Vaporizer Device and Cartridge

The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/797,037, filed on Jan. 25, 2019, and titled “Vaporizer Device and Cartridge,” the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

The subject matter described herein relates to vaporizer devices and cartridges, including vaporizer devices and cartridges having a tobacco-based wicking element.

Vaporizer devices, which can also be referred to as vaporizers, electronic vaporizer devices, or e-vaporizer devices, can be used for delivery of an aerosol (for example, a vapor-phase and/or condensed-phase material suspended in a stationary or moving mass of air or some other gas carrier) containing one or more active ingredients by inhalation of the aerosol by a user of the vaporizing device. For example, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) include a class of vaporizer devices that are battery powered and that can be used to simulate the experience of smoking, but without burning of tobacco or other substances. Vaporizers are gaining increasing popularity both for prescriptive medical use, in delivering medicaments, and for consumption of tobacco, nicotine, and other plant-based materials. Vaporizer devices can be portable, self-contained, and/or convenient for use.

In use of a vaporizer device, the user inhales an aerosol, colloquially referred to as “vapor,” which can be generated by a heating element that vaporizes (e.g., causes a liquid or solid to at least partially transition to the gas phase) a vaporizable material, which can be liquid, a solution, a solid, a paste, a wax, and/or any other form compatible for use with a specific vaporizer device. The vaporizable material used with a vaporizer can be provided within a cartridge for example, a separable part of the vaporizer device that contains vaporizable material) that includes an outlet (for example, a mouthpiece) for inhalation of the aerosol by a user.

To receive the inhalable aerosol generated by a vaporizer device, a user may, in certain examples, activate the vaporizer device by taking a puff, by pressing a button, and/or by some other approach. A puff as used herein can refer to inhalation by the user in a manner that causes a volume of air to be drawn into the vaporizer device such that the inhalable aerosol is generated by a combination of the vaporized vaporizable material with the volume of air.

An approach by which a vaporizer device generates an inhalable aerosol from a vaporizable material involves heating the vaporizable material in a vaporization chamber (e.g., a heater chamber) to cause the vaporizable material to be converted to the gas (or vapor) phase. A vaporization chamber can refer to an area or volume in the vaporizer device within which a heat source (for example, a conductive, convective, and/or radiative heat source) causes heating of a vaporizable material to produce a mixture of air and vaporized material to form a vapor for inhalation of the vaporizable material by a user of the vaporization device.

In some implementations, the vaporizable material can be drawn out of a reservoir and into the vaporization chamber via a wicking element (e.g., a wick). Drawing the vaporizable material into the vaporization chamber can be at least partially due to capillary action provided by the wick, as the wick pulls the vaporizable material along the wick in the direction of the vaporization chamber. However, as vaporizable material is drawn out of the reservoir, the pressure inside the reservoir is reduced, thereby creating a vacuum and acting against the capillary action. This can reduce the effectiveness of the wick to draw the vaporizable material into the vaporization chamber, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the vaporization device to vaporize a desired amount of vaporizable material, such as when a user takes a puff on the vaporizer device. Furthermore, the vacuum created in the reservoir can ultimately result in the inability to draw all of the vaporizable material into the vaporization chamber, thereby wasting vaporizable material. As such, improved vaporization devices and/or vaporization cartridges that improve upon or overcome these issues is desired.

Generally, the vaporizable material may include a certain concentration of nicotine and optionally a particular flavoring to enhance the user's experience. However, in some instances, the vaporizable material may not provide natural flavors and/or a natural source of nicotine. Additionally, many wicking elements used in vaporizer devices may simply act as a medium through which vaporizable material is drawn from the reservoir to be vaporized and inhaled by the user. The wicking elements may not provide a source of flavor or nicotine instead of or in addition to the flavoring and/or nicotine content provided by the vaporizable material.

