SYSTEM AND METHOD OF A LOOP ARCHITECTURE OF A FIXED PIPING SYSTEM IMPLEMENTED WITHIN A SAFETY SYSTEM OF A STRUCTURE TO CONTINUOUSLY SUPPLY BREATHABLE AIR THEREWITHIN

Abstract

A safety system implemented within a structure includes a source of breathable air, and a fixed piping system to supply the breathable air from the source to each level of a number of levels of the structure. The fixed piping system is implemented in a loop architecture including a first portion proximate the each level of the number of levels and a second portion farther away therefrom. In accordance with the loop architecture, the first portion and the second portion are implemented as a continuous loop with respect to the source of the breathable air such that, even during a compromise of a first sub-portion of the first portion relevant to one or more level(s) of the number of levels proximate thereto, unaffected by the compromise, the breathable air continues to be supplied to a second sub-portion of the first portion by way of the second portion.

Claims

1.-20. (canceled)

21. A firefighter air replenishment system (FARS), comprising: a source of breathable air; a piping system, comprising: a first portion structured to extend vertically along a first side of a building, the first portion comprising a first sub-portion and a second sub-portion; a second portion structured to extend vertically along a second side of the building; and at least one link pipe to connect the first portion with the second portion to form one or more loops of the piping system to allow the breathable air to flow to the second sub-portion through the second portion; and at least one air fill station coupled with the second sub-portion to receive the breathable air from the second portion.

22. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the at least one link pipe extends across one or more levels of the building, between the first side and the second side.

23. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: a valve between the first sub-portion and the second sub-portion, the valve to selectively isolate the first sub-portion from the second sub-portion.

24. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the piping system is structured to allow for multidirectional flow of the breathable air.

25. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the piping system is a fixed piping system.

26. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the source of breathable air comprises a plurality of compressed air storage tanks.

27. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the first portion and the second portion are inside the building.

28. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the at least one link pipe comprises a plurality of link pipes extending across a plurality of levels of the building between the first side and the second side.

29. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: a controller to: detect a compromise of the building associated with the first sub-portion; and set at least one valve to isolate the second sub-portion from the first sub-portion and allow the breathable air to flow through the second portion into the second sub-portion.

30. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the piping system forms a continuous loop.

31. The FARS of claim 21, comprising: the first portion at least partially extends in a stairwell.

32. A safety system, comprising: a source of breathable air; a piping system, comprising: a first portion extending at least partially vertically in a structure; a second portion extending at least partially vertically in the structure; and at least one link pipe extending across one or more levels of the building to connect the first portion with the second portion to form a loop architecture; a valve between a first sub-portion of the first portion and a second sub-portion of the first portion; and a controller to close the valve, the second portion to allow the breathable air to flow from the source to the second sub-portion through the at least one link pipe while the valve is closed.

33. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: the controller is to close the valve based on detection of a compromise of a level of the one or more levels that is associated with the first sub-portion.

34. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: the controller is to present a status of the valve.

35. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: the one or more levels comprise a plurality of levels, and the first portion and the second portion extend along the plurality of levels.

36. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: a plurality of air fill stations coupled with the piping system.

37. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: the controller is to close the valve based on at least one of a leak, a fire, an emergency, or a maintenance event.

38. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: the at least one link pipe comprises a plurality of link pipes extending between the first side and the second side.

39. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: the first sub-portion is on a first side of the valve and the second sub-portion is on a second side of the valve.

40. The safety system of claim 32, comprising: the first portion and the second portion are each coupled with the source of breathable air.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] The embodiments of this invention are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references indicate similar elements and in which:

[0010] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a safety system implemented within a structure, according to one or more embodiments.

[0011] FIG. 2 is a schematic view of an example implementation of a control panel of the safety system of FIG. 1.

[0012] FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a context in which the safety system of FIG. 1 operates, according to one or more embodiments.

[0013] FIG. 4A is an example user interface view of a data processing device of the safety system of FIG. 1.

[0014] FIG. 4B is another example user interface view of the data processing device of the safety system of FIG. 1.

[0015] FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a hardware controller compatible with the safety system of FIG. 1, according to one or more embodiments.

