Claims:5. CLAIMS
What is claimed is:
1. A battery management system for monitoring, managing, controlling and restoring batteries of battery packs remotely in real-time, comprising:

at least one voltage sensor (V.S) is configured to measure the voltage across a plurality of batteries connected to a processing device, whereby the processing device configured to receive signals from at least one switching circuit and the at least one switching circuit configured to control the plurality of batteries;

at least one current sensor (C.S) is configured to measure the string current across the plurality of batteries and a plurality of temperature sensors are connected to the plurality of batteries, whereby the plurality of temperature sensors configured to measure the plurality of temperatures across the plurality of batteries by the processing device;

a plurality of end user devices configured to receive the measured voltage, current, and a plurality of temperatures from the processing device, whereby a plurality of users perform a plurality of operations in the plurality of end user devices by a battery management application over a network; and

a plurality of switches are switched to disconnect a plurality of erroneous batteries for enabling to dynamically connect with the plurality of batteries.

2. The battery management system of claim 1, wherein the at least one switching circuit comprises a plurality of switches connected to the plurality of batteries.

3. The battery management system of claim 2, wherein the plurality of switches are configured to provide a power supply cutoff, load cutoff, automatic replacement of the plurality of erroneous batteries with the plurality of batteries.

4. The battery management system of claim 1, wherein the processing device further comprising a network module configured to transmit the parameters of the batteries to the plurality of end user devices.

5. The battery management system of claim 1, wherein the processing device configured to measure parameters of the plurality of batteries.

6. The battery management system of claim 5, wherein the parameters comprising a state of charge of a battery, a state of health of a battery, a depth of discharge of a battery, and an internal resistance of a battery.

7. The battery management system of claim 1, wherein the processing device further comprising a plurality of resistors configured in an voltage divider manner to reduce the high voltage measured by the at least one voltage sensor (V.S).

8. The battery management system of claim 1, wherein processing device further comprising at least one power supply circuit configured to supply an electrical power to an electrical load.

9. A method for monitoring and regulating the operations of the batteries, comprising:

measuring parameters of batteries using a plurality of sensors, at least one processing device and a plurality of end user devices;

transmitting the measured parameters to the plurality of end user devices from the processing device;

performing a data mining on the received parameters by the battery management application to assess the life of battery pack and variation in charge and discharge cycles; and

generate the alerts to the plurality of end user devices during critical battery situations.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising a step of controlling the charging and discharging of the batteries by an automatic load cutoff during under or over voltage conditions or automatic replacement of erroneous batteries with new batteries. , Description:4. DESCRIPTION
TECHNICAL FIELD

[001] The present disclosure generally relates to the field of power data processing management. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a battery management system and method for remote and authenticated monitoring managing, controlling and restoring batteries of battery packs remotely in real-time either by cloud computing or any web computing techniques.

BACKGROUND

[002] In general, the batteries are used as energy sources for automobiles (for e.g., electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, etc.), homes, and industries, shopping malls etc. The batteries are also playing a crucial role in substations and power systems. Typically, the batteries pose the problem of sudden and unexpected failure leading to huge inconvenience, and protecting it prior to failure has become a burning issue.

[003] For example, the batteries installed in public areas (for e.g., cell towers) are subject to the possibility of misuse by un-authorized users which can’t be figured out unless there is always a person there to keep a check on the battery pack. Circuit breakers and isolators of the substations and power systems work with the help of power supply from the batteries. Hence the proper functioning of these circuit breakers and isolators depends on the proper functioning of batteries. The batteries may discharge suddenly or may cause unexpected failures. The existing maintenance of the batteries involves checking the condition and status of the batteries manually. Hence, it is difficult to monitor and measure each battery parameters manually at defined intervals of time, and any disruption between these maintenance periods leads to huge loss of battery capacity and also may cause battery failures.

[004] In the light of the aforementioned discussion, there exists a need for a certain system with a novel method that would overcome or ameliorate the above-mentioned disadvantages.
BRIEF SUMMARY

[005] The following presents a simplified summary of the disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding to the reader. This summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosure and it does not identify key/critical elements of the invention or delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts disclosed herein in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[006] An objective of the present disclosure is directed towards using a single voltage sensor (V.S) to measure the voltage across number of batteries in the battery pack which reduces the cost of the circuit.

