RU2840619C1 - Nicotine electronic vaping device (embodiments) and method for controlling nicotine electronic vaping device (embodiments) - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: smoking accessories.

SUBSTANCE: group of inventions relates to tobacco industry, in particular to systems simulating the tobacco smoking process. Nicotine electronic vaping device comprises a device assembly configured to interact with the nicotine cartridge assembly. Device assembly includes a controller configured to estimate the amount of the nicotine pre-evaporated composition evaporated during the puffing act, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporated composition, obtained from the memory, and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the puffing act. Controller is configured to determine the updated total amount of the evaporated nicotine pre-evaporation formulation based on the total amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation formulation stored in the memory, and the amount of the nicotine pre-evaporated composition evaporated during the puffing act. Controller is configured to determine that the updated total amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. Controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of the current level of the nicotine pre-evaporative composition in response to the determination that the updated total amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to said at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. According to the second embodiment of the nicotine electronic vaping device, the controller is configured to estimate the amount of the nicotine pre-evaporative composition drawn during the puffing act, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the puffing act. Disclosed are embodiments of methods for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device.

EFFECT: providing an indication of the consumption of the nicotine pre-evaporation formulation in the nicotine cartridge assembly.

16 cl, 36 dwg

Description

This invention relates to embodiments of nicotine electronic vaping (nicotine e-vaping) devices and methods for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device.

Nicotine electronic vaping devices (or e-vaping devices) include a heater that vaporizes a nicotine pre-vapor material to create a nicotine vapor. A nicotine e-vaping device may include multiple nicotine e-vaping elements, including a power source, a nicotine cartridge, or a nicotine e-vaping tank, including a heater and a nicotine reservoir capable of holding a nicotine pre-vapor material.

One example of the closest prior art is disclosed in publication US 2020/146361 A1, which describes a device including a cartridge and an evaporator housing. The cartridge may comprise a cartridge housing defining a reservoir configured to contain a material to be evaporated, as well as an evaporating unit located inside the cartridge housing. The evaporator housing may comprise a receiver configured to receive at least a portion of the cartridge, and a control circuit comprising at least one processor and at least one memory located inside the evaporator housing, wherein the at least one memory stores instructions that, when executed, ensure: storing an event indicating detection of insertion of a cartridge into the evaporator housing; requesting information about the cartridge from the cartridge; receiving, in response to the request, information about the cartridge stored in the cartridge; and adjusting, based on at least a portion of the received information about the cartridge, the evaporator device for evaporating the material to be evaporated.

In another prior art publication US 2014/096781 A1, smoking articles and methods for forming such smoking articles, such as an electronic smoking article, are disclosed. An example of a smoking article comprises a control housing part having an engagement end of the control housing and having a first control component located therein. The cartridge housing part comprises an engagement end of the cartridge housing configured to removably engage the engagement end of the control housing of the control housing part. The cartridge housing part further comprises a consumable device comprising at least an aerosol precursor composition and at least one heating element operatively engaged therewith, as well as a second control component. At least the consumable device is configured to provide communication with the first control component when engaged between the cartridge housing and the control housing parts.

In at least one exemplary embodiment, a nicotine electronic vaping device is proposed, comprising a nicotine cartridge unit and a device unit configured to interact with the nicotine cartridge unit. The nicotine cartridge unit includes: a memory storing a nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporation parameter and a total amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporated; a nicotine reservoir for holding the nicotine pre-evaporation composition; and a heater configured to evaporate the nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the said nicotine reservoir. The device unit includes a controller that is configured to: estimate the amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporated during the puffing act based on the nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporation parameter obtained from the memory and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the puffing act; determining an updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition based on the stored total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporized during the puffing act; determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level; and controlling the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a current nicotine pre-evaporation composition level in the nicotine reservoir in response to determining that the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level.

In at least one exemplary embodiment, a nicotine electronic vaping device is proposed, comprising a nicotine cartridge assembly and a device assembly configured to interact with the nicotine cartridge assembly. The nicotine cartridge assembly includes: a nicotine reservoir for holding a nicotine pre-evaporation composition; a heater configured to evaporate the nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir; and a memory storing a nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporation parameter and a total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir. The device assembly comprises a controller that is configured to: estimate the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir during a puffing act, based on the nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporation parameter and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the puffing act; determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir based on a stored total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir and an amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir during a puffing event; determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir is greater than or equal to at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level; and controlling the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a current nicotine pre-evaporation composition level in the nicotine reservoir in response to determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir is greater than or equal to the at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level.

In at least one more exemplary embodiment, a nicotine electronic vaping device is proposed, comprising a controller. The controller is configured to: receive a depletion flag from a memory in a nicotine cartridge unit inserted into the electronic vaping device, wherein said depletion flag indicates that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine cartridge unit has been exhausted; and disable vaping in the nicotine electronic vaping device based on said depletion flag received from the memory.

In at least another exemplary embodiment, a method is provided for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device comprising a nicotine reservoir for holding a nicotine pre-evaporation composition and a heater configured to vaporize the nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir, wherein the method includes: estimating an amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporized by the heater during a puffing act based on a evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and a total amount of power supplied to the heater during the puffing act; determining an updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition based on the stored total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporized during the puffing act; determining that the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level; and outputting an indication of a current level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir in response to determining that the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level.

In at least another exemplary embodiment, a method is provided for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device comprising a nicotine reservoir for holding a nicotine pre-evaporation composition and a heater configured to vaporize the nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir, wherein the method includes: estimating an amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir during a puffing act based on a evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and a total amount of power supplied to the heater during the puffing act; determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir based on a stored total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir and the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir during the puffing act; determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir is greater than or equal to at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level; and outputting an indication of a current nicotine pre-evaporation composition level in the nicotine reservoir in response to determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir is greater than or equal to the at least one threshold nicotine pre-evaporation composition level.

In at least another exemplary embodiment, a method is provided for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device that includes a nicotine cartridge assembly and a device assembly, wherein the method includes: receiving an exhaustion flag from a memory in the nicotine cartridge assembly inserted into the device assembly, wherein the exhaustion flag indicates that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine cartridge assembly has been depleted; and disabling vaping in the nicotine electronic vaping device based on the exhaustion flag received from the memory.

Thus, according to the first object of the present invention, a nicotine electronic vaping device is created, comprising a device unit configured to interact with a nicotine cartridge unit, wherein the device unit includes a controller configured to:

estimating the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporated during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition obtained from the memory and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing,

determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition vaporized based on the total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition stored in memory and the amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition vaporized during the puffing act,

determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level, and

controlling the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a current nicotine pre-vapor composition level in response to determining that an updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to the at least one threshold nicotine pre-vapor composition level.

Preferably, said at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level includes a threshold value of exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value of exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

Preferably, the controller is configured to set a depletion flag in the memory in response to determining that the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to a threshold value for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

Preferably, setting the exhaustion flag prevents further updating of the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-vapor composition.

Preferably, the controller is configured to disable vaping in the nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to a threshold value for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

Preferably, the memory stores a depletion flag indicating whether the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been depleted; and the controller is further configured to:

getting the exhaustion flag from memory,

determining the consumption of nicotine pre-vapor composition based on the value of the exhaustion flag and

disabling vaping in a nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been depleted.

Preferably, said at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level includes a threshold value of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

According to a second object of the present invention, a nicotine electronic vaping device is created, comprising a device unit configured to interact with a nicotine cartridge unit, wherein the device unit includes a controller configured to:

estimates of the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn out during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing,

determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition drawn out based on the total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition stored in memory and the amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition drawn out during the act of puffing,

determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition drawn is greater than or equal to at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level, and

controlling the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of the current level of the nicotine pre-vapor composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to the at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level.

Preferably, said at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level includes a threshold value of exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value of exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

Preferably, the controller is configured to set a depletion flag in the memory in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to a threshold value for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

Preferably, setting the exhaustion flag prevents any further updates to the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition drawn.

Preferably, the controller is configured to disable vaping in the nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

Preferably, the memory stores a depletion flag indicating that the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been depleted; and the controller is further configured to:

getting the exhaustion flag from memory,

determining the depletion of the nicotine pre-vapor composition based on the value of the depletion flag, and

disabling vaping in a nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been depleted.

Preferably, at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level includes a threshold value of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

According to a third object of the present invention, a method for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device is provided, comprising:

an estimate of the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporated by the heater during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing;

determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition based on the total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition stored in memory and the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporized during the act of puffing;

determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition vaporized is greater than or equal to at least one threshold nicotine pre-vapor composition level; and

outputting an indication of the current level of the nicotine pre-vapor composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to the specified at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level.

According to a fourth object of the present invention, a method for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device is created, comprising:

an estimate of the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn out during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing;

determining an updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-vapor composition based on the stored total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-vapor composition and the amount of the nicotine pre-vapor composition drawn during the act of puffing;

determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition drawn is greater than or equal to at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level; and

outputting an indication of the current level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than the specified at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level.

Various features and advantages of the non-limiting embodiments herein may become more apparent when the detailed description is considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings are provided for illustrative purposes only and should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the claims. The accompanying drawings should not be considered as being drawn to scale unless expressly indicated. For clarity, some dimensions in the drawings may be exaggerated.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a nicotine e-vaping device according to an exemplary embodiment;

Fig. 2 is a side view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a rear view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a view of the near end of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a view of the far end of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged view of the inlet opening of the cartridge of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the housing of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 6;

Fig. 10 - front view of the housing of the device according to Fig. 9;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the through hole of Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 is an enlarged perspective view of the electrical contacts of the device of Fig. 10;

Fig. 13 is a partially disassembled view including the mouthpiece of Fig. 12;

Fig. 14 is a partially disassembled view including the inclined structure of Fig. 9;

Fig. 15 is an enlarged perspective view of the mouthpiece, springs, holding structure and inclined structure of Fig. 14;

Fig. 16 is a partially disassembled view including the front cover, frame and rear cover of Fig. 14;

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 6;

Fig. 18 is another perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 17;

Fig. 19 is another perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 18;

Fig. 20 is a perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 19 without the connecting module;

Fig. 21 is a perspective view of the connecting module according to Fig. 19;

Fig. 22 is another perspective view of the connecting module of Fig. 21;

Fig. 23 is an exploded view showing the wick, heater, electrical terminals and contact core of Fig. 22;

Fig. 24 is an exploded view including the first section of the casing of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 17;

Fig. 25 is a partially disassembled view including the second section of the casing of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 17;

Fig. 26 is an exploded view of the activating pin according to Fig. 25;

Fig. 27 is a perspective view of the connecting module of Fig. 22 without the wick, heater, electrical terminals and contact core;

Fig. 28 is a disassembled view of the connecting module according to Fig. 27;

Fig. 29 - electrical systems of the device housing and nicotine cartridge assembly of a nicotine e-vaping device according to one or more example embodiments;

Fig. 30 is a simple functional diagram illustrating a system for determining the consumption of nicotine

pre-evaporation composition and automatic shutdown control according to the exemplary embodiments;

Fig. 31 is a flow chart illustrating a method for determining the level of a nicotine pre-vapor composition according to exemplary embodiments;

Fig. 32 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for controlling the operation of a nicotine e-vaping device after disabling the vaping function in response to detecting a cartridge failure event, according to example embodiments;

Fig. 33 is a diagram of a heater voltage measurement circuit according to exemplary embodiments;

Fig. 34 is a diagram of a heater current measurement according to exemplary embodiments;

Fig. 35 is a schematic diagram illustrating a circuit for shutting down a heating unit according to some exemplary embodiments; and

Fig. 36 is a schematic diagram illustrating a circuit for shutting down a heating unit according to some other exemplary embodiments.

Certain exemplary embodiments are disclosed in detail herein. However, the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are presented solely for the purpose of describing the exemplary embodiments of the present invention. However, the exemplary embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in many alternative forms and should not be construed as limited to only the exemplary embodiments of the present invention that are set forth herein.

Accordingly, although the exemplary embodiments may have various modifications and alternative forms, only exemplary embodiments are shown by way of example in the drawings and described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that there is no intention to limit the exemplary embodiments to the specific forms disclosed; on the contrary, the exemplary embodiments are intended to embrace all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives thereof. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout the description of the figures.

It should be understood that when an element or layer is listed as being "on," "attached to," "linked to," "attached to," "adjacent to," or "overlying" another element or layer, it may be directly on, attached to, linked to, attached to, adjacent to, or overlying the other element or layer, or there may be intervening elements or layers. In contrast, when an element is listed as being "on," "directly attached to," or "directly related to," another element or layer, there are no intervening elements or layers. Like reference numbers refer to like elements throughout this specification. As used herein, the conjunction "and/or" includes any and all combinations or subcombinations of one or more related listed elements.

It should be understood that while the ordinal numbers "first," "second," "third," and so forth may be used herein to describe various elements, regions, layers, and/or sections, these elements, regions, layers, and/or sections are not intended to be limited to the ordinal numbers stated. These ordinal numbers are used merely to distinguish one element, region, layer, or section from another element, region, layer, or section. Accordingly, the first element, region, layer, or section discussed below could be referred to as the second element, region, layer, or section without departing from the teachings of the exemplary embodiments.

Relative spatial location terms (e.g., "below," "under," "lower," "above," "upper," and the like) may be used herein to simplify the description of the relationship of one element or feature to another element or feature shown in the figures. It should be understood that relative spatial location terms are intended to cover other orientations of the device during use or operation, in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is inverted, then elements described as located "under" or "below" other elements or features will appear to be located "above" the other elements or features. Accordingly, the preposition "under" may cover both above and below. The device may be oriented differently (rotated 90 degrees or positioned in other orientations), and the definitions relating to spatial location used herein may be interpreted accordingly.

The terminology used herein is intended to describe various exemplary embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the exemplary embodiments. As used herein, the use of the singular forms is intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the terms "includes," "including," "comprises," and/or "containing," when used herein, indicate the presence of certain features, integers, steps, operations, and/or elements, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or groups thereof.

When the words "approximately" and "substantially" are used in this description in conjunction with a numerical value, the corresponding numerical value is intended to include a margin of error of +10 percent of the stated numerical value, unless otherwise expressly stated.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meanings as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which the exemplary embodiments pertain. It should also be understood that terms, including those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that corresponds to their meaning in the context of the relevant art, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless explicitly defined herein.

The hardware may be implemented using processing or control circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more processors, one or more central processing units (CPUs), one or more microcontrollers, one or more arithmetic logic units (ALUs), one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), one or more microcomputers, one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), one or more systems on a chip (SoCs), one or more programmable logic units (PLUs), one or more microprocessors, one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or any other device or devices capable of responding to instructions and executing them in a specific manner.

As used in this document, the terms "nicotine electronic vaping device" or "nicotine e-vaping device" may in some cases be used and considered synonymous with the terms "nicotine e-vaping device" and/or "nicotine e-vaping device".

Fig. 1 is a front view of a nicotine e-vaping device according to an exemplary embodiment. Fig. 2 is a side view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a back view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1. As shown in Figs. 1-3, the nicotine e-vaping device 500 comprises a device body 100 configured to receive a nicotine cartridge assembly 300. The nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is a modular article configured to hold a nicotine pre-evaporation composition. The "nicotine pre-evaporation composition" is a material or a combination of materials that can be converted into vapor. For example, the nicotine-containing pre-vapor composition may be a liquid, solid, and/or gel composition that includes, but is not limited to, water, granules, solvents, active ingredients, ethanol, plant extracts, natural or artificial flavors, and/or vapor-generating substances such as glycerin and propylene glycol. The nicotine e-vaping device 500 is configured to heat the nicotine pre-vapor composition to generate vapor during vaping. As referred to herein, "nicotine vapor" is any substance generated or output from any nicotine e-vaping device according to any of the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein.

