TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] This disclosure relates generally to housing, and in particular to housing for a head mounted device.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

[0002] A head-mounted device is an electronic device that may be configured to operate interactively with a user. A head-mounted device may be designed to support a variety of form factors, such as Augmented Reality (AR) glasses, Virtual Reality (VR) glasses, or activity tracking/personal assistant glasses, content creation glasses, and/or audio glasses, for example. Head-mounted devices may include one or more electronic components for use in a variety of applications, such as gaming, aviation, engineering, medicine, entertainment, video/audio chat, activity tracking, and so on.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0003] In accordance with a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an arm for a head mounted device, the arm comprising: a C-shaped housing configured to hold electrical components, wherein the C-shaped housing extends a length of the arm; and a close-out cover configured to be coupled to the C-shaped housing to seal electrical components within the arm, wherein the close-out cover includes an anisotropic material to constrain rotation of the C-shaped housing about a long-axis of the arm of the head mounted device.

[0004] In some embodiments, the anisotropic material may be a carbon fiber composite.

[0005] In some embodiments, a stiffness along a fiber direction of carbon fiber in the carbon fiber composite may be greater than a second stiffness of an axis of the carbon fiber that runs parallel to the long-axis of the arm.

[0006] In some embodiments, the C-shaped housing may be formed of a substantially isotropic material.

[0007] In some embodiments, the isotropic material may include glass-filled nylon.

[0008] In some embodiments, a base-thickness of the close-out cover may be between 0.15 mm and 0.4 mm.

[0009] In some embodiments, the arm for a head mounted device may further comprise at least one cross rib, wherein the at least one cross rib is substantially parallel to a plane that is orthogonal to the long-axis of the arm of the head mounted device, the at least one cross rib rising up from the base-thickness and fitting within the C-shaped housing. [0010] In some embodiments, the close-out cover may include oversized adhesive tabs on a perimeter of the close-out cover, wherein the oversized adhesive tabs have a tabheight greater than half of a height of the C-shaped housing, and wherein the C-shaped housing further includes a glue trough having a trough-depth at least half the height of the C- shaped housing, wherein the glue trough is configured to accept an adhesive and the oversized adhesive tabs.

[0011] In some embodiments, the arm for ahead mounted device may further comprise a hermetic sealant that is different from the adhesive, wherein the hermetic sealant contacts the oversized adhesive tabs and an adhesive ledge of the C-shaped housing.

[0012] In some embodiments, the arm may include a rounded end configured to be placed behind an ear of a user of the head mounted device, and wherein the arm includes a hinge end opposite the rounded end, the hinge end configured to be coupled to a frame of the head mounted device.

[0013] In accordance with a further aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a head mounted device comprising: a frame configured to rest on a nose; and at least one arm coupled to the frame, wherein the at least one arm includes: a C-shaped housing configured to hold electrical components, wherein the C-shaped housing extends a length of the arm; and a close-out cover configured to be coupled to the C-shaped housing to seal electrical components within the arm, wherein the close-out cover includes an anisotropic material to constrain rotation of the C-shaped housing about a long-axis of the arm of the head mounted device.

[0014] In some embodiments, the anisotropic material may be a carbon fiber composite.

[0015] In some embodiments, a stiffness along a fiber direction of carbon fiber in the carbon fiber composite may be greater than a second stiffness of an axis of the carbon fiber that runs parallel to the long-axis of the arm.

[0016] In some embodiments, the C-shaped housing may be formed of a substantially isotropic material.

[0017] In some embodiments, the isotropic material may include glass-filled nylon.

[0018] In some embodiments, a base-thickness of the close-out cover may be between 0.15 mm and 0.4 mm.

[0019] In some embodiments, the head mounted device may further comprise at least one cross rib, wherein the at least one cross rib is substantially parallel to a plane that is orthogonal to the long-axis of the arm of the head mounted device, the at least one cross rib rising up from the base-thickness and fitting within the C-shaped housing.

[0020] In some embodiments, the close-out cover may include oversized adhesive tabs on a perimeter of the close-out cover, wherein the oversized adhesive tabs have a tabheight greater than half of a height of the C-shaped housing, and wherein the C-shaped housing further includes a glue trough having a trough-depth at least half the height of the C- shaped housing, wherein the glue trough is configured to accept an adhesive and the oversized adhesive tabs.

