Rapid Prototyping Platform Research Articles

Manual clock distribution technique in partitioning stage for multi-FPGA prototyping

<span>As the complexity of ASIC/SoC design is increasing along with the number of logic gates, a prototyping process in the verification stage is facing a challenge when the ASIC/SoC design cannot fit into a single FPGA. A solution to prototyping multi-million logic gates of ASIC/SoC circuit into the FPGA platform for verification purpose is by partition the design into multi-FPGA. There are various <a name="_Hlk509759576"></a>implementation tools and platform available in the market which automates an FPGA-based prototype phase such as Cadence Protium Rapid Prototyping Platform, Synopsys and S2C. In this paper, <a name="_Hlk509759525"></a>Synopsys protocompiler tool will be used to perform the prototyping process of the large 4 core CPU based circuit into the HAPS-80 FPGA platform. This paper will be focusing on the partition requirement needed to successfully prototype the large SoC circuit into the multi-FPGA. The presence of cut clocks in a circuit after partition stage will resulting to the failure in routing stage due to the congestion error. In this paper, two techniques are used, which is automatic clock replication by the Synopsys Protocompiler tool and our proposed technique which is Manual Clock Distribution technique to solve the presence of the cut clock, so that the circuit is able to meet the partition requirement to complete the prototyping process into multi-FPGA. Obtained result from the proposed technique showing that prototyping the large SoC circuit into the multi-FPGA platform has met the specification by eliminating 100% presence of cut clock.</span>

Case Study: Networked Control for Optimal Maneuvering of Autonomous Vessels

Abstract This paper presents the development of a networked control system for maritime autonomous shipping within the joint project GALILEOnautic 2 (grant 50NA1808). The project aims for autonomous navigation and optimal maneuvering of cooperative vessels in a harbor environment. In this publication, the networked vehicles dynamically estimate position, velocity, attitude and time using a navigation filter. The estimated states are used by an optimization algorithm which calculates optimal trajectories for each active participant. For a secure and efficient data exchange within the system, long term evolution (LTE) mobile communication together with virtual private network (VPN) are used. To compensate for mobile communication latency and time delay by data processing, data synchronization is realized among system components with the help of global navigation satellite system (GNSS). Feedback trajectory control is established to compensate the model errors. Besides active network participants, other vehicles are considered as well by means of the automatic identification system (AIS). Due to high costs related to testing with real vessels, real-world validation is performed with a rapid control prototyping (RCP) platform for research and education developed at RWTH Aachen University, the so called IRT-Buggy. Collision avoidance scenarios in a harbor-like structure defined by geodetic coordinates are evaluated. Results show that the designed networked control system accomplishes the autonomous navigation and maneuvering task as required.

Contribution to the development of a rapid prototyping platform model for reconfigurable nano-biosensors based on nanotechnologies

The paper aims to explore the potential offered by nanotechnologies for the development of a new generation of reconfigurable and robust Nano-biosensors for the purpose of implementation in medical applicationsThe subject proposes to make a contribution in the field of Nano-biosensors by organizing itself around several scientific objectives, multidisciplinary technologies• Demonstrate the interface with reconfigurable architectures based on FPGA/NoC to drive the Nano-biosensors• specify Platform model based on neural networks that can be adapted to Nano biosensors experimental context.

A compact and high gain substrate integrated horn array antenna system

AbstractIn this paper, a novel compact, lightweight and high gain array antennae system is demonstrated which is based on substrate integrated dielectric filled waveguide concepts. It is a planar design which can be easily fabricated with a common two‐layer substrate. The overall goal was to have a high gain so that this array antenna could be potentially used in autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle systems for collision avoidance. An initial model was designed, simulated and fabricated and, upon evaluation, was further modified to achieve a higher performance specification. Additionally, the design can be easily and inexpensively fabricated using standard substrates with a rapid prototyping platform. A two element array resulted in a simulated gain of 9.6 dB with a radiation pattern which had a maximum lobe between a broadside and an end‐fire. This was with a low loss substrate such as Rogers RT duroid 5880. For the design, a low dissipation factor material is preferable as it minimizes losses and also increases compactness of the entire antenna array.

