Patent Grant
11606980
The present invention relates to a handheld vaporizer apparatus for vaporizing liquids, such as e-liquids, Cannabis oil or other vaporizable and inhalable liquids. More particularly, the present invention relates to a handheld vaporizer apparatus that is operable to vaporize oil or other materials using a heating element, and simultaneously reducing the pressure in a chamber containing the oils or liquids, using a vacuum pump in conjunction with the heating element.
There are several known vaporizers that are configured to vaporize a liquid substance for the purpose of inhaling the vapor. The liquid substance includes e-liquids (commonly referred to as a juice), Cannabis oil (Cannabidiol (CBD) oil) and Tetrahydrocannabinol ((THC) oil), essential oils, or dry herbs. The known vaporizer apparatus are sometimes referred to as vaporizers, electronic cigarettes, and “vape” or vaping devices.
The liquid substance is stored in a device, such as an atomizer, cartomizer, or clearomizer, which is screwed on to, or otherwise attached to the vaporizer apparatus and is used to deliver the liquid into vapor form when heated. A typical vaporizer apparatus includes an oil chamber or device for storing oil, a heating element, e.g., a heating coil, a battery which powers the heating coil, and an activation switch or other mechanism for activating the heating coil, which converts the liquid substance to a vapor form, with a mouthpiece that is used by a user to inhale the vapor.
The existing vaporizer apparatus are disadvantageous because they exclusively use a heating element (e.g., a heating coil) for heating, and vaporizing the oil. Such vaporization by heat occurs at a temperature that may be loosely controlled or uncontrolled. In some instances, chemical changes may take place due to overheating the oil. In addition, there is a risk of inhaling vapor near a combustion temperature, which may injure a person's throat, due to inhalation of a harsh and/or hot vapor.
The temperature of the heating coil used in some vaporizer apparatus may range from 110° C. to 1000° C., depending on wick condition, e.g., dry, wet-through-wick, and full-wet conditions of the vaporizer apparatus. As noted above, it is possible that heating the oil may alter the chemical composition of vapor, specifically, if heated at a high temperature.
Vacuum evaporation is a process of causing the pressure in a liquid-filled container to be reduced below the vapor pressure of the liquid, causing the liquid to evaporate at a lower temperature than normal. Vacuum evaporation is a technique that is widely used in some industrial processes such as, for example, wastewater treatment and electroplating. See, for example, the online article on this subject at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/vacuum_evaporation.
The present invention has been made to overcome the drawbacks of the existing vaporizer apparatus. Accordingly, it is one of the objects of the present to provide a vaporizer apparatus configured to produce vapor from the oil or liquid at a reduced pressure and at a temperature which is elevated above room temperature, using a heat source in conjunction with a vacuum pump.
The present invention combines the properties of vacuum evaporation and heating in a vaporizing apparatus used to generate an inhalable vapor, where a vacuum pump is used in conjunction with a heater in the apparatus. By creating a temporarily sealed chamber inside of the apparatus which contains a quantity of oil to be vaporized, and by both heating the chamber and lowering the pressure inside of the chamber, the apparatus is operable to vaporize the oil at reduced temperatures, thereby reducing the temperature of vaporization below what would be required using a heater alone.
It is believed that by reducing the operating temperature attained in the vaporizing apparatus, the vaporized oil which is generated by the apparatus will be less toxic, and less hazardous to the health of a user, than the vaporized oil which is generated by conventional “vaping” apparatus which exclusively uses a heater at atmospheric pressure.
The present invention, according to one aspect thereof, provides a vaporizer apparatus that can produce vapors from a selected liquid substance at a temperature which is elevated above normal room temperature and at a reduced pressure.
A vaporizer apparatus according to a first embodiment includes a main housing having an evacuation chamber formed therein with an air inlet and an air outlet which selectively communicates with the evacuation chamber.
The vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment also includes an operation unit operatively attached to the main housing and configured to be operated by a user, the operation unit also configured to selectively and temporarily seal the evacuation chamber off from communication with the air inlet.
The vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment also includes a heating element disposed either inside of, or proximate the evacuation chamber;
The vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment also includes a vacuum pump operatively connected to the main housing, the pump being in fluid communication with the evacuation chamber, the pump operable to selectively generate a low pressure environment in the evacuation chamber.
The vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment further includes a mouthpiece attached to the main housing and configured to be selectively placed in fluid communication with the air outlet of the evacuation chamber.
The vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment is configured and arranged so that, when an oil is placed in the evacuation chamber and the operation unit is operated, the evacuation chamber is temporarily sealed off from the inlet, thereby creating a vacuum sealed chamber connected with the pump, and the pump is activated to reduce pressure in the evacuation chamber at the same time that the heating element is activated to raise the temperature in the chamber, whereby the oil is vaporized at a temperature below a temperature which would be required if only the heating element were used.
During operation of the vapor apparatus hereof, when the operation unit is released, the evacuation chamber is placed into fluid communication with the air inlet and also with the mouthpiece.
In one aspect of the vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment, the operation unit includes a top seal arranged at a top portion of the evacuation chamber, and a bottom seal disposed in the evacuation chamber below the top seal.
In another aspect of the vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment, the operation unit includes a shaft and a magnetic nut mounted at one end portion of the shaft.
In another aspect of the vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment, the apparatus further includes a control unit having a microprocessor, and a position sensor in communication with the control unit.
In still another aspect of the vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment, the operation unit includes a shaft, a control button mounted on one end portion of the shaft, a top seal arranged at a top portion of the evacuation chamber, a shaft spring mounted on the shaft between the control button and the top seal, and a bottom seal disposed in the evacuation chamber and mounted on the shaft below the top seal.
In operation of the vaporizer apparatus according to the first embodiment, when the control button is pressed, the top seal moves downwardly and seals a top of the evacuation chamber, and the bottom seal seals a bottom of the evacuation chamber.
The pump used as a component of the vaporizer apparatus may be a piezoelectric micro pump.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a method of evaporating a liquid to generate a vapor. This method includes a first step of sealing a chamber with a quantity of liquid therein by closing a valve.
The method includes a second step of activating both a heater and a vacuum pump which communicates with the chamber via an activation passage, and operating the pump to reduce a pressure inside of the chamber simultaneous with the use of the heater, until the liquid evaporates.
The method includes a third step of opening the valve to place the chamber into communication with an outlet; and a fourth step of drawing the vapor outwardly from the chamber via the outlet.
For a more complete understanding of the present invention, the reader is referred to the following, non-limiting, detailed description section, which describes a number of exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Such exemplary embodiments are provided for illustration and better understanding of the present invention and are not intended to limit the invention. Throughout the following detailed description and in the drawings, like numbers refer to like parts.
Illustrative embodiments of vaporizer apparatus according to the present invention will be described hereinafter in detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings. Throughout this description, relative terms like “top”, “bottom”, “back”, “front”, “left”, “right”, and the like are used in reference to a vantage point of a user of the vaporizer apparatus, with the mouthpiece facing toward the user and considered to be at the front of the apparatus. It should be understood that these terms are used for purposes of illustration, and are not intended to limit the invention.
The vaporizer apparatus of the present invention may alternatively be referred to as electronic cigarette, vaping device, or vape device.
A vaporizer apparatus 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention is shown in
As shown in
The main housing 11 has two primary components, a pump housing 14, located in the front part thereof adjacent the mouthpiece 25, and a chamber housing 16 disposed behind the pump housing. These may be made as separate components, or alternatively, may be combined into a single unit.
The control housing 12 includes a main case body 13 and a base plate Bp attached to a lower end of the main case body, as will be further described herein.
The pump 20 used in the present invention may be a piezoelectric pump, a micro piezoelectric pump, a piezoelectric diaphragm micropump, or any other type of pump which can be made suitably small. The pump 20 may be entirely concealed inside of the pump housing 14, as shown in the drawings.