[0021] In some embodiments, the head mounted device may further comprise a hermetic sealant that is different from the adhesive, wherein the hermetic sealant contacts the oversized adhesive tabs and an adhesive ledge of the C-shaped housing.

[0022] In accordance with a further aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a head mounted display (HMD) comprising: a near-eye display system configured to present virtual images to an eyebox region; a frame configured to rest on a nose; and at least one arm coupled to the frame, wherein the at least one arm includes: a C-shaped housing configured to hold electrical components that support the near-eye display system, wherein the C-shaped housing extends a length of the arm; and a close-out cover configured to be coupled to the C- shaped housing to seal electrical components within the arm, wherein the close-out cover includes an anisotropic material to constrain rotation of the C-shaped housing about a long- axis of the arm of the head mounted device.

[0023] It will be appreciated that any features described herein as being suitable for incorporation into one or more aspects or embodiments of the present disclosure are intended to be generalizable across any and all aspects and embodiments of the present disclosure. Other aspects of the present disclosure can be understood by those skilled in the art in light of the description, the claims, and the drawings of the present disclosure. The foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Non-limiting and non-exhaustive embodiments of the invention are described with reference to the following figures, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the various views unless otherwise specified.

[0025] FIG. 1 illustrates an example head mounted device, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0026] FIGs. 2A and 2B illustrate a close-out cover including an anisotropic material, in accordance with aspects of the disclosure. [0027] FIG. 3 A illustrates an example perspective view of a portion of an example close-out cover coupled to a portion of an example C-shaped housing, in accordance with aspects of the disclosure.

[0028] FIGs. 3B-3D illustrates example C-shapes that may be extruded into C-shaped housings, in accordance with aspects of the disclosure

[0029] FIG. 3E illustrates a zoomed-in version of a portion of the arm of FIG. 3 A, in accordance with aspects of the disclosure.

[0030] FIG. 4 illustrates a long-axis running through a middle of an arm from a hinge end of the arm to a rounded end of the arm, in accordance with aspects of the disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] Embodiments of a housing for a head mounted device are described herein. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that the techniques described herein can be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, etc. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring certain aspects.

[0032] Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0033] Reducing size and mass is important for creating a pair of electronic glasses such as smart glasses or augmented reality (AR) glasses. The size is impacted by the components that need to be packaged (e.g. battery, speakers, processors, memory, wireless chip, camera(s), etc.). These components are included in a housing. To reduce size and mass of the device, the weight and size (e.g. thickness) of the housing should be as thin as possible. However, reducing the thickness of the housing below a certain thickness (e.g. 0.4 mm) can reduce the rigidity of the housing leading to twisting of housing components that complicates assembly of the parts. Traditionally, eliminating twisting of housing components includes simply adding ribbing features to better control rotation/twisting of the component in undesirable directions. However, in the context of head mounted devices, adding excessive ribbing features to housing components of the head mounted device constrains and reduces the placement of electronic components that need to be placed in the housing.

[0034] Implementations of the disclosure include an arm (or arms) of a head mounted device that house electronic components. The arm includes a C-shaped housing configured to hold electronic components and a close-out cover for coupling (e.g. adhering) to the C- shaped housing to seal the electronic components. The close-out cover includes anisotropic material to constrain rotation of the C-shaped housing about a long-axis of the arm(s). The base-thickness of the close-out cover may be less than 0.4 mm. The C-shaped housing may be formed of (e.g. molded) a substantially isotropic material. In some implementations, the anisotropic material of the close-out cover is carbon fiber. The fiber direction of the carbon fiber may be configured to constrain the rotation of the C-shaped housing about the long-axis of the arm. These and other implementations are described in more detail in connection with FIGs. 1-4.

[0035] FIG. 1 illustrates an example head mounted device 100, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The illustrated example of head mounted device 100 is shown as including a frame 102, temple arms 104A and 104B, and near-eye optical elements 110A and HOB. Cameras 108 A and 108B are shown as coupled to temple arms 104A and 104B, respectively. FIG. 1 also illustrates an exploded view of an example of near-eye optical element 110A. Near-eye optical element 110A is shown as including an optically transparent layer 120 A, an illumination layer 130A, and a display layer 150A. Display layer 150A may include a waveguide 158 that is configured to direct virtual images to an eye of a user of head mounted device 100. Some head mounted device will not include a near-eye display.

