Patent Application
20250024828
The present disclosure relates to vehicles, and more particularly to a vehicle that may monitor animals in a garage.
Many users have concerns related to garage security, e.g., security of a home garage. Some users use monitoring or security devices to enhance garage security. Such devices typically include cameras that monitor activity in the garage, and alert the users when a suspicious activity is detected.
Although conventional security devices provide many benefits to the users, these security devices may not be effective in certain scenarios. For example, the conventional security devices may not be effective in alerting the users when animals may be trapped in the garage.
The detailed description is set forth with reference to the accompanying drawings. The use of the same reference numerals may indicate similar or identical items. Various embodiments may utilize elements and/or components other than those illustrated in the drawings, and some elements and/or components may not be present in various embodiments. Elements and/or components in the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. Throughout this disclosure, depending on the context, singular and plural terminology may be used interchangeably.
The present disclosure describes a vehicle configured to monitor entry or presence of animals (or any unusual activity) in a garage, and perform one or more remedial actions. The vehicle may use sensors such as vehicle cameras, radar, lidar, etc. to detect a presence of an animal in a garage interior portion and a garage exterior portion (e.g., when a garage door may be open). In some aspects, a vehicle processor may be configured to obtain inputs from the sensor and determine that the animal may be approaching the garage interior portion or the animal may be present in the garage interior portion. Responsive to a determination that the animal may be approaching the garage interior portion, the vehicle processor may perform a first remedial action (first action). On the other hand, responsive to a determination that the animal may be present in the garage interior portion, the vehicle processor may be configured to perform a second remedial action (second action).
The first action may include causing the garage door to move from an open state to a closed state, to ensure that the animal may not enter the garage interior portion. In further aspects, the first action may include controlling one or more vehicle components (such as vehicle speaker, vehicle lights, etc.) or one or more garage components (such as garage lights or an alarm) to scare the animal away. In further aspects, the first action may include moving the vehicle slightly in the garage interior portion to scare the animal away.
In some aspects, when the vehicle processor determines that the animal may be present in the garage interior portion, the vehicle processor may further determine whether the animal is a household pet or other than the household pet (e.g., a stray animal) based on the inputs obtained from the sensors (e.g., the vehicle cameras) and images of a household pet stored in a vehicle memory. Responsive to a determination that the animal may be a stray animal, the vehicle processor may perform the second action that may include causing the garage door to move from a closed state to an open state (e.g., when the garage door may be in the closed state and the stray animal may be present in the garage interior portion). In further aspects, in this case, the second action may include transmitting a notification to a user device indicating a stray animal presence in the garage interior portion. In further aspects, the second action may include determining a stray animal location in the garage interior portion and transmitting the stray animal location to the user device.
On the other hand, responsive to a determination that the animal in the garage interior portion may be the household pet, the vehicle processor may be configured to perform the second action that may include causing the garage door to remain in the closed state (e.g., when the vehicle processor obtains a request to move the garage door from the closed state to the open state). In further aspects, in this case, the second action may include transmitting a notification to a user device indicating a household pet presence in the garage interior portion.
The systems and methods described herein may provide various advantages. For example, the system (e.g., a vehicle) may be configured to provide security in the garage using existing vehicle components. Thus, additional components for garage monitoring/security may not be required. In addition, the vehicle may be configured to perform remedial actions automatically to move to stray animals out of the garage, or to ensure that household pets do not move out of the garage.
The other advantages of the present disclosure are provided in detail herein.
The disclosure will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which example embodiments of the disclosure are shown, and not intended to be limiting.
The network 108 illustrates an example communication infrastructure in which the connected devices discussed in various embodiments of this disclosure may communicate. The network 108 may be and/or include the Internet, a private network, public network or other configuration that operates using any one or more known communication protocols such as, for example, transmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP), Bluetooth®, BLE®, Wi-Fi based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standard 802.11, UWB, and cellular technologies such as Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), High-Speed Packet Access (HSPDA), Long-Term Evolution (LTE), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and Fifth Generation (5G), to name a few examples.
