REFILLING DEVICE

Abstract

A refilling device for refilling a storage area of an article with aerosol-generating material, the article suitable for use in an aerosol provision system for generating aerosol from aerosol-generating material in the storage area of the article. The refilling device includes: a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material; an outlet fluidly coupled to the storage area and configured to permit aerosol-generating material to leave the refilling device via the outlet; a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article, wherein the coupling mechanism is arranged such that the outlet is aligned or engaged with a respective opening of the article, the opening fluidly coupled to a storage area of the article; and a manually operated transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol-generating material from the storage area of the refilling device to the storage area of the article.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This present application is a National Phase entry of PCT Application No. PCT/GB2024/050623, filed Mar. 8, 2024, which claims priority from Great Britain Application No. 2303347.5, filed Mar. 8, 2023, each of which are fully incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to refilling devices for refilling a reservoir of an article for use with an aerosol provision system. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to manually refilling the reservoir of an article.

BACKGROUND

Electronic aerosol provision systems, which are often configured as so-called electronic cigarettes, can have a unitary format with all elements of the system in a common housing, or a multi-component format in which elements are distributed between two or more housings which can be coupled together to form the system. A common example of the latter format is a two-component system comprising a device and an article. The device typically contains an electrical power source for the system, such as a battery, and control electronics for operating elements in order to generate aerosol. The article, also referred to by terms including cartridge, cartomiser, consumable and clearomiser, typically contains a storage volume or area for holding a supply of aerosol-generating material from which the aerosol is generated, and in some instances an aerosol generator such as a heater operable to vaporise the aerosol-generating material. A similar three-component system may include a separate mouthpiece that attaches to the article. In many designs, the article is designed to be disposable, in that it is intended to be detached from the device and thrown away when the aerosol-generating material has been consumed. The user obtains a new article which has been prefilled with aerosol-generating material by a manufacturer and attaches it to the device for use. The device, in contrast, is intended to be used with multiple consecutive articles, with a capability to recharge the battery to allow prolonged operation.

While disposable articles, which may be called consumables, are convenient for the user, they may be considered wasteful of natural resources and hence detrimental to the environment. An alternative design of article is therefore known, which is configured to be refilled with aerosol-generating material by the user. This reduces waste, and can reduce the cost of electronic cigarette usage for the user. The aerosol-generating material may be provided in a bottle, for example, from which the user squeezes or drips a quantity of material into the article via a refilling orifice on the article.

However, the act of refilling can be awkward and inconvenient, since the items are small and the volume of material involved is typically low. Alignment of the juncture between bottle and article can be difficult, with inaccuracies leading to spillage of the material. This is not only wasteful, but may also be dangerous. Aerosol-generating material frequently contains liquid nicotine, which can be poisonous if it makes contact with the skin.

Mechanisms and approaches for controlling, simplifying, and improving safety or reducing leakages/spillages during the transfer of the material from the bottle or other reservoir to the cartridge are of interest.

SUMMARY

According to a first aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a refilling device for refilling a storage area of an article with aerosol-generating material, the article suitable for use in an aerosol provision system for generating aerosol from aerosol-generating material in the storage area of the article. The refilling device includes: a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material; an outlet fluidly coupled to the storage area and configured to permit aerosol-generating material to leave the refilling device via the outlet; a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article, wherein the coupling mechanism is arranged such that the outlet is aligned or engaged with a respective opening of the article, the opening fluidly coupled to a storage area of the article; and a manually operated transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol-generating material from the storage area of the refilling device to the storage area of the article. The manually operated transfer mechanism is configured to be manually operated by a user of the refilling device to cause transfer of the aerosol-generating material.

According to a second aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a refillable article for use with the refilling device of the first aspect, wherein the refillable article includes: a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material; an opening fluidly coupled to the storage area; and a coupling mechanism, wherein the coupling mechanism is configured to engage with the coupling mechanism of the refilling device.

According to a third aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a desktop refilling unit for refilling an article with aerosol-generating material for use with an aerosol provision device to generate aerosol for inhalation by a user. The refilling unit includes: an article port for receiving an article; and an aerosol-generating material transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol generating material from a refill reservoir to the article. The article port is additionally configured to receive the refilling device of the first aspect in place of the article, and the aerosol-generating material transfer mechanism is configured to transfer aerosol-generating material to the storage area of the refilling device.

According to a fourth aspect of certain embodiments there is provided a method for manually refilling a storage area of a refillable article from a refilling device with aerosol-generating material, the article suitable for use in an aerosol provision system for generating aerosol from aerosol-generating material in the storage area of the article, the refilling device comprising, a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material, an outlet fluidly coupled to the storage area and configured to permit aerosol-generating material to leave the refilling device via the outlet, a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article, and a manually operated transfer mechanism. The method includes coupling, using the coupling mechanism, the article to the refilling device, such that the outlet of the refilling device is aligned or engaged with a respective opening of the article; and manually actuating the manually operated transfer mechanism to cause transfer of the aerosol-generating material to the article via the opening.

According to a fifth aspect of certain embodiments there is provided refilling means for refilling storage means of an article with aerosol-generating material, the article suitable for use in an aerosol provision means for generating aerosol from aerosol-generating material in the storage means of the article, the refilling means comprising: a storage means for storing aerosol-generating material; outlet means fluidly coupled to the storage means and configured to permit aerosol-generating material to leave the refilling means via the outlet means; coupling means for coupling to the article, wherein the coupling means is arranged such that the outlet means is aligned or engaged with a respective opening of the article, the opening fluidly coupled to a storage means of the article; and a manually operated transfer means for transferring aerosol-generating material from the storage means of the refilling means to the storage means of the article. The manually operated transfer means is configured to be manually operated by a user of the refilling means to cause transfer of the aerosol-generating material.

These and further aspects of the certain embodiments are set out in the appended independent and dependent claims. It will be appreciated that features of the dependent claims may be combined with each other and features of the independent claims in combinations other than those explicitly set out in the claims. Furthermore, the approach described herein is not restricted to specific embodiments such as set out below, but includes and contemplates any appropriate combinations of features presented herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various embodiments of the invention will now be described in detail by way of example only with reference to the following drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a simplified schematic cross-section through an example electronic aerosol provision system to which embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic representation of the article of the aerosol provision system of FIG. 1 in more detail;

FIG. 3a shows a refilling device comprising a manually operated transfer mechanism in accordance with a first example of the present disclosure, whereby the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a concertinaed outer wall of the refilling device;

FIG. 3b shows a modification to the refilling device of FIG. 3a where the concertinaed wall is provided with walls of varying thicknesses at the joins between sections of the concertinaed wall;

FIG. 4 shows a refilling device comprising a manually operated transfer mechanism in accordance with a second example of the present disclosure, whereby the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a moveable plunger within the refilling device;

FIG. 5 shows a refilling device comprising a manually operated transfer mechanism in accordance with a third example of the present disclosure, whereby the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a pump of the refilling device;

FIG. 6 schematically shows an example of a coupling mechanism of the refilling device and a corresponding coupling mechanism of the article in accordance with the present disclosure, whereby the article is provided with a threaded protrusion and the refilling device is provided with a threaded recessed portion, and an example of a valve provided in the outlet of the refilling device according to a first example;

FIG. 7 schematically shows an example of a valve, specifically an umbrella valve, that may be employed in the outlet of a refilling device in accordance with a second example of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 schematically shows an example of a valve that may be employed in the outlet of a refilling device in accordance with a third example of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 schematically shows a first example of a coupling mechanism comprising a keying feature, where the keying feature is a pair of lugs provided on a protrusion of the refilling device and a corresponding pair of slots provided on the walls of a recessed portion of the reservoir;

FIG. 10 schematically shows a second example of a coupling mechanism comprising a keying feature, where the keying feature is a plurality of coded magnets, each magnet in the coded magnet have a chosen polarity;

FIG. 11 schematically illustrates a modification to the refilling device of FIG. 3a where the refilling device is provided with a retractable elongate element for disposing aerosol-generating material to the article via the elongate element;

FIGS. 12a and 12b schematically illustrate two examples of refilling devices having a plurality of storage areas and a plurality of manually operable transfer mechanisms, whereby the refilling device of FIG. 12a has a plurality of outlets each coupled to one of the plurality of storage areas and the refilling device of FIG. 12b has a single outlet coupled to each of the plurality of storage areas;

FIG. 13 schematically illustrates an example of an audible feedback mechanism for providing the user with audible feedback for indicating the amount of aerosol-generating material transferred during use of the refilling device;

FIG. 14 schematically illustrates an example of a refilling device comprising a refill inlet allowing the storage area of the refilling device to be refilled when the storage area is depleted;

FIG. 15 shows a simplified schematic representation of a desktop refilling unit configured to refill an article or a refilling device with aerosol-generating material using an automated transfer mechanism; and

FIG. 16 shows an example method for refilling an article using a manually operated refilling device according to aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects and features of certain examples and embodiments are discussed/described herein. Some aspects and features of certain examples and embodiments may be implemented conventionally and these are not discussed/described in detail in the interests of brevity. It will thus be appreciated that aspects and features of apparatus and methods discussed herein which are not described in detail may be implemented in accordance with any conventional techniques for implementing such aspects and features.

As used herein, the terms “system” and “delivery system” are intended to encompass systems that deliver a substance to a user, and include non-combustible aerosol provision systems that release compounds from an aerosol-generating material without combusting the aerosol-generating material, such as electronic cigarettes, tobacco heating products, and hybrid systems to generate aerosol using a combination of aerosol-generating materials, and articles comprising aerosol-generating material and configured to be used within one of these non-combustible aerosol provision systems.

According to the present disclosure, a “non-combustible” aerosol provision system is one where a constituent aerosol-generating material of the aerosol provision system (or component thereof) is not combusted or burned in order to facilitate delivery of at least one substance of the aerosol-generating material to a user. In some embodiments, the delivery system is a non-combustible aerosol provision system, such as a powered non-combustible aerosol provision system. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is an electronic cigarette, also known as a vaping device or electronic nicotine delivery (END) system, although it is noted that the presence of nicotine in the aerosol-generating material is not a requirement. The systems are intended to generate an inhalable aerosol by vaporisation of a substrate (aerosol-generating material) in the form of a liquid or gel which may or may not contain nicotine. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is an aerosol-generating material heating system, also known as a heat-not-burn system. An example of such a system is a tobacco heating system. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is a hybrid system to generate aerosol using a combination of aerosol-generating materials, one or a plurality of which may be heated. Each of the aerosol-generating materials may be, for example, in the form of a solid, liquid or gel and may or may not contain nicotine. In some embodiments, the hybrid system comprises a liquid or gel aerosol generating material and a solid aerosol generating material. The solid aerosol generating material may comprise, for example, tobacco or a non-tobacco product.

Typically, the non-combustible aerosol provision system may comprise a non-combustible aerosol provision device and an article (consumable) for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device. In some embodiments, the disclosure relates to consumables comprising aerosol-generating material and configured to be used with non-combustible aerosol provision devices. These consumables are sometimes referred to as articles throughout the disclosure. However, it is envisaged that articles which themselves comprise a means for powering an aerosol generator or aerosol generating component may themselves form the non-combustible aerosol provision system. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision device may comprise a power source and a controller. The power source may, for example, be an electric power source. In some embodiments, the article for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device may comprise an aerosol-generating material, an aerosol-generating component (aerosol generator), an aerosol-generating area, a mouthpiece, and/or an area for receiving and holding aerosol-generating material.

In some systems the aerosol-generating component or aerosol generator comprises a heater capable of interacting with the aerosol-generating material so as to release one or more volatiles from the aerosol-generating material to form an aerosol. However, the disclosure is not limited in this regard, and applies also to systems that use other approaches to form aerosol, such as a vibrating mesh.

In some embodiments, the article for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device may comprise aerosol-generating material or an area for receiving aerosol-generating material. In some embodiments, the article for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device may comprise a mouthpiece. The area for receiving aerosol-generating material may be a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material. For example, the storage area may be a reservoir which may store a liquid aerosol-generating material. In some embodiments, the area for receiving aerosol-generating material may be separate from, or combined with, an aerosol generating area (which is an area at which the aerosol is generated). In some embodiments, the article for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device may comprise a filter and/or an aerosol-modifying agent through which generated aerosol is passed before being delivered to the user.

As used herein, the term “component” may be used to refer to a part, section, unit, module, assembly or similar of an electronic cigarette or similar device that incorporates several smaller parts or elements, possibly within an exterior housing or wall. An aerosol provision system such as an electronic cigarette may be formed or built from one or more such components, such as an article and a device, and the components may be removably or separably connectable to one another, or may be permanently joined together during manufacture to define the whole system. The present disclosure is applicable to (but not limited to) systems comprising two components separably connectable to one another and configured, for example, as an article in the form of an aerosol-generating material carrying component holding liquid or another aerosol-generating material (alternatively referred to as a cartridge, cartomiser, pod or consumable), and a device having a battery or other power source for providing electrical power to operate an aerosol generating component or aerosol generator for creating vapour/aerosol from the aerosol-generating material. A component may include more or fewer parts than those included in the examples.

In some examples, the present disclosure relates to aerosol provision systems and components thereof that utilise aerosol-generating material in the form of a liquid, gel or a solid which is held in an aerosol-generating material storage area such as a reservoir, tank, container or other receptacle comprised in the system, or absorbed onto a carrier substrate. An arrangement for delivering the aerosol-generating material from the aerosol-generating material storage area for the purpose of providing it to an aerosol generator for vapour/aerosol generation is included. The terms “liquid”, “gel”, “solid”, “fluid”, “source liquid”, “source gel”, “source fluid” and the like may be used interchangeably with terms such as “aerosol-generating material”, “aerosolisable substrate material” and “substrate material” to refer to material that has a form capable of being stored and delivered in accordance with examples of the present disclosure.

