U.S. patent application number 14/600086 was filed with the patent office on 2016-07-21 for vehicle side impact control.
This patent application is currently assigned to FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC. The applicant listed for this patent is Ford Global Technologies, LLC. Invention is credited to Dale Scott Crombez, Scott J. Lauffer.
Application Number | 20160207529 14/600086 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 55488216 |
Filed Date | 2016-07-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160207529 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Crombez; Dale Scott ; et
al. |
July 21, 2016 |
VEHICLE SIDE IMPACT CONTROL
Abstract
A vehicle system includes a sensor and a processing device. The
sensor is configured to detect an impact vehicle. The processing
device is programmed to predict an impact zone, define a passenger
zone relative to a host vehicle, and generate a control signal to
move the impact zone away from the passenger zone. The passenger
zone is defined at least in part on a location of at least one
occupant inside the host vehicle.
Inventors: |
Crombez; Dale Scott;
(Livonia, MI) ; Lauffer; Scott J.; (Northville,
MI) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Ford Global Technologies, LLC |
Dearborn |
MI |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES,
LLC
Dearborn
MI
|
Family ID: |
55488216 |
Appl. No.: |
14/600086 |
Filed: |
January 20, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B60W 2720/106 20130101;
B60W 30/08 20130101; B60W 30/085 20130101; B60W 30/095 20130101;
B60W 2554/80 20200201; B60W 50/12 20130101 |
International
Class: |
B60W 30/08 20060101
B60W030/08; B60W 50/12 20060101 B60W050/12; B60W 30/095 20060101
B60W030/095 |
Claims
1. A vehicle system comprising: a sensor configured to detect an
impact vehicle; and a processing device programmed to predict an
initial impact zone defining an impact location relative to a host
vehicle, define a passenger zone relative to the host vehicle,
predict future impact zones based on a simulated acceleration and
deceleration of the host vehicle, select the future impact zone
that moves the impact location furthest away from the passenger
zone, and either accelerate or decelerate the host vehicle in
accordance with the selected future impact zone. wherein the
passenger zone includes at least one area of a passenger
compartment with at least one detected occupant and excludes areas
of the passenger compartment where no occupants are detected.
2. The vehicle system of claim 1, further comprising an occupant
detection system configured to determine a location of the at least
one occupant, wherein the processing device is programmed to define
the passenger zone in accordance with a signal output by the
occupant detection system.
3. The vehicle system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is
programmed to generate a control signal to accelerate the host
vehicle to move the impact zone away from the passenger zone.
4. The vehicle system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is
programmed to generate a control signal to decelerate the host
vehicle to move the impact zone away from the passenger zone.
5. The vehicle system of claim 1, wherein the passenger zone
includes a driver seat area corresponding to a location of a driver
seat in the host vehicle.
6. The vehicle system of claim 1, wherein the passenger zone
includes at least one of a passenger seat area corresponding to a
location of a passenger seat in the host vehicle, a first rear seat
area corresponding to a location of a first rear seat in the host
vehicle, and a second rear seat area corresponding to a location of
a second rear seat in the host vehicle.
7. The vehicle system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is
programmed to generate a control signal in accordance with a
powertrain characteristic of the host vehicle.
8. The vehicle system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is
programmed to generate a control signal in accordance with a
braking characteristic of the host vehicle.
9. The vehicle system of claim 1, wherein the processing device is
programmed to receive a driver input signal and determine whether
the driver input signal controls the host vehicle to move the
impact zone away from the passenger zone.
10. The vehicle system of claim 9, where in the processing device
is programmed to override the driver input signal with the control
signal if the driver input signal controls the host vehicle to keep
the impact zone inside of the passenger zone.
11. A method comprising: detecting an impact vehicle; determining
an initial impact zone defining an impact location relative to a
host vehicle; defining a passenger zone relative to the host
vehicle, wherein the passenger zone includes an area of a passenger
compartment with at least one detected occupant and excludes areas
of the passenger compartment where no occupants are detected;
predicting future impact zones based on a simulated acceleration
and deceleration of the host vehicle; selecting the future impact
zone that moves the impact location farthest away from the
passenger zone; and accelerating or decelerating the host vehicle
in accordance with the selected future impact zone prior to the
impact vehicle colliding with the host vehicle.
