WO2024254737A1

WO2024254737A1 - Device and method for dispensing, in particular for vaporizing, volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances, and heating element

Info

Publication number: WO2024254737A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/099717
Authority: WO
Inventors: David Dycher; Harold Augier; Jianhui REN; Min Luo; Hong Wei
Original assignee: ZHONGSHAN CTR HOUSEHOLD TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Current assignee: ZHONGSHAN CTR HOUSEHOLD TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Priority date: 2023-06-12
Filing date: 2023-06-12
Publication date: 2024-12-19
Anticipated expiration: 2025-12-12

Abstract

The invention relates to a device (1) for dispensing, in particular vaporizing, volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances, with a housing, with at least one container (2) in which a substance to be dispensed and/or volatilized is received, with the container (2) having a wick (3), preferably in the form of a capillary element, which projects out of the container (2) with a free wick end (4) and by means of which the substance to be dispensed is conveyable out of the container (2) into the region of the free wick end (4), with a heating device (17) generating heat with which at least part of the free wick end (4) is heatable, with a, preferably pure, first air flow (15) being enriched with the substance discharged from the free wick end (4) in order to form a substance-enriched air flow (23), with the housing (6) having a first housing outlet opening (26) for the substance-enriched air flow (23) to be dispensed, with the housing (6) having a second housing outlet opening (27) which is arranged at a distance from the first housing outlet opening (26) and which surrounds the first housing outlet opening (26) at least partially, preferably completely, with a, preferably pure, second air flow flowing (16) towards the second housing outlet opening (27), so that at least a part of the second air flow (16), preferably at least a predominant part of the second air flow (16), most preferably substantially the entire second air flow (16), flows via the second housing outlet opening (27) out of the housing (6) and/or into the environment, preferably in such a way that the second air flow (16) surrounds the substance-enriched air flow (23) at least initially.

Description

Device and method for dispensing, in particular for vaporizing, volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances, and heating element

The invention relates to a device for dispensing, in particular for vaporizing, volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances, according to the preamble of claim 1 and a method for dispensing volatile substances according to claim 41.

Devices for dispensing volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances, are generally known and used to distribute a liquid active substance, such as a perfume, insecticide or other substance. The liquid or volatile substances to be dispensed are regularly held in a container which is inserted into a housing of the device in order to guide the substance via a wick to a heating device in order to heat the free wick end and to evaporate the substance. These delivery systems do quite often have a poor performance, especially as regards the distribution of the substance in rooms and here especially in larger rooms.

It is therefore an object of the invention to create a device and a method for dispensing, in particular for vaporizing, volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances, with which the substance can be dispensed into a room in a functionally safe and reliable manner with a high performance.

This object is solved with the features of the independent patent claims. Advantageous embodiments are the subject of the related subclaims.

According to claim 1, a device for dispensing, in particular vaporizing, volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances, comprises:

- a housing,

- at least one container in which a substance to be dispensed and/or volatilized is received,

- with the container having a wick, preferably in the form of a capillary element, which projects out of the container with a free wick end and by means of which the substance to be dispensed is conveyable out of the container into the region of the free wick end,

- with a heating device generating heat with which at least part of the free wick end is heatable and/or comprising a heater and a wick recess for receiving the free wick end,

- with a, preferably pure, first air flow being enriched with the substance discharged from the free wick end in order to form a substance-enriched air flow,

- with the housing having a first housing outlet opening for the substance-enriched air flow to be dispensed,

- with the housing having a second housing outlet opening which is arranged at a distance from the first housing outlet opening and which surrounds the first housing outlet opening at least partially, preferably completely,

- with a, preferably pure, second air flow flowing towards the second housing outlet opening, so that at least a part of the second air flow, preferably at least a predominant part of the second air flow, most preferably substantially the entire second air flow, flows via the second housing outlet opening out of the housing and/or into the environment, preferably in such a way that the second air flow surrounds the substance-enriched air flow at least initially.

With such a design, a second, preferably pure, air flow thus flows out of the housing into the environment at essentially the same point as the first substance-enriched air flow, whereby the second air flow also -and this is an essential point -surrounds the first substance-enriched air flow at least initially, so that only at a certain plume height (defined as the height, viewed in the vertical axis direction, above the housing outlet openings) turbulence does take place with the result that the substance is released into the room at a great height. In other words, the substance is released at a much greater height than in a device in which only the first substance-enriched air flow exits the housing, which significantly increases the effectiveness and efficiency of the device itself and, above all, customer acceptance. In this context, a device in which the second air flow completely surrounds the first air flow, or at least surrounds it by more than 180°, preferably by more than 270°, is particularly advantageous.

These advantages are particularly obtained by means of a particularly preferred design, as described in more detail below:

- the housing is designed as a hollow body, which has a cavity in its interior as a housing interior,

- with the housing having a housing interior separating element, preferably a housing inner wall, arranged in the housing interior and dividing the housing interior, in relation to its vertical axis direction, into an upper housing section and a lower housing section,

- with the housing interior separating element having a mounting dome extending upwards into the upper housing section as seen in the vertical axial direction, with the mounting dome having a mounting opening open towards the lower housing section,

- with the mounting dome receiving the container at and/or via the mounting opening and holding it releasably in the mounting dome by means of a holding device,

- with the mounting dome receiving at least part of the heating device at its upper part and thus above the container, as seen in the vertical axial direction,

- with the heating device comprising a heater and a wick recess,

- with the wick recess having a heater inflow opening and a heater outflow opening, the free wick end projecting into the wick recess at least partially and in such a way that an air gap running ring-shaped around the free wick end forms a heater air flow channel, into which the, preferably pure, first air flow, which comes from the lower housing section and enters the mounting dome via the mounting opening, flows in via the heater inflow opening and, enriched with the substance discharged from the free wick end, flows to the heater outflow opening, where it flows out as a substance-enriched air flow,

- with the heater, in the activated state of the heating device, generating heat with which at least that part of the free wick end which is received in the wick recess is heatable,

