From design-for-test to design-for-debug-and-test: analysis of requirements and limitations for 1149.1

The increasing complexity of VLSI circuits and the reduced accessibility of modern packaging and mounting technologies restrict the usefulness of conventional in-circuit debugging tools, such as in-circuit emulators for microprocessors and microcontrollers. However, this same trend enables the development of more complex products, which in turn require more powerful debugging tools. These conflicting demands could be met if the standard scan test infrastructures now common in most complex components were able to match the debugging requirements of design verification and prototype validation. This paper analyses the main debug requirements in the design of microprocessor-based applications and the feasibility of their implementation using the mandatory, optional and additional operating modes of the standard IEEE 1149.1 test infrastructure.

ALS-Sence: sistema de aquisição e processamento de electromiogramas para pacientes com ALS

Dissertação para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia de Eletrónica e Computadores

Intelligent decision support systems for collaboration in industrial plants

Dissertação apresentada para obtenção do Grau de Doutor em Sistemas de Informação Industriais, Engenharia Electrotécnica, pela Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia

A Generic and Compositional Framework for Multicore Response Time Analysis

23rd International Conference on Real-Time Networks and Systems (RTNS 2015). 4 to 6, Nov, 2015, Main Track. Lille, France. Best Paper Award Nominee

Study of the Reliability of Statistical Timing Analysis for Real-Time Systems

Presented at 23rd International Conference on Real-Time Networks and Systems (RTNS 2015). 4 to 6, Nov, 2015, Main Track. Lille, France.

Effects of Acute Autonomic Modulation on Atrial Conduction Delay and Local Electrograms Duration in Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation

Slowed atrial conduction may contribute to reentry circuits and vulnerability for atrial fibrillation (AF). The autonomic nervous system (ANS) has modulating effects on electrophysiological properties. However, complex interactions of the ANS with the arrhythmogenic substrate make it difficult to understand the mechanisms underlying induction and maintenance of AF. AIM: To determine the effect of acute ANS modulation in atrial activation times in patients (P) with paroxysmal AF (PAF). METHODS AND RESULTS: 16P (9 men; 59±14years) with PAF, who underwent electrophysiological study before AF ablation, and 15P (7 men; 58±11years) with atrioventricular nodal reentry tachycardia, without documentation or induction of AF (control group). Each group included 7P with arterial hypertension but without underlying structural heart disease. The study was performed while off drugs. Multipolar catheters were placed at the high right atrium (HRA), right atrial appendage (RAA), coronary sinus (CS) and His bundle area (His). At baseline and with HRA pacing (600ms, shortest propagated S2) we measured: i) intra-atrial conduction time (IACT, between RAA and atrial deflection in the distal His), ii) inter-atrial conduction time (interACT, between RAA and distal CS), iii) left atrial activation time (LAAT, between atrial deflection in the distal His and distal CS), iv) bipolar electrogram duration at four atrial sites (RAA, His, proximal and distal CS). In the PAF group, measurements were also determined during handgrip and carotid sinus massage (CSM), and after pharmacological blockade of the ANS (ANSB). AF was induced by HRA programmed stimulation in 56% (self-limited - 6; sustained - 3), 68.8% (self-limited - 6; sustained - 5), and 50% (self-limited - 5; sustained - 3) of the P, in basal, during ANS maneuvers, and after ANSB, respectively (p=NS). IACT, interACT and LAAT significantly lengthened during HRA pacing in both groups (600ms, S2). P with PAF have longer IACT (p<0.05), a higher increase in both IACT, interACT (p<0.01) and electrograms duration (p<0.05) with S2, and more fragmented activity, compared with the control group. Atrial conduction times and electrograms duration were not significantly changed during ANS stimulation. Nevertheless, ANS maneuvers increased heterogeneity of the local electrograms duration. Also, P with sustained AF showed longer interACT and LAAT during CSM. CONCLUSION: Atrial conduction times, electrograms duration and fractionated activity are increased in PAF, suggesting a role for conduction delays in the arrhythmogenic substrate. Acute vagal stimulation is associated with prolonged interACT and LAAT in P with inducible sustained AF and ANS modulation may influence the heterogeneity of atrial electrograms duration.

