U.S. patent application number 16/642578 was filed with the patent office on 2020-11-05 for power-over-internet adapter.
The applicant listed for this patent is BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO (INVESTMENTS) LIMITED. Invention is credited to Tobias HERR, Rene HUMMEN, Markus JUNG, Stephan KERHER, Oliver KLEINEBERG, Thomas NIESSEN, Axel SCHNEIDER, Thomas SCHOEPF, Julian VOSSELER.
Application Number | 20200350736 16/642578 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005002797 |
Filed Date | 2020-11-05 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200350736 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
JUNG; Markus ; et
al. |
November 5, 2020 |
POWER-OVER-INTERNET ADAPTER
Abstract
A cartridge for an aerosol provision device comprises a chamber
for containing a liquid from which a flow of aerosol for inhalation
by a user is generated. The cartridge comprises a first connector
arrangement for releasably connecting the cartridge to a body
portion of the device, and a second connector arrangement for
releasably connecting to a container for a material. In use,
aerosol flows through the material in the container before being
inhaled by the user. The first connector arrangement is
configurable in a locked configuration and in an un-locked
configuration, and the first connector arrangement must be
configured in the un-locked configuration for the cartridge to be
removeable from the body portion. The first connector arrangement
is configurable from the locked configuration to the un-locked
configuration while the cartridge remains stationary with respect
to the body portion.
Inventors: |
JUNG; Markus;
(Schalksmuehle, DE) ; VOSSELER; Julian;
(Pfullingen, DE) ; SCHOEPF; Thomas; (Stuttgart,
DE) ; HERR; Tobias; (Frickenhausen, DE) ;
HUMMEN; Rene; (Nuertingen, DE) ; KERHER; Stephan;
(Dusslingen, DE) ; KLEINEBERG; Oliver; (Koengen,
DE) ; NIESSEN; Thomas; (Seeheim-Jugenheim, DE)
; SCHNEIDER; Axel; (Baiersdorf, DE) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO (INVESTMENTS) LIMITED |
London |
|
GB |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005002797 |
Appl. No.: |
16/642578 |
Filed: |
October 23, 2018 |
PCT Filed: |
October 23, 2018 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/EP2018/079036 |
371 Date: |
February 27, 2020 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01R 31/065 20130101;
H04L 12/10 20130101; H01R 2201/04 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H01R 31/06 20060101
H01R031/06; H04L 12/10 20060101 H04L012/10 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Oct 24, 2017 |
GB |
1717496.2 |
Claims
1. A cartridge for an aerosol provision device for generating a
flow of aerosol for inhalation by a user, the cartridge comprising:
a chamber for containing a liquid from which, in use, the aerosol
provision device generates the flow of aerosol; a first connector
arrangement for releasably connecting the cartridge to a body
portion of the aerosol provision device; a second connector
arrangement for releasably connecting the cartridge to a container
for a material so that, in use, the flow of aerosol generated by
the aerosol provision device flows through the material in the
container before being inhaled by the user; wherein the first
connector arrangement is configurable in a locked configuration and
in an un-locked configuration and wherein the first connector
arrangement must be configured in the un-locked configuration in
order for the cartridge to be removeable from the body portion of
the aerosol provision device, and wherein the first connector
arrangement is configured such that the first connector arrangement
can be configured from the locked configuration to the unlocked
configuration while the cartridge remains stationary with respect
to the body portion.
2. A cartridge according to claim 1 wherein when the cartridge is
connected to the body portion, configuring the first connector
arrangement in the unlocked configuration enables the cartridge to
be pulled free of the body portion.
3. A cartridge according to claim 2 wherein the first connector
arrangement comprises a first element for interacting with a
complementary second element on the body portion when the first
connector arrangement is in the locked configuration.
4. A cartridge according to claim 3 wherein the first connector
arrangement may be configured in the unlocked configuration by
moving the first element with respect to the second element.
5. A cartridge according to claim 3 wherein the first connector
arrangement further comprises a third element for interacting with
a complementary fourth element on the body portion when the first
connector arrangement is in the locked configuration.
6. A cartridge according to claim 5 wherein the first connector
arrangement may be configured in the unlocked configuration by:
moving the first element with respect to the second element; and
moving the third element with respect to the fourth element.
