Aerosol Device Light Guide for LED Protection and Illumination

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current aerosol generation devices face challenges in maintaining a compact, portable, and easy-to-use design while protecting LEDs from environmental factors like water and dust, and providing efficient illumination feedback due to limited internal space and vulnerable LED arrangements.

Innovation Solution

The use of a light guide connected to an LED, which allows the LED to be positioned at a distance from the outer layer and capacitive layer, enabling a more flexible component arrangement, protecting the LED from damage, and providing illumination feedback through a capacitive layer with translucent or transparent properties.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Illumination intensity

If LEDs are embedded close to the outer layer for illumination feedback, then illumination intensity is improved, but the LED becomes vulnerable to environmental factors such as water, dust, and physical impact

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveillumination feedbackVSAvoidLED protection

Core Design Contradiction:

Illumination intensityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

A light guide is introduced as an intermediary component between the LED and the outer housing surface. The light guide conducts light from the LED (positioned at a safe distance inside the housing) to the outer surface, enabling illumination feedback while protecting the LED from environmental factors. This mediator allows the LED to be positioned away from vulnerable areas while still providing visible illumination.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Illumination intensity

If the LED is positioned close to the outer layer for better illumination, then illumination efficiency is improved, but the device complexity increases due to constrained component arrangement

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveillumination efficiencyVSAvoidcomponent arrangement

Core Design Contradiction:

Illumination intensityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The light guide extends in a dimensional path from the LED location deep inside the housing to the outer surface, utilizing the depth dimension of the housing. This allows the LED to be positioned in a plane different from the outer surface, transforming a two-dimensional placement constraint into a three-dimensional solution space, thereby simplifying component arrangement.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

3Device complexity

If the LED is positioned at a distance from the outer layer for protection and flexible arrangement, then device compactness and ease of manufacture are improved, but illumination intensity decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecomponent arrangement flexibilityVSAvoidillumination feedback

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSIllumination intensity

Solution Approach 1:

The light guide acts as an optical mediator that efficiently transfers light from the distant LED to the outer surface. This intermediary component ensures that even though the LED is positioned at a distance for protection and flexible arrangement, the illumination intensity at the outer surface remains sufficient for effective user feedback.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

4Temperature

If LEDs are arranged with gaps between housing and LEDs for heat dissipation, then thermal management is improved, but the device becomes vulnerable to wet air, dust, and liquids

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveheat dissipationVSAvoidenvironmental vulnerability

Core Design Contradiction:

TemperatureVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The LED is nested within the housing structure at a position that provides both heat dissipation space and environmental protection. The light guide connects this nested LED position to the outer surface, allowing the LED to be enclosed within the housing (protected from environmental factors) while maintaining thermal management capabilities through proper positioning and spacing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

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 allows for a more elaborate and compact aerosol generation device design, reducing spatial constraints, protecting the LED from environmental influences, and enhancing user feedback through efficient illumination, while maintaining a compact and portable form factor.

Implementation Method 1

a light guide that is arranged in an area that extends orthogonally from the touch area, and is connected to the LED such that light emitted from the LED propagates through the light guide and further through the touch area

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectTotal internal reflection: Total Internal Reflection

Data Source

PatentUS20240164445A1Aerosol Generation Device with an Improved Illumination Arrangement

Publication Date: 2024.05.23 JT INTERNATIONAL SA

AI summary

An aerosol generation device includes: a main body with a main housing; a touch area for detecting a touch operation; an LED; and a light guide. The light guide is arranged in an area that extends orthogonally from the touch area, and the light guide is connected to the LED such that light emitted from the LED propagates through the light guide and further through the touch area. The touch area forms part of the main housing, and the touch area comprises a capacitive layer with capacitive cells for detecting a touch operation on the touch area. At least a portion of the capacitive layer is translucent or preferably transparent to light.