U.S. patent application number 12/319687 was filed with the patent office on 2010-07-15 for leak free semi-stackable drain pan.
This patent application is currently assigned to Lukjan Metal Products, Inc.. Invention is credited to Daniel Korda.
Application Number | 20100175408 12/319687 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42315994 |
Filed Date | 2010-07-15 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100175408 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Korda; Daniel |
July 15, 2010 |
Leak free semi-stackable drain pan
Abstract
The present invention relates to drain pans and the process of
making the same, and more particularly to a leak proof drain pan
that is semi-stackable during storage and can be manufactured from
a single piece of steel without the use of a press, die or tooling.
The drain pan includes corner sections created from a unique
folding system which eliminates seams and thus the need for any
sealing of the seams.
Inventors: |
Korda; Daniel; (Bexley,
OH) |
Correspondence
Address: |
D. PETER HOCHBERG CO. L.P.A.
1940 EAST 6TH STREET
CLEVELAND
OH
44114
US
|
Assignee: |
Lukjan Metal Products, Inc.
Conneaut
OH
|
Family ID: |
42315994 |
Appl. No.: |
12/319687 |
Filed: |
January 9, 2009 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/291 ;
413/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F16N 31/002
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
62/291 ;
413/1 |
International
Class: |
F25D 21/14 20060101
F25D021/14; B21D 51/26 20060101 B21D051/26 |
Claims
1. A seamless drain pan for collecting and storing a liquid such as
condensate and the like, said drain pan comprising: a bottom wall;
a front wall having a top edge portion, said front wall being
integral with and substantially perpendicular to said bottom wall;
a rear wall having a top edge portion, said rear wall being
integral with and substantially perpendicular to said bottom wall;
a first side wall having a top edge portion, said first side wall
being integral with and substantially perpendicular to said bottom
wall, said first side wall being connected to said front wall at a
first leak proof front intersection and said first side wall being
connected to said rear wall at a first leak proof rear
intersection; a second side wall having a top edge portion, said
second side wall being integral with and substantially
perpendicular to said bottom wall, said second side wall being
connected to said front wall at a second leak proof front
intersection and said first side wall being connected to said rear
wall at a second leak proof rear intersection; said front wall,
said rear wall, said first side wall and said second sidewall
having a cross section in the shape of a rectangle; and a corner
section disposed at each of said leak proof front intersections and
each of said leak proof rear intersections, each corner section
having an outside corner and an inside corner, said outside corner
and said inside corner being disposed wherein a fictitious
bisecting line connecting said outside corner and said inside
corner bisects each of said corner sections, wherein each corner
section further comprises: a top corner section integral with one
of said first side wall and said second side wall; a bottom corner
section integral with one of said front wall and said rear wall;
said top corner section and said bottom corner section intersecting
at said fictitious bisecting line of each said corner section;
wherein each corner section comprises said top corner section and
said bottom corner section folded one over the other along said
fictitious bisecting line, said top corner section and said bottom
corner section being substantially coplanar and lying parallel to a
selected one of said first side wall, said second side wall, said
front wall and said rear wall.
2. A seamless drain pan for collecting and storing a liquid such as
condensate and the like, said drain pan comprising: a bottom wall;
a front wall having a top edge portion, said front wall being
integral with and substantially perpendicular to said bottom wall;
a rear wall having a top edge portion, said rear wall being
integral with and substantially perpendicular to said bottom wall;
at least one side wall having a top edge portion, said at least one
side wall being integral with and substantially perpendicular to
said bottom wall, said at least one side wall being connected to
one of said front wall and said rear wall at a leak proof
intersection; and a corner section disposed at said leak proof
intersection, said corner section having an outside corner and an
inside corner, said outside corner and said inside corner being
disposed wherein a fictitious bisecting line connecting said
outside corner and said inside corner bisects said corner section,
wherein said corner section further comprises: a top corner section
integral with said at least one side wall; a bottom corner section
integral with one of said front wall and said rear wall; said top
corner section and said bottom corner section intersecting at said
fictitious bisecting line of said corner section; wherein said
corner section comprises said top corner section and said bottom
corner section folded one over the other along said fictitious
bisecting line, said top corner section and said bottom corner
section being substantially coplanar and lying parallel to a
selected one of said at least one side wall or one of said front
wall and said rear wall.