- with the first housing outlet opening being arranged, preferably with a gap distance, directly adjacent to, preferably in the direction of the vertical axis directly above, the heater outflow opening of the heater air flow channel, so that at least a predominant part of the substance-enriched air flow, preferably substantially the entire substance-enriched air flow, flows from the heater outflow opening to the first housing outlet opening and from there out of the housing and/or into the environment,

- with the housing interior separating element comprising at least one vent opening, preferably at least one vent opening at least partially surrounding said mounting dome, so that the, preferably pure, second air flow is able to flow from said lower housing section into said upper housing section through said at least one vent opening and, preferably along the outside of the mounting dome, in the vertical axis direction upwards towards the second housing outlet opening, so that at least a part of the second air flow, preferably at least a predominant part of the second air flow, most preferably substantially the entire second air flow, flows via the second housing outlet opening out of the housing and/or into the environment, preferably in such a way that the second air flow surrounds the substance-enriched air flow at least initially,

- with a, preferably pure, primary air flow flowing into the lower housing section of the housing interior via at least one housing inlet opening, where the primary air flow splits, preferably autonomously, into the first air flow flowing through the mounting opening and the second air flow flowing through the at least one vent opening.

Such a design is also characterized in particular by its compactness, which makes it possible to produce relatively small-scale devices with high substance delivery efficiency.

A (mounting) dome is understood here as a raised structure in the manner of a cupola, for example a hemispherical curved and/or convex geometry. Such a cupola-shaped dome structure can, but does not necessarily have to, have a round outer circumference, i.e. it can also have an angular outer circumference if necessary. A spherical shape is also not mandatory; other curved and/or convex geometries can also be provided, as long as they are suitable for accommodating the heating device in their interior in the desired manner.

According to another preferred embodiment the housing interior separating element is formed by at least one housing inner wall, which is characterized by simple manufacturing and compactness.

According to another preferred embodiment the housing comprises a housing bottom wall on its underside. This housing bottom wall is preferably spaced from at least part of the housing inner wall in the vertical axis direction. According to another preferred embodiment it is also advantageous when the housing bottom wall defines a standing surface and has a wall region which is set back with respect to this standing surface in the direction of the housing interior and in which the at least one housing inlet opening, preferably a plurality of housing inlet openings, is formed. Said plurality of housing inlet openings are preferably arranged on the set-back wall region in a ring shape and at a distance from one another.

According to another preferred embodiment the housing bottom wall forms a removable lower housing part which, when removed from a single or multi-piece top housing part, provides a fast and easy access to the lower housing section and thus to the mounting opening of the top housing part.

According to another preferred embodiment the container has a neck as an outlet opening designed in the manner of a pipe socket and/or in the manner of a bottle neck, with the wick projecting out of the neck of the container. With this embodiment, it is very easy for the mounting dome to receive the neck of the container at least partially, preferably completely, and to hold it releasably in the mounting dome by means of the holding device, with the neck of the container being insertable into the mounting dome via the mounting opening. Particularly preferred in this context is also an embodiment which provides that the holding device for releasably holding the container in the mounting dome is formed by a plurality of snap hooks forming the mounting opening, which snap hooks, in the inserted state of the container, are arranged annularly and spaced apart from one another around the neck of the container so that the first air flow is able to flow through the snap hooks in the direction of the heater inflow opening. Particularly preferred in this context is further an embodiment which provides that the snap hooks engage with respective latching projections behind a retaining region of the neck of the container or engage in a retaining region of the neck of the container. In this context, it is further advantageous if the neck of the container has on its outer side an at least sectionally, preferably annular, circumferential bead or an at least sectionally, preferably annular, circumferential groove as retaining region.

According to another preferred embodiment the container and the heating device in their assembled state have a gap distance between the heater inflow opening and the top of the container, in particular between the heater inflow opening and the neck of the container, through which the first air flow passes in the direction of the heater inflow opening. This allows an unrestricted flow of the first air flow into the wick recess.

According to another preferred embodiment, the first housing outlet opening is formed by a single hole, preferably by a round or angular or cornered hole. Additionally or alternatively, it can be provided that the second housing outlet opening is formed by a single slit-shaped or circular opening surrounding the first housing outlet opening at least partially, preferably completely, or by a plurality of spaced-apart openings, preferably round or angular or cornered openings, surrounding the first housing outlet opening at least partially, preferably completely. All the geometries just mentioned provide openings with which the objective of the invention can be achieved in a particularly simple and effective manner.

For a particularly effective guidance of the second air flow, it is advantageous if the upper housing section has a flow channel wall which surrounds the mounting dome at least partially and with a gap spacing such that the at least one vent opening opens into a flow channel which guides the second air flow from the at least one vent opening between the flow channel wall and the outside of the mounting dome upwards in the vertical axial direction towards the second housing outlet opening.

For an easily manufacturable and compact design, it is also advantageous if the upper part of the mounting dome which receives the heating device has or forms the wick recess. For the same purpose it can be additionally or alternatively provided that the upper part of the mounting dome which receives the heating device, is built from several parts and comprises a heater bottom cover and a heater top cover, which in the assembled state comprise or form the wick recess.

According to a particularly preferred embodiment the wick recess is formed by an elongate, thin-walled and cylindrical heater tube forming also the heater, preferably enveloping in a shell-like and/or skin-like manner the region of the free wick end received therein. The inventors found out that such a heater tube can be used to provide a sufficient heat supply to a free end of the wick, which is readily capable of producing a substance-enriched air flow which, when discharged into the environment or into a room, achieves a sufficient plume height, thereby further ensuring an effective discharge of substance into the environment or into the room. The inventors believe, without being bound by this theory, that this is due to the fact that, in contrast to the conventional massive heating blocks, a more targeted and direct heat release to the area of the free wick end to be heated takes place, thus avoiding heat losses as they inevitably occur when heating massive heating blocks.

Another significant advantage of the elongated, thin-walled and cylindrical heater tubes according to the invention is that they can be heated to a desired temperature very quickly, which results in a very fast response of the device as a whole. This has a very beneficial effect on the performance of the device as a whole.

Due to the significantly reduced mass of the heater tube compared to conventional massive heating blocks, it can also be manufactured at a much lower cost without sacrificing quality.

