Non-flammable aerosol supply system, system and method

Abstract

The non-flammable aerosol delivery system may include a data system configured to store operational data related to an operating state of the non-flammable aerosol delivery system and to store received operational data related to an operating state of another non-flammable aerosol delivery system, a wireless communication system configured to receive operational data related to an operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol delivery system from the other non-flammable aerosol delivery system using a non-connected data channel, and a user interface system configured to communicate instructions representative of the received operational data related to the operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol delivery system by user interface elements of the non-flammable aerosol delivery system.

Description

Field and Background

[0001]

[0001] This disclosure relates to sensing between devices, and more particularly, but not exclusively, to sharing operational data between devices using unconnected data channels.

[0002]

[0002] A "non-combustible" aerosol supply system is an aerosol supply system (or a component thereof) in which the aerosol-forming material that constitutes the aerosol supply system is not combusted, or cannot be burned, in order to facilitate the delivery of at least one substance to a user.

[0003]

[0003] It should be noted that the non-combustible aerosol supply system may be an electronic cigarette, also referred to as a vaping device or an electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS), but the presence of nicotine in the aerosol-forming material is not essential.

[0004]

[0004] The non-combustible aerosol supply system may be an aerosol-forming material heating system, also referred to as a non-combustion heating system. An example of such a system is a tobacco heating system.

[0005]

[0005] The non-combustible aerosol supply system may be a hybrid system for producing an aerosol using a combination of aerosol-forming materials, and one or more of the aerosol-forming materials may be heated. Each of the aerosol-forming materials may be in the form of, for example, a solid, liquid, or gel, and may or may not contain nicotine. The hybrid system may include a liquid or gel aerosol-forming material and a solid aerosol-forming material. The solid aerosol-forming material may include, for example, tobacco or non-tobacco products.

[0006]

[0006] Typically, a non-flammable aerosol supply system may include a non-flammable aerosol supply device and consumables used with the non-flammable aerosol supply device. The consumables may include an aerosol generating material, and the non-flammable aerosol supply device may generate an aerosol from the aerosol generating material.

[0007]

[0007] A non-flammable aerosol supply system, such as a non-flammable aerosol supply device, may include a power supply and a controller. The power supply may be, for example, a power source or a heat source. The heat source includes a carbon substrate to which a voltage can be applied to distribute power in the form of heat to an aerosol generating material or a heat transfer material adjacent to the heat source.

[0008]

[0008] The non-flammable aerosol supply system may include consumables, an aerosol generator, an aerosol generating area, a housing, a mouthpiece, a filter, and / or an area for housing an aerosol modifier.

[0009]

[0009] Consumables used with the non-flammable aerosol supply device may include aerosol generating material, aerosol generating material storage area, aerosol generating material transfer component, aerosol generator, aerosol generating area, housing, packaging material, filter, mouthpiece, and / or aerosol modifier.

[0010]

[0010] When a non-flammable aerosol supply system is in use, there may be information collected by the device regarding the status of the device. This information may be useful to the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system, relating to information such as the contents of the aerosol generating material, the battery charge level, or information regarding the remaining amount of the aerosol generating material, such as the puff count and / or total puff duration. In addition, information such as error codes may be generated by the device. Furthermore, there may be information useful to the user for the purpose of regulating the user's use of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. Such information may be used, for example, for some form of administrator entity that enables logging of the number and type of errors that occur. The inventors have devised methods for accessing such information in an energy-efficient and non-intrusive manner.

[0011]

[0011] Methods of transferring data using low-power communication protocols such as Bluetooth (trademark), or Bluetooth Low Energy (BTLE), also known as Bluetooth Smart, often involve establishing a partnership, bonding, pairing, or other connection-based channel between two entities to facilitate the transmission of information via that protocol. Overview

[0012]

[0012] Specific embodiments are presented in the independent and dependent claims.

[0013]

[0013] In the first aspect, a data system configured to store operational data relating to the operating state of a non-flammable aerosol supply system and to store received operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system; a wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system from another non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel; and a user interface element of the non-flammable aerosol supply system that indicates the received operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system. tell A non-flammable aerosol supply system may be provided, comprising a user interface system configured in such a manner.

[0014]

[0014] In another aspect, a system comprising a first non-flammable aerosol supply system and a second non-flammable aerosol supply system, wherein the first non-flammable aerosol supply system comprises a first wireless communication system configured to receive operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system from the second non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, a first data system configured to store the received operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system, and an instruction by a user interface element of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system that represents the received operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system tellA system may be provided comprising: a first user interface system configured as such; a second wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating state of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system from the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel; and a second data system configured to store the received operational data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system, wherein the second wireless communication system is configured to transmit operational data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system to the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel.

[0015]

[0015] In a further embodiment, the non-flammable aerosol supply system receives operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system from another non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, the non-flammable aerosol supply system stores the received operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system, and the non-flammable aerosol supply system provides instructions representing the received operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system. tell Methods including the above may be provided.

[0016]

[0016] Furthermore, although the above examples, aspects, and embodiments are implemented in the context of a user interface for a non-flammable aerosol supply system, the same technology may also be deployed in the context of a user interface for a device in a data connection with a non-flammable aerosol supply system, and / or as an alternative thereto. For example, the device may be a user device having a wired or wireless connection to the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0017]

[0017] Embodiments of this teaching will be described here by reference to the accompanying drawings, which are merely examples. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0018] [Figure 1]

[0018] This is a schematic diagram showing an example of a non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0019] [Figure 2A]

[0019] Figure 2A is a diagram schematically showing a method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0020] [Figure 2B]

[0020] Figure 2B is a flowchart of a method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0021] [Figure 3A]

[0021] Figure 3A is a diagram schematically showing another method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems. [Figure 3B]

[0021] Figure 3B is a diagram schematically showing another method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems. [Figure 3C]

[0021] Figure 3C is a diagram schematically showing another method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0022] [Figure 3D]

[0022] Figure 3D is a flowchart of a method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0023] [Figure 4A]

[0023] Figure 4A is a diagram schematically showing a method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0024] [Figure 4B]

[0024] Figure 4B is a flowchart of a method for providing communication between a plurality of separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0025] [Figure 5A]

[0025] Figure 5A is a schematic diagram illustrating a method for providing communication between a non-flammable aerosol supply system and a beacon.

[0026] [Figure 5B]

[0026] Figure 5B is a flowchart of a method for providing communication between a non-flammable aerosol supply system and a beacon.

[0027] [Figure 5C]

[0027] Figure 5C is a flowchart of a method for providing communication between a non-flammable aerosol supply system and a beacon.

[0028] [Figure 6A]

[0028] Figure 6A is a schematic diagram of the sequence of user interface screens.

[0029] [Figure 6B]

[0029] Figure 6B is a schematic diagram of the sequence of user interface screens. Detailed explanation

[0030]

[0030] The described method is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, but specific embodiments are shown as examples in the drawings and described in detail herein. The drawings and their detailed description are not intended to limit the scope to any particular form disclosed, but rather the scope should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives that fall within the spirit and scope defined by the appended claims.

[0031]

[0031] The present invention generally relates to sharing information between different non-flammable aerosol supply system devices, and then displaying the information on the non-flammable aerosol supply system itself. Both sharing and display are performed without transmitting data to, from, or via a connected device such as a smartphone.

[0032]

[0032] This disclosure also relates to the sharing of inventory information from a beacon associated with an inventory holding location to a non-flammable aerosol supply system. The inventory information is then displayed directly to the user by the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0033]

[0033] It should be understood that this method involves the transmission of data to and from a non-flammable aerosol supply system, and for the non-flammable aerosol supply system to process the data it stores and / or receives. Accordingly, an exemplary non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 is shown with respect to Figure 1 to illustrate a suitable device for providing such a function.

[0034]

[0034] An example of a non-flammable aerosol delivery system 10 is schematically shown in Figure 1. As illustrated, the aerosol delivery device 10 is a device that includes elements related to aerosol generation, such as an aerosol generating material container or cartridge 12 (in the case of an END device, the aerosol generating material container or cartridge 12 contains nicotine or a nicotine-containing preparation), an aerosol generation chamber 14, and an outlet 16 from which the generated aerosol can be discharged. The aerosol generating material container or cartridge 12 generally stores the aerosol generating material (also known as the aerosol medium) and may be a consumable or part of a consumable. A battery 18 may be provided to supply power to a heat generating element (such as a heater coil 20) in (or functionally adjacent to) the aerosol generation chamber 14. The battery 18 may also supply power to a processor / controller 22 which can serve the purposes of using the device, such as starting the device for aerosol generation in response to a start trigger, as well as for communication and function control purposes. The processor / controller 22 may have access to memory 24 which can be used to store operating instructions for the processor / controller 22. Memory 24 may also be used to store data describing the operating conditions and / or state of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 and / or one or more of its components. Memory 24 may be located inside the processor / controller 22 or provided as an additional separate physical element.

[0035]

[0035] A transmitter / receiver element 26 is provided in the processor / controller 22 to perform data transmission and reception and / or messaging. The transmitter / receiver element 26 enables the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 to communicate with connected devices using connectivity technologies such as personal area network protocols. Exemplary personal area network protocols include Bluetooth®, Bluetooth Low Energy® (BLE), Zigbee®, Wireless USB, and Near Field Communication (NFC). Exemplary personal area network protocols also include optical communications such as the Infrared Communications Association (IrDA), and protocols that utilize data over sound. Other wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi® technology may be used if the non-flammable aerosol supply system has the appropriate capabilities. In other examples, the transmitter / receiver element 26 may be configured to provide a wired communication channel between the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 and the physical port of the connected device. Such wired communication channels may utilize physical connection technologies such as USB®, serial port, FireWire®, or other point-to-point wired connections. The remainder of this description uses BLE as an example and employs BLE terminology, but it should be understood that corresponding or equivalent functions of other personal area network technologies may be used instead. Therefore, in this example, the transmitter / receiver element 26 is a BLE interface element that includes or is connected to a wireless antenna for wireless communication. In other examples, such as those shown above, this may be an interface element for alternative wireless technologies and / or wired connection interfaces.

[0036]

[0036] Any communication established with the connecting device may be temporary or not permanent, in the sense that it may be established for the duration necessary for the channel to perform a particular function, but may also be disconnected when it is not needed. In this example, the connecting device is typically another non-flammable aerosol supply system. In some examples, the connecting device may additionally or alternatively be any form of user device, such as a mobile phone or tablet, of a user (and / or owner) of the non-flammable aerosol supply system (which may also be called a remote device, in the sense that the device is remote from the non-flammable aerosol supply system).

[0037]

[0037] Continuing the description of Figure 1, the processor / controller 22 may, in one example, be an STM32 microcontroller based on an ARM® Cortex®-M processor, provided by STMicroelectronics. In other examples, alternative microcontrollers or processors may be used, which may be based on the ARM® architecture, and the Atom® architecture or other low-power processor technologies. Alternatively or additionally, the transmitter / receiver element 26 may, in one example, include an nRF BLE chip for providing BLE connectivity to a non-flammable aerosol supply system in cooperation with the processor / controller. In other examples, other communication interface chips or modules may be deployed to provide connectivity services.

[0038]

[0038] As illustrated, the processor / controller 22 may be connected to, for example, an aerosol generating material container or cartridge 12, an aerosol generating chamber 14, and a battery 18. This connection may be to an interface connection or to an output from one of the components, and / or to a sensor located in or within one of the components. These connections may provide the processor with access to the characteristics of each component. For example, a battery connection may be used to control the activation of a non-flammable aerosol supply system for aerosol generation.

[0039]

[0039] Further functions of the processor / controller 22 and / or memory 24 will be described with reference to the following example of the present method.