3. A seamless drain pan according to claim 2, wherein said
respective top edge portions of said walls are folded over the
respective corner sections to prevent unfolding of the respective
corner sections.
4. A seamless drain pan according to claim 2, wherein said drain
pan has a cross section extending through said front wall, said
rear wall and said at least one side wall, said cross section being
in the shape of a rectangle.
5. A seamless drain pan according to claim 2, wherein said drain
pan is manufactured from sheet metal.
6. A seamless drain pan according to claim 5, wherein said sheet
metal has a thickness of approximately 0.0193 inches.
7. A seamless drain pan according to claim 2, further comprising a
drain fitting located on the outside of at least one of said front
wall, rear wall or at least one side wall to drain liquid from said
drain pan.
8. A seamless drain pan according to claim 7, each of said walls
having an inside surface and an outside surface, said drain fitting
comprising: a nut portion having an externally threaded tubular
portion extending through one of said walls; a male adaptor
extending from said nut portion; a gasket located between said nut
portion and the external surface of said one of said walls; and a
fastener screwed on said nut portion for abutting the inside
surface of said one of said walls.
9. A seamless drain pan for collecting and storing a liquid such as
condensate and the like, said drain pan comprising: a bottom wall;
a front wall having a top edge portion, said front wall being
operatively connected to said bottom wall at a leak proof front
intersection; at least one side wall having a top edge portion,
said at least one side wall being operatively connected to said
bottom wall at at least one leak proof side intersection, said at
least one side wall being connected to said front wall at a
respective juncture of said leak proof front intersection and said
at least one leak proof side intersection; and at least one corner
section disposed at said respective juncture, each corner section
having an outside corner and an inside corner, said outside corner
and said inside corner being disposed wherein a fictitious
bisecting line connecting said outside corner and said inside
corner, bisects said respective corner sections, said at least one
corner section further including: a top corner section operatively
connected to said at least one side wall; a bottom corner section
operatively connected to said front wall; and said top corner
section and said bottom corner section intersecting at said
fictitious bisecting line of said at least one corner section;
wherein said at least one corner section comprises said top corner
section and said bottom corner section at least partially folded
one over the other along said fictitious bisecting line.
10. A process of making a seamless drain pan for collecting liquid,
the drain pan having a front wall, a rear wall, opposing side walls
connecting the front wall and the rear wall, and a bottom wall
connected to a corresponding edge of each of said walls, said
process comprising the following steps: cutting a metal sheet in a
generally flat rectangular form, with each side having a top edge
portion extending from the respective side and being shorter than
the respective side, each top edge portion having opposing ends
transverse to the respective side and intersecting the respective
side at a juncture, and adjacent sides forming outside corners,
fictitious first and second lines extending from the respective
junctures of the adjacent edges to an inside corner point to form a
first angle, with a fictitious third line extending from the
respective outside corners of the rectangular sheet to the
respective inside corner points to bisect the first angle; folding
the respective outside corners using the respective inside corner
point as the respective pivots, and further commencing the folding
of the respective opposing side walls, the front wall and the rear
wall about lines extending between adjacent inside corner points,
until the respective side walls, front wall and rear wall are
generally perpendicular to the unfolded part of the metal sheet,
the unfolded part being the bottom wall, the respective halves of
the respective outside corners being doubled over to form a doubled
over corner section with the first and second fictitious lines
being adjacent each other with the confines of the adjacent side
wall and the adjacent front or rear wall; and folding the
respective doubled over corner sections against the adjacent side
wall or adjacent front or rear wall.
11. The process of making a seamless drain pan according to claim
10, and further including the step of folding the respective top
edge portions so that they are adjacent to the respective side
walls, front wall and rear wall.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to drain pans, and more
particularly to a leak proof drain pan that is semi-stackable
during storage and can be manufactured from a single piece of steel
without the use of a press, die, welding or tooling.
