LIDAR data acquisition and control
阅读说明:本技术 Lidar数据获取与控制 (LIDAR data acquisition and control ) 是由 D.S.霍尔 R.利欧 O.米尔格罗姆 A.戈帕兰 P.K.文卡特桑 于 2018-05-08 设计创作,主要内容包括:本文中描述了用于使用集成LIDAR测量设备来执行三维LIDAR测量的方法和系统。在一方面,返回信号接收器生成脉冲触发信号,所述脉冲触发信号触发照明光的脉冲的生成以及返回信号的数据获取,并且还通过时间到数字转换触发飞行时间的计算。此外,返回脉冲接收器还估计每个返回脉冲的宽度以及峰值幅度,并且在包括每个返回脉冲波形的峰值幅度的采样窗口上单独地对每个返回脉冲波形进行采样。在另外的方面,基于粗略定时估计和精细定时估计来估计与每个返回脉冲相关联的飞行时间。在另一方面,从由于内部光学串扰导致的测量脉冲以及有效返回脉冲来测量飞行时间。(Methods and systems for performing three-dimensional LIDAR measurements using an integrated LIDAR measurement device are described herein. In one aspect, the return signal receiver generates a pulse trigger signal that triggers generation of a pulse of illumination light and data acquisition of the return signal, and also triggers calculation of time of flight by time-to-digital conversion. In addition, the return pulse receiver also estimates the width and peak amplitude of each return pulse and samples each return pulse waveform individually over a sampling window that includes the peak amplitude of each return pulse waveform. In a further aspect, a time of flight associated with each return pulse is estimated based on the coarse and fine timing estimates. On the other hand, the time of flight is measured from the measurement pulse due to internal optical crosstalk and the effective return pulse.)
1. An integrated LIDAR measurement device, comprising:
an illumination source mounted to the printed circuit board;
an illumination driver Integrated Circuit (IC) mounted to a printed circuit board, the illumination driver IC selectively coupling an illumination source to an electrical power source in response to a pulse trigger signal such that the illumination source emits a measurement pulse of illumination light;
a photodetector mounted to the printed circuit board, the photodetector configured to detect an amount of return light received by the photodetector in response to a measurement pulse of the illumination light, and to generate an output signal indicative of the detected return light;
a return signal receiver IC mounted to a printed circuit board, the return signal receiver IC configured to:
receiving the output signal during the duration of a measurement window;
identifying one or more return pulses of the detected return light;
determining a time of flight associated with each identified return pulse; and
one or more attributes of the segments of each identified return pulse segment are determined.
2. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 1, wherein the return signal receiver IC generates the pulse trigger signal in response to receiving a pulse command signal on the return signal receiver IC.
3. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 1, wherein the return signal receiver IC comprises a return signal analysis module, wherein the return signal analysis module comprises:
a constant fraction discriminator module having a first input node, a second input node, and an output node, wherein the output signal is received on the first input node, and wherein a hit signal at the output node switches to a different value when the output signal exceeds a threshold voltage value on the second input node.
4. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 3, wherein the return signal analysis module further comprises:
a coarse timing module having a first input node coupled to an output node of the constant fraction discriminator, a second input node, and an output node, wherein the pulse trigger signal is present on the second input node, and wherein the coarse timing module generates a digital value at the output node that indicates an elapsed time between a transition of the pulse trigger signal and a transition of the hit signal.
5. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 4, wherein the digital value is a count of a number of transitions of a digital clock signal that occur between transitions of the pulse trigger signal and transitions of the hit signal.
6. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 5, wherein the return signal analysis module further comprises:
a fine timing module having a first input node, a first output node, and a second output node, wherein the hit signal is present on the first input node, wherein the fine timing module generates a first electrical signal at the first output node indicating a time difference between a transition of the hit signal and a subsequent transition of the digital clock signal and generates a second electrical signal at the second output node indicating a time difference between a transition of the digital hit signal and a subsequent transition of the inversion of the digital clock signal.
7. The integrated LIDAR measurement device of claim 5, wherein the coarse timing module generates a metastable signal, wherein the metastable signal is a digital clock signal shifted by one-half of a period of the digital clock signal.