[0016] FIG. 6 is a process flow diagram detailing the operations involved in a safety system implemented with a looped air piping architecture of a fixed piping system within a structure to continuously supply breathable air therewithin, according to one or more embodiments.

[0017] Other features of the present embodiments will be apparent from the accompanying drawings and from the detailed description that follows.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] Example embodiments, as described below, may be used to provide systems and/or a method of a loop architecture of a fixed piping system implemented within a safety system of a structure to continuously supply breathable air therewithin. Although the present embodiments have been described with reference to specific example embodiments, it will be evident that various modifications and changes may be made to these embodiments without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the various embodiments.

[0019] FIG. 1 shows a safety system 150 implementing a looped air piping architecture 108 of a fixed piping system 104 within a structure 100, according to one or more embodiments. In one or more embodiments, structure 100 may be a multi-story building such as a high-rise building, a shopping mall, a hypermart and an industrial structure. Other types of structure 100 are within the scope of the exemplary embodiments discussed herein. In one or more embodiments, fixed piping system 104 of safety system 150 may include permanent air conduits installed within structure 100 serving as a constant source of replenishment of breathable air. In one or more embodiments, fixed piping system 104 may be regarded as being analogous to a water piping system within structure 100 or another structure analogous thereto for the sake of imaginative convenience. In one or more embodiments, looped air piping architecture 108 of fixed piping system 104 may include pipes (e.g., constituted out of stainless steel tubing) that distribute breathable air to a number of air fill stations 122.sub.1-P within structure 100.

[0020] In one or more embodiments, safety system 150 may be a Firefighter Air Replenishment System (FARS) associated with structure 100. In one or more embodiments, safety system 150 may enable firefighters entering structure 100 in times of emergencies (e.g., fire-related emergencies, noxious/toxic air conditions) to gain access to breathable (e.g., human breathable) air within structure 100 without the need of bringing in additional air bottles/cylinders to be transported up several flights of stairs of structure 100 or deep thereinto, or to refill depleted air bottles/cylinders that are brought into structure 100. In one or more embodiments, safety system 150 may include one or more compressed air source(s) 102 in an air storage system 124 to supply breathable air to each level 106 (e.g., floor level) of the structure 100.

[0021] In one or more embodiments, fixed piping system 104 may include a number of linked/interlinked air pipe segments (e.g., a first sub-portion 114, a second sub-portion 116, etc.; to be discussed below) running across a number of levels 106 (e.g., floors, floor levels) of structure 100 forming a continuous loop architecture (e.g., looped air piping architecture 108) to supply breathable air. In one or more embodiments, ends of each linked air pipe segment (e.g., first sub-portion 114) of fixed piping system 104 may be interconnected with adjacent linked air pipe segments (e.g., second sub-portion 116, etc.) thereof. As shown in FIG. 1, in one or more embodiments, a first portion 110 of fixed piping system 104 may refer to the portion of fixed piping system 104 on a left side of FIG. 1 encompassing levels 106, and a second portion 112 of fixed piping system 104 may refer to a right side (e.g., farther away from the left side) of FIG. 1 also encompassing levels 106. In one or more embodiments, each of first portion 110 and second portion 112 of fixed piping system 104 may be provided proximate stairwell 140 and stairwell 141 respectively of structure 100. In general, in one or more embodiments, fixed piping system 104 may be provided within a fire-rated enclosure (e.g., stairwell 140, stairwell 141) of structure 100.

[0022] In one or more embodiments, the continuous loop architecture formed by the linked air pipe segments and the linked first portion 110 and the second portion 112 may enable multidirectional flow of breathable air through looped air piping architecture 108; in one or more embodiments, this may also build redundancy into safety system 150, as will be seen below. In one or more embodiments, each level 106 may include an air fill station 122.sub.1-P coupled to fixed piping system 104 to provide a sufficient supply of breathable air. In one or more embodiments, each segment of fixed piping system 104 may be isolated and/or disconnected from compressed air sources 102/air storage system 124 through operation of a valve 120.sub.1-P (e.g., an isolation valve) located adjacent to air fill station 122.sub.1-P. For example, an air fill station 122.sub.1-P may be located at each of a basement level, a first floor level, a second floor level, and so on in a vertical multi-story building that serves as an example structure 100. It should be noted that FIG. 1, for example, shows levels 106 only on the left side thereof and air fill stations 122.sub.1-P only on the right hand side thereof merely due to space constraints and for the sake of clarity.

