RU2822585C2 - Electronic steam generation system with the possibility of optical wireless communication - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: electronic steam generation systems.

SUBSTANCE: group of inventions relates to an electronic steam generation system, a data transmission system for an electronic steam generation system, and a method for communication from an electronic steam generation system using optical communication. The electronic steam generation system comprises a light source configured to emit light and a controller comprising a data processor configured to generate transmission data. The controller is configured to control the light source to emit an optical signal for data transmission. The transmission data contains data related to at least one of: the use of an electronic steam generation system; unique identifier of the electronic system for obtaining steam and error codes; wherein the error codes include instructions for changing the operation of the electronic steam production system to overcome an error that has been identified in the electronic steam production system.

EFFECT: efficient and reliable communication of the data on electronic steam system usage, electronic steam system unique identifiers, and error codes is provided, whereby the error codes include commands to modify the operation of the electronic steam system to overcome the identified error.

16 cl, 5 dwg

Description

The present invention relates to a data transmission system and method for electronic vapor production systems, such as electronic nicotine delivery systems (eg, electronic cigarettes), using optical wireless communication.

State of the art

Electronic vapor systems, such as e-cigarettes and other aerosol systems, generally contain a reservoir of liquid to be vaporized, usually nicotine (sometimes called "e-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, eg ethanol or water, along with glycerin or propyleglycol to promote aerosol formation, and may also include one or more additional flavor additives. Those skilled in the art are aware of many different liquid formulations that can be used in electronic cigarettes and other such devices. The practice of inhaling liquid vapor is commonly known as “vaping.”

When using electronic steam systems, the device can collect information about the status of this system. This information may be useful to the user of an electronic vapor delivery system, such as an electronic nicotine delivery device ("END"), regarding information such as battery charge level, or information related to the remaining level of the nicotine source, such as number of puffs and/or or the value of the total duration of puffs. Some information may relate to error codes generated by the device or may be information useful to a user seeking to manage their nicotine addiction. Such information may also be useful to some form of administrator, for example by allowing the numbers and types of errors that occur to be logged. The inventors have developed approaches to access such information in a secure and energy-efficient manner.

Disclosure of the invention

Specific aspects and embodiments are set forth in the independent and dependent claims of the appended claims.

From one point of view, a device, system and method of communication from an electronic vapor production system using light communication, for example, an optical signal, is proposed.

In a certain approach, an electronic vapor production system is proposed, containing: a light source configured to emit light; and a controller comprising a data processor configured to generate transmission data, wherein the controller is configured to control a light source to emit an optical signal for transmitting data.

In other words, an electronic steam generation system is provided, comprising a light source and a controller configured to provide optical wireless communication by controlling the light source to transmit data collected by the electronic steam generation system using optical media such as visible, infrared and ultraviolet wavelengths.

Another specific approach proposes a system containing:

an electronic steam generation system comprising: a light source configured to emit light; and a controller comprising a data processor configured to generate transmission data, wherein the controller is configured to control a light source to emit an optical signal for transmitting data; And

a reading device comprising: an optical signal receiver configured to receive an optical signal emitted by an electronic steam generation system, and a data processor configured to interpret the received optical signal.

The optical signal receiver may include a light sensor. An optical signal is a machine-readable signal that encodes corresponding data. Thus, interpretation of the received optical signal can also be considered as decoding of the optical signal.

In another specific approach, a method is provided comprising the steps of: generating transmission data in an electronic steam generation system; emitting an optical signal to transmit data from the electronic steam generation system; receiving the emitted optical signal at the reading device; process the received optical signal to interpret the received data.

Brief description of drawings

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

In fig. 1 is a schematic representation (in parts) of an electronic cigarette in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

In fig. 2 is a schematic representation of the main electrical/electronic components of the electronic cigarette shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

In fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a reader in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

In fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a system consisting of an electronic steam generation system, a reader and a remote network service.

In fig. 5 is a block diagram of a light communication method between an electronic steam generation system and a reader, and between a reader and a remote network service.