As used herein, “aerosol-generating material” (or “aerosolisable material”) is a material that is capable of generating aerosol, for example when heated, irradiated or energized in any other way. The term “aerosol” may be used interchangeably with “vapour”. Aerosol-generating material may, for example, be in the form of a solid, liquid or gel which may or may not contain an active substance and/or flavourants. In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material may comprise an “amorphous solid”, which may alternatively be referred to as a “monolithic solid” (i.e. non-fibrous). In some embodiments, the amorphous solid may be a dried gel. The amorphous solid is a solid material that may retain some fluid, such as liquid, within it. In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material may for example comprise from about 50 wt %, 60 wt % or 70 wt % of amorphous solid, to about 90 wt %, 95 wt % or 100 wt % of amorphous solid. In some embodiments, the aerosol-generating material may comprise one or more active constituents, one or more flavours, one or more aerosol-former materials, and/or one or more other functional materials. The active substance as used herein may be a physiologically active material, which is a material intended to achieve or enhance a physiological response. The active substance may for example be selected from nutraceuticals, nootropics, psychoactives. The active substance may be naturally occurring or synthetically obtained. The active substance may comprise for example nicotine, caffeine, taurine, theine, vitamins such as B6 or B12 or C, melatonin, cannabinoids, or constituents, derivatives, or combinations thereof. The active substance may comprise one or more constituents, derivatives or extracts of tobacco, cannabis or another botanical. As used herein, the terms “flavour” and “flavourant” refer to materials which, where local regulations permit, may be used to create a desired taste, aroma or other somatosensorial sensation in a product for adult consumers. They may include naturally occurring flavour materials, botanicals, extracts of botanicals, synthetically obtained materials, or combinations thereof. The aerosol-former material may comprise one or more constituents capable of forming an aerosol. In some embodiments, the aerosol-former material may comprise one or more of glycerol, propylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, tetraethylene glycol, 1,3-butylene glycol, erythritol, meso-Erythritol, ethyl vanillate, ethyl laurate, a diethyl suberate, triethyl citrate, triacetin, a diacetin mixture, benzyl benzoate, benzyl phenyl acetate, tributyrin, lauryl acetate, lauric acid, myristic acid, and propylene carbonate. The one or more other functional materials may comprise one or more of pH regulators, colouring agents, preservatives, binders, fillers, stabilizers, and/or antioxidants.

FIG. 1 is a highly schematic diagram (not to scale) of an example electronic aerosol/vapour provision system 10, presented for the purpose of showing the relationship between the various parts of a typical system and explaining the general principles of operation. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to a system configured in this way, and features may be modified in accordance with the various alternatives and definitions described above and/or apparent to the skilled person.

The aerosol provision system 10 has a generally elongate shape in this example, extending along a longitudinal axis indicated by a dashed line, and comprises two main components, namely an aerosol provision device 20 (control or power component, section or unit), and an article or consumable 30 (cartridge assembly or section, sometimes referred to as a cartomiser, clearomiser or pod) carrying aerosol-generating material and operable to generate vapour/aerosol. In the following description, the aerosol provision system 10 is configured to generate aerosol from a liquid aerosol-generating material (source liquid), and the foregoing disclosure will explain the principles of the present disclosure using this example. However, the present disclosure is not limited to aerosolising a liquid aerosol-generating material, and features may be modified in accordance with the various alternatives and definitions described above and/or apparent to the skilled person in order to aerosolise different aerosol-generating materials, e.g., solid aerosol-generating materials or gel aerosol-generating materials as described above.

FIG. 2 schematically shows the article 30 in more detail than FIG. 1. However, again it should be appreciated that the present disclosure is not limited to an article 30 as shown in FIG. 2 and features may be modified in accordance with the various alternatives and definitions described above and/or apparent to the skilled person.

The article 30 includes a reservoir 3 (as an example of an aerosol-generating material storage area) for containing a source liquid from which an aerosol is to be generated, for example containing nicotine. As an example, the source liquid may comprise around 1% to 3% nicotine and 50% glycerol, with the remainder comprising roughly equal measures of water and propylene glycol, and possibly also comprising other components, such as flavourings. Nicotine-free source liquid may also be used, such as to deliver flavouring. In some embodiments, a solid substrate (not illustrated), such as a portion of tobacco or other flavour imparting element through which vapour generated from the liquid is passed, may also be included.

The reservoir 3 may have the form of a storage tank, being a container or receptacle in which source liquid can be stored such that the liquid is free to move and flow within the confines of the tank. In the example of FIG. 2, the reservoir 3 is a hollow cylindrical shape with a volume or void defined between the inner and outer walls of the article 30. In other examples, the reservoir 3 may comprise absorbent material (either inside a tank or similar, or positioned within the outer housing of the article) that substantially holds the aerosol-generating material. For a consumable article, the reservoir 3 may be sealed after filling during manufacture so as to be disposable after the source liquid is consumed. However, the present disclosure is relevant to refillable articles that have an inlet port, orifice or other opening 32 (shown in FIG. 2) through which new source liquid can be added to enable reuse of the article 30.

The article 30 also comprises an aerosol generator 5, which in this example has the form of an electrically powered heating element or heater 4 and an aerosol-generating material transfer element 6 designed to transfer aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 3 to the aerosol generator. The heater 4 is located externally of the reservoir 3 and is operable to generate the aerosol by vaporisation of the source liquid by heating. The aerosol-generating material transfer element 6 is a transfer or delivery arrangement configured to deliver aerosol-generating material from the reservoir 3 to the heater 4. In some examples, such as in the example of FIG. 2, the aerosol-generating material transfer element 6 may have the form of a wick or other porous element. A wick 6 may have one or more parts located inside the reservoir 3, or otherwise be in fluid communication with liquid in the reservoir 3, so as to be able to absorb source liquid (in the reservoir 3) and transfer it by wicking or capillary action to other parts of the wick 6 that are adjacent or in contact with the heater 4. The wick may be formed of any suitable material which can cause wicking of the liquid, such as glass fibres or cotton fibres. This wicked liquid is thereby heated and vaporised, and replacement liquid is drawn, via continuous capillary action, from the reservoir 3 for transfer to the heater 4 by the wick 6. The wick 6 may be thought of as a conduit between the reservoir 3 and the heater 4 that delivers or transfers liquid from the reservoir to the heater. In some implementations, the heater 4 and the aerosol-generating material transfer element 6 are unitary or monolithic, and formed from a same material that is able to be used for both liquid transfer and heating, such as a material which is both porous and conductive. In still other cases, the aerosol-generating material transfer element 6 may operate other than by capillary action, such as by comprising an arrangement of one or more valves by which liquid may exit the reservoir 3 and be passed onto the heater 4.

A heater and wick (or similar) combination, referred to herein as an aerosol generator 5, may sometimes be termed an atomiser or atomiser assembly, and the reservoir 3 with its source liquid plus the atomiser may be collectively referred to as an aerosol source. Various designs are possible, in which the parts may be differently arranged compared with the highly schematic representation of FIGS. 1 and 2. For example, and as mentioned above, the wick 6 may be an entirely separate element from the heater 4, or the heater 4 may be configured to be porous and able to perform at least part of the wicking function directly (a metallic mesh, for example).

In the present example, the system is an electronic system, and the heater 4 may comprise one or more electrical heating elements that operate by ohmic/resistive (Joule) heating. The article 30 may comprise electrical contacts (not shown) at an interface of the article 30 which electrically engage to electrical contacts (not shown) at an interface of the aerosol provision device 20. Electrical energy can therefore be transferred to the heater 4 via the electrical contacts from the aerosol provision device 20 to cause heating of the heater 4. In other examples, the heater 4 may be inductively heated, in which case the heater comprises a susceptor in an induction heating arrangement (which may comprise a suitable drive coil, e.g., located in the aerosol provision device 20, and through which an alternating electrical current is passed).

In general, therefore, an aerosol generator in the present context can be considered as one or more elements that implement the functionality of an aerosol-generating element able to generate vapour by heating source liquid (or other aerosol-generating material) delivered to it, and a liquid transport or delivery element able to deliver or transport liquid from a reservoir or similar liquid store to the vapour-generating element by a wicking action / capillary force or otherwise. An aerosol generator is typically housed in an article 30 of an aerosol generating system, as in FIGS. 1 and 2, but in some examples, at least the heater part may be housed in the device 20. Embodiments of the disclosure are applicable to all and any such configurations which are consistent with the examples and description herein.

Returning to FIGS. 1 and 2, the article 30 also includes a mouthpiece or mouthpiece portion 35 having an opening or air outlet through which a user may inhale the aerosol generated by the heater 4. With reference to FIG. 2, the article 30 of this example includes a central air passage 36 which passes from one end of the article 30 to the opening of the mouthpiece portion 35. The central air passage 36 is defined in part by the inner tubular wall of the reservoir 3. The heater 4 is positioned in the air passage 36 (and in the example shown, specifically extending across a width dimension of the air passage 36) such that air that enters the air passage 36 at the end opposite the mouthpiece portion 35 is able to pass by the heater 4 (and subsequently entrain therein any vaporised liquid from the heater 4 which may be generated when the heater 4 is activated).

The aerosol provision device 20 includes a power source such as a cell or battery 7 (referred to hereinafter as a battery, and which may or may not be re-chargeable) to provide electrical power for electrical components of the aerosol provision system 10, in particular to operate the heater 4. Additionally, there is control circuitry 8 such as a printed circuit board and/or other electronics or circuitry for generally controlling the aerosol provision system 10. The control circuitry 8 may include a processor programmed with software, which may be modifiable by a user of the system. The control circuitry 8, in one aspect, operates the heater 4 using power from the battery 7 when vapour is required. At this time, the user inhales on the system 10 via the mouthpiece 35, and air A enters through one or more air inlets 9 in the wall of the device 20 (air inlets may alternatively or additionally be located in the article 30). When the heater 4 is operated, it vaporises source liquid delivered from the reservoir 3 by the aerosol-generating material transfer component 6 to generate the aerosol by entrainment of the vapour into the air flowing through the system, and this is then inhaled by the user through the opening in the mouthpiece 35. The aerosol is carried from the aerosol generator 5 to the mouthpiece 35 along one or more air channels (not shown) that connect the air inlets 9 to the aerosol generator 5 to the air outlet when a user inhales on the mouthpiece 35.

More generally, the control circuitry 8 is suitably configured/programmed to control the operation of the aerosol provision system 10 to provide conventional operating functions of the aerosol provision system in line with established techniques for controlling such devices, as well as any specific functionality described as part of the foregoing disclosure. The control circuitry 8 may be considered to logically comprise various sub-units/circuitry elements associated with different aspects of the aerosol provision system's operation in accordance with the principles described herein and other conventional operating aspects of aerosol provision systems, such as display driving circuitry for systems that may include a user display (such as an screen or indicator) and user input detections via one or more user actuatable controls 12. It will be appreciated that the functionality of the control circuitry 8 can be provided in various different ways, for example using one or more suitably programmed programmable computers and/or one or more suitably configured application-specific integrated circuits/circuitry/chips/chipsets configured to provide the desired functionality.

The device 20 and the article 30 are separate connectable parts detachable from one another by separation in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis, as indicated by the double-headed arrows in FIG. 1. The components 20, 30 are joined together when the system 10 is in use by cooperating engagement elements 21, 31 (for example, a screw or bayonet fitting) which provide mechanical and in some cases electrical connectivity between the device 20 and the article 30. FIG. 2 shows the example engagement element 31 of the article 30 in more detail, where the engagement element 31 takes the form of a protrusion comprising a screwthread. Electrical connectivity may be present if the heater 4 operates by ohmic heating, so that current can be passed through the heater 4 when it is connected to the battery 7. In systems that use inductive heating, direct electrical connectivity between the article 30 and the device 20 can be omitted. For example, an inductive work coil/drive coil can be housed in the device 20 and supplied with power from the battery 7, and the article 30 and the device 20 shaped so that when they are connected, there is an appropriate exposure of the heater 4 to flux generated by the coil for the purpose of generating current flow in the material of the heater.

It should be appreciated the FIGS. 1 and 2 design is merely an example arrangement, and the various parts and features may be differently distributed between the device 20 and the article 30, and other components and elements may be included. The two sections may connect together end-to-end in a longitudinal configuration as in FIG. 1, or in a different configuration such as a parallel, side-by-side arrangement. The system may or may not be generally cylindrical and/or have a generally longitudinal shape. Either or both sections or components may be intended to be disposed of and replaced when exhausted, or be intended for multiple uses enabled by actions such as refilling the reservoir and recharging the battery. In other examples, the system 10 may be unitary, in that the parts of the device 20 and the article 30 are comprised in a single housing and cannot be separated. Embodiments and examples of the present disclosure are applicable to any of these configurations and other configurations of which the skilled person will be aware.

The present disclosure relates to the refilling of a storage area (reservoir 3) for aerosol generating material in an article 30 for use with an aerosol provision system (or in an aerosol provision system if the aerosol provision system is unitary). A user is enabled to conveniently provide an article 30/system 10 with fresh aerosol generating material when a previous stored quantity has been used up. With reference to FIG. 2, the article 30 is provided with an opening 32, shown as being provided on one side of the article 30. The opening 32 is provided in fluid communication with the reservoir 3 to allow aerosol-generating material to passed from the outside of (i.e., external to) the article 30 and reservoir 3 into the reservoir 3 to replenish the store of aerosol-generating material. The opening 32 may be provided with any suitable mechanism that is capable of preventing aerosol-generating material exiting the reservoir 3 via the opening 32. By way of example, the opening 32 may include a one-way valve, a moveable valve or cover which is controlled to cover the opening 32 when the article 30 is not being refilled, or a septum designed to be pierced by a needle or the like. Any suitable mechanism for selectively allowing access to the reservoir 3 may be implemented in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure.

In addition, the article 30 may optionally be provided with an outlet 38, shown in FIG. 2 as being provided on a side of the article 30. The outlet 38 is provided in fluid communication with the reservoir 3 of the article 30. More specifically, the outlet 38 is designed to allow air (and/or other gases) to escape the reservoir 3 during a refilling operation of the article 30. That is, as aerosol-generating material is inserted into the reservoir 3, the aerosol-generating material displaces air and/or other gases out of the reservoir 3 via the outlet 38 to maintain the pressure (e.g., an ambient pressure) within the reservoir 3. The outlet 38 may comprise any suitable mechanism to allow air but not aerosol-generating material to exit the reservoir 3, such as a gas-permeable, liquid-impermeable membrane. In other implementations, the opening 32 may dually act as an inlet for allowing aerosol-generating material to enter the reservoir 3 and as an outlet for allowing air (and/or other gas) to exit the reservoir 3. In yet other implementations, air and/or other gas may exit the reservoir 3 via other means, such as via the aerosol generator 5 during a refilling operation.

The process of refilling the reservoir 3 can be difficult for some users and/or require a degree of skill to avoid spillages of aerosol-generating material e.g., due to alignment issues between an outlet of a bottle or the like and the opening 32 of the article 30 and/or knowing when the reservoir 3 is full (and thus overfilling).

