Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices having auto shutdown

Abstract

To provide a non-nicotine electronic vaping device and a control method for the same.SOLUTION: A non-nicotine pod assembly includes a non-nicotine reservoir to hold non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation, and a heater configured to vaporize non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation drawn from the non-nicotine reservoir. A device body is configured to engage with the non-nicotine pod assembly, and includes a controller. The controller is configured to cause the device body to detect a fault event at the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, classify the fault event as one of a plurality of types of fault events, and perform at least one consequent action based on the classification of the fault event.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 33A

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] One or more exemplary embodiments relate to a non-nicotine e-vaping device. [Background technology]

[0002] A non-nicotine electronic vaping device (or non-nicotine e-vaping device) includes a heater that vaporizes a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation material to produce a non-nicotine vapor. The non-nicotine e-vaping device may include several non-nicotine e-vapor elements, including a power source, a non-nicotine cartridge or non-nicotine e-vapor tank that includes the heater, and a non-nicotine reservoir that can hold the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation material. Summary of the Invention

[0003] At least one exemplary embodiment provides a non-nicotine e-vaporizing device including a non-nicotine pod assembly and a device body. The non-nicotine pod assembly includes a non-nicotine reservoir for holding a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation and a heater configured to vaporize the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation drawn from the non-nicotine reservoir. The device body is configured to engage with the non-nicotine pod assembly and includes a controller. The controller is configured to detect a fault event in the non-nicotine e-vaporizing device, classify the fault event as one of a plurality of types of fault events, and perform at least one resulting action based on the classification of the fault event.

[0004] According to at least some example embodiments, the failure event may be one of a normal event, a soft-failed pod event, a hard-failed pod event, a soft-failed device event, and a hard-failed device event. The soft-failed pod event and the hard-failed pod event may be an abnormal condition in the non-nicotine pod assembly. The soft-failed device event and the hard-failed device event may be an abnormal condition in the device body.

[0005] The at least one resulting action includes an auto-off action, a heater-off action, a vaping-off action, a charging-stop action, or a combination thereof.

[0006] The device body may further include at least one vapor indicator configured to output an indication that a fault event has occurred.

[0007] The device body may further include a memory.

[0008] The controller may be configured to perform at least one resulting action by disabling power to the heater, recording the occurrence of the fault event in memory, and causing at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that the fault event has occurred.

[0009] The controller may be configured to perform at least one resulting action by disabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, recording the occurrence of the fault event in a memory, and causing at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that a fault event has occurred.

[0010] The control unit may be configured to detect removal of the non-nicotine pod assembly from the device body, and to enable a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to detecting removal of the non-nicotine pod assembly from the device body.

[0011] The control unit may be configured to cause the device body to enter a sleep mode in response to determining that no corrective action has occurred in response to the fault event.

[0012] The controller may be configured to perform at least one resulting action by initiating an auto-off operation that causes the non-nicotine electronic vaping device to enter a sleep mode, recording the occurrence of the fault event in memory, and causing at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that a fault event has occurred.

[0013] The controller may be configured to take at least one resulting action in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device by disabling the vaping function, the charging operation, or the vaping function and the charging operation, recording the occurrence of the fault event in memory, and causing at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that the fault event has occurred.

[0014] The controller may be configured to start a reset timer in response to detecting the fault event, determine that the reset timer has elapsed, and perform a reset of the non-nicotine e-vaporating device in response to determining that the reset timer has elapsed. The reset may be one of a soft reset in which a software application executing on the controller is reset, a hard reset in which the software application executing on the controller and hardware of the non-nicotine e-vaporating device are reset, and a power-on reset (POR). The POR may include generating a reset impulse to all circuitry of the non-nicotine e-vaporating device to clear the fault event.

[0015] The control unit may be configured to determine that the fault event has been resolved by resetting, and to enable the vaping function, the charging operation, or the vaping function and the charging operation in response to determining that the fault event has been resolved by resetting.

[0016] The controller may be configured to detect a corrective action in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device and, in response to detecting the corrective action, enable a vaping function, a charging operation, or a vaping function and a charging operation.

[0017] The non-nicotine pod assembly may include a memory configured to store a threshold temperature value, and the controller detects a fault event in response to retrieving the threshold temperature value from the memory, estimating a temperature of the heater during operation of the non-nicotine e-vaping device, and determining that the temperature of the heater is equal to or greater than the threshold temperature value. The system is configured to detect a fault event.

[0018] The device body may further include a power supply configured to provide power to the non-nicotine electronic vaping device. The fault event may be a power supply low voltage fault event indicating that the voltage of the power supply is below a minimum threshold. The controller may be further configured to perform at least one consequential action in response to detecting the power supply low voltage fault event by disabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device.

[0019] The device body may further include a power source configured to power the non-nicotine e-vaping device. The fault event may be a power source temperature fault event indicating that the temperature of the power source is equal to or greater than a maximum threshold. The controller may be configured to perform at least one consequential action in response to detecting the power source temperature fault event by preventing charging of the power source.

[0020] At least one exemplary embodiment provides a method of operating a non-nicotine electronic vaping device, the method including detecting a fault event in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, classifying the fault event as one of a plurality of types of fault event, and performing at least one consequential action based on the classification of the fault event.

[0021] According to at least some example embodiments, the failure event may be one of a normal event, a soft-failed pod event, a hard-failed pod event, a soft-failed device event, and a hard-failed device event. The soft-failed pod event and the hard-failed pod event may be an abnormal condition in a non-nicotine pod assembly, and the soft-failed device event and the hard-failed device event may be an abnormal condition in the device body.

[0022] The at least one resulting action may include an auto-off action, a heater-off action, a vaping-off action, a charging-stop action, or a combination thereof.

[0023] Performing at least one resultant action may include disabling power to a heater in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, recording the occurrence of the fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, and outputting an indication that the fault event has occurred.

[0024] Performing at least one resultant action may include disabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, recording the occurrence of a fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, and outputting an indication that a fault event has occurred.

[0025] The method may further include detecting a removal of the non-nicotine pod assembly from the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, and enabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to detecting a removal of the non-nicotine pod assembly from the non-nicotine electronic vaping device.

[0026] The method may further include causing the non-nicotine electronic vaping device to enter a sleep mode in response to determining that no corrective action has occurred in response to the fault event.

[0027] Performing at least one resultant action may include initiating an auto-off operation in which the non-nicotine electronic vaping device enters a sleep mode, recording the occurrence of a fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, and outputting an indication that a fault event has occurred.

[0028] Performing at least one resulting action may include disabling a vaping function, a charging operation, or a vaping function and a charging operation in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, recording the occurrence of a fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, and outputting an indication that a fault event has occurred.

[0029] The method may further include initiating a reset timer in response to detecting the fault event, determining that the reset timer has elapsed, and performing a reset of the non-nicotine e-vaping device in response to determining that the reset timer has elapsed.

[0030] The method may further include determining that the fault event has been resolved by resetting, and in response to determining that the fault event has been resolved by resetting, enabling a vaping function, a charging operation, or a vaping function and a charging operation in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device.

[0031] The method may further include detecting a corrective action in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, and enabling a vaping function, a charging operation, or a vaping function and a charging operation in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to detecting the corrective action.

[0032] Detecting the fault event may include obtaining a threshold temperature value from a memory in the non-nicotine e-vaping device, estimating a temperature of a heater in the non-nicotine e-vaping device, and detecting the fault event in response to determining that the temperature of the heater is equal to or greater than the threshold temperature value.

[0033] The fault event may be a power supply low voltage fault event indicating that the voltage of a power supply in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device is below a minimum threshold, and performing at least one consequential action may include disabling vaping functionality in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to detecting the power supply low voltage fault event.

[0034] The fault event may be a power supply temperature fault event indicating that the temperature of the power supply in the non-nicotine e-vaping device is at or above a maximum threshold, and performing at least one resultant action may include preventing charging of the power supply in response to detecting the power supply temperature fault event. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0035] Various features and advantages of the non-limiting embodiments herein will become more apparent from a consideration of the detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings are provided for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the claims. The accompanying drawings are not to be considered as drawn to scale unless explicitly stated. Various dimensions of the drawings may be exaggerated for clarity.

[0036] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front view of a non-nicotine electronic vaping device according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0037] [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a side view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in FIG. 1.

[0038] [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a rear view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in FIG. 1.

[0039] [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a proximal end view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 1.

[0040] [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a distal end view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 1.

[0041] [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in FIG. 1.

[0042] [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the pod inlet in FIG. 6.

[0043] [Figure 8] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in FIG.

[0044] [Figure 9] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the device body of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in FIG. 6.

[0045] [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a front view showing the device main body in FIG.

[0046] [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is an enlarged perspective view of a through hole in FIG.

[0047] [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the device electrical contacts in FIG. 10.

[0048] [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a partial exploded view including the mouthpiece in FIG. 12.

[0049] [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a partial exploded view including the bezel structure in FIG. 9.

[0050] [Figure 15] 15 is an enlarged perspective view of the mouthpiece, spring, holding structure, and bezel structure in FIG. 14. FIG.

[0051] [Figure 16] FIG. 15 is a partial exploded view including the front cover, frame, and rear cover in FIG. 14.

[0052] [Figure 17] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a non-nicotine pod assembly of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG.

[0053] [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is another perspective view of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 17.

[0054] [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is another perspective view of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 18.

[0055] [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 19 without the connector module.

[0056] [Figure 21] FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the connector module in FIG. 19.

[0057] [Figure 22] 22 is another perspective view of the connector module in FIG. 21. FIG.

[0058] [Figure 23] FIG. 23 is an exploded view of the wick, heater, electrical leads, and contact core of FIG. 22.

[0059] [Figure 24] 18 is an exploded view including the first housing portion of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 17.

[0060] [Figure 25] 18 is a partial exploded view including the second housing portion of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 17. FIG.

[0061] [Figure 26] FIG. 26 is an exploded view of the actuation pin in FIG. 25.

[0062] [Figure 27] FIG. 23 is a perspective view of the connector module in FIG. 22 excluding the wick, heater, electrical leads, and contact cores.

[0063] [Figure 28] FIG. 28 is an exploded view of the connector module in FIG. 27.

[0064] [Figure 29] 1 illustrates the electrical system of the device body and non-nicotine pod assembly of a non-nicotine electronic vaping device according to an exemplary embodiment. FIG.

[0065] [Figure 30] FIG. 23 is a simplified block diagram illustrating an automatic shutdown control system 2300 according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0066] [Figure 31] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for detecting an idling event according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0067] [Figure 32A] 1 is a flowchart illustrating a method for detecting a heater temperature fault event according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0068] [Figure 32B] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method for detecting a heater temperature fault event according to another exemplary embodiment.

[0069] [Figure 33A] FIG. 1 illustrates an automatic shutdown control method according to one or more exemplary embodiments. [Figure 33B] FIG. 1 illustrates an automatic shutdown control method according to one or more exemplary embodiments.

[0070] [Figure 34] FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a heater voltage measurement circuit 21252.

[0071] [Figure 35] FIG. 29 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the heater current measurement circuit 21258 shown in FIG.

[0072] [Figure 36] FIG. 1 illustrates a pod temperature measurement circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0073] [Figure 37] FIG. 10 illustrates a pod temperature measurement circuit according to another exemplary embodiment.

[0074] [Figure 38] FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram illustrating a heating engine control circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0075] [Figure 39] FIG. 10 is a circuit diagram illustrating another heating engine control circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0076] [Figure 40] FIG. 1 illustrates a temperature sensing transducer according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0077] [Figure 41] FIG. 10 illustrates a temperature sensing transducer according to another exemplary embodiment.

[0078] [Figure 42A] FIG. 1 illustrates a power supply temperature measurement circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0079] [Figure 42B] FIG. 10 illustrates a power supply temperature measurement circuit according to another exemplary embodiment.

[0080] [Figure 43A] FIG. 1 illustrates a power supply voltage measurement circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0081] [Figure 43B] FIG. 1 illustrates a power supply voltage measurement circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0082] [Figure 44A] FIG. 1 illustrates a charger according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0083] [Figure 44B] FIG. 10 illustrates a charger according to another exemplary embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0084] Several detailed exemplary embodiments are disclosed herein. It should be noted that the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are merely representative for purposes of describing the exemplary embodiments. It should be noted that the exemplary embodiments may be embodied in many alternative forms and should not be construed as being limited to only the exemplary embodiments set forth herein.

[0085] Thus, while exemplary embodiments are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, such exemplary embodiments are shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. It is to be understood that there is no intention to limit the exemplary embodiments to the particular forms disclosed, but rather, the exemplary embodiments are intended to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the exemplary embodiments. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description of the figures.

[0086] When an element or layer is referred to as being "on," "connected to," "coupled to," "attached to," "adjacent to," or "covering" another element or layer, it should be understood that it may be directly connected to, coupled to, attached to, adjacent to, or covering the other element or layer, or that intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly on," "directly connected to," or "directly coupled to" another element or layer, there are no intervening elements or layers. As used herein, like numbers refer to like elements. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations or subcombinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0087] In this specification, terms such as first, second, and third may be used to describe various elements, regions, layers, and / or sections, but it should be understood that these elements, regions, layers, and / or sections are not limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element, region, layer, or section from another region, layer, or section. Thus, a first element, region, layer, or section described below could be referred to as a second element, region, layer, or section without departing from the teachings of the exemplary embodiments.

[0088] For ease of description, spatially relative terms (e.g., "beneath," "below," "lower," "above," "upper," etc.) may be used herein to describe the relationship of one element or feature to another, as illustrated in the figures. It should be understood that spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device during use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures were turned over, elements described as "below" or "beneath" other elements or features would then be oriented "above" the other elements or features. Thus, the term "below" can encompass both an orientation of above and below. Also, the device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees, oriented in other ways), and the spatially relative descriptors used herein would be interpreted accordingly.

[0089] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing various exemplary embodiments only and is not intended to limit the exemplary embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. It is further understood that the terms "includes," "including," "comprises," and / or "comprising," as used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, and / or elements, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or groups thereof.

[0090] As used herein, when the terms "about" and "substantially" are used in connection with numerical values, unless expressly defined otherwise, the associated numerical value is intended to include a tolerance of ±10% around the stated numerical value.

[0091] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the illustrated embodiments belong. Furthermore, terms, including those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning in the context of the relevant technology, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless explicitly defined herein.

[0092] As used herein, "non-nicotine electronic vaping device" or "non-nicotine e-vaping device" may sometimes refer to or be considered synonymous with non-nicotine electronic vaping device and / or non-nicotine e-vaping device.

[0093] FIG. 1 is a front view of a non-nicotine electronic vaping device according to an exemplary embodiment. FIG. 2 is a side view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a rear view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 1. Referring to FIGS. 1-3, a non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 includes a device body 100 configured to receive a non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is a modular item configured to hold a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation. A "non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation" is a material or combination of materials that can be converted into a vapor. For example, the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation may be a liquid, solid, and / or gel formulation, including, but not limited to, water, beads, a solvent, an active ingredient, ethanol, a botanical extract, a natural or artificial flavor, and / or a vapor-forming agent such as glycerin or propylene glycol.

[0094] In exemplary embodiments, the non-nicotine prevapor formulation does not contain or is not derived from tobacco. The non-nicotine compound of the non-nicotine prevapor formulation may be part of or contained in a liquid or partial liquid, including an extract, oil, alcohol, tincture, suspension, dispersion, colloid, general non-neutral (weakly acidic or weakly basic) solution, or a combination thereof. In preparing the non-nicotine prevapor formulation, the non-nicotine compound may be injected, mixed, or otherwise combined with other components of the non-nicotine prevapor formulation.

[0095] In exemplary embodiments, the non-nicotine compound undergoes a slow, natural decarboxylation process over an extended period of time at relatively low temperatures, including room temperature (e.g., 72°F) or below. Additionally, the non-nicotine compound may undergo a significantly enhanced decarboxylation process (e.g., greater than 50% decarboxylation) when exposed to relatively low pressures, such as 1 atmosphere, for periods of time (minutes or hours), particularly elevated temperatures in the range of about 175°F or above. High temperatures, such as about 240°F or above, can cause rapid or instantaneous decarboxylation with a relatively high decarboxylation rate, but even higher temperatures may cause some or all of the chemical properties of the non-nicotine compound to deteriorate.

[0096] In exemplary embodiments, the non-nicotine compound may be derived from a medicinal plant (e.g., a naturally occurring component of a plant that provides a medically recognized therapeutic effect). The medicinal plant may be a cannabis plant, and the component may be at least one cannabis-derived component. Cannabinoids (e.g., phytocannabinoids) and terpenes are examples of cannabis-derived components. Cannabinoids interact with receptors in the body to produce various effects. As such, cannabinoids are used for a variety of medicinal purposes. The cannabis-derived material may include leaves and / or flower material from one or more cannabis plants, or an extract from one or more cannabis plants. For example, one or more species of cannabis plants include Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. In some exemplary embodiments, the non-nicotine prevapor formulation may include a mixture of cannabis and / or cannabis-derived components that is or is derived from 60% to 80% (e.g., 70%) Cannabis sativa and 20% to 40% (e.g., 30%) Cannabis indica.

[0097] Non-limiting examples of cannabis-derived cannabinoids include tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA), tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiolic acid (CBDA), cannabidiol (CBD), cannabinol (CBN), cannabicyclol (CBL), cannabichromene (CBC), and cannabigerol (CBG). Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) is a precursor to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) is a precursor to cannabidiol (CBD). Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) and cannabidiol acid (CBDA) may be converted to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), respectively, via heating. In exemplary embodiments, the heat from the heater may cause decarboxylation to convert tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) in the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and / or may cause decarboxylation to convert cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) in the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation to cannabidiol (CBD).

[0098] When both tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are present in a non-nicotine prevapor formulation, decarboxylation and the resulting conversion result in a decrease in tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) and an increase in tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). At least 50% (e.g., at least 87%) of the tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) may be converted to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) via a decarboxylation process during heating of the non-nicotine prevapor formulation for vaporization. Similarly, in instances where both cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) and cannabidiol (CBD) are present in a non-nicotine prevapor formulation, decarboxylation and the resulting conversion result in a decrease in cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) and an increase in cannabidiol (CBD). At least 50% (e.g., at least 87%) of the cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) may be converted to cannabidiol (CBD) via a decarboxylation process during heating of the non-nicotine prevapor formulation for vaporization.

[0099] Non-nicotine prevapor formulations may include non-nicotine compounds that provide a medically recognized therapeutic effect (e.g., treatment of pain, nausea, epilepsy, psychiatric disorders). Details of the therapeutic method are described in U.S. Application No. 15 / 845,501, entitled "VAPORIZING DEVICES AND METHODS FOR DELIVER A COMPOUND USING THE SAME," filed December 18, 2017, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0100] In exemplary embodiments, the at least one flavoring agent is present in an amount ranging from about 0.2% to about 15% by weight (e.g., about 1% to 12%, about 2% to 10%, or about 5% to 8%), based on the total weight of the non-nicotine prevapor formulation. The at least one flavoring agent may be at least one of a natural flavoring agent, an artificial flavoring agent, or a combination of a natural flavoring agent and an artificial flavoring agent. The at least one flavoring agent may include volatile cannabis flavoring compounds (flavonoids) or other flavoring compounds instead of or in addition to cannabis flavoring compounds. For example, the at least one flavoring agent may include menthol, wintergreen, peppermint, cinnamon, clove, combinations thereof, and / or extracts thereof. Flavoring agents may also be included to provide other herbal flavors, fruit flavors, nut flavors, booze flavors, roasted flavors, mint flavors, savory flavors, combinations thereof, or any other desired flavors.

[0101] In vaping, the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 is configured to heat a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation to generate a vapor. As referred to herein, a "non-nicotine vapor" is any substance produced or output from any non-nicotine electronic vaping device according to any of the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein.

[0102] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 extends longitudinally and has a length greater than its width. Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the length of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 is greater than its thickness. The width of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may also be greater than its thickness. Assuming an XYZ Cartesian coordinate system, the length of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may be measured in the y-direction, the width may be measured in the x-direction, and the thickness may be measured in the z-direction. It should be noted that the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may have a substantially linear shape with tapered ends based on the front, side, and rear views, although exemplary embodiments are not limited thereto.

