Evaporator with controlled mass output

Abstract

An evaporator device includes: a resistive heating element; circuitry configured to control delivery of power from the power source to the resistive heating element; and a controller configured to perform operations including: receiving an input representative of power delivery to the resistive heating element, a temperature of the resistive heating element, and / or a flow rate of air through the resistive heating element; predicting an evaporation amount of the vaporizable material at the resistive heating element using the received input; and controlling power delivery to the resistive heating element in response to the predicted amount of evaporation of the vaporizable material, the control including increasing or decreasing instantaneous power delivery to the heating element, thereby producing a target aerosol yield. Related apparatus, systems, methods, and articles are also described.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of a patent application with application number 201980025608.0 (international application number PCT / US2019 / 019859) filed on February 27, 2019 and invention name “Mass output controlled evaporator”.

[0002] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0003] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 636,086, filed on February 27, 2018, entitled “MASS OUTPUT CONTROLLED EVAPORATOR,” the entire contents of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0004] The subject matter described herein relates to mass output control for evaporator devices. Background Art

[0005] A vaporizer device (which includes and / or may be referred to as an electronic inhalable aerosol device, a vaporizing device, an electronic ventilating device, and / or an electronic aerosol device) typically utilizes a vaporized vaporizable material to generate an aerosol vapor that can deliver an active ingredient to a user. It is often desirable to maintain a certain degree of control over the temperature of the resistive heater, for example, to avoid overheating of the vaporizable material, to ensure sufficient heat to form an aerosol, to maintain a longer battery life for the vaporizer device, etc. Summary of the invention

[0006] Embodiments of the current subject matter are directed to methods of controlling an aerosol output rate provided by a vaporizer device.

[0007] In one aspect, a vaporizer device includes a heating element and a circuit for controlling power delivery from a power source to the heating element. A controller implements a control law based on received inputs representing one or more of power delivery to the resistive heating element, a temperature of the resistive heating element, and / or an air flow rate through the resistive heating element. The inputs are used to predict an amount of vaporizable material vaporized at the heating element. In response to the predicted amount of vaporizable material vaporized, power delivery to the heating element is controlled by increasing or decreasing power delivery to the heater to achieve a target aerosol yield.

[0008] In another aspect, a vaporizer device includes a resistive heating element; a circuit configured to control the delivery of power from a power source to the resistive heating element, the resistive heating element being configured to provide heat to a vaporizable material to vaporize the vaporizable material into a flowing air stream to form an entrained aerosol; a controller configured to: receive inputs representing the delivery of power to the resistive heating element, a temperature of the resistive heating element, and / or an air flow rate through the resistive heating element; use the received inputs to predict an amount of vaporized material at the resistive heating element; and control the delivery of power to the resistive heating element in response to the predicted amount of vaporized material, the control comprising increasing or decreasing the instantaneous power delivery to the heating element to produce a target aerosol yield.

[0009] Any feasible combination may include one or more of the following features. For example, the received input representing the air flow rate through the resistive heating element may be determined by a flow sensor, a pressure sensor, and / or one or more measured characteristics representing the air restriction of the vaporizer device. The target aerosol output may be proportional to the flow rate. The target aerosol output may be a function of the flow rate. The target aerosol output may include a predetermined constant or a user-adjustable parameter. The user-adjustable parameter may include an expected output target based on an expected evaporation rate, an expected number of puffs, a specific time period, and / or a daily output target. The target aerosol output may be adjusted to respond to one or more users and / or one or more user behaviors of one or more vaporizer devices. The power delivery to the resistive heating element may be further controlled in response to the amount of electricity required to maintain the predetermined temperature of the resistive heating element. Controlling the power delivery to the heating element may include selecting power delivery so that the heating element temperature remains below the predetermined temperature. Predicting the evaporation amount may include executing an algorithm using the received input.

[0010] In another aspect, a method includes receiving data characterizing power delivery to a resistive heating element of a vaporizer device, a temperature of the resistive heating element, and / or a flow rate of air passing through the resistive heating element; predicting an amount of vaporized material located at the resistive heating element using the received data; and controlling power delivery to the resistive heating element in response to the predicted amount of vaporized material, the controlling comprising increasing or decreasing instantaneous power delivery to the heating element to produce a target aerosol yield.

[0011] Any feasible combination may include one or more of the following features. For example, the received data characterizing the air flow rate through the resistive heating element may be determined by a flow sensor, a pressure sensor, and / or one or more measured characteristics characterizing the air restriction of the vaporizer device. The target aerosol output may be proportional to the flow rate. The target aerosol output may be a function of the flow rate. The target aerosol output may include a predetermined constant or a user-adjustable parameter. The user-adjustable parameter may include an expected output target based on an expected evaporation rate, an expected number of puffs, a specific time period, and / or a daily output target. The target aerosol output may be adjusted to respond to one or more users and / or one or more user behaviors of one or more vaporizer devices. The power delivery to the resistive heating element may be further controlled in response to the power required to maintain the predetermined temperature of the resistive heating element. Controlling the power delivery to the heating element may include selecting power delivery so that the heating element temperature remains below the predetermined temperature. Predicting the evaporation amount may include executing an algorithm using the received data. The vaporizer device may include a resistive heating element and a circuit configured to control the power delivery from a power supply to the resistive heating element. The resistive heating element may be configured to provide heat to the vaporizable material to vaporize the vaporizable material into the flowing air stream to form the entrained aerosol.