Carrying out the invention

A data transmission system and method for an electronic vapor production system, such as electronic nicotine delivery systems (eg, electronic cigarettes), are disclosed. In the following description, a number of specific details are presented in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that these specific details are not necessary to practice the present invention. Rather, specific details known to one skilled in the art have been omitted where appropriate for clarity.

As described above, the present invention relates to a data transmission system and method for an electronic vapor system such as an electronic cigarette. In the following description, the term "electronic cigarette" is used; however, the expression may be used interchangeably with electronic vapor generation system, aerosol delivery device, and other similar technology.

The present invention describes an electronic cigarette configured to vaporize a liquid to form an aerosol by applying heat for a specific example. However, it should be understood that the methods disclosed herein are not limited to this technology. For example, in some implementations, an electronic cigarette is a heating article that releases one or more compounds by heating, but not burning, a substrate material. The substrate material is an aerosolizable material, which may be, for example, tobacco or other non-tobacco products that may or may not contain nicotine. In one embodiment, the heating device is a tobacco heating product. More generally, an electronic cigarette in accordance with the present invention is configured to aerosolize (by heat or any other suitable means) one or more aerosolizable materials, which may include liquid and/or solid components.

In fig. 1 is a schematic (not to scale) representation of an electronic cigarette 10 in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. The electronic cigarette includes a housing or control unit 20 and a cartomizer 30. The cartomizer 30 includes a liquid reservoir 38, typically including nicotine, a heater 36, and a mouthpiece 35. The electronic cigarette 10 has a longitudinal or cylindrical axis that extends along the centerline 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 with a dotted line indicated by LA.

The liquid reservoir 38 in the cartomizer may contain the liquid directly in liquid form, or it may employ some kind of absorbent structure such as a foam base or cotton wool, etc. as an element that retains liquid. Liquid is then supplied from reservoir 38 to be delivered to an evaporator containing heater 36. For example, liquid by capillary action may flow from reservoir 38 to heater 36 through a wick (not shown in FIG. 1).

The control unit 20 includes a rechargeable battery 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 disconnected from each other, as shown in FIG. 1, but they are connected to each other when the device 10 is in use, for example, using 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 a USB connector to charge the battery 54 in the control unit of the e-cigarette. 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 includes one or more air inlet openings located near PCB 28. These openings are connected to an air passage through the control unit to an air passage provided through connector 21A. It is then connected to an air passage through the cartomizer 30 to the mouthpiece 35. Note that the heater 36 and fluid reservoir 38 are configured to define an air passage between the connector 31B and the mouthpiece 35. This air passage may extend through the center of the cartomizer 30, the reservoir 38 for liquid is confined to an annular region around this central path. Alternatively (or in addition), the air passage may lie between the fluid reservoir 38 and the outer housing 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 inlet openings. This air flow (or corresponding change in pressure) is detected by a sensor, eg 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 air flow and nicotine vapor (actually an aerosol) then passes through the cartomizer 30 and is inhaled by the user through the mouthpiece 35. The cartomizer 30 can be disconnected from the control unit and disposed of when the supply of nicotine liquid is used up, or when the user wishes to change the vaporizer liquid and then replace with another cartomizer.

It will be understood that the electronic cigarette 10 shown in FIG. 1 is provided as an example only, and many other implementations can be adapted. For example, in some implementations, the cartomizer 30 is divided into a cartridge containing a liquid reservoir 38 and a separate evaporator containing a heater 36. In this configuration, the cartridge can be disposed of when the liquid reservoir 38 is empty, leaving a separate evaporator containing a heater 36. Alternatively, the electronic cigarette may include a cartomizer 30, as shown in FIG. 1, or can be made as a solid (single) device, but the reservoir 38 with liquid is made in the form of a replaceable cartridge. Other possibilities are that the heater 36 may be located at the opposite end of the cartomizer 30 from 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 a ring structure, which is located outside the heater 35 in the radial direction.

A person skilled in the art will also know 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 from connector 21A, in addition to or instead of the air flow entering near the PCB 28. In this case, the air flow is typically drawn towards the cartomizer along the passage between the battery 54 and the outer wall of the control box. Likewise, the control unit may include a PCB located at or near the end, eg between the battery and the end. This PCB can be installed in addition to or instead of PCB 28.

