Electronic cigarette, electronic cigarette atomizer and atomization assembly

Abstract

To provide an electronic cigarette preventing a heating element from deforming or breaking under a cold heat cycle, electronic cigarette atomizer and atomization assembly.SOLUTION: An electronic cigarette atomizer includes: a liquid storage chamber for storing a liquid substrate; a porous body in fluid communication with the liquid storage chamber to absorb the liquid substrate; and a heating element including a first electrode connection portion, a second electrode connection portion, and a resistance heating trajectory extending between the first electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion, where a curvature of any position on a part of the resistance heating trajectory connected close to the first electrode connection portion and / or the second electrode connection portion is not zero. The heating element of the electronic cigarette atomizer adopts the resistance heating trajectory to perform heating and causes the part of the resistance heating trajectory that is connected close to the electrode connection portion to be in a bending shape whose curvature is not zero. Therefore, internal tensile stress formed due to a deformation difference is eliminated.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] (CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS) This application claims priority to a Chinese patent application with application number 202010855599.2, entitled "Electronic cigarette, atomizer and atomization assembly for electronic cigarette," filed with the China Patent Office on August 20, 2020, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD Embodiments of the present application relate to the technical field of aerosol generating devices, and in particular to electronic cigarettes, atomizers and atomizing assemblies for electronic cigarettes. [Background technology]

[0003] Tobacco products (e.g., cigarettes, cigars, etc.) burn tobacco to produce tobacco smoke during use. Attempts have been made to produce alternatives to these tobacco-burning products that release compounds without combustion.

[0004] One example of such a product is a heating device that heats, rather than burns, a material to release a compound. For example, the material may be tobacco or other non-tobacco products, which may or may not contain nicotine. Another example is aerosol delivery products, such as so-called e-cigarette devices. These devices generally contain a liquid that can be heated and vaporized to generate an inhalable vapor or aerosol. The liquid may contain nicotine and / or flavorings and / or aerosol-generating substances (e.g., glycerin).

[0005] The core component of the known electronic cigarette product is an atomization assembly that vaporizes liquid to generate aerosol, and the atomization assembly includes a porous body for sucking and conducting liquid, and a heating element disposed in the porous body for heating and atomizing the liquid sucked and conducted by the porous body. The porous body has capillary pores inside, and liquid can be absorbed and transferred to the heating element through the internal pores. During operation, the known heating element has a main heat generation area concentrated in the center of the heating element, and the temperature of the area close to the edge is low, and the temperature of each area of ​​the heating element changes gradually. During operation, the shock effect of the cold-hot cycle causes different degrees of expansion and contraction at different temperatures, which causes the heating element to bend or break, and reduces the service life of the wick. Summary of the Invention

[0006] It is an object of one embodiment of the present application to provide an atomizer for an electronic cigarette configured to atomize a liquid substrate to generate an aerosol for smoking, the atomizer comprising: a liquid storage chamber for storing the liquid substrate; a porous body in fluid communication with the liquid storage chamber for absorbing the liquid substrate; and a heating element formed in the porous body for heating the liquid substrate in at least a portion of the porous body to form an aerosol, the heating element comprising a first electrode connection portion, a second electrode connection portion and a resistive heating track extending between the first electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion, the resistive heating track including a first portion connected adjacent to the first electrode connection portion and a second portion connected adjacent to the second electrode connection portion, the heating element having a curvature at any point of the first portion and / or the second portion that is not zero.

[0007] The heating element of the above-mentioned electronic cigarette atomizer employs a specially designed resistive heating track for heating, and the part connected close to the electrode connection part of the resistive heating track and having a large temperature difference is curved with a non-zero curvature, thereby changing the stress state of this part during thermal shock, eliminating or dispersing part of the internal stress caused by the expansion and contraction difference, and preventing the heating element from deforming or breaking under thermal cycles.

[0008] In a more preferred embodiment, the resistive heating track is constructed in such a way that the entire track contains only a limited number of points of zero curvature, such a construction results in the entire heating track being curvedly connected tracks with different curvature directions, globally optimizing the stress state of the heating track during thermal shock.

[0009] In a more preferred embodiment, the resistive heating track is configured to be connected to the electrode connection, and there exists a straight line passing through the connection point and intersecting the resistive heating track at two points, the distance between the two points being greater than the distance between the connection point and its adjacent intersection point. Such a setting reduces the high temperature difference of the resistive heating track, improves the temperature distribution characteristics near the connection point, and further improves the stress state during thermal shock.

[0010] In a more preferred embodiment, the first and second parts are symmetrical. In specific alternative embodiments, the symmetry may be axial, central or rotational.

[0011] In a more preferred embodiment, the first portion and / or the second portion are configured as an arc having a constant curvature.

[0012] In a more preferred embodiment the curvature of the first portion and / or the second portion is variable.