The present disclosure relates to refilling devices for refilling a storage area (reservoir 3) of an article 30 with aerosol-generating material. More particularly, the refilling device comprises a manually operated transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol-generating material from a storage area of the refilling device (for holding aerosol-generating material) to the storage area of the article 30. The manually operated transfer mechanism is configured to be manually operated by a user of the refilling device to cause transfer of the aerosol-generating material. By providing a manually operated transfer mechanism, the user of the refilling device may have more control over the transfer of aerosol-generating material to the reservoir 3 of the article 30, potentially both in terms of amount transferred and/or rate of transfer of aerosol-generating material.

FIG. 3a schematically shows a first example of a refilling device 100 according to the principles of the present disclosure. Additionally, FIG. 3a schematically shows the refilling device 100 coupled to an article 30.

The refilling device 100 of FIG. 3 comprises an outer wall 101, a top wall 102 and a base or base wall 103. The outer wall 101 extends between the top wall 102 and the base wall 103 thereby connecting the top wall 102 to the base wall 103. The base wall 103 comprises an outlet 104, shown schematically in FIG. 3a as an opening in the base wall 103. The outlet 104 is configured to allow aerosol-generating material held within a storage area of the refilling device 100 to exit the refilling device 100 in order to be supplied to the article 30. The described refilling device 100 generally takes the form of a hollow cylinder, with an internal volume defined between the outer wall 101, top wall 102 and base wall 103, where the top wall 102 and base wall 103 form the ends of the cylinder. However, it should be appreciated that the shape of refilling device 100 is not limited and in other implementations the refilling device 100 may have a different shape. The outer wall 101, top wall 102, and base wall 103 may be formed from any suitable materials, e.g., a plastics material.

The use of “top” and “base” here is used to distinguish the opposing ends of the refilling device 100 in accordance with the orientation shown in FIG. 3a, however these terms are not intended to confer a particular orientation in use of the refilling device 100. That said, it may be advantageous to orientate the refilling device 100 in use such that direction of travel of the aerosol-generating material as it leaves the refilling device 100 (via the outlet 104) is generally along (i.e., parallel to) the direction that gravity acts. In situations where the refilling device 100 is not oriented in such a way, the user may be required to operate the manually operated transfer mechanism against gravity and therefore may need to exert a greater amount of effort to transfer the same amount of aerosol-generating material.

The outer wall 101, top wall 102, and base wall 103 define an internal volume in which aerosol-generating material may be provided (otherwise referred to as aerosol-generating material storage area). As can be seen in FIG. 3a, the outer wall 101 is formed as a concertina. The concertinaed outer wall 101 can be considered to be comprised of different sections, where the sections are provided extending linearly along one of two directions provided at different angles with respect to a longitudinal axis extending from the top wall 102 to the base wall 103. That is, the outer wall 101 follows a zig-zag shape from the top wall 102 to the base wall 103. The outer wall 101 is configured such that at points where the direction of the sections of the outer wall 101 change direction (or, alternatively, at the points where two sections of the outer wall 101 meet), the outer wall 101 is configured to bend or deform at these points in response to pressure applied to the top wall 102 (e.g., by a user in the direction as shown by the downward facing arrow). In the described implementation of FIG. 3a, the outer wall 101 is formed from a continuous piece of material. For example, the outer wall 101 may be formed through a moulding process (such as injection moulding or blow moulding), or alternatively, the concertinaed outer wall 101 may be formed through manipulating (e.g., bending) the continuous piece of material. In other implementations, the concertinaed outer wall 101 may be formed by joining together the plurality of wall sections, e.g., using a hinge-type mechanism to couple wall sections together. The outer wall 101 may be joined to the top wall 102 and base wall 103 using a suitable joining technique (e.g., welding, ultrasonic welding, adhesive, etc.) or the outer wall 101 may be formed together with the top wall 102 and base wall 103 (for example when formed through the moulding processes).

In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material may be stored freely within the volume bounded by the walls 101, 102 and 103 of the refilling device 100. That is, the storage area for storing aerosol-generating material of the refilling device 100 is defined, in part, by concertinaed outer wall 101. The aerosol-generating material may come into direct contact with the surfaces of the walls 101, 102 and 103 of the refilling device 100. In such instances, the material selected to form the walls 101, 102, and 103 of the refilling device 100 may be selected for its compatibility with the aerosol-generating material to be stored in the refilling device 100. The concertinaed wall 101 is configured such that aerosol-generating material is unable to escape the storage area through the concertinaed outer wall 101 and/or between the concertinaed outer wall 101 and the top and/or base walls 102, 103. In implementations where one or more joins between sections of the outer wall 101 and/or between the outer wall 101 and the top and/or base walls 102, 103 are present, the refilling device 100 may be provided with suitable sealing elements (e.g., such as compressible O-rings; not shown) located at the joins. The sealing elements act to prevent aerosol-generating material exiting the refilling device 100 via the joins. The type of aerosol-generating material may dictate whether or not sealing elements are to be provided (for example, sealing elements may be provided if the aerosol-generating material is a liquid).

In other implementations, such as shown in FIG. 3a, within the internal volume defined by the outer wall 101, top wall 102 and base wall 103, a container 110 is provided. The container 110 acts as the storage area for storing aerosol-generating material. That is, the aerosol-generating material is provided in the container 110. The container 110 is formed from a suitable flexible material (for example, such as a plastics material). More specifically, the container 110 is formed so as to have a flexible wall portion (described in more detail below). The container 110 may be coupled to the base wall 103 as shown in FIG. 3a. In other implementations, the container 110 may additionally be coupled to the top wall 102. The container 110 includes an opening provided in fluid communication with the outlet 104 in the base wall 103. That is, aerosol-generating material stored in the container 110 is able to pass through the outlet 104 in the base wall 103 to exit the refilling device 100.

Although not shown in FIG. 3a, the outlet 104 of the refilling device 100 is arranged such that aerosol-generating material is unable to leave the refilling device 100 via the outlet unless subjected to a threshold force. In some implementations, the outlet 104 may include a valve or the like, or be sized so as to retain the aerosol-generating material within the refilling device 100 (e.g., via surface tension of a liquid aerosol-generating material).

Additionally, although not shown in FIG. 3a, the refilling device 100 comprises a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article 30. The coupling mechanism is arranged such that, when the article 30 is coupled to the refilling device 100, the outlet 104 of the refilling device 100 is aligned or engaged with the opening 32 of the article 30 (where the opening 32 of the article 30 is fluidly coupled to the reservoir 3 of the article 30). That is, the coupling mechanism helps to ensure alignment between the outlet 104 of the refilling device 100 and the opening 32 of the article 30, thereby reducing or eliminating spillages or leakages when transferring aerosol generating material from the refilling device 100 to the article 30. In addition, the article 30 may optionally be provided with a corresponding coupling mechanism for coupling to the refilling device 100.

In order to transfer aerosol-generating material from the refilling device 100 (stored either in the volume defined by the walls 101, 102, 103 of the refilling device 100 or the container 110) to the reservoir 3 of the article 30, the user of the refilling device 100 firstly couples the refilling device 100 to the article 30 (using the coupling mechanism(s) mentioned above). The user then applies a force to the top wall 102 of the refilling device 100 (where the article 30 may be placed against a surface or another force applied to the base of the article 30 to counter the force applied to the top wall 102). Upon application of the force by the user to the top wall 102, assuming the force is of a suitable magnitude, the concertinaed outer wall 101 is designed to move/collapse/deform under the application of the force. As the concertinaed outer wall 101 collapses, the volume defined by the outer wall 101, top wall 102 and base wall 103 of the refilling device 100 decreases. Accordingly, as the volume within the refilling device 100 is decreased, a force is applied to the aerosol-generating material stored within. When this force is sufficient, aerosol-generating material is able to escape the refilling device 100 via the outlet 104, and subsequently be transferred to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. Hence, by pressing the top wall 102 of the refilling device 100, the aerosol-generating material is able to be forced out of the storage area of the refilling device 100. In implementations where the aerosol-generating material is stored within the container 110, the container 110 is arranged to cooperate with the concertinaed outer wall 101 such that, upon deforming the concertinaed outer wall 101, the container 110 having a flexible wall portion is compressed by the housing of the refilling device 100.

In some implementations, the concertinaed outer wall 101 may be formed in such a way as to control the collapsing/deforming of the concertinaed outer wall 101 when a force is applied by a user. FIG. 3b schematically shows a section of the concertinaed outer wall 101 in an implementation where the collapse of the concertinaed outer wall 101 is able to be controlled. Other features of the refilling device 100 are omitted in FIG. 3b for clarity.

In FIG. 3b, the material forming the concertinaed outer wall 101 is formed so as to have a variable thickness in a direction from the top wall 102 towards the base wall 103. More particularly, the concertinaed outer wall 101 has an increasing thickness towards the base wall 103. As can be seen in FIG. 3b, when material forming the concertinaed outer wall 101 is of a varying (increasing) thickness, the thickness of outer wall 101 at the point where two sections of the outer wall 101 meet also varies. In FIG. 3b, three such points are shown. The point closest to the top wall 102 has a thickness, t1, the next point in the direction toward the base wall 103 has a thickness t2, and the next point in the direction toward the base wall 103 has a thickness t3, where t3 is greater than t2, and t2 is greater than t1. In this regard, it should be appreciated that the force required to cause bending or deformation of the outer wall 101 at the points where wall sections meet is dependent (in part) on the thickness of the material at the point where the wall sections meet. In other words, relatively less force is required to deform the outer wall at the region having a thickness t, compared to the region t3. Accordingly, when a force is applied to the top wall 102 of the refilling device 100, the outer wall 101 collapses/deforms to a greater extent at the region having a thickness t1, and in some instances, deformation is predominantly seen at the region having a thickness t1, prior to any substantial deformation occurring at the other regions having thicknesses t2 or t3.

In this way, it can be seen that there is a progressive collapsing of the outer wall 101 of the refilling device 100. This may increase the stability of the refilling device 100 as the outer wall 101 is collapsed. In addition, this may provide the user with an indication of the amount of aerosol-generating material that is transferred to the reservoir 3. For example, the refilling device 100 may be configured such that a volume that extends perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the refilling device (i.e., as a slice from left to right in FIG. 3a) and extends the distance along the longitudinal axis between ends of a pair of wall sections opposite to the ends of the wall sections that are joined together is constant. Put another way, the refilling device 100 defines a series of substantially equal volumes stacked in the longitudinal direction, with each volume having a height in the longitudinal corresponding to the height defined by a pair of wall sections of the concertinaed outer wall 101. In some implementations, each volume may correspond to the volume of the reservoir 3 of the article 30. Therefore, as the user presses on the top wall 102 and the concatenated outer wall collapses such that the first pair of wall sections are brought together, the user is able to intuitively understand that, when the wall sections are brought together, the storage area of the refilling device 100 is decreased by a certain volume meaning that a certain volume or amount of aerosol-generating material has been transferred out of the outlet 104 of the refilling device 100 (which may correspond to the volume of the reservoir 3). In this way, the user is provided with a visual indication of how much aerosol-generating material has been delivered by the refilling device 100 to the reservoir 3, and the user is therefore able to control the refilling device 100 to avoid instances of overfilling, for example.

FIG. 4 schematically shows a second example of a refilling device 200 according to the principles of the present disclosure. As with the implementation of FIG. 3a, FIG. 4 schematically shows the refilling device 200 coupled to an article 30.

The refilling device 200 of FIG. 4 comprises a housing having an outer wall 201, a top wall 202 and a base or base wall 203. The outer wall 201 extends between the top wall 202 and the base wall 203 thereby connecting the top wall 202 to the base wall 203. The base wall 203 comprises an outlet 204 configured to allow aerosol-generating material held within a storage area of the refilling device 200 to exit the refilling device 200 in order to be supplied to the article 30. The described refilling device 200 generally takes the form of a hollow cylinder. However, it should be appreciated that the shape of refilling device 200 is not limited and in other implementations the refilling device 200 may have a different shape. The outer wall 201, top wall 202, and base wall 203 may be formed from any suitable materials, e.g., a plastics material. Additionally, the outer wall 201, top wall 202 and base wall 203 may be formed as separate components and subsequently joined together, or alternatively, the outer wall 201, top wall 202 and base wall 203 may be integrally formed.

As with FIG. 3a, the use of “top” and “base” here is used to distinguish the opposing ends of the refilling device 200 in accordance with the orientation shown in FIG. 4, and is not meant to confer a particular orientation in use of the refilling device 200.

Although not shown in FIG. 4, the outlet 204 of the refilling device 200 is arranged such that aerosol-generating material is unable to leave the refilling device 200 via the outlet unless subjected to a threshold force. In some implementations, the outlet 204 may include a valve or the like, or be sized so as to retain the aerosol-generating material within the refilling device 200 (e.g., via surface tension of a liquid aerosol-generating material).

Additionally, although not shown in FIG. 4, the refilling device 200 comprises a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article 30. The coupling mechanism is arranged such that, when the article 30 is coupled to the refilling device 200, the outlet 204 of the refilling device 200 is aligned or engaged with the opening 32 of the article 30 (where the opening 32 of the article 30 is fluidly coupled to the reservoir 3 of the article 30). That is, the coupling mechanism helps to ensure alignment between the outlet 204 of the refilling device 200 and the opening 32 of the article 30, thereby reducing or eliminating spillages or leakages when transferring aerosol generating material from the refilling device 200 to the article 30. In addition, the article 30 may optionally be provided with a corresponding coupling mechanism for coupling to the refilling device 200.

The refilling device 200 of FIG. 5 further comprises a plunger 220. The plunger 220 comprises a disc 221, a stem 222 that extends from the disc 221, for example along an axis normal to the disc 221, and a flange 223 provided at the opposite end of the stem 222. The disc 221, stem 222 and flange 223 may be formed form any suitable material, for example a plastics material or a metal material. The disc 221, stem 222 and flange 223 may be formed as separate components and joined together, e.g., through welding, an adhesive, a screwthread connection, etc. or the disc 221, stem 222 and flange 223 may be integrally formed.