As may be seen from
As shown in
However, as discussed above, in another embodiment the chamber housing 16, the pump housing 14 and the mouthpiece 25 may be formed as one integrated unit.
Control Housing
Further, the main housing 11 and the control housing 12 are connected to one another in similar fashion to that described above.
The control housing 12 may be a box-shaped housing as shown in
The control housing 12 includes the main case body 13, which houses a battery case BC therein, as well as a control unit 24 operatively attached to the battery case. The control unit 24 includes a circuit board 26 with a microprocessor 23 and a memory module 27 thereon, as well as a position-sensing device 28 (which may be a Hall effect sensor, an activation switch or other known position-sensing device).
The battery case BC is configured to receive one or more batteries 22 therein. The battery 22 is electrically connected with each of the heating element 19, the pump 20, and the control unit 24, and the battery provides power thereto at a desired specification, e.g., at 3V. However, the heating element 19, the pump 20, and the control unit 24 may receive power from a different power source in addition to the battery 22 or separate from the battery 22.
The control housing 12 further includes the base plate Bp, as shown. The base plate Bp is held in place on the bottom portion of the main case body 13 using a plurality of conventional fasteners, as shown in
The control unit 24 includes a circuit board 26. The position sensor 28 is connected to the circuit board 26, and provides an input signal to the microprocessor 23 on the circuit board 26 when the operation unit 30 is operated (discussed below), and a position of a magnetic nut 33 is changed due to downward pressure on a control button 54. The position sensor 28 measures the magnitude of a magnetic field of the magnetic nut 33. The position sensor 28 and magnetic nut 33 are used to selectively activate the heating element 19 and the pump 20 using the control unit 24, but the described arrangement may be substituted with a different activation switch or other suitable mechanism.
The control unit 24 operates the heating element 19 and the pump 20 based on input received from the position sensor 28, or from an activation switch or other similar mechanism. The control unit 24 may be placed inside of the battery case BC, as shown, on top of the battery case, or otherwise arranged in the control housing 12 as desired.
Optionally, the control unit 24 may also provide a charging circuit for the batteries 22 as well as modulation circuitry for the pump 20.
The main housing 11 is disposed above the control housing 12 in the depicted embodiment, but other physical arrangements of the components may be used, as desired for a particular application.
As may be seen from
Optionally, the main housing 11 may have an oil-feeding hole 38 formed therein, and where used, the oil-feeding hole 38 facilitates filling of oil into the interior of the oil chamber 32. The oil feeding hole 38 may be provided in either the pump housing 14 or the chamber housing 16, but in either case, the oil feeding hole is connected to a passage that leads to the oil storage chamber 32. Optionally, a cap 17 (
A removable and replaceable oil cartridge 35 may also be temporarily attached to the pump housing 14 by fitting into a bore 18 of the housing, and when so attached, the cartridge 35 may communicate with the oil chamber 32 via an oil inlet passage 15, as shown in
Furthermore, the main housing 11 has an air inlet opening 41 and an air outlet opening 42 (
Operation Unit
Referring now to
The operation unit 30 also includes a stacked disc spring (top spring) 56 disposed outside of the chamber housing 16, to provide upward pressure on the control button 54. As seen in
The operation unit 30 also includes a shaft spring 62 arranged on the shaft 52, specifically on a portion thereof which is disposed in the oil chamber 32 between the lower end of the control button 54 and a top seal 58. The top seal 58 is arranged proximate to the upper end of the oil reservoir 34, and a bottom seal 60 is disposed on the shaft 52 below an enlarged boss portion 59 thereof, to selectively seal a bottom portion of the evacuation chamber 36. The magnetic nut 33 is attached to a lower end of the shaft 52 below the bottom seal 60.
The stacked disc spring 56, the shaft spring 62, the top seal 58, the bottom seal 60 and the magnetic nut 33 are concentrically arranged along the shaft 52 in the order mentioned, in a sequence from top to bottom.
