Compressive Data Telemetry to Implantable Biomedical Microsystems

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The Proposed Program: Implantable medical devices (IMDs) are at the forefront of cutting edge research in medicine and biology, and have proved to be among the most efficient tools in curing diseases and disorders. As an example, one can name brain-implantable microsystems, as a part of the tremendous "worldwide wave of brain research" over the past decade. In harmony with the White House BRAIN Initiative in the US and the Human Brain Program in Europe, Canada has developed the Brain Canada Program, focusing on brain research in a wide sense. The proposed research program focuses on the technical challenges encountered in the development of high-rate data telemetry links to IMDs. The most challenging example of this is in high-density brain implants and visual prostheses (as a highly-advanced engineering effort towards the restoration of vision for the blind). This program aims at introducing a new approach to high-rate data telemetry to such implants by combining data compression techniques with data telemetry procedures, referred to as compressive data telemetry, hereafter. It encompasses the entire wireless telemetry path (comprising the transmitter backend, the wireless link, and the receiver front-end) as well as the realization of data compression methods. This is feasible through our background and achievements in both data compression and wireless interfacing dedicated to IMDs. The research directions in this program will include novel compressive encoding/decoding techniques, modulation/demodulation schemes, the physical telemetry link itself, and the associated implant-efficient integrated circuit implementations (taking into consideration biological tissue safety concerns when exposed to electromagnetic waves). Outcomes: According to the common terminology in digital communications, this program comprises three parts: (a) line encoding/decoding, (b) bandpass modulation/demodulation, and (c) the telemetry link itself. We will introduce novel compressive line encoding techniques that will have the property of temporal compression. Innovative bandpass modulation/demodulation schemes will then follow, which will provide the possibility of high data-rate-to-carrier-frequency ratio telemetry. This program involves the proposition of the techniques themselves, their power- and area-efficient circuit implementations, and the realization and test of the whole wireless interfacing chain. Need and Impact: Nowadays, enhancement of the capacity of IMDs such as brain implants and visual prostheses is the current mainstream of research on the development of such systems. Therefore, being equipped with effective data compression techniques as well as bit-rate efficient telemetry links is becoming a must in the development of such systems. Therefore, our research program will focus on "compressive data telemetry" as a timely effort to address this undeniable and inevitable need.