The disc 221 is sized such that it extends between the inner surfaces of the outer wall 201. The disc 221 is arranged such that fits inside the outer wall 201. Where the outer wall 201 takes the form of a hollow cylinder, the disc 221 is similarly circular and has a diameter broadly equal to the internal diameter of the hollow cylinder of the outer wall 201. In some implementations, a sealing element (such as one or more O-rings) may be provided between the disc 221 and the inner surface of the outer wall 201, whereby the sealing element acts to prevent aerosol-generating material passing between the disc 221 and the inner surface of the outer wall 201.

The top wall 202 of the refilling device 200 further comprises an opening 205 through which the stem 222 of the plunger 220 extends. Hence, part of the stem 222 and the flange 223 exists outside of the volume defined by the outer wall 201, top wall 202, and base wall 203, while the other part of the stem 222 and the disc 221 exists inside the volume defined by the outer wall 201, top wall 202, and base wall 203. The opening 205 is formed such that the stem 222 is able to pass through the opening 205. In the implementation of FIG. 4, the opening 205 is shown as having a similar dimension (e.g., diameter or width) as the stem 222. However, in some implementations, the opening 205 may be larger, for example, extending to almost the size between the inner surfaces of the outer wall 201. The top wall 202 acts as a retaining mechanism for retaining the plunger 220 within the refilling device 200. That is, the top wall 202 prevents a user from pulling on the flange 223 and separating the plunger 220 from the housing of the refilling device 200. In other implementations, the top wall 202 may be omitted and instead one or more protrusions may be provided extending towards the central longitudinal axis of the refilling device 200 from the inner surface of the outer walls 201.

The refilling device 200 includes an aerosol-generating material storage area. The storage area of the refilling device 200 is defined by the base wall 203, a part of the outer wall 201 and the disc 221 of the plunger 220. The plunger 220 is configured to move with respect to the outer wall 201 and the base wall 203. More specifically, when the user applies a force to the flange 223 in the direction shown by the arrow of FIG. 4, and assuming the force is of a sufficient magnitude, the plunger 220 is configured to move towards the base wall 203 (where the outer wall 201 acts as a guide guiding the plunger 220 along a direction of travel substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the refilling device 200). As the plunger 220 moves towards the base wall 203, the volume of the aerosol-generating material storage area decreases. In a similar manner to the implementation of FIG. 3a, a force is applied to the aerosol-generating material stored within the aerosol-generating material storage area and, assuming the force is sufficient, aerosol-generating material is able to exit the refilling device 200 via the outlet 204. Subsequently, the aerosol-generating material passes to the reservoir 3 of the article 30 coupled to the refilling device 200 via the opening 32.

Hence, in the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4, the plunger 220 is a manually operated transfer mechanism which is operated by the user for transferring aerosol-generating material from the refilling device 200 to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. More particularly, the disc 221 acts as a deformable or moveable portion of the refilling device 200. When the user pushes on the plunger 220 (more specifically the flange 223 of the plunger 220), the movement of the plunger 220 deforms the aerosol-generating material storage area applying a force to the aerosol-generating material stored therein.

In some implementations, the refilling device 200 may be provided with some form of indicia to provide a visual indication to the user with respect to how much aerosol-generating material has been transferred to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. For example, the stem 222 may be provided with a measurement scale on its outer surface, whereby the user may be able to read the scale (e.g., using the top wall 202 as a reference) to gain an indication of the amount of aerosol-generating material transferred as more of the stem 222 passes into the volume defined by the outer wall 201, top wall 202 and base wall 203. Alternatively, a scale may be provided on a transparent window of the outer wall 201 of the refilling device 200 that extends in the direction of travel of the plunger 220 (or alternatively the outer wall 201 may be formed from a transparent material) such that the position of the disc 221 may be used to read the scale. In this way, the user is provided with a visual indication of how much aerosol-generating material has been delivered by the refilling device 200 to the reservoir 3, and the user is therefore able to control the refilling device 200 to avoid instances of overfilling, for example.

In some implementations, the aerosol-generating material is stored freely within the volume bounded by the outer wall 201, base wall 203 and the disc 221 of the refilling device 200. The aerosol-generating material may come into direct contact with the surfaces of the outer wall 201, base wall 203 and the disc 221 of the refilling device 200. In such instances, the material selected to form the outer wall 201, base wall 203 and the disc 221 of the refilling device 200 may be selected for its compatibility with the aerosol-generating material to be stored in the refilling device 200. Additionally, if the base wall 203 is joined to the outer wall 201, the refilling device 200 may be provided with suitable sealing elements (e.g., such as O-rings; not shown) located at the join. As with FIG. 3a, the type of aerosol-generating material may dictate whether or not sealing elements are to be provided (for example, sealing element(s) may be provided if the aerosol-generating material is a liquid). In other implementations, a container, similar to container 110 of FIG. 3a, may be provided in the volume between the base wall 203 and the disc 221, whereby the container comprises a flexible wall portion that is able to be compressed as the plunger 220 moves towards the base wall 203.

The flange 223 is provided to offer an increased surface area for the user to interact with, to thereby provide a more ergonomic and conformable interaction with the plunger 220. However, it should be appreciated that in some implementations, the flange 223 may be omitted.

FIG. 5 schematically shows a third example of a refilling device 300 according to the principles of the present disclosure. As with the implementation of FIGS. 3a and 4, FIG. 5 schematically shows the refilling device 300 coupled to an article 30.

The refilling device 300 of FIG. 5 comprises a housing having an outer wall 301, a top wall 302 and a base or base wall 303. The outer wall 301 extends between the top wall 302 and the base wall 303 thereby connecting the top wall 302 to the base wall 303. The base wall 303 comprises an outlet 304 configured to allow aerosol-generating material held within a storage area of the refilling device 300 to exit the refilling device 300 in order to be supplied to the article 30. The described refilling device 300 generally takes the form of a hollow cylinder. However, it should be appreciated that the shape of refilling device 300 is not limited and in other implementations the refilling device 300 may have a different shape. The outer wall 301, top wall 302, and base wall 303 may be formed from any suitable materials, e.g., a plastics material. Additionally, the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303 may be formed as separate components and subsequently joined together, or alternatively, the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303 may be integrally formed.

As with FIGS. 3a and 4, the use of “top” and “base” here is used to distinguish the opposing ends of the refilling device 300 in accordance with the orientation shown in FIG. 5, and is not meant to confer a particular orientation in use of the refilling device 300.

Although not shown in FIG. 5, the outlet 304 of the refilling device 300 is arranged such that aerosol-generating material is unable to leave the refilling device 300 via the outlet unless subjected to a threshold force. In some implementations, the outlet 304 may include a valve or the like, or be sized so as to retain the aerosol-generating material within the refilling device 300 (e.g., via surface tension of a liquid aerosol-generating material).

Additionally, although not shown in FIG. 5, the refilling device 300 comprises a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article 30. The coupling mechanism is arranged such that, when the article 30 is coupled to the refilling device 300, the outlet 304 of the refilling device 300 is aligned or engaged with the opening 32 of the article 30 (where the opening 32 of the article 30 is fluidly coupled to the reservoir 3 of the article 30). That is, the coupling mechanism helps to ensure alignment between the outlet 304 of the refilling device 300 and the opening 32 of the article 30, thereby reducing or eliminating spillages or leakages when transferring aerosol generating material from the refilling device 300 to the article 30. In addition, the article 30 may optionally be provided with a corresponding coupling mechanism for coupling to the refilling device 300.

The refilling device 200 of FIG. 5 further comprises a manually actuated pump 330. The pump 330 is attached to the top wall 30 of the refilling device 300. The pump 330 in this implementation is formed of a resilient material, such as rubber or plastic, that is able to be compressed or deformed in a sideways manner (i.e. squeezed) by a user (as shown by the arrows in FIG. 5), but return to an original or at rest state once the force is no longer applied. The pump 330 shown in FIG. 5 is of a bell or U-shaped construction and is arranged such that the pump defines a volume bounded by the inner surfaces of the flexible material.

The pump 330 further comprises an inlet 331 and an outlet 332. Prior to squeezing the resilient material of the pump 330, a volume of air is stored within the pump 330 (i.e., within the volume defined by the inner surfaces of the resilient material). The volume of air is approximately at atmospheric or ambient pressure. When the resilient material of the pump 330 is squeezed, the volume within the pump 330 decreases and subsequently the air pressure within the pump 330 increases. The outlet 332 is configured to allow air within the pump 330 to pass out of the pump 330 through the outlet 332. The outlet 332 is configured such that air is unable to pass back into the pump 330 via the outlet 332. When the pump 330 is released, i.e., the user stops applying a squeezing force, the resilient material of the pump 330 returns to its original or at rest state (e.g., such as the arrangement shown in FIG. 5). In doing so, air is drawn in through the inlet 331 to equalise the pressure within the pump 330, and additionally draw in a volume of air which may be used in a subsequent pumping action. The inlet 331 is configured to allow air to enter the volume defined by the resilient material of the pump 330, but is configured to prevent air exiting the volume defined by the resilient material of the pump 330. In this regard, the inlet 331 and outlet 332 may comprise suitable one-way valves to allow the flow of air as described above.

The pump 330 is mounted to the top wall 302 of the refilling device 300 as mentioned above. However, more specifically, the outlet 332 of the pump 330 is provided in fluid communication with an opening 305 in the top wall 302 of the refilling device 300. The refilling device 300 includes an aerosol-generating material storage area defined by the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303. As described above, the aerosol-generating material may be stored freely within the volume bounded by the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and the base wall 303 of the refilling device 300 or a container for containing the aerosol-generating material, similar to container 110 of FIG. 3a, may be provided in the volume defined between the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303 (where the container comprises a flexible wall portion that is able to be compressed). As described above, where the aerosol-generating material may come into direct contact with the surfaces of the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303, the material selected to form these components may be selected for its compatibility with the aerosol-generating material to be stored in the refilling device 300. Additionally, if the top wall 302 and/or base wall 303 is joined to the outer wall 301, the refilling device 300 may be provided with suitable sealing elements (e.g., such as O-rings; not shown) located at the join. As with FIG. 3a, the type of aerosol-generating material may dictate whether or not sealing elements are to be provided (for example, sealing element(s) may be provided if the aerosol-generating material is a liquid).

During a squeezing phase of the pump 330, air exits the pump 330 via the outlet 332 and passes into the volume defined by the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303 of the refilling device 300 via the opening 305. The air that enters the volume defined by the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303 causes the pressure within the volume defined by the outer wall 301, top wall 302 and base wall 303 to increase. As the pressure increases within this volume, aerosol-generating material within the refilling device 300 is forced out of the refilling device 300 via the outlet 304 (and subsequently passes to the reservoir 3 of the article 30). The user may repeat actuations of the pump 330 (i.e., repeat squeezing and releasing of the pump 330) to transfer a desired amount of aerosol-generating material to the reservoir 3 of the article 30.

In this regard, the amount of aerosol-generating material that is transferred from the refilling device 300 to the reservoir 3 of the article 30 per actuation of the pump 330 may be a fixed quantity. In this way, a user may be able to count the number of actuations of the pump to determine the amount of aerosol-generating material transferred. In this way, the user is provided with a visual indication of how much aerosol-generating material has been delivered by the refilling device 300 to the reservoir 3, and the user is therefore able to control the refilling device 300 to avoid instances of overfilling, for example.

Hence, in the refilling device 300 of FIG. 5, the pump 330 is a manually operated transfer mechanism which is operated by the user for transferring aerosol-generating material from the refilling device 300 to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. More particularly, the pump 330 comprises a deformable or moveable portion of the refilling device 300. When the user squeezes the pump 330, the pump 330 deforms and causes the pressure within the volume defined by the outer wall 301, top wall 302, and base wall 303 to increase. This pressure is applied to aerosol-generating material stored in the aerosol-generating material storage area and subsequently causes the aerosol-generating material to exit the refilling device 300.

The refilling devices 100, 200, 300 are examples of manually operated refilling devices suitable for transferring aerosol-generating material from a storage area of the refilling devices to the reservoir 3 of an article 30 coupled to the refilling device. Each of these refilling devices comprises a manually operated transfer mechanism. In FIGS. 3a and 3b, the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises the concertinaed outer wall 101 designed to deform under application of a pressing or pushing force applied by the user to the top wall 102. In FIG. 4, the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises the plunger 220, whereby a wall defining an inner volume of the refilling device 200 is formed by the disc 221 of the plunger 220. Application of a pressing or pushing force to the plunger 220 thereby causes movement of the wall defining an inner volume of the refilling device 200. In FIG. 5, the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises the pump 330 formed from a resilient material designed to deform under application of a squeezing or pressing force applied by the user to the sides of the pump 330. It should be appreciated that the examples of FIGS. 3a, 3b, 4 and 5 are examples of refilling devices 100, 200, 300 employing different types of manually operated transfer mechanisms; however, any suitable manually operated transfer mechanism may be employed in accordance with the present disclosure. More particularly, any manually operated transfer mechanism that comprises a region where a user is able to push, press, or squeeze to actuate the transfer mechanism is contemplated by the present disclosure.

Providing a manually operated transfer mechanism for the refilling device 100, 200, 300 may offer certain advantages. In one regard, the manually operated transfer mechanism offers more control to the user in respect of controlling the transfer of aerosol-generating material to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. This may be in terms of when the aerosol-generating material is transferred and when it is not, as well as the rate of transfer and/or the amount transferred. For example, aerosol-generating material may be transferred when the manually operated transfer mechanism is actuated by the user. In addition, the manually operated transfer mechanism operates based on a physical movement by the user. In other words, there is no electronic components provided to transfer the aerosol-generating material, and therefore no requirement for a battery or other power source. Accordingly, the refilling device with a manually operated transfer mechanism may be made lighter and/or more portable compared to a refilling device having electronic components.

The examples of FIGS. 3a, 3b, 4 and 5 described above have highly schematically shown the coupling of the article 30 to the refilling device 100, 200, 300.

FIG. 6 schematically shows an example coupling mechanism in more detail. FIG. 6 shows a part of the refilling device 100, namely the outlet 104 and a part of the housing 103, and a part of the article 30, namely the opening 32 and a part of the housing of the article 30. FIG. 6 depicts the coupling mechanism with respect to the refilling device 100 of FIG. 3a; however, it should be appreciated that that the coupling mechanism of FIG. 6 may be equally applied to the refilling devices 200, 300 of FIGS. 4 and 5, or to other refilling devices of other implementations as appropriate.

