Patent Description:
Recently, the demand for alternatives to traditional cigarettes has increased. For example, there is growing demand for an aerosol generating device which generates an aerosol by heating an aerosol generating material in cigarettes, rather than by combusting cigarettes. Accordingly, research into a heating-type cigarette and a heating-type aerosol generator has been actively conducted.

<CIT> relates to a method for protecting a battery of an aerosol generating device. The method comprises the steps of: detecting whether an initial current for preheating a heater from the battery is supplied to the heater; adding additional resistance to the heater, when an initial current is detected, such that a protection current smaller in size than the detected initial current flows; and removing the added additional resistance if the heater is found to be preheated.

<CIT> relates to a method for supplying power and a device thereof. The device comprises: a battery; a receiving terminal for receiving the power from an external device; a first path for supplying a portion of the power received from the external device to the battery in order to charge the battery; and a second path for supplying a portion of the power received from the external device to a heater to heat the heater. Several functions of the device can be operated simultaneously with charging of the battery.

As the number of users using a heating-type aerosol generating device has increased, so has the number of devices reflecting various needs of such users. As an example, some aerosol generating devices change the temperature profile of a heater within a certain range to provide a user with a different smoking sensation. Also, a heater included in aerosol generating devices may have various shapes and/or may be made of various materials such that a unique temperature profile is created.

One or more embodiments of the present disclosure provide a cradle and an aerosol generating system efficiently using a battery of an aerosol generating device.

According to the present invention, a cradle according to claim <NUM> and an aerosol generating system according to claim <NUM> are provided.

According to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, in an aerosol generating system including a cradle and a holder, it is possible to efficiently use a battery of the holder.

In addition, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, it is possible to reduce the size of the battery of the holder, so that the holder may be miniaturized.

The cradle processor within the cradle may control the cradle battery to supply electric power to the holder battery when the received remaining charge value is less than the reference value.

The cradle processor within the cradle may receive a temperature value of the heater from the holder.

The cradle processor within the cradle may separate the holder from the cradle when the received temperature value is greater than or equal to a preset reference temperature value.

The cradle processor within the system may control the cradle battery to supply electric power to the holder battery when the received remaining charge value is less than the reference value.

The cradle processor within the system may receive a temperature value of the heater from holder processor.

The cradle processor within the system may separate the holder from the cradle when the received temperature value is greater than or equal to a preset reference temperature value.

The holder processor within the system may control the holder battery to supply electric power to the heater when the holder is separated from the cradle.

In addition, there are terms arbitrarily selected by the applicant in the specification, and the meaning of the terms will be described in detail. Therefore, the terms used in the present invention should be defined based on the meaning of the term and the overall contents of the present invention, not a simple name of the term.

The attached drawings for illustrating one or more embodiments are referred to in order to gain a sufficient understanding, the merits thereof, and the objectives accomplished by the implementation.

<FIG> is a schematic block diagram illustrating a cradle according to an embodiment.

Referring to <FIG>, a cradle <NUM> includes a holder mounting portion <NUM>, a controller <NUM>, a battery <NUM>, and a separation controller <NUM>. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that <FIG> illustrates only some components of the cradle <NUM> for convenience of description, and additional components may be added without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In addition, the internal structure of the cradle <NUM> of the aerosol generating system is not limited to that shown in <FIG>, and according to embodiments or design, the arrangement of the holder mounting portion <NUM>, the controller <NUM>, the battery <NUM>, and the separation controller <NUM> may be different from that of <FIG>.

The holder mounting portion <NUM> refers to a space or structure that allows a holder to be mounted on the cradle <NUM>. <FIG> shows that the holder mounting portion <NUM> is inside the cradle <NUM> in <FIG>, but depending on embodiments, the holder mounting portion <NUM> may be located on the outside of the cradle <NUM>, which will be described later with reference to <FIG>. In addition, the holder to be coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> will be described in detail with reference to <FIG>.

The controller <NUM> may be a micro-controller unit (MCU) that controls the overall operation of the cradle <NUM> through a control signal. More specifically, the controller <NUM> controls the operation of the battery <NUM> as well as the operation of other components included in the cradle <NUM>. In addition, the controller <NUM> may check states of each of the components included in the cradle <NUM> to determine whether the cradle <NUM> is in an operable state or not.

In addition, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the controller <NUM> may be implemented in a type of hardware different from the above-described type.