[0013] In a more preferred embodiment, the porous body has an atomizing surface and the heating element is formed on the atomizing surface.

[0014] In a more preferred embodiment, the atomizing surface is a flat, planar surface.

[0015] In a more preferred embodiment, the atomizing surface includes a length direction and a width direction perpendicular to the length direction, the first electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion are sequentially arranged along the length direction, The area of ​​a region defined by a straight line passing through the connection point between the first portion and the first electrode connection portion along the width direction within the atomization surface and a straight line passing through the connection point between the second portion and the second electrode connection portion along the width direction is less than two-thirds of the area of ​​the atomization surface.

[0016] In a more preferred embodiment, the atomizing surface includes a length direction and a width direction perpendicular to the length direction, The first portion and / or the second portion are configured to curve outwardly along the width direction.

[0017] In a more preferred embodiment, the first and / or second portion is defined as a portion whose extension is less than one eighth of the extension length of the resistive heating track.

[0018] In a more preferred embodiment, the resistive heating track is of a circuitous curved or reciprocating curved shape.

[0019] In a more preferred embodiment, the resistive heating track includes at least one curvature direction transition point, and the first portion is formed from the portion between the curvature direction transition point adjacent to the first electrode connection portion and the first electrode connection portion, and the second portion is formed from the portion between the curvature direction transition point adjacent to the second electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion.

[0020] In a more preferred embodiment, the first and second portions are curved in opposite directions.

[0021] In a more preferred embodiment, the resistive heating track includes a first curvature direction transition point adjacent to the first electrode connection portion and a second curvature direction transition point adjacent to the second electrode connection portion, and the first portion is formed from the portion between the first curvature direction transition point and the first electrode connection portion, and the second portion is formed from the portion between the second curvature direction transition point and the second electrode connection portion.

[0022] In a more preferred embodiment, the resistive heating track further comprises a third portion located between the first curvature direction transition point and the second curvature direction transition point, The third portion may be curved in an opposite direction to the first portion, and / or the third portion may be curved in an opposite direction to the second portion.

[0023] In a more preferred embodiment, the third portion has a non-zero curvature at any point.

[0024] In a more preferred embodiment, the curvature of the first portion and / or the second portion is greater than the curvature of the third portion.

[0025] In a more preferred embodiment, there is a straight line within the atomization surface that passes through the connection point between the first portion and the first electrode connection portion and the first curvature direction transition point, the straight line having an intersection with the third portion, and the distance from the connection point between the first portion and the first electrode connection portion to the first curvature direction transition point is smaller than the distance from the first curvature direction transition point to the intersection point.

[0026] In a more preferred embodiment the width of the resistive heating track is substantially constant.

[0027] In a more preferred embodiment, the width of the resistive heating track is 0.2-0.5 mm; and / or the extension length of the resistive heating track is between 5 and 50 mm; And / or the resistance of said resistive heating track is between 0.5 and 2.0 Ω.

[0028] In a more preferred embodiment, the resistive heating track is of circuitous or reciprocating curved shape.

[0029] In a more preferred embodiment, the first electrode connection portion and / or the second electrode connection portion is located substantially in the center of the width of the atomization surface.

[0030] In a more preferred embodiment, the porous body includes porous ceramics.

[0031] The present application further proposes an electronic cigarette comprising an atomisation device for atomising a liquid substrate to generate an aerosol for smoking, and a power supply device for supplying power to said atomisation device, said atomisation device comprising an electronic cigarette atomiser as described above.

[0032] The present application further proposes an atomization assembly for an electronic cigarette comprising a porous body for absorbing a liquid substrate and a heating element formed in the porous body, the heating element comprising a first electrode connection portion, a second electrode connection portion and a resistive heating track extending between the first electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion, the resistive heating track comprising a first portion connected in close proximity to the first electrode connection portion and a second portion connected in close proximity to the second electrode connection portion, and wherein none of the first portion and / or the second portion have zero curvature at any point. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0033] One or more embodiments are illustratively described by way of illustration in the accompanying drawing figures, but these illustrative illustrations are not intended to be limiting of the embodiments, and in the drawings, elements having the same reference numerals designate similar elements, and the drawings are not meant to be drawn to scale unless otherwise specified. [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of an atomizer for an electronic cigarette provided in one embodiment of the present application. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of a heating element proposed in one embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing stress formed in a curved portion of the heating element in FIG. 2 due to thermal shock. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of a heating element proposed in another embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a porous body proposed in another embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of surface mounting in the manufacture of an atomization assembly according to one embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of screen peeling after laser printing in the manufacture of an atomization assembly according to one embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an atomization assembly obtained after sintering in the manufacture of an atomization assembly according to one embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of a heating element of a comparative example. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a structural schematic diagram of a heating element of another comparative example. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is an observational view of the heating element of the embodiment after a thermal cycle test using an electron microscope. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is an enlarged view of a portion A in FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is an observational view of a heating element of a comparative example after a thermal cycle test, taken with an electron microscope. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is an enlarged view of a portion B in FIG. [Figure 15] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of temperature zones in an atomization assembly of one embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of temperature zones in an atomization assembly of another embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of temperature zones in an atomization assembly of another embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of temperature zones of an atomization assembly of one comparative example. [Figure 19] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of temperature zones of another comparative example atomization assembly. [Figure 20] FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of an electronic cigarette proposed in one embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0034] In order to facilitate the understanding of the present application, the present application will now be described in more detail with reference to the drawings and specific embodiments.

