Generation of Multiple Substrates for Aerosol Generation from a Continuous Web

An installation is arranged for serially forming a plurality of substrates for aerosol generation, and includes:          a feeding means arranged for feeding a continuous web of substrate material, and     a rotating cutting wheel having multiple cutting dies arranged circumferentially and for cutting out this continuous web to define a plurality of substrates and then for removing each defined substrate from each cutting die at a chosen instant to make it fall at a chosen position.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the generation of substrates intended for being used in aerosol generation devices to generate aerosol.

BACKGROUND

Some aerosol generation devices, generally called “T-vapor (or heat-not-burn (or “HnB”)) devices”, comprise an aerosol generation unit arranged for receiving a consumable comprising a solid substrate (for instance a tobacco stick) with a possible filter and generally wrapped in a paper, into a heating chamber, and for transforming this substrate into an aerosol that may be inhaled by a user through successive draws (or puffs or else inhalation phases).

When this type of aerosol generation device is portable, i.e. usable when held by a user, it further comprises a battery (or power source) possibly rechargeable and storing electrical energy that is used by the aerosol generation unit for generating the aerosol. In this case the aerosol generation device may be a vaporizer or an electronic cigarette.

In the following description the term “substrate” is used to designate any solid aerosol-forming substance that is aerosolizable in air to form an aerosol. The substrate may comprise one or more of nicotine, cannabinoid, tobacco material, polyol, caffeine or other active components. An active component may be carried by a carrier which may include propylene glycol or glycerin, for instance. A flavoring may also be present in the substrate. This flavoring may include Ethylvanillin (vanilla), menthol, Isoamyl acetate (banana oil) or similar, for instance.

Moreover, in the following description the term “aerosol” may include a suspension of substance as one or more of solid particles, liquid droplets and gas. Such a suspension may be in a gas including air. Aerosol herein may generally refer to, or include, a vapor, and may include one or more components of the substrate.

It has been proposed, notably in the patent document WO-A1 2019/129493, to produce (or generate) a continuous cylindrical web of substrate material with multiple components, which is later on cutted out manually to define a plurality of cylindrical substrates. Actually, there is not an appropriate industrial process allowing for generating substrates without any manual intervention and with low dimensional variations, and possibly in parallel, notably when the substrates are very thin, such as the one having a flat plate shape.

Therefore, an object of this invention is to improve the situation, and notably to allow industrial generation of substrates with low dimensional variations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The proposed invention provides notably an embodiment of a method intended for serially forming a plurality of substrates for aerosol generation, and comprising the steps of:feeding a continuous web of substrate material, andcutting out the continuous web to define a plurality of substrates by rotating a cutting wheel having multiple cutting dies arranged circumferentially.

This method is characterized in that the cutting out step comprises a sub-step of removing each defined substrate from each cutting die at a chosen instant to make it fall at a chosen position.

Thanks to the invention an industrial generation of substrates having a constant shape and a constant weight is now possible without any manual intervention, even with a flat plate shape.

The embodiment of method may comprise other aspects or features, considered separately or combined, as defined hereafter:the removing sub-step may comprise pushing out each defined substrate from its cutting die by releasing a biasing force stored by a shoe of this cutting die, in contact with this defined substrate, at the chosen instant;in a variant of embodiment, the removing sub-step may comprise pushing out each defined substrate from its cutting die, at the chosen instant, by means of a pressurized gas acting on this defined substrate from the inside of this cutting die;in the cutting out step N substrates, with N≥2, may be simultaneously defined in parallel in the continuous web by N cutting dies belonging to N successive sub-parts of the cutting wheel set perpendicular to a rotation axis of the cutting wheel;the cutting out step may define substrates having a flat plate shape;the method may further comprise a step of forming the continuous web by means of an extruder;the method may further comprise a step of collecting each falling substrate on a conveyor at the chosen position and of conveying the collected substrate by means of this conveyor;the conveyor may be a substantially planar conveyor, i.e., a conveyor having a substantially planar surface; for example the conveyor may be a conveyor belt and may be an endless belt conveyor;the feeding step and the collecting and conveying step may use a same conveyor;the method may further comprise a step of lifting the collected substrates from the conveyor by rotating a suction wheel having multiple suction areas arranged circumferentially;the lifting step may comprise synchronizing the suction wheel with the cutting wheel by mechanically connecting or electronically indexing the suction wheel with the cutting wheel;the lifting step may be carried out by means of a suction wheel comprising as many suction areas as cutting dies on the cutting wheel;the lifting step may be carried out by means of a suction wheel comprising suction areas each configured to generate a reduced pressure to suction a collected substrate on the conveyor;the lifting step may further comprise releasing the suction in a suction area retaining a collected substrate when this suction area reaches a collection zone, in order that this collected substrate is collected in this collection zone;in the lifting step N substrates may be simultaneously lifted in parallel by N parallel suction areas belonging to N successive sub-parts of the suction wheel set perpendicular to a rotation axis of the suction wheel.