[0023] In one or more embodiments, valves 120.sub.1-P located at various levels 106 may be operable to isolate a particular air fill station 122.sub.1-P through a control panel 118 located in structure 100 in case of a maintenance requirement and/or an emergency situation such as a fire, an accident, an explosion, a chemical attack, etc. Also, in one or more embodiments, control panel 118 may control operation of valves 120.sub.1-P to isolate and/or disconnect a particular air fill station 122.sub.1-P for maintenance and/or emergency situations including but not limited to air leakage, a pipe/pipe segment burst and/or failure. In one or more embodiments, control panel 118 (an example hardware controller) may be communicatively coupled to one or more data processing device(s) (e.g., data processing device 136 such as a mobile phone; other forms of data processing device 136 are within the scope of the exemplary embodiments discussed herein) through a computer network 132 (e.g., a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a short-range network, a cloud computing network and/or a distributed computing network). Thus, in one or more embodiments, event detection associated with a compromise within fixed piping system 104 may be possible through both control panel 118 and data processing device 136.

[0024] In one or more embodiments, fixed piping system 104 may be implemented along one or more stairwells (e.g., stairwell 140, stairwell 141) of structure 100. FIG. 1 shows two stairwells (140, 141) of structure 100, each of which is laid out along a distinct block of structure 100, according to one or more embodiments. It is obvious that any number of stairwells is within the scope of the exemplary embodiments discussed herein.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 1, in one or more embodiments, looped air piping architecture 108 of fixed piping system 104 may distribute air from air storage system 124 including a number of compressed air sources 102 (e.g., air storage tanks) and/or another air storage system 109 (e.g., also including one or more compressed air source(s) (not shown)) that serve as sources of pressurized air. Additionally, in one or more embodiments, looped air piping architecture 108 of fixed piping system 104 may interconnect with a mobile air unit (e.g., a fire vehicle) through an External Mobile Air Connection (EMAC) panel 142. In one or more embodiments, EMAC panel 142 may be a boxed structure (e.g., exterior to structure 100) to enable the interconnection between mobile air unit and safety system 150. For example, mobile air unit may include an on-board air compressor to store and replenish pressurized and/or compressed air in air bottles/cylinders (e.g., utilizable with Self-Contained Breathing Apparatuses (SCBAs) carried by firefighters).

[0026] In one or more embodiments, an air monitoring system 134 may be installed as part of safety system 150 to automatically track and monitor a parameter (e.g., pressure) and/or a quality (e.g., indicated by a moisture level, a carbon monoxide level) of breathable air within safety system 150. FIG. 1 shows air monitoring system 134 as communicatively coupled to air storage system 124 and EMAC panel 142 merely for the sake of example. It should be noted that EMAC panel 142 may be at a remote location associated with (e.g., internal to, external to) structure 100. In one or more embodiments, for monitoring the parameters and/or the quality of breathable air within safety system 150, air monitoring system 134 include appropriate sensors and circuitries therein. For example, a pressure sensor within air monitoring system 134 may automatically sense and record the pressure of the breathable air within safety system 150. Said pressure sensor may communicate with an alarm system that is triggered when the sensed pressure is outside a safe range. Also, in one or more embodiments, air monitoring system 134 may automatically trigger a shutdown of breathable air distribution through safety system 150 in case of impurity/contaminant (e.g., carbon monoxide) detection therethrough yielding levels above a safety threshold. In certain embodiments, air monitoring system 134 may be the same as control panel 118.

[0027] FIG. 2 shows control panel 118 of safety system 150, according to one or more embodiments. In one or more embodiments, control panel 118 may be a set of components working together to automatically switch ON/OFF valves 120.sub.1-P and/or bypass particular air fill stations 122.sub.1-P when a fault (e.g., leakage, breakdown, etc.) and/or an error is detected in looped air piping architecture 108 of fixed piping system 104. In one or more embodiments, control panel 118 may be operated by authorized personnel (e.g., emergency personnel 126 of FIG. 1); also, as discussed above, data processing device 136 communicatively coupled to control panel 118 may automatically detect events associated with looped air piping architecture 108 of fixed piping system 104.

