a wick housing shown not separately) to an opening to the mouth or mouth region 1330 to provide a route for vaporized vaporizable material 1302 to travel from the region of the heating element 1350 to the mouth region 1330.

As provided above, the wicking element 1362 can be coupled to an atomizer or heating element 1350 (e.g., a resistive heating element or coil), which is connected to one or more electrical contacts (e.g., plate 1326). The heating element 1350 (and/or other heating elements described herein according to one or more embodiments) can have a variety of shapes and/or configurations, and can include one or more heating elements 1350, 1350 or features thereof, as provided in more detail below.

According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the heating element 1350 of the evaporator cartridge 1320 may be formed from a sheet of material (e.g., stamped) and rolled or bent around at least a portion of a wicking element 1362 to provide a preformed element configured to receive the wicking element 1362. For example, the wicking element 1362 is pushed into the heating element 1350. Alternatively and/or additionally, the heating element 1350 is held in a stretched state and pulled over the wicking element 1362.

The heating element 1350 can be bent so that the heating element 1350 secures the wicking element 1362 between at least two or three portions of the heating element 1350. In addition, the heating element 1350 can be bent to conform to a shape of at least a portion of the wicking element 1362. The configuration of the heating element 1350 can allow the heating element 1350 to be manufactured more consistently and with higher quality. The consistency of the manufacturing quality of the heating element 1350 can be particularly important during a scaled and/or automated manufacturing process. For example, a heating element 1350 according to one or more embodiments can help reduce tolerance issues that may occur during a manufacturing process of assembling a heating element 1350 having multiple components.

Additionally, as further discussed below with respect to an included embodiment relating to a heating element formed from a rolled metal, the heating element 1350 may be fully and/or selectively coated with one or more materials to enhance the heating performance of the heating element 1350. Coating all or a portion of the heating element 1350 may help minimize heat loss. Coating may also help focus heat to a portion of the heating element 1350, thereby providing a more efficiently heated heating element 1350 and further reducing heat loss. Selective coating may help direct the current provided to the heating element 1350 to the appropriate location. Selective coating may also help reduce the amount of coating material and/or cost associated with manufacturing the heating element 1350.

As described above, in one embodiment, the heating element 1350 can be configured to receive at least a portion of the wicking element 1362 such that the wicking element 1362 is at least partially disposed within the heating element 1350 (e.g., a heating portion of the heating element 1350). For example, the wicking element 1362 can extend near or next to the plate 1326 and extend through the resistive heating element in contact with the plate 1326. A wick housing can surround at least a portion of a heating element 1350 and connect a heating element 1350 directly or indirectly to an airflow passage 1338. The wicking element 1362 can draw the evaporable material 1302 through one or more passages connected to a reservoir 1340. In one embodiment, one or both of the main passage 1382 or an overflow channel 1104 (see FIG. 5A ) may be utilized to help route or deliver the evaporable material 1302 to one or both ends of a wicking element 1362 or radially along a length of a wicking element 1362.

As provided in greater detail below, and more specifically with reference to FIGS. 2A-2B , the exchange of air and liquid evaporable material 1302 within and outside of the reservoir 1340 of the evaporator cartridge 1320 may be advantageously controlled by incorporating a structure referred to as a collector 1313. The inclusion of the collector 1313 may also improve a volumetric efficiency of the evaporator cartridge 1320, which is defined as the volume of liquid evaporable material ultimately converted to an inhalable aerosol relative to a total volume of liquid evaporable material contained in the evaporator cartridge 1320 (which may correspond to a capacity of the evaporator cartridge 1320 itself).

According to some embodiments, the evaporator box 1320 may include a reservoir 1340 at least partially defined by at least one wall (which may be a wall shared with an outer shell of the box), the reservoir 1340 being configured to contain a liquid evaporable material 1302. The reservoir 1340 may include a storage chamber 1342 and an overflow volume 1344, the overflow volume 1344 may contain or otherwise contain the collector 1313. The storage chamber 1342 may contain the evaporable material 1302, and the overflow volume 1344 may be configured to collect or retain at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 in the reservoir storage chamber 1342 when one or more factors cause the evaporable material 1302 to travel into the overflow volume 1344. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the evaporator cartridge 1320 may be initially filled with the evaporable material 1302 such that the empty space within the collector 1313 is pre-filled with the evaporable material 1302.

In certain exemplary embodiments, when the volume of the contents of the storage chamber 1342 expands due to a maximum expected pressure change relative to the ambient pressure that the reservoir 1340 can experience, the volume of the overflow volume 1344 can be configured to be equal to, approximately equal to, or greater than the increase in the volume of the contents (e.g., evaporable material 1302 and air) contained in the storage chamber 1342.

Depending on changes in ambient pressure, temperature, and/or other factors, the evaporator box 1320 may experience a change from a first pressure state to a second pressure state (e.g., a first relative pressure difference between the reservoir interior and the ambient pressure and a second relative pressure difference between the reservoir interior and the ambient pressure). For example, in the first pressure state, the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 may be less than an ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320. In contrast, in the second pressure state, the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 may exceed the ambient pressure. When the evaporator box 1320 is in a balanced state, the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 may be substantially equal to the ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320.

In some embodiments, the overflow volume 1344 may have an opening to the exterior of the evaporator cartridge 1320 and may be in communication with the storage chamber 1342, such that the overflow volume 1344 may be used as a drain to equalize the pressure in the evaporator cartridge 1320, collect and at least temporarily retain the evaporable material 1302 that enters the overflow volume 1344 (e.g., from the storage chamber 1342 in response to a change in a pressure differential between the storage chamber 1342 and the ambient pressure), and/or return at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 collected in the overflow volume 1344 in reverse as appropriate.

As used herein, a “pressure differential” may refer to a difference between a pressure within an interior portion of the evaporator box 1320 and an ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320. Drawing the evaporable material 1302 from the storage chamber 1342 to the atomizer for conversion to a gas phase or an aerosol phase may reduce the volume of the evaporable material 1302 remaining in the storage chamber 1342. In the absence of a mechanism to return air to the storage chamber 1342 (e.g., to increase the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 to achieve a substantial balance with the ambient pressure), low pressure or even a vacuum may be formed within the evaporator box 1320. The low pressure or vacuum may interfere with the capillary action of the wicking element 1362 to draw additional amounts of the evaporable material 1302 to the heating element 1350.

Alternatively, the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 may also increase due to various environmental factors (e.g., a change in ambient temperature, altitude, and/or the volume of the evaporator box 1320) and exceed the ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320. For example, this increase in internal pressure may occur after returning air to the storage chamber 1342 to achieve a balance between the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 and the ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320. However, it should be understood that a sufficient change in one or more environmental factors can cause the pressure in the evaporator box 1320 to increase from below the ambient pressure to above the ambient pressure (e.g., from a first pressure state to a second pressure state) without any additional air entering the evaporator box 1320 to first achieve a balance between the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 and the ambient pressure. The resulting negative pressure event in which the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 is subjected to a sufficient increase can discharge at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 in the storage chamber 1342. In the absence of a mechanism for collecting and/or retaining the discharged evaporable material 1302 in the evaporator box 1320, the discharged evaporable material 1302 may leak from the evaporator box 1320.

Continuing with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B , the reservoir 1340 may be implemented to include a first region and a second region separable from the first region such that the volume of the reservoir 1340 is divided into a storage chamber 1342 and an overflow volume 1344. The storage chamber 1342 may be configured to store the evaporable material 1302 and may be further coupled to the wicking element 1362 via one or more main passages 1382. In some examples, the length of a main passage 1382 may be very short (e.g., a through hole from a space housing the wicking element 1362 or other portion of an atomizer). In other examples, the main passage 1382 may be a portion of a longer fluid path between the storage chamber 1342 and the wicking element 1362. The overflow volume 1344 can be configured to collect and at least temporarily retain one or more portions of the vaporizable material 1302 that can enter the overflow volume 1344 from the storage chamber 1342 during a second pressure state in which the pressure in the storage chamber 1342 is greater than the ambient pressure, as provided in greater detail below.

In a first pressure state, the evaporable material 1302 can be stored in the storage chamber 1342 of the reservoir 1340. As described, for example, the first pressure state can exist when the ambient pressure outside the evaporator cartridge 1320 is approximately the same as or exceeds the pressure inside the evaporator cartridge 1320. In this first pressure state, the structural and functional properties of the main passage 1382 and the overflow channel 1104 allow the evaporable material 1302 to flow from the storage chamber 1342 toward the wicking element 1362 through the main passage 1382. For example, the capillary action of the wicking element 1362 can draw the evaporable material 1302 close to the heating element 1350. The heat generated by the heating element 1350 can act on the evaporable material 1302 to convert the evaporable material 1302 into a gas phase.

In one embodiment, in the first pressure state, no or a limited amount of the evaporable material 1302 may flow into the collector 1313, for example, into the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313. In contrast, when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is transitioned from the first pressure state to the second pressure state, the evaporable material 1302 may flow from the storage chamber 1342 into the overflow volume 1344 of the reservoir 1340. By collecting and at least temporarily trapping the evaporable material 1302 entering the collector 1313, the collector 1313 may prevent or limit an undesirable (e.g., excessive) flow of the evaporable material 1302 out of the reservoir 1340. As described, a second pressure state may exist when the ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320 is less than the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320. This pressure differential may cause an expansion bubble inside the storage chamber 1342, which may expel a portion of the evaporable material 1302 inside the storage chamber 1342. The collector 1313 may collect and at least temporarily retain the expelled portion of the evaporable material 1302 rather than exiting the evaporator box 1320 and causing an undesirable leak.

Advantageously, the flow of the evaporable material 1302 can be controlled by routing the evaporable material 1302 driven from the storage chamber 1342 to the overflow volume 1344 in the second pressure state. For example, the collector 1313 within the overflow volume 1344 can include one or more capillary structures configured to collect and at least temporarily contain at least some (and advantageously all) excess liquid evaporable material 1302 pushed out of the storage chamber 1342 without allowing the liquid evaporable material 1302 to reach an outlet of the collector 1313, wherein the liquid evaporable material 1302 can exit the collector 1313 and cause undesirable leakage. The collector 1313 may also advantageously include capillary structures that enable liquid evaporable material that is pushed into the collector 1313 (e.g., by excess pressure in the storage chamber 1342 relative to the surrounding pressure) to be drawn back into the storage chamber 1342 when the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 is reduced and/or equalized relative to the surrounding pressure. In other words, the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313 may have microfluidic features or properties that prevent air and liquid from bypassing each other during filling and emptying of the collector 1313. That is, the microfluidic features may be used to manage the flow of the evaporable material 1302 into and out of the collector 1313 (i.e., provide a flow reversal feature). In this case, these microfluidic features can prevent or reduce leakage of the evaporable material 1302 and trapping of air bubbles in the storage chamber 1342 and/or overflow volume 1344.

Depending on the implementation, the microfluidic characteristics or properties described above may be related to the size, shape, surface coating, structural characteristics and/or capillary properties of the wicking element 1362, the main passage 1382 and/or the overflow channel 1104. For example, the overflow channel 1104 in the collector 1313 may have different capillary properties than the main passage 1382 leading to the wicking element 1362, so as to allow a certain volume of the evaporable material 1302 to pass from the storage chamber 1342 to the overflow volume 1344 during the second pressure state in which at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 inside the storage chamber 1342 is discharged from the storage chamber 1342.

In one example embodiment, the total resistance of the collector 1313 to allow liquid to flow out of the collector 1313 can be greater than the total resistance of the wicking element 1362 (for example) to allow the evaporable material 1302 to flow primarily through the main passage 1382 to the wicking element 1362 during the first pressure state.

The main passage 1382 can provide a capillary path for the evaporable material 1302 stored in the reservoir 1340 to pass through or enter the wicking element 1362. The capillary path (e.g., the main passage 1382) can be large enough to allow a wicking action or capillary action to displace the evaporable material 1302 evaporated in the wicking element 1362, but small enough to prevent the evaporable material 1302 from leaking out of the evaporator cartridge 1320 when excess pressure inside the evaporator cartridge 1320 expels at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 from the storage chamber 1342. The wick housing or wicking element 1362 can be treated to prevent leakage. For example, the cartridge evaporator 1320 may be coated after filling to prevent leakage or evaporation through the wicking element 1362. Any suitable coating may be used, such as including a heat evaporable coating (e.g., a wax or other material), etc.

When a user inhales from a mouth area 1330 of the vaporizer cartridge 1320, air flows into the vaporizer cartridge 1320 through an inlet or opening in operative relationship with the wicking element 1362. The heating element 1350 may be activated in response to a signal generated by one or more sensors 113 (shown in FIG. 1 ). As described, the one or more sensors 113 may include at least one of a pressure sensor, a motion sensor, a flow sensor, or other mechanism capable of detecting a puff and/or an impending puff (e.g., including by detecting a change in the airflow passage 1338). When the heating element 1350 is activated, the heating element 1350 may experience a temperature increase due to the current flowing through the plate 1326 or through another resistive component of the heating element that converts electrical energy into thermal energy. It should be understood that activating the heating element 1350 may include the controller 104 (e.g., as shown in FIG. 1 ) controlling the power supply 112 to release a current from the power supply 112 to the heating element 1350.

In one embodiment, the generated heat can be transferred to at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 in the wicking element 1362 via conductive heat transfer, convective heat transfer, and/or radiant heat transfer to evaporate at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 drawn into the wicking element 1362. According to an embodiment, air entering the evaporator cartridge 1320 flows over (or around, near, etc.) the wicking element 1362 and the heated element in the heating element 1350 and strips the evaporated evaporable material 1302 into the airflow passage 1338, where the vapor can condense as appropriate and (for example) be delivered as an aerosol through an opening in the mouth region 1330.

2B, the storage chamber 1342 may be connected to the gas flow passage 1338 (i.e., the overflow channel 1104 through the overflow volume 1344) to allow some portion of the evaporable material 1302 driven from the storage chamber 1342 due to the increase in pressure in the storage chamber 1342 relative to the surroundings to be trapped in the overflow volume 1344 and not escape from the evaporator box 1320. Although the embodiments described herein are related to the evaporator box 1320 including the storage chamber 1340, it should be understood that the described methods are also compatible with and intended for use in an evaporator without a separable box.

Returning to the example, air may be admitted to the storage chamber 1342 when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 is lower than the ambient pressure, which may increase the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 and may cause the evaporator box 1320 to transition to a second pressure state in which the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 exceeds the ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320. Alternatively and/or in addition, the evaporator box 1320 may transition to the second pressure state in response to a change in ambient temperature, a change in ambient pressure (e.g., due to a change in external conditions such as altitude, weather, etc.), and/or a change in the volume of the evaporator box 1320 (e.g., when the evaporator box 1320 is compressed (e.g., squeezed) by an external force). For example, during a negative pressure event, the increase in pressure within the storage chamber 1342 may cause at least air to expand, thereby occupying the empty space of the storage chamber 1342, thereby displacing at least a portion of the liquid evaporable material 1302 in the storage chamber 1342. The displaced portion of the evaporable material 1302 may travel through at least some portion of the overflow channel 1104 in the collector 1313. The microfluidic characteristics of the overflow channel 1104 may cause the liquid evaporable material 1302 to move along a length of the overflow channel 1104 in the collector 1313, wherein only one meniscus completely covers the cross-sectional area of the overflow channel 1104 transverse to the flow direction along the length.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the microfluidic features may include a cross-sectional area small enough so that, given the material forming the walls of the overflow channel 1104 and the composition of the liquid evaporable material 1302, the liquid evaporable material preferentially wets the overflow channel 1104 around an entire perimeter of the overflow channel 1104. For an example in which the liquid evaporable material 1302 comprises one or more of propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin, the wetting properties of such a liquid are advantageously considered in combination with the geometry of the second passage 1384 and the material forming the walls of the overflow channel 1104. In this way, as the sign (e.g., positive, negative, or equal) and magnitude of the pressure differential between the storage chamber 1342 and the ambient pressure changes, a meniscus is maintained between the liquid evaporable material 1302 present in the overflow channel 1104 and the air entering from the ambient atmosphere to prevent the liquid evaporable material 1302 and the air from moving through each other. When the pressure in the storage chamber 1342 drops sufficiently relative to the ambient pressure and if there is sufficient blank volume in the storage chamber 1342 to allow this to occur, the liquid evaporable material 1302 present in the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313 can be sufficiently withdrawn into the storage chamber 1342 so that the leading edge liquid-air meniscus reaches a gate or port between the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313 and the storage chamber 1342. At this time, if the pressure difference in the storage chamber 1342 relative to the surrounding pressure is sufficiently negative to overcome the surface tension that maintains the meniscus at the gate or port, the meniscus breaks away from the gate or port wall to form one or more bubbles, which are released into the storage chamber 1342 with sufficient volume to balance the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 relative to the surrounding pressure.

When air admitted to (or otherwise present in) the storage chamber 1342 discussed above experiences a pressure condition that is elevated relative to the surrounding environment (e.g., due to a drop in ambient pressure such as may occur in an aircraft cabin or other high altitude location, when a window of a moving vehicle is opened, when a train or vehicle exits a tunnel, or an increase in internal pressure in the storage chamber 1342 such as may occur due to localized heating, mechanical pressure that distorts a shape and thereby reduces the volume of the storage chamber 1342, etc.), the procedure described above may be reversed. The liquid passes through the gate or port into the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313 and forms a meniscus at the leading edge of a column of liquid evaporable material 1302 delivered to the overflow channel 1104 to prevent air from bypassing the liquid evaporable material 1302 and flowing in the opposite direction to the propulsion of the liquid evaporable material 1302.

By maintaining this meniscus due to the presence of the microfluidic properties mentioned above, when the high pressure in the storage chamber 1342 is later reduced, the column of evaporable material 1302 can be withdrawn into the storage chamber 1342 and until the meniscus reaches the gate or port, as the case may be. If the pressure difference between the ambient pressure and the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 is large enough, the bubble formation process explained above can occur until the two pressures are equalized. In this way, collector 1313 can be used as a reversible overflow volume that accepts evaporable material 1302 pushed out of storage chamber 1342 under transient conditions where the storage chamber pressure is greater than the ambient pressure, while allowing at least some (and desirably all or most) of this overflow volume of evaporable material 1302 to return to storage chamber 1342 for later delivery to (for example) heating element 1350 for conversion into an inhalable aerosol.

Depending on the implementation, the storage chamber 1342 may or may not be connected to the wicking element 1362 via the overflow channel 1104. In embodiments where the overflow channel 1104 includes a first end coupled to the storage chamber 1342 and a second end of the overflow channel 1104 leading to the wicking element 1362, any evaporable material 1302 that may exit the overflow channel 1104 at the second end may further saturate the wicking element 1362.

The storage chamber 1342 may be positioned closer to one end of the reservoir 1340 near the mouth region 1330, as appropriate. The overflow volume 1344 may be positioned closer to one end of the reservoir 1340 near the heating element 1350, for example, between the storage chamber 1342 and the heating element 1350. The exemplary embodiments shown in the figures are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the claimed subject matter with respect to the location of the various components disclosed herein. For example, the overflow volume 1344 may be positioned at the top portion, the middle portion, or the bottom portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320. The position and location of the storage chamber 1342 can be adjusted relative to the location of the overflow volume 1344 so that the storage chamber 1342 can be located at the top portion, middle portion, or bottom portion of the evaporator box 1320 according to one or more variations.

In one embodiment, when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is filled to the maximum limit, the volume of the liquid evaporable material 1302 may be equal to the internal volume of the storage chamber 1342 plus the overflow volume 1344. In certain exemplary embodiments, the internal volume of the overflow volume may correspond to a volume of the overflow channel 1104 between a gate or port connecting the overflow channel 1104 to the storage chamber 1342 and an outlet of the overflow channel 1104. In other words, the evaporator cartridge 1320 may first be filled with the liquid evaporable material 1302 so that the entire internal volume of the collector 1313 or at least some of the internal volume is occupied by the liquid evaporable material 1302. In this example, the liquid evaporable material 1302 may be delivered to an atomizer (e.g., including wicking element 1362 and heating element 1350) as needed for delivery to a user. For example, to deliver a portion of the evaporable material 1302, the portion of the evaporable material 1302 may be drawn from the storage chamber 1342, thereby drawing any evaporable material 1302 present in the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313 back into the storage chamber 1342, because air cannot enter through the overflow channel 1104 due to the meniscus maintained by the microfluidic properties of the overflow channel 1104 (which prevents air from bypassing the evaporable material 1302 present in the overflow channel 1104). The activities discussed above occur after a sufficient amount of vaporizable material 1302 has been delivered from the storage chamber 1342 to the atomizer (e.g., for vaporization and inhalation by a user) to draw the original volume of the collector 1313 into the storage chamber 1342. For example, when a portion of the vaporizable material 1302 is removed from the storage chamber 1342, one or more bubbles may be released from a gate or port between the secondary passage 1384 and the storage chamber 1342 to equalize the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 (e.g., relative to the surrounding pressure). When the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 increases to be higher than the surrounding pressure (e.g., due to the admission of air in the first pressure state, a temperature change, a change in the surrounding pressure, a change in the volume of the evaporator cartridge 1320, etc.), a portion of the liquid evaporable material 1302 inside the storage chamber 1342 may be discharged and thus moved out of the storage chamber 1342, through the gate or port into the overflow channel 1104, until the high pressure condition of the storage compartment is reduced, at which time the liquid evaporable material 1302 in the overflow channel 1104 may be drawn back into the storage chamber 1342.