Moreover, the e-cigarette may support charging at the end 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 unit. (It is understood that some electronic cigarettes are designed as 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 as an example only. One 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 details of their physical placement within the control unit 20 or cartomizer 30. It is further understood that at least some of the components shown in fig. 2 located in the control unit 20 may be mounted on the circuit board 28. Alternatively, one or more of these components may be located on the control unit to operate in conjunction with the circuit board 28 without being physically located on the circuit board itself. For example, these components may be located on one or more additional circuit boards, or they may be located separately (such as battery 54).

As shown in FIG. 2, the cartomizer includes a heater 310 that receives energy through 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 that is located on or adjacent to the air path passing through the control unit 20 from the air inlet to the air outlet (to the cartomizer 30 via connector 21A). The sensor module includes a pressure sensor 62 and a temperature sensor 63 (also located on or adjacent to the air path). The control unit also includes a battery 54 and input and output devices 59, 58.

The actions 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 into the processor 50 itself or implemented as a separate component. The processor 50 may access the ROM to load individual programs as needed. Processor 50 also includes appropriate communications means, eg, pins or pads (plus associated software) for appropriate communication with other devices in control unit 20, such as pressure sensor 62.

The input device(s) 59 may take various forms. For example, the input device (or devices) may be implemented in the form of buttons on the outside of the electronic cigarette - for example, in the form of mechanical, electrical or capacitor (touch) sensors. Some devices may support supplying, or alternatively inhaling, air into the e-cigarette as an input mechanism (such air supply may be detected by pressure sensor 62, which in this case would also act as input device 59), and/or connection/ disconnecting the cartomizer 30 and the control unit 20 as a different type of input mechanism. Again, it will be understood 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 air flow from the air inlet through the electronic cigarette through the pressure sensor 62 and 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 inhalation based on the information from 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 e-liquid reservoir 38 so that it can be inhaled by the user.

To provide finer control of the amount of energy flowing from battery 54 to heater 310, a pulse width modulation (PWM) circuit using a field effect transistor can be used. Using PWM provides effective heater power, which is determined by the rated available power (based on battery output voltage and heater resistance) multiplied by the duty cycle. Processor 50, for example, may use a duty cycle of 1 (ie, full power) at the start of inhalation to bring heater 310 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 maintain the desired operating temperature of heater 310.

The output device 58 includes a light source configured to emit light. In one embodiment, output device 58 is a light-emitting diode (LED). The LED is controlled by a processor 50, also called a controller. The processor 50 controls the LED to emit an optical signal that the machine recognizes to transmit transmission data. Such transmission data may convey device status information collected by the end device and stored in data storage in processor 50. Such data may be collected by sensor unit 61.

A partial list of examples of device status data includes:

- Number of puffs (the number of aerosol delivery operations performed by the device, defined as the total number of operations for the device or operations since a changeover event such as inserting a new aerosol content cartridge)

- Puff Duration (average duration or total cumulative duration of aerosol delivery operations, usually over the same length of time as the Number of Puffs)

- Battery charges (number of battery charge/discharge cycles performed by the device)

- Average percentage of battery charge before charging (indicating the average percentage of charge at the start of charging)

- Overheat protection (number of times the device has triggered the overheat protection function)

- Error codes (any error codes currently indicated by the device and/or the history of error codes in the device)

- Puff Too Short (indicating aerosol delivery operations whose duration is below a threshold to ensure that aerosol content is actually delivered)

- Cartomizer used (indication of the cartridge with aerosol contents currently installed in the device)

- Number of puffs per power profile (number of aerosol delivery operations for each of a number of different power profiles, e.g. high, medium and low)

- Current power settings (indication of the current power settings that are currently set for use in the next aerosol production operation)

- Charge retention duration (indication of the length of time the device held a charge sufficient for aerosol delivery operations)

- Battery charge threshold before charging (indicating remaining battery charge expressed as percentage, waiting hours and/or number of aerosol deliveries at current power settings, etc.)