The proposed invention provides also an embodiment of an installation intended for serially forming a plurality of substrates for aerosol generation, and comprising a feeding means arranged for feeding a continuous web of substrate material, and a rotating cutting wheel having multiple cutting dies arranged circumferentially and for cutting out this continuous web to define a plurality of substrates.

This installation is characterized in that the cutting wheel is arranged for removing each defined substrate from each cutting die at a chosen instant to make it fall at a chosen position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The invention aims, notably, at offering a method, and an associated installation11, intended for serially forming (or generating) substrates1with low dimensional variations from a continuous web2of solid substrate material, these substrates1being intended for being used in aerosol generation devices to generate aerosol.

In the following description it will be considered that the generated solid substrates1are intended to be part of consumables in which they are wrapped in a paper, possibly with a filter. But this is not mandatory because a solid substrate1could be used alone in the heating chamber of an aerosol generation device.

Moreover, in the following description it will be considered that the solid substrates1, and therefore the consumables they belong to, have a flat plate shape. But this is not mandatory.20

More, in the following description it will be considered that the aerosol generation devices are (or constitute) T-vapor (or heat-not-burn (or HnB)) devices. But the aerosol generation devices could be of another type, as soon as they are arranged for transforming a solid substrate (or aerosol-forming substance) mixed with air into an aerosol (possibly close to room temperature) that may be inhaled by a user through successive puffs (or draws or inhalation phases) during a vaping session.

It is recalled that a T-vapor device comprises an aerosol generation unit comprising a dedicated cavity intended for receiving a consumable containing a substrate1and that may be a heating chamber. The consumable may be manually replaced by the user when there is no more substrate in it. The dedicated cavity communicates with an outlet of an air flow channel to be supplied with air originating from at least one inlet of this air flow channel. The substrate1is arranged for generating an aerosol when it is heated (without burning) and mixed with air. This heating is performed by a heater supplied with electrical energy, originating from a power source (possibly a rechargeable battery), and belonging to the aerosol generation unit. For instance, this heater may be positioned adjacent to, or around the heating chamber and therefore the consumable. Also for instance, this heater may be a flat ceramic heater forming a part of the inner surface of the heating chamber to directly heat the substrate, or a thin film heater wrapped around the outer surface of the heating chamber to heat its side walls and at least a part of its internal volume. Also for instance, the heater may heat the substrate1to a temperature comprised between 150° C. and 350° C. The aerosol generated in the heating chamber is inhaled by the user of the aerosol generation device through an outlet, which may belong to the dedicated cavity or to a mouthpiece coupled to the latter.

It is also recalled that the term “substrate” is used to designate any solid aerosol-forming substance that is aerosolizable in air to form an aerosol. The substrate may comprise one or more of nicotine, cannabinoid, tobacco material, polyol, caffeine or other active components. An active component may be carried by a carrier which may include propylene glycol or glycerin, for instance. A flavoring may also be present in the substrate. This flavoring may include Ethylvanillin (vanilla), menthol, Isoamyl acetate (banana oil) or similar, for instance.