8. The integrated LIDAR measurement device of claim 7, further comprising:
a time-of-flight module configured to estimate a time-of-flight value of a measurement pulse of illumination light based at least in part on a digital value indicative of an elapsed time between a transition of the pulse trigger signal and a transition of the hit signal, a time difference between a transition of the hit signal and a subsequent transition of the digital clock signal, a time difference between a transition of the hit signal and a subsequent transition of an inversion of the digital clock signal, and the metastable state signal.
9. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 3, the return signal analysis module further comprising:
a pulse width detection module comprising:
a first input node on which the hit signal is present,
a second input node on which an enable signal is present, an
An output node, wherein the pulse width detection module generates an electrical signal at the output node that indicates a time difference between a transition of the enable signal and a time when the amplitude of the hit signal falls below a threshold.
10. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 3, the return signal analysis module further comprising:
a return pulse sample and hold module configured to generate an output signal indicative of a peak amplitude of the output signal after a transition of the hit signal.
11. The integrated LIDAR measurement device of claim 10, wherein the return pulse sample and hold module is further configured to generate a plurality of output signal values, each indicative of an amplitude of the output signal before and after the peak amplitude.
12. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 11, wherein a number of output signal samples before and after the peak amplitude is programmable.
13. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 1, wherein a first one of one or more return pulses of the detected return light is due to optical crosstalk of the illumination source and the photodetector, and wherein a time-of-flight associated with each subsequent one of the one or more return pulses is determined with reference to the first return pulse.
14. The integrated LIDAR measurement apparatus of claim 1, wherein a duration of a measurement window is approximately a time of flight of light from the LIDAR measurement apparatus to a maximum range of the LIDAR measurement apparatus and back to the LIDAR measurement apparatus.
15. A method, comprising:
generating a pulse trigger signal in response to receiving a pulse command signal on a return signal receiver IC mounted to the printed circuit board;
selectively electrically coupling an illumination source to an electrical power source in response to the pulse trigger signal such that the illumination source emits a measurement pulse of illumination light;
detecting an amount of return light received by a photodetector in response to a measurement pulse of illumination light, wherein the illumination source and photodetector are mounted to the printed circuit board;
generating an output signal indicative of the detected return light;
receiving the output signal onto the return signal receiver IC during the duration of a measurement window;
identifying one or more return pulses of the detected return light;
determining a time of flight associated with each identified return pulse; and
one or more properties of the segment of each identified return pulse are determined.
16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:
generating a hit signal that switches to a different value when the output signal exceeds a threshold voltage value;
generating a digital value indicative of time elapsed between a transition of the pulse trigger signal and a transition of the hit signal, wherein the digital value is a count of a number of transitions of a digital clock signal that occurred between the transition of the pulse trigger signal and the transition of the hit signal.
17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:
generating a first electrical signal indicative of a time difference between a transition of the hit signal and a subsequent transition of the digital clock signal and a second electrical signal indicative of a time difference between a transition of the digital hit signal and a subsequent transition of an inversion of the digital clock signal; and
generating a metastable signal, wherein the metastable signal is a digital clock signal shifted by half a period of the digital clock signal.
18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:
estimating a value of a time of flight of a measurement pulse of illumination light based at least in part on a digital value indicative of elapsed time between a transition of the pulse trigger signal and a transition of the hit signal, a time difference between a transition of the hit signal and a subsequent transition of the digital clock signal, a time difference between a transition of the hit signal and a subsequent transition of an inversion of the digital clock signal, and the metastable state signal.
19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:
an electrical signal is generated that indicates a time difference between a transition of an enable signal and a time when an amplitude of the hit signal falls below a threshold.
20. The method of claim 16, further comprising:
after the transition of the hit signal, an output signal is generated that indicates a peak amplitude of the output signal.
21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:
generating a plurality of output signal values, each output signal value being indicative of an amplitude of the output signal before and after a peak amplitude, wherein a number of output signal samples before and after the peak amplitude is programmable.
