Reconfigurable Viterbi decoder on mesh connected multiprocessor architecture

In modern wireline and wireless communication systems, Viterbi decoder is one of the most compute intensive and essential elements. Each standard requires a different configuration of Viterbi decoder. Hence there is a need to design a flexible reconfigurable Viterbi decoder to support different configurations on a single platform. In this paper we present a reconfigurable Viterbi decoder which can be reconfigured for standards such as WCDMA, CDMA2000, IEEE 802.11, DAB, DVB, and GSM. Different parameters like code rate, constraint length, polynomials and truncation length can be configured to map any of the above mentioned standards. Our design provides higher throughput and scalable power consumption in various configuration of the reconfigurable Viterbi decoder. The power and throughput can also be optimized for different standards.

Simulation blocks for TOSSIM-T2

We develop several hardware and software simulation blocks for the TinyOS-2 (TOSSIM-T2) simulator. The choice of simulated hardware platform is the popular MICA2 mote. While the hardware simulation elements comprise of radio and external flash memory, the software blocks include an environment noise model, packet delivery model and an energy estimator block for the complete system. The hardware radio block uses the software environment noise model to sample the noise floor. The packet delivery model is built by establishing the SNR-PRR curve for the MICA2 system. The energy estimator block models energy consumption by Micro Controller Unit(MCU), Radio, LEDs, and external flash memory. Using the manufacturerpsilas data sheets we provide an estimate of the energy consumed by the hardware during transmission, reception and also track several of the MCUs states with the associated energy consumption. To study the effectiveness of this work, we take a case study of a paper presented in [1]. We obtain three sets of results for energy consumption through mathematical analysis, simulation using the blocks built into PowerTossim-T2 and finally laboratory measurements. Since there is a significant match between these result sets, we propose our blocks for T2 community to effectively test their application energy requirements and node life times.

Modeling and Analysis of Noise Margin in SET Logic

In this paper the static noise margin for SET (single electron transistor) logic is defined and compact models for the noise margin are developed by making use of the MIB (Mahapatra-Ionescu-Banerjee) model. The variation of the noise margin with temperature and background charge is also studied. A chain of SET inverters is simulated to validate the definition of various logic levels (like VIH, VOH, etc.) and noise margin. Finally the noise immunity of SET logic is compared with current CMOS logic.

Three-level inverter fed open-end winding IM drive with common mode voltage elimination and reduced power device count

A three-level space phasor generation scheme with common mode elimination and with reduced power device count is proposed for an open end winding induction motor in this paper. The open end winding induction motor is fed by the three-level inverters from both sides. Each two level inverter is formed by cascading two two-level inverters. By sharing the bottom inverter for the two three-level inverters on either side, the power device count is reduced. The switching states with zero common mode voltage variation are selected for PWM switching so that there is no alternating common mode voltage in the pole voltages as well as in phase voltages. Only two isolated DC-links, with half the voltage rating of a conventional three-level neutral point clamped inverter, are needed for the proposed scheme.

Formal Verification of Full-Wave Rectifier: A Case Study

We present a case study of formal verification of full-wave rectifier for analog and mixed signal designs. We have used the Checkmate tool from CMU [1], which is a public domain formal verification tool for hybrid systems. Due to the restriction imposed by Checkmate it necessitates to make the changes in the Checkmate implementation to implement the complex and non-linear system. Full-wave rectifier has been implemented by using the Checkmate custom blocks and the Simulink blocks from MATLAB from Math works. After establishing the required changes in the Checkmate implementation we are able to efficiently verify, the safety properties of the full-wave rectifier.

Analysis of Energy Quantization Effects on Single-Electron Transistor Circuits

In this paper, the effects of energy quantization on different single-electron transistor (SET) circuits (logic inverter, current-biased circuits, and hybrid MOS-SET circuits) are analyzed through analytical modeling and Monte Carlo simulations. It is shown that energy quantizationmainly increases the Coulomb blockade area and Coulomb blockade oscillation periodicity, and thus, affects the SET circuit performance. A new model for the noise margin of the SET inverter is proposed, which includes the energy quantization effects. Using the noise margin as a metric, the robustness of the SET inverter is studied against the effects of energy quantization. An analytical expression is developed, which explicitly defines the maximum energy quantization (termed as ``quantization threshold'') that an SET inverter can withstand before its noise margin falls below a specified tolerance level. The effects of energy quantization are further studiedfor the current-biased negative differential resistance (NDR) circuitand hybrid SETMOS circuit. A new model for the conductance of NDR characteristics is also formulated that explains the energy quantization effects.