As shown in
In contrast to
When the control button 54 is pressed downwardly by a user, this pushes the shaft 52 downwardly so that the top seal 58, which is attached to the shaft, forms an airtight seal at the top of the evacuation chamber 36. At the same time, the bottom seal 60 seals off the bottom of the evacuation chamber 36, isolating the evacuation chamber from the inlet 41 to form the vacuum sealed chamber VSC.
At the same time, downward movement of the shaft 52 moves the magnetic nut 33 downwardly, since the nut 33 is attached to the end of the shaft. This makes the proximity sensor 28 send a signal to the microprocessor 23, which turns on power to both the heating element 19 and the pump 20. The heating element 19 may include nichrome wire, arranged in a coil or in other suitable configuration, or may take other forms known in the art.
When activated, the pump 20 operates to lower the pressure (create a vacuum) inside of the sealed off evacuation chamber 36. At this time, air is prevented from entering the chamber 36 from the mouthpiece side by the two one-way valves 20v1 and 20v2 of the pump 20.
The control circuit will initially send 100% power to the pump and the heating element to vaporize the oil. The power will remain at 100% as long as the user holds the control button 54 down. When the reduced pressure inside of the evacuation chamber reaches a specified level and a suitable temperature is obtained, oil which has been placed in the oil chamber 32 will spontaneously be vaporized, due to vapor pressure within the oil. This is accomplished at elevated temperatures because of the heater, and this combination of heat and lowered pressure provides rapid evaporation of the liquid.
When the user releases the control button 54, the vacuum seal will be released, and the power to the pump and to the heating element will be reduced to a user-adjustable level and remain on for a user-adjustable time period. This lower power level will be used to clear the vaporized oil out of the evacuation chamber and into the user's mouth. Both the power level and duration of pump and heater operation will be adjustable by the user.
It will be understood that in this embodiment, the operation unit 30 includes a spring-loaded latching mechanism (not shown) which will keep the control button 54 in the down position shown in
The pump 20 may be a disc pump, which is a high-performance piezoelectric micropump operating through ultrasonic acoustic resonance. The disc pump can be applied to the pressure-driven flow of liquids. The pump 20 has compact form factor, i.e., it has high portability and it can be tightly integrated into portable devices such as the vaporizer apparatus of the present invention. A pair of cross-sectional detail views showing operation of the pump 20 is shown in
The mouthpiece 25 is a cylindrical unit, but may have an oval end portion. The mouthpiece has an inlet opening 92 formed at one end thereof, and an outlet opening 94 formed at the other end thereof. The inlet opening 92 is connected to the outlet opening 78 of the pump housing 14.
The following describes operation of the vaporizer apparatus 10. The present invention works on the principle of gas law, for example, the ideal gas law. The ideal gas law is expressed by the following Equation (1).
PV=nRT (1)
where,
P is the pressure
V is the volume
n is the amount of substance of the gas (in moles)
R is the gas constant (0.08206 L·atm·K−1·mol−1), and
T is the absolute temperature.
According to the present invention, upon operation of the operation unit 30 with reference to
In other words, when the operation unit 30 is operated, i.e., by pressing down the control button (top button) 54 thereof, the shaft 52 is pushed down along with the control button 54, until the top seal 58 (top rubber block) seals off the top of the oil reservoir 34 while trapping oil in the oil reservoir 34. The shaft spring 62 is then further compressed until the bottom seal (bottom rubber block) 60 seals the bottom of the evacuation chamber 36, thereby creating a vacuum seal. Once the vacuum seal is created, the magnetic nut 33 will have reached a point to trigger the position sensor 28, which is operatively connected to the circuit board 26 of the control unit 24 that turns the heating element 19 and the pump 20 both on when the position sensor 28 is triggered. The heating element 19 and the pump 20 are powered by the battery 22. Upon the turning the pump 20 on, the pressure differential is greatly reduced, causing the oil that was trapped in the oil reservoir 34 and evacuation chamber 36 to vaporize and flow though the pump housing (also referred to as an air flow chamber) and out through the mouthpiece when the top button 54 is operated a second time to unseal the chamber. As previously noted, a pair of sequential sectional views showing operation of a pump is shown in
The oil that was trapped in the oil reservoir 34 and evacuation chamber 36 is heated to provide rapid vaporization thereof. At the same time, the oil that was trapped in the oil reservoir 34 and evacuation chamber 36 is subjected to a very low pressure, for example, at 1007 mbar or below, for vaporization thereof.