The article 30 of FIG. 6 comprises a coupling mechanism that is formed from a protrusion 30a protruding from the housing of the article 30, a tapered element 30b protruding from the protrusion 30a, and a threaded profile 30c on the outer surface of the protrusion 30a. The protrusion 30a is provided extending from the article 30 and includes the opening 32. More particularly, the opening 32 in this example is a passageway extending from a top surface of the protrusion 30a, through the protrusion 30a (and specifically along the central longitudinal axis of the protrusion 30a) to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. The passageway enables aerosol-generating material to pass along the channel (i.e., through the opening 32) to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. In this example, the protrusion 30a is cylindrical and thus, with the opening 32, takes the form of a hollow cylinder. However, it should be appreciated that the protrusion 30a is not limited to this shape. At the top surface of the protrusion 30a, which is the surface furthest from the outer dimensions of the article 30, is provided a tapered element 30b. The tapered element 30b is provided extending from the top surface of the protrusion 30a and similarly has a hollow, tube-like structure with the opening 32 running along the longitudinal axis thereof. The tapered element 30b may take the form of a cone or truncated cone provided coaxially with the hollow cylinder of the protrusion 30a. However, again, the shape of the tapered element 30b is not limited to this described example. Additionally, the outer circumferential surface of the protrusion 30a is provided, in this example, with a threaded profile 30c suitable for forming a screwthread connection with a corresponding threaded profile.

Turning to the refilling device 100, the coupling mechanism of the refilling device 100 if formed by a recessed portion 103a provided in the base wall 103 of the refilling device 100, threaded profile 103c provided on the inside of the recessed portion 103a, and a transfer restriction member which, in this example, includes a one way valve 104a.

The recessed portion 103a of the refilling device 100 is formed recessed from the outer surface of the base wall 103 (i.e., so as to project inwards from the base wall 103) and is further configured to receive the protrusion 30a of the article 30. Therefore, the recessed portion 103a is correspondingly shaped so as to receive the protrusion 30a. The threaded portion 103c of the refilling device 100 is formed on the inner circumferential walls of the recessed portion 103a and is arranged to engage with the threaded portion 30c of the article 30, for example, by rotating one of the article 30 or refilling device 100 with respect to the other.

As the protrusion 30a is brought into the recessed portion 103a of the refilling device 100, e.g., via engagement of the threaded profiles 103c and 30c, it should be appreciated that the tapered element 30b is subsequently brought into contact with the valve 104a provided in the outlet 104 of the refilling device 100. The valve 104a is shown as a butterfly valve configured to open inwardly toward the volume defined by the outer wall 101, top wall 102 and base wall 103 of the refilling device 100. Accordingly, as the tapered portion 30b gradually engages more and more with the valve 104a, the valve 104a is forced open by the tapered portion 30a. Accordingly, the valve 104a is opened as the protrusion 30a of the article 30 is engaged with the recessed portion 103a of the refilling device 100. This may help to reduce any leakage or spillages from using the refilling device 100 as the valve 104a prevents aerosol-generating material escaping the refilling device 100 via the opening 104 until the refilling device 100 and article 30 are engaged.

More generally, FIG. 6 demonstrates an example coupling mechanism of the refilling device 100 that is provided with a transfer restriction member (e.g., valve 104a) configured to restrict the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet 104. In this example, the coupling mechanism is configured to adjust the transfer restriction member, i.e., open the valve 104a, such that the restriction to the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet 104 is reduced when the coupling mechanism is coupled to the article 30. In other words, the transfer restriction member in this implementation is actuated or adjusted via engagement between the article 30 and the refilling device 100.

It should be appreciated that in the described implementation the tapered element 30b is provided to facilitate the opening of the valve 104a and subsequently reduce the restriction to the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet 104. However, it should be appreciated that other mechanisms may be employed to achieve a similar purpose in other implementations. For example, instead of the valve 104a described above, the outlet 104 may comprise an iris or the like, or a rotatable valve, and when the article 30 is coupled to the refilling device 100, the iris or rotatable valve is configured to open. That is to say, any suitable coupling mechanism which comprises one or more components that can be configured to reduce the restriction to the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet 104 may be employed in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 represents a further example of a valve 160 which may be employed in the refilling device 100, 200, 300. FIG. 7 is shown with respect to the refilling device 100 of FIG. 3a; however, it should be appreciated that that the valve 160 of FIG. 7 may be equally applied to the refilling devices 200, 300 of FIGS. 4 and 5, or to other refilling devices as appropriate.

The valve 160 of FIG. 7 is an umbrella valve. In its closed configuration, the umbrella valve 160 sits on the inner surface of the base wall 103, effectively blocking the outlet 104. Accordingly, pressing on the top wall 102 of the refilling device 100 does not cause aerosol-generating material to exit the refilling device 100 when the umbrella valve 160 is in this configuration (and in fact the pressure applied to the umbrella valve 160 while the user presses on the top wall 102 may force the umbrella valve 160 towards the base wall 103 thereby improving the sealing effect).

The umbrella valve 160 further comprises a T-shaped channel which is formed of a horizontal channel 161 extending from the sides of the umbrella valve 160 across the diameter or width of a stem portion of the umbrella valve 160 and a vertical channel 162 which extends off (or branches off) the horizontal channel 161 and extends to the base of the umbrella valve 160. Note that “vertical” and “horizontal” are used here merely to distinguish between the different channels and are not considered to impart a particular orientation during use of the refilling device 100.

The umbrella valve 160 can be seen protruding from the outlet 104/base wall 103 in FIG. 7. That is to say, the base of the umbrella valve 160 is not flush with the outer surface of the base wall 103 of the refilling device 100. As the article 30 is brought into contact with the refilling device 100, the wall of the article 30 surrounding the opening 32 engages with, and presses, the umbrella valve upwards in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 7 from its seated position. In this regards, the T-shaped channel formed from the channels 161, 162 can be brought into fluid communication with the aerosol-generating material stored in the volume defined by walls 101, 102 and 103 of the refilling device 100. Subsequently, aerosol-generating material may be permitted to flow along the T-shaped channel and exit from the bottom of the vertical channel 162 into the opening 32 and reservoir 3 of the article 30. When the article 30 is decoupled from the refilling device 100, the umbrella valve 160 moves to its seated (closed position)-for example, the umbrella valve 150 may be biased to the closed position by a resilient element or the like (not shown). In this way, the umbrella valve 160 acts as a transfer restriction member preventing aerosol-generating material exiting the refilling device 100 until the refilling device is coupled to the article 30, whereby the restriction to the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet 104 is reduced when the coupling mechanism is coupled to the article 30 and actuates the umbrella valve 160.

In some implementations, the outlet 104 may be provided in a recessed portion 103a as shown in FIG. 6, for example, in which case the umbrella valve 160 is not flush with the wall of the recessed portion 103a. Providing the recessed portion 103a may prevent the umbrella valve 160 being manually actuated by a user, e.g., by using their fingers to press the umbrella valve 160, particularly if the recessed portion 103a is suitably sized. Additionally, the size (e.g., diameter) of the horizontal and/or vertical channels 161, 162 may be set so as to prevent aerosol-generating material exiting via the T-shaped channel unless subjected to an external force (e.g., pressing of the top wall 102 of the refilling device 100). In this case, the T-shaped channels may be sized such that the surface tension (of a liquid aerosol-generating material) prevents the aerosol generating material from passing along and/or out of the T-shaped channels.

In other implementations, however, the refilling device 100 (or refilling devices 200 and 300 of FIGS. 4 and 5) may be provided with a transfer restriction member (e.g., a valve) that is not adjusted or controlled by the coupling mechanism.

FIG. 8 represents a further example of a valve 150 which may be employed in the refilling device 100, 200, 300. FIG. 8 is shown with respect to the refilling device 100 of FIG. 3a; however, it should be appreciated that that the valve 150 of FIG. 8 may be equally applied to the refilling devices 200, 300 of FIGS. 4 and 5, or to other refilling devices as appropriate.

The valve 150 of FIG. 8 is a butterfly valve 150. The butterfly valve 150 is provided in an opposite orientation to the valve 104a shown in FIG. 6; that is, the butterfly valve 150 opens outwardly from the refilling device 100. Accordingly, the butterfly valve 150 is configured to allow aerosol-generating material to exit the volume defined by the outer wall 101, top wall 102 and base wall 103 of the refilling device 100 when a force is applied to the aerosol-generating material (e.g., through the user pressing on the top wall 102) which is at a sufficient level to cause the valve 150 to open. Hence, in such an implementation, the refilling device 100 comprises the valve 150 (transfer restriction member) located in the fluid pathway between the storage area of the refilling device 100 and the outlet 104. The valve 150 is configured to allow aerosol-generating material to flow in the direction from the storage area of the refilling device 100 to the reservoir 3 of the article 30 upon manual operation of the manually operated transfer mechanism of the refilling device 100.

It should be appreciated that FIG. 8 depicts an example of a suitable valve which may be employed in the outlet of the refilling device 100, but other valves may be employed that achieve a similar effect in other implementations. Such valves may be readily apparent to the skilled person. However, providing transfer restriction members that are actuated or only permitted to be in an open configuration (and allow aerosol-generating material to pass therethrough) when the article 30 and refilling device 100 are coupled may help ensure a suitable connection before the transfer of aerosol-generating material occurs, thus helping to increase safety and/or reduce leakages or spillages when using the refilling device 100.

It should be appreciated that while the above has described a coupling mechanism comprising protrusions/recessed portions along with threaded profiles, it should be appreciated that in other implementations, the coupling mechanism of the article 30 and refilling device 100 may be based on other ways of coupling the two components together, such as a push-fit connection, the engagement of lugs, latches, magnetic coupling, hook-and-loop connections, etc. Indeed, any suitable coupling mechanism may be employed that is capable of causing the engagement of the article 30 and the refilling device 100 in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

In addition, in some implementations, the coupling mechanism of the refilling device 100, 200, 300 is provided with a keying feature configured to engage with a corresponding keying feature of the article 30. The keying feature may help ensure that the article 30 and refilling device 100, 200, 300 are correctly coupled to one another before any refilling takes place. In addition, the keying feature may also help ensure that a refilling device 100, 200, 300 is engaged with a compatible article 30. That is, the keying feature may prevent incompatible articles 30 from engaging with the refilling device 100, 200, 300, or the keying feature may prevent incompatible refilling devices 100, 200, 300 from engaging with the article 30.

FIG. 9 represents a coupling mechanism comprising a keying feature in accordance with a first example of the present disclosure. FIG. 9 is shown with respect to the refilling device 100 of FIG. 3a; however, it should be appreciated that that the coupling mechanism of FIG. 9 may be equally applied to the refilling devices 200, 300 of FIGS. 4 and 5, or to other refilling devices as appropriate.

The coupling mechanism of FIG. 9 is similar to the coupling mechanism of FIG. 6; however, it is reversed. In this regard, the article 30 comprises a recessed portion (that is recessed from an outer surface of the article 30), whereby the opening 32 of the article 30 is provided within the recessed portion of the article 30, and the refilling device 100 is provided with a protrusion 103d that protrudes from the base wall 103 of the refilling device 100 and that comprises the outlet 104 at the surface of the protrusion 104d furthest from the base wall 103. The recessed portion 103 of the article 30 is sized so as to receive the protrusion 103d of the refilling device 100.

In this example, the keying feature of the refilling device 100 is formed of one or more lugs 140 (two are shown in FIG. 9). The lugs 140 are protruding portions of the protrusion 103d of the refilling device 100 and subsequently protrude in the radial or width direction of the protrusion 103d. Although not shown in FIG. 9, the recessed portion of the article 30 comprises one or more slots, whereby the slots are arranged so as to receive the lugs 140 as the protrusion 103d is engaged with, and brought within, the recessed portion of the article 30. The slots of the article may be linearly extending slots (that is, extending along the direction of engagement of the refilling device 100 with the article 30). In this example, the lugs 140 follow the slots as the article 30 is engaged with the refilling device 100. Alternatively, the slots may be formed of a plurality of sections where, for a slot, two sections are provided extending in different directions. For example, the slots may comprise a vertically extending linear section as described above, and additionally comprise a horizontally extending linear section which extends from the bottom of the vertically extending linear section. That is, the slots may be formed in an L-shape. In this example, the lugs 140 follow the vertically extending linear sections of the slots as the refilling device 100 and article 30 are brought towards one another, and then the article 30 is twisted with respect to the refilling device 100 to allow the lugs 140 to pass along the horizontally extending linear section of the slots.

In this way, it should be appreciated that an article 30 that does not comprise the corresponding slots is unable to couple to the refilling device 100 comprising the lugs 140. That is, the lugs 140 would prevent the protrusion 103d from entering the recessed portion of the article 30.

FIG. 10 represents a coupling mechanism comprising a keying feature in accordance with a second example of the present disclosure. FIG. 10 is shown with respect to the refilling device 100 of FIG. 3a; however, it should be appreciated that that the coupling mechanism of FIG. 10 may be equally applied to the refilling devices 200, 300 of FIGS. 4 and 5, or to other refilling devices as appropriate.

FIG. 10 shows the base wall 103 of the refilling device 100 (i.e., the wall comprising the outlet 104) and the surface/wall of the article 30 comprising the opening 32. That is to say, FIG. 10, schematically, illustrates the surfaces of the article 30 and refilling device 100 that are the surfaces that are brought into close proximity, if not contact, when coupling the refilling device 100 and article 30. The base wall 103 of the refilling device 100 is shown as having a rectangular shape here, rather than circular as described above. However, as noted, the shape of the refilling device may be any suitable shape.

In FIG. 10, the refilling device 100 comprises one or more magnets 141a to 141c (collectively referred to as magnets 141). The magnets 141 are arranged at or in the base wall 103 of the refilling device 100. In the example of FIG. 10, the magnets 141 are arranged around the outlet 104; however in principle the magnets 141 may be provided at any location on the base wall 103. Correspondingly, the article 30 comprises one or more magnets 34a to 34c (collectively referred to as magnets 34). The magnets 34 are arranged at or in the surface of the article 30 that is to be brought towards the refilling device 100 when coupled together. In the example of FIG. 10, the magnets 34 are arranged around the opening 32; however in principle the magnets 34 may be provided at any location on the corresponding surface of the article 30. In some implementations, the magnets 141, 34 are embedded within the corresponding walls of the refilling device 100 or article 30 to stop the magnets 141, 34 being removed.

