Digital Commons Network^™

Enhancing System-On-Chip Verification Using Embedded Test Structures, Wei Jiang

Masters Theses

In this project, we designed and implemented a System-on-Chip platform with embedded test structures. The baseline platform consists of a Leon2 CPU, AMBA on-chip bus, and an Advanced Encryption Standard decryption module. Reconfigurable test logic blocks were embedded to form the test structure that can be used in post-silicon debug and verification.

The System-on-Chip platform was designed at the register transistor level and implemented in an 180nm CMOS process. Test logic instrumentation was done with DAFCA, Inc. (Design Automation for Flexible Chip Architecture) pre-silicon tools. The design was then synthesized using the Synopsys Design Compiler and placed and routed using …

A Comparison Of The Sensor Brick Concept As A Modular System Architecture To The Realtime Control System As The Operational Architecture, James Robert Wilson

Masters Theses

This thesis describes the application of modular design into an intelligent mobile robotic system. The Sensor Brick System, a mobile robotic system infused with artificial intelligence, is derived through the concept and application of modular design. Modular design drives the system’s characterization by defining, identifying and selecting the essential composite of sub-systems that form the system architecture. The principles of modular design designate grouping the technologies into modules that facilitate maintenance of the system components and allow the rapid integration of future technological developments. Developing the operational control of the system requires an examination and comprehension of the theories of …

“Design And Verification Of A Reusable Self-Reconfigurable Gate Array Architecture, Gabriel Cozmin Chereches

Masters Theses

This thesis presents the design and verification of a Self-Reconfigurable Gate Array architecture (SRGA-UT) created for reuse, and available with a step-by-step tutorial and comprehensive documentation. The original SRGA [1], created at the University of Southern California, is an innovative architecture for a reconfigurable device that allows single cycle context switching and single cycle random access to a unified on-chip configuration/data memory. The key architecture that enables the above two features is the use of a mesh of trees based interconnect with logic cells and memory blocks at the leaf nodes and identical switches at the parent nodes.

The SRGA-UT …

Biomimetic Membranes Realized With Arrays Of Carbon Nanofibers, Eric Hullander

Masters Theses

A microfluidic device with imbedded nanoporous membranes, constructed using a novel nanostructured material, was designed, built, modeled, and tested. The membranes were shown to be modular, and by adsorbing monodisperse latex spheres to the fibrous membrane, the pore size could be controlled. A mathematical model of the device was developed based on several existing fluidic models for transport through fibrous materials, and an image processing algorithm was designed to extract the hydrodynamic properties of the device from a series of scanning electron micrographs based on the existing hydrodynamic models. A series of experiments were performed using fluorescent microscopy to quantify …

Design Of A Novel Reluctance Motor For Industrial Applications, Weston Clute Johnson

Masters Theses

A novel reluctance motor topology, termed the Johnson-Currie Reluctance Motor (JCRM), has been developed and described in this thesis. The JCRM topology and analysis is based upon the traditional switched reluctance motor (SRM) topology although there are significant modifications.

The flux path of the JCRM topology is such that it passes through the rotor and stator in three-dimensions. This topology with three dimensional flux paths allows for the removal of discrete stator windings giving rise to vastly superior maintance to the traditional SRM and arguably to most electric motors. In addition, the usage of three-dimensions for flux paths gives rise …

Performance Study Of Hybrid Spread Spectrum Techniques, Yachna Sharma

Masters Theses

This thesis focuses on the performance analysis of hybrid direct sequence/slow frequency hopping (DS/SFH) and hybrid direct sequence/fast frequency hopping (DS/FFH) systems under multi-user interference and Rayleigh fading. First, we analyze the performance of direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS), slow frequency hopping (SFH) and fast frequency hopping (FFH) systems for varying processing gains under interference environment assuming equal bandwidth constraint with Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK) modulation and synchronous system. After thorough literature survey, we show that hybrid DS/FFH systems outperform both SFH and hybrid DS/SFH systems under Rayleigh fading and multi-user interference. Also, both hybrid DS/SFH and hybrid DS/FFH …

Automated Analysis Of Fluorescent Microscopic Images To Identify Protein-Protein Interactions, Sankar Venkataraman

