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(11) | EP 4 311 439 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | A HEAT-NOT-BURN STICK |
| (57) An aerosol-generating consumable article (10), comprising: a tubular body (12) comprising
a flexible portion (20), thereby allowing a first end (10a) of the aerosol-generating
consumable article (10) to move relative to a second end (10b) of the aerosol-generating
consumable article (10), wherein the flexible portion (20) is positioned a predetermined
distance from the second end (10b) of the aerosol-generating consumable article (10),
where the predetermined distance corresponds to a length of a cavity (52) of an aerosol-generating
device (50) configured for accommodating the aerosol-generating consumable article
(10) and generating an aerosol by heating thereof.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
BACKGROUND
[0002] The popularity and use of aerosol-generating devices and systems (also known as vaporisers) has grown rapidly in the past few years as an alternative to traditional tobacco products such as cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, and rolling tobacco. Various devices and systems are available that heat or warm aerosolisable substances, that may or may not comprise nicotine or other active substances, as opposed to burning tobacco in conventional tobacco products.
[0003] A commonly available aerosol-generating system is the heated substrate aerosol generation or heat-not-burn type. Systems of this type generate an aerosol or vapour by heating a consumable article (i.e. a "heat-not-burn stick") containing an aerosol substrate such as reconstituted tobacco to a temperature typically in the range of 150°C to 350°C. Heating an aerosol substrate, but not combusting or burning it, releases an aerosol that comprises the components sought by the user but not the undesirable by-products of combustion. In addition, the aerosol produced by heating the tobacco or other aerosolisable material does not typically comprise the burnt or bitter taste that may result from combustion which can be unpleasant for the user.
[0004] Typically, a heat-not-burn consumable article, for example in stick form, is inserted into a cavity of a heat-not-burn device, with an end of the stick left protruding from the device and forming an inhalation mouthpiece. The heat-not-burn device subsequently supplies heat to the stick to aerosolise aerolisable material contained in the aerosol substrate in the stick, and the aerosol produced is supplied to the user from the protruding end of the stick.
[0005] A common problem experienced with typical heat-not-burn systems is that the mouthpiece portion of a stick that protrudes from the aerosol-generating device in use has a tendency to snap, particularly adjacent to the opening of the cavity. To prevent this from occurring, users instead need to hold the device at a position that minimises bending forces being applied to the stick during use. Such positions increase the effort and discomfort required to operate the device, and reduce the user experience.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
[0007] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an aerosol-generating consumable article, comprising: a tubular body comprising a flexible portion, thereby allowing a first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article to move relative to a second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article, wherein the flexible portion is positioned a predetermined distance from the second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article, where the predetermined distance corresponds to a length of a cavity of an aerosol-generating device configured for accommodating the aerosol-generating consumable article and generating an aerosol by heating thereof.
[0008] In this way, the aerosol-generating consumable article is able to flex during use in an aerosol-generating device, thereby reducing the risk of breaking the aerosol-generating consumable article. For example, during use an external force may be applied to the stick, such as a bending, tensile, compressive, or twisting force; by providing a tubular body with a flexible portion, the flexible portion may flex to accommodate the external force without breaking. Additionally, since the position and angle of the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article may change relative to the aerosol-generating device, the aerosol-generating device may be held by a user in a variety of positions during use, thereby improving ergonomics and user experience.
[0009] For example, when the aerosol-generating consumable article is inserted into the cavity of the aerosol-generating device during use, at least part of the flexible portion is arranged to be located outside the cavity of the aerosol-generating device. This allows the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article to flex relative to the aerosol-generating device during use.
[0010] Preferably, when the aerosol-generating consumable article is inserted into the cavity of the aerosol-generating device during use, at least part of the flexible portion of the aerosol-generating consumable article is arranged to be located within an opening of the cavity. In other words, the flexible portion is partially inside the cavity, and partially outside the cavity. In this way, the flexible portion of the aerosol-generating consumable article may provide cushioning against the opening of the cavity, thereby further reducing the risk of breakage of the aerosol-generating consumable article. Alternatively, all of the flexible portion of the aerosol-generating consumable article may be arranged to be located outside of the cavity when the aerosol-generating consumable article is inserted into the aerosol-generating device.
