METHODS

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is a continuation claiming the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 120 of U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 14/957,443, filed December 2, 2015 under Attorney Docket No. B 1348.70022US00 and entitled "TIME GAIN COMPENSATION CIRCUIT AND

RELATED APPARATUS AND METHODS," which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Field

[0002] The present application relates to ultrasound devices having a time gain compensation circuit.

Related Art

[0003] Ultrasound devices may be used to perform diagnostic imaging and/or treatment. Ultrasound imaging may be used to see internal soft tissue body

structures. Ultrasound imaging may be used to find a source of a disease or to exclude any pathology. Ultrasound devices use sound waves with frequencies which are higher than those audible to humans. Ultrasonic images are made by sending pulses of ultrasound into tissue using a probe. The sound waves are reflected off the tissue, with different tissues reflecting varying degrees of sound. These reflected sound waves may be recorded and displayed as an image to the operator. The strength (amplitude) of the sound signal and the time it takes for the wave to travel through the body provide information used to produce an image.

[0004] Many different types of images can be formed using ultrasound devices. The images can be real-time images. For example, images can be generated that show two- dimensional cross-sections of tissue, blood flow, motion of tissue over time, the location of blood, the presence of specific molecules, the stiffness of tissue, or the anatomy of a three- dimensional region. SUMMARY

[0005] According to an aspect of the present application, there is provided an ultrasound device, comprising a profile generator, an encoder configured to receive a profile signal from the profile generator, and an attenuator configured to receive a signal representing an output of an ultrasound sensor and coupled to the encoder to receive a control signal from the encoder, the attenuator comprising a plurality of binary attenuator stages, the attenuator configured to produce an output signal that is an attenuated version of the input signal.

[0006] According to an aspect of the present application, there is provided an ultrasound device, comprising a profile generator, an encoder configured to receive a profile signal from the profile generator, and an attenuator configured to receive a signal representing an output of an ultrasound sensor and coupled to the encoder to receive a control signal from the encoder, the attenuator comprising a plurality of stages, each stage in the plurality of stages having a predetermined attenuation, the attenuator configured to produce an output signal that is an attenuated version of the input signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] Various aspects and embodiments of the application will be described with reference to the following figures. It should be appreciated that the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. Items appearing in multiple figures are indicated by the same reference number in all the figures in which they appear.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an ultrasound device including a time gain compensation circuit, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

[0009] FIG. 2A is a circuit diagram illustrating a differential parallel implementation of the attenuator of FIG. 1, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

[0010] FIG. 2B is a circuit diagram illustrating a differential series implementation of the attenuator of FIG. 1, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

[0011] FIG. 2C is a circuit diagram illustrating a single-ended parallel implementation of the attenuator of FIG. 1, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

[0012] FIG. 2D is a circuit diagram illustrating a single-ended series implementation of the attenuator of FIG. 1, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application. [0013] FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram illustrating an implementation of the attenuator of FIG. 1, including complementary switches, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

[0014] FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram illustrating the digital encoder and shift register used to determine the state of the complementary switches of FIG. 3, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

[0015] FIG. 5 is a graph illustrating the temporal evolution of three control signals and the state of the shift register of FIG. 4, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

[0016] FIG. 6 is a graph illustrating a time gain compensation response triggered by the reception of a signal featuring a dip, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The inventors have recognized and appreciated that the power consumption and the accuracy associated with time gain compensation circuits may be improved by replacing variable amplifiers with amplification circuits comprising variable attenuators and fixed gain amplifiers. This approach can significantly simplify the amplifier design shifting the problem from the design of an active circuit to the design of a passive circuit.

[0018] Aspects of the present application relate to variable attenuator circuits for time gain compensation comprising a plurality of resistors that are individually digitally enabled. Because the circuits comprise fixed resistors, high degrees of attenuation accuracy, and consequently high degrees of gain accuracy, may be accomplished. Furthermore, the source of power consumption associated with the variable attenuator is the digital circuits enabling the resistors.

[0019] The aspects and embodiments described above, as well as additional aspects and embodiments, are described further below. These aspects and/or embodiments may be used individually, all together, or in any combination of two or more, as the application is not limited in this respect.