The magnets 141 and 34 are arranged such that the magnets are capable of attracting one another when the article 30 and refilling device 100 are orientated in the correct orientation. That is, the first magnet 141a of the refilling device 100 is arranged to attract the first magnet 34a of the article 30, the second magnet 141b of the refilling device 100 is arranged to attract the second magnet 34b of the article 30, and the third magnet 141c of the refilling device 100 is arranged to attract the third magnet 34c of the article 30. In order to obtain attraction, the magnets 141, 34 are orientated such that opposite poles are brought into contact with one another. For example, the first magnet 141a may be orientated such that the south pole faces outwardly from the base wall 103 of the refilling device 100, while the first magnet 34a of the article 30 is arranged such that the north pole faces outwardly from the surface of the article 30. However, the magnets 141, 34 are also arranged such that certain magnets 141, 34 repel one another. In order to obtain repulsion, the magnets 141, 34 are orientated such that the same poles are brought into contact with one another. For example, the first magnet 141a may be orientated such that the south pole faces outwardly from the base wall 103 of the refilling device 100, while the second magnet 34b of the article 30 is arranged also such that the south pole faces outwardly from the surface of the article 30. Therefore, if the refilling device 100 and article 30 are orientated such that the first magnet 141a of the refilling device 100 and the second magnet 34b of the article 30 are brought towards one another, the first magnet 141a of the refilling device 100 and the second magnet 34b of the article 30 repel one another and therefore do not permit coupling of the refilling device 100 and the article 30. For completeness, the magnets 141, 34 of FIG. 10 may be arranged as follows: the first magnet 141a of the refilling device 100, and second and third magnets 34b, 34c of the article 30 may have the south pole of the magnet facing outwardly, while the second and third magnets 141b, 141c of the refilling device 100, and first magnet 34a of the article 30 may have the north pole of the magnet facing outwardly.

Accordingly, by providing the refilling device with a plurality of magnets 141, forming a coded magnet or magnetic arrangement (whereby coded refers to the different orientations of the poles magnets arranged in a predetermined pattern based on their polarity), the coded magnet can be arranged to act as a keying feature and allow coupling of the refilling device 100 to a complementary coded magnet on the article 30. Again, as above, it should be appreciated that an article 30 that does not comprise the corresponding magnets is unable to couple to the refilling device 100 comprising the magnets 141.

The two examples described above in FIGS. 9 and 10 show the refilling device 100, 200, 300 (and article 30) comprising a keying feature which acts dually to couple the article 30 and the refilling device 100, 200, 300 together and to permit correct coupling of the article 30 and the refilling device 100, 200, 300. However, it should be appreciated that in other implementations, the primary coupling mechanism may be independent of the keying feature. For example, the coupling mechanism may comprise a series of latches, while the keying feature may comprise the coded magnets, whereby the coded magnets do not permit the latches to be brought into engagement with a corresponding catch or the like.

FIG. 11 represents modification to the refilling device 100 described above in accordance with the present disclosure. FIG. 11 is shown with respect to the refilling device 100 of FIG. 3a; however, it should be appreciated that that the modification of FIG. 11 may be equally applied to the refilling devices 200, 300 of FIGS. 4 and 5, or to other refilling devices as appropriate.

FIG. 11 schematically shows the refilling device 100 comprising an elongate passage 170 (such as a hollow needle) which may be provided to allow for a more precise delivery of the aerosol-generating material to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. In more detail, FIG. 11 shows the refill device 100 (and more specifically a part of the base wall 103) comprising a internally protruding walls 103e that protrude from the base wall 103 into the volume defined by the outer wall 101, top wall 102 and base wall 103 in addition to stoppers 103f provided flush with the base wall 103 at the ends of the internally protruding walls 103e. Between the stoppers 103f lies an opening.

The refilling device 100 further comprises the elongate passage 170 which, in this example, is a needle formed with a piercing element 170a provided at the tip of the elongate passage 170. The elongate passage 170 is hollow and is provided such that one end (the end opposite the piercing element 170a) is provided such that it is able to fluidly communicate with the aerosol-generating material stored in the refilling device 100 and subsequently allow aerosol-generating material to pass along the hollow passageway of the elongate passage 170. The elongate passage 170 comprises the outlet 104 at one thereof. The elongate passage 170 is coupled to a moveable platform 172 which is configured to move towards the stoppers 103f in a direction substantially parallel to the direction of extent of the elongate passage 170. A biasing element 171, such as a spring, is provided between the stoppers 103f and the platform 172. The biasing element 171 biases the platform to a retracted position which is a position where the platform is located substantially towards the ends of the internally protruding walls 103e opposite the ends of the internally protruding walls 103e comprising the stoppers 103f. Thus, broadly, it should be appreciated that the internally protruding walls 103e define a pathway along which the platform 172 and elongate passage 172 are able to pass (when subjected to a suitable force to counter the biasing element 171) towards the stoppers 103f.

The refilling device 100 further comprises a pair of pins 173 and a pair of levers 174 that are provided on a pivot 174a. The levers 174 are provided on the opposite side of the platform 172 to that from which the elongate passage 170 extends. The pins 173 are provided running alongside the internally protruding walls 103e and abut one end of the levers 174. The pins 173 are provided such that they are able to move with respect to the base wall 103. More specifically, the pins 173 are able to move in the direction parallel to the longitudinal extent of the pins 173. When the pins 173 are moved into the refilling device 100 (e.g., in a direction from the base wall 103 towards the top wall 102), the pins 173 engage with the ends of the levers 174 and cause the levers 174 to rotate about the pivots 174a. The opposite ends of the levers 174 (that is, the ends opposite the ends that engage with the pins 174) are configured to apply a force to the platform 172 causing the platform 172 to move in the direction from the top wall 102 towards the base wall 103. That is to say, when the pins 173 are pushed into the refilling device, the platform 172 and elongate passage 170 are moved out of the refilling device 100 into an extended or protracted configuration, whereby the elongate passage 170 extends (or protrudes) from the refilling device 100.

To cause the pins 173 to move as stated above, the article 30 is provided with protruding arms 331a that protrude from a surface 331 of the article 30. The surface 331 includes the opening 32 and, as seen in FIG. 11, the arms 331a are provided either side of the opening 32 (and generally spaced and shaped so as to be able to engage with the pins 173 of the refilling device 100). When the article 30 is brought towards the refilling device 100, the arms 331a are arranged to engage with the pins 173 and push the pins 173 in the direction towards the top wall 102 of the refilling device 100. As described above, this causes the platform 172 and elongate passage 170 to extend from the refilling device 100. The article 30 is provided with a septum 32a covering the opening 32 of the article 30. The septum 32a is arranged to prevent any aerosol-generating material escaping the reservoir 3 of the article 30. Accordingly, as the elongate passage 170 is moved into the protracted configuration, the piercing element 170a is adapted to pierce the septum 32a of the article 30 and permit at least some of the elongate passage 170 to move into the reservoir 3 of the article 30. More particularly, the outlet 104 of the elongate passage 170 where aerosol-generating material is able to exit the elongate passage 170 is now located in the reservoir 3 of the article 30 when the elongate passage 170 is in the protracted configuration. Accordingly, pressing on the top wall 102 of the refilling device 100 allows aerosol-generating material to pass directly into the reservoir 3 and the chances of spillages or the like may be reduced. Once the refilling is completed, the article 30 is decoupled from the refilling device 100 and the biasing element 171 causes the platform 172 and elongate passage 170 to retract into the refilling device 100, and causes the levers 174 to push the pins 173 back into their original position.

The example of FIG. 11 shows the levers 174 extending over and covering an opening of the elongate passage 170 when in the retracted configuration. In this example, the levers 174 may act as a transfer restriction member, aiming to reduce or prevent aerosol-generating material passing along the elongate passage 170 in the retracted configuration. However, it should be appreciated that in other implementations, alternative mechanisms may be employed as the transfer restriction member.

Additionally, the example of FIG. 11 shows the elongate passage 170 comprising a piercing element 170a. However, the elongate passage 170 may not be provided with a piercing element 170a. In such implementations, the article 30 may not comprise a septum 32a, but may instead comprise an alternative mechanism for selectively closing the opening 32. In any case, the elongate passage 170 may still be partially placed within the opening 32/reservoir 3 of the article to thereby facilitate a more precise transfer of aerosol-generating material directly into the reservoir 3.

Further, it should be appreciated that FIG. 11 depicts an example of a retractable elongate passage 170. Alternative constructions which facilitate a retractable elongate passage 170 may be employed in accordance with the present disclosure. Furthermore, in some implementations, the elongate passage 170 may not be retractable and instead be provided in a permanently protracted configuration.

Hence, more generally, the refilling device 100 comprises an elongate passageway 170 which extends from the storage area of the refilling device (where the aerosol-generating material is stored) to an outlet of the elongate passageway 170 through which aerosol-generating material is configured to pass. In some implementations, the elongate passageway 170 comprises a hollow tubular structure having a piercing element 170a at an end comprising the outlet of the elongate passageway 170. The piercing element 170a is configured to pierce a septum 32a covering the opening 32 of the article 30. In some implementations, the elongate passageway may be further configured to be in an initial retracted state, such that the piercing element 170a is retracted within the housing of the refilling device 100. The elongate passageway 170 is able to be moved to a protracted state that protrudes from the housing of the refilling device 100, thereby exposing the piercing element 170a. In some implementations, the elongate passageway 170 is configured to move to the protracted state when or during coupling of the article 30 to the coupling mechanism of the refilling device 100.

It has generally been described above that the refilling device 100, 200, 300 comprises a storage area (for storing the aerosol-generating material) and a manually operated transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol-generating material to the reservoir 3 of the article 30. However, in other implementations, the refilling device 100, 200, 300 comprises a plurality of storage areas, each storing aerosol-generating material that may be different to one another, and a plurality of manually operated transfer mechanisms for transferring aerosol-generating material to the reservoir 3 of the article 30.

FIGS. 12a and 12b schematically illustrate two examples of a refilling device 200A and 200B comprising a plurality of storage areas for storing aerosol-generating material. FIGS. 12a and 12b are based off the implementation of the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4; however, it will be appreciated that the principles described with respect to FIGS. 12a and 12b can be applied to any of the refilling devices described herein.

FIGS. 12a and 12b schematically show two examples of a refilling device 200A and 200B comprising a plurality of storage areas for storing aerosol-generating material. The refilling devices 200A and 200B are similar to the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4. The refilling devices comprise a housing which defines, in these implementation, three storage areas labelled A, B and C in FIGS. 12a and 12b. The three storage areas are each bounded by walls of the housing. The housing of the refilling devices 200A, 200B can therefore be considered to have internal walls that separate the inner volume of the housing to define the three separate storage areas A, B, C. Each of the storage areas A, B and C may contain a different aerosol-generating material, e.g., liquid aerosol-generating material of different flavours.

The top wall of the devices 200A, 200B comprises a plurality of openings, each similar to opening 205 of the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4, through which the stem of a plunger 2201, 2202, 2203 is inserted. The plungers 2201, 2202 and 2203 are substantially the same as the plunger 220 of the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4. Each of the plungers 2201, 2202 and 2203 are configured to move within the respective storage areas A, B and C that they are provided in. That is, each plunger 2201, 2202, and 2203 is configured to move within the respective storage area A, B, C in response to a force being applied to the end of the plunger 2201, 2202, 2203, in a broadly similar way to plunger 220 of FIG. 4.

In respect of FIG. 12a, the refilling device 200A is arranged such that each storage area A, B, C has a corresponding outlet 1041, 1042 and 1043, which are each substantially the same as outlet 104 of the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4. That is, storage area A has an outlet 1041 fluidly coupled thereto where upon actuation (i.e., pressing) of the plunger 2201, aerosol generating material within storage area A is able to exit the refilling device 200A through the outlet 1041. Storage area B has an outlet 1042 fluidly coupled thereto where upon actuation (i.e., pressing) of the plunger 2202, aerosol generating material within storage area B is able to exit the refilling device 200A through the outlet 1042. Storage area C has an outlet 1043 fluidly coupled thereto where upon actuation (i.e., pressing) of the plunger 2203, aerosol generating material within storage area C is able to exit the refilling device 200A through the outlet 1043. That is to say, the refilling device 200A comprises a plurality of outlets 1041, 1042, 1043, wherein each of the plurality of storage areas A, B, C is fluidly connected to a corresponding one of the plurality of outlets 1041, 1042, 1043 of the refilling device 200A.

To refill an article 30 using refilling device 200A, the user firstly selects from which storage area (A, B or C) the user wishes to transfer aerosol-generating material (for example, the user may pick a certain flavour aerosol-generating material). Once selected, the user couples the article 30 to the refilling device 200A such that the opening 32 of the article 30 is provided in fluid communication with the outlet of the corresponding storage area. For example, the user may couple the article 30 such that outlet 1041 is in fluid communication with the opening 32 of the article 30. Accordingly, by actuating the corresponding plunger 2201, the article 30 can be supplied with aerosol-generating material from storage area A.

In this example, it should be appreciated that the refilling device 200A comprises a plurality of coupling mechanisms corresponding to each of the plurality of outlets 1041, 1042, 1043. Each of the coupling mechanisms (which may include any of the coupling mechanisms described above) are able to be individually operated so as to couple the article 30 to the corresponding outlet 1041, 1042, 1043. Each of the outlets 1041, 1042, 1043 may be provided with any of the transfer restriction members (e.g., valves) discussed above. In some implementations, the outlets 1041, 1042, 1043 are provided with transfer restriction members that are activated/actuated upon coupling of the article 30 to the corresponding outlet, thereby preventing the possibly of a user inadvertently actuating (i.e., pressing) the incorrect plunger 2201, 2202, 2203 and allowing aerosol-generating material to exit the refilling device 200A through an outlet not coupled to the article 30.

FIG. 12b represents an alternative configuration of the refilling device, whereby the refilling device 200B is provided with a single outlet 104. In this arrangement, however, each of the plurality of storage areas A, B, C is fluidly connected to the (common) outlet 104 of the refilling device 200B. In particular, the refilling device 200B comprises a plurality of connecting passages 111A, 111B, 111C that fluidly connect the storage areas A, B and C to the common outlet 104. For example, passage 111A couples the storage area A to the outlet 104, passage 111B couples the storage area B to the outlet 104, and passage 111C couples the storage area C to the outlet 104. When actuating any one of the plungers 2201, 2202, 2203, aerosol-generating material from any one of the plurality of these storage areas A, B, C may leave the refilling device 200B via the outlet 104. In this case, it should be appreciated that the refilling device 200B comprises a single coupling mechanism which is designed such that the (common) outlet 104 is engaged with the opening 32 of the article 30. Again, any of the coupling mechanisms as described above may be utilised.

