DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement(s) (IDS) submitted on 04/19/2023 and 10/11/2023 is/are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement(s) is/are being considered by the examiner.
Response to Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election with traverse of Species 1 (Figs.1A-1C) and Sub-Species 1 (Fig.4A) in the reply filed on 07/20/2026 is acknowledge. Species 2 (Figs.2A-2B), Species 3 (Figs.2C), Species 4 (Fig.3A), Species 5 (Fig.3B) and Sub-Species 2 (Fig.4B) are withdrawn from consideration.
Applicant alleged that there would be no serious search burden, see detail on pages 9-10 of the Remarks dated 07/20/2026.
Applicant’s arguments have been fully considered but they are not persuasive for the following reasons:
There would be search and/or examination burden for the patentably distinct species and sub-species because at least the following reason(s) apply:
The species and subspecies or groupings of patentably indistinct species and sub-species require a different field of search, e.g., searching different classes/subclasses or electric resources, or employing different search strategies or search queries; and/or the prior art applicable to one species and subspecies would not likely be applicable to another species and subspecies; and/or the species and subspecies are likely to raise different non-prior art issue under 35 U.S.C. 101 and/or 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph.
In this case, this application contains claims directed to the following patentably distinct species:
Species 1. As shown in Figs.1A-1C. Figs.1A-1C show an electronic vaping device 60 including a cartomizer 70. The cartomizer 70 of Figs.1A-1C includes a first probe 27a connected to a first end of the wick 28 and a second probe 27b connected to a second end of the wick 28, and the channel 9 may be in between the first and second ends of the wick 28, as indicated by Par.0083.
Species 2. As shown in Figs.2A-2B. Figs.2A-2B show that the cartomizer 70 includes the first probe 27a connected to the end of the wick that is adjacent to the first lead 26a. However, the cartomizer 70 of Figs.2A-2B is constructed without the second probe 27b connected to the end of the wick that is adjacent to the second lead 26b, as indicated by Par.0087.
Species 3. As shown in Fig.2C. Fig.2C shows that the cartomizer 70 includes the second probe 27b connected to the end of the wick that is adjacent to the second lead 26b. However, the cartomizer 70 of Fig.2C is constructed without the first probe 27a connected to the end of the wick that is adjacent to the first lead 26a, as indicated by Par.0089.
Species 4. As shown in Fig.3A. Fig.3A shows a different structure of vaporizer. Specifically, the vaporizer of Fig.3A is a heater-wick structure 140 instead of the heating element 14 and wick 28 in the cartomizer 70 shown in Fig.1A. The heater-wick structure 140 is a plurality of small metal beads or particles that have been fused together; opposite ends of the heater-wick structure 140 extend into the liquid supply reservoir; and a middle portion of the heater-wick structure 140 is disposed in the channel 9, as indicated by Par.0092. Furthermore, Fig.3A shows that the first probe 27a and the second probe 27b are connected to the respective ends of the heater-wick structure 140 inside the liquid supply reservoir 22, as also indicated by Par.0093.
Species 5. As shown in Fig.3B. Fig.3B shows that the vaporizer is a heater-wick structure 140 instead of the heating element 14 and wick 28 in the cartomizer 70 shown in Fig.1A. Furthermore, the cartomizer 70 of Fig.3B includes the first probe 27a connected to the end of the heater-wick structure 140 that is adjacent to the first lead 26a. However, the cartomizer 70 of Fig.3B is constructed without the second probe 27b connected to the end of the heater-wick structure 140 that is adjacent to the second lead 26b, as indicated by Par.0096.
Furthermore, this application contains claims directed to the following patentably distinct sub-species:
Sub-Species 1. As shown in Fig.4A. Fig.4A shows the wick 28 includes first and second probes 27a and 27b connected to respective ends of the wick 28, a heating-element (e.g., coil) 14 wrapped around a central portion of the wick 28, and first and second leads 26a and 26b connected to respective ends of the heating element 14. The first and second leads 26a may contact or be adjacent to parts of the wick 28 between the locations where the probes 27a and 27b are connected to the wick 28. The probes 27a and 27b may be connected to a resistive sensing controller 35a. These are indicated by Pars.0099-0100.
Sub-Species 2. As shown in Fig.4B. Fig.4B shows the second probe 27b is not connected to the wick 28, the control circuit 35 is not configured to use the second probe 27b for measuring the resistance of the wick 28, as also indicated by Par.0114.
The species and sub-species are independent or distinct because they contain different structures of vaporizers, and for each structure of vaporizer, each structure contains different numbers of probes. Furthermore, the connections for measuring the resistance of the wick are different. As explained in detail above. In addition, these species and sub-species are not obvious variants of each other based on the current record.
Accordingly, the election requirement set forth in the office action dated 05/11/2026 is deemed proper. Therefore, the elected Species 1 (Figs.1A-1C) and Sub-Species 1 (Fig.4A), consisting of claims 1-17, 19-20 are examined as follows.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
The following title is suggested: “AN ELECTRONIC VAPING DEVICE CONFIGURED TO MEASURE A VAPOR PRECURSOR LEVEL IN A CARTOMIZER OF THE ELECTRONIC VAPING DEVICE”.
Claim Objections
Claims 8-9 and 16 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 8 recites the limitation “the control circuit is circuit is configured to” in line 7. This should be changed to “the control circuit
Claim 9 is objected by virtue of its dependence on claim 8.
Claim 16 recites the limitation “the control circuit is circuit is configured to” in line 6. This should be changed to “the control circuit .
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-7, 10, 13-15, 17, 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Liu (WO 2015015431 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Liu discloses an electronic vaping device (electronic cigarette 10 having Embodiment Fig.5 flavoured vapour generator 200 as shown in Liu Fig.5 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”), comprising:
a cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, Liu Fig.5, and see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) including a housing (main body 130, Liu Fig.1) [cartomiser cartridge 200 is similar to cartomiser cartridge 100 as explained in Liu Par.0027], a liquid supply reservoir (reservoir 136, Liu Fig.1) in the housing (main body 130, Liu Fig.1), a vaporizer (heating wire 152 and wicks 255, Liu Fig.1 & Pars.009 & 0027) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) connected to the liquid supply reservoir (reservoir 136, Liu Fig.1) (Liu Par.0013 discloses: “Figure 2, the electric heater includes a heating wire 152 which is wound into a plurality of windings. The plurality of windings formed by the heater wire is attached to a bundle of glass fibres 155 which collectively define an example naked liquid retention device 154. The example liquid retention wicks comprise a plurality of glass fibres which are twisted into a strand of glass fibres. The glass fibres are filled with the flavoured liquid through wicking of flavoured liquid from the reservoir 136.”), and a channel (passage channel 138, Liu Fig.1) adjacent to the liquid supply reservoir (reservoir 136, Liu Fig.1),
the liquid supply reservoir (reservoir 136, Liu Fig.1) being configured to store vapor precursor (Liu Par.009 discloses: “The space between the outer peripheral wall and the inner peripheral wall collectively define a first hollow compartment 136 which is adapted to hold a supply of flavoured liquid. This hollow compartment 136 defines a reservoir for storing a volume of flavoured liquid for dispensing to the exposed or naked liquid retention device.”),
the vaporizer (heating wire 152 and wicks 255, Liu Fig.1 & Pars.009, 0027) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) including a fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.” and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) that is configured to transport the vapor precursor (vapor precursor in reservoir 136, as explained above) from the liquid supply reservoir (reservoir 136, Liu Fig.1) to the channel (passage channel 138, Liu Fig.1) (Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The exposed liquid retention device 154 extends between a first liquid outlet on a first sidewall of the reservoir 136 and a second liquid outlet on a second sidewall of the reservoir 136 which is oppositely facing the first liquid outlet. The liquid retention device 154 comprises a plurality of wicks which projects across the second hollow compartment 138. The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.”); and
a battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) (Liu Fig.4 shows that the body 12 comprises the battery 16) configured to provide power to the vaporizer (heating wire 152 and wicks 255, Liu Fig.1 & Pars.009, 0027) (Liu Fig.4 & Par.0026 teaches the battery 16 in the body 12 configured to provide power to the vaporizer),
the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) including a control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) that is configured to determine a saturation level of the vapor precursor (vapor precursor in reservoir 136, as explained above) on the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.”, and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) based on an electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.”, and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) (Liu discloses the battery section including a control circuit that is configured to determine a saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette.).