[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art
[0004] Various types of drain pans are known in the art and can be
used in any number of situations for collecting various types of
fluids such as oil or water. Such drain pans should be leak free,
but require sealants to effectively seal the seams of the drain
pan. Drain pans exist in the automotive and trucking industries,
and can be used for heavy duty truck and trailer tubeless dual
wheels, allowing the user to cleanly and safely drain oil or grease
from the axles. Drain pans can also be used in the food industry,
where drain pans are placed underneath frying machines to catch
cooking oil and grease dripping or to completely drain the cooking
oil. Drain pans can be used for water heaters to catch excess
water. A household dishwasher can include a drain pan designed to
relocate leaking fluids to an observable location. Other types of
appliances that can use drain pans include refrigerators and
washing machines for catching excess water leaking from the
appliance. Drain pans can be used to catch excess grease from
underneath barbecue grills and inside home grills.
[0005] A cooling coil used in air conditioning apparatus such as
furnaces, air handling units, and heat pumps extracts moisture from
the air which is being flowed externally across the coil (by a
blower portion of the apparatus) and cooled by the coil for
delivery to a conditioned space served by the apparatus. Air
flowing across the coil is dehumidified as it is cooled, causing
condensation to form on the coil. This condensation must be
disposed of to prevent freezing of the coil and damage to the
surrounding building structure. Typically, a drain pan is located
beneath the coil to receive condensate runoff. The pan includes an
opening in a bottom part of the pan to conduct the condensate
accumulated in the pan to an external drainage conduit.
[0006] It is advantageous to reduce water retention in the pan to
the extent feasible, not only to reduce the likelihood of
condensate spillage from the pan onto the adjacent building
structure, but also to inhibit the formation of mold, rust and
other undesirable byproducts of stagnant water in the pan which may
lead to reduction in the quality of air delivered to the
conditioned space. Further, air flowing across the heat exchanger
cooling coil may pick up moisture from excessive water accumulation
in the pan, which may result in unwanted humidity in the air
supplied to an indoor space.
[0007] Drain pans of various types are known in the art. These
prior art drain pans are typically rectangular in shape and cannot
fit inside one another when stacked for storage. Because of limited
availability of shelf space in retail establishments, it is desired
to stack the drain pans as closely together as possible. FIG. 10 of
the present application shows a typical set of stacked drain pans
according to the prior art. As can be seen, the drain pans of the
prior art are stacked one on top of another and are not nested
together. Thus, stacking multiple drain pans for storage, shipping,
etc. will take up more space.
[0008] U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,632,268 and 4,513,865 disclose stackable
oil drain pans. As can be seen from FIGS. 4 and 5 of both
references, the drain pan has a male protrusion on top of the pan
and a corresponding female indentation on the bottom. When stacked
on top of each other, the drain pans do stack more easily. However,
the amount of excess space saved from stacking is relatively small.
As can be seen from the FIGS. 4 and 5, the main body of the drain
pans do not fit inside one another.
[0009] Some of the prior art drain pans are nestable when stacked.
A typical drain pan of this nature is shown in U.S. Pat. No.
6,718,788. However, this drain pan has a big disadvantage based on
the manufacture of the drain pan itself. The drain pan is
fabricated by use of a press, die and tooling. The drain pan is
pressed into a die and the corners are crimped to form the usual
rectangular shape with crimped corners. The type of press used is a
large hydro-formed press which includes tooling to manufacture only
one size at a time. Each different size drain pan requires a
different die with separate tooling. Since the die and tooling must
be custom made to accommodate each drain pan size, the
manufacturing costs are high. Thus, manufacture of this type of
drain pan is very expensive and is not easily adaptable for
fabricating different size drain pans unless large numbers of each
size of pan are made.
[0010] Furthermore, during the foregoing manufacturing process
using the press, the large force exerted by the press to form the
drain pan can cause the steel to crack at the corners. If these
cracks are not found at the time of manufacture, this can create
possible leakage of the condensate when the drain pan is in use.
Hair-line cracks in steel are often not visible to the naked eye.
Therefore, the prior art drain pans have some major
disadvantages.
[0011] Some of the prior art nestable pans, such as the drain pan
disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,718,788, can become jammed when
stacked, making removal of the pans tedious and slow. If there is
tight stacking, it might not be possible to separate the drain
pans.
