Power Unit of Aerosol Generator

Abstract

To provide a high-performance aerosol generation device.SOLUTION: A suction device 100 includes: a heater connector Cn to which a heater HTR for consuming power supplied from a power source BAT and heating a rod 500 is connected; a first positive side circuit including a switch S4 connected to the heater connector Cn on a positive electrode side and a resistor Rs; a second positive side circuit including a switch S3 connected to the heater connector Cn on the positive electrode side, and connected to the first positive side circuit in parallel; a switch S6 connected to a heater connector Cn on a negative electrode side; and an MCU 1 configured so as to execute predetermined control on the basis of a voltage applied to the heater connector Cn when the switch S4 and the switch S6 are turned ON. The switch S3, the switch S4, and the switch S6 are different from each other.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 20

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a control device for an aerosol suction device, which includes an operational amplifier that heats an aerosol source and outputs a voltage corresponding to the voltage applied to a load having a correlation between temperature and electrical resistance value, a control unit configured to perform processing based on the voltage corresponding to the output, and a first circuit and a second circuit electrically connected in parallel between a power supply and the load. The first circuit and the second circuit each include a first switch and a second switch. This control device is configured to obtain a voltage corresponding to the output of the operational amplifier while the second switch is in the on state.

[0003] Patent Document 2 describes a non-combustible suction device including a heating element having a predetermined resistance value, a power supply that supplies power to the heating element, a plurality of resistors connected in parallel to the heating element, a control unit, a first switch that controls on / off of the heating element, a second switch connected between the power supply and the plurality of resistors, and a third switch connected between a wiring between the plurality of resistors and the control unit. When measuring the resistance value of the heating element, the control unit is configured to execute switch control to turn on the second switch and the third switch and turn off the first switch.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] From the perspective of providing a high-performance aerosol generator There is room for consideration than .

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide a high-performance aerosol generating device.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a power supply and including a + electrode and a - electrode to which a heater is connected that consumes the power supplied from the power source to heat the aerosol source a heater connector, a first fixed resistor having one end connected to the + electrode of the heater connector, a first plus-side switch including a control terminal for controlling opening and closing and connected between the other end of the first fixed resistor and the power source, a positive power supply terminal connected between the other end of the first fixed resistor and the first plus-side switch, a non-inverting input terminal connected between one end of the first fixed resistor and the + electrode of the heater connector, an inverting input terminal connected to the - electrode of the heater connector, and an output terminal; an operational amplifier; and a controller including an input terminal connected to the output terminal of the operational amplifier, wherein the controller is configured to control the supply of power from the power source to the heater based on an input to the input terminal and is such.

Effects of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, a high-performance aerosol generating device can be provided.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

Figure 1

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Figure 11

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Figure 19

Figure 20

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, a suction system which is an embodiment of the aerosol generating device in the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This suction system includes a non-combustible suction device 100 (hereinafter, also simply referred to as "suction device 100") which is an embodiment of the power supply unit of the present invention, and a rod 500 heated by the suction device 100. In the following description, a configuration in which the heating unit is non-removably housed in the suction device 100 will be described as an example. However, the heating unit may be configured to be detachable from the suction device 100. For example, a configuration in which the rod 500 and the heating unit are integrated and configured to be detachable from the suction device 100 may be used. That is, the power supply unit of the aerosol generating device may be configured not to include a heating unit as a component. Note that non-removable refers to a mode in which removal is not possible within the limits of the assumed use. Alternatively, an induction heating coil provided in the suction device 100 and a susceptor built in the rod 500 may cooperate to form a heating unit.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of the suction device 100. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the suction device 100 showing the state where the rod 500 is attached. FIG. 3 is another perspective view of the suction device 100. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the suction device 100. In the following description, for convenience, a three-dimensional orthogonal coordinate system in which three mutually orthogonal directions are defined as the front-rear direction, left-right direction, and up-down direction will be used for explanation. In the figures, the front is indicated as Fr, the rear as Rr, the right side as R, the left side as L, the upper side as U, and the lower side as D.

[0013] The suction device 100 is configured to generate an aerosol containing a fragrance by heating an elongated substantially cylindrical rod 500 (see FIG. 2) as an example of a fragrance component generation substrate having a filling material including an aerosol source and a fragrance source.

[0014] <Fragrance component generation substrate (rod)> The rod 500 contains a filling material containing an aerosol source that is heated at a predetermined temperature to generate an aerosol.

[0015] The type of aerosol source is not particularly limited, and extract substances from various natural products and / or their constituent components can be selected according to the use. The aerosol source may be solid, or may be a liquid such as polyhydric alcohols like glycerin and propylene glycol, or water. The aerosol source may contain a flavor source such as a tobacco raw material or an extract derived from a tobacco raw material that releases flavor components by heating. The gas to which the flavor component is added is not limited to aerosol, and for example, invisible vapor may be generated.

[0016] The filling of the rod 500 may contain tobacco flakes as a flavor source. The material of the tobacco flakes is not particularly limited, and known materials such as lamina and midrib can be used. The filling may contain one or more kinds of fragrances. The type of the fragrance is not particularly limited, but from the viewpoint of imparting good taste, it is preferably menthol. The flavor source may contain plants other than tobacco (for example, mint, Chinese herbal medicine, or herbs, etc.). Depending on the use, the rod 500 may not contain a flavor source.

[0017] <Overall Structure of Non - Combustion Inhaler> Subsequently, the overall structure of the inhaler 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. The inhaler 100 includes a substantially rectangular parallelepiped - shaped case 110 having a front surface, a rear surface, a left surface, a right surface, an upper surface, and a lower surface. The case 110 includes a bottomed cylindrical case body 112 in which the front surface, the rear surface, the upper surface, the lower surface, and the right surface are integrally formed, an outer panel 115 and an inner panel 118 that seal the opening 114 (see FIG. 4) of the case body 112 and constitute the left surface, and a slider 119.

[0018] The inner panel 118 is fixed to the case body 112 with bolts 120. The outer panel 115 is fixed to the case body 112 so as to cover the outer surface of the inner panel 118 by magnets 124 held by a chassis 150 (see FIG. 5) described later housed in the case body 112. Since the outer panel 115 is fixed by the magnets 124, the user can replace the outer panel 115 according to their preference.

[0019] Two through holes 126 are provided in the inner panel 118 so that the magnets 124 can pass through. Between the two vertically arranged through holes 126 in the inner panel 118, a vertically long oblong hole 127 and a circular round hole 128 are further provided. This oblong hole 127 is for transmitting light emitted from eight LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) L1 to L8 built into the case body 112. The button-type operation switch OPS built into the case body 112 passes through the round hole 128. Thereby, the user can detect the light emitted from the eight LEDs L1 to L8 through the LED window 116 of the outer panel 115. Also, the user can press down the operation switch OPS through the pressing portion 117 of the outer panel 115.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 2, an opening 132 into which a rod 500 can be inserted is provided on the upper surface of the case body 112. The slider 119 is coupled to the case body 112 so as to be movable in the front-rear direction between a position where the opening 132 is closed (see FIG. 1) and a position where the opening 132 is open (see FIG. 2).

[0021] The operation switch OPS is used to perform various operations of the suction device 100. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, with the rod 500 inserted into and attached to the opening 132, the user operates the operation switch OPS via the pressing portion 117. Thereby, the heating portion 170 (see FIG. 5) heats the rod 500 without burning it. When the rod 500 is heated, an aerosol is generated from the aerosol source contained in the rod 500, and the fragrance of the fragrance source contained in the rod 500 is added to the aerosol. The user can suck the aerosol containing the fragrance by sucking the suction port 502 of the rod 500 protruding from the opening 132.

[0022] On the lower surface of the case body 112, as shown in FIG. 3, a charging terminal 134 is provided for electrically connecting to an external power source such as an outlet or a mobile battery to receive power supply. In the present embodiment, the charging terminal 134 is a receptacle of the USB (Universal Serial Bus) Type-C shape, but is not limited thereto. The charging terminal 134 will also be referred to as the receptacle RCP hereinafter.

[0023] Note that the charging terminal 134 may include, for example, a power receiving coil and be configured to be able to receive power transmitted from an external power source in a non-contact manner. The power transmission (Wireless Power Transfer) method in this case may be an electromagnetic induction type, a magnetic resonance type, or a combination of an electromagnetic induction type and a magnetic resonance type. As another example, the charging terminal 134 may be connectable to various USB terminals and the like and may have the above-described power receiving coil.

[0024] The configuration of the suction device 100 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is merely an example. The suction device 100 can be configured in various forms such that it holds the rod 500 and applies an action such as heating to generate a gas with a fragrance component imparted from the rod 500, and the user can suck the generated gas.

[0025] <Internal Configuration of Non-Burning Suction Device> The internal unit 140 of the aspirator 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the internal unit 140 of the aspirator 100. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the internal unit 140 of FIG. 5. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the internal unit 140 with the power supply BAT and the chassis 150 removed. FIG. 8 is another perspective view of the internal unit 140 with the power supply BAT and the chassis 150 removed.

[0026] The internal unit 140 housed in the internal space of the case 110 includes a chassis 150, a power supply BAT, a circuit unit 160, a heating unit 170, a notification unit 180, and various sensors.

[0027] The chassis 150 includes a plate-shaped chassis main body 151 disposed substantially at the center of the internal space of the case 110 in the front-rear direction and extending in the vertical and front-rear directions, a plate-shaped front-rear partition wall 152 disposed substantially at the center of the internal space of the case 110 in the front-rear direction and extending in the vertical and left-right directions, a plate-shaped upper-lower partition wall 153 extending forward from substantially the center of the front-rear partition wall 152 in the vertical direction, a plate-shaped chassis upper wall 154 extending rearward from the upper edge portions of the front-rear partition wall 152 and the chassis main body 151, and a plate-shaped chassis lower wall 155 extending rearward from the lower edge portions of the front-rear partition wall 152 and the chassis main body 151. The left surface of the chassis main body 151 is covered by the inner panel 118 and the outer panel 115 of the case 110 described above.

[0028] In the internal space of the case 110, a heating unit accommodation region 142 is defined in the upper front portion by the chassis 150, a substrate accommodation region 144 is defined in the lower front portion, and a power supply accommodation space 146 is defined in the rear extending in the vertical direction.

[0029] The heating unit 170 housed in the heating unit accommodation area 142 is composed of a plurality of cylindrical members, which are arranged concentrically to form a cylindrical body as a whole. The heating unit 170 has a rod accommodation portion 172 capable of accommodating a part of the rod 500 therein, and a heater HTR (see FIGS. 10 to 19) for heating the rod 500 from the outer periphery or the center. It is preferable that the rod accommodation portion 172 is made of a heat insulating material or a heat insulating material is provided inside the rod accommodation portion 172 so that the surface of the rod accommodation portion 172 and the heater HTR are thermally insulated. The heater HTR may be any element capable of heating the rod 500. The heater HTR is, for example, a heating element. Examples of the heating element include a heating resistor, a ceramic heater, and an induction heating type heater. As the heater HTR, for example, one having a PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) characteristic in which the resistance value increases as the temperature increases is preferably used. Alternatively, a heater HTR having an NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) characteristic in which the resistance value decreases as the temperature increases may be used. The heating unit 170 has a function of defining a flow path of air supplied to the rod 500 and a function of heating the rod 500. The case 110 is formed with a ventilation port (not shown) for allowing air to flow in, and is configured such that air can flow into the heating unit 170.

[0030] The power source BAT housed in the power source accommodation space 146 is a rechargeable secondary battery, an electric double layer capacitor, etc., and preferably a lithium ion secondary battery. The electrolyte of the power source BAT may be composed of one of a gel electrolyte, an electrolytic solution, a solid electrolyte, an ionic liquid, or a combination thereof.

[0031] The notification unit 180 notifies various information such as the state of charge (SOC) indicating the charging state of the power supply BAT, the preheating time during suction, and the available suction period. The notification unit 180 of the present embodiment includes eight LEDs L1 to L8 and a vibration motor M. The notification unit 180 may be constituted by a light emitting element such as the LEDs L1 to L8, may be constituted by a vibration element such as the vibration motor M, or may be constituted by a sound output element. The notification unit 180 may be a combination of two or more elements among the light emitting element, the vibration element, and the sound output element.

[0032] The various sensors include an intake sensor that detects the user's puff operation (suction operation), a power supply temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the power supply BAT, a heater temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the heater HTR, a case temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the case 110, a cover position sensor that detects the position of the slider 119, and a panel detection sensor that detects the attachment and detachment of the outer panel 115.

[0033] The intake sensor is mainly constituted by, for example, a thermistor T2 disposed near the opening 132. The power supply temperature sensor is mainly constituted by, for example, a thermistor T1 disposed near the power supply BAT. The heater temperature sensor is mainly constituted by, for example, a thermistor T3 disposed near the heater HTR. As described above, it is preferable that the rod accommodating portion 172 is thermally insulated from the heater HTR. In this case, the thermistor T3 is preferably in contact with or close to the heater HTR inside the rod accommodating portion 172. When the heater HTR has PTC characteristics or NTC characteristics, the heater HTR itself may be used as the heater temperature sensor. The case temperature sensor is mainly constituted by, for example, a thermistor T4 disposed near the left surface of the case 110. The cover position sensor is mainly constituted by a Hall IC14 including a Hall element disposed near the slider 119. The panel detection sensor is mainly constituted by a Hall IC13 including a Hall element disposed near the inner surface of the inner panel 118.

[0034] The circuit unit 160 includes four circuit boards, a plurality of ICs (Integrated Circuits), and a plurality of elements. The four circuit boards mainly include an MCU (Micro Controller Unit) mounting board 161 on which an MCU 1 and a charging IC 2 to be described later are arranged, a receptacle mounting board 162 on which a charging terminal 134 is mainly arranged, an LED mounting board 163 on which an operation switch OPS, LEDs L1 to L8, and a communication IC 15 to be described later are arranged, and a hall IC mounting board 164 on which a hall IC 14 including a hall element constituting a cover position sensor to be described later is arranged.

[0035] The MCU mounting board 161 and the receptacle mounting board 162 are arranged in parallel with each other in the board accommodation area 144. Specifically described, the element arrangement surfaces of the MCU mounting board 161 and the receptacle mounting board 162 are arranged along the left - right direction and the up - down direction, and the MCU mounting board 161 is arranged in front of the receptacle mounting board 162. Openings are provided in the MCU mounting board 161 and the receptacle mounting board 162 respectively. The MCU mounting board 161 and the receptacle mounting board 162 are fastened to the board fixing portion 156 of the front - rear partition wall 152 with bolts 136 in a state where a cylindrical spacer 173 is interposed between the peripheral edges of these openings. That is, the spacer 173 fixes the positions of the MCU mounting board 161 and the receptacle mounting board 162 inside the case 110, and mechanically connects the MCU mounting board 161 and the receptacle mounting board 162. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the contact between the MCU mounting board 161 and the receptacle mounting board 162 and the generation of a short - circuit current between them.

