U.S. patent application number 12/038117 was filed with the patent office on 2009-08-27 for rainwater collection and storage system.
Invention is credited to David C. Liu.
Application Number | 20090212051 12/038117 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 40997310 |
Filed Date | 2009-08-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090212051 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Liu; David C. |
August 27, 2009 |
Rainwater Collection and Storage System
Abstract
A rainwater collection and storage system includes at least one
rainwater collector and a rainwater storage unit. The rainwater
collector includes a bucket, a rainwater collector plate, and a
decorative item. The decorative item camouflages the rainwater
collector and makes it more pleasant to see. The rainwater
collector also includes one or more filtering elements, filtering
out leaves and debris and preventing intrusion of insects into the
bucket. The rainwater collected is pumped to the rainwater storage
unit. The rainwater storage unit has a support structure and a
flexible rainwater container attached to the support structure.
Because of the flexible rainwater container, the rainwater storage
unit can be placed in a terrain that is not flat. The rainwater
storage unit is also camouflaged to resemble a tree.
Inventors: |
Liu; David C.; (Marietta,
GA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Wang Law Firm, Inc.
4989 Peachtree Parkway,, Suite 200
Norcross
GA
30092
US
|
Family ID: |
40997310 |
Appl. No.: |
12/038117 |
Filed: |
February 27, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/23.83 ;
206/457; 220/732 |
Current CPC
Class: |
Y02A 20/106 20180101;
E03B 3/03 20130101; Y02A 20/108 20180101; Y02A 20/00 20180101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/23.83 ;
206/457; 220/732 |
International
Class: |
B65D 21/02 20060101
B65D021/02; B65D 73/00 20060101 B65D073/00; B65D 51/00 20060101
B65D051/00 |
Claims
1. A rainwater collection system, comprising: at least one
rainwater collector for collecting rainwater, the at least one
rainwater collector having at least one decorative camouflage; and
a rainwater storage unit connected to the at least one rainwater
collector, the rainwater storage unit having a flexible rainwater
container and at least one decorative camouflage, wherein the
rainwater collected by the at least one rainwater collector is
transferred to the rainwater storage unit.
2. The rainwater collection system of claim 1, wherein the at least
one rainwater collector further comprising a filter.
3. The rainwater collection system of claim 1, wherein the filter
has a conic shape.
4. The rainwater collection system of claim 1, wherein the at least
one rainwater collector further comprising a collector plate.
5. The rainwater collection system of claim 1, wherein the
collector plate has a concave shape.
6. The rainwater collection system of claim 4, wherein the
collector plate further comprising a cup for holding the decorative
camouflage.
7. The rainwater collection system of claim 1, wherein the
rainwater collector further comprising at least one interconnecting
outlet.
8. The rainwater collection system of claim 1, wherein the flexible
rainwater container having an opening with a cover, the cover being
equipped with a filtering screen.
9. The rainwater collection system of claim 1, wherein the
rainwater storage unit further comprising a support structure for
supporting the flexible rainwater container.
10. The rainwater collection system of claim 9, wherein the
flexible rainwater container further comprising at least one
outlet.
11. The rainwater collection system of claim 9, wherein the
flexible rainwater container further comprising a filter.
12. A rainwater collector comprising: a container, the container
having a slow dripping outlet and a first opening; a collector
plate with a second center opening, the collector plate being
placed on top of the container; a filter with a third center
opening, the filter being placed on top of the collector plate; and
a decorative camouflage, the decorative camouflage being placed on
top of the filter.
13. The rainwater collector of claim 12, further comprising a first
cup attached concentrically to the collector plate.
14. The rainwater collector of claim 12, wherein the collector
plate having a concave shape.
15. The rainwater collector of claim 12, wherein the filter having
a conic shape.
16. The rainwater collector of claim 12, wherein the container
further comprising at least one interconnecting outlet.
17. The rainwater collector of claim 12, wherein the container
further comprising a slow dripping outlet.
18. The rainwater collector of claim 12, further comprising a
filtering cup placed inside the container.
19. A rainwater storage unit comprising: a support structure; a
flexible rainwater container, the flexible rainwater container
being removably attached to the support structure through a
plurality of attaching devices, the flexible rainwater container
having a opening and a cover removably covering the opening; a
outlet; and a plurality of decorative camouflages, the plurality of
decorative camouflages being attached to the support structure.
