Patent Publication Number: US-2017356468-A1

Title: Volumetric resistance blower apparatus and system

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     Modern computing systems generate heat during operation. The heat may affect certain platform components of a system, and is therefore generally required to be dissipated or removed from the system. Heat generated by the computing system may be limited or reduced using various thermal management techniques and/or heat dissipation techniques. For example, heat generated by a processor may be dissipated by creating a flow of air using a fan or blower. Further, various platform-level cooling devices may be implemented in conjunction with the fan or blower to enhance heat dissipation, such as heat pipes, heat spreaders, heat sinks, vents, phase change materials or liquid-based coolants. 
     Traditional blowers used in portable computing systems may generate flows of air to remove or dissipate heat, but they also generate high levels of noise. This may be problematic in notebook computers, for example, because ergonomic acoustic limits may be low to ensure a satisfactory user experience. Because of the ergonomic acoustic limits and other restrictions, the cooling capacity of traditional systems may be thermally limited because standard blowers may not be allowed to run at their maximum speed, resulting in reduced efficiency for the blower and reduced cooling capacity for the system. Consequently, a need exists for improved cooling techniques for notebook computers. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1A  illustrates one embodiment of a first apparatus. 
         FIG. 1B  illustrates one embodiment of a second apparatus. 
         FIG. 1C  illustrates one embodiment of third apparatus. 
         FIG. 2A  illustrates one embodiment of a fourth apparatus. 
         FIG. 2B  illustrates one embodiment of a fifth apparatus. 
         FIG. 2C  illustrates one embodiment of a sixth apparatus. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates one embodiment of a seventh apparatus. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates one embodiment of a first system. 
         FIG. 5A  illustrates one embodiment of a first graph. 
         FIG. 5B  illustrates one embodiment of a second graph. 
         FIG. 6  illustrates one embodiment of a second system. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The embodiments are generally directed to techniques designed to improve cooling in computing systems. Various embodiments provide techniques that include a volumetric resistance blower that includes a cylindrical rotor comprising or having foam material or one or more cylindrical foam blocks. Replacing a traditional blade-based rotor with a cylindrical rotor comprising or having foam material or one or more cylindrical foam blocks in a volumetric resistance blower may reduce blower acoustic levels at a given airflow allowing for improved platform thermal performance under all workloads, improved cooling capabilities, increased system performance and improved acoustics. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     In various embodiments, traditional computing system blowers include a rotor having a plurality of fins or blades. These blade-based rotors, while capable of moving air, generate an undesirable amount of noise. Because of the amount of noise generated, system designers are often required to limit the speed at which traditional blowers are allowed to operate. For example, traditional blowers are often restricted from operating at their maximum speed because the noise generated by the blade-based rotors at this and other high speeds exceeds an established ergonomic acoustic limit (e.g., an allowable amount of noise generated by the system). As a result, other measures are often taken by the system to preventing overheating, such as processor throttling, which may be equally undesirable. Consequently, a need exists for improved techniques for computing system cooling. 
     Embodiments may include one or more elements. An element may comprise any structure arranged to perform certain operations. Each element may be implemented as hardware, software, or any combination thereof, as desired for a given set of design parameters or performance constraints. Although embodiments may be described with particular elements in certain arrangements by way of example, embodiments may include other combinations of elements in alternate arrangements. 
     It is worthy to note that any reference to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” and “in an embodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. 
     In various embodiments, the rotor described herein may comprise a cylindrical rotor comprising or having foam material or one or more cylindrical foam blocks. While some embodiments refer to a cylindrical foam block rotor, it should be understood that the rotor may comprise or include support materials, dividers, or one or more pieces of foam or other suitable porous material and still fall within the described embodiments. Reference is made herein to a cylindrical foam block rotor for purposes of illustration and not limitation. As such, the embodiments are not limited in this respect. 
       FIG. 1A  illustrates an apparatus  100 . Apparatus  100  may comprise a volumetric resistance blower (VRB)  100  in some embodiments. As shown in  FIG. 1A , VRB  100  may include a plurality of components, such as motor or hub  102 , rotor  104 , casing  106 , inlet  108  and outlet  110 . The embodiments are not limited to the number, type or arrangement of components shown in  FIG. 1A . Various embodiments described herein refer to a dual-input, single output blower as shown in  FIG. 1A . The embodiments are not limited in this context. One skilled in the art will appreciate that any suitable arrangement for VRB  100  could be used and still fall within the described embodiments. 