[007] Another objective of the present disclosure is directed towards identifying various crucial parameters of the particular batteries in the battery pack.

[008] Another objective of the present disclosure is directed towards the transmitting these crucial parameters of the batteries to an end user devices in real time.

[009] Another objective of the present disclosure is directed towards real time monitoring and regulating/controlling the parameters of batteries by a remote end user.

[0010] Another objective of the present disclosure is directed towards generating alerts to the end users during critical battery situations.

[0011] Another objective of the present disclosure is directed towards storing, and processing of the data in the cloud.

[0012] An exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, a battery management system comprises a voltage sensor (V.S) configured to measure the voltage across a plurality of batteries connected to a processing device, the processing device configured to receive signals from at least one switching circuit and the at least one switching circuit configured to switch between the plurality of batteries.

[0013] Another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the battery management system further comprises a current sensor (C.S) configured to measure the string current across the plurality of batteries and a plurality of temperature sensors are connected to the plurality of batteries, the plurality of temperature sensors configured to measure the plurality of temperatures across the plurality of batteries by the processing device.

[0014] Another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the battery management system further comprises a plurality of end user devices configured to receive the measured voltage, current, and a plurality of temperatures from the processing device, a plurality of users perform a plurality of operations in the plurality of end user devices by a battery management application over a network.

[0015] Another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, a plurality of switches are switched to disconnect the plurality of erroneous batteries for enabling to dynamically connect with the plurality of batteries.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] FIG. 1 is a block diagram representing an example environment in which aspects of the present disclosure can be implemented. Specifically, FIG. 1 depicts a schematic representation of a battery management system for monitoring, managing, controlling and restoring batteries of battery packs remotely in real-time, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] FIG. 2A is a block diagram depicting the battery management device 102 shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0018] FIG. 2B is a block diagram depicting a restoration circuit in the battery management device 102 shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0019] FIG. 3 is a block diagram depicting a battery management application 112 shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0020] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram depicting a method for managing the parameters of the battery, in one or more exemplary embodiments.

[0021] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram depicting a method for managing the voltage parameters of the batteries, in one or more exemplary embodiments.

[0022] FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating the details of digital processing system in which various aspects of the present disclosure are operative by execution of appropriate software instructions.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] It is to be understood that the present disclosure is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The present disclosure is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

[0024] The use of “including”, “comprising” or “having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. The terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced item. Further, the use of terms “first”, “second”, and “third”, and the like, herein do not denote any order, quantity, or importance, but rather are used to distinguish one element from another.

[0025] Referring to FIG. 1 is a block diagram 100 representing an environment in which aspects of the present disclosure can be implemented. Specifically, FIG. 1 depicts a schematic representation of a battery management system for monitoring, managing, controlling and restoring batteries of battery packs remotely in real-time, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The battery management system 100 includes a battery management device 102, end user devices 104, 106, 108, and a network 110. The network 110 may include, but is not limited to, a mobile network, a Bluetooth network, a ZigBee network, a Wi-Fi shield, a WIFI communication network e.g., the wireless high-speed internet, or a combination of networks. The network 110 may also include an Ethernet, a wireless local area network (WLAN), or a wide area network (WAN), or a combination of networks. The end user devices 104, 106, 108 comprise smartphones, personal computers, laptops, tablet computers, personal digital assistants, handheld display devices, and the like. The end user devices 104, 106, 108 may be operated by users. The users may include but are not limited to, technicians, field engineers, operators, mechanics, workers, staff members, employees, user/customer of the battery pack, and the like.