[0040]

[0040] In addition, the non-flammable aerosol supply system includes an output element 28. This output element is capable of outputting data / representations derived from data stored in memory 24 and / or received by the transmitter / receiver element 26. In this example, the output element includes a visual display element such as an illuminable indicator (e.g., an LED, a multicolor LED, etc.) or a display configured to output one or more letters, numbers, or symbols. If the output element 28 is a display, it may be a matrix or grid display such as an LED display or an LCD display. In some examples, the output element 28 may additionally or alternatively include an audio output element. Such an audio output element may be configured to emit one or more sounds. In some examples, the output element 28 may additionally or alternatively include a tactile feedback element. Such a tactile feedback element may be configured to cause detectable vibration or buzzing of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0041]

[0041] The non-flammable aerosol supply system may also include an input element 30. In this example, the input element 30 includes a button or other element capable of receiving physical input from a user. If the output element 28 is a display, the input element may be a contact-sensing detector and / or pressure-sensitive detector included in the display, such as a touchscreen display. In some examples, the input element 30 may also include, or alternatively include, a voice detector capable of receiving voice input. Such voice input may then be subjected to recognition processing (such as voice recognition processing) by the controller / processor 22 (or other processing hardware of the non-flammable aerosol supply system) to receive voice input from a user.

[0042]

[0042] The output element 28 and the input element 30 (if present) may be described as either the user interface system of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 or as part of the user interface system. Content communicated via the output element 28 is provided to the output element from the processor / controller 22, and inputs received via the input element 30 are provided to the processor / controller 22. Thus, the processor / controller 22 and / or instructions operating on it may also be described as part of the user interface system. The user interface system provides a mechanism for a user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 to receive information / notifications from the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10, and optionally also provides a mechanism for a user to provide input to the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10. The output element 28 and the input element 30 may be collectively referred to as the user interface element. In some examples, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be activated for aerosol generation by the input element 30 or by performing an action that generates a detectable airflow through one or more aerosol generation-related components of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. Therefore, the mechanism for activating the non-flammable aerosol supply system for aerosol generation can be considered either part of the user interface system or separate from the user interface system.

[0043]

[0043] As stated above, a non-flammable aerosol supply system may include one or more user interface elements of a user interface system. However, this teaching is also applicable to situations where a connected device (for example, connected via a wired or wireless connection using a transmitter / receiver element) has its own user interface system. The user interface of such a connected device may be used to carry out and implement any or all of the user interface behaviors described herein, and the user interface behaviors may be in addition to, or instead of, some or all of, the operation of those user interface behaviors using the user interface system of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0044]

[0044] Accordingly, a non-flammable aerosol supply system is described which can interact with one or more other non-flammable aerosol supply systems to provide users of the non-flammable aerosol supply system with several additional functions for the non-flammable aerosol supply system. Examples of such functions are described here.

[0045]

[0045] Figures 2A and 2B illustrate a first method for providing communication between multiple separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0046]

[0046] This method relates to a given non-combustible aerosol supply system configured to provide a user with an indication that one or more other non-combustible aerosol supply systems are in proximity to the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system. In this example, as shown in Figure 2A, two non-combustible aerosol supply systems 10a and 10b are within BLE communication distance D from each other. Either or both non-combustible aerosol supply systems may perform a method for determining whether another non-combustible aerosol supply system is within range of another non-combustible aerosol supply system. In response to a separate determination in each non-combustible aerosol supply system that another non-combustible aerosol supply system is within range, the respective display element 28 of each non-combustible aerosol supply system may display an indication that at least one other non-combustible aerosol supply system is active within range. Figure 2A shows that both non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10a and 10b are performing this method to enable each to display an indicator that at least one other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within range; however, this method is equally applicable when it occurs that only one of two or more non-flammable aerosol supply systems that are within each other's range is performing the method described.

[0047]

[0047] A method that can be performed independently by each non-flammable aerosol supply system to achieve this function is shown in Figure 2B. Starting in step S2-1, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a transmits an advertising packet. This may be a standard BLE advertising packet of the type conventionally used to advertise the presence of a BLE device as available for BLE connection / pairing. For this method, no payload is required for the advertising packet. In order to provide a high level of proximity information to the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be configured to repeatedly transmit such advertising packets at appropriate time intervals without user input. Alternatively, it may be appropriate to avoid wasting the battery power of the non-flammable aerosol supply system for aerosol generation or other functions by allowing user input to be used to trigger the transmission of advertising packets or the activation of an operating mode in which such advertising packets are transmitted. If user input is required for this function, the non-flammable aerosol supply system includes an input element 30.

[0048]

[0048] In response to receiving a BLE advertising packet by the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b, the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b transmits a response packet. The response packet may be either a BLE scan request packet or a BLE connection request packet. The response packet is then received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a in step S2-3. From the fact that this response message was received, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a already knows that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b is within communication range. Otherwise, the response packet would not have been received. As a result, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a knows that another non-flammable aerosol supply system is within communication range and is in an active state.

[0049]

[0049] Accordingly, in step S2-7, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a uses its display element 28a to display some information to indicate to the user that another non-flammable aerosol supply system is within range. As shown in Figure 2A, this displayed information is, in this example, a symbol indicating that some other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within range. In other examples, this information may be given by one or more other symbols, one or more letters, one or more numbers, one or more audible indications, and / or one or more tactile indications.

[0050]

[0050] While it has been explained that the response packet may be a BLE scan packet or a BLE connection request packet (either or both may be used as part of the process of establishing a BLE pairing or connection), it is not necessary for a BLE pairing / connection to be established in order to utilize the technique of this example. In other words, the technique utilizes the Bluetooth / BLE disconnection state to achieve the described result. Such pairing / connection may be requested / desired, and therefore this may be optionally continued in addition to the technique. As stated above, this example uses Bluetooth / BLE terminology, but the taught technique may employ other connectivity techniques, such as other personal area network techniques, to exchange disconnection and / or connection precursor packets. As is recognized, a disconnection state packet is a packet transmitted without (or before) formal, bonding, pairing, or other connection establishment processes. Therefore, an unconnected channel is a channel from which unconnected packets can be transmitted and / or received, i.e., a channel for exchanging packets, and a channel from which formalization, bonding, pairing, or other connection establishment processes have not been completed.

[0051]

[0051] Optionally, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may perform an additional step to determine the range of other non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10b from which the response was received in step S2-3. This determination involves calculating the range of the device from which the response packet was received (in this example, that device is the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b), as shown in optional step S2-5. This range calculation can be based on the received signal power of the response packet. By knowing the received signal power, an approximation of the distance D can be calculated. Thus, the display of information in step S2-7 may be done to indicate that another non-flammable aerosol supply system is within the range of distance D corresponding to a threshold.

[0052]

[0052] In this example, the distance calculation is a threshold distance calculation. In other words, the calculation determines whether the received signal power of the response packet is greater than or less than a preset threshold. This threshold is preset in the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a so as to represent a given value of distance D. Thus, in one particular example, the threshold may be set to determine whether another non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 is within 10 m of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. Other range values ​​are also possible, and the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may have multiple different range thresholds that the user can select for the purpose of "in range" detection.

[0053]

[0053] In order to set the threshold to be used by the non-flammable aerosol supply system, calculations may be performed based on the estimated and / or expected average transmit power of all non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10 that are compatible with this method, and the estimated power drop over the distance of the expected transmitting medium (presumably air, but some intervening building structures and / or living organisms and / or signal interference may be permitted). As is understood, factors such as unexpectedly high or low response packet transmit power, greater or less intervening building structures or living organisms, and higher or lower interference levels in the transmission frequency band(s) can all affect the received signal power, so determining the range using such a threshold based on such estimated parameters is necessarily an approximation. Therefore, the threshold representing a particular distance D will necessarily encompass a range of possible distances over which the distance between two non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10 is approximately that particular distance D.

[0054]

[0054] By using threshold-based calculations as described above, individual non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10a can calculate distance using simple calculations that do not require a large processing capacity. Therefore, this method can be implemented in a non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 having a low-power controller / processor 22.

[0055]

[0055] In another example, by accepting that the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a needs to perform more complex calculations, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may calculate the actual (albeit approximate) range of the response packet to other non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10b from which it has received the packet. In this example, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a uses the actual or expected transmit power for that type of received packet. This may be included as an estimated value in the programming of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, or it may be included as payload data in the received response packet. The non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a also uses a value or formula that shows the expected signal intensity decrease with distance. By knowing the received signal power of the response packet and these two additional pieces of information, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may calculate the actual range to other non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10b. This actual range will be subject to the same uncertainties as described above in relation to thresholding techniques. Using this technique, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may include a representation of distance in its display information.

[0056]

[0056] The above description refers to providing an indication that there is another non-combustible aerosol supply system within range of the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system, but the same method may be used to determine the conditions of such range with respect to multiple other non-combustible aerosol supply systems. The same method is performed by the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system with respect to each of the other non-combustible aerosol supply systems (note that a single advertising packet may elicit responses from more than one other non-combustible aerosol supply systems, or that separate advertising packets may each elicit responses from different other non-combustible aerosol supply systems). The display information may then indicate, for example, the number of other non-combustible aerosol supply systems within range. Additionally or alternatively, the non-combustible aerosol supply system may enable the use of input element 30 to sequentially display information about each detected non-combustible aerosol supply system.

[0057]

[0057] The above description has been made from the perspective of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, but the same applies when the method is carried out by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b, in which case it is the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b that sends the advertisement and the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a that makes the response.

[0058]

[0058] Thus, a method has been described that can determine if a non-flammable aerosol supply system is within a certain range (such as a communication range, a predetermined distance, and / or a calculated distance) of at least one other non-flammable aerosol supply system, and that the non-flammable aerosol supply system itself can display information explaining the situation to the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. In other words, this method will notify the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system when another non-flammable aerosol supply system enters the range. This will enable or facilitate the exchange of information and / or support between different users of the two non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0059]

[0059] Figures 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D illustrate together another method for providing communication between multiple separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0060]

[0060] This method is similar to the method described with respect to Figures 2A and 2B, but in this method, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a is configured to indicate the proximity of one or more other active non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0061]

[0061] In this example, as shown in Figure 3A, two non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10a and 10b are within a distance D1 from each other. In this example, distance D1 is a relatively long distance, and is probably the maximum communication range of the non-flammable aerosol supply systems, or near the maximum communication range. Therefore, the display 28a of non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a indicates another non-flammable aerosol supply system at a long distance, and in this example, also indicates the identifier of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. This identifier may be information contained in a response packet received from the other non-flammable aerosol supply system, or it may be any identifier assigned by the non-flammable aerosol supply system displaying proximity information. If an identifier is included in a response packet received from the other non-flammable aerosol supply system, the identifier may be an actual identifier of a user or device, or it may be a nickname or other impersonally identifying identifier. If any kind of identifier is provided in the response packet, this identifier may be included in the response packet only if, in some examples, the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system has given permission to share such identifier.

[0062]

[0062] In the illustrated example, the display 28a of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a displays the identifier "User 2" along with a distance indicator. The identifier "User 2" is used to indicate that another non-flammable aerosol supply system is identified as a different user from the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, to whom the identifier "User 1" is given in this example, or is presumed to be associated with the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. The display 28b of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b performs the same technique in correspondence and is therefore a similar range indicator, but displays the identifier assigned to the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, or an identifier received from the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, in this example the received or applied identifier "User 1".

[0063]

[0063] As shown in Figure 3B, the two non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10a and 10b are separated by a distance D2 that is shorter than the distance D1. As a result, the display 28 of each non-flammable aerosol supply system shows the same identifier information as in Figure 3A, but the distance indicator here represents the reduced distance (or greater proximity) between the two non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0064]

[0064] Next, as further shown in Figure 3C, the two non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10a and 10b are separated by a distance D3 which is shorter than the distances D1 and D2. As a result, the display 28 of each non-flammable aerosol supply system shows the same identifier information as in Figures 3A and 3B, but the distance indicator here represents the further reduced distance (or even greater proximity) between the two non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0065]

[0065] Similar to the method described above with reference to Figures 2A and 2B, the examples in Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C show the display element 28 of each non-flammable aerosol supply system performing the method of the present invention, but again the present disclosure also includes the method being performed by one (or fewer than all) non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0066]

[0066] Accordingly, a given non-combustible aerosol supply system can indicate the proximity of one or more other non-combustible aerosol supply systems. Methods that can be carried out independently by each non-combustible aerosol supply system to achieve this function are further described here with reference to Figure 3D.

[0067]

[0067] Initiating in step S3-1, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a transmits an advertising packet. This may be a standard BLE advertising packet of the type conventionally used to advertise the presence of a BLE device as available for BLE connection / pairing. For this technique, no specific advertising packet payload is required. To ensure that a high level of proximity information is provided to the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be configured to repeatedly transmit such advertising packets at appropriate time intervals without user input. Alternatively, it may be appropriate to avoid wasting the battery power of the non-flammable aerosol supply system for aerosol generation or other functions by allowing user input to be used to trigger the transmission of advertising packets or the activation of an operating mode in which such advertising packets are transmitted. If user input is required for this function, the non-flammable aerosol supply system includes an input element 30.

