# US 11,026,448 B2 · Electronic vapor provision system using the heater as an antenna for wireless communications > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,026,448 B2 - Document ID: US11026448B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/533,415 - Filed: 2015-10-23 - Published: 2018-06-14 - Granted: 2021-06-08 - Earliest claimed: 2014-12-11 - Assignees: Nicoventures Trading Limited - Applicants: Nicoventures Holdings Limited - Inventors: David Leadley; Ray Lea - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11026448B2 ## CPC - A24F 40/50: Control or monitoring - A24F 40/65: Devices with integrated communication means, e.g. wireless communication means - H05B 3/44: heating conductor arranged within rods or tubes of insulating material - A24F 40/10: Devices using liquid inhalable precursors - A24F 40/46: Shape or structure of electric heating means - H04W 4/80: Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication - A24F: SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES (inhaling appliances for medical purposes, shaped like cigars, cigarettes or pipes A61M15/06) - H05B: ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) ## Abstract An electronic vapor provision system includes an electrical heater for vaporizing a liquid to form an aerosol for inhalation by a user of the electronic vapor provision system, and a communications interface for providing wireless communications. The communications interface is configured to use the heater as an antenna for the wireless communications. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An electronic vapor provision system comprising: an electrical heater for vaporizing a liquid to form an aerosol for inhalation by a user of the electronic vapor provision system; and a communications interface for providing wireless communications using one or more communication protocols, wherein the communications interface is configured to use the heater as an antenna for the wireless communications using the one or more communication protocols, and wherein the communications interface is configured to exchange data between the electronic vapor provision system and one or more external systems using the one or more communication protocols, wherein the communications interface is provided in a first portion of the electronic vapor provision system, and wherein the heater is provided in a second portion of the electronic vapor provision system, and wherein the first portion of the electronic vapor provision system has a metallic housing and the second portion of the electronic vapor provision system has a non-metallic housing. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is Bluetooth Low Energy. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is Bluetooth. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is Near Field Communications (NFC). ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the metallic housing of the first portion provides a ground plane for the wireless communications. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the second portion of the electronic vapor provision system is separable from the first portion of the electronic vapor provision system, and wherein each of the first and second portions of the electronic vapor provision system is provided with a connector to provide mechanical and electrical connectivity between the first and second portions of the electronic vapor provision system. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the first portion of the electronic vapor provision system includes an electrical power supply and the second portion of the electronic vapor provision system includes a reservoir of liquid to be vaporized by the heater. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the heater is provided with a power line connection from an electrical power supply, and wherein signals for the wireless communications are superimposed onto the power line connection. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 8, wherein the wireless interface has a capacitive coupling to the power line connection. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 9, wherein the wireless interface is coupled to the power line connection by an LC network that provides impedance matching. ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 8, further comprising a controller which operates a switch to control a flow of power from the electrical power supply to the heater, wherein the controller is configured to switch on the flow of power from the electrical power supply to the heater to provide heating in response to a detection that a user has inhaled on the electronic vapor provision system. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 11, wherein the controller and the communications interface are integrated into a single chip. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the electronic vapor provision system is configured to prevent wireless communications when the heater is operating to vaporize a liquid to form an aerosol for inhalation by a user of the electronic vapor provision system. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the heater comprises a substantially planar sheet of metal. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 14, wherein the heater is formed from a sintered metal fiber material. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 14, wherein the planar sheet of metal is generally rectangular in shape, with a longest dimension facing towards a mouthpiece of the electronic vapor provision system. ### Claim 17 (depends on 14) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 14, wherein the heater has a longest dimension which extends at least 10 mm. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The electronic vapor provision system of claim 1, wherein the liquid for forming the aerosol is held in the electronic vapor provision system in one of an absorbing material or a plant derivative material. ### Claim 19 A control unit for an electronic vapor provision system comprising: an electrical power supply; a connector for attaching to a vaporizer or a cartomizer containing an electrical heater, wherein the connector is configured to provide electrical power from the power supply to the heater for vaporizing a liquid to form an aerosol for inhalation by a user of the electronic vapor provision system; and a communications interface for providing wireless communications to exchange data between the electronic vapor provision system and one or more external systems using one or more communication protocols, wherein the communications interface is configured to use the connector to transmit and receive signals for the wireless communications using the one or more communication protocols by using the heater as an antenna, wherein the control unit has a metallic housing.