RU2800498C2 - System and method for monitoring consumption - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: computing technology.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to a system and method for monitoring consumption. The technical result is achieved by the active ingredient adjustment system for an electronic vapour production system containing: a memory for storing data indicating the target amount of the active ingredient subject to being provided to the user via the EVPS for a set period of time with a set starting point; a payload use sensor configured to detect the amount of used payload; a use time processing unit configured to calculate the rate of supply of the active ingredient to the user based on the amount of used payload; and an adjustment processing unit configured to change the operation of the EVPS in order to reduce the rate of supply of the active ingredient to the user, when the processing unit is calculating the use time, the rate of supply of the active ingredient leading to the target value being exceeded for a set period of time, and also the technical result is achieved by an electronic vapour production system containing such an active ingredient adjustment system, by a mobile communication apparatus containing such an active ingredient adjustment system, by a method for adjusting such an active ingredient, and a by machine data carrier for such a system.

EFFECT: increase in the efficiency of the active ingredient adjustment system.

19 cl, 8 dwg

Description

The present invention relates to a consumption control system and method.

Regular cigarette users have a clear mechanism by which they track consumption, such as the number of cigarettes smoked per day. However, when using an electronic cigarette, it may be less clear to the user how to track consumption since the payload used as a vapor source (e.g., a reservoir of liquid) may be physically hidden from the user inside the electronic cigarette/vapor generation system. If it is visible, it can be difficult to tell how much fluid has been used in a given period, in particular, since a 10 ml reservoir usually lasts up to a week.

Moreover, different liquids may have different concentrations of the active ingredient (eg, nicotine), and therefore, a comparable apparent payload may not be a reliable indication of the amount of active ingredient consumed over a given period.

The present invention aims to mitigate or minimize this problem.

In the first aspect, a system for adjusting the active ingredient according to claim 1 of the claims is provided.

In another aspect, an electronic steam generation system according to claim 10 is provided.

In another aspect, a mobile communications device according to claim 12 is provided.

In another aspect, a method for adjusting an active ingredient according to claim 13 is provided.

Relevant additional aspects and features of the invention are set forth in the dependent claims.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

- In FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic cigarette in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.

- In FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an electronic cigarette control unit according to embodiments of the present invention.

- In FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an electronic cigarette processor in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.

- In FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of an electronic cigarette communicating with a mobile terminal according to embodiments of the present invention.

- In FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an electronic cigarette cartomizer.

- In FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of an electronic cigarette vaporizer or heater.

- In FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a mobile terminal according to embodiments of the present invention.

- In FIG. 8 is a flow chart of a method for adjusting an active ingredient in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.

Disclosed is a system and method for controlling consumption. In the following description, a number of specific details are provided in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the present invention. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that it is not necessary to use these specific details in order to practice the present invention. Rather, specific details known to those skilled in the art have been omitted for clarity where appropriate.

As an explanation of the prior art, electronic vapor delivery systems such as electronic cigarettes and other aerosol delivery systems generally contain a reservoir of liquid to be vaporized, usually nicotine (sometimes referred to as "electronic cigarette liquid"). When the user inhales, an electrical (eg, resistive) heater is activated to vaporize a small amount of liquid, producing an aerosol which is thus inhaled by the user. The liquid may contain nicotine in solution, for example in ethanol or water, together with glycerol or propylene glycol to aid in aerosol formation, and may also include one or more additional flavor additives. Those skilled in the art are aware of many different liquid compositions that can be used in electronic cigarettes and other such devices.

The practice of inhaling liquid vapors is commonly known as "vaping".

The electronic cigarette may have an interface to support external data transfer. This interface can be used, for example, to download control parameters and/or updated software from an external source to the electronic cigarette. Alternatively or in addition, the interface can be used to download data from an electronic cigarette to an external system. The downloaded data may, for example, be e-cigarette usage parameters, malfunctions, etc. As will be known to those skilled in the art, many other types of data can be exchanged between an electronic cigarette and one or more external systems (which may be other electronic cigarettes).

In some cases, the interface for an electronic cigarette to communicate with an external system is based on a wired connection, such as a USB connection using a micro-mini or conventional USB connection in an electronic cigarette. The interface for an electronic cigarette for communication with an external system may also be based on a wireless connection. This wireless connection has some advantages over wired connections. For example, the user does not need any additional cable for such a connection. In addition, the user has more flexibility in terms of movement, connection establishment and range of interface devices.

In the present description, the term "electronic cigarette" is used; however, the term can be used interchangeably with an electronic vapor production system, an aerosol delivery device, and other similar technology.

In FIG. 1 is a schematic (partial) representation of an electronic cigarette 10 in accordance with some embodiments of the invention (not to scale). An electronic cigarette includes a body or control unit 20 and a cartomizer 30. Cartomizer 30 includes a reservoir 38 of liquid, typically including nicotine, a heater 36, and a mouthpiece 35. Electronic cigarette 10 has a longitudinal or cylindrical axis that extends along the center line of the electronic cigarette from the mouthpiece 35 at one end of the cartomizer 30 to the opposite end of the control unit 20 (commonly referred to as the tip). This longitudinal axis is indicated in Fig. 1 by the dotted line denoted by LA.

The liquid reservoir 38 in the cartomizer may contain liquid directly in liquid form, or it may use some absorbent structure such as a foam base or wadding, etc. as a liquid holding element. Liquid is then supplied from reservoir 38 to be delivered to an evaporator containing heater 36. For example, liquid may wick from reservoir 38 to heater 36 through a wick (not shown in FIG. 1).

In other devices, the liquid may be provided in the form of plant material or some other (appearingly solid) derivative of plant material. In this case, the liquid can be considered as being volatile substances in the material, which evaporates when heated. Note that devices containing this type of material generally do not require a wick to convey fluid to the heater, but rather position the heater in relation to the material in an appropriate manner to provide adequate heating.

It is also understood that forms of delivery of a payload other than liquid, such as heating a solid (eg, processed tobacco leaf) or a gel, may be considered. In such cases, the vaporized volatiles provide the active ingredient in the vapor/aerosol to be inhaled. It is understood that references to "liquid", "e-liquid", etc. equally cover other payload delivery options, and similarly, references to "reservoir" and the like. also cover other means of storage such as a solids container.