Neutral-point balancing of neutral-point-clamped three-level inverter with a front end switched rectifier DC source for the full modulationn range

A switched rectifier DC voltage source three-level neutral-point-clamped (NPC) converter topology is proposed here to alleviate the inverter from capacitor voltage balancing in three-level drive systems. The proposed configuration requires only one DC link with a voltage of half of that needed in a conventional NPC inverter. To obtain a rated DC link voltage, the rectifier DC source is alternately connected in parallel to one of the two series capacitors using two switches and two diodes with device voltage ratings of half the total DC bus voltage. The frequency at which the voltage source is switched is independent of the inverter and will not affect its operation since the switched voltage source in this configuration balances the capacitors automatically. The proposed configuration can also be used as a conventional two-level inverter in the lower modulation index range, thereby increasing the reliability of the drivesystem. A space-vector-based PWM scheme is used to verify this proposed topology on a laboratory system.

High-Throughput Flexible Constraint Length Viterbi Decoders on De Bruijn, Shuffle-Exchange and Butterfly Connected Architectures

Flexible constraint length channel decoders are required for software defined radios. This paper presents a novel scalable scheme for realizing flexible constraint length Viterbi decoders on a de Bruijn interconnection network. Architectures for flexible decoders using the flattened butterfly and shuffle-exchange networks are also described. It is shown that these networks provide favourable substrates for realizing flexible convolutional decoders. Synthesis results for the three networks are provided and a comparison is performed. An architecture based on a 2D-mesh, which is a topology having a nominally lesser silicon area requirement, is also considered as a fourth point for comparison. It is found that of all the networks considered, the de Bruijn network offers the best tradeoff in terms of area versus throughput.

Sensor network deployment for agronomical data gathering in semi-arid regions

We share our experience in planning, designing and deploying a wireless sensor network of one square kilometre area. Environmental data such as soil moisture, temperature, barometric pressure, and relative humidity are collected in this area situated in the semi-arid region of Karnataka, India. It is a hope that information derived from this data will benefit the marginal farmer towards improving his farming practices. Soon after establishing the need for such a project, we begin by showing the big picture of such a data gathering network, the software architecture we have used, the range measurements needed for determining the sensor density, and the packaging issues that seem to play a crucial role in field deployments. Our field deployment experiences include designing with intermittent grid power, enhancing software tools to aid quicker and effective deployment, and flash memory corruption. The first results on data gathering look encouraging.

An analytical approach to the study of cooperation in wireless ad hoc networks

In wireless ad hoc networks, nodes communicate with far off destinations using intermediate nodes as relays. Since wireless nodes are energy constrained, it may not be in the best interest of a node to always accept relay requests. On the other hand, if all nodes decide not to expend energy in relaying, then network throughput will drop dramatically. Both these extreme scenarios (complete cooperation and complete noncooperation) are inimical to the interests of a user. In this paper, we address the issue of user cooperation in ad hoc networks. We assume that nodes are rational, i.e., their actions are strictly determined by self interest, and that each node is associated with a minimum lifetime constraint. Given these lifetime constraints and the assumption of rational behavior, we are able to determine the optimal share of service that each node should receive. We define this to be the rational Pareto optimal operating point. We then propose a distributed and scalable acceptance algorithm called Generous TIT-FOR-TAT (GTFT). The acceptance algorithm is used by the nodes to decide whether to accept or reject a relay request. We show that GTFT results in a Nash equilibrium and prove that the system converges to the rational and optimal operating point.