As shown in Fig. 1 and 3, the nicotine e-vaping device 500 extends in the longitudinal direction and has a length that is greater than its width. In addition, as shown in Fig. 2, the length of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 is also greater than its thickness. In addition, the width of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 may be greater than its thickness. Assuming a Cartesian x-y-z coordinate system, the length of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 may be measured in the y direction, the width may be measured in the x direction, and the thickness may be measured in the z direction. The nicotine e-vaping device 500 may have a substantially linear shape with tapered ends in its front, side and back views, although the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this.

The device housing 100 comprises a front cover 104, a frame 106 and a back cover 108. The front cover 104, the frame 106 and the back cover 108 form a device housing that includes mechanical elements, electronic elements and/or circuits associated with the operation of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. For example, the device housing in the device housing 100 may include a power source configured to supply power to the nicotine e-vaping device 500, which may include supplying an electric current to the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. The device housing in the device housing 100 may also include one or more electrical systems for controlling the nicotine e-vaping device 500. Electrical systems according to example embodiments will be discussed in more detail below. In addition, when assembled, the front cover 104, frame 106 and rear cover 108 may form the main part of the visible portion of the device body 100.

The front cover 104 (for example, the first cover) forms a primary opening configured to receive an inclined structure 112. The primary opening may have a rounded rectangular shape, although other shapes are possible, depending on the shape of the inclined structure 112. The inclined structure 112 forms a through opening 150 configured to receive the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. The through opening 150 is discussed in more detail herein in combination with, for example, Fig. 9.

The front cover 104 also forms a secondary opening configured to accommodate a light-guiding structure. The secondary opening may be similar to a groove (for example, it may have the shape of an elongated rectangle with rounded edges), although other shapes are also possible depending on the shape of the light-guiding structure. In the embodiment given as an example, the light-guiding structure comprises a light-guide housing 114 and a button housing 122. The light-guide housing 114 is configured to open a light-guide lens 116, while the button housing 122 is configured to open a first button lens 124 and a second button lens 126 (for example, in Fig. 16). The first button lens 124 and the upstream portion of the button housing 122 may form the first button 118. Similarly, the second button lens 126 and the downstream portion of the button housing 122 may form the second button 120. The button housing 122 may be present as a single structure or as two separate structures. In the latter case, the first button 118 and the second button 120 may move to create a feeling of greater independence when pressed.

The operation of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 may be controlled by a first button 118 and a second button 120. For example, the first button 118 may be a power button, and the second button 120 may be an intensity control button. Although the drawings show two buttons in combination with a light-guiding structure, it should be understood that more (or fewer) buttons may be provided, depending on the available features and the desired user interface.

The frame 106 (e.g., the main frame) is a central support structure for the body 100 of the device (and for the nicotine e-vaping device 500 in general). The frame 106 can be called a chassis. The frame 106 includes a near end, a far end, and a pair of side sections between the near end and the far end. The near end and the far end can also be called a downstream end and an upstream end, respectively. As used herein, the term "near" (and its inverse "far") are relative to an adult vaper during vaping, and the expression "downstream" (and its inverse "upstream") are relative to the direction of vapor flow. A bridge section can be provided between opposite inner surfaces of the side sections (e.g., approximately midway along the length of the frame 106) for additional strength and stability. The frame 106 may be made as a single unit so that it represents a monolithic structure.

With regard to the material of construction, the frame 106 may be made of an alloy or plastic. The alloy (e.g., of a grade suitable for die casting or for mechanical processing) may be an aluminum (Al) alloy or a zinc (Zn) alloy. The plastic may be polycarbonate (PC), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), or a combination thereof (PC/ABS). For example, the polycarbonate may be LUPOY SC1004A. In addition, the frame 106 may be subjected to a surface finish for functional and/or aesthetic reasons (e.g., to ensure an attractive appearance). In an exemplary embodiment, the frame 106 (e.g., if made of an aluminum alloy) may be anodized. In another embodiment, the frame 106 (e.g., if made of a zinc alloy) may be hard enameled or painted. In another embodiment, the frame 106 (for example, if it is made of polycarbonate) can be metallized. In another embodiment, the frame 106 (for example, if it is made of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) can have a galvanic coating. It should be understood that the materials of construction indicated in relation to the frame 106 can also be applied to the front cover 104, the back cover 108 and/or other corresponding parts of the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

The rear cover 108 (for example, the second cover) also forms an opening adapted to receive the inclined structure 112. The opening may have a rounded rectangular shape, although other shapes are possible depending on the shape of the inclined structure 112. In the exemplary embodiment, the opening in the rear cover 108 is smaller than the primary opening in the front cover 104. In addition, although not shown in the drawings, it should be understood that a light-guiding structure (for example, including buttons) may be provided in the rear of the nicotine e-vaping device 500, in addition to (or instead of) the light-guiding structure in the front of the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

The front cover 104 and the back cover 108 may be configured to interact with the frame 106 by means of a snap-fit design. For example, the front cover 104 and/or the back cover 108 may comprise clips configured to interconnect with corresponding mating elements of the frame 106. In a non-limiting embodiment, said clips may be in the form of tabs with openings configured to receive corresponding mating elements (for example, protrusions with beveled edges) of the frame 106. Alternatively, the front cover 104 and/or the back cover 108 may be configured to interact with the frame 106 by means of an interference fit (which may also be referred to as a press fit or a friction fit). However, it should be understood that the front cover 104, the frame 106 and the back cover 108 may be connected by means of other suitable designs and technologies.

The body 100 of the device also includes a mouthpiece 102. The mouthpiece 102 can be attached to the near end of the frame 106. In addition, as shown in Fig. 2, in an exemplary embodiment in which the frame 106 is clamped between the front cover 104 and the back cover 108, the mouthpiece 102 can be adjacent to the front cover 104, the frame 106 and the back cover 108. In addition, in a non-limiting embodiment, the mouthpiece 102 can be connected to the casing of the device by means of a bayonet connection.

Fig. 4 shows a view of the near end of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1. With reference to Fig. 4, a plurality of vapor outlets are formed on the outlet surface of the mouthpiece 102. In a non-limiting embodiment, the outlet surface of the mouthpiece 102 may have an elliptical shape. In addition, the outlet surface of the mouthpiece 102 may comprise a first crossbar corresponding to the major axis of the elliptical outlet surface, and a second crossbar corresponding to the minor axis of the elliptical outlet surface. In addition, the first crossbar and the second crossbar may intersect perpendicularly, and they may be integral parts of the mouthpiece 102. Although the outlet surface is shown as having four vapor outlets, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this. For example, the outlet surface may have fewer than four (e.g., one, two) vapor outlets or more than four (e.g., six, eight) vapor outlets.

Fig. 5 shows a view of the distal end of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1. With reference to Fig. 5, the distal end of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 comprises a port 110. The port 110 is configured to receive electric current (e.g. via a USB cable) from an external power source for charging an internal power source located inside the nicotine e-vaping device 500. In addition, the port 110 may also be configured to transmit data (e.g. via a USB cable) to another nicotine e-vaping device or another electronic device (e.g. a phone, tablet, computer) and/or to receive data from them. In addition, the nicotine e-vaping device 500 may be configured to wirelessly communicate with another electronic device, such as a phone, using an application program (application) installed on this electronic device. In this case, the adult vaper can control or otherwise interact with the nicotine e-vaping device 500 (e.g., locate the nicotine e-vaping device, check usage information, change operating parameters) through the specified application.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 1. Fig. 7 is an enlarged view of the inlet opening of the cartridge of Fig. 6. As shown in Fig. 6-7 and as briefly noted above, the nicotine e-vaping device 500 comprises a nicotine cartridge assembly 300 configured to hold a nicotine pre-evaporation composition. The nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has an upstream end (which faces the light-guiding structure) and a downstream end (which faces the mouthpiece 102). In a non-limiting embodiment, the upstream end is a surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 opposite the downstream end. The upstream end of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has a cartridge inlet opening 322. The housing 100 of the device forms a through-hole (for example, the through-hole 150 of Fig. 9) adapted to receive the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. In the exemplary embodiment, the inclined structure 112 of the housing 100 of the device forms the through-hole and comprises an upstream rim. As shown in particular in Fig. 7, the upstream rim of the inclined structure 112 is angled (for example, immersed inwardly) such that it opens the inlet 322 of the cartridge when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is placed inside the through-hole of the housing 100 of the device.

For example, instead of following the contour of the front cover 104 (to be generally flush with the front surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and, therefore, to hide the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge), the upstream rim of the inclined structure 112 has the shape of a scoop configured to direct ambient air into the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge. This inclined/scoop-shaped configuration provides the ability to help reduce or prevent the blocking of the air inlet opening (for example, the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge) of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. The depth of the scoop can be such that less than half (for example, less than a quarter) of the upstream end surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is exposed. In addition, in a non-limiting embodiment, the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge has the shape of a groove. In addition, if the device body 100 is considered to extend in a first direction, then said groove may be considered to extend in a second direction, wherein the second direction is transverse to the first direction.

Fig. 8 shows a sectional view of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 6. In Fig. 8, the section is made along the longitudinal axis of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. As shown in the figure, the body 100 of the device and the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 comprise mechanical elements, electronic elements and/or circuits that are associated with the operation of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 and are discussed in more detail herein and/or incorporated herein by reference. For example, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may comprise mechanical elements configured to be activated to release a nicotine pre-evaporation composition from an interior of the sealed nicotine reservoir. The nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may also have mechanical components configured to interact with the body 100 of the device to facilitate the insertion and placement of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300.

In addition, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may be a "smart cartridge" that contains electronic elements and/or circuits configured to store, receive and/or transmit information to or from the device body 100. Such information may be used to authenticate the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 for use with the device body 100 (e.g., to prevent the use of an unapproved/counterfeit nicotine cartridge assembly). In addition, said information may be used to identify the type of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, which is then matched to a vaping profile based on the identified type. The vaping profile may be developed to set general heating parameters for the nicotine pre-vapor composition, and it may be subject to adjustment, optimization or other adjustment by an adult vaper before and/or during vaping.

The nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may also exchange other information with the device body 100 that may be relevant for the operation of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. Examples of relevant information may include the level of nicotine pre-vapor composition within the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and/or the amount of time that has passed since the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 was inserted into the device body 100 and activated. For example, if the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 was inserted into the device body 100 and activated more than a certain period of time ago (e.g., more than 6 months ago), then the nicotine e-vaping device 500 may not allow vaping, and the adult vaper may be asked to switch to a new nicotine cartridge, even if the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 still contains sufficient levels of nicotine pre-vapor composition.

The device body 100 may include mechanical elements (e.g., complementary structures) configured to interact with the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, to hold and/or activate it. In addition, the device body 100 may include electronic elements and/or circuits configured to receive electric current for charging an internal power source (e.g., a battery), which in turn is configured to supply power to the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 during vaping. In addition, the device body 100 may include electronic elements and/or circuits configured to communicate with the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, another nicotine e-vaping device, other electronic devices (e.g., a phone, a tablet, a computer) and/or an adult vaper. The transmitted information may include cartridge-specific data, detailed information about the current vaping and/or charts/history of vaping over a period of time. An adult vaper may be notified of such data transmissions by feedback that is tactile (e.g., vibrations), audible (e.g., beeps), and/or visual (e.g., colored/flashing lights). Charging and/or data transmission may be performed using port 110 (e.g., via a USB cable).

Fig. 9 shows a perspective view of the housing of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 6. With reference to Fig. 9, the inclined structure 112 of the housing 100 of the device forms a through hole 150. The through hole 150 is configured to receive the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. In order to facilitate the insertion and placement of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 inside the through hole 150, the upstream rim of the inclined structure 112 includes a first upstream projection 128a and a second upstream projection 128b. The through hole 150 may have a rectangular shape with rounded corners. In the exemplary embodiment, the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b are formed as a single unit with the inclined structure 112 and are located at two rounded corners of the upstream rim.

The downstream side wall of the inclined structure 112 may form a first downstream opening, a second downstream opening, and a third downstream opening. The retaining structure comprising the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b is brought into interaction with the inclined structure 112 in such a way that the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b protrude respectively through the first downstream opening and the second downstream opening of the inclined structure 112 into the through opening 150. In addition, the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 passes through the third downstream opening of the inclined structure 112 into the through opening 150 in such a way that it is located between the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b.

Fig. 10 shows a front view of the device housing according to Fig. 9. With reference to Fig. 10, the device housing 100 comprises an electrical connector 132 of the device, which is located on the upstream side of the through hole 150. The electrical connector 132 of the device housing 100 is configured to electrically connect to the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, which is located inside the through hole 150. As a result, it is possible to supply power from the device housing 100 to the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 through the electrical connector 132 of the device during vaping. In addition, it is possible to send data to the device housing 100 and the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and/or receive data from them through the electrical connector 132 of the device.

Fig. 11 shows an enlarged perspective view of the through hole of Fig. 10. As shown in Fig. 11, the first upstream projection 128a, the second upstream projection 128b, the first downstream projection 130a, the second downstream projection 130b and the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 protrude into the through hole 150. In the exemplary embodiment, the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b are fixed structures (e.g., fixed hinges), while the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b are movable structures (e.g., retractable elements). For example, the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b may be configured (e.g., spring loaded) to be installed in an extended state by default, and may also be configured to be temporarily moved to a retracted state (and back to an extended state) to facilitate insertion of the nicotine containing member assembly 300.

In particular, when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is inserted into the through hole 150 of the body 100 of the device, the recesses on the upstream end surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may initially be brought into interaction with the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b, followed by rotation of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 (around the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b) until the recesses on the downstream end surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 are brought into interaction with the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b. In this case, the rotation axis (during rotation) of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may be orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the device housing 100. In addition, the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b, which may be pressed to provide mobility, may be retracted when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 rotates inside the through hole 150, and they may be elastically extended to interact with the recesses on the downstream end surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. In addition, the interaction of the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b with the recesses on the downstream end surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 provides the ability to create tactile and/or audible feedback (e.g., an audible click) to notify an adult vaper that the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is properly positioned in the through-hole 150 of the body 100 of the device.

Fig. 12 shows an enlarged perspective view of the electrical contacts of the device of Fig. 10. The electrical contacts of the device in the device housing 100 are configured to interact with the electrical contacts of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is located inside the through hole 150 of the device housing 100. With reference to Fig. 12, the electrical contacts of the device in the device housing 100 comprise an electrical connector 132 of the device. The electrical connector 132 of the device includes power contacts and data contacts. The power contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device are configured to supply power from the device housing 100 to the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. As shown in the figures, the power contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device comprise a first pair of power contacts and a second pair of power contacts (which are arranged such that they are closer to the front cover 104 than to the back cover 108). The first pair of power contacts (for example, the pair adjacent to the first upstream projection 128a) can be a single monolithic structure that is different from the second pair of power contacts and that, when assembled, includes two projections that extend into the through hole 150. Similarly, the second pair of power contacts (for example, the pair adjacent to the second upstream projection 128b) can be a single monolithic structure that is different from the first pair of power contacts and that, when assembled, includes two projections that extend into the through hole 150. The first pair of power contacts and the second pair of power contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device can be mounted movably and pressed so as to extend into the through hole 150 by default and to be retracted (for example, independently) from the through hole 150 under the action of a force exceeding the pressing force.