Thin-walled in the sense of the present invention thus means here a tube which, viewed in the longitudinal direction of the tube, has a large extension, while the tube wall forming the tube has, in contrast, a significantly smaller extension or wall thickness. Accordingly, the wall thickness of the tube is small or very small compared to the length of the tube viewed in the longitudinal direction of the tube.

In order to achieve a compact design which is easy to manufacture it is advantageous when the heater tube is held, preferably clamped, between the heater bottom cover and the heater top cover.

For forming the elongated and thin-walled heater tube, it has proved to be particularly advantageous if the ratio between the wall thickness of the heater tube and its length, for forming the elongated and thin-walled heater tube, is at least 1: 5, preferably 1: 5 to 1: 100, most preferably 1: 10 to 1: 50. With these values, the above advantages can be achieved in a particularly simple and functionally reliable manner.

This applies analogously to a further particularly preferred embodiment, according to which it is provided that the thin-walled heater tube has a wall thickness, preferably a wall thickness which is constant in the circumferential direction, of from 0.5mm to 5.0mm, preferably from 0.5mm to 3.0mm, most preferably from 0.5mm to 2.0mm.

And further this applies analogously also to a particularly preferred embodiment, according to which it is provided that the heater tube has a length of from 5.0mm to 30.0mm, preferably from 7.5mm to 25.0mm, most preferably from 7.5mm to 20.0mm.

The cylindrical heater tube can in principle have any suitable or desired cross-sectional geometry, i.e., for example also an angular, in particular polygonal, cross-sectional geometry, which may also depend on the external geometry of the free wick end. However, a particularly preferred embodiment -in particular also for reasons of production technology and/or for reasons of a conventional, circular-cylindrical outer geometry of the free wick end -is one in which the heater tube has a circular-cylindrical outer circumference and/or a circular-cylindrical inner circumference. And in this context, an embodiment having a circular cylindrical outer circumference and a circular cylindrical inner circumference with the same wall thickness throughout in the circumferential direction is preferred. Such a shape of the heater tube can be produced in a particularly simple and functionally reliable manner.

For simple and functionally reliable manufacture, which can also be carried out inexpensively, it is also particularly advantageous if the heater tube has an identical cross-section on the inside and/or on the outside which is continuous in the longitudinal direction. Particularly in the event that flow velocities or special inflow conditions may have to be taken into account, however, it is also possible for the heater tube to have areas with different cross sections on the inside and/or on the outside, relative to the longitudinal direction.

In principle, the heater tube can be heated in different ways. For example, the heater tube can be made of a heat-conducting material, preferably a plastic material or a ceramic material or a metal material, which is coupled to at least one electrical heating element, in particular to at least one electrical resistance element as heating element. Particularly preferred, however, is an embodiment in which the heater tube is a micro ceramic heater, also known as MCH heater. Such a micro ceramic heater is a heater in which for example a tungsten resistor (heating element) is bonded with a ceramic sheet that has excellent heat resistance and insulation, furthermore a quick temperature rise and good response.

Particularly preferred, however, is an embodiment in which the at least one electrical heating element is coupled to a control device by means of which the heating device is activatable and/or deactivatable in a controlled manner for heating the heater tube, preferably coupled to a main-PCB and/or a heater-PCB, by means of which the heating process is controlled or regulated. Furthermore, it can be provided that the control device in form of a heater-PCB is part of the mounting dome, preferably arranged at the heater bottom cover of the mounting dome, and further connected to a main-PCB, which is also located in the housing interior, preferably in a separate chamber of the housing interior.

The at least one electrical resistance element is preferably suitable and designed to heat the inner surface of the heater tube facing the free wick end to 150℃ to 250℃within 20 to 35 seconds. This enables rapid heating of the heater tube within a very short time, which in turn has a positive effect on the heating of the free wick end and the flow rate of the substance-enriched air flow, which flows off the device at an optimized and desired plume height.

According to another preferred embodiment the heater tube is, with respect to its radial direction, surrounded on its outer side at least partially, preferably completely, by a further tubular element, preferably made of metal, with a gap distance. In particular, it is preferred that the heater tube is, with respect to its radial direction, surrounded on its outer side with a gap distance by a metal ring as a tubular element, which is clamped between the heater bottom cover and the heater top cover of the upper part of the mounting dome. The material of the tubular element is preferably steel, most preferably a stainless steel. Preferably, the tubular element is used to receive heat from the heater, which heater is preferably a micro ceramic heater. Preferably, the tubular element is connected to a TCO to monitor the temperature of the heater. TCO means "Thermal Cut-Off" and represents a safety feature built into the heating device to prevent overheating and potential hazards. It is designed to automatically shut off the heater's power supply when it reaches a certain temperature threshold.

A particularly advantageous embodiment, which favours the formation of a uniform air gap, provides that the free wick end has a circular-cylindrical outer circumference and the wick recess has a circular-cylindrical inner circumference. This also applies if the free wick end is accommodated approximately centrally and/or centred in the wick recess and the air gap surrounds the free wick end ring-shaped and with a substantially equal gap width.

The air gap surrounding the free wick end plays a key role in substance delivery via the free wick end, which projects into the heater tube. The inventors found out that, depending on the specific application, very good substance delivery to the air flow in the air gap results if the air gap surrounding the free wick end has at least a gap width of 0.5mm to 5.0mm at any point, preferably of 1.0mm to 4.0mm, most preferably of 2.0mm to 3.0mm, at each location.

According to another preferred embodiment, the edge area forming the first housing outlet opening is bent outwards away from the housing in a chimney-like manner. This favours the flow away from the housing.