The control unit 20 includes an accumulator or battery 54 for supplying power to the electronic cigarette 10 (hereinafter referred to as a battery) and a printed circuit board (PCB) 28 and/or other electronic components for performing general control of the electronic cigarette.

The control unit 20 and the cartomizer 30 can be detached from each other as shown in FIG. 1, but they are connected to each other when the device 10 is used, for example by means of a screw or a bayonet connection. The connectors on the cartomizer 30 and the control unit 20 are shown schematically in FIG. 1 through 31B and 21A, respectively. This connection between the control unit and the cartomizer provides mechanical and electrical connectivity between the two parts.

When the control unit is disconnected from the cartomizer, the electrical connection 21A on the control unit, which is used to connect to the cartomizer, can also serve as a socket for connecting a charger (not shown). The other end of this charger can be inserted into the USB battery charging port 54 in the electronic cigarette control box. In other implementations, the electronic cigarette may be equipped with (for example) a cable for direct connection between the electrical connection 21A and the USB connector.

The control unit contains one or more air inlet holes located near the PCB 28. These holes are connected to the air channel passing through the control box to the air channel made through the connector 21A. It is then connected to an air passage through the cartomizer 30 to the mouthpiece 35. Note that the heater 36 and the liquid reservoir 38 are configured to form an air passage between the connector 31B and the mouthpiece 35. This air passage may pass through the center of the cartomizer 30 while the reservoir 38 for liquid is limited in an annular area around this central path. Alternatively (or in addition) an air passage may lie between the liquid reservoir 38 and the outer casing of the cartomizer 30.

When the user inhales through the mouthpiece 35, air is drawn into the control unit 20 through one or more air inlets. This airflow (or corresponding pressure change) is detected by a sensor, such as a pressure sensor, which in turn activates the heater 36 to vaporize the nicotine liquid supplied from the cartridge. The air flow passes from the control unit to the evaporator where the air flow is combined with nicotine vapor. This combination of airflow and nicotine vapor (actually an aerosol) then passes through the cartomizer 30 and the user inhales it through the mouthpiece 35. The cartomizer 30 can be detached from the control unit and disposed of when the supply of nicotine liquid is used up (and then replaced with another cartomizer) .

It will be understood that the electronic cigarette 10 shown in FIG. 1 is presented by way of example only, and many other implementations can be adapted. For example, in some implementations, cartomizer 30 is divided into a cartridge containing liquid reservoir 38 and a separate vaporizer containing heater 36. In this configuration, the cartridge can be disposed of when liquid reservoir 38 is empty and a separate vaporizer containing heater 36 remains. Alternatively, the electronic cigarette may include a cartomizer 30 as shown in FIG. 1, or it can be made as a one-piece (single) device, but the liquid reservoir 38 is made in the form of a replaceable cartridge. Other options are that the heater 36 may be located at the opposite end of the cartomizer 30 compared to that shown in FIG. 1, i.e. between the liquid reservoir 38 and the mouthpiece 35, or the heater 36 is located along the central axis LA of the cartomizer, and the liquid reservoir is made in the form of an annular structure, which is located outside the heater 35 in the radial direction.

A person skilled in the art is also aware of many possible embodiments of the control unit 20 . For example, the air flow may enter the control unit at the end, i.e. at the opposite end of connector 21A, in addition to or in place of the airflow entering near the PCB 28. In this case, the airflow is typically drawn towards the cartomizer along the passageway between the battery 54 and the outer wall of the control box. Similarly, the control unit may include a PCB located at or near the top end, such as between the battery and the top end. This PCB can be installed in addition to or instead of PCB 28.

Moreover, the electronic cigarette may support end-of-line charging or through a socket located somewhere on the device, in addition to or instead of charging at the connection point between the cartomizer and the control box. (It is clear that some electronic cigarettes are made in the form of essentially integrated units, in which case the user cannot disconnect the cartomizer from the control unit). Other e-cigarettes may also support wireless (inductive) charging in addition to (or instead of) wired charging.

The above discussion of potential embodiments of the electronic cigarette shown in FIG. 1 is given by way of example only. The person skilled in the art is aware of additional potential variants (and combinations of variants) of the electronic cigarette 10.

In FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of the main functional components of the electronic cigarette 10 shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. Note that Fig. 2 is primarily concerned with electrical connectivity and functionality - it is not intended to show the physical dimensions of the various components, nor the details of their physical placement in the control unit 20 or in the cartomizer 30. In addition, it is understood that at least some of the components shown in fig. 2 located in the control box 20 may be mounted on the printed circuit board 28. Alternatively, one or more of these components may be placed in the control box to work with the printed circuit board 28, but not be physically located on the printed circuit board itself. For example, these components may be located on one or more additional printed circuit boards, or they may be located separately (such as battery 54).

As shown in FIG. 2, the cartomizer includes a heater 310 which is energized via connector 31B. The control unit 20 includes an electrical socket or connector 21A for connection to a corresponding connector 31B of the cartomizer 30 (or possibly a charger). This provides electrical connectivity between the control unit 20 and the cartomizer 30.

The control unit 20 also includes a sensor module 61 which is located in or adjacent to the air path passing through the air inlet to air outlet control unit 20 (to the cartomizer 30 via connector 21A). The sensor module includes a pressure sensor 62 and a temperature sensor 63 (also located in or near the airway). The control unit also includes a capacitor 220, a processor 50, a field effect transistor (FET) switch 210, a battery 54, and input and output devices 59, 58.

The operations of processor 50 and other electronic components, such as pressure sensor 62, are generally at least partially controlled by programs running on the processor (or other components). Such programs may be stored in non-volatile memory, such as ROM, which may be integrated with the processor 50 itself or implemented as a separate component. The processor 50 can access the ROM to download individual programs as needed. The processor 50 also contains appropriate communication means, such as pins or pads (plus associated software) for appropriate communication with other devices in the control unit 20, such as pressure sensor 62.