Masters Theses

The identification and confirmation of protein interactions significantly challenges the field of systems biology and related bio-computational efforts. The identification of protein-protein interactions along with their spatial and temporal localization is useful for assigning functional information to proteins. Fluorescence microscopy is an ideal method for assessing protein localization and interactions as a number of techniques and reagents have been described. Historically, data sets obtained from fluorescence microscopy have been analyzed manually, a process that is both time consuming and tedious. The development of an automated system that can measure the location and dynamics of interacting proteins inside a live cell …

A Dynamic Ampacity Model For The Testing Of Advanced Conductors, Matthew Benjamin Sooter

Masters Theses

Advanced Conductors are an intriguing new technology that promises to help the utility industry increase the transmission capacity available in the United States. Manufacturers of advanced conductors promise double the current carrying capacity of normal Aluminum Clad Steel Reinforced conductor through a combination of increased thermal limits and decreased thermal elongation.

This thesis will outline a control developed for the Power Line Conductor Accelerated Test Facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. This custom facility is designed for the testing and rapid aging of advanced overhead conductors as part of a U.S. Department of Energy initiative to assist the development and …

Optimization Of Dsss Receivers Using Hardware-In-The-Loop Simulations, Balbir Kaur Dhillon

Masters Theses

Over the years, there has been significant interest in defining a hardware abstraction layer to facilitate code reuse in software defined radio (SDR) applications. Designers are looking for a way to enable application software to specify a waveform, configure the platform, and control digital signal processing (DSP) functions in a hardware platform in a way that insulates it from the details of realization.

This thesis presents a tool-based methodolgy for developing and optimizing a Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) transceiver deployed in custom hardware like Field Programmble Gate Arrays (FPGAs). The system model consists of a tranmitter which employs a …

Comparison Of Microscopic Modalities For The 3d Model Reconstruction Of Nanodevices, Christopher Robert Kammerud

Masters Theses

As manufacturing capabilities push nanotechnology to smaller and smaller scales, novel inspection schemes must be developed to ensure product quality. The objective of our research was to implement, refine, and compare 3D reconstruction algorithms that could aid manufacturers in their ability to visualize and inspect nanodevices. Data was collected from three different microscopes: the atomic force microscope (AFM), the scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the laser scanning confocal microscope (LSCM). For each of these microscopes, a specific algorithm was implemented to generate 3D models from the raw microscope data. Scans from the AFM microscope give range information similar to laser …

Universal Geometric Camera Calibration With Statistical Model Selection, Chistopher Paul Broaddus

Masters Theses

We propose a new universal camera calibration approach that uses statistical information criteria for automatic camera model selection. It requires the camera to observe a planar pattern from different positions, and then closed-form estimates for the intrinsic and extrinsic parameters are computed followed by nonlinear optimization. In lieu of modeling radial distortion, the lens projection of the camera is modeled, and in addition we include decentering distortion. This approach is particularly advantageous for wide angle (fisheye) camera calibration because it often reduces the complexity of the model compared to modeling radial distortion. We then apply statistical information criteria to automatically …

Physical Layer Simulation Study For The Co-Existence Of Wlan Standards, Chad Joseph Kiger

Masters Theses

Interference is a prime factor that limits the performance of devices within the 2.4 GHz ISM Band. Due to the ISM Band being unlicensed and free to all users, there is an abundance of devices within this frequency range. The three most prominent of such devices used for data communication consist of Bluetooth, Wifi, and Zigbee. In order to understand whether these three protocols can co-exist with each other, a physical layer system model will be developed for each protocol. These systems models will be combined and their interaction with each other examined to determine the effects of the interference …

“Modeling Study Of Individual And Group Behavior Of Brazilian Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida Brasiliensis) And Dynamic Bat Counting Using Real-Time Infrared Thermal Video, Aruna Raghavan

Masters Theses

Brazilian free-tailed bats live as colonies in caves, under bridges and in places where human exploitation is perceived to be minimal. These bats emerge out of their habitats to forage in the fields nearby and help in natural pest control. These bats consume thousands of tons of insects every day in quantities that can amount to 2/3 of the body weight of each bat. The life of these natural pest destroyers are under threat due to human ignorance, exploitation and unknown myths.

