CN118922088A - Vaporizer cartridge with improved mouthpiece - Google Patents

Abstract

A vaporizer cartridge includes a central member (100) having a central column (110) and a reservoir (120), and a mouthpiece (200) having an inlet (210), an outlet (220), and a fluid passageway (230). The central column (110) has a top end (111) with a first opening (112), a bottom end (113) with a second opening (114), an outer surface (115), and an inner surface (116). The first opening (112), the inner surface (116), the second opening (114), and the fluid passage (230) are in fluid communication. The fluid passage (230) is removably equipped with an inner seal (231). The mouthpiece (200) and the central pillar (110) are shaped such that the mouthpiece (200) forms a snap fit around the central pillar (110). The mouthpiece (200) is made from a single piece of material. Vaporizer cartridges with improved mouthpieces (200) can be used to increase manufacturing efficiency and increase consumer safety.

Description

Vaporizer cartridge with improved mouthpiece

Copyright and Trade Dress Notice

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is protected by copyright or trade dress. This patent document may show and/or describe material that is or may become the owner's trade dress. The owners of the copyrights and trade dress have no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise the owners of the copyrights and trade dress reserve the copyrights and trade dress rights whatsoever.

Priority claim

This application does not claim priority from any patent or patent application.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of related art vaporizer cartridges and more particularly to vaporizer cartridges including improved mouthpieces.

Background Art

Portable electronic vaporizers have become very popular in the United States and other countries. Although there are many types of portable electronic vaporizers, replaceable cartridges with a vaporizer pre-filled with a liquid to be vaporized account for a large portion of the market share.

However, the field of vaporizer cartridges is still in its infancy, so there is much room for improvement in these devices. Improvements to cartridge structure that could lead to increased manufacturing efficiency or improved consumer safety would be particularly valuable.

To this end, a need exists for a simplified vaporizer cartridge that is easier and cheaper to manufacture consistently and has fewer components that may be harmful to the health of the consumer.

Summary of the invention

The present disclosure provides a vaporizer cartridge, which includes a central member, preferably, the central member includes a central column and a reservoir. Preferably, the central column has an outer surface, an inner surface, a top end with a first opening, and a bottom end with a second opening. More preferably, the first opening, the inner surface, and the second opening are fluidically connected. In an embodiment, the vaporizer cartridge includes a mouthpiece, the mouthpiece having an inlet, an outlet, and a fluid passage extending from the inlet to the outlet, the fluid passage being removably equipped with an inner seal, preferably, the fluid passage is in fluid communication with the first opening, the second opening, and the inner surface, and more preferably, the mouthpiece is made of a single piece of material. In an exemplary embodiment, the mouthpiece and the central column are formed so that the mouthpiece forms a snap fit around the central column.

In an embodiment, the mouthpiece comprises no adhesive.

In an embodiment, the vaporizer cartridge includes an outer seal that abuts the reservoir and the mouthpiece.

In an embodiment, the material of the mouthpiece is ceramic. In an embodiment, the material of the mouthpiece is wood. In an embodiment, the material of the mouthpiece is metal.

In an embodiment, the central column comprises a heating element connected to the reservoir and in communication with the interior of the reservoir. In an embodiment, the heating element comprises a fluid-impermeable barrier configured to prevent fluid from passing between the inner surface of the central column and the interior of the reservoir.

In an embodiment, the central member includes a threaded portion adjacent to the bottom end.

In an embodiment, the outer seal is configured to prevent gas communication or fluid communication between any two of the reservoir, the mouthpiece, and the surrounding environment.

In an embodiment, the inner seal is configured to seal a space between the fluid passage and the outer surface.

In an embodiment, the inner seal is a silicone seal. In an embodiment, the outer seal is a silicone seal.

In an embodiment, the mouthpiece comprises a recessed portion located adjacent to the inlet.

