US 12,250,971 B2
Vapor provision system and corresponding method
Joseph Sutton, London (GB)
Assigned to NICOVENTURES TRADING LIMITED, London (GB)
Appl. No. 17/594,344
Filed by NICOVENTURES TRADING LIMITED, London (GB)
PCT Filed Apr. 9, 2020, PCT No. PCT/GB2020/050922
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 12, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/208356, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 15, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 1905251 (GB), filed on Apr. 12, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0183381 A1, Jun. 16, 2022
Int. Cl. A24F 40/50 (2020.01); A24F 40/10 (2020.01); A24F 40/44 (2020.01)
CPC A24F 40/50 (2020.01) [A24F 40/10 (2020.01); A24F 40/44 (2020.01)] 13 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A vapor provision system comprising:
a heating element for generating vapor from a liquid vapor precursor material;
a wick for transporting liquid vapor precursor material from a reservoir to the heating element;
a user activation mechanism for signaling the user's intent to start vapor generation and configured to be actuated by a user; and
control circuitry configured to supply a constant average power to the heating element in response to a signal output from the user activation mechanism;
wherein the control circuitry is configured to supply the constant average power to the heating element regardless of the temperature of the heating element;
wherein the constant average power is set such that the rise in temperature after the onset of dryout, from an operational temperature at which vapor is generated, does not exceed 90° C. per second; and
wherein the constant average power is set such that the rise in temperature after the onset of dryout, from an operational temperature at which vapor is generated, does not fall below 10° C. per second, such that the rise in temperature after the onset of dryout provides a gradually detectable taste to a user to act as an indicator to prompt the user to undertake an action corresponding to depletion of the wick of liquid vapor precursor material.