High-Resolution Indoor Sensing Using Channel State Information of WiFi Networks

Indoor sensing is becoming increasingly important over time as it can be effectively utilized in many applications from digital health care systems to indoor safety and security systems. In particular, implementing sensing operations using existing infrastructures improves our experience and well-being, and exhibits unique advantages. The physical layer channel state information for wireless fidelity (WiFi) communications carries rich information about scatters in the propagation environment; hence, we exploited this information to enable detailed recognition of human behaviours in this study. Comprehensive calibration and filtering techniques were developed to alleviate the redundant responses embedded in the channel state information (CSI) data due to static objects and accidental events. Accurate information on breathing rate, heartbeat and angle of arrival of the incoming signal at the receiver side was inferred from the available CSI data. The method and procedure developed can be extended for sensing or imaging the environment utilizing wireless communication networks

Dual function flexible coplanar waveguide for feeding antenna of balanced structure

A flexible coplanar waveguide (CPW) design is presented suitable for feeding planar antenna with a balanced structure. Two features are provided by the flexible design, transition from balance on the antenna side to unbalance on the receiver side; transformation of characteristic input impedance of the antenna to the value of a standard load. It is essential for the CPW to be bended to fit the purposes hence the effect of bending of CPW on the transmission performance and method to feed planar antenna are investigated. The common mode propagation due to the inserted feedline is observed and the solution to eliminate the auxiliary common-mode effect in the structure is also discussed

Examining Food Quality via RFID Tag Array

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags are widely used in the food supply chain where they can be used to hold identification data of tagged objects. They can also be used to provide information related to the quality and safety of the tagged object. This can be achieved by analyzing the RF signals emitted by the tag which couples with the tagged objects, and hence can be used to acquire useful information related to the safety and quality of that object. This paper investigates the correlation between the radiated signals from the tags and the quality characteristics of the tagged objects. It focuses on analyzing the mutual coupling between the tags in an array, in particular, of orthogonal polarization configuration, which shows that more information can be extracted by an array of tags compared to the use of a single RFID tag emitter

Multibeam Cylindrical Conformal Array in the Presence of Enhanced Mutual Coupling

The limitations of conventional sensors have made array antennas increasingly crucial for gathering information and communication applications in intelligent transportation and communication systems. Compact cylindrical arrays are particularly favored for their ability to achieve azimuth angle scanning. However, the substantial mutual coupling effect between the elements on curved surfaces and its implication for these arrays remain unclear, which is a key factor to consider when such arrays are used for multibeam applications. This study investigates the effect of mutual coupling in a dual-slant-polarized cylindrical array. The results showed that mutual coupling is predominantly observed among the closely located elements, and it is essential for achieving an ultra-wide bandwidth. The study also analyzes the impact of mutual coupling on the scan impedance and radiation characteristics for multibeam applications and reveals that these arrays exhibit robust multibeam capability, hence having great potential for use in sensing and communication applications

Equivalent Circuit of Metamaterial Formed by Array of Conductive Disks

The use of metamaterials to obtain a wideband wide angle impedance matching (WAIM) for compact phased array of interconnected crossed rings is investigated. The metamaterial layer above the planar array is formed by array of conductive disks in contrast to the conventional multilayer homogeneous dielectric structure. The equivalent circuit of the metamaterial layer to enhance wideband array antenna design is derived based on a hybrid technique. The values of the components in the equivalent circuit to represent metamaterial layer is given. The response from the equivalent circuit is verified by using the full-wave numerical simulations on the metamaterial structure. The results show the effectiveness of the method in analyzing the electromagnetic characteristics of the structure and improving the performance of the whole array system

3D Architecture and Replaceable Layers for Label-Free DNA Biochips

Recent advances in bio-sensing technologies have led to design of bio-sensor arrays for rapid identification and quantification of various biological agents such as drugs, gene expressions, proteins, cholesterol, fats, etc. Various dedicated sensing arrays are already available commercially to monitor some of these compounds in a sample. However, monitoring the simultaneous presence of multiple agents in a sample is still a challenging task. Multiple agents may often attach to the same probes on an array which makes it difficult to design a chip that can distinguish such agents (leading to low specificity). Thus, sophisticated algorithms for targets identification need to be implemented in biochip in order to maximize the number of distinguishable targets in the samples. The proposed algorithms are also required to introduce sophisticated signal processing and more intelligence on-chip. Dealing with these new processing and information technology demands constraints also require more innovative approaches towards hybrid integration technologies. To address such new demands, we discuss in this paper an innovative 3D-integrated bio-chips especially dedicated to label-free DNA detection

In-House Made Inverted Microstrip Line Phase Shifter Based on Nematic Liquid Crystal