The claims should not be interpreted as being limited to solving any specific problems or defects mentioned above. In order to achieve the above objectives, the present disclosure may be embodied in the form shown in the accompanying drawings. However, it should be noted that the drawings are only illustrative. Variations are considered part of the present disclosure.

An embodiment may include one or a combination of any two or more of the above-described features or embodiments.

These and other aspects, features, embodiments and advantages may be expressed as methods, apparatus, systems, components, program products, business methods, and means or steps for performing the functions, or some combination thereof.

Other features, aspects, embodiments, and advantages will be apparent from the description, drawings, and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, like elements are represented by like reference numerals. The drawings are briefly described as follows.

1 is a top perspective view illustrating an example embodiment of a vaporizer cartridge according to the present disclosure.

2 is a bottom perspective view illustrating an example embodiment of a vaporizer cartridge according to the present disclosure.

3 is a bottom perspective view illustrating an example embodiment of a central column according to the present disclosure.

4 is a side perspective view illustrating an example embodiment of a center column according to the present disclosure.

5 is a top perspective view illustrating an example embodiment of a center member according to the present disclosure.

6 is a side perspective view illustrating an example embodiment of a center member according to the present disclosure.

7 is a cut-away perspective view showing an example embodiment of a mouthpiece, inner seal, and outer seal according to the present disclosure.

8 is an exploded view showing an example embodiment of a mouthpiece, inner seal, and outer seal according to the present disclosure.

9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example embodiment of a vaporizer cartridge according to the present disclosure.

10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a close-up view of the example embodiment of the vaporizer cartridge shown in FIG. 9 , the close-up view focusing on the portion of the vaporizer cartridge surrounded by the dashed circle in FIG. 9 .

11 is an exploded view illustrating an example embodiment of a vaporizer cartridge according to the present disclosure.

The present disclosure will now be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate various example embodiments. However, the present disclosure may be implemented in a variety of different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the example embodiments described herein. On the contrary, these example embodiments are provided to make the present disclosure comprehensive and complete and to fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations may be made to the present disclosure without departing from the scope or spirit of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Each embodiment of the present disclosure will now be referred to in detail. These embodiments are provided in a manner to explain the present disclosure, but the present disclosure is not intended to be limited thereto in any way. In fact, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art after reading this specification and viewing the accompanying drawings that various modifications and variations may be made to the present disclosure.

For the purpose of this disclosure, unless otherwise stated, the singular encompasses the plural and the plural encompasses the singular, the words "and" and "or" shall be conjunctions and disjunctive conjunctions, and the words "any" and "all" shall mean "any and all".

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a vaporizer cartridge, with reference to Figures 1 and 2, which includes a central member. In some embodiments, with reference to Figures 5 and 6, the central member 100 includes a central columnar member 110 and a reservoir 120, preferably, with reference to Figures 3 and 4, the central columnar member 110 has: a top end 111 with a first opening 112; a bottom end 113 with a second opening 114; an outer surface 115; and an inner surface 116, more preferably, the first opening 112, the inner surface 116 and the second opening 114 are fluidly connected. In some embodiments, the central columnar member 110 is configured to allow the vaporized substance to pass through the interior of the central columnar member 110 for consumption and/or inhalation by the user. In some embodiments, this vaporized substance forms a mixture with ambient air from outside the vaporizer cartridge before being inhaled by the user. In some embodiments, the reservoir 120 has an interior 121, preferably, the interior 121 of the reservoir is filled with a substance to be vaporized, and/or the reservoir 120 contains a substance to be vaporized within the interior 121 of the reservoir. In many embodiments, the reservoir 120 is empty until after the vaporizer cartridge is assembled, after which the reservoir 120 can be filled. In other embodiments, the reservoir 120 is filled and then capped as part of the assembly process of the vaporizer cartridge.