Output devices 58 may provide visible, audible, and/or tactile output. For example, output devices may include a speaker 58, a vibrator, and/or one or more indicator lights. Light indicators are usually made in the form of one or more light-emitting diodes (LED), which can be the same or different colors (or different colors). In the case of multi-colored LEDs, different colors are obtained by switching on LEDs of different colors, for example red, green or blue, alternatively with different relative brightness, in order to obtain corresponding relative color changes. Where red, green, and blue LEDs are provided, a full range of colors is possible, while if only two of the three red, green, and blue LEDs are provided, only the corresponding sub-range of colors can be obtained.

The output from the output device can be used to inform the user of various conditions or states of the electronic cigarette, such as a low battery warning. Different output signals can be used to report different states or conditions. For example, if the output device 58 is a speaker, then different signals for reporting different states or conditions can be represented by beeps or beeps of different tone and/or duration and/or by several such beeps or beeps. Alternatively, if the output device 58 includes one or more indicator lights, then different states or conditions can be represented using different colors, pulses of light or continuous light, pulses of different durations, and so on. For example, one indicator light may be used to display a low battery warning, while another indicator light may be used to indicate that the fluid reservoir 38 is nearly empty. It is understood that a given electronic cigarette may include output devices to support several different output modes (sound, visual, etc.).

The input device(s) 59 may take various forms. For example, the input device(s) may be implemented as buttons on the outside of an electronic cigarette, such as mechanical, electrical, or capacitor (touch) sensors. Some devices may support the supply of air to the electronic cigarette as an input mechanism (such supply of air can be detected by the pressure sensor 62, which in this case will also act as an input device 59), and/or connection/disconnection of the cartomizer 30 and the control unit 20 as an input mechanism of another kind. Again, it will be appreciated that a given electronic cigarette may include input devices 59 to support a variety of different input modes.

As noted above, the electronic cigarette 10 provides airflow from the air inlet through the electronic cigarette through the pressure sensor 62 and the heater 310 in the cartomizer 30 to the mouthpiece 35. Thus, when the user inhales through the mouthpiece of the electronic cigarette, the processor 50 detects such a breath based on the information from the pressure sensor 62. In response to this detection, the CPU supplies power from the battery 54 to the heater, which thereby heats and vaporizes the nicotine from the liquid reservoir 38 so that the user can inhale it.

In the specific implementation shown in FIG. 2, FET 210 is connected between battery 54 and connector 21A. This FET 210 acts as a switch. The processor 50 is connected to the gate of the FET to operate a switch, thereby allowing the processor to turn on and off the power flow from the battery 54 to the heater 310 according to the condition of the detected air flow. It is understood that the heater current can be relatively large, for example in the range of 1 to 5 A, and therefore the FET 210 must be implemented to support this current control (as well as any other kind of switch that can be used in place of the FET). transistor 210).

To provide finer control over the amount of power flowing from battery 54 to heater 310, a pulse width modulation (PWM) scheme can be used. The PWM scheme may be based on a repetition period, such as 1 ms. During each such period, switch 210 is turned on for a portion of the period and turned off for the remainder of the period. This is parameterized by a duty factor, with a duty factor of 0 indicating that the circuit breaker is off for the entire period (i.e., essentially permanently off), a duty factor of 0.33 indicating that the switch is on for a third of the period, a duty factor of 0, 66 indicates that the switch is on for two-thirds of each period, and a duty cycle of 1 means the FET is on for the entire period (i.e., in fact, always on). It is understood that the given parameters are only an example of values for the duty cycle, and intermediate values can be used if necessary.

The use of PWM provides effective heater power, which is determined by the rated available power (based on battery output voltage and heater resistance) multiplied by duty cycle. Processor 50, for example, may use a duty cycle of 1 (ie, full power) at the start of inspiration to bring heater 310 up to the desired operating temperature as quickly as possible. Once this desired operating temperature has been reached, processor 50 may reduce the duty cycle to some suitable value to supply the required operating power to heater 310.

As shown in FIG. 2, the processor 50 includes a communication interface 55 for wireless communication, in particular supporting Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE).

Alternatively, the heater 310 may act as an antenna for use by the communication interface 55 to send and receive wireless communication messages. One reason for this is that the control box 20 may have a metal case 202, while part of the cartomizer 30 may have a plastic case 302 (reflecting the fact that the cartomizer 30 is disposable, while the control box 20 is stored, and therefore , it should be more durable). The metal housing acts as a screen or barrier that impedes the operation of the antenna located within the control unit 20 itself. However, using the heater 310 as a wireless antenna can help prevent this metal shielding, thanks to the cartomizer's plastic housing, without adding extra components to the cartomizer or making it more complex (or more expensive). Alternatively, a separate antenna (not shown) may be provided, or a portion of a metal housing may be used.

If the heater is used as an antenna, then as shown in FIG. 2, the processor 50, in particular the communication interface 55, can be connected to the power line from the battery 54 to the heater 310 (via connector 31B) using a capacitor 220. This capacitive coupling is made after the switch 210, because the wireless communication can work when the heater is not switched on for heating (as described in more detail below). It is understood that the capacitor 220 helps to prevent the energy supplied from the battery 54 to the heater 310 from being diverted back to the processor 50.

Note that capacitive coupling can be implemented using a more complex LC (inductor-capacitor) network, which can also match the impedance to the output of the communication interface 55. (As one skilled in the art would appreciate, this impedance matching can help maintain proper signaling between communication interface 55 and antenna heater 310, rather than reflecting such signals back down the connection).

In some implementations, the processor 50 and communication interface are implemented using a Dialog DA14580 chip from Dialog Semiconductor PLC located in Reading, UK. Additional information (and technical data) for this IC is available at: http://www.dialog-semiconductor.com/products/bluetooth-smart/smartbond-da14580.

In FIG. 3 is a high level and simplified diagram of this chip 50 including a communication interface 55 for supporting Bluetooth® low energy technology. This interface includes, in particular, a radio transceiver 520 for modulating and demodulating signals, etc., a link layer hardware 512, and an advanced cipher 511 (128 bits). The output of radio transceiver 520 is connected to an antenna (eg, to heater 310 acting as an antenna via capacitive coupling 220 and connectors 21A and 31B).