20. The rainwater storage unit of claim 19, wherein the cover
further comprising a screen.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates to water storage, and more
particularly, to a system for collecting and storing rainwater.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Water conservation has become an important issue in many
cities, states, and countries. When drought affects a city, most
often the first water use restriction imposed by city officials is
to stop outdoor use of water, and this measure affects greatly all
the outdoor activities that require water, such as car wash,
gardening, or even some indoor use, such as flushing toilets,
laundry, or shower after some simple treatment.
[0003] To overcome this limitation, house owners have resort to
saving rainwater in plastic containers. Several containers are
available for purchase and most of them are either in barrel shape
or square shape. These containers are simple in construction, which
essentially comprises of a storage compartment with an opening for
collection of rainwater and an outlet for draining of stored
rainwater. Generally, these containers are not pleasant to see and
require to be placed on a relatively flat surface. Consequently,
they are placed away from the front entrance of a house or any
position that is easily seen from the street. Often, homeowners
have to build short wall or fence to block the view of the
containers from the street.
[0004] Besides the appearance problem, the containers often cause
another problem, which is providing a breeding place for
mosquitoes. Stored rainwater in the containers often provides a
good environment for mosquitoes to lay eggs, and this problem has
stopped some homeowners from installing rainwater collection
containers. Another problem is that these barrels are usually small
and range from 50 to 200 gallons, generally not big enough for
storing rainwater for more extensive water use, such as irrigation,
car wash, or toilets use. Large scale water tank is available, but
it is generally for commercial and/or industrial use and requires a
large space and professional installation with a high cost of
installation, shipping, removal, relocation, and dismounting. A
rainwater barrel normally is placed near a downspout and not
interconnected to other rainwater barrels and thus not suited for
centralized filtration.
[0005] Maintenance is another issue for the water tank and
rainwater collectors. Many commercial tanks are large and it is
difficult to clean, replace, relocate, move, and disassemble. For
large plastic tanks, it is not easy to access inside of a tank and
not safe because of lack of fresh air. Another issue with plastic
tanks is they age easily. Steel tank is expensive and not easy to
clean. Cement (concrete) tank is not easy to replace, clean, move,
and disassemble.
[0006] A large rainwater storage tank is also vulnerable to crack
with ice formation inside the tank, which is likely to happen when
the water reaches a freezing temperature. Large tank also poses an
aesthetic problem for residential users living in subdivisions with
restrictive covenants.
[0007] The cost is also an issue for a rainwater collection and
storage system. The tap water is normally cheap and the low cost of
the tap water does not give much incentive for users to use free
rainwater by making investment in a rainwater collection and
storage system. To make a rainwater collection and storage system
attractive to users, the rainwater collection and storage system
must be able to provide long term savings.
[0008] Therefore, there is a need for a low cost rainwater
collection system that reduces the chance of mosquitoes, is easily
installed and visually pleasant, is easy to install, remove, and
relocate, and is resistant to icing weather and to rust and it is
to this apparatus the present invention is primarily directed
to.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The present invention provides a rainwater collection and
storage system. In one embodiment, the rainwater collection and
storage system has at least one rainwater collector for collecting
rainwater and a rainwater storage unit connected to the at least
one rainwater collector. The rainwater collector has at least one
decorative camouflage. The rainwater storage unit has a flexible
rainwater container and at least one decorative camouflage. The
rainwater collected by the rainwater collector is transferred to
the rainwater storage unit.
[0010] In another embodiment of the invention there is provided a
rainwater collector. The rainwater collector has a container, a
collector plate with a second center opening, a conic filter with a
third center opening, and a decorative camouflage. The container
has a slow dripping outlet and a first opening; the collector plate
is placed on top of the container, and the conic filter is placed
concentrically on top of the collector plate. The decorative
camouflage is placed through the second center opening and the
third center opening.