[0036] Illumination layer 130A is shown as including a plurality of in-field illuminators 126. In-field illuminators 126 are described as “in-field” because they are in a field of view (FOV) of a user of the head mounted device 100. In-field illuminators 126 may be in a same FOV that a user views a display of the head mounted device, in an embodiment. In-field illuminators 126 may be in a same FOV that a user views an external environment of the head mounted device 100 via scene light 191 propagating through near-eye optical elements 110. While in-field illuminators 126 may introduce minor occlusions into the near- eye optical element 110A, the in-field illuminators 126, as well as their corresponding electrical routing may be so small as to be unnoticeable or insignificant to a wearer of head mounted device 100. The in-field illuminators 126 may be non-visible in-field illuminators 126 configured to emit non-visible illumination light for eye-tracking purposes, for example. [0037] As shown in FIG. 1, frame 102 is coupled to temple arms 104A and 104B for securing the head mounted device 100 to the head of a user. Frame 102 is configured to rest on a nose of a user. Example head mounted device 100 may also include supporting hardware incorporated into the frame 102 and/or temple arms 104 A and 104B. The hardware of head mounted device 100 may include any of processing logic, wired and/or wireless data interface for sending and receiving data, graphic processors, and one or more memories for storing data and computer-executable instructions. In one example, head mounted device 100 may be configured to receive wired power and/or may be configured to be powered by one or more batteries. In addition, head mounted device 100 may be configured to receive wired and/or wireless data including video data. In some embodiments, cameras 108 may be configured to image the eye directly or indirectly (e.g. relying on a combiner element to redirect reflected/backscattered non- visible light to the camera). The camera(s) 108 may be located in different positions than the positions illustrated.

[0038] FIG. 1 illustrates near-eye optical elements 110A and HOB that are configured to be mounted to the frame 102. In some examples, near-eye optical elements 110A and HOB may appear transparent to the user to facilitate augmented reality or mixed reality such that the user can view visible scene light from the environment while also receiving display light directed to their eye(s) by way of display layer 150A.

[0039] Display layer 150A may include one or more other optical elements depending on the design of the head mounted device 100. For example, display layer 150A may include a waveguide 158A to direct display light generated by an electronic display to an eyebox region to present virtual images to the eye of the user. In some implementations, at least a portion of the electronic display is included in the frame 102 of the head mounted device 100. The electronic display may include an LCD, an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, micro-LED display, pico-projector, or liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS) display for generating the display light.

[0040] Optically transparent layer 120A is shown as being disposed between the illumination layer 130A and the eyeward side 109 of the near-eye optical element 110A. The optically transparent layer 120A may receive the non-visible illumination light emitted by the illumination layer 130A and pass the non-visible illumination light to illuminate the eye of the user. As mentioned above, the optically transparent layer 120A may also be transparent to visible light, such as scene light 191 received from the environment and/or display light received from the display layer 150A. In some examples, the optically transparent layer 120A has a curvature for focusing light (e.g., display light and/or scene light) to the eye of the user. Thus, the optically transparent layer 120A may, in some examples, may be referred to as a lens. In some aspects, the optically transparent layer 120A has a thickness and/or curvature that corresponds to the specifications of a user. In other words, the optically transparent layer 120A may be a prescription lens. However, in other examples, the optically transparent layer 120A may be anon-prescription lens.

[0041] Arms 104A and 104B may include batteries, wireless communication chips, speakers, processors, memory, camera(s) and/or other electronic components of the head mounted device 100. FIGs. 2A and 2B illustrate a close-out cover 220 including an anisotropic material, in accordance with implementations of the disclosure. Close-out cover 220 is configured to be coupled to a C-shaped housing to hold electrical components within an arm of a head mounted device. The C-shaped housing may have a same or similar perimeter as perimeter 229 of close-out cover 220. FIG. 3 A illustrates an example perspective view of a portion of an example close-out cover 320 coupled to a portion of an example C-shaped housing 330.

