A low-power reconfigurable ADC for biomedical sensor interfaces

This paper presents a 12-bit low-voltage low-power reconfigurable Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC). The design employs Switched Capacitor (SC) techniques and implements a Successive Approximation (SA) algorithm. The ADC can be tuned to handle a large variety of biopotential signals, with digitally selectable resolution and input signal amplitude. It achieves 10.4-bit of effective resolution sampling at 56kS/s, with a power consumption below 3μW from a 1V voltage supply.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia TEC2006-03022Junta de Andalucía TIC-0281

A self-calibration circuit for a neural spike recording channel

This paper presents a self-calibration circuit for a neural spike recording channel. The proposed design tunes the bandwidth of the signal acquisition Band-Pass Filter (BPF), which suffers from process variations corners. It also performs the adjustment of the Programmable Gain Amplifier (PGA) gain to maximize the input voltage range of the analog-to-digital conversion. The circuit, which consists on a frequency-controlled signal generator and a digital processor, operates in foreground, is completely autonomous and integrable in an estimated area of 0.026mm 2 , with a power consumption around 450nW. The calibration procedure takes less than 250ms to select the configuration whose performance is closest to the required one.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2009-08447Junta de Andalucía TIC-0281

Power Efficient ADCs for Biomedical Signal Acquisition

Open Access.Peer reviewe

A 64-channel inductively-powered neural recording sensor array

This paper reports a 64-channel inductively powered neural recording sensor array. Neural signals are acquired, filtered, digitized and compressed in the channels. Additionally, each channel implements a local auto-calibration mechanism which configures the transfer characteristics of the recording site. The system has two operation modes; in one case the information captured by the channels is sent as uncompressed raw data; in the other, feature vectors extracted from the detected neural spikes are transmitted. Data streams coming from the channels are serialized by an embedded digital processor and transferred to the outside by means of the same inductive link used for powering the system. Simulation results show that the power consumption of the complete system is 377μW.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2009-0844

A power efficient neural spike recording channel with data bandwidth reduction

This paper presents a mixed-signal neural spike recording channel which features, as an added value, a simple and low-power data compression mechanism. The channel uses a band-limited differential low noise amplifier and a binary search data converter, together with other digital and analog blocks for control, programming and spike characterization. The channel offers a self-calibration operation mode and it can be configured both for signal tracking (to raw digitize the acquired neural waveform) and feature extraction (to build a first-order PWL approximation of the spikes). The prototype has been fabricated in a standard CMOS 0.13μm and occupies 400μm×400μm. The overall power consumption of the channel during signal tracking is 2.8μW and increases to 3.0μW average when the feature extraction operation mode is programmed.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2009-08447Junta de Andalucía TIC-0281

Self-calibration of neural recording sensors

This paper reports a calibration system for automatically adjusting the bandpass and gain characteristics of programmable E×G sensors. The calibration mechanism of the bandpass characteristic is based on a mixed-signal tuning loop which uses as feedback signal the output of the data converter following the signal conditioning of the E×G sensor. Intended high-pass and low-pass frequency poles of the transfer function are injected into the loop by means of a direct frequency synthesizer followed by a smoothing atenuator.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2012-3363

Novel Fuzzy Torque Vectoring Controller for Electric Vehicles with per-wheel Motors

[Resumen] The continuous innovation on the electric vehicle area has led to the use of multi-motor powertrain topologies. These powertrains imply new degrees of freedom and better controllability, thus enabling elaborate control solutions for enhanced vehicle dynamics. This allows not only to achieve better vehicle stability, but also greater performance and responsiveness, leading to safer and more satisfying vehicle handling. This work presents a Fuzzy Torque Vectoring Controller for a rear-wheel drive car with independent motors per wheel. The developed design has been validated in a high fidelity vehicle dynamics simulation platform demonstrating its capability to enhance not only curve performance, but also stability

Agronomic Performance of Three Sunflower Varieties (Helianthus annuus L.) in Topes de Collantes Mountain Community, Cuba

Considering the permanent human need to meet the food demands, current efforts are being made to diversify crop productions and foster multipurpose crops. Accordingly, a study was made in Topes de Collantes mountain community, where there is a predominance of farms under agroecological conversion. The aim of this research was to evaluate the morphological and productive indicators of three sunflower varieties for introduction in local agro-forest-grazing systems. The varieties studied were Cubasol 113, Caburé 15, and CIAP JE 94. The treatments for seed germination were dipped in water for 6, 12, and 24 h. The various phenological phases of the crop were determined in the field. Additionally, growth indicators like height, stem thickness, and number of leaves were evaluated; as well as productive indicators capitulum diameter, number of seeds per capitulum, and total seed weight, from which the yields of the three varieties were estimated. Multifactorial and one-way ANOVA analyses were performed for statistical processing. The best treatment was the 12 h dipping, and the best variety was Cubasol 113, with over 70% germination. The height, stem thickness, and leaf number values for the three varieties matched the responses described for them under other edaphoclimatic conditions. The productive values of variety CIAP JE 94 were higher than the values for Cubasol 113 and Caburé 15 under the conditions of the study

El Autismo: la ausencia personal

El proyecto de revisión bibliográfica que se presenta aborda el tema de los Trastornos de Espectro Autista (TEA). En primer lugar, se explica el proceso que se ha llevado a lo largo de la historia para construir la palabra autismo, y consigo las distintas características que presenta a través de diversas teorías y autores. Por consiguiente, se muestran los aspectos más relevantes que se pueden encontrar en el autismo, así como también las distintas dificultades de aprendizaje, las propuestas que se llevan a cabo y los distintos tipos de contexto en el campo educativo. Por último, se pueden encontrar las diferentes intervenciones que se pueden realizar con los niños y niñas que tienen este tipo de trastorno. Palabras claves: Trastornos del Espectro Autista, Intervención Educativa, Autismo, Dificultades, Educación.This paper addresses the issue of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). First, it explains the process that has taken throughout history to build the word autism, and It get the different characteristics that it presents through various theories and authors. Therefore, the most relevant aspects that can be found in autism, as well as the different learning difficulties, the proposals that are carried out and the different types of context in the educational field are shown. Finally, you can find the different interventions that can be performed with children who have this type of disorder. Key Words: Autism Spectrum Disorders, Educational Intervention, Autism, difficulties, Education