[0011] In yet another embodiment of the invention there is also
provided a rainwater storage unit. The rainwater storage unit has a
support structure, a flexible rainwater container, a bottom outlet
(optional with a pump on outlet, or inside of water), (to inlet or
side inlets) and a plurality of decorative camouflages. The
flexible rainwater container is removably attached to the support
structure through a plurality of attaching devices and has a top
opening removably covering the top opening. The plurality of
decorative camouflages is attached to the support structure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] Features and advantages of embodiments of the invention will
become apparent as the following Detailed Description proceeds, and
upon reference to the Drawings, where like numerals depict like
elements, and in which:
[0013] FIG. 1 illustrates a rainwater collection and storage system
according to one embodiment of the invention;
[0014] FIG. 2 illustrates a rainwater collector according to one
embodiment of the invention:
[0015] FIG. 3 illustrates a filter for the rainwater collector:
[0016] FIG. 4 illustrates a collector plate for the rainwater
collector;
[0017] FIG. 5 illustrates an rainwater collector according to an
alternative embodiment of the invention;
[0018] FIG. 6 illustrates a small scale rainwater collection system
according to one embodiment of the invention;
[0019] FIG. 7 depicts a rainwater storage unit;
[0020] FIG. 8 depicts a camouflage scheme for the rainwater storage
unit;
[0021] FIG. 9 illustrates an alternative small scale rainwater
collection system;
[0022] FIG. 10 depicts an alternative support structure for a
rainwater storage unit;
[0023] FIG. 11 depicts yet another alternative support structure
for a rainwater storage unit;
[0024] FIG. 12 depicts yet another alternative support structure
for a rainwater storage unit;
[0025] FIG. 13 depicts a cross section view of an alternative
embodiment of a rainwater collector;
[0026] FIG. 14 depicts a perspective view of a rainwater collector
for a corner; and
[0027] FIG. 15 depicts a perspective view of a rainwater collector
for a wall.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0028] The present invention provides a rainwater collection and
storage system that is decorative and easy to maintain. The
rainwater collection and storage system of the present invention is
easy to clean, to replace, to check, to install, and to move. The
rainwater collection and storage system also provides a good return
in investment through reducing household water consumption Its
construction is also resistant to sunshine, freezing temperature,
and rust resistant. It is expandable (size of bag, height of water
tank), movable (change location, rearrange), extendable (add more
units), easy to upgrade, portable (integrate with other system,
pump, connections, and purification system), easy to dismount, easy
to ship away, and easy to dispose FIG. 1 illustrates a rain
collection and storage system 100 according to one embodiment of
the invention. The rainwater is generally collected from rain that
falls on the roof 102 of a house, and collected through the gutters
104 and downspouts 106. A decorative rainwater collector 108 can be
placed at the end of the downspout 106 to collect the rainwater.
The decorative rainwater collector 108 is connected through a pipe
110 or a flexible hose to a rainwater storage unit 112. The
rainwater collected at the decorative rainwater collector 108 can
be transferred through the pipe 110 to the storage unit 112. The
rainwater storage unit 112 has an outlet from which the rainwater
can be drained and used for different purposes. The rainwater
storage unit 112 can be placed anywhere near house; it can be
placed near the rainwater collectors 108 or near the place of
usage. The rainwater storage unit 112 can also be placed in less
visible locations for aesthetic reasons. Both the decorative
rainwater collector 108 and the rainwater storage unit 112 are
camouflaged with decorations, thus making them visually pleasant,
and homeowners no longer need to hide them behind fences or walls
or get special permission from their homeowner association.
[0029] FIG. 2 depicts a cross section view of a decorative
rainwater collector 108. The decorative rainwater collector 108 may
have different themes. The decoration on the decorative rainwater
collector 108 may resemble a small tree, a flower plants a
sculpture, or other artistic decoration. The decoration can be
either real plants and flowers or artificial trees and silk
flowers. The decoration shown in FIG. 2 is a tree 202, but other
type of decorations may also be employed. The tree 202 may be a
single piece made from plastic or a suitable recycled material. The
tree 202 may also be a real plant. The tree 202 may also be
composed by branches 204 of leaves inserted onto a main trunk 206.
