FIELD OF THE INVENTION
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The present invention relates to an improved pressing system.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
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Prior art pressing systems typically comprise a pressing element, a steam generator 3 and a steam delivery system, operably connected together.
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These systems provide the advantage of combining what is needed for pressing into a single element. Therefore, they form a single and complete unit, which is particularly useful for users that are not willing to search for each part individually.
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With the increasing success of laundromats (or "coin operated" or "self-service" laundries), there is a stronger need to provide, in addition to normal washing of clothes, the possibility of pressing them.
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Nevertheless, many problems have to be addressed:
- First, if the system comprises an iron, the latter is defined by a hot soleplate which might be improperly used in an unattended environment, thereby causing injury and damage to persons and/or property.
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In the prior art, in order to avoid excessive power consumption for maintaining a constant temperature in all the elements required for pressing, the pressing system is required to be completely switched down, which results in long waiting times before the start of the pressing process.
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It shall be further considered that, if the service requires payment, a user might find it unfair to pay for a pressing time that he/she could not utilize, for instance, as he/she waits for the pressing element to reach the operating temperature, or for instance because he/she can't start pressing as soon as the operating temperature is reached.
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Another drawback in the provision of a pressing system for use in unattended environments, such as self-service laundries, is its environmental impact, mainly caused by power consumption: any viable solution should be also environment-friendly and/or should not require an excessive increase of the available power.
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In view of the above, the provision of an automatic pressing system for use in unattended environments requires at least some of the above drawbacks to be at least partially obviated.
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A pressing system that could (at least partially) obviate the above drawbacks might be used, for instance, in laundromats or in hotels that would offer a self-service pressing service to their customers, either in addition to or instead of normal laundry services.
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The object of the present invention is to provide a pressing system that can fulfill the above mentioned requirement.
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Furthermore, the present invention affords advantages in terms of simple fabrication, greater strength, more compact design and/or higher versatility.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
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According to the present invention, this object is fulfilled by a pressing system as defined in claim 1.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
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The characteristics and advantages of the present invention will appear from the following detailed description of one practical embodiment, which is given as a non limiting example with reference to the annexed drawings, in which:
- Figure 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a first embodiment of a pressing system of the present invention;
- Figure 2 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a second embodiment of a pressing system of the present invention;
- Figure 3 is a block diagram of certain functions of the pressing system of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
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Although this is not expressly shown, the individual features described with reference to each embodiment shall be intended as auxiliary and/or interchangeable with other features, as described with reference to other embodiments.
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It shall be further noted that the claims shall not cover what will be found to be known or obvious to the skilled person before the priority date (which will be intended as a special excerpt).
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A pressing system, generally designated by numeral 1, according to an embodiment of the present invention, comprises a pressing element 2, a steam generator 3, a steam delivery system 5 and a control and monitoring device.
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The pressing system 1 of the present invention is particularly suitable for installation in unattended environments, i.e. where users operate by themselves, using equipment not owned by them, without the assistance of salesmen or attendants, and with the manager not ensuring a substantially continuous presence of operators.
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Optionally, the pressing system 1 may comprise a pressing board 4. The pressing board 4 may be with or without a vacuum feature, with or without a heating feature, and may be a separate, separable or integrated unit, relative to the rest of the pressing system 1.
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The pressing element 2 may be, for instance, the pressing soleplate 22 (as shown in Figure 1) of an iron, or a pressing dummy 21 (as shown in Figure 2), or any other element that the skilled person might deem suitable for an active pressing process.
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The steam generator 3 is typically a boiler, which may be designed to be either permanently connected to the water supply system by known arrangements (e.g. using a tank and a pump, interposed between the boiler and the tank), or not permanently connected to the water supply system.
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As an alternative, the steam generator 3 may be a heatable element, which is adapted to receive an amount of working fluid flowing therein in the liquid state such that, when the heatable element reaches the working temperature, the working fluid will change to the gaseous state, thereby generating pressing steam.
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The working fluid is typically water or steam. As used herein, the working fluid may be deemed to be both in the liquid state (water) and in the gaseous state (steam), and if such distinction is not relevant for the purposes of the present inventions, the three terms may be used interchangeably: for example, to indicate the temperature and/or pressure of water in the boiler, the skilled person will immediately recognize the temperature and/or pressure of steam in those states.
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Still for the purposes of the present disclosure, the pressing steam is distinguished from the heating steam: in a preferred embodiment, the pressing element 2 is heated.
