Advanced Electronic Microsystems for Biomedical and Oilfield Instrumentation Applications

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The goals of my proposed research program are (a) to investigate, design, implement, and test innovative electronic microsystems for biomedical and oilfield applications; (b) develop intellectual property around them; and (c) commercialize them as soon as possible. My plan in the next 5 years is to research, develop and test two such microsystems, the In Situ Lab Aid (ISLA), a new "smart sole" device for painless, single-use blood extraction and analysis for breast cancer screening; and a miniaturized, self-calibrating, mobile inertial microsystem for downhole navigation and wireless communication in lateral drilling deviations from unproductive oil wells. The idea behind ISLA is innovative, but also realistic: after a blood sample is extracted with the combined aid of a MEMS actuator and casual walking, it is subjected to immediate interrogation in situ by a miniature high-intensity superluminescent light emitting diode and the resulting fluorescence is recorded. The hypothesis is that these fluorescence data will be extremely useful for the early diagnosis of breast cancer. A recent (2015) study on blood fluorescence spectroscopy for breast cancer screening revealed the sensitivity and specificity of this approach to be 80.4% and 100%, respectively. Having a minimally-invasive, "smart sole" device to perform blood fluorescence testing in situ will benefit immensely Canadian women in self-controlled, autonomous early breast cancer screening. The project has three components: (a) scientific (modeling the combined action of the actuator and casual walking on skin penetration in various areas of the foot, along with estimation of blood volume collection); (b) development ("smart sole" prototype design and optimization); and (c) laboratory and human testing. In the area of inertial navigation systems (INS) for downhole oil exploration, my idea is to apply the newly developed by my research group In-Drilling Allignment (IDA) technique for lateral drilling deviations from existing unproductive wells, while providing complete three-dimensional (3D) controlled motion of the INS capsule for maximal error compensation in all three planes of the drill bit motion inside these deviations. The goal is to miniaturize the IDA setup to fit in a 12x100 mm enclosure, in which a miniature electric motor will provide controlled 3D motion for error compensation. Relay-based wireless communication is also envisioned. This project has three components as well: (a) scientific (model and quantify the impact of 3D controlled motion on navigation error reduction in each of the three navigation planes and find wireless means to relay the information); (b) development (prototype design and optimization); and (c) laboratory and well-based testing. The project will benefit both the Canadian oil industry and the environment, since old unproductive oil wells will become reusable, avoiding new well drilling.