Portable electronic vaporizing device

Abstract

The present invention relates to a portable electronic vaporizing device for use in the inhalation of vaporizable substances.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A portable electronic vaporizing device comprising:
 a base comprising a gas flow path therein and a housing for one or more components for electrically connecting to a power source and/or controlling the device, the gas flow path comprising a flow path inlet and a flow path outlet;   a mouthpiece that is configured to receive gas from the flow path, the mouthpiece comprising:   a mouthpiece housing comprising one or more mouthpiece walls at least partly defining a mouthpiece internal flow path through the mouthpiece housing;   an inhalation outlet formed in a region of the one or more mouthpiece walls; and   at least one mouthpiece inlet capable of being placed in communication with the flow path outlet of the base, to receive a flow of gas into the mouthpiece from the base; and   an atomizer comprising:   an atomizer housing comprising one or more atomizer housing walls;   a container configured to be placed within the atomizer housing that is capable of holding a vaporizable product, the container comprising one or more container sidewalls, wherein the one or more container sidewalls and the one or more atomizer housing walls are configured to form a passage therebetween that at least partly defines an atomizer internal flow path;   a heating element capable of heating the vaporizable product held in the container, the heating element being configured to be electrically connected to the one or more components for electrically connecting to the power source and/or controlling the device that are housed in the base;   an inlet capable of introducing gas into the container to entrain vaporizable product,   one or more container outlets capable of flowing the gas having the vaporizable product entrained therein into the atomizer internal flow path,   one or more atomizer outlets capable of receiving the flow of gas from the atomizer internal flow path, and providing the flow of gas to the flow path inlet of the base,   wherein the atomizer internal flow path is configured to redirect the gas received from the container in a direction away from the inlet, and   wherein the flow of gas having the vaporizable product entrained therein flows from the atomizer internal flow path and through the gas flow path of the base, and along the mouthpiece internal flow path to the inhalation outlet.   
     
     
         2 . The portable electronic vaporizing device of  claim 1 , wherein at least a part of the atomizer is removably attachable to the base. 
     
     
         3 . The portable electronic vaporizing device of  claim 1 , wherein the atomizer further comprises a removable annular ring configured to fit over at least a portion of the atomizer housing, the removable annular ring configured to at least partly direct gas to the atomizer internal flow path. 
     
     
         4 . The portable electronic vaporizing device of  claim 1 , further comprising a removable carb cap configured to fit over the annular ring and seal a top portion of the atomizer, and wherein gas is introduced into the container through an aperture in the carb cap. 
     
     
         5 . The portable electronic vaporizing device according to  claim 1 , wherein the atomizer is removable from the base independently of removal of the mouthpiece. 
     
     
         6 . The portable electronic vaporizing device according to  claim 1 , wherein the base comprises a first recessed receiving region formed therein that is configured to removably receive the atomizer, and a second recessed receiving region formed therein that is configured to removably receive the mouthpiece. 
     
     
         7 . The portable electronic vaporizing device according to  claim 6 , wherein an airtight seal is formed between the between the base and the atomizer and/or between the base and the mouthpiece, in one or more of the first and second recessed receiving regions. 
     
     
         8 . The portable electronic vaporizing device according to  claim 6 , wherein the base comprises one or more of (i) at least one conformal liner disposed in the first recessed receiving region that is configured to conformally receive at least a portion of the atomizer, and (ii) at least one conformal liner disposed in the second recessed receiving region that is configured to conformally receive at least a portion of the mouthpiece. 
     
     
         9 . The portable electronic vaporizing device according to  claim 8 , wherein the base comprises the at least one conformal liner disposed in the second recessed receiving region that is configured to conformally receive an outer circumferential surface of a fastening region located at a lower portion of the mouthpiece. 
     
     
         10 . The portable electronic vaporizing device according to  claim 1 , wherein the atomizer comprises a heating element disposed below a bottom surface of the container that adapted to receive the vaporizable product. 
     
     
         11 . The portable electronic vaporizer device according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more container outlets in the atomizer that flow the gas having the vaporizable product entrained therein out of the container and into the atomizer internal flow path, are located towards a top end of the atomizer and radially externally to the inlet, and are positioned in an arrangement circumferentially surrounding the inlet. 
     
     
         12 . The portable electronic vaporizing device according to  claim 11 , wherein the one or more container outlets comprise one or more of:
 (i) one or more apertures formed in one or more walls located at an upper portion of the container;   (ii) one or more apertures formed between a top surface of the container and an annular ring disposed above the container, the annular ring comprising one or more indentations formed in a bottom surface about a circumference thereof that form the one or more apertures between the bottom surface of the annular ring and the top surface of the container; and   (iii) one or more apertures formed about a circumference of an annular ring disposed above the container.   
     
