Patent Document

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     The present application claims priority from Provisional U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 60/519, 859 filed on Nov. 14, 2003, and incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to aircraft. In particular, the present invention is directed toward a tilting-rotor aircraft utilizing a centrally located tiltable powerplant fitted with counter-propellers (rotors).  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     Helicopters and other vertical take-off and landing craft (VTOL) are known in the art. The limitations of helicopter designs are also well known. In particular, helicopter rotors generate an enormous amount of aerodynamic drag, which in turn limits the forward speed of a helicopter to much less than that of a conventional fixed-wing aircraft.  
         [0004]     Many attempts have been made to overcome this particular deficiency of helicopter design. Probably the most notable attempt has been the limited production of the Bell V-22 Osprey aircraft, which in turn represents the culmination of years of tilt-wing and tilt-rotor research craft. The V-22 Osprey has itself fallen prey to some design limitations. The complex double tilt-rotor mechanism used by the Osprey has failed on occasion resulting in a number of mishaps.  
         [0005]     In particular, the V-22 Osprey utilizes two wing-mounted turbine engines, each driving a single large diameter propeller. Each engine drives its corresponding propeller in a direction opposite of the other so as to negate any torque effects. To reduce the likelihood of a crash in the event of a single engine-out situation, the V-22 is also provided with a driveshaft connecting the two engines through a complex gearbox mechanism, such that if one engine fails, the other can drive both propellers. Failure of these complex mechanisms and associated hydraulics hardware has been traced as the cause of some V-22 crashes. A simpler and more robust tilt-rotor design is thus still required in the art.  
         [0006]     The V-22 suffers from another design defect as well. Even though the tiltable rotors are mounted on the ends of a high-wing, the craft cannot be landed in horizontal flight mode, except in cases of emergency. If the craft is landed in horizontal flight mode, the blades of the lift/thrust props will strike the ground, destroying the props and possibly causing propeller fragments to injure the crew or bystanders.  
         [0007]     Helicopters suffer from yet another design deficiency. In order to provide constant lift throughout the rotation of the main rotor when traveling in a forward direction, a helicopter is generally provided with a swash plate and cyclic control to control the angle of attack of the main rotor through its cycle of rotation. When the rotor is passing in a forward direction in its arc, the angle of attack is reduced. When the rotor is passing in a rearward direction in its arc, the angle of attack is increased. This cyclic control compensates for the difference in lift produced by a helicopter blade when the helicopter is traveling in one direction. However, such swash plate and cyclic controls add complexity to the rotor and hub design, increasing unit cost, maintenance cost and decreasing reliability. In addition, the cyclic control can be difficult to for a pilot to master and requires a different and more complicated skill set which requires extensive pilot training.  
         [0008]     Pham, U.S. Pat. No. 6,382,556, issued May 7, 2002, discloses a VTOL airplane with only one tiltable prop-rotor. The Pham design looks like a standard General Aviation (GA) aircraft with a main rotor and tail rotor attached. The tilt mechanism causes the engine and rotor assembly to move from a position aft of the main wing to a position forward of the cockpit. This dramatic tilt moves the Center of Gravity (CG) forward from position 22V to 22H when transitioning from vertical to horizontal flight.  
         [0009]     In addition, the amount of space and the weight of the tilting mechanism must be substantial, given the large arc that the engine/rotor assembly travels through. Moreover, as the design is an apparent combination of airplane and helicopter shapes, it presents a fairly long wing and large rotor combination. Such an enormous rotor presents a large amount of drag when in the horizontal flight mode. Pham also suffers from the same deficiency as the V-22 in that it cannot be landed in horizontal flight mode without destroying the main rotor blade, as it will not clear the ground in horizontal flight mode.  
         [0010]     Trek Aerospace (www.millenniumjet.com/index.html) discloses a VTOL craft called the SPRINGTAIL(TM) EFV-4. The unit is almost worn by the user in a similar manner to the Bell JetPack of the 1960&#39;s. Twin ducted rotors are driven by a rotary engine. A fly-by-wire control system provides directional control to the pilot. It appears that the rotors are tiltable to provide directional thrust. It is not clear how yaw and directional control are obtained. Providing differential thrust could require complex propeller pitch or speed control. The unit does not appear to allow for high-speed horizontal flight.  