Specifically, when the operation unit 30 is operated, the oil reservoir 34 and the evacuation chamber 36 are isolated from the oil chamber 32, thereby creating a vacuum sealed chamber VSC, and the resultant displacement of the shaft 52 that also causes displacement of the attached magnetic nut 33 that reaches a point of triggering the position sensor 28. When triggered, the position sensor 28 provides a signal to the control unit 24 to switch on the heating element and the pump 20, which further reduces the pressure in the vacuum sealed chamber VSC, for example, at or below 1007 mbar, causing vaporization of the oil at an elevated temperature, without excessively heating the oil via the heating element 19.
When the shaft is raised up, air is able to enter the inlet 41 and the vapor can be inhaled by the user through the outlet opening of the mouthpiece 25.
In another, modified embodiment, the mouthpiece may act as an activation mechanism for the operation unit. For example, when a user inhales through the mouthpiece, it may trigger the operation unit without the user pressing a control button to turn on the operation unit.
Since the oil is vaporized with less heat than with a conventional vaporizer that does not include a vacuum pump, vapor thus produced is at a moderate temperature that is not excessively hot. Thus, the vaporizer apparatus 10 of the present invention is unlikely to cause any heat-related injury to a user. Moreover, since the oil is heated less than with a conventional vaporizer that does not include a vacuum pump, the alteration of composition of the oil due to excessive heat can be reduced or minimized.
A vaporizer apparatus 101 according to a second embodiment of the present invention is shown in
The apparatus 101 according to the second embodiment also includes a heating element 19 (
The primary difference between these two embodiments is that in the second embodiment, an additional pump 21 (
The two pumps 20, 21 are connected in series. The reason for using the dual pumps 20, 21 in this second embodiment is to generate a quicker and more effective pressure reduction inside of the vacuum sealed chamber VSC of the chamber housing 16 than is possible using the single pump 20. Additional pumps may be included, if desired such that there are more than two pumps.
Operation of the vaporizer apparatus according to the second embodiment is similar to that according to the vaporizer of the first embodiment, except that the controller operates both of the pumps to more quickly reduce the pressure in the oil chamber and work in conjunction with the heating element 19 to evaporate the oil.
A vaporizer apparatus 110 according to a third embodiment of the present invention is shown in
As shown in
The apparatus 110 according to the third embodiment also includes a heating element 19 (
The pump 180 used in the present invention may be a piezo electric pump, a micro piezo electric pump, a piezoelectric diaphragm micropump, or any other type of pump which will work in the vaporizer apparatus 110.
The pump 180 may, optionally, be provided with an external power connector 185, which may be connected to a corresponding connector on the control housing 120. The manifold 170 and the pump 180 may be combined into a single housing to reduce part count, or may be integrally formed as one unit. The pump 180 may be entirely concealed within the manifold 170, as it is in the first embodiment hereof.
It may be noted that the control housing 120, the main housing 130, the manifold 170 and the mouthpiece 190 of the vaporizer apparatus 110 are arranged in series and are connected in this order.
As it can be seen from
As shown in
For example, the respective connecting holes A1, B1 and C1 of the control housing 120, the main housing 130 and the manifold 170 are aligned, and the control housing 120, the main housing 130 and the manifold 170 are connected with each other by fastening the fastener F1.
However, as discussed above, in another embodiment the control housing 120, the main housing 130 and the manifold 170 may be formed as one integrated unit.
Further, the control housing 120 has second connecting holes U1, U2 which correspond to second connecting holes V1, V2 of the main housing 130. The control housing 120 and the main housing 130 are additionally connected with each other by fastening the control housing 120 and the main housing 130 via second connecting holes U1, U2 of the control housing 120 with corresponding second connecting holes V1, V2 of the main housing 30 using second fasteners G1, G2, respectively.