[0011] The flexible portion of the tubular body may comprise a flexible material. As used herein, the term "flexible material" refers to any material that may bend, stretch and/or change shape without breaking or tearing. The flexible material may be a resilient material, which returns to an initial position once an external force is removed. Alternatively, the flexible material may be a compliant material, that does not spontaneously return to the initial position once the external force is removed. The flexible material may be provided by a layer of the flexible material at the flexible portion of the tubular body. The flexible material may comprise flexible paper. The flexible material may comprise silicon.
[0012] The flexible portion of the tubular body may comprise a plurality of ribs extending around a circumference of the tubular body. The ribs may be provided as indentations on either an internal or external surface of the tubular body and may predispose the aerosol-generating consumable article to deform when an external force is applied to the aerosol-generating consumable article. In this way, the circumferential ribs may permit bending under the bending force without the tubular body breaking or tearing, thereby allowing the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article to move relative to the second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article.
[0013] The flexible portion of the tubular body may comprise material arranged in a fold structure. In this way, flexibility of the tubular body may be provided without the tubular body being formed from a material that may stretch. For example, the material arranged in the fold structure may be paper. The fold structure may be able to move between a folded position and an unfolded position.
[0014] The flexible portion of the tubular body may comprise a plurality of openings configured to allow air to flow into the aerosol-generating consumable article, wherein the plurality of openings are covered in a folded position and the plurality of openings are not covered in an unfolded position. In this way, the user may control how much air may flow into the aerosol-generating consumable article during use, thereby controlling the concentration and/or intensity of the vaporized material. The user may select how many of the plurality of openings are not covered by pulling on the aerosol-generating consumable article or bending the aerosol-generating consumable article to at least partially move the fold structure into the unfolded position.
[0015] In some embodiments, the tubular body may comprise: a first layer configured to provide the flexible portion of the tubular body, and a second layer disposed, at least partially, over the first layer.
[0016] The second layer of the tubular body may extend from the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article to the second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article, thereby fully covering the first layer of the tubular body. In this way, the aerosol-generating consumable article may be simply and quickly assembled by wrapping the second layer around the other components of the aerosol-generating consumable article, producing an aerosol-generating consumable article with a continuous outer surface. Having a continuous outer surface may provide protection to internal components of the aerosol-generating consumable article and may provide some rigidity to the aerosol-generating consumable article that may be advantageous during transport or storage of the aerosol-generating consumable article.
[0017] The second layer of the tubular body may comprise perforations in a portion that covers the flexible portion of the first layer. In this way, during use of the aerosol-generating consumable article, such as when an external force is applied, the perforations allow the second layer to at least partially tear without other parts of the aerosol-generating consumable article breaking, such as the first layer.
[0018] In other embodiments, the tubular body may comprise: a first layer; a second layer configured to provide the flexible portion of the tubular body, wherein the second layer is disposed, at least partially over the first layer. The first layer may extend from the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article to the second end of the aerosol generating consumable article. Alternatively, the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article may be defined by the second layer. In this way, the first layer of the aerosol-generating consumable article may provide protection to any internal components, and the second layer may provide structural support to the first layer when a bending force is applied to the aerosol-generating consumable article. This reduces the chance that the aerosol-generating consumable article breaks or snaps during use.
[0019] The second layer may extend from the first or second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article. Preferably, the second layer extends from the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article (i.e. the end that is configured to supply vapour to a user). In this way, the size or length of the flexible portion of the aerosol-generating consumable article is increased, thereby allowing the aerosol-generating consumable article to accommodate a wider range of positions and/or external forces. For example, the second layer may be a silicon film that is wrapped around the first layer of the aerosol-generating consumable article.
[0020] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system comprising: an aerosol-generating device comprising a cavity having a length; and the aerosol-generating consumable article as described above. For example, when the aerosol-generating consumable article is inserted into the cavity of the aerosol-generating device during use, at least part of the flexible portion is arranged to be located outside the cavity of the aerosol-generating device.