Moreover, vaporizer devices may not be able to accommodate more than one type of cartridge. For instance, vaporizer devices may be capable of only be capable of accommodating a vaporizer cartridge of a single type (e.g., a vaporizer cartridge having a particular type of wicking element), rather than more than one type of vaporizer cartridge (e.g., a vaporizer cartridge having a tobacco-based wicking element and a vaporizer cartridge having another type of wicking element). Many vaporizer devices do not allow for various types of vaporizer cartridges to be interchanged due to certain device and/or controller limitations.

Vaporizer devices can be controlled by one or more controllers, electronic circuits (for example, sensors, heating elements), and/or the like on the vaporizer. Vaporizer devices can also wirelessly communicate with an external controller for example, a computing device such as a smartphone).

In certain aspects of the current subject matter, challenges associated with the limitations of conventional wicking elements, vaporizer devices, and vaporizer cartridges can be addressed by the inclusion of one or more of the features described herein. Aspects of the current subject matter are related to a vaporizer device and cartridge including a wicking element. In one aspect, a wicking element made of tobacco or a tobacco-based composition blend is described.

In some variations one or more of the following features may optionally be included in any feasible combination. The device can include a wicking element configured for use in a vaporizer device. The wicking element can be composed, at least partially, of tobacco.

In some variations, the wicking element can be further composed of a tobacco composition including at least tobacco and a fibrous material.

In some variations, the fibrous material incudes cotton fiber. In other variations, the fibrous material includes hemp fiber.

In some variations, the tobacco includes a tobacco blend and a binder.

According to some variations, a method of manufacturing a wicking element includes forming a first portion of the wicking element to include a tobacco. The method may further include adhering the first portion of the wicking element to a second portion of the wicking element comprising a fibrous material.

In some variations, the first portion of the wicking element may be formed by at least blending a first tobacco material with a second tobacco material to form a blended tobacco material. The forming may include priming the blended tobacco material by applying a vaporizable material to the blended tobacco material. The forming may also include applying a binder to the blended tobacco to form the first portion of the wicking element. The forming may further include extruding the first portion of the wicking element. The forming may further include dehydrating the first portion of the wicking element.

In some variations, the adhering further includes applying a vaporizable material to the first portion of the wicking element. The adhering may also include dehydrating the first portion of the wicking element and the second portion of the wicking element.

In some variations, a vaporizer cartridge may include a reservoir, a wicking element, and a heating element. The reservoir may be configured to contain a vaporizable material. The wicking element may draw vaporizable material from the reservoir. The wicking element may include tobacco. The heating element may be coupled with the wicking element and heat the wicking element to cause vaporizable material to vaporize.

In some variations, the heating element is crimped about the wicking element. In some variations, the wicking element further includes a fibrous material coupled with the tobacco.

According to some variations, a method of assembling a vaporizer cartridge comprising a reservoir configured to contain a vaporizable material includes crimping a heating element about a wicking element. The wicking element may include tobacco. The method may further include inserting the heating element and the wicking element into an end of the reservoir. The method may further include securing the heating element and the wicking element within the reservoir with a grill. The method may further include providing vaporizable material to the reservoir. The method may further include coupling a mouthpiece to another end of the reservoir.

According to some variations, a vaporizer device includes a vaporizer body having a cartridge receptacle. The cartridge receptacle may receive a first vaporizer cartridge comprising a first wicking element at least partially composed of tobacco. The cartridge receptacle may also receive a second vaporize cartridge comprising a second wicking element composed of cotton. The vaporizer body may detect whether the first vaporizer cartridge or the second vaporizer cartridge has been inserted into the cartridge receptacle. In some variations, a controller of the vaporizer body may adjust a heating temperature of a heating element of the vaporizer cartridge.

The details of one or more variations of the subject matter described herein are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features and advantages of the subject matter described herein will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

When practical, similar reference numbers denote similar structures, features, or elements.