12. The method of claim 11, further comprising determining a
location of the at least one occupant inside the host vehicle.
13. The method of claim 11, further comprising generating a control
signal to accelerate the host vehicle.
14. The method of claim 11, further comprising generating a control
signal to decelerate the host vehicle.
15. The method of claim 11, further comprising generating a control
signal in accordance with at least one of a powertrain
characteristic and a braking characteristic of the host
vehicle.
16. The method of claim 11, further comprising: receiving a driver
input signal; and determining whether the driver input signal
controls the host vehicle to move the impact zone away from the
passenger zone.
17. The method of claim 16, further comprising overriding the
driver input signal with the control signal if the driver input
signal controls the host vehicle to keep the impact zone inside of
the passenger zone.
18. A vehicle system comprising: an occupant detection system
configured to determine a location in a passenger compartment of at
least one occupant in a host vehicle; a sensor configured to detect
an impact vehicle; and a processing device programmed to predict an
impact zone defining an impact location relative to the host
vehicle, define a passenger zone relative to the host vehicle in
accordance with a signal output by the occupant detection system,
predict future impact zones based on a simulated acceleration and
deceleration of the host vehicle, select the future impact zone
that moves the impact location furthest away from the passenger
zone, and either accelerate or decelerate the host vehicle in
accordance with the selected future impact zone, wherein the
passenger zone includes at least one area of the passenger
compartment with at least one detected occupant and excludes areas
of the passenger compartment where no occupants are detected, and
wherein the processing device is programmed generate a control
signal to accelerate or decelerate the host vehicle and wherein the
control signal is generated in accordance with at least one of a
powertrain characteristic and a braking characteristic of the host
vehicle.
19. (canceled)
20. The vehicle system of claim 18, wherein the passenger zone
includes at least one of a driver seat area corresponding to a
location of a driver seat in the host vehicle, a passenger seat
area corresponding to a location of a passenger seat in the host
vehicle, a first rear seat area corresponding to a location of a
first rear seat in the host vehicle, and a second rear seat area
corresponding to a location of a second rear seat in the host
vehicle.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] Vehicles include various restraint systems to reduce the
risk of harm to occupants in the event of a collision. Examples of
common restraint devices include seatbelts and airbags. During a
collision, seatbelts seek to hold passengers in their respective
seats while airbags seek to cushion passengers from impacting
certain parts of the vehicle interior. Vehicle body design can also
help minimize injury by diverting impact forces away from
passengers.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0002] FIG. 1 illustrates an example host vehicle that incorporates
a side impact control system.
[0003] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing example components of the
side impact control system that may be incorporated into the
vehicle of FIG. 1.
[0004] FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate example scenarios of how the side
impact control system may change an impact zone.
[0005] FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an example process that may be
executed by the side impact control system.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0006] If an impact cannot be avoided, one way to reduce the risk
of harm to occupants in the host vehicle is to divert the host
vehicle so that the impact occurs at a location as far from the
passenger compartment as possible. In the context of an unavoidable
side impact, the host vehicle may incorporate a side impact control
system that includes a sensor and a processing device. The sensor
may detect an impact vehicle. The impact vehicle may include a
vehicle that will imminently collide with the host vehicle. The
processing device is programmed to predict an impact zone. The
impact zone may be a location relative to the host vehicle where
the impact vehicle is likely to collide with the host vehicle. The
processing device may be further programmed to define a passenger
zone relative to the host vehicle. The passenger zone may be based,
at least in part, on where occupants are located in the passenger
compartment of the host vehicle. For example, if the impact zone
includes the driver's side of the host vehicle, the passenger zone
may be limited to the area of the passenger compartment near the
driver seat if no other passengers are present in the host vehicle.
The passenger zone may be expanded to include the area of the
passenger compartment near the driver seat and driver side rear
seat if a passenger is present in the seat behind the driver seat.
When the passenger zone has been defined, the side impact control
system may generate a control signal that can divert the host
vehicle to move the impact zone away from the passenger zone.
Diverting the host vehicle may include accelerating or decelerating
the host vehicle. While the side impact control system may not be
able to cause the impact vehicle to completely avoid colliding with
the host vehicle, the side impact control system may cause the
impact to occur as far away from passengers of the host vehicle as
possible.