Total Harmonic Distortion Oriented Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control for Single-Phase Inverters

Inverters are commonly controlled to generate AC current and Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) is the core index in judging the control effect. In this paper, a THD oriented Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control (FCS MPC) scheme is proposed for the single-phase inverter, where a optimization problem is solved to obtain the switching law for realization. Different from the traditional cost function, which focuses on the instantaneous deviation of amplitude between predictive current and its reference, we redesign a cost function that is the linear combination of the current fundamental tracking error, instantaneous THD value and DC component in one fundamental cycle (for 50 Hz, it is 0.02 s). Iterative method is developed for rapid calculation of this cost function. By choosing a switching state from a FCS to minimize the cost function, a FCS MPC is finally constructed. Simulation results in Matlab/Simulink and experimental results on rapid control prototype platform show the effect of this method. Analyses illustrate that, by choosing suitable weight of the cost function, the performance of this THD oriented FCS MPC method is better than the traditional one.

Accelerators and Coherence: An SoC Perspective

The complexity of System-on-Chip (SoC) designs continues to grow as each SoC features an increasing variety of loosely coupled accelerators together with multiple processor cores. Specialized-hardware accelerators are typically designed in isolation, optimized for the algorithm they are implementing, and with limited consideration of the implications of their integration into a given SoC. However, the interaction between these accelerators and the memory hierarchy is critically important for their performance and the performance of the overall SoC. By leveraging our platform for rapid SoC prototyping, we analyze three models of coherence for loosely coupled accelerators from a system-level perspective.

Multilayer ceramics as integration platform for sensors in in-vitro cell culture reactors

Monitoring systems that are capable to record neuronal activity in in-vitro cell cultures are prerequisite to the comprehensive investigation of neuronal processes. Low temperature cofired ceramics are a suitable platform for rapid prototyping of biological reactors, entailing a wide assortment of integration-capable sensors. Neuronal spikes capture is fundamental for understanding of the signal propagation within the neuronal network. It requires reliable electrodes, which can be arranged 3-dimensionally in an in vitro cell culture. Thick film gold electrodes have been proven for such applications, however their characteristics especially at small dimensions stray strongly. This work investigates thin films separating small thick film gold electrodes and an electrolyte solution with regard to their influence on the charge transport processes in such systems. PEDOT:PSS layer and TiOxNy deposited on LTCC gold electrodes, including their impedance characteristics are discussed and compared. TiOxNy layers with serial resistance Rs of 32 kΩ and serial capacitance Cs of 4.1 pF measured at 1 kHz are proposed to be the used as sensing elements in 3-dimensional in vitro cell cultures.

Adjustable shock absorber characteristics testing and modelling

The paper shortly presents the design of an electromagnetically adjustable shock absorber and its damping characteristics obtained from manufacturers. Next part presents the methodology and test stands typically used for shock absorber testing and test data processing to obtain force vs velocity characteristics. Next part discusses some new functional requirements and performance due to adjustability of damping level. Next part of the paper presents special dedicated software implemented in the Matlab/Simulink and on the dSpace platform for rapid prototyping of control system. The results of damping characteristics, time delay and hysteresis testing with its comparison for 3 types of passenger car adjustable shock absorbers obtained with use of developed methodology and testing control software are presented in the further part.