The trunk 206 is then inserted into a cup 226 attached to a concave
collector plate 210. The cup 226 may have different shape or size;
a live potted plan may be placed inside the cup 226. The concave
collector plate 210 is placed on the top of a container, such as a
bucket 212. The bucket 212 preferably has a conic shape with a
large opening facing up, but any other shape, such as round,
square, polygon, or partially flat, may also be used. Though the
decorative rainwater collector 108 is shown to have a circular
shape, it may a half circular shape as shown in FIG. 15 for placing
adjacent to a flat surface or 3/4 circular for placing around a
corner of a building as show in FIG. 14.
[0030] The concave collector plate 210 is shown in more detail in
FIG. 4. The concave collector plate 210 has preferably a round
shape with a border 404 that may be slightly raised up from the
concave surface 402. When the border 404 is tall, the angle between
the border 404 and the concave surface 402 is diminished. At the
center of the concave surface 402 there is a cup 226 and some
openings 406 around the cup 226. The openings allow the rainwater
collected through the concave collector plate 210 to flow through
the cup 226 and into the bucket 212. The cup 226 is preferably made
from a mesh material, having openings that enable flow of rainwater
but detaining solid materials of certain sizes, such as leaves and
branches. This is second filtration, which has longer time to
filter and provides finer filtration. The mesh materials can be a
fine cloth bag which can catch small dust and particles. The mesh
also prevents the mosquito getting into the bucket. The bucket 212
and the concave collector plate 210 can be made from plastic, fiber
glass, glass, aluminum, stainless steel, ceramic, porcelain, wood,
cement, or other rust resistant material and they may have shapes
other than the circular conic shape.
[0031] An additional filter 208 can be used to screen off leaves
and also to prevent insects from depositing eggs inside the bucket
212. The filter 208 can serve as a mechanical support for the tree
202. The filter 208 is also used to support the main trunk 206. One
embodiment of the filter 208 with a conic shape is illustrated in
FIG. 3. The filter 208 has a conic surface 304 and a center opening
302. The filter 208 is placed concentrically on the top of the
concave collector plate 210, such that the trunk 206 of the tree
108 can be inserted through both the filter 208 and concave
collector plate 210. The filter 208 may be a large mesh and serves
as the first filtration stage. The filter 208 requires less time to
filter and is easy to clean. If the area is clear of debris, this
filter 208 is optional. The filter 208 may also have different
shape such as square.
[0032] The filtering may also be accomplished with a different
filter illustrated in FIG. 13. The decorative piece may be a real
or fake plant 1302 in a pot 1304. The pot 1304 is placed on a
collector 1308 filled with filtering material 1306, such as stone
and sand or other suitable material. The collector 1308 is placed
on top of a bucket 212.
[0033] The bucket 212 has a slow dripping (drainage) outlet 220
near its bottom and an overflow opening 222 near its top. The
overflow opening 222 may be a recess on the edge of the bucket 212
as shown in FIG. 15, so the pump lines can be easily taken in and
out. The slow dripping outlet 220 allows a small amount of
rainwater to exit from the bucket 212, thus preventing accumulation
and freezing of rainwater inside the bucket 212. By allowing an
automatic draining of the rainwater from the bucket 212, it can
also reduce the chance of procreation of mosquitoes inside the
bucket 212. Alternatively, the slow dripping outlet 220 can be
replaced by a faucet that allows a user to control the amount of
rainwater flowing out of the bucket 212. A pump 214 may be placed
inside the bucket 212. The pump 214 has a float control 218, an
intake 216, and an outlet hose 224. The float control 218
determines when the pump 214 should operate and when the pump 214
should shut down. The intake 216 is preferably a floating intake,
taking water from the surface or near the surface, instead of
taking water from the bottom where most likely there will be some
debris. The outlet hose 224 may be bundled with the electrical
cable into one unit for a certain length, thus reducing number of
hose and cables inside the bucket 212. After the predetermined
length, the outlet hose 224 and the electrical cable can then be
separated.