     
         13 . The portable electronic vaporizer device according to  claim 1 , wherein the flow of gas through the atomizer comprises flow through the inlet into a top of the container, flow out of the container through the one or more container outlets that are separate from the inlet and disposed towards a top end of the atomizer, and wherein the atomizer housing at least partially directs gas from the one or more container gas outlets along the internal atomizer gas flow path, in a passage formed between walls of the container and the atomizer housing, and wherein the atomizer housing comprises one or more apertures formed therein to flow gas from the internal atomizer gas flow path to an airtight passage that is external to the atomizer housing. 
     
     
         14 . The portable electronic vaporizer device according to  claim 1 , wherein the mouthpiece internal flow path comprises a convoluted flow path from the at least one mouthpiece inlet to the inhalation outlet, the mouthpiece comprising a first chamber that is internal to a second chamber that at least partially circumferentially surrounds the first chamber, and wherein the flow of gas along the mouthpiece internal flow path is received in the at least one mouthpiece inlet, passes through the first chamber and into the second chamber, and out of the inhalation outlet. 
     
     
         15 . The portable electronic vaporizer device according to  claim 1 , wherein the base comprises a threaded socket that allows for a complementarily threaded part of the atomizer to be screwed into the threaded socket of the base. 
     
     
         16 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 1 , wherein the atomizer comprise a top insulating element that insulates a top end of the container from the atomizer housing, and wherein the top insulating element is removable from the atomizer housing to allow access to the container. 
     
     
         17 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 1 , wherein the heating element heats via resistive heating, and is attached to conductive elements leading to a power source comprising a battery to provide an applied voltage for the resistive heating. 
     
     
         18 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 1 , wherein the mouthpiece comprises a fastening region at a bottom region of the mouthpiece that is configured to be received by a recessed region of the base. 
     
     
         19 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 1 , wherein the outer surface of the fastening region is configured to conformally mate with along the circumference thereof with an internal circumferential surface of a recessed cavity region of the base, so as to form an airtight seal between the internal circumferential surface of the recessed cavity region of the base and the outer surface of the fastening region of the mouthpiece. 
     
     
         20 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 19 , wherein the fastening region comprises a tapering profile, the fastening region having a first region adjacent the bottom of the mouthpiece housing having a first diameter, and a second region that is spaced apart from the first region having a second diameter, and wherein the diameter of the fastening region decreases from the first region to the second region. 
     
     
         21 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 1 , wherein a mouthpiece internal flow path comprises a convoluted flow path from the at least one mouthpiece inlet to the inhalation outlet, the mouthpiece comprising a first chamber that is internal to a second chamber that at least partially circumferentially surrounds the first chamber, and wherein the flow of gas along the mouthpiece internal flow path is received in the at least one mouthpiece inlet, passes through the first chamber and into the second chamber, and out of the inhalation outlet. 
     
     
         22 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 21 , wherein the at least one mouthpiece inlet is located in the fastening region at the bottom region of the mouthpiece, and the first and second chambers are disposed above the fastening region in an upper region of the mouthpiece. 
     
     
         23 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 21 , wherein the mouthpiece comprises one or more internal walls defining the first chamber, and wherein the second chamber is defined between the one or more internal walls and the mouthpiece housing. 
     
     
         24 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 23 , wherein lower portions of the first and second chambers comprise water filtering regions configured to receive and hold water therein. 
     
     
         25 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 23 , wherein the first and second chamber are connected to each other by at least one port formed in the one or more internal walls. 
     
     
         26 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 25 , wherein the first chamber comprises a first chamber inlet that is positioned above the at least one port formed in the one or more internal walls. 
     
     
         27 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 23 , wherein a flow of gas exiting the first chamber inlet is directed by the one or more internal walls towards the water filtering region in a lower portion of the first chamber, and wherein gas exits the water filtering region in the lower portion of the first chamber through the one or more ports to enter a water filtering region of a lower portion of the second chamber, and wherein gas having water vapor therein exits the water filtering region of the lower portion of the second chamber and is output from the mouthpiece via the inhalation outlet. 
     
     
         28 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 27 , wherein the first chamber inlet is at the end of a tube extending upwardly into the first chamber, the tube comprising an aperture to receive gas from the mouthpiece inlet, and wherein the first chamber inlet is located at a location that is higher than the port connecting the chambers. 
     
     
         29 . The portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 23 , wherein the one or more internal walls comprise a conically-shaped internal wall, and the mouthpiece housing comprises a conical housing wall about the conically-shaped internal wall. 
     
     
         30 . A method of using a portable electronic vaporizer according to  claim 1 , the method comprising:
 loading vaporizable product into the container;   at least partially filling the mouthpiece with water in water filter regions thereof;   activating the heating element to at least partially vaporize the product in the container; and
 inhaling gas exiting the mouthpiece inlet, the gas comprising ambient air having vaporize product and water vapor entrained therein.