Regarding claim 2, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 1, Liu also discloses:
wherein the cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) and the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) are configured to be removably coupled to each other (Liu Par.0012 discloses: “The cartridge is adapted for attaching to a main body of an electronic cigarette to facilitate simulated smoking operation. The air inlet end is for coupling to the main body of an electronic cigarette and the base portion includes a 'snap on' or threaded end portion for fastening to the main body of an electronic cigarette.”), and the vaporizer (heating wire 152 and wicks 255, Liu Fig.1 & Pars.009 & 0027; as explained in the rejection of claim 1 above) includes a heating element (heating wire 152, Liu Fig.1) that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor (Liu Par.009 discloses: “The space between the outer peripheral wall and the inner peripheral wall collectively define a first hollow compartment 136 which is adapted to hold a supply of flavoured liquid. This hollow compartment 136 defines a reservoir for storing a volume of flavoured liquid for dispensing to the exposed or naked liquid retention device.”) transported to the channel (passage channel 138, Liu Fig.1) (Liu discloses the heating wire 152 that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor transported to the passage channel 138 because Liu Par.0013 discloses: “the electric heater includes a heating wire 152 which is wound into a plurality of windings. The plurality of windings formed by the heater wire is attached to a bundle of glass fibres 155 which collectively define an example naked liquid retention device 154. The example liquid retention wicks comprise a plurality of glass fibres which are twisted into a strand of glass fibres. The glass fibres are filled with the flavoured liquid through wicking of flavoured liquid from the reservoir 136. An assembly comprising the wound heating filament and the strand of glass fibres is supported on the main body and extends transversely across the second hollow compartment in a bridge-like manner. The assembly comprising the bundle of the glass fibres and the wound heating filament is elongate and extends in an axial direction. The axial ends of the assembly penetrates or projects into the second hollow compartment to tab into a reservoir of flavoured liquid formed inside the second hollow compartment to secure a continuous supply of the flavoured liquid for repeated operation.”, and Liu Par.0014 discloses: “The assembly comprising the wound heating filament and the strand of glass fibres is supported on the main body by a rigid wire frame which projects from the base 140. The rigid wire frame 158 is made of a rigid conductive wire such as a copper or nickel coated iron wire. The wire projects from the base and extends upwardly inside the first hollow compartment 136, bends orthogonally at an elevation level above the base to pass through the inner peripheral wall and enters the second hollow compartment 138, extends across the second hollow compartment at substantially the same elevation level, passes through the inner peripheral wall again and enters the first hollow compartment 136 again at a location which is approximately diametrically opposite to the location from which it exits from the first hollow compartment for the first time, and bends orthogonally downwards to the reach the base.”).
Regarding claim 3, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 2, Liu also discloses:
wherein the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) includes a battery (battery 16, Liu Fig.4) (Liu Fig.4 shows that the body 12 comprises the battery 16), the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.” and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) includes a wick (wicks 255, Liu Fig.5 & Par.0027; as explained above in the rejection of claim 1) that extends from the channel (passage channel 138, Liu Fig.1) into the liquid supply reservoir (reservoir 136, Liu Fig.1) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”, and Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.”, and Liu Par.0013 discloses: “The example liquid retention wicks comprise a plurality of glass fibres which are twisted into a strand of glass fibres. The glass fibres are filled with the flavoured liquid through wicking of flavoured liquid from the reservoir 136.”), the heating element (heating wire 152, Liu Fig.1) includes a heating coil (heating wire 152, Liu Fig.1) (Liu Par.0015 discloses: “The assembly comprising the wound heating filament and the strand of glass fibres are arranged such that an exposed portion of the resistive wire is embedded inside the strand of fibres such that the exposed portion of the resistive wire is separated from the heater filament. In an example, the filament is wound around the strand of glass fibres into a plurality of windings and resistive wire is located at the axis of a coil formed by the filament winding. The approximately central location of the resistive wire inside the coil would promote a more even measurement of resistance inside the liquid retention material to mitigate local variation ”) that is wrapped around a part of the wick (wicks 255, Liu Fig.5 & Par.0027; as explained above in the rejection of claim 1) (Liu Par.0013 discloses: “the electric heater includes a heating wire 152 which is wound into a plurality of windings. The plurality of windings formed by the heater wire is attached to a bundle of glass fibres 155 which collectively define an example naked liquid retention device 154.”, and Liu Par.0015 discloses: “The assembly comprising the wound heating filament and the strand of glass fibres are arranged such that an exposed portion of the resistive wire is embedded inside the strand of fibres such that the exposed portion of the resistive wire is separated from the heater filament. In an example, the filament is wound around the strand of glass fibres into a plurality of windings and resistive wire is located at the axis of a coil formed by the filament winding. The approximately central location of the resistive wire inside the coil would promote a more even measurement of resistance inside the liquid retention material to mitigate local variation. As the portion of the heater filament is wound about the strand of glass fibres, and the stand of glass fibres is in turn held on the portion of the rigid wire extending across the second hollow compartment, the rigid frame of the rigid resistive wire provides a support to reinforce the strength and reliability of the heating filament.”), and the heating coil (heating wire 152, Liu Fig.1) is configured to receive power from the battery (battery 16, Liu Fig.4) and heat the wick (wicks 255, Liu Fig.5 & Par.0027; as explained above in the rejection of claim 1).
Regarding claim 4, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 3, Liu also discloses:
wherein the cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) includes a first electrical lead (T1, Liu Fig.4) and a second electrical lead (T2, Liu Fig.4) that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil (heating wire 152, Liu Fig.1) (Liu Par.0015 discloses: “Contact terminals T1 , T2 of the electric heater”),
the cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, Liu Par.0027, as cited and explained above) includes a first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) connected to a first end of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255”),
the first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and the first electrical lead (T1, Liu Fig.4) are separated from each other (T3 and T1 are separated from each other because Liu Par.0015 discloses: “Contact terminals T1 , T2 of the electric heater”, and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255”),
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a portion of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) using the first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and one of the first electrical lead (T1, Liu Fig.4) and the second electrical lead (T2, Liu Fig.4) (electrical resistance measurements are shown in Table 1 in Liu Par.0020), and the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor (Liu Par.009 discloses: “The space between the outer peripheral wall and the inner peripheral wall collectively define a first hollow compartment 136 which is adapted to hold a supply of flavoured liquid. This hollow compartment 136 defines a reservoir for storing a volume of flavoured liquid for dispensing to the exposed or naked liquid retention device.”) on the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.” and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) based on a measured electrical resistance of the portion of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette.”).