Implementations of the current subject matter include methods, apparatuses, articles of manufacture, and systems relating to vaporization of one or more materials for inhalation by a user. Example implementations include vaporizer devices and systems including vaporizer devices. The term “vaporizer device” as used in the following description and claims refers to any of a self-contained apparatus, an apparatus that includes two or more separable parts (for example, a vaporizer body that includes a battery and other hardware, and a cartridge that includes a vaporizable material), and/or the like. A “vaporizer system,” as used herein, can include one or more components, such as a vaporizer device. Examples of vaporizer devices consistent with implementations of the current subject matter include electronic vaporizers, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), and/or the like. In general, such vaporizer devices are hand-held devices that heat (such as by convection, conduction, radiation, and/or some combination thereof) a vaporizable material to provide an inhalable dose of the material.

The vaporizable material used with a vaporizer device can be provided within a cartridge (for example, a part of the vaporizer that contains the vaporizable material in a reservoir or other container) which can be refillable when empty, or disposable such that a new cartridge containing additional vaporizable material of a same or different type can be used). A vaporizer device can be a cartridge-using vaporizer device, a cartridge-less vaporizer device, or a multi-use vaporizer device capable of use with or without a cartridge. For example, a vaporizer device can include a heating chamber (for example, an oven or other region in which material is heated by a heating element) configured to receive a vaporizable material directly into the heating chamber, and/or a reservoir or the like for containing the vaporizable material.

In some implementations, a vaporizer device can be configured for use with a liquid vaporizable material (for example, a carrier solution in which an active and/or inactive ingredient(s) are suspended or held in solution, or a liquid form of the vaporizable material itself), a paste, a wax, and/or a solid vaporizable material. A solid vaporizable material can include a plant material that emits some part of the plant material as the vaporizable material (for example, some part of the plant material remains as waste after the material is vaporized for inhalation by a user) or optionally can be a solid form of the vaporizable material itself, such that all of the solid material can eventually be vaporized for inhalation. A liquid vaporizable material can likewise be capable of being completely vaporized, or can include some portion of the liquid material that remains after all of the material suitable for inhalation has been vaporized.

Referring to the block diagram of, a vaporizer devicecan include a power source(for example, a battery, which can be a rechargeable battery), and a controller(for example, a processor, circuitry, etc. capable of executing logic) for controlling delivery of heat to an atomizerto cause a vaporizable materialto be converted from a condensed form (such as a solid, a liquid, a solution, a suspension, a part of an at least partially unprocessed plant material, etc.) to the gas phase. The controllercan be part of one or more printed circuit boards (PCBs) consistent with certain implementations of the current subject matter. After conversion of the vaporizable materialto the gas phase, at least some of the vaporizable materialin the gas phase can condense to form particulate matter in at least a partial local equilibrium with the gas phase as part of an aerosol, which can form some or all of an inhalable dose provided by the vaporizer deviceduring a user's puff or draw on the vaporizer device. It should be appreciated that the interplay between gas and condensed phases in an aerosol generated by a vaporizer devicecan be complex and dynamic, due to factors such as ambient temperature, relative humidity, chemistry, flow conditions in airflow paths (both inside the vaporizer and in the airways of a human or other animal), and/or mixing of the vaporizable materialin the gas phase or in the aerosol phase with other air streams, which can affect one or more physical parameters of an aerosol. In some vaporizer devices, and particularly for vaporizer devices configured for delivery of volatile vaporizable materials, the inhalable dose can exist predominantly in the gas phase (for example, formation of condensed phase particles can be very limited).

The atomizerin the vaporizer devicecan be configured to vaporize a vaporizable material. The vaporizable materialcan be a liquid. Examples of the vaporizable materialinclude neat liquids, suspensions, solutions, mixtures, and/or the like. The atomizercan include a wicking element (i.e., a wick) configured to convey an amount of the vaporizable materialto a part of the atomizerthat includes a heating element (not shown in).

For example, the wicking element can be configured to draw the vaporizable materialfrom a reservoirconfigured to contain the vaporizable material, such that the vaporizable materialcan be vaporized by heat delivered from a heating element included in the atomizer. The wicking element can also optionally allow air to enter the reservoirand replace the volume of vaporizable materialremoved. In some implementations of the current subject matter, capillary action can pull vaporizable materialinto the wick for vaporization by the heating element, and air can return to the reservoirthrough the wick to at least partially equalize pressure in the reservoir. Other methods of allowing air back into the reservoirto equalize pressure are also within the scope of the current subject matter.