[0012] Implementations of the current subject matter may include, but are not limited to, methods consistent with the description provided herein and products including machine-readable media that are operable to cause one or more machines (e.g., computers, etc.) to cause the execution of one or more of the operations of the above-described features. Similarly, a computer system is also described, which may include one or more processors and one or more memories connected to the one or more processors. A memory that may include a non-temporary computer-readable or machine-readable storage medium may include, encode, store, etc., one or more programs that cause one or more processors to perform one or more operations described herein. A computer-implemented method consistent with one or more implementations of the current subject matter may be performed by one or more data processors residing in a single computing system or multiple computing systems. Such multiple computing systems may be connected and data and / or commands or other instructions may be exchanged via one or more connections, including but not limited to connections via a network (e.g., the Internet, a wireless wide area network, a local area network, a wide area network, a wired network, etc.), via direct connections between one or more of the multiple computing systems, etc.

[0013] The details of one or more variations of the subject matter described herein are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the following description. Other features and advantages of the subject matter described herein will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. Although certain features of the presently disclosed subject matter are described for illustrative purposes with respect to a portable vaporizer device having a resistive heater and a battery or other mobile power source, it should be readily understood that these features are not intended to be limiting. The claims that follow this disclosure are intended to define the scope of the protected subject matter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate certain aspects of the subject matter disclosed herein and, together with the description, help explain some principles associated with the disclosed embodiments.

[0015] Figure 1A A schematic diagram is shown illustrating features of an evaporator device having a cartridge and an evaporator device body consistent with embodiments of the current subject matter;

[0016] Figure 1B A diagram providing a top view of an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the current subject matter is shown, wherein the cartridge is separated from the cartridge receiver on the evaporator device body;

[0017] Figure 1C A diagram providing a top view of an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the current subject matter is shown, wherein a cartridge is inserted into a cartridge receptacle on the evaporator device body;

[0018] Figure 1D A diagram providing a top isometric perspective view of an evaporator device consistent with an embodiment of the current subject matter is shown, wherein a cartridge is inserted into a cartridge receptacle on the evaporator device body;

[0019] Figure 1E There is shown a diagram providing a top isometric perspective view from the nozzle end of a cartridge suitable for use with an evaporator device body consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter;

[0020] Figure 1F There is shown a diagram providing a top isometric perspective view from the opposite end of a cartridge suitable for use with an evaporator device body consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter;

[0021] Figure 2A shows a schematic diagram illustrating features of a non-cartridge based vaporizer device consistent with embodiments of the current subject matter;

[0022] Figure 2B A diagram providing a side isometric perspective view of a non-cartridge based evaporator device is shown;

[0023] Figure 2C A diagram providing a bottom isometric perspective view of a non-cartridge based evaporator device is shown;

[0024] Figure 3 Figures illustrating aspects of systems having features consistent with implementations of the current subject matter are shown; and

[0025] Figure 4 A process flow diagram is shown illustrating aspects of a method having one or more features consistent with implementations of the current subject matter.

[0026] Where practical, similar reference numerals indicate similar structures, features or elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Embodiments of the current subject matter relate to a method for controlling an aerosol output rate provided by a vaporizer device. In some embodiments, a controller implements a control law in which power delivery to a heater of the vaporizer device is controlled in response to an expected vaporization amount of vaporizable material (e.g., an aerosol yield measurement). Control of the power delivery may include increasing or decreasing power delivery to the heater to produce a target aerosol yield (e.g., a controlled dose). The control law may adjust the mass output rate in response to user behavior.

[0028] The evaporator device may be controlled in a variety of ways. For example, a battery (or other power source, which may be portable or connected to the main power source of a residence, business or other building, etc.) of the evaporator device may be directly connected to the resistive heater so that whenever the resistive heater is turned on (e.g., by actuating a switch, etc.), full current drawn from the battery (or other power source) is delivered. The circuit that provides the current may be controlled to be on (closed) or off (open) according to an algorithm or control law configured to determine when the resistive heater should be energized. In a simple example, the circuit may be closed (current flows) when the temperature is below a set point, and the circuit may be open (current does not flow) when the temperature is above the set point. In more complex systems, the supplied current may be more carefully regulated using, for example, a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control law, etc.

[0029] A PID controller may include a control loop feedback mechanism suitable for continuous modulation control. A PID controller may continuously calculate an error value as the difference between a desired set point and a measured process variable. A PID controller may apply corrections based on proportional, integral, and derivative terms.

[0030] In other examples, the voltage applied to the resistive heater can be adjusted to a predetermined or user adjustable constant. In other examples, the power delivered to the heater can be adjusted to a predetermined or user adjustable constant. In more complex systems, the temperature of the resistive heater can be measured, for example, by using a correlation based on the thermal coefficient of resistance (TCR) or some other method to control the temperature to which the resistive heater is heated. A control law, such as a PID control algorithm, can be implemented to deliver the correct amount of power required to keep the heater at a predetermined or user adjustable constant and / or to meet some other temperature condition (which does not need to be a constant temperature).