22. An integrated LIDAR measurement device, comprising:
an illumination source mounted to the printed circuit board;
an illumination driver Integrated Circuit (IC) mounted to the printed circuit board, the illumination driver IC selectively coupling the illumination source to an electrical power source in response to a pulse trigger signal such that the illumination source emits a measurement pulse of illumination light;
a photodetector mounted to the printed circuit board, the photodetector configured to detect a first amount of measurement pulses of illumination light caused by crosstalk between the illumination source and the photodetector, and a valid return pulse of light reflected from a location in the ambient environment illuminated by a second amount of the measurement pulses; and
a return pulse receiver IC mounted to the printed circuit board, the return pulse receiver IC configured to estimate a time between an instance when a first amount of measurement pulses of illumination light due to crosstalk is detected and an instance when a valid return pulse of light is detected.
Technical Field
The described embodiments relate to a LIDAR based 3-D point cloud measurement system.
Background
LIDAR systems employ light pulses to measure distances to objects based on the time of flight (TOF) of each light pulse. Light pulses emitted from a light source of the LIDAR system interact with remote objects. A portion of the light reflects off the object and returns to the detector of the LIDAR system. The distance is estimated based on the time elapsed between the emission of the light pulse and the detection of the returned light pulse. In some examples, the light pulses are generated by a laser emitter. The light pulses are focused by a lens or lens assembly. The time taken for a laser pulse to return to a detector mounted near the emitter is measured. The distance is derived from a time measurement with high accuracy.
Some LIDAR systems employ a single laser emitter/detector combination in conjunction with a rotating mirror to effectively scan the entire plane. The distance measurements performed by such systems are two-dimensional (i.e., planar) in nature, and the captured distance points are rendered as a 2-D (i.e., single planar) point cloud. In some examples, the rotating mirror rotates at a very fast speed (e.g., thousands of revolutions per minute).
In many operational scenarios, a 3-D point cloud is required. Several schemes have been employed to interrogate the surrounding environment in three dimensions. In some examples, the 2-D instrument is actuated up and down and/or back and forth, typically on a gimbal. This is commonly referred to in the art as "blinking" or "nodding" the sensor. Thus, a single beam LIDAR unit may be employed to capture the entire 3-D array of range points, albeit one point at a time. In a related example, a prism is employed to "divide" the laser pulse into multiple layers, each with a slightly different vertical angle. This simulates the nodding effect described above, but without the actuation sensor itself.
In all of the above examples, the optical path of a single laser emitter/detector combination is altered in some way to obtain a wider field of view than a single sensor. The number of pixels that such devices can generate per unit time is inherently limited due to limitations on the pulse repetition rate of a single laser. Any modification of the path of light speed, whether by mirrors, prisms, or actuating devices to achieve a larger coverage area, comes at the expense of reduced point cloud density.
As described above, 3-D point cloud systems exist in several configurations. However, in many applications, it is necessary to view in a wide field of view. For example, in an autonomous vehicle application, the vertical field of view should extend down as close as possible to see the ground in front of the car. Furthermore, in the event that the vehicle enters a dip in the road, the vertical field of view should extend above the horizon. Furthermore, it is necessary to minimize the delay between actions occurring in the real world and the imaging of those actions. In some examples, it is desirable to provide a full image update at least five times per second. To address these needs, 3-D LIDAR systems have been developed that include multiple laser emitters and detector arrays. This system is described in U.S. patent No. 7,969,558 issued on 28/6/2011, the subject matter of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
In many applications, a sequence of pulses is transmitted. The direction of each pulse is sequentially changed in rapid succession. In these examples, the distance measurements associated with each individual pulse may be considered pixels, and a set of pixels (i.e., a "point cloud") emitted and captured in rapid succession may be rendered into an image or analyzed for other reasons (e.g., to detect obstacles). In some examples, the resulting point cloud is rendered with viewing software as an image that presents three dimensions to the user. Different schemes may be used to depict the distance measurements as 3-D images that appear as if captured by a live camera.
Some existing LIDAR systems employ illumination sources and detectors that are not integrated together on a common substrate (e.g., an electrical mounting board). Additionally, the illumination beam path and the collection beam path are separate within the LIDAR device. This leads to opto-mechanical design complexity and alignment difficulties.
In addition, mechanical devices employed to scan the illumination beam in different directions may be sensitive to mechanical vibrations, inertial forces, and general environmental conditions. Without proper design, these mechanical devices may degrade, resulting in a loss of performance or failure.
