Patent Publication Number: US-2023148478-A1

Title: Agricultural baler with controlled wrapping material brake

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention pertains to agricultural vehicles and, more specifically, to agricultural balers. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     For many years harvesters, such as agricultural balers, have been used to consolidate and package crop material to facilitate the storage and handling of the crop material for later use. Usually, a mower-conditioner cuts and conditions the crop material for windrow drying in the sun. When the cut crop material is properly dried, a harvester, such as a round baler, travels along the windrows to pick up the crop material and form it into cylindrically-shaped round bales. 
     More specifically, pickups of the baler gather the cut and windrowed crop material from the ground, then convey the cut crop material into a bale-forming chamber within the baler. A drive mechanism operates to activate the pickups, augers, and a rotor of the feed mechanism. A conventional baling chamber may include a pair of opposing sidewalls with a series of belts that rotate and compress the crop material into a cylindrical shape. 
     When the bale has reached a desired size and density, a wrapping system may wrap the bale to ensure that the bale maintains its shape and density. For example, a net may be used to wrap the bale of crop material. A cutting or severing mechanism may be used to cut the net once the bale has been wrapped. The wrapped bale may be ejected from the baler and onto the ground by, for example, raising a tailgate of the baler. The tailgate is then closed and the cycle repeated as necessary and desired to manage the field of cut crop material. 
     To wrap the bale, the wrapping system executes a net wrapping cycle during which an actuator powers a rotating arm, also referred to as a duckbill, to move from a home position to an insert position to guide the net around the bale, and then to retract the duckbill from the insert position back to the home position once the bale is wrapped. In certain circumstances, tension in the net is not held at desired values. 
     What is needed in the art is a baler that can address at least some of the previously described issues with known balers. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Exemplary embodiments disclosed herein provide a wrapping assembly with a variable brake that is controlled to increase a braking force applied to a material roll when an averaged electric current draw of a duckbill actuator is below a defined value. 
     In some exemplary embodiments provided according to the present disclosure, a wrapping assembly for an agricultural baler includes: a material roll configured to hold a roll of wrapping material; a duckbill assembly including a duckbill carrying at least one duckbill roll and configured to draw material from a roll of wrapping material held by the material roll, the duckbill being movable between an insert position and a home position; a duckbill actuator coupled to the duckbill and configured to move the duckbill between the insert position and the home position; a variable brake associated with the material roll and configured to apply a variable braking force to the material roll; and a controller operatively coupled to the duckbill actuator and the brake. The controller is configured to: determine an averaged electric current draw of the duckbill actuator during a sampling period is below a defined value; and output a brake increase signal so the brake increases applied braking force to the material roll by a defined amount when the averaged electric current draw is below the defined value. 
     In some exemplary embodiments provided according to the present disclosure, an agricultural baler includes a chassis; a baling chamber carried by the chassis; and a wrapping assembly carried by the chassis. The wrapping assembly includes: a material roll configured to hold a roll of wrapping material; a duckbill assembly including a duckbill carrying at least one duckbill roll and configured to draw material from a roll of wrapping material held by the material roll, the duckbill being movable between an insert position and a home position; a duckbill actuator coupled to the duckbill and configured to move the duckbill between the insert position and the home position; a variable brake associated with the material roll and configured to apply a variable braking force to the material roll; and a controller operatively coupled to the duckbill actuator and the brake. The controller is configured to: determine an averaged electric current draw of the duckbill actuator during a sampling period is below a defined value; and output a brake increase signal so the brake increases applied braking force to the material roll by a defined amount when the averaged electric current draw is below the defined value. 
     In some exemplary embodiments provided according to the present disclosure, a method of controlling a wrapping assembly of an agricultural baler is provided. The wrapping assembly includes a material roll holding a roll of wrapping material, a duckbill including a movable duckbill carrying at least one duckbill roll and configured to draw wrapping material from the roll of wrapping material, a duckbill actuator coupled to the duckbill, and a variable brake coupled to the material roll. The method includes: determining an averaged electric current draw of the duckbill actuator during a sampling period is below a defined value; and increasing an applied braking force to the material roll by a defined amount with the brake when the averaged electric current draw is below the defined value. 
     One possible advantage that may be realized by exemplary embodiments disclosed herein is that the controller can cause the brake to increase the applied braking force to the material roll when the averaged electric current draw of the duckbill actuator is below the defined value, which corresponds to overly low resistance and tension of drawn wrapping material. 