[0103] The device body 100 includes a front cover 104, a frame 106, and a rear cover 108. The front cover 104, the frame 106, and the rear cover 108 form a device housing that contains mechanical elements, electronic elements, and / or circuitry related to the operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. For example, the device housing of the device body 100 may include a power source configured to provide power to the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, including providing current to the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The device housing of the device body 100 may also include one or more electrical systems for controlling the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. Electrical systems according to exemplary embodiments are described in more detail below. Additionally, when assembled, the front cover 104, the frame 106, and the rear cover 108 may constitute the majority of the visible portion of the device body 100.

[0104] The front cover 104 (e.g., first cover) defines a first opening configured to receive a bezel structure 112. The first opening may have a rounded rectangular shape, although other shapes are possible depending on the shape of the bezel structure 112. The bezel structure 112 defines a through hole 150 configured to receive a non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The through hole 150 is described in more detail below, for example, with reference to FIG. 9 .

[0105] The front cover 104 also defines a second opening configured to receive a light guide arrangement. The second opening may resemble a slot (e.g., an elongated rectangle with rounded edges), although other shapes are possible depending on the shape of the light guide arrangement. In the exemplary embodiment, the light guide arrangement includes a light guide housing 114 and a button housing 122. The light guide housing 114 is configured to expose a light guide lens 116, and the button housing 122 is configured to expose a first button lens 124 and a second button lens 126 (e.g., FIG. 16 ). The first button lens 124 and an upstream portion of the button housing 122 may form a first button 118. Similarly, the second button lens 126 and a downstream portion of the button housing 122 may form a second button 120. The button housing 122 may be in the form of a single structure or two separate structures. According to the latter configuration, the first button 118 and the second button 120 can move with a more independent feel when pressed.

[0106] Operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may be controlled by a first button 118 and a second button 120. For example, the first button 118 may be a power button and the second button 120 may be an intensity button. Note that although two buttons are shown in the drawings associated with the light guide arrangement, more (or fewer) buttons may be provided depending on the available functionality and desired user interface.

[0107] The frame 106 (e.g., a base frame) is the central support structure of the device body 100 (and the entire non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500). The frame 106 is sometimes referred to as a chassis. The frame 106 also includes a proximal end, a distal end, and a pair of side sections between the proximal and distal ends. The proximal end and the distal end are sometimes referred to as the downstream end and the upstream end, respectively. As used herein, "proximal" (and conversely, "distal") refers to the relationship with the adult vaper during vaping, and "downstream" (and conversely, "upstream") refers to the relationship with the non-nicotine vapor flow path. For additional strength and stability, a bridging section may be provided between the opposing inner surfaces of the side sections (e.g., approximately midway along the length of the frame 106). The frame 106 may be integrally formed to be a monolithic structure.

[0108] Regarding the material of construction, the frame 106 may be formed of an alloy or plastic. The alloy (e.g., die-cast grade, machinable grade) may be an aluminum (Al) alloy or a zinc (Zn) alloy. The plastic may be polycarbonate (PC), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), or a combination thereof (PC / ABS). For example, the polycarbonate may be LUPOY SC1004A. The frame 106 may also be provided with a surface finish for functional and / or aesthetic reasons (e.g., to provide a premium appearance). In an exemplary embodiment, the frame 106 (e.g., when formed of an aluminum alloy) may be anodized. In other embodiments, the frame 106 (e.g., when formed of a zinc alloy) may be coated with hard enamel or painted. In other embodiments, the frame 106 (e.g., when formed of a polycarbonate) may be metallized. In other embodiments, the frame 106 (e.g., when formed from acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) may be electroplated, and the material of construction for the frame 106 may also be applied to the front cover 104, rear cover 108, and / or other suitable components of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500.

[0109] Additionally, the rear cover 108 (e.g., the second cover) defines an opening configured to receive the bezel structure 112. The opening may have a rounded rectangular shape, although other shapes are possible depending on the shape of the bezel structure 112. In an exemplary embodiment, the opening in the rear cover 108 is smaller than the first opening in the front cover 104. Note that, although not shown, a light guide arrangement (e.g., including a button) may be provided on the back of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 in addition to (or instead of) the light guide arrangement on the front of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500.

[0110] The front cover 104 and the rear cover 108 may be configured to engage with the frame 106 via a snap-fit ​​arrangement. For example, the front cover 104 and / or the rear cover 108 may include clips configured to interlock with corresponding mating members on the frame 106. In a non-limiting embodiment, the clips may be in the form of tabs having orifices configured to receive corresponding mating members (e.g., protrusions with beveled edges) on the frame 106. Alternatively, the front cover 104 and / or the rear cover 108 may be configured to engage with the frame 106 via an interference fit (sometimes referred to as a press fit or friction fit). However, the front cover 104, frame 106, and rear cover 108 may be joined using other suitable arrangements and techniques.

[0111] The device body 100 also includes a mouthpiece 102. The mouthpiece 102 may be secured to a proximal end of a frame 106. In an exemplary embodiment in which the frame 106 is sandwiched between the front cover 104 and the rear cover 108, as shown in FIG. 2, the mouthpiece 102 may be adjacent to the front cover 104, the frame 106, and the rear cover 108. In a non-limiting embodiment, the mouthpiece 102 may be joined to the device housing via a bayonet connection.

[0112] FIG. 4 is a proximal end view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 4, the outlet surface of the mouthpiece 102 defines a plurality of vapor outlets. In a non-limiting embodiment, the outlet surface of the mouthpiece 102 may be elliptical. The outlet surface of the mouthpiece 102 may include a first crossbar corresponding to the major axis of the elliptical outlet surface and a second crossbar corresponding to the minor axis of the elliptical outlet surface. The first and second crossbars may intersect perpendicularly and be integrally formed parts of the mouthpiece 102. Note that while the outlet surface is shown defining four vapor outlets, exemplary embodiments are not so limited. For example, the outlet surface may define fewer than four (e.g., one or two) vapor outlets or more than four (e.g., six or eight) vapor outlets.

[0113] FIG. 5 is a distal end view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 5, the distal end of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 includes a port 110. The port 110 is configured to receive current from an external power source (e.g., via a USB cable) to charge an internal power source within the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. The port 110 may also be configured to transmit data to and / or receive data from (e.g., via a USB cable) other non-nicotine electronic vaping devices or other electronic devices (e.g., phones, tablets, computers). The non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may also be configured to wirelessly communicate with other electronic devices, such as phones, via application software (apps) installed on the electronic devices. In such an example, an adult vaper may control or otherwise interface (e.g., locate the non-nicotine electronic vaping device, view usage information, change operating parameters) with the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 via the app.

[0114] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 1 . FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the pod inlet of FIG. 6 . Referring to FIGS. 6-7 , as briefly described above, the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 includes a non-nicotine pod assembly 300 configured to hold a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation. The non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has an upstream end (facing the light guide arrangement) and a downstream end (facing the mouthpiece 102). In a non-limiting embodiment, the upstream end is the opposite surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 from the downstream end. The upstream end of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 defines a pod inlet 322. The device body 100 defines a through-hole (e.g., through-hole 150 of FIG. 9 ) configured to receive the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. In an exemplary embodiment, the bezel structure 112 of the device body 100 defines the through-hole and includes an upstream rim. As shown particularly in FIG. 7 , the upstream rim of the bezel structure 112 is angled (e.g., recessed inward) to expose the pod entrance 322 when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is seated within the through-hole of the device body 100.

[0115] For example, rather than following the contour of the front cover 104 (so as to be relatively flush with the front surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 and obscure the pod inlet 322), the upstream rim of the bezel structure 112 is in the form of a scoop configured to direct ambient air to the pod inlet 322. This angled / scoop configuration may help reduce or prevent blockage of the air inlet (e.g., the pod inlet 322) of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. The depth of the scoop may be such that less than half (e.g., less than a quarter) of the upstream end face of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is exposed. Also, in a non-limiting embodiment, the pod inlet 322 is in the form of a slot. Also, when the device body 100 is considered to extend in a first direction, the slot may be considered to extend in a second direction, where the second direction is transverse to the first direction.

[0116] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 6 . In FIG. 8 , the cross-section is taken along the longitudinal axis of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. As shown, the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 include mechanical elements, electronic elements, and / or circuitry related to the operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, which are described in more detail herein and / or incorporated by reference herein. For example, the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may include a mechanical element configured to act to release a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation from a sealed non-nicotine reservoir therein. The non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may also have a mechanical aspect configured to engage with the device body 100 to facilitate insertion and seating of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300.

[0117] The non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may also be a "smart pod" that includes electronic elements and / or circuitry configured to store, receive, and / or transmit information to and from the device body 100. Such information may be used to authenticate the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 for use with the device body 100 (e.g., to prevent the use of unauthorized / counterfeit non-nicotine pod assemblies). This information may also be used to identify the type of non-nicotine pod assembly 300, which may be associated with a vaping profile based on the identified type. The vaping profile may be designed to define general parameters for heating the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation and may be adjusted, refined, or otherwise regulated by the adult vaper before and / or during baking.

[0118] The non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may also communicate other information with the device body 100 that may be relevant to the operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. Examples of relevant information may include the level of non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation within the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 and / or the amount of time that has elapsed since the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 was inserted into the device body 100 and activated. For example, if the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 was inserted into the device body 100 and activated more than a certain period of time ago (e.g., more than six months ago), the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may not allow vaping, and the adult vaper may be prompted to change to a new non-nicotine pod assembly, even if the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 still contains a sufficient level of non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation.

[0119] The device body 100 may include mechanical elements (e.g., complementary structures) configured to engage, retain, and / or actuate the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The device body 100 may also include electronic elements and / or circuitry configured to receive electrical current to charge an internal power source (e.g., a battery) configured to power the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 during vaping. The device body 100 may also include electronic elements and / or circuitry configured to communicate with the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, different non-nicotine electronic vaping devices, other electronic devices (e.g., phones, tablets, computers), and / or adult vapers. The communicated information may include pod-specific data, current vaping details, and / or past vaping patterns / history. The adult vaper may be notified of such communication with feedback that is tactile (e.g., vibration), auditory (e.g., beep), and / or visual (e.g., colored / flashing lights). Charging and / or communication of information may occur using port 110 (eg, via a USB cable).

[0120] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the device body of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in FIG. 6. Referring to FIG. 9, the bezel structure 112 of the device body 100 defines a through-hole 150. The through-hole 150 is configured to receive the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. To facilitate insertion and seating of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 into the through-hole 150, the upstream rim of the bezel structure 112 includes a first upstream protrusion 128a and a second upstream protrusion 128b. The through-hole 150 may have a rectangular shape with rounded corners. In the exemplary embodiment, the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b are integrally formed with the bezel structure 112 and are located at the two rounded corners of the upstream rim.

[0121] The downstream wall of the bezel structure 112 may define a first downstream opening, a second downstream opening, and a third downstream opening. The retaining structure including the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b is engaged with the bezel structure 112 such that the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b protrude into the through-hole 150 through the first downstream opening and the second downstream opening of the bezel structure 112, respectively. Additionally, the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 extends through the third downstream opening of the bezel structure 112 and into the through-hole 150 so as to be between the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b.

[0122] 10 is a front view showing the device body in FIG. 9. Referring to FIG. 10, the device body 100 includes a device electrical connector 132 disposed upstream of the through-hole 150. The device electrical connector 132 of the device body 100 is configured to electrically engage with the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 seated in the through-hole 150. As a result, power can be supplied from the device body 100 to the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 via the device electrical connector 132 during vaping. Data can also be transmitted to and / or received from the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 via the device electrical connector 132.

[0123] Figure 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the through-hole in Figure 10. Referring to Figure 11, the first upstream protrusion 128a, the second upstream protrusion 128b, the first downstream protrusion 130a, the second downstream protrusion 130b, and the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 protrude into the through-hole 150. In an exemplary embodiment, the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b are stationary structures (e.g., stationary pivots), and the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b are retractable structures (e.g., retractable members). For example, the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b may be configured to temporarily transition to a retracted state (and reversibly return to the retracted state) to facilitate insertion of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, and may be configured to default to the retracted state (e.g., spring-loaded).

[0124] In particular, when inserting the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 into the through-hole 150 of the device body 100, the recesses on the upstream end surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may first engage with the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b, and then the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is rotated (around the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b) until the recesses on the downstream end surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 engage with the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b. In such a case, the rotation axis of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 (during pivoting) may be perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the device body 100. Additionally, the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b, which may be biased for ease of use, can retract and resiliently expand to engage with recesses in the downstream end surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is pivoted into the through-hole 150. Additionally, the engagement of the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b with the recesses in the downstream end surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may generate tactile and / or auditory feedback (e.g., an audible click) to notify the adult vaper that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is properly attached to the through-hole 150 of the device body 100.

[0125] Figure 12 is an enlarged perspective view of the device electrical contacts in Figure 10. The device electrical contacts of the device body 100 are configured to engage with the pod electrical contacts of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is seated in the through-hole 150 of the device body 100. Referring to Figure 12, the device electrical contacts of the device body 100 include a device electrical connector 132. The device electrical connector 132 includes power contacts and data contacts. The power contacts of the device electrical connector 132 are configured to supply power from the device body 100 to the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. As shown, the power contacts of the device electrical connector 132 include a first pair of power contacts and a second pair of power contacts (located closer to the front cover 104 than to the rear cover 108). The first pair of power contacts (e.g., the pair adjacent first upstream protrusion 128a) may be a single, unitary structure distinct from the second pair of power contacts and may include two protrusions that, when assembled, extend into through-hole 150. Similarly, the second pair of power contacts (e.g., the pair adjacent second upstream protrusion 128b) may be a single, unitary structure distinct from the first pair of power contacts and may include two protrusions that, when assembled, extend into through-hole 150. The first and second pairs of power contacts of device electrical connector 132 may be conveniently mounted and biased to protrude into through-hole 150 by default and to retract (e.g., independently) from through-hole 150 upon application of a force that overcomes the bias.

[0126] The data contacts of the device electrical connector 132 are configured to transmit data between the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 and the device body 100. As shown, the data contacts of the device electrical connector 132 include a row of five protrusions (located closer to the rear cover 108 than to the front cover 104). The data contacts of the device electrical connector 132 may be separate structures that extend into the through-holes 150 upon assembly. Alternatively, the data contacts of the device electrical connector 132 may be conveniently mounted and biased (e.g., with springs) to protrude into the through-holes 150 by default and retract (e.g., independently) from the through-holes 150 upon receiving a force that overcomes the bias. For example, when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is inserted into the through-holes 150 of the device body 100, the pod electrical contacts of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 will press against corresponding device electrical contacts of the device body 100. As a result, the power and data contacts of the device electrical connector 132 retract (e.g., at least partially retract) into the device body 100, but their resilient arrangement continues to press against the corresponding pod electrical contacts, thereby helping to ensure a proper electrical connection between the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. Such a connection may also be mechanically secure and have minimal contact resistance to enable reliable and accurate transfer and / or communication of power and / or signals between the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. It should be noted that while various aspects have been described in connection with device electrical contacts in the device body 100, example embodiments are not limited thereto, and other configurations may be utilized.

[0127] FIG. 13 is a partially exploded view including the mouthpiece of FIG. 12. Referring to FIG. 13, mouthpiece 102 is configured to engage with the device housing via a retaining structure 140. In the exemplary embodiment, retaining structure 140 is positioned so as to be located primarily between frame 106 and bezel structure 112. As shown, retaining structure 140 is positioned within the device housing such that the proximal end of retaining structure 140 extends through the proximal end of frame 106. Retaining structure 140 may extend slightly beyond or substantially even with the proximal end of frame 106. The proximal end of retaining structure 140 is configured to receive the distal end of mouthpiece 102. The proximal end of retaining structure 140 may be a female end, while the distal end of the mouthpiece may be a male end.

[0128] For example, the mouthpiece 102 may be coupled (e.g., reversibly coupled) to the retaining structure 140 with a bayonet connection. In such an example, the female end of the retaining structure 140 may define a pair of opposing L-shaped slots, while the male end of the mouthpiece 102 may have opposing radial members 134 (e.g., radial pins) configured to engage with the L-shaped slots of the retaining structure 140. Each of the L-shaped slots of the retaining structure 140 has a longitudinal portion and a circumferential portion. Optionally, the ends of the circumferential portions may have serrated portions that help reduce or prevent the likelihood of the radial members 134 of the mouthpiece 102 becoming inadvertently disengaged. In a non-limiting embodiment, the longitudinal portions of the L-shaped slots extend parallel to the longitudinal axis of the device body 100, and the circumferential portions of the L-shaped slots extend around the longitudinal axis (e.g., central axis) of the device body 100. As a result, to couple the mouthpiece 102 to the device housing, the mouthpiece 102 shown in FIG. 13 is first rotated 90 degrees to align the radial members 134 with the entrances to the longitudinal portions of the L-shaped slots in the retaining structure 140. The mouthpiece 102 is then pressed into the retaining structure 140 so that the radial members 134 slide along the longitudinal portions of the L-shaped slots until they reach their junctions with each of the circumferential portions. The mouthpiece 102 is then rotated so that the radial members 134 move across the circumferential portions until they reach their respective termini. If serifs are present at each end, tactile and / or auditory feedback (e.g., an audible click) may be generated to notify the adult vaper that the mouthpiece 102 has been properly coupled to the device housing.

[0129] The mouthpiece 102 defines a vapor passageway 136 through which non-nicotine vapor flows during vaping. The vapor passageway 136 is in fluid communication with the through-hole 150 (where the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 seats within the device body 100). The proximal end of the vapor passageway 136 may include a flared portion. The mouthpiece 102 may also include an end cover 138. The end cover 138 may taper from its distal end to its proximal end. The exit surface of the end cover 138 defines a plurality of vapor exits. Note that while four vapor exits are shown on the end cover 138, exemplary embodiments are not limited thereto.

[0130] FIG. 14 is a partially exploded view including the bezel structure in FIG. 9 . FIG. 15 is an enlarged perspective view of the mouthpiece, spring, retaining structure, and bezel structure in FIG. 14 . Referring to FIGS. 14 and 15 , bezel structure 112 includes an upstream wall and a downstream wall. The upstream wall of bezel structure 112 defines a connector opening 146. Connector opening 146 is configured to expose or receive device electrical connector 132 of device body 100. The downstream wall of bezel structure 112 defines first downstream opening 148 a, second downstream opening 148 b, and third downstream opening 148 c. First downstream opening 148 a and second downstream opening 148 b of bezel structure 112 are configured to receive first downstream protrusion 130 a and second downstream protrusion 130 b of retaining structure 140, respectively. The third downstream opening 148c of the bezel structure 112 is configured to receive the distal end of the mouthpiece 102.

[0131] As shown in FIG. 14, the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b are on the concave side of the retention structure 140. As shown in FIG. 15, the first post 142a and the second post 142b are on opposite convex sides of the retention structure 140. A first spring 144a and a second spring 144b are disposed on the first post 142a and the second post 142b, respectively. The first spring 144a and the second spring 144b are configured to bias the retention structure 140 against the bezel structure 112.

[0132] During assembly, the bezel structure 112 may be secured to the frame 106 via a pair of tabs adjacent the connector opening 146. The retention structure 140 also biases the bezel structure 112 so that the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b extend through the first downstream opening 148a and the second downstream opening 148b, respectively. The mouthpiece 102 is coupled to the retention structure 140 so that the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 extends through the retention structure 140 and extends through the third downstream opening 148c of the bezel structure 112. The first spring 144a and the second spring 144b are between the frame 106 and the retention structure 140.

[0133] When the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is inserted into the through-hole 150 of the device body 100, the downstream end of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is pressed against the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b of the retaining structure 140. As a result, the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b of the retaining structure 140 are resiliently retracted and withdrawn from the through-hole 150 of the device body 100 (due to compression of the first spring 144a and the second spring 144b), thereby allowing the insertion of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 to proceed. In the exemplary embodiment, when the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b are fully retracted from the through-hole 150 of the device body 100, the displacement of the retaining structure 140 may cause the ends of the first post 142a and the second post 142b to abut against the inner end surface of the frame 106. Also, because mouthpiece 102 is coupled to retention structure 140, the distal end of mouthpiece 102 retracts from through-hole 150, and the proximal end of mouthpiece 102 (e.g., the visible portion including end cover 138) also moves a corresponding distance away from the device housing.