In order to measure a 3D environment with high resolution and high throughput, the measurement pulses must be very short. Current systems suffer from low resolution because their ability to generate short duration pulses and resolve short duration return pulses is limited.
The saturation of the detector limits the measurement capability because the target reflectivity and proximity vary greatly in real operating environments. Furthermore, power consumption may cause the LIDAR system to overheat.
The light devices, targets, circuits and temperatures vary in the actual system. Without proper calibration of the signals detected from each LIDAR device, the variability of all of these elements limits system performance.
Improvements to the illumination drive electronics as well as the receiver electronics of LIDAR systems are desired to increase imaging resolution and range.
Disclosure of Invention
Methods and systems for performing three-dimensional LIDAR measurements using an integrated LIDAR measurement device are described herein.
In one aspect, a return signal receiver of the LIDAR measurement device generates a pulse trigger signal that causes the illumination driver to provide electrical power to the illumination source, which causes the illumination source to generate a pulse of illumination light. Furthermore, the pulsed trigger signal directly triggers data acquisition of the return signal and associated time-of-flight calculations. In this way, the pulse trigger signal is employed to trigger both pulse generation and return pulse data acquisition. This ensures accurate synchronization of pulse generation and return pulse acquisition, which enables accurate time-of-flight calculations through time-to-digital conversion.
In another aspect, the return signal receiver identifies one or more return pulses of light reflected from one or more objects in the surrounding environment in response to the pulses of illumination light, and determines a time of flight associated with each return pulse. The return signal receiver also estimates the width of each return pulse, the peak amplitude of each return pulse, and samples each return pulse waveform individually over a sampling window that includes the peak amplitude of each return pulse waveform. These signal attributes and timing information are communicated from the integrated LIDAR measurement device to the master controller.
In a further aspect, a time of flight associated with each return pulse is estimated by the return signal receiver based on the coarse timing module and the fine timing module. In a further aspect, a meta-stable bit is employed to determine the correct count of the coarse timing block when the hit signal is near a clock transition. The value of the meta-stable bit determines whether the hit signal comes near a high-to-low transition of the counter signal or near a low-to-high transition of the counter signal, thereby determining the correct count value.
In another further aspect, the return pulse receiver IC measures time-of-flight based on the time elapsed between detection of a pulse and a valid return pulse caused by internal crosstalk between an illumination source and a photodetector of the integrated LIDAR measurement device. In this way, the delay of the system is eliminated from the estimation of the time of flight.
In another aspect, the master controller is configured to generate a plurality of pulse command signals, each pulse command signal being communicated to a different integrated LIDAR measurement device. Each return pulse receiver IC generates a corresponding pulse trigger signal based on the received pulse command signal.
The foregoing is a summary and thus contains, by necessity, simplifications, generalizations, and omissions of detail; accordingly, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. Other aspects, inventive features, and advantages of the devices and/or processes described herein will become apparent in the non-limiting detailed description set forth herein.
Drawings
Fig. 1 is a simplified diagram illustrating one embodiment of a LIDAR measurement system that includes at least on an integrated LIDAR measurement device in at least one novel aspect.
Fig. 2 depicts a graphical representation of the timing associated with the transmission of measurement pulses from the integrated
Fig. 3 depicts a simplified diagram illustrating one embodiment of a portion of a return signal receiver IC that includes a return
Fig. 4 depicts a simplified diagram illustrating one embodiment of a portion of a return signal receiver IC including a constant
Fig. 5 depicts a simplified diagram illustrating one embodiment of a portion of a return signal receiver IC including a coarse timing module in one embodiment.
Fig. 6 depicts a simplified diagram illustrating one embodiment of a portion of a return signal receiver IC including a fine timing module in one embodiment.
Fig. 7 depicts a simplified diagram illustrating one embodiment of a portion of a return signal receiver IC including a pulse width detection module in one embodiment.
Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of the 3-
Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating another embodiment of the 3-D LIDAR system 10 in one exemplary operational scenario.
Fig. 10 depicts a diagram illustrating an exploded view of the 3-
Fig. 11 depicts a view of the
Fig. 12 depicts a cross-sectional view of the
Fig. 13 depicts a flow diagram illustrating a method 300 of performing LIDAR measurements with an integrated LIDAR measurement device in at least one new aspect.