[0007] The elements shown may take many different forms and include
multiple and/or alternate components and facilities. The example
components illustrated are not intended to be limiting. Indeed,
additional or alternative components and/or implementations may be
used.
[0008] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the host vehicle 100 includes a
side impact control system 105 that detects an imminent impact with
another vehicle (referred to as the "impact vehicle"). The term
"imminent" may include impacts predicted to occur within, e.g., a
few seconds. The side impact control system 105 may predict an
impact zone 110 (see FIGS. 3A-3B) relative to the host vehicle 100.
The impact zone 110 may refer to the location where the impact with
the impact vehicle is most likely to occur. The impact zone 110 may
be predicted based on, e.g., the speeds and trajectories of the
host vehicle 100 and the impact vehicle.
[0009] The side impact control system 105 may further define a
passenger zone 115. The passenger zone 115 may include all or parts
of the passenger compartment of the host vehicle 100. Parts of the
passenger compartment may include, e.g., a driver seat area 120
corresponding to a location of a driver seat in the host vehicle
100, a passenger seat area 125 (see FIGS. 3A-3B) corresponding to a
location of a passenger seat in the host vehicle 100, a first rear
seat area 130 corresponding to a location of a first rear seat
(e.g., behind the driver seat) in the host vehicle 100, and a
second rear seat area 135 (see FIGS. 3A-3B) corresponding to a
location of a second rear seat (e.g., behind the front passenger
seat) in the host vehicle 100. The passenger zone 115 may be
defined to include any areas of the passenger compartment where an
occupant is present. For instance, if the only occupant of the host
vehicle 100 is sitting in the driver seat, the passenger zone 115
may be limited to the driver seat area 120. If occupants are
identified in both the driver and front passenger seats, the
passenger zone 115 may include the driver seat area 120 and the
passenger seat area 125. If an occupant is identified in the rear
seat behind the driver seat, the passenger zone 115 may include the
first rear seat area 130. If an occupant is identified in the rear
seat behind the front passenger seat, the passenger zone 115 may
include the second rear seat area 135.
[0010] With the passenger zone 115 defined, the side impact control
system 105 may generate a control signal that diverts the host
vehicle 100 to move the impact zone 110 away from the passenger
zone 115. Diverting the host vehicle 100 may include accelerating
or decelerating the host vehicle 100. While the side impact control
system 105 may not be able to cause the impact vehicle to
completely avoid colliding with the host vehicle 100, the side
impact control system 105 may cause the impact to occur as far away
from passengers of the host vehicle 100 as possible.
[0011] The host vehicle 100 may include any passenger or commercial
automobile such as a car, a truck, a sport utility vehicle, a
crossover vehicle, a van, a minivan, a taxi, a bus, etc. In some
possible approaches, the host vehicle 100 is an autonomous vehicle
configured to operate in an autonomous (e.g., driverless) mode or a
partially autonomous mode.
[0012] Referring now to FIG. 2, the side impact control system 105
may include an impact sensor 140, an occupant detection system 145,
and a processing device 150.
[0013] The impact sensor 140 may include an electronic device that
can detect the impact vehicle relative to the host vehicle 100.
That is, the impact sensor 140 may be configured to detect an
impact vehicle with a trajectory that is likely to collide with the
host vehicle 100. Examples of such sensors 140 may include a radar
sensor, a lidar sensor, a vision sensor, or the like. The impact
sensor 140 may be configured to output a signal representing the
presence of the impact vehicle, the trajectory of the impact
vehicle, or both.
[0014] The occupant detection system 145 may include any number of
devices configured to determine which seats of the host vehicle 100
are occupied. The occupant detection system 145, therefore, may
include seat sensors, such as proximity sensors, associated with
each seat in the passenger compartment. Each seat sensor may output
a signal representing that an occupant has been detected. The
absence of the signal may indicate that no occupant has been
detected in the corresponding seat.
