AUTOMATIC CONSUMPTION DETECTION FOR USE IN CONVERSION OF CONSUMPTION OF AEROSOL-GENERATING ARTICLES

Abstract

Systems (200), devices (101), and methods are configured to generate and provide to users an indication representative of conversion of consumption from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article. The systems (200), devices (101), and methods may be configured automatically detect and provide at least one first value representative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article (2) such as, for example, combustion-style aerosol-generating articles (e.g., combustible cigarettes), and at least one second value representative of consumption of a second type of aerosol-generating article (4) such as, e.g., for example, a heated-type aerosol-generating articles (e.g., heat sticks), over a time period. The indication representative of conversion of consumption may be based on the at least one first value (2) and the at least one second value (4).

Claims

1. A computerized method comprising: a first computer automatically detecting consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article over at least one time period using a detection device to provide at least one first value representative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period; a second computer providing at least one second value representative of consumption of a second type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period, wherein the first type of aerosol-generating article is different than the second type of aerosol-generating article; and the computer generating at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article based on the at least one first value and the at least one second value.

2-4. (canceled)

5. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically detecting consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article comprises analyzing motion of at least one body portion of the user indicative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the detection device comprises at least one accelerometer to determine motion of at least one body portion of the user indicative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the detection device is configured to be attached to the user's wrist.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically detecting consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article comprises analyzing one or more sounds associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the detection device comprises at least one microphone to record sound data for analysis of one or more sounds associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the detection device is configured to be attached to the user's neck.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically detecting consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article comprises detecting heat energy associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the detection device comprises at least one infrared pyroelectric sensor to detect heat energy associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the detection device is configured to be attached to the user's finger, hand, or wrist.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article comprises generating a rate of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article comprises an aggregate rate of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article based on at least a rolling average of a plurality of previous rates of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article from a plurality of previous time periods.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article comprises a graphical indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises generating a textual reinforcement message based on at least the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption to convey encouragement to a user to regarding the conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article.

18. Computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium having program code portions stored thereon, the program code portions configured, when said program product is run on a computer or network device, to: automatically detecting consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article over at least one time period using a detection device to provide at least one first value representative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period; generate at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article based on the at least one first value representative of consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period and at least one second value representative of consumption of a second type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period, wherein the first type of aerosol-generating article is different than the second type of aerosol-generating article; and deliver the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article to a user.

19. A system comprising: a user interface device comprising: a display comprising a graphical user interface configured to present at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article; and a controller comprising one or more processors and operably coupled to the display, wherein the controller is configured to: receive at least one first value representative of consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article over at least one time period from a detection device configured to automatically detect consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article; generate at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article based on at least one first value representative of consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article over at least one time period and at least one second value representative of consumption of a second type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period, wherein the first type of aerosol-generating article is different than the second type of aerosol-generating article, and display, on the graphical user interface, the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising: a detection device configured to automatically detect consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article, wherein the detection device comprises: a first communication interface to transfer data to and from the user interface device; and a first controller comprising one or more processors, wherein the controller is configured to: determine at least one first value representative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period, and transmit the at least one first value representative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period to the user interface device; and an aerosol-generating apparatus configured to use the second type of aerosol generating article to generate aerosol, wherein the aerosol-generating apparatus comprises: a communication interface to transfer data to and from the user interface device; and a controller comprising one or more processors, wherein the controller is configured to: determine at least one second value representative of consumption of the second type of aerosol-generating article over at least one time period using the aerosol-generating apparatus, and transmit the at least one second value representative of consumption of the second type of aerosol-generating article over the at least one time period to the user interface device.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein automatically detecting consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article comprises analyzing motion of at least one body portion of the user indicative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein the detection device comprises at least one accelerometer to determine motion of at least one body portion of the user indicative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

23. The system of claim 19, wherein the detection device is configured to be attached to the user's wrist.

24. The system of claim 19, wherein automatically detecting consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article comprises analyzing one or more sounds associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the detection device comprises at least one microphone to record sound data for analysis of one or more sounds associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

26. The system of claim 24, wherein the detection device is configured to be attached to the user's neck.

27. The system of claim 19, wherein automatically detecting consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article comprises detecting heat energy associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

28. The system of claim 27, wherein the detection device comprises at least one infrared pyroelectric sensor to detect heat energy associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

29. The system of claim 27, wherein the detection device is configured to be attached to the user's finger, hand, or wrist.