[0026] The end user devices 104, 106, 108 comprise a battery management application 112. The battery management application 112 may be accessed as a web based application or a mobile based application or a cloud server and may be configured to enable the users to access, share, store, and update the parameters of the batteries on the end user devices 104, 106, 108. The applications (for e.g., the battery management application 112) are mobile applications (for e.g., android applications, IOS applications), software that offers the functionality of accessing mobile applications, and viewing/processing of interactive pages, for example, is implemented in the end user devices 104, 106, 108, as will be apparent to one skilled in the relevant arts by reading the disclosure provided herein. The battery management application 112 may be deployed in the network 110 for the remote access of the battery management device 102 by the end user devices 104, 106, 108. The battery management application 112 may be directed to a login page where the user may login with registered credentials. The registered credentials may include a password, a user identity, a symmetric encryption key, biometric values, a passphrase, and the like. The users may perform operations in the end user devices 104, 106, 108 by the battery management application 112 over the network 110. The operations may include but are not limited, monitoring and regulating the operations of the batteries.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 2A is a block diagram 200 depicting the battery management device 102 shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with one or more embodiments. The battery management device 102 comprises a processing device 202, a battery pack 204, a voltage sensor (V.S) 206,resistors 208a-208b, a current sensor (C.S) 210, temperature sensors 212a, 212b …212n-1, 212n, a switching circuit 214, a power supply circuit 216, a load circuitry 218, and a network module 220 (for e.g., a WI-FI module (not shown)). The battery pack 204, the voltage sensor (V.S) 206, the current sensor (C.S) 210, the temperature sensor (T.S) 212a, 212b …212n-1, 212n may be connected to input pins of the processing device 202. The battery pack 204 may comprise batteries 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n. A concept of time division multiplexing may be implemented by switching the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 between different batteries 204a, 204b…204n-1, 204n to get each and every battery 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n voltage by output pins of the processing device 202. The input and output pins may include, but not limited to, the digital/Analog input and the digital output pins. The processing device 202 may be configured to receive signals from the switching circuit 214. The signals may be received from the switching circuit 214 to the processing device 202 to control the batteries 204a, 204b….204n-1, 204n. The signals may include but are not limited to, a signal of switching the voltage sensor (V.S) between the batteries, a signal of load cutoff, a signal of power supply cutoff, and the like. The processing device 202 may include but is not limited to, a microcontroller, Embedded processor (for example ARM 7 or ARM 11), a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, a microcomputer, any other open source hardware, a field programmable gate array, a programmable logic device, a state machine or a logic circuitry. The switching circuit 214 may be implemented by using programmable switches 214a, 214b….214n-1, 214n. The programmable switches 214a, 214b….214n-1, 214n may include but are not limited to, relays, and insulated-gate bipolar transistors(IGBTS).The switching circuit 214 may be controlled manually or automatically or by providing required signals from the end-user devices 104, 106, 108 through the network 110.

[0028] The power supply circuit 216 is an electrical circuit configured to supply an electrical power to an electrical load. The primary function of the power supply circuit 216 may be configured to convert an electrical current from a source to the correct parameters. The functions of power supply may include but are not limited to, the current drawn by the load to safe levels, shutting off the current in the event of an electrical fault, power conditioning to prevent electronic noise or voltage surges on the input from reaching the load, power-factor correction, and storing energy so that it can continue to power the load in the event of a temporary interruption in the source power.

[0029] The voltage sensor (V.S) 206 may be configured to measure the voltage across the batteries 204a, 204b….204n-1, 204n. The switches 214a, 214b….214n-1, 214n may be configured to connect the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 to the batteries 204a, 204b…204n-1, 204n. The switch 214a may be configured to provide a power supply cutoff either automatically or by a user control button. The switch 214b may be configured to provide a load cutoff either automatically or by the user control button. The switches 214c, 214d, 214e…214n-1, 214n may be configured to switch the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 between the batteries 204a, 204b…204n-1, 204n. The current sensor (C.S) 210 may be configured to measure the delivered current to the batteries 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n. The voltage sensor (V.S) 206 may be positioned between the batteries 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n to obtain the individual voltage of the batteries 204a, and 204b….204n-1, 204n by the processing device 202. The processing device 202 may be programmed in such a way, if there is any overvoltage in any of the battery(s) 204a, 204b….204n-1, 204n, the power supply circuit 216 may get an automatic cutoff to avoid further worsening of situations. The resistors 208a-208b connected in the form of voltage divider circuit may be configured to reduce the high voltages measured by the voltage sensor (V.S) 206. The load circuitry 218 may be configured to provide the load cutoff when a particular threshold of the battery(s) 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n voltage is reached.

