Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
  • A24F—SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES
  • A24F40/00—Electrically operated smoking devices; Component parts thereof; Manufacture thereof; Maintenance or testing thereof; Charging means specially adapted therefor
  • A24F40/50—Control or monitoring
  • A24F40/53—Monitoring, e.g. fault detection
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
  • A24F—SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES
  • A24F40/00—Electrically operated smoking devices; Component parts thereof; Manufacture thereof; Maintenance or testing thereof; Charging means specially adapted therefor
  • A24F40/10—Devices using liquid inhalable precursors

Definitions

• the present disclosure relates to an aerosol provision system configured to estimate an amount of liquid in a reservoir of the aerosol provision system, via one or more features of composition of the liquid, and a method for estimating a liquid amount in an aerosol provision system.
• the user can continue to use the aerosol provision system for as long as there is liquid available in the reservoir.
• the liquid has been consumed, no more aerosol can be generated and, depending on the design of the system, the user has to replace the whole system, replace the reservoir with a new full reservoir, replace a cartridge part of the system that includes the reservoir and possibly the vaporiser with a new cartridge having a full reservoir, or refill the reservoir with more liquid from a separate store. It is useful if the user is able to monitor the consumption of the liquid, for example to keep track of their usage of the aerosol provision system, and also to be aware when the reservoir is becoming empty so that preparation can be made for any of the above actions for obtaining a new supply of liquid.
• an aerosol provision system comprising: a reservoir holding liquid to be vaporised, the liquid being of a first liquid type; a vaporiser for vaporising liquid from the reservoir; and a controller configured to: determine a mass of aerosol generated by the vaporiser during a puff taken by a user, from a power level value indicating a level of power supplied to the vaporiser during the puff and a puff duration value indicating a duration of the puff, and using an equation relating power level and puff duration to mass of aerosol for an aerosol provision system with a same type of vaporiser and with liquid of a specified liquid type different from the first liquid type; and estimate an amount of liquid in the reservoir after the puff by using the determined mass of aerosol and a known amount of liquid in the reservoir prior to the puff; wherein a composition of the first liquid type is modified compared to the specified liquid type such that the first liquid type has a same vaporisation behaviour as the specified liquid type.
• a method for estimating a liquid amount in an aerosol provision system comprising: obtaining a power level value indicating a level of power applied to a vaporiser of the aerosol provision system during a puff taken by a user, the vaporiser configured to generate aerosol by vaporising liquid from a reservoir of the aerosol provision system, the reservoir holding liquid of a first liquid type; obtaining a puff duration value indicating a duration of the puff; determining a mass of aerosol generated by the vaporiser during the puff, from the power level value and the puff duration value, using an equation relating power level and puff duration to mass of aerosol for an aerosol provision system or cartridge therefor with a same type of vaporiser and with liquid of a specified liquid type different from the first liquid type; and estimating an amount of liquid in the reservoir after the puff by using the determined mass of aerosol and a known amount of liquid in the reservoir prior to the puff; wherein the first liquid type has a composition which is modified
• the present disclosure relates to electronic aerosol or vapour provision systems, such as e-cigarettes.
• e-cigarette and “electronic cigarette” may sometimes be used; however, it will be appreciated these terms may be used interchangeably with aerosol (vapour) provision system or device.
• the systems are intended to generate an inhalable aerosol by vaporisation of an aerosolforming substrate in the form of a liquid or gel which may or may not contain nicotine.
• hybrid systems may comprise a liquid or gel substrate plus a solid substrate which is also heated.
• the solid substrate may be for example tobacco or other non-tobacco products, which may or may not contain nicotine.
• aerosol may be used interchangeably with "vapour”.
• the term "component” is used to refer to a part, section, unit, module, assembly or similar of an electronic cigarette or similar device that incorporates several smaller parts or elements, possibly within an exterior housing or wall.
• An electronic cigarette may be formed or built from one or more such components, and the components may be removably or separably connectable to one another, or may be permanently joined together during manufacture to define the whole electronic cigarette.