[0068]

[0068] In response to receiving a BLE advertising packet by the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b, the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b transmits a response packet. The response packet may be either a BLE scan request packet or a BLE connection request packet. The response packet is then received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a in step S3-3. In this way, the response packet also indicates to the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is active and within communication range.

[0069]

[0069] It has been explained that the response packet may be a BLE scan packet or a BLE connection request packet (either or both may be used as part of the process of establishing BLE pairing or connection), but it is not necessary for BLE pairing / connection to be established in order to utilize the technique described herein. In other words, the technique utilizes the Bluetooth / BLE disconnection state to achieve the described results. Such pairing / connection may be requested / desired, and therefore this may be optionally continued in addition to the technique.

[0070]

[0070] After receiving the response packet in step S2-3, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a determines a specific range relative to the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b. This determination involves calculating the range relative to the device that received the response packet (in this example, that device is the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b), as shown in the optional step S3-5. As described with respect to Figures 2A and 2B, this range calculation can be based on the received signal power of the response packet. By knowing the received signal power, an approximation of the distance D can be calculated. Thus, in step S3-7, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a uses its display element 28a to display some information to indicate to the user that another non-flammable aerosol supply system is within range. As shown in Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C, the displayed information in this example is an identifier indicating another non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b and an indication of the proximity (or range distance) to the non-flammable aerosol supply system. In other examples, this information may be provided by one or more other symbols, one or more letters, one or more digits, one or more audible indications, and / or one or more tactile indications.

[0071]

[0071] In this example, the distance calculation is a threshold distance calculation. In other words, the calculation determines whether the received signal power of the response packet is greater than or less than two or more preset thresholds. Each threshold is preset in the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a so as to represent a given value of distance. Thus, in this example where three ranges are possible, the received signal power is compared against each of the three thresholds, with one threshold corresponding to the longest distance D1, the second threshold to the intermediate distance D2, and the third threshold to the shortest distance D3. Thus, in one particular example, the thresholds may be set to determine whether another non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 is within 10m of non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, within 8m of non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, and within 2m of non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. In other examples, other range values ​​and / or a larger or smaller number of thresholds may be implemented. In one specific example, two range thresholds might be used, which could correspond to ranges of, for example, 10m and 4m.

[0072]

[0072] Each of these thresholds may be set in the same manner as the thresholds already described with reference to Figures 2A and 2B above. Thus, the ranges may similarly be approximate to some extent or expected to represent probabilities.

[0073]

[0073] As described above, the fact that this response message was received means that the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a already knows that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b is within communication range. Otherwise, the response packet would not have been received. Therefore, in some examples, this fact may be used to indicate that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b is within the first (longest) range D1, so that a threshold test is not required to prove that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b is within the longest range D1. In this case, one or more additional ranges may be determined using the threshold method. Thus, in examples where only two ranges are represented, the presence of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system within the longer of the two ranges is determined by the reception of the response packet, and the presence of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system within the shorter of the two ranges is determined by testing against the threshold representing the shorter range.

[0074]

[0074] By using threshold-based calculations as described above, individual non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10a can calculate distance using simple calculations that do not require a large amount of processing power. Therefore, this method can be implemented in a non-flammable aerosol supply system 10 having a low-power controller / processor 22.

[0075]

[0075] In other examples, by accepting that the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a needs to perform more complex calculations, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may calculate the actual (albeit approximate) range of the response packet to other non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10b from which it has received the packet. In this example, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a uses the actual or expected transmit power for that type of received packet. This may be included as an estimated value in the programming of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, or it may be included as payload data in the received response packet. The non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a also uses a value or formula that indicates the expected signal intensity decrease with distance. By knowing the received signal power of the response packet and these two additional pieces of information, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may calculate the actual range to other non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10b. This actual range may then be included in the display 18a as a symbolic range with respect to detectable maximum and minimum values, or as an actual numerical range.

[0076]

[0076] The above description refers to providing an indication that there is another non-combustible aerosol supply system within range of the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system, but the same method may be used to determine the conditions of such range for multiple other non-combustible aerosol supply systems. The same method is performed by the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system with respect to each of the other non-combustible aerosol supply systems (note that a single advertising packet may elicit responses from more than one other non-combustible aerosol supply systems, or that separate advertising packets may each elicit responses from different other non-combustible aerosol supply systems). The display information may then indicate, for example, the number of other non-combustible aerosol supply systems within each range. Additionally or alternatively, the non-combustible aerosol supply system may enable the use of input element 30 to generate information regarding the number of non-combustible aerosol supply systems detected within each range bracket, and / or to display information regarding the range for each detected non-combustible aerosol supply system in sequence.

[0077]

[0077] The above description has been made from the perspective of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, but the same applies when the method is carried out by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b, in which case it is the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b that sends the advertisement and the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a that makes the response.

[0078]

[0078] Thus, a method has been described that can determine if a non-combustible aerosol supply system is within range (or proximity) of at least one other non-combustible aerosol supply system, and that the non-combustible aerosol supply system itself can display information to the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system to explain the situation. In other words, this method will notify the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system when another non-combustible aerosol supply system is within range. This may enable or facilitate the exchange of information and / or support between different users of the two non-combustible aerosol supply systems.

[0079]

[0079] Figures 4A and 4B illustrate another method for providing communication between multiple separate non-flammable aerosol supply systems.

[0080]

[0080] This method is similar to the method described with respect to Figures 2A and 2B (it may be used in combination with any of the methods described with respect to Figures 2A and 2B, or with any of the methods described with respect to Figures 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D), in which case the payload information contained in the response packet is used to provide further information to the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0081]

[0081] In this example, as shown in Figure 4A, two non-combustible aerosol supply systems 10a and 10b are within a communication distance D from each other. Either or both of the non-combustible aerosol supply systems may perform a method to determine whether the other non-combustible aerosol supply system is within range of another active non-combustible aerosol supply system, and to determine any further operational information regarding the other non-combustible aerosol supply system. In response to a separate determination in each non-combustible aerosol supply system that another non-combustible aerosol supply system is active and within range, and to the acquisition of further operational information, the respective display element 28 of each non-combustible aerosol supply system may display an indication that at least one other active non-combustible aerosol supply system is within range, and to display further operational information regarding this other non-combustible aerosol supply system. Figure 4A shows that both non-flammable aerosol supply systems 10a and 10b are performing this method to enable each to display such information; however, this method is equally applicable when it occurs that only one of two or more non-flammable aerosol supply systems, which are within each other's range, is performing the method described.

[0082]

[0082] In this example, further operational information (described as “further” in the sense that it is added to operational information that another non-flammable aerosol supply system is active) includes information about the aerosol-generating material used in the non-flammable aerosol supply system. The aerosol-generating material may be contained, for example, in an aerosol-generating material container or cartridge 12. Information about the aerosol-generating material may be stored in memory 24. In this example, the aerosol-generating material container or cartridge 12 is a detachable / replaceable element, and information describing the aerosol-generating material in the aerosol-generating material container or cartridge 12 may be detectable by the controller / processor 22. In other examples, the aerosol-generating material container or cartridge 12 may be a refillable container or cartridge, and the user may be able to provide information about the aerosol-generating material to the non-flammable aerosol supply system directly or via a connected smartphone or tablet. In other examples, the aerosol-generating material container or cartridge 12 may be a non-replaceable element so that information about the aerosol-generating material may be stored in the non-flammable aerosol supply system as part of the manufacturing process.

[0083]

[0083] Information relating to aerosol-generating materials may include information relating to flavorings or aromas of aerosol-generating materials. As used herein, the terms “flavoring” and “aroma” refer to materials that may be used in products for adult consumers to produce a desired taste, aroma, or other somatosensory sensation, where local regulations permit it.These are natural fragrance materials, plant substances, extracts of plant substances, synthetically obtained materials, or combinations thereof (e.g., tobacco, cannabis, licorice, hydrangea, eugenol, magnolia leaf, chamomile, fenugreek, clove, maple, matcha, menthol, mint, aniseed, cinnamon, turmeric, Indian spices, Asian spices, herbs, wintergreen, cherry, berries, red berries, cranberries, peaches, apples, oranges, mangoes, clementines, lemons, limes, tropical fruits, etc.) Paiya, rhubarb, grapes, durian, dragon fruit, cucumber, blueberry, mulberry, citrus fruit, Drambuie, bourbon, scotch, whiskey, gin, tequila, rum, spearmint, peppermint, lavender, aloe vera, cardamom, celery, cascarilla, nutmeg, sandalwood, bergamot, geranium, khat, naswar, betel nut, shisha, pine, honey essence, rose oil, vanilla, lemon oil, orange oil, orange blossom, cherry blossom, cassia, caraway, cognac, jasmine, ylang-ylang, Mint oil from any of the seeds of the following plants: sage, fennel, wasabi, bell pepper, ginger, coriander, coffee, hemp, mint, eucalyptus, star anise, cocoa, lemongrass, rooibos, flax, ginkgo, hazelnut, hibiscus, bay laurel, mate tea, orange peel, rose, tea such as green tea or black tea, thyme, juniper, elderflower, basil, bay leaf, cumin, oregano, paprika, rosemary, saffron, lemon peel, mint, shiso, turmeric, cilantro, myrtle, blackcurrant, valerian, pimento, mace, dami It may contain other additives such as red bean paste, marjoram, olive, lemon balm, lemon basil, chives, kalbi, verbena, tarragon, limonene, thymol, camphene, etc., flavor enhancers, bitter taste receptor site blockers, sensory receptor site activators or stimulants, sugars and / or sugar substitutes (e.g., sucralose, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, saccharin, cyclamic acid, lactose, sucrose, glucose, fructose, sorbitol, or mannitol), and charcoal, chlorophyll, minerals, plant substances, or breath fresheners.They may be imitations, synthetics, natural ingredients, or mixtures thereof. They may be in any suitable form, such as liquids like oils, solids like powders, or gases.

[0084]

[0084] In some examples, the flavoring includes menthol, spearmint, and / or peppermint. In some embodiments, the flavoring includes cucumber, blueberry, citrus fruit, and / or red berry flavoring components. In some embodiments, the flavoring includes eugenol. In some embodiments, the flavoring includes flavoring components extracted from tobacco. In some embodiments, the flavoring includes flavoring components extracted from cannabis.

[0085]

[0085] In some examples, the fragrance may include a sensory stimulant, which is intended to realize somatosensory sensations that are chemically induced and perceived by stimulation of the fifth cranial nerve (trigeminal nerve) in addition to or instead of the olfactory or gustatory nerves, and these may include agents that produce heating, cooling, stinging, or numbing effects. A suitable heating agent may be, but is not limited to, vanillyl ethyl ether, and a suitable cooling agent may be, but is not limited to, eucalyptol or WS-3.

[0086]

[0086] Information relating to aerosol-generating materials may also include, or alternatively include, information relating to the active substances of aerosol-generating materials. The active substances used herein may be physiologically active substances and are materials intended to realize or enhance physiological responses. The active substances may be selected from, for example, functional foods, nootropics, and psychotropic drugs. The active substances may be natural or obtained by synthesis. The active substances may include, for example, nicotine, caffeine, taurine, theine, vitamins such as B6 or B12 or C, melatonin, cannabinoids, or their components, derivatives, or combinations. The active substances may include one or more components, derivatives, or extracts of tobacco, cannabis, or other plant substances.

[0087]

[0087] In some cases, the active substance includes nicotine. In some cases, the active substance includes caffeine, melatonin, or vitamin B12.

[0088]

[0088] As shown in Figure 4A, in this example, information regarding the aerosol-generating material includes information regarding the flavoring and nicotine strength of the aerosol-generating material. As shown, User 1's non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a has an aerosol-generating material with cherry flavoring and a nicotine strength of 6 mg per milliliter, and User 2's non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b has an aerosol-generating material with mint flavoring and no nicotine. These specific examples of the contents of these two aerosol-generating materials are given as examples only, and it should be understood that this teaching encompasses a wide range of possible aerosol-generating material contents, including but not limited to one or more of the flavorings and / or one or more of the active substances described above. As also described above, user identifiers may be assigned / determined in several different ways and / or may be personally identified or impersonally identified in essence.