- Boot/operation time (s) (indication of the number of switching cycles and/or duration of the switched state)

- Product type (device type identifier)

- Batch number (device batch number identifier)

- Serial number (device serial number identifier)

- Duration of operation of the device (indication of the duration of the on state)

- Duration of device off state (indication of duration of off state)

- Device/coil temperature (indication of the current and/or history of the device temperature and/or the temperature of the heater coil used to generate the aerosol)

It will be appreciated that, depending on the requirements of the aerosol delivery device and/or the remote network service, a large amount of such data relating to the current and historical use/state of the device may be generated and used. For example, in a configuration where an application provided by a remote network service is associated with the successful operation of a device and providing error feedback to the user or administrator, data related to error codes, physical status (temperature, battery, uptime, etc.) ) and device identification (product, batch, serial number, etc.) can be highlighted or transmitted first.

The output device may include more than one LED, and the LEDs may be the same or different colors (or multi-colored). In the case of multi-color LEDs, different colors are obtained by switching on a red, green or blue LED, optionally with different relative brightnesses, to obtain corresponding relative color changes. Where red, green and blue LEDs are provided, a full range of colors is possible, whereas where only two of the three red, green and blue LEDs are provided, only the corresponding sub-range of colors can be obtained.

The light source does not have to emit only visible light. Any part of the light spectrum, such as ultraviolet (UV) or infrared (IR) light, can be used to emit an optical signal for data transmission. Accordingly, output device 58 may be an LED that emits ultraviolet or infrared light or any other light within the light spectrum. Accordingly, the device or unit for receiving transmitted light is equipped with a corresponding detector (ie, sensor unit 61) configured to detect wavelengths of at least the transmitted light.

Transmitting signals using infrared light provides an improved signal-to-noise ratio than using visible light. In addition, IR light is less affected by environmental conditions such as surrounding light sources, allowing it to be independent of the end device's environment during data transmission.

Output device(s) 58 may also provide tactile or audio output and may include, for example, a vibrator and/or a speaker. The output from the output device can be used to inform the user about various conditions or states of the e-cigarette, such as a low battery warning. Different output indications can be used to report different states or conditions. For example, if the output device 58 includes one or more visible light indicators, then different states or conditions may be represented using different colors, pulses of light or continuous light, pulses of different durations, etc. 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 58 is nearly empty.

It should be noted that this indication is different from the emission of an optical data signal generated by the processor 50. For example, the optical data signal is machine readable. The light source is configured to be binary switched on and off at a given frequency to generate an optical signal. The preset frequency may be set based on several factors, including but not limited to: the amount of data to be transmitted; required time to achieve data transfer; number of channels (for example, colors) used to transmit data; physical mechanism for achieving light pulsation; and the temporal resolution of the sensor unit. Thus, the target frequency is set taking into account at least these factors. For example, if only a few bits of data need to be transmitted, a relatively low-frequency pulse signal can be used. One skilled in the art can select the appropriate frequency and suitable output blocks 58 and sensor blocks 61 for a particular application.

The transmission data generated by the optical signal processor is also different from the LED control data to immediately indicate the status of the e-cigarette to the user. In some cases, the LEDs for the optical signal may be different from those that provide a visible indication to the user (especially if IR LEDs are used for the optical signaling). For example, after reaching a threshold number of puffs (eg, 2000 puffs taken since the cartridge was inserted), an LED emitting visible light may indicate to the user that optical signal(s) need to be sent, or that the cartridge needs to be replaced. The LED can then emit an optical signal that cannot be interpreted by the user (due to the high frequency) but can be read by an appropriate reader. Typical frequencies that cannot be detected/distinguished by the user may be on the order of 60 Hz or higher.

The reader may receive the optical signal to interpret the received optical signal. The reader device may be a mobile communication device 400 including a camera for detecting an optical signal. A typical mobile communication device 400 is shown in FIG. 3. Using optical signal transmission, the electronic cigarette can communicate with the mobile communication device 400.

Light sources, in particular visible light sources, are widely used in electronic vapor production systems. Therefore, there is no need to include additional components for wireless data transmission in the electronic steam generation system. This is particularly advantageous since electronic steam systems have limited space within the device and it is desirable for systems to be lightweight and compact. In other words, an electronic vapor system can use visible light to perform visible light communication.