The battery <NUM> may supply electric power needed for the cradle <NUM> to operate, and may receive a control signal from the controller <NUM> to supply electric power to the holder as well as to the cradle <NUM>. More specifically, the battery <NUM> may supply electric power used for the controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> to generate a control signal and perform a necessary calculation, charge a battery of the holder, or supply electric power to a heater of the holder to heat the heater of the holder. In order for the battery <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> to charge the battery of the holder or supply electric power to the heater of the holder, the holder needs to be coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> and the controller <NUM> needs to be aware of that. In addition, the battery <NUM> may supply electric power needed for a display, a sensor, a motor, etc. installed in the cradle <NUM> to operate.

The separation controller <NUM> electrically and/or mechanically separates the holder from the holder mounting portion <NUM>, according to the control signal from the controller <NUM>. The separation controller <NUM> is located between the holder coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> and the controller <NUM>. The separation controller <NUM> may include a sensor to determine whether the holder is coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> or not.

Here, when the holder is electrically and/or mechanically separated from the holder mounting portion <NUM>, a portion of the holder may protrude to the outside of the cradle <NUM> so that a user may easily hold the holder from the cradle <NUM>. Alternatively, the physical force required to detach the holder from the cradle <NUM> may be reduced even though the position of the holder has not changed when the user observes with the naked eye.

<FIG> is a schematic perspective view of a holder according to an embodiment.

As shown in <FIG>, a holder <NUM> may be manufactured in a cylindrical shape. However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. A housing <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may be moved or separated by a user's motion, and a cigarette (i.e., an aerosol generating article including an aerosol generating material) may be inserted into an end <NUM> of the housing <NUM>. In addition, the holder <NUM> may include a button <NUM> through which the user may control the holder <NUM>. In addition, although not shown in <FIG>, the holder <NUM> may further include a display on which an image is output, depending on embodiments.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an embodiment in which a cigarette <NUM> is inserted into a holder <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, the holder <NUM> includes a controller <NUM>, a battery <NUM>, and a heater <NUM>. A double medium cigarette <NUM> may be inserted into the holder <NUM>, as an example of an aerosol generating article including an aerosol generating material that generates an aerosol when heated.

First, the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> controls the overall operation of the holder <NUM>. More specifically, the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> controls the operation of other components included in the holder <NUM> as well as the operation of the battery <NUM> and the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> through a control signal. In addition, the controller <NUM> may check states of each of the components of the holder <NUM> to determine whether or not the holder <NUM> is in an operable state.

The controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may include at least one processor. Moreover, it may be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present embodiment belongs that the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may be implemented in a type of hardware different from that shown in <FIG>. According to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, in order to clearly distinguish the controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> and the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM>, the controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> and the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may be referred to as a cradle processor and a holder processor, respectively.

The battery <NUM> may supply electric power needed for the holder <NUM> to operate, and may be charged by the battery <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. More specifically, when the holder <NUM> is coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> such that the holder <NUM> and the cradle <NUM> are electrically coupled to each other, if the controller <NUM> detects that the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM> is not sufficiently charged with reference to a reference value, the controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> may perform a voltage change through a software and apply an output voltage (e.g., 5V) to a charging module of the holder <NUM> through a direct current (DC)-DC converter in order to charge the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM>. In <FIG>, a software module, a DC-DC converter, and a charging module to perform a voltage change are omitted for convenience of illustration.

The heater <NUM> may be heated by electric power supplied from the battery <NUM>. For example, when a cigarette <NUM> is inserted into the holder <NUM>, the heater <NUM> may be located outside the cigarette <NUM>. Therefore, the heated heater <NUM> may raise the temperature of an aerosol generating material in the cigarette.

The heater <NUM> may be an electric resistive heater. For example, the heater <NUM> may include an electrically conductive track, and the heater <NUM> may be heated as electric current flows through the electrically conductive track. However, the heater <NUM> is not limited to the above-described example, and may be applied without limitation as long as it may be heated to a preset target temperature. Here, the target temperature may be preset in the holder <NUM> or may be set to a desired temperature by a user.

As another example, the heater <NUM> may be an induction heating-type heater. More specifically, the heater <NUM> may include an electrically conductive coil to heat the cigarette <NUM> by an induction heating method, and the cigarette <NUM> may include a susceptor that may be heated by an induction heating-type heater. For example, the heater <NUM> may include a tubular heating element, a plate-shaped heating element, a needle-shaped heating element, or a rod-shaped heating element, and may heat the inside or outside of the cigarette <NUM>, depending on the shape of a heating element.