[0031] Such methods generally do not include any quantification or control of the amount of vaporizable material provided by the vaporizer device in the form of an aerosol for inhalation by a user of the vaporizer device. In the context of the present invention, the "amount of vaporizable material" may be quantified in one or more of a variety of ways, including, for example, the mass delivered per unit time, the density or mass or unit volume of air flowing through the vaporizer as part of a "puff" by the user, the total mass of vaporizable material delivered per puff, etc. Another method of characterizing the "amount of vaporizable material" may include quantifying the mass or volume of air and the mass of vaporizable material entrained in that mass or volume of air so that the concentration of vaporizable material in the air can be calculated.

[0032] Regardless of the control method used by the vaporizer device (e.g., uncontrolled, or controlled by voltage, power, or temperature, or some combination thereof), the aerosol output of the vaporizer device is typically dependent on various uncontrollable parameters, such as the air flow rate inhaled by the user and the flow rate of liquid delivered to the heater. These non-constant variables can easily lead to inconsistent aerosol output, which may be undesirable to the user.

[0033] Existing control methods for vaporizer devices typically cause the aerosol yield (e.g., the mass of aerosol material produced per unit time) to decrease or remain constant as the flow rate caused by the user (e.g., the amount of air drawn through the vaporizer per unit time due to the user inhaling on the mouthpiece of the vaporizer device) increases. This effect occurs because the air flowing through the resistive heating element is heated by interaction with the resistive heating element, thereby absorbing heat from the resistive heating element. The evaporation of the vaporizable material also removes heat from the resistive heating element in the form of latent heat of evaporation. If the vaporizer device includes a temperature control method for maintaining the temperature of the resistive heating element at or below a certain temperature, at best, the evaporation rate of the vaporizable material will be constant. For situations where the aerosol yield per unit time remains constant or decreases as the airflow increases, the result will be a decrease in the aerosol particle density as the flow rate increases. When the user blows hard, the user prefers an aerosol with a constant or even increasing particle density.

[0034] Embodiments of the current subject matter relate to methods for controlling the aerosol output rate provided by a vaporizer device. In this document, the aerosol output rate may refer to the total mass of vaporizable material delivered per unit time, or alternatively, the total mass of vaporizable material delivered per "puff" (e.g., per single inhalation drawn by a user on a vaporizer device). In the following description, either of these metrics applies unless specified and / or inconsistent with the context of the description.

[0035] A vaporizer device in which embodiments of the current subject matter may be implemented may include a battery, a microcontroller, a printed circuit board (PCB), an electronic heater, a means for delivering vaporizable material to the heater, a method for measuring the temperature of the heater, a method for measuring flow through the vaporizer, and a method for measuring or predicting instantaneous aerosol production from the vaporizer.

[0036] Figures 1A to 2C Exemplary evaporator devices 100, 200 and features that may be included therein consistent with embodiments of the present subject matter are shown. One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the various inventive features described herein or otherwise within the scope of the present subject matter may be implemented in evaporators of varying structures, and that any structural description of evaporator features is not intended to be limiting, except to the extent that they appear in the claims.

[0037] Figure 1A A schematic diagram of an evaporator device 100 including a cartridge is shown, and Figures 1B to 1E A view of an exemplary evaporator device 100 having an evaporator device body 101 and a cartridge 114 is shown.

[0038] Figure 1B and 1C A top view is shown before and after the cartridge 114 is connected to the evaporation device body 101 . Figure 1D An isometric view of an evaporator device 100 is shown, which includes an evaporator device body 101 combined with a cartridge 114, Figure 1E An isometric view of a variation of a cartridge 114 holding a liquid vaporizable material is shown. Generally, when a vaporizer device includes a cartridge (e.g., cartridge 114), the cartridge 114 may include one or more reservoirs 120 configured to hold vaporizable materials. Any suitable vaporizable material may be contained within the reservoir 120 of the cartridge 114, including solutions of nicotine or other organic materials, and compositions that may include one or more neat (e.g., solvent-insoluble) compounds, mixtures, formulations, and the like.

[0039] As described above, the evaporator device 100 shown in FIG. 1 includes an evaporator device body 101. As shown in FIG. 1, the evaporator device body 101 consistent with the embodiments of the current subject matter may include a power source 103 (e.g., a device or system for storing electrical energy for use on demand), which may be a battery, a capacitor, a combination thereof, etc., and may be rechargeable or non-rechargeable. A controller 105, which may include a processor (e.g., a programmable processor, a dedicated circuit, etc.), may also be included as part of the evaporator device body 101. The evaporator device body 101 may include a housing that surrounds one or more components of the evaporator body, such as the power source 103, the controller 105, and / or any other components described herein as part of the device. In various embodiments of the evaporator device including the evaporator device body 101 and the cartridge 114, the cartridge 114 may be attached to the evaporator device body 101, attached in the evaporator device body 101, or partially attached in the evaporator device body 101. For example, the vaporizer device body 101 may include a cartridge receptacle in which the cartridge 114 may be insertably received.