• a system may comprise (at least) two components separably connectable to one another and configured, for example, as an aerosolisable substrate material carrying component holding liquid or another aerosolisable substrate material (a cartridge, cartomiser or consumable, or simply "pod"), and a control unit or device (“device”) component having a controller for controlling operation of the aerosol provision system, and a battery for providing electrical power to operate an element for generating vapour from the substrate material.
• an aerosolisable substrate material carrying component holding liquid or another aerosolisable substrate material a cartridge, cartomiser or consumable, or simply "pod
• a control unit or device (“device”) component having a controller for controlling operation of the aerosol provision system, and a battery for providing electrical power to operate an element for generating vapour from the substrate material.
• a cartridge or cartomiser (cartridge component or consumable) is described as an example of the aerosolisable substrate material carrying portion or component in which the aerosolisable substrate material is a liquid or a gel held in a reservoir or tank (storage area), but the disclosure is not limited in this regard and is applicable to any configuration of aerosol provision system having a liquid reservoir.
• a cartridge component may include more or fewer parts than those included in the examples. This is true also of the device component.
• the cartridge component 30 includes a reservoir 3 containing a source liquid or other aerosolisable substrate material comprising a formulation such as liquid or gel from which an aerosol is to be generated, for example containing nicotine.
• the source liquid may comprise around 1 to 3% nicotine and 50% glycerol, with the remainder comprising roughly equal measures of water and propylene glycol, and possibly also comprising other components, such as flavourings. Nicotine-free source liquid may also be used, such as to deliver flavouring.
• a solid substrate (not illustrated), such as a portion of tobacco or other flavour element through which vapour generated from the liquid is passed, may also be included.
• the reservoir 3 has the form of a storage tank, being a container or receptacle in which source liquid can be stored such that the liquid is free to move and flow within the confines of the tank.
• the reservoir 3 may be sealed after filling during manufacture so as to be disposable after the source liquid is consumed, otherwise, it may have an inlet port or other opening through which new source liquid can be added by the user.
• the cartridge component 30 also comprises an electrically powered heating element or heater 4 located externally of the reservoir tank 3 for generating the aerosol by vaporisation of the source liquid by heating.
• source liquid may be generated by an alternative powered means such as a vibrating mesh.
• a heater and wick (or similar) combination is sometimes referred to as an atomiser or atomiser assembly 7, and the reservoir 3 with its source liquid plus the atomiser 7 may be collectively referred to as an aerosol source.
• Other terminology may include a liquid delivery assembly or a liquid transfer assembly, where in the present context these terms may be used interchangeably to refer to a vapour-generating element (vapour generator) plus a wicking or similar component or structure (liquid transport element) that delivers or transfers liquid obtained from a reservoir to the vapour generator for vapour / aerosol generation.
• vapour generator vapour generator
• wicking or similar component or structure liquid transport element
• the cartridge component 30 also includes a mouthpiece or mouthpiece portion 35 having an opening or aerosol outlet through which a user may inhale the aerosol generated by the atomiser 7.
• a mouthpiece may be provided as a separate component which may be permanently or separably connectable to the cartridge component 30.
• the power component or control unit or, simply, device or device component 20 includes a cell or battery 5 (referred to hereinafter as a battery, and which may be rechargeable) to provide power for electrical components of the e-cigarette 10, in particular to operate the vaporiser such as the heater 4. Additionally, there is a controller 28 such as a printed circuit board and/or other electronics or circuitry for generally controlling the e-cigarette.
• the control electronics/circuitry 28 operates the heater 4 using power from the battery 5 when vapour is required, for example in response to a signal from an air pressure sensor or air flow sensor (“puff sensor", not shown) that detects an inhalation on the system 10 during which air enters through one or more air inlets 26 in the wall of the device component 20.
• the heater 4 When the heater 4 is operated, the heater 4 vaporises source liquid delivered from the reservoir 3 by the liquid delivery element 6 to generate the aerosol, and this is then inhaled by a user through the opening in the mouthpiece 35.