[0021] When the aerosol-generating consumable article is inserted into the cavity of the aerosol-generating device during use, at least part of the flexible portion of the aerosol-generating consumable article may be arranged to be located within an opening of the cavity. In other words, the flexible portion is partially inside the cavity, and partially outside the cavity. Alternatively, all of the flexible portion of the aerosol-generating consumable article may be arranged to be located outside of the cavity when the aerosol-generating consumable article is inserted into the aerosol-generating device
[0022] It will be understood that the present invention is described herein purely by way of example, and modifications of detail can be made within the scope of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0023] One or more embodiments will now be described, purely by way of example, with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
Figures 1A to 1D show schematic diagrams of a typical aerosol-generating consumable article such as a heat-not-burn stick, an example of a heat-not-burn aerosol-generating device, and diagrams of the heat-not-burn stick inserted into the device both before and after breakage of the stick;
Figure 2A shows an embodiment of a heat-not-burn stick having a tubular body comprising a flexible portion;
Figure 2B shows an example of a heat-not-burn device corresponding to the example shown in Figure 1B;
Figure 2C shows the heat-not-burn stick of Figure 2A inserted into the heat-not-burn device of Figure 2B;
Figure 2D shows the heat-not-burn device and stick of Figure 2C, where a first end of the stick has moved relative to a second end of the stick due to the bending of the flexible portion;
Figure 3A shows a user operating the heat-not-burn device and typical heat-not-burn stick shown in Figure 1;
Figure 3B shows a user operating the heat-not-burn device and the embodiment of a heat-not-burn stick shown in Figure 2;
Figures 4A to 4C show embodiments of the heat-not-burn stick where the flexible portion is provided by a flexible paper tube;
Figure 5A to 5C show a stick with a flexible portion provided by a fold structure;
Figures 6A and 6B show a flexible tube comprising a plurality of ribs that may provide the flexible portion of the tubular body; and
Figure 7 shows an example of a heat-not-burn stick comprising an outer layer that provides the flexible portion of the tubular body.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] In the following description and accompanying drawings, corresponding features may preferably be identified using corresponding reference numerals to avoid the need to described said common features in detail for each and every embodiment.
[0025] As described herein, a vapour is generally understood to refer to a substance in the gas phase at a temperature lower than its critical temperature, which means that the vapour can be condensed to a liquid by increasing its pressure without reducing the temperature, whereas an aerosol is a suspension of fine solid particles or liquid droplets, in air or another gas. It should, however, be noted that the terms 'aerosol' and 'vapour' may be used interchangeably in this specification, particularly with regard to the form of the inhalable medium that is generated for inhalation by a user.
[0026] Referring now to Figures 1A to 1D, a typical aerosol-generating article such as a heat-not-burn stick 10' will now be described in detail. For brevity, the term "stick" may be used to refer to a "heat-not-burn stick". Figure 1A shows a typical stick 10' extending along a longitudinal axis, the stick 10' having a first end 10a' and a second end 10b'. The stick 10' comprises a tubular body 12' with a first end 12a' and a second end 12b'. The tubular body 12' may be generally cylindrical with a predetermined diameter; however, it will be appreciated that the tubular body 12' may have other shapes such as cuboidal or conical, for example.
[0027] The tubular body 12' of the stick 10' contains an aerosol substrate (not shown) that, when heated by the heat-not-burn device, forms an aerosol or vapour that is supplied to the user. Use of the device 50 may be referred to as "vaping". The first end 10a' of the stick 10' is configured as a mouthpiece to supply vapour to a user, and may comprise a component such as a filter (not shown). The second end 10b' of the stick 10' is configured to be inserted into a heat-not-burn device. The second end 10b' of the stick 10' may comprise a component such as a plug (not shown) in order to retain the aerosol substrate inside the tubular body 12'. The tubular body 12' may formed from one or several wrappers wrapped and fixed around the filter, plug and the aerosol substrate.