Responsible innovation: bringing together technology assessment, applied ethics, and STS research

Paper presented as "key note" at the Doctorate Conference on Technology Assessment in June 2011, at FCT-UNL, Monte de Caparica.

Controller implementation using analog reconfigurable hardware (FPAA)

This Thesis has the main target to make a research about FPAA/dpASPs devices and technologies applied to control systems. These devices provide easy way to emulate analog circuits that can be reconfigurable by programming tools from manufactures and in case of dpASPs are able to be dynamically reconfigurable on the fly. It is described different kinds of technologies commercially available and also academic projects from researcher groups. These technologies are very recent and are in ramp up development to achieve a level of flexibility and integration to penetrate more easily the market. As occurs with CPLD/FPGAs, the FPAA/dpASPs technologies have the target to increase the productivity, reducing the development time and make easier future hardware reconfigurations reducing the costs. FPAA/dpAsps still have some limitations comparing with the classic analog circuits due to lower working frequencies and emulation of complex circuits that require more components inside the integrated circuit. However, they have great advantages in sensor signal condition, filter circuits and control systems. This thesis focuses practical implementations of these technologies to control system PID controllers. The result of the experiments confirms the efficacy of FPAA/dpASPs on signal condition and control systems.

Verification of analog circuits in power-down mode

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia Eletrotécnica e Computadores

Predictive control of a current-source inverter for solar photovoltaic grid interface

Solar photovoltaic systems are an increasing option for electricity production, since they produce electrical energy from a clean renewable energy resource, and over the years, as a result of the research, their efficiency has been increasing. For the interface between the dc photovoltaic solar array and the ac electrical grid is necessary the use of an inverter (dc-ac converter), which should be optimized to extract the maximum power from the photovoltaic solar array. In this paper is presented a solution based on a current-source inverter (CSI) using continuous control set model predictive control (CCS-MPC). All the power circuits and respective control systems are described in detail along the paper and were tested and validated performing computer simulations. The paper shows the simulation results and are drawn several conclusions.

Contribution of the evaluation strategy and the use of hearing protection for the uncertainty associated with occupational exposure to noise

Doctoral Thesis for PhD degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering

Potentially viable solar powered appliances cooling and distillation

Stand alone solar powered refrigeration and water desalination, two of the most popular and sought after applications of solar energy systems, have been selected as the topic of research for the works presented in this thesis. The water desalination system based on evaporation and condensation was found to be the most suitable one to be powered by solar energy. It has been established that highoutput fast-response solar heat collectors used to achieve high rates of evaporation and reliable solar powered cooling system for faster rates of condensation are the most important factors in achieving increased outputs in solar powered desalination systems. Comprehensive reviews of Solar powered cooling/refrigeration and also water desalination techniques have been presented. In view of the fact that the Institute of Technology, Sligo has a well-established long history of research and development in the production of state of the art high-efficiency fast-response evacuated solar heat collectors it was decided to use this know how in the work described in this thesis. For this reason achieving high rates of evaporation was not a problem. It was, therefore, the question of the solar powered refrigeration that was envisaged to be used in the solar powered desalination tofacilitate rapid condensation of the evaporated water that had to be addressed first. The principles of various solar powered refrigeration techniques have also been reviewed. The first step in work on solar powered refrigeration was to successfully modify a conventional refrigerator working on Platen-Munters design to be powered by highoutput fast-response evacuated solar heat collectors. In this work, which was the first ever successful attempt in the field, temperatures as low as —19°C were achieved in the icebox. A new approach in the use of photovoltaic technology to power a conventional domestic refrigerator was also attempted. This was done by modifying a conventional domestic refrigerator to be powered by photovoltaic panels in the most efficient way. In the system developed and successfully tested in this approach, the power demand has been reduced phenomenally and it is possible to achieve 48 hours of cooling power with exposure to just 7 hours of sunshine. The successful development of the first ever multi-cycle intermittent solar powered icemaker is without doubt the most exciting breakthrough in the work described in this thesis. Output of 74.3kg of ice per module with total exposure area of 2.88 m2, or 25.73kg per m2, per day is a major improvement in comparison to about 5-6kg of ice per m2 per day reported for all the single cycle intermittent systems. This system has then become the basis for the development of a new solar powered refrigeration system with even higher output, named the “composite” system described in this thesis. Another major breakthrough associated with the works described in this thesis is the successful development and testing of the high-output water desalination system. This system that uses a combination of the high-output fast-response evacuated solar heat collectors and the multi-cycle icemaker. The system is capable of producing a maximum of 141 litres of distilled water per day per module which has an exposure area of 3.24m2, or a production rate of 43.5 litres per m2 per day. Once again when this result is compared to the reported daily output of 5 litres of desalinated water per m per day the significance of this piece of work becomes apparent. In the presentation of many of the components and systems described in this thesis CAD parametric solid modelling has been used instead of photographs to illustrate them more clearly. The multi-cycle icemaker and the high-output desalination systems are the subject of two patent applications.

