WO2023064298A1 - Vaporisateur électronique et procédé de commande pour la vaporisation d'un matériau visqueux - Google Patents

Vaporisateur électronique et procédé de commande pour la vaporisation d'un matériau visqueux Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2023064298A1
WO2023064298A1 PCT/US2022/046311 US2022046311W WO2023064298A1 WO 2023064298 A1 WO2023064298 A1 WO 2023064298A1 US 2022046311 W US2022046311 W US 2022046311W WO 2023064298 A1 WO2023064298 A1 WO 2023064298A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
vaping
heating element
thermal state
puff
temperature
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US2022/046311
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
John Bellinger
Brandon Ward
Original Assignee
Evolv, Llc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Evolv, Llc filed Critical Evolv, Llc
Publication of WO2023064298A1 publication Critical patent/WO2023064298A1/fr

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Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
    • A24F—SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES
    • A24F40/00—Electrically operated smoking devices; Component parts thereof; Manufacture thereof; Maintenance or testing thereof; Charging means specially adapted therefor
    • A24F40/50—Control or monitoring
    • A24F40/57—Temperature control
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
    • A24F—SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES
    • A24F40/00—Electrically operated smoking devices; Component parts thereof; Manufacture thereof; Maintenance or testing thereof; Charging means specially adapted therefor
    • A24F40/10—Devices using liquid inhalable precursors