[0134] When the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is sufficiently inserted such that the first and second downstream recesses of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 reach positions where they can engage with the first and second downstream protrusions 130a and 130b, respectively, the stored energy from the compression of the first and second springs 144a and 144b causes the first and second downstream protrusions 130a and 130b to elastically expand and engage with the first and second downstream recesses, respectively, of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The engagement may also generate tactile and / or auditory feedback (e.g., an audible click) to notify the adult vaper that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is properly seated within the through-hole 150 of the device body 100.

[0135] FIG. 16 is a partial exploded view of the front cover, frame, and rear cover of FIG. 14 . Referring to FIG. 16 , various mechanical elements, electronic elements, and / or circuits associated with the operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may be secured to the frame 106. The front cover 104 and the rear cover 108 may be configured to engage with the frame 106 via a snap-fit ​​arrangement. In an exemplary embodiment, the front cover 104 and the rear cover 108 include clips configured to interlock with corresponding mating members on the frame 106. The clips may be in the form of tabs having orifices configured to receive corresponding mating members on the frame 106 (e.g., protrusions with chamfered edges). In FIG. 16 , the front cover 104 has two rows of four clips each (eight clips total for the front cover 104). Similarly, the rear cover 108 has two rows of four clips each (eight clips total for the rear cover 108). The corresponding mating members on the frame 106 may be on the inner sidewalls of the frame 106. As a result, the engaged clips and interlocking members may not be visible when the front cover 104 and rear cover 108 are snapped together. Alternatively, the front cover 104 and / or rear cover 108 may be configured to engage with the frame 106 via an interference fit. However, the front cover 104, frame 106, and rear cover 108 may be joined using other suitable arrangements and techniques.

[0136] FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the non-nicotine pod assembly of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device of FIG. 6. FIG. 18 is another perspective view of the non-nicotine pod assembly of FIG. 17. FIG. 19 is another perspective view of the non-nicotine pod assembly of FIG. 18. Referring to FIGS. 17-19, the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 includes a pod body configured to hold a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation. The pod body has an upstream end and a downstream end. The upstream end of the pod body defines a cavity 310 (see FIG. 20). The downstream end of the pod body defines a pod outlet 304 in fluid communication with the cavity 310 at the upstream end. A connector module 320 is configured to seat within the cavity 310 of the pod body. The connector module 320 includes an exterior surface and a side surface. The exterior surface of the connector module 320 forms the exterior of the pod body.

[0137] The outer surface of the connector module 320 defines a pod inlet 322. The pod inlet 322 (through which air enters during vaping) is in fluid communication with the pod outlet 304 (through which non-nicotine vapor exits during vaping). The pod inlet 322 is shown in FIG. 19 as being in the form of a slot, although the exemplary embodiment is not so limited and other configurations are possible. When the connector module 320 is seated within the pod body cavity 310, the outer surface of the connector module 320 remains visible, but the sides of the connector module 320 are largely hidden, such that they are only partially visible through the pod inlet 322 based on a predetermined angle.

[0138] The outer surface of the connector module 320 includes at least one electrical contact. The at least one electrical contact may include a plurality of power contacts. For example, the plurality of power contacts may include a first power contact 324a and a second power contact 324b. The first power contact 324a of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is configured to electrically connect with a first pair of power contacts of the device electrical connector 132 of the device body 100 (e.g., the pair adjacent to the first upstream protrusion 128a in FIG. 12 ). Similarly, the second power contact 324b of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is configured to electrically connect with a second pair of power contacts of the device electrical connector 132 of the device body 100 (e.g., the pair adjacent to the second upstream protrusion 128b in FIG. 12 ). In addition, the at least one electrical contact of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 includes a plurality of data contacts 326. The plurality of data contacts 326 of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 are configured to electrically connect with the data contacts (e.g., the row of five protrusions in FIG. 12 ) of the device electrical connector 132. Note that although two power contacts and five data contacts are shown in connection with the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, other variations are possible depending on the design of the device body 100.

[0139] In the exemplary embodiment, the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 includes a front surface, a rear surface opposite the front surface, a first side surface between the front surface and the rear surface, a second side surface opposite the first side surface, an upstream end surface, and a downstream end surface opposite the upstream end surface. Corners of the side surfaces and end surfaces (e.g., the corner between the first side surface and the upstream end surface, the corner between the upstream end surface and the second side surface, the corner between the second side surface and the downstream end surface, and the corner between the downstream end surface and the first side surface) may be rounded. However, in some cases, the corners may be angular. The periphery of the front surface may also be in the form of a ledge. Note that the outer surface of the connector module 320 may be considered to be part of the upstream end surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The front surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may be wider and longer than the rear surface. In such an example, the surface of the first side surface and the surface of the second side surface may be angled inward relative to each other. The upstream end surface and the downstream end surface may also be angled inward relative to each other. The angled surface ensures that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is inserted in one direction (e.g., from the front side of the device body 100 (the side associated with the front cover 104)), thereby reducing or preventing the possibility of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 being improperly inserted into the device body 100.

[0140] As shown, the pod body of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 includes a first housing portion 302 and a second housing portion 308. The first housing portion 302 has a downstream end that defines a pod outlet 304. The rim of the pod outlet 304 may optionally be a recessed or concave region. In such an example, the region may resemble an inlet, and the side of the rim adjacent the rear surface of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may be open, while the side of the rim adjacent the front surface may be surrounded by a raised portion at the downstream end of the first housing portion 302. The raised portion may function as a stop for the distal end of the mouthpiece 102. As a result, this configuration for the pod outlet 304 facilitates receiving and aligning the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 (e.g., FIG. 11 ) through the open side of the rim, which can then be seated against the raised portion at the downstream end of the first housing portion 302. In a non-limiting embodiment, the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 may also include (or be formed from) a resilient material to help create a seal around the pod outlet 304 when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is properly inserted into the through-hole 150 of the device body 100.

[0141] The downstream end of the first housing portion 302 also defines at least one downstream recess. In the exemplary embodiment, the at least one downstream recess is in the form of a first downstream recess 306a and a second downstream recess 306b. The pod outlet 304 may be located between the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b. The first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b are configured to engage with the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b, respectively, of the device body 100. As shown in FIG. 11 , the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b of the device body 100 may be disposed at adjacent corners of the downstream wall of the through-hole 150. Additionally, each of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b may be in the form of a V-shaped notch. In such an example, the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b of the device body 100 may each have a wedge-shaped structure configured to engage with the corresponding V-shaped notches of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b. The first downstream recess 306a may contact a corner of the downstream end face and the first side face, and the second downstream recess 306b may contact a corner of the downstream end face and the second side face. As a result, the ends of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b adjacent to the first side face and the second side face, respectively, may be open. In such an example, as shown in FIG. 18, each of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b may be a three-sided recess.

[0142] The second housing portion 308 has an upstream end defining a cavity 310 (see FIG. 20). The cavity 310 is configured to receive a connector module 320 (see FIG. 21). The upstream end of the second housing portion 308 also defines at least one upstream recess. In the exemplary embodiment, the at least one upstream recess is in the form of a first upstream recess 312a and a second upstream recess 312b. The pod inlet 322 may be between the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b. The first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b are configured to engage with the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b, respectively, of the device body 100. As shown in FIG. 12, the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b of the device body 100 may be disposed at adjacent corners of the upstream wall of the through-hole 150. The depth of each of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b may be greater than the depth of each of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b. Furthermore, the ends of each of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b may be more rounded than the ends of the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b. For example, each of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b may be in the form of a U-shaped recess. In such an example, each of the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b of the device body 100 may be in the form of a round knob configured to engage with the corresponding U-shaped recess of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b. The first upstream recess 312a may approximately coincide with a corner of the upstream end face and the first side face, and the second upstream recess 312b may approximately coincide with a corner of the upstream end face and the second side face. As a result, the ends of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b adjacent to the first side surface and the second side surface may be open, respectively.

[0143] The first housing portion 302 may define a non-nicotine reservoir configured to hold a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation. The non-nicotine reservoir may be configured to seal the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation until the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is activated to release the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation from the non-nicotine reservoir. As a result of this sealing, the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation may be isolated from the environment as well as from internal elements of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 that potentially react with the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation, thereby reducing or preventing potential adverse effects on the shelf life and / or sensory characteristics (e.g., flavor) of the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation. The second housing portion 308 may include structure configured to activate the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 and to receive and heat the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation released from the non-nicotine reservoir following activation.

[0144] The non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may be manually activated by an adult vaper prior to inserting the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 into the device body 100. Alternatively, the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may be activated as part of inserting the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 into the device body 100. In an exemplary embodiment, the second housing portion 308 of the pod body includes a perforator configured to release the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation from the non-nicotine reservoir during activation of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The perforators may be in the form of a first activation pin 314a and a second activation pin 314b, which are described in more detail herein.

[0145] To manually activate the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, an adult vaper may press the first activation pin 314a and the second activation pin 314b inward (e.g., simultaneously or sequentially) before inserting the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 into the through-hole 150 of the device body 100. For example, the first activation pin 314a and the second activation pin 314b may be manually pressed until their ends are substantially flush with the upstream end face of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. In an exemplary embodiment, the inward movement of the first activation pin 314a and the second activation pin 314b pierces or otherwise compromises the seal of the non-nicotine reservoir, releasing the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation therefrom.

[0146] Alternatively, to activate the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 as part of inserting the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 into the device body 100, the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is initially positioned such that the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b engage (e.g., upstream engage) with the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b, respectively. Each of the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b of the device body 100 may be in the form of a round knob configured to engage with a corresponding U-shaped recess of the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b, so that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 can then be relatively easily rotated about the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b into the through-hole 150 of the device body 100.

[0147] With respect to the pivoting of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, the axis of rotation can be considered to extend through the first upstream protrusion 128a and the second upstream protrusion 128b and to be oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the device body 100. During the initial positioning and subsequent pivoting of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b contact the upstream wall of the through-hole 150, and as the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 advances into the through-hole 150, the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b are pushed into the second housing portion 308 (e.g., simultaneously), thereby transitioning from the extended state to the retracted state. When the downstream end of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 reaches near the downstream wall of the through hole 150 and comes into contact with the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b, the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b retract and elastically extend (e.g., spring back), and as the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is positioned, the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b of the device main body 100 engage with the first downstream recess 306a and the second downstream recess 306b of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, respectively (e.g., downstream engagement).

[0148] As described above, according to the exemplary embodiment, the mouthpiece 102 is secured to the retention structure 140 (of which the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b are a part). In such an example, retraction of the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b from the through-hole 150 causes simultaneous movement of the mouthpiece 102 a corresponding distance in the same direction (e.g., the downstream direction). Conversely, when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is fully inserted to facilitate downstream engagement, the mouthpiece 102 springs back simultaneously with the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b. In addition to the resilient engagement by the first downstream protrusion 130a and the second downstream protrusion 130b, the distal end of the mouthpiece 102 is configured to be biased against the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 (and align with the pod outlet 304 to form a relatively non-nicotine vapor-tight seal) when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is properly installed within the through-hole 150 of the device body 100.

[0149] The downstream engagement may also produce an audible click and / or tactile feedback to indicate that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is properly seated within the through-hole 150 of the device body 100. Once properly seated, the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 will be mechanically, electrically, and fluidly connected to the device body 100. Note that, although the non-limiting embodiments herein have been described as the upstream engagement of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 occurring before the downstream engagement, the proper mating, activation, and / or electrical arrangements may be reversed such that the downstream engagement occurs before the upstream engagement.

[0150] FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 19 without the connector module. Referring to FIG. 20, the upstream end of the second housing portion 308 defines a cavity 310. As described above, the cavity 310 is configured to receive the connector module 320 (e.g., via an interference fit). In the exemplary embodiment, the cavity 310 is located between the first upstream recess 312a and the second upstream recess 312b, and between the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b. In the absence of the connector module 320, the insert 342 (see FIG. 24) and the absorbent material 346 (see FIG. 25) are visible through the recess opening of the cavity 310. The insert 342 is configured to retain the absorbent material 346. The absorbent material 346 is configured to absorb and retain an amount of the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation released from the non-nicotine reservoir when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is actuated. The insert 342 and absorbent material 346 are described in more detail herein.

[0151] FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the connector module of FIG. 19 . FIG. 22 is another perspective view of the connector module of FIG. 21 . Referring to FIGS. 21 and 22 , the general framework of the connector module 320 includes a module housing 354 and a faceplate 366. The connector module 320 also has multiple surfaces, including an exterior surface and a side surface, with the exterior surface adjacent to the side surface. In the exemplary embodiment, the exterior surface of the connector module 320 is formed by the faceplate 366, the first power contact 324 a, the second power contact 324 b, and the upstream surfaces of the data contacts 326. The side surface of the connector module 320 is part of the module housing 354. The side surface of the connector module 320 defines a first module inlet 330 and a second module inlet 332. Two side surfaces adjacent to the side surface (which are also part of the module housing 354) may also include rib structures (e.g., crush ribs) configured to facilitate an interference fit when the connector module 320 is seated within the pod body cavity 310. For example, each of the two side surfaces may include a pair of rib structures that taper away from the faceplate 366. As a result, when the connector module 320 is pressed into the pod body cavity 310, the module housing 354 encounters increasing resistance due to friction of the rib structures against the side walls of the cavity 310. When the connector module 320 is seated in the cavity 310, the faceplate 366 may be substantially flush with the upstream end of the second housing portion 308. Additionally, the sides of the connector module 320 (which define the first and second module inlets 330, 332) face the side walls of the cavity 310.

[0152] The faceplate 366 of the connector module 320 may have a grooved edge 328 that, in combination with a corresponding side surface of the cavity 310, defines the pod inlet 322. However, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiment is not limited thereto. For example, the faceplate 366 of the connector module 320 may alternatively be configured to completely define the pod inlet 322. The sidewall surfaces of the connector module 320 (defining the first module inlet 330 and the second module inlet 332) and the sidewall surfaces of the cavity 310 (facing the sidewall surfaces) define an intermediate space therebetween. The intermediate space is downstream from the pod inlet 322 and upstream from the first module inlet 330 and the second module inlet 332. Thus, in the exemplary embodiment, the pod inlet 322 is in fluid communication with both the first module inlet 330 and the second module inlet 332 via the intermediate space. The first module inlet 330 may be larger than the second module inlet 332. In such an example, when incoming air is received by the pod inlet 322 during vaping, the first module inlet 330 may receive a primary flow (e.g., a larger flow) of the incoming air, while the second module inlet 332 may receive a secondary flow (e.g., a smaller flow) of the incoming air.

[0153] As shown in FIG. 22 , the connector module 320 includes a wick 338 configured to transfer the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation to a heater 336. The heater 336 is configured to heat the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation to generate a non-nicotine vapor during vaping. The heater 336 may be mounted to the connector module 320 via a contact core 334. The heater 336 is electrically connected to at least one electrical contact of the connector module 320. For example, one end (e.g., a first end) of the heater 336 may be connected to the first power contact 324a, and the other end (e.g., a second end) of the heater 336 may be connected to the second power contact 324b. In an exemplary embodiment, the heater 336 includes a folded heating element. In such an example, the wick 338 may have a planar configuration configured to be held by the folded heating element. When the connector module 320 is seated within the cavity 310 of the pod body, the wick 338 is configured to be in fluid communication with the absorbent material 346 such that (when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is actuated) the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation within the absorbent material 346 is transported to the wick 338 via capillary action.

[0154] FIG. 23 is an exploded view of the wick, heater, electrical leads, and contact core of FIG. 22. Referring to FIG. 23, the wick 338 may be a fibrous pad or other structure with pores / gaps designed for capillary action. The wick 338 may also have an irregular hexagonal shape, although exemplary embodiments are not limited thereto. The wick 338 may be manufactured in a hexagonal shape or cut to this shape from a larger sheet of material. The lower portion of the wick 338 tapers toward the heater 336 windings, thereby reducing or eliminating the possibility of non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation remaining in portions of the wick 338 that avoid continuous evaporation (due to their distance from the heater 336).

[0155] In an exemplary embodiment, the heater 336 is configured to undergo Joule heating (also known as ohmic / resistive heating) when an electric current is applied thereto. More specifically, the heater 336 may be formed of one or more conductors and configured to generate heat when an electric current is passed therethrough. The electric current may be supplied from a power source (e.g., a battery) within the device body 100 and transferred to the heater 336 via the first power contact 324 a and the first electrical lead 340 a (or via the second power contact 324 b and the second electrical lead 340 b).

[0156] Suitable conductors for the heater 336 include iron-based alloys (e.g., stainless steel) and / or nickel-based alloys (e.g., nichrome). The heater 336 may be fabricated from a conductive sheet (e.g., metal, alloy) that is stamped to cut a winding pattern therefrom. The winding pattern may have curved segments alternating with horizontal segments such that the horizontal segments zigzag back and forth while running parallel to one another. Additionally, the width of each horizontal segment of the winding pattern may be substantially equal to the spacing between adjacent horizontal segments of the winding pattern, although example embodiments are not limited thereto. To achieve the configuration of the heater 336 shown in the drawings, the winding pattern may be folded to capture the wick 338.

[0157] The heater 336 may be secured to the contact core 334 by the first and second electrical leads 340a, 340b. The contact core 334 is formed of an insulating material and configured to electrically isolate the first electrical lead 340a from the second electrical lead 340b. In an exemplary embodiment, the first and second electrical leads 340a, 340b each define a female opening configured to engage with a corresponding male member of the contact core 334. Once engaged, the first and second ends of the heater 336 may be secured (e.g., by welding, soldering, brazing) to the first and second electrical leads 340a, 340b, respectively. The contact core 334 may then be mounted (e.g., via an interference fit) within a corresponding socket of the module housing 354. Upon completion of assembly of the connector module 320, the first electrical lead 340a electrically connects a first end of the heater 336 to the first power contact 324a, while the second electrical lead 340b electrically connects a second end of the heater 336 to the second power contact 324b. The heater and related structure are described in more detail in U.S. Application No. 15 / 729,909 (Atty. Dkt. No. 24000-000371-US), filed October 11, 2017, and entitled "Folded Heater For Electronic Vaping Device," the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0158] FIG. 24 is an exploded view including the first housing portion of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 17. Referring to FIG. 24, the first housing portion 302 includes a vapor channel 316. The vapor channel 316 is configured to receive vapor generated by the heater 336 and is in fluid communication with the pod outlet 304. In an exemplary embodiment, the vapor channel 316 may gradually increase in size (e.g., diameter) as it extends toward the pod outlet 304. Alternatively, the vapor channel 316 may be integrally formed with the first housing portion 302. A wrap 318, an insert 342, and a seal 344 are disposed at the upstream end of the first housing portion 302 and define a non-nicotine reservoir of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. For example, the wrap 318 may be disposed on a rim of the first housing portion 302. The insert 342 may be seated within the first housing portion 302 to engage the inner surface of the first housing portion 302 along a rim (e.g., via an interference fit) such that the interface between the periphery of the insert 342 and the inner surface of the first housing portion 302 is fluid-tight (e.g., liquid-tight and / or air-tight). Also, a seal 344 is attached upstream of the insert 342 to block the reservoir outlet within the insert 342 so as to provide a fluid-tight (e.g., liquid-tight and / or air-tight) containment of the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation within the non-nicotine reservoir.

[0159] In the exemplary embodiment, the insert 342 includes a retaining portion protruding from the upstream side (as shown in FIG. 24 ) and a connector portion protruding from the downstream side (not visible in FIG. 24 ). The retaining portion of the insert 342 is configured to retain the absorbent material 346, and the connector portion of the insert 342 is configured to engage with the vapor channel 316 of the first housing portion 302. The connector portion of the insert 342 may be configured to seat within the vapor channel 316 and thus engage with the interior of the vapor channel 316. Alternatively, the connector portion of the insert 342 may be configured to receive the vapor channel 316 and thus engage with the exterior of the vapor channel 316. The insert 342 also defines a reservoir outlet through which the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation flows when the seal 344 is punctured (as shown in FIG. 24 ) during activation of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. The retaining portion and connector portion of the insert 342 may be located between the reservoir outlets (e.g., the first and second reservoir outlets), although the exemplary embodiment is not limited thereto. The insert 342 also defines a vapor conduit extending through the retaining portion and connector portion. As a result, when the insert 342 is seated within the first housing portion 302, the vapor conduit of the insert 342 is aligned and in fluid communication with the vapor channel 316 to form a continuous pathway through the non-nicotine reservoir to the pod outlet 304 for non-nicotine vapor generated by the heater 336 during vaping.