Regarding claim 5, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 3, Liu also discloses:
wherein the cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) includes a first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and a second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) that are electrically connected to a first end and a second end of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255”), respectively,
the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) (Liu Fig.4 shows that the body 12 comprises the battery 16) is configured to connect the first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and the second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) to the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) (Liu Par.0026 discloses: “A control circuit 14, battery 16 and a visual indicator 18 such as an LED indicator are installed inside the elongate body. Contact terminals are disposed on the air outlet end of the first elongate body to facilitate contact of the heater terminals T1 , T2 and sensor terminals T3, T4 with their counterpart inside the control circuitry. ”), and
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to measure the electrical resistance across the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) using the first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and the second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette.”).
Regarding claim 6, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 3, Liu also discloses wherein
the cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) includes a first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and a second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) that are electrically connected to a first end and a second of the wick (wicks 255, Liu Fig.5), respectively (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255”),
the cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, Liu Par.0027, as cited and explained above) includes a first electrical lead (T1, Liu Fig.4) and a second electrical lead (T2, Liu Fig.4) that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil (heating wire 152, Liu Fig.1) (Liu Par.0015 discloses: “Contact terminals T1 , T2 of the electric heater”),
the first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and the first electrical lead (T1, Liu Fig.4) are separated from each other (T3 and T1 are separated from each other because Liu Par.0015 discloses: “Contact terminals T1 , T2 of the electric heater”, and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255”),
the second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) and the second electrical lead (T2, Liu Fig.4) are separated from each other (T4 and T2 are separated from each other because Liu Par.0015 discloses: “Contact terminals T1 , T2 of the electric heater”, and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255”),
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a first portion of the wick (first portion of the wick 255, Liu Fig.5; first portion extends from a wick-end contact to the heater’s region) using the first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and at least one of the first electrical lead (T1, Liu Fig.4) and the second electrical lead (T2, Liu Fig.4) (electrical resistance measurements are shown in Table 1 in Liu Par.0020),
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a second portion of the wick (second portion of the wick 255, Liu Fig.5; second portion extends between both wick-end contacts) using the first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and the second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) (Liu Par.0027 discloses: “This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette.”),
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor (Liu Par.009 discloses: “The space between the outer peripheral wall and the inner peripheral wall collectively define a first hollow compartment 136 which is adapted to hold a supply of flavoured liquid. This hollow compartment 136 defines a reservoir for storing a volume of flavoured liquid for dispensing to the exposed or naked liquid retention device.”) on the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.” and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) based on at least one of a measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick and a measured electrical resistance across the second portion (second portion extends between both wick-end contacts) of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) (It is noted that the limitation “at least one of a measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick and a measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick” is in alternative form; therefore, only one of these was required during examination. In this case, Liu discloses the control circuit 14 is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on a measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick using two probes because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette.”), and
the first portion (first portion extends from a wick-end contact to the heater’s region) of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) and the second portion (second portion extends between both wick-end contacts) of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) are different sizes (the first portion of the wick and the second portion of the wick are different sizes because the first portion extends from a wick-end contact to the heater’s region, the second portion extends between both wick-end contacts, encompassing a greater wick extent).
Regarding claim 7, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 6, Liu also discloses wherein
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a third portion of the wick (third portion of the wick 255, Liu Fig.5; third portion extends from T4 to the heater’s contact region) using the second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) and at least one of the first electrical lead (T1, Liu Fig.4) and the second electrical lead (T2, Liu Fig.4) (electrical resistance measurements are shown in Table 1 in Liu Par.0020), and
the second portion (second portion extends between both wick-end contacts) and the third portion (third portion extends from T4 to the heater’s contact region) of the wick (wick 255, Liu Fig.5) are different sizes (the third portion of the wick and the second portion of the wick are different sizes because the third portion extends from T4 to the heater’s contact region, the second portion extends between both wick-end contacts, encompassing a greater wick extent).
Regarding claim 10, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 1, Liu also discloses:
wherein the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) includes a resistive sensing unit (resistance measurement circuit 17, Liu Fig.4) and a vaporizer driver (heater driver 15, Liu Fig.4).
Regarding claim 13, Liu discloses a battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) (Liu Fig.4 shows that the body 12 comprises the battery 16) of an electronic vaping device (electronic cigarette 10 having Embodiment Fig.5 flavoured vapour generator 200 as shown in Liu Fig.5 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”), the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) (Liu Fig.4 shows that the body 12 comprises the battery 16) comprising:
a battery (battery 16, Liu Fig.4); and
a control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) connected to the battery (battery 16, Liu Fig.4), the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) being configured to determine a saturation level of a vapor precursor (Liu Par.009 discloses: “The space between the outer peripheral wall and the inner peripheral wall collectively define a first hollow compartment 136 which is adapted to hold a supply of flavoured liquid. This hollow compartment 136 defines a reservoir for storing a volume of flavoured liquid for dispensing to the exposed or naked liquid retention device.”) on a fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.”, and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) based on an electrical resistance of at least a portion of the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.”, and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) (Liu discloses the battery section including a control circuit that is configured to determine a saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette.).
Regarding claim 14, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 13, Liu also discloses:
wherein the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) is configured to be removably coupled to a cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) of the electronic vaping device (electronic cigarette 10 having Embodiment Fig.5 flavoured vapour generator 200 as shown in Liu Fig.5 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) (Liu Par.0012 discloses: “The cartridge is adapted for attaching to a main body of an electronic cigarette to facilitate simulated smoking operation. The air inlet end is for coupling to the main body of an electronic cigarette and the base portion includes a 'snap on' or threaded end portion for fastening to the main body of an electronic cigarette.”).
Regarding claim 15, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 13, Liu also discloses:
wherein the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to limit a supply of power that the battery (battery 16, Liu Fig.4) supplies to an external device if the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) determines the electrical resistance is greater than a threshold value (“threshold”, Liu Par.0058) (Liu Par.0026 discloses: “An example electronic cigarette 10 depicted in Figure 3 comprises a first elongate body 12 and a cartomiser cartridge 100 of the present disclosure attached to an axial end of the first elongate body. The first elongate body and the rigid housing have the same outer shape and lateral dimensions such that the electronic cigarette appears as a single piece. The first elongate body defines an air inlet, an air outlet and a bore interconnecting the air inlet and the air outlet. The air outlet end of the first elongate body is for mechanical coupling with the air inlet end of the cartomiser and comprises a mechanical coupling means which is complementary to that on the air inlet end of the cartomiser. A control circuit 14, battery 16 and a visual indicator 18 such as an LED indicator are installed inside the elongate body. Contact terminals are disposed on the air outlet end of the first elongate body to facilitate contact of the heater terminals T1 , T2 and sensor terminals T3, T4 with their counterpart inside the control circuitry. The control circuit includes an operation circuit to activate the electric heater and a decision circuit which is arranged to deactivate or limit the power supply to the electric heater upon detection that the wetness or soaking conditions at the strand of glass fibres are not suitable for heating operation. The control circuit may decide whether the wetness or soaking conditions are suitable for operation with reference to the resistance measured between a sensor terminal and a heater terminal as indicated above and without loss of generality.”, and Liu Par.0058 discloses: “The control device may be arranged not to operate said electric heater to heat the flavoured vapour generator to generate flavoured smoke upon determination that the resistance between said sensor and said electric heater is above a threshold non- operation resistance.”).