[0028] An example of a heat-not-burn device 50 shown in Figure 1B, though it will be appreciated that other heat-not-not burn devices may be used with the heat-not-burn sticks described herein. For brevity, the term "device" may be used to refer to a "heat-not-burn device". The device 50 comprises a housing 51 configured to hold various components of the device 50. The housing 51 may be any shape that is sized to fit the various components and that can be comfortably held by a user unaided, in a single hand. The device 50 comprises a cavity 52 with an opening 54. The cavity 52 has a shape that corresponds to the shape of the stick 10'. When the stick 10' is substantially cylindrical, the cavity 52 may have a diameter that corresponds to a diameter of the tubular body 12' of the stick 10'; for example, the diameter of the cavity 52 may be slightly larger than the diameter of the tubular body 12' so that the stick 10' may be inserted into the cavity 52. To ensure the stick 10' remains secured within the cavity 52 after insertion, retaining or constraining elements (not shown in the figures) may be provided in the cavity 52, such as internal ribs, embossing or flat surfaces, to define locally between themselves a diameter equal or slightly smaller than that of the tubular body 12' of the stick 10'. The length of the cavity 52 is less than a length of the stick 10' so that the first end 10a' of the stick 10' protrudes from the heat-not-burn device 50 when the second end 10b' of the stick 10' is inserted into the cavity 52, as depicted in Figure 1C. A heating element (not shown) may be provided in the housing 51 to supply heat for vapourising the aerosol substrate in the stick 10'. The heat-not-burn device 50 may comprise a number of additional components, such as a power supply and control circuitry that will not be described in detail herein.
[0029] As shown in Fig. 1D, an external force F may be applied to the stick 10' during use of the heat-not-burn device 50, in particular at the projecting first end 10a' thereof. For example, the force may include a bending force, a stretching or tensile force, a compressive force, and/or a torsional or twisting force. Since relative movement between the stick 10' and the heat-not-burn device 50 is restricted by the cavity, the external force may cause the stick 10' to break. For example, the stick 10' may completely snap, or may be bent in a manner that obscures any flow of vapour through the stick 10', or may be otherwise damaged in a way that exposes internal components of the stick 10' to the environment. Typically, the tubular body 12' of the stick 10' is fragile since the wrappers holding the various parts of the sticks together cannot stretch to accommodate any bending of the stick 10'. Therefore, whenever a break of the stick 10' occurs, the stick 10' must be discarded and replaced leading to increased waste and cost to operate the device. While the break may occur anywhere on the stick 10', typically the break occurs adjacent the opening 54 of the cavity 52, as shown in Figure 1D. When the stick 10' breaks adjacent to the opening 54, this presents the further problem of making the remainder of the stick 10' difficult to remove from the device 50, thereby increasing the time taken to replace the stick 10'.
[0030] An embodiment of a heat-not-burn stick 10 that solves the above issues will now be described with reference to Figures 2A to 2D. The stick 10 shown in Figure 2A shares a number of features of the stick 10' shown in figure 1A, such as the tubular body 12, and internal components such as the filter at a first end 10a of the stick 10, a plug at a second end 10b of the stick 10, and an aerosol substrate contained within the tubular body 12. The second end 10b of the stick 10 is also configured to be inserted into a heat-not-burn device 50 such as the one depicted in Figure 2B, where the device 50 comprises a cavity 52 with an opening 54.
[0031] In the embodiment of Figures 2A to 2D the tubular body 12 further comprises a flexible portion 20. The flexible portion 20 allows the first end 10a of the stick 10 to move relative to the second end 10b of the stick 10. As used herein, the term "move" refers to any relative movement between the ends 10a, 10b of the stick. For example, it may refer to a change in the angle of the longitudinal axis of the first end 10a relative to the second end 10b (such as by bending or flexing), or a change in distance between the ends 10a, 10b of the stick 10 (such as by stretching or compression) and/or a relative rotation about the longitudinal axis between the ends 10a, 10b of the stick 10 (such as by twisting). The flexible portion 20 is positioned a predetermined distance, D, from the second end 10b of the stick 10. The predetermined distance, D, corresponds at least to the length, L, of the cavity 52 of the heat-not-burn device 50. For example, the flexible portion 20 may extend a distance, X, along the length of the tubular body 12 and the predetermined distance, D, may define a midpoint of the flexible portion 20.
[0032] When the stick 10 is inserted into the cavity 52 of the device 50 during use, at least part of the flexible portion 20 is arranged to be located outside the cavity 52 of the device 50 (i.e. D + X/2 > L). Preferably, when the stick 10 is inserted into the cavity 52 of the device 50, at least part of the flexible portion 50 of the stick 10 is arranged to be located within an opening 54 of the cavity 52 (i.e. D - X/2 < L < D + X/2). In other words, the flexible portion 20 is partially inside the cavity 52, and partially outside the cavity 52, as shown in Figure 2C. In this way, the flexible portion 20 of the stick 10 may provide cushioning against the opening 54 of the cavity 52, thereby further reducing the risk of breakage of the stick 10. Alternatively, all of the flexible portion 20 of the stick 10 may be arranged to be located outside of the cavity 52 when the stick 10 is inserted into the device 50 (i.e. D- X/2 > L).