[0160] The seal 344 is attached to the upstream side of the insert 342 so as to cover the reservoir outlet within the insert 342. In the exemplary embodiment, the seal 344 defines an opening (e.g., a central opening) configured to provide a suitable release lance for accommodating a retainer (protruding from the upstream side of the insert 342) when the seal 344 is attached to the insert 342. Note that in FIG. 24 , the seal 344 is shown in a punctured state. In particular, when punctured by the first and second actuation pins 314a, 314b of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, the two puncture portions of the seal 344 are forced as flaps into the non-nicotine reservoir (as shown in FIG. 24 ), thus forming two puncture openings in the seal 344 (e.g., one on each side of the central opening). The size and shape of the punctured openings in the seal 344 correspond to the size and shape of the reservoir outlets in the insert 342. Meanwhile, when unpierced, the seal 344 has a planar configuration and only one opening (e.g., a central opening). The seal 344 is designed to be strong enough to remain intact during normal movement and / or handling of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 so as to avoid premature / inadvertent rupture. For example, the seal 344 may be a coated foil (e.g., aluminum-backed Tritan).

[0161] FIG. 25 is a partially exploded view including the second housing portion of the non-nicotine pod assembly in FIG. 17. Referring to FIG. 25, the second housing portion 308 is structured to include various elements configured to release, receive, and heat the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation. For example, the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b are configured to puncture a non-nicotine reservoir within the first housing portion 302 to release the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation. Each of the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b has a distal end that extends through a corresponding opening in the second housing portion 308. In the exemplary embodiment, the distal ends of the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b are visible after assembly (e.g., FIG. 17), while the remainder of the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b are hidden from view within the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. Additionally, each of the first and second actuation pins 314a and 314b has a proximal end positioned adjacent to and upstream of the seal 344 prior to activation of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. When the first and second actuation pins 314a and 314b are pressed into the second housing portion 308 to activate the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, the proximal end of each of the first and second actuation pins 314a and 314b advances through the insert 342, thereby piercing the seal 344 and releasing the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation from the non-nicotine reservoir. Movement of the first actuation pin 314a may be independent of movement of the second actuation pin 314b (or vice versa). The first and second actuation pins 314a and 314b are described in more detail herein.

[0162] The absorbent material 346 is configured to engage with the retaining portion of the insert 342 (protruding from the upstream side of the insert 342 as shown in FIG. 24 ). The absorbent material 346 may have an annular shape, although exemplary embodiments are not limited thereto. As depicted in FIG. 25 , the absorbent material 346 may resemble a hollow cylinder. In such an example, the outer diameter of the absorbent material 346 may be substantially equal to (or slightly greater than) the length of the wick 338. The inner diameter of the absorbent material 346 may be smaller than the average outer diameter of the retaining portion of the insert 342 to provide an interference fit. To facilitate engagement with the absorbent material 346, the tip of the retaining portion of the insert 342 may be tapered. Also, although not visible in FIG. 25 , the downstream side of the second housing portion 308 may define a recess configured to receive and support the absorbent material 346. An example of such a recess may be a circular chamber in fluid communication with and downstream of the cavity 310. The absorbent material 346 is configured to receive and retain an amount of the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation released from the non-nicotine reservoir when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is activated.

[0163] The wick 338 is positioned within the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 in fluid communication with the absorbent material 346 so that the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation can be drawn from the absorbent material 346 to the heater 336 by capillary action. The wick 338 may be in physical contact with the upstream side of the absorbent material 346 (e.g., the bottom of the absorbent material 346 based on the diagram shown in FIG. 25 ). The wick 338 may also be aligned with the diameter of the absorbent material 346, although exemplary embodiments are not limited thereto.

[0164] As shown in FIG. 25 (as previously shown in FIG. 23 ), the heater 336 may have a folded configuration to grip opposing surfaces of the wick 338 and establish thermal contact. The heater 336 is configured to heat the wick 338 during vaping to produce non-nicotine. To facilitate such heating, a first end of the heater 336 may be electrically connected to the first power contact 324a via a first electrical lead 340a, while a second end of the heater 336 may be electrically connected to the second power contact 324b via a second electrical lead 340b. As a result, current may be supplied from a power source (e.g., a battery) within the device body 100 and transmitted to the heater 336 via the first power contact 324a and the first electrical lead 340a (or via the second power contact 324b and the second electrical lead 340b). It should be noted that the first electrical lead 340a and the second electrical lead 340b (shown separately in FIG. 23 ) may be engaged with the contact core 334 (as shown in FIG. 25 ). Relevant details of other aspects of the connector module 320 configured to seat within the cavity 310 of the second housing portion 308 have been described above (e.g., in connection with FIGS. 21 and 22 ) and will not be repeated in this section for the sake of brevity. During vaping, non-nicotine produced by the heater 336 is drawn through the vapor conduit of the insert 342, through the vapor channel 316 of the first housing portion 302, out the pod outlet 304 of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, and through the vapor passageway 136 of the mouthpiece 102 to the vapor outlet.

[0165] FIG. 26 is an exploded view of the actuation pin in FIG. 25. Referring to FIG. 26, the actuation pin may be in the form of a first actuation pin 314a and a second actuation pin 314b. Note that while two actuation pins are shown and described in connection with the non-limiting embodiments herein, the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may alternatively include only one actuation pin. In FIG. 26, the first actuation pin 314a may include a first blade 348a, a first actuator 350a, and a first O-ring 352a. Similarly, the second actuation pin 314b may include a second blade 348b, a second actuator 350b, and a second O-ring 352b.

[0166] In the exemplary embodiment, the first blade 348a and the second blade 348b are configured to be attached to the top (e.g., proximal) portions of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b. The attachment may be achieved via a snap-fit ​​connection, an interference (e.g., friction-fit) connection, adhesive, or other suitable bonding technique. The top of each of the first blade 348a and the second blade 348b may have one or more curved or concave edges that taper upward to a pointed tip. For example, each of the first blade 348a and the second blade 348b may have two pointed tips with a concave edge therebetween and a curved edge adjacent each pointed tip. The concave and curved edges may have the same radius of curvature, but their arc lengths may be different. The first blade 348a and the second blade 348b may be formed from sheet metal (e.g., stainless steel) that is cut or otherwise shaped to have a desired profile and bent to its final form. In another example, the first blade 348a and the second blade 348b may be formed from plastic.

[0167] Based on a plan view, the size and shape of the first blade 348a, the second blade 348b, and the portions of the first and second actuators 350a, 350b to which they are attached, may correspond to the size and shape of the reservoir outlet within the insert 342. Also, as shown in FIG. 26 , the first and second actuators 350a, 350b may include convex edges (e.g., curved inner lips that face each other) configured to press against the two puncture portions of the seal 344 as the first and second blades 348a, 348b advance into the non-nicotine reservoir. In a non-limiting embodiment, when the first actuation pin 314a and the second actuation pin 314b are fully inserted into the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, the two flaps (from the two punctures of the seal 344, as shown in FIG. 24 ) may be between the reservoir outlet of the insert 342 and the corresponding curved portions of the convex edges of the first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b. As a result, the possibility that the two punctured openings of the seal 344 become blocked (by the two flaps from the two punctures) is reduced or prevented. The first actuator 350a and the second actuator 350b may also be configured to guide the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation from the non-nicotine reservoir toward the absorbent material 346.

[0168] The lower portion (e.g., distal portion) of each of the first and second actuators 350a and 350b is configured to extend through the bottom (e.g., upstream end) of the second housing portion 308. This rod-shaped portion of each of the first and second actuators 350a and 350b may be referred to as a shaft. The first and second O-rings 352a and 352b may be seated in annular grooves provided in the shafts of each of the first and second actuators 350a and 350b. The first and second O-rings 352a and 352b are configured to engage the shafts of the first and second actuators 350a and 350b and the inner surfaces of the corresponding openings in the second housing portion 308 to provide a fluid-tight seal. As a result, when the first and second actuation pins 314a and 314b are pushed inward to actuate the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, the first and second O-rings 352a and 352b can move with the shafts of the first and second actuators 350a and 350b within the corresponding openings in the second housing portion 308 while maintaining their respective seals, thereby helping to reduce or prevent leakage of the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation through the openings in the second housing portion 308 for the first and second actuation pins 314a and 314b. The first and second O-rings 352a and 352b may be formed of silicone.

[0169] FIG. 27 is a perspective view of the connector module of FIG. 22 , excluding the wick, heater, electrical leads, and contact cores. FIG. 28 is an exploded view of the connector module in FIG. 27 . Referring to FIGS. 27 and 28 , a module housing 354 and a faceplate 366 generally form the outer framework of the connector module 320. The module housing 354 defines a first module inlet 330 and a grooved edge 356. The grooved edge 356 of the module housing 354 exposes a second module inlet 332 (defined by a bypass structure 358). Note that the grooved edge 356 may also be considered to define the module inlet (e.g., in combination with the faceplate 366). The faceplate 366 has a grooved edge 328 that, together with a corresponding side of the cavity 310 of the second housing portion 308, defines the pod inlet 322. The faceplate 366 also defines a first contact opening, a second contact opening, and a third contact opening, which may be square-shaped and configured to expose the first power contact 324a and the second power contact 324b, respectively, and the third contact opening is rectangular-shaped and configured to expose the plurality of data contacts 326, although example embodiments are not limited thereto.

[0170] The first power contact 324 a, the second power contact 324 b, the printed circuit board (PCB) 362, and the bypass structure 358 are disposed within an outer frame formed by the module housing 354 and a faceplate 366. The printed circuit board (PCB) 362 includes a plurality of data contacts 326 on its upstream side (hidden in FIG. 28 ) and a sensor 364 on its downstream side. The bypass structure 358 defines a second module inlet 332 and a bypass outlet 360.

[0171] When assembled, the first power contact 324 a and the second power contact 324 b are positioned such that they are visible through the first and second contact openings, respectively, of the faceplate 366. Additionally, the printed circuit board (PCB) 362 is positioned such that the upstream plurality of data contacts 326 are visible through the third contact opening of the faceplate 366. The printed circuit board (PCB) 362 may overlap the rear surface of the first power contact 324 a and the second power contact 324 b. The bypass structure 358 is positioned on the printed circuit board (PCB) 362 such that the sensor 364 is within the air flow path defined by the second module inlet 332 and the bypass outlet 360. When assembled, the bypass structure 358 and the printed circuit board (PCB) 362 can be considered to be surrounded on at least four sides by the serpentine structure of the first power contact 324 a and the second power contact 324 b. In the exemplary embodiment, the bifurcated ends of the first and second power contacts 324a, 324b are configured to electrically connect to the first and second electrical leads 340a, 340b.

[0172] When incoming air is received by the pod inlet 322 during vaping, the first module inlet 330 may receive a primary flow (e.g., a larger flow) of the incoming air, while the second module inlet 332 may receive a secondary flow (e.g., a smaller flow) of the incoming air. The secondary flow of incoming air may improve the sensitivity of the sensor 364. After exiting the bypass structure 358 through the bypass outlet 360, the secondary flow recombines with the primary flow to form a combined flow that is drawn into and through the contact core 334 to encounter the heater 336 and wick 338. In a non-limiting embodiment, the primary flow may be 60% to 95% (e.g., 80% to 90%) of the incoming air, while the secondary flow may be 5% to 40% (e.g., 10% to 20%) of the incoming air.

[0173] The first module inlet 330 may be a resistance-to-draw (RTD) port, and the second module inlet 332 may be a bypass port. In such a configuration, the draw resistance of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may be adjusted by changing the size of the first module inlet 330 (rather than changing the size of the pod inlet 322). In an exemplary embodiment, the size of the first module inlet 330 may be selected to provide a draw resistance between 25 mmH2O and 100 mmH2O (e.g., between 30 mmH2O and 50 mmH2O). For example, a 1.0 mm diameter for the first module inlet 330 may provide a draw resistance of 88.3 mmH2O. In another example, a 1.1 mm diameter for the first module inlet 330 may provide a draw resistance of 73.6 mmH2O. In another example, a 1.2 mm diameter for the first module inlet 330 may provide a draw resistance of 58.7 mmH2O. In yet another example, a diameter of 1.3 mm for the first modular inlet 330 may result in a draw resistance of 43.8 mm H2O. Note that the size of the first modular inlet 330 may be adjusted due to its internal placement without affecting the external aesthetics of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, thereby allowing for a more standard product design for pod assemblies having a variety of draw resistances (RTDs), while reducing the likelihood of inadvertent shutoff of incoming air.

[0174] FIG. 29 is a diagram illustrating the electrical system of the device body and non-nicotine pod assembly of a non-nicotine electronic vaping device according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0175] 29, the electrical system includes a device body electrical system 2100 and a non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200. The device body electrical system 2100 may be included in the device body 100, and the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200 may be included in the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 described above with reference to FIGS.

[0176] 29, the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200 includes a heater 336, one or more pod sensors 2220, and a non-volatile memory (NVM) 2205. The NVM 2205 may be an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) integrated circuit (IC).

[0177] The non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200 may further include a body electrical / data interface (not shown) for transferring power and / or data between the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the first power contact 324a, the second power contact 324b, and the data contact 326 shown in FIG. 17, for example, may function as the body electrical / data interface.

[0178] The device body electrical system 2100 includes a control unit 2105, a power source 2110, a measurement circuit or device sensor 2125 (referred to herein as device sensor 2125), a heating engine control circuit (also referred to as heating engine stop circuit) 2127, a vapor indicator 2135, an on-product control unit 2150 (e.g., first button 118 and second button 120 shown in FIG. 1 ), a memory 2130, and a clock circuit 2128. The device body electrical system 2100 may further include a pod electrical / data interface (not shown) for transferring power and / or data between the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the device electrical connector 132, shown, for example, in FIG. 12 , may function as the pod electrical / data interface.

[0179] The power supply 2110 may be an internal power source for powering the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. The supply of power from the power supply 2110 may be controlled by the controller 2105 via a power control circuit (not shown). The power control circuit may include one or more switches or transistors for regulating the power output from the power supply 2110. The power supply 2110 may be a lithium-ion battery or a variant thereof (e.g., a lithium-ion polymer battery). The power supply 2110 may be connected to a charger 2132 (also referred to herein as a power supply charger or a battery charger) for charging. An exemplary embodiment of the charger 2132 is described in more detail below with reference to FIGS. 44A and 44B.

[0180] The controller 2105 may be configured to control the overall operation of the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500. According to at least some example embodiments, the controller 2105 may include processing circuitry, such as hardware including logic circuitry, a hardware / software combination, such as a processor executing software, or a combination thereof. More specifically, for example, the processing circuitry may include, but is not limited to, a central processing unit (CPU), an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), a digital signal processor, a microcomputer, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a system on a chip (SoC), a programmable logic unit, a microprocessor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.

[0181] In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 29, the control unit 2105 includes a general purpose input / output (GPIO), an integrated circuit (I 2 21. The controller 2105 is illustrated as a microcontroller including an input / output (I / O) interface, such as a serial peripheral interface bus (SPI) interface, a multi-channel analog-to-digital converter (ADC), and a clock input terminal. However, exemplary embodiments are not limited to this example. In at least one exemplary embodiment, the controller 2105 may be a microprocessor.

[0182] The controller 2105 is communicatively coupled to the device sensor 2125, the heating engine control circuitry 2127, the vapor indicator 2135, the memory 2130, the on-product control 2150, the clock circuitry 2128, and the power supply 2110. The controller 2105 is also communicatively coupled to a charger 2132 (e.g., via a universal serial bus (USB) connection) when charging the power supply 2110.

[0183] The heating engine control circuit 2127 is connected to the control unit 2105 via a GPIO pin. The memory 2130 is connected to the control unit 2105 via an SPI pin. The clock circuit 2128 is connected to the clock input pin of the control unit 2105. The vapor indicator 2135 is connected to the I 2 The controller 2105 is connected to the device sensor 2125 via a C interface pin and a GPIO pin. The device sensor 2125 elements are connected to the controller 2105 via respective pins of the multi-channel ADC. If connected, the charger 2132 may also be connected to the controller 2105 via a GPIO pin.

[0184] The clock circuit 2128 may be a timing mechanism, such as an oscillator circuit, that allows the control unit 2105 to track the idle time of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, the reset time via a reset timer, the vaping length, the measurement interval, a combination thereof, etc. The clock circuit 2128 may also include a dedicated external clock crystal configured to generate the system clock of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500.

[0185] The memory 2130 may be a non-volatile memory configured to store one or more shutdown (or failure event) logs. In one example, the memory 2130 may store the one or more shutdown logs in one or more tables. The memory 2130 and the one or more shutdown logs stored therein are described in more detail below. In one example, the memory 2130 may be an electrically erasable EEPROM, such as flash memory.

[0186] 29, the device sensor 2125 may include multiple sensors or measurement circuits configured to provide measurements or signals indicative of sensor or measurement information to the controller 2105. In the example shown in FIG. 29, the device sensor 2125 includes a heater current measurement circuit 21258, a heater voltage measurement circuit 21252, a pod temperature measurement circuit 21250, a power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254, and a power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256.

[0187] The heater current measurement circuit 21258 may be configured to output a (e.g., voltage) signal indicative of the current through the heater 336. An exemplary embodiment of the heater current measurement circuit 21258 is described in more detail below with reference to FIG.

[0188] The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 may be configured to output a (e.g., voltage) signal indicative of the voltage across the heater 336. An exemplary embodiment of the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 is described in more detail below with reference to FIG.

[0189] The pod temperature measurement circuit 21250 may be configured to output a signal (e.g., a voltage) indicative of the resistance and / or temperature of one or more elements of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. Exemplary embodiments of the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250 are described in more detail below with reference to FIGS.

[0190] The power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254 may be configured to measure the temperature of the power supply 2110 during operation and / or charging. An exemplary embodiment of the power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254 is described in more detail below with reference to Figures 42A and 42B.

[0191] The power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256 may be configured to output a signal indicative of the voltage of the operating and / or charging power supply 2110. An exemplary embodiment of the power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256 is described in more detail below with reference to Figures 43A and 43B.

[0192] As described above, the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250, heater current measurement circuit 21258, heater voltage measurement circuit 21252, power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254, and power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256 are connected to the controller 2105 via pins of the multi-channel ADC. To measure characteristics and / or parameters of the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 (e.g., heater 336 voltage, current, resistance, temperature, etc.), the multi-channel ADC of the controller 2105 may sample output signals from the device sensors 2125 at a sampling rate appropriate for the given characteristic and / or parameter measured by each device sensor.

[0193] Also shown in Figure 29, pod sensor 2220 includes sensor 364 shown in Figure 28. In at least one exemplary embodiment, sensor 364 may be a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) flow or pressure sensor, or another type of sensor configured to measure air flow, such as a hot wire anemometer.

[0194] The heating engine control circuit 2127 is connected to the controller 2105 via a GPIO pin. The heating engine control circuit 2127 is configured to control (enable and / or disable) the heating engine of the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 by controlling power to the heater 336. As described in more detail below, the heating engine control circuit 2127 can disable the heating engine based on a control signal (sometimes referred to herein as a device power state signal) from the controller 2105.

[0195] When the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is inserted into the device body 100, the control unit 2105 also 2 The controller 2105 is communicatively coupled to at least the NVM 2205 and the pod sensor 2220 via a C interface. In one example, the controller 2105 may obtain operating parameters of the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200 from the NVM 2205.

[0196] The controller 2105 may control the vapor indicator 2135 to indicate to the adult vapor the status, fault events, and / or operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. The vapor indicator 2135 may be implemented at least in part via a light guide (e.g., the light guide arrangement shown in FIG. 1 ) and may include a power indicator (e.g., an LED) that may be activated when the controller 2105 senses a button pressed by the adult vapor. The vapor indicator 2135 may also include a vibrator, speaker, display device (display unit or display), or other feedback mechanism and may indicate the current state of a vaping parameter (e.g., non-nicotine vapor amount) controlled by the adult vapor.

[0197] 29, the controller 2105 may control power to the heater 336 to heat the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation according to a heating profile (e.g., heating based on volume, temperature, flavor, etc.). The heating profile may be determined based on empirical data and may be stored in the NVM 2205 of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300.

