A TESTING EQUIPMENT AND METHOD FOR TESTING A HEATING ELEMENT IN AN AEROSOL-GENERATING ARTICLE

Abstract

The present invention relates to a non-destructive testing equipment and method for testing a heating element in an aerosol-generating article. The testing equipment comprises a control module comprising a passage for an aerosol-generating article to pass the control module through the passage. The control module further comprises a control circuit and a measurement device. The control circuit comprises an excitation coil configured to generate an alternating magnetic field within the passage of the control module. The measurement device is configured to determine values related to a load applied to the control circuit responsive to physical characteristics of the heating element, when the heating element passes the control module through the passage. The control module is further configured to determine if a determined value of the tested heating element corresponds to a predefined value of a predefined heating element.

Claims

1. A non-destructive testing equipment for testing a heating element in an aerosol-generating article, the testing equipment comprising: a control module comprising a passage for an aerosol-generating article to pass the control module through the passage, the control module further comprising a control circuit and a measurement device; wherein the control circuit comprises an excitation coil configured to generate an alternating magnetic field within the passage of the control module, and wherein the measurement device is configured to determine values related to a load applied to the control circuit responsive to physical characteristics of the heating element, when the heating element passes the control module through the passage; wherein the control module is further configured to determine if a determined value of the tested heating element corresponds to a predefined value of a predefined heating element.

2. The testing equipment according to claim 1, wherein the determined value is a value indicative of an apparent electrical resistance of the heating element.

3. The testing equipment according to claim 1, wherein the excitation coil is part of an LRC circuit of the measurement device.

4. The testing equipment according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit is configured to operate the excitation coil at low power.

5. The testing equipment according to claim 4, wherein the control circuit is configured to apply a DC voltage in a range between 0.5 V and 3V, preferably 1 V.

6. The testing equipment according to claim 1, wherein the excitation coil is arranged in the control module and arranged to surround the passage.

7. The testing equipment according to claim 1, further comprising a guide element for guiding the aerosol-generating article to the passage of the control module.

8. The testing equipment according to claim 7, wherein the guide element comprises a slide for guiding the aerosol-generating article on the slide.

9. A non-destructive testing method for testing a heating element in an aerosol-generating article, the method comprising: providing an aerosol-generating article comprising a heating element; letting the aerosol-generating article pass an alternating magnetic field of a control circuit without heating the heating element; determining values related to a load by the heating element applied to the control circuit responsive to physical characteristics of the heating element passing the alternating field of the control circuit; and comparing a determined value of the tested heating element with a predefined value of a predefined heating element.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising accepting the aerosol-generating article, if a difference between the determined value of the tested heating element and the predefined value is within a predefined threshold or rejecting the aerosol-generating article, if a difference between the determined value of the tested heating element and the predefined value exceeds the predefined threshold.

11. The method according to claim 9, therein applying a DC voltage of between 0.5 V and 3V to the control circuit.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein the aerosol-generating article passes the alternating magnetic field with a velocity between 0 m/s and 40 m/s, when being tested.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the aerosol-generating article passes the alternating magnetic field with a velocity between 10 m/s and 30 m/s, when being tested.

14. The method according to claim 9, wherein the aerosol-generating article is falling through the alternating magnetic field due to gravitational force.

15. The method according to claim 9, wherein the heating element is a multi-layer susceptor arrangement.

Description

[0132] Examples will now be further described with reference to the figures in which:

[0133] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a testing equipment;

[0134] FIG. 2 schematically illustrates the technical operation principle of the testing equipment of FIG. 1;

[0135] FIG. 3 is a set-up of a testing equipment for measuring falling articles comprising a heating element.

[0136] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an article 1 passing through a testing equipment 2. The article 1 comprises a heating element (not shown), for example an inductively heatable heating element, such as a multi-layer susceptor arrangement. Preferably, the article 1 is a rod-shaped aerosol-generating article comprising the heating element and an aerosol-forming substrate. In particular, the article 1 is a tobacco containing substrate, in which a susceptor is embedded. The article may also be a final consumable, thus a tobacco plug with heating element and additional segments, e.g. a filter element.

[0137] In order to check the quality of the heating element in the article 1, the article 1 is passing the testing equipment 2 through passage 22. Depending on the arrangement of the testing equipment 2, the article 1 may be guided through the passage 22 and through the testing equipment 2, for example by means of a conveyor (not shown). The article may also be guided to the passage 22 in the testing equipment 2 and may fall through the passage upon gravitational force, for example vertically downwards as shown in FIG. 1.

[0138] A moving direction 100 of the article 1 to be tested may thus be horizontal or vertical or anything in between horizontal and vertical.

[0139] A vertical arrangement has a passage that may be arranged exactly vertically or may be arranged to deviate from the exact vertical arrangement by several degrees. For example, a vertical passage may by arranged between 0 degree and 45 degree, preferably, between 0 degree and 30 degree, for example between 0 degree and 15 degree, wherein 0 degree corresponds to the exact vertical arrangement.