[0015] The processing device 150 may receive and process the
signals generated by the impact sensor 140 and the occupant
detection system 145. Thus, the processing device 150 may be
programmed to predict the impact zone 110, define the passenger
zone 115, and generate a control signal. The control signal may be
used to move the host vehicle 100 so that the impact zone 110 is
moved away from the passenger zone 115 since, as discussed above,
the passenger zone 115 includes the locations of occupants within
the host vehicle 100. The control signal generated by the
processing device 150, therefore, may cause the host vehicle 100 to
accelerate or decelerate since doing so would change the impact
zone 110. In some possible implementations, such as when a
collision in the passenger zone 115 is imminent and unavoidable,
another control signal may be generated to prepare or pre-charge
certain passive safety systems such as airbags, belt tensioners, or
the like.
[0016] In determining whether to accelerate or decelerate the host
vehicle 100, the processing device 150 may be programmed to
evaluate certain powertrain and braking characteristics of the host
vehicle 100. That is, the processing device 150 may be programmed
to determine whether the powertrain of the host vehicle 100 can
accelerate the host vehicle 100 fast enough to move the impact zone
110. Alternatively, the processing device 150 may be programmed to
determine whether the braking system of the host vehicle 100 can
decelerate the host vehicle 100 fast enough to move the impact zone
110.
[0017] In some implementations, the processing device 150 may be
programmed to receive a driver input signal relating to the
driver's intent for operating the host vehicle 100. The driver
input signal may be generated in response to, e.g., the driver of
the host vehicle 100 pressing the accelerator pedal or the brake
pedal, or the driver turning the steering wheel. When an impact is
imminent, the processing device 150 may be programmed to ignore or
override certain driver input signals. For instance, the processing
device 150 may ignore driver input signals that would keep the
impact zone 110 within the passenger zone 115 or move the impact
zone 110 to the passenger zone 115.
[0018] FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate example scenarios of how the side
impact control system 105 may move the impact zone 110 out of the
passenger zone 115. As shown in FIG. 3A, the host vehicle 100 has
two passengers--one in the driver seat and one in the rear seat
behind the driver seat. Accordingly, the passenger zone 115 may be
defined as including the driver seat area 120 and the first rear
seat area 130. The impact zone 110 is initially predicted to occur
near both the driver seat area 120 and the first rear seat area
130. The side impact control system 105 may further predict where
the impact zone 110 will be if the host vehicle 100 were to
accelerate or brake. In the example of FIG. 3A, accelerating will
place the impact zone 110 close to the rear passenger. In other
words, accelerating will not move the impact zone 110 away from the
passenger zone 115. Rather, accelerating would move the impact zone
110 toward one of the passengers. Braking, however, will place the
impact zone 110 in front of the passenger zone 115. Therefore,
between accelerating and braking, the side impact control system
105 may control the host vehicle 100 to brake so that the impact
may occur away from the passenger zone 115. Turning now to the
example of FIG. 3B, where no rear passenger is present, both
braking and accelerating will move the impact zone 110 away from
the passenger zone 115. Accelerating, however, will move the impact
zone 110 further from the only passenger. Therefore, the side
impact control system 105 may control the host vehicle 100 to
accelerate.
[0019] FIG. 4 is a process flow diagram of an example process 400
that may be implemented by the side impact control system 105. The
process 400 may begin when the host vehicle 100 is turned on and
continue to run until the host vehicle 100 is turned off.
[0020] At block 405, the processing device 150 may define a
passenger zone 115. The passenger zone 115 may be based on the
location of occupants in the passenger compartment of the host
vehicle 100. The locations of passengers may be determined from the
signals output by the occupant detection system 145. As discussed
above, the passenger zone 115 may include all or parts of the
passenger compartment of the host vehicle 100. Parts of the
passenger compartment may include the driver seat area 120 the
passenger seat area 125 the first rear seat area 130 and the second
rear seat area 135. If the only occupant of the host vehicle 100 is
sitting in the driver seat, the passenger zone 115 may be limited
to the driver seat area 120. If occupants are identified in both
the driver and front passenger seats, the passenger zone 115 may
include the driver seat area 120 and the passenger seat area 125.
If an occupant is identified in the rear seat behind the driver
seat, the passenger zone 115 may include the first rear seat area
130. If an occupant is identified in the rear seat behind the front
passenger seat, the passenger zone 115 may include the second rear
seat area 135.