It is also recalled that the term “aerosol” may include a suspension of substance as one or more of solid (very small) particles, liquid droplets and gas, and that such a suspension may be in a gas including air.

A non-limiting example of an algorithm implementing a method100-140according to the invention is illustrated inFIG.1. As illustrated, a method100-140, according to the invention, comprises at least two steps110and120and may be implemented, for instance, by means of an installation11such as the one illustrated in the non-limiting example ofFIGS.2and3.

This installation11comprises at least a cutting wheel3having multiple cutting dies4arranged circumferentially.

A feeding step110of the method is intended for feeding a continuous web2of substrate material.

A cutting out step120of the method is intended for cutting out this continuous web2to define a plurality of substrates1by rotating the cutting wheel3. In this cutting out step120the substrates1are serially defined by the multiple cutting dies4of the cutting wheel3(arranged circumferentially). This cutting out step120comprises also a removing sub-step during which each defined substrate1is removed from each corresponding cutting die4at a chosen instant to make it fall at a chosen position. Indeed, when a cutting die4cuts out a substrate1from the continuous web2, this substrate1may stick to the corresponding cutting die4and therefore needs to be removed in order to not introduce any perturbation in the serial substrate generation.

So, the installation11provides a continuous web2that is cut by the multiple cutting dies4of the rotating cutting wheel3to define (or form) serially multiple substrates1that are removed to fall at a chosen position.

This allows an industrial generation of substrates1having a constant shape and a constant weight, even with the flat plate shape. Moreover, this allows a cost reduction of the consumables and a possible reduction in dimensions of the heating chamber of the aerosol generation unit (and then possibly of the aerosol generation device) because of the reduced dimensional variations.

At least two embodiments can be envisioned to remove the substrates1from the cutting dies4at the chosen position.

A first embodiment requires that the end of each cutting die4comprises a shoe8that comes in contact with a substrate1during the cut-out and stores a biasing force during this contact, as illustrated in the non-limiting example ofFIG.2. In this first embodiment the removing sub-step comprises pushing out each defined substrate1from its cutting die4by releasing the biasing force stored by the corresponding shoe8of this cutting die4at a chosen instant. So, when a shoe8with a stored biasing force comes into contact with a part of the continuous web2during the cut-out and this part sticks to this shoe8, the releasing of the stored biasing force allows this part (after having been fully cut out) to be removed from this shoe8and therefore to fall at the chosen position. This biasing force may be produced by means of a spring with a cam driven clip to hold it in place or by means of a pneumatic actuator.

A second embodiment requires that the cutting wheel3comprises a pressurized gas circuit coupled to the internal part of each cutting die4to allow a pulse of pressurized gas to cross through holes defined in the end of each cutting die4at a chosen instant. In this second embodiment the removing sub-step comprises pushing out each defined substrate1from its cutting die4by means of a pulse of pressurized gas acting on the defined substrate1from the inside of this cutting die4at a chosen instant. So, when the end of a cutting die4comes into contact with a part of the continuous web2during the cut-out and this part sticks to this shoe8, a pulse of pressurized gas is supplied to the holes of this cutting die end which allows this part (after having been fully cut out) to be removed from this cutting die end and therefore to fall at the chosen position.

In an exemplary and non-limiting example, each substrate1generated by the installation11may have a flat plate shape. In this case each generated substrate1may have a length (in the longitudinal direction) of approximately 18.0 mm, a width of approximately 11.8 mm, and a thickness (or depth) of approximately 1.2 mm. The consumable comprising such a substrate1may have a width of approximately 12.0 mm and a thickness (or depth) of approximately 1.4 mm to accommodate this substrate1inside a wrapping member (or paper).

It should also be noticed, as illustrated in the non-limiting example of the algorithm ofFIG.1, that the method may further comprise a forming step100in which the continuous web2is formed by means of an extruder12of the installation11.

It should also be noticed, as illustrated in the non-limiting example of the algorithm ofFIG.1, that the method may further comprise a collecting and conveying step130in which each falling substrate1is collected on a conveyor5at the chosen position and then conveyed by means of this conveyor5. The conveyor5is a substantially planar conveyor5and, thus, has a substantially planar surface. In the illustrated example, the conveyor5is a conveyor belt, and specifically an endless belt conveyor.