[0033] As shown in Figure 2D, when an external force F is applied to the stick 10 during use of the device 50, the first end 10a of the stick 10 moves relative to the second end 10b of the stick 10 without the stick 10 breaking. In particular, Figure 2D depicts bending of the flexible portion 20, but a compressive, tensile, or torsional motion may also be accommodated by the flexible portion 20, depending on the type of external force that is applied.
[0034] A further advantage of the stick 10 will now be described with reference to Figures 3A and 3B. Figure 3A depicts a user operating the typical heat-not-burn stick 10' inserted into the heat-not-burn device 50. In order to prevent breakage of the stick 10' as described above, the user has to lift the device 50 and tilt it towards their mouth in order to engage with the first end 10a' of the stick 10'. Conversely, when using the embodiment of the stick 10 per the invention, the user may hold the device 50 at a more comfortable level and does not need to tilt the device 50 to prevent breakage of the stick 10. This means that the user may hold the device 50 in a position that is most comfortable for them, without the risk of breaking the stick 10.
[0035] As will now be described in more detail, the flexible portion 20 of the stick 10 may be implemented in a number of ways. For example, the flexible portion 20 may comprise a flexible material, such as a flexible paper or silicon (e.g. Figures 7 and 8). Alternatively, the flexible portion 20 may be provided by structures such as folds, indents, ribs, and or corrugations (e.g. Figures 5 and 6). The flexible portion 20 may be provided using a flexible tube 22 integrated into the tubular body 12, may be provided by an outer layer disposed over the tubular body 12, and/or may be provided any other suitable form, such as with flexible coatings or layers. It will be appreciated that any of the implementations described above and herein may be combined in order to provide additional flexibility. Furthermore, the stick 10 may comprise more than one flexible portion 20 located at a different position along the length of the stick 10; each of these flexible portions 20 may be implemented in the same way as each other, or in different ways.
[0036] Figure 4A depicts a longitudinal cross-section through an embodiment of a stick 10-1 with a flexible portion 20. The stick 10-1 comprises a filter 13 at the first end 10a of the stick 10-1, and the filter 13 is wrapped with a filter wrapper 14. The stick 10-1 also comprises a plug 15 at the second end 10b of the stick 10-1, and the plug 15 is wrapped with a plug wrapper 16. The flexible portion 20 of the stick 10-1 is provided by a flexible tube 22. In this example, the flexible tube 22 is a flexible paper tube 22 that extends between the filter 13 and the plug 15, though it will be appreciated that there are other ways to provide flexibility of the flexible tube 22. For example, the flexible tube 22 may instead be a soft silicon tube, may comprise flexible paper, may comprise a fold structure (see Figure 5), and/or may comprise circumferential ribs (see Figure 6), or may comprise any other suitable means for providing flexibility.
[0037] The flexible tube 22 may be referred to as a first layer 22, and a second layer of material 18 is disposed, at least partially, over the first layer 22. The flexible tube 22 may form an intermediate section of the stick 10-1 between the first end 10a and second end 10b, to which it is secured by wrappers. In particular, a tipping paper 18a may be wrapped around the filter 13, filter wrapper 14 and at least a portion of the flexible tube 22 at the first end 10a. Similarly, a substrate paper 18b may be wrapped around the plug of aerosol substrate 15, plug wrapper 16 and at least a portion of the flexible tube 22. In this way, the tubular body 12 of the stick 10-1 is provided by the first layer 22 (the flexible tube 22), and the second layer 18 (the portions of tipping paper 18a, 18b). Figure 4B depicts a view of the stick 10-1 in Figure 4A, with elements such as the filter wrapper 14, plug wrapper 16, and portions tipping paper 18a and substrate paper 18b partially unwrapped.