In some embodiments, with reference to Figures 7 and 8, the vaporizer cartridge includes a mouthpiece 200, preferably the mouthpiece 200 has an inlet 210, an outlet 220 and a fluid passage 230 extending from the inlet 210 to the outlet 220. In some embodiments, the fluid passage 230 is provided with an inner seal 231 in a removable manner. Preferably, with reference to Figures 9, 10 and 11, the fluid passage 230 is in fluid communication with the first opening 112, the second opening 114 and the inner surface 116. In some embodiments, the mouthpiece is made of a single piece of material. Compared with many vaporizer cartridges in the art made of multiple complex shapes assembled together, making the mouthpiece 200 with a single piece of material significantly reduces the complexity of the vaporizer cartridge, and therefore reduces the manufacturing cost and the possibility of defects compared to the vaporizer cartridges present in the art. In some embodiments, the mouthpiece 200 and the central column 110 are shaped so that the mouthpiece 200 forms a snap fit around the central column 110. This snap fit can provide multiple functions, such as allowing the mouthpiece 200 to be permanently attached to the central member 100 or removably attached to the central member 100, and this snap fit can also be used to cap the reservoir 120 and retain the substance to be vaporized within the reservoir 120. In embodiments where the snap fit of the mouthpiece 200 caps the reservoir 120, the single-piece structure of the mouthpiece 200 also serves to significantly reduce the cost and complexity of the capping process.

In some embodiments, the mouthpiece 200 does not include or contain adhesive, preferably does not include or contain adhesive in or on any portion of the mouthpiece 200, whether on the interior of the mouthpiece 200 or on the exterior surface of the mouthpiece 200. In these embodiments, the absence of adhesive in the mouthpiece 200 has significant benefits to the user, as adhesives, particularly when inhaled or ingested, can have adverse effects on the health of the user. The absence of adhesive in the construction of the mouthpiece 200 also helps reduce the complexity of construction, reduce the likelihood of defects during construction, improve manufacturing efficiency, and significantly reduce manufacturing costs, as the use of adhesives accounts for a significant cost in the manufacture of mouthpieces.

In some embodiments, with reference to Figures 7 and 8, the vaporizer cartridge includes an outer seal 300 that abuts the reservoir 120 and the mouthpiece 200. In some embodiments, this outer seal 300 is used to prevent gas communication or fluid communication between any two of the reservoir 120, the mouthpiece 200, and the surrounding environment. In some embodiments, as part of the capping process, the outer seal 300 is inserted, and the outer seal is used together with the mouthpiece 200 to form a barrier that prevents the substance in the reservoir 120 from escaping, preferably preventing the substance in the reservoir 120 from escaping from the gap between the mouthpiece 200 and the reservoir 120 to the surrounding environment, or preventing the substance in the reservoir 120 from escaping directly from the reservoir 120 to the fluid passage 230 or directly escaping to other spaces between the mouthpiece and the reservoir. In an embodiment, the outer seal 300 prevents air from the surrounding environment from passing through the space between the mouthpiece 200 and the reservoir 120 and entering the vaporizer cartridge. In an embodiment, the inner seal 231 is configured to seal the space between the fluid passage 230 and the outer surface 115. In some embodiments, the inner seal 231 is thus configured to prevent gas or fluid from passing through any gap between the outer surface 115 of the central column and the inner surface of the fluid passage 230, thereby forcing the fluid to communicate only between the fluid passage 230 and the inner surface 116 of the central column by preventing such leakage. In many embodiments, one or more of the inner seal 231 or the outer seal 300 may include any suitable material sufficient to provide the material properties necessary to seal the designated space. However, in some embodiments, one or more of the inner seal 231 or the outer seal 300 may include silicone.

The mouthpiece 200 may be made of any solid material suitable for use in mouthpiece components known in the art, having suitable properties, such as non-toxicity when inserted into a user's mouth, and resistance to the levels of heat associated with vaporized substances passing through the fluid passage 230. Examples of suitable materials include ceramics, wood, metals, alloys, composites, plastics, and other similar materials, so long as the mouthpiece 200 is made of a single piece of such material.