[0036] In terms of cost, the surfaces facing the front of the MCU-mounted substrate 161 and the receptacle-mounted substrate 162 are defined as the respective main surfaces 161a and 162a, and the surfaces opposite to the main surfaces 161a and 162a are defined as the respective sub-surfaces 161b and 162b. Then, the sub-surface 161b of the MCU-mounted substrate 161 and the main surface 162a of the receptacle-mounted substrate 162 face each other with a predetermined gap therebetween. The main surface 161a of the MCU-mounted substrate 161 faces the front surface of the case 110, and the sub-surface 162b of the receptacle-mounted substrate 162 faces the front-rear partition wall 152 of the chassis 150. The elements and ICs mounted on the MCU-mounted substrate 161 and the receptacle-mounted substrate 162 will be described later.

[0037] The LED-mounted substrate 163 is disposed between the left side surface of the chassis body 151 and two magnets 124 arranged vertically. The element arrangement surface of the LED-mounted substrate 163 is arranged along the vertical direction and the front-rear direction. In other words, the element arrangement surfaces of the MCU-mounted substrate 161 and the receptacle-mounted substrate 162 and the element arrangement surface of the LED-mounted substrate 163 are orthogonal to each other. Thus, it is preferable that the element arrangement surfaces of the MCU-mounted substrate 161 and the receptacle-mounted substrate 162 and the element arrangement surface of the LED-mounted substrate 163 are not limited to being orthogonal, but intersect (are non-parallel). Note that the vibration motor M that constitutes the notification unit 180 together with the LEDs L1 to L8 is fixed to the lower surface of the chassis lower wall 155 and is electrically connected to the MCU-mounted substrate 161.

[0038] The Hall IC-mounted substrate 164 is disposed on the upper surface of the chassis upper wall 154.

[0039] <Operation Modes of the Suction Device> FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram for explaining the operation modes of the suction device 100. As shown in FIG. 9, the operation modes of the suction device 100 include a charging mode, a sleep mode, an active mode, a heating initial setting mode, a heating mode, and a heating end mode.

[0040] The sleep mode is a mode mainly for saving power by stopping the power supply to the electronic components necessary for the heating control of the heater HTR.

[0041] The active mode is a mode in which most functions except the heating control of the heater HTR are enabled. When the slider 119 is opened while the suction device 100 is operating in the sleep mode, the operation mode is switched to the active mode. When the slider 119 is closed or the non-operation time of the operation switch OPS reaches a predetermined time while the suction device 100 is operating in the active mode, the operation mode is switched to the sleep mode.

[0042] The heating initial setting mode is a mode for performing initial settings such as control parameters for starting the heating control of the heater HTR. When the operation of the operation switch OPS is detected while the suction device 100 is operating in the active mode, the operation mode is switched to the heating initial setting mode, and when the initial setting is completed, the operation mode is switched to the heating mode.

[0043] The heating mode is a mode for executing the heating control of the heater HTR (heating control for aerosol generation and heating control for temperature detection). When the operation mode is switched to the heating mode, the suction device 100 starts the heating control of the heater HTR.

[0044] The heating end mode is a mode for executing the end process of the heating control of the heater HTR (such as the process of storing the heating history). When the suction device 100 is operating in the heating mode, if the energization time to the heater HTR or the number of suction operations by the user reaches the upper limit, or if the slider 119 is closed, the operation mode is switched to the heating end mode. When the end process is completed, the operation mode is switched to the active mode. When the suction device 100 is operating in the heating mode and a USB connection is made, the operation mode is switched to the heating end mode. When the end process is completed, the operation mode is switched to the charging mode. As shown in FIG. 9, in this case, before switching the operation mode to the charging mode, the operation mode may be switched to the active mode. In other words, when the suction device 100 is operating in the heating mode and a USB connection is made, the operation mode may be switched in the order of the heating end mode, the active mode, and the charging mode.

[0045] The charging mode is a mode for charging the power supply BAT with the power supplied from an external power supply connected to the receptacle RCP. When the suction device 100 is operating in the sleep mode or the active mode and an external power supply is connected (USB connection) to the receptacle RCP, the operation mode is switched to the charging mode. When the suction device 100 is operating in the charging mode and the charging of the power supply BAT is completed or the connection between the receptacle RCP and the external power supply is disconnected, the operation mode is switched to the sleep mode.

[0046] <Schematic of the circuit of the internal unit> FIGS. 10, 11, and 12 are diagrams showing the schematic configuration of the electric circuit of the internal unit 140. FIG. 11 is the same as FIG. 10 except that the range 161A (the range surrounded by the thick dashed line) mounted on the MCU mounting board 161 and the range 163A (the range surrounded by the thick solid line) mounted on the LED mounting board 163 are added to the electric circuit shown in FIG. 10. FIG. 12 is the same as FIG. 10 except that the range 162A mounted on the receptacle mounting board 162 and the range 164A mounted on the Hall IC mounting board 164 are added to the electric circuit shown in FIG. 10.

[0047] In FIG. 10, the wiring shown by the thick solid line is the wiring that has the same potential as the reference potential (ground potential) of the internal unit 140 (the wiring connected to the ground provided in the internal unit 140), and this wiring is hereinafter referred to as the ground line. In FIG. 10, an electronic component in which a plurality of circuit elements are chip-mounted is shown as a rectangle, and the symbols of various terminals are described inside this rectangle. The power supply terminals VCC and VDD mounted on the chip each indicate the power supply terminal on the high potential side. The power supply terminal VSS and the ground terminal GND mounted on the chip each indicate the power supply terminal on the low potential side (reference potential side). For the chip-mounted electronic component, the difference between the potential of the power supply terminal on the high potential side and the potential of the power supply terminal on the low potential side is the power supply voltage. The chip-mounted electronic component executes various functions using this power supply voltage.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 11, on the MCU mounting board 161 (range 161A), as main electronic components, there are an MCU 1 that comprehensively controls the entire aspirator 100, a charging IC 2 that controls the charging of the power supply BAT, load switches (hereinafter, LSW) 3, 4, 5 configured by combining capacitors, resistors, transistors, etc., a ROM (Read Only Memory) 6, a switch driver 7, a step-up / down DC / DC converter 8 (described as step-up / down DC / DC 8 in the figure), an operational amplifier OP2, an operational amplifier OP3, flip-flops (hereinafter, FF) 16, 17, a connector Cn(t2) electrically connected to a thermistor T2 that constitutes an intake sensor (in the figure, the thermistor T2 connected to this connector is described), a connector Cn(t3) electrically connected to a thermistor T3 that constitutes a heater temperature sensor (in the figure, the thermistor T3 connected to this connector is described), a connector Cn(t4) electrically connected to a thermistor T4 that constitutes a case temperature sensor (in the figure, the thermistor T4 connected to this connector is described), and a voltage dividing circuit Pc for USB connection detection.

[0049] The ground terminals GND of each of the charging IC2, LSW3, LSW4, LSW5, switched driver 7, buck-boost DC / DC converter 8, FF16, and FF17 are connected to the ground line. The power supply terminal VSS of the ROM6 is connected to the ground line. The negative power supply terminals of each of the operational amplifier OP2 and the operational amplifier OP3 are connected to the ground line.

[0050] As shown in FIG. 11, on the LED mounting substrate 163 (range 163A), as main electronic components, a Hall IC13 including a Hall element constituting a panel detection sensor, LEDs L1 to L8, an operation switch OPS, and a communication IC15 are provided. The communication IC15 is a communication module for communicating with an electronic device such as a smartphone. The power supply terminal VSS of the Hall IC13 and the ground terminal GND of the communication IC15 are each connected to the ground line. The communication IC15 and the MCU1 are configured to be communicable via a communication line LN. One end of the operation switch OPS is connected to the ground line, and the other end of the operation switch OPS is connected to the terminal P4 of the MCU1.

[0051] As shown in FIG. 12, on the receptacle mounting substrate 162 (range 162A), as main electronic components, a power supply connector electrically connected to the power supply BAT (in the figure, the power supply BAT connected to this power supply connector is described), a connector electrically connected to a thermistor T1 constituting a power supply temperature sensor (in the figure, the thermistor T1 connected to this connector is described), a boost DC / DC converter 9 (described as boost DC / DC9 in the figure), a protection IC10, an overvoltage protection IC11, a remaining amount meter IC12, a receptacle RCP, switches S3 to S6 composed of MOSFETs, an operational amplifier OP1, and a pair (positive electrode side and negative electrode side) of heater connectors Cn electrically connected to the heater HTR are provided.

[0052] The two ground terminals GND of the receptacle RCP, the ground terminal GND of the boost DC / DC converter 9, the power supply terminal VSS of the protection IC 10, the power supply terminal VSS of the remaining amount meter IC 12, the ground terminal GND of the overvoltage protection IC 11, and the negative power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 are each connected to the ground line.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 12, a Hall IC 14 including a Hall element that constitutes a cover position sensor is provided on the Hall IC mounting substrate 164 (range 164A). The power supply terminal VSS of the Hall IC 14 is connected to the ground line. The output terminal OUT of the Hall IC 14 is connected to the terminal P8 of the MCU1. The MCU1 detects the opening and closing of the slider 119 based on the signal input to the terminal P8.

[0054] As shown in FIG. 11, a connector that is electrically connected to the vibration motor M is provided on the MCU mounting substrate 161.

[0055] <Details of the circuit of the internal unit> Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 10, the connection relationship and the like of each electronic component will be described.

[0056] The two power input terminals V of the receptacle RCP BUS are each connected to the input terminal IN of the overvoltage protection IC 11 via a fuse Fs. When a USB plug is connected to the receptacle RCP and a USB cable including this USB plug is connected to an external power supply, the two power input terminals V of the receptacle RCP BUS are supplied with the USB voltage V USB .

[0057] One end of a voltage dividing circuit Pa composed of a series circuit of two resistors is connected to the input terminal IN of the overvoltage protection IC11. The other end of the voltage dividing circuit Pa is connected to the ground line. The connection point of the two resistors constituting the voltage dividing circuit Pa is connected to the voltage detection terminal OVLo of the overvoltage protection IC11. When the voltage input to the voltage detection terminal OVLo of the overvoltage protection IC11 is less than the threshold value, the overvoltage protection IC11 outputs the voltage input to the input terminal IN from the output terminal OUT. When the voltage input to the voltage detection terminal OVLo of the overvoltage protection IC11 becomes equal to or higher than the threshold value (overvoltage), the overvoltage protection IC11 stops the voltage output from the output terminal OUT (cuts off the electrical connection between the LSW3 and the receptacle RCP) to protect the electronic components downstream of the overvoltage protection IC11. The output terminal OUT of the overvoltage protection IC11 is connected to the input terminal VIN of the LSW3 and one end of a voltage dividing circuit Pc (a series circuit of two resistors) connected to the MCU1. The other end of the voltage dividing circuit Pc is connected to the ground line. The connection point of the two resistors constituting the voltage dividing circuit Pc is connected to the terminal P17 of the MCU1.

[0058] One end of a voltage dividing circuit Pf composed of a series circuit of two resistors is connected to the input terminal VIN of the LSW3. The other end of the voltage dividing circuit Pf is connected to the ground line. The connection point of the two resistors constituting the voltage dividing circuit Pf is connected to the control terminal ON of the LSW3. The collector terminal of a bipolar transistor S2 is connected to the control terminal ON of the LSW3. The emitter terminal of the bipolar transistor S2 is connected to the ground line. The base terminal of the bipolar transistor S2 is connected to the terminal P19 of the MCU1. When the signal input to the control terminal ON of the LSW3 becomes high level, the LSW3 outputs the voltage input to the input terminal VIN from the output terminal VOUT. The output terminal VOUT of the LSW3 is connected to the input terminal VBUS of the charging IC2. While the USB connection is not made, the MCU1 turns on the bipolar transistor S2. As a result, the control terminal ON of the LSW3 is connected to the ground line via the bipolar transistor S2, so that a low-level signal is input to the control terminal ON of the LSW3. The bipolar transistor S2 connected to LSW3 is turned off by the MCU1 when a USB connection is made. When the bipolar transistor S2 turns off, the USB voltage V divided by the voltage dividing circuit Pf USB is input to the control terminal ON of LSW3. Therefore, when a USB connection is made and the bipolar transistor S2 is turned off, a high-level signal is input to the control terminal ON of LSW3. As a result, LSW3 outputs the USB voltage V USB from the output terminal VOUT. Note that even if a USB connection is made while the bipolar transistor S2 is not turned off, the control terminal ON of LSW3 is connected to the ground line via the bipolar transistor S2. Therefore, it should be noted that as long as the MCU1 does not turn off the bipolar transistor S2, a low-level signal continues to be input to the control terminal ON of LSW3.

[0059] The positive terminal of the power supply BAT is connected to the power supply terminal VDD of the protection IC10, the input terminal VIN of the boost DC / DC converter 9, and the charging terminal bat of the charging IC2. Therefore, the power supply voltage V BAT of the power supply BAT is supplied to the protection IC10, the charging IC2, and the boost DC / DC converter 9. A resistor Ra, a switch Sa composed of a MOSFET, a switch Sb composed of a MOSFET, and a resistor Rb are connected in series in this order to the negative terminal of the power supply BAT. The current detection terminal CS of the protection IC10 is connected to the connection point of the resistor Ra and the switch Sa. The control terminals of each of the switches Sa and Sb are connected to the protection IC10. Both ends of the resistor Rb are connected to the remaining amount meter IC12.

[0060] The protection IC 10 acquires the current value flowing through the resistor Ra during the charge and discharge of the power supply BAT from the voltage input to the current detection terminal CS, and when this current value becomes excessive (overcurrent), it controls the opening and closing of the switches Sa and Sb to stop the charging or discharging of the power supply BAT, thereby protecting the power supply BAT. More specifically, when the protection IC 10 acquires an excessive current value during the charging of the power supply BAT, it turns off the switch Sb to stop the charging of the power supply BAT. When the protection IC 10 acquires an excessive current value during the discharging of the power supply BAT, it turns off the switch Sa to stop the discharging of the power supply BAT. Also, the protection IC 10 controls the opening and closing of the switches Sa and Sb when the voltage value of the power supply BAT becomes abnormal (in the case of overcharging or overvoltage) from the voltage input to the power supply terminal VDD, and stops the charging or discharging of the power supply BAT, thereby protecting the power supply BAT. More specifically, when the protection IC 10 detects overcharging of the power supply BAT, it turns off the switch Sb to stop the charging of the power supply BAT. When the protection IC 10 detects overdischarging of the power supply BAT, it turns off the switch Sa to stop the discharging of the power supply BAT.