     Another possible advantage that may be realized by exemplary embodiments disclosed herein is that the controller can progressively increase the applied braking force over multiple extension and retraction cycles of the duckbill if the previous increase(s) does not increase the averaged electric current draw to the defined value. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       For the purpose of illustration, there are shown in the drawings certain embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements, dimensions, and instruments shown. Like numerals indicate like elements throughout the drawings. In the drawings: 
         FIG.  1    illustrates a sectional view of an exemplary embodiment of an agricultural baler including a wrapping assembly, provided in accordance with the present disclosure; 
         FIG.  2    illustrates a side view of an exemplary embodiment of a wrapping assembly with a duckbill in a home position; 
         FIG.  3    illustrates a cross-sectional view of the wrapping assembly of  FIG.  2    with the duckbill in an insert position; 
         FIG.  4    illustrates a side view of the wrapping assembly of  FIGS.  2 - 3    with a knife assembly in a cut position; 
         FIG.  5    illustrates a side view of the wrapper system of  FIGS.  2 - 4    with the duckbill in the home position; 
         FIG.  6 A  is a graphical representation of an exemplary time-position plot of a duckbill actuator coupled to the duckbill during operation; 
         FIG.  6 B  is a graphical representation of current drawn by the duckbill actuator while moving according to the time-position plot of  FIG.  6 A ; 
         FIG.  6 C  is a graphical representation of applied braking force from a brake of the wrapping assembly during the time-position plot of the duckbill actuator of  FIG.  6 A ; 
         FIG.  7 A  is a close-up view of a portion of the graphical representation of  FIG.  6 B ; 
         FIG.  7 B  is a close-up view of a portion of the graphical representation of  FIG.  6 C ; and 
         FIG.  8    illustrates a flowchart of an exemplary embodiment of a method for controlling a wrapping assembly, provided in accordance with the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Agricultural balers, such as round balers, are well known in the agricultural industry, and the instant invention can be used with substantially any of such machines. Reference is made, for example, to U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,877,304; 6,688,092; 6,644,006; and 6,295,797 that illustrate such balers, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. For illustrative purposes, details of an exemplary round baler in which the features of the present invention may be used are disclosed in and will be described here in part with reference to U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,976, which is also hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
       FIG.  1    depicts an exemplary agricultural round baler, generally designated  10 , in which embodiments of the present invention may be employed. As previously noted, crop in the field is usually arranged in a windrow as it is engaged by the baler  10  being pulled along the windrow of cut crop material by a tractor (not shown). 
       FIG.  1    illustrates a fixed chamber round baler  10  having a wrapping system for wrapping a cylindrical package of crop material (not shown) formed in a round baler  10 . More particularly, the wrapping system of baler  10  comprises a wrapping assembly  11  and a cutting assembly  12  for cutting wrapping material, such as net, issued from a material roll  13 . 
     As shown, round baler  10  includes a chassis  14  with a main support beam  15  on which a pair of wheels  16  (only one shown) are rotatably affixed. The chassis carries a cylindrical baling chamber including sidewalls  17 . For the purposes of clarity only one wall  17  is shown in  FIG.  1    and the elements mounted inwardly thereof are shown in full lines for clarity. For illustrative purposes reference letter B is used to designate a bale, shown in cross section in the chamber. 
     Baler  10  also includes a tongue  18  extending from the forward portion of chassis  14  for conventional connection to a tractor (not shown). Pivotally connected to the sidewalls of chassis  14  by a pair of stub shafts  20  is tailgate  21  which may be closed, as shown throughout the drawings, during bale formation or pivoted open about stub shafts  20  to discharge a completed bale. The tailgate includes tailgate walls  22  coextensive with side walls  17 . A pickup assembly  23  mounted on chassis  14  in a suitable manner includes a plurality of fingers or tines  24  movable in a predetermined path to lift crop material from the ground, generally depicted by direction arrow a, and deliver it rearwardly (arrow b) toward a transverse inlet  25  in the chamber defined by a floor roll  26  and a transverse stripper roll  27 , both of which rolls are rotatably supported on chassis  14  between sidewalls  17 . 