     Motor and/or hub  102  may comprise any suitable electric motor, mechanically driven engine, heat engine or aerodynamically driven motor capable of rotating rotor  104  to create a flow of air in some embodiments and/or a hub or other support structure arranged to support rotor  104  and to couple the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  to the motor  102 . In various embodiments, motor and/or hub  102  may comprise an AC motor, brushed DC motor or brushless DC motor. For example, motor  102  may comprise a DC motor powered by an internal or external power source of apparatus  100 . The size and location of motor and/or hub  102  may be selected based on the size and performance constraints of a particular implementation of VRB  100 . 
     Casing  106  may comprise a housing or enclosure arranged to mount or otherwise contain or stabilize a motor and/or hub  102  and rotor  104  in some embodiments. In various embodiments, casing  106  may comprise a plastic or metal component configured with one or more inlets  108  and one or more outlets  110 . For example, the casing  106  may include a top inlet  108 , a bottom inlet (not shown) opposite the top inlet  108  and an outlet  110 . In various embodiments, the inlets  108  may be arranged in an axial direction of the rotor  104  and the outlet  110  may be arranged in a radial direction of the rotor  104 . In various embodiments the casing may include more than one outlet to enable, for example, a dual outlet configuration. In some embodiments, the casing  106  may comprise a plastic component, such as an injection molded plastic component, that provides an inlet, outlet and flow management features for the VRB  100 . While various embodiments described herein include a casing  106 , it should be understood that some embodiments may comprise a case-less blower in which no surrounding case is used and an airflow may exit through the rotor in a full  360  degrees. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     In various embodiments, VRB  100  includes rotor  104 . Rotor  104  may be arranged to increase the pressure and/or flow of air for VRB  100  in some embodiments. Rotor  104  may be any size or shape suitable for inducing the flow of air. In some embodiments, rotor  104  may comprise a cylindrical foam block rotor  104  which may comprise a cylindrical rotor comprising or having foam material or one or more cylindrical foam blocks that make up a substantial portion of the rotor. For example, multiple foam portions or portions of another suitable material may be coupled to motor and/or hub  102  in a pie configuration or multiple layers of foam or other suitable material may be coupled or layered together to form the rotor. In some embodiments, one or more different materials may be used to form the rotor  104  and still fall within the described embodiments. Cylindrical foam block rotor  104  is described in more detail with reference to  FIG. 1B . 
       FIG. 1B  illustrates an apparatus  120  that may be the same or similar to apparatus  100  of  FIG. 1A , where like elements are similarly numbered. For example, apparatus  120  may comprise a view of a VRB  120  in which a top portion of casing  106  is removed to reveal cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . While referred to herein as a cylindrical foam block rotor  104 , it should be understood that the rotor  104  could comprise suitable material including but not limited to foam and still fall within the described embodiments. For example, rotor  104  may comprise any suitable porous material in various embodiments. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1B , cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may be a circular disc that is secured to motor and/or hub  102  in some embodiments. For example, cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may include an outer radius  105  and an inner radius  107 , where the outer radius comprises the perimeter of the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  and the inner radius  107  comprises an opening to accommodate and/or secure the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  to the motor and/or hub  102 . In some embodiments, the inner radius  107  is selected to coincide with a radius of the motor and/or hub  102 . 
       FIG. 1C  illustrates an apparatus  140  that may be the same or similar to apparatus  100  of  FIG. 1A  and apparatus  120  of  FIG. 1B , where like elements are similarly numbered. For example, apparatus  150  may comprise another view of a VRB  140  in which a top portion of casing  106  is removed to reveal cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . 
     In some embodiments,  FIG. 1C  may more clearly illustrate the porosity of cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . Cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may comprise or be composed of any suitable material having porosity capable of generating a flow of air in VRB  140 . Porosity or void fraction may comprise a measure of the void or empty spaces in a material, and is a fraction of the volume of voids over the total volume, between 0-1, or as a percentage between 0-100%. In various embodiments, the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may comprise a material selected to have between 10 pores per inch (ppi) and 100 ppi. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     In some embodiments, cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may comprise a solid foam material. Solid foams may comprise an important class of lightweight cellular engineering materials. In various embodiments, these foams can be classified into two types based on their pore structure: open-cell-structured foams (also known as reticulated foams) and closed-cell foams. Cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may comprise an open-cell-structured foam material in some embodiments. 