Establishing a Cell-Free Vibrio natriegens Expression System

The fast growing bacterium Vibrio natriegens is an emerging microbial host for biotechnology. Harnessing its productive cellular components may offer a compelling platform for rapid protein production and prototyping of metabolic pathways or genetic circuits. Here, we report the development of a V. natriegens cell-free expression system. We devised a simplified crude extract preparation protocol and achieved >260 μg/mL of superfolder GFP in a small-scale batch reaction after 3 h. Culturing conditions, including growth media and cell density, significantly affect translation kinetics and protein yield of extracts. We observed maximal protein yield at incubation temperatures of 26 or 30 °C, and show improved yield by tuning ions crucial for ribosomal stability. This work establishes an initial V. natriegens cell-free expression system, enables probing of V. natriegens biology, and will serve as a platform to accelerate metabolic engineering and synthetic biology applications.

Rapid Prototyping Platform for Saccharomyces cerevisiae Using Computer-Aided Genetic Design Enabled by Parallel Software and Workcell Platform Development.

Biofoundries have enabled the ability to automate the construction of genetic constructs using computer-aided design. In this study, we have developed the methodology required to abstract and automate the construction of yeast-compatible designs. We demonstrate the use of our in-house software tool, AMOS, to coordinate with design software, JMP, and robotic liquid handling platforms to successfully manage the construction of a library of 88 yeast expression plasmids. In this proof-of-principle study, we used three fluorescent genes as proxy for three enzyme coding sequences. Our platform has been designed to quickly iterate around a design cycle of four protein coding sequences per plasmid, with larger numbers possible with multiplexed genome integrations in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This work highlights how developing scalable new biotechnology applications requires a close integration between software development, liquid handling robotics, and protocol development.

Energy optimal control of thermal comfort in trams

This paper presents a method for thermal comfort control for trams which achieves the desired thermal comfort and minimises the power consumption of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC). Mathematical models of all relevant parts are stated (these parts being the tram and the HVAC considering both comfort and energy consumption) and these models are linearised.Using linearised models, cascaded control loops are established. A model-predictive controller regulates the thermal comfort inside the tram as a master controller and outputs an auxiliary control variable to the slave controller. A heuristic, realised as mixed-integer optimisation, converts the auxiliary control variable in an energy-optimal way into switching commands for the HVAC. For validation, the method is implemented on a rapid controller prototyping platform. Testing of the control approach is done during several climatic wind tunnel measurements. The annual energy consumption is extrapolated using these results.

Automotive Fuel Cell Subzero Cold-Starts in a Single Cell Quasi-Adiabatic Fixture