[0040] The processor of the controller 105 may include circuitry to control the operation of the heater 118, which may optionally include one or more heating elements, for vaporizing vaporizable material contained in the cartridge 114, for example, in a reservoir or container that is part of the cartridge 114. In various embodiments, the heater 118 may be present in the vaporizer device body 101 or the cartridge 114 (e.g., Figure 1A ) or both. The controller circuit may include one or more clocks (oscillators), charging circuits, I / O controllers, memory, etc. Alternatively or additionally, the controller circuit may include circuits for one or more wireless communication modes, including Bluetooth, near field communication (NFC), WiFi, ultrasound, ZigBee, RFID, etc. The vaporizer device body 101 may also include a memory 125, which may be part of the controller 105 or otherwise in data communication with the controller. The memory 125 may include volatile (e.g., random access memory) and / or non-volatile (e.g., read-only memory, flash memory, solid-state memory, hard drive, other magnetic storage, etc.) memory or data storage.

[0041] With further reference to FIG. 1 , the vaporizer device 100 may include a charger 133 (and charging circuitry controllable by the controller 105 ), optionally including an inductive charger and / or a plug-in charger. For example, a universal serial bus (USB) connection may be used to charge the vaporizer device 100 and / or allow communication via a wired connection between the computing device and the controller 105 . The charger 133 may charge the vehicle power supply 103 . A vaporizer 100 consistent with embodiments of the current subject matter may also include: one or more input devices 117 , such as buttons, dials, etc.; sensors 137 , which may include one or more sensors, such as accelerometers or other motion sensors, pressure sensors (e.g., relative and / or absolute pressure sensors, which may be capacitive, semiconductor-based, etc.), flow sensors, etc. The vaporizer 100 may use yet another such sensor 137 to detect user manipulation and interaction. For example, the controller 105 (e.g., by receiving signals from one or more sensors 137) may interpret the detection of rapid motion (e.g., shaking) of the vaporizer 100 as a user command to initiate communication with a user device that is part of the vaporizer system and can be used to control one or more operations and / or parameters of the vaporizer 100, as described in more detail below. Additionally or alternatively, the controller 105 (e.g., by receiving signals from one or more sensors 137) may interpret the detection of rapid motion (e.g., shaking) of the vaporizer 100 as a user command to cycle through a plurality of temperature settings to which the vaporizable material held within the cartridge 114 is heated by the heater 118. In some optional variations, during the cycling through of the plurality of temperature settings, the removal of the cartridge 114 detected by the controller 105 (e.g., by receiving signals from one or more sensors 137) may serve to establish the temperature (e.g., when cycling at a desired temperature, the user may remove the cartridge 114 to set the desired temperature). The user can then reengage the cartridge 114 with the vaporizer device body 101 to allow the vaporizer 100 to be used with a heater controlled by the controller 105 that is consistent with the selected temperature setting. The multiple temperature settings may be indicated by one or more indicators on the vaporizer device body 101. As described above, the pressure sensor may be used to detect any of the start, end, or continuation of a puff.

[0042] The vaporizer device 100 consistent with embodiments of the current subject matter may also include one or more output devices 115. As used herein, the output device 115 may refer to an optical (e.g., LED, display, etc.), tactile (e.g., vibration, etc.), or audio (e.g., piezoelectric, etc.) feedback component, etc., or some combination thereof.

[0043] A vaporizer device 100 including a cartridge 114 consistent with embodiments of the current subject matter may include one or more electrical contacts (e.g., pins, plates, sockets, mating sockets, or other features for electrically coupling with other contacts, etc.), such as Figure 1A Evaporator device body electrical contacts 109, 111, 113 are shown on or within the evaporator device body 101, which can engage complementary cartridge contacts 119, 121, 123 (e.g., pins, plates, sockets, mating sockets, or other features for electrically coupling with other contacts, etc.) on the cartridge 114 when the cartridge is engaged with the evaporator device body 101. The contacts on the evaporator body 101 are generally referred to herein as "evaporator body contacts," while the contacts on the cartridge 114 are generally referred to herein as "cartridge contacts." In embodiments of the current subject matter, these contacts can be used to provide energy from the power source 103 to the heater 118, wherein the heater 118 is included in the cartridge 114. For example, when the cartridge contacts and the evaporator body contacts are respectively engaged by coupling the cartridge 114 with the evaporator device body 101, an electrical circuit can be formed to allow control of electrical current from the power source 103 in the evaporator device body 101 to the heater 118 in the cartridge 114. The controller 105 in the vaporizer device body 101 may limit this current to control the temperature at which the heater 118 heats the vaporizable material contained in the cartridge 114 .

[0044] Although three vaporizer device body contacts 109, 111, 113 and three cartridge contacts 119, 121, 123 are shown, certain embodiments of the present subject matter may use only two of each type of contact to complete a circuit that may be used for power delivery from the power source 103 to the heater 118, and optionally also for measuring the temperature of a heating element in the heater (e.g., by briefly and intermittently interrupting the flow of current to the heating element, measuring the resistance of the heating element during these brief interruptions, and using the thermal resistivity to obtain the temperature from the measured resistance) and / or for transmitting data between the optional identifier 138 and the controller 105. Alternatively or additionally, additional contacts (e.g., optional contacts 113 and 123) may be included for data transfer, temperature measurement, pressure sensor measurement (e.g., if a pressure sensor is included on the cartridge when the controller 105 is in the vaporizer device body 101).

[0045] Airflow path ( Figure 1E150) can direct air to the heater where it mixes with the vaporized vaporizable material from the reservoir 120 to generate an inhalable aerosol for delivery to the user through the mouthpiece 144, which can also be part of the cartridge 114. In some examples, the airflow path 150 can pass between the outer surface of the cartridge 114 and the inner surface of the cartridge receiver on the vaporizer device body 101, as will be further described below.