As used herein, the terms “wick” or “wicking element” include any material capable of causing fluid motion via capillary pressure.

The heating element can include one or more of a conductive heater, a radiative heater, and/or a convective heater. One type of heating element is a resistive heating element, which can include a material (such as a metal or alloy, for example a nickel-chromium alloy, or a non-metallic resistor) configured to dissipate electrical power in the form of heat when electrical current is passed through one or more resistive segments of the heating element. In some implementations of the current subject matter, the atomizercan include a heating element which includes a resistive coil or other heating element wrapped around, positioned within, integrated into a bulk shape of, pressed into thermal contact with, or otherwise arranged to deliver heat to a wicking element, to cause the vaporizable materialdrawn from the reservoirby the wicking element to be vaporized for subsequent inhalation by a user in a gas and/or a condensed (for example, aerosol particles or droplets) phase. Other wicking elements, heating elements, and/or atomizer assembly configurations are also possible.

Certain vaporizer devices may, additionally or alternatively, be configured to create an inhalable dose of the vaporizable materialin the gas phase and/or aerosol phase via heating of the vaporizable material. The vaporizable materialcan be a solid-phase material (such as a wax or the like) or plant material (for example, tobacco leaves and/or parts of tobacco leaves). In such vaporizer devices, a resistive heating element can be part of, or otherwise incorporated into or in thermal contact with, the walls of an oven or other heating chamber into which the vaporizable materialis placed. Alternatively, a resistive heating element or elements can be used to heat air passing through or past the vaporizable material, to cause convective heating of the vaporizable material. In still other examples, a resistive heating element or elements can be disposed in intimate contact with plant material such that direct conductive heating of the plant material occurs from within a mass of the plant material, as opposed to only by conduction inward from walls of an oven.

The heating element can be activated in association with a user puffing (i.e., drawing, inhaling, etc.) on a mouthpieceof the vaporizer deviceto cause air to flow from an air inlet, along an airflow path that passes the atomizer(i.e., wicking element and heating element). Optionally, air can flow from an air inlet through one or more condensation areas or chambers, to an air outlet in the mouthpiece. Incoming air moving along the airflow path moves over or through the atomizer, where vaporizable materialin the gas phase is entrained into the air. The heating element can be activated via the controller, which can optionally be a part of a vaporizer bodyas discussed herein, causing current to pass from the power sourcethrough a circuit including the resistive heating element, which is optionally part of a vaporizer cartridgeas discussed herein. As noted herein, the entrained vaporizable materialin the gas phase can condense as it passes through the remainder of the airflow path such that an inhalable dose of the vaporizable materialin an aerosol form can be delivered from the air outlet (for example, the mouthpiece) for inhalation by a user.

Activation of the heating element can be caused by automatic detection of a puff based on one or more signals generated by one or more of a sensor. The sensorand the signals generated by the sensorcan include one or more of: a pressure sensor or sensors disposed to detect pressure along the airflow path relative to ambient pressure (or optionally to measure changes in absolute pressure), a motion sensor or sensors (for example, an accelerometer) of the vaporizer device, a flow sensor or sensors of the vaporizer device, a capacitive lip sensor of the vaporizer device, detection of interaction of a user with the vaporizer devicevia one or more input devices(for example, buttons or other tactile control devices of the vaporizer device), receipt of signals from a computing device in communication with the vaporizer device, and/or via other approaches for determining that a puff is occurring or imminent.

As discussed herein, the vaporizer deviceconsistent with implementations of the current subject matter can be configured to connect (such as, for example, wirelessly or via a wired connection) to a computing device (or optionally two or more devices) in communication with the vaporizer device. To this end, the controllercan include communication hardware. The controllercan also include a memory. The communication hardwarecan include firmware and/or can be controlled by software for executing one or more cryptographic protocols for the communication.