[0020] FIG. 1 illustrates a circuit for processing received ultrasound signals, according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present application. The circuit 100 includes N ultrasonic transducers 102a...102n, wherein N is an integer. The ultrasonic transducers are sensors in some embodiments, producing electrical signals representing received ultrasound signals. The ultrasonic transducers may also transmit ultrasound signals in some embodiments. The ultrasonic transducers may be capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs) in some embodiments. The ultrasonic transducers may be piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducers (PMUTs) in some embodiments. Further alternative types of ultrasonic transducers may be used in other embodiments.

[0021] The circuit 100 further comprises N circuitry channels 104a... 104n. The circuitry channels may correspond to a respective ultrasonic transducer 102a... 102n. For example, there may be eight ultrasonic transducers 102a... 102n and eight corresponding circuitry channels 104a... 104n. In some embodiments, the number of ultrasonic transducers 102a... 102n may be greater than the number of circuitry channels.

[0022] The circuitry channels 104a... 104n may include transmit circuitry, receive circuitry, or both. The transmit circuitry may include transmit decoders 106a... 106n coupled to respective pulsers 108a... 108n. The pulsers 108a... 108n may control the respective ultrasonic transducers 102a... 102n to emit ultrasound signals.

[0023] The receive circuitry of the circuitry channels 104a... 104n may receive the electrical signals output from respective ultrasonic transducers 102a... 102n. In the illustrated example, each circuitry channel 104a... 104n includes a respective receive switch 110a... 110η and an amplifier 112a... 112n. The receive switches 110a... 110η may be controlled to activate/deactivate readout of an electrical signal from a given ultrasonic transducer

102a... 102n. More generally, the receive switches 110a... 110η may be receive circuits, since alternatives to a switch may be employed to perform the same function. The amplifiers 112a... 112n may be trans-impedance amplifiers (TIAs).

[0024] The circuit 100 further comprises an averaging circuit 114, which is also referred to herein as a summer or a summing amplifier. In some embodiments, the averaging circuit 114 is a buffer or an amplifier. The averaging circuit 114 may receive output signals from one or more of the amplifiers 112a... 112n and may provide an averaged output signal. The averaged output signal may be formed in part by adding or subtracting the signals from the various amplifiers 112a... 112n. The averaging circuit 114 may include a variable feedback resistance. The value of the variable feedback resistance may be adjusted dynamically based upon the number of amplifiers 112a... 112n from which the averaging circuit receives signals. The averaging circuit 114 is coupled to an auto-zero block 116. [0025] The auto-zero block 116 is coupled to a time gain compensation circuit 118 which includes an attenuator 120 and a fixed gain amplifier 122. Attenuator 120, as well as attenuator 200 of FIG. 2A, attenuator 220 of FIG. 2B, attenuator 240 of FIG. 2C, and attenuator 260 of FIG. 2D, may be a variable attenuator in some embodiments. As will be described further below, one or more resistors may be enabled/disabled thus adjusting the attenuation associated with the attenuator.

[0026] The time gain compensation circuit 118 is coupled to an ADC 126 via ADC drivers 124. In the illustrated example, the ADC drivers 124 include a first ADC driver 125a and a second ADC driver 125b. The ADC 126 digitizes the signal(s) from the averaging circuit 114.

[0027] While FIG. 1 illustrates a number of components as part of a circuit of an ultrasound device, it should be appreciated that the various aspects described herein are not limited to the exact components or configuration of components illustrated. For example, aspects of the present application relate to the time gain compensation circuit 118.

[0028] The components of FIG. 1 may be located on a single substrate or on different substrates. For example, as illustrated, the ultrasonic transducers 102a...102n may be on a first substrate 128a and the remaining illustrated components may be on a second substrate 128b. The first and/or second substrates may be semiconductor substrates, such as silicon substrates. In an alternative embodiment, the components of FIG. 1 may be on a single substrate. For example, the ultrasonic transducers 102a...102n and the illustrated circuitry may be

monolithically integrated on the same semiconductor die. Such integration may be facilitated by using CMUTs as the ultrasonic transducers.

[0029] According to an embodiment, the components of FIG. 1 form part of an ultrasound probe. The ultrasound probe may be handheld. In some embodiments, the components of FIG. 1 form part of an ultrasound patch configured to be worn by a patient.