In addition, a plurality of heaters <NUM> may be disposed on the holder <NUM>. In that case, the plurality of heaters <NUM> may be disposed outside the cigarette <NUM>. The shape of the heater <NUM> is not limited to the shape shown in <FIG>, and may be manufactured in various shapes.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating a holder coupled to a cradle, according to an embodiment.

The cradle <NUM> without a lid is illustrated in <FIG>. For example, as aforementioned with reference to <FIG>, the holder <NUM> may be inserted into the holder mounting portion <NUM> (e.g., a cavity) formed on one side of the cradle <NUM>.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating a holder coupled to a cradle, according to another embodiment.

The cradle <NUM> with a lid is illustrated in <FIG>. For example, the holder <NUM> described in <FIG> is inserted into the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>, and the holder <NUM> may be fixed to the cradle <NUM> as a lid <NUM> is closed.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating how a holder is coupled to a cradle.

As shown in <FIG>, the holder <NUM> may be coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> with the end <NUM> of the holder <NUM> facing the bottom of the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. Accordingly, the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may also be disposed in the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. When the lid <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> is closed after the holder <NUM> is inserted into the cradle <NUM>, the holder <NUM> is fixed inside the cradle <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, the holder <NUM> may be coupled to the cradle <NUM> by being coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> provided on one side of the cradle <NUM>. Unlike the embodiment described in <FIG>, according to the embodiment shown in <FIG>, even when the holder <NUM> is coupled to the outside of the cradle <NUM>, the holder <NUM> may be charged through the battery <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. Also, a user may easily remove the holder <NUM> that has been fully charged without opening the lid <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. As described in <FIG>, the separation controller <NUM> is connected to the holder mounting portion <NUM>. When the user removes the holder <NUM> from the holder mounting portion <NUM>, the separation controller <NUM> may control the holder <NUM> to be detached with a minimum physical force.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating show a holder is coupled to a cradle, according to another embodiment.

As shown in <FIG>, the holder <NUM> may be coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> with the end <NUM> of the holder <NUM> facing the bottom of the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. The cradle <NUM> in <FIG> is distinguished from the cradle <NUM> in <FIG> in that the cradle <NUM> in <FIG> does not have the lid <NUM>. Accordingly, it is not necessary to open the lid <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> in <FIG> to mount the holder <NUM> on the cradle <NUM> or to couple the holder <NUM> to the cradle <NUM>.

In <FIG>, the holder <NUM> is coupled to the cradle <NUM>. The holder <NUM> may be electrically and/or mechanically separated from the cradle <NUM> by the separation controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. In order for a user to easily remove the holder <NUM> from the cradle <NUM>, all or part of the holder <NUM> may be exposed to the outside of the cradle <NUM>, as shown in <FIG>.

Referring to <FIG>, the holder <NUM> is tilted inside the cradle <NUM>. Here, "tilt" refers to a state in which the holder <NUM> is inclined at a certain angle while still being coupled to the holder mounting portion <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>, such that the end <NUM> of the holder <NUM> is exposed to the outside of the cradle <NUM>.

A tilt angle θ may be set in advance so that the cigarette <NUM> is not bent or damaged when the cigarette <NUM> is inserted into the end <NUM> of the holder <NUM>. For example, the tile angle θ may be set to a minimum angle that exposes a cigarette insertion hole of the end <NUM> to the outside. For example, the tilt angle θ may be in the range of <NUM> ° to <NUM> °. Preferably, the tilt angle may be <NUM> °.

Even when the holder <NUM> is tilted, the holder <NUM> and the cradle <NUM> are coupled to each other. Therefore, the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may be heated by electric power supplied by the battery <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>.

The separation controller <NUM> may electrically and/or mechanically couple or decouple the holder <NUM> with the cradle <NUM> under certain conditions. For convenience of description, in <FIG>, the separation controller <NUM> is located between the holder <NUM> and the controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM>. However, depending on embodiments, the separation controller <NUM> may be located at various positions within the cradle <NUM> and may have various shapes.