Additionally, lights require less power to activate and control than other more complex types of wireless communication devices, such as Bluetooth or Wifi.

Unlike other types of wireless communication, communication using an optical signal, as in the present invention, does not require two-way communication. The electronic vapor generating device emits light representing an optical signal received by the reader. The electronic vapor receiving device itself does not need to receive anything from the reader to transmit the optical signal. Thus, with this unidirectional communication method, communication that is more secure from any viruses or external configuration can be achieved through wireless communication. Any malicious virus or unauthorized external configuration performed on the electronic steam device can be dangerous as it may cause the electronic steam system to overheat or even explode.

The reader can be a smartphone with a camera or a photoreceiving diode or any other device containing a photosensitive element for receiving an optical signal. Thus, it can be seen that the present invention uses pre-existing systems to provide optical communication, thereby providing a potentially universal communication route that can be implemented in most types of electronic vapor systems.

As can be seen in FIG. 3, a typical smartphone 400 includes a central processing unit (CPU) (410). The CPU may communicate with smartphone components, as appropriate, either through direct connections or through an I/O bridge 414 and/or bus 430.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, the CPU communicates directly with memory 412, which may include persistent memory, such as flash memory, to store the operating system and applications, and volatile memory, such as RAM, to store 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 plug-in memory, such as a microSD card, as well as subscriber data on a subscriber data module (SIM) (not shown).

The smartphone may also include a graphics processing unit (GPU) 416. The GPU may communicate with the CPU directly or through 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 organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display, but may be configured in accordance with any suitable display technology such as electronic ink. Optionally, the GPU can also be used to control one or more smartphone speakers 420.

Alternatively, the speaker can be connected to the CPU via an I/O bridge and 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 to receive speech from the user, one or more cameras 436 to capture images, a module 438 global positioning system (GPS) for obtaining an estimate of the geographic position of the smartphone and a means 440 of wireless communication.

The wireless communications facility 440 may in turn comprise multiple separate wireless communications systems conforming to different standards and/or protocols, such as Bluetooth® (standard or low energy), near field communication and Wi-Fi®, as well as telephony. , such as 2G, 3G and/or 4G.

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

It is understood that different smartphones may include different features (such as a compass or buzzer) and may not include some of those listed above (such as a touch surface).

Thus, more generally, in an embodiment of the present invention, a suitable reader device, such as a smartphone 400, will include a CPU and memory for storing and running the application, a light sensor, such as a camera, for receiving an optical signal emitted by the aerosol delivery device, output means for providing a user with an interpretation of the optical signal; and wireless communication means for accessing a remote network service. However, it will be understood that the remote device may be a device that has such capabilities, such as a tablet, laptop, smart TV, or the like.

In fig. 4 shows a system including an electronic cigarette 10, a mobile communication device 400 such as a smartphone, tablet, laptop, smart watch, etc., and a remote network service.

As can be seen in FIG. 4, the output device 58, which contains a light source as described above, of the electronic cigarette 10 emits light so as to generate an optical signal that is received by the smartphone camera 436. 400. Such communication may be used for a wide variety of purposes, such as to extract usage data and/or diagnostic data from the electronic cigarette 10.

The mobile communication device 400 may communicate with the remote network service 1300 through the base station 1100, using mobile data to connect to the Internet 1200 and then to the remote network service 1300, or through a Wi-Fi® hotspot (not shown) to connect directly to the Internet 1200 and then to the remote network service 1300.

The smartphone 400 may run an application (this may be another suitable mobile communication device such as a tablet, laptop, smart watch, etc.) to facilitate downloading or accessing data to/from the remote network service 1300 .

The remote network service 1300 contains various databases, which include, for example, messages corresponding to various optical signals, information about each user and about the electronic steam receiving device.

Thus, the smartphone 400 may interpret the received optical signal data by accessing the decoding database of the remote network service 1300. For example, the corresponding optical signal data may be associated with a message or information that the optical signal data represents. The smartphone 400 can then present on its display interpretable information about the received optical signal in a user-readable form.

In fig. 5 is a block diagram of a light communication method between an electronic steam generation system and a reader, and between a reader and a remote network service.