     As shown, the baling chamber is defined primarily by an apron assembly  28  comprising a pair of support chains  30  mounted to travel along a continuous path, the inner run of which is defined on sidewalls  17  and tailgate walls  22  by front and rear sections  31 ,  32  of a continuous chain guide track that separates at a point of track adjacent the stub shaft  20  during bale discharge. The apron further comprises a plurality of parallel tubular crop engaging slats  33  extending between chains  30  to provide a cage-like periphery of the cylindrically shaped chamber. Radially outward of the inner run of apron assembly  28  are front and rear sections  34 ,  35  of continuous cylindrical bale chamber wall. These sections, also separable during bale discharge, are mounted between side walls  17  and tailgate walls  22 , respectively, for maintaining integrity between the outer and inner runs of chain  30 . Operatively engaged with chain  30  are drive sprocket  36  mounted between sidewalls  17 , idler sprockets  37  also mounted between sidewalls  17  on shaft  20 , and idler sprocket  38  mounted between tailgate walls  22 . A conventional chain drive system for drive sprocket  36  is provided via appropriate coupling to gearbox  40  in a conventional manner, diagrammatically depicted in phantom outline outwardly of sidewall  17 . The baling chamber is further defined by the outer conveying surfaces of floor roll  26  and stripper roll  27 , both of which are driven in a direction opposite that of the bale chamber direction by conventional drive means appropriately coupled to gear box  40 . In  FIG.  1   , floor roll  26  receives bale material at its forward surface, moving the bale material upward and rearward, clockwise as shown in  FIG.  1   . Bale material leaves the floor roll  26  and enters the baling chamber which rotates moving the bale material from a lower position, rearward and upward in a circular motion, counterclockwise as shown in  FIG.  1   . These rolls  26 ,  27  may be provided with ribs  41 ,  42  to enhance their ability to convey crops in the chamber as a bale is being formed. Other forms of aggressive surface structure may be used to accommodate various types of crops and conditions. 
       FIGS.  2 - 4    show an exemplary embodiment of the bale wrapping system comprising wrapping assembly  11  and net cutting assembly  12 . As shown, the wrapping assembly  11  includes a material roll  13 , a duckbill assembly  50  including at least one duckbill roll, illustrated as multiple duckbill rolls  51 , carried by a duckbill  53 , and a duckbill actuator  52  coupled to the duckbill  53 . Bale chamber rolls  55  facilitate the forming of the bale and wrapping of the bale with the net. (Reference numeral  55   a  is used to denote the location of the axis of a bale chamber roll, which is not shown, for clarity.) The net cutting assembly  12  may include a knife  61  and a knife duckbill  62 . 
     The wrapping assembly  11 , including the duckbill assembly  50  and its associated structure and mechanisms may be conventional and common to the structure and operation described in the baler patents referenced and incorporated herein by reference above. 
     As shown, the wrapping material, such as net, may be fed from the material roll  13  and travel over the duckbill rolls  51  and exit a tip  54  of the duckbill  53 . The tip  54  of the duckbill  53  serves to pinch the net and prevent the net from snapping back through the duckbill  53  once it is cut. Typically, a portion of net will extend out of the tip after a net cutting action. For example, it is common for a section of net that hangs out of the tip of the duckbill and that net tail is where it grabs on to the bale when the duckbill  53  is inserted for the next net wrapping cycle. 
     As shown, the duckbill actuator  52  may be dedicated to the duckbill  53 , and operation of the duckbill actuator  52  functions to insert the duckbill  53  to commence a net wrapping cycle and then to retract the duckbill  53  at the end of the wrapping cycle once the net has been cut. The duckbill actuator  52  is thus configured to move the duckbill  53  between a first position, which may be an insert position, and a second position, which may be a home position, during retraction of the duckbill  53 . The duckbill actuator  52  may be, for example, a motor that is powered by electricity, hydraulics, and/or pneumatics, as is known. The duckbill rolls  51  function to define the path of the net as it weaves through the duckbill assembly  50  and to ensure the net is stretched to one side of the bale to the other side of the bale. In the operation of the illustrated wrapping assembly  11 , the net comes off the bottom of the material roll  13 , which, in the figure, rotates clockwise, and goes around the upper side of the upper duckbill roll  51  and then makes essentially an 180-degree turn and then goes on the material roll side of the lower duckbill roll  51  and then through the tip  54  of the duckbill  53 . A variable brake  60  is associated with the material roll  13  and is configured to apply a variable braking force to the material roll  13  to reduce or prevent rotation of the material roll  13 , as will be described further herein. The rotational direction of the material roll  13  is unimportant, but ultimately determines the location where the net leaves the roll, and/or the number and placement of additional rolls needed to direct the net appropriately to the duckbill, and eventually rearward, toward the baling chamber. The front of the baler is indicated by arrow  56 . 
