Stationary blade and manufacturing method

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method of manufacturing a stationary blade (102) and to a stationary blade (102), the method comprising providing a metal component (106), involving applying a first bending procedure, thereby forming a top wall (112) and two legs (114, 116) at opposite ends of the top wall (112) that are spaced away from one another in a longitudinal direction, wherein, subsequent to the bending procedure, each of the two legs (114, 116) is arranged at a first angle (α) with respect to the top wall (112), and wherein two bending edges (152, 154) are formed between the top wall (112) and the two legs (114, 116), providing a support insert (108) having a longitudinal extension (l.sub.s) that is at least slightly greater than a receiving space (l.sub.b) between the two bending edges (152, 154), joining the metal component (106) and the support insert (108), wherein the metal component (106) is at least slightly pretensioned due to the longitudinal extension (l.sub.s) of the support insert (108), and applying a second bending procedure to the metal component (106), comprising further bending the two legs (114, 116), thereby arranging each of the two legs (114, 116) at a second angle (*) with respect to the top wall (112) that is smaller than the first angle (α).

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing a stationary blade for a blade set of a hair cutting appliance, the method comprising: providing a metal component, comprising: providing a sheet-metal blank, forming at least one pattern of slots in the sheet-metal blank, and applying a first bending procedure to the metal component, thereby forming a top wall and two legs at opposite ends of the top wall that are spaced from each other in a longitudinal direction, wherein, subsequent to the first bending procedure, each of the two legs is arranged at a first angle with respect to the top wall, and wherein two bending edges are formed between the top wall and the two legs, providing a support insert having a longitudinal extension that is at least slightly greater than a receiving space between the two bending edges, joining the metal component and the support insert, wherein the metal component is at least slightly pretensioned in the longitudinal direction, due to the longitudinal extension of the support insert, and applying a second bending procedure to the metal component, comprising further bending the two legs, thereby arranging each of the two legs at a second angle with respect to the top wall that is smaller than the first angle, wherein the second bending procedure at least partially compensates an intermediate deformation of the top wall that is caused by the pretensioning of the metal component.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of joining the metal component and the support insert induces the intermediate deformation of the top wall, and wherein the second bending procedure induces an opposite deformation.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the top wall, subsequent to the step of joining the metal component and the support insert and prior the second bending procedure, is inwardly domed, when viewed in a cross-sectional plane perpendicular to a lateral direction.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the top wall, subsequent to the second bending procedure, is basically planar, when viewed in a cross-sectional plane perpendicular to a lateral direction.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein in the second bending procedure the two legs are urged against the support insert.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the support insert comprises two side arms and a central portion extending therebetween, wherein the side arms are inclined and arranged at an angle with respect to the central portion that defines a target position for the two legs of the metal component.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein subsequent to the second bending procedure, the legs of the metal component are secured at the support insert.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first bending procedure and the second bending procedure form stationary blade teeth that are, when viewed in a cross-sectional plane perpendicular to a lateral direction, substantially U-shaped or V-shaped and that are respectively formed by the top wall and one of the two legs.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the metal component and the support insert form therebetween a guide slot for a movable blade.

10. A stationary blade for a blade set of a hair cutting appliance, comprising: a metal component obtained from a sheet metal blank, and a support insert, wherein the metal component is folded around the support insert and forms a first folded edge at a first longitudinal end and a second folded edge at a second longitudinal end, wherein the metal component comprises a top wall and two legs at opposite ends of the top wall that are spaced from each other in a longitudinal direction, wherein the support insert is retained between the top wall and the two legs, wherein the metal component and the support insert form therebetween a guide slot for a movable blade, wherein, at the folded edges, at least one series of metal teeth is formed by the metal component, wherein tooth stems provided at the support insert form shoulders for the folded edges, wherein the top wall is pretensioned in the longitudinal direction by the support insert, and wherein a first of the two legs and a second of the two legs are bent about the shoulders in such a way that a deformation of the top wall due to the pretensioning is at least partially compensated so that the top wall is basically planar, wherein the legs of the metal component are, at their end portions, sectionally bonded to the support insert, and wherein an adjacent portion of each of the legs is at least sectionally outwardly domed so that a clearance between the domed section and the support insert is present.