Improved switching frequency variation control of hysteresis controlled voltage source inverter-fed IM drives using current error space vector

A constant switching frequency current error space vector-based hysteresis controller for two-level voltage source inverter-fed induction motor (IM) drives is proposed in this study. The proposed controller is capable of driving the IM in the entire speed range extending to the six-step mode. The proposed controller uses the parabolic boundary, reported earlier, for vector selection in a sector, but uses simple, fast and self-adaptive sector identification logic for sector change detection in the entire modulation range. This new scheme detects the sector change using the change in direction of current error along the axes jA, jB and jC. Most of the previous schemes use an outer boundary for sector change detection. So the current error goes outside the boundary six times during sector change, in one cycle,, introducing additional fifth and seventh harmonic components in phase current. This may cause sixth harmonic torque pulsations in the motor and spread in the harmonic spectrum of phase voltage. The proposed new scheme detects the sector change fast and accurately eliminating the chance of introducing additional fifth and seventh harmonic components in phase current and provides harmonic spectrum of phase voltage, which exactly matches with that of constant switching frequency voltage-controlled space vector pulse width modulation (VC-SVPWM)-based two-level inverter-fed drives.

Influence of External Light Waves on the Thermoelectric Power Under Strong Magnetic Field in Ultrathin Films, Quantum Wires and Quantum Dots of Optoelectronic Materials

In this paper, an attempt is made to study the influence of external light waves on the thermoelectric power under strong magnetic field (TPSM) in ultrathin films (UFs), quantum wires (QWs) and quantum dots (QDs) of optoelectronic materials whose unperturbed dispersion relation of the conduction electrons are defined by three and two band models of Kane together with parabolic energy bands on the basis of newly formulated electron dispersion laws in each case. We have plotted the TPSM as functions of film thickness, electron concentration, light intensity and wavelength for UFs, QWs and ODs of InSb, GaAs, Hg1-xCdxTe and In1-xGaxAsyP1-y respectively. It appears from the figures that for UFs, the TPSM increases with increasing thickness in quantum steps, decreases with increasing electron degeneracy exhibiting entirely different types of oscillations and changes with both light intensity and wavelength and these two latter types of plots are the direct signature of light waves on opto-TPSM. For QWs, the opto-TPSM exhibits rectangular oscillations with increasing thickness and shows enhanced spiky oscillations with electron concentration per unit length. For QDs, the opto-TPSM increases with increasing film thickness exhibiting trapezoidal variations which occurs during quantum jumps and the length and breadth of the trapezoids are totally dependent on energy band constants. Under the condition of non-degeneracy, the results of opto-TPSM gets simplified into the well-known form of classical TPSM equation which the function of three constants only and being invariant of the signature of band structure.

Simplified theory of carrier back-scattering in semiconducting carbon nanotubes: A Kane's model approach

We present a simplified yet analytical formulation of the carrier backscattering coefficient for zig-zag semiconducting single walled carbon nanotubes under diffusive regime. The electron-phonon scattering rate for longitudinal acoustic, optical, and zone-boundary phonon emissions for both inter- and intrasubband transition rates have been derived using Kane's nonparabolic energy subband model.The expressions for the mean free path and diffusive resistance have been formulated incorporating the aforementioned phonon scattering. Appropriate overlap function in Fermi's golden rule has been incorporated for a more general approach. The effect of energy subbands on low and high bias zones for the onset of longitudinal acoustic, optical, and zone-boundary phonon emissions and absorption have been analytically addressed. 90% transmission of the carriers from the source to the drain at 400 K for a 5 mu m long nanotube at 105 V m(-1) has been exhibited. The analytical results are in good agreement with the available experimental data. (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics.

A Computationally Efficient Generalized Poisson Solution for Independent Double-Gate Transistors

Previous techniques used for solving the 1-D Poisson equation ( PE) rigorously for long-channel asymmetric and independent double-gate (IDG) transistors result in potential models that involve multiple intercoupled implicit equations. As these equations need to be solved self-consistently, such potential models are clearly inefficient for compact modeling. This paper reports a different rigorous technique for solving the same PE by which one can obtain the potential profile of a generalized IDG transistor that involves a single implicit equation. The proposed Poisson solution is shown to be computationally more efficient for circuit simulation than the previous solutions.

Non-disruptive and null-deflection mass flow measurement by a pressure compensation technique

Accurate mass flow measurement is very important in various monitoring and control applications. This paper proposes a novel method of fluid flow measurement by compensating the pressure drop across the ends of measuring unit using a compensating pump. The pressure drop due to the flow is balanced by a feedback control loop. This is a null-deflection type of measurement. As the insertion of such a measuring unit does not affect the functioning of the systems, this is also a non-disruptive flow measurement method. The implementation and design of such a unit are discussed. The system is modeled and simulated using the bond graph technique and it is experimentally validated. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.