7. A cartridge according to claim 5 wherein the first element and
the third element are situated on opposite sides of a circumference
of a distal end of the cartridge.
8. A cartridge according to any of claims 1 to 7 wherein the first
connector arrangement is located at a distal end of the cartridge
and the second connector arrangement is located at a proximal end
of the cartridge and the cartridge is tapered from the distal end
to the proximal end such that the cross-sectional area of the
proximal end is less than the cross-sectional area of the distal
end.
9. A cartridge according to any of claims 1 to 8 wherein the second
connector arrangement allows the container to be attached
to/detached from the cartridge by pushing/pulling the container and
the cartridge together/apart.
10. A cartridge according to any of claims 1 to 9 wherein the
second connector arrangement comprises a recess in the cartridge
into which the container for a material is inserted.
11. A cartridge according to claim 10 wherein the container
comprises at least one first surface formation which interfaces
with an interior surface of the recess of the cartridge.
12. A cartridge according to claim 10 or claim 11 wherein the
recess comprises an interior surface comprising at least one second
surface formation which interfaces with the container.
13. A cartridge according to claim 11 or claim 12 wherein the
container comprises at least two first surface formations which
interact with an interior surface of the recess of the
cartridge.
14. A cartridge according to claim 13 wherein the container
comprises at least three first surface formations which interact
with an interior surface of the recess of the cartridge.
15. A cartridge according to any of claims 11 to 14 wherein at
least one of the at least one first surface formations is a first
ridge and at least one of the at least one second surface
formations is a corresponding first groove and the first ridge
interacts with the corresponding first groove to hold the container
in the recess and provide a substantially airtight seal.
16. A cartridge according to any of claims 11 to 15 wherein at
least one of the at least one second surface formations is a second
ridge and at least one of the at least one first surface formations
is a corresponding second groove and the second ridge interacts
with the corresponding second groove to hold the container in the
recess and provide a substantially airtight seal.
17. A cartridge according to any of claims 1 to 16 wherein the
container is part of a mouthpiece assembly, and wherein the
mouthpiece assembly comprises: a first housing for being received,
in use, in a mouth of a user; a second housing for containing a
material through which, in use, an aerosol generated by the aerosol
provision device flows before passing out of the mouthpiece
assembly for inhalation by the user; and wherein the first housing
and the second housing are connected together to form the
mouthpiece assembly.
18. An aerosol provision device comprising a cartridge according to
any of claims 1 to 17, a device body, and a container for a
material.
19. An aerosol provision device according to claim 18 wherein the
container for a material is part of a mouthpiece assembly, and
wherein the mouthpiece assembly comprises: a first housing for
being received, in use, in a mouth of a user; a second housing for
containing a material through which, in use, an aerosol generated
by the aerosol provision device flows before passing out of the
mouthpiece assembly for inhalation by the user; and wherein the
first housing and the second housing are connected together to form
the mouthpiece assembly and the mouthpiece assembly is configured
to be releasably connectable to the cartridge via the second
connector arrangement.
20. A method of using an aerosol provision device according to
claim 18 or claim 19 comprising the steps of: attaching the
cartridge to the device body via the first connector arrangement;
configuring the first connector arrangement in a locked
configuration; and attaching the container for a material to the
cartridge via the second connector arrangement.
21. A method according to claim 20 wherein the step of attaching
the cartridge to the device body comprises pushing the cartridge
and the device body together until the first connector arrangement
enters the locked configuration.
22. A method according to claim 20 or claim 21 wherein the step of
attaching the container to the cartridge comprises push-fitting the
container to the cartridge.
23. A method according to any of claims 20 to 22 further comprising
the step of detaching the container from the cartridge while the
cartridge remains attached to the device body in the locked
configuration.
24. A method according to any of claims 20 to 23 further comprising
the steps of: configuring the first connector arrangement in the
unlocked configuration; and detaching the cartridge from the device
body.
Description
[0001] The invention concerns an adapter to which a cable is
connected on the input side and to which at least one further cable
is connected on the output side, according to the features of the
preamble of patent claim 1.
[0002] It is common knowledge to network devices among one another
and to use cables to interchange data between the devices and to
supply power via the cable.