• the aerosol is carried from the aerosol source to the mouthpiece 35 along one or more air flow channels (not shown in Figure 1 ) that connect the air inlet(s) 26 to the aerosol source to the aerosol outlet when a user inhales on the mouthpiece 35.
• the cartridge component 30 Since in this example the air inlets 26 to the system are located in the device component 20, the cartridge component 30 has its own air inlet(s) in air flow communication with the device component 20 so that air drawn in through the device component air inlet(s) 26 can reach the interior of the cartridge component 30, and the atomiser 7.
• air inlets may be located in the outer wall of the cartridge component 30 so that air enters directly into the cartridge component 30 instead of arriving there via the device component 20.
• the device component (control unit) 20 and the cartridge component (cartomiser, consumable) 30 are, in this example, separate connectable parts detachable from and reattachable to one another by movement in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis, as indicated by the double-headed arrows in Figure 1 .
• Each component 20, 30 has a connecting portion 21, 31 at an end facing towards the corresponding end of the other component, and the components 20, 30 are joined together when the aerosol provision system 10 is ready for use or in use by cooperating engagement elements at the connecting portions 21, 31 (for example, a screw or bayonet fitting, or a push-fit, snap-fit or magnetic connection) which provide mechanical and in the present case electrical connectivity between the device component 20 and the cartridge component 30.
• Electrical connectivity is required if the heater 4 operates by ohmic heating, or where a vibrating mesh vapour generator or other electrically powered vaporiser is used, so that current can be passed through the heater 4 or otherwise supplied to the vaporiser, and/or to any other electrically powered parts in the cartridge component 30, when these parts in the cartridge component 30 are connected to the battery 5 in the device component 20.
• electrical connectivity for vapour generation can be omitted if no vapour generating parts requiring electrical power are located in the cartridge component 30, although electrical power may still need to be supplied to other electrical parts in the cartridge component.
• an inductive work coil can be housed in the device component 20 and supplied with power from the battery 5, and the cartridge component 30 and the device component 20 shaped so that when they are connected, there is an appropriate exposure of the heater 4 to flux generated by the coil for the purpose of generating current flow in the material of the heater 4.
• the connecting portions 21, 31 include electrical contacts to complete electrical circuits between the powered parts and the battery 5 when the cartridge component 30 and the device component 20 are connected together.
• apertures for air flow from the device component 20 to the cartridge component 30 are included at the connecting portions 21, 31 of the two components 20, 30 in designs having one or more air inlets 26 in the outer wall(s) of the device component 20.
• the connecting portions 21, 31 therefore provide an interface between the cartridge component 30 and the device component 20.
• the Figure 1 design is merely an example arrangement, and the various parts and features may be differently distributed between the device component 20 and the cartridge component 30, and other undepicted elements may be included.
• the two components 20, 30 may connect together end-to-end in a longitudinal configuration as in Figure 1 , or in a different configuration such as a parallel, side-by-side arrangement.
• the system may or may not be generally cylindrical and/or have a generally longitudinal shape.
• Either or both components 20, 30 may be intended to be disposed of and replaced when exhausted (the reservoir 3 is empty or the battery 5 is flat, for example), or be intended for multiple uses enabled by actions such as refilling the reservoir 3, replacing the reservoir independently of the cartridge component 30, and recharging the battery 5.
• the aerosol provision system 10 may be unitary, in that the parts of the device component 20 and the cartridge component 30 are comprised in a single housing and cannot be separated. Embodiments and examples of the present disclosure are applicable to any of these configurations and other configurations of which the skilled person will be aware.
• an amount of aerosol is generated during a puff on the system, the aerosol being delivered to the user via the mouthpiece for inhalation.
• the aerosol is generated by vaporisation of liquid taken from the reservoir, so the amount of aerosol in a puff corresponds to an amount of liquid vaporised to produce the puff, and as puffs continue, the liquid is consumed and the amount of liquid remaining in the reservoir reduces.
