Aerosol delivery device including artificial intelligence

Abstract

An aerosol delivery device is provided, the aerosol delivery device including (multiple) sensors for generating measurements of a property during use of the device, and processing circuitry that records data for multiple uses of the device, the data including the measurement of the property for each use. The processing circuitry is configured to build a machine learning model using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature selected from the property, and a training set generated from the measurement of the property to predict a target variable. The processing circuitry is configured to subsequently deploy the machine learning model to predict the target variable and control at least one functional element of the device based thereon. The device also includes a digital camera for capturing a facial image of an attempted user to enable facial recognition to change a lock state of the device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to aerosol delivery devices such as aerosol-generating smoking articles. The smoking article may be configured to heat or otherwise dispense an aerosol precursor or otherwise generate an aerosol from an aerosol precursor, which may contain a material made from or derived from tobacco or otherwise contain tobacco, which precursor may form an inhalable substance for human consumption. Background Art

[0002] Over the years, many smoking articles have been proposed as improvements or alternatives to smoking products based on burning tobacco. Some example alternatives include devices in which solid or liquid fuels are burned to transfer heat to the tobacco or in which chemical reactions are used to provide such heat sources. Additional example alternatives use electrical energy to heat tobacco and / or other aerosol-generating substrate materials, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,078,473 to Worm et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0003] The improvement or replacement of smoking articles generally provides the sensation associated with cigarette, cigar or pipe smoking without delivering a considerable amount of incomplete combustion and pyrolysis products. For this reason, it has been proposed to utilize electric energy to evaporate or heat many smoking products, flavor generators and medicated inhalers of volatile materials, or to attempt to provide the sensation of cigarette, cigar or pipe smoking without burning tobacco to a significant degree. For example, referring to the various alternative smoking articles, aerosol delivery devices and heating sources described in the background technology of U.S. Patent No. 7,726,320 of Robinson et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013 / 0255702 of Griffith Jr. et al. and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0096781 of Sears et al., these patents are incorporated herein by reference. For example, also referring to various types of smoking articles, aerosol delivery devices and electric heating sources cited by trade names and commercial sources in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0216232 of Bless et al., the patent is incorporated herein by reference. Other types of smoking articles, aerosol delivery devices, and electrically powered heat sources, cited by brand name and commercial source, are listed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0245659 to DePiano et al., which is also incorporated herein by reference.Other representative cigarettes or smoking articles that have been described and in some cases are commercially available include those in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al.; 4,922,901, 4,947,874, 4,947,875 to Brooks et al.; 5,060,671 to Counts et al.; 5,249,586 to Morgan et al.; 5,388,571 to Counts et al. 94; Higgins et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,666,977; Adams et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,176; White U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,287; Voges U.S. Pat. No. 6,196,218; Felter et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,810,883; Nichols U.S. Pat. No. 6,854,461; Hon U.S. Pat. No. 7,832,410; Kobayashi U.S. Pat. No. No. 7,513,253; U.S. Patent No. 7,726,320 to Robinson et al.; U.S. Patent No. 7,896,006 to Hamano; U.S. Patent No. 6,772,756 to Shayan; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2009 / 0095311 to Hon; U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 2006 / 0196518, 2009 / 0126745, and 2009 / 0188490 to Hon; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2009 / 0196518 to Thorens et al. No. 009 / 0272379 to Monsees et al.; U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 2009 / 0260641 and 2009 / 0260642 to Monsees et al.; U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 2008 / 0149118 and 2010 / 0024834 to Oglesby et al.; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2010 / 0307518 to Wang; and WO 2010 / 091593 to Hon, which documents are incorporated herein by reference.

[0004] Representative products with many attributes similar to traditional types of cigarettes, cigars or pipes are already on the market: Philip Morris Incorporated's ALPHA by InnoVapor LLC TM 、JOYE510 TM and M4 TM ; CIRRUS from White Cloud Cigarettes TM and FLING TMFontem Ventures BV TM ; International Inc( COHITA TM 、COLIBRI TM ,ELITE CLASSIC TM 、MAGNUM TM PHANTOM TM and SENSE TM ; DUOPRO from Electronic Cigarettes, Inc. TM 、STORM TM AND VAPORKING TM ; EGAR of Egar Australia TM ; Joyetech's eGo-C TM and eGo-T TM ; ELUSION of Elusion UK Ltd (Elusion Limited Liability Company of the United Kingdom) TM ; Eonsmoke LLC FINBranding Group, LLC TM ; Green Smoke Inc.USA GREENARETTE of Greenarette LLC TM ;SMOKE HALLIGAN TM 、HENDU TM 、JET TM , MAXXQ TM PINK TM and PITBULL TM ; HEATBAR by Philip Morris International, Inc. TM ; HYDRO IMPERIAL from Crown7 TM and LXE TM ; LOGIC Technology's LOGICTM and THE CUBAN TM ; Luciano Smokes Inc. Nicotek, LLC Sottera, Inc. and ONEJOY TM ; SS Choice LLC (SS Choice Limited Liability Company) NO.7 TM ; PREMIUM ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE by PremiumEstore LLC TM ; RAPP E-MYSTICK of Ruyan America, Inc. TM ; RED DRAGON from Red Dragon Products, LLC TM ; Ruyan Group (Holdings) Ltd. Smoker Friendly International, LLC The Smart Smoking Electronic Cigarette Company Ltd.'s GREEN SMART SMOKE by Coastline Products LLC SMOKING EVERYWHERE by Smoking Everywhere, Inc. TM ; V2CIGS from VMR Products LLC TM ; VAPOR NINE of VaporNine LLC TM ; Vapor 4 Life, Inc. VEPPO of E-CigaretteDirect, LLC TM; RJReynolds Vapor Company Mistic Ecigs’ Mistic menthol products; CN Creative Ltd.’s Vype products; Philip Morris International, Inc.’s IQOS TM ; British American Tobacco's GLO TM ; MARK TEN products of NuMark LLC; and JUUL products of Juul Labs, Inc. Still other electric aerosol delivery devices and specifically those devices that have been characterized as so-called electronic cigarettes have been marketed under the following trade names: COOLER VISIONS TM ;DIRECT E-CIG TM ;DRAGONFLY TM ;EMIST TM ;EVERSMOKE TM ; HYBRID FLAME TM ;KNIGHT STICKS TM ; ROYAL BLUES TM ; and South Beach Smokey TM .

[0005] However, it may be desirable to provide an aerosol delivery device with improved electronics, such as to expand the usability of the device. Summary of the invention

[0006] The present disclosure relates to an aerosol delivery device configured to generate an aerosol, and in some embodiments, the aerosol delivery device may be referred to as an electronic cigarette, a heat-not-burn cigarette (or device), or a non-heat-not-burn device. The present disclosure includes but is not limited to the following example embodiments.

[0007] Example embodiment 1: An aerosol delivery device comprises: a shell, the shell being constructed to retain an aerosol precursor composition; at least one sensor, the at least one sensor being configured to generate a measurement of a property during use of the aerosol delivery device; a terminal, the terminal being configured to connect a power source to the aerosol delivery device; an aerosol generating component or a second terminal for connecting the aerosol generating component to the aerosol delivery device, the aerosol generating component being configured to generate an aerosol from the aerosol precursor composition; and a control component, the control component comprising a processing circuit system, the processing circuit system being configured to switchably connect the power source to a load including the aerosol generating component, and thereby power the aerosol generating component, wherein the processing circuit system is configured to record data for multiple uses of the aerosol delivery device, for each use, the data including a measurement of the property, wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish a machine learning model using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature selected from the property, and a training set generated from the measurement of the property to establish a machine learning model to predict a target variable, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to deploy the machine learning model to predict the target variable and control at least one functional element of the aerosol delivery device based thereon.

[0008] Example embodiment 2: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the aerosol delivery device further includes a camera system, the camera system including a digital camera, the digital camera configured to capture an image of a face of an attempted user of the aerosol delivery device, wherein the processing circuit system is configured to perform facial recognition using the image to verify that the attempted user is an authorized user of the aerosol delivery device, and the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to change a lock state of the aerosol delivery device based on the verification of the attempted user.

[0009] Example embodiment 3: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein multiple uses of the aerosol delivery device include individual user puffs, wherein each user puff causes airflow to flow through at least a portion of the housing and is used for the user to inhale the aerosol, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to record data for multiple uses including being configured to record measurements with the time and duration of each user puff, and the target variable is a user profile that depends on at least one of the attributes and the time and duration of each user puff.

[0010] Example embodiment 4: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the user profile includes information indicating a predicted time period of non-use of the aerosol delivery device, and the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to cause the aerosol delivery device to enter a sleep mode during the predicted time period of non-use.

[0011] Example embodiment 5: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to control power from a power source to a load including an aerosol generating component based on a user profile.

[0012] Example embodiment 6: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the aerosol generating component includes a plurality of grids surrounded by piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material, the processing circuit system is configured to selectively drive the piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material to vibrate and cause components of the aerosol precursor composition to be discharged through one or more of the grids, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to control power from a power source, including being configured to control power from the power source to selectively drive the piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material based on a user profile.

[0013] Example embodiment 7: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the preceding example embodiments or any combination of any of the preceding example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes a pressure sensor configured to generate a measurement of pressure caused by the airflow, and at least one of the properties on which the user profile depends includes a measurement of pressure that is proportional to the intensity of the puff taken by each user.

[0014] Example embodiment 8: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the preceding example embodiments or any combination of any of the preceding example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes a pressure sensor configured to generate a measurement of pressure caused by airflow that is proportional to the total specific matter (TPM) in the aerosol generated during each user puff, and at least one of the properties on which the user profile depends includes a measurement of pressure that is proportional to the TPM in the aerosol generated during each user puff.

[0015] Example embodiment 9: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes a current or voltage sensor, the current or voltage sensor being configured to generate a measurement of a current through or a voltage across an aerosol generating component, and the processing circuit system is further configured to determine the power dissipated by the aerosol generating component during each user puff based on the measurement of the current through or the voltage across the aerosol generating component, and wherein at least one of the properties on which the user profile depends includes the power dissipated by the aerosol generating component during each user puff.

[0016] Example embodiment 10: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the aerosol delivery device can be used with at least a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions, and at least one sensor includes a reader configured to read machine-readable information, the processing circuit system is configured to identify corresponding aerosol precursor compositions among the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions during individual user puffs based on the machine-readable information when used with the aerosol delivery device, and wherein the user profile depends on at least corresponding aerosol precursor compositions among the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions identified by the processing circuit system, and the time and duration of individual user puffs when used with the aerosol delivery device.

[0017] Example embodiment 11: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the aerosol generating component is a plurality of aerosol generating components configured to generate aerosols from a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to automatically select among the plurality of aerosol generating components at different times based on a user profile.

[0018] Example embodiment 12: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the processing circuit system is further configured to predict depletion of a particular one of a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions based on a user profile, and wherein the aerosol delivery device further includes a wireless communication interface, and the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to communicate with a computing device or service platform via the wireless communication interface to order an additional amount of a particular one of a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions.

[0019] Example embodiment 13: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the preceding example embodiments or any combination of any of the preceding example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes a location sensor configured to determine a geographic location of the aerosol delivery device, and wherein at least one of the attributes on which the user profile depends includes the geographic location of the aerosol delivery device during each user puff.

[0020] Example embodiment 14: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the aerosol delivery device further includes a wireless communication interface, the aerosol delivery device being configured to receive, via the wireless communication interface, a second measurement of an attribute during use of the second aerosol delivery device from a second aerosol delivery device, the use of the second aerosol delivery device including puffs by individual second users, and second times and durations of puffs by individual second users, wherein the processing circuit system is further configured to establish and deploy a second machine learning model to predict a second target variable, the second machine learning model being established using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature selected from the attributes, and a second training set generated from the second measurement of the attributes, and the second target variable being a second user profile that depends on at least one of the attributes and the second times and durations of puffs by individual second users.

[0021] Example embodiment 15: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes an accelerometer configured to generate measurements of acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is a logical activity of a user of the aerosol delivery device, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish a machine learning model including being configured to establish an activity detection model to predict the user's logical activity, using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from the measurement of acceleration to establish the activity detection model.

[0022] Example embodiment 16: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes an accelerometer configured to generate measurements of acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is a logical carrying position of the aerosol delivery device, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish a machine learning model including being configured to establish a carrying position detection model to predict the logical carrying position of the aerosol delivery device, using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from the measurement of acceleration to establish the carrying position detection model.

[0023] Example embodiment 17: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes an accelerometer configured to generate measurements of acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is a gesture performed using the aerosol delivery device, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish a machine learning model including being configured to establish a gesture recognition model to predict gestures, establishing the gesture recognition model using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from the measurement of acceleration.

[0024] Example embodiment 18: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the preceding example embodiments or any combination of any of the preceding example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes a microphone configured to generate measurements of audio from an audio source in an environment of the aerosol delivery device, and wherein the processing circuit system is further configured to create a virtual directional microphone having a beam pattern created from the measurement of the audio, and wherein the beam pattern is pointed in the direction of the audio source.

[0025] Example embodiment 19: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the preceding example embodiments or any combination of any of the preceding example embodiments, wherein the aerosol delivery device further comprises a wireless communication interface, and wherein the processing circuit system is further configured to implement half-duplex Bluetooth low energy communication with a computing device via the wireless communication interface.

[0026] Example embodiment 20: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes a sensor configured to produce a measurement of the resistance of an aerosol precursor composition, and the target variable is a measure of the mass of the aerosol precursor composition that is proportional to the resistivity of the aerosol precursor composition, and the resistivity can be determined based on the measurement of the resistance, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish a machine learning model including being configured to establish a machine learning model to predict the measure of the mass of the aerosol precursor composition, using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including the resistance of the aerosol precursor composition, and a training set generated from the measurement of the resistance to establish the model.

[0027] Example embodiment 21: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the power source is rechargeable, the data for multiple uses includes a recharge count and frequency of the power source, and the target variable is a measure of the life expectancy of the aerosol precursor composition or the power source that is proportional to the recharge count and frequency of the power source, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to build a machine learning model including being configured to build a machine learning model to predict the measure of the life expectancy of the aerosol precursor composition or the power source, using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including the recharge count and frequency of the power source, and a training set generated from the recharge count and frequency to build the model.

[0028] Example embodiment 22: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein at least one sensor includes an accelerometer configured to produce a measurement of acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is or is based on a measure of user activity of the aerosol delivery device that is proportional to the number of steps of the user, and the number of steps can be determined based on the measurement of acceleration, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to build a machine learning model including being configured to build a machine learning model to predict the measure of user activity, using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from the measurement of acceleration to build the model.