A computing device can be a component of a vaporizer system that also includes the vaporizer device, and can include its own hardware for communication, which can establish a wireless communication channel with the communication hardwareof the vaporizer device. For example, a computing device used as part of a vaporizer system can include a general-purpose computing device (such as a smartphone, a tablet, a personal computer, some other portable device such as a smartwatch, or the like) that executes software to produce a user interface for enabling a user to interact with the vaporizer device. In other implementations of the current subject matter, such a device used as part of a vaporizer system can be a dedicated piece of hardware such as a remote control or other wireless or wired device having one or more physical or soft (i.e., configurable on a screen or other display device and selectable via user interaction with a touch-sensitive screen or some other input device like a mouse, pointer, trackball, cursor buttons, or the like) interface controls. The vaporizer devicecan also include one or more outputsor devices for providing information to the user. For example, the outputscan include one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) configured to provide feedback to a user based on a status and/or mode of operation of the vaporizer device.

In the example in which a computing device provides signals related to activation of the resistive heating element, or in other examples of coupling of a computing device with the vaporizer devicefor implementation of various control or other functions, the computing device executes one or more computer instruction sets to provide a user interface and underlying data handling. In one example, detection by the computing device of user interaction with one or more user interface elements can cause the computing device to signal the vaporizer deviceto activate the heating element to reach an operating temperature for creation of an inhalable dose of vapor/aerosol. Other functions of the vaporizer devicecan be controlled by interaction of a user with a user interface on a computing device in communication with the vaporizer device.

The temperature of the heating element of the vaporizer devicecan depend on a number of factors, including an amount of electrical power delivered to the heating element and/or a duty cycle at which the electrical power is delivered, conductive heat transfer to other parts of the electronic vaporizer deviceand/or to the environment, latent heat losses due to vaporization of the vaporizable materialfrom the wicking element and/or the atomizeras a whole, and convective heat losses due to airflow (i.e., air moving across the heating element or the atomizeras a whole when a user inhales on the vaporizer device). As noted herein, to reliably activate the heating element or heat the heating element to a desired temperature, the vaporizer devicemay, in some implementations of the current subject matter, make use of signals from the sensor(for example, a pressure sensor) to determine when a user is inhaling. The sensorcan be positioned in the airflow path and/or can be connected (for example, by a passageway or other path) to an airflow path containing an inlet for air to enter the vaporizer deviceand an outlet via which the user inhales the resulting vapor and/or aerosol such that the sensorexperiences changes (for example, pressure changes) concurrently with air passing through the vaporizer devicefrom the air inlet to the air outlet. In some implementations of the current subject matter, the heating element can be activated in association with a user's puff, for example by automatic detection of the puff, or by the sensordetecting a change (such as a pressure change) in the airflow path.

The sensorcan be positioned on or coupled to (i.e., electrically or electronically connected, either physically or via a wireless connection) the controller(for example, a printed circuit board assembly or other type of circuit board). To take measurements accurately and maintain durability of the vaporizer device, it can be beneficial to provide a sealresilient enough to separate an airflow path from other parts of the vaporizer device. The seal, which can be a gasket, can be configured to at least partially surround the sensorsuch that connections of the sensorto the internal circuitry of the vaporizer deviceare separated from a part of the sensorexposed to the airflow path. In an example of a cartridge-based vaporizer, the sealcan also separate parts of one or more electrical connections between the vaporizer bodyand the vaporizer cartridge. Such arrangements of the sealin the vaporizer devicecan be helpful in mitigating against potentially disruptive impacts on vaporizer components resulting from interactions with environmental factors such as water in the vapor or liquid phases, other fluids such as the vaporizable material, etc., and/or to reduce the escape of air from the designated airflow path in the vaporizer device. Unwanted air, liquid or other fluid passing and/or contacting circuitry of the vaporizer devicecan cause various unwanted effects, such as altered pressure readings, and/or can result in the buildup of unwanted material, such as moisture, excess vaporizable material, etc., in parts of the vaporizer devicewhere they can result in poor pressure signal, degradation of the sensoror other components, and/or a shorter life of the vaporizer device. Leaks in the sealcan also result in a user inhaling air that has passed over parts of the vaporizer devicecontaining, or constructed of, materials that may not be desirable to be inhaled.