• a mass of the aerosol in a puff is related to the mass of the liquid used to generate the aerosol of that puff. It is proposed herein to use the relationship between aerosol amount generation and liquid consumption to estimate a remaining amount of liquid in the reservoir.
• the remaining amount of liquid in the reservoir may be estimated by subtraction of the mass of aerosol that has been generated from a mass of liquid in the reservoir at a previous time, such as the total liquid mass in the reservoir when full if the total accumulated aerosol mass is tracked, or the liquid mass in the reservoir before a particular puff if the aerosol mass of that puff is determined.
• Mass is a convenient metric to use for this procedure, but other metrics might also be used, such as volume, or a relationship between one metric for aerosol amount and another metric for liquid amount.
• the generated aerosol is delivered internally to the user via inhalation, it is not feasible to directly measure the amount of aerosol in an actual real life puff when the user uses the aerosol provision system.
• the amount of aerosol which is generated during a puff depends on characteristics of the aerosol provision system which are known or can be determined, and operating parameters of the aerosol provision system which can be measured. For example, more aerosol is generated in a longer puff than in a shorter puff, so aerosol amount depends on puff duration.
• a higher amount of power delivered to the vaporiser during the puff can also increase the amount of aerosol, for example by heating a heating element of the vaporiser to a higher temperature, so aerosol amount depends on vaporiser operating power level.
• Factors such as these can be readily measured during operation of an aerosol provision system, and the controller may be configured to use measured or otherwise ascertained values for these factors to determine an amount of aerosol in a puff using a predetermined relationship between these factors and aerosol amount. From this, a corresponding decrease in the amount of liquid in the reservoir can be determined, allowing a remaining amount of liquid to be estimated. This can then be reported or indicated to the user. The user can then be aware of their liquid consumption, and prepare for replacement or refilling of the reservoir as it approaches an empty state.
• any technique for determining aerosol amount in a manner that allows the amount of generated aerosol to be subtracted from the amount of liquid in the reservoir in a meaningful way may be used.
• mass is a useful metric for this purpose. If mass is used, an approach proposed herein for determination of the mass of aerosol generated in a puff is to use a metric designated as aerosol collected mass (ACM).
• ACM aerosol collected mass
• the ACM may characteristically refer to a mass of aerosol collected, in laboratory or test conditions, externally from the aerosol provision system during one or more puffs of the device.
• the ACM may be determined for a given aerosol provision system under certain operating conditions by collecting aerosol in a laboratory aerosol analyser / puff analyser during one or more puffs carried out under controlled conditions of airflow (for example, of airflow duration and airflow rate profile) by the aerosol analyser.
• the aerosol for a known number of one or more puffs is collected, for example on a fibrous pad, or otherwise condensed out of the aerosol / vapour phase for analysis, and then weighed to determine its mass.
• the mass of aerosol generated in a puff by a known aerosol generating system operating with known values of operational parameters of the aerosol generating system is thereby determined.
• the aerosol mass for a puff under various operating conditions can be ascertained from one particular example of the aerosol generating system.
• users in the future will be using other aerosol generating systems, which may not function identically to the tested aerosol generating system even if all the systems are of the same design.
• system-to-system variation that affects aerosol generation, arising from factors including manufacturing variation and user puff techniques, so that no two systems, even when of intended exactly identical design, will perform exactly identically and generate exactly the same amount of aerosol in a puff under identical operating conditions.
• the accuracy of the determined relationship between aerosol mass generated and values of the aerosol provision system operating parameters which is ascertained from ACM data obtained empirically as described above can be improved by increasing the size of the population of aerosol provision systems of the same type from which the data is collected.
• it is suggested that as large a population as possible is used, within limits set by factors such as time, cost, and the number of vaporisers and/or systems which are available for the purpose.
• a population comprising about 20 or about 50 or about 100 individual vaporisers or aerosol provision systems (where individual vaporisers may for example be included within individual cartridges which are used in turn with the same device or a smaller number of devices to make complete aerosol provision systems) of the same type may be used to obtain a body of ACM data. Larger or smaller populations are not excluded, however.