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Such heating may occur by either electric dissipation (only) or steam (only), or both. If heating occurs by steam, the steam-based heating circuit (the heating steam delivery circuit) may be separate from or the same as the pressing steam delivery circuit or there may be no pressing steam delivery circuit at all.
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In a preferred embodiment, the pressing system 1 is only heated by steam. Therefore, a pressing system 1 may be envisaged, which comprises a pressing board 4 and a pressing soleplate 2, wherein the pressing soleplate 2 and/or the pressing board 4 are heated by steam, possibly by steam only.
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Therefore, the steam generator 3 may generate pressing steam and/or heating steam, either by a single device or by two separate devices. While reference is made herein, for simplicity, to an embodiment with a steam generator 3 comprising a single device, the skilled person will readily understand how the teachings of the present disclosure are also applicable to multiple separate devices.
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As used herein, the terms "pressing steam" and "heating steam" shall not be deemed as mutually exclusive, and the simple term "steam" shall not be deemed as implying one or both functions; the skilled person will acknowledge the limitations actually involved by these terms from the context, based on the technology that is or can be used from time to time.
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The steam delivery 5, pressing and/or heating system may comprise all the devices required for proper delivery of either type of steam, or both, as is known in the art of pressing. For example, it may include one, two or more conduits 51 for conveying the heating and/or pressing steam to the pressing element 2, as well as one, two or more conduits for returning the steam 52, e.g. the heating steam (only), to provide circulation thereof, thereby affording power savings.
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The control and monitoring device 6 is operably connected to the steam generator 3 to switch the operation of the steam generator 3 between a first stand-by operation state and a second work operation state.
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Thus, during inactivity, the steam generator 3 is not maintained at the temperature and/or pressure required for pressing, which will afford power savings.
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Furthermore, in a preferred embodiment the steam generator 3 may increase the pressure of the working fluid above atmospheric pressure, and hence the stand-by operation state can reduce the risks implied by the presence of a pressurized container in an unattended environment.
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The first and second (i.e. stand-by and working) operation states will be described hereinbelow, referring to steady states, although the pressing system 1 may actually have relatively long transient periods.
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Particularly, at each operation state of the pressing system 1, the control and monitoring device 6 will have a corresponding logic state associated therewith; the control and monitoring device 6 may also have logic states associated with the transient operation states of the pressing system 1.
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When the control and monitoring device 6 changes its logic state, the operation state of the pressing system 1 may not immediately reflect the new logic state, but the control and monitoring device 6 may start a transient to gradually move the operation state of the pressing system 1 closer to the operation state corresponding to the new logic state.
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Such changes may consist, for example, in turning on/off or changing the operation of a heating element 31 (e.g. a resistor, a coil or a heater) in the steam generating device 3.
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The stand-by operation state differs, for instance, from the off-state in that the temperature of the working fluid is higher than ambient temperature, in the steady state. Furthermore, in the stand-by state, the temperature and/or pressure conditions of said working fluid are lower than the temperature and/or pressure conditions that said working fluid has when it is in its steady state in said second operation state.
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Particularly, the temperature and/or pressure conditions for the working fluid include a temperature of said working fluid not exceeding 130°C, preferably not exceeding 120°C, more preferably not exceeding 110°C, most preferably not exceeding 100°C, for instance about 90°C.
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The control and monitoring device 6 may be operably connected to the steam generator 3 to be able to detect the pressure and/or temperature of the working fluid, e.g. by temperature and/or pressure sensors, as specially needed from time to time.
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As used herein, the term "control and monitoring device" is intended to designate the combination of systems and/or devices adapted to carry out the above steps, regardless of whether such systems and/or devices are physically located on a single electronic board or on multiple boards, and regardless of whether such boards are interconnected or not.
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Therefore, the control and monitoring device 6 may control the steam generator 3 to raise and/or lower the temperature of the working fluid until reaching the temperature and/or pressure corresponding to the requested or selected operation state.
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For example, if the steam generator 3 is a pressurized boiler, temperature control may be effected either by a temperature sensor for temperatures up to about 100°C and by a pressure sensor for higher temperatures or by a temperature sensor for all temperatures.
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The heating and/or pressure steam delivery system 5 is advantageously controlled and/or monitored by the control and monitoring device 6; for instance, the pressing steam delivery system is controlled as dependent on the heating steam delivery system (which means that no pressing steam may be delivered if there is no heating steam delivery).