In some implementations, the vaporizer bodyincludes the controller, the power source(for example, a battery), one more of the sensor, charging contacts (such as those for charging the power source), the seal, and a cartridge receptacleconfigured to receive the vaporizer cartridgefor coupling with the vaporizer bodythrough one or more of a variety of attachment structures. In some examples, the vaporizer cartridgeincludes the reservoirfor containing the vaporizable material, and the mouthpiecehas an aerosol outlet for delivering an inhalable dose to a user. The vaporizer cartridgecan include the atomizerhaving a wicking element and a heating element. Alternatively, one or both of the wicking element and the heating element can be part of the vaporizer body. In implementations in which any part of the atomizer(i.e., heating element and/or wicking element) is part of the vaporizer body, the vaporizer devicecan be configured to supply vaporizable materialfrom the reservoirin the vaporizer cartridgeto the part(s) of the atomizerincluded in the vaporizer body.

Cartridge-based configurations for the vaporizer devicethat generate an inhalable dose of a vaporizable materialthat is not a liquid, via heating of a non-liquid material, are also within the scope of the current subject matter. For example, the vaporizer cartridgecan include a mass of a plant material that is processed and formed to have direct contact with parts of one or more resistive heating elements, and the vaporizer cartridgecan be configured to be coupled mechanically and/or electrically to the vaporizer bodythat includes the controller, the power source, and one or more receptacle contactsandconfigured to connect to one or more corresponding cartridge contactsandand complete a circuit with the one or more resistive heating elements.

In an embodiment of the vaporizer devicein which the power sourceis part of the vaporizer body, and a heating element is disposed in the vaporizer cartridgeand configured to couple with the vaporizer body, the vaporizer devicecan include electrical connection features (for example, means for completing a circuit) for completing a circuit that includes the controller(for example, a printed circuit board, a microcontroller, or the like), the power source, and the heating element (for example, a heating element within the atomizer). These features can include one or more contacts (referred to herein as cartridge contactsand) on a bottom surface of the vaporizer cartridgeand at least two contacts (referred to herein as receptacle contactsand) disposed near a base of the cartridge receptacleof the vaporizer devicesuch that the cartridge contactsandand the receptacle contactsandmake electrical connections when the vaporizer cartridgeis inserted into and coupled with the cartridge receptacle. The circuit completed by these electrical connections can allow delivery of electrical current to the resistive heating element and may further be used for additional functions, such as measuring a resistance of the resistive heating element for use in determining and/or controlling a temperature of the heating element based on a thermal coefficient of resistivity of the heating element, for identifying a cartridge based on one or more electrical characteristics of a heating element or the other circuitry of the vaporizer cartridge, etc.

In some implementations of the current subject matter, the cartridge contactsandand the receptacle contactsandcan be configured to electrically connect in either of at least two orientations. In other words, one or more circuits necessary for operation of the vaporizer devicecan be completed by insertion of the vaporizer cartridgeinto the cartridge receptaclein a first rotational orientation (around an axis along which the vaporizer cartridgeis inserted into the cartridge receptacleof the vaporizer body) such that the cartridge contactis electrically connected to the receptacle contactand the cartridge contactis electrically connected to the receptacle contactFurthermore, the one or more circuits necessary for operation of the vaporizer devicecan be completed by insertion of the vaporizer cartridgein the cartridge receptaclein a second rotational orientation such cartridge contactis electrically connected to the receptacle contactand cartridge contactis electrically connected to the receptacle contact