The remainder of processor 50 includes main core 530, RAM 531, ROM 532, one-time programmable (OTP) block 533, general purpose I/O system 560 (for communication with other components on printed circuit board 28), power management block 540, and bridge 570 for connecting two busbars. Software instructions stored in ROM 532 and/or OTP block 533 may be loaded into RAM 531 (and/or memory implemented as part of core 530) for execution by one or more processors in core 530. These software instructions cause processor 50 implement various functionalities described here, for example, interfacing with the sensor module 61 and, accordingly, controlling the heater. It should be noted that although the device shown in FIG. 3 acts as a communication interface 55 as well as a common controller for the electronic steam generation system 10, in other embodiments these two functions may be shared between two or more different devices (chips) - for example, one chip may serve as an interface 55 communication, and another microcircuit as a common controller for the electronic system 10 for obtaining steam.

In some implementations, processor 50 may be configured to prevent wireless communications from occurring when the heater is used to vaporize liquid from reservoir 38. For example, wireless communications may be paused, terminated, or prevented from starting when switch 210 is turned on. Conversely, if there is wireless communication, the heater may be prevented from turning on, for example, by resetting the airflow detection from the sensor module 61 and/or by not operating the switch 210 to power on the heater 310 while the wireless communication is in progress.

One of the reasons for preventing heater 310 from operating for both heating and wireless at the same time in some implementations is to prevent any potential interference from PWM control of the heater. This PWM control has its own frequency (based on the pulse repetition rate), although usually much lower than the frequency used for wireless communication, and they can potentially interfere with each other. In some situations, such interference in practice may not cause any problems, and the simultaneous operation of the heater 310 for both heating and wireless communication may be allowed (if necessary). This problem can be mitigated, for example, by methods such as appropriate selection of signal levels and/or PWM frequency, provision of suitable filtering, etc.

In FIG. 4 is a diagram showing Bluetooth® Low Energy communication between an electronic cigarette 10 and an application running on a smartphone 400 or other suitable mobile device (tablet, laptop, smart watch, etc.). Such communication can be used for a wide variety of purposes, such as updating the firmware of the electronic cigarette 10, obtaining usage and/or diagnostic data from the electronic cigarette 10, resetting or unlocking the electronic cigarette 10, managing the settings of the electronic cigarette, etc. .

In general terms, when the electronic cigarette 10 is turned on, for example by means of the input device 59 or possibly by connecting the cartomizer 30 to the control unit 20, it begins to perform Bluetooth® low energy communication. If the smartphone 400 receives this outgoing connection, the smartphone 400 requests a connection to the electronic cigarette 10. The electronic cigarette may notify the user of this request via the output device 58 and wait for the user to accept or reject the request via the input device 59. If the request is accepted, the electronic cigarette 10 may continue to communicate with the smartphone 400. Note that the electronic cigarette may remember the ID of the smartphone 400 and be able to automatically accept future connection requests from that smartphone. Once the connection is established, smartphone 400 and electronic cigarette 10 operate in a client-server mode, with the smartphone acting as a client that initiates and sends requests to the electronic cigarette, which respectively acts as a server (and responds to appropriate requests).

The Bluetooth® low energy link (also known as Bluetooth Smart®) implements the IEEE 802.15.1 standard and operates at a frequency of 2.4-2.5 GHz, which corresponds to a wavelength of about 12 cm, with a data transfer rate of up to 1 Mbps /With. The connection setup time is less than 6 ms, and the average power consumption can be very low, on the order of 1 mW or less. Bluetooth low energy communication can be performed at a distance of up to 50 m. However, for the situation shown in FIG. 4, the electronic cigarette 10 and the smartphone 400 typically belong to the same person and will therefore be much closer to each other—for example, within 1 m. More information about Bluetooth Low Energy can be found at: http: //www.bluetooth.com/Pages/Bluetooth-Smart.aspx.

It is understood that electronic cigarette 10 may support other communication protocols for communicating with smartphone 400 (or any other suitable device). Such other communication protocols may be implemented instead of or in addition to Bluetooth Low Energy. Examples of such other communication protocols include Bluetooth® (not the low energy option), see e.g. www.bluetooth.com, Near Field Communication (NFC) according to ISO 13157, and WiFi®. NFC communication operates at much lower wavelengths than Bluetooth (13.56MHz) and typically has a much shorter range, say < 0.2m. However, this short range is still compatible with most use cases, as shown in Figure 4. Meanwhile, low power WiFi® connections such as IEEE802.11ah, IEEE802.11v or the like can be used between the electronic cigarette 10 and the remote device. In each case, the corresponding chipset may be located on the printed circuit board 28, either as part of the processor 50 or as a separate component. One skilled in the art will be aware of other wireless communication protocols that may be used in the electronic cigarette 10.

In FIG. 5 is a schematic exploded view of an exemplary cartomizer 30 in accordance with some embodiments. The cartomizer has an outer plastic body 302, a mouthpiece 35 (which may be made as part of the body), a vaporizer 620, a hollow inner tube 612, and a connector 31B for attaching to the control box. The airflow path through the cartomizer 30 begins with air inlet through the connector 31B, then through the inside of the vaporizer 625 and hollow tube 612, and finally exits through the mouthpiece 35. The cartomizer 30 holds liquid in the annular region between (i) the plastic housing 302 and (ii) ) the evaporator 620 and the inner tube 612. The 31B connector is provided with a 635 seal to help keep the liquid in the area and prevent leakage.

In FIG. 6 is a schematic exploded view of the evaporator 620 of the example cartomizer 30 shown in FIG. 5. Evaporator 620 has a substantially cylindrical body (frame) formed from two components 627A, 627B, each of which has a substantially semicircular cross section. When they are assembled, the edges of the components 627A, 627B do not fully abut each other (at least not along their entire length), but a small gap 625 remains (as shown in Fig. 5). This gap allows liquid from the external reservoir around the evaporator and tube 612 to enter the inside of the evaporator 620.

One of the evaporator components 627B supporting the heater 310 is shown in FIG. 6. There are two connectors 631A, 631B for supplying power (and a wireless signal) to the heater 310. More specifically, these connectors 631A, 631B connect the heater to connector 31B, and then to the control unit 20. (Note that connector 631A is connected to pad 632A at the distal end of evaporator 620 from connector 31B via an electrical connection that extends under heater 310 and is not visible in FIG. 6).

