Aerosol Heater Tap Detection With Dynamic Threshold Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Aerosol generating devices face challenges in accurately recognizing user inputs due to finger stress, leading to malfunction and failure to heat the heater despite user input, as they are designed to heat only upon consecutive taps, which can result in inaccurate detection of tap inputs.
Innovation Solution
The device includes a sensor and controller that adjust the sensitivity threshold based on the number of tap inputs, allowing for accurate recognition of user inputs by counting consecutive taps and adjusting the threshold inversely proportional to the tap input frequency, ensuring the heater is operated only when the predetermined input number is reached.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the device requires consecutive tap inputs to prevent malfunction, then the reliability of heater activation is improved, but the measurement precision of user input detection deteriorates due to finger stress
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the threshold value changeable based on the number of consecutive tap inputs. The threshold is dynamically adjusted to be lower for subsequent taps, compensating for finger stress while maintaining reliability through the consecutive tap requirement. This resolves the contradiction by allowing the detection sensitivity to adapt during the input sequence.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the threshold parameter based on the tap input sequence. The controller sets different threshold values for different taps (e.g., lower threshold for second and subsequent taps), which allows accurate detection despite finger stress. This parameter change strategy maintains both reliability and measurement precision.
2Device complexity
If a fixed threshold is used for tap detection, then the device complexity is reduced, but the adaptability to user input variations deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The threshold is made dynamic rather than fixed, adjusting based on the tap input sequence. This allows the system to adapt to finger stress variations without requiring complex adaptive algorithms, achieving a balance between adaptability and controlled complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically adjusts the threshold based on the tap sequence without requiring user intervention or complex external control. The controller inherently modifies the detection criteria to accommodate natural variations in user input, providing self-adaptive behavior.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enhances user convenience by accurately recognizing user inputs and preventing heater activation due to malfunctions, such as device collisions, thereby improving the reliability and usability of the aerosol generating device.
Implementation Method 1
at least one sensor configured to sense a tap input of a user
Implementation Method 2
a heater configured to heat an aerosol generating substrate
Data Source
AI summary
An aerosol generating device includes a heater configured to heat an aerosol generating substrate, at least one sensor configured to sense a tap input of a user, and a controller configured to receive a sensing value indicating the tap input from the at least one sensor, count a number of tap inputs based on the received sensing value being greater than a variable threshold, and operate the heater based on whether the counted number of tap inputs reaches a predetermined input number, wherein the controller adjusts the variable threshold based on the counted number of tap inputs.