     The bale chamber roll  55  closest to the up-cut net knife assembly  12  may include ribs  57  disposed about the outside of the roll. A bale chamber roller  55  positioned above this roller (not shown) may also include ribs. A gap or clearance may be formed between these two bale chamber rollers  55  to allow access for the tip  54  of the duckbill  53 . As the bale chamber roll  55  rotates, the net pinches between the rolls and the bale and ribs  57  help grabs the net and feed it into the bale chamber and onto the bale. In the illustrated embodiment, the bale may rotate such that the top material moves forward and downward, with respect to the baler, clockwise as shown in the figure, in the chamber and the bale chamber rolls  55  rotate in the opposite direction, here counterclockwise. 
       FIG.  2    illustrates the wrapping assembly  11  and the knife assembly  12  in the home position.  FIG.  3    illustrates the duckbill  53  in the insert position.  FIG.  4    illustrates the wrapping assembly  11  again in the home position with the knife assembly  12  in the cut position. 
     During a net wrapping cycle, the wrapping assembly  11  moves through two positions: the home position to the insert position and back to the home position. In the home position ( FIG.  2   ), the duckbill  53  of the wrapping assembly  11  is in the raised or home position. The home position is typically employed at the time a bale is being formed. At some point in time, the bale forming operation is completed and the time to wrap the bale occurs. At this time, the duckbill  53  of the wrapping assembly  11  is lowered to the insert position ( FIG.  3   ), where the duckbill  53  rotates into the baling chamber. The duckbill tip  54  fits in between upper and lower bale chamber rolls  55  (the upper roll is not shown for clarity, but its location is marked  55   a ), and the net is pinched between the bale and the lower roll causing the net to start to feed on to the bale. Sensors (not shown) may be provided to determine when the net is flowing on to the bale. Once it is determined that the net has started wrapping on the bale, the duckbill  53  is retracted out of the bale chamber and returns to the duckbill home position ( FIG.  4   ). Completion of the net wrapping may be determined using sensors and/or via passage of a specified time period. At this point in the net wrapping cycle, the net is still flowing out of the duckbill  53  to the bale chamber. It is also time to cut the net, the operation of which is performed by the knife assembly  12 . 
     In known balers, the material roll may be provided with one or more brakes that provide resistance to rotation of the material roll. This resistance acts to maintain or increase tension in the wrapping material, especially when the bale chamber rolls pinch the material and draw it toward the baling chamber. While it is possible to adjust the brake to control net tension, the dynamics of the system require a tolerance band around the feedback signal to prevent the brake from “chasing” the tension feedback signal. In some cases, the required tolerance zone for adjustment is larger than the desired control limits, which can make it difficult to ensure the net tension remains at the desired level. 
     To address some of the previously described issues, and referring now to  FIGS.  5 - 7 A , the wrapping assembly  11  includes a controller  510  that is operatively coupled to the duckbill actuator  52  and the brake  60 . The controller  510  is configured to determine an averaged electric current draw, illustrated as a dashed line CD 1  in  FIGS.  6 B and  7 A , of the duckbill actuator  52  during a sampling period  501  is below a defined value DV (illustrated in  FIG.  7 A ) and output a brake increase signal so the brake  60  increases applied braking force to the material roll  13  by a defined amount when the averaged electric current draw CD 1  is below the defined value DV. As used herein, an “averaged electric current draw” is derived from a plurality of current draw values, i.e., a single current draw value is not equivalent to an “averaged electric current draw.” The controller  510  may be configured to determine the electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52  in a variety of ways, including by receiving one or more signals from a component of the duckbill actuator  52  that corresponds to the electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52 . 
     As can be appreciated from comparing  FIG.  6 A , which illustrates the position of the duckbill actuator  52  over time, to  FIGS.  6 B and  6 C , the sampling period  501  may occur as the duckbill actuator  52  moves the duckbill  53  from the insert position to the home position, corresponding to the duckbill retraction phase of the net wrapping cycle. The sampling period  501  may define a defined time interval, e.g., a defined amount of time after the duckbill actuator  52  begins to move away from or toward the home position, a time period during a defined position change of the duckbill  53 , e.g., how long it takes for the duckbill actuator  52  to move the duckbill  53  from a first position to a second position, and/or a defined position range of the duckbill actuator  52  that is independent of time. The averaged electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52  may be determined by adding together each electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52  measured during the sampling period  501  and dividing the sum by the number of electric current draw measurements. The sampling period  501  may be manually defined by a user and/or automatically defined by the controller  510 . It should thus be appreciated that the sampling period  501  may be defined in a variety of ways to establish a period for defining the averaged electric current draw CD 1 . 