[0089]

[0089] The information relating to the aerosol generating material may be considered as information relating to the aerosol generating material container or cartridge 12, and therefore as information relating to consumables. Such consumables may be called SKUs, or may be referred to or identified using SKU identifiers.

[0090]

[0090] Other forms of further operational information may be used additionally or alternatively. These may include the remaining amount (absolute or relative) of the aerosol-generating material and / or the battery charge level (also absolute or relative).

[0091]

[0091] Further operational information for the user's non-flammable aerosol supply system may, in some examples, be provided by the non-flammable aerosol supply system only after the user has given permission to share such data.

[0092]

[0092] Accordingly, a given non-flammable aerosol supply system can provide an indication of proximity to one or more other non-flammable aerosol supply systems. Methods that can be carried out independently by each non-flammable aerosol supply system to achieve this function are further illustrated here with reference to Figure 4B.

[0093]

[0093] When step S4-1 begins, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a transmits an advertising packet. This may be a standard BLE advertising packet of the type conventionally used to advertise the presence of a BLE device as available for BLE connection / pairing. For this technique, no payload is required for the specific advertising packet. To provide a user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system with a high level of information about other nearby non-flammable aerosol supply systems, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be configured to repeatedly transmit such advertising packets at appropriate time intervals without user input. On the other hand, it may be appropriate not to waste the battery power of the non-flammable aerosol supply system for aerosol generation or other functions so that user input can be used to trigger the transmission of advertising packets or the activation of an operating mode in which such advertising packets are transmitted. If user input is required for this function, the non-flammable aerosol supply system includes an input element 30.

[0094]

[0094] In response to the reception of a BLE advertising packet by the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b, the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b transmits a response packet. The response packet may be either a BLE scan request packet or a BLE connection request packet. The response packet is then received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a in step S4-3. Thus, the response packet also indicates to the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is active and within communication range. The response packet in this example contains further operational information. Therefore, this further operational information may be included as part of the payload space of the response packet.

[0095]

[0095] It has been explained that the response packet may be a BLE scan packet or a BLE connection request packet (either or both may be used as part of the process of establishing BLE pairing or connection), but it is not necessary for BLE pairing / connection to actually be established in order to utilize the technique described herein. In other words, the technique utilizes the Bluetooth / BLE disconnection state to achieve the described results. Such pairing / connection may be requested / desired, and therefore this may be optionally continued in addition to the technique.

[0096]

[0096] In some cases, multiple packets may need to carry additional operational information because the additional operational information exceeds the available payload space of the response packet. In this example, where communication occurs using BLE, this situation is adapted by using a first response packet in the form of a BLE scan packet. In response to receiving a BLE scan packet, the non-flammable aerosol supply system sends a scan response packet to trigger a connection request packet from the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. In this way, the payload space of both the scan request packet and the connection request packet can be used to carry additional operational information without establishing a pairing / connection status.

[0097]

[0097] After receiving the response packet in step S4-3, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a extracts payload information from the response packet to obtain further operational information. Therefore, in step S4-7, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a displays further operational information using the display element 28a of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. As shown in Figure 4A, this displayed information is, in this example, an identifier indicating another non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b and an indication of the fragrance and nicotine strength used by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b. In other examples, this information may be given by one or more other symbols, one or more letters, one or more numbers, one or more audible indications, and / or one or more tactile indications.

[0098]

[0098] The above description has been made from the perspective of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a, but the same applies when the method is carried out by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b, in which case it is the other non-flammable aerosol supply system 10b that sends the advertisement and the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a that makes the response.

[0099]

[0099] Thus, a method has been described in which a non-combustible aerosol supply system can determine operational information relating to at least one other non-combustible aerosol supply system within its communication range, and the non-combustible aerosol supply system itself can display information explaining this operational information to the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system. In other words, this method allows the user of a non-combustible aerosol supply system to be notified by their non-combustible aerosol supply system of the operational characteristics of another non-combustible aerosol supply system within its communication range. This makes it possible or facilitates the exchange of information and / or support between different users of two non-combustible aerosol supply systems.

[0100]

[0100] The methods shown in Figures 2A and 2B, and in Figures 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D are described separately from the methods shown in Figures 4A and 4B, but these methods may be used in combination. Thus, for example, embodiments can be created in which a user's non-flammable aerosol supply system can display information regarding both ranges (whether a single range or one of several ranges) of another active non-flammable aerosol supply system and further operational information regarding this other non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0101]

[0101] Additionally or alternatively, a non-flammable aerosol supply system may indicate the proximity of entities other than another non-flammable aerosol supply system. For example, a non-flammable aerosol supply system may be configured to provide the distance to a beacon (and / or other information provided by the beacon). Such a beacon may be deployed in relation to facilities such as vendor locations where supplies for the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be available. Such vendor locations may include battery charging facilities and / or aerosol generating material container or cartridge replenishment facilities and / or retail supplies such as replacement batteries and / or aerosol generating material containers or cartridges. Figures 5A and 5B illustrate together methods for providing communication between a beacon and a non-flammable aerosol supply system. Such a beacon may have a data interface that links the beacon to an inventory information data record (such as an inventory list, one or more records in an inventory database) from which the beacon can receive inventory information. Such inventory information may be retrieved in real time (i.e., in response to any specific request from the non-flammable aerosol supply system) by a beacon and / or cached in the beacon's memory (in which case periodic refreshes of the inventory information cache may be performed).

[0102]

[0102] This method is similar to the methods shown in relation to Figures 2, 3, and 4 (in fact, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be configured to perform any of the methods in Figures 2 to 4 and the methods in Figures 5A and 5B), in which case the communication is with a beacon, and the payload information contained in the response packet from the beacon is used to provide information about the distance and / or the equipment or site associated with the beacon.

[0103]

[0103] In this example, as shown in Figure 5A, the non-combustible aerosol supply system 10a is within communication distance D from the beacon 40. The non-combustible aerosol supply system 10a may perform methods to determine whether other non-combustible aerosol supply systems are within range of the beacon 40 and / or to determine some information provided by the beacon 40. In response to the determination in the non-combustible aerosol supply system that the beacon is active and within range, the display element 28a of the non-combustible aerosol supply system 10a may display an indication that the beacon is within range. As shown, the display element may display a logo or symbol indicating that the beacon is nearby to a site or facility. In some examples, the nature of the displayed symbol or logo may be used to indicate information about the nature of the site or facility to which the beacon is associated, based on further information transmitted from the beacon to the non-combustible aerosol supply system.

[0104]

[0104] Alternatively, or in addition, when the non-combustible aerosol supply system acquires further information, the display element 28a of the non-combustible aerosol supply system may display information about the site or facility to which the beacon is associated based on the further information received by the non-combustible aerosol supply system.

[0105]

[0105] In this example, the additional information (described as “additional” in the sense that it is further added to the information that the beacon is active, and the fact that the beacon is active is inherently communicated by the fact that a reply has been received from the beacon) includes information about the site or facility to which the beacon is associated. In this example, such a beacon is associated with the facility or site in terms of the content of the additional information and geographically (i.e., the beacon is on, on, or near the site or facility so that the reception of the beacon signal indicates that the non-flammable aerosol supply system is in close proximity to the actual site or facility). The content of the additional information provided by the beacon may include information about products and / or services available at the site or facility. Such products and / or services may include, for example, instructions indicating one or more of the following: battery charging facilities, aerosol generating material containers or cartridge refill facilities, replacement battery retailers, and aerosol generating material containers or cartridge retailers.

[0106]

[0106] The information may refer to an aerosol generating material container or cartridge, and therefore may also be considered information about a consumable. Such consumables may be called SKUs, or may be referred to or identified using SKU identifiers.

[0107]

[0107] In one set of examples, further information may include inventory information relating to consumables that users of the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be interested in. In these examples, the beacon may transmit real-time or near-real-time (e.g., every minute, every hour, or every day in retail terms) indications of the availability of stock for the non-flammable aerosol supply system. Such consumables in this example include stock of replacement or alternative aerosol generating material containers or cartridges for the non-flammable aerosol supply system, but may also include, or may include as alternative, stock of refill materials for refillable aerosol generating material containers or cartridges used by the non-flammable aerosol supply system, and / or rechargeable battery replacements for the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0108]

[0108] In some such embodiments, the further information in the beacon provides information about consumable inventory, indicating that the site / facility has some inventory of consumables, without generally indicating, for example, what kind of consumables are in stock for one or more ranges of one or more types of non-flammable aerosol supply systems. In further embodiments, the further information may indicate consumable inventory in the form of indicating the type(s) of non-flammable aerosol supply system for which inventory is available. In such examples, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may analyze the received further information so that it can recognize whether the inventory information is relevant to that particular non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0109]

[0109] In additional embodiments, an advertisement from a non-combustible aerosol supply system, such as one received by a beacon, or a subsequent disconnected message, indicates the type of non-combustible aerosol supply system and / or the type of consumables used by the non-combustible aerosol supply system, and further information provided by the beacon is then created to be specific to the type of non-combustible aerosol supply system or consumables identified by the beacon by the non-combustible aerosol supply system. For example, a facility / site may have a stock of consumables for several different types of non-combustible aerosol supply systems (which may be several types corresponding to non-combustible aerosol supply systems from one manufacturer or several different manufacturers), and notifications to the user may be made more relevant to the facts of the situation by adapting the beacon content to a particular type of non-combustible aerosol supply system using the information.

[0110]

[0110] In some examples, further information may include, additionally or alternatively, information about the status of the facility / site to which the beacon is associated. Such status information may include information about whether the facility / site is open for business and / or information about the opening hours of the facility / site.

[0111]

[0111] Therefore, for example, the symbol / logo shown on display element 28a in Figure 5a may, depending on the deployed configuration, indicate any of the following: proximity to a beacon (proximity may be a simple indication that something is generally nearby, or an indication that something is of some degree of proximity), proximity to a beacon associated with a particular type of facility / site, proximity to a beacon associated with a facility / site that generally has a stock of consumables, proximity to a beacon associated with a facility / site that has a stock of consumables specific to a type of non-flammable aerosol supply system, and proximity to a beacon associated with a facility / site that has a given open / closed state. It should be understood that one or more additional or alternative forms of content display on display element 28a may be implemented, including different symbols / logos according to proximity, available products / services, specific consumables available, and / or the relevance of the available consumables. Furthermore, or alternatively, the display content may be originally letters / numbers, such as verbally indicating the availability of products / services and / or available consumables.

[0112]

[0112] In some cases, the transmission of information regarding the non-flammable aerosol supply system and / or related consumables to the beacon may be performed by the non-flammable aerosol supply system only after the user has given permission to share such data.

[0113]

[0113] Exemplary methods that can be carried out by a non-flammable aerosol supply system to achieve this function are further described here with reference to Figures 5B and 5C.

[0114]

[0114] Initiating in step S5-1, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a transmits an advertising packet. This may be a standard BLE advertising packet of the type conventionally used to advertise the presence of a BLE device as available for BLE connection / pairing. For this technique, no payload is required for the specific advertising packet. To provide the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system with high-level information about nearby beacons, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be configured to repeatedly transmit such advertising packets at appropriate time intervals without user input. Alternatively, it may be appropriate to avoid wasting the battery power of the non-flammable aerosol supply system for aerosol generation or other functions by allowing user input to be used to trigger the transmission of advertising packets or the activation of an operating mode in which such advertising packets are transmitted. If user input is required for this function, the non-flammable aerosol supply system includes an input element 30.

[0115]

[0115] In response to the beacon 40 receiving a BLE advertising packet, the beacon transmits a response packet. The response packet may be either a BLE scan request packet or a BLE connection request packet. The response packet is then received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a in step S5-3. In this way, the response packet also indicates to the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a that the beacon is active and within communication range. The response packet in this example contains further information.

[0116]

[0116] Optionally, as shown by the dashed line, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may perform the step of determining the range to the beacon 40 from which the response was received in step S5-3. This determination involves calculating the range to the device from which the response packet was received (in this example, that device is the beacon 40), as shown in the optional step S5-5. This range calculation may be based on the received signal power of the response packet. By knowing the received signal power, an approximation of the distance D can be calculated.