[0028] In one or more embodiments, control panel 118 may include an array of sensors (not shown) and circuitry to activate specific valves 120.sub.1-P and/or to isolate specific air fill stations 122.sub.1-P from a rest of safety system 150. As shown in FIG. 2, control panel 118 may indicate a stairwell 140 and a stairwell 141, an open 202 indicator light, a closed 206 indicator light, a fault 208 indicator light, a switch 204, air fill station(s) 122.sub.1-P, EMAC panel 142, levels 106 constituted by a ground level 212, level 1 214, level 2 216, level 3 218, level 4 220, level 5 222, level 6 224, level 7 226, level 8 228, level 9 230, a two-hour rated enclosure piping 210, a data signal 232, and a lamp test 234, according to one example implementation.

[0029] In one or more embodiments, control panel 118 may indicate that both stairwell 140 and stairwell 141 are connected through loop air piping architecture 108. The open 202 indicator light may be an illuminating device commonly used to signify (e.g., through blinking) that switch 204 (e.g., isolation switch) is in an OFF state. The OFF state of switch 204 may indicate that valve 120.sub.1-P on that particular level 106 (e.g., ground level 212, level 1 214, level 2 216 etc.) is open, according to one implementation.

[0030] The closed 206 indicator light may be an illuminating device commonly used to signify (e.g., through blinking) that switch 204 is in an ON state. The ON state of switch 204 may indicate that valve 120.sub.1-P is closed and a corresponding fill station 122.sub.1-P is isolated, according to one implementation. This may be implemented even for control of multiple valves 120.sub.1-P and multiple fill stations 122.sub.1-P. As will be seen below, in one or more embodiments, the closure of an appropriate valve 120.sub.1-P may cut off supply of breathable air to first sub-portion 114. The fault 208 indicator light may be an illuminating device commonly used to signify (e.g., through blinking) the occurrence of a faulty condition within fixed piping system 104/air fill station 122.sub.1-P that requires immediate attention. In one or more example implementations, while actual statuses of valves 120.sub.1-P may be reflected through, say, limit switches (not shown), control of switch 204 may control electrical coupling to open 202 indicator light, closed 206 indicator light and fault 208 indicator light. Thus, control of switch 204 may also be effected through electrical signals from said limit switches.

[0031] The switch 204 may be a device used to make or break a connection in a circuit so that emergency personnel 126 can operate (e.g., turn ON or OFF) valve 120.sub.1-P to isolate one or more portions (e.g., first sub-portion 114) of fixed piping system 104 or a particular air fill station 122.sub.1-P. When switch 204 of a particular level 106 (e.g., ground level 212, level 1 214, level 2 216 etc.) is in the open state, it may indicate that a corresponding valve 120.sub.1-P associated with the particular level 106 is open. When the switch 204 of the particular level 106 is in the closed state, it may indicate that the corresponding valve 120.sub.1-P associated with the particular level 106 is closed.

[0032] In one or more embodiments, control panel 118 may receive data signals (e.g., data signal 232) from various points (e.g., joints, junctions) of looped air piping architecture 108 of fixed piping system 104 to enable detection of events associated therewith. In one or more embodiments, data signal 232 may be generated manually and/or automatically generated through sensors (not shown) in conjunction with control panel 118/data processing device 136. For example, operation of a switch 204 of a particular level 106 may make or break a connection with an associated valve 120.sub.1-P. Said connection may also be made or broken automatically with an appropriate implementation of control panel 118 and/or data processing device 136.

[0033] Test lamp 234 may be an illuminating device used to determine that control panel 118 is powered. The two-hour rated enclosure piping 210 in control panel 118 may indicate that fixed piping system 104 is enclosed within a two-hour rated enclosure piping, which may protect fixed piping system 104 against a fire hazard for two hours. All of the aforementioned details are implementation specific and serve as mere example parameters. All variations in implementation of control panel 118 are within the scope of the exemplary embodiments discussed herein.