11. The stationary blade as claimed in claim 10, wherein the first leg and the second leg, in their assembled state, are preloaded so that a compensating bending moment acts on the top wall.

12. The stationary blade as claimed in claim 10, wherein the legs of the metal component are secured at the support insert.

13. The stationary blade as claimed in claim 10, wherein the support insert comprises two side arms and a central portion extending therebetween, wherein the side arms are inclined and arranged at an angle with respect to the central portion that defines a target position for the two legs of the metal component.

14. A blade set for a hair cutting appliance, the blade set comprising: a stationary blade as claimed in claim 10, and a movable blade comprising a plurality of movable blade teeth, wherein the movable blade is movably retained between the metal component and the support insert in an assembled state, and wherein the movable blade is arranged to be moved with respect to the stationary blade to cut hair.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiment(s) described hereinafter. In the following drawings

(2) FIG. 1 shows a perspective frontal view of an exemplary embodiment of a hair cutting appliance;

(3) FIG. 2 shows a perspective top view of an exemplary embodiment of a blade set for a hair cutting appliance;

(4) FIG. 3 shows an exploded perspective top view of a blade set in accordance with the present disclosure;

(5) FIG. 4 shows an exploded bottom view of the arrangement of FIG. 3;

(6) FIG. 5 shows a simplified broken top view of a stationary blade for a blade set as shown in FIG. 3;

(7) FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional lateral view along the line VI-VI in FIG. 5;

(8) FIG. 7 shows a simplified lateral view of a sheet metal blank from which a metal component for a stationary blade may be formed;

(9) FIG. 8 shows a support insert that forms a component of a stationary blade;

(10) FIG. 9 shows for illustrative purposes an incorrectly manufactured stationary blade, due to an incorrectly assembled/attached metal component;

(11) FIG. 10 shows an incorrectly manufactured blade set that results from the arrangement of FIG. 9;

(12) FIG. 11 illustrates an intermediate metal component and a support insert for the formation of a stationary blade, in a detached state prior to assembling;

(13) FIG. 12 shows the components of FIG. 11 in an intermediate assembly state;

(14) FIG. 13 shows the arrangement of FIG. 12 in an advanced assembly state;

(15) FIG. 14 shows a blade set for a hair cutting appliance that results from the arrangement of FIG. 13; and

(16) FIG. 15 shows a block diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a method of manufacturing a stationary blade for a blade set for a hair cutting appliance in accordance with the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(17) FIG. 1 shows a perspective frontal view of a hair cutting appliance 10. The hair cutting appliance 10 is arranged as an appliance that is capable of both trimming and shaving.

(18) The appliance 10 comprises a housing 12 which is arranged in an elongated fashion. At the housing 12, a handle section 14 is defined. In the housing 12, a drive unit 16 is arranged. Further, a battery 18 may be arranged in the housing 12. In FIG. 1, the drive unit 16 and the battery 18 are represented by dashed blocks. At the housing 12, operator controls 20 such as on/off buttons and the like may be provided.

(19) At a top end thereof, the appliance 10 comprises a processing head 24 that is attached to the housing 12. The processing head 24 comprises a blade set 26. The blade set 26, particularly a movable blade thereof, may be actuated and driven by the drive unit 16 in a reciprocating fashion, refer also to the double arrow 28 in FIG. 1. As a result, respective teeth of the blades of the blade set 26 are moved with respect to one another, thereby effecting a cutting action. A top side or top surface of the blade set 26 is indicated by 30 in FIG. 1.

(20) The blades of the blade set 26 may be arranged at a first leading edge 32 and, in at least some embodiments, at a second leading edge 34 that is opposite to the first leading edge 32. The first leading edge 32 may be also referred to as frontal leading edge. A second leading edge 34 may be also referred to as rear leading edge.

(21) Further, a general advancing or moving direction of the appliance 10 is indicated in FIG. 1 by a double arrow 38. As the blade set 26 of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1 is equipped with two leading edges 32, 34, a push and a pull movement may be used to cut hair.