Nematic liquid crystals are anisotropic dielectrics whose properties could be controlled by surface anchoring, exter-nal electric or magnetic fields. A typical design method of tunable inverted microstrip line phase shifter based on liquid crystal for microwave application is investigated. Two phase shifter designs based on the proposed method were introduced with the center operation frequency of 10 GHz and 20 GHz respectively. The prototype design operating at 20GHz is manufactured. The dielectric anisotropy of the liquid crystal used for the prototype is 0.45. A differential phase shift of 27.2° was achieved at 20 GHz with the physical length of 20 mm, connected to two coplanar waveguide ports of 50 ohms through vias, and under an external bias of 7 V

Calibration of Aperture Arrays in Time Domain Using the Simultaneous Perturbation Algorithm

Online calibration is desired in antenna arrays of ultrawide bandwidth. This study proposes a time domain calibration method based on the simultaneous perturbation algorithm. Two objective functions were established: power of the received signal at array output; or combination of power and correlation coefficient between the signal at array output and a target signal. For both criteria, the convergence settings require only two measurements at each iteration. One advantage of the method is that the entire signal operation for calibration is performed in the time domain. This is achieved by resolving the effects of distortion on time delay of each channel, which accounts for both amplitude and phase distortions at different frequencies. Therefore, the proposed method significantly increased the calibration efficiency for ultra-wideband antenna arrays. Since time delay coefficients for calibration associated with array elements were determined independently due to characteristic of the simultaneous perturbation, estimation accuracy of the method is tangential to the number of elements in the array, and is mainly dependent on the convergence conditions. This gives the method an additional distinct advantage for calibrating large-scale antenna arrays with ultrawide bandwidth. An estimation accuracy of 99% on time delay adjustments has been achieved and demonstrated

Validation of the porous-medium approach to model interlayer-cooled 3D-chip stacks

Interlayer cooling is the only heat removal concept which scales with the number of active tiers in a vertically integrated chip stack. In this work, we numerically and experimentally characterize the performance of a three tier chip stack with a footprint of 1cm2. The implementation of 100μm pitch area array interconnect compatible heat transfer structures results in a maximal junction temperature increase of 54.7K at 1bar pressure drop with water as coolant for 250W/cm2 hot-spot and 50W/cm2 background heat flux. The total power removed was 390W which corresponds to a 3.9kW/cm3 volumetric heat flow. An efficient multi-scale modeling approach is proposed to predict the temperature response in the complete chip stack. The experimental validation confirmed an accuracy of +/- 10%. Detailed sub-domain modeling with parameter extraction is the base for the system level porous-media calculations with thermal field-coupling between solid – fluid and solid – solid interfaces. Furthermore, the strength and weakness of microchannel and pin fin heat transfer geometries in 2-port and 4-port fluid architectures is identified. Microchannels efficiently mitigate hot spots by distributing the dissipated heat to multiple cavities due to their low porosity. Pin fins with improved permeability and convective heat dissipation are advantageous at small power map contrast and aligned hot spots on the different tiers. Large stacks of 4cm2 can be cooled sufficiently by the 4-port fluid delivery architecture. The flow rate is improved four times compared to the 2-port fluid manifold. The non-uniformity of the flow in case of the 4-port demands a more careful floor- planning with hot spots placed in the chip stack corners. This is especially true in case of communicating heat transfer geometries such as pin fin structures with zero fluid velocity in the stack center. This large velocity contrast can be reduced by the implementation of non- communicating microchannels

Metabolic myopathy presenting with polyarteritis nodosa: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>To the best of our knowledge, we describe for the first time a patient in whom an unusual metabolic myopathy was identified after failure to respond to curative therapy for a systemic vasculitis, polyarteritis nodosa. We hope this report will heighten awareness of common metabolic myopathies that may present later in life. It also speculates on the potential relationship between metabolic myopathy and systemic vasculitis.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 78-year-old African-American woman with a two-year history of progressive fatigue and exercise intolerance presented to our facility with new skin lesions and profound muscle weakness. Skin and muscle biopsies demonstrated a medium-sized artery vasculitis consistent with polyarteritis nodosa. Biochemical studies of the muscle revealed diminished cytochrome C oxidase activity (0.78 μmol/minute/g tissue; normal range 1.03 to 3.83 μmol/minute/g tissue), elevated acid maltase activity (23.39 μmol/minute/g tissue; normal range 1.74 to 9.98 μmol/minute/g tissue) and elevated neutral maltase activity (35.89 μmol/minute/g tissue; normal range 4.35 to 16.03 μmol/minute/g tissue). Treatment for polyarteritis nodosa with prednisone and cyclophosphamide resulted in minimal symptomatic improvement. Additional management with a diet low in complex carbohydrates and ubiquinone, creatine, carnitine, folic acid, α-lipoic acid and ribose resulted in dramatic clinical improvement.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our patient's initial symptoms of fatigue, exercise intolerance and progressive weakness were likely related to her complex metabolic myopathy involving both the mitochondrial respiratory chain and glycogen storage pathways. Management of our patient required treatment of both the polyarteritis nodosa as well as metabolic myopathy. Metabolic myopathies are common and should be considered in any patient with exercise intolerance. Metabolic myopathies may complicate the management of various disease states.</p