[0030] The output voltages of the batteries 204a, 204b…204n-1, 204n by the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 may be used in combination with a current sensor (C.S) 210. The current sensor (C.S) 210 may read the entire string current to obtain the parameters of the batteries204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n. The parameters of batteries204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n may include but are not limited to the voltage of the battery(s), the current of the battery(s), a state of charge (SOC) which may help in assessing the state of health, a depth of discharge of the batteries, internal batteries’ resistance and other parameters. The end-user devices 104, 106, 108 may be configured to monitor the batteries 204a, 204b…204n-1, 204n by the processing device 202.The temperature sensors 212a, 212b …212n-1, 212n may be configured to measure the ambient temperature of the batteries 204a, 204b…. 204n-1, 204n. The network module 220 (not shown) may be configured to transmit the parameters of the battery(s) 204a, 204b…. 204n-1, 204n to the end user devices 104, 106, 108.

[0031] For an example, the switching circuit 214 which connects the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 to the battery 204a at the first instant and the obtained output voltage from the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 may be represented as V1.Further, the output voltage of the battery 204a and the battery 204b at the second instant may be represented as V12, the output voltage of the battery 204a and the battery 204b and the battery 204c at the third instant may be represented as V123 …and the output voltage of battery 204a and battery 204b, the battery 204c, and …the battery (n) at the nth instant may be represented as V123..n. The total output voltage string of battery(s) 204a, 204b…. 204n-1, 204n may be obtained at the nth instant. Individual battery voltages may be acquired by simple mathematical equations. The table shown below represents the sensor readings at different instants that may be sent to the processing device 202 for further mathematical computations.

Instant Batteries Actual value=sensor reading * k (calibration factor)
1 204a V1’*K=V1
2 204b&204c (V1’+ V2’)K= V12
3 204a,204b,,& 204c (V1’+ V2’+ V3’) = V123
4 204a,204b, 204c,&204d (V1’+ V2’+ V3’+ V4’)K = V1234
n 204a,204b…..& 204n-1, 204n (V1’+ V2’+ V3’+ …….Vn’)K = V1234….n

[0032] For an example, the processing device 202 may be programmed to get the individual output voltage of the batteries 204a, 204b…. 204n-1, 204n by the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 with the necessary computations. The obtained output voltage of the battery 204a by the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 may be represented as V1, The output voltage of the battery 204b may be represented as V12, The output voltage of the battery 204c may be represented as V123 and the output voltage of the battery (n) may be represented as Vn.On proper calibration of the voltage sensor (V.S) 206 used in the circuit, the individual battery voltages may be obtained by performing simple mathematics as shown below in the processing device 202.

Battery Voltage
204a V1
204b V12 – V1 = V2
204c V123¬¬¬¬-V12 = V3
204n-1, 204n V1234….n - V1234….n-1 = Vn

[0033] Referring to FIG. 2B is a block diagram 200b depicting a restoration circuit in the battery management device 102 shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with one or more embodiments. The restoration circuit 200b may include batteries 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n, the switches 214c, 214d….214n-1, 214n, switches 214c’, 214d’….214n-1’, 214n’, the power supply circuit 216 or the load circuitry 218, and an auxiliary battery 222. In case the battery(s) 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n is working erroneously in the battery pack 204, automatic restoration may be done by replacing the erroneous battery(s) 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n with the new battery(s) 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n using the switches 214c, 214d….214n-1, 214n, switches 214c’, 214d’….214n-1’, 214n’. The switches 214c, 214d….214n-1, 214n, switches 214c’, 214d’….214n-1’, 214n’ may be switched to disconnect the erroneous battery(s) 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n for enabling to dynamically connect with the new battery(s) 204a, 204b….204n-1, 204n.