The data contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device are configured to transmit data between the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and the body 100 of the device. As shown in the figures, the data contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device comprise a row of five projections (which are arranged in such a way that they are closer to the back cover 108 than to the front cover 104). The data contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device can be separate structures that, in the assembled state, extend inside the through hole 150. The data contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device can also be mounted with the possibility of easy movement and biased (for example, by springs) so as to enter the through hole 150 by default and to be pulled (for example, independently) out of the through hole 150 when exposed to a force that exceeds the bias. For example, when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is inserted into the through hole 150 of the device housing 100, the electrical contacts of the cartridge of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 will be pressed against the corresponding electrical contacts of the device in the device housing 100. As a result, the power contacts and the data contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device will be retracted (for example, at least partially retracted) into the device housing 100, but they will continue to be pressed against the corresponding electrical contacts of the cartridge due to their elastic design, thus helping to ensure a proper electrical connection between the device housing 100 and the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. In addition, such a connection can also be mechanically strong and have a minimum contact resistance so as to ensure the possibility of transmitting power and/or signals between the device housing 100 and the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and/or a reliable and stable connection between them. While various aspects have been discussed with respect to the electrical contacts of the device in the device housing 100, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments are not limited thereto and that other configurations may be used.

Fig. 13 shows a partially exploded view including the mouthpiece of Fig. 12. With reference to Fig. 13, the mouthpiece 102 is configured to interact with the casing of the device via the holding structure 140. In the exemplary embodiment, the holding structure 140 is positioned such that it is located predominantly between the frame 106 and the inclined structure 112. As shown in the figures, the holding structure 140 is positioned inside the casing of the device such that the near end of the holding structure 140 passes through the near end of the frame 106. The holding structure 140 may protrude slightly beyond the near end of the frame 106 or be substantially flush with it. The near end of the holding structure 140 is configured to receive the far end of the mouthpiece 102. The near end of the holding structure 140 may be a female end, while the far end of the mouthpiece may be a male end.

For example, the mouthpiece 102 can be connected (for example, removably connected) to the holding structure 140 by means of a bayonet connection. In this case, the female end of the holding structure 140 can form a pair of opposite L-shaped slots, while the male end of the mouthpiece 102 can have opposite radial elements 134 (for example, radial pins) configured to interact with the L-shaped slots of the holding structure 140. Each of the L-shaped slots of the holding structure 140 has a longitudinal section and a circumferential section. If necessary, the edge of the circumferential section can have a section with a notch to help reduce or prevent the likelihood that the radial element 134 of the mouthpiece 102 will accidentally come out of interaction. In a non-limiting embodiment, the longitudinal sections of the L-shaped grooves extend parallel to the longitudinal axis of the body 100 of the device, while the circumferential sections of the L-shaped grooves extend around the longitudinal axis (for example, the central axis) of the body 100 of the device. As a result, in order to connect the mouthpiece 102 to the casing of the device, the mouthpiece 102, shown in Fig. 13, is first rotated by 90 degrees to align the radial elements 134 with the entrances to the longitudinal sections of the L-shaped grooves of the holding structure 140. Then, the mouthpiece 102 is pushed inside the holding structure 140 in such a way that the radial elements 134 slide along the longitudinal sections of the L-shaped grooves until a connection with each of the circumferential sections is achieved. At this point, the mouthpiece 102 is further rotated so that the radial elements 134 move along the circumferential sections until the edge of each of them is reached. If a notched section is present at each edge, then it is possible to create tactile and/or audible feedback (e.g., an audible click) to notify the adult vaper that the mouthpiece 102 has been properly attached to the casing of the device.

The mouthpiece 102 forms a passage 136 for vapor, through which nicotine vapor flows during vaping. The passage 136 for vapor is in fluid communication with the through hole 150 (which is located at the location where the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is located inside the body 100 of the device). The near end of the passage 136 for vapor may include a portion that widens downwards. In addition, the mouthpiece 102 may include an end cap 138. The end cap 138 may narrow from its far end to its near end. The outlet surface of the end cap 138 forms a plurality of outlet openings for vapor. Although four outlet openings for vapor are shown in the end cap 138, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this.

Fig. 14 is a partially exploded view including the inclined structure of Fig. 9. Fig. 15 is an enlarged perspective view of the mouthpiece, springs, holding structure and the inclined structure of Fig. 14. Referring to Figs. 14-15, the inclined structure 112 includes an upstream side wall and a downstream side wall. The upstream side wall of the inclined structure 112 forms an opening 146 for a connector. The opening 146 for a connector is configured to open or receive an electrical connector 132 of the housing 100 of the device. The downstream side wall of the inclined structure 112 forms a first downstream opening 148a, a second downstream opening 148b and a third downstream opening 148c. The first downstream opening 148a and the second downstream opening 148b of the inclined structure 112 are configured to receive the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b of the retaining structure 140, respectively. The third downstream opening 148c of the inclined structure 112 is configured to receive the distal end of the mouthpiece 102.

As shown in Fig. 14, the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b are located on the concave side of the retaining structure 140. As shown in Fig. 15, on the opposite convex side of the retaining structure 140, the first rod 142a and the second rod 142b are located. On the first rod 142a and the second rod 142b, respectively, the first spring 144a and the second spring 144b are arranged. The first spring 144a and the second spring 144b are configured to bias the retaining structure 140 relative to the inclined structure 112.

In the assembled form, the inclined structure 112 can be attached to the frame 106 by means of a pair of tabs adjacent to the opening 146 for the connector. In addition, the retaining structure 140 will be adjacent to the inclined structure 112 in such a way that the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b will pass through the first downstream opening 148a and the second downstream opening 148b, respectively. The mouthpiece 102 will be connected to the retaining structure 140 in such a way that the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 will pass through the retaining structure 140, as well as through the third downstream opening 148 of the inclined structure 112. The first spring 144a and the second spring 144b will be located between the frame 106 and the retaining structure 140.

When the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is inserted into the through-hole 150 of the body 100 of the device, the downstream end of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 will press on the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b of the holding structure 140. As a result, the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b of the holding structure 140 will be elastically pressed and pulled out of the through-hole 150 of the body 100 of the device (due to the compression of the first spring 144a and the second spring 144b), thus allowing the insertion of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 to continue. In the exemplary embodiment, when the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b are completely retracted from the through-hole 150 of the body 100 of the device, the displacement of the holding structure 140 allows the ends of the first rod 142a and the second rod 142b to contact the inner end surface of the frame 106. In addition, since the mouthpiece 102 is connected to the holding structure 140, the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 will be retracted from the through-hole 150, thus also causing the near end of the mouthpiece 102 (for example, the visible portion including the end cap 138) to be shifted a corresponding distance away from the casing of the device.

After inserting the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 in a proper manner so that the first downstream recess and the second downstream recess of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 have reached a position that allows interaction with the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b, respectively, the accumulated compression energy of the first spring 144a and the second spring 144b causes the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b to elastically extend and engage with the first downstream recess and the second downstream recess, respectively, of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. In addition, said interaction provides the ability to create tactile and/or audible feedback (for example, an audible click) to notify an adult vaper that the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is properly positioned within the through hole 150 of the body 100 of the device.

Fig. 16 is a partially exploded view including the front cover, frame, and back cover of Fig. 14. Referring to Fig. 16, various mechanical elements, electronic elements, and/or circuits associated with the operation of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 may be attached to the frame 106. The front cover 104 and the back cover 108 may be configured to interact with the frame 106 by means of a snap-on design. In an exemplary embodiment, the front cover 104 and the back cover 108 comprise clips configured to interconnect with respective mating elements of the frame 106. The clips may be in the form of tabs with openings configured to receive respective mating elements (e.g., beveled edged protrusions) of the frame 106. In Fig. 16 the front cover 104 has two rows of clips with four clips in each (a total of eight clips for the front cover 104). Similarly, the back cover 108 has two rows of clips with four clips in each (a total of eight clips for the back cover 108). The corresponding mating elements of the frame 106 can be located on the inner side walls of the frame 106. As a result, it is possible that the engaged clips and mating elements will be visually hidden when the front cover 104 and the back cover 108 are snapped together. Alternatively, the front cover 104 and/or the back cover 108 can be configured to interact with the frame 106 by means of an interference fit. However, it should be understood that the front cover 104, the frame 106 and the back cover 108 can be connected using other suitable structures and technologies.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of the nicotine e-vaping device of Fig. 6. Fig. 18 is another perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 17. Fig. 19 is another perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 18. Referring to Figs. 17-19, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 for the nicotine e-vaping device 500 includes a cartridge body configured to retain a nicotine pre-evaporation composition. The cartridge body has an upstream end and a downstream end. The upstream end of the cartridge body defines a cavity 310 (Fig. 20). The downstream end of the cartridge body defines a cartridge outlet 304 that is in fluid communication with the cavity 310 at the upstream end. The connecting module 320 is configured to be placed inside the cavity 310 of the cartridge housing. The connecting module 320 includes an outer surface and a side surface. The outer surface of the connecting module 320 forms the outer surface of the cartridge housing.

The outer surface of the connection module 320 forms an inlet opening 322 of the cartridge. The inlet opening 322 of the cartridge (through which air enters during vaping) is in fluid communication with the outlet opening 304 of the cartridge (through which nicotine vapor exits during vaping). The inlet opening 322 of the cartridge is shown in Fig. 19 as having the shape of a groove. However, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this and that other shapes are possible. When the connection module 320 is placed inside the cavity 310 of the cartridge housing, the outer surface of the connection module 320 remains visible, while the side surface of the connection module 320 becomes predominantly closed such that it is only partially visible through the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge at a given angle.

The outer surface of the connection module 320 comprises at least one electrical contact. The at least one electrical contact may include a plurality of power contacts. For example, the plurality of power contacts may include a first power contact 324a and a second power contact 324b. The first power contact 324a of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is configured to be electrically connected to the first pair of power contacts (for example, to the pair adjacent to the first upstream projection 128a in Fig. 12) of the electrical connector 132 of the body 100 of the device. Similarly, the second power contact 324b of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is configured to be electrically connected to the second pair of power contacts (for example, to the pair adjacent to the second upstream projection 128b in Fig. 12) of the electrical connector 132 of the body 100 of the device. In addition, said at least one electrical contact of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 includes a plurality of data contacts 326. Said plurality of data contacts 326 of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 are configured to be electrically connected to the data contacts of the electrical connector 132 of the device (for example, with a row of five projections in Fig. 12). Although two power contacts and five data contacts are shown in combination with the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, it should be understood that other options are possible, depending on the design of the housing 100 of the device.

In an exemplary embodiment, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 includes a front surface, a rear surface opposite the front surface, a first side surface between the front surface and the rear surface, a second side surface opposite the first side surface, an upstream end surface, and a downstream end surface opposite the upstream end surface. The angles of the side and end surfaces (for example, the angle of the first side surface and the upstream end surface, the angle of the upstream end surface and the second side surface, the angle of the second side surface and the downstream end surface, the angle of the downstream end surface and the first side surface) can be rounded. However, in some cases, the angles can be non-rounded. In addition, the peripheral edge of the front surface can have a step shape. The outer surface of the connector module 320 can be considered as a portion of the upstream end surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. The front surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may be wider and longer than the rear surface. In this case, the first side surface and the second side surface may be inclined inward in the direction of each other. The upstream end surface and the downstream end surface may also be inclined inward in the direction of each other. Due to the inclined surfaces, the insertion of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 will be carried out in one direction (for example, from the front side (the side associated with the front cover 104) of the housing 100 of the device). As a result, it is possible to reduce or prevent the possibility of improper insertion of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 into the housing 100 of the device.

As shown in the figures, the cartridge housing in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 comprises a first section 302 of the housing and a second section 308 of the housing. The first section 302 of the housing has an end located downstream, forming an outlet opening 304 of the cartridge. The rim of the outlet opening 304 of the cartridge can, if necessary, be a recessed or depressed region. In this case, said region can be similar to a cavity, wherein the side of the rim adjacent to the rear surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 can be open, while the side of the rim adjacent to the front surface can be surrounded by a raised portion of the end located downstream of the first section 302 of the housing. The raised portion may function as a stop for the distal end of the mouthpiece 102. As a result, this configuration of the outlet opening 304 of the cartridge provides the ability to facilitate the placement and alignment of the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 (for example, according to Fig. 11) through the open side of the rim and its subsequent placement on the raised portion of the downstream end of the first section 302 of the housing. In a non-limiting embodiment, the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 may also comprise (or be made of) an elastic material that helps to create a seal around the outlet opening 304 of the cartridge when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is properly inserted inside the through opening 150 of the housing 100 of the device.

The downstream end of the first section 302 of the housing further defines at least one downstream recess. In the exemplary embodiment, the at least one downstream recess has the form of a first downstream recess 306a and a second downstream recess 306b. The outlet opening 304 of the cartridge may be located between the first downstream recess 30ba and the second downstream recess 306b. The first downstream recess 30ba and the second downstream recess 306b are configured to interact with the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b of the housing 100 of the device, respectively. As shown in Fig. 11, the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b of the device body 100 may be located in adjacent corners of the downstream side wall of the through hole 150. Each of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b may have the shape of a V-shaped notch. In this case, each of the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b of the device body 100 may have the shape of a wedge-shaped structure configured to interact with the corresponding V-shaped notch of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b. The first downstream recess 306a may adjoin the corner of the downstream end surface and the first side surface, while the second downstream recess 306b may adjoin the corner of the downstream end surface and the second side surface. As a result, the edges of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b adjacent to the first side surface and the second side surface, respectively, may be open. In this case, as shown in Fig. 18, each of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b may be a 3-sided recess.

The second section 308 of the housing has an upstream end that forms a cavity 310 (Fig. 20). The cavity 310 is configured to accommodate a connecting module 320 (Fig. 21). In addition, the upstream end of the second section 308 of the housing forms at least one upstream recess. In an exemplary embodiment, the at least one upstream recess has the form of a first upstream recess 312a and a second upstream recess 312b. The inlet opening 322 of the cartridge may be located between the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b. The first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b are configured to interact with the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b of the device body 100, respectively. As shown in Fig. 12, the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b of the device body 100 may be located in adjacent corners of the upstream side wall of the through hole 150. The depth of each of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b may be greater than the depth of each of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b. The edge of each of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b may also be more rounded than the edge of each of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b. For example, the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b may also have the shape of a U-shaped cutout. In this case, each of the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b of the body 100 of the device may have the shape of a rounded bulge configured to interact with the corresponding U-shaped cutout of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b. The first upstream recess 312a may adjoin the corner of the upstream end surface and the first side surface, while the second upstream recess 312b may adjoin the corner of the upstream end surface and the second side surface. As a result, the edges of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b adjacent to the first side surface and the second side surface, respectively, may be open.

The first section 302 of the housing can form a nicotine reservoir inside, configured to retain a nicotine pre-evaporation composition. The nicotine reservoir can be configured to hermetically seal the nicotine pre-evaporation composition until the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is activated to release the nicotine pre-evaporation composition from the nicotine reservoir. Due to the hermetically sealing, it is possible to isolate the nicotine pre-evaporation composition from the environment, as well as from the internal elements of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 that can potentially react with the nicotine pre-evaporation composition, and thus the possibility of a negative impact on the shelf life and / or organoleptic characteristics (e.g. taste / aroma) of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is reduced or prevented. The second section 308 of the casing may comprise structures configured to activate the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and to receive and heat the nicotine pre-evaporation composition released from the nicotine reservoir after activation.

The nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may be manually activated by an adult vaper prior to inserting the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 into the device housing 100. Alternatively, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may be activated during the insertion of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 into the device housing 100. In an exemplary embodiment, the second section 308 of the cartridge housing housing comprises a perforator configured to ensure that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is released from the nicotine reservoir during activation of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. The perforator may be in the form of a first activating pin 314a and a second activating pin 314b, which will be discussed in more detail herein.

For manual activation of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, an adult vaper may press inward on the first activating pin 314 a and the second activating pin 314 b (e.g., simultaneously or sequentially) before inserting the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 into the through opening 150 of the body 100 of the device. For example, the first activating pin 314 a and the second activating pin 314 b may be pressed manually until their ends are substantially aligned with the upstream end surface of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. In an exemplary embodiment, the inward movement of the first activating pin 314 a and the second activating pin 314 b causes a puncture or other breach of the seal of the nicotine reservoir so that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is released therefrom.