A particularly simple and advantageous way of influencing the outflow velocity can also be achieved with a design in which it is provided that the heater outflow opening is built in the form of an outlet nozzle tapering in the direction of the first housing outlet opening, with the nozzle opening forming a tapered heating outflow opening. With such an outlet nozzle, in particular, a considerably higher temperature can be provided in this outflow and discharge area of the device, in which on the one hand the substance-enriched air flow flows along the inside of the heater respectively the outlet nozzle and on the other hand the second air flow flows at least along the outside of the outlet nozzle in the direction of the first housing outlet opening. In this way, both flows are heated to a sufficiently high temperature so that a stable performance of the device is achieved in terms of plume height and substance output into the room, without any unwanted condensation of the evaporated substance. The inventors believe, without being bound to this theory, that this is due to the fact that the provision of an outlet nozzle and of sufficient heat increases the flow velocity of the air flows in order to achieve a tall plume height. This helps to prevent condensation.

Particularly preferred in this context is an embodiment in which it is provided that the tapering of the heater outflow opening, viewed in the vertical axis direction, begins at a defined distance above the free wick end, preferably in such a way that the free wick end is received in a cylindrical section of the heater, which is adjoined by the tapered section of the outlet nozzle.

Although said outlet nozzle can be an integral part of the heater, it is particularly preferred that the outlet nozzle is a separate nozzle element which directly adjoins the heater, i.e. in direct heat transfer contact with the heater. Preferably, said outlet nozzle element is formed from a heat conductive material, preferably from a metal, most preferably from a light metal (like for example aluminium) . Such a design can easily be made by, for example, connecting a separate cylindrical nozzle element made of, for example, aluminium directly to a cylindrical heater, which makes it easy to achieve very good heat conduction and heat transfer between the two components.

Preferably, said outlet nozzle is arranged on the upper part of the mounting dome.

The air flow is preferably generated by an air flow generating device, preferably a fan, by means of which air, in particular ambient air, is conveyable into the housing interior, preferably in order to generate the primary air flow. At this point, it should be expressly mentioned and clarified that the term "air" in the context of the present invention idea is to be expressly understood in a broad and comprehensive sense and is also intended to include gases other than ambient air, for example gases which can be delivered via a separate gas cartridge, although it is preferred that ambient air is for example drawn or sucked in by means of the air flow generating device. The air flow generating device is preferably formed by at least one fan. Such a fan is eminently suitable for generating the desired air flow. Moreover, such a fan is functionally reliable in operation and inexpensive to purchase and manufacture.

According to a particularly preferred specific embodiment, the air flow generating means is housed in the housing and draws in air from outside the housing, preferably in the lower housing section of the housing interior. This results in an overall compact design of the device.

The advantages resulting from the method according to the invention correspond identically to those of the device, so that in this respect reference is made to the explanations previously given.

The invention is explained in more detail below by way of example only, with reference to drawings.

It shows:

Fig. 1 a schematic sectional drawing of an exemplary embodiment of a device for dispensing volatile substances according to the invention,

Fig. 2 an enlarged detailed view of an upper part of the mounting dome according to Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 an enlarged view of the first and second housing outlet openings,

Fig. 4 an enlarged view of details of the heating device,

Fig. 5 an enlarged view of the bottom wall with a plurality of housing inlet openings.

Figure 1 shows a schematic sectional drawing of an exemplary embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention for dispensing volatile substances, such as fragrances and/or active substances, which has a container 2 in which a substance to be dispensed, which is not shown in more detail here, is accommodated.

As can be further seen from Figure 1, the container 2, also referred to as a refill, has a wick 3, which is designed here as a capillary element and protrudes from the container 2 with a free wick end 4. By means of this wick 3, the substance to be dispensed can be conveyed by capillary action from the container 2 into the region of the free wick end 4. As can be further seen from Figure 1, the container 2 has a neck 5 from which the free wick end 4 protrudes. The neck 5 is formed here in the manner of a pipe socket and/or in the manner of a bottle neck and serves to detachably connect the container 2 to a housing 6 of the device 1 in a manner to be described later on. The wick 3 is only exemplarily held in the neck 5 by means of a wick holder 47.

The housing 6 is designed as a hollow body, which has a cavity in its interior as a housing interior 7.

The housing 6 has here exemplarily a one-piece or multi-piece housing inner wall 8 as housing interior separating element, arranged in the housing interior 7 and dividing the housing interior 7, in relation to its vertical axis direction, into an upper housing section 9 and a lower housing section 10. The direction of the vertical axis is to be understood in all drawings with reference to Figure 1 and is designated x.

The housing inner wall 8 has a mounting dome 11 extending upwards into the upper housing section 9 as seen in the vertical axial direction, with the mounting dome 11 having a mounting opening 12 open towards the lower housing section.

An upper part of the mounting dome 11 is here by way of example formed as a raised structure in the manner of a cupola, preferably as shown here by way of example with a hemispherical curved and convex geometry.

The mounting dome 11 receives a heating device 17 at respectively in its upper part and thus above the container 2, as seen in the vertical axial direction, with the heating device 17 comprising a heater 18 and a wick recess 19.

As can be further seen from the enlarged detail view of Figure 4, the wick recess 19 has a heater inflow opening 20 and a heater outflow opening 21, the free wick end 4 projecting into the wick recess 19 and in such a way that an air gap 22 running ring-shaped around the free wick end 4 forms a heater air flow channel, into which a pure first air flow 15 which comes from the lower housing section 10 and enters the mounting dome 11 via the mounting opening 12, flows in via the heater inflow opening 20 and, enriched with the substance discharged from the free wick end 4, flows to the heater outflow opening 21, where it flows out as a substance-enriched air flow 23. In Figure 1, the heater inflow opening is widened in the shape of a funnel to ensure unimpeded inflow of the incoming first air flow 15 into the wick recess 19 or the air gap 22. This funnel-shaped widening of the heater inflow opening 20 is not tied to any particular combination of features and is accordingly to be considered here quite separately from the specifically illustrated embodiment.

The wick recess 19 is formed by an elongated, thin-walled and cylindrical heater tube, which also forms the heater 18, with the heater 18, in the activated state of the heating device 17, generating heat with which at least that part of the free wick end 4 which is received in the wick recess 19 is heatable.