At step 111, the reader device, such as the smartphone 400, receives the initial optical signal from the electronic vapor acquisition system on the light sensor, such as the camera 436, of the smartphone 400. The initial optical signal, which acts as a header, marks the beginning of the main optical signal. Using the initial optical signal, the reader can discern the main part of the optical signal, which actually includes information related to the state of the electronic vapor generating device. The initial optical signal and the main optical signal can be sent sequentially. The electronic steam system can automatically emit an optical signal if the electronic steam system detects an error. In other cases, the emission of the optical signal can be initiated by the user by configuring the electronic support system. For example, an input element of the electronic steam system, such as mechanical buttons, may be switched to cause the emission of an optical signal related to various electronic system information.

At step 112, the reader additionally receives a primary optical signal from the electronic steam generation system.

The reader may be configured to prompt the user, prior to step 112, to enter into the reader to confirm that the user has permission to receive the optical signal. For example, the initial optical signal may include identification of the electronic steam generation system. The user may register the electronic steam receiving system with the remote network service 1300 such that the user is provided with an authentication message. The user may then be asked to provide an authentication message before accessing the interpretation of the received optical signal. Thus, instead of providing the interpreted optical signal data information to the arbitrary optical signal receiving device 400, only the verified user of the electronic steam system receives such interpretation and can access services related to the electronic steam system in the remote network service. 1300.

At step 113, the reader may contact the remote network service to interpret the optical signal. For example, a reader may access a remote network service database to match optical signal data with a corresponding message to interpret the received optical signal.

At step 114, the reader 400 is configured to present interpreted information of the received optical signal to an output device of the reader. For example, an optical signal can transmit error codes for an electronic steam system. The error code may also include instructions to change the operation of the electronic steam system to overcome an error that has been identified in the electronic steam system. Such instructions may be output by reader 400 as graphic/audio output.

The application may operate on the reader 400 to assist in detecting and filtering any noise in the received optical signal to better receive the optical signal data. The application may also provide a convenient interface for the user to access additional data. For example, since the electronic steam system has limited space, the user cannot be given much control over what data is transmitted via the associated optical signal. In this case, all data can be transmitted to the reader 400 via an optical signal and loaded into a remote network service database, and the user can then navigate the database to access the relevant data using the application interface.

In some embodiments, the remote network service may be configured to automatically order new cartridges when the total duration of puffs or the number of puffs reaches a threshold.

The reader can initiate various other actions depending on the information contained in the received data. For example, if the received data is an error code indicating what error has occurred in the electronic steam system, then the corresponding error message may be displayed on the reader along with possible configuration that the user must perform to correct the error. Next, depending on the error code, it is possible to contact the administrator of the remote network service 1300. This administrator may be the support service of the supplier and/or manufacturer of the electronic steam system.

Data related to electronic steam system error codes may be particularly useful to the administrator of the remote network service 1300. For example, the administrator can obtain a real-time overview and history of any failures experienced by various types of electronic steam systems. In addition, users are provided with immediate response or assistance as soon as an error occurs in the electronic steam system, which provides a more reliable electronic steam system without requiring significant modifications to the existing electronic steam system.

The acquired data, which represents information related to the state of the electronic steam generation system, can also be loaded into a database assigned to a user of the electronic steam generation system.

Data transmission using an optical signal provides unidirectional communication. It should be noted that bidirectional communication (for example, to reset or unlock the e-cigarette, or to control the settings of the e-cigarette) can be achieved using a wired connection, for example, by connecting via a USB connection using a micro, mini or regular USB connector in an electronic cigarette.

The USB connection 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 the electronic cigarette to an external system, such as a remote network service. The downloaded data may, for example, be e-cigarette usage parameters, malfunctions, etc. As is 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).

Note that many electronic cigarettes already provide support for a USB interface so that the electronic cigarette can be charged. Accordingly, the additional use of such a wired interface to also provide data transmission is understandable. Additionally, communication using optical signals can be achieved through the use of an e-cigarette output device, which some devices may already have. It is very effective to use an existing e-cigarette component, in particular a component that is present in most e-cigarettes. Even when using IR LED, the optical signal consumes less power than other forms of wireless communication such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. This results in a more energy efficient communication method. Additionally, LEDs are easier to control than via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. Accordingly, a simpler product is provided.