Detailed Description
Reference will now be made in detail to background examples of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and some embodiments.
Fig. 1 depicts a
Further, in some embodiments, the integrated LIDAR measurement device includes one or more power supplies that provide electrical power to the electronic components mounted to the
The
The
In an aspect, the receiver IC150 receives the
The
In some embodiments, the
As depicted in fig. 1, the
The placement of the waveguide within the cone of acceptance of the
As depicted in fig. 1, return light 135 reflected from the surrounding environment is detected by a
The return signal receiver IC150 performs several functions. In one aspect, the receiver IC150 identifies return pulses of light reflected from one or more objects in the ambient environment in response to the pulses of
Fig. 2 depicts an illustration of timing associated with transmission of a measurement pulse and capture of a return measurement pulse(s) from the integrated
As depicted in fig. 2,
Internal system delays associated with the emission of light from the LIDAR system (e.g., signal communication delays and latencies associated with the switching elements, energy storage elements, and pulsed light emitting devices) and delays associated with collecting light and generating signals indicative of the collected light (e.g., amplifier latencies, analog-to-digital conversion delays, etc.) result in errors in the estimation of the time of flight of the measured pulses of light. Therefore, measurement of time-of-flight based on the rising edge of the
In another aspect, receiver IC150 measures time-of-flight based on the time elapsed between detection of detected
In some embodiments, the signal analysis is performed entirely by
Return signal receiver IC150 is a hybrid analog/digital signal processing IC. In the embodiment depicted in fig. 1, return signal receiver IC150 includes
Fig. 3 depicts a return
Amplified
For example, the
Further, the
The return pulse sample and hold
Pulse
Fig. 4 depicts a
Fig. 5 depicts an embodiment of a
The
In addition, each hit
Fig. 6 depicts the
In another aspect, the determination of the time of flight associated with each return pulse is determined based on the outputs of both the coarse and fine timing modules. In the embodiment depicted in fig. 1, the time-of-
In a further aspect, the transition of
Fig. 7 depicts the pulse
Pulse
In another aspect, the master controller is configured to generate a plurality of pulse command signals, each pulse command signal being communicated to a different integrated LIDAR measurement device. Each return pulse receiver IC generates a corresponding pulse control signal based on the received pulse command signal.
Fig. 8-10 depict a 3-D LIDAR system including multiple integrated LIDAR measurement devices. In some embodiments, a delay time is set between the firing of each integrated LIDAR measurement device. In some examples, the delay time is greater than a time of flight of the measurement pulse sequence to and from an object located at a maximum range of the LIDAR device. In this way, there is no crosstalk between any integrated LIDAR measurement devices. In some other examples, measurement pulses are transmitted from one integrated LIDAR measurement device before the measurement pulses transmitted from another integrated LIDAR measurement device have had time to return to the LIDAR device. In these embodiments, care is taken to ensure that there is sufficient spatial separation between the regions of the surrounding environment interrogated by each beam to avoid cross talk.
Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of the 3-
As depicted in FIG. 8, a plurality of
In the embodiment depicted in fig. 8, the 3-
Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating another embodiment of the 3-D LIDAR system 10 in one exemplary operational scenario. The 3-DLIDAR system 10 includes a lower housing 11 and an upper housing 12, the upper housing 12 including a cylindrical cap element 13 constructed of a material transparent to infrared light (e.g., light having a wavelength in the spectral range of 700 to 1,700 nanometers). In one example, the cylindrical cage element 13 is transparent to light having a wavelength centered at 905 nanometers.
As depicted in FIG. 9, over an angular range β, a plurality of light beams 15 are emitted from the 3-D LIDAR system 10 through the cylindrical cap element 13. in the embodiment depicted in FIG. 9, the chief ray of each light beam is illustrated.
