An IC architecture for RF Energy Harvesting systems

In this work we present an IC architecture for RF energy harvesting. The system has been designed with a 0.18μm CMOS SMIC technology and optimized at 900MHz. Simulation results have confirmed that the integrated system handles an incoming power typically ranging from -25 dBm to 20 dBm by rectifying the variable input signals into a DC voltage source with an overall efficiency up to 50%. The chip area estimation for the proposed system is as low as 3x3mm2

Electronic Interface for Lidar System and Smart Cities Applications

This work deals with the design of a new readoutelectronics for silicon photomultipliers sensors. The so-calledSiPMs sensors are an emerging technology currentlydiffusing in many applications and, among them, in thedefinition of a new generation of LIDAR systems. Thelatter, nowadays have a primary role in the evolutionprocess that is involving Smart Cities, being an enablingtechnology in different fields. The solution here proposed isrealized at electronic level with a 150 nm technology processfrom LFoundry and results provide a feasibledemonstration of the capability of the proposed designapproach to be employed in practical application

A Combined 90/900 MHz IC Architecture for Smart Tag Application

In this work we present a combined 90/900 MHz Energy Harvesting Architecture for active smart tag Application. The harvester takes advantages from a dedicated diplexer and a power manager for battery life enhancement purposes. The system has been optimized in the 900 MHz frequency range by analyzing a probabilistic approach used for modeling the possible amount of Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) energy that could be harvested while a fixed power downlink scenario has been adopted for the 90MHz band. A preliminary IC system with a 0.18μm CMOS SMIC technology has been designed and optimized at 90 and 900 MHz while discrete element board, to be integrated with the proposed IC, with commercial components has been developed and tested. Concerning simulation results on the IC design they have confirmed that the integrated system handles an incoming power typically ranging from -25 dBm to 5 dBm by rectifying the variable input signals into a DC voltage source with an average 50% efficiency

A 10-17 DOF Sensory Gloves with Harvesting Capability for Smart Healthcare

We here present a 10-17 Degrees of Freedom (DoF) sensory gloves for Smart Healthcare implementing an energy harvesting architecture, aimed at enhancing the battery lasting when powering the electronics of the two different types of gloves, used to sense fingers movements. In particular, we realized a comparison in terms of measurement repeatability and reliability, as well as power consumption and battery lasting, between two sensory gloves implemented by means of different technologies. The first is a 3D printed glove with 10 DoF, featuring low-cost, low-effort fabrication and low-power consumption. The second is a classical Lycra® glove with 14 DoF suitable for a more detailed assessment of the hand postures, featuring a relatively higher cost and power consumption. An electronic circuitry was designed to gather and elaborate data from both types of sensory gloves, differing for number of inputs only. Both gloves are equipped with flex sensors and in addiction with the electronics (including a microcontroller and a transmitter) allow the control of hand virtual limbs or mechanical arts in surgical, military, space and civil applications.Six healthy subjects were involved in tests suitable to evaluate the performances of the proposed gloves in terms of repeatability, reproducibility and reliability. Particular effort was devoted to increase battery lasting for both glove-based systems, with the electronics relaying on Radio Frequency, Piezoelectric and Thermoelectric harvesters. The harvesting part was built and tested as a prototype discrete element board, that is interfaced with an external microcontroller and a radiofrequency transmitter board. Measurement results demonstrated a meaningful improvement in battery operation time up to 25%, considering different operating scenarios

RF Active Inductors Small-Signal Design by Means of Conformal Transformations

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SPICE Model Identification Technique of a Cheap Thermoelectric Cell Applied to DC/DC Design with MPPT Algorithm for Low-Cost, Low-Power Energy Harvesting

In this work, an identification technique of a simple, measurements-based SPICE (Simulation Program with Integrated Circuit Emphasis) model is presented for small low-cost Peltier cells used in thermoelectric generator (TEG) mode for low-temperature differences. The collection of electric energy from thermal sources is an alternative solution of great interests to the problem of energy supply for low-power portable devices. However, materials with thermoelectric characteristics specifically designed for this purpose are generally expensive and therefore often not usable for low cost and low power applications. For these reasons, in this paper, we studied the possibility of exploiting small Peltier cells in TEG mode and a method to maximize the efficiency of these objects in energy conversion and storage since they are economical, easy to use, and available with different characteristics on the market. The identification of an accurate model is a key aspect for the design of the DC/DC converter, in order to guarantee maximum efficiency. For this purpose, the SPICE model has been validated and used in a design example of a DC/DC converter with maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm with fractional open-circuit voltage. The results showed that it is possible to obtain a maximum power of 309 µW with a Peltier cell 2 × 2 cm at a ΔT of 16 °C and the designed SPICE DC/DC converter performance proved the improvement and optimization value given by the TEG model identification

Editorial for the Special Issue on Electronics for Sensors II

Sensor signals are physical, chemical, or biological quantities that evolve over time [...

A Novel General Purpose Combined DFVF/VCII Based Biomedical Amplifier

We here present a 0.15 µm CMOS high input impedance and low noise AC coupled flipped voltage follower-based amplifier for high integration level in integrated circuits in a wide range of sensing applications. With such a circuit, it is possible to achieve a high level of integration, thanks to the absence of passive resistors, and also to implement a very high input impedance without capacitive feedback thanks to bootstrap operation, thus offering a very low high-pass cutoff frequency. Simulated results with a proven and well modeled standard technology show a whole circuit input-referred noise of 5.4 µVrms. The bias voltage is ±0.6 V with a total power consumption of the single amplifier of 20 µW. The very low circuit complexity allows a very low estimated reduced area occupation giving, as a general example, the possibility of integrating an array of up to thousands of channels for biomedical applications. Detailed simulation results, PVT analysis and comparison tables are also presented in the paper

Editorial for the Special Issue on Electronics for Sensors II

Sensor signals are physical, chemical, or biological quantities that evolve over time [...

A Second Order 1.8–1.9 GHz Tunable Active Band-Pass Filter with Improved Noise Performances

In this paper, a novel active tunable band-pass filter with improved noise performances is presented. This filter is based on a negative resistance circuit (or active capacitance), where the gain obtained with a transistor is used to compensate for inductor losses. Moreover, the capacitance of the resonator is obtained through a voltage-controlled reverse-biased varactor, which allows for frequency tuning. Despite the active component, the proposed filter also has good noise performance. Measurements show a tunability range from 1.816 GHz to 1.886 GHz, with a bandwidth of 38 MHz. The insertion loss maximum value is 0.4 dB, while the noise figure value has a minimum value of 2.5 dB at the center frequency within the tunability range