[0117]

[0117] Accordingly, in an optional step S5-7, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a may use the display element 28a of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a to display some information to indicate to the user that a beacon is within range. As shown in Figure 5A, the displayed information in this example is a symbol indicating that the beacon (or the site / facility to which the beacon is associated) is within range. In other examples, this information may be given by one or more other symbols, one or more letters, one or more numbers, one or more audible indications, and / or one or more tactile indications. If an optional step S5-5 is also performed, the display of information in step S5-7 may be performed to indicate the range to the beacon and / or to communicate that the beacon is within a distance D corresponding to threshold proximity. As can be understood, distance information may also be processed and displayed in the same manner as described above with reference to Figures 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D, for example, to indicate the approximate range / proximity of the proximity to the beacon of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0118]

[0118] In addition, the further information described above with respect to Figure 5A may therefore be included as part of the payload space of the response packet.

[0119]

[0119] It is explained that the response packet may be a BLE scan packet or a BLE connection request packet (either or both may be used as part of the process of establishing BLE pairing or connection), but it is not necessary for BLE pairing / connection to actually be established in order to utilize the technique in this example. In other words, the technique utilizes the Bluetooth / BLE disconnection state to achieve the described result. Such pairing / connection may be requested / desired, and therefore this may be optionally continued in addition to the technique.

[0120]

[0120] In some cases, multiple packets may need to carry additional operational information because the additional information exceeds the available payload space of the response packet. In this example, where communication occurs using BLE, this situation is adapted by using a first response packet in the form of a BLE scan packet. In response to receiving a BLE scan packet, the non-flammable aerosol supply system sends a scan response packet to trigger a connection request packet from another non-flammable aerosol supply system. In this way, the payload space of both the scan request packet and the connection request packet can be used to carry additional information without establishing a pairing / connection status.

[0121]

[0121] After receiving the response packet in step S5-3 (and before or after, if optionally steps S5-5 and S5-7 are performed), the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a extracts payload information from the response packet to obtain further operational information. Thus, in step S5-9, the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a displays further information using the display element 28a of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. As shown in Figure 5A, this displayed information is, in this example, a symbol or logo indicating the association between the beacon content and the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. In other examples, this information may be given by one or more other symbols, one or more letters, one or more numbers, one or more audible indications, and / or one or more tactile indications. As can be understood, if the payload information indicates that the site / facility to which the beacon is associated is irrelevant or of little relevance to the users of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a (for example, if the site / facility does not have a stock of consumables for the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a), then display step S5-11 may be omitted, or display content may be provided indicating that an irrelevant beacon signal has been received (and / or that there is an irrelevant facility / site within range).

[0122]

[0122] In some examples, the payload information may include an identifier for the site / facility to which the beacon is associated. Such an identifier may be displayed on the display element 28a of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a and / or provided to the connected device via the transmitter / receiver element 26 of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. Thus, the user may be provided with information to which further details of the site / facility can be obtained, for example, by retrieving the information via the Internet using a separate data connection to the connected device. Such information may include, for example, the address / location of the site / facility.

[0123]

[0123] Further exemplary methods are shown in Figure 5C, which correspond to an embodiment in which the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a transmits information identifying the type of consumables used by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and / or the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0124]

[0124] As shown in this example, an advertisement transmitted in step S5-21 includes identification information that allows the beacon to identify the type of non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a and / or the type of consumables for the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. This information may include any or all of the following: an indication of the type of non-flammable aerosol supply system, the types of compatible consumables, and the types of compatible consumables having the desired consumable characteristics. For example, a given type of non-flammable aerosol supply system may be compatible with available consumables when changing the nicotine concentration level and / or flavoring. The user may therefore choose that the identification information also indicates the flavor, strength, and / or other characteristics of the consumables, as well as the type of non-flammable aerosol supply system / consumables. Thus, the user of the non-flammable aerosol supply system may control that notifications or some type of notifications are provided in accordance with the desired consumable characteristics. The advertisement may also be a standard BLE advertising packet of the type conventionally used to advertise the presence of a BLE device as available for BLE connection / pairing. Identification information may be included as the payload of the BLE advertisement packet.

[0125]

[0125] In response to the beacon 40 receiving a BLE advertising packet, the beacon transmits a response packet. The response packet may be either a BLE scan request packet or a BLE connection request packet. The response packet is then received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a in step S5-23. Thus, the response packet also indicates to the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a that the beacon is active and within communication range. Furthermore, the response packet in this example contains additional information, which is adapted by the beacon to unique identification information provided in the advertisement.

[0126]

[0126] In both examples of Figure 5A and Figure 5B, the beacon may have more information available (such as inventory and other information) than can be fitted into a single cycle of disconnected packets. In such situations, the beacon may transmit a complete set of additional information to the non-flammable aerosol supply system using multiple response packet cycles (i.e., triggered by multiple separate advertised packets from the non-flammable aerosol supply system).

[0127]

[0127] It has been explained that the response packet may be a BLE scan packet or a BLE connection request packet (either or both may be used as part of the process of establishing BLE pairing or connection), but it is not necessary for BLE pairing / connection to actually be established in order to utilize the technique in this example. In other words, the technique utilizes the Bluetooth / BLE disconnection state to achieve the described result. Such pairing / connection may be requested / desired, and therefore this may be optionally continued in addition to the technique.

[0128]

[0128] In some cases, multiple packets may need to carry additional operational information because the additional information exceeds the available payload space of the response packet. In this example, where communication occurs using BLE, this situation is adapted by using a first response packet in the form of a BLE scan packet. In response to receiving a BLE scan packet, the non-flammable aerosol supply system sends a scan response packet to trigger a connection request packet from another non-flammable aerosol supply system. In this way, the payload space of both the scan request packet and the connection request packet can be used to carry additional information without establishing a pairing / connection status.

[0129]

[0129] In some examples, the method may be modified so that the advertisement does not contain identification information, and in response to the advertisement, the beacon sends a scan request packet having a payload corresponding to an invitation to the non-flammable aerosol supply system in order to provide identification information for the non-flammable aerosol supply system / consumables as needed. The non-flammable aerosol supply system then sends a scan response packet containing a payload containing identification information, and in response, the beacon sends a connection request packet with further information contained in the payload. If the non-flammable aerosol supply system sends a scan response packet without identification information, the method may continue by the beacon sending a connection request packet having further general information in the payload, and the process then continues as shown in steps S5-5 to S5-11 in Figure 5B.

[0130]

[0130] After receiving a response packet containing further information, in step S2-25 the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a extracts payload information from the response packet to obtain further information. This further information is analyzed to determine the relevance (or lack thereof) between the provided further information and the non-flammable aerosol supply system. Therefore, in step S5-27 the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a displays the further information using the display element 28a of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. As shown in Figure 5A, this displayed information is, in this example, a symbol or logo indicating the relevance between the beacon content and the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. In other examples, this information may be given by one or more other symbols, one or more letters, one or more numbers, one or more audible indications, and / or one or more tactile indications. To be understood, if the payload information indicates that the site / facility to which the beacon is associated is irrelevant or of little relevance to the users of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a (for example, if the site / facility does not have a stock of consumables for the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a), then display step S5-27 may be omitted, or display content may be provided indicating that an irrelevant beacon signal has been received (and / or that there is an irrelevant facility / site within range).

[0131]

[0131] In this example, the steps of distance calculation and display may also be performed at the discretion of the user.

[0132]

[0132] In some examples, the payload information may include an identifier for the site / facility to which the beacon is associated. Such an identifier may be displayed on the display element 28a of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a and / or provided to the connected device via the transmitter / receiver element 26 of the non-flammable aerosol supply system 10a. Thus, the user may be provided with information to which further details of the site / facility can be obtained, for example, by retrieving the information via the Internet using a separate data connection to the connected device. Such information may include, for example, the address / location of the site / facility.

[0133]

[0133] As can be understood, the methods in Figures 5B and 5C are redundant and may be performed as a single method in the decision made to determine which method to use. For example, if the advertisement does not include identification information (as in step S5-1) and the response from the beacon then includes details of the inventory of a particular consumable, the method continues by the non-flammable aerosol supply system determining and displaying the relevance of the detailed inventory information to the non-flammable aerosol supply system. On the other hand, if the response from the beacon does not include detailed inventory information and / or requests the provision of identification information, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may provide the beacon with identification information and await detailed inventory information corresponding to the identification information in a further response from the beacon. The method then continues by the non-flammable aerosol supply system determining and displaying the relevance of the particular inventory to the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0134]

[0134] Thus, a method has been described in which a non-combustible aerosol supply system can determine information about a site or facility associated with a beacon from a beacon within its communication range, and the non-combustible aerosol supply system itself can display information explaining that information to the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system. In other words, this method allows the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system to be notified by the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system of the operating characteristics of nearby sites or facilities from which related services or consumables can be obtained.

[0135]

[0135] The methods shown in Figures 2A and 2B, as well as the methods shown in Figures 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D, and the methods shown in Figures 4A and 4B, are described separately from the methods shown in Figures 5A, 5B, and 5C, but these methods may be used in combination. Thus, for example, an embodiment can be created in which a user's non-flammable aerosol supply system can display information about another active non-flammable aerosol supply system as information about a beacon.

[0136]

[0136] In the above example, the display on the display element 28a is shown as a single display such as a symbol / letter / number. In some examples, the display element 28a may be configured to display content on one or more separate display "screens" or pages. For example, the initial display may be made to indicate the proximity of another non-flammable aerosol supply system (as described with reference to Figure 2A above) and / or a beacon (as described with reference to Figure 5A above), and then user input (received using input element 30) may be received to display a calculated distance (as a symbolic range or numerical range as shown in Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C above) and / or further operational information and / or information related to the equipment / site details associated with the beacon (as described with reference to Figure 4A above).

[0137]

[0137] Examples are shown in Figures 6A and 6B. In the example in Figure 6A, the initial indicator is a symbol indicating that another non-flammable aerosol supply system is nearby. In response to user input (such as a button press while the initial indicator is in place or a predetermined number of shakes / taps while the initial indicator is in place), the indicator is updated to include the range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system for user 2 and further operational information. This is shown as a two-indication step method, but in other examples there may be more steps, for example, when distance and further operational information are presented on separate indicator steps.

[0138]

[0138] In the example of Figure 6B, the three-step display method is illustrated in the example of a beacon. In this example, the initial display is a symbol indicating a nearby beacon (or a site facility associated with a beacon). In response to user input (such as a button press while the initial display is in place or a predetermined number of shakes / taps while the initial display is in place), the display is updated to include a description that there is a store with some consumable stock within a certain distance. In response to further user input, the display is further updated to include a description of the specific consumable available at the store. The selection of which specific consumable to display may be based on the fact that the non-flammable aerosol supply system remembers data indicating the specific consumable of interest (such as a list provided by the user and / or a list of previously inserted consumables). Although this is shown as a three-step display method, there may be fewer or more steps in other examples, for example, when the display of a specific consumable is omitted, or when the display of further specific consumables is required.

[0139]

[0139] User input may also be used to move to a display of a second or other non-flammable aerosol supply system within range. Thus, the user may be able to scroll through displays representing multiple non-flammable aerosol supply systems within range. Similarly, user input may be used to move to a display of a second beacon within range, or to move between other non-flammable aerosol supply systems within range and beacons within range. Thus, scrolling through displays of multiple range devices (whether another non-flammable aerosol supply system or a beacon) may be performed.

[0140]

[0140] In addition, different user inputs may also be used to navigate through the display. For example, a first type of input (such as a specific duration and / or number of button presses, and / or a predetermined number of shakes / taps) may be used to navigate to information about other devices currently displayed (e.g., navigating through the flow in Figure 6A or Figure 6B), and a second type of input (such as a different specific duration and / or number of button presses, and / or a predetermined number of shakes / taps) may be used to navigate to information about another range device (e.g., navigating between the flows in Figure 6A and Figure 6B, or navigating from an instance of the flow in 6A to another range non-flammable aerosol supply system, or navigating from an instance of the flow in 6B to another range beacon).

[0141]

[0141] Accordingly, an example of a multi-screen user interface that may be used to present to a user of a non-flammable aerosol supply system information about another nearby non-flammable aerosol supply system and / or information provided by nearby beacons is described herein.