Heater 310 includes a heating element made of sintered metal fiber, typically in the form of a sheet, or a porous conductive material (such as steel). However, it will be appreciated that other porous conductive materials may be used. The total resistance of the heating element in the example of FIG. 6 is about 1 ohm. However, it will be understood that other resistances may be selected, for example, taking into account the available battery voltage and the required temperature/power dissipation characteristics of the heating element. In this regard, appropriate characteristics can be selected in accordance with the desired aerosol (vapor) generation properties of the device, depending on the source liquid of interest.

The main body of the heating element is typically rectangular in shape, about 20 mm long (ie, in the direction between connector 31B and contact 632A) and about 8 mm wide. The thickness of the sheet containing the heating element in this example is about 0.15 mm.

As can be seen in FIG. 6, the rectangular body of the heating element has slits 311 extending inwardly from each of the longer sides. These slots 311 engage pins 312 provided in the evaporator body component 627B, thereby helping to maintain the position of the heating element relative to the body components 627A, 627B.

The slits extend inwardly by about 4.8 mm and are about 0.6 mm wide. The inwardly extending slots 311 are separated from each other by about 5.4 mm on each side of the heating element, with the inwardly extending slots from opposite sides being offset from each other by about half this distance. A consequence of this arrangement of the slots is that the current flow along the heating element is effectively forced to follow a tortuous path, resulting in a concentration of current and electrical power around the ends of the slots. Different current densities/powers at different locations in the heating element means that there are regions of relatively high current density that get hotter than regions of relatively low current density. This effectively provides a heating element with a range of different temperatures and temperature gradients, which may be desirable in the context of aerosol generating systems. This is because the various components of the source liquid may aerosolize/evaporate at different temperatures, and therefore obtaining a heating element with a range of temperatures can simultaneously aerosolize a number of different components in the source liquid.

Heater 310 shown in FIG. 6, having a substantially flat shape elongated in one direction, is well suited for antenna operation. Combined with the control unit metal case 202, the heater 310 forms an approximate dipole configuration, which typically has a physical size of the same order of magnitude as the wavelength of Bluetooth low energy communications—i.e. a size of a few centimeters (considering both the heater 310 and the metal case 202) at a wavelength of about 12 cm.

Although in FIG. 6 shows one shape and configuration of heater 310 (heating element), various other possibilities are known to those skilled in the art. For example, the heater may be in the form of a coil or some other configuration of high resistance wire. Another possibility is that the heater is in the form of a tube containing a liquid to be vaporized (such as some form of tobacco product). In this case, the pipe may be used primarily to transfer heat from the place of its generation (for example, by means of a coil or other heating element) to the liquid to be evaporated. In this case, the tube still acts as a heater in relation to the liquid being heated. Such configurations may alternatively be used as an antenna to support wireless configurations.

As previously noted, a suitable electronic cigarette 10 may communicate with the mobile communication device 400, for example by pairing devices using the Bluetooth® low energy protocol.

Therefore, it is possible to provide additional functionality to an electronic cigarette and/or a system comprising an electronic cigarette and a smartphone by providing suitable programming instructions (eg, in the form of an application) to run on the smartphone.

Turning now to FIG. 7, the conventional smartphone 400 includes a central processing unit (CPU) (410). The CPU may communicate with smartphone components, as appropriate, either via direct connections or via I/O bridge 414 and/or bus 430.

In the example shown in FIG. 7, the CPU communicates directly with memory 412, which may include persistent memory, such as flash memory, for storing the operating system and applications, and volatile memory, such as RAM, for storing data currently in use by the CPU. Typically, persistent and volatile memory are implemented as physically separate modules (not shown). In addition, the memory may separately contain pluggable memory, such as a microSD card, as well as subscriber data on a Subscriber Information Module (SIM) (not shown).

The smartphone may also include a graphics processing unit (GPU) 416. The GPU may communicate with the CPU directly or via an I/O bridge, or it may be part of the CPU. The GPU may share RAM with the processor or may have its own dedicated RAM (not shown) and is connected to the mobile phone display 418. The display is typically a liquid crystal display (LCD) or an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, but may be made in accordance with any suitable display technology such as electronic ink. Optionally, the GPU can also be used to drive one or more smartphone speakers 420.

Alternatively, the speaker can be connected to the CPU via an I/O bridge and a bus. Other smartphone components may be similarly connected via the bus, including a touch surface 432 such as a capacitive touch surface overlaid on the screen to provide touch input to the device, a microphone 434 for receiving speech from a user, one or more cameras 436 for capturing images, a module 438 global positioning system (GPS) to obtain an estimate of the geographic location of the smartphone and means 440 wireless communication.

The wireless communication means 440, in turn, may comprise several separate wireless communication systems conforming to different standards and/or protocols, such as Bluetooth® (standard or low energy), proximity communication, and Wi-Fi®, as previously described, as well as telephony such as 2G, 3G and/or 4G.

Typically systems are powered by a battery (not shown) which can be charged via a power input (not shown) which in turn can be part of a data line such as USB (not shown).

It is understood that different smartphones may include different features (eg compass or buzzer) and may not include some of the above (eg touch surface).

Thus, in general, in an embodiment of the present invention, a suitable remote device, such as a smartphone 400, will include a processor and memory for storing and running applications, and a wireless communication means capable of initiating and maintaining wireless communication with the electronic cigarette 10. However, it will be appreciated that that the remote device can be a device that has such capabilities, such as a tablet, laptop, smart TV, or the like.

In one embodiment of the present invention, an active ingredient adjustment system for an electronic vapor delivery system (EVPS), such as an electronic cigarette 10, includes a memory adapted to store data indicative of a target amount of active ingredient to be delivered by the EVPS within a predetermined period of time. , which has a given starting point. The memory may be RAM residing in or associated with the EVPS processor 50 . Alternatively, or in addition, the memory may be a remote device, such as a mobile phone, in wireless communication with the EVPS, typically periodically, as in the case of a Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE) connection.

The data may take the form of one or more values of the target amount of the active ingredient, or indicators of that target amount, such as the target calculated or detectable amount of the payload, the concentration of the active ingredient in the payload being known, as discussed later in this document.