In some embodiments, overflow volume 1344 may be large enough to accommodate a percentage of vaporizable material 1302 stored in storage chamber 1342, including up to about 100% of the capacity of storage chamber 1342. In one embodiment, collector 1313 may be configured to accommodate at least 6% to 25% of the volume of vaporizable material 1302 stored in storage chamber 1342. Other ranges are also within the scope of the present subject matter.

The structure of the collector 1313 can be configured, constructed, molded, fabricated or positioned in the overflow volume 1344 in different shapes and with different properties to allow the overflow portion of the evaporable material 1302 to be at least temporarily received, contained or stored in the overflow volume 1344 in a controlled manner (e.g., by means of capillary pressure), thereby preventing the evaporable material 1302 from leaking out of the evaporator cartridge 1320 or oversaturating the wicking element 1362. It should be understood that the above description of the overflow channel 1104 is not intended to be limited to only a single such overflow channel 1104. One or more overflow channels 1104, as the case may be, can be connected to the storage chamber 1342 via one or more gates or ports. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, a single gate or port may be connected to more than one overflow channel 1104, or a single overflow channel 1104 may be separated into more than one overflow channel 1104 to provide additional overflow volume or other advantages.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, an air vent 1318 may connect the overflow volume 1344 to the gas flow passage 1338, which ultimately leads to the ambient air environment outside the evaporator box 1320. This air vent 1318 may, for example, allow a path for air or bubbles that may have formed or been trapped in the collector 1313 to escape through the air vent 1318 during a second pressure state in which the overflow channel 1104 is filled with a portion of the evaporable material 1302 exhausted from the storage chamber 1342.

According to some aspects, the air vent 1318 can act as a reverse vent and provide pressure equalization within the evaporator box 1320 during the return from the second pressure state to the first pressure state due to the overflow of the evaporable material 1302 from the overflow volume 1344 back to the storage chamber 1342. In this embodiment, when the ambient pressure becomes greater than the internal pressure in the evaporator box 1320, the ambient air can flow through the air vent 1318 into the overflow channel 1104 and effectively help push the evaporable material 1302 temporarily stored in the overflow volume 1344 back into the storage chamber 1342 in a reverse direction.

In one or more embodiments, in a first pressure state, the overflow channel 1104 can be at least partially occupied by air. In a second pressure state, the evaporable material 1302 can (for example) enter the overflow channel 1104 through an opening (i.e., a vent) at a point of the interface between the storage chamber 1342 and the overflow volume 1344. Thus, air in the overflow channel 1104 can be exhausted (e.g., the evaporable material 1302 that entered) and can exit through the air vent 1318. In some embodiments, the air vent 1318 may function as or include a control valve (e.g., a selectively permeable diaphragm, a microfluidic gate, etc.) that allows air to exit the overflow volume 1344 but blocks the evaporable material 1302 from exiting the overflow passage 1104 and entering the gas flow passage 1338. As also described, the air vent 1318 may function as an air exchange port that, for example, allows air to enter the collector 1313 when the collector 1313 is filled with evaporable material 1302 that is displaced by excess pressure in the storage chamber 1342, and allows air to exit the collector 1313 when the storage chamber 1342 is emptied when the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 is substantially equalized with the ambient pressure. That is, the air discharge hole 1318 allows air to enter and exit the collector 1313 during a transition between a first pressure state when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 is less than the surrounding pressure, a second pressure state when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 exceeds the surrounding pressure, and an equilibrium state when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 is substantially the same as the surrounding pressure.

Thus, the evaporable material 1302 can be stored in the collector 1313 until the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 stabilizes (e.g., when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 is substantially equal to the ambient pressure or satisfies a specified equilibrium) or until the evaporable material 1302 is removed from the overflow volume 1344 (e.g., by being drawn into an atomizer for evaporation). Thus, as the ambient pressure changes, the level of the evaporable material 1302 in the overflow volume 1344 can be controlled by managing the flow of the evaporable material 1302 into and out of the collector 1313. In one or more embodiments, the overflow of the evaporable material 1302 from the storage chamber 1342 into the overflow volume 1344 can be reversed or reversible based on a detected environmental change (e.g., when a pressure event that caused the overflow of the evaporable material 1302 weakens or ends).

As described above, in certain embodiments of the present subject matter, in a state when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 is lower than the ambient pressure (e.g., when transitioning back from the second pressure state to the first pressure state), the flow of the evaporable material 1302 can be reversed in a direction that causes the evaporable material 1302 to flow from the overflow volume 1344 into the storage chamber 1342 of the reservoir 1340. Therefore, according to an embodiment, the overflow volume 1344 can be configured to temporarily retain the overflow portion of the evaporable material 1302 during the second pressure state when the high pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 discharges at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 from the storage chamber 1342. According to one embodiment, at least some overflow of the evaporable material 1302 that is trapped in the collector 1313 may be returned to the storage chamber 1342 during or after a first pressure state in which the pressure inside the evaporator cartridge 1320 is substantially equal to or less than the ambient pressure.

To control the flow of the evaporable material 1302 in the evaporator cartridge 1320, in other embodiments of the present subject matter, the collector 1313 may optionally include an absorbent or semi-absorbent material (e.g., a material having sponge-like properties) to permanently or semi-permanently collect or intercept the overflow of the evaporable material 1302 traveling through the overflow channel 1104. In one example embodiment including an absorbent material in the collector 1313, the reverse flow of the evaporable material 1302 from the overflow volume 1344 back into the storage chamber 1342 may not be practical or possible compared to embodiments in which the absorbent material is not implemented (or is not implemented as much as possible) in the collector 1313. That is, the presence of the absorbent or semi-absorbent material may at least partially inhibit the evaporable material 1302 collected in the overflow volume 1344 from returning to the storage chamber 1342. Thus, the reversibility and/or rate of reversal of the evaporable material 1302 to the storage chamber 1342 can be controlled by including a greater or lesser density or volume of absorbent material in the collector 1313 or by controlling the texture of the absorbent material, wherein this property results in a higher or lower absorption rate immediately or over a longer period of time.

3A-3D illustrate various design alternatives for connectors used to form a coupling between the evaporator case 1320 and the evaporator body 110 of the evaporator 100. FIG. 3A-3B each illustrate a perspective view of various examples of connectors, and FIG. 3C-3D each illustrate a planar cross-sectional side view of various examples of connectors. The examples of connectors shown in FIG. 3A-3D may include complementary male connectors (e.g., protrusions) and female connectors (e.g., sockets). As shown in FIG. 1 , FIG. 2A-2B , and FIG. 3A-3D , one end of the evaporator case 1320 may include one or more connectors to achieve a coupling between the evaporator case 1320 and the evaporator body 110 of the evaporator 100. For example, one end of the evaporator box 1320 may include one or more mechanical connectors, electrical connectors, and fluid connectors configured to provide an electrical coupling, a mechanical coupling, and/or a fluid coupling between the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110. It should be understood that these connectors can be implemented in various configurations.

In one embodiment of the present subject matter shown in FIGS. 1 , 3A and 3C , one end of the evaporator cartridge 1320 may include a male connector 710 (e.g., a protrusion) configured to couple with a female connector (e.g., cartridge receptacle 118) in the evaporator body 110. In this example, when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is coupled with the evaporator body 110, contacts 1326 disposed on the male connector 710 may form an electrical coupling with corresponding receptacle contacts 125 in the cartridge receptacle 118. In addition, the contacts 1326 on the male connector 710 may mechanically engage with the receptacle contacts 125 in the cartridge receptacle, for example, in a spring-loaded manner, to secure the evaporator cartridge 1320 in the cartridge receptacle 118 of the evaporator body 110. Alternatively, FIG. 3B and FIG. 3D illustrate another example in which one end of the evaporator cartridge 1320 includes a female connector 712. The female connector 712 may be a socket configured to receive a corresponding male connector (e.g., a protrusion) on the evaporator body 110. In this exemplary embodiment, the contact 1326 may be disposed within the female connector 712 and may be configured to form an electrical coupling and a mechanical coupling with a corresponding contact on the male connector on the evaporator body 110.

3E-3F illustrate additional views of the evaporator cartridge 1320 having the male connector 710 shown in FIG. 3A and FIG. 3C. Referring to FIG. 3E, which illustrates a perspective cross-sectional view of an example of the evaporator cartridge 1320, the evaporator cartridge 1320 may include a wick region 910 configured to house at least the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 of the evaporator cartridge 1320. As shown in FIG. 3E, the wick region 910 may be at least partially disposed within the male connector 710 at one end of the evaporator cartridge 1320. Thus, when the male connector 710 is inserted into the cartridge receptacle 118 of the evaporator body 110, the wick region 910 including the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 is at least partially disposed within the cartridge receptacle 118 so that the cartridge receptacle 118 of the evaporator body 110 can provide additional isolation for the heating element 1350. Meanwhile, FIG. 3F illustrates a top plan view of the evaporator cartridge 1320. Specifically, FIG. 9B shows that the male connector 710 can include one or more drain holes 920 disposed at or near the wick region 910. One or more vent holes 920 may be configured to provide precise vapor evacuation and/or airflow to the wicking element 1362, for example to help control condensation within the evaporator cartridge 1320, to improve capillary action, etc.

FIGS. 4A-4D illustrate an example of an evaporator cartridge 1320 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. As shown in FIGS. 4A-4D , the evaporator cartridge 1320 may include a collector 1313, a heating element 1350, a wicking element 1362, contacts 1326, and an airflow passage 1338. The collector 1313 may be configured to control the exchange of air and evaporable material 1302 into and out of a reservoir 1340 of the evaporator cartridge 1320 as described. The collector 1313 may be disposed within a housing of the evaporator cartridge 1320. In some embodiments of the present subject matter, the collector 1313 may be configured, designed, manufactured, fabricated, or constructed wholly or partially independently of a housing of the evaporator cartridge 1320. In addition, the collector 1313 may be formed completely or partially independently of other components of the evaporator cartridge 1320 (e.g., including the storage chamber 1342, the airflow passage 1338, the storage chamber 1342, the heating element 1350, the wicking element 1362, etc.).

For example, in one embodiment of the present subject matter, the evaporator box 1320 may have a box body formed by a single-piece hollow structure having a first end and a second end. The first end (i.e., a first end, also referred to as a receiving end of the box body) may be configured to insertably receive at least one collector 1313. In one embodiment, the second end of the box body may be used as a mouth having an orifice or opening. The orifice or opening may be located opposite to the receiving end of the box body (wherein the collector 1313 may be insertably received). In some embodiments, for example, the opening may be connected to the receiving end by a gas flow passage 1338 that may extend through the body of the evaporator box 1320 and the collector 1313. As in other cartridge embodiments consistent with the present invention, an atomizer (e.g., an atomizer including a wicking element 1362 and a heating element 1350 as discussed elsewhere herein) may be positioned adjacent to or at least partially within the airflow passage 1338 so that an inhalable form of the liquid vaporizable material 1302 or, as the case may be, a precursor to the inhalable form may be released from the atomizer into the air passing through the airflow passage 1338 toward the orifice or opening.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the collector 1313 may have one or more gates and one or more channels configured to control the flow of air and evaporable material 1302 into and out of the reservoir 1340. For further illustration, FIG5A shows a side plan view of an example of a collector 1313 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. A side plan view of an evaporator cassette 1320 including an example of a collector 1313 is shown in FIG5B. The example of the collector 1313 shown in FIGS. 5A-5B may include a single gate 1102 and a single overflow channel 1104, but alternative embodiments of the collector 1313 may include additional gates and/or channels. In the example of the collector 1313 shown in FIGS. 5A-5B , the gate 1102 may be disposed at an opening toward a first portion (e.g., an upper portion) of the collector 1313, wherein the collector 1313 is in contact or fluid communication with a storage chamber 1342 of the reservoir. The gate 1102 may provide a fluid coupling between the storage chamber 1342 and an overflow volume 1344 formed by a second portion (e.g., a middle portion) of the collector 1313.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the second portion of the collector 1313 may have a fin-like structure or a multi-wing structure that forms an overflow channel 1104. The overflow channel 1104 may be spiral, tapered, and/or inclined in a direction away from the gate 1102 and toward an air exchange port 1106. As shown in Figures 5A-5B, the overflow channel 1104 may be configured to direct or cause at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 collected in the overflow volume 1344 to move toward the air exchange port 1106. The evaporable material 1302 from the storage chamber 1342 may pass through the gate 1102 into the overflow volume 1344. The air exchange port 1106 may be connected to the ambient air by an air path or airflow path connected to the mouth. This air path or airflow path is not clearly shown in Figures 5A-5B.

As shown in FIG. 6A , in certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the collector 1313 may be configured to include a flat rib 2102 extending out at the lower perimeter of the collector 1313 to form a conformable surface for welding the collector 1313 to the inner wall of the storage chamber 1342 after the collector 1313 has been inserted into a receiving cavity or socket in the storage chamber 1342. A full perimeter welding or spot welding option may be employed to securely fix the collector 1313 within a receiving cavity or socket in the storage chamber 1342. Alternatively, a tight friction and leak-proof coupling may be established without employing a welding technique, and/or an adhesive material may be utilized in place of or in addition to the coupling techniques described above.

Referring now to FIG. 6B , a sealing bead profile 2104 may be molded at the perimeter of the spiral ribs of the collector 1313 defining an overflow channel 1104 such that the sealing bead profile 2104 may support a sharp turn injection molding process. The geometry of the sealing bead profile 2104 may be designed in various ways so that the collector 1313 may be inserted into a receiving cavity or socket in the storage chamber 1342 in a tight friction manner, wherein the evaporable material 1302 may flow along the sealing bead profile 2104 through the overflow channel 1104 without any leakage.

In some embodiments of the present subject matter, the collector 1313 may include a central tunnel 1100 (e.g., as shown in FIG. 5D ) that may be configured to serve as an airflow passage to the mouth. The airflow passage may be connected to an air exchange port 1106 such that the volume inside the overflow passage 1104 of the collector 1313 is connected to the ambient air via the air exchange port 1106 and is also connected to the volume in the storage chamber 1342 via the gate 1102. Thus, according to some embodiments of the present subject matter, the gate 1102 may be utilized as a control fluid valve to primarily control the flow of liquid and air between the overflow volume 1344 and the storage chamber 1342. The air exchange port 1106 may be used to primarily control the airflow between the overflow volume 1344 and an air path to the mouth and the evaporable material 1302, for example. It should be understood that the relationship of the overflow channel 1104 to the elongated body of the evaporator cartridge 1320 may be diagonal, vertical, or horizontal.

As the evaporator cartridge 1320 is filled, the evaporable material 1302 may have at least one initial interface with the collector 1313 through the gate 1102. This is because an initial interface between the evaporable material 1302 and the gate 1102 may, for example, prevent air from being trapped in the overflow channel 1104 and from entering the storage chamber 1342. In addition, such an interface may initiate a capillary interaction between the evaporable material 1302 and the walls of the overflow channel 1104 so that a limited amount of the evaporable material 1302 may enter the overflow channel 1104 without disturbing an equilibrium state in which negligible evaporable material 1302 flows in and out of the overflow volume 1344. The capillary action (or interaction) between the wall of the overflow channel 1104 and the evaporable material 1302 can maintain the aforementioned equilibrium state when the evaporator box 1320 is in a first pressure state in which the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 is approximately equal to the surrounding pressure.

An equilibrium state and another capillary interaction between the evaporable material 1302 and the walls of the overflow channel 1104 can be established or configured by adjusting or adjusting the volume of the overflow channel 1104 along the length of the channel. As provided in further detail herein, the diameter of the overflow channel 1104 (which is used herein to refer to a measure of the magnitude of the cross-sectional area of the overflow channel 1104, including embodiments of the present subject matter in which the overflow channel does not have a circular cross-section) can be constricted at predetermined intervals or points or throughout the entire length of the channel to allow for a sufficiently strong capillary interaction to provide direct and reverse flow of the evaporable material 1302 into and out of the collector 1313 in response to pressure changes, and further to allow for a large overall volume of the overflow channel while still maintaining a gate point for meniscus formation to prevent gas flow past the liquid in the overflow channel 1104.

The diameter (cross-sectional area) of the overflow channel 1104 may be small enough or narrow enough that the combination of surface tension due to cohesion within the evaporable material 1302 and wetting forces between the evaporable material 1302 and the walls of the overflow channel 1104 may be used to form a meniscus that separates the liquid evaporable material 1302 from the air in a dimension transverse to the axis of flow in the overflow channel 1104. This meniscus may prevent the air and liquid evaporable material 1302 from passing through each other. It will be understood that the meniscus has an inherent curvature, so reference to a dimension transverse to the flow direction is not intended to imply that the air-liquid interface is planar in this or any other dimension.

As shown in FIG. 2B and FIG. 5B , the wicking element 1362 can be thermally or thermodynamically connected to the heating element 1350 so that at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 drawn into the wicking element 1362 can be evaporated by the heat generated by the heating element 1350. At the same time, the air exchange port 1106 can be configured to allow air (and/or other gases) to flow out of the overflow channel 1104 while preventing the evaporable material 1302 from flowing out of the overflow channel 1104.

Referring again to Figures 5A-5B, the direct flow or reverse flow of the evaporable material 1302 in the collector 1313 can be controlled (e.g., enhanced or weakened) by implementing a suitable structure (e.g., a microchannel configuration) to introduce and/or utilize capillary properties that may exist between the evaporable material 1302 and the retention wall of the overflow channel 1104. For example, factors associated with length, diameter, interior surface texture (e.g., rough versus smooth), pinch points, directional taper of channel structures, pinch points, or materials used to construct or coat surfaces of gate 1102, overflow channel 1104, or air exchange port 1106 may positively or negatively affect the rate at which capillary action or other forces acting on evaporator cartridge 1320 draw a liquid into or move the liquid through overflow channel 1104.

According to an embodiment, when the evaporable material 1302 is collected in the channel structure of the collector 1313, one or more of the factors described above can be used to control the discharge of the evaporable material 1302 in the overflow channel 1104 to introduce a desired degree of reversibility. Thus, in some embodiments, the flow of the evaporable material 1302 to the collector 1313 can be fully reversible or semi-reversible by selectively controlling the various factors described above and according to changes in the pressure state inside or outside the evaporator box 1320.

As shown in FIGS. 5A-5B and 11A-11B, in one or more embodiments, the collector 1313 may be formed, constructed or configured to have a single channel single discharge hole structure. In such embodiments, the overflow channel 1104 may be a continuous passage, pipe, channel or other structure for connecting the gate 1102 to the air exchange port 1106, which may be positioned near the wicking element 1362. Thus, in such embodiments, the evaporable material 1302 may enter or exit the collector 1313 from the gate 1102 and through a specially constructed channel, wherein the evaporable material 1302 flows in a first direction when the overflow volume 1344 is filled, and the evaporable material 1302 flows in a second direction when the overflow volume 1344 is drained.

To help maintain a balanced state and/or control the flow of the evaporable material 1302 into the overflow channel 1104, the shape and structural configuration of the overflow channel 1104, the gate 1102 and/or the air exchange port 1106 may be adapted or modified to balance the flow rate of the evaporable material 1302 in the overflow channel 1104 under different pressure conditions. In an embodiment of the present subject matter, for example, the overflow channel 1104 may be tapered so that a cross-sectional dimension (e.g., diameter, area, etc.) of the overflow channel 1104 decreases toward the gate 1102, while a cross-sectional dimension (e.g., diameter, area, etc.) of the overflow channel 1104 increases toward the air exchange port 1106. That is, the cross-sectional dimension of the overflow channel 1104 may be the smallest at the gate 1102 where the overflow channel 1104 is coupled to the storage chamber 1342, and the cross-sectional dimension of the overflow channel 1104 may be the largest at the air exchange port 1106 where the overflow channel 1104 is coupled to the surrounding environment outside the evaporator box 1320. It should be understood that the taper of the overflow channel 1104 may be continuous or discrete. Alternatively and/or in addition, one or more contraction points may be arranged along a length of the overflow channel 1104.

The non-converging end of the overflow channel 1104 with the smallest cross-sectional dimension can be coupled to an airflow path from which the evaporated evaporable material 1302 is delivered to the mouth (e.g., the air discharge hole 1318 connected to the airflow path 1338 shown in FIG. 2A ). In addition, the non-converging end of the overflow channel 1104 can also lead to an area near a core shell 1315 (e.g., see FIG. 7 ) so that at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 exiting the overflow channel 1104 can saturate the wicking element 1362.

