INHALER

• US 20110226236A1
• Filed: 10/21/2009
• Published: 09/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nicoventures Trading Ltd. (British American Tobacco PLC)
• Original Assignee: Batmark Limited (British American Tobacco PLC)
• Inventors: Buchberger, Helmut
• Granted Patent: US 8,833,364 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 128/200.23
• CPC Class Codes: A24F 40/00 Electrically operated smoking devices; Component parts thereof; Manufacture thereof; Maintenance or testing thereof; Charging means specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A24F 40/10 Devices using liquid inhalable precursors
• CPC Class Codes: A24F 40/44 Wicks
• CPC Class Codes: A24F 40/46 Shape or structure of electric heating means
• CPC Class Codes: A24F 40/485 Valves; Apertures
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 31/465 Nicotine; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 11/041 using heaters
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 11/042 electrical
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 15/0021 Mouthpieces therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 15/0086 Inhalation chambers
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 15/06 Inhaling appliances shaped like cigars, cigarettes or pipes
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2016/0021 with a proportional output signal, e.g. from a thermistor
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/11 with means for preventing cross-contamination when used for multiple patients
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3606 cooled
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3653 by Joule effect, i.e. electric resistance
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/7536 allowing gas passage, but preventing liquid passage, e.g. liquophobic, hydrophobic, water-repellent membranes
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8206 battery-operated
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8237 Charging means

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an inhaler component for producing a steam/air mixture or/and condensation aerosol in an intermittent and inhalation- or pull-synchronous manner. Said inhaler component includes the following elements: a housing (3); a chamber (21) arranged in said housing (3); an air inlet opening (26) for the supply of air from the surroundings to the chamber (21); an electrical heating element for evaporating a portion of a liquid material (16), the steam produced mixing in the chamber (21) with the air supplied through the air inlet opening (26), thereby producing the steam/air mixture or/and condensation aerosol; and a wick having a capillary structure, which wick forms a composite structure (22) with the heating element and automatically supplies the heating element with fresh liquid material (16) after evaporation. In order to provide the high specific evaporative capacity required for an intermittent, inhalation- or pull-synchronous operation of the inhaler component (2) while guaranteeing a high efficiency of the evaporator, the composite structure (22) is a flat structure and at least one heated section of the composite structure (22) is arranged in the chamber (21) in a contact-free manner, and the capillary structure of the wick is substantially exposed in said section on at least one side (24) of the flat composite structure.

Claims

1. An inhalator component for the intermittent formation, synchronous with inhalation or drawing, of a vapor-air mixture or/and condensation aerosol, comprising:

a housing;

a chamber arranged in the housing;

an air admission opening for the supply of air from the surroundings to the chamber;

an electric heating element for evaporating a portion of a liquid material, wherein the vapor which is formed is mixed in the chamber with the air supplied through the air admission opening, and the vapor-air mixture or/and condensation aerosol is formed;

and a wick with a capillary structure, which wick forms a composite with the heating element and automatically resupplies the heating element with the liquid material following evaporation,

wherein the composite is of planar design, and at least one heated section of the composite is arranged in the chamber in a contact-free manner, and the capillary structure of the wick in said section is substantially exposed at least on one side of the planar composite.

2. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the capillary structure of the wick in said section is substantially exposed on both sides of the planar composite.

3. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the composite has a thickness of less than 0.6 mm.

4. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the composite has a thickness of less than 0.3 mm.

5. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the composite is designed in the form of a plate, film, strip or band.

6. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the composite contains one of the following structures:

a fabric, open-pored fiber structure, open-pored sintered structure, open-pored foam or open-pored deposition structure.

7. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the composite has at least two layers.

8. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 7, wherein the layers contain at least one of the following structures:

a plate, foil, paper, fabric, open-pored fiber structure, open-pored sintered structure, open-pored foam or open-pored deposition structure.

9. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 8, wherein the layers are connected to one another by heat treatment.

13. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heating element is at least partially integrated in the wick.

14. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 13, wherein the wick at least partially consists of an electric resistance material.

15. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 14, wherein the electric resistance material is metallic.

16. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connection between the heating element and the wick extends over the entire extent of the wick.

21. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the planar composite is of substantially flat design, and the air admission opening is deigned as a slot-shaped channel, and the slot-shaped channel is oriented parallel to the flat composite surface.

23. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the composite passes through the chamber in the manner of a bridge and is mounted by two end sections on two electrically conductive, plate-like contacts, and the heating element is in contact electrically with the contacts.

25. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 23, wherein the electric contact connection of the heating element consists of an adhesive bonding connection by means of an electrically conductive adhesive.

26. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 23, wherein the plate-like contacts protrude out of the outer surface of the housing in the form of two plug contacts.

27. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, wherein one end of the composite projects into a capillary gap, the flow resistance of which is lower than the flow resistance of the wick.

28. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 27, wherein the cross section of the capillary gap is larger than the cross section of the composite.

29. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 27, wherein the heating element of the composite is in contact connection electrically in the capillary gap.

30. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 27, with a liquid container which is arranged in the housing or is connected to the housing and contains the liquid material, together with an openable closure, wherein the liquid container can neither be removed from the housing nor separated from the housing, and the liquid material in the liquid container can be coupled in terms of capillary action to the capillary gap by manual opening of the openable closure.

60. The inhalator component as claimed in claim 1, with a plurality of composites which are arranged next to one another and the heating elements of which consist of electric heating resistors, wherein the heating resistors are connected in series to one another.

61. An inhalator comprising an inhalator component as claimed in claim 1.

10-12. -12. (canceled)

17-20. -20. (canceled)

22. (canceled)

24. (canceled)

31-59. -59. (canceled)