The active ingredient adjustment system also includes a payload usage sensor capable of detecting the amount of payload being used. Any suitable sensor may be provided, such as a sensor that measures the electrical properties of the payload reservoir that change according to the amount of payload inside (for example, changes in capacitance and/or resistance as a function of the amount of payload), or an optical sensor, capable of measuring the amount of liquid in relation to the amount of light transmitted through or absorbed in the tank, or any other suitable measurement technology (eg, via propagation/reflection of ultrasound within the payload). Alternatively, the amount of payload used can be calculated based on, for example, inspiratory time and measured airflow, which can be used to determine the amount of vaporized payload drawn from the EVPS by the user. Therefore, the payload utilization sensor can be, for example, a sensor module 61 containing a pressure sensor 62, in combination with the calculation of the corresponding pressure drop to the air flow velocity, which, using the cross-sectional area of the channel containing the pressure sensor, allows to calculate the flow volume . Then, it is possible to empirically determine the amount of evaporated payload per unit volume of air, alternatively for different pressure/flow rates, if this affects the amount.

The active ingredient adjustment system also includes a use time processor capable of calculating an active ingredient delivery rate to the user based on the amount of payload being used. Again, this time-of-use processor may be embedded in the EVPS processor 50 running an appropriate software instruction, or may be the processor of a remote device, such as a telephone, in wireless communication with the EVPS.

In particular, the delivery rate of the active ingredient to the user is calculated, thereby estimating the amount of the active ingredient delivered to the user during a unit time period. In essence, this is not only a counter of the number of puffs taken by the user, or a count up to or a countdown to a given limit.

The active ingredient adjustment system also includes a control processor adapted to change the operation of the EVPS if the use time processor calculates an active ingredient delivery rate that would result in a target overshoot for a predetermined period to reduce the active ingredient delivery rate to the user.

Again, this regulatory processor may be embedded in the EVPS processor 50 running under the control of an appropriate program instruction, or may be a processor of a remote device, such as a telephone, in wireless communication with the EVPS.

It is understood that the active ingredient adjustment system sets a target amount of active ingredient to be consumed within a given time period, and then calculates whether the consumption rate of the user will cause the user to miss the target for a given time in the future, and adapts the operation of the EVPS to prevent this. .

Alternatively, the operation of the EVPS is only adapted if the user's consumption rate is calculated to exceed the target amount for a given period of time in the future.

As a non-limiting example, a user may wish to inhale 24 mg of nicotine per day. Therefore, the predetermined time period is one day and has a predetermined starting point that may be midnight (i.e. one calendar day), or may be another time such as 4 am to cover the possibility that the user is staying up late. , and therefore, the usage cycle resumes in the early morning hours, and not at midnight. It is also understood that "one day" can be set to correspond to the user's usual waking time, for example, from 7 am to 11 pm. Therefore, for example, the user can set the effective period for one day, for example, through the user interface on the mobile phone.

During one day's use of the EVPS, the payload usage sensor may detect the amount of payload used, and the usage time processor calculates the equivalent amount of active ingredient used during a unit of time, such as per hour. From this, the usage time processor can calculate the delivery rate in mg/h, in this example of nicotine.

The control processor records the amount of active ingredient consumed during a predetermined period, and therefore how much more active ingredient can be consumed during the remaining predetermined period before reaching the target amount.

If the current consumption rate multiplied by the time remaining in the predetermined period exceeds the amount of active ingredient that can still be consumed, then the regulatory processor can predict that the user will exceed the target amount within the predetermined time period.

In this case, only the processor can change the operation of the EVPS to reduce the rate of delivery of the active ingredient to the user.

This may be done in one or more ways.

In the first case, the heating of the payload to generate steam is limited in time during each puff performed by the user. For example, if a user's typical inspiratory period is 0.75 seconds, then limiting the warm-up time to 0.5 seconds reduces the amount of payload consumed by about one-third.

In another case, the heating of the payload to generate steam is performed in accordance with the cyclic mode, for example, 0.1 seconds on and 0.05 seconds off. Thus, one-third less vapor is produced during the user's inhalation.

It is understood that any suitable time limit or cycle of operation may be selected to adjust the amount of steam supplied, depending on how much the current consumption rate would cause the user to exceed the target amount by the end of the predetermined time period.

Other technologies can also be used, such as reducing the heating temperature and reducing the airflow in the EVPS.

It is understood that any combination of these technologies, or any other technology that serves to reduce the amount of steam generated during a puff by the user, may be used.

The active ingredient adjustment system may also include a timer. Again, the timer may be part of the EVPS or part of a remote device, such as a telephone, in wireless communication with the EVPS.

The control processor may be adapted to set a predetermined start point when the timer indicates a predetermined time (eg, midnight or 4 am, as discussed above, or any selected time).

Alternatively, or in addition, the active ingredient adjustment system may receive a "start" signal from a separate device or when activated by the user (eg, by pressing a button before the first puff of the day), indicating a predetermined starting point.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the control processor is adapted to calculate the amount of active ingredient remaining in the EVPS and the control processor is adapted to set a predetermined starting point when the calculated amount is equal to the target amount.

In this case, the regulatory processor may store a measurement of the amount of payload consumed since the current payload was installed in the EVPS (eg, when a new e-liquid reservoir or a new cartridge was installed in the EVPS). If the initial payload amount minus the total amount of consumed payload equals the target amount, then the predetermined time period begins.

This predetermined period may allow sufficient time for the user to order or otherwise receive a replacement payload for the EVPS, such as one full day out of 24 hours, or until a predetermined time of day, such as 10 p.m. of the current day.

The throttling processor may then monitor the user's consumption rate and predict if the user will consume the payload before the end of the predetermined period, and if so, it may adjust the rate of active ingredient supply to the user so that the remaining payload is sufficient until the end of the predetermined time period, thereby giving the user enough time to obtain a replacement before the payload is exhausted.

Thus, the EVPS may activate a payload saving mode in which payload consumption is adjusted if the user's consumption rate indicates that he is likely to use up the payload before a predetermined period of time has elapsed.

It is understood that the target quantity for the payload saving mode may be different from the user-specified target quantity. Therefore, for example, the user may set a target amount of 24 mg of nicotine per day as a voluntary limit. However, the target amount for the payload saving mode may be 10 mg per day. At the same time, the predetermined period of time during which the payload is saved may be one day, 10 hours, one hour, or any suitable period during which the user can be expected to be able to obtain an interchangeable payload for the EVPS.