[0034] FIG. 5 depicts a cross section view of a decorative
rainwater collector 108 according to one alternative embodiment of
the invention. In this embodiment, the bucket 508 has two
interconnecting outlets 502. The interconnecting outlet 502 can be
closed by a cap 506. The interconnecting outlets allow a bucket 508
be connected to neighboring buckets 508. The overflow from one
bucket 508 can flow to another bucket 508. This is useful when a
user for esthetic reasons wants to place multiple decorative
rainwater collectors 108 close to each other, as shown in FIG. 6,
and only one of them is placed near a downspout 108. Multiple
decorative rainwater collectors 108 may be connected in series by
placing them at the same level or at different levels, as shown in
FIG. 9, which requires only one pump at the lowest position
collector. Rubber bumps may be used near the garage door area for
protecting the connecting pipe 110 as the pipe crosses different
areas outside the house. Alternatively, the decorative rainwater
collectors 108 can be connected to each other through the slow
dripping outlet 220 (not shown). When several decorative rainwater
collectors 108 are connected to each other, only one pump 214 is
needed to pump rainwater out of multiple rainwater collectors 108.
The decorative rainwater collectors 108 can be interconnected by a
fixed or flexible pipe 602.
[0035] The bucket 508 may have an optional filtering cup 504 placed
at the inside bottom. The filtering cup 504 may permanently
attached to the internal base inside the bucket 508, and a
filtering cloth may be placed inside. The rainwater flowing out
from the cup 226 is discharged into the filtering cup 504. The
filtering cup 504 provides an additional filtering, and the
filtering cloth can be easily washed or replaced. Alternatively a
filtering bag may be connected to the cup 226, which will allow the
rainwater to gradually leak out by gravity. The filtering bag is
disposable and requires no clean effort. The filtering bag can be
made from plastic, cloth, rubber, or any porous or netlike
material. A submersible pump 214 is placed inside the bucket 508
and pumps rainwater from the outside of the filtering cup 504.
Alternatively, a pedestal pump or other type of pump can also be
used. The pump may be of 110 V or powered by a battery pack. It is
recommended the pump be operated by a battery of 12V, 24V, or 36 V,
which is safe, and the pump may be controlled by a water level
sensor.
[0036] FIG. 7 illustrates a rainwater storage unit 112. The
rainwater storage unit 112 includes a support 702 and a flexible
rainwater container 706. The support 702 is preferably made from
rods or tubes of different sizes and diameters. The support 702 may
be made from stainless steel, aluminum, plastic, wood, bamboo,
fiberglass, coated steel, or other materials that is rust
resistant. The rods may be shipped loose by manufacturer and
assembled by the end user. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the
support 702 has a square top made from four rods, but the support
702 can have different shape, such as triangle, polygon, circle,
trees shape, or spherical. The square top is supported by four
leg-rods 708 and several horizontal rods 704 are attached between
two adjacent leg-rods. The horizontal rods 704 strengthen the frame
and may also serve as ladder for accessing the top of the rainwater
storage unit 112. The leg-rods and horizontal rods are made from
plastic, wood, or other solid and rust resistant material. The
support 702 may have different sizes depending on the number of
rods used for the leg-rods. If the end-user prefers, he may have a
support 702 with a height that ranges from 3 feet to 20 feet tall.
The support 702 may be assembled from several individual pieces,
which allows the support 702 to be extendable to different heights.
The support 702 may also be flexible and bendable frame like
camping tent's support. The support 702 can have different "shoes"
such as nail-like which can go to ground, or rubber shoes such as
those used for ladders for concrete floor. The flexible rainwater
container 706 can be made from plastic, rubber, enforced
fiberglass, or specially treated water-resistant fabric. The
flexible rainwater container 706 may be also have multiple layers,
where one layer serves as a strength net and other layer serves as
a disposable plastic bag. The flexible rainwater container 706 can
be also extendable with additional sections attached through
zippers in a construction commonly used in traveler bags. The
flexible rainwater container 706 has special edges 708 with holes.
Hooks or hangers 710 can be placed into these holes and attached to
the support 702, so the rainwater container 706 can be removably
attached to the support 702 after water in the container 706 is
drained. The attachment of the rainwater container 706 to the
support 702 can be done in a manner similar to hanging a shower
curtain onto a shower rod.
[0037] The flexible rainwater container 706 has a top opening 714,
which can be covered by a top cover 716. The top cover 716 can be
closed with a zipper placed around the top opening 714. The top
cover 716 may have openings for different hoses. Alternatively, the
top cover 716 may be closed with a loop-and-hook faster, such as
Velcro.TM.. The border of top cover 716 may be reinforced with thin
rods, so the proper shape of the top cover 716 can be maintained.