[0198] FIG. 30 is a simplified block diagram illustrating an automatic shutdown control system 2300 according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0199] The automatic shutdown control system 2300 shown in Figure 30 may be implemented in the controller 2105. In one example, the automatic shutdown control system 2300 may be implemented as part of a device manager finite state machine (FSM) software implementation in the controller 2105. In the example shown in Figure 30, the automatic shutdown control system 2300 includes a fault detection subsystem 2630 and an automatic shutdown decision subsystem 2650. It should be understood that the automatic shutdown control system 2300 may include various other subsystems.

[0200] 30 , the auto-shutdown control system 2300, or more generally the controller 2105, may detect a fault event (or condition) in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 and cause the controller 2105 to control one or more subsystems of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to perform one or more consequential actions in response to detecting the fault event. As described in more detail below, types of fault events may include a normal (fault) event, a soft-failure pod event, a hard-failure pod event, a soft-failure device event, and a hard-failure device event.

[0201] A normal event may include, for example, a power source (or battery) fully charged event (a fully charged event), an adult vapor input event (e.g., via the on-product control 2150), insertion of the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200, an idling event (or an idling fault event), combinations thereof, or the like. More generally, for example, a normal event may be a normal condition in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 in which vaping or other functions of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may not be disabled.

[0202] A soft fault pod event may include, for example, a heater temperature fault event in which the temperature of the heater 336 exceeds a threshold maximum. More generally, for example, a soft fault pod event may be an abnormal condition within the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 in which a resulting action (e.g., ineffective vaping) occurs and may not require adult vapor interaction with the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to remedy.

[0203] A hard fault pod event may include an open circuit fault in the heater 336, depletion of the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation (pod empty) in the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, a combination thereof, or the like. More generally, for example, a hard fault pod event may be an abnormal condition within the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 that results in a resulting operation (e.g., ineffective vaping) and requires adult vapor interaction with the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to remedy.

[0204] Examples of soft fault device events may be a boot failure and a power supply low voltage fault event in which the voltage of the power supply 2110 falls below a threshold minimum (e.g., the power supply is depleted and requires recharging). A power supply low voltage fault event may also be referred to herein as a power supply (or battery) low voltage fault or a battery low voltage fault event. More generally, for example, a soft fault device event may be an abnormal condition in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 in which vaping is disabled until corrective action is taken.

[0205] Examples of hard fault device events may be power supply (or battery) charging failures in the charger 2132, and power stage failures, which are described in more detail below. More generally, for example, a hard fault device event may be an abnormal condition in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 that at least disables vaping and requires intervention by the adult vaper to remedy.

[0206] The controller 2105 may control one or more subsystems by outputting one or more control signals (or asserting or deasserting respective signals), as described in more detail below. In some cases, the control signals output from the controller 2105 may be referred to as device power state signals, device power state instructions, or device power control signals. According to one or more exemplary embodiments, in response to detecting one or more fault events in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, the controller 2105 may output one or more control signals to the heating engine control circuit 2127 to cut power to the heater 336 and / or stop the vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, and may output one or more control signals to the charger 2132 to perform a charging stop operation.

[0207] According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the type of resulting action in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 may depend on the identified fault event and / or the current operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device. Multiple resulting actions may be performed sequentially in response to the fault event. In one example, the resulting action may include: (1) an auto-off operation in which the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 switches to a low-power state (e.g., equivalent to turning off the non-nicotine electronic vaping device using the power button); (2) a heater-off operation in which power to the heater 336 is shut down or disabled, terminating the current puff but remaining otherwise ready for vaping; (3) a vaping-off operation in which the vaping subsystem is disabled (e.g., by disabling all power to the heater 336), thereby preventing vaping until corrective action is taken (e.g., recharging the power supply, replacing the non-nicotine pod assembly, etc.); (4) a device soft reset, in which the non-nicotine e-cigarette device software is reset to clear the fault event and return the non-nicotine e-cigarette device to a known normal operating state; (5) a device hard reset, in which the device software and hardware are reset to resolve the fault event and return the non-nicotine e-vaping device to a known normal operating state; and (6) Charger outages, where the charging process of the power source stops and charging does not resume until corrective action is taken; may include:

[0208] 30 , in a more specific example, the fault detection subsystem 2630, or more generally the controller 2105, may detect an idling event in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 and output one or more control signals (or assert or deassert respective signals) to cause the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 to perform one or more consequential actions in response to the idling event. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine whether an idling event has occurred based on a determination that a shutdown timer has elapsed, whether any software timers are running in the device firmware, whether any software events are in a software queue waiting to be processed (e.g., a communication message from an external device via wired or wireless communication), whether any hardware operation (e.g., a direct memory access (DMA) transaction) is in progress, or a combination thereof. If these checks return false, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output an idle warning (or idle event warning) to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650, which in response may cause the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to enter a low-power state by disabling one or more subsystems. In one example, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 (or, more generally, the controller 2105) may output a number or multiple GPIO control lines (signals) to turn off all or substantially all peripherals of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 and cause the controller 2105 to enter a sleep state.

[0209] Functions and / or operations according to one or more illustrative embodiments may, in particular contexts, be described herein with respect to being performed by the controller 2105, the fault detection subsystem 2630, and / or the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650. It should be understood that functions and / or operations discussed with respect to the controller 2105 may be interchangeably discussed as being performed by the fault detection subsystem 2630 and / or the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650. Likewise, it should be understood that functions and / or operations discussed with respect to the fault detection subsystem 2630 and / or the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may be interchangeably described as being performed by the controller 2105.

[0210] 31 is a flowchart illustrating a method for detecting an idling event according to an example embodiment. The flowchart of FIG. 31 is a single iteration of the process for idling detection. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may perform this process continuously and / or periodically to determine whether to take a consequential action, such as transitioning the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 into a low-power sleep state.

[0211] For illustrative purposes, the flowchart shown in FIG. 31 will be described with reference to the electrical system shown in FIG. 29. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example. Rather, the exemplary embodiments are applicable to other non-nicotine e-vaping devices and their electrical systems. Additionally, the exemplary embodiments shown in FIG. 31 will be described with reference to operations performed by the fault detection subsystem 2630. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiments may similarly be described with reference to the auto-shutdown control system 2300 and / or the controller 2105 performing one or more of the functions / operations shown in FIG. 31.

[0212] Referring to FIG. 31 , in step S3100, the fault detection subsystem 2630 schedules an idle task in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to output an idling warning to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 pending checking of software timers, hardware drivers, and software queues.

[0213] In step S3102, the fault detection subsystem 2630 checks the foreground software timers in the control unit 2105 to determine whether any foreground software timers are currently active. According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the foreground software timers are started whenever a software module in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 begins an activity. The fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that a foreground software timer is active if the foreground software timer has not elapsed (not counted down to zero) or has not been interrupted (the activity has completed) by its respective software module.

[0214] An example of a foreground timer in a particular case is a timer used to monitor adult vaper interaction with the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. This may be referred to as a “device off” software timer and may be used to determine the length of time since the adult vaper last interacted with the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. This timer may correspond to a period of time (e.g., seconds or minutes) after which the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 automatically enters a low-power state or shuts down. The timer may be set to a value specified by the adult vaper (e.g., via the on-product control 2150, a connected application or “app,” a combination thereof, or the like). The timer may count down in millisecond increments and may restart each time the adult vaper interacts with the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. In at least one exemplary embodiment, interactions by the adult vaper that can restart this foreground timer and keep the device awake (e.g., prevent the device from entering a low power state) include pressing a button on the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, vaping, inserting a non-nicotine pod assembly 300, disconnecting the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 from the USB cable, combinations thereof, or the like.

[0215] If one or more foreground software timers are active (step S3104), the fault detection subsystem 2630 interrupts the scheduled idle task and does not output an idle warning to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650. In this case, the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 remains in an awake state ready to vape.

[0216] Returning to step S3104, if no foreground software timers are active (e.g., all foreground software timers have elapsed or been interrupted), then in step S3108 the fault detection subsystem 2630 checks the hardware drivers in the control unit 2105 to determine whether any hardware operations (e.g., DMA transactions, etc.) are in progress in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500.

[0217] Each time a hardware operation is initiated, the driver software for that operation registers itself as "busy" by setting a busy flag. Then, the driver software sets itself to "idle" (resets the busy flag) when the hardware operation completes (e.g., when an interrupt is received or a data transaction is completed). Thus, the fault detection subsystem 2630 can determine whether any hardware operation is currently in progress by checking whether the hardware operation's busy flag is set.

[0218] If in step S3110 the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that one or more hardware operations are in progress (e.g., a busy flag is set for at least one hardware driver), processing proceeds to step S3106 and continues as described above.

[0219] Returning to step S3110, if the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that a hardware operation is not currently in progress (e.g., the busy flag is not set), then in step S3112 the fault detection subsystem 2630 checks the software queue for events awaiting processing by the controller 2105. According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the controller 2105 may schedule events for execution in the software queue in response to communication messages from external devices, for example, via wired (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB)) and / or wireless (e.g., short-range wireless such as Bluetooth) communication.

[0220] According to at least one example embodiment, the software queue check as performed in step S3112 may be performed as a task of a real-time operating system (RTOS) running on the control unit 2105.

[0221] If, in step S3114, the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that there are events waiting to be processed in the software queue, processing proceeds to step S3106 and continues as described above.

[0222] Returning to step S3114, if the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that there are no software events waiting to be processed, the fault detection subsystem 2630 outputs an idling warning to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 to indicate that an idling event has occurred. In response to the idling warning, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may determine one or more consequential actions to be taken and may output one or more device power state signals to control the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 to perform the one or more consequential actions. Exemplary operation of the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 in response to a fault warning, such as the idling warning described above, will be described in more detail below with reference to FIGUREs 33A and 33B.

[0223] Returning again to FIG. 30, in other exemplary embodiments, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may detect and / or determine when the temperature of the heater 336 reaches or exceeds (is equal to or greater than) a threshold maximum temperature value (Heater_Max_Temperature threshold parameter) (a heater temperature fault event) and, in response, output a temperature warning to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650.

[0224] The fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine whether to output a temperature warning based on the temperature and confidence interval (CI) of the heater 336. The threshold maximum temperature value and CI may be determined based on empirical data and can be stored and retrieved from the NVM 2205 in the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200. The temperature of the heater 336 (or a signal indicative of the temperature of the heater 336) may be provided by, for example, a temperature-sensing transducer component of the pod sensor 2220.

[0225] In an alternative example, the controller 2105 may determine the temperature of the heater 336 based on voltage measurements from the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 and / or current measurements by the heater current measurement circuit 21258.

[0226] The CI is a level of engineering margin for the temperature of the heater 336. Resistance-based measurements of the heater 336 may result in relatively inaccurate temperature estimates due to component tolerances, rounding errors, variable contact resistance, etc. Therefore, a theoretical worst-case error may be applied as the CI. In at least one exemplary embodiment, the worst-case error may be approximately 15°C.

[0227] For pod sensor-based measurements, the CI for estimating the heater 336 temperature may be large (e.g., on the order of about 50°C to 100°C) because the pod sensor may not be in close proximity to the heater 336 and therefore the heater 336 temperature may be inferred rather than estimated. According to at least one example embodiment, the pod sensor-based measurement may be used (e.g., solely) as a measurement of the temperature of the enclosure rather than the heater itself, and therefore the shutdown point from this reading was dedicated to preventing the temperature of the pod's body from increasing above a maximum threshold.

[0228] FIG. 32A is a flowchart illustrating a method for detecting a heater temperature fault event according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0229] For illustrative purposes, the flowchart shown in FIG. 32A will be described with reference to the electrical system shown in FIG. 29. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example. Rather, the exemplary embodiments are applicable to other non-nicotine e-vaping devices and their electrical systems. Also, the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 32A will be described mostly with reference to operations performed by the fault detection subsystem 2630. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiments could equally be described with reference to the auto-shutdown control system 2300 and / or the controller 2105 performing one or more of the functions / operations shown in FIG. 32A.

[0230] 32A , when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is inserted into the device body 100, in step S2902, the fault detection subsystem 2630 obtains a threshold maximum temperature value from the NVM 2205 in the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200. In one example, the threshold maximum temperature value may be stored in one byte with a resolution of about 2°C, and may be within a range between about 0°C and about 510°C.

[0231] According to at least one exemplary embodiment, temperatures were stored with a resolution of about 2° C. to fit a useful range into one byte. According to at least one exemplary embodiment, temperatures stored with a resolution of about 1° C. would not fit into one byte (e.g., it would only provide a range of 0° C. to 255° C.) because the required range covers at least about 0° C. to 300° C.

[0232] In step S2904, the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines whether a vaping condition exists in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine whether a vaping condition exists in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 based on the output from the sensor 364. In one example, if the output from the sensor 364 indicates application of a negative pressure at the mouthpiece 102 of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 that exceeds a threshold, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine that a vaping condition exists in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500.

[0233] If the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that a vaping condition exists in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, then in step S2905, the controller 2105 controls the heat engine control circuit 2127 to apply power to the heater 336 for vaping. An example of controlling the heat engine control circuit 2127 to apply power to the heater 336 is described in more detail below with reference to Figures 38 and 39.

[0234] In step S2906, the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines whether the resistance of the heater 336 has stabilized. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine that the resistance of the heater 336 has stabilized when the current through the heater 336 reaches a "wet" current threshold (e.g., approximately 100 milliamperes (mA)). The fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine that the current through the heater 336 has reached the "wet" current threshold based on the output signal from the heater current measurement circuit 21258.

[0235] If the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that the resistance of the heater 336 has stabilized, then in step S2910, the fault detection subsystem 2630 estimates the temperature of the heater 336 based on the measured resistance of the heater 336. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may estimate the temperature of the heater 336 in any known manner (e.g., based on a relatively linear relationship between the resistance and temperature of the heater 336). In one example, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine the temperature measurement based on an output from a temperature-sensing transducer component of the pod sensor 2220, as described in more detail below.

[0236] Also, referring to FIG. 32A, in step S2912, the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines whether the estimated temperature of the heater 336 is greater than or equal to (has reached or exceeded) the threshold maximum temperature by comparing the estimated temperature to a threshold maximum temperature value obtained from the NVM 2205.

[0237] If the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that the estimated temperature of the heater 336 is less than the threshold maximum temperature, then in step S2916, the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines whether the measurement interval has expired. The measurement interval may be determined based on empirical data. In one example, the measurement interval may be approximately 10 milliseconds.

[0238] According to at least one exemplary embodiment, a 10 millisecond measurement interval may be used for measurements taken from an I2C pod sensor (as this may be the maximum sample rate), but in at least one other exemplary embodiment, a 1 millisecond measurement interval (the system's tick rate) may be used for resistance-based heater measurements.

[0239] If the measurement interval has expired, processing returns to step S2910 and continues as described herein.

[0240] Returning to step S2916, if the measurement interval has not expired, the fault detection subsystem 2630 waits for the measurement interval to expire before returning to step S2910 and continuing as discussed herein.

[0241] Returning to step S2912, if the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that the estimated temperature of the heater 336 is equal to or greater than the threshold maximum temperature value, then in step S2914 the fault detection subsystem 2630 outputs a heater temperature fault event warning to the auto shutdown decision subsystem 2650.

[0242] Returning to step S2906, if the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that the resistance of the heater 336 has not yet stabilized, the fault detection subsystem 2630 continues to monitor (or wait for) the resistance of the heater 336. Once the resistance of the heater 336 has stabilized, processing proceeds to step S2910 and continues as described above.

[0243] Returning to step S2904, if the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that a vaping condition does not exist in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500, the fault detection subsystem 2630 continues to monitor the output of the sensor 364 for the presence of a non-nicotine e-vaping condition. If a non-nicotine e-vaping condition is detected, the process continues as described above.

[0244] 32B is a flowchart illustrating a method for detecting a heater temperature fault event according to another exemplary embodiment. According to the method illustrated in FIG. 32B, it is possible to determine whether the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 applies power to the heater 336 at the start of a puff event (e.g., upon initial application of negative pressure to the mouthpiece 102).

[0245] As with the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 32A, for illustrative purposes, the flowchart shown in FIG. 32B will be described with reference to the electrical system shown in FIG. 29. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiment should not be limited to this example. Rather, the exemplary embodiment is applicable to other non-nicotine e-vaping devices and their electrical systems. Also, the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 32B will be described mostly with reference to operations performed by the fault detection subsystem 2630. It should be noted that the exemplary embodiment may equally be described with reference to the auto-shutdown control system 2300 and / or the controller 2105 performing one or more of the functions / operations shown in FIG. 32B.

[0246] 32B, when the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 is inserted into the device body 100, in step S3000, the fault detection subsystem 2630 obtains a threshold maximum temperature value from the NVM 2205 in the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200. The threshold maximum temperature value may be the same as or substantially the same as that described above with respect to step S2902 of FIG.

[0247] In step S3002, the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines whether a vaping condition exists in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine whether a vaping condition exists in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S2904 of FIG.

[0248] If the fault detection subsystem 2630 detects the presence of a vaping condition in step S3002, then in step S3004 the fault detection subsystem 2630 estimates the temperature of the heater 336 based on information from the temperature sensing transducer component of the pod sensor 2220. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may estimate the temperature of the heater 336 in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S2910 of FIG.

[0249] In step S3006, the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines whether the estimated temperature is greater than or equal to a threshold maximum temperature value, for example, by comparing the estimated temperature to a threshold maximum temperature value obtained from NVM 2205. The threshold maximum temperature value obtained from NVM 2205 may be the same as or substantially the same as that described above with respect to FIG.

[0250] If the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that the estimated temperature exceeds the threshold maximum temperature value, then in step S3008 the fault detection subsystem 2630 outputs a heater temperature fault event warning to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 and the process ends.

[0251] Returning to step S3006, if the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that the estimated temperature does not exceed the threshold maximum temperature value, there is no need to output a heater temperature fault event warning to the fault detection subsystem 2630, and the controller 2105 may apply power to the heater 336 in step S3010.

[0252] 33A and 33B illustrate an automatic shutdown control method according to one or more exemplary embodiments.

[0253] For illustrative purposes, the flowcharts shown in Figures 33A and 33B will be described with reference to the electrical system shown in Figure 29. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiments should not be limited to this example. Rather, the exemplary embodiments are applicable to other non-nicotine electronic vaping devices and their electrical systems. Also, the exemplary embodiments shown in Figures 33A and 33B will be described mostly with reference to the operations performed by the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiments may similarly be described with reference to the auto-shutdown control system 2300 and / or the control unit 2105 performing one or more of the functions / operations shown in Figures 33A and 33B.

[0254] 33A and 33B, in step S3702, the auto-shutdown determination subsystem 2650 determines whether a fault event has occurred in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500. According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the auto-shutdown determination subsystem 2650 determines that a fault event has occurred in response to receiving a fault alert from the fault detection subsystem 2630.

[0255] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that a fault event has occurred, then in step S3704, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 classifies the fault event as one of a normal fault event, a soft-failed pod event, a hard-failed pod event, a soft-failed device event, or a hard-failed device event. According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may classify the fault event utilizing a look-up table that stores fault event classifications in association with particular fault events and / or their associated fault error codes. In this example, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output an indication of the fault event that triggered the fault alert that is sent to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650.

[0256] In at least one example embodiment, classification may be implemented using a "Switch" programming statement to select a fault type based on an enumerated value of the fault.

[0257] As also discussed above, typical fault events may include an interrupt from the charger 2132 indicating that charging of the power source 2110 is complete, an adult vapor input via the on-product controls 2150 (e.g., shutting down the vaping subsystem or the non-nicotine electronic vaping device), an idle event in which the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 has remained in an idle state for at least a threshold time interval (e.g., as discussed above with reference to FIG. 31 ), combinations of these, or the like.

[0258] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 classifies the fault event as a normal fault event, then in step S3710, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 causes the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to perform one or more consequential actions depending on the fault event that occurred. For example, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may output one or more device power status signals to control the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to perform one or more consequential actions (e.g., a charger shut-off action, a vaping-off action, an auto-off action, a heater-off action, a combination thereof, etc.).

[0259] In an example where the normal fault event is an interrupt from the charger 2132 indicating that charging of the power source 2110 is complete, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may receive the interrupt from the charger 2132. In response to receiving the interrupt from the charger 2132, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output a fault alert (charging completion fault alert) indicating that the interrupt was received to the auto shutdown decision subsystem 2650. In response to the fault alert, the auto shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that a normal fault event has occurred and initiates / executes charger shutdown action.