The upper part of the mounting dome 11 which receives the heating device 17 is here by way of example built from several parts and comprises a heater bottom cover 30 and a heater top cover 31, which in the assembled state comprise or form the wick recess 19 in such way that the heater 18 in form of the heater tube is held, preferably clamped, between the heater bottom cover 30 and the heater top cover 31. As can be best seen from Figure 2, the heater top cover 31 forms the outer surface of the upper part of the mounting dome 11 and its outer surface is therefore formed in the manner of a cupola (or dome) with a hemispherical curved and convex geometry.

The wall thickness of the heater tube and its length, for forming the elongated and thin-walled heater tube, is at least 1: 5, preferably 1: 5 to 1: 100, most preferably 1: 10 to 1: 50. The heater tube has a wall thickness, preferably a wall thickness which is constant in the circumferential direction, of from 0.5mm to 5.0mm, preferably from 0.5mm to 3.0mm, most preferably from 0.5mm to 2.0mm. And the heater tube has a length of from 5.0mm to 30.0mm, preferably from 7.5mm to 25.0mm, most preferably from 7.5mm to 20.0mm.

As can be best seen from Figure 4, the heater tube has a circular-cylindrical outer circumference and a circular-cylindrical inner circumference with a wall thickness that is the same throughout in the circumferential direction. Preferably, the heater tube has a longitudinally continuous, identical cross-section on the inside and/or on the outside.

The heater tube is, with respect to its radial direction, surrounded on its outer side at least partially, preferably completely, by a further tubular element 44, with a gap distance. In the shown preferred embodiment this tubular element 44 is formed by a metal ring which is clamped between the heater bottom cover 30 and the heater top cover 31 of the upper part of the mounting dome 11. The material of the tubular element 44 in form of the metal ring is most preferably a stainless steel. The tubular element 44 is used to receive heat from the heater tube, which heater tube is preferably a micro ceramic heater. Preferably, the tubular element is connected to a TCO to monitor the temperature of the heater tube.

As can be seen in Figure 1, the mounting dome 11 receives the container 2 at and/or via the mounting opening 12 and holds it releasably in the mounting dome 11 by means of a holding device 13, specifically with the neck 5 of the container 2 being insertable into the mounting dome 11 via the mounting opening 12.

The holding device 13 for releasably holding the container 2 in the mounting dome 11 is formed by a plurality of snap hooks 14 forming the mounting opening 12, which snap hooks 14, in the inserted state of the container 2, are arranged annularly and spaced apart from one another around the neck 5 of the container 2 so that the pure first air flow 15 can flow through the snap hooks 15 in the direction of the heater inflow opening 20.

The snap hooks 15 engage with respective latching projections 24 behind a retaining region of the neck 5 of the container 2, here by example formed by an annular, circumferential bead 25.

The container 2 and the heating device 17 in their assembled state have a gap distance D between the heater inflow opening 20 and the neck 5 of the container 2, through which the first air flow 15 passes in the direction of the heater inflow opening 20.

The free wick end 4 has a circular-cylindrical outer circumference and the wick recess 19 has a circular-cylindrical inner circumference, with the free wick end 4 being accommodated approximately centrally and/or centred in the wick recess 19 and the air gap 22 surrounding the free wick end 4 ring-shaped and with a substantially equal gap width. The air gap 22 surrounding the free wick end 4 has at least a gap width of 0.5mm to 5.0mm, preferably of 1.0mm to 4.0mm, most preferably of 2.0mm to 3.0mm, at each location.

As can be further seen by the Figures 1, 3 and 4, the housing 6 has a first housing outlet opening 26 for the substance-enriched air flow 23 to be dispensed, with the first housing outlet opening 26 being arranged, preferably with a gap distance, directly adjacent to, respectively here exemplarily in the direction of the vertical axis directly above, the heater outflow opening 21 of the air gap 22 respectively heater air flow channel, so that at least a predominant part of the substance-enriched air flow 23, preferably substantially the entire substance-enriched air flow 23, flows from the heater outflow opening 21 to the first housing outlet opening 26 and from there out of the housing 6 and into the environment.

The first housing outlet opening 26 is here formed by a single hole, here exemplarily by a round hole, whereby the edge area forming the first housing outlet opening 26 is bent outwards away from the housing in a chimney-like manner.

As can be best seen from Figure 4, an outlet nozzle 29 in form of a separate nozzle element is provided such that the heater outflow opening 21 of the wick recess 19 is tapered in direction of the first housing outlet 26. As can be further seen from Figure 4, the outlet nozzle 29 respectively outlet nozzle element directly adjoins the heater 18, i.e. is in a direct heat transfer contact with the heater 18, and tapers in the direction of the first housing outlet opening 26. Preferably and as shown here, the outlet nozzle element 29 is arranged on the upper part of the mounting dome 11, preferably fixed and/or clamped to the top of the mounting dome, and is formed from a preferably highly heat conductive material, by way of example, from a metal, most preferably from a light metal (for example aluminium) .

As can be further seen from Figures 1 and 4, the tapering of the heater outflow opening 21, viewed in the vertical axis direction, begins at a defined distance above the free wick end 4, preferably in such a way that the free wick end 4 is received in the cylindrical section of the heater 18, which cylindrical section of the heater is adjoined by the tapered section provided by the outlet nozzle element 29. With such an outlet nozzle, a considerably higher temperature can be provided in this outflow and discharge area of the device, in which on the one hand the substance-enriched air flow 23 flows along the inside of the heater 18 respectively the outlet nozzle (element) 29 and on the other hand the second air flow 16 flows at least along the outside of the outlet nozzle (element) 29 in the direction of the first housing outlet opening 26. In this way, both flows 16 and 23 are (further) heated by means of the outlet nozzle (element) 29 to a sufficiently high temperature so that a stable performance of the device is achieved in terms of plume height and substance output into the room, without any unwanted condensation of the evaporated substance.

As can be further seen from Figures 1, 3 and 4, the housing 6 has a second housing outlet opening 27 which is arranged at a distance d from the first housing outlet opening 26 and which surrounds the first housing outlet opening 26 at least partially, preferably completely as shown in the Figures.

The second housing outlet opening 27 is here by way of example formed by a plurality of spaced-apart openings 28, preferably round openings 28, surrounding the first housing outlet opening 26 at least partially, preferably completely as shown in the Figures.