         [0011]     Thus, what remains a requirement in the art is to produce a VTOL/HTOL/STOL craft having a simple tilt-rotor configuration which can combine the vertical lift-off capabilities of a helicopter with the high speed of a fixed wing aircraft—without increasing complexity and cost over that of a prior art helicopter, and which may take off and land in both vertical and horizontal flight modes.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0012]     The present invention solves the aforementioned problems by providing a tilt rotor aircraft having a centrally mounted tiltable engine and rotor assembly. Being mounted near the center of gravity (CG) of the craft, the engine and rotor assembly can be tilted without disturbing the CG of the aircraft. Moreover, such a central location minimizes the complexity of the engine/rotor mount and tilt mechanism.  
         [0013]     A turbine or other type of engine (or engines) is pivotally mounted on a central frame above and between the pilot and co-pilot, who occupy separate and identical control cockpit pods on either side of the engine. Placing the engine between the pilot and copilot maintains the CG within a narrow band in both horizontal and vertical flight modes, simplifying control and handling. As the engine pivots directly on its mount, a simple, lightweight, and robust engine tilt mechanism can be provided.  
         [0014]     Counter-rotating propellers (rotors) may be driven by the engine(s) to eliminate torque effects. The use of counter-rotating propellers and a powerful engine allows the craft to use a much smaller rotor diameter than a conventional helicopter, making storage and shipping of the craft much easier. In addition, the smaller diameter rotor means the craft is easier to handle and less likely to encounter blade strikes due to careless handling. Moreover, when traveling in horizontal flight mode, the smaller rotor provides less drag, allowing for higher horizontal speeds.  
         [0015]     By mounting the engine and rotor package between and above the pilot and copilot, the rotor can be made to clear the ground, allowing the aircraft to land like an ordinary fixed-wing aircraft without damaging the propellers. Thus, the craft can be launched and landed in VTOL, HTOL, or STOL configurations, depending upon conditions and available landing and takeoff sites.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0016]      FIG. 1  is a side view of the craft of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the travel of the tilt engine/rotor from vertical to vertical flight modes.  
         [0017]      FIG. 2  is a front view of the craft of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor in the vertical flight mode.  
         [0018]      FIG. 3  is a top view of the craft of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor in the vertical flight mode.  
         [0019]      FIG. 4  is a left side view of the craft of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilting engine/rotor in the vertical flight mode.  
         [0020]      FIG. 5  is another top view of the craft of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor in the horizontal flight mode.  
         [0021]      FIG. 6  is a front view of the craft of the present invention in the “sprint” configurations. illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor in the vertical flight mode.  
         [0022]      FIG. 7  is a top view of the craft of the present invention in the “sprint” configuration, illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor in the vertical flight mode.  
         [0023]      FIG. 8  is a detailed side view of the craft of the present invention with the cockpit pods and engine removed for clarity, illustrating the main components of the craft. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0024]     The following list of design features are generalized for the purpose of describing the present invention to one of ordinary skill in the art. Like reference numerals are used to describe like components.  
         [0025]      FIG. 1  is a side view of the craft  100  of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft  100  and illustrating the travel of the tilt engine/rotor  150  from vertical to horizontal flight modes.  FIG. 2  is a front view of the craft  100  of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft  100  and illustrating the tilting engine/rotor  150  in the vertical flight mode.  FIG. 3  is a top view of the craft  100  of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft  100  and illustrating the tilting engine/rotor  150  in the vertical flight mode.  FIG. 4  is a left side view of the craft  100  of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft  100  and illustrating the tilting engine/rotor  150  in the vertical flight mode.  FIG. 5  is another top view of the craft  100  of the present invention illustrating the main components of the craft  100  and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor  150  in the horizontal flight mode.  