[0260] As described in more detail below, the charger 2132 may include a dedicated charger IC that includes a number of input / outputs (I / O) used to manage and control the charging of the power source 2110. A charger suspension operation may disable or suspend charging of the power source 2110 in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500. As described in more detail below, the controller 2105 may control the charger 2132 to disable or suspend charging of the power source 2110 by outputting a charge suspension signal BATT_SUSP (e.g., having a logic high level) to the dedicated charger IC of the charger 2132.

[0261] In examples where the normal fault event is an interrupt generated in response to input via the on-product controls 2150 (e.g., requesting disabling of the vaping function, disabling power to the heater 336, or powering down the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500), the fault detection subsystem 2630 may receive the interrupt from the on-product controls 2150. In response to receiving the interrupt, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output a fault alert (Adult Vapor Fault Alert) to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 indicating that an interrupt was received. In response to the fault alert, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that a normal fault event has occurred and initiates / executes a vapor-off operation, a heater-off operation, an auto-off operation, a combination thereof, etc., as appropriate.

[0262] According to at least some example embodiments, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 (or the control unit 2105) may perform an auto-off operation by outputting a number or multiple GPIO control lines (signals) to turn off all or substantially all peripherals of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 and cause the control unit 2105 to enter a sleep state.

[0263] A vaping off operation can disable all energy to the heater 336, thereby preventing vaping until corrective action is taken (e.g., by the adult vaper). As described in more detail below, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 can control the heating engine control circuit 2127 to disable all energy to the heater 336 by outputting a vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN having a logic high level (see FIG. 38) or by deactivating (or stopping output of) the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM (see FIG. 39). In at least one exemplary embodiment, at least the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM can be a pulse-width modulated (PWM) signal.

[0264] A heater-off operation may cut power to the heater 336, terminating the current puff event but otherwise allowing the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to remain ready for vaping. As described in more detail below, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 (or more generally, the controller 2105) may control the heating engine control circuit 2127 to cut power to the heater 336 by outputting a heater activation signal GATE_ON (see FIG. 38) having a logic low level, or by outputting one or more of the first heater enable signal GATE_ENB or the second heater enable signal COIL_Z (see FIG. 39) having a logic low level.

[0265] Also, in another example, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine that an idling event has occurred according to the exemplary embodiment shown in Figure 31. In this example, in response to determining that an idling event has occurred, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output an idling alert to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 indicating that an idling event has occurred. In response to the fault alert, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may classify the idling event as a normal fault event and perform a heater-off action, a vaping-off action, an auto-off action, etc., as appropriate.

[0266] Returning to step S3706, if the failure event is not a normal failure event, then in step S3722 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether the failure event is a soft failure pod event.

[0267] As described above, a soft fault pod event may include a temperature event in which the temperature of the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200 or a component thereof (e.g., heater 336) exceeds a maximum temperature threshold. In a more specific example, the fault detection subsystem may determine whether a heater temperature fault event has occurred according to one or more of the example embodiments shown in Figures 32A and 32B. Note that example embodiments are not limited to these examples.

[0268] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 identifies the failure event as a soft-failed pod event, then in step S372, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 performs one or more consequential actions for a soft-failed pod event.

[0269] By way of example, a more detailed example will now be described regarding one or more resulting actions in response to a heater temperature fault event.

[0270] As shown in Figures 33A and 33B, in step S3724, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 controls the heating engine control circuit 2127 to perform a heater-off operation, as described above and in more detail below.

[0271] In step S3726, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 logs the occurrence of the soft-failure pod event in memory 2130. In one example, the controller 2105 may store an identifier of the soft-failure pod event (e.g., a heater temperature fault event) in association with an identification of the heater-off operation and the time at which the soft-failure pod event and the heater-off operation occurred.

[0272] In step S3727, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 controls the vapor indicator 2135 to output an indication that a fault event (e.g., a heater temperature fault event) has occurred. In one example, the indication may be in the form of an audible, visual indication, and / or haptic feedback to the adult vaper. For example, the indication may be a flashing red LED, a software message including an error code that is sent (e.g., via Bluetooth) to a connected “app” on the remote electronic device.

[0273] In step S3728, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether to return the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 to normal operation (non-fault state of the FSM). In examples where the soft fault pod event is a heater temperature fault event, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may determine whether to return to normal operation based on whether the temperature of the heater 336 has fallen below a threshold maximum temperature value.

[0274] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 should not return to normal operation (e.g., the temperature of the heater 336 is not below the threshold maximum temperature value), the process returns to step S3727 and continues to wait for an indication that the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 should return to normal operation.

[0275] Note that if the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines in step S3728 that the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 should return to normal operation, then in step S3729 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 returns the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to normal operation where the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 is ready to vape when a vaping condition is subsequently presented (e.g., in response to the application of negative pressure by an adult vaper). In an example where a heater temperature fault event occurs, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may control the heating engine control circuit 2127 to enable power to the heater 336 by outputting a heater activation signal GATE_ON (see FIG. 38) having a logic high level, or by outputting both the first heater enable signal GATE_ENB and the second heater enable signal COIL_Z (see FIG. 39) having logic high levels.

[0276] 33A and 33B are described as including step S3728, it should be understood that this step may be omitted and the process may proceed directly from step S3727 to step S3729, where the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 returns to normal operation. Because soft-fault pod events have relatively low significance, while also being intermittent and self-clearing, in a simpler implementation, these faults are not actively monitored or any state information maintained about them within the decision system. Instead, the fault simply recurs (and is processed again) if still present when vaping conditions are again presented at the non-nicotine e-vaping device. For example, if the temperature of the heater 336 still exceeds the threshold maximum temperature value and an adult vaper applies negative pressure to the non-nicotine e-vaping device, a heater-off operation is again performed.

[0277] Returning to step S3722, if the failure event is not a soft failure pod event, then in step S3730 the auto shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether the failure event is a hard failure pod event.

[0278] As described above, hard fault pod events may include an open circuit fault in the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200, depletion of the non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation in the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 (pod empty), dry puff detection in the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, or a combination thereof.

[0279] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 identifies the failure event as a hard failed pod event, then in step S3730 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 performs one or more consequential actions for a hard failed pod event.

[0280] As shown in Figures 33A and 33B, in at least one exemplary embodiment, in step S3732, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may perform a vaping-off operation as described above with respect to step S3710 in response to a hard failure pod event.

[0281] In step S3734, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 records or stores the occurrence of the hard failed pod event in memory 2130. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may record or store the occurrence of the hard failed pod event in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S3726.

[0282] In step S3736, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 controls the vapor indicator 2135 to output an indication that a hard fault pod event has occurred. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may control the vapor indicator 2135 to output an indication in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S3727.

[0283] In step S3738, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether corrective action was taken in response to the hard fault pod event (e.g., by the adult vaper within the threshold time period after the hard fault pod event was detected). The corrective action may include removing the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 from the device body 100 within (before expiration of) the removal threshold time interval after (e.g., in response to) indicating the hard fault pod event to the adult vaper.

[0284] In this example, the auto-shutdown determination subsystem 2650 may determine that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has been digitally removed from the device body 100 by verifying that the set of five data contacts 326 of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has been removed. In another example, the auto-shutdown determination subsystem 2650 may determine that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has been removed from the device body 100 by sensing that the first power contact 324a, the second power contact 324b, and / or the data contact 326 of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has been removed from the device electrical connector 132 of the device body 100.

[0285] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that corrective action has been taken (e.g., the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has been removed from the device body 100 within the removal threshold time interval after indicating a hard fault pod event), the process proceeds to step S3729 and continues as described above. In this case, energy to the heater 336 is still disabled because the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has been removed, but the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 is otherwise ready to vape in response to application of negative pressure by an adult vaper when a new non-nicotine pod assembly is inserted.

[0286] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 has not been removed within the removal threshold time interval (no corrective action has been taken within the threshold time interval), the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 outputs another one or more control signals to perform an auto-off operation.

[0287] The auto-off operation can prevent the power supply 2110 of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 from discharging due to a prolonged fault indication.

[0288] Returning to step S3730, if the fault event is not a hard fault pod event, then in step S3742, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether the fault event is a soft fault device event. As described above, an example of a soft fault device event may be a power supply under-voltage fault event when the voltage or charge of the power supply 2110 falls below a minimum threshold level. In this example, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine that a power supply under-voltage fault event has occurred and output a fault alert to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 indicating the occurrence of a power supply under-voltage fault event. In response to the fault alert, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 classifies the power supply under-voltage fault event as a soft fault device event. More generally, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output a soft fault device event alert to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 indicating that a soft fault device event has occurred in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500.

[0289] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 identifies the fault event as a soft fault device event, then in step S374 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 performs one or more consequential actions on the soft fault device event.

[0290] 33A and 33B , in at least one exemplary embodiment, in step S3744, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 outputs one or more device power state signals to initiate / perform a vaping-off operation and / or an auto-off operation. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may determine whether to initiate a vaping-off operation and / or an auto-off operation based on the current voltage of the power source. For example, if the voltage of the power source 2110 is below a first threshold level, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may initiate a vaping-off operation. However, if the voltage of the power source 2110 falls below a second threshold level that is lower than the first threshold, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may initiate an auto-off operation.

[0291] In step S3746, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 logs or stores the occurrence of the soft hazard device event in memory 2130. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may log or store the occurrence of the soft hazard device event in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S3726.

[0292] In step S3748, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 controls the vapor indicator 2135 to output an indication that a soft fault device event has occurred. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may control the vapor indicator 2135 to output an indication in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S3727.

[0293] In step S3750, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether corrective action has been taken (e.g., by the adult vaper within a threshold time interval) in response to the soft fault device event. In an example where the soft fault device event is a power supply undervoltage fault event, the corrective action may include charging the power supply 2110 above a first threshold level.

[0294] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that corrective action has been taken (e.g., the voltage of the power source 2110 has risen above the first (minimum) threshold level), the process proceeds to step S3729, where the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 returns to normal operation. In this case, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may allow the controller 2105 to exit the sleep state (e.g., if an auto-off operation has been performed) and / or enable the vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 as described above with respect to step S3729.

[0295] Returning to step S3750, if corrective action is not taken in response to the soft fault device event, processing returns to S3748, where an indication of the soft fault device event is continuously output to the adult vapor until corrective action is taken or the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 is manually powered off. If the auto-off operation was initiated in step S3744, an indication of the soft fault device event may be repeatedly output via the vapor indicator 2135 in response to the adult vapor's interaction with the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 (e.g., pressing one or more buttons on the device) until corrective action is taken.

[0296] Returning to step S3742, if the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines that the fault event is not a soft fault device event, then in step S3754 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines the fault event to be a hard fault device event. As discussed above, hard fault device events can include a power supply charging failure event, the presence of current through the heater when not in a vaping state (an "unexpected heater current"), and a power supply temperature fault indicating that the temperature of the power supply 2110 is outside of an acceptable range, combinations thereof, etc. An "unexpected heater current" is a hard fault device event in which software (or hardware) leaves the heater 336 energized (e.g., after a vaping condition no longer exists in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500), and is one example of why the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 is reset in step S3768 as part of the resulting action.

[0297] According to at least one example embodiment, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may determine that a power supply temperature fault has occurred based on whether the estimated temperature of the power supply 2110 is greater than or equal to a maximum power supply temperature threshold or less than or equal to a minimum power supply temperature threshold. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may estimate the temperature of the power supply 2110 based on output from a power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254, which is described in more detail below.

[0298] If the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 identifies the failure event as a hard failed device event, then in step S376 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 performs one or more consequential actions for a hard failed device event.

[0299] As shown in FIGS. 33A and 33B, in at least one exemplary embodiment, in response to a hard fault device event, in step S3756, the auto shutdown decision subsystem 2650 initiates / executes one or more of a vaping off action, a charger stop action, and / or an auto off action.

[0300] In step S3758, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 logs or stores the occurrence of the hard failed device event in memory 2130. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may log or store the occurrence of the hard failed device event in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S3726.

[0301] In step S3760, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 starts a reset timer. The reset timer may be a time interval after which the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 causes the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to perform a soft reset. In this case, the reset timer may be a countdown timer implemented using the clock circuit 2128.

[0302] In step S3762, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 controls the vapor indicator 2135 to output an indication that a hard fault device event has occurred. The auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may control the vapor indicator 2135 to output an indication in the same or substantially the same manner as described above with respect to step S3727.

[0303] After outputting the instruction, in step S3764, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether the reset timer started in step S3760 has expired.

[0304] If the reset timer has elapsed, then in step S3768, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 performs a soft reset of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 in an effort to clear the hard fault device event. The soft reset may include closing all software applications running on the control unit 2105, possibly clearing random access memory (RAM) and / or any persistent memory, and restarting the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500.

[0305] Although a soft reset is described, the reset in step S3768 may be a soft (software) reset, a hard (hardware) reset, or a power-on reset (POR).

[0306] After performing the soft reset, in step S3770 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether the hard fault device event has been cleared (eg, whether the soft reset has corrected the fault condition).

[0307] If the hard fault device event is cleared by the soft reset in step S3768, the process proceeds to step S3729, where the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 returns the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to normal operation, for example, allowing charging if necessary, allowing vaping, etc.

[0308] According to one or more exemplary embodiments, a hard fault device event can cover at least unexpected cases (eg, software crashes) that are generally recoverable only by performing a reset.

[0309] Returning to step S3770, if the hard fault device event is not cleared by the soft reset in step S3768, then in step S3772 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 causes the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to shut down. In this example, similar to the auto-off operation, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may output one or more device power state signals to subsystems of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to power down the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500.

[0310] According to at least one exemplary embodiment, three reset attempts may be made in step S3768 before shutting down the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 in step S3762.

[0311] According to at least some other exemplary embodiments, if three reset attempts do not clear the hard fault device event, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may set a persist bit in memory that prevents the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 from turning on.

[0312] Returning now to step S3764, if the reset timer has not expired, then in step S3766 the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 determines whether corrective action has been taken.

[0313] In an example where the hard fault device event is a power supply temperature fault, the corrective action may include moving the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to a warmer location (if the power supply temperature is below a minimum threshold) or moving the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 to a cooler location (if the power supply temperature rises above a maximum threshold). In this example, the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 may determine whether corrective action was taken based on whether the temperature of the power supply 2110 rose or fell as needed.

[0314] If corrective action has been taken, flow proceeds to step S3729 and processing continues as described above.

[0315] Returning to step S3766, if the reset timer has not expired and corrective action has not yet been taken, the process returns to S3762 and an indication of a hard fault device event is continually output until corrective action is taken or the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 is manually powered off, after which the process continues as discussed herein.

[0316] FIG. 34 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a heater voltage measurement circuit 21252.

[0317] 34, the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 includes resistors 3702 and 3704 connected in a voltage divider configuration between a terminal configured to receive an input voltage signal COIL_OUT and ground. The input voltage signal COIL_OUT is the voltage input to the heater 336 (the voltage at the input terminal). A node N3716 between resistors 3702 and 3704 is coupled to the positive input of an operational amplifier (Op-Amp) 3708. A capacitor 3706 is connected between node N3716 and ground to form a low-pass filter circuit (R / C filter) for stabilizing the input voltage to the positive input of the operational amplifier 3708. This filter circuit reduces inaccuracies due to switching noise induced by the PWM signal used to energize the heater 336 and also has the same phase response / group delay for both current and voltage.

[0318] The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 further includes resistors 3710, 3712 and a capacitor 3714. The resistor 3712 is connected between a node N 3718 and a terminal configured to receive an output voltage signal COIL_RTN. The output voltage signal COIL_RTN is the voltage output from the heater 336 (the voltage at the output terminal of the heater 336).

[0319] Resistor 3710 and capacitor 3714 are connected in parallel between node N3718 and the output of operational amplifier 3708. Node N3718 is also connected to the negative input of operational amplifier 3708. Resistor 3710, resistor 3712 and capacitor 3714 are connected in a low-pass filter circuit configuration.

[0320] The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 utilizes an operational amplifier 3708 to measure the voltage difference between the input voltage signal COIL_OUT and the output voltage signal COIL_RTN and outputs a scaled heater voltage measurement signal COIL_VOL that represents the voltage across the heater 336. The heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 outputs the scaled heater voltage measurement signal COIL_VOL to an ADC pin of the controller 2105 for digital sampling and measurement by the controller 2105.

[0321] The gain of the operational amplifier 3708 may be set based on surrounding passive electrical elements (e.g., resistors and capacitors) to improve the dynamic range of the voltage measurement. In one example, the dynamic range of the operational amplifier 3708 may be achieved by scaling the voltage so that the maximum voltage output matches the maximum input range of the ADC (e.g., approximately 1.8 V). In at least one exemplary embodiment, the scaling may be approximately 267 mV per 1 V, so the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252 may measure up to approximately 1.8 V / 0.267 V = 6.74 V.

[0322] FIG. 35 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of the heater current measurement circuit 21258 shown in FIG.

[0323] 35, the output voltage signal COIL_RTN is input to a four-terminal (4T) measurement resistor 3802 connected to ground. The differential voltage across the four-terminal measurement resistor 3802 is scaled by an operational amplifier 3806 to output a heater current measurement signal COIL_CUR indicative of the current through the heater 336. The heater current measurement signal COIL_CUR is output to an ADC pin of the controller 2105 for digital sampling and measurement of the current through the heater 336 by the controller 2105.

[0324] 35, a four-terminal measurement resistor 3802 may be used to reduce errors in current measurements using the "Kelvin current measurement" technique. In this example, separating the current measurement path from the voltage measurement path can reduce noise in the voltage measurement path.

[0325] The gain of the op-amp 3806 may be set to improve the dynamic range of the measurement. In this example, the scaling of the op-amp 3806 may be approximately 0.577 V / A, so the heater current measurement circuit 21258 will measure approximately Up to JPEG2025183315000002.jpg1157 can be measured.

[0326] 35 , a first terminal of a four-terminal measuring resistor 3802 is connected to a terminal of the heater 336 to receive the output voltage signal COIL_RTN. A second terminal of the four-terminal measuring resistor 3802 is connected to ground. A third terminal of the four-terminal measuring resistor 3802 is connected to a low-pass filter circuit (R / C filter) including a resistor 3804, a capacitor 3808, and a resistor 3810. The output of the low-pass filter circuit is connected to the positive input of an operational amplifier 3806. The low-pass filter circuit reduces inaccuracies due to switching noise induced by the PWM signal applied to energize the heater 336 and can have the same phase response / group delay for both current and voltage.

[0327] The heater current measurement circuit 21258 further includes resistors 3812 and 3814, and a capacitor 3816. The resistors 3812, 3814, and the capacitor 3816 are connected in a low-pass filter circuit configuration to the fourth terminal of the four-terminal measurement resistor 3802, the negative input of the operational amplifier 3806, and the output of the operational amplifier 3806, and the output of the low-pass filter circuit is connected to the negative input of the operational amplifier 3806.

[0328] The operational amplifier 3806 outputs a differential voltage as a heater current measurement signal COIL_CUR to the ADC pin of the control unit 2105, and the control unit 2105 samples and measures the current flowing through the heater 336.

[0329] According to at least this exemplary embodiment, the configuration of the heater current measurement circuit 21258 is similar to the configuration of the heater voltage measurement circuit 21252, except that a low-pass filter circuit including resistor 3804, resistor 3810, and capacitor 3808 is connected to the terminal of the four-terminal measurement resistor 3802, and a low-pass filter circuit including resistor 3812, resistor 3814, and capacitor 3816 is connected to the other terminal of the four-terminal measurement resistor 3802.

[0330] The controller 2105 may average multiple samples (e.g., of voltage) over a time window (e.g., about 1 ms) corresponding to the "tick" time used in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 and convert the average into a mathematical representation of the voltage and current across the heater 336 through application of a scaling value. The scaling value may be determined based on the gain setting implemented in each op-amp, which may be specific to the hardware of the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500.

[0331] The controller 2105 may filter the converted voltage and current measurements using, for example, a three-tap moving average filter to attenuate measurement noise, and may use the filtered measurements to calculate, for example: Resistance R of heater 336 HEATER JPEG2025183315000003.jpg1036, the power P applied to the heater 336 HEATER JPEG2025183315000004.jpg651, power supply current JPEG2025183315000005.jpg1027, where JPEG2025183315000006.jpg1151. Efficiency is the power P delivered to the heater 336 over all operating conditions. in In one example, the efficiency may be at least 85%.

