Patent Application
20220167684
The invention generally relates to the field of vaporizers. More specifically, the invention relates to a vaporizer utilizing a flame to controllably heat and liberate volatile chemicals contained within a vaporizable material without generating smoke and associated hazardous by-products.
Traditional smoking devices, such as cigarettes, cigars and pipes, have existed for centuries. These devices are used to deliver flavored vapor from a smokable substance to a user for therapeutic and smoking pleasure. These traditional devices use combustion to burn the tobacco products. As a result, these traditional devices tend to produce toxic, tarry and carcinogenic by-products which are harmful and also impart a bitter and burnt taste to the mouth.
The primary disadvantage of such traditional methods of utilizing a smokable substance is that the user not only inhales the desired taste and beneficial volatile active ingredients, but also inhales the hazardous, combusted and un-combusted by-products. Some of these by-products are associated with cancer and diseases of the heart and lungs. Such hazardous by-products of combustion include carbon monoxide, benzo(a)pyrene, volatilized cadmium, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, hydrogen sulfide, and a spectrum of heavy hydrocarbons, which are either the direct result of combustion of organic material or are the result of the unnecessarily-high-temperature volatilization of ingredients in the unburned portion of the smokable substance immediately adjacent to the combustion zone.
A more healthy and better controlled approach to liberating desired volatile compounds from a smokable substance is to vaporize them at lower temperatures than that at which combustion occurs. In general this process eliminates the deleterious combustion products from the desirable gaseous ingredients. Devices which perform this task are generally called vaporizers. There have been numerous attempts to provide device structures for producing vapor that is free from harmful by-products.
Most modern vaporizers use heating systems with electronics and batteries that usually require recharging. Some modern vaporizers are even computerized. These modern vaporizers most often use liquid chemical cartridges. As such, many of these vaporizers are designed to only work with a liquid vaporizing material and therefore do not allow for a user to use their own conventional smokable substance. Some mechanical and electronic devices do exist that are capable of accepting standard smokable substance; however these devices are quite complex with a multitude of small moving parts that require cleaning and servicing and thus take away from the simple ease and pleasure that historically comes with conventional smoking.
While current devices on the market have solved some of the problems associated with providing a noncombustible and nonpyrolytic method for heating and inhaling the active volatile compounds without the ingestion of toxic and carcinogenic compounds, there still exists a need for a simple and easy method of doing this. The present invention aims to solve the above noted deficiencies of the prior systems by combining the simplicity of a flame with the familiarity of a pipe to liberate volatile components from a smokable substance without generating smoke and associated hazardous by-products.
In one implementation, the present disclosure is directed to an apparatus for vaporizing into air volatile chemicals contained within a vaporizable material, the vaporizable material heated by a flame that does not make contact with the vaporizable material. The apparatus comprises a body. The body has a fire opening for accepting hot air. The body has an inhalation opening for drawing air through the body. The body has a vaporization chamber, the vaporization chamber is located between the fire opening and inhalation opening and configured to hold a vaporizable material. The body has a heat transfer passage separating the fire hole and vaporization chamber. The body has a respiratory passage separating the vaporization chamber and the inhalation opening. The apparatus operates such that when a flame is applied at the fire opening and air is sucked out of the inhalation opening, heated air created by the flame is drawn through the heat transfer passage into the vaporization chamber to vaporize the volatile chemicals and deliver those vaporized chemicals through the respiratory passage to exit the inhalation opening.
In another implementation, the present disclosure teaches a single piece smokeless pipe in the form of an elongated body that includes an inhalation opening at one end for a user to draw upon and pull air heated by a conventional butane lighter held with the flame over a fire opening in the body. The heated air passes through a heat transfer passage and into a vaporization chamber holding vaporizable material. The heated air is pulled through the vaporizable material to heat by convection heating. The user subsequently removes the flame source and continues to draw cool air into the vaporization chamber and through the vaporizable material so as to release vapor. The apparatus enables the user to inhale the aromatic ingredients of the vaporizable material without inhaling the hazardous by-products if the vaporizable material was to be combusted.
For the purposes of illustrating the invention, the drawings show aspects of one or more embodiments of the invention. However, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown in the drawings, wherein:
For the purposes of this invention the term vaporizable material is intended to include any combustible material containing volatile ingredients which upon heating are vaporized and can be drawn into the mouth and respiratory passages of a user. Vaporizable materials may include dry leaf materials such as tobacco, cannabis, licorice, eucalyptus, teas, flower petals, and other herbs. Vaporizable materials may include composite and impregnated materials such as wicking materials saturate with a liquid. Vaporizable material may also include a liquid that can be added and held within a vaporizing chamber. Such vaporizable materials may be used alone or in various combinations with one another.