[0021] At block 410, the processing device 150 may detect the
impact vehicle. The impact vehicle may be detected from the impact
signal output by the impact sensor 140, such as a radar sensor, a
lidar sensor, a vision sensor, or the like. The impact signal may
represent the presence of the impact vehicle, the trajectory of the
impact vehicle, or both.
[0022] At block 415, the processing device 150 may determine the
impact zone 110 relative to the host vehicle 100. The impact zone
110 may be determined from the speed of the host vehicle 100, and
the speed and trajectory of the impact vehicle relative to the host
vehicle 100.
[0023] At decision block 420, the processing device 150 may compare
the impact zone 110 to the passenger zone 115. If the impact zone
110 is predicted to occur within the passenger zone 115, the
process 400 may continue at block 425. Otherwise, the process 400
may proceed at block 435.
[0024] At block 425, the processing device 150 may select a
countermeasure. Examples of countermeasures may include
accelerating or decelerating the host vehicle 100. The processing
device 150 may determine whether accelerating or decelerating the
host vehicle 100 will cause the impact zone 110 to move away from
the passenger zone 115. The processing device 150 may consider
powertrain characteristics--e.g., how quickly the host vehicle 100
can accelerate--and braking characteristics--e.g., how quickly the
host vehicle 100 can decelerate--in selecting the countermeasure.
If both countermeasures are sufficient to move the impact zone 110
away from the passenger zone 115, or if moving the impact zone 110
out of the passenger zone 115 is impossible, the processing device
150 may select the countermeasure that places the impact zone 110
as far from the occupants as possible.
[0025] At block 430, the processing device 150 may generate a
control signal. The control signal may be output to a vehicle
control system that can cause the host vehicle 100 to implement the
countermeasure. That is, the control signal may maneuver the host
vehicle 100 in a way that moves the impact zone 110 away from the
passenger zone 115 as much as possible. Thus, the control signal
may cause the host vehicle 100 to accelerate or decelerate, among
other countermeasures.
[0026] At decision block 435, the processing device 150 may
determine whether a driver input signal has been received. The
driver input signal may be generated by a driver input device such
as the accelerator pedal, brake pedal, or steering wheel. If
received, the process 400 may proceed to block 440. Otherwise, the
process 400 may continue to execute block 435 until a driver input
signal is received.
[0027] At decision block 440, the processing device 150 may
determine whether the driver input signal will cause the impact
zone 110 to move to, or stay within, the passenger zone 115. If the
driver input signal will maneuver the host vehicle 100 in a manner
contrary to the selected countermeasure or will cause the impact
zone 110 to enter into the passenger zone 115, the process 400 may
continue at block 445. Otherwise, the process 400 may continue at
block 450.
[0028] At block 445, the processing device 150 may override the
driver input signal. For instance, the processing device 150 may
prevent the host vehicle 100 to responding in accordance with the
driver input signal. Therefore, if the driver input signal would
have the host vehicle 100 accelerate, but accelerating will move
the impact zone 110 to within the passenger zone 115, the
processing device 150 may override the driver input signal to
prevent the host vehicle 100 from accelerating. Alternatively, if
the driver input signal would have the host vehicle 100 decelerate,
but decelerating will move the impact zone 110 to within the
passenger zone 115, the processing device 150 may override the
driver input signal to prevent the host vehicle 100 from
decelerating.
[0029] At block 450, the processing device 150 may generate a
control signal to operate the host vehicle 100 in accordance with
the driver input signal.
[0030] The process 400 may end after blocks 445 or 450. If the
collision with the impact vehicle is avoided, however, the process
400 may return to block 410 and so that the process 400 may
continue to execute until the host vehicle 100 is turned off.
[0031] In general, the computing systems and/or devices described
may employ any of a number of computer operating systems,
including, but by no means limited to, versions and/or varieties of
the Ford Sync.RTM. operating system, the Microsoft Windows.RTM.
operating system, the Unix operating system (e.g., the Solaris.RTM.
operating system distributed by Oracle Corporation of Redwood
Shores, California), the AIX UNIX operating system distributed by
International Business Machines of Armonk, N.Y., the Linux
operating system, the Mac OSX and iOS operating systems distributed
by Apple Inc. of Cupertino, Calif., the BlackBerry OS distributed
by Blackberry, Ltd. of Waterloo, Canada, and the Android operating
system developed by Google, Inc. and the Open Handset Alliance.
