Rotatable Heating Element for Solid Nicotine Tape Aerosol System

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Solution Overview

Problem

Commercial electronic cigarettes face issues with e-liquid leakage due to excessive liquid, poor retention capacity of porous materials, changes in environmental pressure, and temperature changes affecting viscosity. Additionally, the integration of heaters in replaceable cartridges increases costs, complexity, and disposal costs.

Innovation Solution

An aerosol-generating system that uses a solid aerosol-generating substrate on a tape, where the substrate includes nicotine and glycerol, and a rotatable heating element with multiple heating surfaces. The heating element rotates to align with the substrate, heating it to vaporize the aerosol and then moves to a cleaning position to maintain system consistency.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If e-liquid is stored in porous material with capillary action, then liquid transport to heater is enabled, but e-liquid leakage occurs due to excessive liquid and poor retention capacity

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveliquid transport capabilityVSAvoide-liquid leakage
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the physical state of nicotine from liquid to solid form on a tape substrate. This parameter change eliminates the leakage issues associated with liquid e-liquid while maintaining the ability to transport and vaporize the active ingredient through the solid-gas phase transition during heating.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The invention utilizes phase transition by storing nicotine in solid form on the tape and transitioning it to gas phase through vaporization during heating. This approach replaces the liquid-capillary-vaporization chain with a solid-adsorption-vaporization mechanism that prevents leakage.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #36Phase transitions

2Ease of manufacture

If heater is integrated in replaceable cartridge, then aerosol generation is enabled, but cost and complexity increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaerosol generation capabilityVSAvoidcartridge structure
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the heater from the replaceable cartridge and places it in the reusable device body. The cartridge is simplified to contain only the solid nicotine tape, which is much cheaper and simpler to manufacture than a cartridge with integrated heating elements, electronics, and fluid management systems.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The system is segmented into a reusable device body containing the heater and electronics, and a disposable cartridge containing only the solid nicotine tape. This segmentation allows the complex components to be reused while the simple consumable is replaced, reducing overall system complexity and cost.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

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

The system provides a stable, leak-free aerosol generation without the need for a heating element in the replaceable cartridge, reducing complexity and cost while ensuring consistent aerosol production.

Implementation Method 1

Resistive heating aerosol-generating system with nicotine tape - the aerosol-generating system is configured to generate aerosol via resistive heating of the nicotine tape

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectResistive heating: Joule Heating

Implementation Method 2

heating it to vaporize the aerosol

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectVaporization: Evaporation

Data Source

PatentEP4398748B1Resistive heating aerosol-generating system with nicotine tape
Publication Date: 2025.06.11 PHILIP MORRIS PRODUCTS SA
  • EP4398748B1 patent drawingFigure 1~4
  • EP4398748B1 patent drawingFigure 5~7C

AI summary

An aerosol-generating system includes a rotating heating element having two or more heating surfaces in the aerosol-generating device. The aerosol-generating device receives a replaceable aerosol-generating article. The replaceable aerosol-generating article includes a tape having a solid aerosol-generating substrate on the tape. Methods of using the aerosol-generating system are also described.