[0046] Any compatible electrical contacts may be used, including pins (e.g., spring pins), plates, etc. In addition, as described below, in some embodiments of the current subject matter, one-way or two-way communication is provided between the evaporator device body 101 and the cartridge 114 by one or more electrical contacts, which may include electrical contacts for providing energy from the power supply 103 to the heater 118, and the heater 118 may include a heating element, such as a resistive heating element. The cartridge 114 and the evaporator device body 101 may be removably coupled together, for example, by engaging a portion of the housing of the cartridge 114 with the evaporator device body 101 and / or the evaporator housing with a mechanical connection (e.g., a snap fit and / or a friction fit). Alternatively or additionally, the cartridge 114 and the evaporator device body 101 may be magnetically coupled or coupled via some other coupling or engagement mechanism. Other connection types are also within the scope of the current subject matter, as are combinations of two or more connection types.

[0047] Figures 1B to 1F An example of an evaporator 100 having an evaporator device body 101 and a cartridge 114 is shown. Figure 1B The two components are shown unconnected. Figure 1C Shown are two components connected. Figure 1D An isometric perspective view of the combined evaporator device body 101 and cartridge 114 is shown, Figure 1E and Figure 1F An individual cartridge 114 is shown from two different perspectives. Figures 1B-1F An exemplary cartridge-based evaporator device is shown in combination and includes many of the features generally shown in Figure 1. Other configurations that include some or all of the features described herein are also within the scope of the current subject matter. Figure 1D The vaporizer device 100 is shown with a cartridge 114 coupled to a cartridge receptacle of the vaporizer device body. In addition to the portion 154 of the cartridge 114 that is insertably received and thus hidden from view in the cartridge receptacle 152, the cartridge 114 and / or the vaporizer device body 101 may also include features that allow a portion 158 of the cartridge 114 to be visible when the cartridge 114 is insertably received in the cartridge receptacle 152. The portion 158 of the cartridge that remains visible may include a transparent, translucent, etc. surface through which at least the level of vaporizable material in the reservoir 120 of the cartridge 114 may be discerned.

[0048] Figure 1E Also shown is an example of an airflow path 150 for allowing air to be drawn by a user from the outside of the cartridge 114 through the heater 118 (e.g., through a vaporization chamber including or containing the heater 118) and to the mouthpiece 144 for delivering an inhalable aerosol. The mouthpiece may optionally have a plurality of openings through which the inhalable aerosol is delivered. For example, a cartridge receiver 152 may be present at one end of the vaporizer device body 101 so that the insertable end 154 of the cartridge 114 may be insertably received in the cartridge receiver 152. When the cartridge insertable portion 154 is fully inserted into the cartridge receiver 152, the inner surface of the cartridge receiver 152 forms one surface of a portion of the airflow path 150, and the outer surface of the cartridge insertable portion 154 forms another surface of the portion of the airflow path.

[0049] like Figure 1E As shown, this structure causes air to flow downwardly around the cartridge insertable portion 154 into the cartridge receiver 152 and then return in the opposite direction after bypassing the insertion end of the cartridge 114 (e.g., the end opposite to the end including the suction nozzle 144) as it enters the cartridge body toward the evaporation chamber and heater 118. The air flow path 150 then passes through the interior of the cartridge 114, such as via one or more tubes or internal passages to one or more outlets 156 formed in the suction nozzle 144. For cartridges 114 having a non-cylindrical shape, the suction nozzle 144 can also be non-cylindrical, and more than one outlet 156 can be formed in the suction nozzle, which are optionally arranged in a line along the longer of the two transverse axes of the cartridge 114, wherein the longitudinal axis of the cartridge is oriented along the direction in which the cartridge 114 is moved to be insertably received or otherwise coupled to the evaporator device body 101, and the two transverse axes are perpendicular to each other and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis.

[0050] Figure 1F Additional features that may be included in the cartridge 114 consistent with the current subject matter are shown. For example, the cartridge 114 may include two cartridge contacts 119, 121 disposed on an insertable portion 154 that is configured to be inserted into a cartridge receiver 152 of the vaporizer device body 101. These cartridge contacts 119, 121 may optionally both be part of a single piece of metal that forms a conductive structure 159, 161 connected to one of the two ends of the resistive heating element. The two conductive structures may optionally form opposite sides of the heating chamber and may also serve as a heat shield and / or heat sink to reduce the transfer of heat to the outer wall of the cartridge 114. Figure 1FAlso shown is a center tube 162 within the cartridge 114 that defines a portion of the air flow path 150 between the heating chamber and the suction nozzle 144 formed between the two conductive structures 159 , 161 .

[0051] As described above, the barrel 114 and the optional evaporator device body 101 may optionally be non-circular in cross-section, and various oblong (e.g., one of the two transverse axes orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the evaporator device 100 is longer than the other transverse axis) cross-sectional shapes can be envisioned, including approximately rectangular, approximately rhombus, approximately triangular or trapezoidal, approximately elliptical, etc. It is well understood by those skilled in the art that the use of "approximately" in this article means that any vertex of the cross-sectional shape does not have to be sharp, but can have a non-zero radius of curvature, and any surface between these vertices does not have to be completely flat, but can have a non-infinite radius of curvature.