The tapered structure of the overflow channel 1104 can reduce or increase the constraint of the evaporable material 1302 flowing into the collector 1313 as needed. For example, in an embodiment where the overflow channel 1104 tapers toward the gate 1102, a favorable capillary pressure that promotes a reverse flow is introduced in the overflow channel 1104 by tapering so that when the pressure state changes (for example, when a negative pressure event is eliminated or weakened), the flow direction of the evaporable material 1302 is away from the collector 1313 and into the storage chamber 1342. Specifically, implementing the overflow channel 1104 with a smaller opening can prevent the evaporable material 1302 from freely flowing into the collector 1313. That is, the overflow channel 1104 tapers toward the gate 1102 to encourage the evaporable material 1302 in the overflow channel 1104 to flow out of the gate 1102 (eg, back into the storage chamber 1342) and prevent the evaporable material 1302 from passing through the gate 1102 and entering the overflow channel 1104 (eg, from the storage chamber 1342). At the same time, during the second pressure state when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 increases and causes at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 to flow from the narrower section of the overflow channel 1104 to the larger volume section of the overflow channel 1104 from the storage chamber 1342 to the collector 1313, the non-gradient configuration of the overflow channel 1104 in a direction toward the air exchange port 1106 enables the evaporable material 1302 to be efficiently stored in the collector 1313.

Thus, the size (e.g., diameter) and shape of the collector 1313 can be implemented to control the flow of the evaporable material 1302 through the gate 1102 into the overflow channel 1104 at a desired rate. For example, during the second pressure state, the size and shape of the collector 1313 can be configured to prevent the evaporable material 1302 from flowing too freely (e.g., exceeding a certain rate or threshold) into the collector 1313 (e.g., due to excessive pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 discharging at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 from the storage chamber 1342), while facilitating a reverse flow back into the storage chamber 1342 (e.g., when the pressure inside the evaporator box 1320 reaches a substantial equilibrium with the ambient pressure outside the evaporator box 1320). It is noteworthy that in one embodiment, the combination of the interaction between the air vent hole 1318, the overflow channel 1104 in the collector 1313 forming the overflow volume 1344, and the air exchange port 1106 can enable proper venting of bubbles introduced into the cassette due to various environmental factors and the controlled flow of the evaporable material 1302 into and out of the overflow channel 1104.

Referring again to FIG. 5B , a portion of the vaporizer cartridge 1320 that includes the storage chamber 1342 may also be configured to include a mouthpiece that can be used by a user to inhale the vaporized vaporizable material 1302. The airflow passage 1338 may extend through the storage chamber 1342, thereby connecting to a vaporization chamber. According to an embodiment, the airflow passage 1338 may be, for example, a straw-shaped structure or a hollow cylinder that forms a passage inside the storage chamber 1342 to allow the vaporized vaporizable material 1302 to pass through. Although the airflow passage may have a circular or at least substantially circular cross-sectional shape, it should be understood that other cross-sectional shapes of the airflow passage are also within the scope of the present invention.

A first end of the airflow passage 1338 may be connected to an opening at a first mouth end of the storage chamber 1342, from which a user may inhale the evaporated evaporable material 1302. A second end of the airflow passage 1338 (opposite the first end) may be received in an opening at a first end of the collector 1313, as provided in greater detail herein. According to embodiments, the second end of the airflow passage 1338 may extend completely or partially through a receiving chamber that extends through the collector 1313 and is connected to a core shell in which the wicking element 1362 may be housed.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the airflow passage 1338 may be an integral part of a one-piece molded mouth portion that includes the storage chamber 1342, wherein the airflow passage 1338 extends through the storage chamber 1342. In other configurations, the airflow passage 1338 may be a separate structure that can be detachably inserted into the storage chamber 1342. In certain configurations, the airflow passage 1338 may be a structural extension of the body of the collector 1313 or evaporator cartridge 1320 that extends internally from an opening in the mouth portion, for example.

Without limitation, various different structural configurations may connect the nozzle (and the airflow passage 1338 within the nozzle) to the air exchange port 1106 in the collector 1313. As provided herein, the collector 1313 may be inserted into the body of the evaporator cartridge 1320, which may also contain and/or serve as the storage chamber 1342. In certain embodiments, the airflow passage 1338 may be configured as an internal sleeve that is a component of a single-piece cartridge body, such that an opening in a first end of the collector 1313 may receive a first end of the sleeve structure that forms the airflow passage 1338. It should be understood that the nozzle may be a single barrel nozzle as shown in FIG. 5B or a multi-barrel nozzle (e.g., a double barrel nozzle) in which multiple airflow passages are provided to deliver a higher dose of evaporated evaporable material 1302.

As described, the collector 1313 may include various mechanisms to control forward and reverse flow of the evaporable material 1302 into and out of the collector 1313 (e.g., overflow volume 1344). Some of these factors may include capillary drive of a fluid discharge hole configured as a gate 1102 herein. The capillary drive of the gate 1102 may be, for example, less than the capillary drive of the wicking element 1362, and the flow resistance of the collector 1313 may be greater than the flow resistance of the wicking element 1362. The overflow channel 1104 may have a smooth or corrugated inner surface to control the flow rate of the evaporable material 1302 through the overflow channel 1104. As described, the overflow channel 1104 may be sloped and/or tapered to provide appropriate capillary interactions and forces to limit the flow rate through the gate 1102 into the overflow volume 1344 during a first pressure state to promote a reverse flow rate through the gate 1102 and out of the overflow volume 1344 during a second pressure state.

Additional modifications to the shape and structure of the components of the collector 1313 may help further regulate or fine-tune the flow of the vaporizable material 1302 into and out of the collector 1313. For example, a smoothly curved spiral channel configuration (i.e., as opposed to a channel having sharp turns or sharp edges) shown in Figures 5A-5H may allow additional features (e.g., one or more vents, channels, apertures, and/or constrictions) to be included in the collector 1313 at predetermined intervals along the overflow channel 1104. As provided in more detail herein, such additional features, structures, and/or configurations may help provide a higher level of flow control for the vaporizable material 1302 along the overflow channel 1104 or through the gate 1102, for example.

5A-5E, a fully or partially inclined spiral surface may be implemented along the inside of the overflow channel 1104 to define one or more sides of the interior volume of the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313 so that the evaporable material 1302 may freely flow through the overflow channel 1104 due to capillary pressure (or gravity) when the evaporable material 1302 enters the overflow channel 1104. The central tunnel 1100 may be transverse to a length of the collector 1313. At a first end, the central tunnel 1100 passing through the collector 1313 may interact with or be connected to a wick 1315 (e.g., see FIG. 7) housing the wicking element 1362 and the heating element 1350. At the second end, the central tunnel 1100 may interact with, connect to, or receive an end of a conduit or tube forming an airflow passage 1338 in the mouth portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320. A first end of the airflow passage 1338 may be connected (e.g., by insertion) to the second end of the central tunnel 1100. A second end of the airflow passage 1338 may include an opening or orifice formed in the mouth region.

According to one or more embodiments, the evaporated evaporable material 1302 produced by heating the evaporable material 1302 by a heating element 1350 may enter through the first end of the central tunnel 1100 in the collector 1313, pass through the central tunnel 1100 and further exit the second end of the central tunnel 1100 and enter the first end of the airflow passage 1338. Then, the evaporated evaporable material 1302 may travel through the airflow passage 1338 and exit through the mouth opening formed at the second end of the airflow passage 1338.

In some of the described aspects of the present subject matter, a gate 1102 can control the flow of evaporable material 1302 into and out of an overflow channel 1104 in a collector 1313. An air exchange port 1106 can control the flow of air into and out of the overflow channel 1104 via a connection to the ambient air to regulate the air pressure in the collector 1313, and in turn regulate the air pressure in the storage chamber 1342 of the evaporator cassette 1320, as provided in greater detail herein. In some embodiments, the air exchange port 1106 can be configured to prevent the evaporable material 1302 present in the overflow channel 1104 of the collector 1313 (e.g., due to excessive pressure discharge inside the evaporator cartridge 1320) from exiting the overflow channel 1104 and leaking into a gas flow path (e.g., the central tunnel 1100).

The air exchange port 1106 can be configured to allow the evaporable material 1302 to exit toward a route leading to the area in which the wicking element 1362 is housed. This embodiment can help prevent the evaporable material 1302 from leaking into an air flow path (e.g., central tunnel 1100) leading to the mouthpiece as the evaporable material 1302 is exhausted from the storage chamber 1342. In certain embodiments, the air exchange port 1106 can have a diaphragm that allows gaseous material (e.g., bubbles) to enter and exit through the air exchange port 1106 but prevents the evaporable material 1302 from entering or exiting the collector 1313 through the air exchange port 1106.

Referring now to FIGS. 5C-5H , the flow rate of the vaporizable material 1302 through the gate 1102 into and out of the collector 1313 can be directly related to the volumetric pressure inside the overflow channel 1104. Thus, the flow rate through the gate 1102 into and out of the collector 1313 can be controlled by manipulating the hydraulic diameter (or cross-sectional area) of the overflow channel 1104 so that reducing the overall volume of the overflow channel 1104 (e.g., uniformly or by introducing multiple constriction points) can increase the pressure in the overflow channel 1104 and adjust the flow rate into the collector 1313. Thus, in at least one embodiment, the hydraulic diameter (or cross-sectional area) of the overflow channel 1104 can be reduced (e.g., narrowed, pinched, constricted, or constrained) uniformly along the length of the spiral path of the overflow channel 1104 or by introducing one or more constrictions 1111a. For example, in the example of the collector 1313 shown in FIGS. 5C-5E , the overflow channel 1104 can include a plurality of downwardly inclined spirals having respective constrictions 1111a and 1111b disposed along the length of the overflow channel 1104 between the gate 1102 and the air exchange port 1106. The number of spirals in the overflow channel 1104 and the number of constriction points along the length of the overflow channel 1104 can determine the volume pressure in the collector 1313. In addition, the volume pressure inside the collector 1313 can be determined by the configuration of the constriction points arranged along the length of the overflow channel 1104.

For example, as shown in FIG5C , the pinch point 1111a may be formed by a bump, raised edge, protrusion, or pinch point extending from the inner surface of the overflow channel 1104 (i.e., the blade of the collector 1313). The shape of the pinch point 1111a may be defined as a bump, finger, tooth, fin, edge, or any other shape that pinches a cross-sectional area transverse to a flow direction in the overflow channel. In the example shown in FIG5C , the pinch point 1111a may be in the shape of a fish fin, for example, with the distal end of the pinch point 1111a tapering to an edge. Additionally, as shown in FIG. 5C , the fin-shaped protruding edge or cantilevered edge may be rounded, but the cantilevered edge may also taper to a sharp end. The shape, size, relative position, and total number of contraction points disposed along the length of the overflow channel 1104 may be adjusted to further control the flow of liquid vaporizable material 1302 into and out of the overflow channel 1104, for example, by fine-tuning the inclination of a meniscus (e.g., separating the liquid vaporizable material 1302 from air) to be formed within the overflow channel 1104.

For example, if it is desired to maintain an incoming flow in overflow channel 1104 at a higher rate than the outgoing flow, the constriction point may be shaped to have a flat surface facing the outgoing flow and a rounded surface facing the incoming flow so as to form and maintain a meniscus that blocks outward flow of liquid (e.g., away from storage chamber 1342) while making it easier for the meniscus to break the side of the constriction point facing away from storage compartment 1340. In this way, a series of such constrictions may be used as a kind of "hydraulic ratchet system" to microfluidically force liquid flow back into the storage compartment relative to outward flow from the storage compartment. This effect may be achieved at least in part by the relative tendency of a meniscus to break from the storage chamber side of the contraction point rather than from the opposite side.

Referring again to FIG. 5C , in one exemplary embodiment, in addition to (or in lieu of) the pinch points extending from the floor or ceiling of the overflow channel 1104, some pinch points may extend from the inner wall of the overflow channel 1104. As more clearly shown in FIG. 5F , a pinch point may extend from one inner wall of the overflow channel 1104 at the same pinch point 1111a, with two additional pinch points extending from the floor and ceiling of the overflow channel 1104 to form a C-shaped pinch point 1111a. The exemplary embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 5D and 5F can more effectively tune the microfluidic properties of the overflow channel 1104 to cause the liquid flow to retract toward the storage chamber 1342 relative to the embodiment in FIG. 5C because the hydraulic diameter of the overflow channel 1104 is more constricted (i.e., narrowed) at the constriction point 1111a shown in FIGS. 5D and 5F.

The shape, size, frequency, or symmetry of the constrictions formed along the overflow channel 1104 need not be uniform. That is, depending on the implementation, different constrictions 1111a or 1111b may be implemented along the overflow channel 1104 with different sizes, designs, shapes, positions, or frequencies. In one example, the shape of a constriction 1111a or 1111b may resemble the shape of the letter C with a circular inner diameter. In some embodiments, instead of forming the inner diameter as a rounded C shape, the inner wall of the constriction may have corners (e.g., sharp corners), such as the corners shown in Figures 5F and 5G.

In some examples, at a first level, the overflow channel 1104 may have a pinch point extending from the ceiling of the overflow channel 1104, and at a second level, the pinch point may extend from the floor of the overflow channel 1104. At a third level, the pinch point may extend from the inner wall, for example. Alternatives to the above embodiments may be possible by adjusting or changing the number of pinch points and pinch point shapes or positioning pinch points in different sequences or levels to help control the microfluidic effects on flow in two directions within the overflow channel 1104. In one example, pinch points 1111a may be implemented on one or more (or all) levels, sides, or widths of the collector 1313, for example.

Referring now to FIGS. 5E-5G , in addition to defining a constriction point 1111a along the longer length of the overflow channel 1104 or one of the wider sides of the collector 1313, one or more additional constriction points 1111b may also be defined along the narrower side of the collector 1313. Thus, the exemplary embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 5E-5G may improve the adjustment of the resistance or promotion to meniscus separation in a desired direction in the overflow channel 1104 as compared to the embodiment in FIG. 5D , because the total hydraulic diameter (or flow volume) of the overflow channel 1104 is more constricted due to the addition of the additional constriction points 1111b.

5H, in some embodiments of the present subject matter, the gate 1102 may be constructed to include an aperture or opening configuration that is similar to a pinch point 1111a or 1111b, having a tapered edge, rim, or lip that is flatter in one direction. For example, the edge of the aperture of the gate 1102 may be shaped to be flat on one side (e.g., the side facing the storage chamber 1342) and rounded on another side (e.g., the side facing away from the storage chamber 1342). In such a configuration, the microfluidic forces that cause flow back toward storage chamber 1342 rather than overflowing away from storage chamber 1342 may be enhanced by easier meniscus removal on the less rounded side relative to the more rounded side.

Thus, depending on the embodiment and variations of the pinch point and the structure or configuration of the gate 1102, the resistance to the flow of the evaporable material 1302 out of the collector 1313 may be higher than the resistance to the flow of the evaporable material 1302 into the collector 1313 and toward the storage chamber 1342. In a particular embodiment, the gate 1102 is configured to maintain a liquid seal such that a layer of evaporable material 1302 is present in the medium where the storage chamber 1342 communicates with the overflow channel 1104 in the overflow volume 1344. The presence of a liquid seal can help maintain a pressure balance between the storage chamber 1342 and the overflow volume 1344 to facilitate a sufficient level of vacuum (e.g., a partial vacuum) in the storage chamber 1342 to prevent the evaporable material 1302 from completely draining into the overflow volume 1344 and to prevent the wicking element 1362 from losing sufficient saturation.

In one or more exemplary embodiments, a single passage or channel in the collector 1313 may be connected to the storage chamber 1342 by means of two drain holes, so that the two drain holes maintain a liquid seal regardless of the positioning of the evaporator box 1320. The formation of a liquid seal at the gate 1102 can also help prevent air in the collector 1313 from entering the storage chamber 1342 even when the evaporator box 1320 is held diagonally relative to the horizontal or when the evaporator box 1320 is positioned with the mouth facing downward. This is because if air bubbles from the collector 1313 enter the storage chamber, the pressure inside the storage chamber 1342 will equalize with the ambient pressure. That is, if ambient air flows into storage chamber 1342, the partial vacuum inside storage chamber 1342 (e.g., formed by evaporable material 1302 draining through wick feeder 1368) will be offset.

In certain scenarios, the headspace vacuum cannot be maintained when the empty space in the storage chamber 1342 (i.e., the headspace above the evaporable material 1302) contacts the gate 1102. Therefore, as previously described, the liquid seal established at the gate 1102 can be broken. This effect can be attributed to the gate 1102 being unable to maintain a fluid film when the collector 1313 is drained and the headspace begins to contact the gate 1102, resulting in a partial loss of the headspace vacuum.

In certain embodiments, the head space in the storage chamber 1342 may have an ambient pressure and if there is a fluid hydrostatic offset between the gate 1102 and the atomizer in the evaporator box 1320, the contents of the storage chamber 1342 may drain into the atomizer, resulting in a core box overflow and leak. To avoid leaks, one or more embodiments may be implemented to remove the fluid hydrostatic offset between the gate 1102 and the atomizer and maintain gate 1102 functionality when the storage chamber 1342 is nearly drained.

5I to 5K illustrate a labyrinth structure 1190 that can be configured to surround the gate 1102 to establish a high drive connection between the gate 1102 and the overflow channel 1104 in the collector 1313 to maintain a liquid seal at the gate 1102. According to one or more embodiments, in the example shown in FIG. 5J, a deep groove structure 1190 can be included as a component to further improve the maintenance of the liquid seal at the gate 1102.

FIGS. 5L-5N illustrate various views of gate 1102 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. As shown, overflow channel 1104 in collector 1313 may be connected to storage chamber 1342 via a V-shaped or horn-shaped controlled fluid gate 1102, for example such that V-shaped gate 1102 includes at least two (and desirably three) openings connected to storage chamber 1342. As provided in greater detail herein, a liquid seal may be maintained at gate 1102 regardless of whether evaporator box 1320 is oriented vertically or horizontally.

As shown in FIG. 5L , on a first side of the drain hole, a drain hole path can be maintained between the overflow channel 1104 and the gate 1102 through which bubbles can escape from the overflow channel 1104 in the collector into the reservoir. On a second side, one or more high drive channels connected to the reservoir can be implemented to cause pinching at a pinch point 1122 to maintain a liquid seal that prevents premature discharge of bubbles leaving the overflow channel 1104 and entering the reservoir, as well as undesirable entry of air or evaporable material 1302 from the reservoir into the overflow channel 1104.

According to an embodiment, the high drive channel shown by way of example on the right side of FIG. 5L is preferably maintained as a seal due to the capillary pressure applied by the liquid evaporable material 1302 in the cartridge reservoir. The low drive channel formed on the opposite side (i.e., shown on the left side in FIG. 5L) can be configured to have a relatively lower capillary drive than the high drive channel, but still have sufficient capillary drive to maintain a liquid seal in both the high drive channel and the low drive channel in a first pressure state.

Thus, in a first pressure state (e.g., when the pressure inside the reservoir is approximately equal to or greater than the ambient air pressure), a liquid seal is maintained in both the low drive channel and the high drive channel, thereby preventing any bubbles from flowing into the reservoir. Conversely, in a second pressure state (e.g., when the pressure inside the reservoir is less than the ambient air pressure), bubbles formed in the overflow channel 1104 (e.g., by virtue of entering through the air exchange port 1106) or more generally a meniscus edge of a liquid evaporable material-air interface can travel upward and toward the controlled fluid gate 1102. When the meniscus reaches the pinch point 1122 between the low drive channel and the high drive channel located at the air discharge hole 1318, the air is preferentially delivered through one or more low drive channels due to the presence of a higher capillary resistance in the high drive channel.

Once the bubble has passed through the low drive passage portion of the gate 1102, the bubble enters the reservoir and equalizes the pressure inside the reservoir with the pressure of the surrounding air. In this way, the air exchange port 1106 and the controlled fluid gate 1102 combination allow the surrounding air entering through the overflow passage 1104 to pass into the reservoir until an equilibrium pressure condition is established between the reservoir and the surrounding air. As previously described, this process can be referred to as reservoir venting. Once an equilibrium pressure state is established (e.g., transitioning from a second pressure state back to a first pressure state), a liquid seal is again established at the pinch point 1122 due to the presence of liquid in both the high drive channel and the low drive channel fed by the liquid evaporable material 1302 stored in the reservoir.

In certain embodiments, the tapered channel can be designed to increase drive toward the controlled discharge orifice. Considering pinching of the two advancing menisci, the tank wall of the reservoir and the channel bottom can be configured to continue to provide drive, while the side walls provide a pinching location for the menisci. In one configuration, the net drive of the advancing meniscus does not exceed the net drive of the retreating meniscus, thereby maintaining static stability of the system.

Referring back to FIGS. 4C-4D and 5B, in some variations, the collector 1313 may be configured to be insertably received by a receiving end of the storage chamber 1342. The end of the collector 1313 opposite the end received by the storage chamber 1342 may be configured to receive the wicking element 1362. For example, forked contractions may be formed to securely receive the wicking element 1362. The core shell 1315 may be used to further secure the wicking element 1362 in a fixed position between the contractions. This configuration may also help prevent the wicking element 1362 from substantially expanding and weakening due to oversaturation.