     In various embodiments, open-cell-structured foams contain pores that are connected to each other and form an interconnected network that is relatively soft. Open-cell foams will fill with whatever they are surrounded with in some embodiments. For example, open-cell foam may be filled with air. In various embodiments, cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may be spun by motor and/or hub  102 , resulting in the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  creating a volumetric resistance inside the casing  106 . In some embodiments, the volumetric resistance may to cause a flow of air to be drawn into the one or more inlets  108  and out of the outlet  110 . In some embodiments, cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may be arranged to pump water or other materials. The embodiments are not limited in this respect. 
     The cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may be arranged to generate a centrifugal force that causes a flow of air to flow through the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  in some embodiments. For example, the open-cell-structured foam material of cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may allow for air to fill the open cells and to pass through the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  in some embodiments. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
       FIGS. 2A  illustrates an apparatus  200  and  FIG. 2B  illustrations an apparatus  220  that may be the same or similar to cylindrical foam block rotor  104  of  FIG. 1A ,  FIG. 1B  and  FIG. 1C , where like elements are similarly numbered. For example, apparatus  200  and apparatus  220  may comprise different views of cylindrical foam block rotor  104  in which cylindrical foam block rotor  104  has been removed from casing  106  to reveal additional details. For example,  FIG. 2A  may comprise a top down view and  FIG. 2B  may comprise a side view. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2A , cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may comprise a circular shape having a substantially contiguous radius  226  in some embodiments. In various embodiments, the substantially contiguous radius  226  may comprise a flat or smooth edge that forms the outer perimeter of cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . While shown as a substantially flat radial surface  226  in  FIG. 2B , it should be understood that the edges or corners of the radial surface may be rounded or otherwise shaped to form cylindrical foam block rotor  104  and still fall within the described embodiments. 
     In some embodiments, as shown in  FIGS. 2A and 2B , cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may comprise a substantially flat top surface  222  having no blades or fins and a substantially flat bottom surface  224  having no blades or fins. Unlike traditional blade-based rotors, cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may comprise substantially flat surfaces that produce less acoustic noise than rotors having discontinuities like blades and fins. The embodiments are not limited in this respect. 
       FIGS. 2C  illustrates an apparatus  240  that may be the same or similar to cylindrical foam block rotor  104  of  FIG. 1A ,  FIG. 1B ,  FIG. 1C ,  FIG. 2A  and  FIG. 2B , where like elements are similarly numbered. In some embodiments, apparatus  240  may comprise the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  having one or more internal dividers  242  arranged to prevent azimuthal circulation inside the cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . In various embodiments, the porous composition of cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may allow for air to enter the pores or open cells of cylindrical foam block rotor  104  that, when spun, may result in integral circulation of the air which may result in reduced efficiencies for the cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . To combat this problem, internal dividers  242  may be arranged inside cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . 
     In some embodiments, internal dividers  242  may comprise plastic or metals arms extending from hub  102  to create chambers in the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  that reduce any azimuthal circulation. In other embodiments, internal dividers  242  may be arranged as or similar to standard rotor blades or fins. In these embodiments, the foam or other material used to form cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may be formed or arranged around the blades or fins. For example, a traditional blade-based rotor may be covered in a foam or other suitable material to form cylindrical foam block rotor  104 , where the traditional rotor provides the structural support and rigidity for the cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . While a limited number and arrangement of internal dividers  242  are shown in  FIG. 2C , it should be understood that any number, type or arrangement of internal dividers  242  could be used and still fall within the described embodiments. As such, other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     In various embodiments, cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may include a non-uniform pore density. For example, the one or more dividers  242  may be formed using dense subsections of foam with a much high pores per inch (ppi) than the remaining portions of cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . In some embodiments the pore gradient in the radial direction could also be varied. Performance may be improved by using denser foam towards the outer radius of the blower in various embodiments. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
       FIGS. 3  illustrates an apparatus  300  that may be the same or similar to VRB  100  of  FIG. 1A, 120  of  FIG. 1B or 140  of  FIG. 1C  where like elements are similarly numbered. In some embodiments, VRB  300  may include motor and/or hub  102 , cylindrical foam block rotor  104 , casing  106  and one or more grooves, ribs or brushes  302  arranged as part of a top portion or a bottom portion of casing  106 . In various embodiments, VRB  300  may comprise a view from the perspective of the outlet  110 . The embodiments are not limited in this respect. 