Alternatively, to activate the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 during the insertion of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 into the device housing 100, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is initially positioned such that the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b are brought into interaction (e.g., interaction upstream) with the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b, respectively. Since each of the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b of the device body 100 may have the shape of a rounded protrusion configured to interact with a corresponding U-shaped cutout of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may subsequently be relatively easily rotated around the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b into the through-hole 150 of the device body 100.

With respect to the rotation of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, the axis of rotation can be considered as passing through the first upstream projection 128a and the second upstream projection 128b and oriented orthogonally to the longitudinal axis of the body 100 of the device. During the initial positioning and subsequent rotation of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b will come into contact with the upstream side wall of the through opening 150 and will move from the extended state to the retracted state as the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b are pushed (e.g. simultaneously) into the second housing section 308 during the advancement of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 into the through opening 150. When the downstream end of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 reaches a location near the downstream side wall of the through opening 150 and comes into contact with the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b, the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b will be retracted and then elastically extended (e.g., returned by a spring) when the position of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 allows the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b of the body 100 of the device to interact (e.g., interact further downstream) with the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b, respectively, of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300.

As noted above, according to the exemplary embodiment, the mouthpiece 102 is attached to the holding structure 140 (of which the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b are part). In this case, the extension of the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b from the through hole 150 will cause the mouthpiece 102 to be simultaneously shifted by a corresponding distance in the same direction (for example, in the downstream direction). On the other hand, the mouthpiece 102 will be returned by the action of the spring simultaneously with the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b, when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is sufficiently inserted to facilitate the downstream interaction. In addition to the elastic interaction by means of the first downstream projection 130a and the second downstream projection 130b, the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 is also configured to be pressed against the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 (and aligned with the outlet opening 304 so as to form a relatively vapor-impermeable seal) when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is properly positioned within the through-hole 150 of the housing 100 of the device.

In addition, the downstream interaction enables the creation of an audible click and/or tactile feedback to indicate that the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is properly positioned within the through-hole 150 of the device housing 100. When properly positioned, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 will be mechanically, electrically and fluidically connected to the device housing 100. Although in non-limiting embodiments herein, the upstream interaction with the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is described as occurring before the downstream interaction, it should be understood that the proper coupling, activation and/or electrical arrangements can be reversed, such that the downstream interaction will occur before the upstream interaction.

Fig. 20 is a perspective view of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 19 without the connector module. Referring to Fig. 20, the upstream end of the second section 308 of the housing forms a cavity 310. As noted above, the cavity 310 is configured to receive the connector module 320 (e.g., by means of an interference fit). In the exemplary embodiment, the cavity 310 is located between the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b, as well as between the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b. In the absence of the connector module 320, the insertion piece 342 (Fig. 24) and the absorbent material 346 (Fig. 25) are visible through the openings formed by the recesses in the cavity 310. The insertion part 342 is configured to hold the absorbent material 346. The absorbent material 346 is configured to absorb and hold the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition that is released from the nicotine reservoir when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is activated. The insertion part 342 and the absorbent material 346 will be discussed in more detail herein.

Fig. 21 shows a perspective view of the connection module of Fig. 19. Fig. 22 shows another perspective view of the connection module of Fig. 21. With reference to Figs. 21-22, the overall frame of the connection module 320 includes a module housing 354 and a face plate 366. In addition, the connection module 320 has a plurality of surfaces, including an outer surface and a side surface, wherein the outer surface is adjacent to the side surface. In an exemplary embodiment, the outer surface of the connection module 320 consists of upstream surfaces of the face plate 366, the first power contact 324a, the second power contact 324b and the data contacts 326. The side surface of the connection module 320 is a portion of the module housing 354. The side surface of the connection module 320 forms a first module inlet 330 and a second module inlet 332. In addition, two peripheral surfaces adjacent to said side surface (which also represent a portion of the module housing 354) may include ribbed structures (for example, crushable ribs) configured to facilitate an interference fit when placing the connecting module 320 inside the cavity 310 of the cartridge housing. For example, each of two said peripheral surfaces may include a pair of ribbed structures that taper as they move away from the face plate 366. As a result, the module housing 354 will encounter increasing resistance due to friction of the ribbed structures against the side walls of the cavity 310 as the connecting module 320 is pressed inside the cavity 310 of the cartridge housing. When the connecting module 320 is placed inside the cavity 310, the face plate 366 may be located substantially flush with the upstream end of the second section 308 of the housing. In this case, the side surface (which forms the first inlet opening 330 of the module and the second inlet opening 332 of the module) of the connecting module 320 will face the side wall of the cavity 310.

The face plate 366 of the connection module 320 may have an edge 328 with a groove, which in combination with the corresponding side surface of the cavity 310 forms the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge. However, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this. For example, the face plate 366 of the connection module 320 may, as an alternative, be designed in such a way as to completely form the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge. The side surface (which forms the first inlet opening 330 of the module and the second inlet opening 332 of the module) of the connection module 320 and the side wall of the cavity 310 (which faces the side surface) form an intermediate space between them. The intermediate space is located further downstream relative to the inlet opening 322 of the cartridge and earlier downstream relative to the first inlet opening 330 of the module and the second inlet opening 332 of the module. Therefore, in the exemplary embodiment, the inlet 322 of the cartridge is in fluid communication with both the first inlet 330 of the module and the second inlet 332 of the module through said intermediate space. The first inlet 330 of the module may be larger than the second inlet 332 of the module. In this case, when the inlet 322 of the cartridge receives incoming air during vaping, the first inlet 330 of the module may receive a primary flow (e.g., a more intense flow) of incoming air, while the second inlet 332 of the module may receive a secondary flow (e.g., a less intense flow) of incoming air.

As shown in Fig. 22, the connection module 320 includes a wick 338, which is configured to transfer a nicotine pre-evaporation composition to a heater 336. The heater 336 is configured to heat the nicotine pre-evaporation composition during vaping to generate vapor. The heater 336 can be installed in the connection module 320 by means of a contact core 334. The heater 336 is electrically connected to at least one electrical contact of the connection module 320. For example, one end (for example, the first end) of the heater 336 can be connected to the first power contact 324a, while the other end (for example, the second end) of the heater 336 can be connected to the second power contact 324b. In the exemplary embodiment, the heater 336 comprises a folded heating element. In this case, the wick 338 may have a flat shape that allows it to be held by the folded heating element. The wick 338 is configured to communicate via a fluid medium with the absorbent material 346 when the connecting module 320 is placed inside the cavity 310 of the cartridge housing, so that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition that will be present in the absorbent material 346 (when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is activated) will be transferred to the wick 338 by capillary action.

Fig. 23 shows an exploded view including the wick, the heater, the electrical wires and the contact core of Fig. 22. As shown in Fig. 23, the wick 338 may be a fibrous pad or other structure with pores/voids provided for capillary action. In addition, the wick 338 may have the shape of an irregular hexagon, although the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this. The wick 338 may be formed as a hexagon, or it may be cut in this form from a larger sheet of material. Since the lower section of the wick 338 tapers toward the winding section of the heater 336, it is possible to reduce or eliminate the likelihood of the presence of nicotine pre-evaporation composition in that portion of the wick 338 where there is no constant evaporation (due to its distance from the heater 336).

In an exemplary embodiment, the heater 336 is configured to undergo Joule heating (also known as ohmic/resistive heating) when an electric current is applied thereto. In more detail, the heater 336 may be formed from one or more conductors and configured to generate heat when an electric current is applied thereto. The electric current may be supplied from a power source (e.g., a battery) within the device housing 100 and transmitted to the heater 336 via the first power contact 324a and the first electrical terminal 340a (or via the second power contact 324b and the second electrical terminal 340b).

Suitable conductors for the heater 336 comprise an iron-based alloy (e.g., stainless steel) and/or a nickel-based alloy (e.g., nichrome). The heater 336 may be made from a conductive sheet (e.g., metal, alloy) that is stamped to cut out a winding pattern therefrom. The winding pattern may have curved segments arranged alternately with horizontal segments in such a way as to allow the horizontal segments to zigzag back and forth while simultaneously passing parallel to each other. In addition, the width of each of the horizontal segments of the winding pattern may be substantially equal to the distance between adjacent horizontal segments of the winding pattern, although the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this. To obtain the shape of the heater 336 shown in the drawings, the winding pattern may be folded in such a way as to capture the wick 338.

The heater 336 can be attached to the contact core 334 by means of the first electrical terminal 340a and the second electrical terminal 340b. The contact core 334 is formed from an insulating material and is configured to electrically isolate the first electrical terminal 340a from the second electrical terminal 340b. In the exemplary embodiment, each of the first electrical terminal 340a and the second electrical terminal 340b forms a female opening that is configured to interact with the corresponding male elements of the contact core 334. After entering into interaction, it is possible to attach (for example, by welding, soldering, surfacing) the first end and the second end of the heater 336 to the first electrical terminal 340a and to the second electrical terminal 340b, respectively. Then, it is possible to place the contact core 334 in a corresponding socket in the module casing 354 (for example, by means of an interference fit). Upon completion of the assembly of the connection module 320, the first electrical terminal 340a will electrically connect the first end of the heater 336 to the first power contact 324a, while the second electrical terminal 340b will electrically connect the second end of the heater 336 to the second power contact 324b. The heater and related structures are discussed in more detail in U.S. Patent Application No. 15/729,909, entitled "Folded Heater For Electronic Vaping Device" (Patent Registry Number 24000-000371-US), filed October 11, 2017, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Fig. 24 shows an exploded view including a first section of the housing of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 17. Referring to Fig. 24, the first section 302 of the housing includes a steam channel 316. The steam channel 316 is configured to receive nicotine vapor generated by the heater 336 and is in fluid communication with the outlet 304 of the cartridge. In an exemplary embodiment, the steam channel 316 may gradually increase in size (e.g., diameter) as it extends toward the outlet 304 of the cartridge. In addition, the steam channel 316 may be formed as an integral part with the first section 302 of the housing. The wrapper 318, the insertion piece 342 and the seal 344 are arranged on the upstream end of the first section 302 of the housing to form a nicotine reservoir of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. For example, the wrapper 318 can be arranged on the rim of the first section 302 of the housing. The insertion piece 342 can be arranged inside the first section 302 of the housing in such a way that the peripheral surface of the insertion piece 342 interacts with the inner surface of the first section 302 of the housing along the rim (for example, by means of an interference fit) so that the mating place of the peripheral surface of the insertion piece 342 and the inner surface of the first section 302 of the housing is impermeable to a fluid medium (for example, impermeable to liquid and/or impermeable to air). In addition, the seal 344 is attached to the upstream side of the insert piece 342 for closing the outlet openings of the nicotine reservoir in the insert piece 342 so as to provide a fluid-impermeable (e.g., liquid-impermeable and/or air-impermeable) shell for the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir.

In an exemplary embodiment, the insert piece 342 includes a holder portion that projects from the upstream side (as shown in Fig. 24) and a connector portion that projects from the downstream side (not shown in Fig. 24). The holder portion of the insert piece 342 is configured to retain the absorbent material 346, while the connector portion of the insert piece 342 is configured to interact with the steam channel 316 of the first section 302 of the casing. The connector portion of the insert piece 342 can be configured to be received within the steam channel 316 and, therefore, to interact with the inside of the steam channel 316. Alternatively, the connector portion of the insert piece 342 can be configured to receive the steam channel 316 and, therefore, to interact with the outside of the steam channel 316. The insertion part 342 also forms outlet openings of the reservoir through which the nicotine pre-vapor composition flows out when the seal 344 is pierced (as shown in Fig. 24) during activation of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. The holder-like portion and the connector-like portion of the insertion part 342 may be located between the outlet openings of the nicotine reservoir (for example, the first and second outlet openings of the nicotine reservoir), although the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this. In addition, the insertion part 342 forms a vapor conduit passing through the holder-like portion and the connector-like portion. As a result, when the insert piece 342 is placed inside the first section 302 of the housing, the vapor line of the insert piece 342 will be aligned with the vapor channel 316 and will be in fluid communication with it, forming a continuous path through the nicotine reservoir to the outlet 304 of the cartridge for nicotine vapor generated by the heater 336 during vaping.

The seal 344 is attached to the upstream side of the insertion part 342 to close the outlet openings of the nicotine reservoir in the insertion part 342. In the exemplary embodiment, the seal 344 forms an opening (for example, a central opening) configured to provide a suitable gap for receiving a portion in the form of a holder (protruding from the upstream side of the insertion part 342) when the seal 344 is attached to the insertion part 342. It should be understood that in Fig. 24 the seal 344 is shown in a pierced state. In particular, when the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b pierce the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, the two pierced sections of the seal 344 will be pressed into the nicotine reservoir in the form of valves (as shown in Fig. 24), thereby creating two pierced holes (for example, one on each side of the central hole) in the seal 344. The size and shape of the pierced holes in the seal 344 can correspond to the size and shape of the outlet holes of the nicotine reservoir in the insert part 342. In contrast, in the non-pierced state, the seal 344 will have a flat shape and only one hole (for example, the central hole). The seal 344 is made strong enough to remain intact during normal movement of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and/or handling to avoid premature/inadvertent failure.

For example, seal 344 may be a coated foil (e.g., aluminized tritan).

Fig. 25 shows a partially exploded view including a second section of the housing of the nicotine cartridge assembly of Fig. 17. With reference to Fig. 25, the second section 308 of the housing is configured to accommodate various elements configured to release, receive and heat the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. For example, the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b are configured to pierce the nicotine reservoir in the first section 302 of the housing to release the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. Each of the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b has a distal end that passes through corresponding openings into the second section 308 of the housing. In the exemplary embodiment, the distal ends of the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b are visible after assembly (for example, in Fig. 17), while the remaining portions of the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b are visually hidden inside the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. In addition, each of the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b has a near end that is positioned such that it is located adjacent to the seal 344 upstream of it before the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is activated. When the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b are pushed inside the second section 308 of the housing to activate the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, the near end of each of the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b will move forward through the insertion part 342 and as a result pierce the seal 344, which will lead to the release of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition from the nicotine reservoir. The movement of the first activating pin 314a can be independent of the movement of the second activating pin 314b (and vice versa). The first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b will be discussed in more detail herein.

The absorbent material 346 is configured to cooperate with the portion in the form of a holder of the insert part 342 (which, as shown in Fig. 24, projects from the upstream side of the insert part 342). The absorbent material 346 can have a ring shape, although the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this. As shown in Fig. 25, the absorbent material 346 can be similar to a hollow cylinder. In this case, the outer diameter of the absorbent material 346 can be substantially equal to the length of the wick 338 (or slightly exceed it). The inner diameter of the absorbent material 346 can be smaller than the average outer diameter of the portion in the form of a holder of the insert part 342, which as a result ensures an interference fit. To facilitate cooperation with the absorbent material 346, the tip of the portion in the form of a holder of the insert part 342 can be beveled. In addition, the downstream side of the second section 308 of the housing, although not visible in Fig. 25, may form a concavity configured to receive and support the absorbent material 346. An example of such a concavity may be a circular chamber that is in fluid communication with the cavity 310 and is located downstream of it. The absorbent material 346 is configured to receive and retain the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition that is released from the nicotine reservoir when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is activated.

The wick 338 is positioned within the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 in such a way that it is in fluid communication with the absorbent material 346, so that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition can be drawn from the absorbent material 346 to the heater 336 by capillary action. The wick 338 can physically contact an upstream side of the absorbent material 346 (for example, a lower portion of the absorbent material 346, as shown in Fig. 25). In addition, the wick 338 can be aligned with the diameter of the absorbent material 346, although the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this.

