Cigarette dispensing device

• US 9,648,906 B2
• Filed: 11/28/2013
• Issued: 05/16/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CIT,S.A.
• Original Assignee: CIT,S.A.
• Inventors: Fabregas Pedrell, Jose Maria
• Primary Examiner(s): Waggoner, Timothy
• Assistant Examiner(s): AKRIDGE, STEPHEN LEE
• Application Number:
  US14/387,074
• Publication Number:
  US 20150272212A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,265 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A24F 15/005 with means for limiting the frequency of smoking, e.g. with time-control, counting means

Abstract

A cigarette dispensing device includes a case provided with a lid including a closure element controlled by an electric actuator, an electronic plate, and a rechargeable battery for powering the electronic plate and the electric actuator. The opening of the case is actuated using an application installed on a mobile terminal. The application is designed to: receive a request for the remote opening of the case from the user; establish a variable delay time between the case opening request from the user and the transmission of an opening command to the case via a wireless communication; and, during the variable delay time, transmit an information message to the screen of the mobile terminal.

Claims

1. A cigarette dispensing system for regulating a smoking habit of a smoker, the cigarette dispensing system comprising:

a cigarette case having a body that defines an interior receptacle adapted to receive an arrangement of cigarettes therein;

a lid having a closure cooperative with said cigarette case, said closure controlled by an electric actuator and an electronic plate;

a rechargeable battery cooperative with said electronic plate and said electric actuator; and

a mobile handset separate from said cigarette case and cooperative with said electric actuator and said electronic plate so as to control an opening of said lid of said cigarette case by said closure, said mobile handset having a microprocessor with a memory and screen and a battery, said screen adapted to present menus and a variety of information, said battery of said mobile handset supplying power to said microprocessor and to said screen, said mobile handset having a transmitter cooperative with said microprocessor so as to transmit a signal to said electronic plate so as to remotely activate said electric actuator for opening said lid of said cigarette case, said mobile handset having an application that receives a remote request from the smoker to open said lid of said cigarette case so as to allow the smoker to access the arrangement of cigarettes in said cigarette case, said microprocessor establishing a variable delay time between the remote request and the transmission of the signal and to present an information message on said screen during the variable delay time, said microprocessor having a memory with a database so as to record a variety of information, the variety of information selected from the group consisting of locations, times, activities, companies and a combination thereof.

2. The system of claim 1, said mobile handset having a geo-positioning sensor cooperative with said microprocessor so as to determine coordinates of a position of the smoker and to compare with coordinates previously recorded in the database so as to cancel or delay the remote request when the coordinates of the position coincides with the coordinates previously recorded.

3. The system of claim 1, the application enquiring the smoker as to a cigarette smoked, the microprocessor recording information as to the enquiry of the smoker as to cigarette smoked in the database.