30. The system of claim 19, wherein generating the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article comprises generating a rate of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article.

31. The system of claim 19, wherein the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article comprises an aggregate rate of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article based on at least a rolling average of a plurality of previous rates of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article from a plurality of previous time periods.

32. The system of claim 19, wherein the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article comprises a graphical indication representative of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article.

33. The system of claim 19 wherein the controller of the user interface device is further configured to execute generating a textual reinforcement message based on at least the at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption to convey encouragement to a user to regarding the conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article.

Description

[0083] Reference will now be made to the drawings, which depict one or more aspects described in this disclosure. However, it will be understood that other aspects not depicted in the drawing fall within the scope and spirit of this disclosure. Like numbers used in the figures refer to like components, steps and the like. However, it will be understood that the use of a number to refer to a component in a given figure is not intended to limit the component in another figure labeled with the same number. In addition, the use of different numbers to refer to components in different figures is not intended to indicate that the different numbered components cannot be the same or similar to other numbered components.

[0084] FIG. 1 is block diagram of an illustrative system 200 for use in generating at least one indication representative of conversion of consumption from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article.

[0085] FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of an illustrative aerosol-generating apparatus 100 includes an aerosol-generating device 102 and a host device 101 configured to interface with the aerosol-generating device 102.

[0086] FIGS. 3-5 are views of an illustrative graphical user interface 250 for use with a user interface device 201 depicting indications representative of conversion of consumption from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article.

[0087] FIG. 6 is a flow chart of an illustrative method of generating an indication of conversion of consumption from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article.

[0088] FIGS. 7-8 are charts depicting various scenarios including data representative of consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article and a second type of aerosol-generating article, indications of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article, and intermediate data related thereto over a plurality of time periods.

[0089] FIGS. 9-11 are views of illustrative detection devices to detect consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article.

[0090] The schematic drawings are not necessarily to scale and are presented for purposes of illustration and not limitation.

[0091] With reference to FIG. 1, a functional scheme of an illustrative method and an illustrative system 200 according to the present invention are depicted. The system 200 includes a user interface device 201, an aerosol-generating apparatus 100, and a detection device 109. The user interface device 201, the aerosol-generating apparatus 100, and the detection device 109 are physically separate devices. The user interface device 201 is a general purpose computer (in this example, a smart phone or tablet computer) and includes a controller 202 and associated data storage 203. The data storage 203 includes programs and routines 204 such as, for example, programs and routines for the acquisition of data representative of the consumption of the first and second types of aerosol-generating articles, generation of indications of the conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article, and any other programs or routines to execute the illustrative methods and processes described herein. The data storage 203 further includes data 205 such as the data representative of the consumption of the first and second types of aerosol-generating articles, the indications of the conversion of consumption over a plurality of time periods, and the like. The user interface device 201 further includes a display 206 comprising a user-interactable, graphical user interface. The user interface devices includes a communication connection to the Internet, such as a wireless local area network (for example, Wi-Fi) transceiver (not illustrated).

[0092] Block 2 represents a first value representative of consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article and block 4 represents a second value representative of consumption of a second type of aerosol-generating article, each of which may be input into the user interface device 201. According to this embodiment, the second type of aerosol-generating article is a heat stick 104 to be used with an aerosol-generating device 102 of the aerosol-generating apparatus 100, and the first type of aerosol-generating article is a conventional combustion-type cigarette.