• a clock may be provided which is configured to time the period between the start and stop of the user control operation, for example, the duration for which a button is pressed, or the time elapsed between a switch being turned on and then off. This time period can then be taken by the controller as a value for the duration of the puff.
• an equation that relates aerosol mass of a puff to the power level value at the vaporiser used to generate the aerosol in the puff, and the value of the duration of the puff can be obtained from empirical data measured in laboratory conditions.
• This equation can be provided to the controller of an aerosol provision system, and stored in memory of the controller (or memory accessible by the controller).
• the controller is configured to obtain a value of the power level and a value of the puff duration during puffs taken on the aerosol provision system, as described above.
• the controller obtains the power level value and the puff duration value, and uses these values, with the equation, to determine a mass of the aerosol contained in the puff that has been taken.
• the controller is further configured to use the determined mass of aerosol to estimate an amount of liquid in the reservoir of the aerosol provision system.
• the pod or reservoir can be replaced, it may be that only reservoirs of a single capacity or single initial liquid fill amount or level are provided by the manufacturer, so that the value of this capacity is provided to the controller during manufacture, and the controller is configured to recognise when a new pod or reservoir is fitted, so that the amount of liquid in the reservoir at that time can be assumed to be equal to the pre-provided value for the total or initial capacity.
• the controller may be configured to store the equation, and directly use the equation to determine the mass of aerosol in a puff by utilising the obtained values of power level and puff duration in the equation.
• This approach requires computation by the processor for each puff, but has a low storage requirement since only the equation needs storing. It can also give a relatively accurate determination of the aerosol amount for each puff, since the equation returns a value for the aerosol amount for any value of puff duration and power level; the equation performs an extrapolation between the selected discrete values of puff duration and power level for which the empirical data was collected, which may not correspond to the puff duration value and/or of the power level value for an actual puff.
• the controller may store a look-up table that stores, for multiple combinations of puff duration value and power level value, a corresponding value for the mass of aerosol in a puff with that combination of puff duration and power level.
• the controller is configured, when a puff takes places, to retrieve, from the look-up table, an aerosol mass value corresponding to the values of power level and puff duration that the controller has obtained for that puff.
• the look-up table therefore maps values of power level and values of puff duration to values of aerosol mass. The provision of a look-up table reduces computation by the controller, since there is no need to calculate a value for the equation for each puff, but has an increased storage requirement since a look-up table will be larger than the equation.
• FIG. 5 shows a highly simplified schematic representation of an example of an aerosol provision system configured to implement remaining liquid amount estimation as described herein.
• the aerosol provision system 10 is similar to the example shown in Figure 1 , and comprises a device component 20 and a cartridge or pod component 30.
• the system 10 may be unitary, or the pod component 30 may be replaceable.
• the pod component 30 comprises a reservoir 3 for storing aerosolisable liquid, and having a total liquid capacity when full of liquid.
• the pod component 30 may be supplied with (or filled to) an initial amount or volume of liquid equal to or less than the total capacity of the reservoir 3.
• the pod component 30 also comprises a vaporiser 4 for vaporising liquid from the reservoir in order to generate aerosol for delivery to the user during a puff.
• the device component comprises a battery 5 for supplying electrical power to the vaporiser 4, and a controller 28 for controlling the supply of power from the battery 5 to the vaporiser 4.
• the controller 28 comprises a processor 22 for performing operations and actions such as controlling the supply of power, and estimating remaining liquid amount in the reservoir 3 as described herein.
• the controller 28 has a memory 23, in which is stored an equation for determining the aerosol amount in a puff, or a look-up table derived from the equation, as described above.
• the controller 28 also has a clock 24 for timing puff duration, either via a puff detector 32 or via detection of user operation of a button or other user operable control 27 to activate the vaporiser, again as described above.
• liquid type is intended to acknowledge that liquid aerosol forming substrate that is vaporised to generate aerosol for delivery by an aerosol provision system is available in many different compositions, which may show differences in vaporisation behaviour under otherwise same or similar conditions.