[0029] Example embodiment 23: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein multiple uses of the aerosol delivery device include individual user puffs, wherein each user puff causes airflow to flow through at least a portion of the housing and is used for the user to inhale the aerosol, and wherein the processing circuit system is configured to record data for multiple uses including being configured to record measurements of the time and duration of individual user puffs, and the target variable is a measure of activity based and further based on a measure of the health of the user based on the rate of use that depends on the time and duration of individual user puffs.

[0030] Example embodiment 24: An aerosol delivery device as in any of the foregoing example embodiments or any combination of any of the foregoing example embodiments, wherein the aerosol delivery device further comprises a wireless communication interface, wherein the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to transmit a target variable to a service platform via the wireless communication interface, and the service platform is configured to electronically record the target variable on a blockchain.

[0031] These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will be apparent from reading the following specific embodiments together with the accompanying drawings briefly described below. The present disclosure includes any combination of two, three, four or more features or components set forth in the present disclosure, regardless of whether such features or components are explicitly combined or otherwise referenced in the specific example embodiments described herein. The present disclosure is intended to be read as a whole so that any separable features or components of the present disclosure in any of its aspects and example embodiments should be considered combinable unless the context of the present disclosure explicitly states otherwise.

[0032] Therefore, it will be understood that the present disclosure is provided only for the purpose of summarizing some example embodiments in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the present disclosure. Therefore, it will be understood that the example embodiments described above are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the scope or spirit of the present disclosure in any way. Other example embodiments, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description made in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the principles of some of the described example embodiments by way of example. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] Having thus described various aspects of the disclosure in the foregoing summary manner, reference is now made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, and in which:

[0034] Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of an aerosol delivery device including a cartridge and a control body coupled to each other according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0035] Figure 2 According to an example implementation Figure 1 A partial cross-sectional view of an aerosol delivery device, wherein the cartridge and the control body are decoupled from each other;

[0036] Figure 3 and Figure 4 shows a perspective view of an aerosol delivery device including a control body and an aerosol source member according to another example embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the control body and the aerosol source member are coupled to and decoupled from each other, respectively;

[0037] Figure 5 and Figure 6 According to example embodiments, Figure 3 and Figure 4 A front view of an aerosol delivery device and a cross-sectional view through the aerosol delivery device;

[0038] Figure 7 and Figure 8shows a side view and a partial cross-sectional view, respectively, of an aerosol delivery device including a cartridge coupled to a control body according to an example embodiment;

[0039] Fig. 9 A circuit diagram showing an aerosol delivery device according to various example embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0040] Fig.10 A communication system including an aerosol delivery device according to various example embodiments is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] The present disclosure will now be described more fully below with reference to example embodiments of the present disclosure. These embodiments are described so that the present disclosure is thorough and complete, and the scope of the present disclosure is fully conveyed to those skilled in the art. In fact, the present disclosure can be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the implementations set forth herein; on the contrary, these implementations are provided so that the present disclosure will meet applicable legal requirements. As used in the specification and the appended claims, unless the context clearly provides otherwise, the singular forms "a / an", "the" and similar terms include multiple indicators. In addition, although reference may be made here to quantitative measurements, values, geometric relationships, etc., unless otherwise stated, any one or more (if not all) of these references may be absolute or approximate to illustrate acceptable changes that may occur, such as changes due to engineering tolerances, etc.

[0042] As described below, the present disclosure relates to an aerosol delivery device. An aerosol delivery device may be configured to produce an aerosol (inhalable substance) from an aerosol precursor composition (sometimes referred to as an inhalable substance medium). An aerosol precursor composition may include one or more of a solid tobacco material, a semisolid tobacco material, or a liquid aerosol precursor composition. In some embodiments, an aerosol delivery device may be configured to heat a fluid aerosol precursor composition (such as a liquid aerosol precursor composition) and produce an aerosol from a fluid aerosol precursor composition (such as a liquid aerosol precursor composition). Such an aerosol delivery device may include a so-called electronic cigarette. In other embodiments, an aerosol delivery device may include a heat-not-burn device. In yet other embodiments, an aerosol delivery device may include a no-heat-no-burn device.

[0043] Liquid aerosol precursor compositions (also referred to as vapor precursor compositions or "e-liquids") are particularly useful for electronic cigarettes and heat-not-burn devices. The aerosol precursor composition can include a variety of ingredients, such as polyols (e.g., glycerol (including vegetable glycerol), propylene glycol, or mixtures thereof), nicotine, tobacco, tobacco extracts, and / or flavorings. In some examples, the aerosol precursor composition includes glycerol and nicotine.

[0044] Some liquid aerosol precursor compositions that can be used in conjunction with various embodiments can include one or more acids, such as levulinic acid, succinic acid, lactic acid, pyruvic acid, benzoic acid, fumaric acid, combinations thereof, etc. Including (multiple) acids in the liquid aerosol precursor composition with nicotine can provide a protonated liquid aerosol precursor composition, including nicotine in salt form. Representative types of liquid aerosol precursor compositions and formulations are described and characterized in U.S. Pat. No. 7,726,320 to Robinson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 9,254,002 to Chong et al.; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013 / 0008457 to Zheng et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0020823 to Lipowicz et al., and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0020830 to Koller; and PCT Patent Application Publication No. WO 2014 / 182736 to Bowen et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,881,737 to Collett et al., the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Other aerosol precursors that may be employed include those that have been incorporated into any of the many representative products described above. So-called "smoke juices" for electronic cigarettes available from Johnson Creek Enterprises LLC are also desirable. Still further exemplary aerosol precursor compositions are sold under the following brand names: BLACK NOTE, COSMIC FOG, THE MILKMAN E-LIQUID, FIVE PAWNS, THE VAPOR CHEF, VAPE WILD, BOOSTED, THE STEAM FACTORY, MECH SAUCE, CASEY JONESMAINLINE RESERVE, MITTEN VAPORS, DR. CRIMMY'S V-LIQUID, SMILEY E LIQUID, BEANTOWN VAPOR, CUTTWOOD, CYCLOPS VAPOR, SICBOY, GOOD LIFE VAPOR, TELEOS, PINUP VAPORS, SPACEJAM, MT. BAKER VAPOR, and JIMMY THE JUICE MAN. Embodiments of foaming materials may be used with aerosol precursors and are described by way of example in US Patent Application Publication No. 2012 / 0055494 to Hunt et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.Further, the use of foaming materials is described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,639,368 to Niazi et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,178,878 to Wehling et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,223,264 to Wehling et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,974,590 to Pather et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 7,381,667 to Bergquist et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 8,424,541 to Crawford et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 8,627,828 to Strickland et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 9,307,787 to Sun et al.; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010 / 0018539 to Brinkley et al.; and PCT Patent Application Publication No. WO 97 / 06786 to Johnson et al., all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0045] Representative types of matrices, reservoirs, or other components for supporting aerosol precursors are described in Newton's U.S. Pat. No. 8,528,569; Chapman et al.'s U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0261487; Davis et al.'s U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0059780; and Bless et al.'s U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0216232, all of which are incorporated herein by reference. Additionally, various wicking materials within certain types of electronic cigarettes and the configuration and operation of those wicking materials are described in Sears et al.'s U.S. Pat. No. 8,910,640, which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0046] In other embodiments, the aerosol delivery device may include a heat-not-burn device configured to heat a solid aerosol precursor composition (e.g., an extruded tobacco rod) or a semisolid aerosol precursor composition (e.g., a tobacco paste loaded with glycerol). The aerosol precursor composition may include: tobacco-containing beads, shredded tobacco, tobacco rods, reconstituted tobacco materials, or combinations thereof, and / or a mixture of finely ground tobacco, tobacco extracts, spray-dried tobacco extracts, or other tobacco forms, mixed with optional inorganic materials (such as calcium carbonate), optional flavoring agents, and aerosol-forming materials to form a substantially solid or moldable (e.g., extrudable) matrix. Representative types of solid and semi-solid aerosol precursor compositions and formulations are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,424,538 to Thomas et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 8,464,726 to Sebastian et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0083150 to Conner et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0157052 to Ademe et al.; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0000188 to Nordskog et al., all of which are incorporated herein by reference. Further representative types of solid and semi-solid aerosol precursor compositions and arrangements include GLO® of British American Tobacco. TM NEOSTIKS products TM Consumable Aerosol Source Components Neutralizing Philip Morris International Inc.’s IQOS TM HEETS OF PRODUCTS TM Those found in the aerosol source component may be consumed.

[0047] In various embodiments, more specifically, inhalable substances can be tobacco ingredients or materials derived from tobacco (that is, materials that can be directly separated or synthetically prepared from tobacco that are naturally present in tobacco). For example, an aerosol precursor composition may include a tobacco extract or a portion thereof, which is combined with an inert substrate. The aerosol precursor composition may further include unburned tobacco or a composition comprising unburned tobacco, which releases inhalable substances when heated to a temperature lower than its combustion temperature. In some embodiments, an aerosol precursor composition may include tobacco condensate or a portion thereof (that is, the condensation components of the smoke produced by the combustion of tobacco, leaving flavoring agents and possible nicotine).

[0048] Tobacco materials that can be used in the present disclosure can change and can include, for example, flue-cured tobacco, burley tobacco, oriental tobacco or Maryland tobacco, dark tobacco, dark flue-cured tobacco and yellow flower (Rustica) tobacco, and other rare or special tobaccos or their mixtures.Tobacco materials can also include so-called "through mixing" form and processed form, such as processed tobacco stems (for example, cut-rolled or cut puffed stems), volume expanded tobacco (for example, puffed tobacco, such as dry ice expanded tobacco (DIET), preferably in the form of formula shredded tobacco (cut filler)), reconstructed tobacco (for example, reconstructed tobacco using papermaking type or cast sheet type process to manufacture). Various representative tobacco types, processed tobacco types, and tobacco blend types are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,224 to Lawson et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,888 to Perfetti et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,537 to Brown et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,942 to Brinkley et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,930 to Gentry, U.S. Pat. No. 5,360,023 to Blakley et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,701,936 to Shafer et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,011,096 to Li et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,017,585 to Li et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 7,025,066 to Lawson et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004 / 0255965 to Perfetti et al.; PCT Patent Application Publication No. WO 2004 / 0255965 to Bereman 02 / 37990; and Bombick et al., Basic and Applied Toxicology, 39, pp. 11-17 (1997), which are incorporated herein by reference. Further, exemplary tobacco compositions that may be useful in smoking devices (including smoking devices according to the present disclosure) are disclosed in Robinson et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,726,320, which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0049] Further, the aerosol precursor composition may include an inert substrate having an inhalable substance or a precursor thereof integrated therein or otherwise deposited thereon. For example, a liquid including an inhalable substance may be coated on an inert substrate or adsorbed into an inert substrate so that when heat is applied, the inhalable substance is released in a form that can be drawn from the product of the present invention by applying positive or negative pressure. In some aspects, the aerosol precursor composition may include a mixture of spices and aromatic tobacco in the form of formulated tobacco shreds. On the other hand, the aerosol precursor composition may include a reconstituted tobacco material, such as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,807,809 of Pryor et al.; U.S. Patent No. 4,889,143 of Pryor et al.; and U.S. Patent No. 5,025,814 of Raker, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. For more information on suitable aerosol precursor compositions, see U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 15 / 916,834 filed by Sur et al. on March 9, 2018, which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0050] Regardless of the type of aerosol precursor composition, the aerosol delivery device may include an aerosol generating component configured to generate an aerosol from the aerosol precursor composition. For example, in the case of an electronic cigarette or a heat-not-burn device, the aerosol generating component may be or include a heating component. In the case of a heat-not-burn device, in some examples, the aerosol generating component may be or include at least one vibrating piezoelectric grid or piezomagnetic grid.

[0051] An example of a suitable heating assembly is an induction heater. Such a heater typically includes an induction transmitter and an induction receiver. The induction transmitter may include a coil configured to create an oscillating magnetic field (e.g., a magnetic field that varies periodically over time) when an alternating current is directed through the coil. The induction receiver may be at least partially positioned or received within the induction receiver and may include a conductive material (e.g., a ferromagnetic material or an aluminum-coated material). By directing an alternating current through the induction transmitter, eddy currents may be generated in the induction receiver via induction. The eddy currents flowing through the resistance of the material defining the induction receiver may heat it by Joule heating (i.e., by the Joule effect). The induction receiver that may define the atomizer may be wirelessly heated to form an aerosol from an aerosol precursor composition positioned close to the induction receiver. Various embodiments of an aerosol delivery device with an induction heater are described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0127722 to Davis et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0202266 to Sur et al.; U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 15 / 352,153 filed by Sur et al. on November 15, 2016; U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 15 / 799,365 filed by Sebastian et al. on October 31, 2017; and U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 15 / 836,086 to Sur, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0052] In other embodiments, including those described in more detail herein, the heating assembly is a conductive heater such as in the case of a resistive heater. These heaters can be configured to generate heat when an electric current is directed through the heater. In various embodiments, the conductive heater can be provided in various forms, such as in the form of a foil, foam, disc, spiral, fiber, wire, film, yarn, strip, band or cylinder. Such heaters often include metallic materials and are configured to generate heat due to the resistance associated with passing an electric current through a resistor. Such resistive heaters can be positioned close to an aerosol precursor composition and heat the aerosol precursor composition to generate an aerosol. A variety of conductive materials that can be used with the present disclosure are described in the U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013 / 0255702 of Griffith et al. cited above.

[0053] In some embodiments, the aerosol delivery device may include a control body and a cartridge in the case of a so-called electronic cigarette or a heat-not-burn device, or may include a control body and an aerosol source member in the case of a heat-not-burn device. In the case of an electronic cigarette or a heat-not-burn device, the control body may be reusable, while the cartridge / aerosol source member may be configured for a limited number of uses and / or configured as a disposable. Various mechanisms may connect the cartridge / aerosol source member to the control body, thereby creating a threaded engagement, a press-fit engagement, an interference fit, a slide fit, a magnetic engagement, etc.

[0054] The control body and the cartridge / aerosol source member may include a separate, separate housing or outer body that may be formed from any of a variety of different materials. The housing may be formed from any suitable structurally sound material. In some examples, the housing may be formed from a metal or alloy such as stainless steel, aluminum, etc. Other suitable materials include various plastics (e.g., polycarbonate), metal-plating over plastic, ceramics, etc.

