Power-aware sensor interfacing and signal processing using nonlinear analog techniques

本研究的目的是发现一种新型的超低功耗传感器。方法是开发非线性自适应方案，以绕过线性时不变系统所面临的权衡。这项研究旨在促进移动医疗等应用程序的发展，这些应用程序依赖于电力预算有限的传感器。特别是，这项研究将使脑控人工耳蜗成为可能--下一代神经假体，解决噪声背景下长期存在的语音清晰度问题。智能优势：非线性分析可以识别对应用程序的计算和状态变化至关重要的传感器数据区域。此外，自适应系统可以调整其参数和资源消耗，以专门容纳这些与计算相关的数据，同时丢弃剩余的、不太相关的数据。这些非线性和自适应方案导致了非常节能的传感器，所提出的项目将通过有条不紊地利用模拟元件固有的非线性动力学来实现它们。通过这种方式，该项目旨在推进低功率传感器设计领域。广泛的影响：该项目实现的移动医疗设备将促进一种预防性的、分散的医疗保健提供模式。这可能会缓解不断上涨的医疗保健成本。该项目将通过外展项目和已在达特茅斯学院蓬勃发展的跨学科研讨会，将非线性系统思维融入工程教学。该项目的健康应用将表明，工程是一项以人为本的职业。这与妇女和少数群体有关，有人建议他们避免工程学，因为他们认为工程学与人类直接关心的问题脱节。

The objective of this research is to discover a new class of ultra low power sensors. The approach is to develop nonlinear adaptive schemes that circumvent the tradeoffs faced by linear, time-invariant systems. This research aims at facilitating applications like mobile health, which rely on sensors with a limited power budget. In particular, this research will enable the brain-controlled cochlear implant - a next generation neural prosthetic that addresses the long-standing problem of speech intelligibility in a noisy background.Intellectual Merit: Nonlinear analysis can identify those regions of sensor data that are critical for an application's computations and state changes. Further, an adaptive system can adjust its parameters and resource consumption to specifically accommodate such computationally-relevant data, while discarding the remaining, less relevant data. These nonlinear and adaptive schemes result in very power-efficient sensors, and the proposed project will realize them by methodically harnessing the inherent nonlinear dynamics of analog components. In this way, the project aims to advance the field of low power sensor design.Broader Impacts: The mobile health devices that this project enables will promote a preventative, decentralized model of health-care delivery. This could allay the rising cost of health care. The project will integrate nonlinear systems thinking into engineering teaching through outreach programs and interdisciplinary workshops that are already thriving at Dartmouth College. The project's health applications will demonstrate that engineering is a human-focused occupation. This is relevant to women and minorities who, it has been suggested, avoid engineering because of its perceived disconnect with direct human concerns.