     In some embodiments, the one or more grooves, ribs or brushes  302  may be arranged to remove contaminants from the cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . For example, dust or other contaminants may collect on the substantially flat surfaces of cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . These contaminants may reduce the efficiency of cylindrical foam block rotor  104  and VRB  300  in some embodiments and, therefore, should be removed. 
     The one or more grooves, ribs or brushes  302  may comprise grooves that are formed as part of a top or bottom portion of the casing  106  in some embodiments. For example, the grooves may be arranged in close proximity to cylindrical foam block rotor  104  when cylindrical foam block rotor  104  is clean (e.g. free of a dust or other contaminant layer). In this manner, as the dust or other contaminants collect on cylindrical foam block rotor  104 , the thickness of cylindrical foam block rotor  104  may increase resulting in the dust or other contaminants coming in contact with the grooves  302  that scrape and remove the dust from the cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . While described in terms of grooves  302  formed as part of casing  106 , it should be understood that any suitable shape, size or arrangement for grooves, ribs or brushes  302  could be used and still fall within the described embodiments. For example, in some embodiments brushes may be affixed inside casing  106  in close proximity to cylindrical foam block rotor  104 . Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
       FIG. 4  illustrations one embodiment of a computing system  400 . In various embodiments, computing system  400  may comprise a computing device such as a laptop or notebook computer. As shown in  FIG. 4 , computing device  400  may include a VRB  402 , one or more heat generating components  404 , one or more input devices  406 , an enclosure  408  and a display  410 . While shown in the form of a laptop or notebook computer, it should be understood that the embodiments are not limited in this respect. For example, in some embodiments computing system  400  may comprise a tablet computer, netbook computer, desktop computer, all-in-one (AIO) computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), smartphone, multimedia player or any other suitable device. The computing system  400  is described in more detail with reference to  FIG. 6 . 
     While shown and described in conjunction with a computer device in various embodiments, it should be understood that the VRB described herein could be used in any suitable device that requires air to be moved. For example, the VRB described herein may be used in Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems, automotive cooling, desk fans or any other suitable application. Many of these additional usage scenarios include acoustic constraints which may benefit from the implementation of a VRB as described herein. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     In various embodiments, the VRB  402  may be the same or similar to the VRB described above with reference to  FIGS. 1A, 1B, 1C and 3 . In some embodiments the VRB  402  may include a cylindrical foam block rotor  104  and the VRB  402  may be arranged to remove heat generated inside enclosure  408 . For the example, the one or more heat generating components  404  may comprise a processor, memory or other device that generates heat during operation. VRB  402  maybe arranged to remove this heat from system  400  in some embodiments. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     While VRB  402  of  FIG. 4  is arranged with its outlet facing in the direction of a user of the system  400 , it should be understood that the embodiments are not limited in this respect. For example, VRB  402  may be arranged to provide a rear or side exhaust for the computing system  400 . In various embodiments, providing a rear or side exhaust by VRB  402  may avoid a flow of warm air being directed towards a user of the system  400 . Additionally, acoustic benefits may be realized through the use of a side or rear exhaust. For example, arranging the outlet of VRB  402  in a direction away from a user of the system  400  may reduce the noise that is audible to the user. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     The above-described embodiments may be used to improve airflow in computing systems. Some embodiments may improve the acoustic performance of computing systems, which may result in an improved user experience. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     In various embodiments, use of any of the above-described VRBs in a computing system may result in enhanced cooling capability at a constant iso-acoustic level compared to traditional cooling methods that rely on blade-based blowers that have discontinuities that generate an undesirable amount of noise during operation. For example,  FIG. 5A  illustrates an iso-acoustic comparison for a traditional blade-based rotor (e.g. stock rotor) and a VRB, such as any of the above-described embodiments of a VRB. As shown in  FIG. 5A , substantial improvements in both pressure and flow can be achieved through the use of a VRB. 