[0061] A resistor Rt1 is connected to a connector connected to a thermistor T1 arranged near the power supply BAT. The series circuit of the resistor Rt1 and the thermistor T1 is connected to the ground line and the regulator terminal TREG of the remaining amount meter IC12. The connection point of the thermistor T1 and the resistor Rt1 is connected to the thermistor terminal THM of the remaining amount meter IC12. The thermistor T1 may be a PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) thermistor whose resistance value increases as the temperature increases, or an NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) thermistor whose resistance value decreases as the temperature increases.

[0062] The remaining capacity meter IC12 detects the current flowing through the resistor Rb, and based on the detected current value, derives battery information such as the remaining capacity of the power supply BAT, the state of charge (SOC) indicating the charging state, and the state of health (SOH) indicating the soundness state. The remaining capacity meter IC12 supplies voltage to the voltage dividing circuit of the thermistor T1 and the resistor Rt1 from the built-in regulator connected to the regulator terminal TREG. The remaining capacity meter IC12 acquires the voltage divided by this voltage dividing circuit from the thermistor terminal THM, and based on this voltage, acquires temperature information regarding the temperature of the power supply BAT. The remaining capacity meter IC12 is connected to the MCU1 by a communication line LN for serial communication and is configured to be able to communicate with the MCU1. The remaining capacity meter IC12 transmits the derived battery information and the acquired temperature information of the power supply BAT to the MCU1 in response to a request from the MCU1. Note that in order to perform serial communication, a plurality of signal lines such as a data line for data transmission and a clock line for synchronization are required. It should be noted that in FIGS. 10-19, only one signal line is shown for simplification.

[0063] The remaining capacity meter IC12 includes a notification terminal 12a. The notification terminal 12a is connected to the terminal P6 of the MCU1 and the cathode of a diode D2 described later. When the remaining capacity meter IC12 detects an abnormality such as the temperature of the power supply BAT becoming excessive, it notifies the MCU1 of the occurrence of the abnormality by outputting a low-level signal from the notification terminal 12a. This low-level signal is also input to the CLR(￣) terminal of the FF17 via the diode D2.

[0064] One end of the reactor Lc is connected to the switching terminal SW of the boost DC / DC converter 9. The other end of the reactor Lc is connected to the input terminal VIN of the boost DC / DC converter 9. The boost DC / DC converter 9 boosts the input voltage by controlling the on / off of the built-in transistor connected to the switching terminal SW and outputs it from the output terminal VOUT. Note that the input terminal VIN of the boost DC / DC converter 9 constitutes the high-potential power supply terminal of the boost DC / DC converter 9. The boost DC / DC converter 9 performs a boosting operation when the signal input to the enable terminal EN is at a high level. In the state where USB is connected, the signal input to the enable terminal EN of the boost DC / DC converter 9 may be controlled to a low level by the MCU1. Alternatively, in the state where USB is connected, the potential of the enable terminal EN may be made indefinite by the MCU1 not controlling the signal input to the enable terminal EN of the boost DC / DC converter 9.

[0065] The source terminal of the switch S4 composed of a P-channel MOSFET is connected to the output terminal VOUT of the boost DC / DC converter 9. The gate terminal of the switch S4 is connected to the terminal P15 of the MCU1. One end of the resistor Rs is connected to the drain terminal of the switch S4. The other end of the resistor Rs is connected to the positive electrode side heater connector Cn which is connected to one end of the heater HTR. A voltage dividing circuit Pb composed of two resistors is connected to the connection point between the switch S4 and the resistor Rs. The connection point of the two resistors constituting the voltage dividing circuit Pb is connected to the terminal P18 of the MCU1. The connection point between the switch S4 and the resistor Rs is further connected to the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1.

[0066] To the connection line between the output terminal VOUT of the boost DC / DC converter 9 and the source terminal of the switch S4, the source terminal of the switch S3 composed of a P-channel type MOSFET is connected. The gate terminal of the switch S3 is connected to the terminal P16 of the MCU1. The drain terminal of the switch S3 is connected to the connection line between the resistor Rs and the positive electrode side heater connector Cn. Thus, between the output terminal VOUT of the boost DC / DC converter 9 and the positive electrode side of the heater connector Cn, a circuit including the switch S3 and a circuit including the switch S4 and the resistor Rs are connected in parallel. Since the circuit including the switch S3 has no resistor, it is a circuit with lower resistance than the circuit including the switch S4 and the resistor Rs.

[0067] The non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 is connected to the connection line between the resistor Rs and the positive electrode side heater connector Cn. The inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 is connected to the negative electrode side heater connector Cn connected to the other end of the heater HTR and the drain terminal of the switch S6 composed of an N-channel type MOSFET. The source terminal of the switch S6 is connected to the ground line. The gate terminal of the switch S6 is connected to the terminal P14 of the MCU1, the anode of the diode D4, and the enable terminal EN of the boost DC / DC converter 9. The cathode of the diode D4 is connected to the Q terminal of the FF17. One end of the resistor R4 is connected to the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP1. The other end of the resistor R4 is connected to the terminal P9 of the MCU1 and the drain terminal of the switch S5 composed of an N-channel type MOSFET. The source terminal of the switch S5 is connected to the ground line. The gate terminal of the switch S5 is connected to the connection line between the resistor Rs and the positive electrode side heater connector Cn.

[0068] The input terminal VBUS of the charging IC2 is connected to the anode of each of the LEDs L1 to L8. The cathode of each of the LEDs L1 to L8 is connected to the control terminals PD1 to PD8 of the MCU1 via resistors for current limiting. That is, the LEDs L1 to L8 are connected in parallel to the input terminal VBUS. The LEDs L1 to L8 are operable by the USB voltage V USB supplied from the USB cable connected to the receptacle RCP, and the voltage supplied from the power supply BAT via the charging IC2, respectively. The MCU1 incorporates transistors (switching elements) connected to each of the control terminals PD1 to PD8 and the ground terminal GND. The MCU1 energizes the LED L1 to turn it on by turning on the transistor connected to the control terminal PD1, and turns off the LED L1 by turning off the transistor connected to the control terminal PD1. By rapidly switching the on and off of the transistor connected to the control terminal PD1, the brightness and emission pattern of the LED L1 can be dynamically controlled. The LEDs L2 to L8 are similarly controlled for lighting by the MCU1.

[0069] The charging IC2 has a charging function for charging the power supply BAT based on the USB voltage V USB input to the input terminal VBUS. The charging IC2 obtains the charging current and charging voltage of the power supply BAT from terminals and wiring (not shown), and based on these, performs charging control of the power supply BAT (power supply control from the charging terminal bat to the power supply BAT). Further, the charging IC2 may obtain the temperature information of the power supply BAT transmitted from the remaining amount meter IC12 to the MCU1 by serial communication using the communication line LN, and use it for charging control.

[0070] The charging IC2 further has a BAT power pass function and an OTG function. The BAT power pass function is a function of outputting a system power supply voltage Vcc0 that substantially matches the power supply voltage V BAT input to the charging terminal bat from the output terminal SYS. The OTG function is a function of outputting a system power supply voltage Vcc0 that substantially matches the power supply voltage V BATIt is a function to output the system power supply voltage Vcc4 obtained by boosting from the input terminal VBUS. The on / off of the OTG function of the charging IC2 is controlled by the MCU1 through serial communication using the communication line LN. In the OTG function, the power supply voltage V BAT input to the charging terminal bat may be output directly from the input terminal VBUS. In this case, the power supply voltage V BAT is substantially the same as the system power supply voltage Vcc4.

[0071] The output terminal SYS of the charging IC2 is connected to the input terminal VIN of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8. One end of the reactor La is connected to the switching terminal SW of the charging IC2. The other end of the reactor La is connected to the output terminal SYS of the charging IC2. The charging enable terminal CE(￣) of the charging IC2 is connected to the terminal P22 of the MCU1 via a resistor. Further, the collector terminal of the bipolar transistor S1 is connected to the charging enable terminal CE(￣) of the charging IC2. The emitter terminal of the bipolar transistor S1 is connected to the output terminal VOUT of the LSW4 described later. The base terminal of the bipolar transistor S1 is connected to the Q terminal of the FF17. Further, one end of the resistor Rc is connected to the charging enable terminal CE(￣) of the charging IC2. The other end of the resistor Rc is connected to the output terminal VOUT of the LSW4.

[0072] A resistor is connected to the input terminal VIN and the enable terminal EN of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8. When the system power supply voltage Vcc0 is input from the output terminal SYS of the charging IC2 to the input terminal VIN of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8, the signal input to the enable terminal EN of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8 becomes high level, and the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8 starts the boost operation or the buck operation. The buck-boost DC / DC converter 8 boosts or buck-boosts the system power supply voltage Vcc0 input to the input terminal VIN by switching control of the built-in transistor connected to the reactor Lb to generate the system power supply voltage Vcc1 and outputs it from the output terminal VOUT. The output terminal VOUT of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8 is connected to the feedback terminal FB of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8, the input terminal VIN of the LSW4, the input terminal VIN of the switch driver 7, the power supply terminal VCC and the D terminal of the FF16. The wiring to which the system power supply voltage Vcc1 output from the output terminal VOUT of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8 is supplied is described as the power line PL1.

[0073] When the signal input to the control terminal ON of the LSW4 becomes high level, the LSW4 outputs the system power supply voltage Vcc1 input to the input terminal VIN from the output terminal VOUT. The control terminal ON of the LSW4 and the power line PL1 are connected via a resistor. Therefore, when the system power supply voltage Vcc1 is supplied to the power line PL1, a high-level signal is input to the control terminal ON of the LSW4. The voltage output by the LSW4 is the same as the system power supply voltage Vcc1 if wiring resistance and the like are ignored, but in order to distinguish it from the system power supply voltage Vcc1, the voltage output from the output terminal VOUT of the LSW4 is hereinafter described as the system power supply voltage Vcc2.

[0074] The output terminal VOUT of LSW4 is connected to the power supply terminal VDD of MCU1, the input terminal VIN of LSW5, the power supply terminal VDD of the remaining amount meter IC12, the power supply terminal VCC of ROM6, the emitter terminal of the bipolar transistor S1, the resistor Rc, and the power supply terminal VCC of FF17. The wiring to which the system power supply voltage Vcc2 output from the output terminal VOUT of LSW4 is supplied is described as the power line PL2.

[0075] When the signal input to the control terminal ON of LSW5 becomes high level, LSW5 outputs the system power supply voltage Vcc2 input to the input terminal VIN from the output terminal VOUT. The control terminal ON of LSW5 is connected to the terminal P23 of MCU1. The voltage output by LSW5 is the same as the system power supply voltage Vcc2 if wiring resistance and the like are ignored. However, in order to distinguish it from the system power supply voltage Vcc2, the voltage output from the output terminal VOUT of LSW5 is hereinafter described as the system power supply voltage Vcc3. The wiring to which the system power supply voltage Vcc3 output from the output terminal VOUT of LSW5 is supplied is described as the power line PL3.

[0076] A series circuit of a thermistor T2 and a resistor Rt2 is connected to the power line PL3, and the resistor Rt2 is connected to the ground line. The thermistor T2 and the resistor Rt2 form a voltage dividing circuit, and the connection point thereof is connected to the terminal P21 of MCU1. MCU1 detects the temperature variation (resistance value variation) of the thermistor T2 based on the voltage input to the terminal P21, and determines the presence or absence of the puff operation according to the amount of the temperature variation.

[0077] A series circuit of a thermistor T3 and a resistor Rt3 is connected to the power line PL3, and the resistor Rt3 is connected to the ground line. The thermistor T3 and the resistor Rt3 form a voltage dividing circuit, and the connection point thereof is connected to the terminal P13 of MCU1 and the inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP2. MCU1 detects the temperature of the thermistor T3 (corresponding to the temperature of the heater HTR) based on the voltage input to the terminal P13.

[0078] A series circuit of a thermistor T4 and a resistor Rt4 is connected to the power line PL3, and the resistor Rt4 is connected to the ground line. The thermistor T4 and the resistor Rt4 constitute a voltage dividing circuit, and the connection point thereof is connected to the terminal P12 of the MCU1 and the inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP3. The MCU1 detects the temperature of the thermistor T4 (corresponding to the temperature of the case 110) based on the voltage input to the terminal P12.

[0079] The source terminal of a switch S7 constituted by a MOSFET is connected to the power line PL2. The gate terminal of the switch S7 is connected to the terminal P20 of the MCU1. The drain terminal of the switch S7 is connected to one of a pair of connectors to which the vibration motor M is connected. The other of this pair of connectors is connected to the ground line. The MCU1 can control the opening and closing of the switch S7 by operating the potential of the terminal P20, and vibrate the vibration motor M in a specific pattern. Instead of the switch S7, a dedicated driver IC may be used.

[0080] The positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP2 and a voltage dividing circuit Pd (a series circuit of two resistors) connected to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP2 are connected to the power line PL2. The connection point of the two resistors constituting the voltage dividing circuit Pd is connected to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP2. The operational amplifier OP2 outputs a signal corresponding to the temperature of the heater HTR (a signal corresponding to the resistance value of the thermistor T3). In the present embodiment, since a thermistor T3 having an NTC characteristic is used, the higher the temperature of the heater HTR (the temperature of the thermistor T3), the lower the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP2. This is because the negative power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP2 is connected to the ground line, and when the voltage value (the voltage dividing value by the thermistor T3 and the resistor Rt3) input to the inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP2 becomes higher than the voltage value (the voltage dividing value by the voltage dividing circuit Pd) input to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP2, the value of the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP2 becomes substantially equal to the value of the ground potential. That is, when the temperature of the heater HTR (the temperature of the thermistor T3) becomes high, the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP2 becomes a low level. When using a thermistor T3 with PTC characteristics, the output of the voltage dividing circuit of the thermistor T3 and the resistor Rt3 may be connected to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP2, and the output of the voltage dividing circuit Pd may be connected to the inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP2.