Definitions

  • This application relates generally to an electronic vaporizer and control method that controls a viscosity of a vaping material to facilitate conveyance of the vaping material to a heating element, which converts at least a portion of the vaping material into an aerosol.
  • Electronic vaping devices commonly include a power source (e.g., a battery), and a heating element that is energized with electric energy supplied by the battery.
  • a vaping material commonly referred to as “juice” or “vape juice” is stored in a reservoir to be conveyed to the heating element by a wicking material.
  • the heating element is energized to generate heat that converts at least some of the juice into an aerosol (e.g., a vapor), that is inhaled by a user who is drawing a puff through a mouthpiece.
  • Conventional juice is a relatively-low-viscosity fluid at room temperature (e.g., approximately 70°F) that is conveyed to the heating element by wicking material. Even during an initial puff taken after a long period during which the vaping device is not used, the juice readily flows at room temperature to the wicking material, and is wicked by the wicking material to the heating element.
  • Cannabis oil is not waterbased like many conventional juices, and more viscous than free-flowing liquids at room temperature. Due in part to its higher viscosity, cannabis oil clogs up the cotton-batting, ceramic or other wicking material used with conventional juice, and prevents the cannabis oil from being conveyed to the heating element by the wicking material in such a thermal state. As a result, conventional electronic vaping devices frustrate users who will often have to wait for lengthy periods of time for the viscous cannabis oil to be heated to an extent to be conveyed by the wicking material to the heating element.
  • a portable electronic vaping device and control method that enters a maintenance mode following operation of the vaping device during a puff.
  • the vaping device and control method maintains the vaping material in a first thermal state in which the vaping material has a relatively-low viscosity.
  • the maintenance mode can be established for a defined period of time after completion of the puff.
  • the vaping device can operate in maintenance mode for at least X seconds after completion of the puff, where X can be any positive integer between 5 and 300, however any duration of operation mode is contemplated by the present disclosure.
  • the control circuit can terminate operation of maintenance mode automatically, without human intervention.
  • the vaping device can be configured to operate in maintenance mode until a subsequent puff is initiated.
  • the vaping device can be configured to operate in maintenance mode until the user manually terminates maintenance mode by pressing a button, using a switch, or otherwise entering a termination command.
  • a control circuit provided to the vaping device controls the supply of electric energy from the battery to the heating element to maintain the vaping material at a temperature above ambient temperature (e.g., room temperature of approximately 70°F) and below a vaping temperature.
  • the vaping temperature can be a temperature at which the vaping material is converted into an aerosol.
  • the temperature of the vaping material in maintenance mode causes the viscosity of the vaping material to be lower than the viscosity of the vaping material at room temperature.
  • FIG. l is a schematic block diagram of an exemplary, non-limiting embodiment of an electronic vaping device according to one or more aspects
  • FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary, non-limiting heating element according to one or more aspects
  • FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional, schematic diagram of a wire of the heating element of Figure 2A;
  • FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an example of a control circuit that controls a supply of power to a heating element in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.
  • FIG. 4 is a flow diagram representing an illustrative example of a process of operating a heating element in maintenance mode in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.
  • the phrase “at least one of’, if used herein, followed by a plurality of members herein means one of the members, or a combination of more than one of the members.
  • the phrase “at least one of a first widget and a second widget” means in the present application: the first widget, the second widget, or the first widget and the second widget.
  • “at least one of a first widget, a second widget and a third widget” means in the present application: the first widget, the second widget, the third widget, the first widget and the second widget, the first widget and the third widget, the second widget and the third widget, or the first widget and the second widget and the third widget.
  • FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary, nonlimiting embodiment of a vaping device 100.
  • the vaping device 100 can include a power source 110, a control circuit 120, an atomizer 130, and a mouthpiece 140.
  • the atomizer 130 can include at least one heating element 132 generally positioned within an air channel 134 leading to the mouthpiece 140. Further, the heating element 132 can be in fluid communication with a vaping material 138 held in a chamber, tank or any suitable container 136 that contains a vaping material 138, including a cannabis- derived oil such as cannabidiol, for example, as described herein.
  • the vaping material has a relatively-high viscosity to be substantially resistant to fluid flow.
  • the relatively-high viscosity can include viscosities of at least 1,000 mPa*s, or at least 2,000 mPa*s, etc.) at room temperature.
  • honey at room temperature can have a viscosity within a range from about 2,000 mPa*s up to about 10,000 mPa*s.
  • the vaping material can be in the form of a gel or wax, which has a relatively-high viscosity at room temperature that resists fluid flow under the force of gravity (e.g., at least 10,000 mPa*s).
  • a wicking material or other delivery mechanism can be employed to convey vaping material 138 from the container 136 to a location proximate to the heating element 132.
  • Vaping material 138 which is deposited near or in contact with the heating element 132, boils and transitions to a vapor when the heating element 132 is heated via electrical power provided by power source 110 and regulated by control circuit 120.
  • the vapor once generated, can be drawn up the air channel 134 by an air flow created by a user via the mouthpiece 140.
  • the output of the vaping device 100 is an aerosol mist form of vaping material 138.
  • the term “vapor,” as used herein, refers to gaseous molecules of the vaping material 138 that are evaporated, and small liquid droplets of the vaping material 138 that are to be suspended or entrained in the air flowing through the electronic vaping device 100 as an aerosol, as a result of being exposed to an elevated temperature of a heating element 132 provided to the atomizer 130. It is the vapor entrained in the air that is inhaled by a user through the air channel 134 of the mouthpiece 140 provided to the electronic vaping device 100.
  • the above-described embodiment of the electronic vaping device 100 is provided by way of example as a non-limiting example of the electronic vaping device 100.
  • Alternate embodiments of the vaping device 100 can employ a plurality of heating elements 132, operated independently or synchronized with each other, a removable or permanently fixed container 136, and any other variants.
  • the embodiment of the vaping device 100 illustrated in FIGs. 1, 2 A and 2B will be used in the description that follows.
  • FIG. 2A a schematic diagram of an exemplary, non-limiting embodiment of heating element 132 is illustrated.
  • the heating element 132 can be a heating coil at least partially positioned within the air channel 134.
  • a wicking material 210 being in fluid communication with vaping material 138, conveys vaping material 138 to the heating element 132, where the vaping material 138 can be vaporized (more specifically, aerosolized).
  • Fig. 2B depicts a cross- sectional view of a wire 202 of the heating element 132.
  • the wi eking material 210 deposits a liquid phase layer 206 of vaping material 138 around the wire 202.
  • vapor phase layer 204 Due to the current carried by the wire 202, a portion of the liquid phase layer 206 is heated to a boiling point and transitions to a vapor, thereby creating a vapor phase layer 204. In response to air flow 220 through air channel 134, vapor in the vapor phase layer 204 is carried away from the wire 202. However, as the vapor phase layer 204 is substantially surrounded by the liquid phase layer 206, the vapor particles condense, cool, and increase in size. After transiting across the liquid phase layer 206, the vapor condenses to aerosol particles 208 having a larger particle size than the vapor particles of the vapor phase layer 204.