For economic reasons, it becomes necessary to study the behavior and movement of these bats and to count …

A 2.4 Ghz Lc-Vco Using On-Chip Inductors And Accumulation-Mode Varactors In A Cmos 0.18 Μm Process, Bryant Derand Williamson

Masters Theses

The demand for low power, low cost, and low noise RF sub-systems has lead to the development of completely integrated transceivers. Frequency synthesizers containing a PLL and a crystal oscillator are perhaps the most challenging part of a transceiver’s design. One of its nosiest, most power consuming components, the VCO, often makes the PLL a challenging design. For an LC-VCO, the best type of VCO for quality noise performance, the struggle lies in the fully integrated inductor. Despite the vast improvement in additional facets of the LC-VCO, the integrated inductor lags in its accomplishments; and the focus of designers is …

Design And Development Of Epics Based Rf Conditioning System For The High Power Rf Components Of Charged Particle Accelerators, S.M. Shajedul Hasan

Masters Theses

Charged particle accelerators use various vacuum windows on their accelerating RF cavities to pass very high RF power through for the acceleration of particles. The accelerating cavities and the windows should be cleaned, baked and fully RF conditioned to eliminate poor vacuum caused by outgassing and other contamination. The linear accelerator (Linac) in the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) contains various accelerating cavity structures and RF conditioning of their high power vacuum windows is necessary for present work as well as future upgrade and development. An example is the coaxial fundamental power coupler (FPC) with an annular alumina ceramic window for …

Design And Analysis Of New Concept Interior Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor By 3d Finite Element Analysis, Seongtaek Lee

Masters Theses

Throughout the years Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV) require an electric motor which has high power density and wide constant power operating region as well as low manufacturing cost. For these purposes, a new concept permanent magnet motor is designed and analyzed with the basic theories about Interior Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (IPMSM).

This new motor has DC excitation coils and flux paths, which can increase the output torque and be controlled for field weakening operating. The analysis has been conducted by three-dimensional Finite Element Analysis. The results show the possibility of the new motor for HEV applications. The new motor …

Civilian Target Recognition Using Hierarchical Fusion, Balasubramanian Lakshminarayanan

Masters Theses

The growth of computer vision technology has been marked by attempts to imitate human behavior to impart robustness and confidence to the decision making process of automated systems. Examples of disciplines in computer vision that have been targets of such efforts are Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) and fusion. ATR is the process of aided or unaided target detection and recognition using data from different sensors. Usually, it is synonymous with its military application of recognizing battlefield targets using imaging sensors. Fusion is the process of integrating information from different sources at the data or decision levels so as to provide …

Analytical Modeling And Simulation Of Sige Mos Gate Hemt, Mohmmad Tanvir Alam

Masters Theses

This thesis presents work on analytical modeling and simulation of SiGe MOS gate HEMT. A modified model for the threshold voltage of the MOS-gate HEMT is presented. An expression to calculate accurately minimum gate voltage VGmin of p-channel MOS-gate HEMT is derived. Using the modified expressions, VTHp and VGmin are calculated. Current-voltage characteristics, transconductance and cutoff frequency are calculated and plotted using the modified model and the results are compared with the results obtained from an existing model. The effects of different device and material parameter variation on VTHp and VGmin are also investigated.
An analytical temperature model for the …

De-Velopment Of Demosaicking Techniques For Multi-Spectral Imaging Using Mosaic Focal Plane Arrays, Gaurav Ashok Baone

Masters Theses

The use of mosaicked array technology in commercial digital cameras has madethem smaller, cheaper and mechanically more robust. In a mosaicked sensor, each pixel detector is covered with a wavelength-specific optical filter. Since only one spectral band is sensed per pixel location, there is an absence of information from the rest of the spectral bands. These unmeasured spectral bands are estimated by using information obtained from the neighborhood pixels. This process of estimating the unmeasured spectral band information is called demosaicking. The demosaicking process uses interpolation strategies to estimate the missing pixels. Sophisticated interpolation methods have been developed for performing …

Analysis Of 2d Spatial Filtering Of Simulated Muscle Action Potential Using Grid Arrays, Mohammad Moshiur Rahman

Masters Theses

Surface grid electrode is a noninvasive technique, which can be utilized for topographic analysis of EMG signals. In this study, an innovative spatial filtering technique is proposed in the form of grid electrodes to enhance the selectivity of surface EMG signal considering the effect of intermediate tissue layers between source and recording electrode. A simulation algorithm is developed to generate complete profile of single fiber action potential (SFAP) using previously derived mathematical model and published clinical data. A multiple-layer model is investigated in order to determine the potential distribution at the skin, fat and muscle surface based on the solution …

Pitot Tube And Wind Tunnel Studies Of The Flow Induced By One Atmosphere Uniform Glow Discharge (Oaugdp ®) Plasma Actuators Using A Conventional And An Economical High Voltage Power Supply, Manish Yadav