In one example of an attachment structure for coupling the vaporizer cartridgeto the vaporizer body, the vaporizer bodyincludes one or more detents (for example, dimples, protrusions, etc.) protruding inwardly from an inner surface of the cartridge receptacle, additional material (such as metal, plastic, etc.) formed to include a portion protruding into the cartridge receptacle, and/or the like. One or more exterior surfaces of the vaporizer cartridgecan include corresponding recesses (not shown in) that can fit and/or otherwise snap over such detents or protruding portions when the vaporizer cartridgeis inserted into the cartridge receptacleon the vaporizer body. When the vaporizer cartridgeand the vaporizer bodyare coupled (e.g., by insertion of the vaporizer cartridgeinto the cartridge receptacleof the vaporizer body), the detents or protrusions of the vaporizer bodycan fit within and/or otherwise be held within the recesses of the vaporizer cartridge, to hold the vaporizer cartridgein place when assembled. Such an assembly can provide enough support to hold the vaporizer cartridgein place to ensure good contact between the cartridge contactsandand the receptacle contactsandwhile allowing release of the vaporizer cartridgefrom the vaporizer bodywhen a user pulls with reasonable force on the vaporizer cartridgeto disengage the vaporizer cartridgefrom the cartridge receptacle.

In some implementations, the vaporizer cartridge, or at least an insertable endof the vaporizer cartridgeconfigured for insertion in the cartridge receptacle, can have a non-circular cross section transverse to the axis along which the vaporizer cartridgeis inserted into the cartridge receptacle. For example, the non-circular cross section can be approximately rectangular, approximately elliptical (i.e., have an approximately oval shape), non-rectangular but with two sets of parallel or approximately parallel opposing sides (i.e., having a parallelogram-like shape), or other shapes having rotational symmetry of at least order two. In this context, approximate shape indicates that a basic likeness to the described shape is apparent, but that sides of the shape in question need not be completely linear and vertices need not be completely sharp. Rounding of both or either of the edges or the vertices of the cross-sectional shape is contemplated in the description of any non-circular cross section referred to herein.

The cartridge contactsandand the receptacle contactsandcan take various forms. For example, one or both sets of contacts can include conductive pins, tabs, posts, receiving holes for pins or posts, or the like. Some types of contacts can include springs or other features to facilitate better physical and electrical contact between the contacts on the vaporizer cartridgeand the vaporizer body. The electrical contacts can optionally be gold-plated, and/or include other materials.

illustrates an embodiment of the vaporizer bodyand the cartridge receptacleinto which the vaporizer cartridgecan be releasably inserted.shows a top view of the vaporizer deviceillustrating the vaporizer cartridgepositioned for insertion into the vaporizer body. When a user puffs on the vaporizer device, air can pass between an outer surface of the vaporizer cartridgeand an inner surface of the cartridge receptacleon the vaporizer body. Air can then be drawn into the insertable endof the cartridge, through the vaporization chamber that includes or contains the heating element and wick, and out through an outlet of the mouthpiecefor delivery of the inhalable aerosol to a user. The reservoirof the vaporizer cartridgecan be formed in whole or in part from translucent material such that a level of the vaporizable materialis visible within the vaporizer cartridge. The mouthpiececan be a separable component of the vaporizer cartridgeor can be integrally formed with other component(s) of the vaporizer cartridge(for example, formed as a unitary structure with the reservoirand/or the like).

Further to the discussion above regarding the electrical connections between the vaporizer cartridgeand the vaporizer bodybeing reversible such that at least two rotational orientations of the vaporizer cartridgein the cartridge receptacleare possible, in some embodiments of the vaporizer device, the shape of the vaporizer cartridge, or at least a shape of the insertable endof the vaporizer cartridgethat is configured for insertion into the cartridge receptacle, can have rotational symmetry of at least order two. In other words, the vaporizer cartridgeor at least the insertable endof the vaporizer cartridgecan be symmetrical upon a rotation of 180° around an axis along which the vaporizer cartridgeis inserted into the cartridge receptacle. In such a configuration, the circuitry of the vaporizer devicecan support identical operation regardless of which symmetrical orientation of the vaporizer cartridgeoccurs.

illustrate example features that can be included in embodiments of the vaporizer deviceconsistent with implementations of the current subject matter. FIGS. IC andD show top views of an example of the vaporizer devicebefore () and after () connecting the vaporizer cartridgeto the vaporizer body.