     In various embodiments, traditional blade-based rotors may generate blade pass tones created as a blade pass an obstruction or other object inside a blower casing. For example, as the blades of a traditional rotor pass by a cut-water in the casing, resulting in a repeating tone that at high speeds sounds to a user like a continuous, annoying hum. This may be undesirable from a design and ergonomic perspective. As a result, some blade-based rotor systems are designed to allow a gap between the rotor and the cut-water, which reduces the efficiency of the blower. In various embodiments, use of a VRB as described herein may allow for the arrangement of the cylindrical foam based rotor  104  in close proximity to the cut-water and other obstructions because the cylindrical foam based rotor  104  does not include blades that would generate blade pass tones. By reducing the space between the cylindrical foam block rotor  104  and the cut-water of the casing, the efficiency of the VRB can be significantly improved. 
     In various embodiments, the lack of blades on a cylindrical foam block rotor  104  as described herein may allow for higher rotor speeds at the same acoustic noise level of a traditional blade-based rotor. Testing has indicated that as much as a 20%-30% iso-acoustic flow improvement can be achieved using a cylindrical foam block rotor  104  in place of a traditional blade-based rotor. 
       FIG. 5B  includes two graphs showing the acoustic performance of a stock rotor (e.g. blade-based rotor) and a VRB as described herein. As shown in  FIG. 5B , the cylindrical foam block rotor of the VRB may be arranged to generate low iso-acoustic noise or interference compared to a traditional or stock blade-based rotor. For example, the spikes present in the middle-right portion of the stock rotor graph may be caused by blades passing by the cut-water of the casing. This may occur throughout the 500-5000 Hz range that may be particularly sensitive to human hearing. As a result, these acoustic disturbances may be particularly troubling to human users. 
     The VRB graph shown in  FIG. 5B , however, shows fewer spikes and a more uniform spectrum. The spectrum of the VRB would, in some embodiments, be less annoying or bothersome to a user and have an improved sound quality when compared to that of the stock rotor. Because humans are sensitive to tone and to pitch, the improved sound quality of the VRB may result in psychoacoustic benefits not realized by traditional or stock blade-based rotors. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
       FIG. 6  is a diagram of an exemplary system embodiment. In particular,  FIG. 6  is a diagram showing a system  600 , which may include various elements. For instance,  FIG. 6  shows that system  600  may include a processor  602 , a chipset  604 , an input/output (I/O) device  606 , a random access memory (RAM) (such as dynamic RAM (DRAM))  608 , and a read only memory (ROM)  610 , and various platform components  614  (e.g., a fan, a crossflow blower, a heat sink, DTM system, cooling system, housing, vents, and so forth). These elements may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. The embodiments, however, are not limited to these elements. 
     In particular, the platform components  614  may include a cooling system implementing various VRB techniques. The cooling system may be sized for the system  600 , and may include any cooling elements designed to perform heat dissipation, such as heat pipes, heat links, heat transfers, heat spreaders, vents, fans, blowers, crossflow blowers and liquid-based coolants. 
     As shown in  FIG. 6 , I/O device  606 , RAM  608 , and ROM  610  are coupled to processor  602  by way of chipset  604 . Chipset  604  may be coupled to processor  602  by a bus  612 . Accordingly, bus  612  may include multiple lines. 
     Processor  602  may be a central processing unit comprising one or more processor cores and may include any number of processors having any number of processor cores. The processor  602  may include any type of processing unit, such as, for example, CPU, multi-processing unit, a reduced instruction set computer (RISC), a processor that have a pipeline, a complex instruction set computer (CISC), digital signal processor (DSP), and so forth. 
     Although not shown, the system  600  may include various interface circuits, such as an Ethernet interface and/or a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, and/or the like. In some exemplary embodiments, the I/O device  606  may comprise one or more input devices connected to interface circuits for entering data and commands into the system  600 . For example, the input devices may include a keyboard, mouse, touch screen, track pad, track ball, isopoint, a voice recognition system, and/or the like. Similarly, the I/O device  606  may comprise one or more output devices connected to the interface circuits for outputting information to an operator. For example, the output devices may include one or more displays, printers, speakers, and/or other output devices, if desired. For example, one of the output devices may be a display. The display may be a cathode ray tube (CRTs), liquid crystal displays (LCDs), or any other type of display. 