[0034] FIG. 3 shows a context in which safety system 150 of FIG. 1 operates, according to one or more embodiments. In one example scenario, an event 350 associated with a compromise of first sub-portion 114 of first portion 110 of looped air piping architecture 108 of fixed piping system 104 at a specific level 106 may occur. Examples of event 350 may include but are not limited to a fire (as shown in FIG. 3), a piping fault, a piping leak, a poor quality of breathable air, contamination of breathable air within level 106 and a chemical leak. In one or more embodiments, event 350 (e.g., a fire) may be detected through control panel 118 and/or data processing device 136 discussed above. In one or more embodiments, in accordance therewith, control panel 118 and/or data processing device 136 may cut off (e.g., automatically, manually) the breathable air to compromised first sub-portion 114 of first portion 110 based on controlling one or more valves 120.sub.1-P associated with first sub-portion 114.

[0035] Now, in one or more embodiments, because safety system 150 has looped air piping architecture 108 implemented therein, even during the compromise of first sub-portion 114 of first portion 110 relevant to one or more levels 106 (e.g., first and second floors) proximate thereto, unaffected by the compromise, the breathable air may continue to be supplied (e.g., through air storage system 124, another air storage system 109) to second sub-portion 116 of first portion 110 of fixed piping system 104 by way of second portion 112 of fixed piping system 104. In one or more embodiments, the interlinking and/or linking of pipe segments through looped air piping architecture 108 may enable the aforementioned redundancy in breathable air supply to be implemented within safety system 150. It should be noted that certain components of safety system 150 of FIG. 1 have not been shown in FIG. 3 for the sake of illustrative clarity. However, it should be noted that all components of FIG. 1 are also relevant to FIG. 3.

[0036] The redundancy built into safety system 150 may enable emergency personnel 126 to work toward setting safety system 150 right as soon as possible with minimized difficulties during emergencies (e.g., event 350). In one or more embodiments, real-time communication between emergency personnel 126, a fire control room 302 within safety system 150 and a firefighting command center (not shown) may also be facilitated through computer network 132. In one or more embodiments, this may enable isolation of one or more air fill stations 122.sub.1-P and closure of one or more valves 120.sub.1-P associated with a compromised floor 306 (e.g., first sub-portion 114) from the rest of safety system 150. In one or more embodiments, emergency personnel 126 may still be able to receive a continuous supply of breathable air (e.g., airflow 304) via fill stations 122.sub.1-P associated with the non-isolated sub-portions (e.g., second sub-portion 116) of first portion 110 by way of second portion 112 of fixed piping system 104; for example, the non-isolated sub-portions of first portion 110 may be associated with levels 106 adjacent to a level 106 of compromised floor 306.

[0037] FIG. 4A shows an example user interface view 450A of data processing device 136 of safety system 150 of FIGS. 1 and 3. As shown in (a), a user interface 402 of data processing device 136 may display user authentication tabs with respect to emergency personnel 126. For example, user interface 402 may display an identification number tab 412, a username tab 414 and a password tab 416. A user (e.g., emergency personnel 126) may need to enter an identification number, a username and/or a password in order to access a fire safety application 470 executing on data processing device 136.

[0038] In one or more embodiments, user interface 402 may help the user to navigate and view different parameters and contexts of safety system 150. As shown in (b), the user may receive a pop-up alert notification in a notification tab 404. Notification tab 404 may indicate detection of a fire at a level 106 within structure 100. In accordance therewith, the user may click on a valve tab 422 to take necessary corrective measures. As shown in (c), a valve tab interface 406 may indicate one or more levels 106 in which a faulty condition (FLT) has been detected. Control valve interface 406 may also indicate whether a valve 120.sub.1-P is open (OPN) or closed (CLS) at a particular level 106. Further, valve tab interface 406 may enable the user to check air supply status 424 of the breathable air at a particular fill station 122.sub.1-P. In FIG. 4A, valve tab interface 406 shows that all valves 120.sub.1-P are open (OPN) and faults (FLT) have occurred in specific levels 106, viz. LV3 and LV4 (e.g., floors 3 and 4).