[0042] The close-out cover 220 in FIG. 2A includes optional cross ribs 241 A, 241B, and 241C (collectively referred to as cross ribs 241). Close-out cover 220 also includes adhesive tabs 227 A, 227B, 227C, and 227D (collectively referred to as adhesive tabs 227). The adhesive tabs serve as a bonding surface to adhere close-out cover 220 to the C-shaped housing. Close-out cover 220 includes a rounded end 292 configured to be placed behind an ear of a user as part of arm 104, for example. Close-out cover 220 also includes a hinge end 293 disposed opposite of the rounded end 292. The hinge end 293 is configured to be coupled to a frame (e.g. frame 102) of a head mounted device.

[0043] FIG. 2B illustrates a profile view of close-out cover 220. Close-out cover 220 has a base-thickness 221 between 0.15 mm and 0.4 mm, in some implementations. In some implementations, base-thickness 221 is less than 0.3 mm. In some implementations, basethickness is approximately 0.2 mm. FIG. 2B illustrates that adhesive tab 227A has a tabheight 297.

[0044] FIG. 3A illustrates a perspective view of a portion of arm 304 including a close-out cover 320 coupled to a C-shaped housing 330, in accordance with aspects of the disclosure. C-shaped housing 330 houses electronic components 370. C-shaped housing 330 in FIG. 3A takes the general form of a letter “C” having the opening of the C-shape facing up. Electronic components 370 may include batteries, wireless communication chips, speakers, processors, memory, camera(s) and/or other electronic components. The electronic components may extend to the boundaries of C-shaped housing 330 and close-out cover 320. [0045] C-shaped housing 330 may be formed of a substantially isotropic material such as high modulus plastic or glass-filled nylon, for example. C-shaped housing 330 may have sufficient rigidity in four or five degrees of freedom, although rotation (or twisting) about a long-axis 399 of arm 304 may be the most flexible. The cross-section shape of the C- shaped housing 330 imparts the designed rigidity in the four or five degrees of freedom. Long-axis 399 may run approximately through a middle the C-shape of C-shaped housing 330.

[0046] FIG. 3 A illustrates one example shape of a C-shaped housing. FIG. 3B illustrates a C-shape 371 that was extruded to form C-shaped housing 330. FIGs. 3C-3D illustrate additional example C-shapes that may be extruded into C-shaped housings. For example C-shape 372 of FIG. 3C and C-shape 373 of FIG. 3D may also be extruded into a C- shaped housing, in accordance with implementations of the disclosure. Of course, the extruded C-shapes may be formed using molding or machining techniques.

[0047] Referring again to FIG. 3A, to reduce rotation about long-axis 399, close-out cover 320 may include an anisotropic material. For purposes of the disclosure, an anisotropic material is defined as a material having a directionally dependent Young’s Modulus. For purposes of the disclosure, an isotropic material is defined as a material having a directionally independent Young’s Modulus that is substantially equivalent across different directions of the material. The anisotropic material of close-out cover 320 may be carbon fiber composite, for example. FIG. 3A illustrates carbon fibers 323 of close-out cover 320 having a fiber direction 391 that is aligned lengthwise with the carbon fibers 323. A stiffness along the fiber direction 391 of the carbon fibers 323 is greater than the stiffness of a width-direction 392 of the carbon fiber composite that runs approximately parallel to the long-axis 399. Width-direction 392 is also approximately orthogonal to fiber direction 391. In most conventional contexts, using an isotropic material for a close-out cover would suffice to constrain rotation of C-shaped housing 330 about long-axis 399. However, since the basethickness 321 of close-out cover 320 is very thin (e.g. less than 0.4 mm) to save on weight and space, merely forming close-out cover 320 of isotropic material may not sufficiently constrain the rotation of C-shaped housing 330 about long-axis 399. Hence, forming closeout cover 320 of anisotropic material aligned in a direction that constrains rotation of C- shaped housing 330 allows the close-out cover 320 to have a base-thickness 321 that is very thin.

[0048] FIG. 3A illustrates that close-out cover 320 may optionally include adhesive tabs 327A and 327B (collectively referred to as adhesive tabs 327) on a perimeter of close- out cover 320. Of course, in arm 304, there may be more than two adhesive tabs included in close-out cover 320. In FIG. 2A, there are four adhesive tabs 227, for example. Adhesive tabs 327 may be considered oversized adhesive tabs when they have a tab-height 297 that is great than half of a height of the C-shaped housing.