[0081] Connected to the power supply line PL2 are the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP3 and a voltage dividing circuit Pe (a series circuit of two resistors) connected to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP3. The connection point of the two resistors constituting the voltage dividing circuit Pe is connected to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP3. The operational amplifier OP3 outputs a signal corresponding to the temperature of the case 110 (a signal corresponding to the resistance value of the thermistor T4). In this embodiment, since a thermistor T4 with NTC characteristics is used, the higher the temperature of the case 110, the lower the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP3. This is because the negative power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP3 is connected to the ground line, and when the voltage value input to the inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP3 (the voltage dividing value by the thermistor T4 and the resistor Rt4) becomes higher than the voltage value input to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP3 (the voltage dividing value by the voltage dividing circuit Pe), the value of the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP3 becomes substantially equal to the value of the ground potential. That is, when the temperature of the thermistor T4 becomes high, the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP3 becomes a low level. When using a thermistor T4 with PTC characteristics, the output of the voltage dividing circuit of the thermistor T4 and the resistor Rt4 may be connected to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP3, and the output of the voltage dividing circuit Pe may be connected to the inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP3.

[0082] A resistor R1 is connected to the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP2. The cathode of the diode D1 is connected to the resistor R1. The anode of the diode D1 is connected to the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP3, the D terminal of the FF17, and the CLR(￣) terminal of the FF17. A resistor R2 connected to the power supply line PL1 is connected to the connection line between the resistor R1 and the diode D1. Also, the CLR(￣) terminal of the FF16 is connected to this connection line.

[0083] One end of a resistor R3 is connected to a connection line between the anode of a diode D1 and the output terminal of an operational amplifier OP3 and the D terminal of an FF17. The other end of the resistor R3 is connected to a power supply line PL2. Further, the anode of a diode D2 connected to a notification terminal 12a of a remaining amount meter IC12, the anode of a diode D3, and the CLR(￣) terminal of the FF17 are connected to this connection line. The cathode of the diode D3 is connected to a terminal P5 of an MCU1.

[0084] When the temperature of a heater HTR becomes excessive, a signal output from an operational amplifier OP2 becomes small, and a signal input to the CLR(￣) terminal becomes a low level, an FF16 inputs a high-level signal from a Q(￣) terminal to a terminal P11 of an MCU1. A high-level system power supply voltage Vcc1 is supplied from a power supply line PL1 to the D terminal of the FF16. Therefore, in the FF16, a low-level signal continues to be output from the Q(￣) terminal unless the signal input to the CLR(￣) terminal that operates in negative logic becomes a low level.

[0085] The signal input to the CLR(￣) terminal of FF17 goes low when any of the following occurs: when the temperature of the heater HTR becomes excessive, when the temperature of the case 110 becomes excessive, or when a low-level signal indicating abnormal detection is output from the notification terminal 12a of the remaining amount meter IC12. When the signal input to the CLR(￣) terminal of FF17 goes low, FF17 outputs a low-level signal from the Q terminal. This low-level signal is input to the terminal P10 of the MCU1, the gate terminal of the switch S6, the enable terminal EN of the boost DC / DC converter 9, and the base terminal of the bipolar transistor S1 connected to the charging IC2, respectively. When a low-level signal is input to the gate terminal of the switch S6, the gate-source voltage of the N-channel MOSFET constituting the switch S6 becomes less than the threshold voltage, so the switch S6 turns off. When a low-level signal is input to the enable terminal EN of the boost DC / DC converter 9, the boost operation stops because the enable terminal EN of the boost DC / DC converter 9 is positive logic. When a low-level signal is input to the base terminal of the bipolar transistor S1, the bipolar transistor S1 turns on (an amplified current is output from the collector terminal). When the bipolar transistor S1 turns on, a high-level system power supply voltage Vcc2 is input to the CE(￣) terminal of the charging IC2 via the bipolar transistor S1. Since the CE(￣) terminal of the charging IC2 is negative logic, the charging of the power supply BAT stops. As a result, the heating of the heater HTR and the charging of the power supply BAT stop. Note that even if the MCU1 tries to output a low-level enable signal from the terminal P22 to the charging enable terminal CE(￣) of the charging IC2, when the bipolar transistor S1 turns on, the amplified current is input to the terminal P22 of the MCU1 and the charging enable terminal CE(￣) of the charging IC2 from the collector terminal. Therefore, it should be noted that a high-level signal is input to the charging enable terminal CE(￣) of the charging IC2.

[0086] The D terminal of FF17 is supplied with a high-level system power supply voltage Vcc2 from the power supply line PL2. Therefore, in FF17, as long as the signal input to the CLR(￣) terminal that operates in negative logic does not become low level, a high-level signal continues to be output from the Q terminal. When a low-level signal is output from the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP3, a low-level signal is input to the CLR(￣) terminal of FF17 regardless of the level of the signal output from the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP2. It should be noted that when a high-level signal is output from the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP2, the low-level signal output from the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP3 is not affected by this high-level signal by the diode D1. Also, when a low-level signal is output from the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP2, even if a high-level signal is output from the output terminal of the operational amplifier OP3, this high-level signal is replaced with a low-level signal via the diode D1.

[0087] The power supply line PL2 further branches from the MCU-mounted board 161 toward the LED-mounted board 163 and the Hall IC-mounted board 164 side. The power supply terminals VDD of the Hall IC 13, the power supply terminal VCC of the communication IC 15, and the power supply terminal VDD of the Hall IC 14 are connected to this branched power supply line PL2.

[0088] The output terminal OUT of the Hall IC 13 is connected to the terminal P3 of the MCU1 and the terminal SW2 of the switch driver 7. When the outer panel 115 is removed, a low-level signal is output from the output terminal OUT of the Hall IC 13. The MCU1 determines the presence or absence of the mounting of the outer panel 115 based on the signal input to the terminal P3.

[0089] The LED-mounted substrate 163 is provided with a series circuit (a series circuit of a resistor and a capacitor) connected to the operation switch OPS. This series circuit is connected to the power supply line PL2. The connection point of the resistor and the capacitor in this series circuit is connected to the terminal P4 of the MCU1, the operation switch OPS, and the terminal SW1 of the switch driver 7. When the operation switch OPS is not pressed, the operation switch OPS is non-conductive, and the signals input to the terminal P4 of the MCU1 and the terminal SW1 of the switch driver 7 respectively become high level due to the system power supply voltage Vcc2. When the operation switch OPS is pressed and the operation switch OPS becomes conductive, the signals input to the terminal P4 of the MCU1 and the terminal SW1 of the switch driver 7 respectively become low level because they are connected to the ground line. The MCU1 detects the operation of the operation switch OPS based on the signal input to the terminal P4.

[0090] The switch driver 7 is provided with a reset input terminal RSTB. The reset input terminal RSTB is connected to the control terminal ON of the LSW4. When the levels of the signals input to the terminal SW1 and the terminal SW2 of the switch driver 7 are both low (when the outer panel 115 is removed and the operation switch OPS is pressed), the switch driver 7 outputs a low-level signal from the reset input terminal RSTB to stop the output operation of the LSW4. That is, when the operation switch OPS, which is originally pressed through the pressing portion 117 of the outer panel 115, is directly pressed by the user with the outer panel 115 removed, the levels of the signals input to the terminal SW1 and the terminal SW2 of the switch driver 7 both become low.

[0091] <Operation of the aspirator for each operation mode> Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 13 to 19, the operation of the electric circuit shown in FIG. 10 will be described. FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the electric circuit in the sleep mode. FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the electric circuit in the active mode. FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the electric circuit in the heating initial setting mode. FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the electric circuit when the heater HTR is heated in the heating mode. FIG. 17 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the electric circuit when the temperature of the heater HTR is detected in the heating mode. FIG. 18 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the electric circuit in the charging mode. FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the electric circuit when the MCU1 is reset (restarted). In each of FIGS. 13 to 19, among the terminals of the chip-sized electronic components, the terminals surrounded by the broken-line ellipse are the terminals where inputs or outputs such as the power supply voltage V BAT and the USB voltage V USB are made, and the input or output of the system power supply voltage and the like are shown.

[0092] In any operation mode, the power supply voltage V BAT is input to the power supply terminal VDD of the protection IC10, the input terminal VIN of the boost DC / DC converter 9, and the charging terminal bat of the charging IC2.

[0093] <Sleep mode: FIG. 13> The MCU1 enables the V BAT power pass function of the charging IC2 and disables the OTG function and the charging function. Since the USB voltage V USB is not input to the input terminal VBUS of the charging IC2, the V BAT power pass function of the charging IC2 becomes effective. Since the signal for enabling the OTG function is not output from the MCU1 to the charging IC2 from the communication line LN, the OTG function becomes ineffective. Therefore, the charging IC2 uses the power supply voltage V BATIt generates the system power supply voltage Vcc0 from [source] and outputs it from the output terminal SYS. The system power supply voltage Vcc0 output from the output terminal SYS is input to the input terminal VIN and the enable terminal EN of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8. When a high-level system power supply voltage Vcc0 is input to the enable terminal EN, which is of positive logic, the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8 is enabled, generates the system power supply voltage Vcc1 from the system power supply voltage Vcc0, and outputs it from the output terminal VOUT. The system power supply voltage Vcc1 output from the output terminal VOUT of the buck-boost DC / DC converter 8 is supplied to the input terminal VIN of LSW4, the control terminal ON of LSW4, the input terminal VIN of the switch driver 7, the power supply terminal VCC and the D terminal of FF16, respectively.

[0094] When the system power supply voltage Vcc1 is input to the control terminal ON of LSW4, LSW4 outputs the system power supply voltage Vcc1 input to the input terminal VIN as the system power supply voltage Vcc2 from the output terminal VOUT. The system power supply voltage Vcc2 output from LSW4 is input to the power supply terminal VDD of MCU1, the input terminal VIN of LSW5, the power supply terminal VDD of the hall IC13, the power supply terminal VCC of the communication IC15, and the power supply terminal VDD of the hall IC14. Further, the system power supply voltage Vcc2 is supplied to the power supply terminal VDD of the remaining amount meter IC12, the power supply terminal VCC of ROM6, the resistor Rc and the bipolar transistor S1 connected to the charge enable terminal CE(￣) of the charge IC2, the power supply terminal VCC of FF17, the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP3, the voltage dividing circuit Pe, the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP2, and the voltage dividing circuit Pd, respectively. The bipolar transistor S1 connected to the charge IC2 is off unless a low-level signal is output from the Q terminal of FF17. Therefore, the system power supply voltage Vcc2 generated by LSW4 is also input to the charge enable terminal CE(￣) of the charge IC2. Since the charge enable terminal CE(￣) of the charge IC2 is of negative logic, in this state, the charging function by the charge IC2 is turned off.

[0095] Thus, in the sleep mode, since LSW5 stops the output of the system power supply voltage Vcc3, the power supply to the electronic components connected to the power line PL3 is stopped. Also, in the sleep mode, since the OTG function of the charging IC2 is stopped, the power supply to the LEDs L1 to L8 is stopped.

[0096] <Active mode: Figure 14> When the MCU1 detects that the signal input to the terminal P8 becomes high level and the slider 119 is opened from the sleep mode state shown in FIG. 13, it inputs a high-level signal to the control terminal ON of the LSW5 from the terminal P23. As a result, LSW5 outputs the system power supply voltage Vcc2 input to the input terminal VIN as the system power supply voltage Vcc3 from the output terminal VOUT. The system power supply voltage Vcc3 output from the output terminal VOUT of LSW5 is supplied to the thermistor T2, the thermistor T3, and the thermistor T4.

[0097] Furthermore, when the MCU1 detects that the slider 119 is opened, it enables the OTG function of the charging IC2 via the communication line LN. As a result, the charging IC2 outputs the system power supply voltage Vcc4 obtained by boosting the power supply voltage V BAT input from the charging terminal bat from the input terminal VBUS. The system power supply voltage Vcc4 output from the input terminal VBUS is supplied to the LEDs L1 to L8.

[0098] <Heating initial setting mode: Figure 15> When the signal input to the terminal P4 becomes low level (the operation switch OPS is pressed) from the state shown in FIG. 14, after the MCU1 performs various settings necessary for heating, it inputs a high-level enable signal to the enable terminal EN of the boost DC / DC converter 9 from the terminal P14. As a result, the boost DC / DC converter 9 outputs the drive voltage V BAT obtained by boosting the power supply voltage V bst from the output terminal VOUT. The drive voltage V bstis supplied to switch S3 and switch S4. In this state, switch S3 and switch S4 are off. Also, switch S6 is turned on by the high-level enable signal output from terminal P14. As a result, the negative terminal of heater HTR is connected to the ground line, and if switch S3 is turned on, the heater HTR can be heated. After a high-level enable signal is output from terminal P14 of MCU1, the system shifts to the heating mode.

[0099] <Heater Heating in Heating Mode: Figure 16> In the state of Figure 15, MCU1 starts the switching control of switch S3 connected to terminal P16 and the switching control of switch S4 connected to terminal P15. These switching controls may be automatically started when the above-described heating initial setting mode is completed, or may be started by pressing the further operation switch OPS. Specifically, as shown in Figure 16, MCU1 turns on switch S3, turns off switch S4, supplies the drive voltage V bst to heater HTR, and performs heating control for heating heater HTR for aerosol generation, and as shown in Figure 17, turns off switch S3, turns on switch S4, and performs temperature detection control for detecting the temperature of heater HTR.

[0100] As shown in Figure 16, during heating control, the drive voltage V bst is also supplied to the gate of switch S5, and switch S5 is turned on. Also, during heating control, the drive voltage V bst that has passed through switch S3 is input to the positive power supply terminal of operational amplifier OP1 via resistor Rs. The resistance value of resistor Rs is negligibly small compared to the internal resistance value of operational amplifier OP1. Therefore, during heating control, the voltage input to the positive power supply terminal of operational amplifier OP1 is almost equal to the drive voltage V bst .

[0101] Note that the resistance value of resistor R4 is larger than the on-resistance value of switch S5. The operational amplifier OP1 operates during the heating control, but switch S5 turns on during the heating control. When switch S5 is on, the output voltage of operational amplifier OP1 is divided by the voltage divider circuit of resistor R4 and switch S5 and input to terminal P9 of MCU1. Since the resistance value of resistor R4 is larger than the on-resistance value of switch S5, the voltage input to terminal P9 of MCU1 becomes sufficiently small. Thereby, it is possible to prevent a large voltage from being input from operational amplifier OP1 to MCU1.