Desplegament dels circuits dedicats de 1 i 10 Gbps entre el PIC i el CERN

Aquest projecte consisteix a realitzar el disseny i desplegament d'una connexió entre el Port d'Informació Científica (PIC) i el Consell Europeu per a la Recerca Nuclear (CERN) sobre un circuit dedicat amb una velocitat de transferència de 10 Gbps. En una primera fase el desplegament de la connexió es realitza sobre un circuit dedicat de 1 Gbps. El projecte implica la certificació dels circuits dedicats de 1 i 10 Gbps i el disseny dels plans d'actuació que han de permetre la integració de les noves connexions dins la xarxa i els serveis del PIC.

Phase Contrast X-Ray Tomographic Microscopy for Biological and Materials Science Applications

The application of two approaches for high-throughput, high-resolution X-ray phase contrast tomographic imaging being used at the tomographic microscopy and coherent radiology experiments (TOMCAT) beamline of the SLS is discussed and illustrated. Differential phase contrast (DPC) imaging, using a grating interferometer and a phase-stepping technique, is integrated into the beamline environment at TOMCAT in terms of the fast acquisition and reconstruction of data and the availability to scan samples within an aqueous environment. A second phase contrast method is a modified transfer of intensity approach that can yield the 3D distribution of the decrement of the refractive index of a weakly absorbing object from a single tomographic dataset. The two methods are complementary to one another: the DPC method is characterised by a higher sensitivity and by moderate resolution with larger samples; the modified transfer of intensity approach is particularly suited for small specimens when high resolution (around 1 mu m) is required. Both are being applied to investigations in the biological and materials science fields.

A Study of Alcohol Problems and Marriage from a Treatment Perspective

This thesis is concerned with alcohol problems and marital relationships. It is particularly interested in these dynamics from a treatment perspective. The study addresses theory, research and clinical practice in the field of alcohol problems. It specifically considers these areas as they relate to enhancing understanding of the dynamics between alcohol problems and marriage. The study examines three theoretical paradigms, the disease concept of addiction, behavioural/cognitive behavioural and systems based approaches to understanding alcohol addiction. This provides a multiple theory base from which research in the field and the clinical data collected in the current research is analysed and interpreted. The study reviews research findings that have contributed to the recognition of marital treatment interventions as significant in the alcohol field. It highlights the discrepancies between such research findings and developments in actual clinical practice. In doing so, the study illustrates the gap between theory, research and clinical practice. The need for a more effective framework of information exchange across these areas of activity is identified and a model for better exchange is presented and discussed. This model highlights the importance of including clients' experiences to influence policy, practice, theory and research. In the research, specific attention is focused on the experiences of couples in alcohol treatment. Clinical data is collected from a series of alcohol treatment couples group therapy sessions. The research analysis of the clinical data identifies and extracts concerns as expressed by couples in treatment. Interpretation of these identified concerns or themes is conducted by employing the theoretical constructs of the three selected theoretical paradigms in conjunction with group work theory. On the basis of the findings in this thesis a model for a maritally sensitive assessment framework is developed. The model identifies a number of factors that should be considered in order to enhance appreciation of the interaction between alcohol problems and marital dynamics. This has particular significance for treatment interventions.This resource was contributed by The National Documentation Centre on Drug Use.