• Liquids of different nicotine strength and different flavour are readily available, for example, and may be composed of different ingredients and differing proportions of ingredients, which may affect the rate and temperature at which the liquid vaporises.
• puffs at equal power and of equal duration carried out on the same aerosol provision system using different liquids may tend to contain different masses of aerosol. Accordingly, the use of a single equation to determine aerosol mass per puff without regard to the liquid type may produce varying accuracy of estimation of the remaining liquid amount.
• a particular aerosol provision system is configured to only be used with a single liquid type.
• the aerosol provision system may be of a design in which the pod or the reservoir cannot be replaced, or the reservoir cannot be refilled, and the system is made available prefilled with only a single type of liquid. In such a case, there is no need to take account of the type of liquid in estimating the remaining liquid amount in the reservoir. All that is required is that the empirical data from which the equation used by the controller for determining aerosol amount in a puff is collected using the same type of liquid as is contained in the reservoir, so that the equation is applicable and give sufficiently accurate results.
• aerosol provision systems of an otherwise same or similar design and configuration are often supplied to the user prefilled with a choice of different liquid types.
• Other aerosol provision systems are configured to allow the user to consume different liquid types, by replacement of the pod or the reservoir with a pod or reservoir that may contain a different liquid type, or by refilling of the reservoir with a different liquid type.
• liquid of a particular type is considered to have a composition different from liquid of another type.
• An approach to handling different liquid types can be to obtain empirical data for a range of different liquid types so that equations for determining aerosol mass per puff can be derived for different liquid types or that otherwise take account of liquid type.
• this approach can require a substantial amount of laboratory work and resources in order to collect the empirical data.
• Data storage requirements for the controller are increased if multiple equations or look-up tables for different liquids are stored, and there is a requirement for the controller to be able to ascertain the liquid type so as to apply the appropriate equation when determining the aerosol mass in a puff.
• the equation for determining aerosol mass in a puff is obtained for liquid of a specified type vaporised in a specified aerosol provision system (in that the configuration of the aerosol provision system is known and specified, for example with a specified type of vaporiser), and used by the controller of an aerosol provision system to estimate liquid amount in the reservoir, as described above, and that a feature of the aerosol provision system itself is modified compared to the specified aerosol provision system in order to compensate for differences in vaporisation behaviour of the liquid type in the aerosol provision system compared to the specified liquid type for which the equation is obtained.
• the aim is to adjust the vaporisation performance of the aerosol provision system in such a way that, for a given power level and puff duration the same or approximately the same aerosol mass is produced from the liquid in the aerosol provision system (which we may refer to as a first liquid) as for the specified liquid in the specified aerosol provision system, and/or the rate of liquid consumption by vaporisation is the same or approximately the same, and/or a same or similar number of puffs is required to empty the reservoir.
• the equation or look-up tables obtained for the specified liquid type can be directly used by the controller to estimate liquid amounts for a different liquid type without any adjustment of the equation or selection between equations, and with no requirement for the controller to ascertain the liquid type in the reservoir in order to correctly apply the equation.
• the feature of the aerosol provision system that may be modified is a composition of the first liquid.
• different compositions or recipes of liquid can produce variations in vaporisation behaviour.
• the composition of the first liquid can be tailored such that, although the composition is different from the composition of the specified liquid, its vaporisation behaviour is made the same, substantially the same, or similar to that of the specified liquid.
• a flavour component in the first liquid which is different from a flavour component in the specified liquid may give a different vaporisation behaviour if the liquid compositions are otherwise the same.
• one or more components and/or amounts / proportions of components in a liquid of a first type be altered in order to adjust the vaporisation behaviour back to or towards the vaporisation behaviour of the specified liquid used when deriving the equation.
• a composition of the first liquid type is modified compared to the composition of the specified liquid type in order that the first liquid type has a same vaporisation behaviour as the specified liquid type.