[0102] <Heater temperature detection in heating mode: Figure 17> As shown in Figure 17, during the temperature detection control, the drive voltage V bst is input to the positive power supply terminal of operational amplifier OP1 and also input to the voltage divider circuit Pb. The voltage divided by the voltage divider circuit Pb is input to terminal P18 of MCU1. Based on the voltage input to terminal P18, MCU1 obtains the reference voltage V temp applied to the series circuit of resistor Rs and heater HTR during the temperature detection control.

[0103] Also, during the temperature detection control, the drive voltage V bst (reference voltage V temp ) is supplied to the series circuit of resistor Rs and heater HTR. Then, the voltage V bst (reference voltage V temp ) divided by resistor Rs and heater HTR is input to the non-inverting input terminal of operational amplifier OP1. Since the resistance value of resistor Rs is sufficiently larger than the resistance value of heater HTR, the voltage V heat is a value sufficiently lower than the drive voltage V heat bst . During the temperature detection control, this low voltage V heat is also supplied to the gate terminal of switch S5, so switch S5 is turned off. Operational amplifier OP1 amplifies and outputs the difference between the voltage input to the inverting input terminal and the voltage V heat input to the non-inverting input terminal.

[0104] ​ The output signal of the operational amplifier OP1 is input to terminal P9 of the MCU1. The MCU1 acquires the reference voltage V based on the signal input to terminal P9 and the input voltage of terminal P18 temp and based on the electrical resistance value of the known resistor Rs, acquires the temperature of the heater HTR. The MCU1 performs heating control of the heater HTR (for example, control such that the temperature of the heater HTR reaches the target temperature) based on the acquired temperature of the heater HTR.

[0105] Note that the MCU1 can also acquire the temperature of the heater HTR even during the period when the switches S3 and S4 are each turned off (the period when power is not supplied to the heater HTR). Specifically, the MCU1 acquires the temperature of the heater HTR based on the voltage input to terminal P13 (the output voltage of the voltage dividing circuit composed of the thermistor T3 and the resistor Rt3).

[0106] Also, the MCU1 can acquire the temperature of the case 110 at any timing. Specifically, the MCU1 acquires the temperature of the case 110 based on the voltage input to terminal P12 (the output voltage of the voltage dividing circuit composed of the thermistor T4 and the resistor Rt4).

[0107] <Charging mode: Figure 18> Figure 18 illustrates the case when a USB connection is made in the sleep mode. When a USB connection is made, the USB voltage V USB is input to the input terminal VIN of the LSW3 via the overvoltage protection IC11. The USB voltage V USB is also supplied to the voltage dividing circuit Pf connected to the input terminal VIN of the LSW3. Immediately after the USB connection is made, since the bipolar transistor S2 is on, the signal input to the control terminal ON of the LSW3 remains at a low level. The USB voltage V USB is also supplied to the voltage dividing circuit Pc connected to terminal P17 of the MCU1, and the voltage divided by this voltage dividing circuit Pc is input to terminal P17. The MCU1 detects that a USB connection has been made based on the voltage input to terminal P17.

[0108] When the MCU1 detects that a USB connection has been made, it turns off the bipolar transistor S2 connected to the terminal P19. When a low-level signal is input to the gate terminal of the bipolar transistor S2, the USB voltage V divided by the voltage divider circuit Pf is USB is input to the control terminal ON of LSW3. As a result, a high-level signal is input to the control terminal ON of LSW3, and LSW3 is turned on at the USB voltage V USB is output from the output terminal VOUT. The USB voltage V USB is input to the input terminal VBUS of the charging IC2. Also, the USB voltage V USB is supplied as it is to the LEDs L1 to L8 as the system power supply voltage Vcc4.

[0109] When the MCU1 detects that a USB connection has been made, it also outputs a low-level enable signal from terminal P22 to the charge enable terminal CE(￣) of the charger IC2. This causes the charger IC2 to enable the charging function of the power supply BAT and increase the USB voltage V input to the input terminal VBUS. USB Start charging the power supply BAT.

[0110] If a USB connection is made in the active mode, the MCU1 detects this and turns off the bipolar transistor S2 connected to the terminal P19. It also outputs a low-level enable signal from the terminal P22 to the charge enable terminal CE(￣) of the charging IC2, and turns off the OTG function of the charging IC2 through serial communication using the communication line LN. As a result, the system power supply voltage Vcc4 supplied to the LEDs L1 to L8 becomes the voltage (power supply voltage V BAT The USB voltage V output from LSW3 is USB The LEDs L1 to L8 will not operate unless the built-in transistors are turned on by the MCU1. This prevents the unstable voltage that occurs during the transition period when the OTG function is turned on and off from being supplied to the LEDs L1 to L8.

[0111] <Reset of MCU: Figure 19> When the outer panel 115 is removed and the output of the Hall IC 13 becomes low level, and when the on-operation of the operation switch OPS is performed and the signal input to the terminal P4 of the MCU 1 becomes low level, both the terminal SW1 and the terminal SW2 of the switch driver 7 become low level. As a result, the switch driver 7 outputs a low-level signal from the reset input terminal RSTB. The low-level signal output from the reset input terminal RSTB is input to the control terminal ON of the LSW4. As a result, the LSW4 stops the output of the system power supply voltage Vcc2 from the output terminal VOUT. Since the system power supply voltage Vcc2 is no longer input to the power supply terminal VDD of the MCU 1, the MCU 1 stops.

[0112] When the time during which the switch driver 7 outputs a low-level signal from the reset input terminal RSTB reaches a predetermined time, or when the signal input to either the terminal SW1 or the terminal SW2 becomes high level, the switch driver 7 returns the signal output from the reset input terminal RSTB to high level. As a result, the control terminal ON of the LSW4 becomes high level, and the state in which the system power supply voltage Vcc2 is supplied to each part returns.

[0113] <Details of Heating Control and Temperature Detection Control> Figure 20 is a main circuit diagram showing the main electronic components used for heating and temperature detection of the heater HTR among the electric circuits shown in Figure 10. In Figure 20, as electronic components and nodes whose illustration or symbols were omitted in Figure 10, there are a reactor Ld, a resistor R S4 and an npn-type bipolar transistor T S4 and resistors R Pb1 and resistor R Pb2 that constitute the voltage dividing circuit Pb, the parasitic diode D5 of the switch S5, nodes N1 to N8, the operational amplifiers OP4 and OP5 built in the MCU 1, the ADC (analog-to-digital converter) 1a, and the ADC1b. Various resistors shown in Figure 20 (resistor R S4 resistor Rs, resistor RPb1 , resistor R Pb2 , and resistor R4) are fixed resistors with a predetermined resistance value.

[0114] Resistor R S4 One end of is connected to the gate terminal of switch S4. Resistor R S4 The other end of is connected to the collector terminal of bipolar transistor T S4 The emitter terminal of bipolar transistor T S4 is connected to ground. The base terminal of bipolar transistor T S4 is connected to terminal P15 of MCU1.

[0115] Reactor Ld is provided for the purpose of reducing the noise of the drive voltage V bst output from boost DC / DC converter 9. Reactor Ld is connected between the source terminal of switch S4 and the output terminal VOUT of boost DC / DC converter 9. In addition to reactor Ld, a first reactor for noise reduction may be provided between switch S4 and resistor Rs, and another second reactor for noise reduction may be provided between resistor Rs and the positive electrode side heater connector Cn(+). Any one of these, reactor Ld, the first reactor, and the second reactor may be omitted, or any two of them may be omitted. Also, these reactors for noise reduction are not essential and can be omitted.

[0116] Node N1 connects the source terminal of switch S3 and one end of reactor Ld. Node N1 is connected to the output terminal VOUT of boost DC / DC converter 9.

[0117] Node N7 connects the positive electrode side (+ pole) heater connector Cn(+) and the non-inverting input terminal of operational amplifier OP1.

[0118] Node N2 connects the drain terminal of switch S3 and node N7.

[0119] Node N4 connects node N2 and resistor Rs. Node N4 is connected to the gate terminal of switch S5.

[0120] Node N5 connects the opposite end of resistor R4 on the op-amp OP1 side and the drain terminal of switch S5. Node N5 is connected to terminal P9 of MCU1.

[0121] Node N3 connects the drain terminal of switch S4 and the opposite end of resistor Rs on the node N4 side. Node N3 is connected to the positive power supply terminal of op-amp OP1 and one end of resistor R Pb1 and is connected to one end of the resistor.

[0122] Node N6 connects the other end of resistor R Pb1 and one end of resistor R Pb2 Node N6 is connected to terminal P18 of MCU1. The other end of resistor R Pb2 is connected to ground.

[0123] Node N8 connects the negative electrode side (- pole) heater connector Cn(-) and the drain terminal of switch S6. Node N8 is connected to the inverting input terminal of op-amp OP1.

[0124] The parasitic diode D5 has a configuration where the anode is connected to the source terminal of switch S5 and the cathode is connected to the drain terminal of switch S5.

[0125] In the circuit shown in FIG. 20, the current flow when switch S4 is turned on is as follows. First, with the drive voltage V bst output from the output terminal VOUT of the boost DC / DC converter 9, MCU1 turns on the bipolar transistor T S4 and an amplified current is output from the emitter terminal of the bipolar transistor T S4 . As a result, the gate terminal of switch S4 is connected to resistor R S4 , the collector terminal of the bipolar transistor T S4 and the bipolar transistor TS4 is connected to the ground via the emitter terminal thereof. As a result, the gate voltage of the switch S4 becomes a value close to the ground potential (assumed to be 0V in this embodiment), and the absolute value of the gate-source voltage of the switch S4 becomes larger than the absolute value of the threshold voltage of the switch S4, and the switch S4 turns on. The bipolar transistor T S4 is turned off, the absolute value of the gate-source voltage of the switch S4 becomes equal to or less than the absolute value of the threshold voltage of the switch S4, so the switch S4 turns off. The gate-source voltage refers to the voltage applied between the gate terminal and the source terminal. Since the switch S4 in this embodiment is a P-channel type MOSFET, when trying to turn on the switch S4, a gate-source voltage having a negative value is required. In other words, when the potential of the source terminal becomes lower than the threshold voltage from the potential of the gate terminal, the switch S4 is turned on. For example, when the threshold voltage of the switch S4 is -4.5V, if the source potential is 4.9V and the gate potential is 0V, the gate-source voltage becomes -4.9V. Since -4.9V is lower than the threshold voltage of -4.5V, the switch S4 is turned on. On the other hand, if the source potential is 4.9V and the gate potential is 3.3V, the gate-source voltage becomes -1.6V. Since -1.6V is higher than the threshold voltage of -4.5V, the switch S4 is turned off. In this specification, for ease of understanding, the gate-source voltage and the threshold voltage of the P-channel type MOSFET are described as absolute values ignoring the signs.

[0126] Note that the system power supply voltage Vcc2 (the power supply voltage of the MCU1 input to the power supply terminal VDD of the MCU1) and the drive voltage V bst are preferably the values shown below. System power supply voltage Vcc2 = 3.3V Drive voltage V bst = 4.9V

[0127] Next, with reference to FIGS. 21 to 24, the heating control of the heater HTR and the operation of the temperature detection control of the heater HTR will be described.

[0128] FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of voltage changes input to the gate terminals of switch S3 and switch S4 in the heating mode. In the present embodiment, since switches S3 and S4 are P-channel type MOSFETs, it should be noted that switches S3 and S4 are turned on when the voltage input to the gate terminal is at a low level. In FIG. 21, drive example EX1 and drive example EX2 are shown. In drive example EX1 of FIG. 21, MCU1 alternately repeats turning on and off each of switches S3 and S4. That is, in drive example EX1, MCU1 turns off switch S4 while switch S3 is on, and turns on switch S4 while switch S3 is off. In other words, in drive example EX1, the period during which the voltage input to the gate terminal of switch S3 is at a low level and the period during which the voltage input to the gate terminal of switch S4 is at a low level do not overlap. Drive example EX2 is different from drive example EX1 in that the period during which switch S3 is on and the period during which switch S4 is on partially overlap. In other words, in drive example EX2, the period during which the voltage input to the gate terminal of switch S3 is at a low level and the period during which the voltage input to the gate terminal of switch S4 is at a low level overlap.

[0129] FIG. 21 shows the control cycle Tc of MCU1. MCU1 controls the time for turning on switch S3 while keeping the time for turning on switch S4 constant in this control cycle Tc. That is, during heating control, MCU1 supplies power to heater HTR by PWM (pulse width modulation) control. Among this control cycle Tc, the time excluding the fixed time during which switch S4 is on is the maximum value of the time for turning on switch S3. The fixed time during which switch S4 is on is sufficiently smaller than the maximum value of the time for turning on switch S3, for example, it is 1 / 10 or less of this maximum value. Note that switch S3 may be turned on multiple times during control cycle Tc. In this case, if the duty ratio calculated by PWM control is less than 100%, switch S3 will be intermittently turned on during the time excluding the fixed time during which switch S4 is on in control cycle Tc.

[0130] In drive example EX1, the MCU1 controls such that the switch S4 switches from off to on at the timing when the switch S3 switches from on to off. That is, the MCU1 fixes the timing to turn off the switch S3 and changes the on-time of the switch S3 by controlling the timing to turn on the switch S3. Note that the MCU1 may supply power to the heater HTR by PFM (pulse frequency modulation) control.

[0131] FIG. 22 is a diagram showing the current flow during heating control in the heating mode. During heating control, the switch S3 is on and the switch S4 is off. In this state, a first heating discharge path HR1 in which current flows in the order of node N1, switch S3, node N2, node N7, heater HTR, node N8, switch S6, and ground, a second heating discharge path HR2 in which current flows in the order of node N1, switch S3, node N2, node N4, and the gate terminal of switch S5, and a third heating discharge path HR3 in which current flows in the order of node N1, switch S3, node N2, node N4, resistor Rs, node N3, and the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 are formed.