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In a preferred embodiment, for example, there is a single steam delivery system 5, which comprises a delivery conduit 51 that conveys steam from the steam generator 3 to the pressing element 2; at such pressing element 2, the steam delivery system 5 comprises a heating circuit and a pressing circuit, which is separate from the former by a valve 53, e.g. having a manual operation. The valve 53 is in such position as to allow steam to flow out of the heating circuit towards the pressing circuit, when needed.
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In the first stand-by operation state, for example, the heating steam delivery system 5 substantially (or entirely) prevents delivery of pressing and/or heating steam to the pressing element 2.
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Upon authentication of a user by an authentication device 7, this authentication device 7 sends a starting signal to the control and monitoring device 6 and the latter actuates the heating element 31 to reach the second working operation state.
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The authentication device 7 may include a payment system, an ID card reading system, a system comprising a code entering device and a code checking device, a fingerprint scanner, or any other device equivalent thereto in view of the purposes as disclosed herein.
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The authentication device 7 may be either physically connected to the pressing system 1 or physically (entirely or partially) separated therefrom. In any case, irrespective of its physical or logic structure, the authentication device 7 may send the starting signal to the control and monitoring device 6.
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Of course, a pressure and/or temperature check on the working fluid may be envisaged before heating, to prevent excessive heating, e.g. if the control and monitoring device 6 is actually in the stand-by logic state, and the steam generator 3 has not been cooled enough, or has not been cooled at all.
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If needed, the control and monitoring device 6 may turn on the heating element 31 of the steam generator 3.
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During heating, the control and monitoring device 6 may sense the temperature and/or pressure of the working fluid, and compare them to preset values, i.e. stored in a suitable storage (or memory) device.
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Certain preset values may define a third threshold state; for instance, such temperature and/or pressure conditions may involve a working fluid temperature of at least 105°C, preferably at least 115°C, e.g. at least 125°C. If a pressure check is performed, the pressure for the third threshold state may be above 1 bar (relative), e.g. above 1.5 bar (relative), preferably above or about equal to 2 bar (relative).
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During heating, preferably as long as the temperature and/or pressure of the working fluid are lower than those of the third threshold state, the control and monitoring device 6 may prevent the steam delivery system from delivering (pressing and/or heating) steam.
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Advantageously, the control and monitoring device 6 only allows delivery of heating and/or pressing steam if the temperature and/or pressure conditions detected in the steam generator 3 fall in the preset temperature and/or pressure conditions of the third threshold state and the second working operation state.
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Therefore, the control and monitoring device 6 may have, stored therein, the information concerning the parameters that define the first stand-by operation state, the second working operation state, the third threshold state and/or a fourth end-of-waiting time state.
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Particularly, once the third threshold state has been reached, the control and monitoring device 6 may check whether the parameters for the fourth end-of-waiting time state have been fulfilled.
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In one exemplary embodiment, the fourth end-of-waiting time state may be reached either when the pressure and/or temperature conditions of the steam generator 3 fulfill the preset conditions for the second working state, or when a predetermined maximum waiting time has elapsed from the time in which the third was reached.
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Thus, as soon as the third threshold state has been reached (as confirmed by the emission of an audible and/or visual signal, such as a colored, e.g. amber, indicator) the user may safely use the pressing system 1 within a maximum waiting time, and under efficient pressing conditions.
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For instance, the maximum waiting time may be preset to a value of one minute or less, two minutes of less, five minutes or less.
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The attainment of the fourth end-of-waiting time state may be confirmed to the user by the emission of an audible and/or visual signal, such as a colored, e.g. green, indicator, possibly without notifying the user whether the second working state and/or the third threshold state have been reached or not.
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If the fourth end-of-waiting time state has been reached without reaching the second working state, the control and monitoring device 6 may keep on monitoring the steam generator 3 to further heat the working fluid.
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The pressing system 1 may also include an end-of-pressing check system (not shown).
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This check system can generate an end-of-pressing signal and send it to the control and monitoring device 6. Possibly, the end-of-pressing check system may be incorporated in the control and monitoring device 6.
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When the control and monitoring device 6 receives the end-of-pressing signal, it ends the heating operation and/or controls the steam delivery system 5 to substantially (or entirely) prevent delivery of pressing and/or heating steam, and moves to the logic state corresponding to the stand-by operation state.
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Then, the heating element 31 of the steam generator 3 will no longer operate to heat the working fluid, and the temperature and/or pressure of the working fluid will slowly decrease towards ambient conditions, by thermal drift.