Regarding claim 17, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 15, Liu also discloses:
wherein the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) includes a resistive sensing controller (resistance measurement circuit 17, Liu Fig.4) and a vaporizer driver (heater driver 15, Liu Fig.4),
the vaporizer driver (heater driver 15, Liu Fig.4) is configured to control supplying power to a vaporizer (heating wire 152 and wicks 255, Liu Fig.1 & Pars.009, 0027) if the vaporizer driver (heater driver 15, Liu Fig.4) is electrically connected to the vaporizer (heating wire 152 and wicks 255, Liu Fig.1 & Pars.009, 0027) (Liu Par.0026 discloses: “An example electronic cigarette 10 depicted in Figure 3 comprises a first elongate body 12 and a cartomiser cartridge 100 of the present disclosure attached to an axial end of the first elongate body. The first elongate body and the rigid housing have the same outer shape and lateral dimensions such that the electronic cigarette appears as a single piece. The first elongate body defines an air inlet, an air outlet and a bore interconnecting the air inlet and the air outlet. The air outlet end of the first elongate body is for mechanical coupling with the air inlet end of the cartomiser and comprises a mechanical coupling means which is complementary to that on the air inlet end of the cartomiser. A control circuit 14, battery 16 and a visual indicator 18 such as an LED indicator are installed inside the elongate body. Contact terminals are disposed on the air outlet end of the first elongate body to facilitate contact of the heater terminals T1 , T2 and sensor terminals T3, T4 with their counterpart inside the control circuitry. The control circuit includes an operation circuit to activate the electric heater and a decision circuit which is arranged to deactivate or limit the power supply to the electric heater upon detection that the wetness or soaking conditions at the strand of glass fibres are not suitable for heating operation. The control circuit may decide whether the wetness or soaking conditions are suitable for operation with reference to the resistance measured between a sensor terminal and a heater terminal as indicated above and without loss of generality.”), and
the resistive sensing controller (resistance measurement circuit 17, Liu Fig.4) is configured to determine the electrical resistance based on sensing resistance values measured at different positions (different heater/sensor terminal pairings as shown in Liu Par.0020, Liu Pars.0019-0020 and Table 1 discloses resistance values for those different pairings for different portions) of the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.” and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) (Liu Pars.0019-0020 and Table 1 discloses resistance values for different pairings for different portions of the fluid-transport structure).
Regarding claim 19, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 1, Liu also discloses:
wherein the cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) includes a first probe (sensor terminal T3, Liu Fig.5) and a second probe (sensor terminal T4, Liu Fig.5) that are connected to respective ends of a heating coil (heater terminals T1, T2) (Liu Par.0015 discloses: “the filament is wound around the strand of glass fibres into a plurality of windings and resistive wire is located at the axis of a coil formed by the filament winding. The approximately central location of the resistive wire inside the coil would promote a more even measurement of resistance inside the liquid retention material to mitigate local variation. As the portion of the heater filament is wound about the strand of glass fibres, and the stand of glass fibres is in turn held on the portion of the rigid wire extending across the second hollow compartment, the rigid frame of the rigid resistive wire provides a support to reinforce the strength and reliability of the heating filament. Contact terminals T1 , T2 of the electric heater are also accessible from the same side of the base 140 on which the sensor terminals T3, T4 are present.”, Liu Par.0019 discloses: “Example resistance measurements made on various combination of terminals between a contact terminal on the heater (one of T1 and T2) and a contact terminal on the sensor (one of T3 and T3) using a Fluke™ 189 meter are set out in table 1 below:” and see measuring table in Liu Par.0020).
Regarding claim 20, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 15, Liu also discloses:
An electronic vaping device (electronic cigarette 10 having Embodiment Fig.5 flavoured vapour generator 200 as shown in Liu Fig.5 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”), comprising:
the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) (Liu Fig.4 shows that the body 12 comprises the battery 16) of claim 15; and
a cartomizer (cartomiser cartridge 200, see example of cartomiser cartridge 100 in Liu Figs.1 & 3 because Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) connected to the battery section (body 12, Liu Figs.3-4) (Liu Fig.4 shows that the body 12 comprises the battery 16).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 8-9 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (WO 2015015431 A1) in view of Steingraber et al. (U.S. Pub. No. 2015/0053217 A1).
Regarding claim 8, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 1, Liu also discloses:
a LED (LED 18, Liu Fig.4), wherein
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is connected to the LED (LED 18, Liu Fig.4),
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to control the LED (LED 18, Liu Fig.4),
the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value (Liu Pars.0050-0053 disclose operational and non-operational resistance thresholds that can be selected as lower and higher thresholds)
Liu does not disclose:
the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color.
Steingraber teaches an electronic vaping device (device 10, Steingraber Fig.1) having an LED (“LED”, Steingraber Par.0210):
the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color (in combination, Liu in view of Steingraber teaches the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color because Steingraber Pars.0210-0211 teaches a red/yellow/green LED indicates remaining liquid and receives information from the microprocessor, Steingraber Par.0214 teaches: “As the user depletes the liquid in the cartridge they are notified of the remaining liquid level via a LED ring on the anode collar. Green for >60% full, Yellow for >20% full, Red for <20%. This feature allows the user to easily identify when a new liquid cartridge is needed. Once the user reaches −10% the collar flashes red and a new liquid cartridge must be inserted.”, and Steingraber Pars.0288 and 0291 teach repeat the same color scheme).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Liu, by adding the teaching of the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color, as taught by Steingraber, in order to provide a readily distinguishable visual indication of sufficient-liquid and low-liquid conditions, enabling user to recognize when the cartomizer requires replacement or refilling before further use with an insufficiently saturated wick.