[0055] The cartridge / aerosol source member may include an aerosol precursor composition. In order to generate an aerosol from the aerosol precursor composition, an aerosol generating component (e.g., a heating assembly, a piezoelectric grid / piezomagnetic grid) may be positioned in contact with or near the aerosol precursor composition, such as positioned across the control body and the cartridge, or positioned in the control body where the aerosol source member may be located. The control body may include a power source, which may be rechargeable or replaceable, and whereby the control body may be reused with multiple cartridges / aerosol source members.

[0056] The control body may also include means for activating the aerosol delivery device, such as a button, a touch-sensitive surface or the like for manual control of the device. Additionally or alternatively, the control body may include a flow sensor to detect when a user draws on the cartridge / aerosol source member to thereby activate the aerosol delivery device.

[0057] In various embodiments, aerosol delivery devices according to the present disclosure may have a variety of overall shapes, including but not limited to, an overall shape that can be defined as a substantially rod-shaped or substantially tubular shape or a substantially cylindrical shape. In the embodiments shown and described with reference to the accompanying drawings, the aerosol delivery device has a substantially circular cross-section; however, the present disclosure also encompasses other cross-sectional shapes (e.g., elliptical, square, rectangular, triangular, etc.). Such language describing the physical shape of the article also applies to the various components of the article, including the control body and the cartridge / aerosol source member. In other embodiments, the control body may take another handheld shape, such as a small box shape.

[0058] In more specific embodiments, one or both of the control body and the cartridge / aerosol source member may be referred to as disposable or reusable. For example, the control body may have a power source such as a replaceable battery or a rechargeable battery, SSB, a film SSB, a rechargeable supercapacitor, a lithium ion or a hybrid lithium ion supercapacitor, etc. An example of a power source is a TKI-1550 rechargeable lithium ion battery produced by Tadiran Batteries GmbH of Germany. In another embodiment, a useful power source may be an N50-AAA CADNICA nickel-cadmium battery produced by Sanyo Electric Company, Ltd. of Japan. In other embodiments, a plurality of such batteries (e.g., each battery provides 1.2 volts) may be connected in series.

[0059] In some examples, the power supply can then be connected to and thereby combined with any type of recharging technology. Examples of suitable chargers include chargers that simply supply constant or pulsed direct current (DC) power to the power supply, fast chargers that add control circuitry, three-stage chargers, inductively powered chargers, smart chargers, sports powered chargers, pulse chargers, solar chargers, USB-based chargers, and the like. In some examples, the charger includes a power adapter and any suitable charging circuitry. In other examples, the charger includes a power adapter and a control body equipped with a charging circuitry. In these other examples, the charger may sometimes be simply referred to as a power adapter.

[0060] The control body may include any one of a plurality of different terminals, electrical connectors, etc., to connect to a suitable charger and, in some examples, to other peripheral devices for communication. More specific suitable examples include direct current (DC) connectors, such as cylindrical connectors, cigarette lighter connectors, and USB connectors (including those specified by USB 1.x (e.g., type A, type B), USB 2.0 and its updates and additions (e.g., mini A, mini B, mini AB, micro A, micro B, micro AB) and USB3.x (e.g., type A, type B, micro B, micro AB, type C)), dedicated connectors such as Apple's lightning connector, etc. The control body may be directly connected to the charger or other peripheral device, or the two may be connected via an appropriate cable that also has a suitable connector. In the example where the two are connected by a cable, the control body and the charger or other peripheral device may have the same or different types of connectors, wherein the cable has one type of connector or both types of connectors.

[0061] In examples involving inductively powered charging, the aerosol delivery device may be equipped with inductive wireless charging technology and include an inductive receiver to connect to a wireless charger, charging pad, etc. that includes an inductive transmitter and uses inductive wireless charging (including, for example, wireless charging according to the Qi wireless charging standard from the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC)). Alternatively, the power supply may be recharged from a wireless radio frequency (RF) based charger. Examples of inductive wireless charging systems are described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0112196 to Sur et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Further, in some embodiments in the case of an electronic cigarette, the cartridge may include a disposable cartridge as disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 8,910,639 to Chang et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0062] One or more connections may be used to connect the power source to the recharging technology, and some connections may involve a charging box, a cradle, a dock, a sleeve, etc. More specifically, for example, the control body may be configured to engage a cradle including a USB connector to connect to the power source. Or in another example, the control body may be configured to fit within a sleeve including a USB connector and engage the sleeve to connect to the power source. In these and similar examples, the USB connector may be directly connected to the power source, or the USB connector may be connected to the power source via a suitable power adapter.

[0063] Examples of power supplies are described in U.S. Patent No. 9,484,155 to Peckerar et al. and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0112191 filed on October 21, 2015 by Sur et al., which are incorporated herein by reference. Other examples of suitable power supplies are provided in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0283855 to Hawes et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0014125 to Fernando et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013 / 0243410 to Nichols et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010 / 0313901 to Fernando et al., and U.S. Patent No. 9,439,454 to Fernando et al., all of which are incorporated herein by reference. With respect to flow sensors, representative current regulating components and other current control components including various microcontrollers, sensors and switches for aerosol delivery devices are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al.; U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,922,901, 4,947,874 and 4,947,875, all to Brooks et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,148 to McCafferty et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,040,000 to Fleischhauer et al. ,560; U.S. Patent No. 7,040,314 to Nguyen et al.; U.S. Patent No. 8,205,622 to Pan; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 8,881,737 to Collet et al.; U.S. Patent No. 9,423,152 to Ampolini et al.; U.S. Patent No. 9,439,454 to Fernando et al.; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0257445 to Henry et al., all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0064] An input device may be included in the aerosol delivery device (and may replace or supplement a flow sensor). An input may be included to allow a user to control the functionality of the device and / or to output information to the user. Any component or combination of components may be used as an input for controlling the functionality of the device. Suitable input devices include buttons, touch switches, or other touch-sensitive surfaces. For example, one or more buttons may be used, as described in U.S. Publication No. 2015 / 0245658 to Worm et al., which is incorporated herein by reference. Similarly, a touch screen may be used, as described in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 14 / 643,626 filed by Sears et al. on March 10, 2015, which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0065] As a further example, a component suitable for gesture recognition based on a specified movement of an aerosol delivery device can be used as an input device. See U.S. Patent Publication No. 2016 / 0158782 to Henry et al., which is incorporated herein by reference. As yet a further example, a capacitive sensor can be implemented on an aerosol delivery device to enable a user to provide input, such as by touching the surface of the device on which the capacitive sensor is implemented. In another example, a sensor capable of detecting motion associated with the device (e.g., an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a photoelectric proximity sensor, etc.) can be implemented on the aerosol delivery device to enable a user to provide input. Examples of suitable sensors are described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018 / 0132528 to Sur et al. and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016 / 0158782 to Henry et al., which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0066] As indicated above, the aerosol delivery device may include various electronic devices, such as at least one control component. Suitable control components may include multiple electronic components, and in some examples may be formed by a circuit board such as a printed circuit board (PCB). In some examples, according to one or more example embodiments, the electronic component includes a processing circuit system, and the processing circuit system is configured to perform data processing, application execution, or other processing, control or management services. The processing circuit system may include a processor embodied in the following various forms: such as at least one processor core, a microprocessor, a coprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, or various other computing or processing devices including one or more integrated circuits (such as, for example, an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit), an FPGA (field programmable gate array), some combination thereof, etc.). In some examples, the processing circuit system may include a memory coupled to or integrated with the processor, and the memory may store data, computer program instructions executable by the processor, some combination thereof, etc.

[0067] In some examples, the control component may include one or more input / output peripherals that may be coupled to or integrated with the processing circuit system. More specifically, the control component may include a communication interface to enable wireless communication with one or more networks, computing devices, or other appropriately enabled devices. An example of a suitable communication interface is disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016 / 0261020 to Marion et al., the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Another example of a suitable communication interface is the CC3200 single-chip wireless microcontroller unit (MCU) from Texas Instruments. And examples of suitable ways in which the aerosol delivery device can be configured for wireless communication are disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016 / 0007651 to Ampolini et al.; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016 / 0219933 to Henry, Jr. et al., each of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0068] Still further components may be used in the aerosol delivery devices of the present disclosure. An example of a suitable component is an indicator such as a light emitting diode (LED), a quantum dot-based LED, etc., which can be illuminated in conjunction with the use of the aerosol delivery device. Suitable LED components and examples of their configurations and uses are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,192 to Sprinkel et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 8,499,766 to Newton; U.S. Pat. No. 8,539,959 to Scatterday; and U.S. Pat. No. 9,451,791 to Sears et al., all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0069] The present disclosure also includes other operation indexes. For example, the visual indicator of operation also includes the change of light color or intensity to show the progress of smoking experience. Similarly, the present disclosure covers the tactile (tactile) indicator of operation such as vibration motor and the sound (audio) indicator of operation such as speaker. In addition, the combination of such indicators of operation may also be suitable for use in a single smoking article. According to another aspect, the aerosol delivery device may include one or more indicators or marks, such as, for example, a display configured to provide information corresponding to the operation of the smoking article, the information such as, for example, the remaining power in the power supply, the progress of the smoking experience, the indication corresponding to the activation of the aerosol generating component and / or the like.

[0070] Still other components are contemplated. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,192 to Sprinkel et al. discloses an indicator for a smoking article; U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,424 to Sprinkel, Jr. discloses a piezoelectric sensor that can be associated with the mouthpiece end of the device to detect user lip activity associated with a draw and then trigger heating of the heating device; U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,148 to McCafferty et al. discloses a puff sensor for controlling energy flow into a heating load array in response to a pressure drop across a mouthpiece; U.S. Pat. No. 5,967,148 to Harris et al. discloses a socket in a smoking device that includes an identifier for detecting non-uniformity of infrared transmittance of an inserted component and a controller that performs a detection routine when the component is inserted into the socket; U.S. Pat. No. 6,040,560 to Fleischhauer et al. describes an executable power cycle with a definition of multiple differential phases; Watkins et al. discloses a power controller for controlling a power supply to a heating load array; U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,148 to McCafferty et al. discloses a power supply for controlling energy flow into a heating load array in response to a pressure drop across a mouthpiece; U.S. Pat. No. 5,967,148 to Harris et al. discloses a socket in a smoking device that includes an identifier for detecting non-uniformity of infrared transmittance of an inserted component and a controller that performs a detection routine when the component is inserted into the socket; U.S. Pat. No. 6,040,560 to Fleischhauer et al. describes an executable power cycle with a definition of multiple differential phases; discloses a computer interface device for a smoking device to facilitate charging and allow a computer to control the device; U.S. Patent No. 8,689,804 to Fernando et al. discloses an identification system for a smoking device; and PCT Patent Application Publication No. WO2010 / 003480 to Flick discloses a fluid flow sensing system for indicating puffs in an aerosol generating system; all of the disclosures in the foregoing are incorporated herein by reference.

[0071] Further examples of components related to electronic aerosol delivery articles and disclosed materials or components that can be used in existing articles include U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,586 to Morgan et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,666,977 to Higgins et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,176 to Adams et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,287 to White; U.S. Pat. No. 6,196,218 to Voges; U.S. Pat. No. 6,810,883 to Felter et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,854,461 to Nichols; U.S. Pat. No. 7,832,410 to Hon; U.S. Pat. No. 7,513,253 to Kobayashi; U.S. Pat. No. 7,896,006 to Hamano; U.S. Pat. No. 6,772,756 to Shayan; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,894,697 to H. on U.S. Patent Nos. 8,156,944 and 8,375,957; Thorens et al. U.S. Patent No. 8,794,231; Oglesby et al. U.S. Patent No. 8,851,083; Monsees et al. U.S. Patent Nos. 8,915,254 and 8,925,555; DePiano et al. U.S. Patent No. 9,220,302; Hon U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006 / 0196518 and 2009 / 0188490 to Oglesby et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010 / 0024834 to Oglesby et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010 / 0307518 to Wang; PCT Patent Application Publication No. WO2010 / 091593 to Hon; and PCT Patent Application Publication No. WO2013 / 089551 to Foo, each of which is incorporated herein by reference. Further, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0099877 to Worm et al. discloses a capsule that may be included in an aerosol delivery device and a fob-shape configuration for an aerosol delivery device, and is incorporated herein by reference. The various materials disclosed by the foregoing documents may be incorporated into the present device in various embodiments, and all of the foregoing disclosures are incorporated herein by reference.

[0072] Still other features, controls, or components that may be incorporated into the aerosol delivery devices of the present disclosure are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,967,148 to Harris et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,289 to Watkins et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,954,979 to Counts et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,040,560 to Fleischhauer et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 8,365,742 to Hon; U.S. Pat. No. 8,402,976 to Fernando et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005 / 0016550 to Katase; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005 / 0016550 to Ferna. U.S. Patent No. 8,689,804 to Ndo et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013 / 0192623 to Tucker et al.; U.S. Patent No. 9,427,022 to Leven et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013 / 0180553 to Kim et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0000638 to Sebastian et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0261495 to Novak et al.; and U.S. Patent No. 9,220,302 to DePiano et al., all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0073] Figure 1 and Figure 2 An embodiment of an aerosol delivery device including a control body and a cartridge in the context of an electronic cigarette is shown. In this regard, Figure 1 and Figure 2 An aerosol delivery device 100 according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. As shown, the aerosol delivery device may include a control body 102 and a cartridge 104. The control body and the cartridge may be permanently or removably aligned in a functional relationship. In this regard, Figure 1 shows a stereoscopic view of an aerosol delivery device in a coupled configuration, and Figure 2 A partial cross-sectional view of the aerosol delivery device in a decoupled configuration is shown. In some embodiments, the aerosol delivery device can be substantially stick-shaped, substantially tubular-shaped, or substantially cylindrical-shaped, for example, when the control body and cartridge are in an assembled configuration.

