code: public T emptyInstance() {
  		T component = _newInstance();
  
  		//remove any properties/components that were created in the constructor
  		component.getProperties().clear();
  		component.getComponents().clear();
  
  		return component;
  	}
docs: Creates a new instance of the component class that doesn't have any
  properties or sub-components.
  @return the new instance