Why??

[Warped3k]

Ok, I stumbled upon this patent assigned to Philip Morris Inc. quite a few years back. I haven't gone through much of it, but it seems something very, very similar to our electronic cigarettes.

Ok, my question is, why would Philip Morris have a patent on this? You all know, if they were able to "sell" this it would in fact contain Nicotine (to keep people hooked). How would this be any different than the ecigs out today?

United States Patent: 5666977

There are pictures available if you click on Images at the top to see the actual patent documents.

Edit: After reading a little bit more, it seems as though they planned to use "actual" liquid tobacco, full of all their wonderful chemicals in the product and vaporize it with a heater to product it into an aerosol. How would our form of vaping liquid be more hazardous than that??

 

[D103]

WOW Unbelievable, now we know for certain why Big Tobacco hasn't been harping about banning e-cigs. That's an incredible link - and in 1994!?!?!?!?

 

[satoshi]

Good find...wonder if this patent 'inspired' Ruyan.

 

[MsSki]

Its a good read but it makes me wonder what is really going on here.
Tara

 

[Tampa2]

Warped3K Great find. You also touch on a subject that I know will happen if & when the FDA approves Phillip Morris, or Big tobacco in general, to make the e-cigarette.
Some of the other threads seem to welcome Big Tobacco making an e-cig so that the FDA will not ban them. But, as you point out, we all know that Big Tobacco will simply put the chemicals in the juice to hook you & make you purchase more. It's the chemicals in the tobacco that kills the 440,000 Americans. Not the Nicotine. Yet they have the Government's blessing to kill us. Amazing!

 

[aubergine]

No one knows for sure, but my bet is that pharma, not big tobacco, will own it. For one thing, there's the tobacco growers lobby in the BT corner. For another, the FDA is deeper in bed with pharma than with BT.

Then, as I've noted before, we can get scrips for fat beige atomizers with juice that tastes like spit - if we claim to be smokers. It's a wonderful world.

 

[mistinthewoods]

Umm.... I don't think this is good news. I'm not well versed on patent laws, but could this be used as a "nuclear option" in the effort to ban e-cigs? I mean if they own the patent on the devices we use can they legally stop the sale from other sources on that grounds?
Is there a patent atty. in da house?

 

[Vocalek]

Their design would have to have been copied rather closely for them to claim patent infringment.

 

[NCC]

This might have been seen in Popular Science or some such magazine a decade or more ago. I say 'might' because I am not sure the device I recall was one in the same. However, I remember a large magazine layout with an artist's rendering of an electronic cigarette at least 10 years ago. And, as I recall the details, it was fundamentally the same as today's PVs.

 

[Whistle_Pig]

Their design would have to have been copied rather closely for them to claim patent infringment.

Actually, they can make all the claims they want, as long as they have money to pay the lawyers, and the patent hasn't been invalidated. That's one of the things that corporations with lots of money are well equipped to do. The problem this creates is that even if the patent doesn't apply, the cost of defending against an infringement suit can be more than a small company can bear.

Another question would be how, or whether, they can manage to claim infringement against a Chinese company. Or maybe they'd just attempt to get importation blocked.

 

[carina]

a lot have to learn

 

[Windsage]

The basis of this patent is that the e-cig actually has a liquid supply and drips onto the heater. Today's e-cigs use a fabric filler material to hold the juice and wick the juice to the heater. The two designs are different because of this. Basically this patent uses the identical design to a fog machine.

 

[Charged]

I'm pretty sure design patents have a life span of 14 years. So if this was granted in 94 it has since expired and can be legally copied.

 

[MiloB]

Never underestimate Big Tobacco. They will do whatever it takes to keep Big Pharma in business providing cancer drugs to analog junkies.