Since wired communication is more secure than wireless communication, and wireless communication is achieved through unidirectional communication, it provides more secure communication. In other words, they exclude the possibility of any external interference or the penetration of viruses through wireless communications. Such external interference or virus may be dangerous because the e-cigarette may be configured so that heat control is not achieved or the heater is turned on when the user is not using the e-cigarette.

It should be noted that a wireless connection can be beneficial since the user does not need additional cables to create such a connection. In addition, the user has greater flexibility in terms of movement, connection establishment and range of pairing devices. Thus, the user can be provided with both wired and wireless communication capabilities.

To address various problems and advance the prior art, this disclosure illustrates by example various embodiments by which the invention can be practiced. The advantages and features of the disclosure are merely representative examples of embodiments and are not exhaustive and/or exclusive. They are presented only to promote understanding and convey the ideas of the claimed invention. It is understood that the advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures and/or other aspects of the disclosure should not be construed as limiting the disclosure set forth by the claims or limitations on equivalent claims, and that without departing from the scope of the claims, other embodiments and make modifications. Various embodiments may suitably contain, consist of, or be substantially composed of various combinations of described elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc., other than those described herein. The invention may include other inventions not expressly claimed but which may be claimed in the future.

Claims (17)

1. An electronic steam generating system (10) comprising a light source configured to emit light, and a controller (50) comprising a data processor configured to generate transmission data, wherein the controller (50) is configured to control the light source , for emitting an optical signal for transmitting data, the transmission data comprising data related to at least one of: use of an electronic steam generation system; unique identifier of the electronic steam receiving system and error codes; wherein the error codes include instructions to change the operation of the electronic steam system to overcome an error that has been identified in the electronic steam system. 2. The electronic steam generation system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission data is based on data relating to the electronic steam generation system (10) retrieved from the data storage of the electronic steam generation system (10). 3. Electronic steam generation system (10) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the light source comprises an infrared light-emitting diode. 4. Electronic system (10) for generating steam according to any one of claims. 1-3, in which the light source is configured to turn on and off at a predetermined frequency to emit an optical signal. 5. Electronic system (10) for generating steam according to any one of claims. 1-4, in which the optical signal contains a leading part and a main part. 6. Electronic steam receiving system (10) according to claim 5, in which the initial part starts the authentication process. 7. Electronic system (10) for generating steam according to any one of claims. 1-6, in which the emission of an optical signal is started when the electronic vapor generation system satisfies a condition. 8. The electronic steam generation system (10) according to claim 7, wherein the condition includes at least one of: an error in the electronic steam generation system is identified; and upon reaching a usage data threshold, wherein the usage data includes at least one of: number of puffs, total duration of puffs. 9. Electronic system (10) for generating steam according to any one of claims. 1-6, in which the emission of the optical signal is manually initiated by the user. 10. Data transmission system for an electronic steam generation system, containing: electronic system (10) for generating steam according to any one of claims. 1-9 and a reading device (400) containing an optical signal receiver (436), configured to receive an optical signal emitted by the electronic steam generation system (10), and a data processor (410), configured to interpret the received optical signal. 11. The system of claim 10, wherein the data processor (410) is configured to access the remote network service (1300). 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the data processor (410) is configured to interpret the received optical signal by correlating the received optical signal with a corresponding message in the remote network service database (1300). 13. The system of claim 11 or 12, wherein the data processor (410) is configured to update a remote database for collecting data in the remote network service (1300). 14. The system according to any one of paragraphs. 10-13, in which the reader includes display means (418) configured to present interpreted optical signal information to the user. 15. The system according to any one of paragraphs. 11-14, wherein the remote network service (1300) is configured to update a database related to a user based on the received optical signal data. 16. A method of communication from an electronic steam generation system using optical communication, comprising the steps of: generating transmission data in the electronic steam generation system (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 9; emit an optical signal to transmit data from the electronic system (10) for generating steam; receiving the emitted optical signal at the reading device (400); process the received optical signal to interpret the received data.