[0074] The control body 102 and the cartridge 104 may be configured to engage with each other through a plurality of connections, such as a press-fit (or interference fit) connection, a threaded connection, a magnetic connection, etc. Therefore, the control body may include a first engagement component (e.g., a coupler) adapted to engage a second engagement component (e.g., a connector) on the cartridge. The first engagement component and the second engagement component may be reversible. As an example, either the first engagement component or the second engagement component may be a male thread, and the other may be a female thread. As a further example, either the first engagement component or the second engagement component may be a magnet, and the other may be a metal or a matching magnet. In a particular embodiment, the engagement component may be directly defined by existing components of the control body and the cartridge. For example, the housing of the control body may define a cavity at one end thereof, which is configured to receive at least a portion of the cartridge (e.g., a storage tank of the cartridge or other shell forming components of the cartridge). Specifically, the storage tank of the cartridge may be at least partially accommodated in the cavity of the control body, while the mouthpiece of the cartridge remains exposed outside the cavity of the control body. The cartridge can be retained within the cavity formed by the control body housing, such as by an interference fit (e.g., by using a stop and / or other features that create an interference engagement between an outer surface of the cartridge and an inner surface of a wall forming the control body cavity), by magnetic engagement (e.g., by using magnets and / or magnetic metal positioned within the cavity of the control body and positioned on the cartridge), or by other suitable techniques.

[0075] like Figure 2 As shown in the cross-sectional view shown, the control body 102 and the cartridge 104 may each include a plurality of corresponding components. Figure 2 The components shown in are representative of components that may be present in the control body and the cartridge and are not intended to limit the scope of components covered by the present disclosure. For example, as shown, the control body may be formed by a housing 206 (sometimes referred to as a control body shell), which may include a control component 208 (e.g., a processing circuit system, etc.), a flow sensor 210, a power source 212 (e.g., a battery, a supercapacitor), and an indicator 214 (e.g., an LED, a quantum dot-based LED), and the alignment of such components may be variable. The power source may be rechargeable, and the control body may include a charging circuit system coupled to the power source and configured to controllably charge the power source.

[0076] The cartridge 104 may be formed of a housing 216 (sometimes referred to as a cartridge shell) enclosing a reservoir 218, the reservoir 220 being configured to retain an aerosol precursor composition, and the housing 216 including a heating assembly 220 (aerosol generating component). In various configurations, the structure may be referred to as a tank; and accordingly, the terms "cartridge", "tank", etc. may be used interchangeably to refer to a shell or other housing that encloses a reservoir of an aerosol gas composition and includes a heater.

[0077] As shown, in some examples, the reservoir 218 can be in fluid communication with a liquid delivery assembly 220 that is adapted to wick or otherwise deliver an aerosol precursor composition stored in the reservoir housing to a heating assembly 228. In some examples, a valve can be positioned between the reservoir and the heating assembly, and the valve can be configured to control the amount of aerosol precursor composition that is transferred or delivered from the reservoir to the heating assembly.

[0078] Various examples of materials configured to generate heat when an electric current is applied therethrough may be used to form the heating assembly 220. The heating assembly in these examples may be a resistive heating assembly, such as a coil, a microheater, and the like. Example materials from which the heating assembly may be formed include Kanthal (FeCrAl), nichrome, nickel, stainless steel, indium tin oxide, tungsten, molybdenum disilicide (MoSi2), molybdenum silicide (MoSi), molybdenum disilicide doped with aluminum (Mo(Si,Al)2), titanium, platinum, silver, palladium, alloys of silver and palladium, graphite and graphite-based materials (e.g., carbon-based foams and yarns), conductive inks, boron-doped silicon dioxide, and ceramics (e.g., positive temperature coefficient ceramics or negative temperature coefficient ceramics). The heating assembly may be a resistive heating assembly or a heating assembly configured to generate heat by induction. The heating assembly may be coated with a thermally conductive ceramic such as aluminum nitride, silicon carbide, beryllium oxide, aluminum oxide, silicon nitride, or a composite thereof. Example embodiments of heating assemblies useful in aerosol delivery devices according to the present disclosure are described further below, and may be incorporated into devices such as those described herein.

[0079] There may be an opening 224 in the housing 216 (eg, at the mouthpiece end) to allow for the formed aerosol to be vented from the cartridge 104 .

[0080] The cartridge 104 may also include one or more electronic components 226, which may include integrated circuits, memory components (e.g., EEPROM, flash memory), sensors, etc. The electronic components may be suitable for communicating with the control component 208 and / or external devices by wired or wireless means. The electronic components may be located anywhere within the cartridge or its base 228.

[0081] Although the control component 208 and the flow sensor 210 are shown separately, it is understood that the various electronic components including the control component and the flow sensor can also be combined on a circuit board (e.g., PCB) that supports and electrically connects these electronic components. Further, the circuit board can be arranged relative to the central axis of the control body in a manner parallel to the length thereof. Figure 1. In some examples, the air flow sensor may include its own circuit board or other base assembly to which it may be attached. In some examples, a flexible circuit board may be utilized. The flexible circuit board may be configured in a variety of shapes, including a substantially tubular shape. In some examples, the flexible circuit board may be combined with, laminated to, or form part or all of a heater substrate.

[0082] The control body 102 and the cartridge 104 may include components adapted to facilitate fluid engagement therebetween. Figure 2 As shown, the control body may include a coupler 230 having a cavity 232 therein. The base 228 of the cartridge can be adapted to engage the coupler and may include a protrusion 234 adapted to the cavity. Such engagement can facilitate a stable connection between the control body and the cartridge, as well as establishing an electrical connection between the power supply 212 and the control component 208 in the control body and the heater 222 in the cartridge. Further, the housing 206 may include an air inlet 236, which may be a notch on the housing connected to the coupler, which allows air around the coupler to pass through and enter the housing, then pass through the cavity 232 of the coupler within the housing and enter the cartridge through the protrusion 234.

[0083] Useful couplers and mounts according to the present disclosure are described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0261495 to Novak et al., which is incorporated herein by reference. For example, Figure 2 The coupler 230 shown in the figure can define an outer periphery 238 configured to cooperate with the inner periphery 240 of the base 228. In one example, the inner periphery of the base can define a radius that is substantially equal to or slightly larger than the radius of the outer periphery of the coupler. Further, the coupler can define one or more protrusions 242 on the outer periphery, which are configured to engage with one or more grooves 244 defined at the inner periphery of the base. However, various other examples of structures, shapes and parts can also be used to couple the base to the coupler. In some examples, the connection between the base of the cartridge 104 and the coupler of the control body 102 can be substantially permanent, but in other examples, it can be a detachable connection so that, for example, the control body can be reused with one or more other cartridges that are disposable and / or refillable.

[0084] Figure 2As described above, the reservoir 218 shown in the figure can be a container or a fiber reservoir. For example, in this example, the reservoir may include one or more layers of non-woven fibers, which are substantially formed into the shape of a tube surrounding the interior of the housing 216. The aerosol precursor composition can be retained in the reservoir. For example, the liquid component can be retained by the reservoir adsorption. The reservoir can be connected to the liquid delivery component 222 fluid. In this example, the liquid delivery component can be transported to the heating component 220 in the form of a metal coil via capillary action or via a micropump. Therefore, the heating component and the liquid delivery component are in a heating arrangement.

[0085] In some examples, the microfluidic chip can be embedded in the reservoir 218, and the amount and / or mass of the aerosol precursor composition delivered from the reservoir can be controlled by a micropump such as based on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology. Other example embodiments of reservoirs and delivery components useful in aerosol delivery devices according to the present disclosure are further described below, and such reservoirs and / or delivery components can be included in devices such as those described herein. Specifically, specific combinations of heating components and delivery components as further described herein can be incorporated into devices such as those described herein.

[0086] In use, when a user draws on the aerosol delivery device 100, air flow is detected by the flow sensor 210, and the heating assembly 220 is activated to vaporize the components of the aerosol precursor composition. Drawing on the mouthpiece end of the aerosol delivery device causes ambient air to enter the air inlet 236 and pass through the cavity 232 in the coupler 230 and the central opening in the protrusion 234 of the base 228. In the cartridge 104, the drawn air combines with the formed vapor to form an aerosol. The aerosol is agitated, sucked or otherwise drawn out of the heating assembly and discharged from the opening 224 in the mouthpiece end of the aerosol delivery device.

[0087] For further details on embodiments of an aerosol delivery device including a control body and a cartridge in the context of an electronic cigarette, see U.S. patent application serial number 15 / 836,086 to Sur cited above; and U.S. patent application serial number 15 / 916,834 to Sur et al.; and U.S. patent application serial number 15 / 916,696 filed by Sur on March 9, 2018, which are also incorporated herein by reference.

[0088] Figures 3 to 6 An embodiment of an aerosol delivery device including a control body and an aerosol source member in the context of a heat-not-burn device is shown. More specifically, Figure 3An aerosol delivery device 300 is shown according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The aerosol delivery device may include a control body 302 and an aerosol source component 304. In various embodiments, the aerosol source component and the control body may be permanently aligned or removably aligned in a functional relationship. In this regard, Figure 3 An aerosol delivery device is shown in a coupled configuration, and Figure 4 An aerosol delivery device is shown in a decoupled configuration.

[0089] like Figure 4 As shown, in various embodiments of the present disclosure, the aerosol source component 304 may include a heating end 406 and a mouthpiece end 408, wherein the heating end 406 is configured to be inserted into the control body 302, and the user draws on the mouthpiece end 408 to generate an aerosol. In various embodiments, at least a portion of the heating end may include an aerosol precursor composition 410.

[0090] In various embodiments, the aerosol source member 304 or a portion thereof may be wrapped in an outer wrapping material 412, which may be formed of any material that can be used to provide additional structure and / or support for the aerosol source member. In various embodiments, the outer wrapping material may include a material that resists heat transfer, which may include paper or other fiber materials, such as cellulose materials. The outer wrapping material may also include at least one filler material embedded or dispersed in the fiber material. In various embodiments, the filler material may have the form of water-insoluble particles. In addition, the filler material may be mixed with inorganic components. In various embodiments, the outer wrapper may be formed by multiple layers such as a block layer and a covering layer of the lower layer, such as a typical wrapper in a cigarette. Such materials may include, for example, lightweight "rag fibers", such as flax, sisal, straw and / or esparto. The outer wrapper may also include materials commonly used in filter components of conventional cigarettes, such as cellulose acetate. Further, the excess length of the coating at the mouthpiece end 408 of the aerosol source member can be used to simply separate the aerosol precursor composition 410 from the consumer's mouth, or to provide space for positioning filter materials as described below, or to affect the draw of the article or the flow characteristics of the vapor or aerosol leaving the device during puffing. Further discussion of the configuration of the coating material that can be used with the present disclosure can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 9,078,473 to Worm et al., cited above.

[0091] In various embodiments, other components may be present between the aerosol precursor composition 410 and the mouthpiece end 408 of the aerosol source component 304, wherein the mouthpiece end may include a filter 414, for example, the filter 414 may be made of cellulose acetate or polypropylene material. The filter may additionally or alternatively include multiple strands of tobacco-containing materials, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,814 of Raker et al., which is incorporated herein by reference as a whole. In various embodiments, the filter may increase the structural integrity of the mouthpiece end of the aerosol source component, and / or provide filtering capacity (if necessary), and / or provide suction resistance. In some embodiments, one of the following components or any combination thereof may be positioned between the aerosol precursor composition and the mouthpiece end: an air gap; a phase change material for cooling air; a flavor release medium; an ion exchange fiber capable of selective chemical adsorption; aerogel particles as a filter medium; and other suitable materials.

[0092] Various embodiments of the present disclosure use one or more conductive heating components to heat the aerosol precursor composition 410 of the aerosol source member 304. In various embodiments, the heating component can be set in various forms, such as in the form of foil, foam, grid, hollow sphere, hemisphere, disc, spiral, fiber, wire, film, yarn, strip, belt or cylinder. Such heating components often include metal materials and are configured to generate heat due to the resistance associated with passing current through them. Such resistive heating components can be positioned to directly contact or approach the aerosol precursor composition of the aerosol source member, especially the aerosol source member. The heating component may be located in the control body and / or the aerosol source member. In various embodiments, the aerosol precursor composition may include a component (e.g., a heat conductive component) embedded in the matrix portion or otherwise as a part of the matrix portion, which can be used as a heating component or promote the function of the heating component. Some examples of various heating components and components are described in U.S. Patent No. 9,078,473 to Worm et al.

[0093] Some non-limiting examples of various heating component configurations include configurations in which the heating component is placed near the aerosol source component 304. For example, in some examples, at least a portion of the heating component may be surrounded by at least a portion of the aerosol source component. In other examples, when inserted in the control body 302, one or more heating components may be positioned adjacent to the exterior of the aerosol source component. In other examples, when the aerosol source component is inserted into the control body, at least a portion of the heating component may penetrate at least a portion of the aerosol source component (such as, for example, one or more tines and / or protrusions that penetrate the aerosol source component). In some cases, the aerosol precursor composition may include a structure in contact with the aerosol precursor composition, or a plurality of beads or particles embedded in the aerosol precursor composition or otherwise as part of the aerosol precursor composition, which may serve as a heating component or facilitate the function of the heating component.

[0094] Figure 5 shows a front view of an aerosol delivery device 300 according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure, and Figure 6 Shown through Figure 5 sectional view of the aerosol delivery device. Specifically, the control body 302 of the depicted embodiment may include a housing 516 including an opening 518 defined in an engagement end thereof, a flow sensor 520 (e.g., a puff sensor or a pressure switch), a control component 522 (e.g., a processing circuit system, etc.), a power source 524 (e.g., a battery, a supercapacitor), and an end cap including an indicator 526 (e.g., an LED). The power source may be rechargeable, and the control body may include a charging circuit system coupled to the power source and configured to controllably charge the power source.

[0095] In one embodiment, the indicator 526 may include one or more LEDs, quantum dot-based LEDs, etc. The indicator may be in communication with the control component 522 and illuminated, for example, when a user draws on the aerosol source member 304, as detected by the flow sensor 520 when coupled to the control body 302.

[0096] The control body 302 of the depicted embodiment includes one or more heating components 528 (individually or collectively referred to as heating components) configured to heat the aerosol precursor composition 410 of the aerosol source component 304. Although the heating components of various embodiments of the present disclosure may take a variety of forms, in some embodiments, the heating components 528 are preferably used in combination with the heating components 528 of the aerosol source component 304. Figure 5 and Figure 6In the particular embodiment depicted in , the heating assembly includes an outer barrel 530 and a heating assembly 532 (aerosol generating component), in which the heating assembly 532 includes a plurality of heater tines extending from a receiving base 534 (in various configurations, the heating assembly, or more specifically the heater tines, may be referred to as heaters). In the depicted embodiment, the outer barrel includes a double-walled vacuum tube constructed of stainless steel to retain the heat generated by the heater tines within the outer barrel, and more specifically, to retain the heat generated by the heater tines within the aerosol precursor composition. In various embodiments, the heater tines may be constructed of one or more conductive materials, including but not limited to copper, aluminum, platinum, gold, silver, iron, steel, brass, bronze, graphite, or any combination thereof.