[0034] The restoration circuit 200b may operate in case any battery voltage or state of charge goes below allowable minimum limit. When such a situation arises the auxiliary battery 222 may be made to disconnect the present failure battery(s) 204a, 204b… 204n-1, 204n automatically without any manual interference. For an example, the programmable switches 214c’, 214d’….214n-1’, 214n’ appropriately in the circuit in such a way that the battery 204a undergoes failure the switches 214c and 214d are opened and the switches 214c’ and 214d’ are closed, in case the battery 204a undergoes failure the switches 214e and 214f are opened and switches 214e’ and 214f’ are closed and similarly for any failure battery may be replaced by the auxiliary battery 222 automatically.

[0035] Referring to FIG. 3 is a block diagram 300 depicting the battery management application 112 shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with one or more embodiments. The end user devices 104, 106, 108 may verify the login credentials to view the parameters of the battery(s) 204a, 204b….204n-1, 204n. For an example, if the login credentials of user are wrong, the user may not be able to view the parameters of the battery(s) 204a, 204b….204n-1, 204n and hence the data is secured. If the login credentials of the user are valid, the login page of the battery management application 112 may be directed to the graphical user interface, and thereby the user may able to view the parameters and various reports in graphical form regarding the previous history of the battery, estimated left out life time of the battery, the possible data of replacement that may take place for the batteries individually for the batteries 204a, 204b….204n-1, 204n. The battery management application 112 may comprise a data receiving module 302, a data access module 304, an alerts generation module 306, a data mining module 308, a switch controlling module 310.

[0036] The data receiving module 302 which may be configured to receive the parameters of batteries 204a, 204b…204n-1, 204n from the processing device 202. The data access module 304 may provide the data (for e.g., the received data) access to the users. The alerts generation module 306 may generate alerts to the users during critical battery situations. The alerts may include but are not limited to, visual alerts, audible alerts, text messages, notifications, emails, and the like. The critical battery situations may include but are not limited to, over voltages, high temperatures, undercharge, short circuits, and the low state of charge, the state of charge, depth of discharge, the internal power resistance, and the like. The data mining module 308 may perform a data mining on the received parameters to assess the life of the batteries 204a, 204b…204n-1,204n, and variation in charge and discharge cycles. The switch controlling module 310 may control the switching circuit 214 remotely, the user may able to control the charging and discharging state of the batteries 204a, 204b….204n-1,204n by the battery management application 112. The parameters of the battery(s) 204a, 204b…204n-1,204n may be displayed on the end user devices 104, 106, 108 in the form of graphical user interface.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 4 is a flow diagram 400 depicting a method for managing the parameters of the battery, in one or more exemplary embodiments. The method 400 may be carried out in the context of the details of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3. However, method 400 may also be carried out in any desired environment. Further, the aforementioned definitions may equally apply to the description below.

[0038] The method commences at step 402, measure the parameters of the battery pack using the sensors, and the processing device, transmit the measured parameters to the end user devices from the processing device, at step 404. Thereafter, at step 406, control the charging and discharging of the battery pack by automatic load cutoff during under or over voltage conditions or automatically disconnecting the erroneous battery from the circuit and connecting a fresh battery in its place and like. Thereafter, at step 408, perform a data mining on the received parameters by the battery management application to assess the life of battery pack and variation in charge and discharge cycles. Thereafter at step 410, generate the alerts to the user during critical battery situations.

[0039] Referring to FIG. 5 is a flow diagram 500 depicting a method for managing the voltage parameters of the battery, in one or more exemplary embodiments. The method 500 may be carried out in the context of the details of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3. However, method 500 may also be carried out in any desired environment. Further, the aforementioned definitions may equally apply to the description below.

[0040] The method commences at step 502, measure the voltages across the number of batteries in the battery pack by the voltage sensor (V.S), and the switching circuit. The measured voltages may be transmitted to the processing device from the voltage sensor (V.S), at step 504. Reduce the measured high voltages using the voltage divider circuit with the resistors, at step 506. Thereafter, at step 508, the processing device determines whether there is an over voltage in any of the battery in the battery pack. If the answer to step 508 is a YES, then at step 510, gets the power supply cutoff to the switches to avoid further worsening of situations. If the answer to step 508 is a NO, then the method continues at step 508.
[0041] Referring to FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is a block diagram 600 illustrating the details of digital processing system 600 in which various aspects of the present disclosure are operative by execution of appropriate software instructions. Digital processing system 600 may correspond to end user device 104, 106, 108 (or any other system in which the various features disclosed above can be implemented).