In this example, the outlet 104 may comprise a transfer restriction member to prevent any aerosol-generating material escaping the refilling device 200B via the outlet 104 and, in addition, each of the passages 111A, 111B, 111C may comprise a transfer restriction member (such as a valve) which may restrict or prevent aerosol-generating material leaving a particular storage area A, B, C and passing to the outlet 104. In other words, when the user activates (i.e., presses) e.g., plunger 2201, the transfer restriction members in passages 111B and 111C prevent aerosol-generating material exiting the storage areas B and C and passing to the outlet 104. However, it should also be appreciated that in some implementations it may be desirable to fill the article 30 with more than one type of aerosol-generating material. The arrangement of FIG. 12b allows for a user to do this without decoupling the article 30—for example, the user may actuate plunger 2201 and 2202 in sequence or simultaneously to fill the article 30 with aerosol-generating material from each of the storage areas A and B.

Broadly, FIGS. 12a and 12b show examples of a refilling device 200A, 200B that comprises a plurality of storage areas, each for storing an aerosol-generating material, and a manually operated transfer mechanism (which may comprise a plurality of plungers 2201, 2202, 2203 or a plurality of concertinaed walls 101 or a plurality of pumps 330). The manually operated transfer mechanism enables the user to selectively transfer aerosol-generating material from at least one of the plurality of storage areas. In this way, the user may be provided with a refilling device, which may be portable, that comprises a plurality of storage areas and therefore potentially a plurality of different aerosol-generating materials for refilling the article 30. The user is therefore provided with increased convenience when it comes to refilling the article 30 with different flavours/different aerosol-generating materials.

In some implementations, the refilling device is configured such that the refilling device is capable of indicating the amount of aerosol-generating material dispensed when using the refilling device. For example, it has already been described above with respect to the refilling device 100 of FIG. 3 that collapsing (deformation) of the concertinaed outer wall 101 can act as a visual indication to the user as to how much aerosol-generating material has been dispensed and/or how much aerosol-generating material is remaining. In the example refilling device 200 of FIG. 4, the position of the plunger 220 may also indicate the amount of aerosol-generating material dispensed and/or remaining. Hence, it has generally been described that when the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a deformable (or moveable) portion, the extent to which the deformable portion is deformed from an initial condition is indicative of the amount of aerosol-generating material dispensed from the refilling device.

However, in other implementations, the manually operated transfer mechanism of the refilling device 100, 200, 300 may comprise a feedback mechanism configured to provide feedback to the user when a predetermined amount of aerosol-generating material has been dispensed by the refilling device 100, 200, 300.

FIG. 13 schematically represents a feedback mechanism which may be employed in the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4. FIG. 13 shows a part of the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4, and in particular a part of the stem 222, opening 205 and top wall 202.

In the example of FIG. 13, the feedback mechanism comprises a prong 202a fixed to (or integrally formed with) the top wall 202 of the refilling device 200, where the prong 202a protrudes in the direction of the opening 205, and a saw-toothed profile 222a provided on a part of the stem 222 of the plunger 220. The prong 202a is configured to engage with the saw-toothed profile 222a on the surface of the stem 222. In this regard, as the plunger 220 is actuated (i.e. pushed) by the user, the stem 222 moves with respect to the top wall 202 and consequently also the prong 202a. The prong is deformed by the saw-toothed profile 222a but in such a way that the prong 202a makes an audible sound as it snaps back into place after passing the peak of one tooth of the saw-toothed profile 222a. In other words, the prong 202a makes a sound each time it passes a tooth of the saw-toothed profile 2220a. The sound then acts as an indicator to the user of the refilling device 200, whereby this indicator is an indication of the distance the plunger 220 has travelled and subsequently how much aerosol-generating material has been dispensed from the refilling device 200.

The example feedback mechanism of FIG. 13 is an example of a possible feedback mechanism and it should be appreciated that the refilling devices 100, 200, 300 may be provided with any suitable feedback mechanism which is compatible with operation of the refilling device 100, 200, 300. The feedback mechanism may comprise a visual feedback or an audible feedback mechanism.

The refilling devices 100, 200, 300 may be disposable devices such that once the aerosol-generating material in the storage area has been depleted, the refilling device 100, 200, 300 is disposed of. However, in other implementations, the refilling devices 100, 200, 300 may be reusable. In some implementations, the refilling device 100, 200, 300 may be configured such that the storage area is refillable.

FIG. 14 schematically represents a refilling device in which the storage area is refillable. FIG. 14 represents a modification to the refilling device 200 described above in accordance with the present disclosure. FIG. 14 is shown with respect to the refilling device 200 of FIG. 4; however, it should be appreciated that that the modification of FIG. 14 may be equally applied to the refilling devices 100, 300 of FIGS. 3a and 5, or to other refilling devices as appropriate.

FIG. 14 shows a part of the refilling device 200 whereby a refill inlet 210 is arranged at a wall of the refilling device 200. The refill inlet 210 is configured to allow aerosol-generating material to be inserted into the storage area of the refilling device 200, but such that aerosol-generating material may not leave the storage area through the refill inlet 210. For example, the refill inlet may be a one way valve. In the described implementation, the refill inlet 210 comprises a septum covering an opening in the wall of the refilling device 200. The septum is designed so as to be pierced by a needle or the like of a syringe (or similar device) such that aerosol-generating material may be inserted into the storage area after the needle has pierced the septum. The septum may also be configured to re-seal once the needle has been withdrawn (e.g., the septum may be formed from a resilient material, such as a silicone material).

In the implementation shown, the refill inlet 210 is arranged on the outer wall 201 of the refilling device 200, at a position close to the base wall 203. In this way, when the refilling device 200 is depleted, the plunger 222 is at its lowest position and, in effect, the storage area is at its smallest volume. Providing the refill inlet 210 at a position close to the base wall 203 and such that the refill inlet 210 is able to communicate with the storage area when the storage area is at its smallest volume means that the refill inlet 210 is capable of supplying aerosol-generating material to the storage area and subsequently resupplying the storage area (and in the refilling device 200, to additionally cause the plunger 222 to move in a direction away from the base wall 203 to expand the storage area).

While it has been described above that the article 30 is refilled by a refilling device 100, 200, 300 comprising a manually operated transfer mechanism, the article 30 may alternatively be refilled automatically, by provision of apparatus which is termed herein a desktop refilling unit, refilling station, or simply dock. The refilling unit is configured to receive an aerosol provision system 10, or more conveniently, the article 30 from the aerosol provision system 10 having an aerosol-generating material storage area which is empty or only partly full, plus a larger reservoir holding aerosol generating material. However, in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, the desktop refilling unit is also configured to receive the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 (or a part thereof) and perform refilling of the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 (e.g., via the refill inlet 210). That is to say, the desktop refilling unit is dually capable of refilling the article 30 or the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300.

FIG. 15 shows a highly schematic representation of an example desktop refilling unit. The desktop refilling unit is shown in a simplified form only, to illustrate various elements and their relationship to one another. More particular features of one or more of the elements with which the present disclosure is concerned will be described in more detail below.

The refilling unit 50 will be referred to hereinafter for convenience as a “dock”. This term is applicable since a reservoir and an article are received or “docked” in the refilling device during use. The dock 50 comprises an outer housing 52. The dock 50 is expected to be useful for refilling of articles in the home or workplace (rather than being a portable device or a commercial device, although these options are not excluded). Therefore, the outer housing, made for example from metal, plastics or glass, may be designed to have a pleasing outward appearance such as to make it suitable for permanent and convenient access, such as on a shelf, desk, table or counter. It may be any size suitable for accommodating the various elements described herein, such as having dimensions between about 10 cm and 20 cm, although smaller or larger sizes may be preferred. Inside the housing 50 are defined two cavities or ports 54, 56.

A first port 54 is shaped and dimensioned to receive and interface with a refill reservoir 40. The first or refill reservoir port 54 is configured to enable an interface between the refill reservoir 40 and the dock 50, so might alternatively be termed a refill reservoir interface. Primarily, the refill reservoir interface is for moving aerosol-generating material out of the refill reservoir 40, but in some cases the interface may enable additional functions, such as electrical contacts and sensing capabilities for communication between the refill reservoir 40 and the dock 50 and determining characteristics and features of the refill reservoir 40.

The refill reservoir 40 comprises a wall or housing 41 that defines a storage space (or storage area) for holding aerosol-generating material 42. The volume of the storage space is large enough to accommodate many or several times the storage area/reservoir 3 of an article 30 intended to be refilled in the dock 50 and/or several times the storage area of the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300. A user can therefore purchase a filled reservoir 40 of their preferred aerosol generating material (flavour, strength, brand, etc.), and use it to refill an article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 multiple times. A user could acquire several reservoirs 40 of different aerosol generating materials, so as to have a convenient choice available when refilling an article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300. The refill reservoir 40 includes an outlet orifice or opening 44 by which the aerosol generating material 42 can pass out of the refill reservoir 40. The outlet orifice 44 may include any suitable cap, valve, semipermeable membrane, septum, etc. to allow aerosol-generating material to selectively exit the refill reservoir 40 through the orifice 44.

A second port 56 is shaped and dimensioned to receive and interface with an article 30. The second or article port 56 is configured to enable an interface between the article 30 and the dock 50, so might alternatively be termed an article interface. Primarily, the article interface is for receiving aerosol-generating material into the article 30, but in some cases the interface may enable additional functions, such as electrical contacts and sensing capabilities for communication between the article 30 and the dock 50 and determining characteristics and features of the reservoir 30.

In addition, the second port 56 is shaped and dimensioned to receive and interface with the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300, or at least a part thereof. The second or article port 56 is therefore dually configured to enable an interface between the article 30 and the dock 50 or the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 and the dock 50. In this regard, the second port 56 may be configured in such a way to accommodate the article 30 and refilling device 100, 200, 300 of differing sizes, or alternatively the relevant parts of the article 30 and manual refilling device (i.e., the parts comprising the refill inlet 210) are commonly sized such that ether may fit in and be received by the second port 56.

The housing also accommodates a fluid conduit 58, being a passage or flow path by which the reservoir 40 and the storage area 3 of the article 30/or the storage area of the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 are placed in fluid communication, so that aerosol-generating material can move from the refill reservoir 40 to the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 when both the refill reservoir 40 and the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 are correctly positioned in the dock 50. Placement of the refill reservoir 40 and the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 into the dock 50 locates and engages them such that the fluid conduit 58 is connected between the outlet orifice 44 of the reservoir 40 and the inlet orifice 32 of the article 30 or the refill inlet 210 of the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300. Note that in some examples, all or part of the fluid conduit 58 may be formed by parts of the refill reservoir 40 and the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300, so that the fluid conduit 58 is created and defined only when the refill reservoir 40 and/or the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 are placed in the dock 50. In other cases, the fluid conduit 58 may be a flow path defined within the housing 52 of the dock 50, to each end of which the respective orifices are engaged.

Access to the reservoir port 54 and the second port 56 can be by any convenient means. Apertures may be provided in the housing 52 of the dock 50, through which the refill reservoir 40 and the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 can be placed or pushed. The refill reservoir 40 and/or the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 may be completely contained within the respective apertures or may partially be contained such that a portion of the refill reservoir 40 and/or the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 protrude from the respective ports 54, 56. In some instances, doors or the like may be included to cover the apertures to prevent dust or other contaminants from entering the apertures. When the refill reservoir 40 and/or the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 are completely contained in the ports 54, 56, the doors or the like might require to be placed in closed state to allow refilling to take place. Doors, hatches and other hinged coverings, or sliding access elements such as drawers or trays, might include shaped tracks, slots or recesses to receive and hold the refill reservoir 40 or the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300, which bring the refill reservoir 40 or the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 into proper alignment inside the housing 52 when the door, etc. is closed. Alternatively, the housing of the dock 50 may be shaped so as to include recessed portions into which the article 30, manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 or refill reservoir 40 may be inserted respectively. These and other alternatives will be apparent to the skilled person, and do not affect the scope of the present disclosure.

The dock 50 also includes an aerosol generating material transfer mechanism, arrangement, or apparatus 53, operable to move or cause the movement of fluid out of the refill reservoir 40, along the conduit 58. Various options are contemplated for the automated transfer mechanism 53, but by way of an example, the refill reservoir 40 may comprise a collapsible or movable wall (e.g., a plunger) such that the volume of the refill reservoir 40 can be adjusted (reduced) and the aerosol-generating material transfer mechanism 53 comprises a suitable push rod or the like for actuating the collapsible or movable wall of the refill reservoir 40 to supply aerosol-generating material along the conduit 58. In other implementations, the transfer mechanism 53 may comprise a fluid pump, such as a peristaltic pump. The peristaltic pump may be arranged to rotate and compress parts of the conduit 58 to force source liquid along the length of the conduit towards the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 in accordance with the conventional techniques for operating a peristaltic pump.

A controller 55 (or control circuitry) is also included in the dock 50, which is operable to control components of the dock 50, in particular to generate and send control signals to operate the automated transfer mechanism 53. As noted, this may be in response to a user input, such as actuation of a button or switch (not shown) on the housing 52, or automatically in response to both the refill reservoir 40 and the article 30 or manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 being detected as present inside their respective ports 54, 56. The controller 55 may therefore be in communication with contacts and/or sensors (not shown) at the ports 54, 56 that can be used in the generation of control signals for operating the automated transfer mechanism 53. The controller 55 may comprise a microcontroller, a microprocessor, or any configuration of circuitry, hardware, firmware or software as preferred; various options will be apparent to the skilled person.

Finally, the dock 50 includes a power source 57 to provide electrical power for the controller 55, and any other electrical components that may be included in the dock 50, such as sensors, user inputs such as switches, buttons or touch panels, and, if present, display elements such as light emitting diodes and/or display screens to convey information about the dock's operation and status to the user. In addition, the automated transfer mechanism 53 may be electrically powered. Since the dock 50 may be for permanent location in a house or office, the power source 57 may comprise a socket for connection of an electrical mains cable to the dock 50, so that the dock 50 may be “plugged in” to mains electricity. Any suitable electrical converter to convert mains electricity to a suitable operational supply of electricity to the dock 50 may be provided, either on the mains cable or within the dock 50. Alternatively, the power source 57 may comprise one or more batteries, which might be replaceable or rechargeable, and in the latter case the dock 50 may also comprise a socket connection for a charging cable adapted to recharge the battery or batteries while housed in the dock.