[0097] As shown, the heating assembly 528 can extend proximate the engagement end of the housing 516 and can be configured to substantially surround the portion of the heating end 406 of the aerosol source member 304 that includes the aerosol precursor composition 410. In this manner, the heating assembly can define a generally tubular configuration. Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, a heating assembly 532 (e.g., a plurality of heater tines) is surrounded by an outer barrel 530 to create a receiving chamber 536. In this manner, in various embodiments, the outer barrel may include a non-conductive insulating material and / or configuration, including but not limited to insulating polymers (e.g., plastic or cellulose), glass, rubber, ceramic, porcelain, a double-walled vacuum structure, or any combination thereof.

[0098] In some embodiments, one or more parts or components of the heating assembly 528 can be combined, packaged and / or integrated with the aerosol precursor composition 410. For example, in some embodiments, the aerosol precursor composition can be formed of materials as described above and can include one or more conductive materials mixed therein. In some of these embodiments, the contacts can be directly connected to the aerosol precursor composition so that when the aerosol source member is inserted into the receiving chamber of the control body, the contacts are electrically connected to the electric energy source. Alternatively, the contacts can be integrated with the electric energy source and can extend into the receiving chamber so that when the aerosol source member is inserted into the receiving chamber of the control body, the contacts are electrically connected to the aerosol precursor composition. Because there is a conductive material in the aerosol precursor composition, the application of energy from the electric energy source to the aerosol precursor composition allows current to flow and thus generates heat from the conductive material. Therefore, in some embodiments, the heating assembly can be described as being integrated with the aerosol precursor composition. As a non-limiting example, graphite or other suitable conductive material may be mixed with, embedded in, or otherwise directly present on or in the material forming the aerosol precursor composition, thereby integrating the heating component with the medium.

[0099] As described above, in the illustrated embodiment, the outer barrel 530 can also be used to facilitate proper positioning of the aerosol source member 304 when the aerosol source member is inserted into the housing 516. In various embodiments, the outer barrel of the heating assembly 528 can engage the inner surface of the housing to provide alignment of the heating assembly relative to the housing. Thus, due to the fixed coupling between the heating assembly, the longitudinal axis of the heating assembly can extend substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the housing. In particular, the support barrel can extend from the opening 518 of the housing to the receiving base 534 to create a receiving chamber 536.

[0100] The size and shape of the heating end 406 of the aerosol source member 304 are designed for insertion into the control body 302. In various embodiments, the receiving chamber 536 of the control body can be characterized as being defined by a wall having an inner surface and an outer surface, the inner surface defining the internal volume of the receiving chamber. For example, in the depicted embodiment, the outer barrel 530 defines an inner surface that defines the internal volume of the receiving chamber. In the illustrated embodiment, the inner diameter of the outer barrel may be slightly larger than or approximately equal to the outer diameter of the corresponding aerosol source member (e.g., to produce a sliding fit), so that the outer barrel is configured to guide the aerosol source member to an appropriate position (e.g., a lateral position) relative to the control body. Therefore, the maximum outer diameter (or other dimension, depending on the specific cross-sectional shape of the embodiment) of the aerosol source member can be sized to be smaller than the inner diameter (or other dimension) at the inner surface of the wall of the open end of the receiving chamber in the control body. In some embodiments, the difference in the corresponding diameters may be small enough so that the aerosol source member fits tightly into the receiving chamber, and friction prevents the aerosol source member from moving without applying force. On the other hand, the difference is large enough to allow the aerosol source member to slide into or out of the receiving chamber without requiring undue force.

[0101] In the illustrated embodiment, the control body 302 is configured so that when the aerosol source member 304 is inserted into the control body, the heating assembly 532 (e.g., heater tines) is located at the approximate radial center of at least a portion of the aerosol precursor composition 410 at the heating end 406 of the aerosol source member. In this way, when used in conjunction with a solid or semi-solid aerosol precursor composition, the heater tines can be in direct contact with the aerosol precursor composition. In other embodiments, such as when used in conjunction with an extruded aerosol precursor composition defining a tube structure, the heater tines can be located inside a cavity defined by the inner surface of the extruded tube structure and will not contact the inner surface of the extruded tube structure.

[0102] During use, the consumer initiates the heating of the heating assembly 528, and in particular the heating assembly 532 adjacent to the aerosol precursor composition 410 (or a particular layer thereof). The heating of the aerosol precursor composition releases the inhalable substance in the aerosol source component 304 to produce the inhalable substance. When the consumer inhales on the mouthpiece end 408 of the aerosol source component, air is inhaled into the aerosol source component through an air inlet 538 such as an opening or hole on the control body 302. When the material sucked leaves the mouthpiece end of the aerosol source component, the combination of the sucked air and the released inhalable substance is inhaled by the consumer. In some embodiments, in order to initiate heating, the consumer can manually actuate a button or similar component, which causes the heating assembly of the heating assembly to receive electrical energy from a battery or other energy source. Electrical energy can be supplied for a predetermined length of time or can be manually controlled.

[0103] In some embodiments, the flow of electrical energy is not substantially carried out between puffs on the device 300 (although the energy flow may continue to maintain a baseline temperature above the ambient temperature, for example, to promote rapid heating to a temperature that activates the heating temperature). However, in the depicted embodiment, heating is initiated by the consumer's puff action using one or more sensors (such as flow sensors 520). Once the puff is interrupted, heating stops or decreases. When the consumer has taken a sufficient number of puffs, thereby releasing a sufficient amount of inhalable material (for example, an amount sufficient to be equivalent to a typical smoking experience), the aerosol source member 304 can be removed from the control body 302 and discarded. In some embodiments, further sensing components (such as capacitive sensing components and other sensors) as discussed in U.S. Patent Application No. 15 / 707,461 to Phillips et al. can be used, and the document is incorporated herein by reference.

[0104] In various embodiments, the aerosol source member 304 may be formed of any material suitable for forming and maintaining an appropriate configuration (such as a tubular shape) and suitable for retaining an aerosol precursor composition 410 therein. In some embodiments, the aerosol source member may be formed of a single wall, or in other embodiments, may be formed of multiple walls, and may be formed of a heat-resistant (natural or synthetic) material so as to retain its structural integrity (e.g., not degrade) at least at the temperature of the heating temperature provided by the electric heating assembly, as further discussed herein. Although in some embodiments, heat-resistant polymers may be used, in other embodiments, the aerosol source member may be formed of paper (such as paper that is roughly in the shape of a straw). As further discussed herein, the aerosol source member may have one or more layers associated therewith that act to substantially prevent the movement of steam passing therethrough. In an example embodiment, a layer of aluminum foil may be laminated to one surface of the aerosol source member. Ceramic materials may also be used. In further embodiments, insulating materials may be used so as not to unnecessarily remove heat from the aerosol precursor composition. Further example types of components and materials that can be used to provide the above-described functionality or as alternatives to the above-described materials and components can be those described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010 / 00186757 to Crooks et al. and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2011 / 0041861 to Sebastian et al., all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0105] In the depicted embodiment, the control body 302 includes a control component 522 that controls various functions of the aerosol delivery device 300, including providing power to the electric heating assembly 532. For example, the control component may include a processing circuit system (which may be connected to further components, as further described herein), which is connected to a power source 524 by a conductive cable (not shown). In various embodiments, the processing circuit system can control when and how the heating assembly 528, particularly the heater tines, receives electrical energy to heat the aerosol precursor composition 410 for releasing the inhalable substance for inhalation by the consumer. In some embodiments, such control can be activated by a flow sensor 520 as described in more detail above.

[0106] like Figure 5 and Figure 6As shown, the heating assembly 528 of the depicted embodiment includes an outer barrel 530 and a heating assembly 532 (e.g., a plurality of heater tines) extending from a receiving base 534. In some embodiments, such as those embodiments in which the aerosol precursor composition 410 includes a tube structure, the heater tines may be configured to extend into a cavity defined by an inner surface of the aerosol precursor composition. In other embodiments, such as the depicted embodiments in which the aerosol precursor composition includes a solid or semi-solid, when the aerosol source component is inserted into the control body 302, the plurality of heater tines are configured to penetrate the aerosol precursor composition contained in the heating end 406 of the aerosol source component 304. In such embodiments, one or more components of the heating assembly including the heater tines and / or the receiving base may be constructed of a non-stick or stick-resistant material (e.g., certain aluminum, copper, stainless steel, carbon steel, and ceramic materials). In other embodiments, one or more components of the heating assembly including the heater tines and / or the receiving base may include a non-stick coating, including, for example, a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) coating (such as ), or other coatings, such as anti-stick enamel coatings, or ceramic coatings, such as or Thermolon TM .

[0107] Additionally, while in the depicted embodiment there are a plurality of heater tines 532 substantially equidistantly distributed about the receiving base 534, it should be noted that in other embodiments, any number of heater tines may be used, including as few as one heater tine, with any other suitable spatial configuration. Furthermore, in various embodiments, the length of the heater tines may vary. For example, in some embodiments, the heater tines may include a small protrusion, while in other embodiments, the heater tines may extend any portion of the length of the receiving chamber 536, including up to about 25%, up to about 50%, up to about 75%, and up to about the entire length of the receiving chamber. In yet other embodiments, the heating assembly 528 may take on other configurations. Based on the discussion provided above, examples of other heater configurations that may be suitable for use in the present invention may be found in U.S. Patent Nos. 5,060,671 to Counts et al., 5,093,894 to Deevi et al., 5,224,498 to Deevi et al., and 6,084,693 to Sprinkel et al. No. 5,228,460 to Jr. et al., No. 5,322,075 to Deevi et al., No. 5,353,813 to Deevi et al., No. 5,468,936 to Deevi et al., No. 5,498,850 to Das, No. 5,659,656 to Das, No. 5,498,855 to Deevi et al., No. 5,530,225 to Hajaligol, No. 5,665,262 to Hajaligol, and No. 5,573,692 to Das et al.; and No. 5,591,368 to Fleischhauer et al., which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0108] In various embodiments, the control body 302 may include an air inlet 538 (e.g., one or more openings or holes) therein for allowing ambient air to enter the interior of the receiving chamber 536. In this way, in some embodiments, the receiving base 534 may also include an air inlet. Thus, in some embodiments, when a consumer draws on the mouthpiece end of the aerosol source component 304, air can be drawn through the air inlet of the control body and the receiving base into the receiving chamber, transferred into the aerosol source component, and drawn through the aerosol precursor composition 410 of the aerosol source component for inhalation by the consumer. In some embodiments, the drawn air carries the inhalable substance through the optional filter 414 and leaves the opening at the mouthpiece end 408 of the aerosol source component. In the case where the heating assembly 532 is positioned inside the aerosol precursor composition, the heater tines can be activated to heat the aerosol precursor composition and release the inhalable substance through the aerosol source component.

[0109] As mentioned above Figure 5 and Figure 6 Described, specifically, various embodiments of the present disclosure use a conductive heater to heat the aerosol precursor composition 410. As also described above, various other embodiments use an induction heater to heat the aerosol precursor composition. In some of these embodiments, the heating component 528 may be configured as an induction heater including a transformer having an induction transmitter and an induction receiver. In an embodiment in which the heating component is configured as an induction heater, the outer cylinder 530 may be configured as an induction transmitter, and the heating component 532 (e.g., a plurality of heater tines) extending from the receiving base 534 may be configured as an induction receiver. In various embodiments, one or both of the induction transmitter and the induction receiver may be located in the control body 302 and / or the aerosol source component 304.

[0110] In various embodiments, the outer barrel 530 and the heating assembly 532 as the inductive transmitter and inductive receiver may be constructed of one or more conductive materials, and in further embodiments, the inductive receiver may be constructed of ferromagnetic materials, including but not limited to cobalt, iron, nickel, and combinations thereof. In one example embodiment, the foil material is constructed of a conductive material, and the heater tines are constructed of a ferromagnetic material. In various embodiments, the receiving base may be constructed of a non-conductive and / or insulating material.

[0111] The outer cylinder 530 as an inductive transmitter may include a laminate having a foil material around a support cylinder. In some embodiments, the foil material may include electrical traces printed thereon, such as, for example, in some embodiments, when the foil material is positioned around the heating assembly 532 as an inductive receiver, one or more electrical traces may form a spiral coil pattern. The foil material and the support cylinder may each define a tubular configuration. The support cylinder may be configured to support the foil material so that the foil material does not move into contact with the heater tines and thus short-circuit with the heater tines. In this way, the support cylinder may include a non-conductive material that is substantially transparent to the oscillating magnetic field generated by the foil material. In various embodiments, the foil material may be embedded in the support cylinder or otherwise coupled to the support cylinder. In the illustrated embodiment, the foil material engages with the outer surface of the support cylinder; however, in other embodiments, the foil material may be positioned at the inner surface of the support cylinder or completely embedded in the support cylinder.

[0112] The foil material of the outer barrel 530 can be configured to create an oscillating magnetic field (e.g., a magnetic field that changes periodically over time) when an alternating current is directed therethrough. The heater tines of the heating assembly 532 can be at least partially located or contained within the outer barrel and include a conductive material. By directing an alternating current through the foil material, eddy currents can be generated in the heater tines via induction. The eddy currents flowing through the resistance of the material defining the heater tines can heat it by Joule heating (i.e., by the Joule effect). The heater tines can be wirelessly heated to form an aerosol from an aerosol precursor composition 410 positioned proximate to the heater tines.

[0113] Other embodiments of aerosol delivery devices, control bodies, and aerosol source components are described in the above-referenced U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 15 / 916,834 to Sur et al.; U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 15 / 916,696 to Sur; and U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 15 / 836,086 to Sur.

[0114] Figure 7 and Figure 8 An embodiment of an aerosol delivery device including a control body and a cartridge in the case of a heat-not-burn device is shown. In this regard, Figure 7 700 including a control body 702 and a cartridge 704 according to various example implementations of the present disclosure. Specifically, Figure 7 A control body and a cartridge are shown coupled to each other. The control body and the cartridge may be removably aligned in a functional relationship.

