# US 12,007,109 B2 · Aerosol generation device with non-visible illumination unit > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,007,109 B2 - Document ID: US12007109B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/912,231 - Filed: 2021-03-16 - Published: 2023-05-04 - Granted: 2024-06-11 - Earliest claimed: 2020-03-18 - Assignees: JT International SA - Applicants: JT International SA - Inventors: Marko Plevnik; Layth Sliman Bouchuiguir - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12007109B2 ## CPC - F21V 33/0004: {Personal or domestic articles} - A24F 40/60: Devices with integrated user interfaces - A24F 40/20: Devices using solid inhalable precursors - F21Y 2115/10: Light-emitting diodes [LED] - F21V: FUNCTIONAL FEATURES OR DETAILS OF LIGHTING DEVICES OR SYSTEMS THEREOF; STRUCTURAL COMBINATIONS OF LIGHTING DEVICES WITH OTHER ARTICLES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - A24F: SMOKERS' REQUISITES; MATCH BOXES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES (inhaling appliances for medical purposes, shaped like cigars, cigarettes or pipes A61M15/06) - F21Y: INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASSES F21K, F21L, F21S and F21V, RELATING TO THE FORM OR THE KIND OF THE LIGHT SOURCES OR OF THE COLOUR OF THE LIGHT EMITTED ## Abstract An aerosol generation device has a partially opaque portion for rendering an illumination unit non-visible when the illumination unit is not emitting light. An illumination unit for an aerosol generation device includes a plurality of light sources, wherein each of the light sources is configured to operate in a first power operation mode illuminating the light source at a first brightness level, and a second power operation mode for illuminating the light source at a second brightness level different from the first brightness level, wherein one or more light sources of the plurality of light sources form a contiguous illumination region when the one or more of the plurality of light source are emitting light, and wherein the illumination region is configured to provide to a user visual feedback that indicates a state of the aerosol generation device or a consumable used with the aerosol generation device. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An illumination unit for an aerosol generation device, comprising: a plurality of light sources, wherein one or more light sources of the plurality of light sources form a contiguous illumination region when the one or more light sources of the plurality of light sources are emitting light; wherein each light source of the plurality of light sources is configured to operate in: a first power operation mode with a first brightness level illuminating a portion of the illumination region at the first brightness level, and a second power operation mode with a second brightness level different from the first brightness level for illuminating the portion at the second brightness level different from the first brightness level; wherein the illumination region is configured to provide to a user visual feedback that indicates a state of the aerosol generation device or a consumable used with the aerosol generation device, wherein the illumination region comprises a region configured to be illuminated at the first brightness level and a region configured to be illuminated at the second brightness level. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, wherein a full extent of the illumination region is: either an extent of a region illuminated at the first brightness level, when the illuminated region contains only the region illuminated at the first brightness level, or a combined extent of a region illuminated at the first brightness level and a region illuminated at the second brightness level, when the illumination region contains only the region illuminated at the first brightness level and the region illuminated at the second brightness level, or an extent of a region at the second brightness level, when the illumination region contains only the region illuminated at the second brightness level. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The illumination unit according to claim 2, wherein the visual feedback is based on a relation between the extent of the region at the second brightness level and the full extent of the illumination region. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The illumination unit according to claim 3, wherein full extent of the illumination region is indicative of a maximum range of values for states indicated by the visual feedback. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The illumination unit according to claim 4, wherein the extent of the region illuminated at the second brightness level is indicative of a sub-range within the maximum range of values, and an extent of the sub-range in relation to an extent of the maximum range of values corresponds to the extent of the region illuminated at the second brightness level in relation to the full extent of the illumination region. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, wherein each light source of the plurality of light sources is an LED which is capable of emitting light in a plurality of colors. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The illumination unit according to claim 6, wherein the illumination region is illuminated in a color. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The illumination unit according to claim 7, wherein different colors of the illumination region are indicative of different states of the aerosol generation device or a consumable used with the aerosol generation device. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, configured to form one or more patterns on the illumination region, wherein each pattern of the one or more patterns is indicative of different states of the aerosol generation device or a consumable used with the aerosol generation device. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The illumination unit according to claim 9, wherein at least one pattern of the one or more patterns includes a moving pattern. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The illumination unit according to claim 10, wherein a moving direction of the at least one pattern of the one or more patterns indicates a change in a state indicated by the at least one pattern of the one or more patterns. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, wherein states of the aerosol generation device or a consumable used with the aerosol generation device comprise information on at least one of: elapsed and/or remaining start-up time period of the device, user's vaping progress on the device, time of use of the device since start-up, consumed and/or remaining amount of aerosol generation substrate in the consumable, an operational temperature of the device, and depletion level of a battery of the device. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The illumination unit according to claim 12, wherein the start-up time period is a time period required for heating-up a heating unit comprised by the aerosol generation device before the user can start consuming the consumable. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of light sources are arranged in a straight or curved line and the illumination region comprises a curved or bent shape. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, wherein the second brightness level is higher than the first brightness level. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, wherein the first brightness level is at least 2% of a maximum brightness of each light source of the plurality of light sources, and at most 30% of the maximum brightness of each light source of the plurality of light sources. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The illumination unit according to claim 1, wherein the second brightness level is at least 70% of a maximum brightness of each light source of the plurality of light sources.