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) mirror current amenities available from the internal combustion engine such as: rapid start-up time, refueling time, and travel range. For an automotive PEMFC stack to attain 80 kW of power, typically greater than 300 repeat cells are required. A single cell is comprised of 7 layers between the anode and cathode flow fields/current collectors and include layers of macro/microporous diffusion media, ionomer bound carbon supported platinum catalyst layers, and a central proton exchange membrane (PEM). In the presence of partially humidified fuel and oxidant feeds (H2 and 21%O2/79%N2 on the anode and cathode, respectively) energy is produced under applied load as electrons and protons are formed from H2 oxidation on the anode and water is formed by the exothermic reduction of the protons and electrons with O2 on the cathode. The hygroscopic PEM inherently retains humidified reactant gas and oxygen reduction reaction product water which facilitates proton conduction. Four main issues limit commercial viability of automotive fuel cells – (i) cathode catalyst durability, (ii) fuel cell cost, (iii) subzero cold-starts, and (iv) refueling infrastructure. Automotive subzero cold-starts are challenging due to residual water inventory of the PEMFC and product water formation and retention. Water retained within the ionomer of the membrane and catalyst layers partially remains in a liquid phase above -40°C due to pore size and acidity induced freezing point depression.1 For successful cold-start, the temperature of the PEMFC must increase above 0°C before the accumulation of product water in the cathode catalyst layer significantly restricts O2 mass transport. Catalyst layer fabrication affects the water storage capacity of the PEMFC at subzero temperatures. Directly spraying the cathode catalyst layer on the membrane vs. decal transfer of a screen printing results in a nearly 60 mV increase in the initial on load voltage that would translate to a high initial power output, but a 2-2.5x decrease in the water storage capacity at -20°C.2 Partially dehydrating the PEMFC to lower initial water contents (λinitial) increases that water storage capacity at the expense of the initial on load voltage.3 A prototype quasi-adiabatic cold-start single cell PEMFC fixture was designed in-house to address several of the initial issues found in UTRC’s4 original design. The insulating materials selected for permeability and mechanical stability were polycarbonate and balsa wood, respectively. Internal Kapton heaters were used to emulate adjacent cell heading. Figure 1 show the impact of λinitial of 3.2 and 6.2, heater output levels equivalent to 1x and 2x adjacent cell heating (to compensate for non-adiabatic losses), and constant current (600 mV cm-2) vs. constant potential (0.1V) starts. The initial temperature rise increased with higher λinitial and under constant potential control. Isothermal water fill tests were performed on the same membrane electrode assembly after cold starts. Performance degradation due to subzero testing was higher for isothermal water fill tests compared to cold starts. Balliet, R.J. and J. Newman, 'Cold Start of a Polymer-Electrolyte Fuel Cell I. Development of a Two-Dimensional Model', J. Electrochem. Soc., 2011, 158, B927.Pistono, A. and C.A. Rice, 'The Effect of Material Properties on the Subzero Water Storage Capacity of Cathode Catalyst Layers for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells', J. Electrochem. Soc., 2017, 164, F582.Pistono, A. and C.A. Rice, 'Subzero Water Storage Capacity in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells: Effects of Preconditioning Method', The Journal of Power Souces, 2018 Under Review.Rice-York, C., J. Needham, N. Gupta, and P.L. Hagans, 'Platform for Rapid Prototyping of PEM Fuel Cell Designs with Enhanced Cold-Start Performance and Durability', ECS Transactions, 2006, 1, 383. Figure 1

DIY 3D Microparticle Generation from Next Generation Optofluidic Fabrication.

Complex‐shaped microparticles can enhance applications in drug delivery, tissue engineering, and structural materials, although techniques to fabricate these particles remain limited. A microfluidics‐based process called optofluidic fabrication that utilizes inertial flows and ultraviolet polymerization has shown great potential for creating highly 3D‐shaped particles in a high‐throughput manner, but the particle dimensions are mainly at the millimeter scale. Here, a next generation optofluidic fabrication process is presented that utilizes on‐the‐fly fabricated multiscale fluidic channels producing customized sub‐100 µm 3D‐shaped microparticles. This flexible design scheme offers a user‐friendly platform for rapid prototyping of new 3D particle shapes, providing greater potential for creating impactful engineered microparticles.

Design, Construction, and Validation of Histone-Binding Effectors in Vitro and in Cells.

Chromatin is a system of nuclear proteins and nucleic acids that plays a pivotal role in gene expression and cell behavior and is therefore the subject of intense study for cell development and cancer research. Biochemistry, crystallography, and reverse genetics have elucidated the macromolecular interactions that drive chromatin regulation. One of the central mechanisms is the recognition of post-translational modifications (PTMs) on histone proteins by a family of nuclear proteins known as "readers". This knowledge has launched a wave of activity around the rational design of proteins that interact with histone PTMs. Useful molecular tools have emerged from this work, enabling researchers to probe and manipulate chromatin states in live cells. Chromatin-based proteins represent a vast design space that remains underexplored. Therefore, we have developed a rapid prototyping platform to identify engineered fusion proteins that bind histone PTMs in vitro and regulate genes near the same histone PTMs in living cells. We have used our system to build gene activators with strong avidity for the gene silencing-associated histone PTM H3K27me3. Here, we describe procedures and data for cell-free production of fluorescently tagged fusion proteins, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay-based measurement of histone PTM binding, and a live cell assay to demonstrate that the fusion proteins modulate transcriptional activation at a site that carries the target histone PTM. This pipeline will be useful for synthetic biologists who are interested in designing novel histone PTM-binding actuators and probes.