The top cover 716 may have a filtering screen 718 with a cover to
shield the inside of the flexible rainwater container 706 from
light). The filtering screen 718 allows a visual inspection of
inside of the flexible container and prevents entrance of insects
into the flexible rainwater container 706 The flexible rainwater
container 706 should be preferably completely sealed from light to
prevent growth of mold and mildew. The top cover 716 should
prevent, when covering the top opening 714, smell from escaping the
flexible rainwater container 706, but should not be air tight. The
flexible rainwater container 706 may also be equipped with an
outlet 720, which allows the stored rainwater be drained and
used.
[0038] The rainwater from a rainwater collector 108 can be
channeled to the rainwater storage unit 112 though a flexible hose
with one end inside the flexible rainwater container 706, or
alternatively, through a fixed pipe, such as PVC pipe connected to
an inlet pipe 724 attached to the flexible rainwater container 706.
The flexible hose or the PVC pipe can be hidden behind camouflages
and go into the container from its top.
[0039] The flexible rainwater container 706 has a soft bottom
surface and can be placed in any irregular surface. The flexible
rainwater container 706 can also be easily washed, cleaned, or
replaced by removing it from the support 702 after draining the
container 706. The flexible container 706 can be flipped inside out
for cleaning purposes. The rods on the support 112 have holes onto
which decorative camouflages 802 can be placed on the leg-rods 708
and support rods 704 as shown in FIG. 8. The decorative camouflages
may be military camouflages, such as net/clothing of different
shape and color, silk flowers, artificial plants and trees,
sculptures, artistic decorations, statutes made from plastic,
cement, stone, wood, fiberglass, porcelain, etc. Alternatively,
live plants may also be hung around the support 702. When the
support 702 is covered by the decorative camouflages, the support
702 may resemble a tree or other artistic decorations, thus making
it pleasant to see.
[0040] The rainwater storage unit 112 may have a water pump placed
immerse the flexible rainwater container 706 for pumping the water
out of the container 706. A filtration system can also be attached
to the water pump for filtering purposes. An incoming water
filtration system may also be installed by connecting to the inlet
pipe 724. The inlet pipe 724 can be also discharge from the top
into the container 706. The inlet pipe 724 can be installed on the
top of the rainwater storage unit 112.
[0041] A filtering bag may be placed inside the flexible rainwater
container 706. The filtering bag can be made from cloth, plastic,
rubber, or other suitable porous material. The stored rainwater
water will flow through the filtering bag first before exiting the
flexible rainwater container 706. The filtering bag has a large
surface to allow water penetrate. This will speed up the filtration
speed while requiring no pressure and drive for the filtration. As
the pump pumps the stored rainwater out of the rainwater storage
unit, the deposit/dust will be kept inside the bag.
[0042] The rainwater storage unit 112 may have a profile other than
trapezoidal form shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. The rainwater storage unit
112 may have a triangular profile, a circular profile, a polygonal
profile, etc. FIG. 10 depicts an alternative support for the
rainwater storage unit 112. The support rods 1002 are circular and
fixed on the leg-rods 1004. FIG. 11 depicts another alternative
support where the leg-rods 1104 are curved. In FIG. 12, the
leg-rods 1204 are curved and extend above the top support-rod 1202.
These different shapes of supports enable the rainwater storage
unit 112 to have a different external appearance when camouflages
are placed on these supports.
[0043] The rainwater collection and storage system of the present
invention can be sold to end-users as a system or as separate
items. The system can be easily installed and uninstalled; each
component can be cleaned easily. The design of the rainwater
collection and storage system is modular, and can be extended
easily to increase the amount of rainwater collected and stored.
Additional storage will also increase the level of water purity as
additional filtering stages may be added with the additional
storage capacity.
[0044] The terms and expressions which have been employed herein
are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there
is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of
excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described (or
portions thereof), and it is recognized that various modifications
are possible within the scope of the claims. Other modifications,
variations, and alternatives are also possible. Accordingly, the
claims are intended to cover all such equivalents. Dimensions in
the drawings here presented are not to the scale unless otherwise
indicated.
* * * * *