[0115] Figure 8 More particularly shown is an aerosol delivery device 700 according to some example embodiments. As seen in the cross-sectional view shown therein, once again, the aerosol delivery device may include a control body 702 and a cartridge 704, each having a plurality of corresponding components. Figure 8The components shown in represent the components that may be present in the control body and the cartridge, and are not intended to limit the scope of the components covered by the present disclosure. For example, as shown in the figure, the control body may be formed by a control body housing or shell 806, and the control body housing or shell 806 may include a control component 808 (e.g., a processing circuit system, etc.), an input device 810, a power supply 812, and an indicator 814 (e.g., an LED, an LED based on quantum dots), and the alignment of such components is variable. Here, a specific example of a suitable control component includes a PIC16 (L) F1713 / 6 microcontroller of Microchip Technology Inc., which is described in Microchip Technology Inc., AN2265, Vibrating Mesh Nebulizer Reference Design (2016), which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0116] The cartridge 704 may be formed of a housing (sometimes referred to as a cartridge housing 816) that encloses a reservoir 818 configured to retain an aerosol precursor composition and includes a nozzle 820 having at least one piezoelectric grid / piezomagnetic grid (aerosol generating component). Similar to the above, in various configurations, the structure may be referred to as a tank, and accordingly, the terms "cartridge", "tank", etc. may be used interchangeably to refer to a housing or other housing that encloses a reservoir of an aerosol gas composition and includes a nozzle.

[0117] As mentioned above, Figure 8 The reservoir 818 shown can be a container or a fiber reservoir. The reservoir can be in fluid communication with a nozzle 820 to transfer the aerosol precursor composition stored in the reservoir housing to the nozzle. An opening 822 (e.g., at the mouthpiece end) can be present in the cartridge housing 816 to allow the formed aerosol to be discharged from the cartridge 704.

[0118] In some examples, the transmission assembly may be positioned between the reservoir 818 and the nozzle 820, and is configured to control the amount of aerosol precursor composition transferred or delivered to the nozzle from the reservoir. In some examples, the microfluidic chip may be embedded in the cartridge 704, and the amount and / or quality of the aerosol precursor composition delivered from the reservoir may be controlled by one or more microfluidic components. An example of a microfluidic component is a micropump 824, such as a micropump based on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology. Examples of suitable micropumps include the MDP2205 type micropump and other micropumps from thinXXS Microtechnology AG, the mp5 and mp6 type micropumps and other micropumps from Bartels Mikrotechnik GmbH, and the piezoelectric micropump from TakasagoFluidic Systems (Takasago Electric).

[0119] Also as shown, in some examples, a microfilter 826 may be positioned between the micropump 824 and the nozzle 820 to filter the aerosol precursor composition delivered to the nozzle. Like the micropump, the microfilter is also a microfluidic component. Examples of suitable microfilters include flow-through microfilters, which are manufactured using a chip lab (LOC) technology.

[0120] In use, when the input device 810 detects a user input activating the aerosol delivery device, the piezoelectric / piezomagnetic grid is activated to vibrate, thereby drawing an aerosol precursor composition through the grid. This forms droplets of the aerosol precursor composition, which combine with air to form an aerosol. The aerosol is stirred, sucked or otherwise drawn from the grid and out of the opening 822 at the mouthpiece end of the aerosol delivery device.

[0121] The aerosol delivery device 700 may include an input device 810, such as a switch, sensor, or detector, for controlling the power supply to at least one piezoelectric / piezomagnetic grid of the nozzle 820 when aerosol generation is desired (e.g., when puffing during use). Thus, for example, a means or method is provided for turning off power to the grid when the aerosol delivery device is not being puffed during use, and for turning on power during puffing to actuate or trigger the generation of an aerosol and the dispensing of the aerosol from the nozzle. Additional representative types of sensing or detection mechanisms, their structures and configurations, their components, and general methods of operation thereof are described above and in U.S. Patent No. 5,261,424 to Sprinkel, Jr., U.S. Patent No. 5,372,148 to McCafferty et al., and PCT Patent Application Publication No. WO 2010 / 003480 to Flick, all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0122] For more information on the above and other embodiments of aerosol delivery devices without heat-not-burn devices, see U.S. patent application serial number 15 / 651,548 filed by Sur on July 17, 2017, which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0123] As described above, in the context of an electronic cigarette, a heat-not-burn device, or a no-heat-not-burn device, or even in the case of a device that includes the functionality of one or more of an electronic cigarette, a heat-not-burn device, or a no-heat-not-burn device, an example embodiment of an aerosol delivery device may include various electronic components. Fig. 9 A circuit diagram of an aerosol delivery device 900 is shown, which may be any one or more of the aerosol delivery devices 100, 300, 700 or may include the functionality of any one or more of the aerosol delivery devices 100, 300, 700 according to various example embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0124] like Fig. 9 As shown, the aerosol delivery device 900 includes a control body 902 having a control component 904 (having a processing circuit system 906) and a power supply 908, which components may correspond to or include the functions of the corresponding ones of the control body 102, 302, 702, the control component 208, 522, 808 and the power supply 212, 524, 812. The aerosol delivery device also includes an aerosol generating component 910, which may correspond to or include the functions of the piezoelectric grid / piezomagnetic grid of the heating component 222, 534 or the nozzle 820. In some embodiments, the aerosol delivery device, in particular the control body, includes a terminal 912, which is configured to connect the power supply 904 to the aerosol delivery device or in particular the control body. The control body may include an aerosol generating component or be configured to connect the aerosol generating component to a second terminal 914 of the control body.

[0125] In some examples, the aerosol delivery device 900 includes at least one sensor 916, including in some examples a first sensor 916a and / or one or more second sensors 916b, which are configured to generate a measurement of a property during use of the aerosol delivery device 900. In this regard, the first sensor may correspond to or include the functionality of the sensor 210, 520 or the input device 810. The first sensor can be a pressure sensor configured to generate a measurement of the pressure caused by the air flow through at least a portion of the aerosol delivery device, or otherwise receive input to indicate the use of the aerosol delivery device. The first sensor is configured to convert the measurement result / user input into a corresponding electrical signal, which may include analog-to-digital conversion. In some examples, the first sensor can be a digital sensor, a digital pressure sensor, etc., some suitable examples of which are manufactured by Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.

[0126] The processing circuit 906 may be configured to switchably connect the power supply 908 to a load 918 including an aerosol generating component 910, and thereby power the aerosol generating component. More specifically, for example, the processing circuit system may be configured to receive a corresponding electrical signal from the first sensor 916a, and in response connect the power supply to the load including the aerosol generating component, and thereby power the aerosol generating component. The processing circuit system may be configured to process the corresponding electrical signal to determine the on / off state, and may adjust the switching connection of the power supply in proportion to the measurement / user input generated by the first sensor. In some examples, the control component 904 further includes a high-side load switch (LS) 920 between the first sensor and the load and controllable by the processing circuit system to connect and disconnect the power supply to the load including the aerosol generating component.

[0127] As with the first sensor 916a, the second sensor(s) 916b are also configured to generate measurements of properties during use of the aerosol delivery device 900. These second sensors(s) may include any of a variety of different types of sensors. Examples of suitable sensors include current sensors, voltage sensors, resistance sensors, machine-readable information readers, position sensors, accelerometers, microphones, and the like. The machine-readable information reader is specifically configured to read machine-readable information such as according to any of many different automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) technologies (e.g., barcodes, radio frequency identification, etc.). The position sensor is configured to determine its geographic location in a variety of different ways (such as by interacting with a satellite navigation system such as a global positioning system (GPS)). In this regard, the geographic location may be given in the form of coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude). In other examples, the geographic location may be given by an address or other identifier of a structure or land on the ground, or even further by a location within a structure or land on the ground. In a specific example, the geographic location may be given by the address of the user's workplace, or perhaps more specifically, by the location of a smoking room in the user's workplace.

[0128] Despite Fig. 9 Sensors are also shown separately in , but in some examples, the aerosol delivery device 900 also includes a camera system having a digital camera 922 and supporting electronics, which in some examples may include processing circuitry 906. The digital camera can be configured to capture images of objects or scenes in its field of view, and these images can be transmitted locally on the board of the aerosol delivery device or to an external computing device. The images can include still images or videos, or in some examples, the digital camera can be configured to selectively capture still images or capture video. For more information on suitable camera systems, see U.S. Patent No. 9,955,733 to Sur et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0129] As described above, in some examples, control component 904 includes communication interface 924 to enable wireless communication with one or more networks, computing devices, or other appropriately enabled devices. In this regard, Fig.10A communication system 1000 is shown that includes an aerosol delivery device 900. The communication interface can be configured to be able to establish or connect to a computing device 1002 (external computing device) external to the aerosol delivery device. The computing device can also be embodied as a plurality of different devices, such as any one of a plurality of different mobile computers. More specific examples of suitable mobile computers include portable computers (e.g., laptop computers, notebooks, tablet computers), mobile phones (e.g., cell phones, smart phones), wearable computers (e.g., smart watches), and the like. In other examples, the computing device can be embodied as a computing device other than a mobile computer, such as in the form of a desktop computer, a server computer, and the like. In still other instances, the computing device can be embodied as another aerosol delivery device.

[0130] Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the communication interface 924 of the aerosol delivery device 900 is configured to enable establishment of a wireless personal area network (WPAN) 1004 including the computing device 1002 or to enable connection to the WPAN 1004. Examples of suitable WPAN technologies include those based on or specified by the IEEE 802.15 standard, including Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (Bluetooth LE), ZigBee, infrared (e.g., IrDA), radio frequency identification (RFID), wireless USB, etc. In some examples, the processing circuit system 906 may then be configured to enable half-duplex Bluetooth low energy communication with the computing device via the wireless communication interface. Other examples of suitable WPAN technologies include Wi-Fi Direct and certain other technologies based on or specified by the IEEE 802.11 standard and supporting direct device-to-device communication.

[0131] In some examples, the communication interface 924 of the aerosol delivery device 900 may be configured to enable connection to a wireless local area network (WLAN) 1006. Examples of suitable WLAN technologies include those WLAN technologies based on or specified by the IEEE 802.11 standard and marketed as Wi-Fi. The WLAN includes appropriate networking hardware, some of which may be integrated, and others of which may be separate and interconnected. As shown, for example, the WLAN includes a wireless access point 1008 configured to allow wireless devices including the aerosol delivery device 900 and the computing device 1002 to connect to the WLAN. Also as shown, for example, the WLAN may include a gateway device 1010 (such as a residential gateway) configured to connect the WLAN to an external computer network 1012 (such as a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet) such as the Internet. In some examples, the wireless access point or gateway device may include an integrated router to which other systems or devices may be connected. A WLAN may also include other integrated or separate and connected networking hardware such as network switches, hubs, digital subscriber line (DSL) modems, cable modems, and the like.

[0132] In some examples, the system 1000 may further include a service platform 1014, which may be embodied as a computer system accessible by the WLAN 1006 or the external network 1012 (as shown). The service platform may include one or more servers, such as may be provided by one or more blade servers, cloud computing infrastructure, distributed databases, etc. In some examples, the service platform is embodied as a distributed computing device including multiple computing devices, such as may be used to provide a cloud computing infrastructure or a distributed database. An example of a suitable distributed database is a blockchain, which is a shared, immutable ledger for recording transactions. And in these examples, the computing devices forming the service platform may communicate with each other via a network such as an external network.

[0133] In some examples, the service platform 1014 can be accessed by the aerosol delivery device 900 via the WLAN 1006 and the external network 1012, and is configured to provide one or more services to users of the aerosol delivery device and possibly users of other aerosol delivery devices. For example, the service platform can be operated by a retailer of an aerosol delivery device or aerosol delivery device component, an aerosol precursor composition, etc. The service platform can enable users to order or reorder aerosol precursor compositions, access and use various features, such as for monitoring, tracking or communicating machine learning models, user profiles, or information derived from machine learning models, user profiles, etc. (described in more detail below). In this regard, the service platform can store machine learning models and / or user profiles, and enable users to transfer one or both of machine learning models or user profiles between different aerosol delivery devices. Alternatively, an aerosol delivery device can be capable of device-to-device transmission from one aerosol delivery device to another aerosol delivery device (e.g., a computing device 1002 embodied as an aerosol delivery device).

[0134] In some examples, similar to aerosol delivery device 900, although the WLAN or external network may be different between the aerosol delivery device and the computing device, the service platform 1014 may also be accessed by the computing device 1002 via WLAN 1006 and the external network 1012. The computing device may include or otherwise provide an installed application or other interface through which the service platform can be accessed. The application or other interface may be or may be provided by a thin client and / or other client application, such as a web browser application through which a web page (e.g., a service portal) provided by the service platform can be accessed. As another example, the application or other interface may be or may be provided by a dedicated application, such as a mobile application installed on a computing device embodied as a mobile computing device.

[0135] Back to Fig. 9 And further reference Fig.10 , in examples where the aerosol delivery device 900 includes a camera system having a digital camera 922, the digital camera may be configured to capture an image of the face of an attempted user of the aerosol delivery device (a facial image). In these examples, the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to perform facial recognition using the facial image to verify that the attempted user is an authorized user of the aerosol delivery device. The processing circuit system may be configured to subsequently control at least one functional element of the aerosol delivery device based on the verification of the attempted user. This may include a processing circuit system that is configured to change a locked state of the aerosol delivery device based on the verification of the attempted user.

[0136] The aerosol delivery device 900 may be configured to communicate with the service platform 1014 to perform facial recognition, or the aerosol delivery device may perform facial recognition locally without the service platform. In the latter example, the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to perform nodal analysis (sometimes referred to as node analysis), in which analysis calculations of facial images are performed locally at the aerosol delivery device. Therefore, facial recognition can be performed using quickly completed calculations and contours stored in onboard memory without storing facial images. Nodal analysis consumes less computing power and enables facial recognition with reduced latency. Nodal analysis can also enhance security and use less power on the aerosol delivery device.

[0137] In some examples, processing circuit system 906 may be configured to perform node analysis in response to a visual event, such as an attempting user appearing in the field of view of digital camera 922. In response, the digital camera may capture an image of the attempting user's face, and processing circuit system 906 may be configured to perform facial recognition locally using the image to verify that the attempting user is an authorized user of the aerosol delivery device without accessing service platform 1014.

[0138] The processing circuit system 906 can perform facial recognition in any of a number of different ways. In some examples, the processing circuit system can be trained to recognize the face of the authorized user using one or more reference images of the authorized user, which can define a training set for facial recognition. The training can result in at least a threshold accuracy when verifying the authorized user, and can be performed before the facial recognition is used to control (multiple) functional elements of the aerosol delivery device 900 (such as the lock state of the aerosol delivery device). In some further examples, initial training can be performed to at least achieve a threshold accuracy, and then the initial training can be continued as facial recognition is performed, adding verified images of authorized users to the training set for facial recognition.