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The control and monitoring device 6 will not oppose cooling until the temperature and/or pressure conditions of the working fluid are higher than those preset for the first stand-by operation state.
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As soon as such conditions are reached, the control and monitoring device 6 may control the steam generator 3 to keep it in such state, until it receives the starting signal.
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In a preferred embodiment, the physical construction of the control and monitoring device 6 to keep the steam generator 3 in stand-by conditions may be separate and/or independent from the physical construction of the other parts of the control and monitoring device 6.
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The following two tables, concerning an exemplary embodiment, show the preset required parameters to reach the four states as described above.
| | First state (stand-by) | Second state (working) |
| Condition | T=90°C | p=3 bar (relative) |
| Heating steam delivery system | Closed | Open |
| Pressing steam delivery system | Closed | Open |
| Waiting for: | Starting signal | End-of-pressing signal |
| To change to: | Heating | End-of-heating |
| | Third state (threshold) | Fourth state (end-of-waiting time) |
| Condition | p=2 bar (relative) | p=3 bar (relative) or 1 min from third state |
| Heating steam delivery system | Open | Open |
| Pressing steam delivery system | Closed | Open |
| Waiting for: | Check of threshold condition | Check of end-of-waiting time conditions |
| To change to: | Heating | Heating or maintenance of the second working state |
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The first and second states may be steady states, which means that the control and monitoring device 6 may be designed to keep the pressing system 1 in a (stand-by or working) operation state, in which it will remain until an external stimulus is received: the starting signal or the end-of-pressing signal respectively.
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On the other hand, the third and fourth states may be transient states, which means that the control and monitoring device 6 may be designed to keep on heating the working fluid both before and after reaching the third and fourth states. Particularly, the third threshold state may serve as a trigger for checking the fourth end-of-waiting time state.
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Preferably, the countdown of the maximum waiting time starts as the third state is reached.
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The authentication device 7 and the end-of-pressing check system may include a payment system and/or a personal ID element reading system and/or a system for locating the pressing element 2 and/or a system for detecting a garment to be pressed in a given volume.
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For example, the generation of the starting signal may be subordinated to a local or remote check of payment or recognition of a personal ID (card, electronic key or the like) among the authorized personal IDs within a proper storage system, or may be timed with a predetermined or programmable delay.
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The generation of the end-of-pressing signal may be subordinated to a check of the end of a preset interval of time and/or to the detection of the pressing element 2 in a given volume, possibly for a preset (e.g. at least 10 seconds) or programmable period of time.
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The following embodiments are further described:
Embodiment 1
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A pressing system 1 for use in unattended environments comprising:
- a steam generator 3 capable of generating steam from a working fluid;
- a pressing element 2 in fluid connection with said steam generator 3 to receive steam from said steam generator 3;
wherein said pressing element 2 is adapted to be heated by the steam generated by said steam generator 3, preferably only by the steam generated by said steam generator 3.
Embodiment 2
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A pressing system 1 according to the previous embodiment, wherein said pressing element 2 comprises a pressing soleplate 22 and said pressing system comprises a pressing board 4, said pressing board 4 being adapted to be heated by steam generated by said steam generator 3, preferably to be heated only by steam generated by said steam generator 3.
Embodiment 3
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A pressing system according to the embodiment 1, wherein said pressing element 2 comprises a pressing dummy 21.
Embodiment 4
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A pressing method comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a pressing system 1 according to any one of the embodiments from 1 to 3 in an unattended environment, said pressing system comprising a control and monitoring device 6 and comprising or being adapted to be connected to a user authentication device 7;
- (b) authenticating a user by said authentication device 7;
- (c) sending an authentication signal to said control and monitoring device 6;
- (d) at least after receiving said authentication signal from said control and monitoring device 6, heating said pressing element 2 by steam generated by said steam generator 3, preferably only by steam generated by said steam generator 3.
Embodiment 5
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A method according to the previous embodiment, wherein said pressing element 2 comprises a pressing soleplate 22 and said pressing system comprises a pressing board 4, said method comprising the step of:
- (e) heating said pressing board 4 by steam generated by said steam generator 3, preferably only by steam generated by said steam generator 3.
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Those skilled in the art will obviously appreciate that a number of changes and variants may be made to the arrangements as described hereinbefore to meet incidental and specific needs.
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All of these variants and changes fall within scope of the invention, as defined in the following claims.