[0035] One embodiment of the present application proposes an atomizer for electronic cigarettes for heating and vaporizing a liquid substrate to generate an aerosol for smoking. FIG. 1 shows a structural schematic diagram of an atomizer for electronic cigarettes according to one embodiment, which includes: The device comprises a main housing 10 which is generally hollow and tubular, and of course the main housing 10 is hollow inside and contains the functional devices necessary for storing and atomizing the liquid substrate. In FIG. 1, an end cap 20 is provided at the lower end of the main housing 10 which is open along the length direction, to close the lower end of the main housing 10.

[0036] The main housing 10 includes: a smoke delivery tube 11 extending axially and providing a smoke delivery passage for delivering the formed aerosol to an upper end for smoking; A liquid storage chamber 12 is provided, formed between the smoke delivery tube 11 and an inner wall of the main housing 10, for storing a liquid substrate.

[0037] A porous body 30 is further provided within the main housing 10. The porous body 30 is in the form of a sheet or block in the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and has a liquid absorbing surface 310 and an atomizing surface 320 that are opposite to each other in the axial direction of the main housing 10. In FIG. 1, the liquid-absorbing surface 310 is the upper surface of the porous body 30, which is in fluid communication with the liquid storage chamber 12, such that in use, liquid substrate within the liquid storage chamber 12 can be transferred to and absorbed by the upper surface 310, as shown by the arrow R1; 1, the atomizing surface 320 is the underside of the porous body 30, on which a heating element 40 is provided for heating and vaporizing at least a portion of the liquid substrate within the porous body 30 to generate an aerosol for smoking. The atomizing surface 320 is in airflow communication with the smoke delivery tube 11, and the generated aerosol is delivered through the smoke delivery tube 11 after being emitted or exiting from the atomizing surface 320, as shown by arrow R2.

[0038] FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the heating element 40 formed on the atomizing surface 320 of the porous body 30. In the preferred embodiment of FIG. 2, the atomizing surface 320 is a rectangular structure extending along the lateral direction of the main housing 10. The porous body 30 is generally manufactured by adopting porous ceramics, inorganic porous materials, and porous rigid materials. The porous ceramics most commonly used in electronic cigarette atomizers include at least one of silicon-based ceramics such as silica, silicon carbide, and silicon nitride, aluminum-based ceramics such as aluminum nitride and alumina, zirconia ceramics, and diatomaceous earth ceramics. The porous body 30 preferably has a pore size of 5 to 60 μm and a porosity of 30% to 60%.

[0039] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the heating element 40 has a first electrode connection portion 41 adjacent to one side of the length of the atomizing surface 320, and a second electrode connection portion 42 adjacent to the other side of the length of the atomizing surface 320, and in use, the first electrode connection portion 41 and the second electrode connection portion 42 form an electrical connection by abutting or welding the positive electrode / negative electrode 21 of FIG. 1, etc., and further supply power to the heating element 40.

[0040] 2, the first electrode connection portion 41 and the second electrode connection portion 42 are configured in a substantially rectangular shape, or in other alternative embodiments, may be circular, elliptical, etc. In terms of material, the first electrode connection portion 41 and the second electrode connection portion 42 are preferably made of a material such as gold or silver that has a low resistance coefficient and high conductivity.

[0041] The heating element 40 further includes a resistive heating track 43 extending between the first electrode connection 41 and the second electrode connection 42. Based on the functional requirements for heating atomization, the resistive heating track 43 generally adopts a resistive metal material, metal alloy material having a suitable impedance, for example, suitable metal or alloy material includes at least one of nickel, cobalt, zirconium, titanium, nickel alloy, cobalt alloy, zirconium alloy, titanium alloy, nickel chromium alloy, nickel iron alloy, iron chromium alloy, titanium alloy, iron manganese aluminum based alloy or stainless steel, etc.

[0042] 2, the resistive heating track 43 comprises a first portion 431 connected adjacent to the first electrode connection 41 and a second portion 432 connected adjacent to the second electrode connection 42, the first portion 431 and the second portion 432 being arranged in a curved shape rather than in a straight line. In a preferred embodiment, the first electrode connection 41 and the second electrode connection 42 are located at a central point in the width direction of the atomization surface 320.