As shown in Fig. 25 (and also in the previous Fig. 23), the heater 336 can have a folded configuration so as to capture and establish thermal contact with the opposite surfaces of the wick 338. The heater 336 is configured to heat the wick 338 during vaping to generate vapor. To facilitate such heating, the first end of the heater 336 can be electrically connected to the first power contact 324a via the first electrical terminal 340a, while the second end of the heater 336 can be electrically connected to the second power contact 324b via the second electrical terminal 340b. As a result, it is possible to supply electric current from a power source (for example, a battery) inside the body 100 of the device and transmit it to the heater 336 via the first power contact 324a and the first electrical terminal 340a (or via the second power contact 324b and the second electrical terminal 340b). The first electrical terminal 340a and the second electrical terminal 340b (which are shown separately in Fig. 23) can be brought into interaction with the contact core 334 (as shown in Fig. 25). The relevant details of other aspects of the connector module 320 configured to be received within the cavity 310 of the second section 308 of the housing were discussed above (for example, in connection with Figs. 21-22) and will not be described again in this section for the sake of brevity. During vaping, nicotine generated by the heater 336 is drawn through the steam line of the insert part 342, passes through the steam channel 316 of the first section 302 of the housing, exits outside the outlet opening 304 of the cartridge in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, and through the steam passage 136 of the mouthpiece 102 is supplied to the said one or more outlet openings for steam.

Fig. 26 shows an exploded view of the activating pin of Fig. 25. As shown in Fig. 26, the activating pin may be present in the form of a first activating pin 314a and a second activating pin 314b. Although two activating pins are shown and discussed herein in conjunction with non-limiting embodiments, it should be understood that, alternatively, the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 may comprise only one activating pin. In Fig. 26, the first activating pin 314a may comprise a first plate 348a, a first actuator 350a, and a first sealing ring 352a. Similarly, the second activating pin 314b may comprise a second plate 348b, a second actuator 350b, and a second sealing ring 352b.

In an exemplary embodiment, the first plate 348a and the second plate 348b are configured to be mounted or secured on the upper portions (e.g., the near portions) of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b, respectively. The mounting or securing may be achieved by snap-fitting, interlocking (e.g., friction fit), adhesive, or other suitable joining method. The upper side of each of the first plate 348a and the second plate 348b may have one or more curved or concave edges that taper upward toward a pointed tip. For example, each of the first plate 348a and the second plate 348b may have two pointed tips with a concave edge between them and a curved edge adjacent to each pointed tip. The radii of curvature of the concave edge and the curved edges may be the same, while their arc lengths may differ. The first plate 348a and the second plate 348b may be made of sheet metal (for example, stainless steel), which is cut or otherwise profiled to give it the desired profile and bent to give it the final shape. In another case, the first plate 348a and the second plate 348b may be made of plastic.

In a top view, the size and shape of the first plate 348a, the second plate 348b and the portions of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b on which they are mounted may correspond to the size and shape of the outlet openings of the nicotine reservoir in the insert part 342. In addition, as shown in Fig. 26, the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b may comprise protruding edges (for example, curved inner edges facing each other) configured to push two pierced sections of the seal 344 into the nicotine reservoir as the first plate 348a and the second plate 348b advance into the nicotine reservoir. In a non-limiting embodiment, when the first activation piercer 314a and the second activation piercer 314b are fully inserted into the nicotine containing element assembly 300, the two valves (from the two pierced sections of the seal 344, as shown in Fig. 24) can be located between the curved side walls of the outlet openings of the reservoir of the insert 342 and the corresponding curves of the protruding edges of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b. As a result, it is possible to reduce or prevent the likelihood that the two pierced openings in the seal 344 will be blocked (by the two valves from the two pierced sections). In addition, the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b can be configured to direct the nicotine-containing finished vapor composition from the nicotine reservoir to the absorbent material 346.

The lower section (for example, the distant section) of each of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b is configured to pass through the lower section (for example, the end located earlier downstream) of the second section 308 of the casing. This rod-shaped section of each of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b can also be called a shaft. The first sealing ring 352a and the second sealing ring 352b can be placed in the annular grooves of the corresponding shafts of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b. The first sealing ring 352a and the second sealing ring 352b are configured to interact with the shafts of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b, as well as the inner surfaces of the corresponding openings in the second section 308 of the casing in order to provide a fluid-tight seal. As a result, when the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b are pushed inward to activate the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, it is possible to move the first sealing ring 352a and the second sealing ring 352b together with the corresponding shafts of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b inside the corresponding openings in the second section 308 of the housing while maintaining their corresponding seals, which helps to reduce or prevent leakage of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition through the openings in the second section 308 of the housing for the first activating pin 314a and the second activating pin 314b. The first sealing ring 352a and the second sealing ring 352b can be made of silicone.

Fig. 27 shows a perspective view of the connection module of Fig. 22 without a wick, a heater, electric wires and a contact core. Fig. 28 shows an exploded view of the connection module of Fig. 27. As shown in Fig. 27-28, the module casing 354 and the face plate 366 generally form an outer frame of the connection module 320. The module casing 354 forms a first inlet opening 330 of the module and a grooved edge 356. The grooved edge 356 of the module casing 354 opens a second inlet opening 332 of the module (which is formed by the bypass structure 358). However, it should be understood that the grooved edge 356 can also be considered as forming an inlet opening of the module (for example, in combination with the face plate 366). The face plate 366 has an edge 328 with a groove, which together with the corresponding side surface of the cavity 310 of the second section 308 of the casing forms an inlet opening 322 of the cartridge. In addition, the face plate 366 forms a first contact opening, a second contact opening and a third contact opening. The first contact opening and the second contact opening may have a square shape, and they may be configured to open the first power contact 324a and the second power contact 324b, respectively, while the third contact opening may have a rectangular shape, and it may be configured to open a plurality of data contacts 326, although the exemplary embodiments are not limited to this.

The first power supply contact 324a, the second power supply contact 324b, the printed circuit board (PCB) 362 and the bypass structure 358 are located inside the outer frame formed by the module housing 354 and the face plate 366. The printed circuit board (PCB) 362 includes a plurality of data contacts 326 on its upstream side (which is visually hidden in Fig. 28) and a sensor 364 on its downstream side. The bypass structure 358 forms the second inlet opening 332 of the module and the bypass outlet opening 360.

During assembly, the first power supply contact 324a and the second power supply contact 324b are positioned so that they are visible through the first contact opening and the second contact opening, respectively, of the front plate 366. In addition, the printed circuit board (PCB) 362 is positioned so that said plurality of data contacts 326 on its upstream side are visible through the third contact opening of the front plate 366. The printed circuit board (PCB) 362 can also overlap with the rear surfaces of the first power supply contact 324a and the second power supply contact 324b. The bypass structure 358 is arranged on the printed circuit board (PCB) 362 in such a way that the sensor 364 is located inside the air flow path formed by the second inlet 332 of the module and the bypass outlet 360. In the assembled form, the bypass structure 358 and the printed circuit board (PCB) 362 can be considered as surrounded on at least four sides by zigzag structures of the first power contact 324a and the second power contact 324b. In the embodiment given as an example, the bifurcated ends of the first power contact 324a and the second power contact 324b are configured to be electrically connected to the first electrical wire 340a and the second electrical wire 340b.

When receiving incoming air by the inlet 322 of the cartridge during vaping, it is possible that the first inlet 330 of the module will receive a primary flow (e.g., a more intense flow) of incoming air, while the second inlet 332 of the module will receive a secondary flow (e.g., a less intense flow) of incoming air. The secondary flow of incoming air provides the ability to increase the sensitivity of the sensor 364. After exiting the bypass structure 358 through the bypass outlet 360, the secondary flow recombines with the primary flow, forming a mixed flow, which is drawn into the contact core 334 and passes through it to come into contact with the heater 336 and the wick 338. In a non-limiting example of an embodiment, the primary flow can be 60-95 percent (for example, 80-90 percent) of the incoming air, while the secondary flow can be 5-40 percent (for example, 10-20 percent) of the incoming air.

The first inlet 330 of the module may be a resistance to draw (RTD) hole, while the second inlet 332 of the module may be a bypass hole. In such a configuration, it is possible to adjust the draw resistance of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 by changing the size of the first inlet 330 of the module (instead of changing the size of the inlet 322 of the cartridge). In an exemplary embodiment, the size of the first inlet 330 of the module can be selected so that the draw resistance is 25-100 millimeters of water column (for example, 30-50 millimeters of water column). For example, a diameter of the first inlet 330 of the module equal to 1.0 millimeter can create a draw resistance equal to 88.3 millimeters of water column. In another embodiment, the diameter of the first inlet opening 330 of the module, equal to 1.1 millimeters, can create a drag resistance equal to 73.6 millimeters of water column. In another embodiment, the diameter of the first inlet opening 330 of the module, equal to 1.2 millimeters, can create a drag resistance equal to 58.7 millimeters of water column. In another embodiment, the diameter of the first inlet opening 330 of the module, equal to 1.3 millimeters, can create a drag resistance equal to 43.8 millimeters of water column. Notably, the size of the first inlet opening 330 of the module, due to its internal design, can be adjusted without affecting the aesthetic appearance of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300, thus providing a more standardized product design for cartridge assemblies with different drag resistance (RTD) while reducing the likelihood of unintentional blocking of the incoming air.

Fig. 29 shows the electrical systems of the device housing and the nicotine cartridge assembly of the nicotine e-vaping device according to exemplary embodiments.

As shown in Fig. 29, the electrical systems include an electrical system 2100 of the device body and an electrical system 2200 of the nicotine cartridge assembly. The electrical system 2100 of the device body can be included in the device body 100, and the electrical system 2200 of the nicotine cartridge assembly can be included in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 discussed above with respect to Figs. 1-28.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 29, the electrical system 2200 of the nicotine cartridge assembly includes a heater 336 and a non-volatile memory (NVM) 2205. The non-volatile memory 2205 may be an integrated circuit (IC) with an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EE PROM).

The electrical system 2200 of the nicotine cartridge assembly may further comprise an electrical/data interface of the housing (not shown) for transmitting power and/or data between the housing 100 of the device and the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the electrical contacts 324a, 324b and 326 shown in Fig. 17 may serve, for example, as an electrical/data interface of the housing.

The electrical system 2100 of the device body includes a controller 2105, a power source 2110, device sensors 2125, a heating unit control circuit 2127 (also referred to as a heating unit shutdown circuit), indicators 2135 for a vaper, controls 2150 (for example, buttons 118 and 120 shown in Fig. 1) located on the product, a memory 2130 and a synchronization circuit 2128. The electrical system 2100 of the device body may further include an electrical/data interface of the cartridge (not shown) for transmitting power and/or data between the device body 100 and the nicotine cartridge assembly 300. According to at least one example embodiment, the electrical connector 132 of the device shown in Fig. 12 may serve, for example, as an electrical/data interface of the cartridge.

The power source 2110 may be an internal power source for supplying power to the device body 100 and the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. The power supply from the power source 2110 may be controlled by the controller 2105 through the power management circuit (not shown). The power management circuit may include one or more switches or transistors for regulating the output power of the power source 2110. The power source 2110 may be a lithium-ion battery or one of its variants (for example, a lithium-ion polymer battery).

The controller 2105 may be configured to control all operations of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. According to at least some example embodiments, the controller 2105 may be implemented using hardware, a combination of hardware and software, or a storage medium storing software. As described above, the hardware may be implemented using a processing or control circuit such as, without limitation, one or more processors, one or more central processing units (CPUs), one or more microcontrollers, one or more arithmetic logic units (ALUs), one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), one or more microcomputers, one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), one or more systems on a chip (SoCs), one or more programmable logic units (PLUs), one or more microprocessors, one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or any other device or apparatus capable of responding to instructions and executing them in a specific manner.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 29, the controller 2105 is shown as a microcontroller including: input/output (I/O) interfaces such as general purpose inputs/outputs (GPIO), interconnected integrated circuit ( ^I2C ) interfaces, serial peripheral interface (SPI) bus interfaces, or the like; a multi-channel analog-to-digital converter (ADC); and a clock input terminal. However, the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example. In at least one exemplary embodiment, the controller 2105 may be a microprocessor.

The controller 2105 is connected with the possibility of communication with the sensors 2125 of the device, the heating unit control circuit 2127, the indicators 2135 for the vaper, the memory 2130, the control elements 2150 located on the product, the synchronization circuit 2128 and the power source 2110.

The 2127 heating unit control circuit is connected to the 2105 controller via the GPIO pin. The 2130 memory is connected to the 2105 controller via the SPI pin. The 2128 timing circuit is connected to the 2105 controller timing input terminal. The 2135 vaper indicators are connected to the 2105 controller via the I ² C interface pin and the GPIO pin. The 2125 device sensors are connected to the 2105 controller via the corresponding pins of the multi-channel analog-to-digital converter.

The timing circuit 2128 may be a timing mechanism, such as an oscillator circuit, to enable the controller 2105 to track the idle time, the vaping duration, the combination of the idle time and the vaping duration, or the like of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. The timing circuit 2128 may also include a dedicated clock generator chip configured to generate a system clock signal for the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

Memory 2130 may be a non-volatile memory configured to store one or more outage logs. In one example, memory 2130 may store one or more outage logs in one or more tables. Memory 2130 and the one or more outage logs stored therein will be discussed in more detail below. In one example, memory 2130 may be an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), such as flash memory or the like.

Still referring to Fig. 29, the sensors 2125 of the device may include a plurality of sensors or measuring circuits configured to supply signals carrying sensory or measuring information to the controller 2105. In the example shown in Fig. 29, the sensors 2125 of the device include a heater current measuring circuit 21258 and a heater voltage measuring circuit 21252.

The heater current measurement circuit 21258 may be configured to output signals (e.g., voltage) indicative of the current through the heater 336. An exemplary embodiment of the heater current measurement circuit 21258 will be discussed in more detail below with respect to Fig. 34.

The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 may be configured to output signals (e.g., voltage) indicative of the voltage on the heater 336. An exemplary embodiment of the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 will be discussed in more detail below with respect to Fig. 33.

The heater current measuring circuit 21258 and the heater voltage measuring circuit 21252 are connected to the controller 2105 via the contacts of the multi-channel analog-to-digital converter. In order to measure the characteristics and/or parameters of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 (for example, the voltage, current, resistance, temperature or the like, of the heater 336), the multi-channel analog-to-digital converter in the controller 2105 can sample the output signals from the sensors 2125 of the device with a sampling frequency corresponding to a given characteristic and/or parameter measured by the corresponding sensor of the device.

As shown in Fig. 29, the sensors 2125 of the device may also include the sensor 364 shown in Fig. 28. In at least one exemplary embodiment, the sensor 364 may be a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) based flow or pressure sensor or another type of sensor configured to measure air flow, such as a hot-wire anemometer.

As mentioned above, the heating unit control circuit 2127 is connected to the controller 2105 via a GPIO contact. The heating unit control circuit 2127 is configured to control (turn on and/or turn off) the heating unit of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 by controlling the power supply to the heater 336. As discussed in more detail below, the heating unit control circuit 2127 can turn off the heating unit based on a control signal (sometimes referred to herein as device power state signals) from the controller 2105.

When the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is inserted into the device housing 100, the controller 2105 is also communicatively coupled to a non-volatile memory 2205 via an I ² C interface. The non-volatile memory 2205 may store parameters of the nicotine pre-vapor composition and variables for the nicotine cartridge assembly 300.

According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the nicotine pre-evaporation composition parameters may include a nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion threshold parameter (e.g., in microliters (μL)), a nicotine pre-evaporation composition initial level parameter (e.g., in μL), a nicotine pre-evaporation composition low level threshold parameter (e.g., in μL), nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporization parameters (e.g., vaporization rate), a subcombination, a combination, or the like. The variable nicotine pre-evaporation composition parameters may include a total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporized (e.g., in μL) and/or a nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion flag.

According to at least some exemplary embodiments, the threshold parameters for exhaustion of the nicotine pre-vapor composition may be read-only values that cannot be changed by an adult vaper. On the other hand, the variable parameters of the nicotine pre-vapor composition are read/write values that are updated by the nicotine e-vaping device 500 during operation.

The initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition indicates the initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is inserted into the body of the device 100. The initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir can be determined during filling or manufacturing of the nicotine reservoir and/or the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 prior to insertion into the body of the device 100.

The evaporation parameters of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition indicate, for example, the evaporation rate of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition (for example, a conversion factor for the evaporation rate, such as picoliters (pL) per millijoule (mJ) for the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300).

Nicotine exhaustion threshold

pre-vapor composition (also referred to herein as the pre-vapor composition nicotine exhaustion threshold or exhaustion threshold) and the pre-vapor composition low-level nicotine threshold parameter (also referred to herein as the pre-vapor composition low-level threshold or low-level threshold) are threshold values that can be established based on empirical data.

According to at least some exemplary embodiments, the initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be approximately 3500 μL, the threshold parameter of the low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be approximately 3000 μL, and the threshold parameter of the exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be approximately 3400 μL. The threshold parameter of the exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be less than the initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in order to provide an acceptable error taking into account inaccuracies in measuring the energy used.

An example vaporization rate of a nicotine pre-vapor formulation may be approximately 280 pL/mJ, although the vaporization rate may vary depending on the formulation.

These threshold parameters will be discussed in more detail below.

Total amount of nicotine pre-vaporized indicates the total (cumulative) amount of nicotine pre-vaporized that was drawn from the nicotine reservoir and/or vaporized during a vaping session or during one or more puffs.

The nicotine pre-vapor composition depletion flag may be a flag bit that is set when the total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition vaporized has reached or exceeded (is greater than or equal to) a nicotine pre-vapor composition depletion threshold parameter.

Still referring to Fig. 29, the controller 2105 can control the indicators 2135 for the vaper in such a way as to indicate to the adult vaper the states and/or operations of the nicotine e-vaping device 500. The indicators 2135 for the vaper can be at least partially implemented using a light guide (for example, the light guide structure shown in Fig. 1), and they can include a power indicator (for example, an LED), which can be activated when the controller 2105 detects a press of a button by an adult vaper. The indicators 2135 for the vaper can also include a vibrator, a speaker or other feedback mechanisms, and they can indicate the current state of the vaping parameters adjustable by the vaper (for example, the volume of nicotine vapor).

Still referring to Fig. 29, the controller 2105 can control the power supply to the heater 336 for heating the nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir in accordance with a heating profile (e.g., heating based on volume, temperature, taste/aroma, or the like). The heating profile can be determined based on empirical data, and it can be stored in the non-volatile memory 2205 of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300.

Fig. 30 shows a simple functional diagram illustrating a system 2300 for controlling the level of a nicotine pre-evaporation composition and automatic shut-off, according to exemplary embodiments. For brevity, the system 2300 for controlling the level of a nicotine pre-evaporation composition and automatic shut-off may be referred to herein as an automatic shut-off control system 2300.

The automatic shut-off control system 2300 shown in Fig. 30 may be implemented in the controller 2105. In one example, the automatic shut-off control system 2300 may be implemented as part of a software implementation of a finite state machine (FSM) of a device manager in the controller 2105. In the example shown in Fig. 30, the automatic shut-off control system 2300 includes a subsystem 2620 for determining the level of a nicotine pre-vapor composition. However, it should be understood that the automatic shut-off control system 2300 may include various other subsystem modules.

Referring to Fig. 30, the automatic shut-off control system 2300 and, more generally, the controller 2105, can determine a total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition and provide an indication of a level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition (e.g., low, exhausted, used up, or the like) remaining in the nicotine reservoir of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 based on the determined total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition.

For example, the automatic shut-off control system 2300 may output an indication that the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir is relatively low (e.g., becoming depleted) when the total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition has reached or exceeded (is greater than or equal to) a low nicotine pre-evaporation composition threshold, but is less than a nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion threshold. The automatic shut-off control system 2300 may output an indication of depletion (e.g., exhaustion) if the total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition has reached (is greater than or equal to) a nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion threshold. The nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion threshold may be greater than the nicotine pre-evaporation composition low level threshold. The automatic shut-off control system 2300 may indicate the level of the nicotine pre-vapor composition (e.g., low or depleted) via one or more indicators 2135 to the vaper.

In response to the total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition reaching the nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion threshold, the automatic shut-off system 2300 may also initiate the controller 2105 to control one or more subsystems of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 to perform one or more subsequent actions. According to one or more example embodiments, a number of subsequent actions may be performed in series in response to the total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition reaching the nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion threshold. In one example, the subsequent actions may include:

an automatic shutdown operation in which the nicotine e-vaping device 500 is switched to a low power state (which is equivalent to, for example, turning off the nicotine e-vaping device 500 using the power button); or

a vaping disable operation in which the vaping subsystem is disabled (e.g., by disconnecting all power to the heater 336), and thus vaping is stopped until a corrective action is taken (e.g., replacing the nicotine cartridge assembly).

The depletion of the nicotine pre-vapor composition in the nicotine reservoir is an example of a failure event (e.g., a major cartridge failure event) in the nicotine e-vaping device 500 that may require corrective action (e.g., replacement of the nicotine cartridge assembly) to reactivate the disabled functions (e.g., the vaping function) in the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

The controller 2105 may control the subsystems of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 by outputting one or more control signals (or confirming or de-confirming a corresponding signal), as will be discussed in more detail below. In some cases, the control signals output from the controller 2105 may be referred to as device power state signals, device power state instructions, or device power control signals. In at least one exemplary embodiment, the controller 2105 may output one or more control signals to the control circuit 2127 of the heating assembly to disable the vaping functions in the nicotine e-vaping device 500 in response to determining that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir in the nicotine e-vaping device 500 has been depleted.

In the example shown in Fig. 30, the automatic shut-off control system 2300 or, more generally, the controller 2105 determines the total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition by estimating the amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition during each puffing event and summing the estimated amounts. The automatic shut-off control system 2300 can estimate the amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition during the puffing event based on the amount (e.g., the total amount) of power supplied to the heater 336 during the puffing event and the nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporization parameter obtained from the non-volatile memory 2205 for the nicotine cartridge assembly 300.

Fig. 31 is a flow chart illustrating a method for determining a nicotine level of a pre-vapor composition according to exemplary embodiments.

For illustrative purposes, the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 31 will be discussed with respect to the electrical systems shown in Fig. 29. However, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example. Rather, the exemplary embodiments may be applicable to other nicotine e-vaping devices. Furthermore, the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 32 will be described with respect to the operations performed by the controller 2105. However, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiment may be described in a similar manner with respect to the automatic shut-off control system 2300 and/or the nicotine pre-evaporative composition level determination subsystem 2620, which perform one or more of the functions/operations shown in Fig. 31.

Referring to Fig. 31, when the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is inserted into the device body 100 or brought into interaction with it, the controller 2105 obtains the parameters and variables of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition from the non-volatile memory 2205 in step S2802.

As discussed above, the nicotine pre-evaporation composition parameters may include a nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion threshold parameter, a nicotine pre-evaporation composition initial level, a nicotine pre-evaporation composition low level threshold parameter, a nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporization parameter, a subcombination thereof, a combination thereof, or the like. As further discussed above, the nicotine pre-evaporation composition variables may include a total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporized and/or a nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion flag.

In step S2804, the controller 2105 determines whether the nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion flag is set. The nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion flag may be set or reset depending on whether a condition is met according to which the total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion obtained from the non-volatile memory 2205. The set nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion flag may have a first bit value (for example, "1" or "0"), while the reset nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion flag may have a second bit value (for example, the other of the values "1" or "0").

In this example, the set nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion flag indicates that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is depleted (the nicotine reservoir in the nicotine cartridge assembly is empty), while the cleared nicotine pre-evaporation composition depletion flag indicates that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is not depleted.

If the nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion flag is set, then in step S2826 the controller 2105 controls the indicators 2135 for the vaper in such a way as to output an indication of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion in the nicotine cartridge unit 300. More specifically, the controller 2105 can control the indicators 2135 for the vaper, for example, in such a way as to output an indication of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition exhaustion in the form of an audible signal, a visual display and/or a tactile feedback. According to one or more example embodiments, the indication can be a flashing red LED, a software message containing an error code, which is transmitted (for example via Bluetooth) to a connected application or a remote electronic device, which can then trigger a notification in the application; a combination of the above or the like are also possible.

Also in step S2826, the controller 2105 controls the heating unit control circuit 2127 to perform a vaping disable operation. As mentioned above, the vaping disable operation disables the vaping function by disconnecting all power supplied to the heater 336, thereby preventing vaping until a corrective action is performed (for example, by an adult vaper). As discussed in more detail below, the controller 2105 can control the heating unit control circuit 2127 to disconnect all power supplied to the heater 336 by outputting a vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN having a high logic level (Fig. 35), or by de-asserting (or stopping the output) of the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM (Fig. 36). In at least one example, the COIL_VGATE_PWM signal is pulse width modulated (PWM). An example of a corrective action will also be discussed in more detail below.

Returning to step S2804, if the nicotine pre-vapor composition exhaustion flag is cleared (not set), then in step S2806 the controller 2105 determines whether conditions for vaping exist in the nicotine e-vaping device 500. The controller 2105 may determine whether conditions for vaping exist in the nicotine e-vaping device 500 based on the output data from the sensor 364. In one example, if the output data from the sensor 364 indicates the application of a negative pressure exceeding a threshold value to the mouthpiece 102 of the nicotine e-vaping device 500, then the controller 2105 may determine whether conditions for vaping exist in the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

If the controller 2105 detects conditions for vaping, then in step S2808, the controller 2105 controls the heating unit control circuit 2127 to supply power to the heater 336 to vaporize the nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn from the nicotine reservoir of the nicotine cartridge unit 300. An example of controlling the heating unit control circuit 2127 to supply power to the heater 336 will be discussed in more detail below with respect to Figs. 35 and 36.

Also at step S2808, the controller 2105 begins integrating the power supplied to the heater 336 to calculate the total energy supplied to the heater 336 during the puffing act (if vaping conditions are present).

According to at least one exemplary embodiment, since the power supplied to the heater 336 can be dynamically adjusted during the act of puffing (during the puff), the controller 2105 integrates or sums the power supplied to the heater 336 during the act of puffing to calculate the total energy supplied to the heater 336 during the act of puffing.

As discussed in more detail below, according to one or more example embodiments, the controller 2105 can filter the converted heater voltage and current measurements from the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 and the heater current measurement circuit 21258, respectively, using a three-tap moving average filter to reduce measurement noise. The controller 2105 can then use the filtered measurements to calculate, for example, the power P _HEATER supplied to the heater 336 {P _HEATER = V _{HEATER *} I _HEATER ). The controller 2105 can then calculate the energy E _Appljed supplied to the heater 336 during the puffing event in accordance with equation (1) below, where T = PuffLength is the duration of the puffing event:

In at least one exemplary embodiment, the integration in equation (1) from T=0 to T=PuffLength may be performed in 1-millisecond steps. However, the size of this step may vary depending on the embodiment.

If the power PHEATERP is constant, then a linear equation can be used to calculate the energy E _APPLIED .

In step S2810, the controller 2105 determines whether the vaping conditions have ceased to exist (the vaping conditions are no longer detected and the puffing act is completed) in the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

If the controller 2105 determines that the vaping conditions have ceased to exist (end of the puffing act), then in step S2812 the controller 2105 estimates the amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition during the puffing act (also referred to herein as a vaping time period or vaping interval) based on the energy supplied to the heater 336 during the puffing act. In one example, the energy supplied to the heater 336 during the puffing act can be linearly approximated by the amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition by applying the vaporization rate conversion factor obtained from the non-volatile memory 2205 in step S2802. In this case, the estimated amount EST_AMT_VAP of vaporized nicotine pre-vapor composition can be calculated as the product of the conversion factor VAP_CONV_FACTOR (picoliters per millijoule) and the energy supplied to the heater 336 during the puffing act, as shown below in equation (2).

Then, in step S2814, the controller 2105 calculates an updated estimate of the total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition (also referred to herein as the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition value) for the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 by adding the amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition estimated in step S2812 to the total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition stored in the non-volatile memory 2205.

In step S2816, the controller 2105 compares the updated total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition with the threshold parameter of depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition obtained from the non-volatile memory 2205 in step S2802.

If the updated total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold parameter for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition, then in step S2818 the controller 2105 controls the indicators 2135 for the vaper (via one or more control signals) to output an indication that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is depleted (for example, the nicotine reservoir in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is empty).

In step S2820, the controller 2105 stores the updated total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the non-volatile memory 2205 and sets a depletion flag in the non-volatile memory 2205 to indicate that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has been depleted.

Setting the exhaustion flag in non-volatile memory 2205 also serves as a write lock to prevent further updates to the train total. This write lock also prevents the exhaustion flag from being cleared.

The process then returns to step S2804 and continues as described above.

Returning to step S2816, if the updated total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is less than the threshold parameter of the depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition, the controller 2105 compares the updated total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition with the threshold parameter of the low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in step S2822.

If the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold parameter of a low level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition, then in step S2824 the controller 2105 controls the indicators 2135 for the vaper (via one or more control signals) to output an indication of a low level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition. In one example, the indication of a low level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be implemented in the form of a sound, a visual display and/or tactile feedback to an adult vaper. For example, the indication may be a flashing red LED, a software message containing an error code and sent (for example, via Bluetooth) to a connected application on a remote electronic device, which may subsequently launch a notification in the specified application; a combination of the above is also possible, or the like.

Then, in step S2828, the controller 2105 updates the total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the non-volatile memory 2205, the process returns to step S2804 and continues as described above.

Returning to step S2822, if the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is less than the low nicotine pre-evaporation composition threshold parameter, the process proceeds to step S2828 and continues as discussed herein.

Now, returning to step S2810, if the controller 2105 determines that the vaping conditions have not yet ceased to exist (the act of puffing is not completed) after detecting the vaping conditions, the controller 2105 continues to control the power control circuit to supply power to the heater 336 and integrate the supplied power. After the controller 2105 determines that the vaping conditions have ceased to exist, the process continues as described above.

Returning to step S2806, if the controller 2105 determines that the vaping conditions are not yet present after determining that the nicotine pre-vapor composition exhaustion flag is not set, the controller 2105 continues to monitor the output signal of the sensor 364 for the presence of vaping conditions. After the controller 2105 detects the vaping conditions, the process proceeds to step S2808 and continues as described above.

Although the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 31 is discussed herein with respect to determining a low level and exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir when the total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition has exceeded a corresponding threshold parameter, the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example. Alternatively, the exhaustion (exhaustion) of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir can be determined by comparing with corresponding minimum threshold parameters of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. For example, the controller 2105 may determine whether the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir is used up (exhausted) by calculating a difference between the initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir and the total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition calculated in step S2814, and then comparing the calculated difference with a minimum threshold parameter for the exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in step S2816. In this example, if the calculated difference is less than the minimum threshold value for the exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition, then the controller 2105 determines that the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir is used up.

In another example, the controller 2105 may determine whether the level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir is low by calculating a difference between the initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir and the total amount of the vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition calculated in step S2814, and then comparing the calculated difference with a minimum threshold parameter of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in step S2822. In this example, if the calculated difference is less than the threshold parameter of a low level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition, but greater than the threshold parameter of an exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition, then the controller 2105 determines that the level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in the nicotine reservoir is low.

In this alternative example, the initial level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be approximately 3500 μL, the low level threshold parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be approximately 500 μL, and the depletion threshold parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be approximately 100 μL. The depletion threshold parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition may be greater than zero in order to provide an acceptable margin of error for inaccuracies in measuring the energy used.