(22) In the following, exemplary embodiments of stationary blades and blade sets 26 will be elucidated and described in more detail. The blade sets 26 may be attached to the appliance 10, or to a similar appliance. It goes without saying the single features disclosed in the context of a respective embodiment may be combined with any of the other embodiments, also in isolated fashion, thereby forming further embodiments that still fall under the scope of the present disclosure.

(23) In some Figures shown herein, exemplary coordinate systems are shown for illustrative purposes. As used herein, an X-axis is assigned to a longitudinal direction. Further, a Y-axis is assigned to a lateral direction. Accordingly, a Z-axis is assigned to a vertical (height) direction. Respective associations of the axes/directions X, Y, Z with respective features and extensions of the blade set 26 can be derived from those Figures. It should be understood that the coordinate system X, Y, Z is primarily provided for illustrative purposes and not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. This involves that the skilled person may readily convert and transform the coordinate system when being confronted with further embodiments, illustrations and deviating view orientations. Also a conversation of Cartesian coordinate systems into polar coordinate system may be envisaged, particularly in the context of a circular or curved blade set.

(24) In FIG. 2, a perspective view of a blade set 26 for a processing head or cutting head 24 of a hair cutting appliance 10 is shown. As with the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a cutting direction and/or a direction of a relative movement of blades of the blade set 26 is indicated by an arrow 28. A top side of the blade set 26 that is facing the user when the appliance 10 is operated is indicated by 30. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the blade set 26 is provided with a first leading edge 32 and a second leading edge 34. In FIG. 2 a stationary blade 42 of the blade set 26 is shown. A movable blade (cutter blade) is covered by the stationary blade 42 in FIG. 2. Stationary blade teeth are indicated by 44.

(25) The movable blade of the blade set 26 that is not visible in FIG. 2 is operated and actuated via a driving engagement element 48 that may also be referred to as driving bridge. At the element 48, a driving or engagement slot is formed that is engaged by a driving pin 50 of a driving shaft 52. The driving shaft 52 is rotated about a driving axis 54, refer to a curved arrow 56. The driving pin 50 is off-centered with respect to the driving axis 54. Consequently, as the driving pin 50 is revolving, a reciprocating movement of the movable blade with respect to the stationary blade 42 is effected.

(26) In FIG. 2, there is further indicated a pivot mechanism 58 which may be referred to as a contour following feature. The mechanism 58 enables a certain pivot movement of the blade set 26 about the Y-axis.

(27) With reference to FIGS. 3 to 14, exemplary insights and aspects of the present disclosure will be described and discussed in more detail. In particular, manufacturing aspects are discussed that contribute to the production of accurately and reliably operating blade sets that may be thus implemented in the appliance 10 as illustrated in FIG. 1, and/or the processing head 24 as illustrated in FIG. 2.

(28) It is to be noted that FIGS. 3 to 14 illustrate schematic, simplified embodiments. For illustrative purposes, further components and/or details of the metal component and the support insert are omitted therein. For instance, the support insert may be provided with a slot for a driving element that extends therethrough and that engages the movable blade to transmit a driving movement to the movable blade.

(29) With reference to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, a blade set 100 is shown that comprises a stationary blade 102 and a movable blade 104. Preferably, the blade set 100 is arranged to replace and/or augment the design of the blade set 26 illustrated in FIG. 2.

(30) The blade set 100 is shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 in exploded states. In FIG. 3, a perspective top view is provided, refer to the view orientation of FIG. 2. In FIG. 4, a perspective bottom view is shown.

(31) This stationary blade 102 of the blade set 100 is a composed/assembled component. This stationary blade 102 comprises a metal component 106 and a support insert 108. As illustrated further herein below, the metal component 106 and the support insert 108 may be attached to one another to form the stationary blade 102, and to define a guide slot 110 therein that accommodates the movable blade 104, refer to FIG. 6 and to FIG. 14.

(32) It is to be noted that in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the metal component 106 is shown in an intermediate assembly state. The metal component 106 may be obtained from a sheet metal blank.