• the composition of the first liquid type may be selected such that a mass of aerosol generated by the vaporiser of the aerosol provision system in a puff of a given puff duration and with a given level of power applied to the vaporiser using the first liquid type is the same as the mass of aerosol determined using the equation with a given puff duration value and the given power level value.
• composition of a liquid for vaporisation in an aerosol provision system can be understood herein as the different components or ingredients that make up the liquid, and their relative proportions within the liquid. This can be thought of as a recipe for the liquid, which specifies which ingredients should be combined in what proportions in order to make the liquid.
• the proportion of each ingredient may be a percentage of that ingredient relative to the whole of a volume of liquid, for example.
• the main ingredients typically present in a liquid are flavouring (which may itself be a combination of different components to produce a desired flavour/taste effect for the liquid when vaporised), nicotine (which may be in a salt form), propylene glycol (PG) and vegetable glycerin (VG), and sometimes water.
• Nicotine is of course omitted in zero-nicotine liquids, but otherwise can be included in different proportions in different liquids, to offer a range of nicotine "strengths" of liquid to the consumer.
• the PG and VG act as diluents for the nicotine.
• the PG carries the flavouring, and the amount of PG can govern the strength of flavour and also throat "hit” experienced by the user during a puff (included to emulate the effect of smoking a traditional cigarette).
• the VG is included to create a visible vapour/aerosol cloud, again emulating the experience of a traditional cigarette.
• the PG and VG are included in equal proportions as this is considered to balance the flavour delivery and cloud effect in a way acceptable to many users.
• PG and VG make up the bulk of a given volume of liquid, with flavouring and nicotine included in small proportions only.
• PG is an odourless thin liquid; it has low viscosity.
• VG is a thick liquid with a sweet flavour; it has a higher viscosity. Consequently, the proportion or ratio of PG and VG within a liquid tends to govern the overall viscosity of the liquid. In turn, the viscosity can have a significant effect on the vaporisation behaviour of the liquid. This may be inherent, and related to or similar to changes in surface tension and density that can also arise from changing the PG:VG ration.
• the effect may arise from the behaviour of the liquid within the aerosol provision system, since a less viscous liquid may be delivered more quickly or efficiently to the vaporiser than a more viscous liquid, for the same configuration of reservoir, wick and heater, for example.
• a higher viscosity liquid with higher surface tension may be more difficult to vaporise, since more energy is required to drive vapour from the portion of liquid at the vaporise.
• a higher level of power may therefore be required at the vaporiser to create a same amount of vapour. This applies also to changes in specific heat capacity and vaporisation temperature that may occur if the liquid composition is changed; a higher or lower amount of power may be needed to deliver enough heat energy to raise the liquid at the vaporiser to its vaporisation temperature.
• compositions of a liquid compared to the specified liquid in such a way that the vaporisation behaviour is altered to match the specified liquid.
• Some options are discussed below, but the disclosure is not limited in this way, and it will be apparent to the skilled person that the composition can be modified in any way appropriate to achieve the desired effect (possibly within boundaries set by legislation, for example, to limit the maximum nicotine content of commercially supplied liquids).
• the ability to offer different liquid types that retain choice of nicotine level, flavour and experience for the user is important.
• the composition of the first liquid type may therefore include one or more different flavourings (flavouring components) from the specified liquid type.
• Different flavouring components may have different properties that cause a change in vaporisation behaviour of the liquid if one flavouring is replaced with another.
• a different amount of a flavouring component may be needed to produce a stronger or weaker flavour experience.
• the proportion of the flavouring component in the liquid changes, requiring or producing a corresponding change in the proportion of one or more other components which could alter the vaporisation behaviour. If these effects are present, the overall composition of the liquid can be modified by changing the proportion(s) of one or more other components while retaining the required flavouring contribution, in order to match the vaporisation behaviour to that of the specified liquid.
• the composition of the first liquid type may therefore include a different amount or proportion of nicotine from the specified liquid type.