[0043] Or, in another alternative embodiment, the first electrode connection portion 41 and the second electrode connection portion 42 are staggered along the width of the atomizing surface 320. For example, the first electrode connection portion 41 is adjacent to a lower end along the width of the atomizing surface 320, and the second electrode connection portion 42 is adjacent to an upper end along the width of the atomizing surface 320.

[0044] In practice, the first electrode connection part 41 and the second electrode connection part 42 have low temperatures, the first part 431 and / or the second part 432 are far away from the central high temperature area of ​​the resistance heating track 43, and the first part 431 and / or the second part 432 are located at the point where the temperature change is the largest, and the internal stress due to the expansion difference during the thermal cycle is large. When the first part 431 and / or the second part 432 are designed in a curved shape, the three-way tensile stress experienced at any point includes the tensile stresses F1 and F2 in the opposite directions due to the different temperature differences on both sides of the extension direction, and the tensile stress F3 in the curved direction, as shown in A1 of Fig. 3, which can be offset by the force decomposition, and the deformation or cracking of the heating element during the thermal cycle can be effectively prevented.

[0045] In a preferred embodiment shown in Figure 2, the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 are arcs with a constant curvature value, or in an alternative embodiment shown in Figure 4, the curvature of the first portion 431a and / or the second portion 432a is variable.

[0046] Further, in a preferred embodiment, as shown in Fig. 2, there is a straight line L1 passing through the connection point between the first electrode connection part 41 and the first part 431 along the width direction of the atomizing surface 320, and there is a straight line L2 passing through the connection point between the second electrode connection part 42 and the second part 432 along the width direction of the atomizing surface 320, and the resistance heating track 43 is disposed to be located between the straight lines L1 and L2. And the area of ​​the region S1 defined by the straight lines L1 and L2 does not exceed two-thirds of the total area of ​​the atomizing surface 320. More preferably, the area of ​​the region S1 does not exceed one-half of the total area of ​​the atomizing surface 320.

[0047] 2, the atomizing surface 320 of the bulk porous body 30 has a length of about 8 mm, a width of about 4.2 mm, and the distance between L1 and the left end is about 1.8 mm, i.e., the area S1 defined by the straight lines L1 and L2 has a length of about 4.4 mm and an area slightly less than half the total area of ​​the atomizing surface 320. The resistive heating track 43 helps to concentrate the radiative main heat generation area at an optimal location on the atomizing surface 320.

[0048] Generally, in implementation, the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 are part of the resistive heating track 43 and are not visibly or noticeably distinct from other portions in terms of visible shape or color or material, etc.

[0049] Generally, in practice, it is reasonable to define the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 as a portion whose length is less than about one eighth of the total extension length of the resistive heating track 43. For example, for the geometry of the conductive track 43 in Fig. 2, the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 have a length of about 2-3 mm, and the conductive track 43 has a total extension length after deployment of about 5-50 mm. In use, the temperature difference on either side of the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 defined by this dimensional ratio is significant, exactly where stresses are concentrated and prone to breakage.

[0050] 2, the first portion 431 and the second portion 432 are defined by a transition point in the curvature direction of the reciprocatingly curved resistive heating track 43. Specifically, as can be seen in FIG. 2, the resistive heating track 43 has a first curvature direction transition point 434 and a second curvature direction transition point 435. The first curvature direction transition point 434 is adjacent to the first electrode connection portion 41, and the portion between the first curvature direction transition point 434 and the first electrode connection portion 41 is the first portion 431, and the portion between the second curvature direction transition point 435 and the second electrode connection portion 42 is the second portion 432.

[0051] The resistive heating track 43 further includes a third portion 433 located between the first curvature direction transition point 434 and the second curvature direction transition point 435. Of course, the third portion 433 is also curved, with a non-zero curvature at any point, i.e., it is not linear. As shown in FIG. 2, the curvature direction of the third portion 433 is opposite to that of the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432.

[0052] Moreover, the curvature of the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 is larger than that of the third portion 433. The third portion 433 has a wider heat radiation range, which can cover the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 as much as possible, thereby reducing the temperature difference between the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432.

[0053] 2, the width dimension of the resistive heating track 43 is about 0.35 mm and is substantially constant. Based on the requirement that the resistance value of a typical heating element 40 is 0.5-2.0Ω, the resistive heating track 43 / 43a may adopt a width range of 0.2-0.5 mm.

[0054] In a specific product example, the following FIG. 10 shows a microscope observation diagram of a manufactured resistive heating track 43 suitable for a current typical low-power flat electronic cigarette, where the resistive heating track 43 has a total extension length of 10.5-10.6 mm, a line width of 0.35 mm, and a resistance value of 1.1 Ω (tolerance ±0.15).