5C-5E, depending on the implementation, one or more additional conduits, channels, tubes, or cavities traveling through the collector 1313 may be structured or configured as a path for feeding the vaporizable material 1302 stored in the storage chamber 1342 to the wicking element 1362. In some configurations, such as those discussed in more detail herein, the wick feeding conduit, tube, or cavity (i.e., wick feeder 1368) may extend approximately parallel to the central tunnel 1100. In at least one configuration, there may be one or more wick feeders extending diagonally along the length of the collector 1313, either independently or in conjunction with a wick exchanger, for example, optionally including one or more other wick feeders.

In certain embodiments, a plurality of core feeders may be interactively connected in a multi-chain configuration such that an interconnection of feed paths that may cross each other may lead to the core housing region. This configuration may help prevent complete blockage of the core feed mechanism if, for example, one or more of the feed paths in the core feeder interconnection crossovers are obstructed by the formation of gas bubbles or other types of blockages. Advantageously, instrumentation of multiple feed paths may allow the vaporizable material 1302 to safely travel through one or more paths (or cross to a different but open path) toward the core housing region even if certain paths or specific routes in the core feeder interconnection crossovers are completely or partially blocked or obstructed.

Depending on the implementation, a core feed path may be shaped as a tube having, for example, a circular shape or a multi-faceted cross-shaped diameter shape. For example, the hollow cross-section of the core feed may be triangular, rectangular, pentagonal, or any other suitable geometric shape. In one or more embodiments, the cross-sectional perimeter of the core feed may be in the shape of a hollow cross, for example, such that the arms of the cross have a narrow width relative to the diameter of the central intersection of the cross from which the arms extend. More generally, a core feed channel (also referred to herein as a first channel) may have a cross-sectional shape having at least one irregularity (e.g., a protrusion, a side channel, etc.) that provides an alternate path for liquid evaporable material to flow through in the event that a bubble barrier blocks the remainder of the cross-sectional area of the core feed. The cross-shaped cross-section of the present example is an example of such a structure, but a skilled artisan will appreciate that other shapes are also contemplated and feasible consistent with the present invention.

The cross-shaped conduit or pipe embodiment formed through a core feed path can overcome the clogging problem because the cross-shaped conduit can be essentially considered to include five separate paths (e.g., a central path formed in the hollow center of the cross and four additional paths formed in the hollow arms of the cross). In this embodiment, for example, a blockage in the feed conduit by a gas bubble will likely be formed at the center portion of the cross-shaped conduit, thereby leaving the sub-paths (i.e., the paths through the arms of the cross-shaped conduit) open for flow.

According to one or more aspects, the wick feed path can be wide enough to allow the vaporizable material 1302 to freely pass through the feed path and travel toward the core. In some embodiments, the flow through the wick feed can be enhanced or adapted by designing the relative diameters of specific portions of the wick feed to impose capillary attraction or pressure on the vaporizable material 1302 traveling through a wick feed path. In other words, depending on the shape and other structural or material factors, certain wick feed paths can rely on gravity or capillary forces to cause the vaporizable material 1302 to move toward the core-shell portion.

In a cross-shaped channel embodiment, for example, the feed path through the arms of the cross-shaped channel can be configured to feed the wick by means of capillary pressure rather than relying on gravity. In this embodiment, the central portion of the cross-shaped channel can feed the wick due to gravity, for example, while the flow of the evaporable material 1302 in the arms of the cross-shaped channel can be supported by capillary pressure. It should be noted that the cross-shaped channel disclosed herein is for the purpose of providing an exemplary embodiment.

It should be understood that a cross-shaped cross-section of a core feed path is only one of many potential configurations consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. In other words, the concepts and functionality implemented in this exemplary embodiment can be extended to core feed paths having different cross-sectional shapes (e.g., a tube having a hollow star-shaped cross-section with two or more arms extending from a central tunnel extending along a core feed path). A common feature consistent with this aspect of the present subject matter is to achieve a cross-sectional shape of a wetting angle of the material forming the wicking path and the liquid evaporable material to be used, the cross-sectional shape preferably being such that a bubble cannot completely block the entire cross-section, for example, because one or more protruding shapes in the cross-section are sized so that a meniscus formed across the protruding shapes can maintain a continuous liquid flow path around any such bubble (e.g., in the portion of the wicking path that forms the protruding portion of the cross-section).

Referring again to FIG. 5C , an exemplary collector 1313 configuration is shown in which two wick feeders 1368 are positioned on opposite sides of the central tunnel 1100 so that the vaporizable material 1302 can enter the feeders and flow directly toward the cavity region at the other end of the collector 1313 where a housing for the wick is formed.

The core feeder mechanism may be formed through the collector 1313 so that at least one core feeder path in the collector 1313 may be shaped as a multi-faceted cross-diameter hollow conduit. For example, the hollow cross section of the core feeder may be in the shape of a plus sign (e.g., a hollow cross-shaped core feeder if viewed from a top cross-sectional view) so that the arms of the cross have a narrower width relative to the diameter of the central cross section of the cross from which the arms extend.

This central positioning of the gas bubble will ultimately keep the subpaths (i.e., the paths through the arms of the cross-shaped conduit) open to the flow of vaporizable material 1302 even when the central path is blocked by the gas bubble. Other embodiments of a wick feed passage structure are possible that can achieve the same or similar goals as those disclosed above with respect to trapping gas bubbles or preventing gas bubbles from completely blocking the wick feed passage.

Depending on the implementation, adding more drain holes in the structure of collector 1313 may allow for faster flow rates because a relatively larger total volume of vaporizable material 1302 may be drained when additional drain holes are available. Thus, while not explicitly shown, embodiments having more than two drain holes (e.g., triple drain hole embodiments, quadruple drain hole embodiments, etc.) are also within the scope of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG8A illustrates a perspective view, a front view, a side view, a bottom view, and a top view of an example of a collector 1313 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. In the example of the collector 1313 shown in FIG8A , the gate 1102 can be V-shaped. The collector 1313 can be assembled inside a hollow cavity in the evaporator cartridge 1320 along with additional components (e.g., wicking element 1362, heating element 1350, and wick housing 1315). The wicking element 1362 can be positioned between a second end of the collector 1313 and the heating element 1350 wrapped around the wicking element 1362. During assembly, the collector 1313, wicking element 1362, and heating element 1350 may be assembled together and covered by the wick housing 1315 before being inserted into the cavity inside the evaporator cartridge 1320.

The core shell 1315 can be inserted into the end of the evaporator box 1320 opposite the mouth together with the other components described above, thereby retaining the components inside in a pressure-sealed or pressure-fit manner. The core shell 1315 and the collector 1313 are preferably sealed or fitted to the inner side of the inner wall of the receiving sleeve of the evaporator box 1320 tightly enough to prevent leakage of the evaporable material 1302 retained in the reservoir of the evaporator box 1320. In some embodiments, the pressure seal between the core shell 1315 and the collector 1313 and the inner wall of the receiving sleeve of the evaporator box 1320 is also tight enough to prevent a user from manually disassembling the components with bare hands.

Referring now to FIGS. 8B-8C , in certain embodiments of the present subject matter, a wicking element 1362 may be constrained or compressed by compression ribs 1110 in specific locations along its length (e.g., toward the longitudinally distal end of the wicking element 1362 positioned directly below the wick feeder 1368) to help prevent leakage by, for example, maintaining a larger saturation area of the evaporable material 1302 toward the ends of the wicking element 1362, such that the center portion of the wicking element 1362 remains drier and less prone to leakage. Additionally, the use of compression ribs 1110 may further press the wicking element 1362 into the atomizer housing to prevent leakage into the atomizer.

8D-8F illustrate top plan views of examples of core feed mechanisms that may be formed by or structured through collector 1313. In the example shown in FIG8D , the path of at least one core feed member 1368 in collector 1313 may be shaped as a multi-faceted cross-diameter hollow conduit. For example, the hollow cross-section of the core feed member 1368 path may be in the shape of a plus sign (e.g., a hollow cross-shaped core feed member if viewed from a top cross-section) such that the arms of the cross have a narrower width relative to the diameter of the central cross portion of the cross from which the arms extend. Meanwhile, in the example shown in FIG. 8E , a conduit or pipe having a cross-shaped diameter formed by a path through a core feed member 1368 can overcome the blockage problem because a pipe having a cross-shaped diameter can be considered to include five separate paths (e.g., a central path formed at the hollow center of the cross and four additional paths formed in the hollow arms of the cross). In this embodiment, a blockage in the feed pipe by a gas bubble (e.g., a bubble) will likely form at the central portion of the cross-shaped pipe shown in FIG. 8E . A central positioning of the gas bubble will ultimately keep the subpaths (i.e., the paths through the arms of the cross-shaped pipe) open to the flow of the vaporizable material 1302, even when the central path is blocked by the gas bubble.

Now referring to FIG. 8F , the core feedback mechanism may also be a core feeder 1368 path structure that can trap gas bubbles or prevent the trapped gas bubbles from completely blocking the path of the core feeder 1368 . As shown in the example illustration of FIG. 8F , one or more droplet-shaped pinch points 1368a and/or 1368b (e.g., shaped similarly to one or more separated tubes with a wick feeder 1368 path therebetween) may be formed at one end of the wick feeder 1368 path, and the evaporable material 1302 flows from the storage chamber 1342 through the wick feeder 1368 path to the collector 1313 to help guide the evaporable material 1302 through the wick feeder 1368 path when a gas bubble is trapped in a central region of the wick feeder 1368 path. In this way, a reasonably controlled and consistent flow of the vaporizable material 1302 can flow toward the core, thereby preventing a scenario in which the vaporizable material 1302 does not adequately saturate the core.

FIG. 7 depicts a perspective view, a front view, a side view, and an exploded view of an example of a vaporizer cartridge 1320 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. As shown, the vaporizer cartridge 1320 may include a mouth-reservoir combination shaped in the form of a sleeve having an airflow passage 1338 defined therethrough. A region in the vaporizer cartridge 1320 houses the collector 1313, wicking element 1362, heating element 1350, and wick housing 1315. An opening at a first end of the collector 1313 leads to the airflow passage 1338 in the mouth and provides a route for vaporized vaporizable material 1302 to travel from the heating element 1350 region to the mouth (where a user inhales).

9A to 9C illustrate a perspective view, a front view, and a side view of an example of an evaporator cassette 1320 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. Referring to FIG. 9A to 9C, the evaporator cassette 1320 shown may be assembled from a plurality of components including a collector 1313, a heating element 1350, and a core shell 1315, which is used to hold the cassette components in place when the components are inserted into a body of a cassette. In one embodiment, a laser weld may be performed at a circumferential seam located approximately at the point where one end of the collector 1313 meets the core shell 1315. A laser weld between the collector 1313 and the heating chamber can prevent the liquid evaporable material 1302 in the collector 1313 from flowing into the heating chamber when the atomizer is placed.

Evaporating evaporable material into an aerosol may form condensate that collects along one or more internal passages and outlets (e.g., along a mouth) of certain evaporators. For example, this condensate may include evaporable material that was drawn from a reservoir, formed into an aerosol, and condensed into condensate before exiting the evaporator. Additionally, evaporable material that has circumvented the evaporation process may also accumulate along one or more internal passages and/or air outlets. This may cause condensate and/or unevaporated evaporable material to exit the mouth outlet and deposit in a user's mouth, thereby both creating an unpleasant user experience and reducing the amount of inhalable aerosol that would otherwise be available. In addition, the accumulation and loss of condensate may eventually result in a failure to draw all of the evaporable material from the reservoir into the evaporation chamber, thereby wasting the evaporable material. For example, when particles of evaporable material accumulate in the internal passage of an air duct downstream of an evaporation chamber, the effective cross-sectional area of the air flow passage narrows, thereby increasing the flow velocity of the air and thereby exerting a drag force on the accumulated fluid, thereby amplifying the likelihood of entraining the fluid from the internal passage and through the nozzle outlet. Thus, in certain embodiments of the present subject matter, evaporator cartridge 1320 may include a condensate recirculation system including, for example, a condensate collector 3201 and condensate recirculation channel 3204 (e.g., a microfluidic channel) extending from an opening at the mouth of wicking element 1362. For further illustration, FIGS. 10A-10E show various views of evaporator cartridge 1320 including an example of a condensate recirculation system consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter.

Referring to Figures 10A to 10E, the condensate collector 3201 acts on the evaporated evaporable material 1302, which is cooled in the mouth and becomes droplets to collect the condensate droplets and route the condensate droplets to the condensate recirculator channel 3204. The condensate recirculator channel 3204 collects condensate and large vapor droplets and returns the condensate and large vapor droplets to the core, and prevents the liquid evaporable material formed in the mouth from being deposited in the user's mouth during the user's suction or inhalation from the mouth. The condensate recirculator channel 3204 can be implemented as a microfluidic channel to trap any liquid droplets of condensate and thereby eliminate direct inhalation of the evaporable material in liquid form and avoid an unpleasant feeling or taste in the user's mouth.

Additional and/or alternative embodiments of condensate recirculator channels and/or one or more other features for controlling, collecting and/or recycling condensate in an evaporator apparatus are described and shown with respect to FIGS. 45A-45C . For example, FIGS. 45A-45C illustrate another example of a condensate recirculator system 360 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. The condensate recirculator system 360 can be configured to collect evaporable material condensate and direct the condensate back to the wick for reuse. As shown in FIGS. 45A-45C , the condensate recirculator system 360 may include an internally grooved air duct 334 forming an airflow passage 338 extending from the mouth toward the evaporation chamber 342 and may be configured to collect any evaporable material condensate and direct it (via capillary action) back to the wick for reuse.

One function of the grooves may include evaporable material condensate being trapped or otherwise positioned within the grooves. Once positioned within the grooves, the condensate drains downwardly to the wick due to capillary action created by the wicking element. Drainage of the condensate within the grooves may be achieved at least in part via capillary action. If any condensation exists within the air duct, the evaporable material particles fill the grooves rather than forming or building up a condensate wall within the air duct if no grooves are present. When the grooves are filled sufficiently to establish fluid communication with the wick, the condensate passes through the grooves and drains from the grooves and may be reused as evaporable material. In certain embodiments, the grooves may be tapered such that the grooves narrow toward the wick and widen toward the mouth. This taper encourages the flow to move toward the evaporation chamber because more condensate is collected in the grooves due to the higher capillary action at the narrower points.

FIG. 45A shows a cross-sectional view of the air duct 334. The air duct 334 includes an air flow passage 338 and one or more internal grooves having a hydraulic diameter that decreases toward the evaporation chamber 342. The grooves are sized and shaped so that a fluid (such as condensate) disposed in the grooves can be transferred from a first location to a second location via capillary action. The internal grooves include air duct groove 364 and chamber groove 365. The air duct groove 364 can be disposed inside the air duct 334 and can be tapered so that the cross-section of the air duct groove 364 at an air duct first end 362 can be larger than the cross-section of the air duct groove 364 at an air duct second end 363. The chamber groove 365 can be disposed proximate to the air duct second end 363 and coupled to the air duct groove 364. The inner grooves may be in fluid communication with the core and configured to allow the core to continuously drain the evaporable material condensate from the inner grooves, thereby preventing the accumulation of a condensate film in the gas flow path 338. The condensate may preferentially enter the inner grooves due to the capillary drive of the inner grooves. The capillary drive gradient in the inner grooves directs the fluid to migrate toward the core shell 346, where the evaporable material condensate is recirculated by resaturating the core.

FIG. 45B and FIG. 45C show an interior view of the condensate recirculator system 360 as seen from the air duct first end 362 and the air duct second end 363, respectively. The air duct first end 362 may be disposed proximate to the mouth and/or air outlet. The air duct second end 363 may be disposed proximate to the evaporation chamber 342 and/or the core shell 346 and may be in communication with the chamber groove 365 and/or the core fluid. The air duct groove 364 may have a first diameter 366 and a second diameter 368. The second diameter 368 may be narrower than the first diameter 366.

As the effective cross-section of the airflow path is narrowed due to accumulation of condensate in the airflow path or due to a design as discussed herein, the flow rate of air moving through the air duct increases, thereby exerting a drag force on the accumulated fluid (e.g., condensate). The fluid exits the air outlet when the drag force pulling the fluid toward the user (e.g., in response to inhalation on the evaporator) is greater than the capillary force pulling the fluid toward the wick.

To overcome this problem and encourage condensate away from the nozzle outlet and back toward the evaporation chamber 342 and/or wick, a tapered airflow path is provided such that a cross-section of the air duct groove 364 proximate the evaporation chamber 342 is narrower than a cross-section of the air duct groove 364 proximate the nozzle. In addition, each of the internal grooves is narrowed such that the width of the internal groove proximate the air duct first end 362 can be wider than the width of the internal groove proximate the air duct second end 363. In this way, the narrowed path increases the capillary drive of the air duct groove 364 and encourages fluid movement of the condensate toward the chamber groove 365. Further, the chamber groove 365 proximate the air duct second end 363 can be wider than the width of the chamber groove 365 proximate the wick. That is, in addition to the airflow path itself narrowing toward the core end, each groove channel also gradually narrows as it approaches the core.

To maximize the effectiveness of the capillary action provided by the condensate recirculator system design, the size of the air duct cross section relative to the groove size may be considered. Although capillary drive may increase as the groove width becomes narrower, smaller groove sizes may cause condensate to overflow the groove and plug the air duct. Thus, the groove width may range from approximately 0.1 mm to approximately 0.8 mm.

In some embodiments, the geometry or number of grooves may vary. For example, the grooves may not necessarily have a decreasing hydraulic diameter toward the core. In some embodiments, a decreasing hydraulic diameter toward the core may improve the performance of the capillary drive, but other embodiments are contemplated. For example, the internal grooves and channels may have a substantially straight structure, a tapered structure, a spiral structure, and/or other configurations.

FIGS. 11A-11B illustrate a front view and a side view of an example of an evaporator box 1320 having an external airflow path consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. For example, as shown in FIGS. 11A-11B, one or more gates (also referred to as air inlet holes) may be disposed on the evaporator body 110. The inlet holes may be positioned inside an air inlet passage having a width, height, and depth sized to prevent a user from inadvertently blocking individual air inlet holes when the user holds the evaporator 100 coupled to the evaporator box 1320. In one aspect, the air inlet passage structure may be long enough so as not to significantly block or restrict airflow through the air inlet passage when, for example, a user's finger blocks an area of the air inlet passage.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the geometry of the air inlet passage can provide at least one of a minimum length, a minimum depth, or a maximum width, for example, to ensure that a user cannot completely cover or block the air inlet hole in the air inlet passage with a finger, a hand, or another body part. For example, the length of the air inlet passage can be longer than the width of an average human finger, and the width and depth of the air inlet passage can be such that when a user's finger presses on the top of the passage, the skin folds formed do not interfere with the air inlet hole inside the air inlet passage.

The air inlet passage may be constructed or formed to have rounded edges or to be shaped to wrap around one or more corners or areas of the evaporator body 110 so that a user's finger or body part cannot easily cover the air inlet passage. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, an optional cover may be provided to protect the air inlet passage so that a user's finger cannot block or completely restrict the air flow into the air inlet passage. Alternatively and/or in addition, the air inlet passage may be disposed at an interface between the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110. For example, the air inlet passage may be disposed in a recessed area, such as a seam, a cavity, a groove, a gap, etc., formed between the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110 when the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110 are coupled. The recessed area may extend at least partially around the circumference of the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110 so that a user's finger (or other body part) can cover only a portion of the recessed area and air can still pass through the uncovered portion of the recessed area into the air inlet passage.

FIG. 12A illustrates a perspective view, a top view, a bottom view, and various side views of an example of a core shell 1315 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. As shown, one or more perforations, holes, or slots 596 may be formed in a lower portion of the core shell 1315 to enable air to flow into the core shell 1315 and around and/or through the wick element 1362 positioned in the core shell 1315. A sufficient number of slots 596 may facilitate sufficient airflow through the core shell 1315, which may be necessary to respond to the heat generated by the heating element 1350 positioned near or around the wicking element 1362 to provide a proper and timely evaporation of the evaporable material 1302 absorbed into the wicking element 1362.

To prevent the evaporable material 1302 present in the core shell 1315 (e.g., the evaporable material 1302 drawn into the wicking element 1362) from flowing out of the core shell 1315, the internal dimensions (e.g., cross-sectional area, diameter, width, length, etc.) of the groove 596 can be stepped to provide (e.g.,) one or more constriction points, and a meniscus can be formed at the one or more constriction points to prevent the evaporable material 1302 from further flowing out. For further illustration, Figures 50A-50B show cross-sectional views of the core shell 1315 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. As shown in FIGS. 50A-50B , the groove 596 may be stepped, so that an inner dimension of the groove 596 at a bottom of the core shell 1315 may be smaller than the dimension of the groove 596 so that the inner side of the groove 596 exhibits at least one step.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the dimensions of the groove 596 at the bottom of the core shell 1315 may be between 1.0 and 1.4 mm long by 0.3 and 0.7 mm wide. For example, the groove 596 at the bottom of the core shell 1315 may be 1.2 mm long by 0.5 mm wide, but may exhibit a stepped interior so that the inner dimensions of the groove are approximately 1.0 mm long by 0.3 mm wide. The steps may provide a constriction point at which a meniscus may form to prevent further egress of the evaporable material 1302 from the groove 596. Specifically, the stepped interior of the tank 596 maintains an air-liquid interface that prevents the liquid evaporable material 1302 from damaging the bottom of the core shell 1315 and contaminating an external environment, for example, including the evaporator body 110 (e.g., the cartridge receptacle 118) near where the evaporator cartridge 1320 couples with the evaporator body 110.