The garage 102 may include one or more smart devices, for example, a garage door 110, garage lights 112, etc. The smart devices may communicatively couple with the vehicle 104 via the garage computing device and the network 108. The smart devices may be configured to receive and transmit instructions/notification/inputs from/to the vehicle 104. Further, the vehicle 104 may control operation of one or more smart devices installed in the garage 102 via the garage computing device.
The vehicle 104 may take the form of any passenger or commercial vehicle such as, for example, an off-road vehicle, a car, a crossover vehicle, a van, a minivan, a bus, a truck, etc. Further, the vehicle 104 may be a manually driven vehicle and/or may be configured to operate in partially or fully autonomous mode.
The vehicle 104 may include a garage security unit (shown as garage security unit 210 in
The vehicle 104 and the garage 102 may implement and/or perform operations, as described here in the present disclosure, in accordance with the owner manual and safety guidelines.
The system 200 may include a vehicle 202 and a garage 204. The vehicle 202 may be same as the vehicle 104 and the garage 204 may be same as the garage 102.
The vehicle 202 may include an automotive computer 206, a Vehicle Control Unit (VCU) 208 and a garage security unit 210. The VCU 208 may include a plurality of Electronic Control Units (ECUs) 212 disposed in communication with the automotive computer 206.
The system 200 may further include a mobile device 214 (same as the user device 106) that may connect with the automotive computer 206 and/or the garage security unit 210 by using wired and/or wireless communication protocols and transceivers. In some aspects, the mobile device 214 may be associated with a vehicle user/operator (not shown in
In some aspects, the automotive computer 206 and/or the garage security unit 210 may be installed in a vehicle engine compartment (or elsewhere in the vehicle 202). The automotive computer 206 may be or include an electronic vehicle controller, having one or more processor(s) 218 and a memory 220. Moreover, the garage security unit 210 may be separate from the automotive computer 206 (as shown in
The processor(s) 218 may be disposed in communication with one or more memory devices disposed in communication with the respective computing systems (e.g., the memory 220 and/or one or more external databases not shown in
In some aspects, the automotive computer 206 may be disposed in communication with one or more server(s) 222 and the mobile device 214. The server(s) 222 may be part of a cloud-based computing infrastructure and may be associated with and/or include a Telematics Service Delivery Network (SDN) that provides digital data services to the vehicle 202 and other vehicles (not shown in
In accordance with some aspects, the VCU 208 may share a power bus with the automotive computer 206, and may be configured and/or programmed to coordinate the data between vehicle 202 systems, connected servers (e.g., the server(s) 222), and other vehicles (not shown in
The vehicle sensory system 236 may include one or more vehicle sensors including, but not limited to, a Radio Detection and Ranging (RADAR or “radar”) sensor configured for detection and localization of objects inside and outside the vehicle 202 using radio waves, sitting area buckle sensors, sitting area sensors, a Light Detecting and Ranging (LiDAR or “lidar”) sensor, door sensors, proximity sensors, temperature sensors, wheel sensors, vehicle internal and external cameras, etc. In some aspects, the vehicle sensory system 236 may be configured to detect presence of an animal in a garage interior portion and a garage exterior portion. The animal may include a stray animal (such as a raccoon, a squirrel, a mouse, etc.) or household pets (such as dogs, cats, etc.). In further aspects, the vehicle sensory system 236 may be configured to monitor other activities in the garage 204 (or any other location) and is not restricted to monitoring of animals in the garage 204. For example, the vehicle sensory system 236 may further monitor presence of a child in the garage 204.
The TCU 230 can be configured and/or programmed to provide vehicle connectivity to wireless computing systems onboard and off board the vehicle 202, and may include a Navigation (NAV) receiver 238 for receiving and processing a GPS signal, a BLE® Module (BLEM) 240, a Wi-Fi transceiver, a UWB transceiver, and/or other wireless transceivers (not shown in
In some aspects, the ECUs 212 may control aspects of vehicle operation and communication using inputs from human drivers, inputs from an autonomous vehicle controller, the garage security unit 210, and/or via wireless signal inputs received via the wireless connection(s) from other connected devices, such as the mobile device 214, the server(s) 222, the garage 204 (e.g., a garage computing device associated with the garage 204, as described above in conjunction with
The BCM 224 generally includes integration of sensors, vehicle performance indicators, and variable reactors associated with vehicle systems, and may include processor-based power distribution circuitry that can control functions associated with the vehicle body such as vehicle lights, windows, security, camera(s), audio system(s), vehicle speakers, display system, door locks and access control, vehicle energy management, and various comfort controls. The BCM 224 may also operate as a gateway for bus and network interfaces to interact with remote ECUs (not shown in
In some aspects, the DAT controller 232 may provide Level-1 through Level-3 automated driving and driver assistance functionality that can include, for example, active parking assistance, trailer backup assistance, adaptive cruise control, lane keeping, and/or driver status monitoring, among other features. The DAT controller 232 may also provide aspects of user and environmental inputs usable for user authentication.