Regarding claim 9, Liu in view of Steingraber teaches the apparatus set forth in claim 8, Liu also discloses:
wherein the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to limit a supply of power to the vaporizer (heating wire 152 and wicks 255, Liu Fig.1 & Pars.009 & 0027; as cited and explained in the rejection of claim 1 above) if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure (heating wire and wicks include fluid-transport structure because Liu Par.0011 discloses: “The wicks are formed form a bundle of fibrous liquid retention materials 155 such as fibre glass threads and flavoured liquid stored in the reservoir will be guided to move from the first and/or second liquid outlets along the wicks to get exposed in the second hollow compartment 138.” and Liu Par.0027 discloses: “Figure 5 shows another example flavoured vapour generator 200 according to the disclosure. This example flavoured vapour generator is a modification from the example flavoured vapour generator 100 but with the non-conductive or insulating wicks directly used as a sensing device. In this example, output terminals of the sensor 254 are connected to the lengthwise ends of the wicks 255. As the resistivity of the wicks will change substantially depending on whether or not the wicks are filled, and whether the wicks are fully or partially filled with the flavoured liquid, information on such resistance properties can be used to determine operation of the electronic cigarette. In this example, other features are the same as that of the flavoured vapour generator 100 and the description of those other features are incorporated by reference with feature numerals increased by 100.”) is greater than the first threshold (“threshold”, Liu Par.0058) (Liu Par.0026 discloses: “An example electronic cigarette 10 depicted in Figure 3 comprises a first elongate body 12 and a cartomiser cartridge 100 of the present disclosure attached to an axial end of the first elongate body. The first elongate body and the rigid housing have the same outer shape and lateral dimensions such that the electronic cigarette appears as a single piece. The first elongate body defines an air inlet, an air outlet and a bore interconnecting the air inlet and the air outlet. The air outlet end of the first elongate body is for mechanical coupling with the air inlet end of the cartomiser and comprises a mechanical coupling means which is complementary to that on the air inlet end of the cartomiser. A control circuit 14, battery 16 and a visual indicator 18 such as an LED indicator are installed inside the elongate body. Contact terminals are disposed on the air outlet end of the first elongate body to facilitate contact of the heater terminals T1 , T2 and sensor terminals T3, T4 with their counterpart inside the control circuitry. The control circuit includes an operation circuit to activate the electric heater and a decision circuit which is arranged to deactivate or limit the power supply to the electric heater upon detection that the wetness or soaking conditions at the strand of glass fibres are not suitable for heating operation. The control circuit may decide whether the wetness or soaking conditions are suitable for operation with reference to the resistance measured between a sensor terminal and a heater terminal as indicated above and without loss of generality.”, and Liu Par.0058 discloses: “The control device may be arranged not to operate said electric heater to heat the flavoured vapour generator to generate flavoured smoke upon determination that the resistance between said sensor and said electric heater is above a threshold non- operation resistance.”).
Regarding claim 16, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 13, Liu also discloses:
a LED (LED 18, Liu Fig.4) connected to the battery (battery 16, Liu Fig.4), wherein
the control circuit (control circuit 14, Liu Fig.4) is configured to control the LED (LED 18, Liu Fig.4),
the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value (Liu Pars.0050-0053 disclose operational and non-operational resistance thresholds that can be selected as lower and higher thresholds)
Liu does not disclose:
the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color.
Steingraber teaches an electronic vaping device (device 10, Steingraber Fig.1) having an LED (“LED”, Steingraber Par.0210):
the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color (in combination, Liu in view of Steingraber teaches the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color because Steingraber Pars.0210-0211 teaches a red/yellow/green LED indicates remaining liquid and receives information from the microprocessor, Steingraber Par.0214 teaches: “As the user depletes the liquid in the cartridge they are notified of the remaining liquid level via a LED ring on the anode collar. Green for >60% full, Yellow for >20% full, Red for <20%. This feature allows the user to easily identify when a new liquid cartridge is needed. Once the user reaches −10% the collar flashes red and a new liquid cartridge must be inserted.”, and Steingraber Pars.0288 and 0291 teach repeat the same color scheme).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Liu, by adding the teaching of the LED displays a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the LED displays a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color, as taught by Steingraber, in order to provide a readily distinguishable visual indication of sufficient-liquid and low-liquid conditions, enabling user to recognize when the cartomizer requires replacement or refilling before further use with an insufficiently saturated wick.
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (WO 2015015431 A1) in view of Ampolini et al. (U.S. Pub. No. 2014/0096782 A1).
Regarding claim 11, Liu discloses the apparatus set forth in claim 1, Liu also discloses measuring at least two electrical resistance values from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer (see Table 1 of Liu in Par.0020 of Liu).
However, Liu does not explicitly disclose:
wherein the control circuit includes a memory unit,
the memory unit is configured to store a plurality of electrical resistance values that correspond to the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure measured at different times, and
the control circuit is configured to issue an alert based on a comparison result of at least two electrical resistance values measured from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer.
Ampolini teaches an electronic vaping device (Ampolini Abstract):
wherein the control circuit (controller 590, Ampolini Par.0100 & Fig.5) includes a memory unit (“memory”, Ampolini Par.0100),
the memory unit (“memory”, Ampolini Par.0100) is configured to store a plurality of electrical resistance values that correspond to the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure measured at different times (Ampolini Par.0092 teaches: “the second control component 590 may comprise, for example, a Texas Instruments Model bq26150 authentication IC. In such instances, aspects of the present disclosure may further comprise software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware, included in the control body portion 506, for example, in association with the first control component 520, and configured to execute an authentication procedure between the control body portion 506 and the cartridge body portion 505 engaged therewith, through interaction between the first and second control components 520, 590. In general, the cartridge body portion 505 may include an authentication hardware IC (i.e., a crypto chip), and a “calculator engine” which uses a programmed secret key to generate response values in response to any challenge codes sent to it. Communication with the control body portion 506 may be accomplished, for example, via a single-wire interface extending between the control body portion 506 and the cartridge body portion 505. The control body portion 506 may include a number of pre-calculated, pre-programmed challenge-response pairs, stored in memory, wherein these challenge-response pairs may be verified at particular instances (i.e., upon receiving a response to a challenge from the cartridge body portion 505), as directed by the executed software.”), and
the control circuit (controller 590, Ampolini Par.0100 & Fig.5) is configured to issue an alert based on a comparison result of at least two electrical resistance values measured from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer (Ampolini Par.0100 teaches: “In some aspects, each time the control body portion 506 is powered up, the first control component 520 will first read the remaining “puff-seconds” in the cartridge body portion 505 from a memory associated with the second control component 590, and determine whether this value is greater than zero. If the value is zero, the first control component 520 will not actuate the at least one heating element 560 and will alert the user that the cartridge body portion 505 is expired. If the value is greater than zero, the first control component 520 may send a MAC challenge to the second control component 590 using one of the stored challenge-response pairs and then compare the response to the expected response. The choice of which challenge-response pair to use may be randomized, for example, by using a characteristic (i.e., LSB) of the puff-seconds as the index. If the response from the second control component 590 matches the stored/expected response, the first control component 520 will be operable to actuate the at least one heating element 560 of the cartridge body portion 505. If the response differs from the expected response, the first control component 520 will not be operable to actuate the at least one heating element 560, and the user will be alerted as to the failure of the authentication procedure. The crypto chip (i.e., the TI bq26150 authentication IC) implemented in conjunction with this exemplary aspect disclosed herein may be configured with various functional slots, which may include, for example, secret keys and alternate keys or other measures used to generate authentication or other security information; feature enabling or facilitation indicators; manufacturing lot number or other information; cartridge life or other count information; and/or hardware control information regarding or otherwise pertaining to the particular cartridge body portion 505 or type of cartridge body portion.”. It is noted that the primary reference Liu already discloses measuring multiple resistance values from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer, as explained above and see Table 1 in Par.0020 of Liu. Therefore, in combination, Liu in view of Ampolini teaches the control circuit is configured to issue an alert based on a comparison result of at least two electrical resistance values measured from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Liu, by adding the teaching of the control circuit includes a memory unit, the memory unit is configured to store a plurality of electrical resistance values that correspond to the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure measured at different times, and the control circuit is configured to issue an alert based on a comparison result of at least two electrical resistance values measured from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer, as taught by Ampolini, in order to detect changes in wick saturation over time relative to the same cartomizer’s earlier condition, reducing reliance on a fixed resistance threshold that may vary with liquid composition or wick characteristics, and alerting the user as the wick dries.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (WO 2015015431 A1) in view of Ampolini et al. (U.S. Pub. No. 2014/0096782 A1), and further in view of Ales et al. (U.S. Pub. No. 2007/0083174 A1).