[0142]

[0142] As described above, detailed examples have been presented relating to communication between one non-flammable aerosol supply system and another non-flammable aerosol supply system or beacon via BLE, but other communication technologies may be used instead of BLE for connectivity technologies.

[0143]

[0143] As described above, BLE is an example of so-called personal area network technology. Therefore, another personal area technology having corresponding / equivalent messaging used to transfer information between non-flammable aerosol supply systems and / or between non-flammable aerosol supply systems and beacons may be used instead of BLE. Suitable examples include Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Wireless USB, and Near Field Communication (NFC), RFID, Infrared Communications Association (IrDA), and Data Over Sound.

[0144]

[0144] Other connection technologies may be wireless networks such as Wi-Fi® technology. In such cases, it is assumed that both the non-flammable aerosol supply system or the non-flammable aerosol supply system and the beacon are connected to the same Wi-Fi network (in fact, the beacon may be part of or associated with a Wi-Fi access point to which the non-flammable aerosol supply system can connect to the Wi-Fi network). Thus, without establishing a specific Wi-Fi network between the non-flammable aerosol supply system and other non-flammable aerosol supply systems or beacons, the non-flammable aerosol supply system may be able to advertise its presence on the Wi-Fi network, and any other non-flammable aerosol supply system or beacon connected to the Wi-Fi network may respond with the information shown in the various examples presented above.

[0145]

[0145] Other options for connectivity technology include cellular technologies such as GSM, GPRS, 2G, 3G, 4G, or 5G. Another example is the low-power wide-area technology of the Narrowband Internet of Things. Furthermore, as mentioned above, wired communication technologies such as USB®, Serial Port, FireWire®, or other point-to-point wired connections may be used.

[0146]

[0146] In addition, with respect to any or all of the connection technologies described above or previously, the communication between the two non-flammable aerosol supply systems and / or between the non-flammable aerosol supply system and the beacon is not effectively point-to-point, and the communication may pass through one or more communication hubs or other communication concentrator devices.

[0147]

[0147] Through the various methods described above, information about one or more other nearby non-combustible aerosol supply systems will be presented to the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system by the user's own non-combustible aerosol supply system itself. In other words, the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system can receive such information without having to refer to another device, such as a smartphone or tablet, connected to the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system. Thus, the user of the non-combustible aerosol supply system can receive such information, for example, while the user has the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system at hand to utilize the aerosol generation function. This gives the user the freedom to receive such information about other nearby non-combustible aerosol supply systems without having to have a mobile phone or tablet at hand and connect it to the non-combustible aerosol supply system while the user is using (or preparing to use, or has recently used) the user's non-combustible aerosol supply system for aerosol generation.

[0148]

[0148] The various embodiments described herein are presented solely to assist in understanding and teaching the claimed features. These embodiments are provided merely as representative examples of embodiments and are not exhaustive and / or exclusive. The advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures, and / or other aspects described herein should not be considered as limitations to the scope of the invention as defined by the claims, or to equivalents of the claims, and it should be understood that other embodiments may be used and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. Various embodiments of the invention may appropriately include, consist of, or essentially consist of, appropriate combinations of disclosed elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc., other than those specifically described herein. In addition, this disclosure may include other inventions that are not currently claimed but may be patentable in the future.

[0149]

[0149] Thus, from one perspective, a data system configured to store operational data relating to the operating state of a non-flammable aerosol supply system and to store received operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system; a wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system from another non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel; and a user interface element of the non-flammable aerosol supply system that indicates the received operational data relating to the operating state of another non-flammable aerosol supply system. tell A non-flammable aerosol supply system comprising a user interface system configured as described above is described.

[0150]

[0150] Further examples are presented in the following numbered clauses.

[0151]

[0151] [Clause 1] A non-flammable aerosol supply system comprising a wireless communication system configured to receive data relating to the physical location associated with a wireless communication beacon using a disconnected data channel, and a user interface element of the non-flammable aerosol supply system providing instructions relating to the received data tell A non-flammable aerosol supply system comprising a user interface system configured as follows.

[0152]

[0152] [Clause 2] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to Clause 1, wherein the beacon is located at the physical location, within the physical location, or near the physical location.

[0153]

[0153] [Clause 3] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to Clause 1 or 2, wherein the received data includes information indicating that the beacon associated with the physical location is within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0154]

[0154] [Clause 4] The user interface system is further configured to compare the received data with one or more predetermined values, and in accordance with the result of the comparison, the user interface system provides one of a plurality of predetermined outputs. tell A non-flammable aerosol supply system as described in any one of clauses 1 to 3, further configured as follows.

[0155]

[0155] [Clause 5] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 1 to 4, wherein the received data includes data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position.

[0156]

[0156] [Clause 6] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to Clause 5, wherein the data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position includes one or more of the current open / closed state and future open / closed states.

[0157]

[0157] [Clause 7] A non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 1 to 6, wherein the received data includes data relating to inventory available at the physical location.

[0158]

[0158] [Clause 8] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to Clause 7, wherein the physical location is a retail store, and the data relating to the stock available at the physical location is information relating to the types of consumables and / or accessories available at the retail store.

[0159]

[0159] [Clause 9] The user interface system has an input element configured to receive a selection input, and in response to the selection input, the user interface system provides further instructions representing the received data relating to the stock available at the physical location. tell A non-flammable aerosol supply system as described in Clause 7 or 8.

[0160]

[0160] [Clause 10] The user interface system further comprises a processor configured to filter the data relating to inventory available at the physical location to remove data relating to inventory not related to the non-flammable aerosol supply system, wherein the filtered inventory information tell A non-flammable aerosol supply system as described in any one of clauses 7 to 9.

[0161]

[0161] [Clause 11] A non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 7 to 10, wherein the received data relating to available stock at the physical location associated with the beacon, received in response to transmitting a first advertising packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system to the beacon, is different from the data relating to available stock at the physical location associated with the beacon, received in response to transmitting a second advertising packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system to the beacon.

[0162]

[0162] [Clause 12] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 1 to 11, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to use Bluetooth and / or Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol and to transmit and / or receive data using a disconnected channel.

[0163]

[0163] [Clause 13] A non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 1 to 12, wherein the disconnected channel uses pre-paired advertising packets.

[0164]

[0164] [Clause 14] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to Clause 13, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet includes an advertising packet transmitted by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by the beacon and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0165]

[0165] [Clause 15] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 1 to 14, wherein the wireless communication system uses a hub-based method.

[0166]

[0166] [Clause 16] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 1 to 15, wherein the user interface element includes one or more selected from a display, an audio output device, and a haptic device.

[0167]

[0167] [Clause 17] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of Clauses 1 to 16, further comprising an input element configured to receive selection input for selecting a user interface function.

[0168]

[0168] [Clause 18] A wireless communication beacon comprising: a data interface configured to receive data relating to a physical location associated with the beacon; and a wireless communication system configured to transmit data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon using a disconnected data channel.

[0169]

[0169] [Clause 19] The radio beacon according to Clause 18, wherein the beacon is located at the physical location, within the physical location, or near the physical location.

[0170]

[0170] [Clause 20] The radio beacon according to Clause 18 or 19, wherein the data relating to the physical location includes data relating to the open / closed state of the physical location.

[0171]

[0171] [Clause 21] The radio beacon according to Clause 20, wherein the data relating to the open / closed state of the physical location includes one or more of the current open / closed state and future open / closed states.

[0172]

[0172] [Clause 22] A radio beacon according to any one of Clauses 18 to 21, wherein the data relating to the physical location includes data relating to inventory available at the physical location.

[0173]

[0173] [Clause 23] A radio beacon as described in Clause 22, wherein the physical location is a retail store, and the data relating to the inventory available at the physical location is information relating to the types of consumables and / or accessories available at the retail store.

[0174]

[0174] [Clause 24] The radio beacon according to Clause 22 or 23, wherein the radio communication system is configured to receive packets from a non-flammable aerosol supply system via the disconnected channel and to transmit the data relating to the physical location in response to the receipt of the packets.

[0175]

[0175] [Clause 25] The radio beacon according to Clause 24, wherein the amount of data relating to the physical location is greater than the payload capacity that can be transmitted over the disconnected channel in response to a packet received from the non-flammable aerosol supply system, and the radio beacon is configured to transmit a first portion of the data relating to the physical location in response to a first packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel, and to transmit a second portion of the data relating to the physical location in response to a second packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel.

[0176]

[0176] [Clause 26] A radio beacon according to Clause 24 or 25, wherein the packet received from the non-flammable aerosol supply system identifies a subset of the data relating to the stock available at the physical location, and the data relating to the stock available at the physical location includes the subset of the data relating to the stock available at the physical location, wherein the data is subject to at least Clause 22.

[0177]

[0177] [Clause 27] A wireless beacon according to any one of Clauses 18 to 26, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to use Bluetooth and / or Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol and to transmit and / or receive data using the disconnected channel.

[0178]

[0178] [Clause 28] A radio beacon as described in any one of Clauses 18 to 27, wherein the disconnected channel includes using pre-pairing advertising packets.

[0179]

[0179] [Clause 29] A radio beacon according to Clause 28, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet includes an advertising packet from a non-flammable aerosol supply system within the operating range of the radio beacon, which is received by the radio beacon, and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by the radio beacon and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system within the operating range of the radio beacon.

[0180]

[0180] [Clause 30] The wireless communication system uses a hub-based method, and the wireless beacon is as described in any one of Clauses 18 to 29.

[0181]

[0181] [Clause 31] A system comprising a non-flammable aerosol supply system and a radio beacon, wherein the radio beacon comprises a data interface configured to receive data relating to a physical location associated with the beacon, and a wireless communication system configured to transmit data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon using a disconnected data channel, wherein the non-flammable aerosol supply system is configured to receive the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon from the wireless communication beacon using a disconnected data channel, and a user interface element of the non-flammable aerosol supply system provides instructions relating to the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon. tell A system comprising a user interface system configured in such a way.

[0182]

[0182] [Clause 32] The system according to Clause 31, wherein the beacon is located at the physical location, within the physical location, or near the physical location.

[0183]

[0183] [Clause 33] The system according to Clause 31 or 32, wherein the data relating to the physical location to which the beacon is associated includes information indicating that the beacon is within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0184]

[0184] [Clause 34] The non-flammable aerosol supply system is further configured to compare the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon with one or more preset values, and the user interface system provides one of a plurality of preset outputs in response to the result of the comparison. tell A system as described in any one of clauses 31 to 33, further configured as follows.

[0185]

[0185] [Clause 35] The system according to any one of Clauses 31 to 34, wherein the data relating to the physical location to which the beacon is associated includes data relating to the open / closed state of the physical location.

[0186]

[0186] [Clause 36] The system according to Clause 35, wherein the data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position includes one or more of the current open / closed state and future open / closed states.

[0187]

[0187] [Clause 37] The system described in any one of Clauses 31 to 36, wherein the received data includes data relating to inventory available at the physical location.

[0188]

[0188] [Clause 38] The system according to Clause 37, wherein the physical location is a retail store, and the data relating to the inventory available at the physical location is information relating to the types of consumables and / or accessories available at the retail store.

[0189]

[0189] [Clause 39] The user interface system has an input element configured to receive a selection input, and in response to the selection input, the user interface system provides further instructions representing the received data relating to the stock available at the physical location. tell The system as described in Clause 37 or 38, configured as such.

[0190]

[0190] [Clause 40] The non-flammable aerosol supply system further comprises a processor configured to filter the data relating to the stock available at the physical location to remove data relating to stock not related to the non-flammable aerosol supply system, wherein the user interface system provides the filtered data relating to the stock available at the physical location tellA system configured as described in any one of clauses 37 to 39.

[0191]

[0191] [Clause 41] The system according to any one of Clauses 37 to 40, wherein the data relating to the stock available at the physical location associated with the beacon, received in response to transmitting a first advertising packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system to the beacon, is different from the data relating to the stock available at the physical location associated with the beacon, received in response to transmitting a second advertising packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system to the beacon.

[0192]

[0192] [Clause 42] The wireless communication system according to any one of Clauses 31 to 41, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to use Bluetooth and / or Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol and to transmit and / or receive data using the disconnected channel.

[0193]

[0193] [Clause 43] The system described in any one of Clauses 31 to 42, wherein the disconnected channel includes using pre-pairing advertising packets.