  • operation of the heating element 132 can be controlled, via control circuit 120 for example, to establish and/or maintain a desired thermal state of the vaping material 138.
  • the second heating element 310 can be temperature controlled and/or power (wattage) controlled by control circuit 120 via any technique that maintains the vaping material in the thermal states as described herein.
  • a reference resistance of the heating element 132 can be established.
  • the reference resistance can be a resistance of the heating element 132 at room temperature relative to an operating temperature of the atomizer 130.
  • the heating element 132 can have known resistance characteristics versus temperature.
  • a relative change in measured resistance can be translated into a relative change in temperature of the heating element 132, which can be fed back to control circuit 120 to allow the supply of power from the power source 110.
  • the control circuit 120 can determine an actual average temperature of the heating element 132. By monitoring the average temperature of the heating element 132, the control circuit 120 can control the temperature of the heating element 132 to maintain the vaping material 138 in a thermal state while operating in a maintenance mode to promote conveyance of the vaping material 138 to the heating element 132 by the wi eking material 210.
  • any other control techniques can be employed to establish and/or maintain a thermal state of the vaping material 138 as described herein, and are considered within the scope of the present disclosure.
  • a user interface 124 includes an actuator that can be manipulated by the user to trigger a puff.
  • the user interface 124 can include a fire button that, when pressed, causes the control circuit 120 to initiate the supply of power from the power source 110 to the heating element 132 through a switch 135 as described herein.
  • the heating element 132 is energized by the output power to generate the vapor for the puff, thereby producing the yield and/or concentration profile as described herein.
  • the fire button can be replaced and/or supplemented by a control routine programmed into a non-transitory computer- readable medium 137 provided to the control circuit 120.
  • the user interface 124 can include a sensor disposed adjacent to the air channel 134 to sense an airflow through the air channel 134 indicative of the user inhaling during a puff.
  • the control circuit 120 can control the supply of power to the heating element 132 to convert a portion of the vaping material 138 into a vapor.
  • the input/output module 129 can be integrated into the processor 128 and include one or a plurality of pins of the processor 128. According to other embodiments, the input/output module 129 is a discrete circuit that facilitates communications between the processor 128 and the user interface 124.
  • the control routine executed by the control circuit 120 can optionally be governed by computer-executable instructions stored in the CRM 137.
  • the instructions of the control routine cause the processor 128 to selectively control the switch 135 to activate the heating element 132 in response to initiation of a puff through the user interface 124.
  • Output power is supplied during the puff by the power source 110 to the heating element 132 under the control of the control circuit 120 to generate the vapor.
  • the control circuit 120 can control operation of the heating element 132 in a maintenance mode to maintain the vaping material 138 in a second thermal state according to a process represented in FIG. 4.
  • the vaping material 138 Prior to the puff, the vaping material 138 has a relatively-high viscosity if allowed to rest long enough to reach a first thermal state.
  • the vaping material can be in a substantially-gelatinous phase in the first thermal state, resisting fluid flow or at least exhibiting slow conveyance by the wi eking material 210 to the heating element 132.
  • the heating element 132 is energized to heat at least a portion of the vaping material 138, thereby at least partially liquifying the vaping material 138 to improve flowability of the vaping fluid 138, and accelerate conveyance of the vaping fluid 138 by the wi eking material 210 compared to the rate of wi eking of the vaping material 138 in the first thermal state.
  • the portion of the vaping material 138 introduced to the heating element 132 is converted into the vapor during the puff and inhaled by the user through the air channel 134.
  • the control circuit detects completion of a puff at block 240.
  • Completion of the puff can be detected in any desired manner, based on any sensed parameter.
  • the puff can be determined to be complete when a sensor of the user interface 124 senses a rapid decrease in the air flow 220 through the air channel 134.
  • the signal transmitted to the processor 128 by the input/output module 129 can be interrupted or commenced in response to the user releasing the fire button.
  • the control circuit 120 can enter a maintenance mode in which the control circuit controls operation of the heating element 132 after the puff to maintain at least a portion of the vaping material 138 in the second thermal state.
  • the vaping material In the second thermal state, the vaping material has a relatively-low viscosity that is less than the relatively-high viscosity.
  • a cannabis oil that is substantially gelatinous in the first thermal state is maintained in a substantially-liquid phase in the second thermal state.
  • the control circuit controls the power supplied to the heating element 132 in the maintenance mode to maintain the vaping material 138 in the second thermal state.
  • the control circuit 120 controls operation of the heating element 132 to maintain a temperature of the vaping material 138 at a temperature above the temperature of the bulk of the vaping material 138 in the first thermal state.
  • the vaping material 138 exhibits improved fluidity and ability to be conveyed by the wi eking material to the heating element 132 relative to the vaping material 138 int eh first thermal state.
  • the control circuit 120 can operate the heating element 132 in a maintenance mode, which maintains at least a portion of the vaping material 138 in a fluidized state with the relatively-low viscosity. Accordingly, rather than having to wait for the temperature of the vaping material 138 to exceed the temperature of the vaping material in the first thermal state to improve wicking, the vaping material is already in the second thermal state at a time when a subsequent puff is commenced.
  • the control circuit regulates the power supplied to the heating element 132 to interfere with, and optionally prevent vaporization of the portion of the vaping material 138 introduced to the heating element 132 in the second thermal state while in the maintenance mode.
  • the control circuit 120 maintains the vaping material 138 in the second thermal state below a vaporization temperature at which a substantial (e.g., majority) portion of the vaping material 138 exposed to the heating element 132 is converted into the vapor.
  • Controlling operation of the heating element 132 can be based on the computer-executable instructions stored in the CRM 137 of the control circuit 120, and achieved by temperature control techniques, power control techniques, a combination thereof, or via any other technique.
  • control circuit 120 can maintain operation of the heating element 132 in maintenance mode until a subsequent puff is commenced by the user, as determined at decision 246. If it is determined that a subsequent puff is commenced at decision 246, the control circuit 120 terminates maintenance mode at block 248, and the process returns to detecting completion of that subsequent puff at block 240.
  • the control circuit 120 can optionally include a timer 139 (FIG. 3), that can limit the duration of the maintenance mode at decision 250.
  • the timer 139 can optionally be integrated into the processor 128, or implemented as a discrete circuit.
  • the control circuit 120 can optionally be configured to operate the heating element 132 in the maintenance mode to maintain the vaping material 138 in the second thermal state for a defined period of time following completion of the preceding puff. If, at decision 250, it is determined that the defined period of time has expired based on the timer 139, then maintenance mode is terminated at block 252 before returning to block 240 and monitoring for completion of a subsequent puff. Otherwise, the process returns to decision 246 to monitor for the start of a subsequent puff at decision 246, or expiration of the defined period of time at decision 250.