FIG. 12B illustrates a perspective view of the collector 1313 and the core shell 1315, which may be coupled, for example, to form at least a portion of the evaporator cassette 1320. As shown, the core shell 1315 (which includes the core-shell portion of the cassette) may be implemented to include one or more protruding members or tabs 4390. The tabs 4390 may be configured to extend from an upper end of the core shell 1315 that mate with a receiving end of the collector 1313 during assembly. The tabs 4390 may include one or more facets that correspond or match one or more facets in a receiving recess or receiving cavity 1390, for example, in a bottom portion of the collector 1313. The receiving cavity 1390 may be configured to removably receive the tabs 4390 with a snap-fit engagement, for example. The snap-fit configuration may assist in holding the collector 1313 and the core shell 1315 together during or after assembly.

In certain embodiments, tabs 4390 may be utilized to guide the orientation of the core housing 1315 during assembly. For example, in one embodiment, one or more vibration mechanisms (e.g., a vibration bowl) may be utilized to temporarily store or display various components of the evaporator cartridge 1320. According to certain embodiments, tabs 4390 may help orient the upper portion of the core housing 1315 into a mechanical grip for easy engagement and proper automated assembly.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the collector 1313 may include one or more features configured to promote mixing of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 in the airflow passage 1338. As described, the central tunnel 1100 may be transverse to the collector 1313 to form a fluid connection between the airflow passage 1338 and the wick 1315 in which the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 are disposed. Thus, the aerosol generated by the heating element 1350 heating the evaporable material 1302 drawn into the wicking element 1362 may travel from the wick 1315 to the central tunnel 1100 in the collector 1313 before flowing to the airflow passage 1338 for delivery to the user. To promote mixing of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 as it travels through the central tunnel 1100 and the gas flow passage 1338, the bottom surface of the collector 1313, which serves as an interface between the collector 1313 and the core shell 1315, may include one or more features configured to direct the flow of the evaporated evaporable material 1302.

For further illustration, FIGS. 52A-52E show a collector 1313 having an example of a flow controller 5220 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. Referring to FIGS. 52A-52E , the collector 1313 may include a flow controller 5220 on its bottom surface. The bottom surface of the collector 1313 may further include one or more coupling mechanisms for securing the collector 1313 to the core shell 1315, for example including a first coupling mechanism 5210a and a second coupling mechanism 5210b. The first coupling mechanism 5210a and the second coupling mechanism 5210b may be male connectors (e.g., forks) configured to be inserted into and frictionally engaged with corresponding female connectors (e.g., sockets) in the core shell 1315. In the example of the collector 1313 shown in FIGS. 52A to 52E , the bottom surface of the collector 1313 may further include one or more core interfaces, for example, including a first core interface 5230a and a second core interface 5230b. The first core interface 5230a and the second core interface 5230b may be coupled with the core feeder 1368. For example, the first core interface 5230a may be disposed between one end of a first core feeder 1368a and the core housing 1315, and the second core interface 5230b may be disposed between one end of a second core feeder 1368b and the core housing 1315. The first core interface 5230a and the second core interface 5230b can each be configured to serve as a conduit for delivering at least a portion of the evaporable material 1302 flowing through the core feeder 1368 to the wicking element 1362 disposed in the core shell 1315.

Referring again to FIGS. 52A-52E , the flow controller 5220 may be fluidly coupled to the central tunnel 1100, which in turn is fluidly connected to the airflow passage 1338. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the flow controller 5220 may be configured to direct the flow of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 to promote mixing of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 in the central tunnel 1100 and/or the airflow passage 1338. Mixing of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 may be desired for a variety of reasons, including, for example, regulating a temperature and/or a distribution of evaporated particles in an aerosol delivered to a user.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the flow controller 5220 may include one or more channels, for example, a first channel 5225a and a second channel 5225b. In the example of the collector 1313 shown in Figures 52A to 52E, the relative positions of the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b may be offset (or staggered) so that the first channel 5225a to a first opening in the central tunnel 1100 is at least partially offset from the second channel 5225b to a second opening in the central tunnel 1100. In addition, the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b may taper to form a separate funnel-shaped structure, for example. The cross-sectional dimensions of the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b may also taper toward the end where the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b meet the central tunnel 1100. For example, at a height of about 2.25 mm, the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b may each taper from 2.62 mm x 5.85 mm (at the bottom of the collector 1313) to 1.35 mm x 0.70 mm. In addition, the inner side walls of the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b may be inclined toward a center of the central tunnel 1100. Thus, the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b may each form a separate column of evaporated evaporable material 1302 from the evaporated evaporable material 1302 entering the flow controller 5220 from the core shell 1315.

In addition, each column of evaporated evaporable material 1302 can flow in a direction that is offset by the slanted inner profile of the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b. For example, instead of traveling straight toward the gas flow passage 1338, the column of evaporated evaporable material 1302 can be directed toward the walls of the central tunnel 1100 and the gas flow passage 1338. That is, the flow controller 5220 can be configured to disrupt the laminar flow of evaporated evaporable material 1302, in which the layers of evaporated evaporable material 1302 travel independently without any disturbance or merging between the layers, each layer traveling at its own speed and having its own temperature. The lateral mixing between the layers of evaporated evaporable material 1302 in a laminar flow may be minimal and slow (e.g., through diffusion mixing). Thus, without disturbances introduced by the flow controller 5220, the evaporated evaporable material 1302 may not undergo adequate mixing before exiting the airflow passage 1338 for delivery to a user.

Thus, because the first channel 5225a and the second channel 5225b are configured to deviate the flow of the evaporated evaporable material 1302, the flow controller 5220 can introduce turbulence into the evaporated evaporable material 1302 passing through the flow controller 5220. For example, deviating the flow direction of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 can force each column of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 to interact with the walls of the central tunnel 1100 and the gas flow passage 1338 and with each other. These interactions can disturb the layers of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 traveling at different speeds and having different temperatures to cause the layers of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 to mix.

To further illustrate, Figure 52F shows an example of laminar flow and an example of turbulent flow through the central tunnel 1100 and the gas flow passage 1338. On the left side of Figure 52F, the column of evaporated evaporable material 1302 is separated as it travels through the central tunnel 1100 and the gas flow passage 1338. As such, the evaporated evaporable material 1302 maintains a substantially laminar flow in which minimal mixing occurs between the layers of evaporated evaporable material 1302. In contrast, on the right side of FIG. 52F , the flow controller 5220 introduces turbulence into the evaporated evaporable material 1302 including by deviating the flow direction of the column of evaporated evaporable material 1302 so that the column of evaporated evaporable material 1302 interacts with the walls of the central tunnel 1100 and the airflow passage 1338 and with each other. As described, the turbulence of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 can cause different layers of the evaporated evaporable material 1302 to mix so that the resulting aerosol delivered to the user can exhibit greater homogeneity in the temperature and/or distribution of the evaporated particles.

As described above, evaporator cartridge 1320 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter may include one or more heating elements, such as heating element 1350. According to certain embodiments of the present subject matter, heating element 1350 may desirably be shaped to receive wicking element 1362, and/or be rolled or pressed to at least partially surround wicking element 1362. Heating element 1350 may be bent such that heating element 1350 is configured to secure wicking element 1362 between at least two or three portions of heating element 1350. Heating element 1350 may be bent to conform to the shape of at least a portion of wicking element 1362. Heating element 1350 may be easier to manufacture than typical heating elements. Heating elements consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter may also be made of a conductive metal suitable for resistive heating, and in certain embodiments, the heating element may include a selective coating of another material that allows the heating element (and therefore, the evaporable material) to heat more efficiently.

FIG. 13A illustrates an exploded view of an example of the evaporator cartridge 1320, FIG. 13B shows a perspective view of an embodiment of the evaporator cartridge 1320, and FIG. 13C shows a bottom perspective view of an example of the evaporator cartridge 1320. As shown in FIGS. 44A-44C, the evaporator cartridge 1320 may include a housing 160 configured to accommodate the collector 1313, the wick 1315, and the heating element 1350 (at least partially disposed within the wick 1315). In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the wick 1315, the heating element 1350, and the wicking element 1362 may form the atomizer assembly 141 shown in FIG. 1.

As explained in more detail below, at least a portion of the heating element 1350 is positioned between the shell 160 and the core shell 1315 and is exposed to couple with a portion of the evaporator body 110 (e.g., electrically coupled with the socket contact 125). The core shell 1315 may include four sides. For example, the core shell 1315 may include two relatively short sides and two relatively long sides. The two relatively long sides may each include at least one (two or more) recess. The recess may be located along the long side of the core shell 1315 and adjacent to respective intersections between the long side and the short side of the core shell 1315. The recess may be shaped to releasably couple with a corresponding feature on the evaporator body 110 (e.g., a spring) to secure the evaporator cartridge 1320 to the evaporator body 110 within the cartridge receptacle 118. The recess provides a mechanically stable securing member to couple the evaporator cartridge 1320 to the evaporator body 110.

In some embodiments, the core shell 1315 also includes an identification chip 174, which can be configured to communicate with a corresponding chip reader located on the evaporator. The identification chip 174 can be glued and/or otherwise bonded to the core shell 1315, such as on a short side of the core shell 1315. Additionally or alternatively, the core shell 1315 can include a chip recess configured to receive the identification chip 174. The chip recess can be surrounded by two, four or more walls. The chip recess can be shaped to secure the identification chip 174 to the core shell 1315.

FIGS. 14-17 illustrate schematic diagrams of a heating element 1350 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. For example, FIG. 14 illustrates a schematic diagram of a heating element 1350 in an expanded position. As shown, in the expanded position, the heating element 1350 forms a planar heating element. The heating element 1350 may initially be formed from a substrate material. The substrate material is then cut and/or stamped into the appropriate shape by various mechanical processes, including but not limited to stamping, laser cutting, photoetching, chemical etching, and/or the like.

The substrate material may be made of a conductive metal suitable for resistive heating. In certain embodiments, the heating element 1350 comprises a nickel-chromium alloy, a nickel alloy, stainless steel, and/or the like. As discussed below, the heating element 1350 may be coated with a coating in one or more locations on a surface of the substrate material to enhance, limit, or otherwise modify the resistivity of the heating element in one or more locations of the substrate material (which may be all or a portion of the heating element 1350).

The heating element 1350 includes one or more prongs 502 (e.g., heating segments) located in a heating portion 504, one or more connecting portions or legs 506 (e.g., one, two, or more) located in a transition region 508, and a box contact 124 located in an electrical contact region 510 and formed at an end of each of the one or more legs 506. The prongs 502, legs 506, and box contacts 124 can be formed as a unitary body. For example, the prongs 502, legs 506, and box contacts 124 are formed as part of the heating element 1350 that is stamped and/or cut from substrate material. In some embodiments, the heating element 1350 also includes a thermal shield 518 extending from one or more of the legs 506 and also formed as a unit with the prongs 502, the legs 506, and the box contacts 124.

In certain embodiments, at least a portion of the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 is configured to interface with the evaporable material drawn from the reservoir 1340 of the evaporator cartridge 1320 into the wicking element. The heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 can be shaped, sized, and/or otherwise processed to form a desired resistance. For example, the prongs 502 located in the heating portion 504 can be designed so that the resistance of the prongs 502 matches the appropriate amount of resistance to affect localized heating in the heating portion 504 to more efficiently and effectively heat the evaporable material from the wicking element. The prongs 502 form thin path heating segments or traces in series and/or parallel to provide the desired amount of resistance.

The prongs 502 (e.g., traces) may include a variety of shapes, sizes, and configurations. In certain configurations, one or more of the prongs 502 may be spaced apart to allow the evaporable material to wick out of the wicking element and therefrom evaporate out of the side edges of each of the prongs 502. The shape, length, width, composition, etc., and other properties of the prongs 502 may be optimized to maximize the efficiency of generating an aerosol by evaporating the evaporable material from within the heated portion of the heating element 1350 and to maximize electrical efficiency. Additionally or alternatively, the shape, length, width, composition, etc., and other properties of the prongs 502 may be optimized to evenly distribute heat across the length of the prongs 502 (or a portion of the prongs 502, such as at the heated portion 504). For example, the width of the prongs 502 can be uniform or variable along a length of the prongs 502 to control the temperature profile across at least the heated portion 504 of the heating element 1350. In some examples, the length of the prongs 502 can be controlled to achieve a desired resistance along at least a portion of the heating element 1350, such as at the heated portion 504. As shown in Figures 45 to 48, the prongs 502 each have the same size and shape. For example, the prongs 502 include an outer edge 503 that is approximately aligned with a flat or square outer edge 503 or a rounded outer edge 503 and has a generally rectangular shape. In some embodiments, one or more of the prongs 502 may include outer edges 503 that are not aligned and/or may have different sizes or shapes. In some embodiments, the teeth 502 may be evenly spaced or have variable spacing between adjacent teeth 502. It may be desirable to select a particular geometry of the teeth 502 to produce a particular local resistance to heating the heating portion 504 and maximize the efficiency of the heating element 1350 in heating the evaporable material and generating an aerosol.

The heating element 1350 may include portions of wider and/or thicker geometry and/or different compositions relative to the prongs 502. Such portions may form electrical contact areas and/or more conductive portions, and/or may include features for mounting the heating element 1350 within the evaporator cartridge. A leg 506 of the heating element 1350 extends from one end of each outermost prong 502A. The leg 506 forms a portion of the heating element 1350 that has a width and/or thickness that is typically wider than a width of each of the prongs 502. However, in some embodiments, the leg 506 has a width and/or thickness that is the same as or narrower than the width of each of the prongs 502. Legs 506 couple the heating element 1350 to the core housing 1315 or another portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320 so that the heating element 1350 is at least partially or completely enclosed by the housing 160. Legs 506 provide rigidity to facilitate mechanical stability of the heating element 1350 during and after manufacturing. Legs 506 also connect cartridge contacts 124 with prongs 502 located in the heating portion 504. Legs 506 are shaped and sized to allow the heating element 1350 to maintain the electrical requirements of the heating portion 504. As shown in FIG. 18 , when the heating element 1350 and the evaporator cartridge 1320 are assembled together, the legs 506 space the heating portion 504 from one end of the evaporator cartridge 1320. Leg 506 may also include a capillary feature that limits and/or prevents the evaporable material 1302 from flowing out of the heating portion 504 to other portions of the heating element 1350.

In some embodiments, one or more of the legs 506 include one or more locating features 516. The locating features 516 can be used to position the heating element 1350 or portions thereof relative to each other during and/or after assembly by interfacing with other (e.g., adjacent) components of the evaporator cassette 1320. In some embodiments, the locating features 516 can be used during or after manufacturing to properly position substrate material for cutting and/or stamping the substrate material to form the heating element 1350 or for post-processing of the heating element 1350. The locating features 516 can be sheared and/or severed prior to curling or otherwise bending the heating element 1350.

In some embodiments, the heating element 1350 includes one or more heat shields 518. The heat shields 518 form a portion of the heating element 1350 that extends laterally from the legs 506. When folded and/or rolled, the heat shields 518 are positioned to be offset from the prongs 502 in a first direction and/or a second direction opposite to the first direction in the same plane. When the heating element 1350 is assembled in the evaporator box 1320, the heat shields 518 are configured to be positioned between the prongs 502 (and the heating portion 504) and the body (e.g., a plastic body) of the evaporator box 1320. The heat shields 518 can help insulate the heating portion 504 from the body of the evaporator box 1320. The heat shield 518 helps minimize the effect of heat emanating from the heating portion 504 on the body of the evaporator box 1320 to protect the structural integrity of the body of the evaporator box 1320 and prevent melting or other deformation of the evaporator box 1320. The heat shield 518 can also help maintain a consistent temperature at the heating portion 504 by keeping the heat within the heating portion 504, thereby preventing or limiting heat loss while evaporation occurs. In some embodiments, the evaporator box 1320 may also or alternatively include a heat shield 518A separated from the heating element 1350.

As described above, the heating element 1350 includes at least two box contacts 124, which form an end portion of each of the legs 506. For example, as shown in Figures 14 to 17, the box contacts 124 can form a portion of the legs 506 that is folded along a fold line 507. The box contacts 124 can be folded at an angle of about 90 degrees relative to the legs 506. In some embodiments, the box contacts 124 can be folded at other angles relative to the legs 506, such as folded at an angle of about 15 degrees, 25 degrees, 35 degrees, 45 degrees, 55 degrees, 65 degrees, 75 degrees, or other ranges therebetween. Depending on the implementation, the box contact 124 can be folded toward or away from the heating portion 504. The box contact 124 can also be formed on another portion of the heating element 1350, such as along a length of at least one of the legs 506. The box contact 124 is configured to be exposed to the environment when assembled in the evaporator box 1320.

The cartridge contacts 124 may form conductive pins, tabs, posts, receiving holes or surfaces for pins or posts or other contact configurations. Certain types of cartridge contacts 124 may include springs or other actuation features to cause better physical and electrical contact between the cartridge contacts 124 on the evaporator cartridge and the socket contacts 125 on the evaporator body 110. In some embodiments, the cartridge contacts 124 include wiper contacts configured to clean the connection between the cartridge contacts 124 and other contacts or a power source. For example, the wiper contacts will include two parallel but offset protrusions that frictionally engage and slide against each other in a direction parallel or perpendicular to the insertion direction.

The cartridge contacts 124 are configured to interface with receptacle contacts 125 disposed near a base of a cartridge receptacle of the evaporator 100 such that the cartridge contacts 124 and receptacle contacts 125 are electrically connected when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is inserted into and coupled with the cartridge receptacle 118. The cartridge contacts 124 may be in electrical communication with the power source 112 of the evaporator device (e.g., via the receptacle contacts 125, etc.). The circuitry completed by such electrical connections may allow current to be delivered to the resistive heating element to heat at least a portion of the heating element 1350 and may be further used for additional functions, such as, for example, for measuring a resistance of the resistive heating element for determining and/or controlling a temperature of the resistive heating element based on a thermal coefficient of resistivity of the resistive heating element, for identifying a cartridge based on one or more electrical characteristics of a resistive heating element or other circuitry of the evaporator cartridge, etc. As explained in more detail below, the cartridge contacts 124 may be processed to provide improved electrical properties (e.g., contact resistance) using, for example, conductive plating, surface treatment, and/or deposited materials.

In certain embodiments, the heating element 1350 can be processed through a series of curling and/or bending operations to shape the heating element 1350 into a desired three-dimensional shape. For example, the heating element 1350 can be preformed to receive or curl around a wicking element 1362 to secure the wicking element between at least two portions (e.g., substantially parallel portions) of the heating element 1350 (e.g., between opposing portions of the heating portion 504). To curl the heating element 1350, the heating element 1350 can be bent toward each other along the fold line 520. Folding the heating element 1350 along the fold line 520 forms a platform tooth portion 524 defined by the area between the fold line 520 and a plurality of side tooth portions 526 defined by the area between the fold line 520 and the outer edge 503 of the tooth 502. The platform tooth portion 524 is configured to contact one end of the wicking element 1362. The side tooth portion 526 is configured to contact the opposite side of the wicking element 1362. The platform tooth portion 524 and the side tooth portion 526 form a pocket shaped to receive the wicking element 1362 and/or conform to the shape of at least a portion of the wicking element 1362. The pocket allows the wicking element 1362 to be secured and held within the pocket by the heating element 1350. The platform prong portion 524 and the side prong portion 526 contact the wicking element 1362 to provide a multi-dimensional contact between the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362. The multi-dimensional contact between the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 provides a more efficient and/or faster transfer of the evaporable material from the reservoir 1340 of the evaporator cartridge 1320 to the heating portion 504 (via the wicking element 1362) for evaporation.

In some embodiments, portions of the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 may also be bent away from each other along the fold line 522. Folding portions of the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 away from each other along the fold line 522 positions the legs 506 at a position spaced apart from the heating portion 504 (and the prongs 502) of the heating element 1350 in a first direction and/or a second direction opposite the first direction (e.g., in the same plane). Thus, folding portions of the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 away from each other along the fold line 522 spaces the heating portion 504 from the body of the evaporator cartridge 1320. FIG. 15 illustrates a schematic diagram of a heating element 1350 that has been folded around a wicking element 1362 along fold lines 520 and fold lines 522. As shown in FIG. 15, the wicking element is positioned within the pocket formed by folding the heating element 1350 along fold lines 520 and 522.