[0030] The gain of fixed gain amplifier 122 may have values between approximately ldB and lOOdB, between approximately 3dB and 30dB, between approximately 5dB and 20dB, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0031] In some embodiments fixed gain amplifier 122 has a gain of 20dB.

[0032] The attenuation of variable attenuator 120 may have values between

approximately ldB and lOOdB, between approximately 3dB and 30dB, between approximately 5dB and 20dB, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible. [0033] Circuit 200, shown in FIG. 2A, represents a non-limiting embodiment of attenuator 120. Circuit 200 is arranged in a differential configuration. Circuit 200 has a differential input voltage 201 and a differential output voltage 202. Resistor 203 is associated with the "+" side of the differential circuit. On the other hand, series resistors 204 is associated with the "-" side of the differential circuit. Resistor 203 may or may not have a resistance equal to that of resistor 204. Placed in parallel, between the output of resistors 203 and 204 and output voltage 202, are circuits 210i, where i may assume values between 1 and m. According to some embodiments, each circuit 210i comprises the series of resistor 205i, switch 206i and resistor 207i. Resistor 205i may or may not have a resistance equal to that of resistor 207i.

[0034] Each switch 206i may have 2 possible states: closed or open. When switch 206i is closed, circuit 210i represents a resistor having a resistance equal to the sum of resistors 205i and 207 i _. Contrarily, when switch 206i open, circuit 210ihas a resistance equal to infinite.

According to some embodiments, the overall resistance seen by the input signal may be varied by changing the state of switches 206i. In this configuration, the overall resistance may be defined by a digital code of m bits in length, where a bit equal to 1 represents a closed switch and a bit equal to 0 represents an open switch. Each switch 206i may assume a closed or open state, independently of the state of the other switches.

[0035] Resistors 203 and 204, and each resistor 205i and 207 i may have values between approximately 1Ω and lOGQ, between approximately 100Ω and 100ΜΩ, between

approximately 1ΚΩ and 1ΜΩ, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0036] In some embodiments, resistors 205i and 207imay be chosen to progressively increase or decrease by a constant factor x as a function of i. For example, if resistor 2051 is set to R, resistor 205 ₂ may be equal to xR, resistor 205 ₃ may be equal to x R, and resistor 205 _m may be equal to x ^{m l} R. Factor x may have values between approximately 0.001 and 1000, between approximately 0.1 and 10, between approximately 0.5 and 2, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0037] In some embodiments, resistors 205i are all equal to each other and resistors 207 i are all equal to each other, for any value of i.

[0038] In some embodiments, a fixed attenuation stage may be obtained by closing some or all switches 206i and by setting resistors 203, 204 and each of the resistors 205i and 207 i to a predefined value. [0039] Circuit 220, shown in FIG. 2B, represents another non-limiting embodiment of the attenuator 120. Circuit 220 is also arranged in a differential configuration. Circuit 220 has a differential input voltage 221 and a differential output voltage 222. Resistor 223 is associated with the "+" side of the differential circuit. On the other hand, series resistor 224 is associated with the "-" side of the differential circuit. Resistor 223 may or may not have a resistance equal to that of resistor 224. In series to resistor 223 is the series of circuits 230i where i may assume any value between 1 and m. Similarly, in series to resistor 224 is the series of circuits 231L Each circuit 230i comprises resistor 225i configured in parallel to switch 226i and circuit 23 li comprises resistor 227 i configured in parallel to switch 228i _. Resistors 225i may or may not have a resistance equal to that of resistor 227i.

[0040] Each switch 226i and 228i may have 2 possible states: closed or open. According to some embodiments, the overall resistance seen by the input signal may be varied by independently adjusting the state of each switch 226i and 228i. As in the parallel circuit described previously, a bit sequence may be used to determine the state of each switch.

[0041] Resistors 223 and 224, and each resistor 225i and 227 i may have values between approximately 1Ω and lOGQ, between approximately 100Ω and 100ΜΩ, between

approximately 1ΚΩ and 1ΜΩ, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0042] In some embodiments, resistors 225i and 227imay be chosen to progressively increase or decrease by a constant factor x as a function of i. For example, if resistor 2251 is set to R, resistor 225 ₂ may be equal to xR, resistor 225 ₃ may be equal to x R, and resistor 225 _m may be equal to x ^{m l} R. Factor x may have values between approximately 0.001 and 1000, between approximately 0.1 and 10, between approximately 0.5 and 2, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0043] In some embodiments, resistors 225i are all equal to each other and resistors 227 i are all equal to each other, for any value of i.