In the embodiment depicted in fig. 9, the 3-D LIDAR system 10 is configured to scan each of the plurality of light beams 15 about the
Fig. 10 depicts an exploded view of the 3-
As depicted in fig. 10, the light emission/
The light emitted from each integrated LIDAR measurement device passes through a series of
Fig. 11 depicts a view of the
Fig. 12 depicts a cross-sectional view of the
In this manner, a LIDAR system, such as the 3-D LIDAR system 10 depicted in fig. 9 and the
In some embodiments, such as the embodiments described with reference to fig. 8 and 9, the array of integrated LIDAR measurement devices is mounted to a rotating frame of the LIDAR device. The rotating frame rotates relative to a base frame of the LIDAR device. In general, however, the array of integrated LIDAR measurement devices may be movable or fixed relative to the base frame of the LIDAR device in any suitable manner (e.g., gimbal, pan/tilt, etc.).
In some other embodiments, each integrated LIDAR measurement device includes a beam-directing element (e.g., a scanning mirror, a MEMS mirror, etc.) that scans an illumination beam generated by the integrated LIDAR measurement device.
In some other embodiments, two or more integrated LIDAR measurement devices each emit a beam of illumination light toward a scanning mirror device (e.g., a MEMS mirror) that reflects the beam in different directions into the surrounding environment.
In a further aspect, the one or more integrated LIDAR measurement devices are in optical communication with an optical phase modulation device that directs the illumination beam(s) generated by the one or more integrated LIDAR measurement devices in different directions. The optical phase modulation device is an active device that receives a control signal that causes the optical phase modulation device to change state, thereby changing the direction of light diffracted from the optical phase modulation device. In this manner, the illumination beam(s) generated by the one or more integrated LIDAR devices scan through a plurality of different orientations and effectively interrogate the surrounding 3-D environment being measured. The diffracted beam projected into the surrounding environment interacts with objects in the environment. Each respective integrated LIDAR measurement device measures a distance between the LIDAR measurement system and the detected object based on the collected return light from the object. An optical phase modulation device is placed in the optical path between the integrated LIDAR measurement device and the object being measured in the surrounding environment. Thus, both the illumination light and the corresponding return light pass through the optical phase modulation device.
Fig. 13 illustrates a flow diagram of a method 300 suitable for implementation by the integrated LIDAR measurement system described herein. In some embodiments, the integrated LIDAR measurement device may operate in accordance with the method 300 illustrated in fig. 13. In general, however, performance of the method 300 is not limited to the embodiment of the integrated
In block 301, a pulsed trigger signal is generated in response to receiving a pulsed command signal on a return signal receiver IC mounted to a printed circuit board.
In block 302, in response to a pulse trigger signal, an illumination source is selectively electrically coupled to an electrical power source such that the illumination source emits a measurement pulse of illumination light.
In block 303, an amount of return light received by the photodetector is detected in response to the measurement pulse of the illumination light. The illumination source and photodetector are mounted to a printed circuit board.
In block 304, an output signal indicative of the detected return light is generated.
In block 305, an output signal is received onto the return signal receiver IC during the duration of the measurement window.
In block 306, one or more return pulses of the detected return light are identified.
In block 307, a time of flight associated with each of the identified return pulses is determined.
In block 308, one or more attributes of the segments of each of the identified return pulses are determined.
A computing system as described herein may include, but is not limited to, a personal computer system, a mainframe computer system, a workstation, an image computer, a parallel processor, or any other device known in the art. In general, the term "computing system" may be broadly defined to encompass any device having one or more processors that execute instructions from a memory medium.
Program instructions implementing methods such as those described herein may be transmitted over transmission media such as wire, cable or wireless transmission links. The program instructions are stored in a computer readable medium. Exemplary computer readable media include read-only memory, random-access memory, magnetic or optical disks or tape.
In general, any of the power sources described herein may be configured to supply power specified as a voltage or current. Thus, any electrical power source described herein as a voltage source or current source may be considered an equivalent current source or voltage source, respectively. Similarly, any electrical signal described herein may be designated as a voltage signal or a current signal. Thus, any electrical signal described herein as being a voltage signal or a current signal may be considered an equivalent current signal or voltage signal, respectively.
In one or more exemplary embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and which can be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, includes Compact Disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), floppy disk and blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.
Although certain specific embodiments are described above for instructional purposes, the teachings of this patent document have general applicability and are not limited to the specific embodiments described above. Accordingly, various modifications, adaptations, and combinations of the various features of the described embodiments can be practiced without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.
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