     The duckbill actuator  52  draws more current to counteract tension in the wrapping material, in order to pull the wrapping material, so a higher current draw by the duckbill actuator  52  corresponds to a greater tension in the wrapping material, and vice versa. The defined value DV can thus be defined, manually by a user and/or automatically by the controller  510 , to a value where an averaged electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52  corresponds to a defined level of tension in the wrapping material, such as 90-100 pounds of tension. Referring specifically now to  FIGS.  7 A and  7 B , close-up views of the graphical representations of  FIGS.  6 B and  6 C , respectively, are illustrated. As illustrated in  FIG.  7 A , the averaged electric current draw CD 1  of the duckbill actuator  52  is below the defined value DV, which indicates that the tension in wrapping material from the material roll  13  is too low. To compensate, the controller  510  outputs a brake increase signal so applied braking force ABF 1  from the brake  60  to the material roll  13  increases by a defined amount DA, which may be no more than 3% of the applied braking force ABF 1  so the increase in applied braking force is not too great, when the averaged electric current draw CD 1  is below the defined value DV. By increasing the applied braking force ABF 1  by the defined amount DA, the brake  60  applies a second applied braking force ABF 2  to the material roll  13 , which results in a second averaged electric current draw CD 2  of the duckbill actuator  52  during a subsequent second sampling period  501  that is greater than the averaged electric current draw CD 1 , indicating that tension in the wrapping material has increased due to the increase in the applied braking force. In some embodiments, the brake  60  is an electric brake that increases the applied braking force ABF 1  in response to electrical signals and the controller  510  outputs the brake increase signal to the brake  60  to increase the applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2 . In such an embodiment, the controller  510  may be configured to adjust the applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2  through pulse-width modulation, according to known techniques. 
     However, since the second averaged electric current draw CD 2  of the duckbill actuator  52  is still below the defined value DV, the controller  510  may be configured to determine the second averaged electric current draw CD 2  of the duckbill actuator  52  is below the defined value DV and output a second brake increase signal so the brake  60  increases the second applied braking force ABF 2 , which may also be referred to as simply the “applied braking force” because it is the braking force applied at the time of sampling, to the material roll  13  by a second defined amount, which may be equal to the defined amount DA, when the second averaged electric current draw CD 2  is below the defined value DV. In this respect, increasing the applied braking force ABF 2  by the defined amount DA to a third applied braking force ABF 3  can further increase the tension in the wrapping material pulled from the material roll  13  so a third averaged electric current draw CD 3  of the duckbill actuator  52  is greater than the defined value DV, which indicates acceptable tension in the wrapping material and no need for further increases in the applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2 , ABF 3 . In this respect, the controller  510  can cause progressive increases in the applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2 , ABF 3  until the averaged electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52  during the sampling period  501  is at least the defined value DV, indicating acceptable tension in the wrapping material so the applied braking force does not need to be increased. Otherwise, the controller  510  can continue averaging the electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52  and outputting the brake increase signal to increase the applied braking force by the defined amount as necessary until the average electric current draw of the duckbill actuator  52  during the sampling period  501  is at least equal to the defined value DV. 
     It should be appreciated that while the defined amount DA is illustrated as being a constant amount for each increase in the applied braking force, i.e., resulting in a linear increase in the applied braking force, the defined amount DA may also be a variable amount. For example, the defined amount DA may be 1% of the applied braking force so the applied braking force can be exponentially increased. If the applied braking force ABF 1  is, for example,  100  units, the defined amount DA may be 1% of 100 units (1 unit) so increasing the applied braking force ABF 1  by the defined amount DA to the second applied braking force ABF 2  results in the second applied braking force ABF 2  being  101  units. The defined amount DA, taken as 1% of the second applied braking force ABF 2 , would then be 1% of 101 units (1.01 units) so increasing the second applied braking force ABF 2  by the defined amount DA to the third applied braking force ABF 3  results in the third applied braking force ABF 3  being 102.01 units. It should be further appreciated that, if the defined amount DA is a percentage of the applied braking force, the defined amount DA can be a different percentage between two different increases in the applied braking force, e.g., the defined amount can be 1% of the applied braking force in a first increase of the applied braking force and 1.2% of the applied braking force in a subsequent increase of the applied braking force. It should thus be appreciated that the defined amount DA by which the applied braking force is increased can be altered in a variety of ways according to the present disclosure. 
