Aerosol-generating system with adjustable pump flow rate

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10667559-B2
Application number	US-201715825548-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 29, 2017
Priority date	Nov 29, 2016
Publication date	Jun 2, 2020
Grant date	Jun 2, 2020

Abstract

A method of generating an aerosol in an aerosol-generating system includes storing liquid aerosol-forming substrate in a liquid storage portion and delivering via a pump a liquid aerosol-forming substrate from the liquid storage portion to an atomizer. The method also includes sensing a puff via a a puff sensor in an airflow path of the aerosol-generating system and determining a puff intensity during the puff via a controller. The delivery flow rate of the liquid aerosol-forming substrate to the atomizer is adjusted in response to the determined puff intensity.

First claim

We claim:

1. An aerosol-generating system, the system comprising:
a housing including an air inlet and an air outlet, an airflow path defined between the air inlet and the air outlet;
vaporizer configured to vaporize an aerosol-forming substrate, the vaporizer including,
a heating element;

a liquid storage portion configured to contain the aerosol-forming substrate;
a pump configured to deliver the aerosol-forming substrate from the liquid storage portion to the vaporizer;
a puff sensor in the airflow path, the puff sensor configured to sense a puff, and
a controller configured to determine a puff intensity based on an output from the puff sensor and adjust a delivery flow rate of the pump and the electrical power supplied to the heating element in response to the determined puff intensity.

2. The aerosol-generating system according to claim 1 , wherein the puff sensor is one of a pressure sensor or an airflow sensor.

3. A method of generating an aerosol in an aerosol-generating system, comprising:
pumping a liquid aerosol-forming substrate from a liquid storage portion to a vaporizer using a pump, the vaporizer including,
a heating element configured to vaporize the liquid aerosol-forming substrate;

sensing a puff using a puff sensor, the puff sensor in an airflow path of the aerosol-generating system, the puff sensor configured to sense a puff; and
determining, using a controller, a puff intensity based on an output from the puff sensor and values stored in a look-up table, the controller configured to adjust a delivery flow rate of the pump and electrical power supplied to the heating element in response to the determined puff intensity.

4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the puff intensity is based on a puff sensor reading obtained after about 0.1 seconds to about 0.9 seconds after initiation of the puff.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the sensing includes at least one of,
detecting the initiation of the puff by the puff sensor, or
detecting the initiation of the puff by activation of a button.

6. The method according to claim 3 , further comprising:
adjusting the electrical power supplied to the heating element in response to the delivery flow rate of the liquid aerosol-forming substrate.

7. The method according to claim 3 , further comprising:
activating the pump until an end of the puff is detected.

8. The method according to claim 3 , further comprising:
pre-heating the heating element upon initiation of a puff.

9. The method according to claim 3 , further comprising:
activating the heating element for the duration of the puff.

10. The method according to claim 3 , further comprising:
activating the heating element for an additional period of time about 0.5 seconds after the pump has been deactivated.

Assignees

• BESSANT Michel
• Mazur Ben
• Latorre Eva Saade
• Tabasso Alain
• Altria Client Services Llc

Inventors

• BESSANT Michel
• Mazur Ben
• Latorre Eva Saade
• Tabasso Alain

Classifications

• A61M2205/8206

  battery-operated · CPC title

• A61M11/042 Primary

  electrical · CPC title

• H05B1/0297

  Heating of fluids for non specified applications · CPC title

• A61M2205/3653

  by Joule effect, i.e. electric resistance · CPC title

• A61M15/06 Primary

  Inhaling appliances shaped like cigars, cigarettes or pipes · CPC title