[0093] Generally, second value 4, HScur, relative to the consumption of the second type aerosol-generating article such as, for example, heat sticks, may be provided by the user to the user interface device apparatus 201 and/or by the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 (for example, automatically by the aerosol-generating device 102) to the user interface device apparatus 201. Similarly, a first value 2, CCcur, is relative to the consumption of the second type aerosol-generating article such as, for example, conventional cigarettes, may be provided (for example, automatically detected and provided) by the detection device 109 to the user interface device 201. In at least one embodiment, the first value 2, CCcur, is received data directly from the detection device 109 in response to a query carried out by the user interface device 201, which may be timely spaced in accordance to a predefined time schedule. Additionally, if the first value 2, CCcur, is received by the detection device 109, a predicted second data, CCpred, may be generated by the user interface device 201, which is an input data of the conventional cigarette consumption that may be estimated based on a predefined formula.

[0094] After first and second values 2, 4 have been provided to the user interface device 201, the user interface device 201 may determine an output data, CS, based on the received values 2, 4. As mentioned, the output data, CS, may include at least one indication of conversion of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article such as, e.g., a rate of the conversion from consuming conventional cigarettes to the usage of the heat sticks. The output data, CS, may be delivered to the user via the display 206 of the user interface device 201. These method steps may be periodically repeated during subsequent time intervals, with the specific aim of informing/educating the users during their journey and converting them to the consumption of reduced-risk product such as, for example, heated-type aerosol-generating articles. Preferably, the collection of first and second values 2, 4, and calculation and delivery of the at least one indication of conversion of consumption (e.g., a conversion rate) are operations performed on a daily basis.

[0095] Still with reference to FIG. 1, the user interface device 201 may be a portable device that is configured to establish a connection to an external database serve 50, to transfer/receive data. Data can be transferred and/or received over the Internet via the Wi-Fi transceiver of the user interface device 201. The programs and routines or app in the data storage 203 may be updated over the Internet from a remote server (not illustrated), such as a cloud server. As a result, the app in the data storage 203 can be readily updated.

[0096] As noted herein, the system 200 may include aerosol-generating apparatus 100 as described with more detail in reference to FIG. 2. Preferably, the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 includes an aerosol-generating device 102 and a host device 101. The aerosol-generating device 102 comprises a cavity 132 for receiving a second type of aerosol-generating article such as a heat stick 104 and a heater 134, which is configured to provide a source of heat to the heat stick 104 thus producing inhalable aerosol. The aerosol-generating device 102 further includes a controller 128 comprising one or more processors and associated memory. The controller 128 may be associated with the heater 134 in order to collect second input consumption data 4, HScur. In fact, advantageously, the controller 128 may sense/record the temperature history of the heater 134 during a smoking occurrence, including, for example, the temperature drops due to user puffs. By collecting all data relative to the temperature history of the heater 134, the controller 128 may detect whether a heat stick 104 has been consumed or not. If so, the control unit 128 updates an internal counter. The controller 128 then keeps a record of the number of heat sticks 104 smoked for each day. The controller 128 may further include a communication interface such as, e.g., a wireless communication interface to, for example, communicate with the user interface device 201 and/or host device 101. The communication interface of the controller 128 may preferably comprise a BLUETOOH interface. The aerosol-generating device 102 further comprises a power supply 126 and power and data interface ports 130.

[0097] The host device 101 includes a cavity 112 configured to host the aerosol-generating device 102 to recharge its power supply 126 via the power and interface ports 130. Preferably, the power supply 126 of the aerosol-generating device 102 may be designed to supply sufficient power for a one smoking experience, such that the user after consumption of a heat stick 104 has to re-insert the aerosol-generating device 102 into the host device 101 to recharge its battery 126 via the power and data interface ports 110 of the host device 101.

[0098] The host device 101 includes a controller 108 comprising one or more processors and associated with a communication interface unit 106, which interacts with the controller 128 of the aerosol-generating device 102 to exchange/store data collected such as, for example, the daily amount, or number, of heat stick consumed, HScur, when the aerosol-generating device 102 and the host devices 101 are electrically coupled (e.g., when the aerosol-generating device 102 is docked, via wireless communication, etc.). The communication interface unit 106, in turn, may be configured to exchange collected data such as second input data 4, HScur, to/from the user interface device 201. Advantageously, communication interface unit 106 has a wireless communication module, preferably comprising a BLUETOOH interface. This is a low power interface.