The control housing 120 includes a battery chamber BC, and is configured to receive a battery holder 121, a control unit 124 and a position-sensing device 128 (which may be a Hall effect sensor, an activation switch or other position-sensing device). The battery holder 121 is configured to receive a battery 22 including one or more battery cells 22a of suitable specification. The battery cells 22a may be connected in series or parallel, and the plurality of battery cells 22a are used to achieve a desired power.
The control unit 124 is mounted on the battery holder 121. The battery 22 is connected with each of the control unit 124 and the pump 180, and provides power thereto at a desired specification, e.g., at 3V. However, the control unit 124 and the pump 180 may receive a power from a different power source in addition to the battery 22 or separate from the battery 22.
In the embodiment depicted in
The control unit 124 includes a circuit board 126. The position sensor 128 is connected to the circuit board 126, and provides input signal to the circuit board 126 when the operation unit 150 is operated (discussed below) and a position of the magnetic nut 164 is changed due to pressing of the knob 154. The position sensor 128 measures the magnitude of a magnetic field of the magnetic nut 164. The position sensor 128 and magnetic nut 164 are used to activate the control unit 124, but may be substituted with an activation switch or other mechanism.
The control unit 124 operates the pump 180 and the heating element 19 based on input received either from the position sensor 128, or from an activation switch or other mechanism. The control unit 124 may be placed on a back side of the battery holder 121. Optionally, the control unit 124 may also provide a charging circuit for the batteries 22a, as well as the modulation circuitry for the heating element 19 and the pump 180.
The main housing 130 is a box-shaped unit. The main housing 130 is disposed between the control housing 120 and the manifold 170.
As it can be seen from
Further, the main housing 130 has an oil-feeding hole 138 and an operation unit opening 140 formed therein. The oil-feeding hole 138 facilitates filling of oil in the oil chamber 132. A cap, similar to the cap 17 shown in
Furthermore, the main housing 130 has an outlet opening 142 (
The operation unit 150 is disposed in the operation unit opening 140 formed in the main housing 130. The operation unit 150 is operable to seal a top of the oil reservoir 134, and also to seal a bottom of the evacuation chamber 136, thereby trapping oil in the oil reservoir 134 and the evacuation chamber 136 and further creating a vacuum sealed chamber VSC.
The operation unit 150 includes a shaft 152, an operating knob (also referred to as a top button or a knob or an activation mechanism) 154 mounted on the shaft 152, and a stacked disc spring (top spring) 156 disposed between the top portion 114 of the main housing 130 and the operating knob 154. The operation unit 150 also includes a shaft spring 162 arranged on the shaft 152, specifically on a portion thereof disposed in the oil chamber 132 between a top seal 158 arranged at a top portion of the oil reservoir 134, and a bottom seal 160 disposed at a bottom portion of the evacuation chamber 136. The operation unit 150 further includes a magnetic nut 164, arranged below the bottom seal 160 on lower portion of the shaft 152.
The stacked disc spring 156, the shaft spring 162, the top seal 158, the bottom seal 160 and the magnetic nut 164 are concentrically and sequentially arranged along the shaft 152 from top to bottom, as shown.
A rubber O-ring seal 168 is disposed between the operation unit opening 140 of the main housing 130 and the operating knob 154. The operating knob 154 has an upper portion 155 and a lower portion 157. The top spring 156, which may be a stacked disk spring, is mounted between a lower portion 157 of the operating knob 154 and an outer (upper) portion of the main housing 130.
The manifold (also referred to as an air flow chamber) 170 is a box-shaped unit. However, the manifold may be of a cylindrical shape. Optionally, the manifold 170 may be omitted, may be modified in shape, or may be combined with the main housing 130 as an integral unit.