[0044] In some embodiments, a fixed attenuation stage may be obtained by closing some or all switches 226i and 228i and by setting resistors 223, 224 and each of the resistors 225i and 227i to a predefined value.

[0045] While circuit 200 represents a differential parallel embodiment of attenuator 120, circuit 220 represents a differential series embodiment of attenuator 120. As may be appreciated by a person of ordinary skills in the art, any suitable combination of parallel and series arrangements may be used.

[0046] Circuit 240, shown in FIG. 2C, represents another non-limiting embodiment of the attenuator 120. Circuit 240 is arranged in a single-ended configuration, as the - side of the circuit is connected to ground. Circuit 240 has a single-ended input voltage 241 and a single- ended output voltage 242. Circuit 240 comprises series resistor 243, and parallel circuits 250i where i may assume any value between 1 and m. Each circuit 250i comprises resistor 245i connected in series to switch 246i.

[0047] Each switch 246i may have 2 possible states: closed or open. According to some embodiments, the overall resistance seen by the input signal may be varied by independently adjusting the state of each switch 246i . As in the parallel circuits described previously, a bit sequence may be used to determine the state of each switch.

[0048] Resistors 243, and each resistor 245i may have values between approximately 1Ω and lOGQ, between approximately 100Ω and 100ΜΩ, between approximately 1ΚΩ and 1ΜΩ, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0049] In some embodiments, resistors 245i may be chosen to progressively increase or decrease by a constant factor x as a function of i. For example, if resistor 2451 is set to R, resistor 245 ₂ may be equal to xR, resistor 245 ₃ may be equal to x R, and resistor 245 _m may be equal to x ^{m l} R. Factor x may have values between approximately 0.001 and 1000, between approximately 0.1 and 10, between approximately 0.5 and 2, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0050] In some embodiments, resistors 245i are all equal to each other.

[0051] In some embodiments, a fixed attenuation stage may be obtained by closing each switch 246i and by setting resistors 243 and each of the resistors 245i to a predefined value, for any value of i.

[0052] Circuit 260, shown in FIG. 2D, represents another non-limiting embodiment of the attenuator 120. Circuit 260 is also arranged in a single-ended configuration. Circuit 260 has a single-ended input voltage 261 and a single-ended output voltage 262. Circuit 260 comprises series resistor 263 connected in series to circuits 270i where i may assume any value between 1 and m. Each circuit 270i comprises resistor 265i connected in parallel to switch 266i.

[0053] Each switch 266i may have 2 possible states: closed or open. According to some embodiments, the overall resistance seen by the input signal may be varied by independently adjusting the state of each switch 266i . As in the parallel circuits described previously, a bit sequence may be used to determine the state of each switch.

[0054] Resistors 263, and each resistor 265i may have values between approximately 1Ω and lOGQ, between approximately 100Ω and 100ΜΩ, between approximately 1ΚΩ and 1ΜΩ, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0055] In some embodiments, resistors 265i may be chosen to progressively increase or decrease by a constant factor x as a function of i. For example, if resistor 2651 is set to R, resistor 265 ₂ may be equal to xR, resistor 265 ₃ may be equal to x R, and resistor 265 _m may be equal to x ^{m l} R. Factor x may have values between approximately 0.001 and 1000, between approximately 0.1 and 10, between approximately 0.5 and 2, or any other value or range of values. Other values are also possible.

[0056] In some embodiments, resistors 265i are all equal to each other.

[0057] According to some embodiments, a fixed attenuation stage may be obtained by closing some or all switches 266i and by setting resistors 263 and each of the resistors 265i to a predefined value, for any value of i.

[0058] While circuit 240 represents a single-ended parallel embodiment of attenuator 120, circuit 260 represents a single-ended series embodiment of attenuator 120. As may be appreciated by a person of ordinary skills in the art, any suitable combination of parallel and series arrangements may be used.