For instance, and as illustrated in the non-limiting example ofFIGS.2and3, the feeding step110and the collecting and conveying step130may use the same conveyor5of the installation11. In this case the conveyor5acts as a feeding means in the installation11. So, the continuous web2, delivered by the output of the extruder12, may fall on the conveyor5upstream of the cutting wheel3, which allows cutting out substrates1online directly after extrusion without requiring a second offline installation. This allows to simplify the latter (11) but also to confer a compact design to the installation11.

It should also be noticed, as illustrated in the non-limiting example of the algorithm ofFIG.1, that the method may further comprise a lifting step140in which the substrates1are serially lifted from the conveyor5by rotating a suction wheel6having multiple suction areas7arranged circumferentially. So, the collecting and conveying step130is intended for conveying the substrates1by means of the conveyor5up to the suction wheel6where they are serially lifted in the multiple suction areas7. This allows also to confer a compact design to the installation11.

For instance, the lifting step140may comprise synchronizing the suction wheel6with the cutting wheel3by mechanically connecting the suction wheel6with the cutting wheel3. In a variant of embodiment, the lifting step140may comprise synchronizing the suction wheel6with the cutting wheel3by electronically indexing the suction wheel6with the cutting wheel3. This allows to optimize the serial production of substrates1.

It should also be noticed that the lifting step140may be carried out by means of a suction wheel6comprising as many suction areas7as cutting dies4on the cutting wheel3. So, when the suction wheel6drops the substrates1they are evenly spaced, which allows to optimize the serial production of substrates1.

It should also be noticed that the lifting step140may be carried out by means of a suction wheel6comprising suction areas7each configured to generate a reduced pressure to suction a collected substrate1on the conveyor5. To this effect, the installation11may comprise a suction circuit coupled to the internal part of the suction wheel6in each suction area7to allow suction of a substrate1through holes defined in each suction area7when the latter (7) comes into contact with this substrate1. Using a vacuum to change the pressure and hold the defined substrate1is an interesting embodiment because it is much faster than mechanically holding the defined substrate1and does not deform the shape of the defined substrate1.

It should also be noticed that the lifting step140may further comprise releasing the suction in a suction area7retaining a collected substrate1when this suction area7reaches a collection zone9. This allows each collected substrate1to be collected in the collection zone9. As illustrated in the non-limiting example ofFIGS.2and3, the collection zone9may be an open box (or container) located at the end of the conveyor5just below the place where each substrate1leaves its suction area7when the suction is released in it. But in a variant the collection zone9could be another conveyor belt.

It should also be noticed, as illustrated in the non-limiting example ofFIG.3, that during the cutting out step120N substrates1, with N≥2, may be simultaneously defined in parallel in the continuous web2by N cutting dies4belonging to N successive sub-parts of the cutting wheel3set perpendicular to the rotation axis of the cutting wheel3. In this embodiment, in the lifting step140N substrates1may be simultaneously lifted in parallel by N parallel suction areas7belonging to N successive sub-parts of the suction wheel6set perpendicular to the rotation axis of the suction wheel6. Such an option allows to increase considerably the number of substrates1that are generated by the installation11per minute. The precise and simultaneous cut-out in parallel of N parts of the continuous web2is facilitated when the latter (2) is divided in advance into N parallel strips10as illustrated in the non-limiting example ofFIG.3.

In the non-limiting example illustrated inFIG.3N=9, but N may take any value greater or equal to 2.

For instance, and as illustrated in the non-limiting example ofFIG.3, the extruder12may allow to generate directly the N parallel strips10of the continuous web2.

It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that some block diagrams ofFIGS.2and3herein represent conceptual views of illustrative elements and circuitry embodying the principles of the invention. The description and drawings merely illustrate the principles of the invention. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the invention and are included within its spirit and scope. Furthermore, all examples recited herein are principally intended expressly to be only for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the invention and the concepts contributed by the inventor(s) to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the invention, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.