[0049] FIG. 3E illustrates a zoomed-in version of a portion of arm 304 of FIG. 3 A. In FIG. 3E, a tab-height 397 of adhesive tab 327B is greater than half of the height 394 of C- shaped housing 330. In implementations of the disclosure, oversized adhesive tabs may be used to strengthen a bond between C-shaped housing 330 and close-out cover 320 by increasing the surface area for adhering C-shaped housing 330 to close-out cover. In the illustration of FIG. 3E, C-shaped housing 330 includes a glue trough 338 having a troughdepth 395 that is at least half of the height 394 of C-shaped housing 330. Glue trough 338 is configured to accept an adhesive 363 and oversized adhesive tab 327B. In an implementation, oversized adhesive tabs 327 include a hole in them to provide a mechanical interlock to the close-out cover 320.

[0050] FIG. 3E also illustrates C-shaped housing 330 including standoff 337B configured to support close-out cover 320 at a particular assembly height that allows closeout cover 320 to be positioned just above adhesive ledge 339. This allows a sufficient amount of hermetic sealant 365 to be retained between the edge of close-out cover 320 and C-shaped housing 330. The standoffs 337A and 337B may be configured to hold close-out cover 320 between 0.025 mm and 0.3 mm above adhesive ledge 339, for example. In an implementation, standoffs 337A and 337B hold close-out cover 320 approximately 0.05 mm above adhesive ledge 339. The hermetic sealant 365 contacts the oversized adhesive tabs and adhesive ledge 339 of C-shaped housing 330. Hermetic sealant 365 may be different from adhesive 363. The right side of standoff 337B also serves as glue trough 338 in the illustrated implementation. The opposite side of C-shaped housing 330 illustrated in FIG. 3A is similarly configured to accept oversized adhesive tab 327B. When the close-out cover 320 is coupled with C-shaped housing 330 (as in Fig. 3A and 3E), the outer-edge of close-out cover 320 assists in straightening C-shaped housing 330. In some implementations, perimeter ribbing of the close-out cover 320 may also assist in straightening C-shaped housing 330.

[0051] In some implementations, the arms of the disclosure may include at least one cross rib as illustrated example cross ribs 241 in FIG. 2A and 2B. Referring to FIG. 3A, cross ribs may be substantially parallel to a plane 396 that is orthogonal to the long-axis 399 of arm 304. Adding cross ribs (where they can be fit between electronic components housed by the arm) to close-out cover 320 may also assist in constraining the rotation of C-shaped housing 330 about long-axis 399.

[0052] FIG. 4 illustrates a long-axis 499 running through a middle of arm 404 from a hinge end 493 of the arm 404 to a rounded end 494 of arm 404, in accordance with an implementation of the disclosure. Hence, the long-axis of a given arm may not necessarily be straight but may run through a middle of the C-shaped housing of an arm as the C-shaped housing follows the shape of an arm. In implementations of the disclosure, carbon fibers 423 of the carbon fiber composite are positioned so that the width-direction 492 of carbon fibers 423 is approximately parallel to long-axis 499 even as long-axis 499 follows a curve. In the particular implementation of FIG. 4, the width-direction 492A of carbon fiber 423 A is approximately parallel to long-axis 499 at the position of carbon fiber 423A, the widthdirection 492B of carbon fiber 423B is approximately parallel to long-axis 499 at the position of carbon fiber 423B, and the width-direction 492C of carbon fiber 423C is approximately parallel to long-axis 499 at the position of carbon fiber 423C. Width-direction 492A is approximately orthogonal to fiber direction 491A of carbon fiber 423 A, width-direction 492B is approximately orthogonal to fiber direction 49 IB of carbon fiber 423B, and widthdirection 492C is approximately orthogonal to fiber direction 491 C of carbon fiber 423C.