As can be best seen from Figure 1 in combination with Figure 2, the housing inner wall 8 comprises, here by way of example only, a plurality of vent openings 32 surrounding the mounting dome 11 respectively the heater top cover 31 at least partially, here by way of example only partially due to the arrangement of at least part of a heater-PCB 42 (PCB = Printed Circuit Board) on or near the outer surface of the heater top cover 31.

This allows a pure second air flow 16 to flow from said lower housing section 10 into said upper housing section 9 through said vent openings 32 and along the outside of the mounting dome 11 respectively the heater top cover 31, in the vertical axis direction upwards towards the second housing outlet opening 27, so that at least a part of the second air flow, preferably at least a predominant part of the second air flow 16, most preferably substantially the entire second air flow 16, flows via the second housing outlet opening 27 respectively the openings 28 out of the housing 6 and into the environment.

The pure second air flow 16 thus flows out of the housing 6 into the environment at essentially the same point as the first substance-enriched air flow 23, whereby the second air flow 16 surrounds the first substance-enriched air flow 23 at least initially, so that only at a certain plume height (defined as the height, viewed in the vertical axis direction, above the housing outlet openings 26, 27) turbulence does take place with the result that the substance is released into the room at a great height. In this context, a device 1 in which the second air flow 16 completely surrounds the first air flow, or at least surrounds it by more than 180°, preferably by more than 270°, is particularly advantageous.

As can be best seen from Figure 1 in combination with Figure 4, the upper housing section 9 has a flow channel wall 33 which surrounds the mounting dome 11 respectively the heater top cover 31 at least partially and with a gap spacing such that the vent openings 32 open into a flow channel 34 which guides the second air flow 16 from the vent openings 32 between the flow channel wall 33 and the outside of the mounting dome 11 respectively the heater top cover 31 upwards in the vertical axial direction towards the second housing outlet opening 27.

The housing 6 comprises a housing bottom wall 35 on its underside. The housing bottom wall 35 forms a removable lower housing part 36 which, when removed from a single or multi-piece top housing part 37, provides access to the lower housing section 10 and thus to the mounting opening 12 of the top housing part 37.

As can be best seen from Figure 1 in combination with Figure 5, the housing bottom wall 35 is spaced from at least part of the housing inner wall 8 in the vertical axis direction. The housing bottom wall 35 further defines a standing surface 38 and has a wall region 39 which is set back with respect to this standing surface 38 in the direction of the housing interior 7 and in which, here by way of example, a plurality of housing inlet openings 40 are formed, which are arranged on the set-back wall region 39 in a ring shape and at a distance from one another.

This allows a pure primary air flow 41 to flow into the lower housing section 10 of the housing interior 7 via the housing inlet openings 40, where the primary air flow 41 splits, preferably autonomously, into the first air flow 15 flowing through the mounting opening 12 and the second air flow 16 flowing through the vent openings 32.

The heater tube is by way of example a micro ceramic heater being coupled to the heater-PCB 42 by means of which the heating device is activatable and/or deactivatable in a controlled manner for heating the heater tube. The heater-PCB 42 is further connected to a main-PCB 43, which is also located in the housing interior 7, preferably in a separate chamber 48 of the housing interior 7.

As shown only very schematically in figure 1a, it is possible to provide a fan 46 as an air flow generating device, by means of which air, in particular ambient air, is conveyable into the housing interior 7 to generate the primary air flow. The fan 46 can be housed in the lower housing section 10 of the housing 6 and can draw in air from outside of the housing. The activation and deactivation of the fan 46 can be controlled by means of the main-PCB 43 for example.

As further shown by way of example in Figure 1, the main PCB 43 may further comprise a USB port 49.

List of reference signs
1 device                                    28 opening
2 container                                 29 outlet nozzle
3 wick                                      30 heater bottom cover
4 free wick end                             31 heater top cover
5 neck                                      32 vent opening
6 housing                                   33 flow channel wall
7 housing interior                          34 flow channel
8 housing inner wall                        35 housing bottom wall
9 upper housing section                     36 lower housing part
10 lower housing section                    37 top housing part
11 mounting dome                            38 standing surface
12 mounting opening                         39 wall region
13 holding device                           40 housing inlet opening
14 snap hook                                41 primary air flow
15 first air flow                           42 heater-PCB
16 second air flow                          43 main-PCB
17 heating device                           44 tubular element
18 heater                                   45 resistor
19 wick recess                              46 fan
20 heater outflow opening                   47 wick holder
21 heater inflow opening                    48 chamber
22 air gap                                  49 USB port
23 substance-enriched air flow              d distance
24 latching projection                      D gap distance
25 bead
26 first housing outlet opening
27 second housing outlet opening

Claims

Device (1) for dispensing, in particular vaporizing, volatile substances, in particular fragrances and/or active substances,

with a housing,

with at least one container (2) in which a substance to be dispensed and/or volatilized is received,

with the container (2) having a wick (3) , preferably in the form of a capillary element, which projects out of the container (2) with a free wick end (4) and by means of which the substance to be dispensed is conveyable out of the container (2) into the region of the free wick end (4) ,

with a heating device (17) generating heat with which at least part of the free wick end (4) is heatable and/or comprising a heater (18) and a wick recess (19) for receiving the free wick end (4) ,

with a, preferably pure, first air flow (15) being enriched with the substance discharged from the free wick end (4) in order to form a substance-enriched air flow (23) ,

with the housing (6) having a first housing outlet opening (26) for the substance-enriched air flow (23) to be dispensed,

with the housing (6) having a second housing outlet opening (27) which is arranged at a distance from the first housing outlet opening (26) and which surrounds the first housing outlet opening (26) at least partially, preferably completely,

with a, preferably pure, second air flow flowing (16) towards the second housing outlet opening (27) , so that at least a part of the second air flow (16) , preferably at least a predominant part of the second air flow (16) , most preferably substantially the entire second air flow (16) , flows via the second housing outlet opening (27) out of the housing (6) and/or into the environment, preferably in such a way that the second air flow (16) surrounds the substance-enriched air flow (23) at least initially.
Device according to claim 1, characterized in that