[0055] 2, the resistive heating track 43 has a straight line m passing through the connection point between the first electrode connection 41 and the first portion 431 and the first bending direction transition point 434, and the straight line m has an intersection point m1 with the third portion 433 of the resistive heating track 43. The distance from the connection point between the first electrode connection 41 and the first portion 431 to the first bending direction transition point 434 is smaller than the distance from the first bending direction transition point 434 to the intersection point m1. This structure allows the main temperature area of ​​the resistive heating track 43 to be substantially close to or covering the first electrode connection 41 or the first portion 431, which helps to prevent the temperature difference between both sides of the first portion 431 from becoming too large during operation, which is likely to cause large internal stress during thermal cycling.

[0056] In the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the shape of the resistive heating track 43 is generally "Ω" shaped, and the temperature region formed by employing a resistive heating track 43 of this shape is generally uniform and circular.

[0057] In the preferred shape and location shown in Fig. 2, the shortest distance from the resistive heating track 43 to the upper or lower end of the atomizing surface 320 is less than one-fifth of the width of the atomizing surface 320, so that the radiation area of ​​the main heat generation temperature of the resistive heating track 43 does not exceed the atomizing surface 320 as much as possible. For example, in Fig. 2, the shortest distance n from the resistive heating track 43 to the upper and lower ends of the atomizing surface 320 is about 0.8 mm. In the variant shown in Fig. 2, the shortest distance n from the resistive heating track 43 to the upper end of the atomizing surface 320 may be further increased to 1.2 mm, that is, the resistive heating track 43 shown in Figs. 2 and 4 can be designed to be flatter, which may be advantageous for temperature concentration.

[0058] In an alternative embodiment, the shape of the resistive heating track 43a may also be substantially S-shaped as shown in Fig. 4, and any part of the resistive heating track 43a, particularly the first part 431a and / or the second part 432a, may be curved, which may not only allow the temperature of each part to transition to match during operation, but also eliminate the internal tensile stress caused by the expansion and contraction difference, and prevent the heating element from being deformed or cracked. Similarly, the location of the resistive heating track 43a and the dimensional distance between each side end of the atomizing surface 320a may also follow the position in Fig. 2. In Fig. 4, the first part 431a and / or the second part 432a may also be defined by adopting the ratio of the extension length of the entire resistive heating track 43a, or may be defined by the curved direction transition point 434a.

[0059] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the resistive heating track 43 / 43a is curved in a round trip manner, the purpose of which is to enable the resistive heating track 43 / 43a to extend a sufficient length for a given area and still achieve the desired resistance value.

[0060] In the preferred embodiment shown in Figures 2 and 4, the first portion 431 / 431a and / or the second portion 432 / 432a are curved outwardly across the width of the atomizing surface 320 / 320a, rather than curved inwardly.

[0061] In other alternative embodiments, the shape of the porous body 30 can be changed arbitrarily, for example, FIG. 5 shows the structure of one general shape of porous body 30d, which has an atomizing surface 320d for forming a heating element 40, and has a structure such as a groove 31d on the opposite side to the atomizing surface 320d, and the space of the groove 31d helps to shorten the transmission distance of the liquid substrate to the atomizing surface 320d.

[0062] Furthermore, in the embodiment shown in Figure 5, the atomization surface 320d corresponds to the projection area S2 of the groove 31d (i.e., the portion between the dashed lines L3 and L4 in Figure 5), and the heating element 40 is located within the projection area S2 of the groove 31d on the atomization surface 320d, and further, during use, the liquid substrate can be smoothly and quickly transferred to the heating element 40.

[0063] An embodiment of the present application further proposes an atomization assembly for an atomizer for an electronic cigarette, comprising a porous body 30 for absorbing a liquid substrate, and a heating element 40 formed in the porous body 30, the heating element 40 comprising a first electrode connection portion 41, a second electrode connection portion 42, and a resistive heating track 43 extending between the first electrode connection portion 41 and the second electrode connection portion 42, the resistive heating track 43 comprising a first portion 431 connected in close proximity to the first electrode connection portion 41 and a second portion 432 connected in close proximity to the second electrode connection portion 42, and the curvature at any point of the first portion 431 and / or the second portion 432 is not zero.

[0064] An embodiment of the present application further proposes a manufacturing method of an atomization assembly for an electronic cigarette atomizer, the atomization assembly comprising the above-mentioned porous body 30 and a heating element 40. In an embodiment, the manufacturing method steps are performed like SMT (surface mount) laser printing and sintering, which is more accurate than the current SMT screen printing and sintering.

[0065] To further embody the feasibility of manufacturing the atomized assembly with the SMT laser printing process of the present application, in one embodiment, the detailed step process includes the following steps S10 to S50, as shown in Figures 6 to 8.

[0066] In S10, the sheet-shaped porous body 30 shown in the above figure is obtained. The material is a diatomaceous earth-based porous ceramic body with added alumina and glass powder, and it can be purchased directly or fired by oneself.