According to an alternative example for a better understanding, a user may insert the cigarette <NUM> into the end <NUM> of the holder <NUM> exposed to the outside of the cradle <NUM>. When the cigarette <NUM> is inserted into the end <NUM> of the holder <NUM>, the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> determines whether the holder <NUM> is normally coupled to the cradle <NUM> and whether the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM> is charged as much as a preset reference value or more. Following that, the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> supplies electric power to the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> from the battery <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> to preheat the heater <NUM>. When the preheating of the heater <NUM> is completed, the separation controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> receives a control signal from the controller <NUM> and electrically and/or mechanically separates the holder <NUM> from the cradle <NUM>, such that the user may enjoy smoking through the separated holder <NUM>.

<FIG> is a graph illustrating variations in temperature of a heater of a holder, according to an embodiment.

In the graph of <FIG>, the horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents Celsius temperature. The heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> receives electric power from the battery <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> to be preheated, and the temperature rises to a preheating temperature T<NUM>, in section a <NUM>.

When the controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> detects that the temperature of the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> has risen to the preheating temperature, the controller <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> controls the holder <NUM> to be electrically and/or mechanically separated from the cradle <NUM> through the separation controller <NUM>.

Section b <NUM> in <FIG> refers to a section in which the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> is cooled while holder <NUM> is electrically and/or mechanically separated from the cradle <NUM>, so that the temperature of the heater <NUM> falls to a maintenance temperature T<NUM> lower than the preheating temperature T<NUM>.

When the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> detects that the holder <NUM> is separated from the cradle <NUM>, the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> controls the temperature of the heater <NUM> such that an aerosol is generated while maintaining the temperature of the heater <NUM> at the maintenance temperature T<NUM> in section c <NUM> through the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM>. Here, in order for the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> to maintain the maintenance temperature T<NUM> by using the electric power of the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM>, the temperature of the heater <NUM> needs to be within a certain range from the preheating temperature T<NUM>.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating a cigarette according to an embodiment.

The cigarette <NUM> accommodated in the holder <NUM> according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure may be referred to as an aerosol generating article including at least one aerosol generating material. The cigarette may include a plurality of segments. The segments may include different aerosol generating materials.

Referring to <FIG>, the cigarette <NUM> includes a first segment <NUM> and a second segment <NUM>, and different aerosol generating materials are included in the segments <NUM> and <NUM>. For example, only the first and second segments <NUM> and <NUM> may include an aerosol generating material, and third and fourth segments <NUM> and <NUM> may include materials that do not generate an aerosol. However, since embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the number of types of aerosol generating materials to a specific number, the number of segments including an aerosol generating material may be three or more, depending on embodiments.

The first segment <NUM> of the cigarette <NUM> may include a first aerosol generating material that provides a user with a first smoking sensation. As an example, the first segment <NUM> of the cigarette <NUM> may include at least one of glycerin, propylene glycol, ethylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, tetraethylene glycol, and oleyl alcohol. However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. For example, the aerosol generating material included in the first segment <NUM> may serve to increase the migration amount of glycerin, thereby increasing the user's smoking satisfaction.

The second segment <NUM> of the cigarette <NUM> may include a second aerosol generating material that provides the user with a second smoking sensation. As an example, the second segment <NUM> of the cigarette <NUM> may include a material including nicotine, such as tobacco. The tobacco included in the second segment <NUM> may include an ordinary cut filler manufactured in the form of a sheet or strand. The aerosol generating material included in the second segment <NUM> may serve to increase the migration amount of nicotine, thereby increasing the user's smoking satisfaction.

According to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, the first segment <NUM> and the second segment <NUM> are heated by the heater <NUM>, and the aerosol generating materials included in the first segment <NUM> and the second segment <NUM> may form a first gas and a second gas, respectively.

The first gas and the second gas are mixed to finally become an aerosol that the user inhales. The vaporization temperature of the first material included in the first segment <NUM> may be higher than a vaporization temperature of the second material included in the second segment <NUM>. In this case, the depth of a cigarette insertion hole may be formed such that the first segment <NUM> is heated by the heater <NUM> and the second segment <NUM> is partially heated or indirectly heated by the heated first segment <NUM>. The second segment <NUM> may serve as a filter to reduce the first gas generated from the first segment <NUM> to an appropriate amount, thereby providing the user with a smooth smoking sensation.

