The language behind the supply chain
The vocabulary of this supply chain is split across customs, trademark, tobacco regulation and cannabis licensing. These are the terms that matter and why each one matters.
What vocabulary do you need to trace a cannabis vape?
Four bodies of rules meet in this one product: Chinese manufacturing licensing, US customs classification, tobacco regulation and state cannabis licensing, each with its own vocabulary and its own public register. As of 11 October 2026 this glossary defines the 25 terms that decide whether a device can actually be traced, and says why each one matters.
Each term links to the records on this site where it does work — the factories, importers and brands it describes.
Last checked 11 October 2026
01
Every term, A to Z
Each definition below is the same sentence its own page opens with — one term, one wording, wherever it appears.
- 510 thread510510-thread batteryIn depth
- 510 thread is the de facto standard screw fitting between a vape cartridge and its battery, named for its ten threads of 0.5 mm pitch.
- AIO (all-in-one)all-in-onedisposable vape
- An AIO is a sealed disposable vape in which the battery, tank and coil ship as one unit that cannot be separated or refilled.
- Bill of ladingBOLB/L
- A bill of lading is the carrier's receipt for a shipment, naming the shipper, the consignee, the goods and the port of entry.
- Cartridgecartcarts
- A cartridge is the replaceable tank holding cannabis oil, which screws onto a separate battery, most commonly on a 510 thread.
- Ceramic coilIn depth
- A ceramic coil is a heating element in which the wire is embedded in a porous ceramic body rather than wrapped around cotton wicking.
- COA (certificate of analysis)certificate of analysislab reportIn depth
- A certificate of analysis is a laboratory report stating a cannabis batch's potency and contaminant results.
- Confidence level
- A confidence level is Traceleaf's grading of how firmly a link between two entities is established: confirmed, inferred or suspected.
- Consignee
- The consignee is the party named on a bill of lading as the receiver of a shipment.
- Counterfeit
- A counterfeit product carries another company's trademark without authorisation.
- Export licence
- An export licence is the authorisation a Chinese manufacturer needs to ship regulated goods, including vaping devices, to overseas buyers.
- Gray market
- Gray market describes goods sold outside a jurisdiction's licensed and regulated channel, without necessarily being counterfeit.
- Heavy metals testing
- Heavy metals testing screens cannabis vape products for lead, cadmium, arsenic and mercury, which can leach from the cartridge hardware into the oil.
- Hemp-derived THC restrictionhemp banfarm bill loopholeIn depth
- The hemp-derived THC restriction is the change in US federal law closing the route by which intoxicating hemp products were sold outside the licensed cannabis channel.
- HS 8543.408543.40HS code 8543
- HS 8543.40 is the Harmonized System tariff code covering electronic cigarettes and similar personal vaporising devices.
- Importer of recordIOR
- The importer of record is the entity legally responsible to customs for a shipment's duties, documentation and compliance.
- ITC Section 337 investigationSection 337337 investigation
- A Section 337 investigation is a US International Trade Commission proceeding into unfair import practices, most commonly patent infringement by imported goods.
- Liquid diamondsIn depth
- Liquid diamonds is a marketing term for a cannabis concentrate combining THCa crystalline with a terpene-rich liquid.
- PACT ActPrevent All Cigarette Trafficking ActIn depth
- The PACT Act is a US law requiring sellers who ship vaping products across state lines to register federally and with each state, and to report their shipments.
- State licencecannabis licencedispensary licence
- A state licence is the authorisation a cannabis business needs from a US state regulator to cultivate, manufacture, distribute or sell within that state.
- STMA licenceState Tobacco Monopoly Administration
- An STMA licence is the production authorisation issued by China's State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, which regulates e-cigarette manufacturing and export.
- THCaIn depth
- THCa is the non-intoxicating acid form of THC found in raw cannabis, which converts to THC when heated.
- Trademark
- A trademark is a registered mark identifying the commercial source of a product, searchable in public registers such as the USPTO's.
- Unbranded kit
- An unbranded kit is vape hardware and packaging sold by a wholesaler with the brand name left blank for the buyer to supply.
- Unified Social Credit CodeUSCCcredit code统一社会信用代码
- The Unified Social Credit Code is the eighteen-character identifier assigned to every registered Chinese company, equivalent to a company registration number.
- White labelprivate labelOEM
- A white-label product is manufactured by one company and sold under another company's branding, with no manufacturer marking on the finished goods.