[0194]

[0194] [Clause 44] The system according to Clause 43, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet includes an advertising packet transmitted by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and subsequently received by the radio beacon, and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by the beacon and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0195]

[0195] [Clause 45] The wireless communication system described in any one of Clauses 31 to 33, which uses a hub-based method.

[0196]

[0196] [Clause 46] The system according to any one of Clauses 31 to 45, wherein the user interface element includes one or more selected from a display, an audio output device, and a haptic device.

[0197]

[0197] [Clause 47] The system according to any one of Clauses 31 to 46, further comprising an input element configured to receive selection input for selecting a user interface function.

[0198]

[0198] [Clause 48] The system according to any one of Clauses 31 to 47, wherein the radio communication system of the radio beacon is configured to receive packets from the non-flammable aerosol supply system via the disconnected channel and to transmit the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon in response to the receipt of the packets.

[0199]

[0199] [Clause 49] The system according to Clause 48, wherein the amount of data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon is greater than the payload capacity that can be transmitted over the disconnected channel in response to a packet received from the non-flammable aerosol supply system, and the radio beacon is configured to transmit a first portion of the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon in response to a first packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel, and to transmit a second portion of the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon in response to a second packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel.

[0200]

[0200] [Clause 50] The system according to Clause 48 or 49, wherein the packets received from the non-flammable aerosol supply system identify a subset of the data relating to the stock available at the physical location, and the data relating to the stock available at the physical location includes the subset of the data relating to the stock available at the physical location, wherein the system is subject to Clause 37.

[0201]

[0201] [Clause 51] A non-flammable aerosol supply system receives data relating to the physical location associated with a wireless communication beacon using a disconnected data channel, and a user interface element of the non-flammable aerosol supply system provides instructions relating to the received data. tell Steps and methods, including

[0202]

[0202] [Clause 52] The method according to Clause 51, wherein the beacon is located at the physical location, within the physical location, or near the physical location.

[0203]

[0203] [Clause 53] The method according to Clause 51 or 52, wherein the received data includes information indicating that the beacon associated with the physical location is within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0204]

[0204] [Clause 54] Further comprising the step of comparing the received data with one or more pre-set values, tell The above step selects one of a plurality of predetermined outputs according to the result of the comparison. tell The method described in any one of the clauses 51 to 53, including the act of doing so.

[0205]

[0205] [Clause 55] The method according to any one of Clauses 51 to 54, wherein the received data includes data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position.

[0206]

[0206] [Clause 56] The method according to Clause 56, wherein the data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position includes one or more of the current open / closed state and future open / closed states.

[0207]

[0207] [Clause 57] The method according to any one of Clauses 51 to 56, wherein the received data includes data relating to inventory available at the physical location.

[0208]

[0208] [Clause 58] The method of Clause 57, wherein the physical location is a retail store, and the data relating to the stock available at the physical location is information relating to the types of consumables and / or accessories available at the retail store.

[0209]

[0209] [Clause 59] The method of Clause 57 or 58, further comprising the step of receiving a selection input, wherein in response to the selection input, the user interface system displays further instructions representing the received data relating to the stock available at the physical location.

[0210]

[0210] [Clause 60] Further comprising the step of filtering the data relating to inventory available at the physical location to remove data relating to inventory not related to the non-flammable aerosol supply system, wherein the user interface system accesses the filtered inventory information tell or the method described in any one of clauses 57 to 59.

[0211]

[0211] [Clause 61] The method according to any one of Clauses 57 to 60, wherein the received data relating to available stock at the physical location associated with the beacon, received in response to transmitting a first advertising packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system to the beacon, is different from the data relating to available stock at the physical location associated with the beacon, received in response to transmitting a second advertising packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system to the beacon.

[0212]

[0212] [Clause 62] The method according to any one of Clauses 51 to 61, wherein the disconnected channel uses Bluetooth and / or Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol.

[0213]

[0213] [Clause 63] The method according to any one of Clauses 51 to 62, wherein the disconnected channel uses pre-pairing advertising packets.

[0214]

[0214] [Clause 64] The method according to Clause 63, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet comprises an advertising packet transmitted by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by the beacon and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0215]

[0215] [Clause 65] A wireless communication system using a hub-based method, as described in any one of Clauses 51 to 64.

[0216]

[0216] [Clause 66] tell The method according to any one of the clauses 51 to 65, wherein the step includes using an interface element in one or more forms selected from a display, an audio output device, and a haptic device.

[0217]

[0217] [Clause 67] The method according to any one of Clauses 51 to 66, further comprising the step of receiving a selection input for selecting a user interface function via an input element of the interface system.

[0218]

[0218] [Clause 68] A method for a radio beacon, comprising: receiving data relating to a physical location associated with the beacon via a data interface; and transmitting data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon using a radio communication system configured to use a disconnected data channel.

[0219]

[0219] [Clause 69] The method of Clause 68, wherein the beacon is located at the physical location, within the physical location, or near the physical location.

[0220]

[0220] [Clause 70] The method according to Clause 68 or 69, wherein the data relating to the physical position includes data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position.

[0221]

[0221] [Clause 71] The method according to Clause 70, wherein the data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position includes one or more of the current open / closed state and future open / closed states.

[0222]

[0222] [Clause 72] The method according to any one of Clauses 68 to 71, wherein the data relating to the physical location includes data relating to inventory available at the physical location.

[0223]

[0223] [Clause 73] The method of Clause 72, wherein the physical location is a retail store, and the data relating to the inventory available at the physical location is information relating to the types of consumables and / or accessories available at the retail store.

[0224]

[0224] The method of Clause 74, further impairing the steps of receiving a packet from a non-flammable aerosol supply system via the disconnected channel and transmitting the data relating to the data relating to the physical location in response to the receiving step.

[0225]

[0225] [Clause 75] The method according to Clause 74, wherein the amount of data relating to the physical location is greater than the payload capacity that can be transmitted over the disconnected channel in response to a packet received from the non-flammable aerosol supply system, and the step of transmitting includes transmitting a first portion of the data relating to the physical location in response to a first packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel, and transmitting a second portion of the data relating to the physical location in response to a second packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel.

[0226]

[0226] [Clause 76] The method of Clause 74 or 75, wherein the packet received from the non-flammable aerosol supply system identifies a subset of the data relating to the stock available at the physical location, and the data relating to the stock available at the physical location includes the subset of the data relating to the stock available at the physical location, wherein the data is subject to at least Clause 72.

[0227]

[0227] [Clause 77] The method according to any one of Clauses 68 to 76, wherein the step of transmitting using the disconnected channel includes using the Bluetooth and / or Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol.

[0228]

[0228] [Clause 78] The method according to any one of Clauses 68 to 77, wherein the step of transmitting using the disconnected channel includes using a pre-pairing advertising packet.

[0229]

[0229] [Clause 79] The method according to Clause 78, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet comprises an advertising packet from a non-flammable aerosol supply system within the operating range of the radio beacon, which is received by the radio beacon, and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by the radio beacon and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system within the operating range of the radio beacon.

[0230]

[0230] [Clause 80] The method according to any one of Clauses 68 to 79, wherein the wireless communication system uses a hub-based approach.

[0231]

[0231] [Clause 81] A method for a non-flammable aerosol supply system and a system comprising a radio beacon, comprising: receiving data relating to a physical location associated with the beacon using the data interface of the radio beacon; transmitting the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon using a radio communication system configured to transmit using a disconnected data channel; receiving the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon using a radio communication system configured to receive using the disconnected data channel; and using a user interface element of the non-flammable aerosol supply system tell Using a user interface system configured in such a way, instructions are given to represent the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon. tell Steps and methods, including

[0232]

[0232] [Clause 82] The method according to Clause 81, wherein the beacon is located at the physical location, within the physical location, or near the physical location.

[0233]

[0233] [Clause 83] The method of Clause 81 or 82, wherein the data relating to the physical location to which the beacon is associated includes information indicating that the beacon is within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0234]

[0234] [Clause 84] The non-flammable aerosol supply system is further configured to compare the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon with one or more preset values, and the user interface system provides one of a plurality of preset outputs in response to the result of the comparison. tell The method described in any one of the clauses 81 to 83, further configured as follows:

[0235]

[0235] [Clause 85] The method according to any one of Clauses 81 to 84, wherein the data relating to the physical location to which the beacon is associated includes data relating to the open / closed state of the physical location.

[0236]

[0236] [Clause 86] The method according to Clause 85, wherein the data relating to the open / closed state of the physical position includes one or more of the current open / closed state and future open / closed states.

[0237]

[0237] [Clause 87] The method of any one of Clauses 81 to 86, wherein the received data includes data relating to inventory available at the physical location.

[0238]

[0238] [Clause 88] The method of Clause 87, wherein the physical location is a retail store, and the data relating to the stock available at the physical location is information relating to the types of consumables and / or accessories available at the retail store.

[0239]

[0239] [Clause 89] The steps of receiving a selection input using an input element of the user interface system, and in response to the selection input, using the user interface system, providing further instructions representing the received data relating to the available stock at the physical location. tell The method described in Clause 87 or 88, further including the steps of:

[0240]

[0240] [Clause 90] The data relating to the stock available at the physical location by the non-flammable aerosol supply system further includes the step of filtering out data relating to stock not related to the non-flammable aerosol supply system, tell The method according to any one of the clauses 87 to 87, wherein the step includes conveying the filtered data relating to the inventory available at the physical location.

[0241]

[0241] [Clause 91] The method of any one of Clauses 87 to 90, further comprising the step of transmitting a packet from the radio communication system of the non-flammable aerosol supply system to the radio communication system of the radio beacon before transmitting data relating to the available stock, wherein the step of receiving data relating to the available stock includes receiving different data relating to the available stock in response to transmitting each of two packets.

[0242]

[0242] [Clause 92] The method according to any one of Clauses 81 to 91, wherein the step of transmitting using the disconnected channel includes using the Bluetooth and / or Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol.

[0243]

[0243] [Clause 93] The method according to any one of Clauses 81 to 92, wherein the step of transmitting using the disconnected channel includes using a pre-pairing advertising packet.

[0244]

[0244] [Clause 94] The method according to Clause 93, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet comprises an advertising packet transmitted by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and subsequently received by the radio beacon, and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by the beacon and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

[0245]

[0245] [Clause 95] The method described in any one of Clauses 81 to 94, wherein the wireless communication system uses a hub-based approach.

[0246]

[0246] [Clause 96] tell The method according to any one of the clauses 81 to 95, wherein the step includes using one or more selected from a display, an audio output device, and a haptic device.

[0247]

[0247] [Clause 97] The method according to any one of Clauses 81 to 96, further comprising the step of receiving a selection input for selecting a user interface function using an input element of the user interface system.

[0248]

[0248] [Clause 98] The method according to any one of Clauses 81 to 97, further comprising the steps of: using the radio communication system of the radio beacon to receive a packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system via the disconnected channel; and transmitting the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon in response to the receiving step.

[0249]

[0249] [Clause 99] The method of Clause 98, wherein the amount of data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon is greater than the payload capacity that can be transmitted over the disconnected channel in response to a packet received from the non-flammable aerosol supply system, and the method further comprises the steps of: transmitting a first portion of the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon in response to a first packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel; and transmitting a second portion of the data relating to the physical location associated with the beacon in response to a second packet from the non-flammable aerosol supply system over the disconnected channel.