The DAT controller 232 can further obtain input information via the vehicle sensory system(s) 236, which may include sensors disposed on the vehicle interior and/or exterior (sensors not shown in
In some aspects, the automotive computer 206 may connect with an infotainment system 242 that may include a touchscreen interface portion, and may include voice recognition features, biometric identification capabilities that can identify users based on facial recognition, voice recognition, fingerprint identification, or other biological identification means.
The computing system architecture of the automotive computer 206, the VCU 208, and/or the garage security unit 210 may omit certain computing modules. It should be readily understood that the computing environment depicted in
In accordance with some aspects, the garage security unit 210 may be executed as part of and/or integrated with the ECUs 212. The garage security unit 210, regardless of whether it is integrated with the automotive computer 206 or the ECUs 212, or whether it operates as an independent computing system in the vehicle 202, may include a vehicle transceiver 244, a vehicle processor 246, and a vehicle computer-readable memory 248, which may be communicatively coupled to each other. The vehicle memory 248 may store the information associated with the household pets. In some aspects, the vehicle memory 248 may obtain the information associated with the household pets from the server(s) 222 or from the mobile device 214. In further aspects, the vehicle memory 248 may store information associated with the garage 204. The information associated with the garage 204 may include, for example, garage boundary details, images of the garage 204 captured by the vehicle exterior cameras, and/or the like. In addition, the vehicle memory 248 may store user preferences associated with garage monitoring. The user preferences may include, for example, settings to monitor specific types of entities (e.g., animals) and not to monitor other types of entities (e.g., adults), sensitivity levels, threshold values, alert mechanisms, etc.
The vehicle transceiver 244 may be configured to receive information/inputs from one or more external devices or systems, e.g., the mobile device 214, the server(s) 222, the garage 204 and/or the like via the network 216. The vehicle transceiver 244 may store the received information/inputs in the vehicle memory 248. Further, the vehicle transceiver 244 may transmit notifications (e.g., alert/alarm signals) to the external devices or systems (such as components associated with the garage 204). In addition, the vehicle transceiver 244 may be configured to receive information/inputs from vehicle components such as the infotainment system 242, the vehicle sensory system 236, and/or the like. Further, the vehicle transceiver 244 may transmit notifications (e.g., alert/alarm/activation signals) to the vehicle components such as the infotainment system 242, vehicle speakers, vehicle lights, etc.
The garage 204 may include a plurality of components including, but not limited to, a garage transceiver 250, a garage processor 252, a garage memory 254, the garage door 110, and the garage lights 112, etc., which may be communicatively coupled to each other. In some aspects, the garage transceiver 250, the garage processor 252 and the garage memory 254 may be part of the garage computing device described above in conjunction with
The garage memory 254 may store information associated with the garage 204. The information associated with the garage 204 may include, for example, the garage boundary details, garage light locations, etc. Further, the garage memory 254 may store programs in code and/or store data for performing various garage operations in accordance with the present disclosure. Specifically, the garage processor 252 may be configured and/or programmed to execute computer-executable instructions stored in the garage memory 254 for performing various garage security functions in accordance with the present disclosure. Consequently, the garage memory 254 may be used for storing code and/or data code and/or data for performing operations in accordance with the present disclosure.
In some aspects, the garage processor 252 may be disposed in communication with one or more memory devices (e.g., the garage memory 254 and/or one or more external databases (not shown in
In some aspects, the garage transceiver 250 may be configured to receive the inputs/notification/data from the vehicle transceiver 244. The garage transceiver 250 may be configured to store the received inputs/notification/data in the garage memory 254. For example, the garage transceiver 250 may receive activation signals from the vehicle transceiver 244 to move the garage door 110 between a closed state and an open state, request signals to provide garage door status (e.g., whether the garage door 110 may be in the closed state or the open state), activation signals to activate the garage lights 112, etc.