[0038] Figure 4C depicts a cross-section through another embodiment of a stick 10-2 with a flexible portion 20. The stick 10-2 shares a number of features with the stick 10-1 shown Figures 4A and 4B and thus those common features will not be described in further detail. However, the stick 10-2 in Figure 4C differs in that a single outer wrapper 18 extends from the first end 10a of the stick 10-2 to the second end 10b of the stick 10-2, thereby fully covering the first layer 18 of the tubular body 12. The outer wrapper 18 is provided by a single piece of paper 18 that is wrapped so as to fully cover the flexible tube 22 as well as the filter 13, filter wrapper 14, plug 15, and plug wrapper 16. In this way, the stick 10-2 may be simply and quickly assembled by wrapping the outer wrapper 18 around the other components of the stick 10-2. This means that the stick 10-2 does not need to be flipped to wrap a second piece of outer wrapper 18, as may be required in the stick 10-1 in Figure 4A. Additionally, using a single outer wrapper 18 produces a stick 10-2 with a continuous outer surface. Having a continuous outer surface may provide protection to internal components of the stick 10-2 and may provide some rigidity to the stick 10-2 that may be advantageous during transport of storage of the stick 10-2.
[0039] Preferably, the outer wrapper 18 comprises perforations in a portion that covers the first layer 22. When an external force is applied during use of the stick 10-2, the perforations allow the outer wrapper 18 to bend and may allow it to at least partially tear without other parts of the stick 10-2 breaking, such as the first layer 22. The stick may also comprise airflow openings 19 that provide a path through both the first layer 22 and the outer wrapper 18.
[0040] Figures 5A to 5C depict another embodiment of a stick 10-3 with a flexible portion 20. In particular, the tubular body 12 comprises a flexible tube 22 arranged in a fold structure 26. In this way, the fold structure 26 may move between a folded position and an unfolded position in order to accommodate external forces that may be applied to the stick 10-3 during use. In particular, the fold structure 26 may uniformly move to the unfolded position when a stretching (or tensile) force is applied to the tubular body 12 (see Figure 5A). Conversely, the fold structure 26 may uniformly move to the folded position when a compressive force is applied to the tubular body 12 (see Figure 5B). Alternatively or additionally, one side of the fold structure 26 may move to the folded position while another (e.g. opposite) side of the fold structure 26 moves to the unfolded position, when a bending force is applied to the tubular body 12 (see Figure 5C).
[0041] Additionally, a plurality of openings (not shown) may be provided on the fold structure 26 of the flexible tube 22, where the openings are configured to allow air to flow into the stick 10-3. The openings may be covered in the folded position (e.g. Figure 5B) and may not be covered in an unfolded position (e.g. Figure 5A). In this way, the user may pull on the stick 10-3 (i.e. apply a tensile force) to at least partially move the fold structure 26 into the unfolded position, thereby uncovering or exposing at least one of the openings. This allows the user to control how much air may flow into the stick 10-3 during use, thereby controlling the concentration and/or intensity of the vaporized material.
[0042] Figures 6A and 6B show another example of a flexible tube 22 that may be used to provide a flexible portion 20 of a tubular body 12 of a stick 10. In this embodiment, the flexible tube 22 comprises a plurality of ribs 28 (only some labelled) that extend around a circumference of the flexible tube 22. The ribs 28 may be provided as indentations or corrugations on either an internal or external surface of the flexible tube 22, and may be preconfigured or predisposed to deform when a bending force is applied to the stick 10. The flexible tube 22 may comprise paper, or may comprise a flexible or stretchable material such as silicon or the flexible paper described above. As shown in Figure 6B, a bending force has been applied to the flexible tube 22, thereby causing the circumferential ribs 28 to collapse on at least one side of the flexible tube 22, without the flexible tube 22 as a whole breaking or tearing. In this way, when the flexible tube 22 is incorporated into the tubular body 12 of a stick 10, the first end 10a of the stick 10 may move relative to the second end 10b of the stick 10. The flexible tube 22 is advantageous since it may be easily manufactured such as by a flexible straw bending machine (e.g. Jx021 machine). This flexible tube 22 may be used to provide the flexible portion 20 of any suitable stick 10, such as the stick 10-1 depicted in Figures 4A to 4C. Alternatively, the ribs 28 may be formed directly onto a stick 10 without needing to assemble the flexible tube 22 with other components of the stick 10. For example, a flexible straw bending machine may directly form ribs 28 on the tubular body 12 of an existing stick 10, such as the typical stick 10' already described above.