(33) The metal component 106 comprises a top wall 112 that is arranged as a skin-facing wall when the hair cutting appliance 10 that is equipped with the blade set 100 is operated to cut hair. At longitudinal ends of the top wall 112, a first leg 114 and a second leg 116 are provided that are originally flat portions that are bended/folded to be arranged at a defined angle with respect to the top wall 112.

(34) The support insert 108 comprises a central portion 120 that is opposite to the top wall 112, and side arms 122, 124 that are contacted by the first leg 114 and the second leg 116 in the mounted state. In exemplary embodiments, the support insert 108 is an injection-molded plastic part. Therefore, mounting features and further elements may be integrally formed with the support insert 108 (not explicitly shown herein).

(35) In the metal component 106, two opposite series of tooth slots 126 are formed that define in the final assembly state a series of tooth portions 128. At the support insert 108, tooth stems 132 are formed that are aligned with respective tooth portions 128 of the metal component. In the finally assembled state of the stationary blade 102, the tooth portions 128 and the tooth stems 132 form stationary blade teeth 136.

(36) As with the arrangement illustrated in FIG. 2, also the blade set 100 comprises a first leading edge 138 and a second leading edge 140 each of which is provided with a respective series of teeth 136.

(37) At the movable blade 104, movable blade teeth 144 are formed. The movable blade teeth 144 cooperate with the stationary blade teeth 136 to cut hair when the movable blade 104 is operated to be moved with respect to the stationary blade 102.

(38) The blade set 100 that is provided with the stationary blade 102 may be operated for trimming purposes. However, as the metal component 106 may be considerably thin, at least in some embodiments, the blade set 100 is also operable for shaving operations where a very close skin contact is preferred to achieve a smooth and freshly shaved appearance.

(39) To make the metal component 106 considerably thin, the support insert 108 is provided to strengthen the stationary blade 102. In isolation, the metal component 106 would be too flexible to efficiently cooperate with the movable blade 104.

(40) FIG. 6 illustrates the guide slot 110 that is defined by the metal component 106 and the support insert 108. To provide a reliable connection between the metal component 106 and the support insert 108, the first leg 114 and the second leg 116 are bent in such a way that the support insert 108 is caught or clamped between the first leg 114 and the second leg 116. In other words, the first leg 114 and the second leg 116 are folded back to form a clamping holder for the support insert 108. As the support insert 108 is much thicker than the metal component 106, the support insert 108 may be regarded as a basically rigid component so that the support insert 108 does not collapse due to the bias applied by the metal component 106.

(41) The first leg 114 and the second leg 116 are bent about bending shoulders 150 that are formed at the tips of the tooth stems 132. Consequently, tips of the tooth portions 128 of the movable blade 104 that are formed at the transition between the top wall 112 and the two legs 114 and 116, respectively, contact the shoulders 150. At the first leading edge 138, the bending edge 152 is formed. At the second leading edge 140, the bending edge 154 is formed.

(42) FIG. 6 further illustrates by means of a dashed representation intermediate positions of the legs 114, 116 after the first bending procedure, refer also to FIG. 11. So is it clear that basically opposite deformation procedures are involved to achieve the final assembly state of the legs 114, 116.

(43) Several constraints have to be considered for the manufacture of the stationary blade 102. In this context, reference is made to FIGS. 7 to 14, each showing a lateral view of components to be used in the manufacture of blade sets for hair cutting appliances.

(44) FIG. 7 shows a sheet metal blank 158 having a basically planar shape. From the sheet metal blank 158, metal components 106 may be obtained. In the flat and even state as shown in FIG. 7, the slots 126 may be processed in the sheet metal blank 158 to define the series of stationary blade teeth 136 that results from the manufacturing procedure.

(45) FIG. 8 shows a lateral view of the support insert 108 that is to be assembled with the originally flat sheet metal blank 158.