In some embodiments of the present subject matter, the heating element 1350 can also be bent along the fold line 523. For example, the box contacts 124 can be bent toward each other along the fold line 523 (inside and outside the page shown in FIG. 16). The contact portion of the heating element 1350 including the box contacts 124 can be at least partially disposed outside the core shell 1315 so that the box contacts 124 are exposed to the external environment and can be engaged with the socket contacts 125. At the same time, the heating portion of the heating element 1350 can be at least partially disposed within the core shell 1315.

In use, when the heating element 1350 is mounted in the vaporizer cartridge 1320, when a user draws a puff on the mouthpiece 130 of the vaporizer cartridge 1320, air flows into the vaporizer cartridge and flows along an air path. In connection with the user drawing a puff, the heating element 1350 may be activated, for example, by automatically detecting the puff via a pressure sensor, by detecting a push of a button by the user, by a signal generated from a motion sensor, a flow sensor, a capacitive lip sensor, and/or another method capable of detecting that a user is drawing or about to draw a puff or otherwise inhales to cause air to enter the vaporizer 100 and travel at least along the air path. When the heating element 1350 is activated, power may be supplied from the evaporator device to the heating element 1350 at the cartridge contact 124.

When the heating element 1350 is activated, a temperature increase is caused due to the flow of current through the heating element 1350 to generate heat. Heat is transferred to a certain amount of evaporable material through conductive heat transfer, convective heat transfer and/or radiative heat transfer to cause at least a portion of the evaporable material to evaporate. Heat transfer may occur to the evaporable material in the reservoir and/or to the evaporable material drawn into the wicking element 1362 held by the heating element 1350. In certain embodiments, the evaporable material may evaporate along one or more edges of the fork teeth 502, as mentioned above. Air transferred into the evaporator device flows across the heating element 1350 along the air path, thereby stripping the evaporated evaporable material from the heating element 1350. The evaporated evaporable material may condense due to cooling, pressure changes, etc., so that it exits the mouthpiece 130 as an aerosol for inhalation by a user.

As described above, the heating element 1350 can be made of a variety of materials, such as nickel-cadmium alloys, stainless steel, or other resistive heater materials. Combinations of two or more materials can be included in the heating element 1350, and such combinations can include two homogeneous distributions of the two or more materials throughout the heating element or other configurations in which the relative amounts of the two or more materials are spatially heterogeneous. For example, the prongs 502 can have a more resistive portion and thereby be designed to become hotter than other sections of the prongs or heating element 1350. In some embodiments, at least the prongs 502 (such as within the heating portion 504) can include a material having high electrical conductivity and thermal resistance.

The heating element 1350 may be completely or selectively coated with one or more materials. Since the heating element 1350 is made of a thermally and/or electrically conductive material (such as stainless steel, nickel-chromium alloy, or other thermally and/or electrically conductive alloy), the heating element 1350 may experience electrical or heating losses in the path between the cartridge contact 124 and the prongs 502 in the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350. To help reduce heating and/or electrical losses, at least a portion of the heating element 1350 may be coated with one or more materials to reduce the resistance in the electrical path to the heating portion 504. In certain embodiments consistent with the present subject matter, it is beneficial to leave the heated portion 504 (e.g., the prongs 502) uncoated, where at least a portion of the legs 506 and/or the box contacts 124 are coated with a coating material that reduces the resistance in those portions (e.g., either or both of the body and contact resistance).

For example, the heating element 1350 may include various portions coated with different materials. In another example, the heating element 1350 may be coated with layered materials. Coating at least a portion of the heating element 1350 helps to concentrate the current flowing to the heating portion 504 to reduce electrical and/or thermal losses in other portions of the heating element 1350. In some embodiments, it is desirable to maintain a low resistance in the electrical path between the cartridge contact 124 and the prongs 502 of the heating element 1350 to reduce electrical and/or thermal losses in the electrical path and compensate for concentrated voltage drops across the heating portion 504.

In certain embodiments, the box contacts 124 may be selectively coated. Selectively coating the box contacts 124 with a particular material may minimize or eliminate contact resistance at the point where measurement is made and electrical contact is made between the box contacts 124 and the socket contacts. Providing a low resistance at the box contacts 124 may provide more accurate voltage, current, and/or resistance measurements and readings, which may be beneficial for accurately determining the current actual temperature of the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350.

In some embodiments, at least a portion of the box contact 124 and/or at least a portion of the leg 506 may be coated with one or more overcoating materials 550. For example, at least a portion of the box contact 124 and/or at least a portion of the leg 506 may be coated with at least gold, or another material that provides low contact resistance, such as platinum, palladium, silver, copper, etc.

In some embodiments, in order to fasten the low-resistance overcoat material to the heating element 1350, one surface of the heating element 1350 may be coated with an adhesive coating material. In such configurations, the adhesive coating material may be deposited on the surface of the heating element 1350 and the overcoat material may be deposited on the adhesive coating material, thereby defining a first coating layer and a second coating layer, respectively. When the overcoat material is deposited on the adhesive coating material, the adhesive coating material includes a material having adhesive properties. For example, the adhesive coating material may include nickel, zinc, aluminum, iron, alloys thereof, etc.

In some embodiments, the surface of the heating element 1350 may be primed using a non-coating primer (rather than by coating the surface of the heating element 1350 with an adhesive coating material) for an external coating material to be deposited on the heating element 1350. For example, the surface of the heating element 1350 may be primed using etching rather than by depositing an adhesive coating material.

In some embodiments, all or a portion of the legs 506 and the box contacts 124 may be coated with an adhesive coating material and/or an outer coating material. In some instances, the box contacts 124 may include at least a portion having an outer coating material having a greater thickness relative to the remaining portion of the legs 506 of the box contacts 124 and/or the heating element 1350. In some embodiments, the box contacts 124 and/or the legs 506 may have a greater thickness relative to the prongs 502 and/or the heating portion 504.

In some embodiments, the heating element 1350 may be formed from various materials that are coupled together (e.g., via laser welding, diffusion processes, etc.), rather than forming the heating element 1350 from a single substrate material and coating the substrate material. The material of each portion of the coupled heating element 1350 may be selected to provide a low or zero resistance at the cartridge contact 124 and a high resistance at the prong 502 or heating portion 504 relative to other portions of the heating element 1350.

In some embodiments, the heating element 1350 may be electroplated with silver ink and/or sprayed with one or more coating materials, such as an adhesive coating material and an outer coating material.

As mentioned above, the heating element 1350 may include a variety of shapes, sizes, and geometries to more efficiently heat the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 and more efficiently evaporate the evaporable material 1302.

FIGS. 19-24 illustrate another example of a heating element 1350 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. As shown, the heating element 1350 includes one or more prongs 502 located in a heating portion 504, one or more legs 506 extending from the prongs 502, and a box contact 124 formed at an end portion and/or as a part of each of the one or more legs 506.

The prongs 502 may be folded and/or rolled to define a pocket in which a wicking element 1362 (e.g., a flat pad) resides. The prongs 502 include a platform prong portion 524 and a plurality of side prong portions 526. The platform prong portion 524 is configured to contact one side of the wicking element 1362 and the side prong portions 526 are configured to contact the other opposing sides of the wicking element 1362. The platform prong portion 524 and the side prong portions 526 form a pocket shaped to receive the wicking element 1362 and/or conform to the shape of at least a portion of the wicking element 1362. The pocket allows the wicking element 1362 to be secured and retained within the pocket by the heating element 1350.

In this example, the prongs 502 have a variety of shapes and sizes and are spaced apart from each other at the same or different distances. For example, as shown, each of the side prong portions 526 includes at least four prongs 502. In a first pair 570 of adjacent prongs 502, each of the adjacent prongs 502 is spaced apart at an equal distance from an inner region 576 located near the platform prong portion 524 to an outer region 578 located near the outer edge 503. In a second pair 572 of adjacent prongs 502, the adjacent prongs 502 are spaced apart at a varying distance from the inner region 576 to the outer region 578. For example, adjacent teeth 502 of the second pair 572 are spaced apart by a greater width at the inner region 576 than at the outer region 578. Such configurations can help maintain a constant and uniform temperature along the length of the teeth 502 of the heated portion 504. Maintaining a constant temperature along the length of the teeth 502 can provide a higher quality aerosol because the maximum temperature can be more evenly maintained across the entire heated portion 504.

As described above, each of the legs 506 can include and/or define a cartridge contact 124 configured to contact a corresponding socket contact 125 of the evaporator 100. In some embodiments, each pair of legs 506 (and cartridge contacts 124) can contact a single socket contact 125. In some embodiments, the legs 506 include a retainer portion 180 configured to bend and generally extend away from the heating portion 504. The retainer portion 180 is configured to be positioned within a corresponding recess in the wick body 1315. The retainer portion 180 forms one end of the leg 506. The retainer portion 180 helps secure the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 to the wick body 1315 (and the evaporator cartridge 1320). The retainer portion 180 may have a tip portion 180A extending from one end of the retainer portion 180 toward the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350. This configuration reduces the likelihood that the retainer portion will contact another portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320 or a cleaning device used to clean the evaporator cartridge 1320.

The outer edge 503 of the prong 502 in the heating portion 504 may include a tab 580. The tab 580 may include one, two, three, four or more tabs 580. The tab 580 may extend outward from the outer edge 503 and extend away from a center of the heating element 1350. For example, the tab 580 may be positioned along an edge of the heating element 1350 surrounding an inner volume defined by at least the side prong portion 526 for receiving the wicking element 1362. The tab 580 may extend outward away from the inner volume of the wicking element 1362. The tab 580 may also extend away in a direction opposite to the platform prong portion 524. In certain embodiments, the tabs 580 positioned on opposite sides of the interior volume of the wicking element 1362 can extend away from each other. This configuration helps widen the opening to the interior volume of the wicking element 1362, thereby helping to reduce the likelihood that the wicking element 1362 will get stuck, tear, and/or become damaged when assembled with the heating element 1350. Due to the material of the wicking element 1362, the wicking element 1362 can easily get stuck, tear, and/or otherwise become damaged when assembled with the heating element 1350 (e.g., positioned within or inserted into the heating element 1350). Contact between the wicking element 1362 and the outer edge 503 of the prong 502 may also cause damage to the heating element. The shape and/or positioning of the tab 580 may allow the wicking element 1362 to be more easily positioned within or into the pocket formed by the prong 502 (e.g., the interior volume of the heating element 1350), thereby preventing or reducing the likelihood that the wicking element 1362 and/or the heating element will be damaged. Thus, the tab 580 helps reduce or prevent damage to the heating element 1350 and/or the wicking element 1362 after the wicking element 1362 enters into thermal contact with the heating element 1350. The shape of the tab 580 also helps minimize the impact on the electrical resistance of the heating portion 504.

In some embodiments, at least a portion of the cartridge contact 124 and/or at least a portion of the leg 506 may be coated with one or more coating materials 550 to reduce the contact resistance at the point where the heating element 1350 contacts the socket contact 125.

FIGS. 25A-25B, 26-28, 29A-29B, and 30A-30B illustrate another example of a heating element 1350 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. As shown, the heating element 1350 includes one or more prongs 502 located in a heating portion 504, one or more legs 506 extending from the prongs 502, and a box contact 124 formed at an end portion and/or as a part of each of the one or more legs 506.

The prongs 502 may be folded and/or rolled to define a pocket in which a wicking element 1362 (e.g., a flat pad) resides. The prongs 502 include a platform prong portion 524 and a plurality of side prong portions 526. The platform prong portion 524 is configured to contact one side of the wicking element 1362 and the side prong portions 526 are configured to contact the other opposing sides of the wicking element 1362. The platform prong portion 524 and the side prong portions 526 form a pocket shaped to receive the wicking element 1362 and/or conform to the shape of at least a portion of the wicking element 1362. The pocket allows the wicking element 1362 to be secured and retained within the pocket by the heating element 1350.

In this example, the forks 502 have the same shape and size and are spaced apart from each other at equal distances. Here, the forks 502 include a first side fork portion 526A and a second side fork portion 526B separated by a platform fork portion 524. Each of the first side fork portion 526A and the second side fork portion 526B includes an inner region 576 positioned near the platform fork portion 524 to an outer region 578 positioned near the outer edge 503. At the outer region 578, the first side fork portion 526A is positioned substantially parallel to the second side fork portion 526B. At the inner region 576, the first side tooth portion 526A is positioned offset from the second side tooth portion 526B and the first side tooth portion 526A and the second side tooth portion 526B are not parallel. This configuration can help maintain a constant and uniform temperature along the length of the teeth 502 of the heating portion 504. Maintaining a constant temperature along the length of the teeth 502 can provide a higher quality aerosol because the maximum temperature can be more evenly maintained across the entire heating portion 504.

As described above, each of the legs 506 can include and/or define a cartridge contact 124 configured to contact a corresponding socket contact 125 of the evaporator 100. In some embodiments, each pair of legs 506 (and cartridge contacts 124) can contact a single socket contact 125. In some embodiments, the legs 506 include a retainer portion 180 configured to bend and generally extend away from the heating portion 504. The retainer portion 180 is configured to be positioned within a corresponding recess in the wick body 1315. The retainer portion 180 forms one end of the leg 506. The retainer portion 180 helps secure the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 to the wick body 1315 (and the evaporator cartridge 1320). The retainer portion 180 may have a tip portion 180A extending from one end of the retainer portion 180 toward the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350. This configuration reduces the likelihood that the retainer portion will contact another portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320 or a cleaning device used to clean the evaporator cartridge 1320.

The outer edge 503 of the prongs 502 in the heating portion 504 may include a tab 580. The tab 580 may extend outward from the outer edge 503 and away from a center of the heating element 1350. The tab 580 may be shaped to allow the wicking element 1362 to be more easily positioned within the pocket formed by the prongs 502, thereby preventing or reducing the likelihood that the wicking element 1362 will get stuck on the outer edge 503. The shape of the tab 580 helps minimize the effect on the electrical resistance of the heating portion 504.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, at least a portion of the box contact 124 and/or at least a portion of the leg 506 may be coated with one or more overcoating materials 550 to reduce the contact resistance at the point where the heating element 1350 contacts the socket contact 125.

24 and 30A-30B, the geometry of the heating element 1350 may resemble the letter "H" in an unfolded state, wherein the heating portion 504 is substantially disposed across a center of the leg 506. The temperature of the heating element 1350 may correspond to a resistance of the heating element 1350, for example, across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350. For example, the temperature of the heating element 1350 may be determined based on the thermal resistivity coefficient and the resistance of the heating element 1350. Therefore, the temperature of the heating element 1350 may be determined and/or controlled (e.g., by the controller 104) by measuring the resistance across at least the heating element 1350 (e.g., across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350). It should be appreciated that in certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the geometry of the heating element 1350 may enable resistance to be measured across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350. That is, the resistance across the heating portion 504 may be measured in isolation (e.g., from other portions of the heating element 1350), thereby improving the accuracy of the resistance measurement and the accuracy of the corresponding temperature determination.

For further illustration, FIG. 53 shows a resistance measurement of an example of a heating element 1350 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. Referring to FIG. 53, the resistance across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 may be measured by applying a current from at least a first point 1a located, for example, at a respective tip portion 180A of a leg 506 of the heating element 1350 to a second point 2b. Although the current may flow from the first point 1a to the second point 2b, the current may not flow between a third point 2a and a fourth point 1b.

The resulting voltage drop between the first point 1a and the third point 2a may correspond to a voltage drop between a fifth point C and a sixth point D. As shown in FIG. 53 , the fifth point C and the sixth point D are located at respective end portions of the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350. Therefore, the voltage drop across the fifth point C and the sixth point D may correspond to the voltage drop across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350. In addition, measuring the voltage drop across the first point 1a and the third point 2a may correspond to measuring the voltage drop across the fifth point C and the sixth point D. The resistance R across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 may be determined based on the following equation (1), which relates the resistance R across the heating portion 504 to a voltage V and a current I across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350.

R=VI (1)

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the first point 1a and the third point 2a at the tip portion 180A of the leg 506 of the heating element 1350 may at least partially coincide with the box contact 124 that forms an electrical coupling with the socket contact 125 in the box socket 118 of the evaporator body 110. In this way, the geometry of the heating element 1350 may enable an isolated measurement of the resistance across the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 by measuring the voltage drop across the tip portion 180A (e.g., the first point 1a and the third point 2a) of the leg 506, which is disposed outside the core shell 1315 and is more accessible than the heating portion 504 disposed at least partially inside the core shell 1315.

Figures 31-32 show an example of an atomizer assembly 141 with a heating element 1350 and a core shell 1315 assembled together, and Figure 33 shows an exploded view of the atomizer assembly 141 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The core shell 1315 can be made of plastic, polypropylene, and the like. The core shell 1315 includes four recesses 592 in which at least a portion of each of the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 can be positioned and secured. As shown, the core shell 1315 also includes an opening 593 that provides access to an internal volume 594 in which at least the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 are positioned.

The core 1315 may also include a separate heat shield 518A. The heat shield 518A is positioned within the interior volume 594 within the core 1315 between the walls of the core 1315 and the heating element 1350. The heat shield 518A is shaped to at least partially surround the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 and to space the heating element 1350 from the side walls of the core 1315. The heat shield 518A can help insulate the heating portion 504 from the body of the evaporator cartridge 1320 and/or the core 1315. The heat shield 518A helps minimize the effect of heat emanating from the heating portion 504 on the body of the evaporator cassette 1320 and/or the core shell 1315 to protect the structural integrity of the body of the evaporator cassette 1320 and/or the core shell 1315 and prevent melting or other deformation of the evaporator cassette 1320 and/or the core shell 1315. The heat shield 518A can also help maintain a consistent temperature at the heating portion 504 by keeping the heat within the heating portion 504, thereby preventing or limiting heat loss.

The heat shield 518A includes one or more grooves 596 (e.g., three grooves) at one end aligned with one or more grooves (e.g., one, two, three, four, five, six, or seven or more grooves) 596 formed in a portion of the core shell 1315 (e.g., a base of the core shell 1315 (see Figures 32 and 43)) opposite the opening 593. The one or more grooves 596 allow the pressure caused by the flow of liquid evaporable material and evaporation of the evaporable material in the heating portion 504 to escape without affecting the liquid flow of the evaporable material.

In some embodiments, overflow may occur between the heating element 1350 (e.g., the leg 506) and an outer wall of the core shell 1315 (or between portions of the heating element 1350). For example, liquid evaporable material may accumulate due to capillary pressure between the leg 506 of the heating element 1350 and the outer wall of the core shell 1315, as indicated by the liquid path 599. In such cases, there may be sufficient capillary pressure to draw the liquid evaporable material away from the reservoir and/or the heating portion 504. To help limit and/or prevent liquid evaporable material from overflowing the interior volume of the core shell 1315 (or the heating portion 504), the core shell 1315 and/or the heating element 1350 may include a capillary feature that causes a sudden change in capillary pressure, thereby forming a liquid barrier that prevents liquid evaporable material from passing through the feature without the use of an additional seal (e.g., an airtight seal). The capillary feature may define a capillary rupture formed by a point, bend, curved surface, or other surface in the core shell 1315 and/or the heating element 1350. The capillary feature allows a conductive element (e.g., the heating element 1350) to be positioned in both a wet and dry region.

The capillary feature may be located on and/or form a portion of the heating element 1350 and/or the wick body 1315 and cause a sudden change in capillary pressure. For example, the capillary feature may include a bend, point, curved surface, angled surface, or other surface feature along a length of the heating element or another component of the evaporator cartridge that causes a sudden change in capillary pressure between the heating element and the wick body. The capillary feature may also include a protrusion or other portion of the heating element and/or the core body that widens a capillary channel (such as a capillary channel formed between portions of the heating element, between the heating element and the core body, and the like) sufficient to reduce the capillary pressure in the capillary channel (e.g., the capillary feature separates the heating element from the core body) so that the capillary channel does not draw liquid into the capillary channel. Thus, the capillary feature prevents or restricts liquid from flowing along a liquid path past the capillary feature at least in part due to a sudden change and/or reduction in capillary pressure. The size and/or shape of capillary features (e.g., bends, points, curved surfaces, angled surfaces, protrusions, and the like) may vary depending on a wetting angle formed between materials (such as the heating element and the core shell or other wall of a capillary passage formed between components), may vary depending on a material of the heating element and/or core shell or other component, and/or may vary depending on a size of a gap formed between two components (such as the heating element and/or core shell defining the capillary passage), among other properties.

As an example, Figures 34A and 34B illustrate a core shell 1315 having a capillary feature 598 that creates a sudden change in capillary pressure. The capillary feature 598 prevents or limits the flow of liquid along the liquid path 599 past the capillary feature 598 and helps prevent the liquid from collecting between the legs 506 and the core shell 1315. The capillary feature 598 on the core shell 1315 separates the heating element 1350 (e.g., a component made of metal, etc.) from the core shell 1315 (e.g., a component made of plastic, etc.), thereby reducing the capillary strength between the two components. The capillary feature 598 shown in FIGS. 34A and 34B also includes a sharp edge at one end of an angled surface of the core shell that limits or prevents liquid from flowing past the capillary feature 598.

As shown in FIG. 34B , the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 may also be angled inwardly toward the interior volume of the heating element 1350 and/or the core shell 1315. The angled legs 506 may form a capillary feature that helps limit or prevent liquid from flowing over an outer surface of the heating element and along the legs 506 of the heating element 1350.