FIG. 11 shows an exemplary embodiment of a vaporizer cartridge of the present disclosure, which includes a mouthpiece 200, an inner seal 231, an outer seal 300, and a central member 100 having a central column 110 and a reservoir 120, and also includes typical additional components of vaporizer cartridges in the art, such as a heating element. In some embodiments, the central column includes a heating element, which is preferably located between the inner surface 116 of the central column and the interior 121 of the reservoir, and/or the heating element is connected to the reservoir 120 and communicates with the interior 121 of the reservoir. In some embodiments, the heating element is configured to heat the substance in the reservoir and/or vaporize the substance in the reservoir so that it is transmitted to the user and/or inhaled by the user via the inner surface 116 of the central column and the fluid passage 230. In some embodiments, the heating element includes a fluid-impermeable barrier configured to prevent fluid from passing between the inner surface 116 of the central column and the interior 121 of the reservoir. In some embodiments, the fluid-impermeable barrier is necessary to prevent the contents of the reservoir from leaking into the central column. In some embodiments, the fluid-impermeable barrier is only fluid-impermeable, but allows gas and other vaporized materials to pass from the interior 121 of the reservoir to the inner surface 116 of the central column, preferably then through the fluid passage 230 in the mouthpiece and to the user. In some embodiments, the central member 100 and/or the central column 110 includes a threaded portion 400 adjacent to the bottom end 113.

In some embodiments, referring to FIGS. 9 and 10 , the mouthpiece 200 includes a recessed portion 240 positioned adjacent to the inlet 210. In some embodiments, the recessed portion 240 is configured to fit within the space between the reservoir 120 and the central column 110, preferably when the vaporizer cartridge is assembled and/or the reservoir 120 is capped by the mouthpiece 200. In an exemplary embodiment, the recessed portion 240 is shaped and the central column 110 is correspondingly shaped such that: when the vaporizer cartridge is assembled and/or the reservoir 120 is capped by the mouthpiece 200, the recessed portion 240 forms a snap fit around the central column 110.

In an embodiment, the mouthpiece 200 includes an opening located adjacent to the inlet 210, which connects the fluid passage 230 to the exterior of the mouthpiece. In an embodiment, the mouthpiece 200 includes a circlip located in the opening. In an embodiment, when the circlip is located in the opening, the circlip fixes the fluid passage 230 to the central column 110. Preferably, the opening includes a pair of hole portions, and the circlip is shaped so that the circlip has two ends configured to fit in these hole portions. In some embodiments, the circlip is U-shaped, or the circlip is shaped into an equivalent shape connecting the two ends. In these embodiments, when the circlip is inserted into the opening, the circlip thus restricts the portion of the mouthpiece 200 located between the two ends, and through the portion, the mouthpiece is generally restricted to the central column 110. However, in other embodiments, the circlip may have any number of ends, and the opening may have any number of hole portions, as long as the function of the circlip to restrict a portion of the mouthpiece to the central column is maintained. In an exemplary embodiment, the circlip is held in place by fitting it into a designed groove or recess in the central column when the circlip is inserted into the opening. Other methods of holding the circlip in place and thereby fixing the attachment position of the mouthpiece 200 to the central column 110 are also contemplated.

It is understood that, when an element is referred to as being "located on another element" in the above text, the element may be directly located on the other element, or an intermediate element may exist between the element and the other element. On the contrary, when an element is referred to as being "directly located on another element", there is no intermediate element.

Furthermore, any component or material may be formed from the same, structurally continuous components or may be fabricated and joined separately.

It should also be understood that although ordinal terms such as "first", "second" and "third" are used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or parts, these elements, components, regions, layers and/or parts should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer and/or part from another element, component, region, layer and/or part. Therefore, the "first element", "component", "region", "layer" and/or "part" discussed below may be referred to as a second element, component, region, layer and/or part without departing from the teachings of this article.