[0052] FIG. 2A to FIG. 2C Contemplated is an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter wherein the evaporator device is not cartridge based. Figure 2A A schematic diagram of a vaporizer device 200 is shown that does not use a cartridge (but may still optionally receive a cartridge), but may alternatively (or additionally) be configured for use with loose leaf material or some other vaporizable material (e.g., solids, wax, etc.). Figure 2A The vaporizer device 200 in the embodiment of the present invention may be configured to receive a vaporizable material, such as a loose vaporizable material, a wax, and / or some other liquid or solid vaporizable material, in an oven 220 (eg, a vaporization chamber). Figures 1A-1E Many elements similar to those present in the evaporator device 100 using the cartridge 114 shown in FIG. 1 may also be included as part of the evaporator device 200 that does not require the use of a cartridge. For example, the evaporator device 200 may include a control circuit 105 in a housing, which may include a power control circuit and / or a wireless circuit 207 and / or a memory 125. A power source 103 (e.g., a battery, a capacitor, etc.) within the housing may be charged by a charger 133 (and may include a charging control circuit not shown). The evaporator device 200 may also include one or more output devices 115 and one or more input devices 117 with sensors 137, which may include one or more sensors discussed above with respect to the cartridge-based evaporator device 100. In addition, the evaporator device 200 may include one or more heaters 118 that heat an evaporation chamber, which may be an oven 220 or other heating chamber. The heater 118 may be controlled using the resistance of the heater 118 to determine the temperature of the heater, for example, by using the resistivity temperature coefficient of the heater. A mouthpiece 144 may also be included in such a vaporizer device 200 for delivering the generated inhalable aerosol to a user. Figure 2BA side isometric view of an exemplary evaporator device 200 having an evaporator device body 101 is shown. Figure 2C In the bottom isometric view of FIG. 2 , the cover 230 is shown removed from the evaporator body 201 , exposing the oven / evaporation chamber 220 .

[0053] Current theme can be applied to vaporizer device, and this vaporizer device heats the material originating from plant leaves or other plant components, to extract the aromatic compounds and other products of plant specific flavor as steam.These plant materials can be shredded and mixed with various plant products (including tobacco) into a homogeneous structure, in which case nicotine and / or nicotine compounds can be produced and delivered to the user of this vaporizer device in aerosol form.The homogeneous structure can also include a vaporizable liquid, such as propylene glycol and glycerine, to enhance the vapor density and the aerosol generated during heating.In order to avoid producing undesirable harmful or potentially harmful components (HPHC), the vaporizer device can include a heater with temperature control.These vaporizer devices, i.e., the above-mentioned heating plant leaves or homogeneous structures are kept at a temperature below the combustion level, are generally referred to as heating non-combustion (HNB) devices.

[0054] Figure 3 A block diagram representing a system 300 for controlling an aerosol output rate provided by a vaporizer device consistent with embodiments of the current subject matter described herein is shown. The system 300 includes a heater 310 (e.g., a resistive heating element), a circuit 320, and a battery 340 (or other power source). The circuit 320 (e.g., a printed circuit board) may include a temperature measurement circuit 322 for measuring the temperature of the heater 310, a flow measurement circuit 324 for measuring the flow rate in the air flow path of the vaporizer device, and a FET 326 for amplifying a power signal from a controller 334 to the heater 310.

[0055] In some implementations of the current subject matter, temperature measurement circuit 322 can implement TCR-related resistance measurements to measure the temperature of heater 310. In other implementations, temperature measurement circuit 322 can incorporate a thermistor, thermocouple, and / or infrared (IR) sensor for measuring the temperature of heater 310.

[0056] In some embodiments of the current subject matter, the flow measurement circuit 324 may include a flow sensor in the air flow path of the vaporizer to measure the flow rate in the air flow path where the heater 310 is located. In other embodiments, the flow rate may be measured with various types of pressure sensors, such as an absolute pressure sensor, a relative pressure sensor, a hot wire anemometer, and / or a paddle wheel. In some cases, the flow rate may be estimated using a pressure sensor with a well-defined known air restriction. In other cases, the air restriction and / or other known or measurable characteristics of the vaporizer device may be calculated and used to determine or estimate the flow rate. In other embodiments, flow rate measurement or estimation is not required. For example, the flow rate is not necessary to determine the total mass of vaporizable material delivered in a given puff or over time, but may be necessary to calculate the concentration of the inhalable aerosol in a given volume of air.

[0057] In some embodiments of the current subject matter, the instantaneous aerosol production from the vaporizer device can be determined and / or predicted by an algorithm that uses as inputs power, temperature of the heater 310, and / or flow measurements of the flow rate of air passing through the heater 310 to predict the evaporation rate at the heater. Alternatively, the instantaneous aerosol production from the vaporizer can be measured and / or predicted by measuring and / or predicting the amount of material evaporated by the heater within a short sampling period (e.g., <100 ms).

[0058] Continue to refer Figure 3 , microcontroller 330 includes an aerosol production predictor 332 and a controller 334. Predictor 332 uses received inputs representing power delivery to heater 310, the temperature of heater 310 (from temperature measurement circuit 312), and / or the air flow rate through heater 310 (from flow measurement circuit 324) to predict the amount of vaporizable material vaporized at heater 310.