         [0026]     Referring to  FIGS. 1-5 , the overall configuration of the craft  100  is arranged in a manner to allow for a high percentage of the down draft of the rigid rotor airflow to move through the structure of the craft  100  thereby building lift through ground effect. The overall configuration of the craft  100  locates the twin vertical stabilizers  130 A and  130 B and rudders  135 A (not shown) and  135 B outside of the cylinder of the down draft from the rotors  190 A,  190 B in the uppermost (vertical flight) position. However, as the craft  100  lifts and rotors  190 A,  190 B begin to transition to horizontal flight mode, the vertical stabilizers  130 A and  130 B are progressively more exposed to the airflow, provide yaw control through rudder management.  
         [0027]     Three lifting surfaces are included in the overall configuration of the craft  100 . Forward of contra-rotating, rigid rotors  190 A,  190 B is canard  110 . Canard  10  may comprise a fixed canard (fixed angle of attack) made from a composite material. A fixed canard may be provided to simplify the control mechanism for the present invention. In an alternative embodiment, a movable canard, or canard provided with movable control surfaces may be provided. At or near the center of gravity  200 , two forward swept, removable/foldable wings  170 A,  170 B provide lift and roll control with electronically controlled ailerons/flaps  175 A,  175 B. The rear tail plane (horizontal stabilizer)  120  may include elevators and trim tabs  120 A,  120 B, which may provide pitch control for both the basic configuration and the wingless “sprint” configuration. Elevators  120 A,  120 B may function as ailerons in sprint configuration, moving in opposite directions to provide roll and bank control.  
         [0028]      FIG. 8  is a detailed side view of the craft of the present invention with the cockpit pods and engine removed for clarity, illustrating the main components of the craft. Referring to  FIGS. 1-5  and  8 , the utilization of twin vertical stabilizers  130 A and  130 B in combination with a rearward located tail rotor  101  and the low torque reaction of the contra-rotating rotors  190 A and  190 B. provide yaw control without the extended tail boom of a helicopter. This results in a compact footprint for the craft  100  reducing the space requirements for storage and transportation. This condensed arrangement also may allow maneuvers in confined spaces.  
         [0029]     The ground area around the large contra-rotating rotors  190 A and  190 B in the down position is protected by the canard  110 , thus preventing ground personnel from walking into the rotors  190 A and  190 B.  
         [0030]     Two occupant (pilot/co-pilot or pilot/passenger) compartments  160 A and  160 B are located at the sides of the trussed frame  108  supporting the tilting rotor and power plant assembly  150 . The advantages of this unusual configuration accrue around specific hazardous operation of the craft  100 . The second compartment  160 A may be designed in a shape different from the pilot compartment thereby allowing for transport of an immobile person, cargo, or other items.  
         [0031]      FIG. 6  is a front view of the craft of the present invention in the “sprint” configuration, illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor in the horizontal flight mode.  FIG. 7  is a top view of the craft of the present invention in the “sprint” configuration, illustrating the main components of the craft and illustrating the tilt engine/rotor in the horizontal flight mode. The sprint configuration without the center of gravity  200  wings  170 A and  170 B represents the minimal weight craft  100  relying on power (thrust) vectoring and the minimum lift/control planes for assent and maneuvering. Absent the required lifting area provided by the wings  170 A and  170 B, this configuration is seen as a critical event response craft. This lighter craft  100  with sufficient power and the large scale tractor type rotors  190 A and  190 B can be seen as a VTOL craft  100  with an arc assent through transition from vertical to horizontal flight. Safety in this configuration relies on the reliability of the power plant, autorotation and an emergency parachute recovery system.  
         [0032]     The primary structure for this craft  100  is an open-truss composite furnace  108  designed to transfer the loads from rotor and power plant  150  into the landing gear  180 A,  180 B and canard booms  105 . The two vertically inclined trusses  108  may be connected with composite circular beams  153  supporting the rotor/power plant assembly  150  in the horizontal position. The forward inclined frame members  154  may comprise anchor points for hydraulic cylinders (not shown) utilized to raise rotor/power plant  150  assembly into a vertical position. These members  154  also may act as a shock strut for non-routine landings. The rear landing gear assemblies  180 A  180 B are equipped with combination spring and shock strut levers.  