Features shown or described as part of one embodiment may be used with another embodiment, and such variations fall within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. Embodiments may also include one or a combination of any two or more of the above-described features or embodiments.

For ease of description, spatial relative terms such as "below", "below", "lower", "above", "upper", etc. are used herein to describe the relationship between an element or feature and another one or more elements or features, as shown in the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that in addition to the orientations shown in the accompanying drawings, the spatial relative terms are also intended to cover different orientations of the device in use or operation. For example, if the device in the figure is turned over, the elements described as "below" or "below" other elements or features will be oriented to be located "above" other elements or features. Therefore, the example term "below" can cover the orientation of above and below. The device can be positioned in other ways (rotated 90 degrees or other orientations), and the spatial relative descriptors used herein can be interpreted accordingly.

Example embodiments are described herein with reference to cross-sectional illustrations, which are schematic diagrams of idealized embodiments. Therefore, it is expected that there will be differences compared to the shapes illustrated, for example due to manufacturing techniques and/or manufacturing tolerances. Therefore, the example embodiments described herein should not be interpreted as being limited to the specific shapes of the regions shown herein, but should include shape deviations caused by manufacturing, etc. For example, an area illustrated or described as flat may typically have rough and/or nonlinear features. In addition, the illustrated sharp corners may be rounded. Therefore, the areas shown in the figures are schematic in nature, and their shapes are not intended to illustrate the precise shape of the areas, nor are they intended to limit the scope of the claims.

Since the present disclosure has been described in conjunction with various embodiments currently considered to be the most practical, it should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but rather is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements within the scope of the appended claims. Although specific terms are used herein, these specific terms are used only in a general and descriptive sense and not for the purpose of limitation.

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined in the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.

The claims should not be construed as being limited to solving any of the above-mentioned specific problems or deficiencies. To achieve the above-mentioned objectives, the present disclosure may be embodied in the form shown in the accompanying drawings. However, please note that the drawings are only illustrative. Variations are considered part of the present disclosure.

The present disclosure is illustrated throughout the written description. It should be understood that many variations can be made while following the concept of the present invention. These variations are considered part of the present disclosure.

Claims (14)

1. A vaporizer cartridge, the vaporizer cartridge comprising: a central member, the central member comprising a central column and a reservoir, The central column has a top end with a first opening, a bottom end with a second opening, an outer surface and an inner surface. wherein the first opening, the inner surface and the second opening are in fluid communication; A mouthpiece having an inlet, an outlet, a fluid passage extending from the inlet to the outlet, the fluid passage being removably provided with an inner seal, wherein the fluid passage is in fluid communication with the first opening, the second opening and the inner surface, Wherein, the cigarette holder is made of a single material piece, And wherein the mouthpiece and the central pillar are shaped such that the mouthpiece forms a snap fit around the central pillar. 2. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 1, wherein the mouthpiece contains no adhesive. 3. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 2, further comprising an outer seal abutting the reservoir and the mouthpiece. 4. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 3, wherein the material piece is a ceramic piece. 5. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 3, wherein the piece of material is a piece of wood. 6. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 3, wherein the material piece is a metal piece. 7. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 3, wherein the central column includes a heating element connected to the reservoir and in communication with an interior of the reservoir. 8. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 7, wherein the heating element comprises a fluid-impermeable barrier configured to prevent fluid from passing between the inner surface of the central column and the interior of the reservoir. 9. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 1, wherein the central member further comprises a threaded portion adjacent the bottom end. 10. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 3, wherein the outer seal is configured to prevent gaseous or fluid communication between any two of the reservoir, the mouthpiece, and the surrounding environment. 11. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 1 , wherein the inner seal is configured to seal a space between the fluid passageway and the outer surface. 12. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 1, wherein the inner seal is a silicone seal. 13. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 3, wherein the outer seal is a silicone seal. 14. The vaporizer cartridge of claim 1, wherein the mouthpiece further comprises a recessed portion positioned adjacent the inlet.