the housing (6) being designed as a hollow body, which has a cavity in its interior as a housing interior (7) ,

with the housing (6) having a housing interior separating element (8) , preferably a housing inner wall, arranged in the housing interior (7) and dividing the housing interior (7) , in relation to its vertical axis direction, into an upper housing section (9) and a lower housing section (10) ,

with the housing interior separating element (8) having a mounting dome (11) extending upwards into the upper housing section (9) as seen in the vertical axial direction, with the mounting dome (11) having a mounting opening (12) open towards the lower housing section (10) ,

with the mounting dome (11) receiving the container (2) at and/or via the mounting opening (12) and holding it releasably in the mounting dome (11) by means of a holding device (13) ,

with the mounting dome (11) receiving at least part of the heating device (17) at its upper part and thus above the container (2) , as seen in the vertical axial direction,

with the heating device (17) comprising a heater (18) and a wick recess (19) ,

with the wick recess (19) having a heater inflow opening (20) and a heater outflow opening (21) , the free wick end (4) projecting into the wick recess (19) at least partially and in such a way that an air gap (22) running ring-shaped around the free wick end (4) forms a heater air flow channel, into which the, preferably pure, first air flow (15) , which comes from the lower housing section (10) and enters the mounting dome (11) via the mounting opening (12) , flows in via the heater inflow opening (20) and, enriched with the substance discharged from the free wick end (4) , flows to the heater outflow opening (21) , where it flows out as a substance-enriched air flow (23) ,

with the heater (18) , in the activated state of the heating device (17) , generating heat with which at least that part of the free wick end (4) which is received in the wick recess (19) is heatable,

with the first housing outlet opening (26) being arranged, preferably with a gap distance, directly adjacent to, preferably in the direction of the vertical axis directly above, the heater outflow opening (21) of the heater air flow channel, so that at least a predominant part of the substance-enriched air flow (23) , preferably substantially the entire substance-enriched air flow (23) , flows from the heater outflow opening (21) to the first housing outlet opening (26) and from there out of the housing (6) and/or into the environment,

with the housing interior separating element (8) comprising at least one vent opening (32) , preferably at least one vent opening (32) at least partially surrounding said mounting dome (11) , so that the, preferably pure, second air flow (16) is able to flow from said lower housing section (9) into said upper housing section (10) through said at least one vent opening (32) and, preferably along the outside of the mounting dome (11) , in the vertical axis direction upwards towards the second housing outlet opening (27) , so that at least a part of the second air flow (16) , preferably at least a predominant part of the second air flow (16) , most preferably substantially the entire second air flow (16) , flows via the second housing outlet opening (27) out of the housing (6) and/or into the environment, preferably in such a way that the second air flow (16) surrounds the substance-enriched air flow (23) at least initially,

with a, preferably pure, primary air flow (41) flowing into the lower housing section (10) of the housing interior (7) via at least one housing inlet opening (40) , where the primary air flow (41) splits, preferably autonomously, into the first air flow (15) flowing through the mounting opening (12) and the second air flow (16) flowing through the at least one vent opening (32) .
Device according to claim 2, characterized in that the housing interior separating element (8) is formed by at least one housing inner wall.
Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the housing (6) comprises a housing bottom wall (35) on its underside.
Device according to claims 3 and 4, characterized in that the housing bottom wall (35) is spaced from at least part of the housing inner wall (8) in the vertical axis direction.
Device according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the housing bottom wall (35) defines a standing surface (38) and has a wall region (39) which is set back with respect to this standing surface (38) in the direction of the housing interior (7) and in which the at least one housing inlet opening (40) , preferably a plurality of housing inlet openings (40) , is formed, preferably in such way that the plurality of housing inlet openings (40) are arranged on the set-back wall region (39) in a ring shape and at a distance from one another.
Device according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that the housing bottom wall (35) forms a removable lower housing part (36) which, when removed from a single or multi-piece top housing part (37) , provides access to the lower housing section (10) and thus to the mounting opening (12) of the top housing part (37) .
Device according to any one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that

the container (2) has a neck (5) as an outlet opening designed in the manner of a pipe socket and/or in the manner of a bottle neck,