[0139] In some examples, the facial image may be divided into a plurality of points (e.g., 100 points) that may be used to verify that the attempting user is an authorized user. Processing circuit system 906 may also include object recognition logic to distinguish an image of a face from an image of another object. This may help localize the process and reduce delays or computational errors relative to techniques that involve performing at least some of the analysis remote from aerosol delivery device 900.

[0140] The digital camera 922 may be or include a linear imager to capture facial images, or the digital camera may be or include a logarithmic imager. In addition to being less dependent on brightness changes that may occur due to shadows, reflections, etc., logarithmic imagers may provide a higher dynamic range for image processing than linear imagers. This may improve image capture, which in turn may improve analysis of the image.

[0141] Linear imagers typically use pixels that generate a voltage as a linear function of light which results in limited contrast. Contrast in linear imagers may also depend on brightness which may introduce reflection based contrast issues. Logarithmic imagers may reduce if not eliminate these issues. In a logarithmic imager, the pixel generates a voltage that is a logarithmic function of light which can improve contrast. Logarithmic imagers also offer a wider range of light levels, thus increasing contrast due to the logarithmic generation of the pixel voltage. Logarithmic imagers can be more beneficial than linear imagers in locations where shadows are generated or there is cloud cover. Logarithmic imagers can also be beneficial when excessive reflections are produced on a person due to sudden flashes of headlights or lamps.

[0142] In addition to or in lieu of facial recognition, the aerosol delivery device 900 may be equipped with other machine learning capabilities. According to some example implementations, the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to record data for multiple uses of the aerosol delivery device. For each use, the data may include measurements of properties from sensors 916 (including first sensor 916a and / or (multiple) second sensors 916b). The processing circuit system may then be configured to establish a machine learning model to predict a target variable, and deploy the machine learning model to predict the target variable, and control at least one functional element of the aerosol delivery device based thereon. In this regard, a machine learning model may be constructed using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature selected from the property, and a training set generated from the measurement of the property.

[0143] In some examples, the multiple uses of the aerosol delivery device 900 may include corresponding user puffs, wherein each puff causes an airflow to flow through at least a portion of the housing of the aerosol delivery device and is used for the user to inhale the aerosol. In some of these examples, the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to have measurements of properties from the sensor 916 of the time and duration of each user puff. In some examples, the time and duration may be provided, or determined according to a real-time clock (RTC) in the processing circuit system, or accessed by the processing circuit system.

[0144] The target variable may be any of a number of different variables for different applications or use cases. The target variable may be a measure of user health, based on a measure of activity, and further based on a usage rate that depends on the time and duration of puffs by individual users. In some examples, the target variable may be or include a user profile that depends on at least one of an attribute and the time and duration of puffs by individual users.

[0145] In some examples, the user profile may include information indicating a predicted period of non-use of the aerosol delivery device 900. In some of these examples, control of the functional element(s) of the aerosol delivery device may include a processing circuit system 906 configured to cause the aerosol delivery device to enter a sleep mode during the predicted period of non-use. The sleep mode may be a low power or power saving mode in which power to components that may not be needed during the non-use period, such as the first sensor 916a, may be cut off. In some examples, the mode may include a power supply component that may be used in charging the power supply 908 of the aerosol delivery device, which may be particularly useful in the case where the power supply can be charged from an RF-based charger.

[0146] As indicated above and described in more detail below, the user profile may depend on the suction of each user. In this regard, the user profile may include or otherwise define the suction profile of the user. The suction profile may describe the suction of each user. The suction profile may include the time and duration of the corresponding user's suction. Additionally or alternatively, the suction profile may include any of the attributes that are characteristics of the suction of each user or otherwise related to the suction of each user. As described below, for example, this may include the measurement of the pressure proportional to the suction intensity of each user, the measurement of the pressure proportional to the total specific material (TPM) in the aerosol generated during the suction of each user, the power dissipated by the aerosol generating component during each suction, the aerosol precursor composition used during the suction of each user, the geographical location of the aerosol delivery device during each suction, etc. For other examples of the attributes that can be incorporated into the jet profile, see the British patent application serial number 1818007.5 filed on November 5, 2018, which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0147] In some examples, the one or more properties on which the user profile depends may include a measurement of pressure from the first sensor 916a that is proportional to the intensity of the respective user's puff. In other examples, the one or more properties on which the user profile depends may include a pressure measurement that is proportional to the TPM in the aerosol produced during the respective user's puff.

[0148] In some further examples where the target variable is or includes a user profile, control of the functional element(s) may include a processing circuit system configured to control power from a power source 908 to a load 918 including an aerosol generating component 910 based on the user profile.

[0149] In yet further examples, the aerosol generating component 910 includes a plurality of grids surrounded by a piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material (e.g., the piezoelectric grid / piezomagnetic grid of the nozzle 820). In some of these examples, the processing circuit system 906 can be configured to selectively drive the piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material to vibrate and discharge the components of the aerosol precursor composition through one or more of the grids. In this regard, the processing circuit system can be configured to control power from the power supply 908 to selectively drive the piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material based on a user profile.

[0150] In a specific example, the aerosol generating component 910 includes three grids operable to vibrate at 113 kilohertz (kHz), 800kHz, and 2.2 megahertz, respectively, wherein the higher the frequency, the smaller the droplets of the aerosol precursor composition formed. If the user frequently uses the aerosol delivery device 900, the processing circuit system 906 can drive all three grids. If the user uses the aerosol delivery device less frequently, less than three grids can be driven. At the low end, a 113kHz grid can be driven, which can form droplets larger than the other two grids. In some users, larger droplets may not be fully ingested, which can help users reduce the use of the device.

[0151] In some examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include a current or voltage sensor, the current or voltage sensor may be configured to generate a measurement of the current through the aerosol generating component 910 or a measurement of the voltage across the aerosol generating component 910. In some of these examples, the processing circuit system 906 may be further configured to determine the power dissipated by the aerosol generating component during each user's puff based on the measurement of the current through the aerosol generating component 910 or the measurement of the voltage across the aerosol generating component 910. Also in some of these examples, the one or more attributes on which the user profile depends may include the power dissipated by the aerosol generating component during each user's puff.

[0152] In some examples, the aerosol delivery device 900 can be used with at least a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions, and the second sensor(s) 916b can include a reader configured to read machine-readable information. Based on the machine-readable information, the processing circuit system 906 can be configured to identify a corresponding aerosol precursor composition in the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions during each user puff when used with the aerosol delivery device.

[0153] A plurality of aerosol precursor compositions may have different resistivities, which may also be used to identify individual aerosol precursor compositions in the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions. In some examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include a resistance sensor, the resistance sensor may be a sensor configured to produce a measurement of the resistance of the aerosol precursor composition. Subsequently, based on the measurement of the resistance, the processing circuit system may be configured to determine the resistivity of the aerosol precursor composition, and then identify the aerosol precursor composition based on its resistivity.

[0154] In some of the above examples, the user profile may depend on at least a corresponding aerosol precursor composition in a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions identified by the processing circuit system 906, and the time and duration of each user's puff when used with an aerosol delivery device. In some further examples, the aerosol generating component 910 may be a plurality of aerosol generating components configured to generate aerosols from a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions. In some of these examples, the control of the (multiple) functional elements may include a processing circuit system that is configured to automatically select among the plurality of aerosol generating components at different times based on the user profile.

[0155] In other further examples, processing circuit system 906 may be further configured to predict depletion of a particular one of the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions based on a user profile. In some of these examples, control of the functional element(s) may include processing circuit system 906 configured to communicate with computing device 1002 or service platform 1014 via communication interface 924 (e.g., a wireless communication interface) to order additional amounts of a particular one of the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions.

[0156] To further illustrate some of the above examples, consider the case of four aerosol precursor compositions of different flavoring agents (with different flavoring agents): Menthol, Crema, Chai, and Tropicana. The user profile may include measurements of the time and duration of use of different flavoring agents. The processing circuit system may apply regression principles to the measurements over a period of time (e.g., 30 days) and determine boundary conditions. Or in some examples, the processing circuit system may upload the measurements to the service platform 1014, which may determine the boundary conditions.

[0157]

[0158] Based on boundary conditions, it can be understood that users prefer menthol and tea, and this understanding can be used to deliver or otherwise provide more of these flavors to users. The service platform 1014 can be accessed by the marketing team in particular to supply more of those flavors that are used more frequently by the user (or more than more users).

[0159] In some examples, the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to communicate the target variable to the service platform 1014 via the wireless communication interface 924, and the service platform 1014 is configured to electronically record the target variable on the blockchain. Those who have access to the blockchain can therefore access the target variable. The predicted target variable can be compared with the actual data of the target variable. As the prediction and the actual converge, the system 1000 can predict the actual data and thus use machine learning and blockchain to improve the efficiency of the system.

[0160] In some examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include a location sensor configured to determine a geographic location of an aerosol delivery device, one or more attributes on which the user profile depends may include the geographic location of the aerosol delivery device during each user puff. In other examples, the computing device 1002 may include a location sensor configured to determine a geographic location of the computing device (in addition to or in lieu of the aerosol delivery device). When the aerosol delivery device is close to the computing device, the geographic location of the computing device may approximate the geographic location of the aerosol delivery device. The computing device may communicate the geographic location to the aerosol delivery device via a communication interface 924 (e.g., a wireless communication interface) for use similar to the geographic location determined by the location sensor of the aerosol delivery device.

[0161] As a further example, a user profile may include information indicating one or more predicted geographic areas of use or non-use of the aerosol delivery device, the predicted geographic areas being predicted based on the geographic location of the aerosol delivery device 900 (or a computing device 1002 near the aerosol delivery device). In some of these examples, control of the (multiple) functional elements of the aerosol delivery device may include a processing circuit system 906 that is configured to unlock the aerosol delivery device when the aerosol delivery device is within the predicted geographic area of ​​use, or to lock the aerosol delivery device when the aerosol delivery device is outside the (multiple) predicted geographic areas of use or within the predicted geographic areas of non-use. In this regard, the aerosol delivery device may learn where an authorized user uses or does not use the device, and lock or unlock the device based on that information, which may prevent unauthorized use, such as in the case of a lost or stolen aerosol delivery device.

[0162] In other examples of the above examples involving (multiple) predicted geographic areas of use or non-use, control of (multiple) functional elements of the aerosol delivery device 900 may include a processing circuit system 906, which is configured to prepare the aerosol delivery device for use when approaching or within the predicted geographic area of ​​use. This may include resuming the aerosol delivery device from a sleep mode or otherwise activating a component (such as the first sensor 916a) that may have been powered off. Additionally or alternatively, in examples in which the aerosol generating component 910 is or includes a heating component, the processing circuit system may initiate pre-heating of the heating component. Conversely, the processing circuit system may be configured to cause the aerosol delivery device to enter a sleep mode when the aerosol delivery device exits the (multiple) predicted geographic areas of use or is located outside the (multiple) predicted geographic areas of use, or is approaching or within the predicted geographic area of ​​non-use.

[0163] In some further examples, the user profile may include information indicating one or more predicted geographic areas of modified use of the aerosol delivery device, the information being predicted based on the geographic location of the aerosol delivery device 900 (or a computing device 1002 near the aerosol delivery device). In some of these examples, control of the functional element(s) may include a processing circuit system 906 configured to cause the aerosol delivery device to adjust the volume of aerosol generated by the aerosol delivery device when the aerosol delivery device is located within the predicted geographic area of ​​modified use. Specifically, for example, the aerosol delivery device may reduce the volume of aerosol generated by the aerosol delivery device when the aerosol delivery device is indoors or in another geographic area where modified use is desired.

[0164] Similar to the predicted geographic area of ​​use (or modified use), other aspects of the user profile can be used to lock the aerosol delivery device 900 for authorized users. As described above, the user profile may include or otherwise define the profile of the authorized user, and the profile of the authorized user may describe the individual user suctions of the user. In some examples, the aerosol delivery device may lock the suction profile for the authorized user. In these examples, the processing circuit system 906 may develop the suction profile specific to use of each suction during the use of the aerosol delivery device, and compare the suction profile specific to use with the suction profile in the user profile. The processing circuit system may enable continued use when the suction profile specific to use matches or otherwise has at least a threshold similarity with the suction profile, and lock the aerosol delivery device to prevent continued use when the suction profile specific to use does not match or otherwise has at least a threshold similarity with the suction profile.

[0165] In another similar example, processing circuitry 906 may use a puff profile to distinguish between users who are over or under an allowed age for use of aerosol delivery device 900. Here, processing circuitry may enable continued use when the use-specific puff profile indicates that the user is at least the allowed age, and lock the aerosol delivery device from continued use when the use-specific puff profile indicates that the user is at least the allowed age.

[0166] In some examples, the aerosol delivery device 900 is configured to communicate with a second aerosol delivery device (e.g., a computing device 1002 embodied as an aerosol delivery device) via a communication interface 924 (e.g., a wireless communication interface). In some of these examples, the aerosol delivery device may be configured to receive from the second aerosol delivery device a second measurement of the attribute during use of the second aerosol delivery device, the use of the second aerosol delivery device including puffs by individual second users, and second times and durations for puffs by individual second users. The processing circuit system 906 may be further configured to establish and deploy a second machine learning model to predict a second target variable. The second machine learning model may be constructed using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature selected from the attribute, and a second training set generated from a second measurement of the attribute. Here, the second target variable may be a second user profile that depends on at least one of the attribute and the second time and duration for puffs by individual second users.

[0167] In the above example, a user can pair his aerosol delivery device 900 with another user's aerosol delivery device. This can allow the user to monitor the user and other users' usage, such as time, frequency, aerosol precursor composition, etc., which can create a social network in a sense. There can also be more than two aerosol delivery devices to provide a larger social network, where each user can monitor the usage of users of the devices in the social network. In these or other examples, the aerosol delivery device can additionally or alternatively upload usage information to the service platform 1024. For more information on suitable social network features, see U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015 / 0224268 to Henry et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0168] In some examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include an accelerometer, the accelerometer may be configured to generate a measurement of the acceleration of the aerosol delivery device 900, and the target variable may be a logical activity of a user of the aerosol delivery device. In some of these examples, the machine learning model may be or include an activity detection model to predict the logical activity of the user. And the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to construct the activity detection model using the machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from the measurement of acceleration.

[0169] In other examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include an accelerometer, the target variable may be a logical carry position of the aerosol delivery device 900. In some of these examples, the machine learning model may be or include a carry position detection model to predict the logical carry position of the aerosol delivery device. And the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to construct the carry position detection model using the machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from measurements of acceleration.