[0099] In this way, the number of heat sticks consumed per day, HScur, is stored into the system 200, with no action on the user side, and it is communicated to the user interface device 201 (for calculation of the output data, that is conversion rate) as explained in the following with reference to different practical scenarios in FIGS. 7-8.

[0100] The illustrative user interface device 201 including a display 206 depicting a graphical user interface 250 is shown in FIGS. 3-5. The graphical user interface 250 includes two indications of conversion of consumption from conventional cigarettes to heated-type aerosol-generating articles 260, 264, textual reinforcement messages 262 to convey encouragement to a user regarding the conversion of consumption, and informational content 266 related to conversion of consumption to convey additional information to a user for assistance in conversion of consumption. The first indication 260 of conversion of consumption from conventional cigarettes to heated-type aerosol-generating articles comprises a rate, or percentage, of conversion of consumption from conventional cigarettes to heated-type aerosol-generating articles (“20% Converted” in FIG. 3, “50% Converted” in FIG. 4, and “75% Converted” in FIG. 5). The second indication 264 of conversion of consumption from conventional cigarettes to heated-type aerosol-generating articles comprises bar-type graph representative of the rate, or percentage, of conversion of consumption from conventional cigarettes to heated-type aerosol-generating articles. In FIG. 3, the textual reinforcement message 262 reads “You are doing great!” In FIG. 4, the textual reinforcement message 262 reads “Keep in up!” In FIG. 5, the textual reinforcement message 262 reads “You're almost there.”

[0101] Generally, the illustrative methods according to the invention may be implemented by means of a software application downloaded, from a user, on the user interface device 201 (typically a mobile phone or tablet) from the server database 50. A user may perform a first login once the application is downloaded and may be requested to insert their credentials along with initial data relative to their consumption habits of first and second type of smoking articles. Said differently, on day 1, when a user starts their conversion journey (which may correspond to the purchase of an illustrative aerosol-generating system), the user may be asked to insert data of their average consumption of heat sticks (number of heat sticks per day) and their average consumption of conventional cigarettes (number of conventional cigarettes per day). Normally the initial number of heat sticks per day is zero, unless the user is already smoking heat sticks at the first log in.

[0102] The first value 2, for example, such as daily number of conventional cigarettes, is stored determined by and stored within the detection device 109, and communicated to the user interface device 201 for carrying out the calculation of the conversion rate every time the user logs in into the application and performs a sync between the detection device 109 and the user interface device 201. During the synchronization, the conventional cigarette consumption data is transferred from the detection device 109 to the user interface device 201. Therefore, different scenarios are possible depending on the user behavior in terms of how often the users sync their detection devices 109 to their user interface devices 201. Further, the detection device 109 may automatically sync with the user interface device 201 upon, for example, the detection of consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article such as a conventional cigarette or periodically such as once per day.

[0103] The second value 4, for example, such as daily number of smoked heat sticks, is stored within the aerosol generating apparatus 100, and communicated to the user interface device 201 for carrying out the calculation of the conversion rate every time the user logs in into the application and performs a sync between the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 and the user interface device 201. During the synchronization, the heat stick consumption data is transferred from the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 to the user interface device 201. Therefore, different scenarios are possible depending on the user behavior in terms of how often the users sync their aerosol-generating apparatus 100 to their user interface devices 201.

[0104] FIGS. 7-8 are charts depicting various scenarios including data representative of consumption of a first type of aerosol-generating article and a second type of aerosol-generating article, indications of conversion of consumption from the first type of aerosol-generating article to the second type of aerosol-generating article, and intermediate data related thereto over a plurality of time periods. In this first scenario of FIG. 7, the user is very compliant and syncs their aerosol-generating system daily.

[0105] In this example, at a first log in the user inserts the initial data: [0106] HSinit=0 [0107] CCinit=18

[0108] Therefore, the user is new to smoking heat sticks and appears to be quite a passionate smoker of conventional cigarette (i.e., 18 per day). Day 1 passes and a certain number of heat sticks and conventional cigarettes are smoked. The number of heat sticks are stored in the aerosol-generating system as explained herein. During day 2, the user logs in, and input data is obtained pertaining to the previous day 1. In particular, heat stick consumption (e.g., a number of heat sticks smoked on day 1), HScur, is delivered by synchronization of the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 and the user interface device 201, whilst the consumption of convention cigarette CCpred is estimated based on a predefined formula.

