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EP-4487715-B1 - CARTRIDGE FOR A VAPORIZER DEVICE AND VAPORIZER DEVICE

EP4487715B1EP 4487715 B1EP4487715 B1EP 4487715B1EP-4487715-B1

Inventors

  • ATKINS, Ariel
  • CHRISTENSEN, STEVEN
  • GOULD, ALEXANDER J.
  • WHITE, BRYAN

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20191008

Claims (13)

  1. A cartridge (52) for a vaporizer device, the cartridge (52) comprising: a reservoir (55) configured to hold a vaporizable material (51); and a heating element (120) configured to heat the vaporizable material (51), the heating element (120) comprising: a capillary structure including a plurality of rigid portions (124, 126), the plurality of rigid portions (124, 126) comprising an upper rigid portion (124) and a lower rigid portion (126), wherein the lower rigid portion (126) is spaced apart from the upper rigid portion (124) by a span (128) that defines a capillary gap, the capillary gap configured to draw the vaporizable material (51) from the reservoir (55) to a heater region (108) of the heating element (120) to be heated, and an aerosol being generated by the heating of the vaporizable material (51) drawn to the heater region (108) of the heating element (120), and characterized in that the upper rigid portion (124) of the plurality of rigid portions (124, 126) comprises an upper vaporization portion (122A) having a plurality of upper gaps (152A), and the lower rigid portion (126) of the plurality of rigid portions (124, 126) comprises a lower vaporization portion (122B) having a plurality of lower gaps (152B), and that the plurality of upper gaps (152A) are positioned laterally offset from the plurality of lower gaps (152B).
  2. The cartridge (52) of claim 1, wherein the lower rigid portion (126) is integrally formed with the upper rigid portion (124).
  3. The cartridge (52) of claim 2, wherein the plurality of rigid portions (124, 126) of the capillary structure further comprises: an upper end portion (193A) configured to be in fluid communication with the reservoir (55); and a lower end portion (193B) comprising a heater (120A); wherein the upper rigid portion (124) comprises: a plurality of upwardly extending members (702), wherein the capillary gap is formed between adjacent upwardly extending members (702) of the plurality of upwardly extending members (702).
  4. The cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims, wherein the heating element (120) is at least partially positioned within the reservoir (55).
  5. The cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims, further comprising an air inlet configured to direct a flow of air across the heater region (108) such that when the heating element (120) is activated, the vaporizable material (51) drawn into the capillary gap at the heater region (108) is evaporated into the flow of air.
  6. The cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims, wherein the heating element (120) comprises an electrically conductive layer, wherein preferably the electrically conductive layer comprises a trace pattern.
  7. The cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims, wherein the heating element (120) comprises nichrome.
  8. The cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims, further comprising an atomizer chamber housing (112) that surrounds at least a portion of the heating element (120), the atomizer chamber housing (112) comprising a cutout region, wherein preferably the cutout region is configured to receive a porous material configured to absorb the vaporizable material (51).
  9. The cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims and claim 2, wherein the heating element (120) forms a single rigid portion that is folded to define the upper rigid portion (124) and the lower rigid portion (126).
  10. The cartridge of one of the previous claims, wherein the upper rigid portion (124) is positioned parallel to the lower rigid portion (126).
  11. The cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims, wherein the heating element (120) comprises a plurality of perforations (199) to allow the vaporizable material (51) to evaporate therethrough.
  12. A vaporizer device (100) comprising: the cartridge (52) of one of the previous claims.
  13. A vaporizer device (100) of claim 12, further comprising: a vaporizer device body (50).

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The subject matter described herein relates to a cartridge for a vaporizer device and a vaporizer device comprising the cartridge. BACKGROUND Vaporizing devices, which can also be referred to as vaporizers, electronic vaporizer devices, or e-vaporizer devices, can be used for delivery of an aerosol (e.g., vapor-phase and/or condensed-phase material suspended in a stationary or moving mass of air or some other gas carrier) containing one or more active ingredients by inhalation of the aerosol by a user of the vaporizing device. For example, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) include a class of vaporizer devices that are battery powered and that may be used to simulate the experience of smoking, but without burning of tobacco or other substances. Vaporizers are gaining increasing popularity both for prescriptive medical use, in delivering medicaments, and for consumption of tobacco, nicotine, and other plant-based vaporizable materials, including solid and/or liquid materials, and prefilled pods (cartridges, wrapped containers, etc.) of such materials. Vaporizer devices may be portable, self-contained, and convenient for use. In use of a vaporizer device, the user inhales an aerosol, colloquially referred to as "vapor," which may be generated by a heating element that vaporizes (e.g., causes a liquid or solid to at least partially transition to the gas phase) a vaporizable material, which may be liquid, a solution, a solid, a paste, a wax, and/or any other form compatible for use with a specific vaporizer device. The vaporizable material used with a vaporizer can be provided within a cartridge (e.g., a separable part of the vaporizer device that contains vaporizable material) that includes an outlet (e.g., a mouthpiece) for inhalation of the aerosol by a user. To receive the inhalable aerosol generated by a vaporizer device, a user may, in certain examples, activate the vaporizer device by taking a puff, by pressing a button, and/or by some other approach. A puff as used herein can refer to inhalation by the user in a manner that causes a volume of air to be drawn into the vaporizer device such that the inhalable aerosol is generated by a combination of vaporized vaporizable material with the volume of air. An approach by which a vaporizer device generates an inhalable aerosol from a vaporizable material involves heating the vaporizable material in a vaporization chamber (e.g., a heater chamber) to cause the vaporizable material to be converted to the gas (or vapor) phase. A vaporization chamber can refer to an area or volume in the vaporizer device within which a heat source (e.g., conductive, convective, and/or radiative) causes heating of a vaporizable material to produce a mixture of air and vaporized material to form a vapor for inhalation of the vaporizable material by a user of the vaporizer device. In some implementations, the vaporizable material can be drawn out of a reservoir and into the vaporization chamber via a wicking element (e.g., a wick). Drawing of the vaporizable material into the vaporization chamber may be at least partially due to capillary action provided by the wick as the wick pulls the vaporizable material along the wick in the direction of the vaporization chamber. EP 0 893 071 A1 discloses a flavor-generating device having a liquid container for storing a liquid flavor source. The liquid flavor source is drawn out of the container by capillary forces acting between two plates protruding into the container. The drawn-out liquid source is heated by two plate-like heaters, each of which is mounted on a respective distal end of the two plates. Further technical background is provided by CN 104 886 784 A and US 2018/242642 A1. Vaporizer devices can be controlled by one or more controllers, electronic circuits (e.g., sensors, heating elements), and/or the like on the vaporizer. Vaporizer devices may also wirelessly communicate with an external controller (e.g., a computing device such as a smartphone). SUMMARY The invention is set out in the appended set of claims. According to the invention, a cartridge for a vaporizer device includes a reservoir and a heating element. The reservoir is configured to hold a vaporizable material. The heating element is configured to heat the vaporizable material. The heating element includes a capillary structure, which includes a plurality of rigid portions. Pairs of the plurality of rigid portions are spaced apart from one another to define a capillary gap therebetween. The capillary gap is configured to draw the vaporizable material from the reservoir to a heater region of the heating element to be heated. An aerosol is generated by heating the vaporizable material drawn to the heater region of the heating element. According to the invention, the plurality of rigid portions of the capillary structure includes an upper rigid portion and a lower rigid portion, which is preferably integrally formed with the upper rigid portion a