As mentioned above, the depletion of the nicotine pre-vapor composition is an example of a failure event in the nicotine e-vaping device 500. As further mentioned above, the failure event is such an event that leads to one or more subsequent actions (for example, a vaping shutdown operation and/or an automatic shutdown operation) in the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

Fig. 32 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for controlling the operation of a nicotine e-vaping device after performing a vaping shutdown operation in response to detecting a failure event such as the depletion of a nicotine pre-evaporation composition, according to example embodiments. For illustrative purposes, the example embodiment shown in Fig. 32 will be discussed with respect to the depletion of a nicotine pre-evaporation composition. However, the example embodiments should not be limited to this example.

Also for illustrative purposes, the block diagram shown in Fig. 32 will be discussed in relation to the electrical systems shown in Fig. 29. However, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example. Rather, the exemplary embodiments may be applicable to other nicotine e-vaping devices and their electrical systems. Furthermore, the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 32 will be described in relation to the operations performed by the controller 2105. However, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiment may be described in a similar manner in relation to the automatic shut-off control system 2300 and/or the controller 2620 performing one or more of the functions/operations shown in Fig. 32.

As shown in Fig. 32, in step S3804, the controller 2105 records the occurrence of a failure event (the content in the nicotine reservoir being exhausted) in the memory 2130. In one example, the controller 2105 may store an identifier of the event (the nicotine pre-vapor composition being exhausted) in connection with a subsequent action (for example, a vaping shutdown operation) and the time when the failure event and the subsequent action occurred.

In step S3808, the controller 2105 determines whether the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has been removed (corrective action) from the device body 100 within (before expiration of) the threshold time interval for removal from the moment of the indication (for example, in response to the indication) to the adult vaper to use up the nicotine pre-vaporization composition. In this example, the controller 2105 can determine that the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has been removed from the device body 100, digitally, by determining that the set of five contacts 326 of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has been removed. In another example, the controller 2105 may determine that the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has been removed from the device housing 100 by determining that the electrical contacts 324a, 324b and/or 326 of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 have been disconnected from the electrical connector 132 of the device housing 100.

If the controller 2105 determines that the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has been removed from the device body 100 within a threshold time interval of removal from the moment of the instruction (for example, in response to the instruction) to the adult vaper to use up the nicotine pre-evaporation composition, then in step S3810 the controller 2105 controls the nicotine e-vaping device 500 to return to normal operation (non-failure state). In this case, although the power supply to the heater 336 is still turned off because the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 has been removed, the nicotine e-vaping device 500 is otherwise ready for vaping in response to the application of negative pressure by the adult vaper after inserting a new nicotine cartridge.

In step S3812, the controller 2105 determines whether a new nicotine cartridge assembly is inserted into the device body 100 within (before expiration of) the threshold insertion time interval from the moment the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 is removed and the nicotine e-vaping device 500 returns to normal operation in step S3814.

In at least one example, the threshold time interval of extraction and/or the threshold time interval of insertion may have a duration from about 5 minutes to about 120 minutes. The threshold time interval of extraction and/or the threshold time interval of insertion may be set to a duration within this range by an adult vaper. In at least one example embodiment, the controller 2105 may determine that a new nicotine cartridge assembly is inserted into the body 100 of the device by measuring the electrical resistance of the heater 336 between the electrical contacts 324a and 324b of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and the electrical connector 132 of the body 100 of the device. In another exemplary embodiment, the controller 2105 may determine that a new nicotine cartridge assembly is inserted into the device housing 100 by determining the presence of a pull-up resistor included in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 between the electrical contacts 326 of the nicotine cartridge assembly 300 and the electrical connector 132 of the device housing 100.

If the controller 2105 determines that a new nicotine cartridge assembly is inserted into the body of the device 100 during the threshold insertion time interval, then in step S3814 the controller 2105 controls the heating assembly control circuit 2127 to re-enable the vaping module (for example, to turn on the power supply to the heater 336). As discussed in more detail below, the controller 2105 can control the heating assembly control circuit 2127 to re-enable the vaping module by outputting the vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN having a low logic level (Fig. 35), or by confirming the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM (Fig. 36).

Returning to step S3812, if the controller 2105 determines that a new nicotine cartridge assembly has not been inserted into the device body 100 within the threshold insertion time interval, then in step S3816 the controller 2105 outputs another one or more control signals to perform an automatic shutdown operation in which the nicotine e-vaping device 500 is powered off or goes into a low power mode. According to at least some exemplary embodiments, in the context of a normal software automatic shutdown, the controller 2105 can output several or a plurality of general-purpose input/output control lines (signals) to turn off all or substantially all peripheral devices of the nicotine e-vaping device 500 and initiate a transition of the controller 2105 to a sleep state.

Returning now to step S3808, if the nicotine cartridge unit 300 has not been removed within the removal threshold time interval, the process proceeds to step S3816 and continues as discussed above.

Fig. 33 shows an exemplary embodiment of a heater voltage measurement circuit 21252.

As shown in Fig. 33, the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 includes a resistor 3702 and a resistor 3704 connected in a voltage divider circuit between a terminal configured to receive the COIL_OUT voltage input signal and ground. The COIL OUT voltage input signal is the voltage at the input (voltage at the input terminal) of the heater 336. The node N3716 between the resistor 3702 and the resistor 3704 is connected to the positive input of the operational amplifier (Op-Amp) 3708. Between the node N3716 and ground, a capacitor 3706 is connected to form a low-pass filter (R/C filter) circuit to stabilize the input voltage applied to the positive input of the operational amplifier 3708. The filter circuit is also capable of reducing switching noise error induced by the PWM signals used to power the heater 336, and it can have the same phase response/group delay for both current and voltage.

The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 further includes resistors 3710 and 3712 and a capacitor 3714. The resistor 3712 is connected between the node N3718 and a terminal configured to receive the output voltage signal COIL_RTN. The output voltage signal COIL_RTN represents the output voltage (voltage at the output terminal) of the heater 336.

Resistor 3710 and capacitor 3714 are connected in parallel between node N3718 and the output of op amp 3708. The negative input of op amp 3708 is also connected to node N3718. Resistors 3710 and 3712 and capacitor 3714 are connected in a low pass filter configuration.

The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 uses the operational amplifier 3708 to measure the voltage difference between the voltage input signal COIL_OUT and the voltage output signal COIL_RTN and to output a scaled heater voltage measurement signal COIL_VOL that represents the voltage across the heater 336. The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 outputs the scaled heater voltage measurement signal COIL_VOL to the analog-to-digital converter pin of the controller 2105 for digital sampling and measurement by the controller 2105.

The gain of the operational amplifier 3708 can be set based on the surrounding passive electrical elements (e.g., resistors and capacitors) to improve the dynamic range of the voltage measurement. In one example, the dynamic range of the operational amplifier 3708 can be achieved by scaling the voltage such that the maximum output voltage matches the maximum input range of the analog-to-digital converter (e.g., approximately 1.8 V). In at least one example embodiment, the scaling can be approximately 267 mV/V and, therefore, the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 can measure a voltage of up to approximately 1.8 V/0.267 V=6.74 V.

Fig. 34 shows an exemplary embodiment of the heater current measurement circuit 21258 shown in Fig. 29.

Referring to Fig. 34, the output voltage signal COIL_RTN is applied to the input of a four-terminal (4T) sense resistor 3802 connected to ground. The differential voltage across the four-terminal sense resistor 3802 is scaled by an operational amplifier 3806, which produces a heater current sense signal COIL_CUR, which is representative of the current through the heater 336. The heater current sense signal COIL_CUR is output to the terminal of the analog-to-digital converter of the controller 2105 for digital sampling and measurement of the current through the heater 336 in the controller 2105.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 35, a four-terminal measuring resistor 3802 can be used to reduce the error in measuring the current using the "Kelvin current measurement" method. In this example, separating the current measuring path from the voltage measuring path makes it possible to reduce interference in the voltage measuring path.

The gain of the 3806 op-amp can be set to improve the dynamic range of the measurement. In this example, the scaling of the 3806 Op-Amp can be approximately 0.577 V/A, and therefore the 21258 heater current measurement circuit can measure up to approximately .

As shown in more detail in Fig. 34, the first terminal of the four-terminal sense resistor 3802 is connected to the terminal of the heater 336 to receive the output signal COIL_RTN voltage. The second terminal of the four-terminal sense resistor 3802 is connected to ground. The third terminal of the four-terminal sense resistor 3802 is connected to a low-pass filter (R/C filter) circuit that includes a resistor 3804, a capacitor 3808 and a resistor 3810. The output of the low-pass filter circuit is connected to the positive input of the operational amplifier 3806. The low-pass filter circuit provides the ability to reduce the inaccuracy due to switching noise induced by the PWM signals supplied to power the heater 336, and it can also have the same phase response/group delay for both the current and the voltage.

The heater current measuring circuit 21258 further includes resistors 3812 and 3814 and a capacitor 3816. The resistors 3812 and 3814 and the capacitor 3816 are connected to the fourth terminal of the measuring resistor 3802 with four terminals, the negative input of the operational amplifier 3806 and the output of the operational amplifier 3806 according to the low-pass filter circuit, and the output of the said low-pass filter circuit is connected to the negative input of the operational amplifier 3806.

The operational amplifier 3806 outputs the differential voltage in the form of a heater current measurement signal COIL_CUR to the A/D converter pin of the controller 2105 for sampling and measuring the current through the heater 336 using the controller 2105.

According to at least this exemplary embodiment, the configuration of the heater current measurement circuit 21258 is similar to the configuration of the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252, except that the low-pass filter circuit, including the resistors 3804 and 3810 and the capacitor 3808, is connected to a terminal of the four-terminal measuring resistor 3802, and the low-pass filter circuit, including the resistors 3812 and 3814 and the capacitor 3816, is connected to another terminal of the four-terminal measuring resistor 3802.

The controller 2105 can average a plurality of samples (for example, voltage) over a time period (for example, approximately 1 ms) corresponding to the duration of the time signal pulse used in the nicotine e-vaping device 500, and convert the average value into a mathematical representation of the voltage and current on the heater 336 by applying a scaling value. The scaling value can be determined based on gain settings that are implemented in the corresponding operational amplifiers and which can be specific to the hardware of the nicotine e-vaping device 500.

The 2105 controller may filter the converted voltage and current measurements using, for example, a three-tap moving average filter to attenuate measurement noise. The 2105 controller may then use the filtered measurements to calculate: the resistance R _HEATER of the heater 336 power P _HEATER supplied to the heater 336 power supply current Where or the like. Efficiency is the power factor P _in supplied to heater 336 under all operating conditions. In one example, Efficiency may be at least 85 percent.

According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the gain settings of the passive circuit elements shown in Fig. 33 and/or 34 may be adjusted to match the output signal range to the input signal range of the controller 2105.

Fig. 35 is a schematic diagram illustrating a heating unit control circuit according to some exemplary embodiments. The heating unit control circuit shown in Fig. 35 is an example of the heating unit control circuit 2127 shown in Fig. 29.

Referring to Fig. 35, the heater assembly control circuit 2127A includes a CMOS charge pump U2 configured to supply power (for example, a power supply of approximately 7 V (7V_CP)) to one or more gate driver integrated circuits (ICs) for controlling power field-effect transistors (a heater power control circuit, also called a heater assembly drive circuit or circuit, not shown in Fig. 35), which supply power to a heater 336 in the nicotine cartridge assembly 300.

In an exemplary embodiment of operation, the charge pump U2 is controlled (selectively activated or deactivated) based on the vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN (a device power state signal, also referred to as a vaping enable signal) from the controller 2105. In the example shown in Fig. 35, the charge pump U2 is activated in response to the output of the vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN, which has a low logic level, and is deactivated in response to the output of the coil disable signal COIL-SHDN, which has a high logic level. After the supply power 7V_CP has stabilized after the activation of the charge pump U2 (e.g., after the calming time interval has expired), the controller 2105 can activate the heater enable signal GATE_ON to supply power to the heater power control circuit and the heater 336.

According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the controller 2105 may perform a vaping disable operation by issuing (activating) a vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN having a high logic level to turn off all power to the heater 336 until the vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN is deactivated (changed to a low logic level) by the controller 2105.

The controller 2105 may output a heater activation signal GATE_ON (another device power state signal) having a high logic level in response to detecting the presence of vaping conditions in the nicotine e-vaping device 500. In this exemplary embodiment, the transistors (e.g., field-effect transistors (FET)) Q5 and Q7A' are activated when the heater activation signal GATE_ON is activated by the controller 2105 to a high logic level. The controller 2105 may output a heater activation signal GATE_ON having a low logic level to turn off the power supply to the heater 336, thereby performing a heater shutdown operation.

If a power stage failure event occurs such that transistors Q5 and Q7A' do not respond to the heater activation signal GATE_ON, the controller 2105 may perform a vaping disable operation by driving the vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN high to turn off power to the gate driver, which in turn turns off power to the heater 336.

In another example, if the controller 2105 fails to properly boot up, resulting in an undefined state of the COIL_SHDN vaping shutdown signal, the heating assembly control circuit 2127A automatically sets the COIL_SHDN vaping shutdown signal to a high logic level to automatically turn off power to the heater 336.

More specifically, with respect to Fig. 35, capacitor C9, charge pump U2, and capacitor C10 are connected in a positive voltage doubler configuration. Capacitor C9 is connected between terminals C- and C+ of charge pump U2 and serves as a reservoir for charge pump U2. Terminal VIN of the input voltage of charge pump U2 is connected to the BATT voltage source at node N3801, and capacitor C10 is connected between ground and terminal VOUT of the output voltage of charge pump U2 at node N3802. Capacitor C10 provides a filter and reservoir for the output charge of charge pump U2, which makes it possible to provide a more stable output voltage of charge pump U2.

Capacitor C11 is connected between node N3801 and ground to provide a filter and reservoir for the input voltage supplied to charge pump U2.

Resistor R10 is connected between the positive voltage source and the SHDN shutdown pin. Resistor R10 serves as a pull-up resistor to ensure that the input signal at the SHDN shutdown pin is high, which results in the output signal (VOUT) of the charge pump U2 being turned off and the power supply to the heater 336 being turned off when the COIL_SHDN vaping shutdown signal is in an undefined state.

Resistor R43 is connected between ground and the gate of transistor Q7A' at node N3804. Resistor R43 serves as a pull-down resistor to ensure that transistor Q7A' is in a high impedance state (off), which results in the 7V_CP supply being turned off and the 336 heater being turned off when the GATE_ON heater enable signal is in an undefined state.

Resistor R41 is connected between node N3802 and node N3803 between the gate of transistor Q5 and the drain of transistor Q7A'. Resistor R41 serves as a pull-down resistor to ensure more reliable locking of transistor Q5.

Transistor Q5 is configured to selectively isolate the 7V_CP power supply from the VOUT terminal of charge pump U2. The gate of transistor Q5 is connected to node N3803, the drain of transistor Q5 is connected to the VOUT terminal of the output voltage of charge pump U2 at node N3802, and the source of transistor Q5 serves as an output terminal for the 7V_CP power supply. This configuration allows capacitor CU to reach the operating voltage faster due to load isolation, and provides fault tolerance since both the COIL_SHDN signal for disabling vaping and the GATE_ON signal for activating the heater must be in the proper state to supply power to heater 336.

Transistor Q7A is configured to control the operation of transistor Q5 based on the GATE_ON heater activation signal. For example, when the GATE_ON heater activation signal has a high logic level (e.g., above ~2 V), transistor Q7A is in a low impedance state (unlatched state), which leads to grounding of the gate of transistor Q5 and, thus, to the transition of transistor Q5 to a low impedance state (unlatched state). In this case, the heater node control circuit 2127A supplies 7V_CP supply power to the heater node excitation circuit (not shown), thus providing the ability to supply power to heater 336.