Reconfigurable rapid prototyping platform for power electronic circuits and systems for research and educational purposes

This study presents a power electronics rapid prototyping platform that can be used to implement a wide range of power conversion circuits and systems quickly and inexpensively. The proposed platform features a modular structure, which is consisted of a control board and a power board. The control board includes adjustable signal conditioning circuitry, adjustable gate driving circuits, networking interfaces, and a fast processing unit that can be programmed easily using MATLAB Simulink code generation tools. The power board houses current and voltage sensors and electric sockets that could be used for implementing various power stage circuits. A case study involving the use of the proposed platform for constructing a buck converter is discussed. A cost evaluation of the proposed platform has also been provided.

Functionalized Thick Film Impedance Sensors for Use in In Vitro Cell Culture.

Multi-electrode arrays find application in electrophysiological recordings. The quality of the captured signals depends on the interfacial contact between electrogenic cells and the electronic system. Therefore, it requires reliable low-impedance electrodes. Low-temperature cofired ceramic technology offers a suitable platform for rapid prototyping of biological reactors and can provide both stable fluid supply and integrated bio-hardware interfaces for recordings in electrogenic cell cultures. The 3D assembly of thick film gold electrodes in in vitro bio-reactors has been demonstrated for neuronal recordings. However, especially when dimensions become small, their performance varies strongly. This work investigates the influence of different coatings on thick film gold electrodes with regard to their influence on impedance behavior. PEDOT:PSS layer, titanium oxynitride and laminin coatings are deposited on LTCC gold electrodes using different 2D and 3D MEA chip designs. Their impedance characteristics are compared and discussed. Titanium oxynitride layers emerged as suitable functionalization. Small 86-µm-electrodes have a serial resistance Rs of 32 kOhm and serial capacitance Cs of 4.1 pF at 1 kHz. Thick film gold electrodes with such coatings are thus qualified for signal recording in 3-dimensional in vitro cell cultures.

Development of a decision aid for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and invasive mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit employing user-centered design and a wiki platform for rapid prototyping.

BackgroundUpon admission to an intensive care unit (ICU), all patients should discuss their goals of care and express their wishes concerning life-sustaining interventions (e.g., cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)). Without such discussions, interventions that prolong life at the cost of decreasing its quality may be used without appropriate guidance from patients.ObjectivesTo adapt an existing decision aid about CPR to create a wiki-based decision aid individually adapted to each patient’s risk factors; and to document the use of a wiki platform for this purpose.MethodsWe conducted three weeks of ethnographic observation in our ICU to observe intensivists and patients discussing goals of care and to identify their needs regarding decision making. We interviewed intensivists individually. Then we conducted three rounds of rapid prototyping involving 15 patients and 11 health professionals. We recorded and analyzed all discussions, interviews and comments, and collected sociodemographic data. Using a wiki, a website that allows multiple users to contribute or edit content, we adapted the decision aid accordingly and added the Good Outcome Following Attempted Resuscitation (GO-FAR) prediction rule calculator.ResultsWe added discussion of invasive mechanical ventilation. The final decision aid comprises values clarification, risks and benefits of CPR and invasive mechanical ventilation, statistics about CPR, and a synthesis section. We added the GO-FAR prediction calculator as an online adjunct to the decision aid. Although three rounds of rapid prototyping simplified the information in the decision aid, 60% (n = 3/5) of the patients involved in the last cycle still did not understand its purpose.ConclusionsWikis and user-centered design can be used to adapt decision aids to users’ needs and local contexts. Our wiki platform allows other centers to adapt our tools, reducing duplication and accelerating scale-up. Physicians need training in shared decision making skills about goals of care and in using the decision aid. A video version of the decision aid could clarify its purpose.