[0250]

[0250] [Clause 100] The method of Clause 98 or 99, which is at least dependent on Clause 87, further comprising the step of transmitting the subset of the data relating to the stock available at the physical location as the data relating to the stock available at the physical location, based on the instructions of a subset contained in the received packet. [Item of the invention] [Item 1] A non-flammable aerosol supply system, A data system configured to store operational data relating to the operating status of the aforementioned non-flammable aerosol supply system, and to store received operational data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system, A wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system from another non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, A user interface system is configured to convey instructions representing the received operation data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system through the user interface elements of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. A non-flammable aerosol supply system equipped with [the specified feature]. [Item 2] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to item 1, wherein the operating data relating to the operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system includes one or more selected from the group including information that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is active and information identifying consumables used by the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 3] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to item 1 or 2, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within the operating range of the wireless communication system. [Item 4] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to item 1, 2, or 3, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 5] A non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 4, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that another non-flammable aerosol supply system located within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system is the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 6] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 5, further configured to compare the received operating data relating to the operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system with one or more preset values, and the user interface system further configured to output one of a plurality of preset outputs in accordance with the result of the comparison. [Item 7] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 6, wherein the user interface elements include one or more selected from the group including a display configured to visually convey instructions, an audio output device configured to audibly convey instructions, and a tactile device configured to convey instructions using touch-detectable motion. [Item 8] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 7, wherein the user interface system comprises an input element configured to receive selection input, and the user interface system is further configured to convey further instructions in response to the received selection input, representing the received operational data relating to the operational state of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 9] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to item 8, wherein the input element is a button, a pressure-sensitive element, a touch membrane of a display, and / or a microphone. [Item 10] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 9, wherein the wireless communication system is further configured to transmit operational data relating to the operating status of the non-flammable aerosol supply system to another non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 11] The wireless communication system is further configured to receive data relating to a site associated with a beacon from a beacon using a disconnected data channel. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 10, wherein the user interface system is further configured to convey instructions representing the received data relating to the site associated with the beacon by the user interface elements. [Item 12] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 11, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to receive data using the disconnected channel using personal area network technology. [Item 13] A non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 12, wherein the disconnected channel is configured to use pre-paired advertising packets of personal area network technology. [Item 14] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to item 13, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet includes an advertising packet transmitted by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by another non-flammable aerosol supply system and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 15] The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 14, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to interface with a wireless network to which both the non-flammable aerosol supply system and the other non-flammable aerosol supply system are connected, using wireless network technology, and the disconnected channel is configured to use network packets transmitted over the wireless network to receive the operation data without establishing a network session with the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 16] The wireless communication system is a non-flammable aerosol supply system according to any one of items 1 to 15, wherein the wireless communication system uses a hub-based method. [Item 17] A system comprising a first non-flammable aerosol supply system and a second non-flammable aerosol supply system, wherein the first non-flammable aerosol supply system is A first wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating status of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system from the second non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, A first data system configured to store the received operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system, The first user interface system is configured to convey instructions representing the received operation data relating to the operating status of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system via the user interface elements of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system, Equipped with, The second non-flammable aerosol supply system is A second wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating status of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system from the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, A second data system configured to store the received operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system, A system comprising the second wireless communication system, wherein the second wireless communication system is configured to transmit the operation data relating to the operating status of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system to the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel. [Item 18] The first data system is further configured to store operational data relating to the operating state of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system. The first wireless communication system is further configured to transmit the operation data relating to the operating status of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system to the second non-flammable aerosol supply system using the disconnected data channel, The second wireless communication system is further configured to receive the operation data relating to the operating status of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system from the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using the disconnected data channel, The system according to item 17, further comprising a second user interface system configured to transmit instructions representing the received operational data relating to the operational status of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system via a user interface element of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 19] The system according to item 17 or 18, wherein the operating data relating to the operating state of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and / or the second non-flammable aerosol supply system includes one or more selected from the group including information that the other of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system is active, and information identifying consumables used by the other of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 20] The system according to item 17, 18, or 19, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system is within the operating range of the wireless communication system. [Item 21] The system according to any one of items 17 to 20, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system is within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 22] The system according to any one of items 17 to 21, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other of the first non-combustible aerosol supply system and the second non-combustible aerosol supply system, which is within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-combustible aerosol supply system, is the other of the first non-combustible aerosol supply system and the second non-combustible aerosol supply system. [Item 23] The system according to any one of items 17 to 22, wherein the first non-flammable aerosol supply system is configured to compare the received operating data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system with one or more preset values, and the first user interface system is configured to output one of a plurality of preset outputs in accordance with the result of the comparison. [Item 24] The system described in item 18, or, when subject to item 18, the system described in any one of items 19 to 23, wherein the second non-flammable aerosol supply system is configured to compare the received operating data relating to the operating state of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system with one or more preset values, and the second user interface system is configured to output one of a plurality of preset outputs in accordance with the result of the comparison. [Item 25] The system according to any one of items 18 to 24, wherein the first user interface element and / or the second user interface element includes one or more selected from the group including a display configured to visually convey instructions, an audio output device configured to audibly convey instructions, and a haptic device configured to convey instructions using touch-detectable motion. [Item 26] The system according to any one of items 18 to 25, wherein the first user interface system or the second user interface system includes an input element configured to receive a selection input, and the user interface system is further configured to transmit further instructions in response to the received selection input, representing the received operation data relating to the operating state of the other of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 27] The system according to item 26, wherein the input element is a button, a pressure-sensitive element, a touch membrane of a display, and / or a microphone. [Item 28] The first wireless communication system and / or the second wireless communication system are further configured to receive data relating to a site associated with a beacon from a beacon using a disconnected data channel. The system according to any one of items 18 to 27, wherein the first user interface system and / or the second user interface system are further configured to convey instructions by the user interface elements that represent the received data relating to the site associated with the beacon. [Item 29] The system according to any one of items 18 to 29, wherein the first wireless communication system is configured to receive data using the disconnected channel using personal area network technology. [Item 30] The system according to any one of items 18 to 29, wherein the disconnected channel is configured to use pre-paired advertising packets of the personal area network technology. [Item 31] The system according to item 30, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet includes an advertising packet transmitted by the first non-flammable aerosol supply system or the second non-flammable aerosol supply system, and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by the second non-flammable aerosol supply system or the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and subsequently received by the first non-flammable aerosol supply system or the second non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 32] The system according to any one of items 18 to 31, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to interface with a wireless network to which both the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system are connected, using wireless network technology, and the disconnected channel is configured to use network packets transmitted over the wireless network to receive the operation data without establishing a network session with another non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 33] The wireless communication system described in any one of items 18 to 32 uses a hub-based approach. [Item 34] A non-flammable aerosol supply system receives operational data regarding the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system from another non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel. The non-flammable aerosol supply system stores received operational data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system. The non-flammable aerosol supply system transmits instructions representing the received operation data regarding the operating status of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. Methods that include... [Item 35] The method according to item 34, wherein the operation data relating to the operating status of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system includes one or more selected from the group including information that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is active and information identifying consumables used by the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 36] The method according to item 34 or 35, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within the operating range of the wireless communication system of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 37] The method according to item 34, 35, or 36, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 38] The method according to any one of items 34 to 37, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that another non-flammable aerosol supply system located within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system is the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 39] The method according to any one of items 34 to 38, further comprising comparing the received operating data relating to the operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system with one or more preset values, and communicating one of a plurality of preset outputs based on the result of the comparison. [Item 40] The method according to any one of items 34 to 39, wherein the communication includes one or more selected from the group including communicating instructions visually, communicating instructions aurally, and communicating instructions using touch-detectable motion. [Item 41] The method according to any one of items 34 to 40, further comprising receiving a selection input and, in response to the received selection input, conveying further instructions representing the received operational data relating to the operational status of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 42] The method according to item 41, wherein the selection input is received via a button, a pressure-sensitive element, a touch membrane of a display, and / or a microphone. [Item 43] The method according to any one of items 34 to 42, further comprising transmitting operational data relating to the operating status of the non-flammable aerosol supply system to another non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 44] Receiving data about the site associated with a beacon from a beacon using a disconnected data channel, To convey instructions representing the received data relating to the site associated with the beacon, The method described in any one of items 34 to 43, further including the method described in any one of items 34 to 43. [Item 45] The method according to any one of items 34 to 44, wherein receiving data using the aforementioned disconnected channel includes receiving the data using personal area network technology. [Item 46] The method according to any one of items 34 to 45, wherein the disconnected channel is configured to use pre-paired advertising packets of personal area network technology. [Item 47] The method according to item 46, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet includes an advertising packet transmitted by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by and subsequently received by the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. [Item 48] The method according to any one of items 34 to 47, wherein receiving data using the disconnected data channel includes receiving the data via a wireless network, both the non-flammable aerosol supply system and the other non-flammable aerosol supply system are connected to the wireless network, and receiving the data via the wireless network includes receiving the operational data without establishing a network session with the other non-flammable aerosol supply system using network packets transmitted via the wireless network. [Item 49] A wireless communication system using a hub-based approach, as described in any one of items 34-48.

Claims

1. A non-flammable aerosol supply system, A data system configured to store operational data relating to the operating status of the aforementioned non-flammable aerosol supply system, and to store received operational data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system, A wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system from another non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, A user interface system is configured to convey instructions representing the received operation data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system through the user interface elements of the non-flammable aerosol supply system. A non-flammable aerosol supply system equipped with [the specified feature].

2. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the operation data relating to the operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system includes one or more selected from the group including information that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is active and information identifying consumables used by the other non-flammable aerosol supply system.

3. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within the operating range of the wireless communication system.

4. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that the other non-flammable aerosol supply system is within a specific range of the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

5. The non-combustible aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the instruction includes information indicating that another non-combustible aerosol supply system located within the operating range of the wireless communication system or within a specific range of the non-combustible aerosol supply system is the other non-combustible aerosol supply system.

6. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, further configured to compare the received operating data relating to the operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system with one or more preset values, and the user interface system further configured to output one of a plurality of preset outputs in accordance with the result of the comparison.

7. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the user interface elements include one or more selected from the group including a display configured to visually convey instructions, an audio output device configured to audibly convey instructions, and a tactile device configured to convey instructions using touch-detectable motion.

8. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the user interface system comprises an input element configured to receive selection input, and the user interface system is further configured to transmit further instructions representing the received operation data relating to the operating state of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system in response to the received selection input.

9. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 8, wherein the input element is a button, a pressure-sensitive element, a touch membrane of a display, and / or a microphone.

10. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication system is further configured to transmit operational data relating to the operating state of the non-flammable aerosol supply system to another non-flammable aerosol supply system.

11. The wireless communication system is further configured to receive data relating to a site associated with a beacon from a beacon using a disconnected data channel. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the user interface system is further configured to convey instructions representing the received data relating to the site associated with the beacon by the user interface elements.

12. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to receive data using the disconnected channel using personal area network technology.

13. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the disconnected channel is configured to use pre-paired advertising packets of personal area network technology.

14. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 13, wherein the pre-pairing advertising packet includes an advertising packet transmitted by the non-flammable aerosol supply system and a request packet and / or response packet transmitted by another non-flammable aerosol supply system and subsequently received by the non-flammable aerosol supply system.

15. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication system is configured to interface with a wireless network to which both the non-flammable aerosol supply system and the other non-flammable aerosol supply system are connected, using wireless network technology, and the disconnected channel is configured to use network packets transmitted over the wireless network to receive the operation data without establishing a network session with the other non-flammable aerosol supply system.

16. The non-flammable aerosol supply system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication system uses a hub-based method.

17. A system comprising a first non-flammable aerosol supply system and a second non-flammable aerosol supply system, wherein the first non-flammable aerosol supply system is A first wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating status of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system from the second non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, A first data system configured to store the received operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system, The first user interface system is configured to transmit instructions representing the received operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system via the user interface elements of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system, Equipped with, The second non-flammable aerosol supply system is A second wireless communication system configured to receive operational data relating to the operating status of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system from the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel, A second data system configured to store the received operation data relating to the operating state of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system, A system comprising the second wireless communication system, wherein the second wireless communication system is configured to transmit the operation data relating to the operating status of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system to the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel.

18. The first data system is further configured to store operational data relating to the operating state of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system. The first wireless communication system is further configured to transmit the operation data relating to the operating status of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system to the second non-flammable aerosol supply system using the disconnected data channel, The second wireless communication system is further configured to receive the operation data relating to the operating status of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system from the first non-flammable aerosol supply system using the disconnected data channel, The system according to claim 17, further comprising a second user interface system configured to transmit instructions representing the received operation data relating to the operating state of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system via a user interface element of the second non-flammable aerosol supply system.

19. The system according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the operation data relating to the operating state of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and / or the second non-flammable aerosol supply system includes one or more selected from the group including information that the other of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system is active, and information identifying consumables used by the other of the first non-flammable aerosol supply system and the second non-flammable aerosol supply system.

20. A non-flammable aerosol supply system receives operational data regarding the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system from another non-flammable aerosol supply system using a disconnected data channel. The non-flammable aerosol supply system stores received operational data relating to the operating status of another non-flammable aerosol supply system. The non-flammable aerosol supply system transmits instructions representing the received operation data regarding the operating status of the other non-flammable aerosol supply system. Methods that include...

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