Regarding claim 12, Liu in view of Ampolini teaches the apparatus set forth in claim 11, but does not teach:
wherein the at least two electrical resistance values include a first value and a second value, and the control circuit is configured to issue the alert if at least one of: a ratio based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold ratio, and a difference based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold difference.
Ales teaches (Ales Fig.8):
wherein the at least two electrical resistance values (R1 and R2, Ales Fig.8) include a first value (R1, Ales Fig.8) and a second value (R2, Ales Fig.8), and the control circuit is configured to issue the alert if at least one of: a ratio based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold ratio, and a difference based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold difference (Ales Steps 106-108 teaches calculates ((R1-R2)/R1) x 100%, stored as difference indicator value DIV, and Steps 110-112 teaches compares DIV with difference threshold DTV and activates alarm 95 when DIV is greater than DTV).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Liu in view of Ampolini, by adding the teaching of the at least two electrical resistance values include a first value and a second value, and the control circuit is configured to issue the alert if at least one of: a ratio based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold ratio, and a difference based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold difference, as taught by Ales, in order to detect a significant change in wick saturation relative to the same wick’s earlier condition, reducing dependence on a fixed resistance threshold and allowing a more reliable low-liquid alert despite variations in initial resistance caused by liquid composition or wick characteristics.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1-17, 19-20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent No. 10,524,505 B2. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because they are directed to the same electronic vaping device and battery section of the electronic vaping device.
Instant Application 18/303,563
U.S. Patent No. 10,524,505 B2
1. (Original) An electronic vaping device, comprising: a cartomizer including a housing, a liquid supply reservoir in the housing, a vaporizer connected to the liquid supply reservoir, and a channel adjacent to the liquid supply reservoir, the liquid supply reservoir being configured to store vapor precursor, the vaporizer including a fluid-transport structure that is configured to transport the vapor precursor from the liquid supply reservoir to the channel; and a battery section configured to provide power to the vaporizer, the battery section including a control circuit that is configured to determine a saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure.
2. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the cartomizer and the battery section are configured to be removably coupled to each other, and the vaporizer includes a heating element that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor transported to the channel.
3. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 2, wherein the battery section includes a battery, the fluid-transport structure includes a wick that extends from the channel into the liquid supply reservoir, the heating element includes a heating coil that is wrapped around a part of the wick, and the heating coil is configured to receive power from the battery and heat the wick.
4. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 3, wherein the cartomizer includes a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil, the cartomizer includes a first probe connected to a first end of the wick, the first probe and the first electrical lead are separated from each other, the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a portion of the wick using the first probe and one of the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, and the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on a measured electrical resistance of the portion of the wick.
5. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 3, wherein the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second end of the wick, respectively, the battery section is configured to connect the first probe and the second probe to the control circuit, and the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across the wick using the first probe and the second probe.
6. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 3, wherein the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second of the wick, respectively, the cartomizer includes a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil, the first probe and the first electrical lead are separated from each other, the second probe and the second electrical lead are separated from each other, the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a first portion of the wick using the first probe and at least one of the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a second portion of the wick using the first probe and the second probe, the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on at least one of a measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick and a measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick, and the first portion of the wick and the second portion of the wick are different sizes.
7. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 6, wherein the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a third portion of the wick using the second probe and at least one of the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, and the second portion and the third portion of the wick are different sizes.
8. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, further comprising: a LED, wherein the control circuit is connected to the LED, the control circuit is configured to control the LED to display a first color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the control circuit is circuit is configured to control the LED to display a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color.
9. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 8, wherein the control circuit is configured to limit a supply of power to the vaporizer if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value.
10. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the control circuit includes a resistive sensing unit and a vaporizer driver.
11. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the control circuit includes a memory unit, the memory unit is configured to store a plurality of electrical resistance values that correspond to the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure measured at different times, and the control circuit is configured to issue an alert based on a comparison result of at least two electrical resistance values measured from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer.
12. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 11, wherein the at least two electrical resistance values include a first value and a second value, and the control circuit is configured to issue the alert if at least one of: a ratio based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold ratio, and a difference based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold difference.
13. (Currently Amended) A battery section of an electronic vaping device, the battery section comprising: a battery; and a control circuit connected to the battery, the control circuit being configured to determine a saturation level of a vapor precursor on a fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of at least a portion of the fluid-transport structure.
14. (Original) The battery section of claim 13, wherein the battery section is configured to be removably coupled to a cartomizer of the electronic vaping device.
15. (Currently Amended) The battery section of claim 13, wherein the control circuit is configured to limit a supply of power that the battery supplies to an external device if the control circuit determines the electrical resistance is greater than a threshold value.
16. (Original) The battery section of claim 13, further comprising: a LED connected to the battery, wherein the control circuit is configured to control the LED to display a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the control circuit is circuit is configured to control the LED to display a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color.
17. (Original) The battery section of claim 15, wherein the control circuit includes a resistive sensing controller and a vaporizer driver, the vaporizer driver is configured to control supplying power to a vaporizer if the vaporizer driver is electrically connected to the vaporizer, and the resistive sensing controller is configured to determine the electrical resistance based on sensing resistance values measured at different positions of the fluid-transport structure.
18. (Withdrawn) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the fluid-transport structure is a heater-wick structure.
19. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are connected to respective ends of a heating coil.
20. (Original) An electronic vaping device, comprising: the battery section of claim 15; and a cartomizer connected to the battery section.
1. An electronic vaping device, comprising:
a cartomizer including a housing, a liquid supply reservoir in the housing, a vaporizer connected to the liquid supply reservoir, and a channel adjacent to the liquid supply reservoir,
the liquid supply reservoir being configured to store vapor precursor,
the vaporizer including a fluid-transport structure that is configured to transport the vapor precursor from the liquid supply reservoir to the channel,
the vaporizer including a heating element that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor transported to the channel,
the fluid-transport structure including a wick that extends from the channel into the liquid supply reservoir,
the cartomizer including a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second end of the wick, respectively,
the heating element including a heating coil that is wrapped around a part of the wick,
the cartomizer including a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil,
the first probe and the first electrical lead being separated from each other,
the second probe and the second electrical lead being separated from each other; and
a battery section configured to provide power to the vaporizer,
the battery section including a control circuit that is configured to determine a saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of at least a portion of the fluid-transport structure,
the control circuit being configured to measure the electrical resistance across a first portion of the wick using the first probe and one of the first electrical lead, the second electrical lead, or the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead,
the control circuit being configured to measure the electrical resistance across a second portion of the wick using the first probe and the second probe,
the control circuit being configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on one of the measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick, the measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick, or the measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the Wick and the measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick, and
the first portion of the wick and the second portion of the wick being different sizes.
2. The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein
the cartomizer and the battery section are configured to be removably coupled to each other.
3. The electronic vaping device of claim 2, wherein
the battery section includes a battery, and
the heating coil is configured to receive power from the battery and heat the wick.