[0140] The testing equipment 2 comprises a control module 13. Located in the control module 13 is an excitation coil 11, which forms part of a LRC measuring circuit indicated with block 130.

[0141] The testing equipment 2 operates differently from a coil module used in a marketed device. In a real device the heating element has to be heated in order to heat the aerosol-forming substrate of the article 1 for aerosol formation.

[0142] In the testing equipment 2, the excitation coil 11 is fed with a low voltage, for example with about 1 V.

[0143] The LRC circuit is connected to a processor to collect output data from the control module 13.

[0144] Results of the test outputted and determined are typically the equivalent resistance of the excitation coil 11 arranged inside the testing equipment 2 when the article 2 and accordingly the heating element is located inside the coil 11.

[0145] The control module 13 comprising the passage 22 allows the article to be tested to pass the passage and to carry out the measurement during the passage of the article through the control module 13. This allows for a sample testing in a fast process. It is possible to analyze a high number of articles at high speed, for example at article velocities passing the passage 22 at about 10 m/s to 30 m/s. The velocity of the article 1 may be made dependent on the capacity of the measuring device.

[0146] The basic feedback provided by testing equipment 2 is to verify that all tested articles have a similar response in terms of equivalent resistance recorded in the equipment.

[0147] Since the testing equipment 2 is a non-destructive testing, the tested articles 1 can still be used after the testing. For this reason, the testing equipment 2 is suitable to be arranged along a manufacturing line of articles, where defective articles can easily and in a fast way be sorted out.

[0148] In FIG. 2, the basic technical operating principle of the measurement part of the testing equipment 2 is schematically illustrated. The load 111 is representative of the impedance produced by a system comprising the excitation coil 11 arranged in the control module 13 and the heating element, in particular a susceptor, located in the article 1 to be tested.

[0149] The system sends a signal 112 and then measures the resulting voltage V and current I that is absorbed by the control circuit. By knowing the characteristics of the excitation coil 11, it is possible to obtain a measurement of the physical properties of the heating element.

[0150] FIG. 3 schematically shows a set-up of a testing equipment 2, adapted to measure falling articles 1 passing through the testing equipment 2.

[0151] A reservoir 30 in the form of a hopper contains a plurality of articles to be tested, for example elongate sticks carrying a susceptor element to be tested. Preferably, the hopper may contain a few hundred stick, for example 200 to 300 sticks. The sticks may be final consumables comprising an element comprising a susceptor arrangement or may be rods mainly being tobacco rods with a susceptor arrangement arranged inside the tobacco rod.

[0152] From the hopper, the articles 1 fall downwards and are positioned along a vertical line within the slide assembly 31 arranged below the reservoir 30. From the slide assembly 31, articles reach the testing equipment 2. The slide assembly 31 is positioned such that the falling articles are guided to the passage 22 in the testing equipment. The tested articles leave the passage 22 and pass through measuring and indicator portion 33 and subsequently into a container 34 collecting the articles.

[0153] The measuring and indicator portion 33 comprises sensor 110, a stopper 332 and indicator lights 333.

[0154] The indicator lights 333 may indicate, for example, the status of the testing equipment or if the tested articles are acceptable or defective by changing light colour. For example, one colour may indicate that the apparatus is ready for a measurement, that the measurement is ongoing, that a measured article is within product tolerances or that an article is outside product tolerances.

[0155] The sensor 110 may be a control module 13 as described above in FIG. 1 to measure the articles passing through the testing equipment, wherein an equivalent electrical resistance of the susceptor element is measured.

[0156] The stopper 332 maintains an article in a measuring position inside the sensor 110. The stopper 332 stops the article when the article falls through the testing equipment and releases the article after the measurement for the article to end up in the container 34.

[0157] Preferably, test conditions are kept constant for an entire measurement cycle, for example over a certain number of tested articles or over a certain time of testing, for example over 24 hours. For example, test conditions comprise about 20 to 24 degree Celsius and about 40 to 60 percent relative humidity. An acceptable deviation from a desired electrical resistance is for example plus or minus 40 milliohms with an electrical resistance of between 300 to 450 milliohm of the susceptor element. The deviation is preferably determined relative to an average value over e.g. five measurements.

[0158] For the purpose of the present description and of the appended claims, except where otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing amounts, quantities, percentages, and so forth, are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term about. Also, all ranges include the maximum and minimum points disclosed and include any intermediate ranges therein, which may or may not be specifically enumerated herein. In this context, therefore, a number A is understood as A?5 percent A. Within this context, a number A may be considered to include numerical values that are within general standard error for the measurement of the property that the number A modifies. The number A, in some instances as used in the appended claims, may deviate by the percentages enumerated above provided that the amount by which A deviates does not materially affect the basic and novel characteristic(s) of the claimed invention. Also, all ranges include the maximum and minimum points disclosed and include any intermediate ranges therein, which may or may not be specifically enumerated herein.