[0067] In S20, a slurry for printing the resistive heating tracks 43 is prepared, the composition of the slurry being: The above-mentioned electric heating metal or alloy powder is used, the particle size is 600 mesh, the shape is approximately spherical, and the solid phase heat generating functional component accounts for about 80 to 90 wt% of the mass percentage of the solid phase component of the slurry; A glass phase component for hardening and molding, which is made of SiO2 glass powder, Al2O3, MgO, CaO, or a mixture thereof, has a particle size of about 4 to 5 μm and accounts for about 1 to 10 wt% of the mass percentage of the solid phase component of the slurry, It is available by purchasing commercially available organic assistants for laser printing, and generally contains components such as solvents, thickeners, leveling agents, surfactants, and thixotropic agents, and the addition ratio of the liquid assistant components that assist slurry printing is 10 to 20 wt% of the mass percentage of the above solid phase components.

[0068] In S30, SMT mounting is performed, that is, as shown in FIG. 6, a laser printing screen 50 having a cutout portion 51 in the shape of the heating element 40 shown in FIG. 2 is attached to the surface used as the atomization surface 320 of the porous body 30 in step S10, and a steel screen is generally used.

[0069] In S40, the printing slurry produced in step S20 is printed on the surface of the porous body 30 equipped with a laser printing screen 50 using a laser printing device, and when the laser printing screen 50 is peeled off or removed after printing is completed, a heating element 40 is deposited and formed on the surface of the porous body 30, as shown in Figure 7.

[0070] In S50, sintering hardening is performed, that is, the porous body 30 obtained in step S40 is baked and dried in an oven at 100°C for 20 minutes, and then transferred to a sintering furnace and sintered in a protective gas atmosphere furnace at 1100-1150°C for 30 minutes. After sintering, a batch-produced atomized assembly is obtained, as shown in Figure 8, and then cutting and separating is performed using a grinding wheel to obtain a large number of individual atomized assemblies.

[0071] In the process of preparing the printing slurry for the resistance heating track 43 in step S20 above, firstly obtain the solid phase components according to the desired ratio, mix uniformly in a ball mill for a certain period of time, then add the liquid auxiliary components, stir and mix, and then roll using a three-roll mill to uniformly disperse the solid phase powder in the organic phase of the liquid auxiliary, so that a printing slurry with appropriate viscosity can be obtained, which is then put into a refrigerated storage at 16°C for a certain period of time to make the properties more stable before use.

[0072] The above-mentioned laser printing is used to form a printing slurry layer of a desired thickness by printing once with a laser printing device, which is faster and more accurate than the screen printing process to form a slurry layer of a desired thickness by printing multiple times to increase the thickness. In addition, the pattern formed by laser printing is printed neatly without any overflow, has a strong three-dimensional effect, and is easy to print. The laser printing process has a simple flow, high printing efficiency, low cost, and is suitable for industrial mass automatic production.

[0073] Furthermore, in order to embody the advances of the atomization assemblies illustrated in Figs. 2 and 4 of the present application over conventional atomization assemblies, performance tests including thermal shock fracture tests and temperature field distribution tests are conducted on the atomization assemblies of the embodiments of the present application. In the tests, the heating elements 40b / 40c shown in Figs. 9 and 10 are used as comparative examples. The resistive heating track 43b shown in Fig. 9 is a comparative example of the generally linear first portion 431b and / or second portion 432b. Fig. 10 is a comparative example in which the extension length of the resistive heating track 43 in Fig. 2 is further increased.

[0074] In S100, a rupture test is performed, that is, a thermal cycle is performed on the resistance heating track of the atomization assembly illustrated in FIG. 2 and FIG. 9, and the rupture state due to thermal cycle shock is tested, which specifically includes the following: Under the condition of a constant power of 6.5W DC power supply, one cycle is 3 seconds on and 15 seconds off, and the resistance heating track is subjected to a thermal shock cycle, and the fracture state of the resistance heating track is continuously observed under a visual microscope, and each set of tests includes 5 repetitions. The results are shown in Figures 10 to 13.

[0075] As a result, Fig. 11 shows the overall microscopic shape diagram of the resistance heating track 43 of the atomization assembly illustrated in Fig. 2 after 50 cycles by an electron microscope, and Fig. 12 shows a partial enlarged view of part A in Fig. 11. As can be seen from Fig. 11 and Fig. 12, the resistance heating track 43 is still in good condition and no cracks are observed under the microscope. In addition, the first electrode connection part 41 and the second electrode connection part 42, which are electrodes at both ends, adopt highly conductive silver-platinum alloy powder and are substantially white in color.