     From the foregoing, it should be appreciated that the controller  510  provided according to the present disclosure can increase the braking force applied by the brake  60  on the material roll  13  responsively to determining the averaged current draw of the duckbill actuator  52 , which corresponds to tension in the drawn wrapping material, is below the defined value DV. In this respect, the controller  510  can control the brake  60  so incremental increases to the applied braking force are made so the applied braking force, and corresponding wrapping material tension, stay within a desired range. Thus, embodiments provided according to the present disclosure can continuously adjust the brake  60  to keep a braking force applied to the material roll  13  so the tension on the wrapping material stays at a desired level. 
     Referring now to  FIG.  8   , an exemplary embodiment of a method  800  of controlling a wrapping assembly  11  provided according to the present disclosure is provided. The method  800  includes determining  801  an averaged electric current draw ACD 1 , ACD 2  of a duckbill actuator  52  during a sampling period  501  is below a defined value DV and increasing  802  an applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2  to a material roll  13  by a defined amount DA, which may be no more than 3% of the applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2 , with a brake  60  when the averaged electric current draw ACD 1 , ACD 2  is below the defined value DV. In some embodiments, the defined amount DA is 1% of the applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2 . As previously described, the sampling period  501 , the defined amount DA, and the defined value DV may be adjusted as desired. The method  800  may further include moving  803  a duckbill  53  from an insert position to a home position using the duckbill actuator  52 , with the sampling period  501  occurring as the duckbill actuator  52  moves the duckbill  53  from the insert position to the home position, i.e., during a retraction phase of the wrapping cycle. The method  800  may further include subsequently determining  804  a second averaged electric current draw CD 2  of the duckbill actuator  52  during a second sampling period is below the defined value DV and responsively increasing  805  the applied braking force ABF 2  to the material roll  13  by a second defined amount, which may or may not be equal to the defined amount DA, which may be no more than 3% of the applied braking force ABF 2 , when the second averaged electric current draw CD 2  is below the defined value DV. In this respect, the method  800  can be performed to continuously increase the applied braking force ABF 1 , ABF 2  responsively to the averaged electric current CD 1 , CD 2 , being below the defined value DV to keep desired tension in drawn wrapping material. In some embodiments, the method  800  is entirely or partially performed by the controller  510 , with or without user input. 
     It is to be understood that the steps of the method  800  may be performed by the controller  510  upon loading and executing software code or instructions which are tangibly stored on a tangible computer readable medium, such as on a magnetic medium, e.g., a computer hard drive, an optical medium, e.g., an optical disc, solid-state memory, e.g., flash memory, or other storage media known in the art. Thus, any of the functionality performed by the controller  510  described herein, such as the method  800 , may be implemented in software code or instructions which are tangibly stored on a tangible computer readable medium. The controller  510  loads the software code or instructions via a direct interface with the computer readable medium or via a wired and/or wireless network. Upon loading and executing such software code or instructions by the controller  510 , the controller  510  may perform any of the functionality of the controller  510  described herein, including any steps of the method  800  described herein. 
     The term “software code” or “code” used herein refers to any instructions or set of instructions that influence the operation of a computer or controller. They may exist in a computer-executable form, such as machine code, which is the set of instructions and data directly executed by a computer&#39;s central processing unit or by a controller, a human-understandable form, such as source code, which may be compiled in order to be executed by a computer&#39;s central processing unit or by a controller, or an intermediate form, such as object code, which is produced by a compiler. As used herein, the term “software code” or “code” also includes any human-understandable computer instructions or set of instructions, e.g., a script, that may be executed on the fly with the aid of an interpreter executed by a computer&#39;s central processing unit or by a controller. 
     These and other advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing specification. Accordingly, it is to be recognized by those skilled in the art that changes or modifications may be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the broad inventive concepts of the invention. It is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described herein, but is intended to include all changes and modifications that are within the scope and spirit of the invention.