[0053] Embodiments of the invention may include or be implemented in conjunction with an artificial reality system. Artificial reality is a form of reality that has been adjusted in some manner before presentation to a user, which may include, e.g., a virtual reality (VR), an augmented reality (AR), a mixed reality (MR), a hybrid reality, or some combination and/or derivatives thereof. Artificial reality content may include completely generated content or generated content combined with captured (e.g., real-world) content. The artificial reality content may include video, audio, haptic feedback, or some combination thereof, and any of which may be presented in a single channel or in multiple channels (such as stereo video that produces a three-dimensional effect to the viewer). Additionally, in some embodiments, artificial reality may also be associated with applications, products, accessories, services, or some combination thereof, that are used to, e.g., create content in an artificial reality and/or are otherwise used in (e.g., perform activities in) an artificial reality. The artificial reality system that provides the artificial reality content may be implemented on various platforms, including a head-mounted display (HMD) connected to a host computer system, a standalone HMD, a mobile device or computing system, or any other hardware platform capable of providing artificial reality content to one or more viewers.

[0054] In some implementations of the disclosure, the term “near-eye” may be defined as including an element that is configured to be placed within 50 mm of an eye of a user while a near-eye device is being utilized. Therefore, a “near-eye optical element” or a “near-eye system” would include one or more elements configured to be placed within 50 mm of the eye of the user.

[0055] In aspects of this disclosure, visible light may be defined as having a wavelength range of approximately 380 nm - 700 nm. Non-visible light may be defined as light having wavelengths that are outside the visible light range, such as ultraviolet light and infrared light. Infrared light having a wavelength range of approximately 700 nm - 1 mm includes near-infrared light. In aspects of this disclosure, near-infrared light may be defined as having a wavelength range of approximately 700 nm - 1.6 pm.

[0056] In aspects of this disclosure, the term “transparent” may be defined as having greater than 90% transmission of light. In some aspects, the term “transparent” may be defined as a material having greater than 90% transmission of visible light.

[0057] The term “processing logic” in this disclosure may include one or more processors, microprocessors, multi-core processors, Application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), and/or Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) to execute operations disclosed herein. In some embodiments, memories (not illustrated) are integrated into the processing logic to store instructions to execute operations and/or store data. Processing logic may also include analog or digital circuitry to perform the operations in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure.

[0058] A “memory” or “memories” described in this disclosure may include one or more volatile or non-volatile memory architectures. The “memory” or “memories” may be removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. Example memory technologies may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD), high-definition multimedia/ data storage disks, or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transmission medium that can be used to store information for access by a computing device.

[0059] Network may include any network or network system such as, but not limited to, the following: a peer-to-peer network; a Local Area Network (LAN); a Wide Area Network (WAN); a public network, such as the Internet; a private network; a cellular network; a wireless network; a wired network; a wireless and wired combination network; and a satellite network.

[0060] Communication channels may include or be routed through one or more wired or wireless communication utilizing IEEE 802.11 protocols, BlueTooth, SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface), I ² C (Inter-Integrated Circuit), USB (Universal Serial Port), CAN (Controller Area Network), cellular data protocols (e.g. 3G, 4G, LTE, 5G), optical communication networks, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), a peer-to-peer network, a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a public network (e.g. “the Internet”), a private network, a satellite network, or otherwise.

[0061] A computing device may include a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tablet, a phablet, a smartphone, a feature phone, a server computer, or otherwise. A server computer may be located remotely in a data center or be stored locally.

[0062] The processes explained above are described in terms of computer software and hardware. The techniques described may constitute machine-executable instructions embodied within a tangible or non-transitory machine (e.g., computer) readable storage medium, that when executed by a machine will cause the machine to perform the operations described. Additionally, the processes may be embodied within hardware, such as an application specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”) or otherwise.

[0063] A tangible non-transitory machine-readable storage medium includes any mechanism that provides (i.e., stores) information in a form accessible by a machine (e.g., a computer, network device, personal digital assistant, manufacturing tool, any device with a set of one or more processors, etc.). For example, a machine-readable storage medium includes recordable/non-recordable media (e.g., read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices, etc.).

[0064] The above description of illustrated embodiments of the invention, including what is described in the Abstract, is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the invention are described herein for illustrative purposes, various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize.

[0065] These modifications can be made to the invention in light of the above detailed description. The terms used in the following claims should not be construed to limit the invention to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification. Rather, the scope of the invention is to be determined entirely by the following claims, which are to be construed in accordance with established doctrines of claim interpretation.