         [0033]     Bottom horizontal truss member  102  forms canard booms  105  . at the front and secondary bracing  125 A,  125 B for tail plane  120  at the rear of craft  100 . At right angles to the primary frame trusses  108  are the separate composite tubular wing spars  103  and tubular cross-bracing members  104 . The spacing of these spars  103 ,  104  allow the passage of rotor airflow through the frame of the craft  100 . The tubular spars  103  are joined at the ends forming a longitudinal box beam  102  that receives the removable wings  170 A,  170 B at the outside surface. This box beam  102  may contain conduits and connector plates for the electronic controls for the wing lighting as well as aileron and flap controls. Auxiliary fuel cells may be attached to box beam  102  as well.  
         [0034]     The scale of this craft  100  is relatively small relying on open trussed frame  108  to be fitted with an optimized rotor/power plant assembly  150  to achieve the demands of rotor lift to overcome gravity loads. This minimized structural system decreases weight while providing the resistance to deformation due to the various applied forces and loads.  
         [0035]     One crucial element of the design is the location of the rotor/power plant assembly  150  near the center of gravity  200  of both the basic and sprint configurations. The weight distribution of this assembly as it rotates from the vertical position toward the horizontal position  1  may be balanced about the pivot point in a manner to keep the center of gravity  200  forward of the center of lift during transition to horizontal flight. In the sprint configuration, the weight of the rotor/power plant assembly  150  may be located near the center of gravity  200  of the total frame  108  without the wings  170 A,  170 B. Stability may be acquired through the compelling thrust vector relative to other forces as well as the canard and tail plane control surfaces.  
         [0036]     In addition to the yaw control provided by the airflow through the twin vertical stabilizers  130 A and  130 B, a secondary source of yaw control may be achieved with a vertical tail rotor  101 . This tail rotor  101 , located aft of pilot/passenger compartments  160 A and  160 B, may be driven by an independent air-cooled engine  109  located between compartments  160 A and  160 B. Reversible tail rotor  101  thrust augments the yaw stability and provides for maneuvering the craft  100  about a vertical axis.  
         [0037]     The craft  100  may be supported on the ground at three locations. The horizontal bottom rails  102  of the trussed frame  108  may be turned down into two parallel booms  105  supporting the canard  100 . These booms  105  rest on the ground but may be elevated by a single, hinged and electrically operated front wheel assembly  185  during ground operations. At the rear of the trussed frame  108  two wheel assemblies  180 A and  180 B with brakes and shock absorbers may support craft  100 . The footprint of these support points may be widely spaced allowing for sufficient stability of the craft  100  with rotor/power plant assembly  150  in the vertical position. Box beams  103  at removable/hinged wings  170 A,  170 B are relatively near the ground to help deter roll over.  
         [0038]     The fundamental functions of the craft  100  in sprint mode rely on the tilting rotor/power plant assembly  150  and the reduction of weight by the removal of forward swept wings  170 A,  170 B. Main rotors  190 A and  190 B may be contra-rotating to reduce the amount of rotor torque reaction. The mechanical components for reversing the hub rotation between the rotor roots are concealed within a cowl. The engine/rotor assembly  150  may comprise a concentric drive shaft and planetary gear device utilized to rotate an outer cylinder connected to the outmost rotor set. The hubs may contain electrically driven servomotors to trim individual rotor blades.  
         [0039]     Tilting rotor/power plant assembly  150  may be positioned in an arc around a center of gravity  200  pivot point  151 . Two hydraulic pistons (not shown) may lift or retract the assembly  150  through a 94 degree arc. The arc extends beyond vertical to a rearward tilt of 4 degrees to allow for slow rearward hovering.  
         [0040]     Removable/folding wings  170 A and  170 B may be hinged at the two longitudinal box beams  102  at the end of open spars  103 . Wings  170 A and  170 B may be manually operated. and therefore composed of aluminum spars, punched ribs and stringers. The combination ailerons/flaps  175 A and  175 B may be electrically powered through disconnect plugs within box beams  102 .  
         [0041]     The configuration of the wing form may comprise a traditional airfoil having a larger angle of attack at the wing root and a smaller angle attack at the wing tips. The plan form of the wing may comprise that of a long chord and shortened length wing yielding the lift area necessary for weight and control of craft  100 . The forward swept wing may be used to attain a center of lift more forward than a perpendicular alignment. This may be necessary for the balance of lift and weight distribution during horizontal lift-off and flight.  