In operation, the vehicle processor 246 may determine that the vehicle 202 may be located or parked in the garage 204. Responsive to determining that the vehicle 202 may be parked in the garage 204, the vehicle processor 246 may determine/identify garage boundary (or entrance area of the garage 204). In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may receive inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236 and may identify the garage boundary based on the inputs obtained from the vehicle sensory system 236. In further aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain the boundary details from the vehicle memory 248 (that may pre-store garage boundary details) and identify the garage boundary based on the obtained boundary details. In further aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain the boundary details from the server 222 or the garage memory 254.
Further, the vehicle processor 246 may determine that the vehicle 202 may be in a key-off mode (e.g., vehicle ignition may be turned-off) and a garage security mode in the vehicle 202 may be enabled. In some aspects, the vehicle user may enable the garage security mode manually by using the infotainment system 242, an actuator, or via the mobile device 214. In further aspects, the garage security mode may be enabled automatically based on the user preferences stored in the vehicle memory 248. For example, the vehicle 202 may automatically enable the garage security mode when the vehicle 202 may be parked in the garage 204.
Responsive to a determination that the vehicle 202 may be parked in the garage 204, the vehicle 202 may be in the key-off mode and the garage security mode may be enabled, the vehicle processor 246 may perform garage monitoring. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain, via the vehicle transceiver 244, inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236 and may detect presence of animals (or other things) in the garage interior portion and the garage exterior portion based on the obtained inputs. For example, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain inputs from one or more of the radar, lidar, vehicle exterior cameras, etc. simultaneously or in a predetermined sequential manner (e.g., obtaining inputs from the vehicle exterior camera responsive to obtaining inputs from radar, lidar, etc.) and detect an animal presence (or any other activity) based on the obtained inputs.
In further aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may determine a state of charge (SoC) level of a vehicle battery and compare the SoC level with a predefined threshold value (that may be pre-stored in the vehicle memory 248). In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain the inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236 when the SoC level may be greater than the predefined threshold value. Stated another way, the vehicle processor 246 may first determine that the SoC level may be greater than the threshold value, and then obtain inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236 responsive to a determination that the SoC level is greater than the threshold value.
Responsive to detecting animal presence in the garage interior portion and/or the garage exterior portion, the vehicle processor 246 may determine that the detected animal may be approaching the garage interior portion or the animal may be present in the garage interior portion based on the inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236. The vehicle processor 246 may perform a first action when the detected animal may be approaching the garage interior portion and perform a second action when the animal may be present in the garage interior portion. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may perform the first action when a stray animal may be approaching the garage interior portion, and may perform the second action when the stray animal or a household pet may be present in the garage interior portion. In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may perform the first action or the second action based on the user preferences stored in the vehicle memory 248. The details of such determination and the first/second actions may be understood in conjunction with
In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may determine whether the garage door 304 may be in the open state or the closed state based on inputs obtained from the garage 300. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may transmit a request signal (e.g., via the vehicle transceiver 244) to the garage transceiver 250 seeking status associated with the garage door 304. Responsive to transmitting the request signal, the vehicle processor 246 may receive inputs associated with garage door status from the garage transceiver 250. The vehicle processor 246 may then determine that the garage door 304 may be in the open state based on the inputs obtained from the garage transceiver 250.
Responsive to a determination that the garage door 304 may be in the open state (and the garage security mode may be enabled), the vehicle processor 246 may obtain inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236 and determine that the stray animal 306 may be approaching the garage interior portion. Alternatively, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236 and determine that the stray animal 306 may be approaching the garage interior portion without determining that the garage door 304 may be in the open state.
In additional aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may identify the garage boundary (as described above) and determine that the stray animal 306 may have crossed the garage boundary based on the inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236. The vehicle processor 246 may determine that the stray animal 306 may be approaching the garage interior portion when the stray animal 306 crosses the garage boundary.