The first segment <NUM> and the second segment <NUM> may be surrounded by the first segment wrapper 310a and second segment wrapper 320a, as shown in <FIG>. A specific design or pattern that may be detected by a cigarette recognition sensor of the holder <NUM> may be engraved on outer surfaces of the first and second segment wrappers 310a and 320a. In addition, depending on embodiments, the first and second segment wrappers 310a and 320a may be additionally surrounded by aluminum foil paper.

The third segment <NUM> of the cigarette <NUM> may be a cooling portion that cools the aerosol generated from the first segment <NUM> and the second segment <NUM> to an appropriate temperature such that the user may easily inhale the aerosol. As an example, the third segment <NUM> may be made of cellulose acetate tow, and may be a tube-shaped structure including a hollow therein.

The fourth segment <NUM> of the cigarette <NUM> may be a filter portion. The fourth segment <NUM> may be manufactured by adding a plasticizer to the cellulose acetate tow. In addition, the fourth segment <NUM> may be manufactured to generate flavor. As an example, a flavoring liquid may be sprayed into the fourth segment <NUM>. Alternatively, a separate fiber coated with the flavoring liquid may be inserted into the fourth segment <NUM>.

In an embodiment, the fourth segment <NUM> may include at least one capsule formed by a liquid containing perfume wrapped by a film. The capsule may have a spherical or cylindrical shape, and may be destroyed by applying a certain pressure or more by the user before smoking or in the middle of smoking, thereby allowing the user to inhale the flavored aerosol. The fourth segment <NUM> may also be surrounded by a wrapper like the first and second segments <NUM> and <NUM>. For example, poly lactic acid (PLA) laminated paper may be used as a fourth segment wrapper 340a.

The cigarette <NUM> may further include an outer shell 350a to surround all of the first segment <NUM> to fourth segment <NUM>. The outer shell 350a may be made of a material having high thermal conductivity such that the thermal energy of the heater <NUM> is more efficiently transferred to the cigarette <NUM>.

<FIG> is a block diagram illustrating a holder and a cradle, according to an embodiment.

<FIG> schematically shows a data flow between a cradle processor and a holder processor while a holder is coupled to a cradle, and for convenience of description, only some components included in the cradle <NUM> and the holder <NUM> are shown.

The cradle processor <NUM> determines whether or not the holder <NUM> is coupled to the cradle <NUM>. Determining that the holder <NUM> is coupled to the cradle <NUM>, the cradle processor <NUM> receives a remaining charge value of the holder battery <NUM> from the holder processor <NUM>.

When the remaining charge value of the holder battery <NUM> received from the holder processor <NUM> is greater than or equal to a preset reference value, and an aerosol generating article is inserted into the holder <NUM>, the cradle processor <NUM> controls the cradle battery <NUM> to supply electric power to the heater <NUM>. On the other hand, even when the aerosol generating article is inserted into the holder <NUM>, if the remaining charge value of the holder battery <NUM> received from the holder processor <NUM> is less than the reference value, the cradle processor <NUM> may control the heater <NUM> not to be supplied with electric power and control the holder battery <NUM> to be charged by the cradle battery <NUM>.

The cradle processor <NUM> receives a temperature value of the heater <NUM> from the holder processor <NUM>, and separates the holder <NUM> from the cradle <NUM> when the temperature of the heater <NUM> is greater than or equal to a preset reference temperature value. In that process, the reference temperature value may be the preheating temperature T<NUM> described in <FIG>.

When the holder <NUM> is separated from the cradle <NUM>, the holder processor <NUM> controls the holder battery <NUM> to supply electric power to the heater <NUM>, thereby maintaining the temperature of the heater <NUM> at a constant temperature. In that case, a maintenance temperature of the heater <NUM> may be the maintenance temperature T<NUM> described in <FIG>.

<FIG> is a flowchart of a method of generating an aerosol according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The method according to <FIG> may be implemented by an aerosol generating system including the cradle <NUM> and the holder <NUM> described in <FIG>, and hereinafter description will be given with reference to <FIG>.

The cradle processor <NUM> waits until the coupling of the cradle <NUM> and the holder <NUM> is detected in operation S <NUM>, and when the coupling of the cradle <NUM> and the holder <NUM> is detected in operation S1120, the cradle processor <NUM> determines whether or not an aerosol generating article is coupled to the holder <NUM> in operation S1130.