[0012] It would be advantageous to reduce the amount of space the
drain pans occupy when stacked upon one another for storage or
shipping purposes. In this regard, it would be useful for a drain
pan to fit inside another drain pan.
[0013] Furthermore, it would be an advantage to significantly
reduce the costs and time associated with the manufacture of drain
pans by eliminating the need for a die and tooling to be used with
a press. The elimination of the press during the manufacturing
process would also reduce the likelihood of cracks or flaws in the
drain pan.
[0014] As can readily be seen from the foregoing, a need exists for
a drain pan structure which eliminates or at least substantially
reduces the above-mentioned problems, limitations and disadvantages
of conventionally constructed drain pans. It is to this need that
the present invention is directed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] As described in the Description of the Prior Art, drain pans
are known in the art and can be used in any number of situations
for collecting various types of fluids such as oil or water in the
form of condensation. Such drain pans should be leak free, but
require sealants to effectively seal the seams of the drain
pan.
[0016] An object of the present invention is to provide a drain pan
which is leak proof and can be manufactured without the need of a
press, die and tooling.
[0017] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
drain pan which can be manufactured easily at relatively low cost
and is easily adaptable for being manufactured in various
sizes.
[0018] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a
drain pan that can be manufactured from one piece of steel or other
appropriate metal, wherein the single piece of steel or other metal
is folded upon itself to form the drain pan, without the formation
of hairline or other types of cracks.
[0019] A further object of the present invention is to provide a
drain pan which is semi-stackable for reducing the space on the
shelves of wholesalers and other storers of such pans.
[0020] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
drain pan which does not require the use of sealants to prevent
leaks.
[0021] Still yet another object of the present invention is to
provide a drain pan with a drain plug that can be located on any
side of the drain pan for preventing overflow of the pan.
[0022] The foregoing objects are achieved according to the
preferred embodiment of the invention by the provision of a drain
pan from a single piece of sheet metal which is uniquely folded to
create a seamless drain pan. The drain pan includes folded corner
sections which are folded toward the inner portion of the drain pan
as described below, which enables the stacking of the drain pans in
a stable manner, with easy placement of drain pans in the stack and
fast removal therefrom, without any possibility of jamming.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] Other characteristics and advantages of the present
invention will emerge from reading the detailed description
hereinbelow of nonlimiting embodiments of the invention, and
examining the attached drawings wherein:
[0024] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the leak free semi-stackable
drain pan.
[0025] FIG. 2 is a section view of the drain pan of FIG. 1 taken
along the line 2-2.
[0026] FIG. 3 is a section view of the drain pan of FIG. 1 taken
along the line 3-3.
[0027] FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of an unfolded corner
of the drain pan of FIG. 1 showing dotted lines where the drain pan
will be folded.
[0028] FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a partially folded
corner of the drain pan of FIG. 1 showing the direction of the
folds indicated by arrows.
[0029] FIG. 6 is an enlarged perspective view of a corner of the
drain pan of FIG. 1 showing the direction of the final fold of
indicated by arrows.
[0030] FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of a corner of the
drain pan of FIG. 1 showing a completely folded corner with
completely folded top edges.
[0031] FIG. 8 is a top view of the drain pan of FIG. 1 as a single
sheet of metal completely unfolded, prior to its fabrication into a
drain pan.
[0032] FIG. 9 is a front view of multiple drain pans of FIG. 1
placed upon one another in a semi-stackable fashion.
[0033] FIG. 10 is a front view of multiple drain pans according to
the prior art in a stacked configuration.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0034] As discussed throughout the specification, the term "crimp"
or "crimped" means corrugated or to produce a corrugated surface.
The term "semi-stackable" means that one drain pan is inserted with
its open top facing upwards, into a lower drain pan with its open
top facing upwards, with the upper edge of the inserted end wall
contacting the inside of the corresponding end wall of the drain
pan into which the inserted drain pan is being placed, and the
lower edge portion of the opposite end wall of the inserted drain
pan resting on the upper edge of the end wall of the lower drain
pan so that the drain pan at the top of the stack can be easily
grasped to enable lifting of the pan from the stack. The
inclination of the next drain pan in the stack is reversed to limit
the tilting of the stack. An example of stacking of the
semi-stackable drain pan is shown in FIG. 9.
