Removable Tipping Wrapper for Customizable Mouthpiece Texture

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Solution Overview

Problem

Smoking articles typically offer consumers limited choices in their smoking experience, with the experience being determined at the time of manufacture and lacking customization options for surface texture and usage preferences.

Innovation Solution

An aerosol generating article with a mouthpiece featuring surface formations and a removable tipping wrapper portion, allowing consumers to choose between different surface textures by removing the wrapper to expose embossed or debossed patterns on the mouthpiece wrapper, providing a customizable smoking experience.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If a conventional tipping wrapper is used without surface formations, then the manufacturing process is simple, but the consumer experience lacks customization and variety

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveconsumer experience customizationVSAvoidmouthpiece structure

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The tipping wrapper is divided into a fixed upstream portion and a removable downstream portion, allowing consumers to choose whether to remove the portion with surface formations. This segmentation enables customization of consumer experience while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Surface formations are pre-applied to the mouthpiece wrapper during manufacturing, before the consumer uses the article. The removable tipping wrapper portion is pre-configured to cover or expose these formations, allowing consumers to select their preferred tactile experience without requiring complex active mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Adaptability or versatility

If a removable tipping wrapper portion is added to provide surface texture choices, then consumer choice is improved, but the manufacturing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesurface texture optionsVSAvoidwrapper assembly process

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The tipping wrapper is segmented into fixed and removable portions, with the removable portion containing the surface formations. This allows the surface texture variations to be added as a separate module during manufacturing, rather than requiring complex integration into the entire wrapper structure.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The removable tipping wrapper portion is designed as a disposable element that can be easily removed and discarded. This allows manufacturers to use relatively simple and inexpensive surface formation techniques on a component that is intended for single-use removal, reducing the overall manufacturing complexity and cost.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

3Ease of operation

If surface formations are embossed on the mouthpiece wrapper, then consumer tactile experience is enhanced, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveconsumer tactile interactionVSAvoidsurface formation accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

Surface formations are embossed on the mouthpiece wrapper during the manufacturing process, before the article reaches the consumer. This preliminary action allows standard embossing techniques to be used without requiring high precision during final assembly, as the surface formations are already in place and only need to be either exposed or covered by the removable tipping wrapper portion.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

Surface formations are applied locally to specific areas of the mouthpiece wrapper, particularly in regions where consumer tactile interaction occurs. This localized application allows manufacturing precision to be focused only on the necessary areas, rather than requiring high precision across the entire wrapper structure.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

4Adaptability or versatility

If the tipping wrapper is made removable to allow surface texture selection, then consumer preference satisfaction is improved, but the structural integrity may be compromised

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveusage configuration optionsVSAvoidwrapper structural stability

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The tipping wrapper is segmented into fixed and removable portions, with the fixed upstream portion providing structural stability and support. The removable downstream portion can be taken away to expose surface formations without compromising the overall structural integrity of the article, as the fixed portion remains in place to maintain stability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The weakening line is pre-formed in the removable tipping wrapper portion during manufacturing, allowing clean and controlled removal without damaging the underlying structure. This preliminary preparation ensures that when consumers remove the tipping wrapper portion, it separates cleanly along the pre-formed line, maintaining the structural integrity of both the removed portion and the remaining article.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS10842184B2Aerosol generating article having mouthpiece with surface formations and removable tipping wrapper portion

Publication Date: 2020.11.24 PHILIP MORRIS PRODUCTS SA

AI summary

There is provided an aerosol generating article (10) comprising an aerosol generating substrate (12), a mouthpiece (14) in axial alignment with the aerosol generating substrate (12), and a tipping wrapper (20) wrapped around the mouthpiece (14) and at least a portion of the aerosol generating substrate (12). The mouthpiece (14) comprises a mouthpiece wrapper (30) circumscribing one or more mouthpiece segments (16). The tipping wrapper (20) comprises at least one weakening line (22) extending transversely around at least a portion of the tipping wrapper (20); an upstream wrapper portion (24) extending upstream from the at least one weakening line; and a removable tipping wrapper portion (26) extending downstream from the at least one weakening line (22). The mouthpiece wrapper (30) comprises at least one surface formation (28) underlying the removable tipping wrapper portion (26).