AEROSOL-GENERATING ARTICLE COMPRISING A TRANSPARENT TUBE

Abstract

There is provided an aerosol-generating article (10; 100) comprising an aerosol-generating substrate (12) and a mouthpiece (14) secured to the aerosol-generating substrate (12). The mouthpiece (14) comprises at least one filter segment (18, 20) and a substantially transparent tubular segment (22) defining an empty cavity extending substantially longitudinally through the substantially transparent tubular segment (22), wherein aerosol passing through the empty cavity during use of the aerosol-generating article (10; 100) is visible from the exterior of the aerosol-generating article (10; 100) through the substantially transparent tubular segment (22).

Claims

1. An aerosol-generating article comprising: an aerosol-generating substrate; a mouthpiece secured to the aerosol-generating substrate, the mouthpiece comprising at least one filter segment and a substantially transparent tubular segment axially aligned in an abutting end-to-end relationship with the at least one filter segment and defining an empty cavity extending substantially longitudinally through the substantially transparent tubular segment, wherein aerosol passing through the empty cavity during use of the aerosol-generating article is visible from the exterior of the aerosol-generating article through the substantially transparent tubular segment.

2. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein an outer diameter of the at least one filter segment is substantially the same as an outer diameter of the substantially transparent tubular segment.

3. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, further comprising a substantially transparent wrapper circumscribing at least a portion of each of the substantially transparent tubular segment and the at least one filter segment to secure the substantially transparent tubular segment to the at least one filter segment.

4. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, further comprising a tipping wrapper circumscribing an end portion of the aerosol-generating substrate and at least a portion of the mouthpiece to secure the mouthpiece to the aerosol-generating substrate, wherein the tipping wrapper comprises at least one cut-out portion overlying at least a portion of the substantially transparent tubular segment so that the substantially transparent tubular segment is visible through the at least one cut-out portion.

5. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, further comprising a first tipping wrapper circumscribing an end portion of the aerosol-generating substrate and a portion of the mouthpiece to secure the mouthpiece to the aerosol-generating substrate, wherein at least a portion of the substantially transparent tubular segment does not underlie the first tipping wrapper so that at least a portion of the substantially transparent tubular segment is visible.

6. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 5, further comprising a second tipping wrapper circumscribing a portion of the mouthpiece, wherein an upstream end of the second tipping wrapper is spaced apart from a downstream end of the first tipping wrapper to define an aperture band between the first and second tipping wrappers, wherein at least a portion of the substantially transparent tubular segment underlies the aperture band.

7. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the substantially transparent tubular segment comprises at least one thermoplastic.

8. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the substantially transparent tubular segment comprises at least one of polyethylene, low density polyethylene (LDPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polypropylene, polystyrene, polycarbonate, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or a mixture thereof.

9. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, further comprising a coating material on an inner surface of the substantially transparent tubular segment, wherein the coating material comprises at least one of a hydrophobic substance, an oleophobic substance, a hydrophobic and oleophobic substance, or a mixture thereof.

10. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the at least one filter segment comprises a first filter segment and a second filter segment, and wherein the substantially transparent tubular segment is positioned between the first and second filter segments.

11. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the substantially transparent tubular segment is positioned at a mouth end of the mouthpiece so that the substantially transparent tubular segment forms a mouth end recess.

12. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the substantially transparent tubular segment has a length of between 2 millimetres and 20 millimetres.

13. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the substantially transparent tubular segment has a wall thickness of between 0.1 millimetres and 2 millimetres.

14. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the substantially transparent tubular segment has an inner diameter of between 2 millimetres and 7 millimetres.

15. An aerosol-generating article according to claim 1, wherein the aerosol-generating substrate comprises a tobacco rod.

Description

[0035] The invention will now be further described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0036] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an aerosol-generating article in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the aerosol-generating article of Figure

[0038] FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of an aerosol-generating article in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention; and

[0039] FIG. 4 shows a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the aerosol-generating article of FIG. 3.

[0040] FIG. 1 shows an aerosol-generating article 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The aerosol-generating article 10 is a filter cigarette comprising an aerosol-generating substrate 12 in the form of a wrapped tobacco rod, and a mouthpiece 14. The mouthpiece 14 is secured to the wrapped tobacco rod by a tipping wrapper 16.

[0041] As shown more clearly in FIG. 2, which shows a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the aerosol-generating article 10 of FIG. 1, the mouthpiece 14 comprises a first filter segment 18 at an upstream end of the mouthpiece 14 and a second filter segment 20 at a downstream end of the mouthpiece 14. The mouthpiece 14 further comprises a substantially transparent tubular segment 22 positioned between the first and second filter segments 18, 20. A substantially transparent combining plug wrap 24 is wrapped around the first and second filter segments 18, 20 and the substantially transparent tubular segment 22 to combine them and form the mouthpiece 14.

[0042] A cut-out portion 26 in the tipping wrapper 16 overlies the substantially transparent tubular segment 22 and the substantially transparent combining plug wrap 24 so that, during smoking of the aerosol-generating article 10, the consumer can observe the mainstream smoke from the wrapped tobacco rod passing through an empty channel 28 defined by the substantially transparent tubular segment 22.

[0043] FIGS. 3 and 4 show an aerosol-generating article 100 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The aerosol-generating article 100 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is a filter cigarette having a similar construction to the aerosol-generating article 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Therefore, like reference numerals are used to designate like parts.

[0044] The difference between the aerosol-generating articles 10, 100 of FIGS. 1 and 3 is in the tipping wrapper. Specifically, whereas the aerosol-generating article 10 shown in FIG. 1 comprises a single tipping wrapper 16 having a cut-out portion 26 therein, the aerosol-generating article 100 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 comprises a first tipping wrapper 116 and a second tipping wrapper 117.

[0045] The first tipping wrapper 116 is provided at an upstream end of the mouthpiece 14 and is wrapped around a downstream end of the wrapped tobacco rod, the first filter segment 18 and an upstream end of the substantially transparent tubular segment 22. The first tipping wrapper 116 therefore secures the mouthpiece 14 to the aerosol-generating substrate 12.

[0046] The second tipping wrapper 117 is spaced apart from the first tipping wrapper 116 and is wrapped around the second filter segment 20 and a downstream end of the substantially transparent tubular segment 22.

[0047] Spacing apart the first and second tipping wrappers 116, 117 forms an aperture band 126 between the two tipping wrappers, wherein the aperture band 126 extends around the full circumference of the mouthpiece 14 and overlies the substantially transparent tubular segment 22 and the substantially transparent combining plug wrap 24. Therefore, during smoking, the aperture band 126 allows the consumer to observe the mainstream smoke from the wrapped tobacco rod passing through the empty channel 28 defined by the substantially transparent tubular segment 22.

[0048] The embodiments and examples shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 and described above illustrate but do not limit the invention. Other embodiments of the invention may be made without departing from the scope thereof, and it is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are not limiting. In particular, it will be appreciated that whilst the specific embodiments described above relate to conventional smoking articles comprising a combustible tobacco rod, a similar arrangement could also be used on a distillation-based smoking article or an electrically heated smoking article.