Hence, the dock 50 is provided to facilitate automated refilling of the article 30 and/or to facilitate automated refilling of the refilling devices 100, 200, 300 comprising manually operated transfer mechanisms, provided such refilling devices 100, 200, 300 have a suitable inlet port 210 or similar structural features that allows aerosol-generating material to be inserted into the storage area of the refilling device 100, 200, 300. In this regard, the inlet port 210 of the refilling device 100, 200, 300 may be configured in a similar manner to a refilling port of the article 30 (e.g., the opening 32 of the article 30). In this way, the user may refill the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 from their desktop refilling unit 50 and may take the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300 with them during their day. When the article 30 is depleted and the user is away from the desktop refilling unit 50, the article 30 may be refilled with the manual refilling device 100, 200, 300.

Thus, there has generally been described a refilling device 100, 200, 300 which comprises a manually operated transfer mechanism that is capable, upon application of a force by a user, to transfer aerosol-generating material from the refilling device 100, 200, 300 to an article 30 coupled to the refilling device 100, 200, 300. Such a manually operated refilling device 100, 200, 300 allows for potentially greater portability (as no electronic components, such as a battery, are provided in the refilling device) as well as allowing for more intuitive control over the supply of the aerosol-generating material to the reservoir.

FIG. 16 shows an example method for manually refilling a storage area (reservoir 3) of a refillable article 30 from a refilling device, such as refilling devices 100, 200, 300 described above, with aerosol-generating material from the refilling device 100, 200, 300.

The method begins at step S1, whereby the user couples the article 30 to the refilling device 100, 200, 300. The refilling device 100, 200, 300 comprises a coupling mechanism for allowing the article 30 to couple to the refilling device 100, 200, 300. In particular, the coupling mechanism allows an outlet 104, 204, 304 of the refilling device 100, 200, 300 to be provided in fluid communication with an opening 32 of the article 30. In some implementations, only the refilling device 100, 200, 300 is provided with a coupling mechanism, but in other implementations the article 30 may be provided with a corresponding coupling mechanism that cooperates with the coupling mechanism of the refilling device 100, 200, 300. Coupling the article 30 to the refilling device 100, 200, 300 may also cause a transfer restriction member provided at the outlet 104, 204, 304 of the refilling device 100, 200, 300 to open (or more specifically, to reduce its resistance to the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet 104, 204, 304).

Once the article 30 has been coupled to the refilling device 100, 200, 300, the method proceeds to step S2 whereby the user actuates the manually operable transfer mechanism of the refilling device 100, 200, 300. The manually operable transfer mechanism may be actuated via a push, press or squeezing actuation performed by the user. This may include pressing on a top wall 102 of a refilling device 100 provided with a concertinaed outer wall 101, pressing on a flange 203 of a plunger 220 of a refilling device 200, squeezing the walls of a pump 330 of a refilling device 300, or any other suitable actuation for an alternative manually operable transfer mechanism.

The method proceeds to step S3 where the question is asked as to whether the storage area (reservoir 3) of the article 30 has been sufficiently refilled. This may be such that the reservoir 3 is completely full or partially full depending on the user's preference. As noted above, the refilling device 100, 200, 300 may be provided with a suitable feedback mechanism, which may include a visual indicator (such as the amount of deformation or movement of a deformable or moveable element of the refilling device 100, 200, 300, or observing through a transparent window/transparent wall of the refilling device 100, 200, 300) or an audible indicator (such as a prong 202a and saw-toothed profile 222a). In some cases, a haptic feedback may also be provided, for example in respect of the effort required to push the segments of the concertinaed wall 101 of varying thicknesses e.g., of FIG. 3b. In other instances, the feedback may be provided via the article 30—for example, with the article 30 having a transparent window.

If at step S3 the user determines that the storage area of the article 30 is not full (or is not filled to a certain user requirement), i.e., a NO at step S3, then the method proceeds back to step S2 where the user continues to actuate the manually operable transfer mechanism. If at step S3 the user determines that the storage area of the article 30 is full (or is filled to a certain user requirement), i.e., a YES at step S3, then the method proceeds to step S4 where the user stops actuation of the manually operable transfer mechanism. The method finishes with the user decoupling the article from the refilling device 100, 200, 300 at step S5.

It should be appreciated that the method of FIG. 16 is an example method and other steps may additionally be included as desired or as necessitated by the particular implementation at hand. For example, in some implementations, the opening 32 of the article 30 and/or the outlet(s) 104, 204, 304, 2041, 2042, 2043 may be provided with a removable cap or cover which is removed prior to coupling the article 30 to the refilling device 100, 200, 300. Additionally, in some implementations, a cover may be provided that covers the manually operated transfer mechanism (e.g., a cover provided over the concertinaed wall 101 and top wall 102 of the refilling device 100, a cover over the exposed stem 222 and flange 223 of the refilling device 200, or a cover over the pump 330 of the refilling device 300) such that the manually operated transfer mechanism is unable to be actuated by a user until the cover has been removed. Alternatively, instead of a cover, locking elements (e.g., such as a pin locking the stem 222) may be provided to perform a similar function of preventing the manually operated transfer mechanism from being actuated.

Although it has been described above that the refilling device 100, 200, 300 is provided to transfer source liquid as the aerosol-generating material to an article 30, as discussed, other implementations may use other aerosol-generating materials (such as solids, e.g., tobacco). The principles of the present disclosure apply equally to other types of aerosol-generating material, and suitable refilling devices 100, 200, 300 and articles 30 for storing/holding the aerosol-generating materials, and a suitable manually operated transfer mechanism, may accordingly be employed by the skilled person for such implementations.

Hence, it has been described a refilling device for refilling a storage area of an article with aerosol-generating material, the article suitable for use in an aerosol provision system for generating aerosol from aerosol-generating material in the storage area of the article. The refilling device includes: a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material; an outlet fluidly coupled to the storage area and configured to permit aerosol-generating material to leave the refilling device via the outlet; a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article, wherein the coupling mechanism is arranged such that the outlet is aligned or engaged with a respective opening of the article, the opening fluidly coupled to a storage area of the article; and a manually operated transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol-generating material from the storage area of the refilling device to the storage area of the article. The manually operated transfer mechanism is configured to be manually operated by a user of the refilling device to cause transfer of the aerosol-generating material. Also described is a refillable article for use with the refilling device, a desktop refilling unit for refilling an article with aerosol-generating material, and a method for manually refilling a storage area of a refillable article.

The various embodiments described herein are presented only to assist in understanding and teaching the claimed features. These embodiments are provided as a representative sample of embodiments only, and are not exhaustive and/or exclusive. It is to be understood that advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures, and/or other aspects described herein are not to be considered limitations on the scope of the invention as defined by the claims or limitations on equivalents to the claims, and that other embodiments may be utilised and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. Various embodiments of the invention may suitably comprise, consist of, or consist essentially of, appropriate combinations of the disclosed elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc., other than those specifically described herein. In addition, this disclosure may include other inventions not presently claimed, but which may be claimed in future.

Claims

1. A refilling device for refilling a storage area of an article with aerosol-generating material, the article suitable for use in an aerosol provision system for generating aerosol from aerosol-generating material in the storage area of the article, the refilling device comprising:

a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material;

an outlet fluidly coupled to the storage area and configured to permit aerosol-generating material to leave the refilling device via the outlet;

a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article, wherein the coupling mechanism is arranged such that the outlet is aligned or engaged with a respective opening of the article, the opening fluidly coupled to a storage area of the article; and

a manually operated transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol-generating material from the storage area of the refilling device to the storage area of the article, wherein the manually operated transfer mechanism is configured to be manually operated by a user of the refilling device to cause transfer of the aerosol-generating material.

2. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a region where a user is able to push, press, or squeeze in order to actuate the transfer mechanism.

3. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the manually operated transfer mechanism includes a deformable portion of a housing of the refilling device, and wherein pressing or squeezing the deformable portion causes aerosol-generating material to be forced out of the storage area of the refilling device.

4. The refilling device of claim 3, wherein the deformable portion of the housing includes a concertinaed configuration of the housing joined to the periphery of a wall of the housing, wherein the concertinaed configuration is capable of collapsing to reduce the volume of the housing when force is applied to the wall of the housing, and optionally, wherein the storage area for storing aerosol-generating material either:

comprises a container having a flexible wall portion, and wherein the container is arranged to cooperate with the concertinaed configuration of the housing such that, upon deforming the concertinaed configuration of the housing, the container having a flexible wall is compressed by the housing of the refilling device; or

is defined, in part, by the concertinaed configuration of the housing such that, upon deforming the concertinaed configuration of the housing, the volume of the storage area is reduced, and wherein the concertinaed configuration is arranged such that aerosol-generating material is unable to escape the storage area through the concertinaed configuration of the housing.

5. (canceled)

6. (canceled)

7. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the manually operated transfer mechanism includes a manually actuated pump which, when actuated by a user, causes pressure to be applied to the aerosol-generating material in the storage area of the refilling device to cause the aerosol-generating material to be forced out of the storage area of the refilling device.

8. The refilling device of any claim 1, wherein the coupling mechanism is provided with a transfer restriction member configured to restrict the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet wherein optionally, the coupling mechanism is configured to adjust the transfer restriction member such that the restriction to the transfer of aerosol-generating material through the outlet is reduced when the coupling mechanism is coupled to the article.

9. (canceled)

10. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the refilling device comprises a valve, located in the fluid pathway between the storage area of the refilling device and the outlet, the valve configured to allow aerosol-generating material to flow at least in the direction from the storage area of the refilling device to the storage area of the article upon manual operation of the manually operated transfer mechanism.

11. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the outlet is configured such that, aerosol-generating material is unable to leave the refilling device via the opening unless subjected to a threshold force.

12. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the coupling mechanism either:

is provided with a keying feature configured to engage with a corresponding keying feature of the article; and/or

includes a coded magnet, the coded magnet including a plurality of individual magnets arranged in a predetermined pattern based on their polarity, wherein the coded magnet is arranged to magnetically couple to a complementary coded magnet on the article.

13. (canceled)

14. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the refill device comprises a plurality of storage areas, each storage area for storing an aerosol-generating material, wherein the manually operated transfer mechanism is configured, when operated by a user, to be able to selectively transfer aerosol-generating from at least one of the plurality of storage areas, wherein optionally, the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a plurality of manually operated transfer mechanisms, wherein each of the plurality of storage mechanisms comprises a manually operated transfer mechanism, and wherein, upon actuation of a manually operated transfer mechanism, the corresponding storage area is configured to transfer aerosol-generating material stored in that storage area.

15. (canceled)

16. The refilling device of claim 14, wherein each of the plurality of storage areas is fluidly connected to the outlet of the refilling device, such that aerosol-generating material form any one of the plurality of storage areas may leave the refilling device via the outlet.

17. The refilling device of claim 14, wherein the refilling device comprises a plurality of outlets, wherein each of the plurality of storage areas is fluidly connected to a corresponding one of the plurality of outlets of the refilling device, optionally, wherein the refilling device comprises a plurality of coupling mechanisms corresponding to each of the plurality of outlets.

18. (canceled)

19. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the refilling device comprises an elongate passageway from the storage area to the outlet, wherein optionally, the elongate passageway comprises a hollow tubular structure having a piercing element at an end comprising the outlet, wherein the piercing element is configured to pierce a septum covering the opening of the article.

20. (canceled)

21. The refilling device of claim 19, wherein the elongate passageway is provided in an initial retracted state, such that the piercing element is retracted within the housing of the refilling device, and wherein the elongate passageway is able to be moved to a protracted state that protrudes from the housing of the refilling device;

and/or wherein the elongate passageway is configured to move to the protracted state when or during coupling of the article to the coupling mechanism.

22. (canceled)

23. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the refilling device is configured such that the refilling device is capable of indicating the amount of aerosol-generating material dispensed when using the refilling device,

wherein optionally, the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a deformable portion, the extent to which the deformable portion is deformed from an initial condition is indicative of the amount of aerosol-generating material dispensed.

wherein further optionally, the manually operated transfer mechanism comprises a feedback mechanism configured to provide feedback to the user when a predetermined amount of aerosol-generating material has been dispensed by the refilling device.

24. (canceled)

25. (canceled)

26. The refilling device of claim 1, wherein the refilling device is provided with an inlet configured to receive aerosol-generating material in order to refill the storage area of the refilling device, wherein optionally, the inlet includes an opening fluidly connected to the storage area of the refilling device, and wherein the opening is covered by a septum.

27. (canceled)

28. A refillable article for use with the refilling device of claim 1, wherein the refillable article comprises:

a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material;

an opening fluidly coupled to the storage area; and

a coupling mechanism, wherein the coupling mechanism is configured to engage with the coupling mechanism of the refilling device.

29. A desktop refilling unit for refilling an article with aerosol-generating material for use with an aerosol provision device to generate aerosol for inhalation by a user, the refilling unit comprising:

an article port for receiving an article; and

an aerosol-generating material transfer mechanism for transferring aerosol generating material from a refill reservoir to the article,

wherein the article port is additionally configured to receive the refilling device of claim 26 in place of the article, and the aerosol-generating material transfer mechanism is configured to transfer aerosol-generating material to the storage area of the refilling device.

30. The desktop refilling unit of claim 29, wherein the article port includes a region sized to receive the article, and a region sized to receive the refilling device of claim 20, wherein the region sized to receive the article and the region sized to receive the refilling device overlap such that only one of the article or the refilling device may be received in the article port at any given time.

31. A method for manually refilling a storage area of a refillable article from a refilling device with aerosol-generating material, the article suitable for use in an aerosol provision system for generating aerosol from aerosol-generating material in the storage area of the article, the refilling device comprising, a storage area for storing aerosol-generating material, an outlet fluidly coupled to the storage area and configured to permit aerosol-generating material to leave the refilling device via the outlet, a coupling mechanism for coupling to the article, and a manually operated transfer mechanism, the method comprising

coupling, using the coupling mechanism, the article to the refilling device, such that the outlet of the refilling device is aligned or engaged with a respective opening of the article; and

manually actuating the manually operated transfer mechanism to cause transfer of the aerosol-generating material to the article via the opening.

32. (canceled)