Where used, the manifold 170 includes a first chamber 172, and a second chamber 174, which is separate from the first chamber 172. The first chamber 172 is disposed next to the main housing 130. A first side wall 172a of the first chamber 172 has an inlet opening 176 formed therein. The inlet opening 176 of the first chamber 172 is connected with the outlet opening 142 of the main housing 130. A first top wall 172b of the first chamber 172 has one or more first connector openings 177 formed therein. The first connector opening 177 is configured to receive an inlet 182 (also referred to as a suction end pipe) of the piezo pump 180.
In a modified embodiment, the manifold 170 and the pump 180 may be combined into a single housing to reduce cost and part count. In other words, one or more pumps 180 may be disposed inside of the manifold 170 such that manifold 170 and the pump 180 cooperate to form one single unit.
The second chamber 174 includes a second side wall 174a having an outlet opening 178 formed therein. The outlet opening 178 is configured to receive an inlet opening 192 (
The pump 180 is a disc pump, which is a high-performance piezoelectric micropump operating through ultrasonic acoustic resonance. The disc pump can be applied to the pressure-driven flow of liquids. The pump 180 has compact form factor, i.e., it has high portability and it can be tightly integrated into portable devices such as the vaporizer apparatus of the present invention. An operational cross section showing a sequence of operation of a piezo pump is shown in
The mouthpiece 190 is a cylindrical unit. The mouthpiece has an inlet opening 192 (
According to the present invention, upon operation of the operation unit 150, the top seal 158 isolates the oil reservoir 134 from the oil chamber 132, and the bottom seal 160 seals the bottom of the evacuation chamber 136, whereupon a vacuum seal is created which causes lowering of pressure for the oil trapped in the oil reservoir 134 and evacuation chamber 136. Further, when the piezo pump 180 is automatically triggered upon formation of the vacuum seal, i.e. turned on, the pressure differential is reduced to a value that causes oil that is trapped in the oil reservoir 134 and evacuation chamber 136 to vaporize, and the resulting vapor to flow from the outlet opening 142 to the first chamber 172, then the second chamber 174 of the manifold 170, and further to the mouthpiece 190.
In other words, when the operation unit 150 is operated, i.e., by pressing down the knob (top button) 154 thereof, the shaft 152 is pushed down along with the knob 154, until the top seal 158 (top rubber block) seals of the top of the oil reservoir 134 while trapping oil in the oil reservoir 134. The shaft spring 162 is then further compressed until the bottom seal (bottom rubber block) 160 seals the bottom of the evacuation chamber 136, thereby creating a vacuum sealed chamber.
Once the vacuum seal is created, the magnetic nut 164 will have reached a point to trigger the position sensor 128, which is operatively connected to the circuit board 126 of the control unit 124 that turns the pump 180 on when the position sensor 128 is triggered. The pump 180 is powered by the battery 22. Upon the turning the pump 180 on, the pressure differential is greatly reduced, causing the oil that was trapped in the oil reservoir 34 and evacuation chamber 36 to vaporize and flow though the manifold (also referred to as an air flow chamber), out through the mouthpiece.
The oil that was trapped in the oil reservoir 134 and evacuation chamber 136 is heated, but using less heat than with a conventional vaporizer that does not include a vacuum pump. Rather, the oil that was trapped in the oil reservoir 134 and evacuation chamber 136 is subjected to a very low pressure, for example, at 1007 mbar or below, for vaporization thereof. Specifically, when the operation unit 150 is operated, the oil reservoir 134 and the evacuation chamber 136 are isolated from the oil chamber 132, thereby creating vacuum sealed chamber VSC.
Displacement of the shaft 152 also causes further displacement of the magnetic nut 164 that reaches a point of triggering the position sensor 128 that provides signal to the control unit 24 to switch on the pump 180, which further reduces the pressure differential, for example, at or below 1007 mbar, in the vacuum sealed chamber VSC causing vaporization of the oil at an elevated temperature, but using less heat than with a conventional vaporizer that does not include a vacuum pump. The vapor is moved to a second chamber 174 of the manifold 170 and to the mouthpiece 190. The vapor in the mouthpiece 190 can be inhaled by the user through the outlet opening 194 of the mouthpiece 190.