[0332] According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the gain settings of the passive elements of the circuits shown in Figures 34 and / or 35 may be adjusted to match the output signal range to the input range of the control unit 2105.

[0333] The fault detection subsystem 2630 can utilize the heater voltage measurements and / or heater current measurements to determine if a hard fault pod event, such as an open circuit fault in the heater 336, has occurred.

[0334] 36 and 37 are diagrams illustrating a pod temperature measurement circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0335] 36, the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250A includes a driver stage 3902A and a measurement stage 3904A. The driver stage 3902A is configured to generate a pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER to power the pod sensor 2220 in response to a pod temperature measurement control signal HW_ENB. The pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER may be a PWM signal. The measurement stage 3904A is configured to generate a pod temperature measurement output signal HW_SIGNAL based on a DAC comparison signal HW_DAC from a DAC (not shown) in the controller 2105 and a pod sensor signal SP_HW from the pod sensor 2220. The pod temperature measurement output signal HW_SIGNAL may be a differential voltage signal indicative of the temperature of one or more elements (e.g., heater 336) of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. Inputs to and outputs from an exemplary embodiment of the pod sensor 2220 are described in more detail below.

[0336] 36, the driver stage 3902A receives a pod temperature measurement control signal HW_ENB from the controller 2105. In this example, the pod temperature measurement control signal HW_ENB may be a PWM signal having a duty cycle adjusted by the controller 2105 to vary power based on the pod sensor signal SP_HW from the pod sensor 2220. When the pod temperature measurement control signal HW_ENB is asserted (active), the driver stage 3902A may be enabled to output the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER; otherwise, the output of the driver stage 3902A may be disabled.

[0337] The pod temperature measurement control signal HW_ENB is input to the enable pin EN of a low dropout voltage regulator (LDO) U10, which converts the pod temperature measurement control signal HW_ENB, a low current drive strength processor signal, into the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER, a high current drive strength PWM signal.

[0338] Resistor R80 is connected as a pull-down resistor between enable pin EN of LDO U10 and ground so that the output of driver stage 3902A is disabled when pod temperature measurement control signal HW_ENB is in an unknown state.

[0339] Driver stage 3902A further includes capacitors C43 and C44. Capacitor C44 is connected to the input pin IN of LDO U10 and to a voltage source to provide a reservoir and filter, allowing the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER to reach its on-voltage faster. Capacitor C43 is connected between the output pin IN and ground to provide filtering and a reservoir for the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER.

[0340] Resistors R60 and R61 form a feedback network 39028 in the form of a voltage divider. Feedback network 39028 outputs a feedback voltage to the adjustment or feedback terminal ADJ of LDO U10. LDO U10 sets the precision voltage output of the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER based on the feedback voltage input to feedback terminal ADJ. According to at least some example embodiments, the precision voltage output of the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER and the feedback voltage V ADJ The relationship between the output is In this example, the resistances of resistors R60 and R61 are known, and the voltage V ADJ Also known based on the type of LDO U10.

[0341] In the measurement stage 3904A, the pod sensor signal SP_HW from the pod sensor 2220 is input to the negative input of an operational amplifier U11A via resistor R66, and the voltage of the pod sensor signal SP_HW is gain-scaled for measurement by the ADC in the control unit 2105. The operational amplifier U11A is an inverting amplifier whose gain is set according to the resistance of resistor R66 and the resistance of resistor R67 connected between the negative input and output of the operational amplifier U11A. Capacitor C47 is connected in parallel with resistor R67 to form a low-pass filter circuit to remove high-frequency noise from the pod sensor signal SP_HW.

[0342] The DAC comparison signal HW_DAC from the DAC in the control unit 2105 is input to the positive input of the operational amplifier U11A via a voltage divider circuit 39042 including resistors R63 and R64. The DAC comparison signal HW_DAC sets the reference voltage level of the operational amplifier U11A, essentially selecting the differential voltage applied to the operational amplifier U11A and suppressing or preventing saturation of the operational amplifier U11A. In other words, the DAC comparison signal HW_DAC sets the operating point of the operational amplifier U11A to suppress saturation of the pod temperature measurement output signal HW_SIGNAL output by the operational amplifier U11A. The voltage divider circuit 39042 reduces the voltage of each DAC step to control finer range setting. The ratio of resistors R63 and R64 may approximate the balance resistance and the pod sensor 2220 (e.g., at its maximum temperature). Capacitor C46 is connected in parallel with resistor R64 to form a low pass filter circuit to filter noise from the DAC comparison signal HW_DAC. Resistor R69 is connected between the output of voltage divider circuit 39042 and the positive input of operational amplifier U11A.

[0343] The pod sensor signal SP_HW from the pod sensor 2220 may have a relatively small voltage level (e.g., about 2 mV), and therefore the relatively high gain of the operational amplifier U11A may be used to match the pod temperature measurement output signal HW_SIGNAL to the dynamic signal range (e.g., about 1.8 V) of the ADC in the controller 2105. Thus, the operational amplifier U11A amplifies the pod sensor signal SP_HW and outputs the amplified signal as the pod temperature measurement output signal HW_SIGNAL to the ADC for sampling and measurement by the controller 2105.

[0344] 37, the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250B includes a driver stage 3902B and a measurement stage 3904B. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 37, the driver stage 3902B and the measurement stage 3904B are similar to the driver stage 3902A and the measurement stage 3904A, respectively, shown in FIG. 36, except that the driver stage 3902B further includes a measurement balancing resistor R93, and the capacitance of the capacitor C43 may be reduced to increase the rise / fall time of the pod sensor signal SP_HW. In at least one example, the measurement balancing resistor R93 may have a resistance of approximately 3 ohms and may be moved from the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200 to the device body electrical system 2100 to reduce the cost of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300. Also, in at least the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 37, passive elements may be positioned and adjusted to configure gain settings such that the output signal range matches the input signal range of the controller 2105.

[0345] According to one or more exemplary embodiments, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may utilize temperature measurements in the control unit 2105 to estimate the temperature of, for example, the heater 336 or other portions of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 to determine whether a soft fault pod event (e.g., a heater temperature fault event) has occurred.

[0346] 38 is a circuit diagram illustrating a heating engine control circuit according to an exemplary embodiment. The heating engine control circuit shown in FIG. 38 is an example of the heating engine control circuit 2127 shown in FIG.

[0347] Referring to FIG. 38, the heating engine control circuit 2127A includes a CMOS charge pump U2 configured to supply a power rail (e.g., an approximately 7V power rail (7V_CP)) to one or more gate driver integrated circuits (ICs) to control a power FET (also called a heating engine drive circuit or circuit, heater power control circuit not shown in FIG. 38) that energizes the heater 336 in the non-nicotine pod assembly 300.

[0348] In exemplary operation, charge pump U2 is controlled (selectively activated or deactivated) based on a vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN (device power state signal; also referred to as a vaping enable signal) from controller 2105. In the example shown in FIG. 38, charge pump U2 is activated in response to the vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN output having a logic low level and is deactivated in response to the coil shutdown signal COIL-SHDN output having a logic high level. Once power rail 7V_CP has stabilized after activation of charge pump U2 (e.g., after a settling time interval has expired), controller 2105 may enable heater activation signal GATE_ON to supply power to heater power control circuitry and heater 336.

[0349] According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the control unit 2105 (or the automatic shutdown decision subsystem 2650) may perform a vaping-off operation by outputting (enabling) a vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN having a logic high level to disable all power to the heater 336 until the vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN is disabled (transitioned to a logic low level) by the control unit 2105.

[0350] In response to detecting the presence of a vaping condition in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, the controller 2105 may output a heater activation signal GATE_ON (another device power state signal) having a logic high level, which in this exemplary embodiment is a transistor (e.g., a field effect transistor (FET)). Q5 and Q7A′ are activated when the controller 2105 enables the heater activation signal GATE_ON to a logic high level. The controller 2105 may output the heater activation signal GATE_ON having a logic low level to disable power to the heater 336, thereby performing a heater-off operation.

[0351] In the event of a power stage fault event (hard fault device event) in which transistors Q5 and Q7A′ do not respond to the heater activation signal GATE_ON, the control unit 2105 may output a vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN having a logic high level to shut down power to the gate drivers, thereby also shutting down power to the heater 336 and performing a vaping shutdown operation.

[0352] In another example, if the control unit 2105 fails to boot properly, resulting in the vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN having an indeterminate state (boot failure), the heating engine control circuit 2127A automatically pulls the vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN to a logic high level and automatically cuts off power to the heater 336.

[0353] Referring more specifically to Figure 38, capacitor C9, charge pump U2, and capacitor C10 are connected in a positive voltage doubler configuration. Capacitor C9 is connected between pins C- and C+ of charge pump U2 and acts as a reservoir for charge pump U2. The input voltage pin VIN of charge pump U2 is connected to voltage source BATT at node N3801, and capacitor C10 is connected between ground and output voltage pin VOUT of charge pump U2 at node N3802. Capacitor C10 acts as a filter and reservoir for the output from charge pump U2, allowing for a more stable voltage output from charge pump U2.

[0354] Capacitor C11 is connected between node N3801 and ground and serves as a reservoir and filtering for the input voltage to charge pump U2.

[0355] Resistor R10 is connected between a positive voltage supply and the shutdown pin SHDN, and acts as a pull-up resistor so that when the vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN is in an indeterminate state, the input to the shutdown pin SHDN goes high, thereby disabling the output (VOUT) of charge pump U2 and shutting down power to the heater 336.

[0356] Resistor R43 is connected between ground and the gate of transistor Q7A' at node N3804. Resistor R43 acts as a pull-down resistor that ensures that transistor Q7A' is in a high impedance (OFF) state when heater enable signal GATE_ON is in an indeterminate state, thereby disabling power rail 7V_CP and shutting down power to heater 336.

[0357] Resistor R41 is connected between node N3802 and node N3803, between the gate of transistor Q5 and the drain of transistor Q7A'. Resistor R41 functions as a pull-down resistor to more reliably switch off transistor Q5.

[0358] Transistor Q5 is configured to selectively isolate power rail 7V_CP from the VOUT pin of charge pump U2. The gate of transistor Q5 is connected to node N3803, the drain of transistor Q5 is connected to the output voltage pin VOUT of charge pump U2 at node N3802, and the source of transistor Q5 functions as the output terminal of power rail 7V_CP. With this configuration, capacitor C10 isolates the load, allowing it to reach its operating voltage more quickly and providing a fail-safe by preventing power from being applied to heater 336 unless both the vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN and the heater enable signal GATE_ON are in the correct state.

[0359] Transistor Q7A is configured to control the operation of transistor Q5 based on heater enable signal GATE_ON. For example, when heater enable signal GATE_ON is at a logic high level (e.g., 2V or higher), transistor Q7A is in its low impedance (ON) state, which grounds the gate of transistor Q5, causing transistor Q5 to transition to its low impedance (ON) state. In this case, heat engine control circuit 2127A outputs power rail 7V_CP to a heat engine drive circuit (not shown), which enables power to be supplied to heater 336.

[0360] If the heater enable signal GATE_ON is a logic low level, transistor Q7A transitions to a high impedance (OFF) state, discharging the gate of transistor Q5 through resistor R41, which transitions transistor Q5 to a high impedance (OFF) state. In this case, power rail 7V_CP is not output and power to the heating engine drive circuit (and heater 336) is shut down.

[0361] 38, the control unit 2105 does not directly control transistor Q5 because a gate voltage (up to 7V) similar to the source voltage is required for transistor Q5 to enter a high impedance (OFF) state. Transistor Q7A provides a mechanism for controlling transistor Q5 based on a low voltage from control unit 2105.

[0362] 39 is a circuit diagram illustrating another heat engine control circuit according to an exemplary embodiment. The heat engine control circuit shown in FIG. 39 is another example of the heat engine control circuit 2127 shown in FIG.

[0363] 39, the heating engine control circuit 2127B includes a rail converter circuit 39020 (also referred to as a boost converter circuit) and a gate driver circuit 39040. The rail converter circuit 39020 is configured to output a voltage signal 9V_GATE (also referred to as a power signal or an input voltage signal) for powering the gate driver circuit 39040 based on a vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM (also referred to as a vaping shutdown signal). The rail converter circuit 39020 uses the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM to regulate the 9V_GATE output, which may be software defined.

[0364] The gate driver circuit 39040 utilizes the 9V input voltage signal 9V_GATE from the rail converter circuit 39020 to drive the heating engine drive circuit 3906 .

[0365] In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 39, the rail converter circuit 39020 generates the 9V input voltage signal 9V_GATE only when the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is asserted (present). The controller 2105 may disable the 9V rail and shut down power to the gate driver circuit 39040 by deasserting (stopping or terminating) the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM. Similar to the vaping shutdown signal COIL_SHDN in the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 38, the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM may function as a device state power signal for performing a vaping-off operation in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. In this example, the controller 2105 may perform a vaping-off operation by deasserting the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM, thereby disabling all power to the gate driver circuit 39040, the heating engine drive circuit 3906, and the heater 336. The controller 2105 may then enable vaping in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500 by re-asserting the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM to the rail converter circuit 39020.

[0366] 38 , the controller 2105 may output a first heater enable signal GATE_ENB having a logic high level to enable power to the heating engine drive circuit 3906 and the heater 336 in response to detecting a vaping condition in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500. The controller 2105 may output the first heater enable signal GATE_ENB having a logic low level to disable power to the heating engine drive circuit 3906 and the heater 336, thereby performing a heater-off operation.

[0367] 39, a capacitor C36 is connected between the voltage source BATT and ground. Capacitor C36 acts as a reservoir for the rail converter circuit 39020.

[0368] A first terminal of inductor L1006 is connected to node Node1 between voltage source BATT and capacitor C36. Inductor L1006 functions as the main storage element of rail converter circuit 39020.

[0369] The second terminal of inductor L1006, the drain of transistor (e.g., enhancement-mode MOSFET) Q1009, and the first terminal of capacitor C1056 are connected at node Node2. The source of transistor Q1009 is connected to ground, and the gate of transistor Q1009 is configured to receive vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM from controller 2105.

[0370] In the example shown in FIG. 39, transistor Q1009 functions as the main switching element of rail converter circuit 39020.

[0371] A resistor R29 is connected between the gate of transistor Q1009 and ground to act as a pull-down resistor, ensuring that transistor Q1009 is more reliably switched off to prevent operation of heater 336 when the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is in an indeterminate state.

[0372] A second terminal of the capacitor C1056 is connected to the cathode of a Zener diode D1012 and the anode of a Zener diode D1013 at the node Node3. The anode of the Zener diode D1012 is connected to ground.

[0373] The cathode of Zener diode D1013 is connected to one terminal of capacitor C35 and to the input of a voltage divider circuit including resistors R1087 and R1088 at node Node4. The other terminal of capacitor C35 is connected to ground. The voltage at node Node4 is the output voltage 9V_GATE from rail converter circuit 39020.

[0374] A resistor R1089 is connected to the output of the voltage divider circuit at node Node5.

[0375] In exemplary operation, when the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is asserted to a logic high level, transistor Q1009 switches to a low impedance state (ON), thereby allowing current to flow from voltage source BATT and capacitor C36 through inductor L1006 and transistor Q1009 to ground, causing energy to be stored in inductor L1006 and the current to increase linearly with time.

[0376] When the vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is at a logic low level, transistor Q1009 switches to a high impedance state (OFF), inductor L1006 continues to conduct current (linearly decaying), and the voltage at node Node2 increases.

[0377] The duty cycle of vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM determines the amount of voltage rise for a given load. Thus, vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is controlled in a closed loop by controller 2105 using feedback signal COIL_VGATE_FB output by the voltage divider circuit at node Node5 as feedback. The switching described above occurs at a relatively high rate (e.g., approximately 2 MHz, although different frequencies may be used depending on the required parameters and component values).

[0378] 39, capacitor C1056 is an AC coupling capacitor that provides a DC block to remove DC levels. Capacitor C1056 blocks current from flowing from voltage source BATT through inductor L1006 and Zener diode D1013 to gate driver circuit 39040 when vaping enable signal COIL_VGATE_PWM is low (e.g., when non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 is in standby mode) to conserve battery life. The capacitance of capacitor C1056 may be selected to provide a relatively low impedance path at the switching frequency.

[0379] Zener diode D1012 establishes the ground level of the switching signal. The voltage at node Node3 may be normally bipolar because capacitor C1056 removes the DC level. As an example, Zener diode D1012 can clamp the negative half-cycle of the signal to approximately 0.3 V below ground.

[0380] Capacitor C35 acts as an output reservoir for rail converter circuit 39020. Zener diode D1013 shuts down current from capacitor C35 through capacitor C1056 and transistor Q1009 when transistor Q1009 is ON.

[0381] The decaying current from inductor L1006 causes a voltage rise at node Node4 between Zener diode D1013 and capacitor C35, which flows into capacitor C35, which maintains the 9V_GATE voltage while storing energy in inductor L1006.

[0382] A voltage divider circuit including resistors R1087 and R1088 reduces the voltage to an acceptable level for measurement by the ADC of control unit 2105. This reduced voltage signal is output as feedback signal COIL_VGATE_FB.

[0383] In the circuit shown in FIG. 39, the feedback signal COIL_VGATE_FB voltage is scaled by approximately 0.25 times, so the 9V output voltage is reduced to approximately 2.25V for input to the ADC in control section 2105.

[0384] Resistor R1089 provides current limiting for overvoltage faults at the output of rail converter circuit 39020 (eg, node Node4) and protects the ADC in control unit 2105.

[0385] A 9V input voltage signal 9V_GATE is output from the rail converter circuit 39020 to the gate driver circuit 39040, and power is supplied to the gate driver circuit 39040.

[0386] Referring now in more detail to the gate driver circuit 39040, the gate driver circuit 39040 includes, among other things, an integrated gate driver U2003 configured to convert low current signals from the controller 2105 into high current signals for controlling the switching of transistors (e.g., MOSFETs) in the heating engine drive circuit 3906. The integrated gate driver U2003 is also configured to convert voltage levels from the controller 2105 to voltage levels required by the transistors in the heating engine drive circuit 3906. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 39, the integrated gate driver U2003 is a half-bridge driver. Note that the exemplary embodiment should not be limited to this example.

[0387] More specifically, the 9V output voltage from the rail converter circuit 39020 is input to the gate driver circuit 39040 via a filter circuit including resistor R2012 and capacitor C2009. The filter circuit including resistor R2012 and capacitor C2009 is connected to the VCC pin (pin 4) of the integrated gate driver U2003 and the anode of Zener diode S2002 at node Node6. The second terminal of capacitor C2009 is connected to ground. The anode of Zener diode D2002 is connected to the first terminal of capacitor C2007 and to the boost pin BST (pin 1) of the integrated gate driver U2003 at node Node7. The second terminal of capacitor C2007 is connected to the switching node pin SWN (pin 7) of the integrated gate driver U2003 and to the heat engine drive circuit 3906 (e.g., between two MOSFETs) at node Node8. 39, Zener diode D2002 and capacitor C2007 form part of a bootstrap charge pump circuit connected between input voltage pin VCC and boost pin BST of integrated gate driver U2003. Capacitor C2007 is connected to the 9V input voltage signal 9V_GATE from rail converter circuit 39020 and therefore charges through Zener diode D2002 to a voltage approximately equal to the voltage signal 9V_GATE.

[0388] 39, the high-side gate driver pin DRVH (pin 8), the low-side gate driver pin DRVL (pin 5) and the EP pin (pin 9) of the integrated gate driver U2003 are also connected to the heat engine drive circuit 3906.

[0389] Resistor R2013 and capacitor C2010 form a filter circuit connected to input pin IN (pin 2) of integrated gate driver U2003. The filter circuit is configured to remove high-frequency noise from second heater enable signal COIL_Z input to the input pin. Note that second heater enable signal COIL_Z may be a PWM signal from controller 2105.

[0390] Resistor R2014 is connected to the filter circuit and to input pin IN of node Node9. Resistor R2014 is used as a pull-down resistor such that if second heater enable signal COIL_Z is floating (or indeterminate), input pin IN of integrated gate driver U2003 is held at a logic low level, preventing operation of heat engine drive circuit 3906 and heater 336.

[0391] The first heater enable signal GATE_ENB from the control unit 2105 is input to the OD pin (pin 3) of the integrated gate driver U2003. A resistor R2016 is connected to the OD pin of the integrated gate driver U2003 as a pull-down resistor, and is configured to hold the OD pin of the integrated gate driver U2003 at a logic low level to prevent activation of the heating engine drive circuit 3906 and heater 336 if the first heater enable signal GATE_ENB from the control unit 2105 is floating (or undefined).