[0076] Fig. 13 is an overall microscopic view of the resistance heating track 43b of the exemplary atomization assembly when it is cycled until cracks occur, and Fig. 14 is a partial enlarged view of the B part of Fig. 13. As can be seen from Fig. 14, statistically, there are cracks in the first part 431b of the resistance heating track 43b, and the average period during the test when cracks occur is 25 times. The reason for the cracks is that the first part 431b is linear, and the temperature difference between both sides generates tensile stresses F4 and F5 opposite to the extension direction shown in Fig. 9, and when the temperature difference is too large, the difference between F4 and F5 exceeds a certain threshold, which causes cracks.

[0077] In S200, a temperature range test is carried out, that is, the shape of the porous body 30d in Fig. 5 is adopted, and the resistance heating tracks 43 / 43a / 43b / 43c of the above-mentioned embodiments and comparative examples are combined, and a constant power of 6.5W is applied to the manufactured atomization assembly, emulating the temperature range after 1S of empty firing, and the test does not take into account convection and radiation heat dissipation, and the results are shown in Fig. 15 to Fig. 19. Of course, in the test, the materials of each exemplified atomization assembly are all the same as each other for comparison, and the relevant parameters are shown in the table below.

[0078] Resistance Heating Track Fe-Cr alloy thermal conductivity coefficient 12.8W / m / K Specific heat capacity: 490J / kg / ℃ Density 7200kg / m 3 Porous ceramics body Alumina-Zirconia Thermal Conductivity Coefficient 1 W / m / K Specific heat capacity: 430 J / kg / ℃ Density 900 kg / m 3

[0079] In the test results, in the schematic diagram of the temperature region of the embodiment of the atomization assembly shown in Figure 15, the resistance heating track 43 has a maximum temperature of 964.14°C, and it can be seen from Figure 15 that the temperature within the main heat radiation region (central yellow region) is substantially uniform, and the results show that the temperature difference between both sides of the first portion 431 / second portion 432 is approximately 100-150°C.

[0080] FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of the temperature field results of an embodiment after the dimension is reduced in the width direction of the atomization surface 320 relative to the resistance heating track 43 in FIG. 15, i.e., after the above-mentioned squashing, the shape of the entire heat radiation area is substantially the same as FIG. 15, and due to the track being relatively squashed, the resistance value changes, so the maximum temperature drops to 870.25°C, the temperature within the main heat radiation area is substantially uniform, and the temperature difference between both sides of the first part 431 / second part 432 is also about 100-150°C.

[0081] FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram showing the temperature range results of the resistive heating track 43a of the embodiment shown in FIG. 4. The resistive heating track 43a of this shape has a maximum temperature of 922.794°C, the main heat radiation area is slightly smaller than that of FIG. 15 and FIG. 16, and the temperature difference between both sides of the first portion 431a / second portion 432a increases to about 180-200°C.

[0082] Fig. 18 is a schematic diagram showing the result of the temperature region of the resistive heating track 43b of the comparative example shown in Fig. 9, in which the resistive heating track 43b has a maximum temperature of 1042.98°C, and has a smaller area and lower uniformity of the main heat radiation region than the previous example. In addition, the temperature difference between the two sides of the linear first part 431b / second part 432b exceeds 300°C, so that expansion / contraction and stress formation due to thermal shock are more likely to occur.

[0083] Fig. 19 is a schematic diagram of the temperature region of the comparative example of the resistive heating track 43c shown in Fig. 10, in which the resistance value increases because the resistive heating track 43c has a longer extension length along the length direction of the atomization surface, and the heat generation temperature decreases slightly, with the maximum temperature remaining at 729.116°C. The area of ​​the temperature radiation region is also generally increased, but the heat utilization rate is relatively low, and the first portion 431c / second portion 432c are farther away from the central region, so the temperature difference between both ends is about 250°C.

[0084] Another embodiment of the present application further proposes an electronic cigarette, the structural schematic diagram of which is shown in Fig. 20, which includes an atomizing device 100 and a power supply device 200 for supplying power to the atomizing device 100, the power supply device 200 is provided with a receiving cavity 210 for at least partially receiving the atomizing device 100, and the positive and negative poles 220 of the power supply device 200 form an electrical closed circuit with the electrodes 21 of the atomizing device 100, and are further used to supply power to the atomizing device 100. The atomizing device 100 may include an electronic cigarette atomizer shown in Fig. 1.

[0085] It should be noted that the specification and drawings of the present application show preferred embodiments of the present application, but are not limited to the embodiments described in the present specification, and further, a person skilled in the art may make improvements or modifications based on the above description, and all such improvements and modifications are intended to fall within the scope of the claims attached to the present application.