As another example, the heating element 1350 may include a capillary feature (e.g., a bridge 585) formed with one or more legs 506 and spacing the legs 506 away from the heating portion 504. The bridge 585 may be formed by folding the heating element 1350 along the fold lines 520, 522. In some embodiments, the bridge 585 helps reduce or eliminate overflow of evaporable material from the heating portion 504, such as due to capillary action. In some examples, such as the exemplary heating element 1350 shown in Figures 25A to 30B, the bridge 585 is angled and/or includes a bend to help restrict fluid flow out of the heating portion 504.

As another example, the heating element 1350 may include a capillary feature 598 that defines a sharp point that causes a sudden change in capillary pressure, thereby preventing liquid evaporable material from flowing out of the capillary feature 598. The capillary feature 598 may form an end of the bridge 585 that extends away from the heating portion a distance that is greater than a distance between the leg 506 and the heating portion 504. The end of the bridge 585 may be a sharp edge to further help prevent the liquid evaporable material from traveling to the leg 506 and/or leaving the heating portion 504, thereby reducing leakage and increasing the amount of evaporable material in the heating portion 504.

Figures 35-37 illustrate a variation of the heating element 1350 shown in Figures 19-24. In this variation of the heating element 1350, the leg 506 of the heating element 1350 includes a bend at a deflection zone 511. The bend in the leg 506 can form a capillary feature 598 that helps prevent the liquid evaporable material from flowing out of the capillary feature 598. For example, the bend can produce a sudden change in capillary pressure, which can also help limit or prevent the liquid evaporable material from flowing out of the bend and/or accumulating between the leg 506 and the core shell 1315, and can help limit or prevent the liquid evaporable material from flowing out of the heating portion 504.

As shown in FIG. 35 , the leg 506 may be bent to form one or more joints, for example including a first joint 534a, a second joint 534b, and a third joint 534c. In the example of the heating element 1350 shown in FIGS. 35 to 37 , the leg 506 may be bent so that the first joint 534a may be disposed between the second joint 534b and the third joint 534c, and the second joint may be disposed between the tip 180a (of the leg 506) and the first joint 534a. In addition, the coating material 550 and the cartridge contact 124 may be disposed at the second joint 534b. Bending the leg 506 in this manner may at least spring-load the leg 506 so that the leg 506 may form a mechanical coupling (e.g., a friction fit) with the socket contact 125 in the cartridge socket 118 of the evaporator body 110.

FIGS. 38-39 illustrate another variation of a heating element 1350 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. In this variation of the heating element 1350, the leg 506 of the heating element 1350 includes a bend at a deflection zone 511. The bend in the leg 506 can form a capillary feature 598 that helps prevent the liquid evaporable material from flowing across the capillary feature 598. For example, the bend can produce a sudden change in capillary pressure, which also helps limit or prevent the liquid evaporable material from flowing across the bend and/or gathering between the leg 506 and the core shell 1315, and can help limit or prevent the liquid evaporable material from flowing out of the heating portion 504.

FIGS. 18A-18E illustrate another variation of a heating element 1350 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the tip portions 180A of the retainer portions 180 of the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 are bent inwardly (rather than outwardly in the manner shown, for example, in FIGS. 19-22 ). Each of the legs 506 may include and/or define a cartridge contact 124 configured to contact a corresponding socket contact 125 of the evaporator 100. For example, each pair of legs 506 (and cartridge contacts 124) may contact a single socket contact 125. The legs 506 may be spring loaded to allow the legs 506 to maintain contact with the socket contacts 125. The leg 506 may include a portion extending along a length of the leg 506 that is curved to help maintain contact with the socket contact 125. Springing the leg 506 and/or the curvature of the leg 506 may help increase and/or maintain a consistent pressure between the leg 506 and the socket contact 125. In some embodiments, the leg 506 is coupled to a support member 176 that helps increase and/or maintain a consistent pressure between the leg 506 and the socket contact 125. The support member 176 may include plastic, rubber, or other material to help maintain contact between the leg 506 and the socket contact 125. In some embodiments, the support member 176 is formed as part of the leg 506.

FIGS. 51A-51D illustrate another variation of a heating element 1350 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, tip portions 180A of retainer portions 180 of legs 506 of heating element 1350 are bent inwardly (rather than outwardly, for example, as shown in FIGS. 19-22 ). When retainer portions 180 of legs 506 are positioned within a corresponding recess in core shell 1315, tip portions 180A of retainer portions 180 may contact core shell 1315. As shown in FIG. 51B , folding legs 506 in this manner forms one or more joints, including, for example, a first joint 534a, a second joint 534b, and a third joint 534c. Also as shown in FIG. 51B , the first joint 534a may be disposed between the second joint 534b and the third joint 534c, and the second joint 534b may be disposed between the tip 180a and the first joint 534a. In the example of the heating element 1350 shown in FIGS. 51A to 51D , the cartridge contact 124 and the coating material 550 may be disposed at the first joint 534a in the leg 506. Bending the leg 506 of the heating element 1350 in this manner may spring-stress the leg 506 so that the leg 506 may form a mechanical coupling (e.g., a friction fit) with the socket contact 125 in the cartridge socket 118 of the evaporator body 110.

For example, as shown in FIG. 51B , a first fold in the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 can cause the tip portion 180A of the retainer portion 180 of the legs 506 to bend inward and form the second joint 534 b. When the retainer portion 180 of the legs 506 can secure the heating element 1350 to the core shell 1315 (e.g., by being placed in a corresponding recess in the core shell 1315), a second fold in the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 that can form the first joint 534 a can provide spring tension to further secure the evaporator cartridge 1320 to the evaporator body 110. That is, when the cartridge contact 124 is electrically coupled to the socket contact 125, the first connection 534a formed by the second fold in the leg 506 can apply sufficient pressure against the cartridge socket 118 to secure the evaporator cartridge 1320 to the evaporator body 110. It will be appreciated that this configuration of the heating element 1350 can be associated with a minimal stress at the third connection 534c in the heating element 1350 when the heating element 1350 is folded a third time, at least because the force of the leg 506 on the cartridge socket 118 is more evenly distributed along the length of the leg 506.

FIGS. 42A-42B and 43 show another example of an atomizer assembly 141 with a heating element 1350 assembled with a core shell 1315 and a heat shield 518A, and FIG. 44 illustrates an exploded view of an atomizer assembly 141 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The core shell 1315 can be made of plastic, polypropylene, and the like. The core shell 1315 includes four recesses 592 in which at least a portion of each of the legs 506 of the heating element 1350 can be positioned and secured. Within recess 592, core shell 1315 may include one or more core shell retention features 172 configured to secure heating element 1350 to core shell 1315, such as, for example, via a snap-fit arrangement between at least a portion of legs 506 of heating element 1350 and core shell retention features 172. Core shell retention features 172 may also help space heating element 1350 from a surface of core shell 1315 to help prevent heat from acting on the core shell and melting a portion of core shell 1315.

As shown, the core shell 1315 also includes an opening 593 that allows access to an interior volume 594 in which at least the heating portion 504 of the heating element 1350 and the wicking element 1362 are positioned.

The core shell 1315 may also include one or more other cutouts that help space the heating element 1350 from a surface of the core shell 1315 to reduce the amount of heat contacting the surface of the core shell 1315. For example, the core shell 1315 may include a cutout 170. The cutout 170 may be formed along an outer surface of the core shell 1315 proximate to the opening 593. The cutout 170 may also include a capillary feature, such as capillary feature 598. The capillary feature of the cutout 170 may define a surface (e.g., a curved surface) that interrupts the tangent point between adjacent (or intersecting) walls (e.g., walls of the core shell). The curved surface may have a radius sufficient to reduce or eliminate capillaries formed between adjacent outer walls of the core shell.

Referring to FIG. 42A , the core shell 1315 may include a tab 168. The tab 168 may help properly position and/or orient the core shell relative to one or more other components of the evaporator cassette during assembly of the evaporator cassette. For example, the additional material forming the tab 168 shifts the center of mass of the core shell 1315. Due to the shifted center of mass, the core shell 1315 may rotate or slide in a particular orientation during assembly to align with a corresponding feature of another component of the evaporator cassette.

FIG. 46 illustrates an exploded view of an example of an evaporator body 110 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the evaporator body 110 may be configured to receive and/or couple with a cassette having the various features described above (e.g., including an evaporator cassette 1320 having a collector 1313, a finned condensate collector 3201, etc.).

As shown in FIG. 46 , the evaporator body 110 may include a housing 1220 (including a decorative sheath 1219), a battery 1212, a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) 1203, an antenna 1217, a frame 1211, a charging shield 1213, a cassette socket 118 and an end cap 1201, and an LED shield 1215. In some aspects, assembling the evaporator body 110 includes placing the battery 1212 within the frame 1211 at a lower end of the frame 1211 (left-hand side of FIG. 46 ). The antenna 1217 may be coupled to a lower end of the battery 1212. The cassette socket 118, the PCBA 1203, and the battery 1212 may be mechanically coupled, for example, via one or more coupling members. For example, a lower end of PCBA 1203 may be coupled to an upper end of battery 1212, and an upper end of PCBA 1203 may be coupled to cartridge receptacle 118 using a press fitting, a solder joint, and/or any other coupling member. When cartridge receptacle 118 is disposed in decorative sheath 1219, decorative sheath 1219 may be configured to at least partially surround cartridge receptacle 118.

As shown in FIG. 46 , the decorative sheath 1219 may include an aperture sized and shaped to receive the charging shield 1213 on a first side of the decorative sheath 1219. A second side of the decorative sheath 1219 may include an LED shield 1215, which may be built into the decorative sheath 1219 or disposed in another aperture sized and shaped to receive the LED shield 1215. In some embodiments, the decorative sheath 1219 may include a stainless steel material and may have a thickness of approximately 0.2 mm. The LED shield 1215 may be molded with a black printed circuit. In some embodiments, the charging shield 1213 may include a liquid crystal polymer (LCP), polycarbonate and/or phosphor bronze contacts. The charging shield 1213 may minimize the distance between the charging pads by using a polyester film. A coating of the charging shield may include palladium-nickel, black nickel, physical vapor deposition (PVD), or another black coating option. In some embodiments, the assembled battery 1212, PCBA 1203, a box socket 118, and a decorative sheath 1219 may be configured to fit within the frame 1211, and the frame 1211 may be configured to fit within the housing 1220. In some aspects, the decorative sheath 1219 may include a stainless steel material with a thickness of 0.2 mm. The shell 1220 may include a ground pad, an end cap reference surface, an LED interface, one or more air inlets (in fluid communication with the groove 596 at the bottom of the core shell 1315 when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is coupled to the evaporator body 110), and a frame snap feature where the frame 1211 snaps into place when inserted into the shell 1220. The end cap 1201 may be disposed at a lower end of the shell 1220 opposite the decorative sheath 1219. The end cap 1201 may be configured to retain the inner components of the evaporator body 110 within the shell 1220 and may also serve as a drain hole on the lower end of the shell 1220.

In an evaporator in which the power supply 112 is part of an evaporator body 110 and a heating element is disposed in an evaporator box 1320 configured to couple with the evaporator body 110, the evaporator 100 may include electrical connection features for completing a circuit (e.g., components for completing a circuit) that includes the controller 104 (e.g., a printed circuit board, a microcontroller, etc.), the power supply, and the heating element. These features may include at least two contacts 124 (referred to herein as box contacts 124) located on a bottom surface of the evaporator box 1320 and at least two contacts 125 (referred to herein as socket contacts 125) disposed near a base of a box socket of the evaporator 100, so that when the evaporator box 1320 is inserted into the box socket 118 and coupled with the box socket 118, the box contacts 124 and the socket contacts 125 are electrically connected. The circuit completed by such electrical connections can allow current to be delivered to the resistive heating element and can be further used to realize additional functions, such as measuring a resistance of the resistive heating element for determining and/or controlling a temperature of the resistive heating element based on a thermal resistivity coefficient of the resistive heating element, identifying a box based on one or more electrical characteristics of a resistive heating element or other circuit system of the evaporator box, etc.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, at least two cartridge contacts and at least two socket contacts may be configured to electrically connect in either of at least two orientations. For example, one or more circuits required to operate the evaporator may be accomplished by inserting an evaporator cartridge 1320 into the cartridge socket 118 in a first rotational orientation (about an axis along which the end of the evaporator cartridge is inserted into the cartridge socket 118 of the evaporator body 110) such that a first set of cartridge contacts of at least two cartridge contacts 124 are electrically connected to a first set of socket contacts of at least two socket contacts 125, and a second set of cartridge contacts of at least two cartridge contacts 124 are electrically connected to a second set of socket contacts of at least two socket contacts 125. In addition, one or more circuits required to operate the evaporator can be completed by inserting an evaporator cartridge 1320 into the cartridge receptacle 118 in a second rotational orientation so that a first set of cartridge contacts among at least two cartridge contacts 124 are electrically connected to a second set of receptacle contacts among at least two receptacle contacts 125 and a second set of cartridge contacts among at least two cartridge contacts 124 are electrically connected to a first set of receptacle contacts among at least two receptacle contacts 125. This feature that an evaporator cartridge 1320 can be reversely inserted into a cartridge receptacle 118 of the evaporator body 110 is further described below.

In one example of an attachment structure for coupling an evaporator cartridge 1320 to the evaporator body 110, the evaporator body 110 includes one or more detents (e.g., a shallow recess, protrusion, spring connector, etc.) protruding inwardly from an inner surface of the cartridge receptacle 118. One or more outer surfaces of the evaporator cartridge 1320 may include corresponding recesses (not shown in FIG. 1 ) that may fit and/or otherwise snap over these detents when one end of the evaporator cartridge 1320 is inserted into the cartridge receptacle 118 on the evaporator body 110. When the evaporator cartridge 1320 is coupled to the evaporator body 110 (e.g., by inserting one end of the evaporator cartridge 1320 into the cartridge receptacle 118 of the evaporator body 110), a latch in the evaporator body 110 may engage and/or otherwise retain within a recess in the evaporator cartridge 1320 to hold the evaporator cartridge 1320 in place during assembly. Such a latch-recess assembly may provide sufficient support to hold the evaporator cartridge 1320 in place to ensure good contact between at least two cartridge contacts 124 and at least two receptacle contacts 125, while allowing the evaporator cartridge 1320 to be released from the evaporator body 110 when a user pulls on the evaporator cartridge 1320 with reasonable force to disengage the evaporator cartridge 1320 from the cartridge receptacle 118. For example, in one embodiment of the present subject matter, at least two detents may be disposed on an outer side of the decorative sheath 1219. The detents on the outer side of the decorative sheath 1219 may be configured to engage with one or more corresponding recesses in the evaporator cassette 1320, for example, the corresponding recesses being located in an inner surface of a portion of the housing of the evaporator cassette 1320 that extends below an open top of the decorative sheath 1219 (and cassette receptacle 118) to cover at least a portion of the decorative sheath 1219 (and cassette receptacle 118).

Further discussing the above that the electrical connection between an evaporator box and an evaporator body can be reversed so that the evaporator box can have at least two rotational orientations in the box socket, in some evaporators, the shape of the evaporator box or at least the shape of one of the ends of the evaporator box configured to be inserted into the box socket can have at least two degrees of rotational symmetry. In other words, the evaporator box or at least the insertable end of the evaporator box can be 180° rotationally symmetrical about an axis along which the evaporator box is inserted into the box socket. In this configuration, the circuit system of the evaporator can support the same operation regardless of which symmetrical orientation of the evaporator box occurs. In some embodiments, the first rotational position can be more or less than 180° away from the second rotational position.

In some examples, the evaporator cartridge or at least one end of the evaporator cartridge configured to be inserted into the cartridge receptacle may have a non-circular cross-section transverse to the axis along which the evaporator cartridge is inserted into the cartridge receptacle. For example, the non-circular cross-section may be approximately rectangular, approximately elliptical (e.g., having an approximately oval shape), non-rectangular but having two sets of parallel or approximately parallel opposing sides (e.g., having a parallel ramp-like shape), or other shapes having at least second-order rotational symmetry. In the context of this content, it is obvious that approximately having a shape indicates a basic similarity to the described shape, but the sides of the shape in question need not be completely linear and the vertices need not be completely sharp. Any reference to a non-circular cross-section in this document includes rounding of either or both of the edges or vertices of the cross-sectional shape.

FIGS. 47A-47C illustrate various examples of socket contacts 125 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. FIG. 47A shows an example cavity ID contact 307A extending from the cavity ID overmold 308. The cavity ID contact 307A can be configured to couple to a contact 293 of the identification chip 174. FIG. 47B shows another example cavity ID contact 307B extending from the cavity ID overmold 308. FIG. 47C shows another example cavity ID contact 307C extending from the cavity ID overmold 308.

As shown in FIGS. 47A-47C , the evaporator cartridge 1320 can be inserted into the cartridge receptacle 318 from the top of the page. In some embodiments, when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is inserted into the cartridge receptacle 318, the capsule ID contacts 307A-307C can be compressed inward or to the left of the page in response to the evaporator cartridge 1320 being inserted. In addition, the capsule ID contacts 307A-307C can be configured to couple to one or more cartridge contacts 124 (e.g., contact 293) after the evaporator cartridge 1320 has been fully inserted into the cartridge receptacle 318.

As shown in FIG. 47A, pocket ID contact 307A includes a 180° bend of a material of pocket ID contact 307 at location 407. Pocket ID contact 307C of FIG. 47C is similar to and adapted from pocket ID contact 307B of FIG. 47B. As shown in FIG. 47C, pocket ID contact 307C includes a protective member (e.g., foot or boot) 408 that at least partially surrounds a portion of pocket ID contact 307C.

FIG. 47D shows an assembled cartridge socket 118 of the evaporator body 110. As shown in FIG. 47D, the cartridge socket 118 includes one or more capsule ID contacts on a first side 404 of the cartridge socket 318, for example including capsule ID contacts 307A, 307B, and 307C. FIG. 47D further illustrates two heater/cartridge socket contacts 125A and 125B on a second side 402 of the cartridge socket 118.

FIG. 47E illustrates a top perspective view of an evaporator body 110 including an example of a cartridge receptacle 118 consistent with the embodiments of the present subject matter. As shown in FIG. 47E , the cartridge receptacle 118 may be at least partially disposed in a decorative sheath 1219. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 47E , the top edges of the cartridge receptacle 118 and the decorative sheath 1219 may be substantially flush. The inner side of the cartridge receptacle 118 may include one or more capsule ID contacts (e.g., capsule ID contacts 307A, 307B, and 307C) and one or more receptacle contacts (e.g., receptacle contacts 125A and 125B). In addition, the evaporator body 110 may also include one or more capsule retaining features 415, which may be disposed on an inner side of the cartridge receptacle 118 and/or an outer side of the decorative sheath 1219. Examples of capsule retaining features 415 may include pins, clips, protrusions, detents, etc. The capsule retaining features 415 may be configured to secure the evaporator cartridge 1320 in the cartridge receptacle 118, including applying a magnetic force, an adhesive force, a compressive force, a friction force, etc. to the evaporator cartridge 1320.

In embodiments where the capsule retention feature 415 is disposed within the cartridge receptacle 118, the capsule retention feature 415 can be configured to form a mechanical coupling with, for example, at least a portion of the heating element 1350 (e.g., a portion of one or more legs 506 disposed outside the core shell 1315) and/or a portion of the core shell 1315 (e.g., a recess in the core shell 1315). Alternatively and/or in addition, in exemplary embodiments where the capsule retention feature 415 is disposed on an outer side of the decorative sheath 1219, the capsule retention feature 415 can be configured to form a mechanical coupling with the shell of the evaporator cartridge 1320. It should be understood that the capsule retention feature 415 can include various components that secure the evaporator cartridge 1320 within the cartridge receptacle 118. Additionally, the capsule retention feature 415 may be positioned at any suitable location within the evaporator body 110.

FIGS. 48A-48B illustrate side cross-sectional views of an evaporator cartridge 1320 disposed within a cartridge receptacle 118 consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter. As shown in FIG. 48A , a capsule ID contact 307 may be disposed on a first side of the cartridge receptacle 118 and may be coupled to an identification chip 174 on the evaporator cartridge 1320. Additionally, a capsule ID contact 309 may be located on a second side of the cartridge receptacle 118 (opposite the first side of the cartridge receptacle 118) and may be coupled to the evaporator cartridge 1320. FIG. 48A further shows the capsule ID contact 309 coupled to a contact 293 of the identification chip 174. It should be understood that the cartridge receptacle 118 may be sized to receive at least a portion of the evaporator cartridge 1320, including at least a portion of the core housing 1315, for example. For example, the cartridge receptacle 118 may be approximately 4.54 mm deep so that the core shell 1315 (having a height of approximately 5.25 mm, including a flange disposed at least partially around its upper perimeter) may be partially disposed within the cartridge receptacle 118 (e.g., up to the flange). The flange may be located outside the cartridge receptacle 118 when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is coupled to the evaporator body 110, and may extend at least partially over an edge of the cartridge receptacle 118 and the decorative sheath 1219.