Responsive to a determination that the stray animal 306 may be approaching the garage interior portion, the vehicle processor 246 may perform the first action. In some aspects, the first action may include causing the garage door 304 to move from the open state to the closed state. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may transmit a control signal to the garage processor 252 (e.g., via the vehicle transceiver 244 and the garage transceiver 250) and cause the garage door 304 to move from the open state to the closed state.
In further aspects, the first action may include activating one or more vehicle components (via the BCM 224) to scare the stray animal 306 away and keep the stray animal 306 in the garage exterior portion. The vehicle components may include vehicle lights, vehicle speaker, etc. In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may cause the vehicle lights to activate in a predetermined manner and may cause the vehicle speaker to make noise at a predetermined volume, which may be based on the user preferences. The vehicle processor 246 may further deactivate the vehicle components after a predetermined time duration.
In additional aspects, the first action may include causing the vehicle 302 to move a predetermined distance or slightly (and remain in the garage interior portion) to scare the stray animal 306. Specifically, the vehicle transceiver 244 may transmit a control signal to the VCU 208 (e.g., the DAT controller 232) to move the vehicle 302 inside the garage 204.
In further aspects, the first action may include activating one or more garage components to scare the stray animal 306. The garage component may include garage lights 112, garage alarm, etc. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may transmit a control signal (via the vehicle transceiver 244 and the garage transceiver 250) to the garage processor 252 to activate the garage components. In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may further transmit a control signal to the garage processor 252 to deactivate the garage components after a predetermined time duration.
In further aspects, the first action may include transmitting a notification to the mobile device 214 indicating that the stray animal 306 may be approaching the garage interior portion. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may transmit the notification to the mobile device 214 via the vehicle transceiver 244.
In further aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may be configured to characterize the stray animal 306 based on the inputs obtained from the vehicle sensory system 236. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain images captured by the vehicle exterior camera, perform image processing, and characterize the stray animal 306 based on the image processing. For example, the vehicle processor 246 may characterize whether the stray animal 306 may be big or small. In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may further identify a stray animal type, e.g., stray dog, squirrel, raccoon, etc. The vehicle processor 246 may further transmit information associated with such determination/characterization to the mobile device 214 via the vehicle transceiver 244.
As described above, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236, and may determine that an animal may be present in the garage interior portion based on the obtained inputs. In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may additionally determine whether the detected animal is a stray animal (e.g., the stray animal 406) or a household pet (e.g., a household pet 506, as depicted in
The vehicle processor 246 may first determine whether a garage door 404 (same as the garage door 304) may be in the open state or the closed state, as described above. The vehicle processor 246 may perform the second action based on the determination of the garage door status. In some aspects, the second action may include causing the garage door 404 to move from the closed state to the open state responsive to a determination that the garage door 404 may be in the closed state and the stray animal 406 may be trapped or present in the garage interior portion. On the other hand, if the garage door 404 is already in the open state when the vehicle processor 246 determines that the stray animal 406 may be present in the garage interior portion, the vehicle processor 246 may keep or maintain the garage door 404 in the open state.
In further aspects, the second action may include activating one or more vehicle components to scare the stray animal 406 away to move the stray animal 406 from the garage interior portion to the garage exterior portion. The vehicle components may include the vehicle lights, the vehicle speaker, etc. The second action may further include causing the vehicle 402 to move slightly (and remain in the garage 204) to scare the stray animal 406. In further aspects, the second action may include activating one or more garage components to scare the stray animal 406, as described above in conjunction with
In further aspects, the second action may include transmitting a notification to the mobile device 214 to indicate that the stray animal 306 may be trapped or present in the garage interior portion. Specifically, the vehicle processor 246 may transmit the notification to the mobile device 214 via the vehicle transceiver 244. The notification may further include characterization of the stray animal 406, as described above in conjunction with
In further aspects, the second action may include determining a stray animal location based on the inputs obtained from the vehicle sensory system 236 responsive to a determination that the stray animal 406 may be present in the garage interior portion. Responsive to determining the stray animal location, the vehicle processor 246 may store the stray animal location in the vehicle memory 248 and may track the stray animal location using the inputs obtained from the vehicle sensory system 236. The vehicle processor 246 may further transmit the stray animal location to the mobile device 214 via the vehicle transceiver 244.