When the cradle <NUM> and the holder <NUM> are not coupled to each other, or the aerosol generating article is not coupled to the holder <NUM>, the cradle processor <NUM> switches an operation mode of the cradle <NUM> back to a standby mode and waits until the aerosol generating article is mounted on the holder <NUM> and the cradle <NUM> and the holder <NUM> are coupled to each other. In addition, even when the cradle <NUM> and the holder <NUM> are coupled to each other and the aerosol generating article is mounted on the holder <NUM>, if the holder battery <NUM> is not charged as much as a reference value or more, the cradle processor <NUM> may control the holder battery <NUM> to be charged as much as the reference value or more by the cradle battery <NUM>.

Accordingly, the battery <NUM> may be prevented from being exhausted in the middle of smoking.

According to an embodiment, when the holder battery <NUM> is charged enough for the user to smoke through the cigarette <NUM> one time or more, the holder processor <NUM> may determine that the holder battery <NUM> is charged as much as the reference value or more. Here, 'smoke one time or more' may refer to a total time for which the temperature of the heater is raised to the preheating temperature T<NUM> and then maintained at the maintenance temperature T<NUM> (i.e., the sections a through c in <FIG>), or may only refer to a time for which the temperature of the heater is maintained at the maintenance temperature T<NUM> in a preheated state (the section c in <FIG>).

In particular, the holder <NUM> according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure may be provided with a display capable of visually outputting a message or the like in order to improve user convenience. In a case where the cigarette <NUM> using a double medium is heated by a non-contact external heating method, the consumption speed of the holder battery <NUM> is high. Therefore, the holder battery <NUM> needs to be charged as much as the reference value or more so that the aerosol may be stably generated until the user finishes smoking through the holder <NUM>. Moreover, by including the holder battery <NUM> with a small capacity, the overall size of the holder <NUM> may be reduced, thereby increasing the portability of the holder <NUM>.

When it is confirmed that the holder battery <NUM> is charged as much as the reference value or more, the cradle processor <NUM> starts to preheat the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> through the cradle battery <NUM> in operation S <NUM>. The temperature of the heater <NUM> rises to a preset preheating temperature in operation S <NUM>. The point at which temperature rise of the heater <NUM> stops has already been described in the description of the graph of <FIG>.

When the preheating of the heater <NUM> is completed, the cradle processor <NUM> electrically and/or mechanically separates the holder <NUM> from the cradle <NUM>, in operation S1150. According to an embodiment, in operation S1150, the cradle processor <NUM> may separate the holder <NUM> from the cradle <NUM>, and then, provide the user with any one of visual, audible, and tactile notification messages through various output devices provided in the cradle <NUM>.

In operation S1160, when the user removes the holder <NUM> from the cradle <NUM>, the controller <NUM> of the holder <NUM> controls the temperature of the heater <NUM> to be maintained at the maintenance temperature lower than the preheating temperature, such that an aerosol is stably generated while maintaining the temperature of the heater <NUM>. In operation S1160, the holder processor <NUM> may utilize proportional integral derivative (PID) control to maintain the temperature of the heater <NUM>. Also, in order to maintain atomization of the aerosol generated from the holder <NUM> or the smoking sensation felt by the user uniformly, the maintenance temperature may be regulated within a certain range, during the smoking time.

According to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, since electric power of the holder battery <NUM> is not used in the process of preheating the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM>, even when the battery capacity of the holder <NUM> is configured to be small, the aerosol may be stably generated from the holder <NUM> while the user smokes. In addition, when the battery capacity of the holder <NUM> is not configured as a small capacity, continuous smoking may be possible, and various functions may be added to the holder <NUM>.

Moreover, since the capacity of a battery is generally proportional to the size of the battery, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, the capacity of the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may be reduced. As a result, the holder <NUM> may be made even slimmer so that the user may hold the holder <NUM> and use the same without any difficulties.

The cigarette <NUM> according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure may be a double-medium cigarette capable of providing a deep flavor to the user. In this case, in order to effectively heat the cigarette <NUM>, the heater <NUM>, which has improved in terms of shape and material in various ways, needs to be used. However, such heater <NUM> may accelerate the power consumption of the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM>. Under such circumstances, when electric power of the battery <NUM> of the cradle <NUM> is used to preheat the heater <NUM> of the holder <NUM> in a preheating section according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, there is also an advantage that the user may use the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM> only in a section (e.g., a maintenance section) in which the user substantially inhales the aerosol by using the holder <NUM>.