Masters Theses

The aerodynamic applications of plasma science is a field of growing interest. Investigations using various approaches have been initiated by several research groups that are designed to manipulate the aerodynamic boundary layer and to re-attach the flow to airfoils. EHD (ElectroHydroDynamic) flow control has proven at least as effective as other methods of boundary layer flow control. In the EHD approach, glow discharge plasma actuators are placed on the wings and fuselage of the aircraft, or on the turbine blades in the engine, to influence the boundary layer flow. This thesis is concerned with plasma actuators based on the OAUGDP …

Reconfigurable Hardware Acceleration Of Exact Stochastic Simulation, Brandon Parks Thurmon

Masters Theses

This thesis explores the use of reconfigurable hardware in modeling chemical species reacting in a spatially homogeneous environment. The time evolution of biochemical models is often evaluated using a deterministic approach that uses differential equations to describe the chemical interactions of the model. However, such an approach treats species as continuous valued concentrations, is inaccurate for small species populations, and neglects the stochastic nature of biochemical systems. The Stochastic Simulation Algorithm (SSA) developed by Gillespie is able to properly account for these inherent noise fluctuations. This allows the SSA to accurately project the time evolution of a biochemical model. Unfortunately, …

Using Platform Express For System-On-Chip Design, Mardavsinh Harisinh Wala

Masters Theses

The advent of nanoscale technology brings with it an increase in system complexity with integrated circuit transistor numbers reaching hundreds of millions. Systems-on-chip are attaining a level of complexity where design turn-around times are a major factor. Reusing existing intellectual property blocks that are already verified for functionality could help minimize the design time and increase system reliability. This allows the designers to focus on more important product design aspects. Platform-based design is an effective method to deal with the increasing pressure on time-to-market. The approach also provides a practical solution to reduce the design and manufacturing costs.

This thesis …

Modeling And Analysis Of Active Front-End Induction Motor Drive For Reactive Power Compensation, Pankaj Prabhakar Pandit

Masters Theses

In this thesis, an active front end induction motor drive for reactive power compensation is analyzed. The classical vector control approach for high performance control of an induction motor drive is a well established industry standard today. The same idea of decoupled control is extended to the line-side PWM converter for achieving better dynamic performance.

The system model is obtained using d-q rotating frame theory. The i_qe component of line currents is used to control the reactive power. The i_decomponent is used to control the dc-link voltage and also to supply active power required by the motor. …

Ridge Regression Approach To Color Constancy, Vivek Agarwal

Masters Theses

This thesis presents the work on color constancy and its application in the field of computer vision. Color constancy is a phenomena of representing (visualizing) the reflectance properties of the scene independent of the illumination spectrum. The motivation behind this work is two folds:
The primary motivation is to seek ‘consistency and stability’ in color reproduction and algorithm performance respectively because color is used as one of the important features in many computer vision applications; therefore consistency of the color features is essential for high application success. Second motivation is to reduce ‘computational complexity’ without sacrificing the primary motivation.
This …

Time-Varying Autoregressive Modeling Of Nonstationary Signals, Xiaolin Luo

Masters Theses

Nonstationary signal modeling is a research topic of practical interest. In this thesis, we adopt a time-varying (TV) autoregressive (AR) model using the basis function (BF) parameter estimation method for nonstationary process identification and instantaneous frequency (IF) estimation. The current TVAR model in direct form (DF) with the blockwise least-squares and recursive weighted-least-squares BF methods perform equivalently well in signal modeling, but the large estimation error may cause temporary instabilities of the estimated model.

To achieve convenient model stability monitoring and pole tracking, the TVAR model in cascade form (CF) was proposed through the parameterization in terms of TV poles …

An Investigation Of The Current Distribution In An Hts Triaxial Power Cable And Its Operational Impacts On A Power System, Marcus Aaron Young Ii

Masters Theses

An investigation of the current distribution in a 3-phase triaxial superconducting cable was conducted to study the phase imbalance under steady-state operation and to assist in the construction of a transient model to study operational impacts in a power grid.

The triaxial cable consisted of three superconducting concentric phases inside a copper shield, with each phase composed of multiple layers of BSCCO tape wound helically in opposite directions. Current distribution within the cable was determined by using an electric circuit (EC) model containing the self and mutual inductances resulting from both axial and tangential magnetic fields. An AC loss term …