In a modified embodiment, the mouthpiece may act as an activation mechanism for the operation unit. For example, when a user inhales through the mouthpiece, it may trigger the operation unit without the user pressing a knob to turn on the operation unit.
Since the oil is vaporized with less heat than with a conventional vaporizer that does not include a vacuum pump, vapor thus produced is at a moderate temperature that is not excessively hot. Thus, the vaporizer apparatus 10 of the present invention is unlikely to cause any heat-related injury to a user. Moreover, since the oil is heated less than with a conventional vaporizer that does not include a vacuum pump, the alteration of composition of the oil due to excessive heat can be reduced or minimized.
A vaporizer apparatus 410 according a fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown in
It can be seen from
The apparatus 410 according to the fourth embodiment also includes a heating element 119 (
The second manifold 171 is arranged between the first manifold 170 and the main housing 130. Additional pumps and manifolds may be included, such that there are two or more piezoelectric pumps and two or more manifolds.
Alternatively, a plurality of pumps may be mounted in or on one manifold. The second manifold 171 has an inlet portion connected with main housing, specifically oil outlet thereof, and an outlet portion, which is connected with the inlet portion of the manifold such that the two pumps 180 and 181 are arranged in series. However, pumps 180, 181, which may be more than two, may be arranged in different combination. Further, the pumps may have similar or different specifications.
The vaporizer apparatus 410 of the fourth embodiment is operated in a similar manner as the vaporizer apparatus 110 of the third embodiment, with the exception that both the pumps 180 and 181 are activated along with the heating element 119 when the operation unit 150 is operated.
The present invention also relates to a method of evaporating a liquid in a vaporizing apparatus to generate a vapor.
The method includes a first step of sealing a chamber with a quantity of liquid therein by closing a valve.
The method includes a subsequent step of activating a heating element disposed either inside of, or proximate the chamber;
The method includes another step of activating at least one vacuum pump which communicates with the chamber via an activation passage, and operating the pump in conjunction with the heating element to reduce a pressure and to raise a temperature inside of the chamber until the liquid evaporates.
The method includes another step of opening the valve after the liquid has evaporated to place the chamber into communication with an outlet.
The method includes a final step of drawing the vapor outwardly from the chamber via the outlet.
Optionally, in performing the method hereof, the vaporizing apparatus contains a control circuit, and when a user holds an activation button down, the control circuit sends 100% power to the pump and to the heater, and maintains the power at 100% as long as a user holds the activation button down.
When the user releases the activation button, a vacuum seal is released, and the power to the pump is reduced to a user-adjustable level and remains on for a user-adjustable time period.
Although the present invention has been described herein with respect to several specific illustrative embodiments, the foregoing description is intended to illustrate, rather than to limit the invention. Those skilled in the art of vaporizers will realize that many modifications of the illustrative embodiment can be made and would be operable. All such modifications, which are within the scope of the claims, are intended to be within the scope and spirit of the present invention.
This application is a continuation-in-part of, and claims the benefit of priority from U.S. application Ser. No. 16/683,765, filed on Nov. 14, 2019, which is a continuation-in-part of, and claims the benefit of priority from U.S. application Ser. No. 16/549,241, filed on Aug. 23, 2019. The entire disclosure of each of these referenced priority documents, including specification, claims and drawings, is incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3640001 | Ellison | Feb 1972 | A |
| 6176930 | Koai | Jan 2001 | B1 |
| 20140251330 | Collins | Sep 2014 | A1 |
| 20180199627 | Bowen | Jul 2018 | A1 |
| 20200289770 | Hebrank | Sep 2020 | A1 |
| 20200330706 | Greenfield | Oct 2020 | A1 |
| 20210052007 | Mabee | Feb 2021 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| WO-2017011419 | Jan 2017 | WO |
| WO-2018152637 | Aug 2018 | WO |
| WO-2021041111 | Mar 2021 | WO |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20210052007 A1 | Feb 2021 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 16683765 | Nov 2019 | US |
| Child | 16818257 | US | |
| Parent | 16549241 | Aug 2019 | US |
| Child | 16683765 | US |