         [0042]     The control surfaces of the craft  100  are redundant in two areas. While the ailerons/flaps  175 A and  175 B may be electrically operated, oversized elevators  120 A and  120 B on horizontal stabilizers  120  and rudders  135 A and  135 B on vertical stabilizers  130 A and  130 B may be electrically operated and/or manually operated with cabling as a safety override.  
         [0043]     Nose gear  185  may be electrically operated for ground movement and steering. Dual rear landing gears  180 A,  180 B may be fixed with shock absorbers.  
         [0044]     Retracted tail rotor  101  is unlike the customary tail rotor of a helicopter whose primary function is to resist main rotor torque in one direction. The tail rotor  101  of this craft  100  may be capable of providing a thrust vector in both directions to provide yaw control. The trim of the tail rotor  101  may be more akin to reversible fans than airfoils.  
         [0045]     A second, smaller, air-cooled engine  109  may drive tail rotor  101 . This engine  109  may be located directly in front of the tail rotor  101  and beneath the arc of the main power plant in down position.  
         [0046]     The main power plant for the craft  100  may be directly aligned with the concentric drive shafts of the contra-rotating rotor assembly. While a number of power plant types can be utilized in the craft  100 , two types are clearly more appropriate. In the preferred embodiment, the engine comprises an internal combustion engine manufactured by the Dyna-Cam Aero Engine Corporation. This is a twelve cylinder, six longitudinal-piston engine using a cam plate crankshaft, which produces high torque to turn the larger rotors  190 A and  190 B at a lower engine RPM level of 1600 through 2000 RPM.  
         [0047]     Another type of power plant that may be used in this craft  100  is the turboprop engine with a reduction gearbox. A number of turbine manufacturers offer relative lightweight units with outputs in the 450 horsepower range. Rolls-Royce produces the very compact Model 250-B17F turboprop engine having a weight of 205 lbs. and develops 450 shaft horsepower for takeoff and 380 shp for normal cruise. This engine has been successfully installed in single and twin-engine small private aircraft  100 . The utilization of this type engine depends on the application and the acceptable cost.  
         [0048]     Other types of engines, such as turbines discussed above may be used, with suitable gearboxes provided to reduce shaft speed. Dual engines may be fitted to provide redundancy in the event of an engine-out condition. However, in the preferred embodiment, the Dyna-Cam engine is used, as its high torque and lower shaft speed reduce the need for complex speed reducing gearboxes and the like.  
         [0049]     A lightweight, single cylinder engine  109  may power vertical tail rotor  101 . A suitable example of such an air-cooled engine  109  is manufactured by Gobler-Hirthmortoren. This 35-lb. gas engine provides 25 hp @ 5200 rpm.  
         [0050]     The contra-rotating rotor array  190 A and  190 B may comprise three blades per. rotor plane with a separation angle of 120 degrees between blades. Each array  190 A and  190 B may have a twelve-foot (12′) diameter and the two arrays  190 A and  190 B may be separated approximately 22 inches on the longitudinal axis of the concentric drive shaft. Each blade  190 A,  190 B of the array may be constructed with an aluminum core and a carbon fiber warped plane body or airfoil. The root of the blade may be anchored to the hub in a manner allowing feathering of the blades.  
         [0051]     The design predecessor for the rotors  190 A and  190 B included in this design falls between the large diameter graphite/fiberglass rotors of the Bell/Boeing V-22 Osprey and the typical helicopter rotational air foil. The Osprey has a vertical take off maximum total loading of 47,000 lbs. with 2,258-sq. ft. of rotor disk area or approximately 20 lbs. per sq. ft. The craft of the present invention may have approximately 220-sq. ft. of rotor disk area, which, comparatively, lifts 4400 lbs. The smaller scale disk area may not be as efficient and an assumed total load of 2,200 lbs. may be more realistic. Early estimates of the craft maximum vertical takeoff weight fall within this disk area lifting capacity.  