4. The electronic vaping device of claim 3, wherein
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick using the first probe and one of the first electrical lead or the second electrical lead, and
the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on the measured electrical resistance of the first portion of the wick.
5. The electronic starring device of claim 3, wherein
the battery section is configured to connect the first probe and the second probe to the control circuit, and
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across the wick using the first probe and the second probe.
6. The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a third portion of the wick using the second probe and one of the first electrical lead, the second electrical lead, or the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, and
the second portion and the third portion of the wick are different sires.
7. The electronic vaping device of claim 1, further comprising:
a LED, wherein
the control circuit is connected to the LED,
the control circuit is configured to control the LED to display a first color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value,
the control circuit is circuit is configured to control the LED to display a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value,
the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value, and
the first color is different than the second color.
8. The electronic vaping device of claim 7, wherein the control circuit is configured to limit a supply of power to the vaporizer if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value.
9. The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the control circuit includes resistive sensing unit and a vaporizer driver.
10. The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein
the control circuit includes a memory unit,
the memory unit is configured to store a plurality of electrical resistance values that correspond to the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure measured at different times, and
the control circuit is configured to issue an alert based on a comparison result of at least two of the electrical resistance values measured from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer.
11. The electronic vaping device of claim 10, wherein
the at least two of the electrical resistance values include a first value and a second value, and
the control circuit is configured to issue the alert if one of:
a ratio based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold ratio,
a difference based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold difference, or
both the ratio based on the first value and the second value is greater than the threshold ratio, and the difference based on the first value and the second value is greater than the threshold difference.
12. A battery section of an electronic vaping device, the battery section comprising:
a battery; and
a control circuit connected to the battery,
the control circuit being configured to determine a saturation level of vapor precursor on a fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of at least a portion of the fluid-transport structure, wherein
the fluid-transport structure is part of a cartomizer that includes a wick in the fluid-transport structure, a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second end respectively of the wick, and a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of a heating coil wrapped around a part of the wick;
the first probe and the first electrical lead are separated from each other, the second probe and the second electrical lead are separated from each other, and a first portion of the wick and a second portion of the wick are different sizes; and
the control circuit is configured to Measure the electrical resistance across the first portion of a wick using the first probe and one of the first electrical lead, the second electrical lead, or the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead,
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick using the first probe and the second probe,
the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on one of the measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick, the measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick, or the Measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick and the measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick.
13. The battery section of claim 12, wherein
the battery section is configured to be removably coupled to the cartomizer, and the cartomizer is part of the electronic raping device.
14. The battery section of claim 12, wherein the control circuit is configured to limit a supply of power that the battery supplies to the cartomizer if the control circuit determines the electrical resistance is greater than a threshold value.
15. The battery section of claim 12, further comprising:
a LED connected to the battery, wherein
the control circuit is configured to control the LED to display a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value,
the control circuit is circuit is configured to control the LED to display a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value,
the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value, and
the first color is different than the second color.
16. The battery section of claim 15, wherein
the control circuit includes a resistive sensing controller and a vaporizer driver,
the vaporizer driver is configured to control supplying power to a vaporizer if the vaporizer driver is electrically connected to the vaporizer, and
the resistive sensing controller is configured to determine the electrical resistance based on sensing resistance values measured at different positions of the fluid-transport structure.
17. The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein
the first electrical lead, the second electrical lead, the first probe, and the second probe are spaced apart from each other.
18. The electronic vaping device of claim 17, wherein
the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead are connected to different ends of the heating coil such that the respective ends of the heating coil are different ends of the heating coil.
19. The electronic vaping device of claim 18, wherein
the cartomizer includes a mouth-end insert and a seal in the housing at opposite ends of the housing,
the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead extend through the seal to one end of the housing.
20. The electronic vaping device of claim 19, wherein
the first probe extends to the one end of the housing,
the second probe extends to the one end of the housing, or
both the first probe and the second probe extend to the one end of the housing.
Claims 1-17, 19-20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-17 of U.S. Patent No. 11,679,211 B2. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because they are directed to the same electronic vaping device.
Instant Application 18/303,563
U.S. Patent No. 11,679,211 B2
1. (Original) An electronic vaping device, comprising: a cartomizer including a housing, a liquid supply reservoir in the housing, a vaporizer connected to the liquid supply reservoir, and a channel adjacent to the liquid supply reservoir, the liquid supply reservoir being configured to store vapor precursor, the vaporizer including a fluid-transport structure that is configured to transport the vapor precursor from the liquid supply reservoir to the channel; and a battery section configured to provide power to the vaporizer, the battery section including a control circuit that is configured to determine a saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure.
2. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the cartomizer and the battery section are configured to be removably coupled to each other, and the vaporizer includes a heating element that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor transported to the channel.
3. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 2, wherein the battery section includes a battery, the fluid-transport structure includes a wick that extends from the channel into the liquid supply reservoir, the heating element includes a heating coil that is wrapped around a part of the wick, and the heating coil is configured to receive power from the battery and heat the wick.
4. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 3, wherein the cartomizer includes a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil, the cartomizer includes a first probe connected to a first end of the wick, the first probe and the first electrical lead are separated from each other, the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a portion of the wick using the first probe and one of the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, and the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on a measured electrical resistance of the portion of the wick.
5. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 3, wherein the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second end of the wick, respectively, the battery section is configured to connect the first probe and the second probe to the control circuit, and the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across the wick using the first probe and the second probe.
6. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 3, wherein the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second of the wick, respectively, the cartomizer includes a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil, the first probe and the first electrical lead are separated from each other, the second probe and the second electrical lead are separated from each other, the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a first portion of the wick using the first probe and at least one of the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a second portion of the wick using the first probe and the second probe, the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on at least one of a measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick and a measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick, and the first portion of the wick and the second portion of the wick are different sizes.
7. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 6, wherein the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a third portion of the wick using the second probe and at least one of the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, and the second portion and the third portion of the wick are different sizes.
8. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, further comprising: a LED, wherein the control circuit is connected to the LED, the control circuit is configured to control the LED to display a first color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the control circuit is circuit is configured to control the LED to display a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color.
9. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 8, wherein the control circuit is configured to limit a supply of power to the vaporizer if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value.
10. (Original) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the control circuit includes a resistive sensing unit and a vaporizer driver.
11. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the control circuit includes a memory unit, the memory unit is configured to store a plurality of electrical resistance values that correspond to the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure measured at different times, and the control circuit is configured to issue an alert based on a comparison result of at least two electrical resistance values measured from the fluid-transport structure of a same cartomizer.
12. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 11, wherein the at least two electrical resistance values include a first value and a second value, and the control circuit is configured to issue the alert if at least one of: a ratio based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold ratio, and a difference based on the first value and the second value is greater than a threshold difference.
13. (Currently Amended) A battery section of an electronic vaping device, the battery section comprising: a battery; and a control circuit connected to the battery, the control circuit being configured to determine a saturation level of a vapor precursor on a fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of at least a portion of the fluid-transport structure.
14. (Original) The battery section of claim 13, wherein the battery section is configured to be removably coupled to a cartomizer of the electronic vaping device.