[0132] Due to the existence of the third heating discharge path HR3, a voltage lower than the drive voltage V (the voltage after voltage drop by the resistor Rs of the drive voltage V) is supplied to the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1, and the operational amplifier OP1 is operable. That is, during heating control, due to the existence of the third heating discharge path HR3, the voltage applied between the positive power supply terminal and the negative power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 is a value lower than the drive voltage V (however, a value higher than the system power supply voltage Vcc2 which is the power supply voltage of the MCU1). In this state, the differential input value of the operational amplifier OP1 is the drive voltage V bst is supplied with a voltage lower than it (the voltage after voltage drop by the resistor Rs of the drive voltage V), and the operational amplifier OP1 is operable. That is, during heating control, due to the existence of the third heating discharge path HR3, the voltage applied between the positive power supply terminal and the negative power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 is a value lower than the drive voltage V bst and becomes a value lower than the drive voltage V (however, a value higher than the system power supply voltage Vcc2 which is the power supply voltage of the MCU1). In this state, the differential input value of the operational amplifier OP1 is the drive voltage V bst and becomes a value lower than the drive voltage V (however, a value higher than the system power supply voltage Vcc2 which is the power supply voltage of the MCU1). In this state, the differential input value of the operational amplifier OP1 is the drive voltage V bstWhen it becomes higher than [a certain value], the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 will stick to the voltage applied to the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1. Since this voltage is higher than the power supply voltage of the MCU1, if this voltage is input to the MCU1, there is a risk that the MCU1 will not operate properly. Therefore, due to the presence of the second heating discharge path HR2, the switch S5 is turned on. As a result, the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 is divided by the resistor R4 and the on-resistance of the switch S5 and input to the terminal P9 of the MCU1. The on-resistance value of the switch S5 is sufficiently smaller than the resistance value of the resistor R4. For this reason, the voltage value divided by the resistor R4 and the switch S5 becomes very small. Therefore, it can be considered that the switch S5 clamps the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 to the ground level by turning on.

[0133] Figure 23 is a diagram showing the current flow during temperature detection control in the heating mode. During temperature detection control, the switch S3 is off and the switch S4 is on. In this state, a first detection discharge path MR1 through which current flows in the order of node N1, reactor Ld, switch S4, resistor Rs, node N2, node N7, heater HTR, node N8, switch S6, and ground, a second detection discharge path MR2 through which current flows in the order of node N1, reactor Ld, switch S4, resistor Rs, node N4, and the gate terminal of switch S5, and a third detection discharge path MR3 through which current flows in the order of node N1, reactor Ld, switch S4, node N3, and the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 are formed.

[0134] The resistance value of the reactor Ld and the on-resistance value of the switch S4 are sufficiently small. For this reason, due to the presence of the third detection discharge path MR3, a voltage (reference voltage V bst which is almost the same as [a certain voltage] temp ) is supplied to the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1, and the operational amplifier OP1 is operable. In this way, during temperature detection control, since the power supply voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 becomes larger than that during heating control, the upper limit value of the differential input value of the operational amplifier OP1 can be increased.

[0135] During temperature detection and control, the voltage of node N3 (reference voltage V temp ) is input to the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 as the voltage V heat divided by the resistor Rs and the heater HTR. Note that node N7 coincides with the potential of node N4 if the wiring resistance is ignored. Therefore, the voltage input to the gate terminal of switch S5 is also the same as the voltage V heat . Since the voltage V heat is below the threshold voltage of switch S5, switch S5 is off in the state of Fig. 23. Thus, it is preferable to determine the resistance value of the resistor Rs so that the voltage V heat is below the threshold voltage of switch S5. When switch S5 turns off, the output voltage V OUT of the operational amplifier OP1 is input to terminal P9 of the MCU1 without being divided. Note that when switch S5 is off, the parasitic diode D5 behaves like a Zener diode. Therefore, even if the output voltage V OUT of the operational amplifier OP1 becomes excessive due to some factor, it is possible to prevent the voltage input to terminal P9 of the MCU1 from becoming high. In this embodiment, in the state of Fig. 23, the resistance values of the resistor R4 and the resistor Rs are determined so that the voltage input to terminal P9 of the MCU1 is below the operating voltage of the MCU1 (system power supply voltage Vcc2).

[0136] Let the amplification factor of the operational amplifier OP1 be A, the resistance value of the heater HTR be R HTR , the resistance value of the resistor Rs be R RS , and assume that the voltage input to the inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 is 0V. Then, the output voltage V OUT of the operational amplifier OP1 is expressed by the following formula (1). The term excluding the amplification factor A on the right side of formula (1) corresponds to the voltage V heat .

[0137]

Equation

[0138] Regarding formula (1) with respect to the resistance value R HTRSolving for it gives the following equation (2).

[0139] [Number]

[0140] During temperature detection control, the MCU1 amplifies the difference between the output voltage V input to terminal P9 and the ground potential (= 0V) by the built-in operational amplifier OP5, and converts the amplified voltage into a digital value (denoted as ADC_V OUT using the built-in ADC1b. Also, the MCU1 amplifies the difference between the divided voltage value of the reference voltage V input to terminal P18 (the value divided by the voltage dividing circuit Pb) and the ground potential (= 0V) by the built-in operational amplifier OP4, and converts the amplified voltage into a digital value (denoted as ADC_V OUT using the built-in ADC1a. The inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier OP4 and / or the operational amplifier OP5 does not necessarily have to be connected to the ground potential, and it may be connected to another reference potential. When this reference potential is sufficiently high, the reference potential is connected to the non-inverting input terminal, and the output voltage V temp or the divided voltage value of the reference voltage V temp may be connected to the inverting input terminal. Note that the outputs of ADC1a and the operational amplifier OP4 generate a temperature drift error ε1 due to the influence of the temperature inside the MCU1, and the outputs of ADC1b and the operational amplifier OP5 generate a temperature drift error ε2 due to the influence of the temperature inside the MCU1. That is, the digital value output from ADC1a is strictly ADC_V OUT (1 + ε1), and the digital value output from ADC1b is strictly ADC_V temp (1 + ε2). temp (1 + ε1) is substituted into V OUT in Equation (2), and the digital value ADC_V

[0141] The digital value ADC_V temp (1 + ε2) is substituted into V temp in Equation (2), and the digital value ADC_V OUT (1 + ε2) is substituted into V OUTWhat is substituted into it is Equation (3). ADC1a and operational amplifier OP4, and ADC1b and operational amplifier OP5 are respectively provided inside MCU1. Therefore, the temperature drift error ε1 and the temperature drift error ε2 can be regarded as almost the same. That is, (1 + ε1) and (1 + ε2) in Equation (3) have the same value. For this reason, in Equation (3), the temperature drift error is canceled out. MCU1 derives the resistance value R of the heater HTR through the calculation of this Equation (3). HTR Since the heater HTR has the characteristic that its resistance value changes according to the temperature, once the resistance value R HTR is derived, the temperature of the heater HTR can be obtained.

[0142]

Number

[0143] In this way, through the calculation of Equation (3), the temperature drift error that may occur in the output voltage V OUT (exactly, the temperature drift error that may occur in the output of the electronic components (operational amplifier OP5 and ADC1b) necessary to obtain the information corresponding to the output voltage V OUT ) and the temperature drift error that may occur in the reference voltage V temp (exactly, the temperature drift error that may occur in the output of the electronic components (operational amplifier OP4 and ADC1a) necessary to obtain the information corresponding to the reference voltage V temp ) can be canceled out, and the resistance value R of the heater HTR HTR can be derived more accurately. In other words, the resistance value R of the heater HTR HTR can be easily derived without being affected by the temperature of MCU1.

[0144] In the example of Figure 20, inside MCU1, the operational amplifier OP5 and ADC1b, and the operational amplifier OP4 and ADC1a are provided separately. However, these may be shared. That is, the operational amplifier and ADC for obtaining the information of the output voltage V OUT and the operational amplifier and ADC for obtaining the information of the reference voltage V temp are shared, and the digital value ADC_Vtemp (1 + ε1) and the digital value ADC_V OUT It may be configured to obtain (1 + ε2) in a time-division manner. According to this configuration, the temperature drift errors generated in these two digital values can be made more consistent, and the resistance value R of the heater HTR HTR can be derived with higher accuracy.

[0145] Note that the potential of node N3 when switch S4 is on is almost the same as the potential of node N1. Therefore, when switch S3 is off and switch S4 is on, MCU1 uses the potential of node N1 as the reference voltage V temp for acquisition and may be used for deriving the resistance value of the heater HTR. Also, if it is acceptable to constantly supply a voltage to the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 and increase the power consumption, the positive power supply terminal of the operational amplifier OP1 may be connected to node N1 instead of node N3, and node N1 and the voltage dividing circuit Pb may be connected.

[0146] FIG. 24 is a diagram showing the current flow when both switch S3 and switch S4 in the driving example EX2 of FIG. 21 are on. In the state of FIG. 24, a first heating and discharging path HR1 in which current flows in the order of node N1, switch S3, node N2, node N7, heater HTR, node N8, switch S6, and ground, a second heating and discharging path HR2 in which current flows in the order of node N1, switch S3, node N2, node N4, and the gate terminal of switch S5, and a third detection and discharging path MR3 in which current flows in the order of node N1, reactor Ld, switch S4, node N3, and the positive power supply terminal of operational amplifier OP1 are formed.

[0147] In the state of FIG. 24, since node N3 and node N4 are at almost the same potential, almost no current flows through the resistor Rs. Therefore, the power supply voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 is the driving voltage V bst That is, in this state, the upper limit value of the differential input value of the operational amplifier OP1 is the driving voltage V bstIt becomes equal to this. Therefore, the output voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 becomes larger compared to the state of FIG. 22. However, in the present embodiment, in the state of FIG. 24, the resistance ratio of the resistor R4 and the on-resistance of the switch S5 are determined so that the voltage input to the terminal P9 of the MCU1 becomes equal to or lower than the operating voltage of the MCU1 (system power supply voltage Vcc2). For this reason, a voltage larger than the operating voltage is not input to the terminal P9 of the MCU1. That is, the operation of the MCU1 is stabilized.

[0148] Thus, in the suction device 100, as shown in FIG. 22, during the period when the switch S3 is on and the switch S4 is off, a voltage smaller than the drive voltage V is supplied as the power supply voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 by the third heating discharge path HR3. bst Also, as shown in FIG. 23, during the period when the switch S4 is on and the switch S3 is off, a voltage equivalent to the drive voltage V is supplied as the power supply voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 by the third detection discharge path MR3. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 21, during the period from starting the heating of the heater HTR, ending the heating, and ending the temperature detection of the heater HTR (the period from the fall of the gate voltage of the switch 3 to the rise of the immediately subsequent switch S4), the power supply voltage can be continuously supplied to the operational amplifier OP1. Therefore, compared with the reference example in which the power supply voltage is not supplied to the operational amplifier OP1 during the on-period of the switch S3 (the heating period of the heater HTR), it is not necessary to wait until the power supply voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 sufficiently rises during the temperature detection control, and the heating control and the temperature detection control can be efficiently executed. bst In particular, according to the drive example EX2, it becomes possible to supply the power supply voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 required during the temperature detection control while performing the heating control. For this reason, at the timing when the heating control ends, the power supply voltage of the operational amplifier OP1 can be set to a state where it has sufficiently risen. Compared with the drive example EX1, after the heating of the heater HTR ends, the resistance value of the heater HTR can be detected with high accuracy at an earlier timing.

[0149]

[0150] ​Note that in both driving example EX1 and driving example EX2 shown in FIG. 21, after switch S4 is turned off, there may be a period until switch S3 is turned on next, during which the power supply voltage is not supplied to operational amplifier OP1. However, immediately after this period, heating control is performed, and the operation of operational amplifier OP1 is not essential. Therefore, there is no problem even if the power supply voltage is not supplied to operational amplifier OP1 during this period. Moreover, since power consumption by operational amplifier OP1 can be eliminated during this period, it can contribute to power saving of the entire aspirator 100.

[0151] In the aspirator 100 configured as described above, switches S3, S4, and S6 shown in FIG. 20 each have a preferable configuration. Hereinafter, preferable examples of each switch will be described.

[0152] <Preferred Configuration of Switch S3> When heating heater HTR, switch S3 preferably has a low on-resistance value (in other words, a large chip size) so that more current flows through heater HTR. Hereinafter, when comparing the on-resistance values of switches S3, S4, and S6, the comparison will be made under the condition that the temperature and the flowing current are the same.

[0153] When heating heater HTR, switch S3 is turned on and off at high speed by PWM control, PFM control, or the like. Therefore, it is preferable that the maximum current value that can be output instantaneously (the maximum current value that can be output in a pulse shape) is large. Also, from the viewpoint of flowing a large amount of current through heater HTR and the viewpoint of having a longer on-time than switch S4, it is preferable that the maximum continuous output current value of switch S3 is larger than that of switch S4. Hereinafter, when comparing the maximum current values that can be output by switches S3, S4, and S6, the comparison will be made under the condition that the temperature is the same.

[0154] As illustrated in FIG. 20, switch S3 is preferably a P-channel MOSFET. Switch S3 can also be composed of an N-channel MOSFET. However, when switch S3 is composed of an N-channel MOSFET, in order to turn on switch S3, the voltage supplied from terminal P16 of MCU1 to the gate terminal of switch S3 needs to be a value larger than the drive voltage V bst and the power supply voltage of MCU1 needs to be increased. On the other hand, if switch S3 is composed of a P-channel MOSFET, since the power supply voltage of MCU1 can be lowered below the drive voltage V bst , the power consumption of MCU1 can be suppressed.

[0155] <Preferred Configuration of Switch S4> Switch S4 preferably has a small on-resistance value so that a voltage of sufficient magnitude can be applied to the series circuit of resistor Rs and heater HTR. However, if the on-resistance value is made too small, the size will increase. Therefore, in order to reduce the circuit area, the on-resistance value of switch S4 is preferably larger than the on-resistance value of switch S3. Also, in order for the current for detecting the resistance value of heater HTR not to change the temperature of heater HTR, the on-resistance value of switch S4 is preferably not too small. Specifically, the on-resistance value of switch S4 is preferably smaller than the resistance value of resistor Rs and larger than the on-resistance value of switch 3.

[0156] As illustrated in FIG. 21, the detection of the resistance value of heater HTR needs to be performed in a shorter time than the heating of heater HTR. Also, since switch S6 is always on in the heating mode, its responsiveness does not need to be high. For this reason, the responsiveness of switch S4 is preferably higher than the responsiveness of switch S3 and switch S6. As indicators showing the responsiveness of a transistor, there are turn-on time t on , turn-on delay time t d(on) , rise time t r , turn-off time t off , turn-off delay time t d(off) , and fall time t f .

[0157] Turn-on delay time t d(on) is the time required for the drain-source voltage to reach 90% of the set value after the gate-source voltage reaches 10% of the set value during turn-on. Rise time t r is the time required for the drain-source voltage to reach from 90% to 10% of the set value during turn-on. Turn-on time t on is the turn-on delay time t d(on) and the rise time t r is the total value of. Turn-off delay time t d(off) is the time required for the drain-source voltage to reach 10% of the set value after the gate-source voltage reaches 90% of the set value during turn-off. Fall time t f is the time required for the drain-source voltage to reach from 10% to 90% of the set value during turn-off. Turn-off time t off is the turn-off delay time t d(off) and the fall time t f is the total value of.