[0392] 39, the heating engine drive circuit 3906 includes a transistor (e.g., MOSFET) circuit including transistors (e.g., MOSFETs) 39062 and 39064 connected in series between a voltage source BATT and ground. The gate of transistor 39064 is connected to the low-side gate driver pin DRVL (pin 5) of integrated gate driver U2003, the drain of transistor 39064 is connected to the switching node pin SWN (pin 7) of integrated gate driver U2003 at node Node8, and the source of transistor 39064 is connected to ground GND.

[0393] When the low-side gate drive signal output from the low-side gate driver pin DRVL is high, the transistor 39064 is in a low impedance state (ON), which connects the node Node8 to ground.

[0394] As described above, capacitor C2007 is connected to the 9V input voltage signal 9V_GATE from the rail converter circuit 39020 and is therefore charged to a voltage equal to or substantially equal to the 9V input voltage signal 9V_GATE via Zener diode D2002.

[0395] When the low-side gate drive signal output from low-side gate driver pin DRVL is low, transistor 39064 switches to a high-impedance state (OFF), and high-side gate driver pin DRVH (Pin 8) is internally connected to boost pin BST within integrated gate driver U2003. As a result, transistor 39062 switches to a low-impedance state (ON), which connects switching node pin SWN to voltage source BATT, allowing switching node pin SWN (Node 8) to be pulled to the voltage of voltage source BATT.

[0396] In this case, node Node7 rises to the boosted voltage V(BST)≈V(9V_GATE)+V(BATT), which allows the gate-to-source voltage of transistor 39062 to be the same or substantially the same as the voltage of the 9V input voltage signal 9V_GATE (e.g., V(9V_GATE)), regardless of (or independent of) the voltage from voltage source BATT. As a result, switching node pin SWN (Node8) provides a high current switching signal that can be used to generate a voltage output to heater 336 that is substantially independent of the voltage output from battery voltage source BATT.

[0397] 40 and 41 are diagrams illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a temperature sensing transducer included in a pod sensor 2220. FIG.

[0398] 40 , the temperature sensing transducer 3600A includes a resistor R3602 and a sensor transducer R3604. In at least one exemplary embodiment, the resistor R3602 may have a fixed resistance of approximately 3 ohms. The sensor transducer R3604 may be a resistor having a variable resistance that changes with temperature. The resistor R3602 and the sensor transducer R3604 are arranged in a voltage divider circuit such that the voltage across the sensor transducer R3604 (the voltage at the measurement node N3606) is output to the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250 for scaling and may then be used to measure the temperature of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 or one or more elements of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300, such as the heater 336.

[0399] In exemplary operation, the driver stage 3902A of the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250A (see FIG. 36 ) applies the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER to the temperature sensing transducer 3600A, and the measurement stage 3904A of the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250A scales the sensed voltage of the pod sensor signal SP_HW at measurement node N 3606 and outputs the scaled voltage as the pod temperature measurement output signal HW_SIGNAL to the controller 2105. The controller 2105 (or the fault detection subsystem 2630) can then determine the temperature of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 or one or more elements of the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 based on the pod temperature measurement output signal HW_SIGNAL.

[0400] In at least one exemplary embodiment, the voltage of the pod temperature measurement power signal HW_POWER may be fixed, and therefore the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250A may also calculate the current through resistors R3602 and R3604 since the resistance of resistor R3602 is a known resistance.

[0401] 41 , the temperature sensing transducer 3600B is similar to the temperature sensing transducer 3600A of FIG. 40 , except that the resistor R3602 is omitted from the temperature sensing transducer 3600B and relocated to the driver stage 3902B of the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250B of FIG. 37 , as described above with reference to FIG. 37 . By relocating the resistor R3602 to the driver stage 3902B of the pod temperature measurement circuit 21250B, the cost of the non-nicotine pod assembly electrical system 2200 and / or the number of pins required for the interface between the device body 100 and the non-nicotine pod assembly 300 may be reduced. Also, the resistance of the sensor transducer R3606 in the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 41 may be greater than the resistance of the sensor transducer R3604 in FIG. 40 to reduce current consumption by the temperature sensing transducer 3600B.

[0402] FIG. 42A illustrates an example embodiment of a power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254.

[0403] 42A, the power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254A is configured to measure the temperature of the power supply 2110, for example, during charging. The power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254A estimates the temperature of the battery using a thermistor RTH 21254 placed relatively close (proximate) to the power supply. The power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254A outputs the TEMP signal as temperature signal EXT_TEMP to a dedicated charger IC, which may terminate charging and notify the fault detection subsystem 2630 of a fault if the temperature signal EXT_TEMP indicates that the temperature of the power supply 2110 has exceeded a maximum temperature threshold.

[0404] The allowable temperature may be set by varying the ratio of resistors R21250 and R21252 to bias the resistance of the voltage divider circuit including resistors R21250 and R21252. A capacitor C21254 is connected in parallel with resistors R21250, R21252, and thermistor RTH21254.

[0405] Additionally, the power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254A may be powered by USB voltage via the charger 2132 to eliminate dependency on other system voltages (eg, power supply voltage) when charging.

[0406] In addition, the power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254A may be a temperature measurement circuit dedicated to the charger IC in the charger 2132.

[0407] FIG. 42B illustrates another exemplary embodiment of a power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254.

[0408] Referring to FIG. 42B, the power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254B is functionally equivalent to the circuit shown in FIG. 42A, but further includes a second power supply temperature sensor circuit configured to output a temperature signal BATT_TEMP_MCU to the control unit 2105 to determine whether the temperature of the power supply 2110 is outside operational limits (e.g., above a maximum threshold or below a minimum threshold) and whether a power supply temperature fault event has occurred.

[0409] More specifically, the power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254B includes a first power supply temperature sensor circuit that estimates the temperature of the power supply 2110 using a thermistor 21254B4 located relatively close to (near) the power supply 2110. If the temperature of the power supply 2110 exceeds a maximum temperature threshold, the first power supply temperature sensor circuit can output a temperature signal BATT_TEMP_CHGR to the charge-only IC to terminate charging and notify the fault detection subsystem 2630 of the fault.

[0410] The power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254B further includes a second power supply temperature sensor circuit, which is similar to the first power supply sensor circuit except that the second power supply temperature sensor circuit outputs a temperature signal BATT_TEMP_MCU to the control unit 2105.

[0411] More specifically, the second power supply temperature sensor circuit estimates the temperature of the power supply 2110 using a thermistor 21254B8 located relatively near the power supply 2110. The second power supply temperature sensor circuit then outputs a temperature signal BATT_TEMP_MCU indicative of the sensed temperature to the controller 2105. The fault detection subsystem 2630 can determine whether a power supply temperature fault event has occurred in the non-nicotine e-vaping device 500 based on the temperature signal BATT_TEMP_MCU. Capacitor C21254B is connected between ground and the node between resistor 21254B9 and thermistor 21254B8.

[0412] The second power supply temperature sensor circuit also includes a temperature measurement control circuit 21254B6 configured to disable measurement of the temperature of the power supply 2110 and isolate the voltage divider included therein in a low power mode (e.g., after an auto-off operation) to conserve power. As shown in FIG. 42B, the temperature measurement control circuit 21254B6 may include a transistor Q2001 connected between thermistor 21254B8 and ground. Transistor Q2001 can selectively enable or disable the second power supply temperature sensor circuit based on a power supply measurement enable signal MEAS_EN from the controller 2105.

[0413] FIG. 43A is a diagram showing an example of an embodiment of the power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256.

[0414] 43A, power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256A utilizes a voltage divider circuit including resistors 21256A2 and 21256A4 to scale power supply voltage measurement signal BATT_VOL to the input range (e.g., approximately 1.8 V) of the ADC in control unit 2105. Control unit 2105 may determine the voltage level of power supply 2110 based on power supply voltage measurement signal BATT_VOL.

[0415] Capacitor C21256A is connected between ground and the node between resistors 21256A2-21256A4.

[0416] The power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256A may utilize a relatively large total resistance (eg, approximately 147 kΩ) to reduce the drain on the power supply 2110.

[0417] The controller 2105 may scale the power supply voltage measurement signal BATT_VOL to represent the actual voltage of the power supply 2110. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine that a power supply voltage fault has occurred if the power supply voltage falls below a minimum threshold level (e.g., on the order of 3.6V).

[0418] 43B shows another exemplary embodiment of the power supply voltage measurement circuit 21256. The exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 43B is similar to the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 43A, but further includes a voltage measurement control circuit 21256B6 configured to disable measurement of the voltage of the power supply 2110 and isolate the voltage divider included therein in a low power mode to conserve power. As shown in FIG. 43B, the voltage measurement control circuit 21256B6 may include a transistor circuit including transistors Q3001 and Q3002 configured to selectively enable and disable based on the power supply measurement enable signal MEAS_EN to selectively enable and disable the power supply voltage sensor circuit 21256B.

[0419] FIG. 44A illustrates an example embodiment of a charger 2132.

[0420] 44A, charger 2132A includes a dedicated charging IC 4202A that provides multiple inputs / outputs (I / O) for managing the charging of power supply 2110. Capacitors C2132A2 and C2132A4 are connected in parallel with each other between the VCC input of dedicated charging IC 4202A and ground.

[0421] The charge-only IC 4202A is configured to output a power supply charging signal BATT_NCHRG to the controller 2105. The power supply charging signal BATT_NCHRG may be a PWM modulated output configured to communicate four states: charging, charging complete, dead battery, or battery temperature out of range. The fault detection subsystem 2630 may determine whether a fault event has occurred based on the power supply charging signal BATT_NCHRG. In one example, the power supply charging signal BATT_NCHRG having a charging complete state may indicate a normal fault event (e.g., a charging complete fault event) to the fault detection subsystem 2630, and in response, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output a normal fault event warning to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650. In another example, the power supply charging signal BATT_NCHRG having a dead battery state may indicate a hard fault device event (e.g., a power supply failure event) to the fault detection subsystem 2630, and in response, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output a hard fault device event alert to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650. In yet another example, a power supply charging signal BATT_NCHRG having a battery temperature out-of-range condition can indicate a hard fault device event to the fault detection subsystem 2630, which in response can output a hard fault device event alert to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650. Also, the charge-only IC 4202A may output a power supply charging signal BATT_NCHRG having a battery temperature out-of-range in response to receiving an indicative temperature signal BATT_TEMP_CHGR from the power supply temperature measurement circuit 21254.

[0422] The charge stop signal BATT_SUSP is an example of a device power supply status signal that the control unit 2105 outputs to the charge-only IC 4202A to cause the charger 2132A to perform a charger stop operation, thereby temporarily suspending charging of the power supply 2110 by the charger 2132A.

[0423] The charger 2132A is also configured to output a charging voltage signal BATT_V_ICHRG to the controller 2105. The charging voltage signal BATT_V_ICHRG represents the amount of current currently being supplied by the charger 2132A to the power source 2110. Based on the charging voltage signal BATT_V_CHRG, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may also monitor the current being supplied by the charger 2132 to the power source 2110 to determine whether the charging current is outside of a range of values ​​(e.g., less than a minimum threshold or greater than a maximum threshold, each of which may be determined based on empirical data). If the fault detection subsystem 2630 determines that the charging current is outside of a range of values, the fault detection subsystem 2630 may output a hard fault device event alert to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650.

[0424] According to at least some example embodiments, a maximum overcurrent of approximately 105% of a specified maximum may be utilized as the upper limit of a range of values. In one example, for a maximum charge rate of 900 mA expected for a non-nicotine electronic vaping device 500, a hard fault device event warning is output to the auto-shutdown decision subsystem 2650 at approximately 945 mA.

[0425] Since the charging current decreases as the battery approaches full charge, it is not necessary to specify a lower limit for the range value.

[0426] Figure 44B shows another exemplary embodiment of charger 2132. Charger 2132B is similar to the circuit shown in Figure 44A, except that a different IC is utilized and the circuit further includes a charging rate selector 4404B. Also in the exemplary embodiment shown in Figure 44B, charger 2132B is connected between input pin IN and ground.

[0427] In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 44B, the dedicated charging IC 4402B maintains the same control and monitoring signals (e.g., BATT_NCHRG, BATT_SUSP, BAT_V_ICHRG, etc.) described above with reference to FIG. 44A, but removes the built-in voltage regulator from the dedicated charging IC 4202A shown in FIG. 44A.

[0428] Charging rate selector 4404B includes transistor Q2001A and allows controller 2105 to select different charging currents using charging current adjustment signal BATT_USB_TYP.

[0429] While exemplary embodiments are disclosed herein, it should be understood that other variations are possible. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, and all such modifications as would be apparent to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. 1. A non-nicotine electronic vaping device, comprising: a non-nicotine pod assembly and a device body; the non-nicotine pod assembly includes a non-nicotine reservoir and a heater; the non-nicotine reservoir is configured to hold a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation; the heater is configured to vaporize a non-nicotine pre-vapor formulation drawn from the non-nicotine reservoir; the device body is configured to engage with the non-nicotine pod assembly and includes a control unit; The control unit Detecting a fault event in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; classifying the failure event as one of a plurality of types of failure event; configured to perform at least one consequential action based on the classification of the fault event. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

2. 10. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 1, the failure event is one of a soft-failed pod event, a hard-failed pod event, a soft-failed device event, and a hard-failed device event; the soft failure pod event and the hard failure pod event are abnormal conditions in the non-nicotine pod assembly; The soft fault device event and the hard fault device event are abnormal conditions in the device main body. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

3. 10. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 1, the at least one resulting action includes an auto-off action, a heater-off action, a vaping-off action, a charging stop action, or a combination thereof; Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

4. 10. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 1, further comprising at least one vapor indicator; the at least one vapor indicator is configured to output an indication that the fault event has occurred. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

5. 5. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 4, The device main body further includes a memory, The control unit Disabling power to the heater; recording the occurrence of the fault event in the memory; causing the at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that the fault event has occurred; configured to perform the at least one resulting action; Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

6. 5. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 4, The device main body further includes a memory, The control unit Disabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; recording the occurrence of the fault event in the memory; and causing the at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that the fault event has occurred, thereby configured to perform the at least one resulting action; Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

7. 7. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 6, The control unit detecting a removal of the non-nicotine pod assembly from the device body; and further configured to enable the vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to detecting a removal of the non-nicotine pod assembly from the device body. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

8. 7. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 6, The control unit is further configured to cause the device body to enter a sleep mode in response to determining that no corrective action has occurred in response to the fault event. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

9. 5. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 4, The device main body further includes a memory, The control unit Initiating an auto-off operation that causes the non-nicotine electronic vaping device to enter a sleep mode; recording the occurrence of the fault event in the memory; and causing the at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that the fault event has occurred, thereby configured to perform the at least one resulting action; Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

10. 5. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 4, The device main body further includes a memory, The control unit Disabling a vaping function, a charging operation, or both the vaping function and the charging operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; recording the occurrence of the fault event in the memory; and causing the at least one vapor indicator to output an indication that the fault event has occurred, thereby configured to perform the at least one resulting action; Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

11. 11. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 10, The control unit In response to detecting the fault event, starting a reset timer; determining that the reset timer has elapsed; configured to perform a reset of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the reset timer has elapsed. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

12. 12. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 11, The control unit determining that the fault event has been resolved by the reset; In response to determining that the fault event has been resolved by the reset, the vaping function, the charging operation, or both the vaping function and the charging operation are enabled. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

13. 12. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 11, The resetting is a soft reset in which a software application executed by the control unit is reset; a hard reset, in which the software application running on the control unit and the hardware of the non-nicotine e-vaping device are reset; and a power-on reset (POR) that includes generating a reset impulse to all circuits of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

14. 11. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 10, The control unit Detecting corrective action in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; configured to enable the vaping function, the charging operation, or the vaping function and the charging operation in response to detecting the corrective action. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

15. 10. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 1, the non-nicotine pod assembly comprises a memory; the memory is configured to store a threshold temperature value; The control unit retrieving the threshold temperature value from the memory; estimating a temperature of the heater during operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; detecting the fault event in response to determining that the temperature of the heater is equal to or greater than the threshold temperature value, thereby configured to detect the fault event; Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

16. 10. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 1, The device body further includes a power source; the power source is configured to power the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; the fault event is a power supply undervoltage fault event indicating that the voltage of the power supply is below a minimum threshold; The controller is further configured, in response to detecting the power supply undervoltage fault event, to perform the at least one consequential action by disabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

17. 10. The non-nicotine electronic vaping device of claim 1, The device body further includes a power source; the power source is configured to power the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; the fault event is a power supply temperature fault event indicating that the temperature of the power supply is at or above a maximum threshold; the controller is configured, in response to detecting the power supply temperature fault event, to perform the at least one resulting action by preventing charging of the power supply. Non-nicotine electronic vaping devices.

18. 1. A method of operating a non-nicotine electronic vaping device, comprising: detecting a fault event in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; classifying the fault event as one of a plurality of types of fault event; and performing at least one consequential action based on the classification of the fault event. method.

19. 20. The method of claim 18, the failure event is one of a soft-failed pod event, a hard-failed pod event, a soft-failed device event, and a hard-failed device event; the soft failure pod event and the hard failure pod event are abnormal conditions in the non-nicotine pod assembly; The soft fault device event and the hard fault device event are abnormal conditions in the device main body. method.

20. 20. The method of claim 18, the at least one resulting action includes an auto-off action, a heater-off action, a vaping-off action, a charging stop action, or a combination thereof; method.

21. 20. The method of claim 18, The step of performing the at least one resulting action comprises: Disabling power to a heater in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; recording the occurrence of the fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; and outputting a display indicating that the fault event has occurred. method.

22. 20. The method of claim 18, The step of performing the at least one resulting action comprises: Disabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; recording the occurrence of the fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; and outputting a display indicating that the fault event has occurred. method.

23. 23. The method of claim 22, detecting a removal of a non-nicotine pod assembly from the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; and enabling the vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to detecting removal of the non-nicotine pod assembly from the non-nicotine electronic vaping device. method.

24. 23. The method of claim 22, and, in response to determining that no corrective action has occurred in response to the fault event, causing the non-nicotine electronic vaping device to enter a sleep mode. method.

25. 20. The method of claim 18, The step of performing the at least one resulting action comprises: initiating an auto-off operation whereby the non-nicotine electronic vaping device enters a sleep mode; recording the occurrence of the fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; and outputting a display indicating that the fault event has occurred. method.

26. 20. The method of claim 18, The step of performing the at least one resulting action comprises: disabling a vaping function, a charging operation, or both the vaping function and the charging operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; recording the occurrence of the fault event in a memory in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; and outputting a display indicating that the fault event has occurred. method.

27. 27. The method of claim 26, In response to detecting the fault event, starting a reset timer; determining that the reset timer has expired; and performing a reset of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the reset timer has elapsed. method.

28. 28. The method of claim 27, determining that the fault event has been resolved by the reset; and enabling the vaping function, the charging operation, or the vaping function and the charging operation of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to determining that the fault event has been resolved by the reset. method.

29. 28. The method of claim 27, The resetting is a soft reset in which a software application executed by the control unit is reset; a hard reset, in which the software application running on the control unit and the hardware of the non-nicotine e-vaping device are reset; and a power-on reset (POR) that includes generating a reset impulse to all of the circuits of the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; method.

30. 28. The method of claim 27, detecting a corrective action in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device; and in response to detecting the corrective action, enabling the vaping function, the charging operation, or the vaping function and the charging operation in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device. method.

31. 20. The method of claim 18, The step of detecting a fault event includes: obtaining a threshold temperature value from a memory in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; estimating a temperature of a heater in the non-nicotine e-vaping device; detecting the fault event in response to determining that the temperature of the heater is equal to or greater than the threshold temperature value. method.

32. 20. The method of claim 18, the fault event is a power supply undervoltage fault event indicating that the voltage of a power supply in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device is below a minimum threshold; performing at least one consequential action includes disabling a vaping function in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device in response to detecting the power supply undervoltage fault event. method.

33. 20. The method of claim 18, the fault event is a power supply temperature fault event indicating that the temperature of a power supply in the non-nicotine electronic vaping device is at or above a maximum threshold; performing the at least one resulting action includes, in response to detecting the power supply temperature fault event, preventing charging of the power supply. method.

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