Therefore, it is understood that, according to the respective criteria by which the predetermined starting point is selected, different time periods can be selected, with the period for the user-specified target amount potentially different from the period for the payload saving mode target amount.

In one embodiment of the present invention, payload concentration sensors can detect the concentration of an active ingredient in the payload. This is usually done by detecting a concentration indicator rather than by directly measuring the payload, although alternatively such a direct measurement could be done where appropriate.

By default, it can be assumed that the active ingredient concentration in the payload is a predetermined level, such as the level used by the manufacturer of a particular EVPS. However, alternatively, it could instead be a measured concentration level, for example, expressed by the presence or absence of electrical contacts on the payload container, setting a binary pattern corresponding to the concentration of the active ingredient, or the shape of the payload container area that interacts with sensors, such as switches in the EVPS, also setting a binary template corresponding to the concentration of the active ingredient. Alternatively or in addition, the concentration can be determined by referring to information on the packaging of the payload container, for example, reading a barcode or QR code by an application on a mobile device capable of reading active ingredient concentration information from a read code or from a data source, specified in the read code, and then independently use this information in case it is also used as a use time processor and / or regulation processor, or transmit this information to the EVPS in case the EVPS processor acts as a use time processor and / or control processor.

As noted earlier, the user may set a target amount and optionally also a predetermined period. Accordingly, the active ingredient adjustment system may comprise an input device adapted to receive an indication of the target amount from the user. This input device may be provided in the EVPS; for example, pressing a button may cycle through a plurality of predetermined targets, such as 10, 15, 20, and 30 mg, with a light on or a beep sounding when a new cycle occurs. The user can then set the target value with minimal user experience. Alternatively, or in addition, the mobile phone application may provide a richer user interface whereby the user may set a predetermined target value and optionally a predetermined time period, such as specifying a start time and an end time for an effective day.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the active ingredient adjustment system comprises a geo-location detector capable of detecting the geo-location of the EVPS. Usually, this is a GPS receiver. The GPS receiver may be part of the EVPS, or may be part of a remote device capable of wirelessly communicating with the EVPS, such as a mobile phone. In this latter case, it can be assumed that when the remote device communicates wirelessly with the EVPS, they are close enough to each other that the position of the remote device accurately represents the location of the EVPS. An alternative means of detecting a geographic location could be, for example, a country code in a mobile network signal.

The active ingredient adjustment system may set a target amount in response to a specific geographic location of the EVPS. Thus, the active ingredient regulation system may, for example, specify a maximum amount of the active ingredient consumed per day or per hour, etc., the maximum amount not exceeding the legal maximum in the country, state, or other legal entity corresponding to a certain geographic location. So, in principle, a user can use their EVPS as often as they like, knowing they won't break the law. This can be especially useful in countries or states where psychotropic drugs such as marijuana are legal, but where there are penalties for driving or doing other activities after consuming more than a certain amount of the drug or for exceeding a certain blood concentration of the drug.

It is also understood that by calculating and monitoring the rate of consumption, the active ingredient control system can detect if an effective dose of the drug is in the process of being consumed for a relatively short period of time, which may cause the user to temporarily exceed the legal limit (for example, if the user tries to inhale the daily allowance of the active ingredient over two hours), and reduce the amount of active ingredient given if the current consumption rate indicates that a dose can be received.

Therefore, more generally, in addition to adjusting the EVPS to reduce the rate at which the active ingredient is delivered to the user so that the user can reach (or not exceed) the target amount by a point in the future, the control processor may alternatively adjust the EVPS to to reduce the rate of active ingredient delivery to the user if it exceeds the threshold consumption rate. This threshold rate may be set by the user and/or may be limited based on predetermined legal requirements associated with the location of the EVPS (optionally either the location of sale or the location determined by the active ingredient control system).

As noted herein, it is understood that at least a usage time processor, throttling processor, or memory may be located on a device remote from the EVPS, such as a mobile phone, that communicates wirelessly with it, typically on a periodic basis.

Therefore, more generally, in an embodiment of the present invention, the EVPS 10 may comprise an active ingredient adjustment system, which in turn includes a payload usage sensor 61 capable of detecting the amount of payload being used, the active ingredient adjustment system adapted to to change the operation of the EVPS in response to control signals from a control processor adapted to change the operation of the EVPS to reduce the rate of delivery of the active ingredient to the user of the EVPS, if the time-of-use processor calculates the rate of delivery of the active ingredient, which will exceed the target amount of the active ingredient supplied EVPS for a given period having a given starting point.

The EVPS itself may comprise at least one regulation processor and a usage time processor, such as an EVPS 50 processor, operable under the control of an appropriate program instruction. Any components not included in the EVPS can be provided by a remote device in wireless communication with the EVPS as described in this document. The active ingredient and/or EVPS adjustment system may also include a memory adapted to store data indicative of a target amount of active ingredient to be delivered by the EVPS within a predetermined time period having a predetermined starting point.

Likewise, more generally, in an embodiment of the present invention, the mobile communication device 400 may include a wireless receiver 440 (e.g., Bluetooth®, WiFi®, etc.) adapted to receive data from an electronic vapor recovery system (EVPS) , indicating the amount of payload used by the user; and a wireless transmitter 440 (eg, Bluetooth®, WiFi®, etc.) adapted to transmit control data to the EVPS, and an active ingredient control system (eg, PC 410 operating under the control of a suitable programming instruction), in in turn, comprises a time-of-use processor (eg, a CPU 410 running a suitable program instruction) capable of calculating an active ingredient delivery rate to a user based on the amount of payload being used; and a control processor (e.g., a CPU 410 operable under the control of a suitable program instruction) adapted to generate control data to change the operation of the EVPS to reduce the active ingredient delivery rate to the user if the time-of-use processor calculates an active ingredient delivery rate that would result in exceeding the target value within a given period of time having a given starting point.