[0158] The detection of the resistance value of the heater HTR needs to be performed in a shorter time than the heating of the heater HTR. For this reason, it is preferable that the turn-on delay time or the rise time of the switch S4 is shorter than the respective turn-on delay times or rise times of the switches S3 and S6. Similarly, it is preferable that the turn-off delay time or the fall time of the switch S4 is shorter than the respective turn-off delay times or fall times of the switches S3 and S6.

[0159] As illustrated in FIG. 20, the switch S4 is preferably a P-channel type MOSFET. The switch S4 can also be composed of an N-channel type MOSFET. However, when the switch S4 is composed of an N-channel type MOSFET, in order to turn on the switch S4, the voltage supplied from the terminal P15 of the MCU1 to the gate terminal of the switch S4 is the drive voltage V bstIt is necessary to set it to a value larger than this, and the power supply voltage of the MCU1 increases. On the other hand, if the switch S4 is composed of a P-channel MOSFET, the power supply voltage of the MCU1 can be lowered below the driving voltage V bst Therefore, the power consumption of the MCU1 can be suppressed.

[0160] <Preferred Configuration of Switch S6> When heating the heater HTR, the switch S6 preferably has a low on-resistance value (in other words, a large chip size) so that more current flows through the heater HTR. Specifically, the on-resistance value of the switch S6 is preferably made equal to the on-resistance value of the switch S3.

[0161] The switch S6 needs to continuously conduct current in the heating mode. Therefore, the maximum current value that the switch S6 can continuously output is preferably larger than that of the switch S4 and the switch S3. On the other hand, since the switch S6 is always on in the heating mode, the maximum current value that the switch S6 can instantaneously output (output in a pulse shape) is preferably made smaller than that of the switch S3 whose on and off are repeated. If the maximum current value that can be instantaneously output (output in a pulse shape) for the application of the switch S6 is made too large, there is a risk that the chip size and cost of the switch S6 will increase.

[0162] In addition, since the switch S3 is connected to a high-potential point on the circuit, it is difficult to improve the responsiveness of the switch S3 more than that of the switch S6 from the viewpoint of safety. Therefore, increasing the responsiveness of the switch S6 more than that of the switch S3 is effective in improving the responsiveness of the entire circuit. Specifically, the turn-off delay time or fall time of the switch S6 is preferably shorter than the turn-off delay time or fall time of the switch S3. Similarly, the turn-on delay time or rise time of the switch S6 is preferably shorter than the turn-on delay time or rise time of the switch S3.

[0163] As illustrated in FIG. 20, switch S6 is preferably an N-channel MOSFET. Switch S6 can also be configured with a P-channel MOSFET. However, when switch S6 is configured with a P-channel MOSFET, in order to turn on switch S6, it is necessary to make the voltage supplied from terminal P14 of MCU1 to the gate terminal of switch S6 a value smaller than the ground level. If an attempt is made to generate a voltage smaller than the ground level, a dedicated circuit such as a negative power supply or a rail splitter circuit becomes necessary. On the other hand, if switch S6 is configured with an N-channel MOSFET, MCU1 can turn on switch S6 by inputting a voltage equivalent to its own power supply voltage to the gate terminal, so that the circuit can be prevented from becoming complicated. Also, if switch S6 is configured with an N-channel MOSFET, simultaneously with turning on switch S6, a high-level signal can be input to the enable terminal EN of boost DC / DC converter 9 to output drive voltage V bst therefrom. When switch S6 is configured with a P-channel MOSFET, it is necessary to connect an inverter for logical inversion between the enable terminal EN of boost DC / DC converter 9 and the gate terminal of switch S6. However, by configuring switch S6 with an N-channel MOSFET, such an inverter can be made unnecessary, and reduction of circuit scale and manufacturing cost can be realized.

[0164] Thus, it is preferable that switches S3, S4, and S6 have different configurations respectively. In this specification, different configurations of switches including transistors mean satisfying at least one of different types of transistors and different transistor specifications (such as on-resistance value and responsiveness). By adopting such a configuration, the type and specification of each switch can be made corresponding to the location where each is connected, compared with the case where all three switches are of the same type and specification. Therefore, the performance of the suction device 100 can be improved.

[0165] In the circuit shown in FIG. 20, it is also possible to omit the switch S6 and directly connect the node N8 to the ground. Even in this case, by configuring the switch S3 and the switch S4 differently, the type and specification of each switch can be made according to the location to which each is connected, as compared with the case where all of the two switches are of the same type and specification. Therefore, the performance of the suction device 100 can be improved.

[0166] <Preferred Arrangement of Electronic Components> Next, a preferred example of the installation location on the receptacle mounting board 162 of the main electronic components in the circuit shown in FIG. 20 will be described.

[0167] FIG. 25 is a plan view of the receptacle mounting board 162 as viewed from the main surface 162a side. FIG. 26 is a plan view of the receptacle mounting board 162 as viewed from the sub-surface 162b side. As shown in FIG. 25, on the main surface 162a of the receptacle mounting board 162, among the electronic components shown in FIG. 20, the reactor Lc, the resistor Rs, the switch S4, the switch S6, and the heater connector Cn are provided. As shown in FIG. 26, on the sub-surface 162b of the receptacle mounting board 162, among the electronic components shown in FIG. 20, the boost DC / DC converter 9, the switch S3, the resistor R Pb1 、and the resistor R Pb2 are provided.

[0168] On the sub-surface 162b, the resistor R Pb1 and the resistor R Pb2 are arranged in proximity. The resistor R Pb1 and the resistor R Pb2 constitute a voltage dividing circuit Pb that divides the potential of the node N3. When a temperature difference occurs between the resistor R Pb1 and the resistor R Pb2 , the voltage division ratio of the voltage dividing circuit Pb fluctuates, and the acquisition accuracy of the potential of the node N3 required to derive the resistance value of the heater HTR decreases. As shown in FIG. 26, the resistor R Pb1 and the resistor R Pb2 are mounted on the same surface of the receptacle mounting board 162 and, furthermore, are arranged in proximity, so that the resistor R Pb1and resistor R Pb2 It is possible to prevent a temperature difference from occurring. To enhance this effect, among the electronic components mounted on the receptacle mounting substrate 162, the electronic component closest to the resistor R Pb1 is preferably the resistor R Pb2 .

[0169] Among the electronic components shown in FIGS. 25 and 26, those that can be heat sources or noise sources include the switch S3, the boost DC / DC converter 9, the reactor Lc, and the heater connector Cn. Among these, the switch S3 has the largest heat generation amount, and the boost DC / DC converter 9 has the second largest heat generation amount. In the examples of FIGS. 25 and 26, the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9 with large heat generation amounts, the switch S4, the switch S6, and the resistor Rs are mounted on the other side of the same substrate. In other words, the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9 are mounted on the secondary surface 162b, and the switch S4, the switch S6, and the resistor Rs are mounted on the primary surface 162a. By doing so, it is possible to suppress the switch S4, the switch S6, and the resistor Rs from being affected by heat or noise from the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9.

[0170] Also, in the example shown in FIG. 25, in a state viewed in a direction orthogonal to the element mounting surfaces (the primary surface 162a and the secondary surface 162b) of the receptacle mounting substrate 162, the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9, and the switch S4, the switch S6, and the resistor Rs are arranged so as not to overlap. By doing so, heat or noise generated by the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9 is less likely to be transmitted to the switch S4, the switch S6, and the resistor Rs through the substrate. That is, it is possible to more strongly suppress the switch S4, the switch S6, and the resistor Rs from being affected by heat or noise from the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9.

[0171] In the examples shown in FIGS. 25 and 26, for example, the switch S4 or the switch S6 may be implemented on the secondary surface 162b. By doing so, it is possible to prevent either the switch S4 or the switch S6 from being affected by heat or noise from the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9.

[0172] Also, among the electronic components of the circuit shown in FIG. 20, at least one of the switch S4 and the switch S6 may be configured to be mounted on a substrate different from the receptacle mounting substrate 162 (for example, the MCU mounting substrate 161, etc.). By doing so, it is also possible to prevent at least one of the switch S4 and the switch S6 from being affected by heat or noise from the switch S3 and the boost DC / DC converter 9.

[0173] FIG. 25 shows the distance DS4 (the length of the straight line connecting the two mounting areas at the shortest distance) between the mounting area where the resistor Rs is mounted on the main surface 162a and the mounting area where the reactor Lc is mounted on the main surface 162a. Also, FIG. 25 shows the distance DS5 (the length of the straight line connecting the two mounting areas at the shortest distance) between the mounting area where the switch S4 is mounted on the main surface 162a and the mounting area where the reactor Lc is mounted on the main surface 162a. And the distance DS4 is shorter than the distance DS5.

[0174] The resistance value of the resistor Rs is less affected by temperature variation compared to the on-resistance value of the switch S4. Therefore, for the resistor Rs that is less affected by temperature changes, by arranging it closer to the reactor Lc than the switch S4, the substrate area can be effectively utilized.

[0175] Furthermore, in the example of FIG. 25, a resistor Rs is mounted between the switch S4 and the reactor Lc. That is, the mounting area of the resistor Rs exists on a straight line connecting the mounting area of the switch S4 and the mounting area of the reactor Lc. By doing so, the resistor Rs becomes a physical barrier that protects the switch S4 from the heat generated by the reactor Lc. As a result, it is possible to strongly suppress the change in the temperature of the switch S4. If the on-resistance value of the switch S4 fluctuates, it will affect the measurement accuracy of the resistance value of the heater HTR. Therefore, suppressing the temperature change of the switch S4 is particularly important.

[0176] FIG. 27 is an enlarged view of the range H shown in FIG. 25. As shown in FIG. 27, on the main surface 162a of the receptacle mounting substrate 162, the mounting area of the switch S4 and the mounting area of the heater connector Cn are separated from each other, but between them, the resistor R S4 and the bipolar transistor T S4 are mounted. In other words, on each of the straight lines DL1 and DL2 connecting the mounting area of the switch S4 and the mounting area of the heater connector Cn, the resistor R S4 and the bipolar transistor T S4 are mounted. According to this configuration, the resistor R S4 and the bipolar transistor T S4 become physical barriers that protect the switch S4 from the heat generated by the heater connector Cn. As a result, it is possible to strongly suppress the change in the temperature of the switch S4.

[0177] Also, as shown in FIGS. 25 and 27, switch S4 is disposed near the outer edge on the main surface 162a of the receptacle mounting substrate 162. Specifically, on the main surface 162a of the receptacle mounting substrate 162, the distance DS1 between the mounting area of switch S4 and the closest edge 162em, which is the edge of the rightward edge 162e of the main surface 162a closest to the mounting area of switch S4, is shorter than the distance DS2 between the center in the left-right direction on the main surface 162a of the receptacle mounting substrate 162 and the mounting area of switch S4. In this way, by disposing switch S4 near the edge of the receptacle mounting substrate 162, it is less likely to be affected by the heat generated by other electronic components. In particular, as shown in FIG. 27, by ensuring that there are no other electronic components between the closest edge 162em and switch S4, in other words, by making the electronic component closest to the closest edge 162em on the receptacle mounting substrate 162 be switch S4, the temperature change of switch S4 can be further suppressed.

[0178] Also, in the example shown in FIG. 27, the distance DS3 between the mounting area of the resistor Rs on the main surface 162a of the receptacle mounting substrate 162 and the edge 162en, which is the edge of the edge 162e closest to the mounting area of the resistor Rs, is larger than the distance DS1. As described above, the resistor Rs is less likely to be affected by temperature changes than switch S4. Therefore, with respect to the resistor Rs, by disposing it closer to the center of the receptacle mounting substrate 162, the substrate area can be effectively utilized.

[0179] <Preferred form of switch S4> When switch S4 is on, the voltage V GS (absolute value) applied between the gate and the source is preferably set to as high a value as possible. That is, when switch S4 is a P-channel type MOSFET, the voltage V GSIt is preferably set to the largest possible value of -. By doing so, the on-resistance value of switch S4 can be reduced, the Joule heat during conduction can be decreased, and the temperature fluctuation of switch S4 can be suppressed. Specifically, the maximum rated value (absolute value) of the voltage that can be applied between the gate and source of switch S4 is voltage V GSS is set, and the threshold value (absolute value) of the voltage between the gate and source of switch S4 is voltage V th is set, then MCU1 preferably controls the voltage applied to the gate terminal of switch S4 such that the voltage V GS (absolute value) becomes a value close to the voltage V GSS and the voltage V th . In other words, it is preferable to control the voltage applied to the gate terminal of switch S4 such that the absolute value of the difference between the voltage V GSS and the voltage V GSS is smaller than the absolute value of the difference between the voltage V GS (absolute value) and the voltage V th and the voltage V GS (absolute value).

[0180] Thus, in order to make the voltage V GS (absolute value) a high value, it is preferable to provide an overvoltage protection diode such as a varistor between the gate terminal and source terminal of switch S4. With this overvoltage protection diode, even when a surge voltage that may be generated by switching in the boost DC / DC converter 9 is applied to switch S4, its value can be made not to exceed the maximum rated value. As a result, switch S4 is less likely to fail, and the durability of the aspirator 100 can be improved.

[0181] At least the following matters are described in this specification. Although the corresponding components, etc. in the above-described embodiments are shown in parentheses, it is not limited thereto.

[0182] (1) A power supply (power supply BAT), and A heater (heater HTR) that includes a + electrode and a - electrode and consumes power supplied from the power source to heat an aerosol source is connected to the + electrode and the - electrode, a heater connector (heater connector Cn); A first positive-side circuit including a first positive-side switch (switch S4) and a fixed resistor (resistor Rs) having one end connected to the + electrode (a circuit including a series circuit of a reactor Ld, a switch S4, and a resistor Rs and wiring connecting this series circuit to nodes N1 and N2); A second positive-side circuit including a second positive-side switch (switch S3) having one end connected to the + electrode and being connected in parallel to the first positive-side circuit (a circuit including wiring connecting the switch S3 to nodes N1 and N2); A negative-side switch (switch S6) connected to the - electrode; A controller (MCU1) configured to execute predetermined control based on the voltage applied to the fixed resistor or the heater connector when the first positive-side switch and the negative-side switch are ON; and The first positive-side switch satisfies at least one of a first condition that it is different from at least one of the second positive-side switch and the negative-side switch, and a second condition that the second positive-side switch is different from the negative-side switch. A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

[0183] (1) According to this, compared with the case where all three switches are of the same type and specification, the type and specification of each switch can be made according to the location where each is connected. For this reason, the performance of the aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0184] (2) A power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to (1), The first positive-side switch includes a P-channel type MOSFET, The second positive-side switch includes a P-channel type MOSFET, The negative-side switch includes an N-channel type MOSFET. Power supply unit of aerosol generator.