As described, one or more air inlets may be formed and/or maintained when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is coupled to the evaporator body 110, for example by inserting the evaporator cartridge 1320 into the cartridge receptacle 118. The one or more air inlets may be in fluid communication with one or more slots 596 in the wick body 1315 so that air entering through the one or more air inlets may further enter the wick body 1315 through the one or more slots 596 to flow through and/or around the circular wicking element 1362. As described, sufficient air flow may be required through the wick body 1315 to enable proper and timely evaporation of the evaporable material 1302 drawn into the wicking element 1362. In instances where there is more than one air inlet, the plurality of air inlets may be disposed around the assembly comprising the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110. For example, two or more air inlets may be disposed on substantially opposite sides of the assembly comprising the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110. It is also within the scope of the present subject matter that more than one air inlet is disposed on the same side of the assembly comprising the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110, or that the air inlets are located on different but substantially opposite (e.g., adjacent) sides of such an assembly.

In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the air inlet may be configured to allow sufficient air to evaporate the evaporable material 1302 and produce an inhalable aerosol. As further described, one or more air inlets may be configured to prevent obstruction, for example, by a user's finger, hand, or other body part. For example, one or more air inlets may be disposed at an interface between the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110. As shown in Figures 48A to 48D, when the evaporator box 1320 is coupled to the evaporator body 110, a recessed area 1395 (e.g., a cavity, a groove, a gap, a seam, etc.) may be formed between the evaporator box 1320 and the evaporator body 110. One or more air inlets may be disposed within the recessed area 1395 so that portions of the evaporator cassette 1320 (e.g., housing 160) and evaporator body 110 may extend beyond the area containing the one or more air inlets. In addition, the recessed area 1395 may extend at least partially around the circumference of the evaporator cassette 1320 and evaporator body 110 to provide clearance for the one or more air inlets because a user's finger (or other body part) may only be able to cover a portion of the recessed area 1395. Thus, as shown in FIG. 48E , even when a user's finger (or other body part) covers a portion of the recessed area 1395, air may still pass through an uncovered portion of the recessed area to enter the one or more air inlets.

It will be appreciated that the air inlet may cause the airflow entering the evaporator cartridge 1320 to exhibit at least some constriction. For example, in the pressure diagram shown in FIG. 48F , a maximum local pressure reduction is observed at the air inlet, where, as described, ambient air may enter the evaporator cartridge 1320 to provide sufficient air to enable evaporation of the evaporable material 1302 and to produce a respirable aerosol. A maximum airflow velocity through the air inlet may also be observed as ambient air enters the constricted space of the air inlet. A reduction in airflow velocity is observed after introduction through the air inlet.

FIG. 49A shows a perspective view of an assembled evaporator body housing 1220 with LED shield 1215 facing forward. As shown in FIG. 49A, housing 1220 may include cartridge receptacle 118 having a second side 402 with one or more capsule retention features, cartridge receptacle contacts 125A and 125B, and capsule ID contact 307. FIG. 49A further shows that housing 1220 includes at least one air inlet 1605 on the right hand side of housing 1220, but it should be understood that housing 1220 may include additional air inlets disposed at locations other than those shown. For example, in some embodiments of the present subject matter, the air inlet 1605 can be positioned above a ridge 1387 in the housing 1220, the ridge 1387 being formed by a first portion of the housing 1220 (including the decorative sheath 1219) having a smaller cross-sectional dimension than a second portion of the housing 1220 located below the decorative sheath 1219 configured to house at least a portion of the power source 112 (e.g., the battery 1212). The air inlet 1605 can be configured to allow ambient air to enter the evaporator cartridge 1320 and mix with the vapor produced in the atomizer 141. For example, the air inlet 1605 can be in fluid communication with an airflow passage 1338 extending through the body of the evaporator cartridge 1320, such that ambient air can enter the airflow passage 1338 through the air inlet 1605 when the evaporator cartridge 1320 is coupled to the housing 1220. A mixture of ambient air and vapor generated in the atomizer 141 can be drawn through the air passage 1338 for inhalation through the mouthpiece 130 (e.g., into the mouth of a user).

Alternatively and/or in addition, the air inlet 1605 can be in fluid communication with an air discharge hole 1318 disposed at one end of the overflow channel 1104 in the overflow volume 1344 of the collector 1313. As described, air can travel into and out of the collector 1313 through the air discharge hole 1318. For example, air bubbles trapped inside the collector 1313 can be released through the air discharge hole 1318. In addition, air can also enter the collector 1313 through the air discharge hole 1318 to increase the pressure inside the reservoir 1340. Thus, it should be appreciated that the size of the air inlet 1605, the shape of the air inlet 1605, and/or the location of the air inlet 1605 on the housing 1220 may be such that at least a portion of the ambient air entering the air inlet 1605 may enter the collector 1313 through the air discharge aperture 1318 and at least a portion of the air released from the collector 1313 through the air discharge aperture 1318 may exit through the air inlet 1605. The air inlet 1605 may be substantially circular and have a diameter between 0.6 mm and 1.0 mm. For example, in certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the air inlet 1605 may be substantially circular and have a diameter of approximately 0.8 mm. In certain embodiments of the present subject matter, the air discharge aperture 1318 may also be in fluid communication with the air passage 1338. Thus, ambient air entering the air inlet 1605 can supply the collector 1313 (e.g., via the air discharge hole 1318) and the air passage 1338 (e.g., to form a respirable aerosol).

FIG. 49B illustrates a cross-sectional view of an evaporator body housing 1220 consistent with an embodiment of the present subject matter. As shown in FIG. 49B , housing 1220 may include: a pressure sensor path 1602; decorative sheath 1219; air inlet 1605, which may also include a capsule identification cavity; and a capsule ID housing 1607, which may include connections to capsule ID contacts 307 or 309 and/or heater contacts 125A and 125B (or 302).

Terminology

When a feature or element is referred to herein as being "on" another feature or element, it may be directly on the other feature or element, or there may be intervening features and/or elements. In contrast, when a feature or element is referred to as being "directly on" another feature or element, there are no intervening features or elements. It will also be understood that when a feature or element is referred to as being "connected," "attached," or "coupled" to another feature or element, it may be directly connected, attached, or coupled to the other feature or element, or there may be intervening features or elements. In contrast, when a feature or element is referred to as being "directly connected," "directly attached," or "directly coupled" to another feature or element, there are no intervening features or elements.

Although described or shown with respect to one embodiment, the features and components so described or shown may be applicable to other embodiments. Those skilled in the art will also understand that a structure or feature referred to as being disposed "adjacent" another feature may have portions that overlap or are located beneath the adjacent feature.

The terms used herein are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and implementation schemes and are not intended to be limiting. For example, as used herein, the singular forms "a, an" and "the" are also intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should be further understood that the term "comprises and/or comprising" used in this specification stipulates the existence of the stated features, steps, operations, elements and/or components, but does not exclude the existence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term "and/or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items and can be abbreviated as "/".

In the above description and in the claims, phrases such as "at least one of" or "one or more of" may be followed by a list of elements or features. The term "and/or" may also appear in a list of two or more elements or features. Unless there is an implicit or explicit contradiction in the context in which it is used, such a phrase is intended to mean any of the listed elements or features individually or in combination with any of the other stated elements or features. For example, the phrases "at least one of A and B"; "one or more of A and B"; and "A and/or B" are each intended to mean "A alone, B alone, or A and B together." A similar interpretation is also intended for lists containing three or more items. For example, the phrases "at least one of A, B, and C"; "one or more of A, B, and C"; and "A, B, and/or C" are each intended to mean "A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, or A and B and C together." The term "based on" used above and in the claims is intended to mean "based at least in part on," such that an unstated feature or element is also permissible.

As illustrated in the figures, for ease of explanation, spatially relative terms (such as "forward," "rearward," "below," "beneath," "lower," "above," "upper," etc.) may be used herein to describe the relationship of one element or feature to another (additional) element or feature. It should be understood that these spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if a device is inverted in the figures, elements described as being "below" or "beneath" other elements or features would then be oriented as being "above" the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term "below" may encompass either orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein may be interpreted accordingly. Similarly, the terms "upwardly", "downwardly", "vertical", "horizontally" and the like are used herein for explanatory purposes only unless specifically indicated otherwise.

Although the terms "first" and "second" may be used herein to describe various features/elements (including steps), such features/elements should not be limited by such terms unless the context of the content indicates otherwise. Such terms may be used to distinguish one feature/element from another feature/element. Thus, a first feature/element discussed below may be referred to as a second feature/element, and similarly, a second feature/element discussed below may be referred to as a first feature/element without departing from the teachings provided herein.

As used herein in the specification and claims, including as used in the examples and unless expressly provided otherwise, all numbers may be interpreted as if preceded by the wording "about" or "substantially," even if the term does not expressly appear. The phrase "about" or "substantially" may be used when stating a value and/or position to indicate that the stated value and/or position is within a reasonably expected range of values and/or positions. For example, a numerical value may have a value that is +/-0.1% of the stated value (or range of values), +/-1% of the stated value (or range of values), +/-2% of the stated value (or range of values), +/-5% of the stated value (or range of values), +/-10% of the stated value (or range of values), etc. Any numerical value given herein should also be understood to include approximately or approximately that value, unless the context indicates otherwise. For example, if the value "10" is disclosed, "approximately 10" is also disclosed. Any numerical range stated herein is intended to include all sub-ranges included herein. It should also be understood that when a value "less than or equal to" is disclosed, "greater than or equal to" and possible ranges between values are also disclosed, as appropriately understood by those skilled in the art. For example, if the value "X" is disclosed, "less than or equal to X" and "greater than or equal to X" (e.g., where X is a numerical value) are also disclosed. It should also be understood that throughout this application, data is provided in several different formats, and that this data represents a range of any combination of end points and starting points and data points. For example, if a specific data point "10" and a specific data point "15" are disclosed, it should be understood that greater than, greater than or equal to, less than, less than or equal to, and equal to 10 and 15, as well as between 10 and 15 are contemplated for disclosure. It should also be understood that every unit between the two specific units is also disclosed. For example, if 10 and 15 are disclosed, 11, 12, 13, and 14 are also disclosed.

Although various illustrative embodiments are described above, any of a number of changes may be made to the various embodiments without departing from the teachings herein. For example, the order in which the various described method steps are performed may generally be changed in alternative embodiments, and in other alternative embodiments, one or more method steps may be skipped altogether. Optional features of various device and system embodiments may be included in some embodiments and not included in other embodiments. Therefore, the foregoing description is provided primarily for illustrative purposes and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the scope of the patent application.

One or more aspects or features of the subject matter described herein may be implemented by: digital electronic circuit systems, integrated circuit systems, specially designed application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), computer hardware, firmware, software, and/or combinations thereof. Such various aspects or features may include implementations in one or more computer programs that may be executed and/or interpreted on a programmable system, the programmable system including at least one programmable processor that may be special-purpose or general-purpose (coupled to receive data and instructions from a storage system and transmit data and instructions to the storage system), at least one input device, and at least one output device. The programmable system or computing system may include clients and servers. A client and server are usually remote from each other and can usually interact through a communications network. The client-server relationship is created by computer programs running on the respective computers and having a client-server relationship with each other.

Such computer programs, which may also be referred to as programs, software, software applications, applications, components or program code, comprise machine instructions for a programmable processor and may be implemented in a high-level programming language, an object-oriented programming language, a functional programming language, a logical programming language and/or in assembly/machine languages. As used herein, the term "machine-readable medium" refers to any computer program product, apparatus and/or device (e.g., disk, optical disk, memory and programmable logic device (PLD)) for providing machine instructions and/or data to a programmable processor, including a machine-readable medium that receives machine instructions as a machine-readable signal. The term "machine-readable signal" refers to any signal used to provide machine instructions and/or data to a programmable processor. The machine-readable medium may store such machine instructions non-temporarily, such as would be a non-temporary solid-state memory or a magnetic hard drive or any equivalent storage medium. Alternatively or additionally, the machine-readable medium may store such machine instructions in a transient manner, such as would be a processor cache or other random access memory associated with one or more physical processor cores.

The examples and illustrations contained herein show, by way of illustration and not limitation, specific embodiments in which the subject matter may be practiced. As mentioned, other embodiments may be utilized and derived from the present invention, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Such embodiments of the disclosed subject matter may be referred to herein, individually or collectively, by the term "invention," which is merely for convenience and is not intended to automatically limit the scope of the present application to any single invention or inventive concept when more than one invention or inventive concept is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, any configuration calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. The present invention is intended to cover any and all modifications or variations of the various embodiments. After reviewing the above description, those familiar with this technology will immediately understand the combination of the above embodiments and other embodiments not specifically described in this article.

100: Evaporator

104: Controller

105: Communication hardware

108:Memory

110: Evaporator body

112: Power supply

113:Sensor

116: Input device

117: Output

118: Box socket

124: Charging contact/box contact/contact

125: socket contacts

130: Mouth

140: Memory

141: Atomizer/Atomizer assembly

150: Elastic seal/seal

1320: Evaporator box

Claims (27)

A cartridge for an evaporator device, the cartridge comprising: a cartridge housing configured to extend below an open top of a socket in the evaporator device when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device; a reservoir disposed in the cartridge housing, the reservoir configured to contain a vaporizable material; a core housing disposed in the cartridge housing, the cartridge housing extending below the top of the core housing to surround at least a portion of a perimeter of the core housing; a heating element including a heating portion disposed at least partially within the core housing; A contact portion at least partially disposed on the outside of the core shell, the contact portion including one or more cartridge contacts, the one or more cartridge contacts being configured to form an electrical coupling with one or more socket contacts in the socket of the evaporator device; and a wicking element disposed in the core shell and close to the heating portion of the heating element, the wicking element being configured to draw the evaporable material from the reservoir to the core shell for evaporation by the heating element, when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device, the core shell is at least partially disposed inside the socket. A box as claimed in claim 1, wherein the contact portion is further configured to form a mechanical coupling with the socket of the evaporator device, and wherein the mechanical coupling secures the box in the socket of the evaporator device. A cassette as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the socket comprises a first portion of a body of the evaporator device, the first portion having a smaller cross-sectional dimension than a second portion of the body of the evaporator device, and wherein when the cassette is coupled to the evaporator device, a recessed area is formed between the cassette housing and the second portion of the body of the evaporator device. The cartridge of claim 3, wherein the socket comprises one or more air inlets, the one or more air inlets forming a fluid coupling with one or more grooves in a bottom of the core shell when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device, wherein the one or more grooves are configured to allow air to enter the one or more air inlets to further enter the core shell, and wherein the one or more air inlets are disposed in the recessed area. A box as claimed in claim 4, wherein the one or more air inlets have a linear diameter between 0.6 mm and 1.0 mm. As in claim 4, the inner side of each of the one or more grooves comprises at least one step, the at least one step is formed by an inner dimension of the one or more grooves being smaller than a dimension of the one or more grooves at the bottom of the core shell, and the at least one step provides a contraction point, a meniscus is formed at the contraction point to prevent the evaporable material in the core shell from flowing out of the one or more grooves. As in claim 6, the size of the one or more grooves at the bottom of the core shell is 12 mm long x 0.5 mm wide, and the inner size of the one or more grooves is 1.0 mm long x 0.30 mm wide. The box of claim 1, wherein the heating portion of the heating element and the contact portion of the heating element are formed by folding a substrate material, wherein the substrate material is cut to include one or more prongs for forming the heating portion of the heating element, and wherein the substrate material is further cut to include one or more legs for forming the contact portion of the heating element. A cassette as claimed in claim 8, wherein the contact portion of the heating element is formed by folding each of the one or more legs to form at least a first joint, a second joint and a third joint, wherein the first joint is disposed between the second joint and the third joint, and wherein the second joint is disposed between a tip of each of the one or more legs and the first joint. A cartridge as claimed in claim 9, wherein the one or more cartridge contacts are disposed at the second joint, wherein the heating element is secured to the cartridge body by a first mechanical coupling between an outer side of the cartridge body and a portion of each of the one or more legs located between the first joint and the third joint, and wherein the cartridge is secured to the socket of the evaporator device by a second mechanical coupling between the second joint and the socket of the evaporator device. A cartridge as claimed in claim 9, wherein the one or more cartridge contacts are disposed at the first joint, wherein the heating element is secured to the cartridge body by a first mechanical coupling between an outer side of the cartridge body and a portion of each of the one or more legs between the tip and the second joint, and wherein the cartridge is secured to the socket of the evaporator device by a second mechanical coupling between the first joint and the socket of the evaporator device. A cassette as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reservoir comprises a storage chamber and a collector, wherein the collector comprises an overflow channel configured to retain a volume of the evaporable material in fluid contact with the storage chamber, wherein one or more microfluidic features are disposed along a length of the overflow channel, and wherein each of the one or more microfluidic features is configured to provide a constriction point at which a meniscus is formed to prevent air entering the reservoir from passing through the evaporable material in the overflow channel. A box as claimed in claim 12, wherein the box housing includes an airflow passage leading to an outlet for an aerosol formed by evaporating the evaporable material by the heating element, wherein the collector includes a central tunnel in fluid communication with the airflow passage, and wherein a bottom surface of the collector includes a flow controller configured to mix the aerosol generated by evaporating the evaporable material by the heating element. A cartridge as claimed in claim 13, wherein an inner surface of the airflow passage comprises one or more channels extending from the outlet to the wicking element, and wherein the one or more channels are configured to collect a condensate formed from the aerosol and direct at least a portion of the collected condensate toward the wicking element. A box as claimed in claim 14, wherein the flow controller comprises a first channel and a second channel, wherein the first channel is offset from the second channel, and wherein a first inner surface of the first channel is inclined in a direction different from a second inner surface of the second channel to guide the aerosol to pass through the first channel and enter a first column of the central tunnel in a direction different from the aerosol to pass through the second channel and enter a second column of the central tunnel. The cartridge of claim 14, wherein the bottom surface of the controller further comprises one or more wick interfaces, wherein the one or more wick interfaces are in fluid communication with one or more wick feeders in the collector, and wherein the one or more wick feeders are configured to deliver at least a portion of the evaporable material contained in the storage chamber to the wicking element disposed in the wick housing. A cassette as claimed in claim 16, wherein a flange is disposed at least partially around an upper periphery of the core shell, and wherein the flange extends over at least a portion of an edge of the cassette receptacle. A box as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the box is coupled to the evaporator device, the wall of the socket is at least partially disposed between the box shell and the core shell. An evaporator device, the evaporator device comprising: a socket, which includes a first portion of a main body of the evaporator device, the socket including one or more socket contacts, the socket being configured to receive a core shell of a box containing a vaporizable material when the box is coupled to the evaporator device, a shell of the box extending below an open top of the socket when the box is coupled to the evaporator device, the box shell further extending below the top of the core shell to surround at least a portion of a perimeter of the core shell, the one or more socket contacts being configured to engage with one or more box contacts including a contact portion of a heating element in the box The contact portion is at least partially disposed outside the core shell body, and when the box is coupled to the evaporator device, the core shell body is at least partially disposed inside the socket; a power source, which is at least partially disposed in a second portion of the main body of the evaporator device; and a controller, which is configured to control a current from the power source to discharge to one of the heating elements contained in the box when the box is coupled to the evaporator device, and the current is discharged to the heating element to evaporate at least a portion of the evaporable material that saturates a wicking element disposed in the core shell body and close to a heating portion of the heating element. The evaporator device of claim 19, wherein the socket is further configured to form a mechanical coupling with the contact portion of the heating element, and wherein the mechanical coupling secures the cartridge in the socket of the evaporator device. An evaporator device as claimed in claim 19 or 20, wherein the first portion of the body of the evaporator device has a smaller cross-sectional dimension than the second portion of the body of the evaporator device, and wherein when the cassette is coupled to the evaporator device, a recessed area is formed between the second portion of the body of the evaporator device and the cassette housing. The evaporator device of claim 21, wherein the socket includes one or more air inlets, the one or more air inlets forming a fluid coupling with one or more grooves in a bottom of the core shell when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device, wherein the one or more grooves are configured to allow air to enter the one or more air inlets to further enter the core shell, and wherein the one or more air inlets are disposed in the recessed area. An evaporator device as claimed in claim 22, wherein the one or more air inlets have a linear diameter between 0.6 mm and 1.0 mm. An evaporator device as claimed in claim 19, wherein the socket is disposed in the first portion of the main body of the evaporator device so that a top edge of the socket is substantially flush with a top edge of the first portion of the main body of the evaporator device. An evaporator device as claimed in claim 24, wherein the socket is configured to receive a portion of the core shell so that a flange disposed at least partially around an upper periphery of the core shell extends over at least a portion of the top edge of the cartridge socket and/or the top edge of the first portion of the body of the evaporator device. An evaporator device as claimed in claim 25, wherein the socket is 4.5 mm deep. An evaporator device as claimed in claim 19, wherein when the cartridge is coupled to the evaporator device, the wall of the socket is at least partially disposed between the cartridge shell and the core shell.