[0170] In other examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include an accelerometer, the target variable may be a gesture performed using the aerosol delivery device 900. In some of these examples, the machine learning model may be or include a gesture recognition model to predict the gesture. And the processing circuit system 906 may be configured to construct the gesture recognition model using the machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from measurements of acceleration.

[0171] In the above and other similar examples, the processing circuit system 906 can be configured to control (multiple) functional elements of the aerosol delivery device 900 based on a user's logical activity, such as predicted, a logical carrying position of the aerosol delivery device, a posture, etc. For example, when the logical activity, carrying position, or posture indicates the use of the aerosol delivery device, the processing circuit system can restore the aerosol delivery device from a sleep mode, or otherwise activate a component that may have been powered off (such as the first sensor 916a). Additionally or alternatively, in examples where the aerosol generating component 910 is or includes a heating component, the processing circuit system can initiate preheating of the heating component.

[0172] In some examples, the user profile may include information describing the authorized user through one or more logical activities, carrying positions and / or postures, which can be used to describe the authorized user, similar to the suction profile of the authorized user. In these examples, in addition to the suction profile or instead of the suction profile, this information can be used to lock the aerosol delivery device 900 for the authorized user. The processing circuit system 906 can predict the logical activities, carrying positions and / or postures during the use of the aerosol delivery device, and compare the predicted logical activities, carrying positions and / or postures with the information in the user profile. When the predicted logical activities, carrying positions and / or postures match the information in the user profile or otherwise have at least a threshold similarity with the information in the user profile, the processing circuit system can enable continued use, and when the predicted logical activities, carrying positions and / or postures do not match or have at least a threshold similarity with the information in the user profile, the aerosol delivery device is locked to prevent continued use.

[0173] In yet another example where the second sensor(s) 916b include an accelerometer, the target variable may be or may be based on a measure of user activity of the aerosol delivery device 900 that is proportional to the number of steps of the user. The number of steps may be determined based on the measurement of acceleration. In some of these examples, the processing circuit system may be configured to build a machine learning model to predict the measure of user activity. Here, the model may be built using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including acceleration, and a training set generated from the measurement of acceleration. These steps may be used to determine the relationship between usage of the aerosol delivery device and activity. If usage increases and the measure of activity decreases, the processing circuit system 906 may trigger visual, tactile, and / or audio indicators to encourage the user to increase their activity.

[0174] In some examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include a resistance sensor, the resistance sensor may be a sensor configured to produce a measurement of the resistance of the aerosol precursor composition. The target variable may be a measure of the mass of the aerosol precursor composition that is proportional to the resistivity of the aerosol precursor composition, and the resistivity may be determined based on the measurement of the resistance. Here, the machine learning model may be or include a machine learning model for predicting a measure of the mass of the aerosol precursor composition. The processing circuit system 906 may be configured to construct a machine learning model using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including the resistance of the aerosol precursor composition, and a training set generated from the measurement of the resistance.

[0175] Specifically, consider an example embodiment in which the aerosol generating component 910 is or includes a heating component to heat a liquid aerosol precursor composition including a polyol. When the heating component heats the aerosol precursor composition, the amount of polyol can be reduced, which can also reduce the mass of the aerosol precursor composition. This can also reduce the resistivity of the aerosol precursor composition. Given a baseline resistivity of the aerosol precursor composition, a measurement of resistance can be made during use of the aerosol delivery device 900, and the resistivity of the aerosol precursor composition can be determined and compared to the baseline resistivity to determine the mass of the remaining aerosol precursor composition.

[0176] In some examples where power source 908 is rechargeable, the data for multiple uses includes a recharge count and frequency of the power source. In some of these examples, the target variable may be a measure of the expected life of the aerosol precursor composition or the power source that is proportional to the recharge count and frequency of the power source. Processing circuit system 906 may be configured to construct a machine learning model using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including the count and frequency of recharges of the power source, and a training set generated from the count and frequency of recharges to predict a measure of the expected life of the aerosol precursor composition or the power source.

[0177] In the above, machine learning and possibly a fuel gauge can be used to predict the life expectancy of the power source 908. If the user frequently uses and recharges the power source, the life expectancy of the power source can be measured as a function of the usage rate. If the usage rate is lower, the power source may have a higher expected life expectancy. In some examples, a fuel gauge may not be used, and the expected life of the number of charges related to the current charge count may be used.

[0178] In some examples where a measure of the expected life of power source 908 is predicted, control of the functional element(s) of aerosol delivery device 900 may include processing circuitry 906 configured to cause the aerosol delivery device to enter a sleep mode when the expected life measurement falls below a threshold time, similar to when the aerosol delivery device is not needed during a period of non-use. Alternatively, the processing circuitry may cause the aerosol delivery device to enter different power saving modes in which components required to use the device to generate an aerosol remain powered, but in which other components may be powered off.

[0179] In examples where the second sensor(s) 916b include a microphone, the microphone may be configured to generate measurements of audio from an audio source in the environment of the aerosol delivery device 900. In some of these examples, the processing circuitry 906 may be further configured to create a virtual directional microphone having a beam pattern created from the measurements of the audio and pointing in the direction of the audio source.

[0180] The foregoing description of the manner of use of the article(s) may be applied to the various example embodiments described herein with minor modifications that will be apparent to a person skilled in the art in view of the further disclosure provided herein. However, the foregoing description of the manner of use is not intended to limit the manner of use of the article, but is in accordance with all necessary requirements of the disclosure of the present disclosure. Figures 1 to 10 Any of the components shown in the article(s) illustrated in or described above may be included in an aerosol delivery device according to the present disclosure.

[0181] Many modifications and other embodiments of the present disclosure will occur to those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure belongs, with the benefit of the teachings presented in the preceding description and the associated drawings. Therefore, it should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, and modifications and other embodiment schemes thereof are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, these terms are used only in a general and descriptive sense and not for limiting purposes.

Claims

1. An aerosol delivery device comprising: a housing configured to retain an aerosol precursor composition; at least one sensor configured to produce a measurement of a property during use of the aerosol delivery device; a terminal configured to connect a power source to the aerosol delivery device; an aerosol generating component or a second terminal for connecting the aerosol generating component to the aerosol delivery device, the aerosol generating component being configured to generate an aerosol from the aerosol precursor composition; as well as a control component comprising processing circuitry configured to switchably connect the power source to a load comprising the aerosol generating component and thereby power the aerosol generating component; wherein the aerosol delivery device is capable of being used with at least a plurality of aerosol precursor compositions, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to record data for a plurality of uses of the aerosol delivery device, the data including, for each use, the measurement of the property, the plurality of uses of the aerosol delivery device including respective user puffs, wherein each user puff causes airflow through at least a portion of the housing and for the user to inhale the aerosol, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to record data comprises the processing circuitry being configured to record the measurements having the time and duration of the respective user puffs, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to build a machine learning model to predict a target variable, the machine learning model using a machine learning algorithm, at least one feature selected from the attribute, and a training set generated from the measurement of the attribute, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to deploy the machine learning model to predict the target variable, the target variable being a user profile that is dependent on at least one of the attributes and the time and duration of the respective user puffs, and control at least one functional element of the aerosol delivery device based thereon, and Wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to predict depletion of a particular one of the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions based on a user profile.

2. The aerosol delivery device according to claim 1, characterized in that The user profile includes information indicating a predicted time period of non-use of the aerosol delivery device, and the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to cause the aerosol delivery device to enter a sleep mode during the predicted time period of non-use.

3. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The processing circuitry being configured to control the at least one functional element includes being configured to control power from the power source to the load including the aerosol generating component based on the user profile.

4. The aerosol delivery device of claim 3, wherein: The aerosol generating component comprises a plurality of meshes surrounded by a piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material, the processing circuit system being configured to selectively drive the piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material to vibrate and cause components of the aerosol precursor composition to be discharged through one or more of the meshes, and Wherein the processing circuitry is configured to control power from the power source includes being configured to control power from the power source to selectively drive the piezoelectric or piezomagnetic material based on the user profile.

5. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor comprises a pressure sensor configured to produce a measurement of pressure caused by the airflow, and the at least one of the properties on which the user profile depends comprises a measurement of the pressure proportional to the intensity of the puffs taken by the respective user.

6. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor comprises a pressure sensor configured to produce a measurement of pressure caused by the airflow that is proportional to the total specific matter (TPM) in the aerosol produced during each user puff, and at least one of the properties on which the user profile depends comprises the measurement of the pressure that is proportional to the TPM in the aerosol produced during each user puff.

7. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor comprises a current or voltage sensor configured to produce a measurement of a current through or a voltage across the aerosol generating component, and the processing circuitry is further configured to determine the power dissipated by the aerosol generating component during the respective user puffs based on the measurement of the current through or the voltage across the aerosol generating component, and Wherein said at least one of said properties on which said user profile depends comprises said power dissipated by said aerosol generating component during said respective user puff.

8. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor comprises a reader configured to read machine-readable information, the processing circuitry being configured to, when used with the aerosol delivery device, identify a respective one of the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions during a puff by the respective user based on the machine-readable information, and wherein the user profile is dependent upon at least the respective aerosol precursor composition of the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions identified by the processing circuitry, and the timing and duration of the respective user's puffs when used with the aerosol delivery device.

9. The aerosol delivery device of claim 8, wherein: The aerosol generating component is a plurality of aerosol generating components configured to generate aerosols from the plurality of aerosol precursor compositions, and Wherein the processing circuitry being configured to control the at least one functional element comprises being configured to automatically select among the plurality of aerosol generating components at different times based on the user profile.

10. The aerosol delivery device of claim 8, wherein: The aerosol delivery device further includes a wireless communication interface, and the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one of the functional elements including being configured to communicate with a computing device or a service platform via the wireless communication interface to order an additional amount of the particular one of the multiple aerosol precursor compositions.

11. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor comprises a location sensor configured to determine a geographic location of the aerosol delivery device, and the at least one of the attributes on which the user profile depends comprises the geographic location of the aerosol delivery device during the respective user puffs.

12. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, further comprising a wireless communication interface, the aerosol delivery device being configured to receive, via the wireless communication interface, a second measurement of the property from a second aerosol delivery device during use of the second aerosol delivery device, the use of the second aerosol delivery device comprising puffs by respective second users, and second times and durations of puffs by the respective second users, wherein the processing circuit system is further configured to build and deploy a second machine learning model to predict a second target variable, the second machine learning model being built using the machine learning algorithm, the at least one feature selected from the attributes, and a second training set generated from the second measurement of the attributes, and the second target variable being a second user profile that is dependent on at least one of the attributes and the second time and duration of the respective second user puffs.

13. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor includes an accelerometer configured to produce a measurement of acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is a logical activity of a user of the aerosol delivery device, and Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish the machine learning model, including being configured to establish an activity detection model to predict the logical activity of the user, and establishing the activity detection model using the machine learning algorithm, the at least one feature including the acceleration, and the training set generated from the measurement of the acceleration.

14. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor includes an accelerometer configured to produce a measurement of an acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is a logical carrying position of the aerosol delivery device, and Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish the machine learning model, including being configured to establish a carrying position detection model to predict the logical carrying position of the aerosol delivery device, and the carrying position detection model is established using the machine learning algorithm, the at least one feature including the acceleration, and the training set generated from the measurement of the acceleration.

15. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor includes an accelerometer configured to produce a measurement of an acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is a gesture performed using the aerosol delivery device, and Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish the machine learning model, including being configured to establish a gesture recognition model to predict the gesture, using the machine learning algorithm, the at least one feature including the acceleration, and the training set generated from the measurement of the acceleration to establish the gesture recognition model.

16. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor includes a microphone configured to produce a measurement of audio from an audio source in an environment of the aerosol delivery device, and Wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to create a virtual directional microphone having a beam pattern created from the measurement of the audio, and the beam pattern pointing in the direction of the audio source.

17. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, further comprising a wireless communication interface, and Wherein the processing circuit system is further configured to implement half-duplex Bluetooth low energy communication with a computing device via the wireless communication interface.

18. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor comprises a sensor configured to produce a measurement of the electrical resistance of the aerosol precursor composition, and the target variable is a measure of the mass of the aerosol precursor composition that is proportional to the resistivity of the aerosol precursor composition, and the resistivity is determinable from the measurement of the electrical resistance, and Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish the machine learning model, including being configured to establish the machine learning model to predict the measure of the quality of the aerosol precursor composition, using the machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including the resistance of the aerosol precursor composition, and the training set generated from the measurement of resistance to establish the model.

19. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: the power source is rechargeable, the data for the plurality of uses includes a recharge count and frequency of the power source, and the target variable is a measure of the life expectancy of the aerosol precursor composition or the power source that is proportional to the recharge count and frequency of the power source, and Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish the machine learning model, including being configured to establish the machine learning model to predict a metric of the expected life span of the aerosol precursor composition or the power source, using the machine learning algorithm, at least one feature including the recharge count and frequency of the power source, and the training set generated from the recharge count and frequency to establish the model.

20. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, wherein: The at least one sensor comprises an accelerometer configured to produce a measure of acceleration of the aerosol delivery device, and the target variable is or is based on a measure of activity of a user of the aerosol delivery device that is proportional to a number of steps of the user, and the number of steps is determinable from the measure of acceleration, and Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to establish the machine learning model, including being configured to establish the machine learning model to predict the measure of the user activity, using the machine learning algorithm, the at least one feature including the acceleration, and the training set generated from the measurement of the acceleration to establish the model.

21. The aerosol delivery device of claim 20, wherein: The plurality of uses of the aerosol delivery device include individual user puffs, wherein each user puff causes an airflow to flow through at least a portion of the housing and for the user to inhale the aerosol, and Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to record the data for multiple uses including being configured to record the measurements having the time and duration of the puffs taken by the respective users, and the target variable is based on the measure of activity and further based on a measure of the health of the users as a function of the rate of use of the time and duration of the puffs taken by the respective users.

22. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, further comprising a wireless communication interface, Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to control the at least one functional element, including being configured to transmit the target variable to a service platform via the wireless communication interface, and the service platform is configured to electronically record the target variable on the blockchain.

23. The aerosol delivery device of claim 1, further comprising a camera system, the camera system comprising a digital camera configured to capture an image of a face of an attempted user of the aerosol delivery device, Wherein the processing circuit system is configured to perform facial recognition using the image to verify that the attempted user is an authorized user of the aerosol delivery device, and the processing circuit system is configured to control at least one functional element including being configured to change a lock state of the aerosol delivery device based on the verification of the attempted user.

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