[0035] Disclosed according to the present invention is a drain pan
and a method of producing the drain pan. As will be more fully
explained hereinafter, the drain pan of the present invention is
preferably folded from a single sheet of steel or similar material
without the use of a press and the necessary die and tooling
associated with the press. The drain pan is semi-stackable for
reducing the space on the shelves of wholesalers, and making
removal of one or more drain pans easy whether done manually or
with an appropriate tool or appropriate equipment.
[0036] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the leak free
semi-stackable drain pan generally designated at 10. Drain pan 10
is seamless and does not leak. As shown, drain pan 10 is
substantially square shaped and includes a bottom wall 12 which can
have a width of about 24 inches width and a length of 24 inches.
However, drain pan 10 is not limited by these dimensions or being
substantially square shaped and could retain other shapes such as a
rectangle, for example, depending upon the application of the drain
pan and the different sizes of the air conditioner. Drain pan 10
could also be curved or have irregular shapes as well. Drain pan 10
also includes a front wall 14, a rear wall 16 and two side walls
18. Front wall 14 and rear wall 16 are substantially parallel to
each other and substantially perpendicular to bottom wall 12. Side
walls 18 are also substantially parallel to each other and
substantially perpendicular to bottom wall 12. Front wall 14 and
rear wall 16 are substantially perpendicular to sidewalls 18. As
seen in FIG. 1, side walls 18 also include corner sections 20 on
the inside of drain pan 10 resulting from the folding of the
corners of drain pan 10 as discussed later. Top edge portions 22A,
22B and 22C are located on the inside of front wall 14, rear wall
16 and side walls 18 respectively, and are modified as described
below, to serve to protect a user handling drain pan 10 from any
sharp edges of the sheet metal. Top edge portion 22C overlaps
corner sections 20 of each sidewall 18 as shown in FIG. 1. A drain
fitting 24 is located on the outside of front wall 14 to drain the
water or condensation retained by drain pan 10. In use, drain
fitting 24 is hermetically sealed in drain pan 10 and thus does not
have any leaks. When installed in an air conditioner, freezer or
refrigeration unit, for example, a hose is attached to drain
fitting 24 in the manner shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,718,788 for
draining condensates from drain pan 10. Drain fitting 24 can
advantageously include as an integral unit, a cylindrical tube or
male adaptor 25A extending from a nut portion 25B from which
extends an externally threaded tubular portion extending through
wall 14 (or some other wall). Male adaptor 25A is held in place by
internal nut or fastener 26 screwed to abut the inside surface of
wall 14, and a gasket 27 is located between nut portion 25B and the
external surface of wall 14.
[0037] Drain pan 10 is formed by folding of a blank 40 as shown by
the fictitious fold lines shown in FIG. 8. Drain pan 10 is not
crimped, meaning it does not have corrugated surfaces. Preferably
the blank is made from steel and usually is made of sheet metal. An
appropriate thickness is 0.0193 inches. However, other materials
that create a rigid, leak proof drain pan when folded can also be
used. The sheet metal is cut to the desired blank size. The dotted
lines shown in FIG. 8 display where blank 40 is folded to create
drain pan 10 in FIG. 1. Each section separated by the dotted lines
substantially corresponds to the parts of drain pan 10 as described
above. Bottom wall 12 is substantially square-shaped although it is
not limited to this embodiment as mentioned above. Blank 40 also
includes front wall 14, rear wall 16 and side walls 18. A drain
plug hole 30 is punched out of front wall 14 to accommodate drain
plug 24. Drain plug hole 30 can be also located in rear wall 16 or
side walls 18. Of course, more than one drain plug hole 30 can be
punched to accommodate multiple drain plugs 24. Top edges 22 are
also part of blank 40 and are located on each front wall 14, rear
wall 16 and side walls 18 respectively. Top edge portions 22A, 22B
and 22C are slightly chamfered at each end to allow for clearance
when folded over at each corner section 20. Of course it is
possible that top edge portions 22A, 22B and 22C are not chamfered
at all or may be rounded. Top edge portions 22A, 22B and 22C do not
have to be included in drain pan 10, but they are rendered smooth
as discussed below to prevent them from cutting a person or items
during handling and use, and to prevent them from scratching other
drain pans during stacking.