Real Time Actuation of a DNA Based Robotic Arm

Since the early days of nanotechnology, scientists have dreamt of nanoscale mechanical systems that resemble macroscale industrial assembly lines. Molecular self-assembly with DNA molecules, used for the bottom-up creation of complex molecular constructs, has been shown to hold large potential to push towards a realization of this vision. Starting out from simple mechanical mechanisms, increasingly intricate systems have been demonstrated in the past decade. A wide collection of mechanical elements, potentially used as components for even more elaborate systems have been developed over the past years. These elements were based on a variety of different concepts to facilitate conformational changes, sliding motion and rotation. We here demonstrate a DNA-based molecular robotic arm integrated on a square base plate created with the DNA origami technique, expanding the repertoire of available building components for DNA assembled nanomachines. A flexible connection between base plate and arm allows rotation of the arm with respect to the specifically addressable base plate. Based on a one pot folding approach, the structure efficiently self-assembles. With the help of single-molecule fluorescence techniques, diffusive arm rotation and temporary fixation at different docking positions on the base plate is observed on a millisecond time scale. Utilizing the high intrinsic charge of our DNA nanoconstruct we also demonstrate the use of electrical fields to actively control the arm's angle relative to the base plate. Actuation of the robot arm only requires milliseconds, which is many orders of magnitude faster than established methods for the operation of synthetic DNA nanomachines. For future work, the system promises to act a as versatile rapid prototyping platform for the development of components for molecular assembly lines and highly parallelizable nanoscale force spectroscopy.

Implementation of Massive MIMO Uplink Receiver on RaPro Prototyping Platform

The updated physical layer standard of the fifth generation wireless communication suggests the necessity of a rapid prototyping platform. To this end, we develop 5G rapid prototyping system architecture (RaPro), a multi-core general purpose processor-based massive multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) prototyping platform. To enhance RaPro, high performance detection and beamforming are needed, whereas both of them request for accurate channel state information (CSI). In this paper, linear minimum mean square error (LMMSE)-based channel estimator is adopted and encapsulated inside RaPro to gain more accurate CSI. Considering the high complexity and unknown of channel statistics, we design low-complexity LMMSE channel estimator to alleviate the rising complexity along with increasing antenna number and set more computational resource aside for massive MIMO uplink detection and downlink beamforming. Simulation results indicate the high mean square error performance and robustness of designed low-complexity method. Indoor and corridor scenario tests show prominent improvement in bit error rate performance. Time cost analysis proves the practical use and real-time transmission ability of the implemented uplink receiver on RaPro.

TOPPE: A framework for rapid prototyping of MR pulse sequences.

To introduce a framework for rapid prototyping of MR pulse sequences. We propose a simple file format, called "TOPPE", for specifying all details of an MR imaging experiment, such as gradient and radiofrequency waveforms and the complete scan loop. In addition, we provide a TOPPE file "interpreter" for GE scanners, which is a binary executable that loads TOPPE files and executes the sequence on the scanner. We also provide MATLAB scripts for reading and writing TOPPE files and previewing the sequence prior to hardware execution. With this setup, the task of the pulse sequence programmer is reduced to creating TOPPE files, eliminating the need for hardware-specific programming. No sequence-specific compilation is necessary; the interpreter only needs to be compiled once (for every scanner software upgrade). We demonstrate TOPPE in three different applications: k-space mapping, non-Cartesian PRESTO whole-brain dynamic imaging, and myelin mapping in the brain using inhomogeneous magnetization transfer. We successfully implemented and executed the three example sequences. By simply changing the various TOPPE sequence files, a single binary executable (interpreter) was used to execute several different sequences. The TOPPE file format is a complete specification of an MR imaging experiment, based on arbitrary sequences of a (typically small) number of unique modules. Along with the GE interpreter, TOPPE comprises a modular and flexible platform for rapid prototyping of new pulse sequences. Magn Reson Med 79:3128-3134, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.