15. (Currently Amended) The battery section of claim 13, wherein the control circuit is configured to limit a supply of power that the battery supplies to an external device if the control circuit determines the electrical resistance is greater than a threshold value.
16. (Original) The battery section of claim 13, further comprising: a LED connected to the battery, wherein the control circuit is configured to control the LED to display a first color if the electrical resistance is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value, the control circuit is circuit is configured to control the LED to display a second color if the electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure is greater than the first threshold value, the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value, and the first color is different than the second color.
17. (Original) The battery section of claim 15, wherein the control circuit includes a resistive sensing controller and a vaporizer driver, the vaporizer driver is configured to control supplying power to a vaporizer if the vaporizer driver is electrically connected to the vaporizer, and the resistive sensing controller is configured to determine the electrical resistance based on sensing resistance values measured at different positions of the fluid-transport structure.
18. (Withdrawn) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the fluid-transport structure is a heater-wick structure.
19. (Currently Amended) The electronic vaping device of claim 1, wherein the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are connected to respective ends of a heating coil.
20. (Original) An electronic vaping device, comprising: the battery section of claim 15; and a cartomizer connected to the battery section.
1. A cartomizer comprising:
a housing;
a liquid supply reservoir in the housing;
a vaporizer connected to the liquid supply reservoir, and
a channel adjacent to the liquid supply reservoir,
the liquid supply reservoir being configured to store vapor precursor,
the vaporizer including a fluid-transport structure that extends from the liquid supply reservoir into the channel and is configured to transport the vapor precursor from the liquid supply reservoir to the channel;
a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead connected to a first position and a second position of the vaporizer; and
a probe connected to a third position of the vaporizer,
the first position, the second position, and the third position of the vaporizer being spaced apart from each other, and
the first electrical lead, second electrical lead, and the probe being spaced apart from each other.
2. The cartomizer of claim 1, wherein
the vaporizer includes a heating element that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor transported to the channel, and
the first position and the second position of the vaporizer are different ends of the heating element.
3. The cartomizer of claim 2, wherein
the fluid-transport structure includes a wick that extends from the channel into the liquid supply reservoir,
the heating element surrounds a portion of the wick in the channel, and
the third position of the vaporizer corresponds to one end of the wick.
4. The cartomizer of claim 2, wherein
the cartomizer includes a mouth-end insert and a seal in the housing at opposite ends of the housing,
the first electrical lead and second electrical lead extend from the first and second positions through the seal to one end of the housing.
5. The cartomizer of claim 4, wherein
the probe extends from the third position of the vaporizer to the one end of the housing.
6. A method of operating an electronic vaping device, the comprising:
measuring an electrical resistance of a fluid-transport structure in a cartomizer of the electronic vaping device using a control circuit in a battery section of the electronic vaping device,
the cartomizer including a housing, a liquid supply reservoir in the housing, a vaporizer connected to the liquid supply reservoir, and a channel adjacent to the liquid supply reservoir,
the vaporizer including a fluid-transport structure that is configured to transport vapor precursor from the liquid supply reservoir to the channel; and
determining a saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on the electrical resistance measurement of the fluid-transport structure.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:
issuing an alarm or re-measuring the electrical resistance after an adult vaper applies negative pressure to the electronic vaping device at least one time, based on the electrical resistance measurement.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein
the determining the saturation level includes determining if the electrical resistance measurement is less than a threshold value,
the issuing the alarm is performed in response to the electrical resistance measurement is greater than the threshold value, and
the re-measuring the electrical resistance after the adult vaper applies negative pressure to the electronic vaping device at least one time is performed in response to the electrical resistance measurement is less than or equal to the threshold value.
9. The method of claim 6, wherein
the determining the saturation level includes determining if the electrical resistance measurement is between a first threshold value and a second threshold value,
the first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value,
the re-measuring the electrical resistance after the adult vaper applies negative pressure to the electronic vaping device at least one time is performed in response to the electrical resistance measurement is between the first and second threshold values.
10. The method of claim 6, wherein
the cartomizer and the battery section are configured to be removably coupled to each other, and
the vaporizer includes a heating element that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor transported to the channel.
11. A method of making an electronic vaping device, the method comprising:
connecting a cartomizer to a battery section,
the cartomizer including a housing, a liquid supply reservoir in the housing, a vaporizer connected to the liquid supply reservoir, and a channel adjacent to the liquid supply reservoir,
the liquid supply reservoir configured to store vapor precursor,
the vaporizer including a fluid-transport structure that is configured to transport the vapor precursor from the liquid supply reservoir to the channel,
the battery section being configured to provide power to the vaporizer,
the battery section including a control circuit that is configured to determine a saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on an electrical resistance of the fluid-transport structure.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein
the cartomizer and the battery section are configured to be removably coupled to each other, and
the vaporizer includes a heating element that is configured to generate a vapor from the vapor precursor transported to the channel.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein
the battery section includes a battery,
the fluid-transport structure includes a wick that extends from the channel into the liquid supply reservoir,
the heating element includes a heating coil that is wrapped around a part of the wick, and
the heating coil configured to receive power from the battery and heat the wick.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein
the cartomizer includes a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil,
the cartomizer includes a first probe connected to a first end of the wick,
the first probe and the first electrical lead are separated from each other,
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a portion of the wick using the first probe and one of the first and second electrical leads, and
the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on the measured electrical resistance of the portion of the wick.
15. The method of claim 13, wherein
the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second of the wick, respectively,
the battery section is configured to connect the first probe and the second probe to the control circuit, and
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across the wick using the first probe and the second probe.
16. The method of claim 13, wherein
the cartomizer includes a first probe and a second probe that are electrically connected to a first end and a second end of the wick, respectively,
the cartomizer includes a first electrical lead and a second electrical lead that are connected to respective ends of the heating coil,
the first probe and the first electrical lead are separated from each other,
the second probe and the second electrical lead are separated from each other,
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a first portion of the wick using the first probe and one of the first and second electrical leads,
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a second portion of the wick using the first probe and the second probe,
the control circuit is configured to determine the saturation level of the vapor precursor on the fluid-transport structure based on at least one of the measured electrical resistance across the first portion of the wick and the measured electrical resistance across the second portion of the wick, and
the first portion of the wick and the second portion of the wick are different sizes.
17. The method of claim 14, wherein
the control circuit is configured to measure the electrical resistance across a third portion of the wick using the second probe and at least one of the first electrical lead and the second electrical lead, and
the second portion of the wick and the third portion of the wick are different sizes.
Conclusion
The following prior art(s) made of record and not relied upon is/are considered pertinent to Applicant’s disclosure.
Marangos (U.S. Pub. No. 2012/0199146 A1) discloses an electronic cigarette having L.E.D. indicators to indicate the usage of the electronic cigarette as well as memory devices for storing and generating data and charts on the usage of the electronic cigarette. The invention also relates to an improved cartomizer as well as a method of monitoring the inhalation of smoke from an electronic cigarette.
Tucket et al. (U.S. Pub. No. 2013/0213419 A1) discloses an electronic cigarette having a heater that is provided with a ribbon of electrically resistive mesh material that is wound about a filamentary wick. The wick is in communication with a liquid supply including liquid material. The heater is configured to vaporize liquid material to produce an aerosol.
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/THAO UYEN TRAN-LE/Examiner, Art Unit 3761 09/30/2026