• the nicotine content of a liquid is typically given in units of mg/ml, thereby indicating how much nicotine is present per millilitre of the liquid. Accordingly, to provide a higher or level amount of nicotine may require a larger or smaller volume of nicotine to be included in the liquid, which will alter the proportion of nicotine to the other ingredients and change the overall composition of the liquid. Hence, the vaporisation behaviour may be altered.
• the overall composition of the liquid may again be modified by changing the proportion(s) of one or more other components while retaining the required nicotine amount, in order to match the vaporisation behaviour to that of the specified liquid.
• the concentration of nicotine in the nicotine component might be changed so that a same proportion of the nicotine component can be used while still changing the amount of nicotine, thereby allowing the proportions of the other ingredients to be retained, which may preserve the same vaporisation behaviour.
• the viscosity of the liquid can make a significant contribution to vaporisation behaviour.
• matching the viscosity of the first liquid to that of the specified liquid may be appropriate to provide a same vaporisation behaviour.
• the PG:VG ratio might be adjusted slightly up or down to compensate and make the viscosity the same as of the specified liquid.
• a more viscous flavouring component will increase the overall viscosity of the liquid, which might be compensated by increasing the amount of PG and decreasing the amount of VG (increasing the PG:VG ratio), for example.
• a higher nicotine level might require a larger proportion of nicotine, reducing the overall viscosity, and being compensable by decreasing the PG:VG ratio so that a higher proportion of VG is used, providing more viscosity.
• the first liquid type differs from the specified liquid type by having a different PG:VG ratio from that of the specified liquid. This may be additionally or alternatively to the viscosity of the first liquid type and the specified liquid type being the same.
• the PG:VG it may desirable to maintain the PG:VG to be the same for the first liquid type and the specified liquid type.
• many liquids include equal amounts of PG and VG (often described as a PG:VG ratio of 50:50, where this indicates that the proportion of each in the total amount of PG and VG within the liquid is 50%, and does not indicate that either makes up 50% of the whole of the liquid), as this is considered to provide a good compromise between the different characteristics imparted by each of these components.
• the composition of the first liquid might be modified in various ways to achieve this, such as by including a further ingredient such as water, or by changing the total combined amount of PG and VG in the liquid while maintaining the proportions of PG and VG within the total amount.
• the term "same” has been used when comparing the first liquid type and the specified liquid type, for example that the vaporisation behaviour and the aerosol mass per puff are the same, or various proportions of components in the liquids are the same. This is not intended to be limited to exact parity only, but to also include substantially the same, similar and substantially similar to the extent that the equation is able to deliver a useful level of accuracy of estimation of liquid amount in the reservoir.
• Figure 6 shows a flow chart of steps in an example method for estimating a liquid amount in an aerosol provision system, generally in line with features of the preceding disclosure.
• the method may be performed by a controller comprised within an aerosol provision system, such as within a device component of an aerosol provision system that can be coupled to a cartridge or pod component to form the complete aerosol provision system.
• a power level value is obtained, being a level of power which is applied a vaporiser of the aerosol provision system during a puff taken by a user of the aerosol provision system.
• the vaporiser operates under the supply of electrical power to generate aerosol for the puff by vaporising liquid from the reservoir.
• liquid in the reservoir is a first liquid type.
• the aerosol provision system includes a modification compared to a specified aerosol provision system that vaporises liquid of a specified type which is different from the first liquid type.
• the modification is implemented to compensate for differences in vaporisation behaviour that may arise between liquids of different types if this is not taken into account.
• the modification comprises a composition of the first liquid type, which is modified compared with a composition of the specified liquid type in order to provide a same vaporisation behaviour for both liquid types.
• a puff duration value is obtained, being a duration of the puff for which the power at the obtained power level value has been applied to the vaporiser.
• Various embodiments may suitably comprise, consist of, or consist essentially of, various combinations of the disclosed elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc. other than those specifically described herein.
• the disclosure may include other inventions not presently claimed, but which may be claimed in future.

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• 2024
  • 2024-02-08 EP EP24156622.3A patent/EP4599722A1/de active Pending

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