Examples of computing devices include, without limitation, an
on-board vehicle computer, a computer workstation, a server, a
desktop, notebook, laptop, or handheld computer, or some other
computing system and/or device.
[0032] Computing devices generally include computer-executable
instructions, where the instructions may be executable by one or
more computing devices such as those listed above.
Computer-executable instructions may be compiled or interpreted
from computer programs created using a variety of programming
languages and/or technologies, including, without limitation, and
either alone or in combination, Java.TM., C, C++, Visual Basic,
Java Script, Perl, etc. In general, a processor (e.g., a
microprocessor) receives instructions, e.g., from a memory, a
computer-readable medium, etc., and executes these instructions,
thereby performing one or more processes, including one or more of
the processes described herein. Such instructions and other data
may be stored and transmitted using a variety of computer-readable
media.
[0033] A computer-readable medium (also referred to as a
processor-readable medium) includes any non-transitory (e.g.,
tangible) medium that participates in providing data (e.g.,
instructions) that may be read by a computer (e.g., by a processor
of a computer). Such a medium may take many forms, including, but
not limited to, non-volatile media and volatile media. Non-volatile
media may include, for example, optical or magnetic disks and other
persistent memory. Volatile media may include, for example, dynamic
random access memory (DRAM), which typically constitutes a main
memory. Such instructions may be transmitted by one or more
transmission media, including coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber
optics, including the wires that comprise a system bus coupled to a
processor of a computer. Common forms of computer-readable media
include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk,
magnetic tape, any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, DVD, any other
optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, any other physical medium
with patterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EEPROM,
any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other medium from which
a computer can read.
[0034] Databases, data repositories or other data stores described
herein may include various kinds of mechanisms for storing,
accessing, and retrieving various kinds of data, including a
hierarchical database, a set of files in a file system, an
application database in a proprietary format, a relational database
management system (RDBMS), etc. Each such data store is generally
included within a computing device employing a computer operating
system such as one of those mentioned above, and are accessed via a
network in any one or more of a variety of manners. A file system
may be accessible from a computer operating system, and may include
files stored in various formats. An RDBMS generally employs the
Structured Query Language (SQL) in addition to a language for
creating, storing, editing, and executing stored procedures, such
as the PL/SQL language mentioned above.
[0035] In some examples, system elements may be implemented as
computer-readable instructions (e.g., software) on one or more
computing devices (e.g., servers, personal computers, etc.), stored
on computer readable media associated therewith (e.g., disks,
memories, etc.). A computer program product may comprise such
instructions stored on computer readable media for carrying out the
functions described herein.
[0036] With regard to the processes, systems, methods, heuristics,
etc. described herein, it should be understood that, although the
steps of such processes, etc. have been described as occurring
according to a certain ordered sequence, such processes could be
practiced with the described steps performed in an order other than
the order described herein. It further should be understood that
certain steps could be performed simultaneously, that other steps
could be added, or that certain steps described herein could be
omitted. In other words, the descriptions of processes herein are
provided for the purpose of illustrating certain embodiments, and
should in no way be construed so as to limit the claims.
[0037] Accordingly, it is to be understood that the above
description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive.
Many embodiments and applications other than the examples provided
would be apparent upon reading the above description. The scope
should be determined, not with reference to the above description,
but should instead be determined with reference to the appended
claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such
claims are entitled. It is anticipated and intended that future
developments will occur in the technologies discussed herein, and
that the disclosed systems and methods will be incorporated into
such future embodiments. In sum, it should be understood that the
application is capable of modification and variation.
[0038] All terms used in the claims are intended to be given their
ordinary meanings as understood by those knowledgeable in the
technologies described herein unless an explicit indication to the
contrary is made herein. In particular, use of the singular
articles such as "a," "the," "said," etc. should be read to recite
one or more of the indicated elements unless a claim recites an
explicit limitation to the contrary.
[0039] The Abstract is provided to allow the reader to quickly
ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted
with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or
limit the scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the
foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen that various
features are grouped together in various embodiments for the
purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure
is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the
claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly
recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect,
inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single
disclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are hereby
incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim
standing on its own as a separately claimed subject matter.
* * * * *