[0059] FIG. 3 shows a non-limiting embodiment of attenuator 120. While circuit 300 is presented in a differential parallel configuration, other configurations may be used. For example a differential series configuration or a single-ended parallel configuration or a single-ended series configuration or any other suitable combination thereof may be used. According to some non-limiting aspects of the present application, switched 206i may be implemented by complementary switches as shown in FIG. 3. The complementary switches may comprise a nMOS transistor 3 lOi and a pMOS transistor 31 li. The drain of nMOS transistor 3 lOi may be connected to the source of pMOS transistor 31 li. The source of nMOS transistor 310i may be connected to the drain of pMOS transistor 31 li. The gate of nMOS transistor 310i may be connected to the input port of inverter 315i, whose output port may be connected to the gate of pMOS transistor 31 li _.

[0060] As may readily be appreciated by a person of ordinary skill in the art, while FIG. 3 shows complementary switches based on one pMOS transistor and one nMOS transistor, any suitable number of pMOS transistors and nMOS transistors may be used. In addition, a non- complementary switch using only nMOS (or only pMOS) transistors may be used.

[0061] As may further be appreciated by a person of ordinary skill in the art, while FIG. 3 shows complementary switches based on metal-oxide- semiconductor (MOSFET) transistors, any other type of transistors may be used. Transistors 3 lOi and 31 li may be implemented by BJT, BiCMOS, JFET, IGFET, MESFET or any other suitable type of transistor.

[0062] In some embodiments, flip-flops 317i, where i may assume any value between 1 and m, may be used to set the state of complementary switches 206i. The output port of each flip-flop 317i may be connected to the gate of each nMOS transistor 3 lOi- As further described below, in some embodiments, instead of connecting the gates of the two transistors through inverters 315i, the Q port of each flip-flop 317i may be connected to the gate of each nMOS transistor 310i while the Q (Q not) port of each flip-flop 317i may be connected to the gate of each pMOS transistor 31 li . Furthermore, the output port of each flip-flop 317i may be connected to the input port of the following flip-flop 317 ₁ +1, where i may assume any value between 1 and m-1. According to some aspects of the present application, flip-flops 317i collectively represent a shift register.

[0063] In some embodiments, flip-flops 317i may be controlled by encoder 350. In turn, encoder 350 may be controlled by profile generator 351. According to some aspects of the present application, profile generator 351 may be a circuit that generates a target time gain compensation response and sources the control signals necessary to track the desired profile. The target time gain compensation response may be manually defined by a user, automatically defined by a computer, or defined in any other suitable manner.

[0064] FIG. 4 shows a non-limiting embodiment of attenuator circuit 300. While attenuator 400 comprises four attenuation stages each corresponding to one complementary switch, any other suitable number of stages may be used. According to some aspects of the present application, within circuit 400 is digital circuit 401. In the non-limiting example, digital circuit 401 comprises four 2-to-l multiplexers 470i, a shift register 402 consisting of four flip- flops 317i (also illustrated in FIG. 3), four inverter pairs 450i and 452i and four inverter pairs 453i and 454i. At any moment in time each flip-flops 317i may be set to a 1 or 0 state through input port Di. When flip-flop 317i is triggered by shift signal 490, output port Qi is set to the same value as Di, while output port Q i is set to the opposite value. In some embodiments flip- flop 317i may be triggered by a rising edge or a falling edge. In some other embodiments flip- flop 317i may be triggered by a 1 pulse or by a 0 pulse. Reset signal 492 may be used to set the state of all flip-flops to 0. Each port Qi may be connected to the gate of each nMOS transistor

310i through an inverter pair 450i and 45 li. Similarly, each port Q i may be connected to the gate of each pMOS transistor 31 li through an inverter pair 45 li and 452i. Inverter pairs may be used to prevent undesired voltage spikes from hitting the complementary switches.

[0065] In some embodiments, 2-to-l multiplexers 470i may be used to set the state of each bit of shift register 402. Each multiplexer 470i may have two input ports Ai and Bi and one output port Zi. When the value of the Inc_Dec is set to 0, Zi may assume the value of Ai, independently of the value of Bi. Contrarily, when the value of the Inc_Dec is set to 1, Zi may assume the value of Bi, independently of the value of Ai. However any other suitable logic may be used. In some embodiments, ports Ai and B ₄ may be set by the profile generator, while all other port Ai and Bi are set by the output Q of the neighboring flip-flop. In a non-limiting example, Ai may be set by Qi_i and Bi may be set by Qi ₊₁ .