[0038] Corner sections 20 are further defined as seen in FIGS. 4
and 5. Corner section 20 includes an outside corner 28 and an
inside corner 29. FIG. 4 shows a magnified corner section 20 in
more detail. Corner section 20 has four sides as defined by lines A
and B, and phantom lines C and D. As seen in FIG. 4, a phantom line
H diagonally bisects corner section 20 from outside corner 28 to
inside corner 29 creating a top corner section 28A and bottom
internal corner section 29A which are substantially the same size.
An angle a is the angle between line B and phantom line D. .alpha.
is also the angle between line A and phantom line C. As shown in
FIG. 4, a is about 95 degrees. However, .alpha. is not limited to
being 95 degrees and can either be an acute, obtuse or a right
angle. As shown in FIG. 8, the edges between front wall 14 and rear
wall 16, and bottom wall 12 are shown by phantom lines E and F,
respectively. The edges between side walls 18 and bottom wall 12
are shown by phantom lines G.
[0039] FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 show the folding of corner section 20 as
well as front wall 14, side wall 18 and top edge portions 22A, 22B
and 22C. First, considering drain pan 10 in an unfolded condition
and initially in a ground engaging position as shown in FIG. 8, the
portion of sheet metal including phantom line H is forced upward
from bottom wall 12 by hand or suitable machine, rotating top
corner section 28A about bottom internal corner section 29A.
Outside corner 28 is thus moved upwardly and inward as shown by
arrow X towards bottom wall 12. At the same time, side wall 18 and
front wall 14 are forced to fold inwardly as shown by arrows Y and
Z respectively, about edges. Since top edges 22C and 22A are
attached to side walls 18 and front wall 14, respectively, they too
are pulled inward. However, top edges 22 are not yet folded over.
When side walls 18 and front wall 14 become substantially
perpendicular to bottom wall 12, top corner section 28A and bottom
internal corner section 29A should be substantially coplanar. That
is, lines A and B should be collinear and lines C and D should be
collinear. Next, corner section 20 is folded either towards side
wall 18 or front wall 14. In FIG. 6, corner section 20 is folded
towards side wall 18 until it is substantially coplanar with side
wall 18.
[0040] Next, top edge 22A of front wall 14 is folded inward at 180
degrees along phantom line I as seen in FIG. 6. FIGS. 4 and 5 show
phantom line I before folding. The folding over of top edge 22A is
for safety and prevents any sharp surfaces of blank 40 from cutting
or injuring a user when handling drain pan 10. This same folding
procedure is repeated for the other three corner sections 20.
Finally, each top edge 22C of each side wall 18, as shown in FIG.
6, is folded inward at 180 degrees along dotted line L. Arrow J
shows part of top edge 22 folding over part of corner section 20 to
the position shown in FIG. 7. Arrow K shows the remaining part of
top edge 22C folding over part of side wall 18. It is important
that these top edges 20C are folded last, since they help secure
corner sections 20 and prevent them from unfolding at each corner
of drain pan 10. After the folding is complete, drain fitting 24 is
inserted into drain hole 30 and is hermetically sealed by means of
nut 25B and gasket 27 as explained earlier. Drain pan 10, which was
created from blank 40, is now seamless and leak proof. No sealing
around the corners or any part of drain pan 10 is necessary.
Furthermore, no press, die or tooling was needed to create drain
pan 10. Thus, drain pan 10 is relatively inexpensive to manufacture
and creates significant cost savings compared to the previous drain
pans created from a press.
[0041] After multiple drain pans 10 of the same size have been
manufactured, they can be stacked as seen in FIG. 9 for storage
purposes in the semi-stackable arrangement to reduce the space on
the shelves of wholesalers or for shipment. The stacking
configuration shown in FIG. 9 allow for twice the number of drain
pans 10 to be stacked compared to the prior art drain pans as seen
stacked in FIG. 10.
[0042] Having described the invention, it will be apparent to those
skilled in the art that alterations and modifications may be made
without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention
limited only by the appended claims.
* * * * *