[0039] FIG. 4B is a continuation of FIG. 4A as user interface view 450B of data processing device 136. As shown in (d), valve tab interface 406 now indicates closure (e.g., through the user via valve tab interface 406) of valves 120.sub.1-P corresponding to LV3 and LV4 in which faults have occurred. Thus, air fill stations 122.sub.1-P in the above specific levels 106, viz. floors 3 and 4, may be isolated. Further, the user (e.g., emergency personnel 126) may click on air supply status 424 discussed above to check the status of the breathable air supply in the corresponding air fill stations 122.sub.1-P of levels 106 of structure 100. As shown in (e), air supply status 424 shows that floor GND (ground), LV1 (floor 1), LV2 (floor 2), and LV5 (floor 5) are active, which may imply that there is a continuous supply of breathable air to air fill stations 122.sub.1-P of the ground floor, floor 1, floor 2 and floor 5 (specific levels 106) of structure 100. Further, air supply status 424 shows that LV3 and LV4 are inactive, thereby indicating that air fill stations 122.sub.1-P of floor 3 and floor 4 of structure 100 are isolated. All reasonable variations are within the scope of the exemplary embodiments discussed herein.

[0040] FIG. 5 shows a hardware controller 500, according to one or more embodiments. In one or more embodiments, hardware controller 500 may include a processor 502 (e.g., a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a processor core, a processor) communicatively coupled to a memory 504 (e.g., a non-volatile and/or a volatile memory). In one or more embodiments, all components 506 of control panel 118 may be communicatively coupled to processor 502; in some embodiments, processor 502 may transmit signals to control components 506 and receive signals therefrom. In some embodiments, hardware controller 500 may be the same as control panel 118. As shown in FIG. 5, hardware controller 500 may be communicatively coupled to data processing device 136 through computer network 132. All concepts associated with FIGS. 1-4A/B may be applicable to hardware controller 500 of FIG. 5 and all variations therein are within the scope of the exemplary embodiments discussed herein. In the scenarios discussed above, hardware controller 500 and/or data processing device 136 may detect event 350 and, in accordance therewith, may cut off (e.g., automatically, manually) the breathable air to compromised first sub-portion 114 of first portion 110 of fixed piping system 104 based on controlling one or more valves 120.sub.1-P associated with first sub-portion 114.

[0041] FIG. 6 shows a process flow diagram detailing the operations involved in a safety system (e.g., safety system 150) implemented with a looped air piping architecture (e.g., looped air piping architecture 108) of a fixed piping system (e.g., fixed piping system 104) within a structure (e.g., structure 100) to continuously supply breathable air therewithin, according to one or more embodiments. In one or more embodiments, operation 602 may involve supplying the breathable air from a source (e.g., air storage system 124, another air storage system 109) to each level of a number of levels (e.g., levels 106) of the structure through the fixed piping system. In one or more embodiments, operation 604 may involve implementing the fixed piping system in a loop architecture (e.g., looped air piping architecture 108) including a first portion (e.g., first portion 110) of the fixed piping system proximate the each level of the number of levels and a second portion (e.g., second portion 112) of the fixed piping system farther away from the each level of the number of levels.

[0042] In one or more embodiments, operation 606 may then involve, in accordance with the loop architecture, forming a continuous loop involving both the first portion and the second portion with respect to the source of the breathable air such that, even during a compromise of a first sub-portion (e.g., first sub-portion 114) of the first portion of the fixed piping system relevant to one or more level(s) of the number of levels proximate thereto, unaffected by the compromise, the breathable air continues to be supplied to a second sub-portion (e.g., second sub-portion 116) of the first portion of the fixed piping system by way of the second portion of the fixed piping system.

[0043] Although the present embodiments have been described with reference to specific example embodiments, it will be evident that various modifications and changes may be made to these embodiments without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the various embodiments.

[0044] A number of embodiments have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimed invention. In addition, the logic flows depicted in the figures do not require the particular order shown, or sequential order, to achieve desirable results. In addition, other steps may be provided, or steps may be eliminated, from the described flows, and other components may be added to, or removed from, the described systems. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.

[0045] The structures and modules in the figures may be shown as distinct and communicating with only a few specific structures and not others. The structures may be merged with each other, may perform overlapping functions, and may communicate with other structures not shown to be connected in the figures. Accordingly, the specification and/or drawings may be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.