[0003] Two different transmission standards are known for this.
[0004] On the one hand, it is known to use a hybrid cable (hybrid
line) to transmit data, in particular according to an Ethernet
standard, and at the same time to supply the devices with power
among one another, the power supply being adapted to the energy
requirements of the devices. For example, a standard is known in
this regard for hybrid cables where a voltage of 24 V and a maximum
current of 6 A ave used as the power supply.
[0005] On the other hand, it is common knowledge to use an Ethernet
cable to also supply the devices with power and interchange data
between the devices (so-called Power-over-Ethernet PoE).
[0006] Currently existing Ethernet devices (such as IP cameras) can
sometimes be powered via Power-over-Ethernet (PoE). This simplifies
the installation and operation of such devices, as no separate
cable is required for the supplying power.
[0007] However, the higher amperage of the devices poses new
challenges for data cabling. With increased current flow, more heat
is generated due to the resistance. Warmer cables attenuate data
transmission more. This results in insufficient signal strength
reaching the connected device and makes data transmission
impossible. This effect must therefore be taken into account when
planning new PoE-compatible LAN cabling. The maximum transmission
length must therefore be adapted to the temperature conditions and
shortened in a disadvantageous way.
[0008] It is also possible to supply devices (such as input/output
modules for automation) with data and power via hybrid cables in
combination with a corresponding plug connection (for example M12-Y
coded). These methods usually provide higher power than is the case
with PoE.
[0009] The object of the invention is to make the power provided by
the hybrid line available to standard PoE systems.
[0010] This object is attained by the features of patent claim
1.
[0011] In accordance with the invention, the input-side cable is a
hybrid cable and the at least one output-side cable is an Ethernet
cable, and the adapter has means for converting the transmission
standard of the hybrid cable to the transmission standard of the at
least one Ethernet cable.
[0012] According to the invention, an interposed adapter makes it
possible not only to continue to be able to interchange data by
using those devices that interchange data with each other and are
also supplied with power according to a given transmission
standard, but also to use a larger number of devices that could not
be used in this number according to the further transmission
standard (such as Power-over-Ethernet), as the energy requirement
could not be covered according to this further transmission
standard.
[0013] The adapter (also known as a converter) can be arranged in a
linear topology typical for automation and thus supports the
operation of a larger number of PoE terminal devices from one power
supply than would be possible with a pure use of PoE.
[0014] The adapter makes it possible to transmit (loop through) the
data during the interchange between two devices in the same
transmission standard or to enable a change from a first to another
transmission standard. For this purpose, the adapter according to
the invention has appropriate means suitable and intended to make
the input-side data received by the adapter available to the
connected device on the output side without modification.
Alternatively or in addition to this, these means are suitable and
intended to convert the input-side data of a given transmission
standard to a further given transmission standard and to provide
them on the output side so that the connected device, which
operates according to this further given transmission standard,
receives these data and can process them further.
[0015] In one development of the invention, the hybrid cable is
connected to the adapter on the input side via a plug connection.
For this purpose, the hybrid cable has a plug connector at the end
that can be plugged into a corresponding mating connector of the
adapter. This allows for quick and easy connection of the adapter
to the hybrid cable.
[0016] In addition, defective hybrid cables or a defective adapter
can be easily replaced in the event of a fault.
[0017] In one development of the invention, the Internet cable is
connected to the adapter on the output side via a plug connection.
This has the same benefits as described above.
[0018] In one development of the invention, a further hybrid cable
is connected to the adapter on the output side. This output-side
hybrid cable can also be connected to the adapter via a plug
connection.
[0019] An adapter according to the invention is shown in two
different variants in FIGS. 1 and 2 and described in more detail
below.
[0020] FIG. 1 shows, as far as is shown in detail, in a manner
known per se, a hybrid cable 1 that has electrical conductors that
are used to transmit power for a power supply and also data
according to a first transmission standard. There is also an
Ethernet cable 2 that is also used for power supply and data
transmission according to a second transmission standard. The first
transmission standard is completely or partially different from the
second transmission standard. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a
power supply with dual 24 V and 6 A feeds is formed by the hybrid
cable 1 as the first transmission standard. The data transmission
is based on an Ethernet standard. The Ethernet cable 2 transmits
data and power according to the IEEE standard 802.3af-2003, for
example. In this case, the maximum supply voltage is 48 V, the
maximum current consumption of the terminal devices being able to
be 350 mA (400 mA are permitted for a short time when switching
on). The 802.3af standard divides the devices involved into power
sourcing equipment (PSE) and powered devices (PD). The maximum
power output is 15.4 watts. The standard assumes that only 12.95
watts of usable power may be consumed after line losses in order
not to exceed the maximum power output.