Apparatus 20 (a.k.a. vaporizer),
Apparatus 20 (20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e),
Body 30 may be made of any material capable of not being burnt by a flame or that does not decompose from temperatures up to 1100° C. Body 30 is preferably fabricated from an inorganic oxide. Inorganic oxides include, but are not limited to ceramics, glasses, stone, etc. These materials can be exposed to temperatures 400-1100° C. or above without combustion, melting or decomposition. Stone is desired because stone has the required thermal properties and also possesses natural beauty; however some stone materials can be difficult to machine. Soapstone is most preferred for the body material because soapstone is easily machined and also has superior thermal properties. Some of soapstone's properties are thermal conductivity 6.4 W/mK, specific heat capacity 0.98 J/gK, density 2.98 kg/m3, flexural strength along grain 16.8 MN/m2, and flexural strength perpendicular to grain 15.7 MN/m2. Soapstone does not burn or melt at wood burning temperatures. As a result of these properties, soap stone has the ability to absorb heat, hold heat and radiate heat slowly. These properties make soapstone the preferred material for body 30.
Fire opening 32 is provided in body 30 proximal to an end distal from user's mouth when apparatus 20 is being used. Fire opening 32 may be 1/16th inch or larger in diameter. Fire opening may be fit with a fire hole insert 33, that is resistant to high temperature flame damage. Fire hole insert 33 may be made of a high melting temperature metal that does not oxidize easily. Fire hole insert 33 covers any chipping that may occur on the edge of fire opening 32 if the fire hole was created by machining and also limit future chipping of the edge of the fire hole during use.
Heat transfer passage 42 extends from fire opening 32 towards vaporization chamber 40 in the heat transfer region of apparatus 20. Vaporization chamber 40 has a vaporization chamber diameter and heat transfer passage 42 has a heat transfer passage diameter. The heat transfer passage diameter is always less than the vaporization chamber diameter. Heat transfer passage's purpose is to transfer hot air 34 heated by flame 24 to vaporization chamber 40. Heat transfer passage 42 may be straight. However, in one embodiment heat transfer passage 42 may include a downward passage 42a and an upward passage 42b. Heat transfer passage length is generally in the range of 1 to 1-¾ inches down and ¼ to ½ inches up for an overall length of 1.25 to 2.25 inches. This shape, diameter and length of heat transfer passage 42 has been found to stop any flame from entering vaporization chamber 40, yet provide adequate heated air that heats the vaporization chamber in the range of 135-220° C. to vaporize vaporizable material 22. Upward passage 42b is angled to direct hot air 34 directly to the bottom of retainer 52 holding vaporizable material 22. Upward passage 42b has a diameter of 1/16th to ⅛th inch in diameter. The diameter of the downward passage 42a is generally ⅛th or more. Upward passage generally has a smaller diameter than the downward passage. The smallest diameter of heat transfer passage 42 is what limits the rate at which heated air 34 may enter vaporization chamber 40.
Vaporization chamber 40 has a vaporization chamber opening 43 that is a separate opening from the heat transfer passage 42 and respiratory passage 44. Vaporization chamber 40 has a diameter generally in the range of ¼ to ½ inches and ½ to 1 inches deep. Vaporization chamber 40 is sized so that a temperature of 135-220° C. is achieved in a few seconds when drawing hot air 34 heated by flame 24 into the vaporization chamber through heat transfer passage 42. A recessed lip 35 is provided at the top of vaporization chamber 42 to hold retainer 52.
Retainer 52 is for holding vaporizable material 22. Retainer 52 includes flange 37 for supporting the retainer within vaporization chamber 42. In one embodiment, retainer 52 is a meshed retainer with perforations that allow hot air to permeate and heat vaporizable material 22,
Apparatus 20 further comprises a vaporization chamber cap 54 (54a, 54b) for covering vaporization chamber 40 during the heating/vaporization process. In one embodiment,
Inhalation passage 44 is for delivering vaporized volatile compounds to exit inhalation hole 36. Inhalation passage is generally greater than ⅛th inch in diameter and greater than 1 inch long.
Apparatus 20, 20d may further comprise a carburetor 58,
Apparatus 20, 20e may be fabricated such that it includes body 20 with an addition outer shell 60,
Apparatus 20, 20e may further comprise a filter 64,
Apparatus 20, 20e may further include a detachable mouthpiece 66,
While several embodiments of the invention, together with modifications thereof, have been described in detail herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it will be evident that various further modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the invention. The scope of the claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set forth in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole.
This disclosure claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/120,631, filed Dec. 2, 2020, which is herein incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63120631 | Dec 2020 | US |