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Abstract

L'invention concerne un dispositif de vapotage électronique comprenant un élément chauffant qui doit être alimenté pour convertir une partie d'un matériau de vapotage en une vapeur par élévation d'une température du matériau de vapotage. Le matériau de vapotage, dans un premier état thermique, présente une viscosité relativement élevée. Le dispositif de vapotage électronique comprend également un passage d'écoulement d'air à travers lequel l'air entraînant la vapeur s'écoule à la suite de l'inhalation par un utilisateur à travers un embout buccal pendant une bouffée. Un circuit de commande fait fonctionner l'élément chauffant dans un mode de maintenance après la bouffée pour maintenir le matériau de vapotage dans un second état thermique. Le matériau de vapotage présente une viscosité relativement faible dans le second état thermique et la viscosité relativement élevée est supérieure à la viscosité relativement faible.
PCT/US2022/046311 2021-10-11 2022-10-11 Vaporisateur électronique et procédé de commande pour la vaporisation d'un matériau visqueux WO2023064298A1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US202163254186P 2021-10-11 2021-10-11
US63/254,186 2021-10-11

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WO2023064298A1 true WO2023064298A1 (fr) 2023-04-20

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Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20060196518A1 (en) * 2003-04-29 2006-09-07 Lik Hon Flameless electronic atomizing cigarette
DE102007011120A1 (de) * 2007-03-07 2008-09-11 Bel Air International Corp., Nashville Rauchfreie Zigarette sowie Kombination aus einer rauchfreien Zigarette und einem Ladegerät für diese
US20110005535A1 (en) * 2008-02-29 2011-01-13 Yunqiang Xiu Electronic simulated cigarette and atomizing liquid thereof, smoking set for electronic simulated cigarette and smoking liquid capsule thereof
US9247773B2 (en) * 2014-02-28 2016-02-02 Beyond Twenty Ltd. E-cigarette personal vaporizer

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20060196518A1 (en) * 2003-04-29 2006-09-07 Lik Hon Flameless electronic atomizing cigarette
DE102007011120A1 (de) * 2007-03-07 2008-09-11 Bel Air International Corp., Nashville Rauchfreie Zigarette sowie Kombination aus einer rauchfreien Zigarette und einem Ladegerät für diese
US20110005535A1 (en) * 2008-02-29 2011-01-13 Yunqiang Xiu Electronic simulated cigarette and atomizing liquid thereof, smoking set for electronic simulated cigarette and smoking liquid capsule thereof
US9247773B2 (en) * 2014-02-28 2016-02-02 Beyond Twenty Ltd. E-cigarette personal vaporizer

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