[0059] Controller 334 implements a control law in which power delivery to heater 310 is controlled in response to a predicted vaporization amount of vaporizable material (predicted by predictor circuit 332). In some embodiments, control of power delivery includes increasing or decreasing power delivery to heater 310 to produce a target aerosol yield.

[0060] The control law uses the aerosol production measurement (e.g., the predicted evaporation amount of the vaporizable material from the predictor 332) as a control signal to attenuate the amount of power delivered to the heater 310. The controller 334 can set the control target for the instantaneous aerosol production to be proportional to the flow rate measured by the flow sensor (e.g., the flow measurement circuit 314). Alternatively, the control target can be set to a constant or a user-adjustable parameter. The control target of the instantaneous aerosol can be adjusted during the puff process, during the continuous puff process, or in response to other user behaviors, preferences and / or goals. For example, the user can set one or more of the following as the desired output target: the desired evaporation rate (e.g., 1 mg / s), the number of puffs desired per a specific time period, and / or a specific program to achieve a daily goal (e.g., a specific goal in the morning, another goal in the evening, etc.). According to an embodiment of the current subject matter, the control law can be implemented as part of a feedback loop to control the power delivery to the heater to achieve a desired (e.g., set point, threshold, target, etc.) mass output rate, which can be configured or not configured by the user.

[0061] Additionally, a vaporizer device implementing a control law according to the embodiments described herein can adjust the mass output rate accordingly in response to user behavior (e.g., by utilizing user samples and the history of one or more devices). Thus, the mass output rate can be automatically adjusted based on the time of day, day of the week, etc.

[0062] In some embodiments, in addition to the mass output control law, a temperature control law can also be implemented in conjunction. As described herein, the mass output control law specifies the amount of power required to achieve a constant mass output. The temperature control law determines the amount of power required to maintain the temperature. According to some embodiments, a smaller amount of power is provided to the heater to avoid the risk of exceeding a certain temperature. This can serve as a protection feature by ensuring that a certain predetermined temperature is not exceeded.

[0063] refer to Figure 4 , process flow diagram 400 illustrates features of a method, which may optionally include some or all of the following: At 410 , inputs are received representing power delivery to the heater 310 , the temperature of the heater 310 , and / or the flow rate of air passing through the heater 310 .

[0064] At 420, an algorithm using the received input is executed to predict the amount of vaporization of the vaporizable material at the heater. For example, predicting the amount of vaporization of the vaporizable material at the heater may include determining the amount of vapor and / or material in the vapor based on electrical and thermal properties (e.g., power or energy applied to the heating element, and the temperature of the material just before and during vaporization). Other methods are also possible.

[0065] At 430, the power delivery to the heater is controlled in response to the predicted evaporation amount of the vaporizable material. For example, the control of the power delivery may include increasing or decreasing the instantaneous power delivery to the heater 310 to produce a target aerosol yield (e.g., a desired output rate). In some embodiments, the power delivery may be modulated by pulse width modulation (PWM) of the current from a power source (e.g., a battery) to the heater. The amount of power to be delivered may be determined by a proportional integral derivative (PID) control law. For example, a target mass evaporation rate set point (e.g., a target aerosol yield) may be predefined, such as may be contained in a memory. The error between the target mass evaporation rate (e.g., a target aerosol yield) and the predicted evaporation amount may be calculated, for example, by calculating the difference between the target evaporation amount and the predicted evaporation amount. The power may be adjusted based on one or more of: a function of the error; a sum of error histories from previous predictions (e.g., iterations); and / or a change in error from a previous prediction to a current prediction. Additional methods and additional control laws for modulating power may be used in some embodiments to control the amount of power delivered to an appropriate amount of power.

[0066] One or more aspects or features of the subject matter described herein can be implemented as digital electronic circuits, integrated circuits, specially designed application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) computer hardware, firmware, software, and / or combinations thereof. These various aspects or features can be included in the implementation in one or more computer programs, which can be executed and / or interpreted on a programmable system including at least one programmable processor, at least one input device, and at least one output device, the programmable processor can be dedicated or general, and it is connected to receive data and instructions from a storage system and send data and instructions to the storage system. A programmable system or computing system can include a client and a server. The client and the server are usually far away from each other, and usually interact through a communication network. The relationship between the client and the server is generated by a computer program running on a corresponding computer and having a client-server relationship with each other.

[0067] These computer programs (which may also be referred to as programs, software, software applications, applications, components or codes) include machine instructions for programmable processors and may be implemented in high-level programming languages, object-oriented programming languages, functional programming languages, logical programming languages ​​and / or assembly / machine languages. As used herein, the term "machine-readable medium" refers to any computer program product, device and / or device for providing machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor, such as a disk, an optical disk, a memory and a programmable logic device (PLD), including a machine-readable medium that receives machine instructions as machine-readable signals. The term "machine-readable signal" refers to any signal for providing machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor. A machine-readable medium may store such machine instructions non-temporarily, such as a non-temporary solid-state memory or a magnetic hard drive or any equivalent storage medium. A machine-readable medium may alternatively or additionally store such machine instructions in a transient manner, such as a processor cache or other random access memory associated with one or more physical processor cores.