Further, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, the performance and life of the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may be increased. In general, an output voltage of the battery <NUM> used in the holder <NUM> is <NUM> V, and as electric power is consumed and as charging and discharging are repeated, an end of discharge voltage of the battery <NUM> drops to about <NUM> V. In this case, a maximum current supplied to the holder <NUM> increases, making it impossible to generate an aerosol that may provide satisfaction to the user. However, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, by not using the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM> excessively, the power consumption and the maximum current of the holder <NUM> may be reduced, and the performance of the battery <NUM> of the holder <NUM> may be maintained for a long time.

The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in the form of a computer program which may be executed on a computer via various types of components, and such a computer program may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. The medium may include a magnetic medium such as a hard disk, a floppy disk, and a magnetic tape, an optical recording medium such as CD-ROM and DVD, a magneto-optical medium such as a floptical disk, and a hardware device specifically configured to store and execute program instructions, such as ROM, RAM, and flash memory.

The computer program is specifically designed and configured for the present disclosure but may be known to and used by one of ordinary skill in the computer software field. Examples of the computer program may include a high-level language code which may be executed using an interpreter or the like by a computer, as well as a machine language code such as that made by a complier.

The specific implementations described in the present disclosure are example embodiments and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way. For brevity of the specification, descriptions of existing electronic components, control systems, software, and other functional aspects of the systems may be omitted. Connections of lines or connection members between components illustrated in the drawings illustratively show functional connections and/or physical or circuit connections and may be represented as alternative or additional various functional connections, physical connections, or circuit connections in an actual device. Unless specifically mentioned, such as "essential", "importantly", etc., the components may not be necessary components for application of the present disclosure.

As used herein (in particular, in claims), use of the term "the" and similar indication terms may correspond to both singular and plural. When a range is described in the present disclosure, the present disclosure may include the invention to which individual values belonging to the range are applied (unless contrary description), and each individual value constituting the range is the same as being described in the detailed description of the disclosure. Unless there is an explicit description of the order of the steps constituting the method according to the present disclosure or a contrary description, the steps may be performed in an appropriate order. The present disclosure is not necessarily limited to the description order of the steps. The use of all examples or example terms (for example, etc.) is merely for describing the present disclosure in detail, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited by the examples or the example terms unless the examples or the example terms are limited by claims.

At least one of the components, elements, modules or units (collectively "components" in this paragraph) represented by a block in the drawings, such as the controller <NUM>, the controller <NUM>, and the separation controller <NUM>, may be embodied as various numbers of hardware, software and/or firmware structures that execute respective functions described above, according to an exemplary embodiment. For example, at least one of these components may use a direct circuit structure, such as a memory, a processor, a logic circuit, a look-up table, etc. that may execute the respective functions through controls of one or more microprocessors or other control apparatuses. Also, at least one of these components may be specifically embodied by a module, a program, or a part of code, which contains one or more executable instructions for performing specified logic functions, and executed by one or more microprocessors or other control apparatuses. Further, at least one of these components may include or may be implemented by a processor such as a central processing unit (CPU) that performs the respective functions, a microprocessor, or the like. Two or more of these components may be combined into one single component which performs all operations or functions of the combined two or more components. Also, at least part of functions of at least one of these components may be performed by another of these components. Further, although a bus is not illustrated in the above block diagrams, communication between the components may be performed through the bus. Functional aspects of the above exemplary embodiments may be implemented in algorithms that execute on one or more processors. Furthermore, the components represented by a block or processing steps may employ any number of related art techniques for electronics configuration, signal processing and/or control, data processing and the like.

Claim 1:
A cradle (<NUM>) to which a holder (<NUM>) configured to generate an aerosol is detachably attachable, the cradle (<NUM>) comprising:
a cradle battery (<NUM>) configured to supply electric power to a heater (<NUM>) or a battery (<NUM>) of the holder (<NUM>); and
a cradle processor (<NUM>) configured to:
identify whether the holder (<NUM>) is coupled to the cradle (<NUM>);
receive a remaining charge value of the battery (<NUM>) of the holder (<NUM>) from the holder (<NUM>) based on the holder (<NUM>) being coupled to the cradle (<NUM>), and
control the cradle battery (<NUM>) to supply electric power to the heater (<NUM>) based on the received remaining charge value being greater than or equal to a preset reference value,
wherein the cradle processor (<NUM>) is configured to receive the remaining charge value further based on whether an aerosol generating article is inserted into the holder (<NUM>).