[0043] Figure 7 depicts another embodiment of a stick 10-4 having a flexible portion 20. The stick 10-4 shares a number of features with the sticks 10 already described, that will not be discussed in further detail. In this embodiment, the stick 10-4 comprises a first (paper) layer 30 wrapped at least around aerosol substrate plug 15, and plug wrapper 16 already described previously. Additionally, a second layer 32 (or "outer layer") such as tipping paper 32 is disposed at least partially over the first paper layer 30 and the remaining internal components of the stick 10-4 such as filter plug 13 and filter wrapper 14, where the second layer 32 is configured to provide the flexible portion 20 of the tubular body 12 that extends till the first end 10a of the stick. For example, the second layer 32 may be a silicon film wrapped at least partially around the first layer 30 to connect first end 10a and second end 10b of the stick 10-4. Such silicon film as the second layer 32 exhibits innate elasticity and flexibility compared to a standard tipping paper, thus allowing some flexibility of the first end 10a in case of application of an external force. As shown in Figure 7, the second layer 32 extends from the first end 10a of the stick 10-4. In this way, the length of the flexible portion 20 of the stick 10-4 is increased, thereby allowing the stick 10-4 to accommodate a wider range of positions and/or external forces.
[0044] It will be understood that the embodiments described above may be combined in any suitable way. For example, the layer 32 described in relation to Figure 7 may also be provided on any of the other heat-not-burn sticks 10. It will also be appreciated that a stick 10 may comprise more than one flexible portion 20, where each of the flexible portions 20 may be located at different distances along the length of the stick. Each of the flexible portions 20 may be implemented in the same way as each other, or may be implemented in different ways.
[0045] While the foregoing is directed to exemplary embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood that the present invention is described herein purely by way of example, and modifications of detail can be made within the scope of the invention. Furthermore, one skilled in the art will understand that the present invention may not be limited by the embodiments disclosed herein, or to any details shown in the accompanying figures that are not described in detail herein or defined in the claims.
1. An aerosol-generating consumable article, comprising:
a tubular body comprising a flexible portion, thereby allowing a first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article to move relative to a second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article,
wherein the flexible portion is positioned a predetermined distance from the second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article, where the predetermined distance corresponds to a length of a cavity of an aerosol generating device configured for accommodating the aerosol-generating consumable article and generating an aerosol by heating thereof.
2. The aerosol-generating consumable article of claim 1, wherein the flexible portion
of the tubular body comprises a flexible material.
3. The aerosol-generating consumable article of claim 2, wherein the flexible material
comprises silicon.
4. The aerosol-generating consumable article of any preceding claim, wherein the flexible
portion of the tubular body comprises a plurality of ribs extending around a circumference
of the tubular body.
5. The aerosol-generating consumable article of any preceding claim, wherein the flexible
portion of the tubular body comprises material arranged in a fold structure.
6. The aerosol-generating consumable article of claim 5, wherein the flexible portion
of the tubular body comprises a plurality of openings configured to allow air to flow
into the aerosol-generating consumable article, wherein the plurality of openings
are covered in a folded position and the plurality of openings are not covered in
an unfolded position.
7. The aerosol-generating consumable article of any preceding claim, wherein the tubular
body comprises:
a first layer configured to provide the flexible portion of the tubular body,
and a second layer disposed, at least partially, over the first layer.
8. The aerosol-generating consumable article of claim 7, wherein the second layer of
the tubular body extends from the first end of the aerosol-generating consumable article
to the second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article, thereby fully covering
the first layer of the tubular body.
9. The aerosol-generating consumable article of claim 7 or 8, wherein the second layer
of the tubular body comprises perforations in a portion that covers the flexible portion
of the first layer.
10. The aerosol-generating consumable article of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the tubular
body comprises:
a first layer;
a second layer configured to provide the flexible portion of the tubular body, wherein the second layer is disposed, at least partially over the first layer.
11. The aerosol-generating consumable article of claim 10, wherein the second layer extends
from the first or second end of the aerosol-generating consumable article.
12. A system comprising:
an aerosol-generating device comprising a cavity having a length; and
the aerosol-generating consumable article of any preceding claim.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein when the aerosol-generating consumable article is
inserted into the cavity of the aerosol-generating device during use, at least part
of the flexible portion of the aerosol-generating consumable article is arranged to
be located within an opening of the cavity.