Acoustic Data Transmission in Electronic Inhalation Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Electronic inhalation devices lack effective means to monitor and transmit user data on nicotine vapor intake habits, hindering the assessment of replacement therapy efficacy and requiring cumbersome cable interfaces for data transfer.
Innovation Solution
An electronic inhalation device with a control unit containing a microcontroller, pressure sensor, and wireless transmitter, capable of collecting and transmitting usage data, such as inhalation count, average inhalation time, and session count, via sound signals, minimizing data storage and optimizing transmission through header, core, and footer data, with configuration data for frequency, duration, and intensity, ensuring reliable data transfer without the need for physical access ports.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If data is transmitted using a cable interface, then data transfer reliability is improved, but device complexity and ease of operation deteriorate due to requiring physical access ports and connections
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical cable interface system with an acoustic transmission system using a buzzer or speaker to emit sound waves modulated with data. This eliminates the need for physical access ports, connectors, and cables, thereby reducing device complexity while enabling data transmission without mechanical connections.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces sound waves as an intermediary medium to carry data between the electronic inhalation device and an external receiver. By modulating the acoustic signal with data and using a receiver with audio input to decode it, the system achieves wireless data transfer without direct physical contact, simplifying the device structure.
2Productivity
If data is minimized to 8 bytes or less, then transmission speed is improved, but information completeness worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the most essential usage data elements needed for monitoring purposes, storing them in a minimized format of 8 bytes or less. By selecting only critical parameters and using efficient data encoding, the system achieves rapid transmission through the acoustic channel while retaining sufficient information to assess usage habits and provide feedback.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the data representation parameters by using compact byte-sized storage for usage counts and statistics. This parameter optimization enables the minimized data set to be transmitted quickly via acoustic modulation while still capturing the essential usage patterns needed for monitoring and feedback purposes.
3Ease of operation
If wireless transmission is implemented, then ease of operation is improved by eliminating cables, but data transmission reliability worsens due to potential interference
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the reliable but cumbersome mechanical cable connection with an acoustic wireless transmission system. By using a buzzer or speaker to emit modulated sound waves that can be received and decoded by an external device, the system achieves cable-free operation improving ease of use while maintaining data transmission capability through the acoustic channel.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic inhalation device comprising a mouthpiece and a control unit, the control unit comprising a power cell and a computer, where the computer comprises a computer processor, a memory and an input-output means; wherein the device further comprises a transmitter connected to the computer and the computer is configured in use to collect and store use data relating to a user's use of the device in the computer memory and transmit the use data.