[0042] Digital processing system 600 may contain one or more processors such as a central processing unit (CPU) 610, random access memory (RAM) 620, secondary memory 627, graphics controller 660, display unit 670, network interface 680, an input interface 690. All the components except display unit 670 may communicate with each other over communication path 650, which may contain several buses as is well known in the relevant arts. The components of Figure 6 are described below in further detail.

[0043] CPU 610 may execute instructions stored in RAM 620 to provide several features of the present disclosure. CPU 610 may contain multiple processing units, with each processing unit potentially being designed for a specific task. Alternatively, CPU 610 may contain only a single general-purpose processing unit or can be a part of Cloud processing Unit.

[0044] RAM 620 may receive instructions from secondary memory 630 using communication path 650. RAM 620 is shown currently containing software instructions, such as those used in threads and stacks, constituting shared environment 625 and/or user programs 626. Shared environment 625 includes operating systems, device drivers, virtual machines, etc., which provide a (common) run time environment for execution of user programs 626.

[0045] Graphics controller 660 generates display signals (e.g., in RGB format) to display unit 670 based on data/instructions received from CPU 610. Display unit 670 contains a display screen to display the images defined by the display signals. Input interface 690 may correspond to a keyboard and a pointing device (e.g., touch-pad, mouse) and may be used to provide inputs. Network interface 680 provides connectivity to a network (e.g., using Internet Protocol), and may be used to communicate with other systems (such as those shown in Figure 1, network 110) connected to the network.

[0046] Secondary memory 630 may contain hard drive 635, flash memory 636, and removable storage drive 637. Secondary memory 630 may store the data software instructions (e.g., for performing the actions noted above with respect to the Figures), which enable digital processing system 600 to provide several features in accordance with the present disclosure.

[0047] Some or all of the data and instructions may be provided on removable storage unit 640, and the data and instructions may be read and provided by removable storage drive 637 to CPU 610. Floppy drive, magnetic tape drive, CD-ROM drive, DVD Drive, Flash memory, removable memory chip (PCMCIA Card, EEPROM) are examples of such removable storage drive 637.

[0048] The removable storage unit 640 may be implemented using medium and storage format compatible with removable storage drive 637, or a cloud storage such that removable storage drive 637 can read the data and instructions. Thus, the removable storage unit 640 includes a computer readable (storage) medium having stored therein computer software and/or data. However, the computer (or machine, in general) readable medium can be in other forms (e.g., non-removable, random access, etc.).

[0049] In this document, the term "computer program product" is used to generally refer to the removable storage unit 640 or hard disk installed in hard drive 635. These computer program products are means for providing instructions to digital processing system 600. CPU 610 may retrieve the software instructions, and execute the instructions to provide various features of the present disclosure described above.

[0050] The term “storage media/medium” as used herein refers to any non-transitory media that store data and/or instructions that cause a machine to operate in a specific fashion. Such storage media may comprise non-volatile media and/or volatile media. Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical disks, magnetic disks, or solid-state drives, such as storage memory 630. Volatile media includes dynamic memory, such as RAM 620. Common forms of storage media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, solid-state drive, magnetic tape, or any other magnetic data storage medium, a CD-ROM, any other optical data storage medium, any physical medium with patterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, and EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, NVRAM, any other memory chip or cartridge.

[0051] Storage media is distinct from but may be used in conjunction with transmission media. Transmission media participates in transferring information between storage media. For example, transmission media includes coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, including the wires that comprise bus 650. Transmission media can also take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated during radio-wave and infra-red data communications.

[0052] Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”, or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment”, “in an embodiment” and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.

[0053] Although the present disclosure has been described in terms of certain preferred embodiments and illustrations thereof, other embodiments and modifications to preferred embodiments may be possible that are within the principles and spirit of the invention. The above descriptions and figures are therefore to be regarded as illustrative and not restrictive.

[0054] Thus the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims and includes both combinations and sub-combinations of the various features described hereinabove as well as variations and modifications thereof, which would occur to persons skilled in the art upon reading the foregoing description.