         [0052]     The contra-rotating rotors  190 A and  190 B of this craft  100  do not anticipate blade folding. The design provides for electrical feathering of the blades at the hub.  
         [0053]     One essential supposition of the design of present invention is formed on the idea that a craft can be configured in a way that allows volumes of draft air from an array of lifting rotors to pass through a partially open and trussed structure. The lift generated by negative pressure above the air foils and the generally unrestricted flow of the down draft through the open body of the craft  100  can result in, first, a “ground effect” at lift off and, then reduced parasitic drag in flight. Consequently, the craft  100  is designed with open vertical trusses supporting the rotor/power plant assembly  150  and connecting the other separate parts of the of the fuselage and tail plane. The transverse wing forms are connected to the frame  108  of the fuselage with open spars  103 .  
         [0054]     The materials utilized in these structural elements may comprise composites of light aluminum tubing and fiber-reinforced plastics. The tubular sections of structural frame  108  may be designed to accommodate forces imposed on each member. Where impact forces are expected, the tubular sections may be designed for compressive forces in a way to absorb the loads and transmit portions of the loads to other members without failure. A number of reinforced resin composites are available for fabrication the structural elements of craft  100 . The selection of the specific composite material may be determined by the engineered loading on individual structural members.  
         [0055]     This convertible craft  100 , like the helicopter, is inherently unstable in the sprint configuration when compared to a fixed wing airplane. Thus, redundant safety features may be incorporated into the design. The use of autorotation as a means of controlled power-off descent is one inherent safety feature. A second safety feature is the implementation of an emergency parachute recovery system (e.g., ballistic parachute recovery). The location of a parachute package may be problematic due to the rotation of the rotors from horizontal to a vertical position. The logical location of this compact device may be in the spinner dome of the rotor assembly, a feature not included in the proportions of the spinner as illustrated in the Figures. Emergency procedures for horizontal flight may require the quick release of the rotor assembly from a forward position for a controlled roll up to a vertical position. When the rotor assembly is in the vertical position it may be possible to initiate autorotation and the deployment of the emergency parachute recovery system.  
         [0056]     A more radical safety feature is the design of the individual cabins  160 A,  160 B in a manner that allows the pilot and passenger to be ejected outward from the fuselage. This may require that the seat and the rear portion of the cabin to be separable from the forward portion of the cabin containing the control panel and control linkages. While this is a possibility, it is seen as being complicated and in contrast with the basic goal of designing a relatively low cost craft  100  for very specialized uses. In an alternative embodiment, where all controls are provided as electrical controls, the entire cabins  160 A,  160 B may be ejected from the craft  100  by providing a quick-disconnect for electrical connections from the instrument panel and controls within each cabin  160 A and  160 B.  
         [0057]     Fuel tanks may be located in the longitudinal box beams  102  at the end of open spars  103  and roots of wings  170 A and  170 B. The capacity of the built-in tanks may be, for example, 20 gallons for the internal combustion Dyna-Cam engine. In configurations utilizing the turbine power plant, supplemental fuel pods  106  may be attached above both longitudinal box beams  102  to increase the fuel available for specific missions. Alternately, pod  106  may contain the craft battery and various control systems. Since this craft may be used only for short missions, the fuel component of the useful load may be reduced. The Dyna-Cam internal combustion engine may use 100 LL AvGas, 80 octane or Unleaded Auto Gas (regular or supreme). The fuel may be delivered to engine/rotor package  105  by electric pumps located in longitudinal box beams  102 . The final section of the fuel lines may be flexible to accommodate the rotation of the rotor/power plant assembly.  
         [0058]     While not included in the graphical description of the craft  100  in the Figures, in an alternative embodiment, auxiliary power devices might be attached to craft  100  in order to accelerate the ascent and arc into horizontal flight. Specifically, booster rocket engines could be located above the engine cowling with thrust vectors synchronized with the thrust vector of the rotor assembly.  
         [0059]     The APPENDIX submitted in Provisional U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 60/519,859filed Nov. 14, 2003, incorporated herein by reference, contains original plan drawings for the present invention.  
         [0060]     While the preferred embodiment and various alternative embodiments of the invention have been disclosed and described in detail herein, it may be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

Technology Category: 7