If the GATE_ON signal of the heater activation is low, then the transistor Q7A goes into a high impedance state (off state), which causes the gate of transistor Q5 to discharge through resistor R41 and thus puts transistor Q5 into a high impedance state (off state). In this case, the supply power 7V_CP is not supplied, and the power supply to the excitation circuit of the heater module (and heater 336) is disconnected.

In the example shown in Fig. 35, since transistor Q5 requires the same high gate voltage as the source (~7 V) to be in the high impedance (off) state, controller 2105 does not control transistor Q5 directly. Transistor Q7A provides a mechanism for controlling transistor Q5 based on the lower voltage from controller 2105.

Fig. 36 is a circuit diagram illustrating another heating unit control circuit according to exemplary embodiments. The heating unit control circuit shown in Fig. 36 is another example of the heating unit control circuit 2127 shown in Fig. 29.

Referring to Fig. 36, the heating assembly control circuit 2127B includes a power converter circuit 39020 (also called a boost converter circuit) and a gate driver circuit 39040. The power converter circuit 39020 is configured to output a voltage signal 9V_GATE (also called a power signal or an input voltage signal) to power the gate driver circuit 39040 based on a vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM (also called a vaping disable signal). The power converter circuit 39020 can be software-defined, and the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is used to regulate the output signal 9V_GATE.

The 39040 gate driver circuit uses the 9V_GATE voltage input signal from the 39020 power converter circuit to drive the 3906 heater node excitation circuit.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 36, the power converter circuit 39020 generates the input voltage signal 9V_GATE only if the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is asserted (present). The controller 2105 can turn off the 9 V bus to turn off the power supply of the gate driver circuit 39040 by deasserting (terminating or completing) the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM. Similar to the vaping disable signal COIL_SHDN in the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 35, the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal can serve as a device power state signal for performing a vaping disable operation in the nicotine e-vaping device 500. In this example, the controller 2105 can perform a vaping disable operation by canceling the confirmation of the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal, thereby turning off all the power of the gate driver circuit 39040, the heating assembly driving circuit 3906 and the heater 336. Then, the controller 2105 can then enable vaping in the nicotine e-vaping device 500 by re-confirming the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal supplied to the power converter circuit 39020.

Similar to the heater activation signal GATE_ON of Fig. 35, the controller 2105 may output the first heater activation signal GATE ENB, having a high logic level, to turn on the power supply of the heating unit excitation circuit 3906 and the heater 336 in response to detecting conditions for vaping in the nicotine e-vaping device 500. The controller 2105 may output the first heater activation signal GATE ENB, having a low logic level, to turn off the power supply of the heating unit excitation circuit 3906 and the heater 336, thereby performing a heater shutdown operation.

If we consider in more detail the circuit diagram of the 39020 power converter in Fig. 36, then between the VATT voltage source and the ground, a capacitor C36 is connected. Capacitor C36 serves as a reservoir for the circuit diagram of the 39020 power converter.

The first terminal of inductor L1006 is connected to node Nodel between the VATT voltage source and capacitor C36. Inductor L1006 serves as the main storage element of the 39020 power converter circuit.

The second terminal of the inductor L1006, the drain of the transistor (e.g., a MOSFET operating in enrichment mode) Q1009, and the first terminal of the capacitor C1056 are connected at Node2. The source of the transistor Q1009 is connected to ground, and the gate of the transistor Q1009 is configured to receive the COIL_VGATE_PWM signal to enable vaping from the 2105 controller.

In the example shown in Fig. 36, transistor Q1009 serves as the main switching element of power converter circuit 39020.

Resistor R29 is connected between the gate of transistor Q1009 and ground to act as a pull-down resistor to provide more reliable locking of transistor Q1009 and prevent heater 336 from operating when the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal is in an undefined state.

The second terminal of the capacitor C1056 is connected to the cathode of the zener diode D1012 and the anode of the zener diode D1013 in node Node3. The anode of the zener diode D1012 is connected to ground.

The cathode of the zener diode D1013 is connected to the terminal of capacitor C35 and the input of the voltage divider circuit comprising resistors R1087 and R1088 at Node4. The other terminal of capacitor C35 is connected to ground. The voltage at Node4 is also the output voltage 9V_GATE derived from the 39020 power converter circuit.

Resistor R1089 is connected to the output of the voltage divider circuit at node Node5.

In the example operation, when the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal is asserted to be logic high, transistor Q1009 switches to a low impedance (unlatched) state, thus allowing current to flow from the VATT voltage source and capacitor C36 to ground through inductor L1006 and transistor Q1009. This causes energy to accumulate in inductor L1006, with the current increasing linearly over time.

When the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal is low, transistor Q1009 switches to a high impedance state (off state). In this case, inductor L1006 maintains the current flow (linear decay), and the voltage at Node2 increases.

The duty cycle of the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal determines the amount of voltage increase for a given load. Accordingly, the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal is controlled by the 2105 controller in a closed loop using the COIL_VGATE_FB feedback signal output by the voltage divider circuit in the NodeS node as feedback. The switching described above occurs at a relatively high frequency (e.g., approximately 2 MHz, but other frequencies can be used, depending on the required parameters and component ratings).

Still referring to the power converter circuit 39020 of Fig. 36, the capacitor C1056 is an AC coupling capacitor that provides DC blocking for resetting the DC level. The capacitor C1056 blocks the current flow from the BATT voltage source through the inductor L1006 and the diode D1013 to the gate driver circuit 39040 when the COIL_VGATE_PWM vaping enable signal is low in order to save battery life (for example, when the nicotine e-vaping device 500 is in standby mode). The capacitance of the capacitor C1056 can be selected so as to provide a path with a relatively low impedance at the switching frequency.

Zener diode D1012 sets the ground level of the switching signal. Since capacitor C1056 resets the DC level, the voltage at Node3 can typically be bipolar. In one example, Zener diode D1012 can clamp the negative half-cycle of the signal to a level approximately 0.3 V below ground.

Capacitor C35 serves as the output reservoir for the 39020 power converter circuit. Zener diode D1013 blocks current flow from capacitor C35 through capacitor C1056 and transistor Q1009 when transistor Q1009 is on.

As the decaying current from inductor L1006 creates a voltage increase at Node4 between zener diode D1013 and capacitor C35, current flows into capacitor C35. Capacitor C35 maintains the voltage at 9V_GATE while storing energy in inductor L1006.

A voltage divider circuit including resistors R1087 and R1088 reduces the voltage to a level suitable for measurement in the A/D converter in the 2105 controller. This reduced voltage signal is output as the COIL VGATE FB feedback signal.

In the circuit shown in Fig. 36, the voltage of the COIL_VGATE_FB feedback signal is scaled by approximately 0.25 times, and therefore the 9 V output voltage is reduced to approximately 2.25 V for input to the analog-to-digital converter in the 2105 controller.

Resistor R1089 provides overvoltage fault current limiting at the output of the 39020 power converter circuit (e.g. at Node4) to protect the A/D converter in the 2105 controller.

The 9V output voltage signal 9V_GATE is output from the bus converter circuit 39020 to the gate driver circuit 39040 to power the gate driver circuit 39040.

Now, considering the gate driver circuit 39040 in more detail: the gate driver circuit 39040 includes, among other things, an integrated gate driver U2003 configured to convert one or more low-current signals from the controller 2105 into high-current signals for controlling the switching of transistors (e.g., MOSFETs) of the heater node driver circuit 3906. The integrated gate driver U2003 is also configured to convert voltage levels from the controller 2105 into voltage levels required by the transistors of the heater node driver circuit 3906. In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 36, the integrated gate driver U2003 is a half-bridge driver. However, the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example.

More specifically, the 9 V output voltage from the power converter circuit 39020 is input to the gate driver circuit 39040 through a filter circuit including a resistor R2012 and a capacitor C2009. The filter circuit including the resistor R2012 and the capacitor C2009 is connected to the VCC terminal (pin 4) of the gate driver integrated circuit U2003 and the anode of the zener diode S2002 at node 6. The second terminal of the capacitor C2009 is connected to ground. The anode of the zener diode D2002 is connected to the first terminal of the capacitor C2007 and the step-up terminal BST (pin 1) of the gate driver integrated circuit U2003 at node 7. The second terminal of the capacitor C2007 is connected to the terminal SWN of the switching node (terminal 7) of the integrated gate driver U2003 and the heater node excitation circuit 3906 (for example, between two MOSFETs) in the node Node8. In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 36, the zener diode D2002 and the capacitor C2007 form part of a charge pump circuit with a compensation feedback connected between the input voltage terminal VCC and the step-up terminal BST of the integrated gate driver U2003. Since the capacitor C2007 is connected to the terminal of the 9V_GATE input voltage signal from the power converter circuit 39020, the capacitor C2007 is charged to a voltage substantially equal to the level of the 9V_GATE voltage signal through the diode D2002.

Still referring to Fig. 36, the high side gate driver DRVH contact (pin 8), the low side gate driver DRVL contact (pin 5), and the EP contact (pin 9) of the integrated gate driver U2003 are also connected to the heater node drive circuit 3906.

Resistor R2013 and capacitor C2010 form a filter circuit connected to the input contact IN (contact 2) of the integrated gate driver U2003. The filter circuit is designed to eliminate high-frequency interference from the second COIL Z heater enable signal supplied to the specified input contact. The second COIL Z heater enable signal may be a PWM signal from the 2105 controller.

Resistor R2014 is connected to the filter circuit and the IN input terminal at Node9. Resistor R2014 is used as a pull-down resistor so that if the second heater enable signal COIL Z is floating (or undefined), then the IN input terminal of gate driver IC U2003 is held low to prevent activation of heater node drive circuit 3906 and heater 336.

The first GATE ENB signal from the 2105 controller is applied to the OD pin (pin 3) of the gate driver integrated circuit U2003. Resistor R2016 is connected to the OD pin of the gate driver integrated circuit U2003 as a pull-down resistor so that if the first GATE ENB signal from the 2105 controller is floating (or undefined), then the OD pin of the gate driver integrated circuit U2003 is held at a logic low level to prevent activation of the heater node excitation circuit 3906 and heater 336.

In an exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 36, the heating node driver circuit 3906 includes a transistor (e.g., MOSFET) circuit that includes transistors (e.g., MOSFETs) 39062 and 39064 connected in series between a voltage source BATT and ground. The gate of the transistor 39064 is connected to a DRVL pin (pin 5) of a low-voltage side gate driver integrated circuit U2003, the drain of the transistor 39064 is connected to a SWN pin of a switching node (pin 7) of the gate driver integrated circuit U2003 in node Node8, and the source of the transistor 39064 is connected to ground GND.

If the low-side gate drive output signal from the low-side gate driver DRVL pin is high, then the 39064 transistor is in a low impedance (off) state, thus connecting Node8 to ground.

As mentioned above, since the capacitor C2007 is connected to the 9V_GATE input voltage signal having a 9V level from the power converter circuit 39020, the capacitor C2007 is charged to a voltage equal to or substantially equal to the level of the 9V_GATE input voltage signal having a 9V level through the diode D2002.

If the low-side gate drive output signal from the low-side gate driver DRVL pin is low, the 39064 transistor switches to a high-impedance state (off state), and the DRVH pin (pin 8) of the high-side gate driver is internally connected to the pull-up pin BST inside the gate driver integrated circuit U2003. As a result, the 39062 transistor is in a low-impedance state (off state), thus connecting the switching node SWN to the BATT voltage source to raise the voltage of the switching node SWN (node 8) to the BATT voltage source voltage.

In this case, node Node7 is raised to a step-up voltage V(BST) « V(9V_GATE)+V(BATT), which allows the gate-source voltage of transistor 39062 to be the same or substantially the same as the voltage of the input voltage signal in 9 V 9V_GATE (e.g., V(9V_GATE)) regardless of (or independent of) the voltage from the voltage source BATT. As a result, switching node SWN (node 8) provides a switched high current signal that can be used to generate an output voltage supplied to heater 336, which is substantially independent of the output voltage of battery source BATT.

Exemplary embodiments have been disclosed herein, but it should be understood that other variations are possible. Such variations should not be considered a departure from the scope of the present invention, and it is intended that all such modifications that will be obvious to those skilled in the art be included within the scope of the following claims.

Claims (46)

1. A nicotine electronic vaping device comprising a device unit configured to interact with a nicotine cartridge unit, wherein the device unit includes a controller configured to: estimating the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporated during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition obtained from the memory and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing, determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition vaporized based on the total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition stored in memory and the amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition vaporized during the puffing act, determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level, and controlling the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a current nicotine pre-vapor composition level in response to determining that an updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to the at least one nicotine pre-vapor composition level threshold. 2. The device of claim 1, wherein said at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level includes a threshold value of depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of the consumption of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value for the exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 3. The device of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to set a depletion flag in the memory in response to determining that the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to a threshold value for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 4. The device of claim 3, wherein setting the exhaustion flag prevents further updating of the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 5. The device according to paragraphs 2, 3 or 4, in which the controller is configured to disable vaping in the nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the updated total amount of vaporized nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 6. A device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the memory stores a depletion flag indicating whether the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been depleted; and the controller is additionally designed with the ability to: getting the exhaustion flag from memory, determination of nicotine pre-vaporization consumption composition based on the value of the exhaustion flag and disabling vaping in a nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been depleted. 7. A device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level comprises a threshold value of a low level of the nicotine pre-vapor composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a low level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to a threshold value of a low level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 8. A nicotine electronic vaping device comprising a device unit configured to interact with a nicotine cartridge unit, wherein the device unit includes a controller configured to: estimates of the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn out during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing, determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition drawn out based on the total amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition stored in memory and the amount of nicotine pre-vaporization composition drawn out during the act of puffing, determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition drawn is greater than or equal to at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level, and controlling the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of the current level of the nicotine pre-vapor composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to the at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level. 9. The device of claim 8, wherein said at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level includes a threshold value of depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of the consumption of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to the threshold value for the exhaustion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 10. The device of claim 9, wherein the controller is configured to set a depletion flag in the memory in response to determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn is greater than or equal to a threshold value for depletion of nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 11. The device of claim 10, wherein setting the exhaustion flag prevents any further updates of the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn out. 12. The device according to claim 9, 10 or 11, in which the controller is configured to disable vaping in the nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn out is greater than or equal to the threshold value for depletion of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 13. A device according to any one of paragraphs 8-12, in which the memory stores a depletion flag indicating that the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been exhausted; and the controller is additionally designed with the ability to: getting the exhaustion flag from memory, determining the depletion of the nicotine pre-vapor composition based on the value of the depletion flag, and disabling vaping in a nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the nicotine pre-vapor composition has been depleted. 14. The device of any one of paragraphs 8-13, in which at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level comprises a threshold value of a low level of the nicotine pre-vapor composition; and the controller is configured to control the nicotine electronic vaping device to output an indication of a low level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than or equal to a threshold value of a low level of nicotine pre-evaporation composition. 15. A method for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device, comprising: an estimate of the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition evaporated by the heater during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing; determining an updated total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition based on the total amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition stored in memory and the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition vaporized during the act of puffing; determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition vaporized is greater than or equal to at least one threshold nicotine pre-vapor composition level; and outputting an indication of the current level of the nicotine pre-vapor composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the nicotine pre-vapor composition is greater than or equal to the specified at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level. 16. A method for controlling a nicotine electronic vaping device, comprising: an estimate of the amount of nicotine pre-evaporation composition drawn out during the act of puffing, based on the evaporation parameter of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition and the total amount of power supplied to the heater during the act of puffing; determining an updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-vapor composition based on the stored total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-vapor composition and the amount of the nicotine pre-vapor composition drawn during the act of puffing; determining that the updated total amount of nicotine pre-vapor composition drawn is greater than or equal to at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-vapor composition level; and outputting an indication of the current level of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition in response to determining that the updated total amount of the drawn nicotine pre-evaporation composition is greater than the specified at least one threshold value of the nicotine pre-evaporation composition level.