     The system  600  may also have a wired or wireless network interface to exchange data with other devices via a connection to a network. The network connection may be any type of network connection, such as an Ethernet connection, digital subscriber line (DSL), telephone line, coaxial cable, etc. The network may be any type of network, such as the Internet, a telephone network, a cable network, a wireless network, a packet-switched network, a circuit-switched network, and/or the like. 
     Numerous specific details have been set forth herein to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. It will be understood by those skilled in the art, however, that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known operations, components and circuits have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the embodiments. It can be appreciated that the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein may be representative and do not necessarily limit the scope of the embodiments. 
     Various embodiments may be implemented using hardware elements, software elements, or a combination of both. Examples of hardware elements may include processors, microprocessors, circuits, circuit elements (e.g., transistors, resistors, capacitors, inductors, and so forth), integrated circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), programmable logic devices (PLD), digital signal processors (DSP), field programmable gate array (FPGA), logic gates, registers, semiconductor device, chips, microchips, chip sets, and so forth. Examples of software may include software components, programs, applications, computer programs, application programs, system programs, machine programs, operating system software, middleware, firmware, software modules, routines, subroutines, functions, methods, procedures, software interfaces, application program interfaces (API), instruction sets, computing code, computer code, code segments, computer code segments, words, values, symbols, or any combination thereof. Determining whether an embodiment is implemented using hardware elements and/or software elements may vary in accordance with any number of factors, such as desired computational rate, power levels, heat tolerances, processing cycle budget, input data rates, output data rates, memory resources, data bus speeds and other design or performance constraints. 
     Some embodiments may be described using the expression “coupled” and “connected” along with their derivatives. These terms are not intended as synonyms for each other. For example, some embodiments may be described using the terms “connected” and/or “coupled” to indicate that two or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contact with each other. The term “coupled,” however, may also mean that two or more elements are not in direct contact with each other, but yet still co-operate or interact with each other. 
     Some embodiments may be implemented, for example, using a machine-readable or computer-readable medium or article which may store an instruction, a set of instructions or computer executable code that, if executed by a machine or processor, may cause the machine or processor to perform a method and/or operations in accordance with the embodiments. Such a machine may include, for example, any suitable processing platform, computing platform, computing device, processing device, computing system, processing system, computer, processor, or the like, and may be implemented using any suitable combination of hardware and/or software. The machine-readable medium or article may include, for example, any suitable type of memory unit, memory device, memory article, memory medium, storage device, storage article, storage medium and/or storage unit, for example, memory, removable or non-removable media, erasable or non-erasable media, writeable or re-writeable media, digital or analog media, hard disk, floppy disk, Compact Disk Read Only Memory (CD-ROM), Compact Disk Recordable (CD-R), Compact Disk Rewriteable (CD-RW), optical disk, magnetic media, magneto-optical media, removable memory cards or disks, various types of Digital Versatile Disk (DVD), a tape, a cassette, or the like. The instructions may include any suitable type of code, such as source code, compiled code, interpreted code, executable code, static code, dynamic code, encrypted code, and the like, implemented using any suitable high-level, low-level, object-oriented, visual, compiled and/or interpreted programming language. 
     Unless specifically stated otherwise, it may be appreciated that terms such as “processing,” “computing,” “calculating,” “determining,” or the like, refer to the action and/or processes of a computer or computing system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and/or transforms data represented as physical quantities (e.g., electronic) within the computing system&#39;s registers and/or memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computing system&#39;s memories, registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     It should be noted that the methods described herein do not have to be executed in the order described, or in any particular order. Moreover, various activities described with respect to the methods identified herein can be executed in serial or parallel fashion. 
     Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments. It is to be understood that the above description has been made in an illustrative fashion, and not a restrictive one. Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Thus, the scope of various embodiments includes any other applications in which the above compositions, structures, and methods are used. 
     It is emphasized that the Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R. §1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will 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 a single embodiment 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 that 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 separate preferred embodiment. In the appended claims, the terms “including” and “in which” are used as the plain-English equivalents of the respective terms “comprising” and “wherein,” respectively. Moreover, the terms “first,” “second,” and “third,” etc. are used merely as labels, and are not intended to impose numerical requirements on their objects. 
     Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.