Nicotine cessation device and method of using same

Abstract

A system aids in the cessation of a nicotine dependency. The system has a nicotine cessation device having a device housing including a plurality of mouthpieces and associated fluid pod bays. Each fluid pod bay receives a fluid pod having a nicotine fluid of a different concentration. A dosage program is stored that dictates a desired nicotine dosage according to the dosage program. When a user accesses the system, a calculation is made for which fluid pod to activate to deliver vapor having the desired dosage. The housing includes inter-pod channels through which vapor produced from one fluid pod can be delivered to other mouthpieces.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for aiding in the cessation of a nicotine dependency, the system comprising:
 a nicotine cessation device comprising:   a) a device housing comprising a plurality of vapor access ports, wherein each access port comprises:   a fluid pod bay configured to receive a fluid pod and to energize the vapor fluid within the fluid pod to produce vapor;   a mouthpiece defining a chamber in fluid communication with the fluid pod bay through which vapor is inhaled by a user;   wherein:   the device housing further comprises inter-pod channels formed into the device housing that fluidly connect adjacent vapor access ports, such that vapor produced at one vapor access port flows to an adjacent vapor access port when sufficient negative pressure is applied at the adjacent vapor access port;   each fluid pod of the plurality of fluid pods is configured to receive a vapor fluid having a predetermined concentration of nicotine therein;   each respective fluid pod receives a nicotine fluid concentration that is different than at least one other fluid pod;   b) one or more computer processors;   c) one or more computer-readable storage media;   d) program instructions stored on the computer-readable storage media for execution by at least one of the one or more processors, the program instructions comprising program instructions to:   store a dosage program defining an appropriate dosage of nicotine at any given time based, at least in part, upon a predetermined goal of nicotine cessation;   calculate which combination of fluid pods to activate to achieve the appropriate dosage, wherein:   at least one of the vapor fluid pods has a high concentration;   at least one other of the vapor fluid pods has a low concentration;   the appropriate dosage is between the high concentration and the low concentration; and   the appropriate dosage is achieved by activating both the high concentration vapor fluid pod and the low concentration vapor fluid pod and mixing the vapor produced through at least one of the inter-pod channels.   
     
     
         2 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1  wherein the plurality of vapor access ports, and wherein the inter-pod channels permit vapor produced at one of the fluid pods to reach a mouthpiece of each other vapor access ports. 
     
     
         3 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1  wherein the fluid pods have a first end and a second end, wherein the first end is removably coupled with a respective fluid pod bay, and wherein the second end is configured to deliver vapor to a user of the nicotine cessation device. 
     
     
         4 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1  wherein only the second end of the fluid pods are available at a time to dispense vapor to the user. 
     
     
         5 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1 , the device housing further comprising an openable top portion that, when opened, provides access to the fluid pod bays. 
     
     
         6 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1  wherein the inter-pod channels are positioned at a periphery of the nicotine cessation device. 
     
     
         7 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1 , the device housing further comprising an openable top portion that, when opened, provides access to the inter-pod channels. 
     
     
         8 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1  wherein the mouthpiece is positioned distally of the chamber, wherein the chamber is positioned distally of the fluid pod bay. 
     
     
         9 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1 , further comprising a contact plate positioned between the fluid pod bay and the chamber, the contact plate comprising contacts that are aligned with a corresponding contact in the fluid pod, through which energy is delivered to the fluid pod to vaporize the fluid. 
     
     
         10 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 9  wherein the contact plate permits vapor to reach the chamber and the inter-pod channels. 
     
     
         11 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1 , further comprising a diaphragm configured to measure fluid pressure within the chambers of the vapor access ports. 
     
     
         12 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1 , further comprising a sensor configured to measure a concentration of nicotine in the produced vapor in the chamber. 
     
     
         13 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 1  wherein the program instructions further comprise determining if the fluid pods within the fluid pod bays can combine to deliver an appropriate dosage according to the dosage program within a tolerance. 
     
     
         14 . A method of aiding in cessation of nicotine dependency comprising the steps of:
 storing a dosage program for a user that defines a desired nicotine dosage as a function of time;   providing a nicotine cessation device having two or more mouthpieces and two or more fluid pods, wherein each mouthpiece is connected to one of the fluid pods held within the nicotine cessation device, wherein each of the two or more fluid pods contains fluid of a different concentration of nicotine, and wherein vapor produced for one of the mouthpieces is permitted to reach other mouthpieces through inter-pod channels;   allowing a user to inhale from a first mouthpiece; and   calculating which of the fluid pods to activate to deliver the desired nicotine dosage to the first mouthpiece based, at least in part, upon a concentration of nicotine within the two or more fluid pods.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising energizing at least one of the two or more fluid pods to produce the desired nicotine dosage. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14  wherein calculating which of the fluid pods to activate comprises averaging the concentration from the two or more fluid pods. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 14  wherein activating the fluid pods comprises activating the fluid pods at different power levels, wherein a higher power level creates more vapor, and a lower power level creates less vapor, and wherein calculating which of the fluid pods to activate includes factoring in a power level for each of the fluid pods. 
     
     
         18 . A nicotine cessation device, comprising:
 a housing having a triangular shape with three sides and three mouthpieces at points of the triangular shape;   three fluid pods within the housing corresponding to the three mouthpieces, a first fluid pod containing a high nicotine concentration, a second fluid pod containing a medium nicotine concentration, and a third fluid pod containing a low nicotine concentration; and   a power source coupled to each of the fluid pods to vaporize the fluid within the fluid pods, the power source being configured to selectively deliver power to the first fluid pod, second fluid pod, third fluid pod, or any one or more of the fluid pods according to a dosage program, the dosage program dictating a desired nicotine concentration, wherein the desired nicotine concentration is between the low nicotine concentration and the high nicotine concentration;   wherein:   a user accesses the nicotine cessation device by inhaling from one of the mouthpieces; and   in response to the access the dosage program informs the power source which one or more of the three fluid pods to activate to achieve a desired nicotine concentration level by mixing the vapor from the activated fluid pods.   
     
     
         19 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 18  wherein the housing contains inter-pod channels that permit vapor produced by one of the fluid pods to be inhaled through the other mouthpieces. 
     
     
         20 . The nicotine cessation device of  claim 18 , further comprising a PCB configured to store the dosage program.