[0109] In particular, the formula for calculation of CCpred of day 1 is based on the HScur of day 1 and the constant first value CCinit and the constant second value HSinit initially provided at the first log in.

CCpred=HSinit+CCinit−HScur

[0110] In other terms, it is estimated that the number of smoked heat sticks will replace an equal number of conventional cigarette. Therefore, for day 1, first and second input data collected are: [0111] HScur=10 [0112] CCpred=8

[0113] Based on this input, the apparatus calculates the rate of conversion from conventional cigarettes to heat sticks, CS, based on the following general formula:

CS=HS/(HS+CC)

[0114] Now, since there is a delay of a day between when the effective consumption of smoking articles is performed (heat sticks and conventional cigarettes) and when the associated data is transferred to the application, it may be useful to distinguish between output data, CSraw and CSactual. In general, CSraw may be the conversion rate delivered on a particular day, but which actually refers to the consumption of the day before. In general terms, only on a generic day (n), input data of day (n−1) can be complete and hence processed. On day 1, CSraw is calculated based on HSinit as follows:

CSraw(day 1)=HSinit/HSinit+CCinit=0(in this case HSinit is zero)

On day 2, CSraw is calculated based on the input data relative to day 1:

CSraw(day 2)=HScur(day 1)/HScur(day 1)+CCpred(day 1)

Whilst CSactual on day 1 is actually the conversion rate based on the consumption of day 1:

CSactual(day 1)=HScur(day 1)/HScur(day 1)+CCpred(day 1)

So, it is now clear that in general:

CSraw(day n)=CSactual(day n−1)

[0115] With the logic explained above, for every day CSraw and CSactual output values are calculated based on first and second input data. However, this may not always true for scenarios where the user is compliant and syncs their device daily. Moreover, the daily number of convention cigarettes smoked is not always predicted, but sometimes it is automatically determined and provided using one or more detection devices (which, when inputted, is indicated as CCcur). The requests are carried out based on a specific predetermined time schedule. When CCcur is available, that is the input data which is used in calculation.

[0116] A flow chart of an illustrative method 300 of generating an indication of conversion of consumption, CSraw, from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article is depicted in FIG. 6. As shown, the method first checks if synchronization 302 has occurred between the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 and the user interface device 201, and thus, determining if a second value representative of the consumption of the second type of aerosol-generating article, HScur, has been downloaded from the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 to the user interface device 201. If no synchronization 302 has occurred on a particular day, then the indication of conversion of consumption, CSraw, may not be accurate if calculated, and thus, the indication of conversion of consumption, CSraw, is set equal to the previous day's, or yesterday's, output value 308. If synchronization 302 has occurred on a particular day, then the method 300 may check 304 if synchronization 302 has occurred between the detection device 109 and the user interface device 201 to provide the consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article, CCcur. If no first value 304 has been provided from a detection device 109 on a particular day, then the method 300 may use a predicted first value, CCpred, which may be estimated as described herein, to calculate the indication of conversion of consumption, CSraw. In this situation, the indication of conversion of consumption, CSraw, may calculated 310 as being equal to the second value, HScur, divided by the sum of the second value, HScur, and the first value, CCpred. If a first value 304 has been automatically detected and provided by a detection device 109 on a particular day, then the method 300 may use the provided first value, CCcur, such that CSraw, may calculated 306 as being equal to the second value, HScur, divided by the sum of the second value, HScur, and the first value, CCcur.

[0117] Once CSraw is obtained, it is transformed into CSorig as now explained. Generally, CSorig is the data used to serve behavioral content. Preferably CSorig is a “trimmed average” of CSraw and may be calculated as follows: from day 1 to day 5, CSorig=CSraw; and from day 6 on, CSorig may be calculated taking multiple CSraw values of the last five days, deleting minimum and maximum values and measuring the average of the remaining three.