the wick (3) projects out of the neck (5) of the container (2) ,

the mounting dome (11) receives the neck (5) of the container (2) at least partially, preferably completely, and holds it releasably in the mounting dome (11) by means of the holding device (13) , with the neck (5) of the container (2) being insertable into the mounting dome (11) via the mounting opening (12) .
Device according to claim 8, characterized in that the holding device for releasably holding the container (2) in the mounting dome (11) is formed by a plurality of snap hooks (14) forming the mounting opening (12) , which snap hooks (14) , in the inserted state of the container (2) , are arranged annularly and spaced apart from one another around the neck (5) of the container (2) so that the first air flow (15) is able to flow through the snap hooks (14) in the direction of the heater inflow opening (20) .
Device according to claim 9, characterized in that the snap hooks (14) engage with respective latching projections (24) behind a retaining region of the neck (5) of the container (2) or engage in a retaining region of the neck (5) of the container (2) .
Device according to claim 10, characterized in that that the neck of the container (2) has on its outer side an at least sectionally, preferably annular, circumferential bead (25) or an at least sectionally, preferably annular, circumferential groove as retaining region.
Device according to any one of claims 2 to 11, characterized in that the container (2) and the heating device (17) in their assembled state have a gap distance (D) between the heater inflow opening (20) and the top of the container (2) , in particular between the heater inflow opening (20) and the neck (5) of the container (2) , through which the first air flow passes in the direction of the heater inflow opening (20) .
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the first housing outlet opening (26) is formed by a single hole, preferably by a round or angular or cornered hole.
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the second housing outlet opening (27) is formed by a single slit-shaped or circular opening surrounding the first housing outlet opening (26) at least partially, preferably completely, or by a plurality of spaced-apart openings (28) , preferably round or angular or cornered openings, surrounding the first housing outlet opening (26) at least partially, preferably completely.
Device according to any one of claims 2 to 15, characterized in that the upper housing section (9) has a flow channel wall (33) which surrounds the mounting dome (11) at least partially and with a gap spacing such that the at least one vent opening (32) opens into a flow channel (34) which guides the second air flow (16) from the at least one vent opening (32) between the flow channel wall (33) and the outside of the mounting dome (11) upwards in the vertical axial direction towards the second housing outlet opening (27) .
Device according to any one of claims 2 to 15, characterized in that the upper part of the mounting dome (11) receiving the heating device (17) has or forms the wick recess (19) .
Device according to any one of claims 2 to 16, characterized in that the upper part of the mounting dome (11) receiving the heating device (17) is built from several parts and comprises a heater bottom cover (30) and a heater top cover (31) , which in the assembled state comprise or form the wick recess (19) .
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the wick recess (19) is formed by an elongate, thin-walled and cylindrical heater tube as the heater (18) , preferably enveloping in a shell-like and/or skin-like manner the region of the free wick end (4) received therein.
Device according to claims 17 and 18, characterized in that the heater tube is held, preferably clamped, between the heater bottom cover (30) and the heater top cover (31) .
Device according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that the ratio between the wall thickness of the heater tube and its length, for forming the elongated and thin-walled heater tube, is at least 1: 5, preferably 1: 5 to 1: 100, most preferably 1: 10 to 1: 50.
Device according to any one of claims 18 to 20, characterized in that the heater tube has a wall thickness, preferably a wall thickness which is constant in the circumferential direction, of from 0.5mm to 5.0mm, preferably from 0.5mm to 3.0mm, most preferably from 0.5mm to 2.0mm.
Device according to any one of the claims 18 to 21, characterized in that the heater tube has a length of from 5.0mm to 30.0mm, preferably from 7.5mm to 25.0mm, most preferably from 7.5mm to 20.0mm.
Device according to any one of the claims 18 to 22, characterized in that the heater tube has a circular-cylindrical outer circumference and/or a circular-cylindrical inner circumference, preferably a circular-cylindrical outer circumference and a circular-cylindrical inner circumference with a wall thickness that is the same throughout in the circumferential direction.
Device according to any one of the claims 18 to 23, characterized in that the heater tube has a longitudinally continuous, identical cross-section on the inside and/or on the outside, or in that the heater tube has regions with different cross-sections on the inside and/or on the outside, relative to the longitudinal direction.
Device according to any one of the claims 18 to 24, characterized in that the heater tube is made of a heat-conducting material, preferably a plastic material and/or a ceramic material and/or a metal material, which is coupled to at least one electrical heating element, in particular to at least one electrical resistance element (45) as heating element, and/or that the heater tube is a micro ceramic heater.
Device according to claim 25, characterized in that the at least one electrical heating element is coupled to a control device by means of which the heating device (17) is activatable and/or deactivatable in a controlled manner for heating the heater tube, preferably coupled to a main-PCB (43) and/or a heater-PCB (42) , by means of which the heating process is controlled or regulated.
Device according to claim 26, characterized in that the control device in form of a heater-PCB (42) is part of the mounting dome (11) , preferably arranged at the heater bottom cover (30) of the mounting dome (11) , and further connected to a main-PCB (43) , which is also located in the housing interior (7) , preferably in a separate chamber (48) of the housing interior (7) .
Device according to any one of the claims 18 to 26, characterized in that the heater tube is, with respect to its radial direction, surrounded on its outer side with a gap distance and at least partially, preferably completely, by a further tubular element (44) , preferably made of metal, preferably the heater tube is, with respect to its radial direction, surrounded on its outer side with a gap distance by a metal ring which is clamped between the heater bottom cover (30) and the heater top cover (31) of the upper part of the mounting dome (11) .
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the free wick end (4) has a circular-cylindrical outer circumference and the wick recess (19) has a circular-cylindrical inner circumference.
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the free wick end (4) is accommodated approximately centrally and/or centred in the wick recess (19) and the air gap (22) surrounds the free wick end (4) ring-shaped and with a substantially equal gap width.
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the air gap (22) surrounding the free wick end (4) has at least a gap width of 0.5mm to 5.0mm, preferably of 1.0mm to 4.0mm, most preferably of 2.0mm to 3.0mm, at each location.
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in the edge area forming the first housing outlet opening (26) is bent outwards away from the housing (6) in a chimney-like manner.
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that that the heater (18) provides a heater outflow opening (21) in the form of an outlet nozzle (29) tapering in the direction of the first housing outlet opening (26) , with the nozzle opening forming a tapered heating outflow opening (21) .
Device according to claim 33, characterized in that the tapering of the heater outflow opening (21) , viewed in the vertical axis direction, begins at a defined distance above the free wick end (4) , preferably in such a way that the free wick end (4) is received in a cylindrical section of the heater (18) , which is adjoined by the tapered section of the outlet nozzle (29) .
Device according to claim 33 or 34, characterised in that the outlet nozzle (29) is an integral part of the heater (18) or that the outlet nozzle (29) is a separate nozzle element which directly adjoins the heater.
Device according to claim 35, characterized in that the outlet nozzle element is formed from a heat conductive material, preferably from a metal, most preferably from a light metal.
Device according to any one of claims 33 to 36, characterized in that the outlet nozzle (29) is arranged in the device (1) and/or in the flow path of the substance-enriched air flow (23) and of the second air flow (16) in such a way that the substance-enriched air flow (23) flows along the inside of the heater (18) respectively the outlet nozzle (29) and that the second air flow (16) flows at least along the outside of the outlet nozzle (29) in the direction of the first housing outlet opening (26) , preferably in order to heat the second air flow (16) and the substance-enriched air flow (23) .
Device according to any one of claims 33 to 37, characterized in that the outlet nozzle (29) is arranged on the upper part of the mounting dome (11) .
Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that an air flow generating device, preferably a fan (46) , is provided, by means of which air, in particular ambient air, is conveyable into the housing interior (7) , preferably in order to generate the primary air flow (41) .
Device according to claim 39, characterized in that the air flow generating means is housed in the housing (6) and draws in air from outside the housing (6) , preferably in the lower housing section (10) of the housing interior (7) .
A method for operating a device according to any one of the preceding claims.