[0185] According to (2), a P-channel MOSFET suitable for a high potential (+ control) is arranged on the + side, and an N-channel MOSFET suitable for a low potential (− control) is arranged on the minus side. Therefore, the performance of the aerosol generator can be improved.

[0186] (3) The power supply unit of the aerosol generator according to (2), A boost converter (boost DC / DC converter 9) whose output terminal is connected to the source terminal of the P-channel MOSFET included in the first plus-side switch and the source terminal of the P-channel MOSFET included in the second plus-side switch; A controller (MCU1) connected to the gate terminal of the P-channel MOSFET included in the first plus-side switch and the gate terminal of the P-channel MOSFET included in the second plus-side switch; The voltage (system power supply voltage Vcc2) input to the power supply terminal (power supply terminal VDD) of the controller is lower than the voltage (drive voltage V bst ) output from the output terminal (VOUT) of the boost converter, Power supply unit of aerosol generator.

[0187] According to (3), a high voltage with excellent aerosol generation efficiency can be applied to the heater by the boost converter. In addition, even a power-saving type controller that operates at a low voltage can easily set the voltage between the gate and source of each of the first plus-side switch and the second plus-side switch to a value for turning on the switch. As a result, high performance and power saving of the aerosol generator can be realized simultaneously.

[0188] (4) The power supply unit of the aerosol generator according to (2) or (3), An output terminal (output terminal VOUT) is connected to the source terminals of the P-channel MOSFETs included in the first positive-side switch and the source terminals of the P-channel MOSFETs included in the second positive-side switch, and an enabling terminal (enable terminal EN) that outputs a voltage from the output terminal when a signal of a predetermined level is input is provided. A boost converter (boost DC / DC converter 9) is provided. The enabling terminal of the boost converter is connected to the gate terminal of the N-channel MOSFET included in the negative-side switch. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0189] (4) According to this, the ON of the negative-side switch and the startup of the boost converter can be performed simultaneously. Therefore, the processes required to discharge to the heater are reduced, and the responsiveness of aerosol generation can be enhanced.

[0190] (5) A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to (4), wherein the predetermined level is a high level. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0191] (5) According to this, the ON of the negative-side switch and the startup of the boost converter can be performed with the same signal. In other words, it is not necessary to connect an inverter for logical inversion to the enabling terminal of the boost converter. Therefore, while reducing the cost of the aerosol generating device, the responsiveness of aerosol generation can be enhanced.

[0192] (6) A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to (1), wherein the second positive-side switch includes a transistor, the negative-side switch includes a transistor, and the transistor included in the second positive-side switch has a difference other than the channel type from the transistor included in the negative-side switch. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0193] (6) According to this, compared with the case where the second positive-side switch and the negative-side switch are of different types and the same specifications, the specifications of each switch can be made according to the location where each is connected. Therefore, the performance of the aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0194] (7) A power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to (6), The maximum current value that the transistor included in the negative-side switch can continuously output is larger than the maximum current value that the transistor included in the second positive-side switch can continuously output. A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

[0195] (7) According to this, even if due to some factor the two positive-side switches are simultaneously turned on and current is supplied to the negative-side switch from both of the two positive-side circuits connected in parallel, the negative-side switch is less likely to be damaged. Therefore, the durability of the aerosol generating device is improved.

[0196] (8) A power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to (6) or (7), The controller is configured to repeatedly switch the on and off of the transistor included in the second positive-side switch while the transistor included in the negative-side switch is on. The maximum current value that the transistor included in the negative-side switch can output in a pulsed manner is smaller than the maximum current value that the transistor included in the second positive-side switch can output in a pulsed manner. A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

[0197] (8) According to this, even if a surge current is generated by repeatedly switching the second positive-side switch, the second positive-side switch is less likely to be damaged. Therefore, the aerosol generating device can operate stably.

[0198] (9) The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to any one of (6) to (8), The turn-off delay time of the transistor included in the second positive-side switch is longer than the turn-off delay time of the transistor included in the negative-side switch, and / or, The fall time of the transistor included in the second positive-side switch is longer than the fall time of the transistor included in the negative-side switch, The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device.

[0199] Since the positive-side transistor is connected to a high-potential point on the circuit, it is difficult to improve the responsiveness from the viewpoint of safety. According to (9), since the responsiveness of the negative-side transistor is higher than that of the positive side, the responsiveness regarding aerosol generation of the entire aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0200] (10) The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to any one of (6) to (9), The turn-on delay time of the transistor included in the second positive-side switch is longer than the turn-on delay time of the transistor included in the negative-side switch, and / or, The rise time of the transistor included in the second positive-side switch is longer than the rise time of the transistor included in the negative-side switch, The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device.

[0201] Since the positive-side transistor is connected to a high-potential point on the circuit, it is difficult to improve the responsiveness from the viewpoint of safety. According to (10), since the responsiveness of the negative-side transistor is higher than that of the positive side, the responsiveness regarding aerosol generation of the entire aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0202] (11) The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to (1), The first positive-side switch includes a P-channel type MOSFET, The second positive-side switch includes a P-channel type MOSFET, The P-channel type MOSFET included in the first positive-side switch is different from the P-channel type MOSFET included in the second positive-side switch. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0203] (11) According to this, compared with the case where the two positive-side switches are of the same type and specification, the specifications of each switch can be made according to the location where each is connected. Therefore, the performance of the aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0204] (12) A power supply unit for the aerosol generating device according to (11), The maximum current value that the P-channel type MOSFET included in the second positive-side switch can continuously output is larger than the maximum current value that the P-channel type MOSFET included in the first positive-side switch can continuously output. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0205] (12) According to this, when generating aerosol, more current can be supplied to the heater through the second positive-side switch. Therefore, the amount of aerosol that can be generated is improved, and the marketability of the aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0206] (13) A power supply unit for the aerosol generating device according to (11) or (12), The ON resistance value of the P-channel type MOSFET included in the second positive-side switch is lower than the ON resistance value of the P-channel type MOSFET included in the first positive-side switch. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0207] According to (13), while reducing the loss in the second positive-side switch, not only can the power for aerosol generation be supplied to the heater with low loss, but also the size of the first positive-side switch can be reduced. Therefore, while improving the aerosol generation efficiency of the aerosol generation device, its miniaturization can be achieved.

[0208] (14) A power supply unit of the aerosol generation device according to (13), The ON resistance value of the P-channel type MOSFET included in the first positive-side switch is lower than the electrical resistance value of the fixed resistor. A power supply unit of an aerosol generation device

[0209] According to (14), by using a fixed resistor with a high resistance value, the current flowing through the first positive-side switch can be made even smaller. Therefore, the first positive-side switch can be miniaturized, and further miniaturization of the aerosol generation device can be achieved.

[0210] (15) A power supply unit of the aerosol generation device according to any one of (11) to (14), The turn-on delay time of the P-channel type MOSFET included in the first positive-side switch is shorter than the turn-on delay time of the P-channel type MOSFET included in the second positive-side switch. And / or The rise time of the P-channel type MOSFET included in the first positive-side switch is shorter than the rise time of the P-channel type MOSFET included in the second positive-side switch. A power supply unit of an aerosol generation device

[0211] According to (15), when executing a predetermined control, the voltage applied to the heater connector or the fixed resistor can be obtained earlier. Therefore, the predetermined control can be executed with good responsiveness.

[0212] (16) A power supply unit of the aerosol generation device according to (1), The first positive-side switch includes a transistor, the negative-side switch includes a transistor, the transistor included in the first positive-side switch has a difference other than the channel type from the transistor included in the negative-side switch, A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0213] (16) According to this, compared with the case where the first positive-side switch and the negative-side switch are of the same type and specification, the specifications of each switch can be made according to the location to which each is connected. Therefore, the performance of the aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0214] (17) A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to (16), the turn-on delay time of the transistor included in the first positive-side switch is shorter than the turn-on delay time of the transistor included in the negative-side switch, and / or, the rise time of the transistor included in the first positive-side switch is shorter than the rise time of the transistor included in the negative-side switch, A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

[0215] (17) According to this, unlike the negative-type switch, the responsiveness of the first positive-side switch through which a large current does not flow can be enhanced. Therefore, the responsiveness for executing predetermined control of the entire aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0216] (18) A power source (power source BAT), a heater connector (heater connector Cn) including a + electrode and a - electrode, to which a heater (heater HTR) that consumes electric power supplied from the power source to heat an aerosol source is connected to the + electrode and the - electrode, A first positive-side circuit including a first positive-side switch (switch S4) having one end connected to the positive electrode and a fixed resistor (resistor Rs) (a series circuit of a reactor Ld, switch S4, and resistor Rs, and a circuit including wiring connecting this series circuit to nodes N1 and N2), A second positive-side circuit including a second positive-side switch (switch S3) having one end connected to the positive electrode and being connected in parallel to the first positive-side circuit (a circuit including wiring connecting switch S3 to nodes N1 and N2), A controller (MCU1) configured to execute predetermined control based on the voltage applied to the fixed resistor or the heater connector when the first positive-side switch is ON, The first positive-side switch is different from the second positive-side switch, A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

[0217] (18) According to this, compared with the case where the two switches are of the same type and specification, the type and specification of each switch can be made according to the location where each is connected. Therefore, the performance of the aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0218] (19) A power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to (18), The first positive-side switch includes a P-channel type MOSFET, The second positive-side switch includes a P-channel type MOSFET, The P-channel type MOSFET included in the first positive-side switch is different from the P-channel type MOSFET included in the second positive-side switch, A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

[0219] (19) According to this, compared with the case where the two switches are of different types and the same specification, the specification of each switch can be made according to the location where each is connected. Therefore, the performance of the aerosol generating device can be improved.

[0220] As described above, various embodiments have been described with reference to the drawings. Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious that those skilled in the art can conceive of various modifications or corrections within the scope described in the claims, and it is naturally understood that they also belong to the technical scope of the present invention. Further, within the scope not departing from the gist of the invention, the components in the above embodiments may be arbitrarily combined.

[0221] This application is based on a Japanese patent application filed on May 10, 2021 (Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-079879), the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0222] 100 Suction device 1 MCU 9 Boost DC / DC converter OP1 Operational amplifier Lc, Ld Reactors HTR Heater BAT Power supply Cn Heater connector S3, S4, S5, S6 Switches Rs, R4, R Pb1 、R Pb2 Resistor D5 Parasitic diode N1~N8 Nodes HR1 First heating discharge path HR2 Second heating discharge path HR3 Third heating discharge path MR1 First detection discharge path MR2 Second detection discharge path MR3 Third detection discharge path

Claims

1. A power supply, a heater connector including a + terminal and a - terminal to which a heater that consumes power supplied from the power supply and heats an aerosol source is connected, a first fixed resistor having one end connected to the + terminal of the heater connector, a first plus-side switch including a control terminal for controlling opening and closing and connected between the other end of the first fixed resistor and the power supply, a positive power supply terminal connected between the other end of the first fixed resistor and the first plus-side switch, a non-inverting input terminal connected between one end of the first fixed resistor and the + terminal of the heater connector, an inverting input terminal connected to the - terminal of the heater connector, and an output terminal, an operational amplifier including the same, a controller including an input terminal connected to the output terminal of the operational amplifier, the controller is configured to control the supply of power from the power supply to the heater based on an input to the input terminal, A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

2. The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to Claim 1, at least one of between the first plus-side switch and the power supply, between the first plus-side switch and the other end of the first fixed resistor, and between one end of the first fixed resistor and the + terminal of the heater connector is connected with a noise reduction component for reducing input noise, A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

3. The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to Claim 2, the noise reduction component is connected between the first plus-side switch and the power supply, A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

4. The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, including a minus-side switch connected to the - terminal of the heater connector, A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

5. The power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to Claim 4, including a voltage converter including an input terminal connected to the power supply, an output terminal connected to the first plus-side switch, and an activation terminal that outputs a voltage from the output terminal when a signal of a predetermined level is input, the minus-side switch includes a control terminal for controlling opening and closing, a terminal of the controller connected to the activation terminal of the voltage converter is the same as a terminal of the controller connected to the control terminal of the minus-side switch, A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

6. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, comprising: a second plus-side switch connected between one end of the first fixed resistor and the power supply; a sensor that outputs a user's aerosol generation request; and the controller is configured to close the second plus-side switch based on the aerosol generation request. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

7. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to Claim 6, wherein the controller is configured to alternately close the first plus-side switch and the second plus-side switch. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

8. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to Claim 7, wherein the controller turns on the first plus-side switch, and then, in the period until the first plus-side switch is turned on next, turns on the second plus-side switch at a start timing that is a predetermined time before the end timing of the period, turns off the second plus-side switch at the end timing, and variably controls the start timing. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

9. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to Claim 6, wherein the controller is configured to output a signal for turning on the other of the first plus-side switch and the second plus-side switch to the control terminal of the other of the first plus-side switch and the second plus-side switch while one of the first plus-side switch and the second plus-side switch is in the ON state. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

10. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to any one of Claims 6 to 9, comprising a clamp circuit connected to the output terminal of the operational amplifier and functioning only when the second plus-side switch is in the ON state. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

11. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to Claim 10, wherein the clamp circuit includes a clamp switch including a control terminal for controlling opening and closing, and the control terminal of the clamp switch is connected between one end of the first fixed resistor and the + pole of the heater connector. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device.

12. A power supply unit for an aerosol generating device according to Claim 10, wherein A second fixed resistor having one end connected to the output terminal of the operational amplifier and the other end connected to the input terminal of the controller. The clamping circuit includes an N-channel MOSFET. The gate terminal of the N-channel MOSFET is connected between one end of the first fixed resistor and the + pole of the heater connector. The source terminal of the N-channel MOSFET is connected to ground. The drain terminal of the N-channel MOSFET is connected between the other end of the second fixed resistor and the input terminal of the controller. A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

13. A power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to claim 12, wherein the resistance value of the second fixed resistor is higher than the ON resistance value of the N-channel MOSFET. A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

14. A power supply unit of the aerosol generating device according to claim 12 or 13, wherein the clamping circuit includes a parasitic diode including an anode connected to the source terminal of the N-channel MOSFET and a cathode connected to the drain terminal of the N-channel MOSFET. A power supply unit of an aerosol generating device.

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