Turning now to FIG. 8, the method for adjusting the active ingredient of the electronic steam generation system comprises the following:

- in the first step s810 save data indicating the target amount of the active ingredient, which must be provided to the user through the EVPS within a predetermined period of time having a predetermined starting point;

- in the second step s820, the amount of payload in use is detected;

- in the third step s830 calculate the rate of supply of the active ingredient to the user, based on the amount of payload used; And

- in the fourth step s840, the operation of the EVPS is modified if the use time processor calculates an active ingredient delivery rate that would result in a target overshoot for a predetermined period to reduce the active ingredient delivery rate to the user.

It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that variations on the above method corresponding to different embodiments of the apparatus as described and claimed herein are contemplated within the scope of the present invention, including the following, but not limited to:

- the given starting point is the given time of day;

the method comprises the step of calculating the amount of active ingredient remaining in the EVPS and setting a starting point when the calculated amount is equal to the target amount;

the method comprises the step of detecting an active ingredient concentration in the payload and calculating an active ingredient delivery rate to the user based on the amount of payload used and the measured active ingredient concentration in the payload;

- the method comprises the step of detecting the geographic location of the EVPS, and

- setting the target amount depending on the specific geographic location of the EVPS; And

- at least one of the steps of calculating the rate of delivery of the active ingredient to the user and changing the operation of the electronic cigarette is performed using a device remote from the electronic cigarette and performing wireless communication with it.

It will be understood that the methods described above can be performed on conventional hardware appropriately adapted accordingly, either by means of software commands or by including or replacing special hardware.

Thus, the required adaptation to existing parts of a conventional equivalent device can be implemented as a computer program product containing processor-executable instructions stored on a permanent machine medium such as floppy disk, optical disk, hard disk, PROM, random access memory, flash memory. memory, or any combination of these or other storage media, or may be implemented in hardware, such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or other configurable circuit suitable for use in conventional equivalent device adaptation. Individually, such a computer program may be transmitted via data signals over a network such as Ethernet, a wireless network, the Internet, or any combination of these and other networks.

Claims (51)

1. An active ingredient adjustment system for an electronic vapor production system (EVPS), comprising: a memory for storing data indicative of a target amount of an active ingredient to be provided to a user by the EVPS within a predetermined time period having a predetermined starting point; a payload usage sensor configured to detect the amount of payload being used; a use time processor configured to calculate an active ingredient delivery rate to a user based on the amount of payload used; And a control processor configured to change the operation of the EVPS to reduce the active ingredient delivery rate to the user, when the time-of-use processor calculates the active ingredient delivery rate that results in a target overshoot for a predetermined period of time. 2. The system according to claim 1, comprising: timer; wherein the control processor is configured to set a start point when the timer is equal to a predetermined time. 3. The system according to claim 1 or 2, in which: the control processor is configured to calculate the amount of active ingredient remaining in the EVPS, and the control processor is configured to set a starting point if the calculated amount matches the target amount. 4. The system according to any one of paragraphs. 1-3, in which various predetermined periods are selected in accordance with the criterion according to which the predetermined starting point is selected. 5. The system according to any one of paragraphs. 1-4 containing: a payload concentration sensor configured to detect an active ingredient concentration in the payload; wherein the time-of-use processor is configured to calculate an active ingredient delivery rate to the user based on the amount of payload used and the measured active ingredient concentration in the payload. 6. The system according to any one of paragraphs. 1-5 containing: an input device configured to receive an indication of a target amount from a user. 7. The system according to any one of paragraphs. 1-6 containing: a geographic location detector configured to detect the geographic location of the EVPS; wherein the target amount is set depending on the specific geographic location of the EVPS. 8. The system according to any one of paragraphs. 1-7, in which: at least one of the usage time processor and the throttling processor is located on a device remote from and in wireless communication with the EVPS. 9. The system of claim. 8, in which the memory is located on the remote device. 10. Electronic steam production system (EVPS), containing an active ingredient adjustment system, in turn comprising: a payload usage sensor configured to detect the amount of payload being used; wherein the active ingredient adjustment system is configured to change the operation of the EVPS in response to control signals from the adjustment processor, configured to change the operation of the EVPS to reduce the rate of active ingredient delivery to the user of the EVPS, when the time of use processor calculates the rate of delivery of the active ingredient leading to exceeding the target the amount of active ingredient supplied to the EVPS during a given period having a given starting point. 11. The electronic steam generation system of claim 10, wherein the EVPS comprises at least one of a control processor and a usage time processor. 12. Mobile communication device, containing: a wireless receiver configured to receive data from an electronic steam generation system (EVPS) indicative of the amount of payload used by the user; And a wireless transmitter configured to transmit control data to the EVPS, and an active ingredient adjustment system, in turn comprising: a use time processor configured to calculate an active ingredient delivery rate to a user based on the amount of payload used; And a control processor configured to generate control data for changing the operation of the EVPS to reduce the rate of supply of the active ingredient to the user, when the time of use processor calculates the rate of supply of the active ingredient leading to exceeding the target value for a given period of time having a given starting point. 13. A method for adjusting the active ingredient of an electronic steam production system, comprising the steps of: storing data indicative of a target amount of the active ingredient to be provided to the user by the EVPS within a predetermined time period having a predetermined starting point; detecting the amount of payload used; calculating an active ingredient delivery rate to a user based on the amount of payload used; And changing the operation of the EVPS, when calculating, in the calculation step, the rate of delivery of the active ingredient, leading to exceeding the target value for a given period, to reduce the rate of delivery of the active ingredient to the user. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the predetermined start point is a predetermined time of day. 15. The method according to claim 13 or 14, comprising the steps of: the amount of active ingredient remaining in the EVPS is calculated, and specifying a starting point if the calculated amount matches the target amount. 16. The method according to any one of paragraphs. 13-15, containing the steps in which: detecting the concentration of the active ingredient in the payload; And calculating an active ingredient delivery rate to the user based on the amount of payload used and the measured active ingredient concentration in the payload. 17. The method according to any one of paragraphs. 13-16, containing the steps in which: detecting the geographic location of the EVPS; And setting a target amount depending on the specific geographic location of the EVPS. 18. The method according to any one of paragraphs. 13-17, wherein at least one of the steps of calculating an active ingredient delivery rate to a user and changing the operation of the electronic cigarette is performed by a remote device in wireless communication with the electronic cigarette. 19. A machine storage medium that stores computer-executable instructions causing execution, by a computer system, of a method according to any one of claims. 13-18.