[0066] In some embodiments, when Inc_Dec signal 491 is set to 0 and the register is triggered by shift signal 490, the bits stored in the register may shift from the least significant flip-flop 317i to the most significant flip-flop 317 ₄ . Contrarily, when Inc_Dec is set to 1 and the register is triggered by shift signal 490, the bits stored in the register may shift from the most significant flip-flop 317 ₄ to the least significant flip-flop 317i.

[0067] FIG. 5 shows a non-limiting example of operation of digital circuit 401. The top portion of the chart shows three control signals: shift signal 490, Inc_Dec signal 491 and Reset signal 492. The bottom portion of the chart shows the state of each flip-flop of the shift register in response to the three control signals, where FFi represents flip-flop 317i of FIG. 4. From Ti through T ₄ , in response to the control signal Inc_Dec being set to 0, the register shifts bits towards FF ₄ . The shift occurs when the circuit is triggered by shift signal 490. From T5 through T ₈ , in response to the control signal Inc_Dec being set to 1, the register shifts bits towards FFi _. While in the non-limiting example Reset is set to 0 at all times, it may be set to 1 at any time thus setting the state of each flip-flop to 0.

[0068] FIG. 6 shows a non-limiting example of a time-dependent response generated by the time gain compensation circuit 118, which may comprise variable attenuator 120 and fixed gain amplifier 122. Chart 600 shows three signals as a function of time. Curve 611 shows the response received by one or more transducers 102i, obtained by sending an ultrasonic wave towards a target. The target may comprise multiple layers, causing multiple reflections having varying magnitude as a function of depth. Curve 611 shows a dip that may be caused by a multilayered target. In some embodiments, in order to obtain a clear ultrasound image it may be desirable to have a uniform response as a function of time as shown by curve 631.

Consequently, profile generator 351 may source control signals so as to provide a gain response that compensates losses caused by the depth-dependent reflections. Curve 621 is a non-limiting example of such gain response.

[0069] In some embodiments, each binary attenuation stage can provide about 0.2 dB of attenuation.

[0070] In some other embodiments, it may be desirable to generate a gain response that causes the compensated signal to have any suitable time-dependent behavior. For example, in order to improve the contrast of an ultrasound image, it may be desirable to magnify the response of one layer of the target while attenuating the response of another layer. The time gain compensation response may be manually defined by the user, automatically defined by a computer, or defined in any other suitable manner.

[0071] Having thus described several aspects and embodiments of the technology of this application, it is to be appreciated that various alterations, modifications, and improvements will readily occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. Such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be within the spirit and scope of the technology described in the application. It is, therefore, to be understood that the foregoing embodiments are presented by way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereto, inventive embodiments may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

[0072] As described, some aspects may be embodied as one or more methods. The acts performed as part of the method(s) may be ordered in any suitable way. Accordingly, embodiments may be constructed in which acts are performed in an order different than illustrated, which may include performing some acts simultaneously, even though shown as sequential acts in illustrative embodiments.

[0073] All definitions, as defined and used herein, should be understood to control over dictionary definitions, definitions in documents incorporated by reference, and/or ordinary meanings of the defined terms. [0074] The phrase "and/or," as used herein in the specification and in the claims, should be understood to mean "either or both" of the elements so conjoined, i.e., elements that are conjunctively present in some cases and disjunctively present in other cases.

[0075] As used herein in the specification and in the claims, the phrase "at least one," in reference to a list of one or more elements, should be understood to mean at least one element selected from any one or more of the elements in the list of elements, but not necessarily including at least one of each and every element specifically listed within the list of elements and not excluding any combinations of elements in the list of elements.

[0076] As used herein, the term "between" used in a numerical context is to be inclusive unless indicated otherwise. For example, "between A and B" includes A and B unless indicated otherwise.

[0077] In the claims, as well as in the specification above, all transitional phrases such as "comprising," "including," "carrying," "having," "containing," "involving," "holding,"

"composed of," and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limited to. Only the transitional phrases "consisting of and "consisting essentially of shall be closed or semi-closed transitional phrases, respectively.