[0068] To provide interaction with a user, one or more aspects or features of the subject matter described herein may be implemented on a computer having a display device, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT) or a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a light emitting diode (LED) monitor, for displaying information to the user, a keyboard, and a pointing device, such as a mouse or a trackball, through which the user can provide input to the computer. Other types of devices may also be used to provide interaction with the user. For example, the feedback provided to the user may be any form of sensory feedback, such as visual feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback; and input from the user may be received in any form, including but not limited to sound, voice, or tactile input. Other possible input devices include but are not limited to touch screens or other touch-sensitive devices, such as single-point or multi-point resistive or capacitive touch pads, voice recognition hardware and software, optical scanners, optical pointers, digital image capture devices, and related interpretation software, etc.

[0069] In the above description and claims, phrases such as "at least one" or "one or more" may appear, followed by a list of combinations of elements or features. The term "and / or" may also appear in a list of two or more elements or features. Unless its context implicitly or obviously indicates a contradiction, the phrase is intended to represent any element or feature listed alone, or any recorded element or feature combined with any other recorded element or feature. For example, the phrases "at least one of A and B;" "one or more of A and B;" and "A and / or B" are all intended to mean "A alone, B alone, or A and B together". A similar interpretation also applies to lists containing three or more items. For example, the phrases "at least one of A, B and C;" "one or more of A, B and C;" and "A, B and / or C" are all intended to mean "A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, or A and B and C together". The use of the term "based on" above and in the claims is intended to mean "based at least in part on", thereby also allowing unrecorded features or elements.

[0070] Depending on the desired structure, the subject matter described herein can be implemented in systems, devices, methods and / or articles. The embodiments set forth in the foregoing description do not represent all embodiments consistent with the subject matter described herein. On the contrary, they are merely some examples consistent with the relevant aspects of the described subject matter. Although some variations have been described in detail above, other modifications or additions are possible. In particular, in addition to those features and / or changes set forth herein, other features and / or changes may also be provided. For example, the above-mentioned embodiments may be directed to various combinations and sub-combinations of the disclosed features and / or combinations and sub-combinations of several other features disclosed above. In addition, the logic flows depicted in the accompanying drawings and / or described herein do not necessarily require the specific order or sequential order shown to achieve the desired results. Other embodiments may be within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An evaporator device, comprising: Heating elements; circuitry configured to control the delivery of power from a power source to the heating element, the heating element being configured to provide heat to a vaporizable material to vaporize the vaporizable material; and A controller configured to perform operations including: receiving at least one input, wherein one of the at least one input is indicative of an air flow rate through the heating element, the air flow rate being determined based at least on one or more measured characteristics indicative of an air restriction of the evaporator device; predicting an amount of vaporization of the vaporizable material at the heating element using the at least one received input; and In response to the predicted vaporized amount of the vaporizable material, the power delivery to the heating element is controlled, the controlling comprising increasing or decreasing the instantaneous power delivery to the heating element such that a target aerosol yield is produced.

2. The evaporator device according to claim 1, wherein Another of the at least one input is power delivery to the heating element or a temperature of the heating element.

3. The evaporator device according to claim 1, wherein: The received input representing the air flow rate through the heating element is further determined by at least one of a flow sensor or a pressure sensor.

4. The evaporator device according to claim 1, wherein: The target aerosol yield is proportional to the flow rate.

5. The evaporator device according to claim 1, wherein: The target aerosol yield is a function of the flow rate.

6. The evaporator device according to claim 1, wherein: The target aerosol yield may comprise a predetermined constant or a user adjustable parameter.

7. The evaporator device according to claim 6, wherein: The user adjustable parameters include a desired output target based on a desired vaporization rate, a desired number of puffs, a specific time period, and / or a daily output target.

8. The evaporator device according to claim 1, wherein: The target aerosol yield is adjusted in response to one or more users and / or one or more user actions of one or more vaporizer devices.

9. A method comprising: receiving data indicative of an air flow rate through the heating element, wherein the received data is determined based at least on one or more measured characteristics indicative of an air restriction of the evaporator device; using the received data to predict an amount of vaporized material located at the heating element; and In response to the predicted vaporized amount of the vaporizable material, power delivery to the heating element is controlled, the controlling comprising increasing or decreasing instantaneous power delivery to the heating element such that a target aerosol yield is produced.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The target aerosol yield is proportional to the flow rate.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The target aerosol yield is a function of the flow rate.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The target aerosol yield may comprise a predetermined constant or a user adjustable parameter.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The user adjustable parameters include a desired output target based on a desired vaporization rate, a desired number of puffs, a specific time period, and / or a daily output target.

14. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The target aerosol yield is adjusted in response to one or more users and / or one or more user actions of one or more vaporizer devices.

15. The method according to claim 9, wherein: Controlling the delivery of power to the heating element is further responsive to an amount of power required to maintain a predetermined temperature of the heating element.

16. The method according to claim 9, wherein: Controlling the power delivery to the heating element includes selecting the power delivery such that a heating element temperature remains below a predetermined temperature.

17. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The predicting the evaporation amount includes executing an algorithm using the received data.

18. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The vaporizer device includes a heating element; and a circuit configured to control the delivery of power from a power source to the heating element, the heating element being configured to provide heat to a vaporizable material to vaporize the vaporizable material into a flowing air stream to form an entrained aerosol.

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