Claims

1. 1. An atomizer for an electronic cigarette configured to atomize a liquid substrate to generate an aerosol for smoking, comprising: a liquid storage chamber for storing a liquid substrate; a porous body in fluid communication with the liquid storage chamber for absorbing a liquid substrate, the porous body having an atomizing surface, the atomizing surface including a length direction and a width direction perpendicular to the length direction; an atomizer for an electronic cigarette comprising: a heating element formed on an atomization surface of the porous body for heating a liquid substrate within at least a portion of the porous body to form an aerosol, the heating element including a first electrode connection portion, a second electrode connection portion, and a resistive heating track extending between the first electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion, the first electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion being arranged sequentially along the length direction, the resistive heating track including a first portion connected adjacent to the first electrode connection portion and a second portion connected adjacent to the second electrode connection portion, wherein an area of ​​a region defined by a straight line passing through a connection point between the first portion and the first electrode connection portion along the width direction within the atomization surface and a straight line passing through a connection point between the second portion and the second electrode connection portion along the width direction is less than two-thirds of the area of ​​the atomization surface.

2. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1 , wherein the first and second parts are symmetrical.

3. 2. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette as described in claim 1, wherein the curvature at any point of the first portion and / or the second portion is non-zero, and the resistive heating track is configured such that the entire track contains only a limited number of points where the curvature is zero.

4. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette as described in claim 1, wherein the resistive heating track is configured to be connected to the electrode connection portion, and a straight line exists that passes through a connection point between the resistive heating track and the electrode connection portion and intersects with the resistive heating track at two intersection points, the distance between the two intersection points being greater than the distance between the connection point and its adjacent intersection point.

5. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1 , wherein the first portion and / or the second portion are configured in an arc shape having a constant curvature.

6. the curvature of the first portion is variable; 2. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1, wherein the curvature of the second portion is variable.

7. 2. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette of claim 1, wherein the atomizing surface is a flat, planar surface.

8. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1 , wherein the first portion and / or the second portion are configured to curve outward along the width direction.

9. 2. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1, wherein the extension length of the first portion and / or the second portion is less than one eighth of the extension length of the resistive heating track.

10. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1 , wherein the resistive heating track is in a circuitous or reciprocating curved shape.

11. 11. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 10, wherein the resistive heating track includes at least one curvature direction transition point, and the first portion is formed from a portion between the curvature direction transition point adjacent to the first electrode connection portion and the first electrode connection portion, and the second portion is formed from a portion between the curvature direction transition point adjacent to the second electrode connection portion and the second electrode connection portion.

12. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 10, wherein the first and second portions are curved in opposite directions.

13. 11. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette as described in claim 10, wherein the resistive heating track includes a first curvature direction transition point adjacent to the first electrode connection portion and a second curvature direction transition point adjacent to the second electrode connection portion, and the first portion is formed from the portion between the first curvature direction transition point and the first electrode connection portion, and the second portion is formed from the portion between the second curvature direction transition point and the second electrode connection portion.

14. the resistive heating track further comprises at least one third portion located between the first curvature directional transition point and the second curvature directional transition point; The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 13, wherein at least one of the third portions is opposite to the curvature direction of the first portion and / or the third portion is opposite to the curvature direction of the second portion.

15. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette of claim 14, wherein the third portion has a non-zero curvature at any point.

16. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 15, wherein the curvature of the first portion and / or the second portion is greater than that of the third portion.

17. Within the atomization surface, there is a straight line passing through a connection point between the first portion and the first electrode connection portion and the first curvature direction transition point, and the straight line has an intersection with the third portion; The atomizer for electronic cigarettes according to claim 14, wherein the distance from the connection point between the first portion and the first electrode connection portion to the first bending direction transition point is smaller than the distance from the first bending direction transition point to the intersection point.

18. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1 , wherein the width of the resistive heating track is substantially constant.

19. the width of said resistive heating track is between 0.2 and 0.5 mm; and / or the resistive heating track has an extension length of 5-50 mm; And / or the resistance of the resistive heating track is between 0.5 and 2.0 Ω.

20. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1 , wherein the first electrode connection portion and / or the second electrode connection portion is located substantially at the center of the width direction of the atomizing surface.

21. The atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to claim 1 , wherein the porous body comprises a porous ceramic body.

22. An electronic cigarette comprising an atomization device for atomizing a liquid substrate to generate an aerosol for smoking, and a power supply device for supplying power to the atomization device, characterized in that the atomization device comprises an atomizer for an electronic cigarette according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

23. a porous body for absorbing a liquid substrate, the porous body having an atomizing surface, the atomizing surface including a length direction and a width direction perpendicular to the length direction; a heating element formed on the atomizing surface of the porous body, the heating element including a first electrode connection, a second electrode connection, and a resistive heating track extending between the first electrode connection and the second electrode connection, the first electrode connection and the second electrode connection being arranged sequentially along the length direction, the resistive heating track including a first portion connected adjacent to the first electrode connection and a second portion connected adjacent to the second electrode connection, An atomization assembly for an electronic cigarette, wherein the area of ​​a region defined by a straight line passing through a connection point between the first portion and the first electrode connection portion along the width direction within the atomization surface and a straight line passing through a connection point between the second portion and the second electrode connection portion along the width direction is less than two-thirds of the area of ​​the atomization surface.

Images