(46) With reference to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, an incorrect and defective manufacturing approach is illustrated. When the support insert 108 is used as the primary bending gage for the folding procedure applied to the sheet metal blank 158 as shown in FIG. 7 without any intermediate bending procedure, quite likely a result as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 will be achieved. In FIG. 9, an incorrectly manufactured metal component 162 is shown that forms an incorrectly produced stationary blade 164. The main reason for the convexly shaped/domed appearance of the metal component 162 is that the sheet metal blank 158 has been bent about the shoulders 150 of the side arms 122, 124 of the support insert 108 without any further preparation and/or intermediate bending procedure. The sheet metal material the metal component 162 is formed from is considerably resilient. Hence, the bending procedure has a negative impact also on the shape and evenness of the top wall 112. The bending force applied to the first leg 114 and the second leg 116 induces a reaction that induces an outward doming of the top wall 112. An arrow 170 illustrates the doming effect.

(47) As a result, the cutting performance may be significantly deteriorated as a certain gap 168 is present in the finally assembled state of such an incorrectly produced blade set 166, refer to FIG. 10. The movable blade 104 is basically rigid and designed to be substantially planar. Hence, a huge gap 168 is formed in a central region of the blade set 166. In the cutting zone, where the stationary blade teeth 136 and the movable blade teeth 144 cooperate, at least a slight gap or offset is present between the metal component 162 and the movable blade 104. To achieve a great cutting performance, however, a close and basically parallel contact between the cutting edges of the stationary blade teeth 136 and the movable blade teeth 144 is preferred.

(48) With reference to FIGS. 11 to 14, an alternative manufacturing approach within the context of the present disclosure will be described that may result in a better cutting performance due to an improved dimensional stability of the metal component 106 of the stationary blade 102. The approach as discussed hereinafter may also use the sheet metal blank 158 shown in FIG. 7 and the support insert 108 shown in FIG. 8.

(49) In FIG. 11, an intermediate manufacturing state involving a still detached state of the metal component 106 and the support insert 108 is illustrated. In contrast to the approach illustrated in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, a first bending procedure is applied to the metal component 106 before fitting it onto the support insert 108. As a result, the first leg 114 and the second leg 116 are arranged at an angle α (alpha) with respect to the top wall 112. As shown in FIG. 11, the angle α is an inner angle that is defined in a region where the top wall 112 and the two legs 114, 116 face one another. It is noted that the bending angle is a complementary angle (180°-α).

(50) The initial bending procedure defines a certain dimension between the bending edges 152, 154. In FIG. 11, the resulting mounting space is indicated by l.sub.b.

(51) In FIG. 11, there is further shown a lateral view of the support insert 108. The side arms 122, 124 of the support insert 108 are arranged at an angle β (beta) with respect to the main extension (longitudinal extension) of the central portion 120. The angle β is smaller than the bending angle α of the metal component 106. Further, the opposite shoulders 150 of the side arms 122, 124 (or the tooth stems 132), define a longitudinal extension l.sub.s. In accordance with major embodiments, the mounting space l.sub.b is at least slightly smaller than the longitudinal extension l.sub.s (l.sub.b<l.sub.s).

(52) In other words, the metal component 106 and the support insert 108 may only be assembled to one another when a certain clamping force due to the interference between the dimensions l.sub.b, l.sub.l is borne by the metal component 106.

(53) The resulting intermediate assembly state is illustrated in FIG. 12. The metal component 106 and the support insert 108 are already force-fitted to one another, due to the dimensional interference. A result of the interference between the mounting space l.sub.b of the metal component 106 and the longitudinal extension l.sub.s of the support insert 108 is that the first leg 114 and the second leg 116 are bent contrary to their initial intermediate bending. A resulting angle is indicated in FIG. 12 by γ (gamma). In other words, a certain deformation (folding out) indicated by the arrows 178 in FIG. 12 happens to the first leg 114 and the second leg 116. As the metal component 106 is made from relatively elastic and resilient material, the resulting deformation also continues at the top wall 112. As indicated by an arrow 180, the top wall 112 is inwardly domed, due to the interference fit of the metal component 106 and the support insert 108.