[0118] Further, the rate of conversion of consumption may be categorized into stages and turned into coded information as follows: <33%=Low; 33 to 66%=Medium; 66 to 95%=High; and >95%=Converted. Each of the categorizations/coded information are indicated in the tables of FIGS. 7-8 proximate to the corresponding output data.

[0119] The second scenario depicted in the chart of FIG. 8 is different that the first scenario of FIG. 7 in that user is not very compliant and does not sync the aerosol-generating apparatus 100 daily with the user interface device 201. In this scenario, when the user does not sync, the apparatus will not know the first input of the heat stick consumption (number of heat sticks smoked the previous day). In this case, CSraw is computed equal to the one of the day before. This is clearly indicated in the second scenario of chart of FIG. 8. The reason why a conversion rate, CSraw, is calculated and delivered to the user even when the user does not sync his device (thus does not deliver the input data) is because, for example, the conversion rate may be useful to be provided to the user daily even when user does not provide input data. As previously outlined, CSorig is the output based on which behavioral content is delivered and is calculated from CSraw. In the second scenario, it is possible to appreciate the fluctuations of CSraw from CSactual (in particular, the conversion rate may be given to the user in terms of the categorizations/coded information such as, for example, low, medium, high and converted) for a user who does not sync daily.

[0120] Various detection devices 109 for automatic detection of the consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article such as conventional cigarettes are depicted in FIGS. 9-11. The detection device 109 of FIG. 9 is configured to be wearable about a user's finger and includes one or more sensors 111 that are configured to automatically detect the consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article. For example, the sensors 111 of the detection device 109 of FIG. 9 include one or more infrared pyroelectric sensors to detect heat energy associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article. The detection device 109 of FIG. 10 is configured to be wearable about a user's neck and includes one or more sensors 111 that are configured to automatically detect the consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article. For example, the sensors 111 of the detection device 109 of FIG. 10 include one or more microphones, or other sounds sensors, to record sound data for analysis of one or more sounds associated with consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article. The detection device 109 of FIG. 11 is configured to be wearable about a user's wrist and includes one or more sensors 111 that are configured to automatically detect the consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article. For example, the sensors 111 of the detection device 109 of FIG. 10 include one or more accelerometers to determine motion of at least one body portion of the user indicative of consumption of the first type of aerosol-generating article.

[0121] Thus, systems, devices, and methods for use in conversion from a first type of aerosol-generating article to a second type of aerosol-generating article are described. Various modifications and variations of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the invention which are apparent to those skilled in the electrical arts, computer arts and aerosol generating article manufacturing or related fields are intended to be within the scope of the following claims.

[0122] According to a further aspect of the invention, the conversion can be computed from an e-cigarette to heat sticks. Here, the rationale of the computation is exactly as previously described. In this aspect of the invention it is important to understand how large a volume of e-liquid is equivalent to the smoking of a single combustible cigarette. If EC(equivalent) is the volume of e-liquid corresponding to one combustible cigarette, we can define it as a unitary volume, which is used for computing the conversion towards heat sticks in accordance with the description above. Similarly, as for conversion from combustible cigarettes to heat sticks, we can define EC(init) as the initial EC(equivalent) which means the volume of liquid initially used (at the beginning) calculated in number of equivalent combustible cigarettes.

[0123] EC(cur)=subsequent EC(equi) readings. A way to calculate EC(cur) is to let the user input to the interface device how long a given volume of e-liquid lasts, from which is calculated the average volume consumption per day and therefore the number of equivalent combustible cigarettes (as above described).

[0124] EC can also be predicted EC(pred), with a similar formula as for other examples. In yet another example, a conversion from using two different aerosol-generating articles, e.g. e-cigs and combustible cigarettes (dual use of conventional cigarettes and e-cigs is occurring) to heat sticks, may be computed.

[0125] This may be done as described above with reference to conversion from a first type article to the second type of article, with the difference that the conversion ratio will be calculated using the sum of the consumption of both e-cigs and combustible cigarettes.