[0021] In order to be able to operate multiple devices according to
the IEEE standard 802.3af-2003, for example, the invention provides
for an adapter 3 to which the necessary amount of power is supplied
via the hybrid cable 1 for this purpose, this power then being fed
to the devices connected to the adapter 3 via the Internet cable.
For this purpose, the adapter 3 has appropriate internal means for
converting at least the power supply from the supplied first
transmission standard to a further transmission standard that
corresponds to the transmission standard used by the devices
connected to the adapter 3 via the Ethernet cable 2. The first
transmission standard for the data supplied to the adapter 3 via
the hybrid cable 1 can be the same as that also made available to
the connected devices via the Internet cable 2. In this case, it is
sufficient for the data lines of the hybrid cable 1 to be looped
through to the Ethernet cable 2 in the adapter 3 without
conversion. As an alternative, it is possible for means for
converting the data transmission standard at the input of adapter 3
to a data transmission standard at the output of adapter 3 to be
provided in the adapter 3.
[0022] The adapter 3 can retain the benefit of PoE technology of
eliminating the need for a power supply cable, allowing
Ethernet-connected devices to be installed even in hard-to-reach
locations or in areas where many cables would be a nuisance. There
is no need to supply power to the device separately using a power
cord and a power supply unit or to achieve this with a battery.
Instead, the device draws its energy from the data network. For
this purpose, power additionally needs to be fed into the data line
at a central point in the network distributor besides the data
signals.
[0023] While on the one hand it is conceivable that the two cables
1, 2 are permanently connected to the adapter 3 (i.e. that they are
routed into and out of the adapter and are thus nondetachably
connected to the adapter 3), the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 has
provision for a plug connection 5 at the input of the adapter 3 to
connect the hybrid cable 1 and for a plug connection 6 at the
output of the adapter 3 to connect the Internet cable 2.
[0024] The adapter 3 (converter) thus forms the end point of hybrid
cabling. From the supply of power and data (especially Ethernet)
provided by the hybrid cable 1, the adapter 3 produces a valid PoE
that can be processed further by the connected end devices. The
benefits here are the introduction of high power with few losses
close to the connected PoE load and the use of a hybrid
infrastructure. It is important that the adapter 3 have a power
supply, especially a 24V-compatible PoE injector.
[0025] The embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is based on the same
principle as shown in FIG. 1. However, this adapter 3 additionally
has a further output to which another hybrid cable 4 can be
connected. In this case too, the additional hybrid cable 4 can be
permanently connected to the adapter 3 or detachably connected to
the adapter 3 via a plug connection 7.
[0026] The adapter 3 designed as a T-adapter can thus be integrated
into a hybrid line structure in this configuration. For this
purpose, it has a hybrid plug connection 5 (especially a plug) as
input and a hybrid plug connection 7 (especially a socket) as
output or routing.
[0027] The benefits here, in addition to those of the embodiment
shown in FIG. 1, are integration into an existing hybrid line
structure, also in conjunction with I/O field devices, and the
connection of multiple PoE devices in series. In this case, the
adapter 3 must additionally have a 3-port (MAC) switch. In order to
ensure trouble-free integration into the field level, this switch
should have IRT capability.
[0028] Not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, but present when the whole
system is fully functional, are devices connected to the ends of
the cables 1, 2 (and possibly 4) at opposite ends from the plug
connections 5, 6 (and possibly 7).
[0029] The power for the devices needing to be powered (PD) can be
supplied by so-called endspan devices (for example switches) or
midspan devices (units between switch and terminal device).
LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS
TABLE-US-00001 [0030] 1 Hybrid cable 2 Ethernet cable 3 Adapter 4
Hybrid cable 5 Plug connection 6 Plug connection 7 Plug
connection
* * * * *