(54) To accomplish the assembly and manufacturing procedure, a further bending procedure is necessary to connect the first leg 114 and the second leg 116 with their counterpart side arms 122, 124, refer to FIG. 13. To this end, a certain fixation force 186 is applied to the first leg 114 and the second leg 116. Due to the elasticity of the metal material, at least in some embodiments, connector portions 188, 190 of the legs 114, 116 are fixedly attached to the support insert 108. This may involve a welding procedure, a bonding procedure, a gluing procedure, etc. In any case, it is necessary to permanently apply the fixation force 186 to avoid a rebound of the first leg 114 and the second leg 116, i.e. a disengagement from opposite bottom sides of the side arms 122, 124.

(55) The connector portions 188, 190 may be arranged as outermost (inward) points of the first leg 114 and the second leg 116. Hence, a considerably large lever arm is present so that the required fixation force 186 is not too large.

(56) As illustrated in FIG. 13, it is not necessary to achieve a planar shape and contact for the first leg 114 and the second leg 116. Rather, a contact at the connector portions 188, 190 is sufficient.

(57) The fixation force 194, 196 induces a reaction/continuation along the extension of the metal component 106. As a result, an outward doming effect is present at the top wall 112, refer to the arrow 198. In other words, the doming effect already discussed in accordance with FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 is still present, with the difference that an opposite deformation of the top wall 112 has been induced before. Preferably, the inward doming 180 shown in FIG. 12 and the outward doming 198 shown in FIG. 13 are similar or equal in terms of the induced deformation. As a result, a basically planar surface 202 that is sufficiently even may be provided at the top wall 112.

(58) As shown in FIG. 14, a tight contact between the top wall 112 and the movable blade 104 is possible when the top wall 112 is basically planar and not considerably deformed during the manufacturing and assembling procedure.

(59) The above-described approach has the benefit that deformations that are always present when bending procedures are involved may be compensated so that dimensionally stable components may be achieved even though relatively simple and cost-effective production and assembly processes are used.

(60) Further reference is made to FIG. 15, schematically illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a method of manufacturing a stationary blade for a blade set of a hair cutting appliance.

(61) In a first step S10, a sheet metal blank is provided based on which a metal component is formed. The step S10 may involve, for instance, stamping, cutting, etching, and similar manufacturing processes.

(62) In a further, subsequent step S12, at least one pattern of slots is formed in the sheet metal blank. Preferably, two opposite patterns of slots are formed. In the final manufacturing state, the pattern of slots defines a series of teeth. The slots may be formed by cutting, particularly laser cutting, etching (electro-chemical processing), cutting, stamping, etc.

(63) In a subsequent step S14, a first bending procedure is applied to the initially flat sheet metal blank. In the step S14, a top wall and two opposite legs are formed. The first bending procedure involves a bending of the slots so that bending edges are defined that form tooth portions in a downstream manufacturing step. The metal component obtained through the steps S10 to S14 is clamp-shaped and arranged to be coupled with a support insert.

(64) In a further step S16, such a support insert is provided. The step S16 may involve injection-molding the support insert. The support insert may comprise central portions and two opposite side arms extending therefrom that are inclined with respect to the central portion. At the side arms, tooth stems may be formed that cooperate with the tooth portions of the metal component to form stationary blade teeth in the finally assembled state.

(65) In a further step S18, the metal component and the support insert are assembled. This may involve an insertion of the support insert in a receiving space defined between the first leg and the second leg of the metal component. In this regard, the support insert has an extension that is at least slightly larger than the receiving space provided between the first leg and the second leg of the metal component.

(66) As a result, a pretensioning and a deformation of the metal component is present that is opposite to the initial bending procedure applied in the step S14. This has the effect that also the top wall between the first leg and the second wall is at least slightly deformed. This deformation may be regarded as a preparation for a further deformation induced at the top wall due to the final assembly step S20. In the step S20, the two legs of the metal component are bent further so that connector portions thereof contact the side arms of the support insert. Optionally, the step S20 may involve a fixation of the connector portions at the side arms. A resulting deformation is opposite to the deformation of the top wall induced in the step S18.

(67) Ultimately, a basically flat and even top wall may be achieved which qualifies the stationary blade for an improved cutting performance.

(68) While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive; the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims.

(69) In the claims, the word “comprising” does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article “a” or “an” does not exclude a plurality. A single element or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

(70) Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.