As described above, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236, and may determine that an animal may be present in the garage interior portion based on the obtained inputs. In some aspects, the vehicle processor 246 may determine whether the animal is a stray animal (e.g., the stray animal 406) or the household pet 506 (as described above in conjunction with
In operation, when the vehicle user (or any other user) actuates a button to move the garage door (e.g., a garage door 504, same as the garage door 110) from the closed state to the open state, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain such user request from the garage transceiver 250. Responsive to obtaining such user request, the vehicle processor 246 may obtain inputs from the vehicle sensory system 236. The vehicle processor 246 may then determine that the household pet 506 may be present in the garage interior portion (e.g., in proximity to the vehicle 502) based on the inputs, as described above. Responsive to a determination that the household pet 506 may be present in the garage interior portion, the vehicle processor 246 may perform the second action. In some aspects, the second action may include causing the garage door 504 to remain in the closed state such that the household pet 506 may remain in the garage interior portion. In further aspects, the second action may include transmitting a notification to the mobile device 214 (or activating a sound exciter or any other component) to indicate that the household pet 506 may be in the garage interior portion, before enabling the garage door 504 to open. The user may view/hear the notification and may move the household pet 506 away from the garage interior portion, before the vehicle processor 246 may open the garage door 504.
Referring to
At step 606, the method 600 may include determining, by the vehicle processor 246, that an animal may be approaching the garage interior portion or may be present in the garage interior portion based on the inputs obtained from the sensor. The animal may be a stray animal or a household pet.
At step 608, the method 600 may include performing, by the vehicle processor 246, a first action when the animal may be approaching the garage interior portion and a second action when the animal may be present in the garage interior portion.
The method 600 may end at step 610.
In the above disclosure, reference has been made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, which illustrate specific implementations in which the present disclosure may be practiced. It is understood that other implementations may be utilized, and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. References in the specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “an example embodiment,” etc., indicate that the embodiment described may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but every embodiment may not necessarily include the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, one skilled in the art will recognize such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described.
Further, where appropriate, the functions described herein can be performed in one or more of hardware, software, firmware, digital components, or analog components. For example, one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) can be programmed to carry out one or more of the systems and procedures described herein. Certain terms are used throughout the description and claims refer to particular system components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, components may be referred to by different names. This document does not intend to distinguish between components that differ in name, but not function.
It should also be understood that the word “example” as used herein is intended to be non-exclusionary and non-limiting in nature. More particularly, the word “example” as used herein indicates one among several examples, and it should be understood that no undue emphasis or preference is being directed to the particular example being described.
A computer-readable medium (also referred to as a processor-readable medium) includes any non-transitory (e.g., tangible) medium that participates in providing data (e.g., instructions) that may be read by a computer (e.g., by a processor of a computer). Such a medium may take many forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media and volatile media. Computing devices may include computer-executable instructions, where the instructions may be executable by one or more computing devices such as those listed above and stored on a computer-readable medium.
With regard to the processes, systems, methods, heuristics, etc. described herein, it should be understood that, although the steps of such processes, etc. have been described as occurring according to a certain ordered sequence, such processes could be practiced with the described steps performed in an order other than the order described herein. It further should be understood that certain steps could be performed simultaneously, that other steps could be added, or that certain steps described herein could be omitted. In other words, the descriptions of processes herein are provided for the purpose of illustrating various embodiments and should in no way be construed so as to limit the claims.
Accordingly, it is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many embodiments and applications other than the examples provided would be apparent upon reading the above description. The scope should be determined, not with reference to the above description, but should instead be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is anticipated and intended that future developments will occur in the technologies discussed herein, and that the disclosed systems and methods will be incorporated into such future embodiments. In sum, it should be understood that the application is capable of modification and variation.
All terms used in the claims are intended to be given their ordinary meanings as understood by those knowledgeable in the technologies described herein unless an explicit indication to the contrary is made herein. In particular, use of the singular articles such as “a,” “the,” “said,” etc. should be read to recite one or more of the indicated elements unless a claim recites an explicit limitation to the contrary. Conditional language, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” or “may,” unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments could include, while other embodiments may not include, certain features, elements, and/or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements, and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments.
