Matching Items (347)
Description
In the late 1960s, Granger published a seminal study on causality in time series, using linear interdependencies and information transfer. Recent developments in the field of information theory have introduced new methods to investigate the transfer of information in dynamical systems. Using concepts from Chaos and Markov theory, much of these methods have evolved to capture non-linear relations and information flow between coupled dynamical systems with applications to fields like biomedical signal processing. This thesis deals with the application of information theory to non-linear multivariate time series and develops measures of information flow to identify significant drivers and response (driven) components in networks of coupled sub-systems with variable coupling in strength and direction (uni- or bi-directional) for each connection. Transfer Entropy (TE) is used to quantify pairwise directional information. Four TE-based measures of information flow are proposed, namely TE Outflow (TEO), TE Inflow (TEI), TE Net flow (TEN), and Average TE flow (ATE). First, the reliability of the information flow measures on models, with and without noise, is evaluated. The driver and response sub-systems in these models are identified. Second, these measures are applied to electroencephalographic (EEG) data from two patients with focal epilepsy. The analysis showed dominant directions of information flow between brain sites and identified the epileptogenic focus as the system component typically with the highest value for the proposed measures (for example, ATE). Statistical tests between pre-seizure (preictal) and post-seizure (postictal) information flow also showed a breakage of the driving of the brain by the focus after seizure onset. The above findings shed light on the function of the epileptogenic focus and understanding of ictogenesis. It is expected that they will contribute to the diagnosis of epilepsy, for example by accurate identification of the epileptogenic focus from interictal periods, as well as the development of better seizure detection, prediction and control methods, for example by isolating pathologic areas of excessive information flow through electrical stimulation.
ContributorsPrasanna, Shashank (Author) / Jassemidis, Leonidas (Thesis advisor) / Tsakalis, Konstantinos (Thesis advisor) / Tepedelenlioğlu, Cihan (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
This study focuses on state estimation of nonlinear discrete time systems with constraints. Physical processes have inherent in them, constraints on inputs, outputs, states and disturbances. These constraints can provide additional information to the estimator in estimating states from the measured output. Recursive filters such as Kalman Filters or Extended Kalman Filters are commonly used in state estimation; however, they do not allow inclusion of constraints in their formulation. On the other hand, computational complexity of full information estimation (using all measurements) grows with iteration and becomes intractable. One way of formulating the recursive state estimation problem with constraints is the Moving Horizon Estimation (MHE) approximation. Estimates of states are calculated from the solution of a constrained optimization problem of fixed size. Detailed formulation of this strategy is studied and properties of this estimation algorithm are discussed in this work. The problem with the MHE formulation is solving an optimization problem in each iteration which is computationally intensive. State estimation with constraints can be formulated as Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) with a projection applied to estimates. The states are estimated from the measurements using standard Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) algorithm and the estimated states are projected on to a constrained set. Detailed formulation of this estimation strategy is studied and the properties associated with this algorithm are discussed. Both these state estimation strategies (MHE and EKF with projection) are tested with examples from the literature. The average estimation time and the sum of square estimation error are used to compare performance of these estimators. Results of the case studies are analyzed and trade-offs are discussed.
ContributorsJoshi, Rakesh (Author) / Tsakalis, Konstantinos (Thesis advisor) / Rodriguez, Armando (Committee member) / Si, Jennie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
With increasing demand for System on Chip (SoC) and System in Package (SiP) design in computer and communication technologies, integrated inductor which is an essential passive component has been widely used in numerous integrated circuits (ICs) such as in voltage regulators and RF circuits. In this work, soft ferromagnetic core material, amorphous Co-Zr-Ta-B, was incorporated into on-chip and in-package inductors in order to scale down inductors and improve inductors performance in both inductance density and quality factor. With two layers of 500 nm Co-Zr-Ta-B films a 3.5X increase in inductance and a 3.9X increase in quality factor over inductors without magnetic films were measured at frequencies as high as 1 GHz. By laminating technology, up to 9.1X increase in inductance and more than 5X increase in quality factor (Q) were obtained from stripline inductors incorporated with 50 nm by 10 laminated films with a peak Q at 300 MHz. It was also demonstrated that this peak Q can be pushed towards high frequency as far as 1GHz by a combination of patterning magnetic films into fine bars and laminations. The role of magnetic vias in magnetic flux and eddy current control was investigated by both simulation and experiment using different patterning techniques and by altering the magnetic via width. Finger-shaped magnetic vias were designed and integrated into on-chip RF inductors improving the frequency of peak quality factor from 400 MHz to 800 MHz without sacrificing inductance enhancement. Eddy current and magnetic flux density in different areas of magnetic vias were analyzed by HFSS 3D EM simulation. With optimized magnetic vias, high frequency response of up to 2 GHz was achieved. Furthermore, the effect of applied magnetic field on on-chip inductors was investigated for high power applications. It was observed that as applied magnetic field along the hard axis (HA) increases, inductance maintains similar value initially at low fields, but decreases at larger fields until the magnetic films become saturated. The high frequency quality factor showed an opposite trend which is correlated to the reduction of ferromagnetic resonant absorption in the magnetic film. In addition, experiments showed that this field-dependent inductance change varied with different patterned magnetic film structures, including bars/slots and fingers structures. Magnetic properties of Co-Zr-Ta-B films on standard organic package substrates including ABF and polyimide were also characterized. Effects of substrate roughness and stress were analyzed and simulated which provide strategies for integrating Co-Zr-Ta-B into package inductors and improving inductors performance. Stripline and spiral inductors with Co-Zr-Ta-B films were fabricated on both ABF and polyimide substrates. Maximum 90% inductance increase in hundreds MHz frequency range were achieved in stripline inductors which are suitable for power delivery applications. Spiral inductors with Co-Zr-Ta-B films showed 18% inductance increase with quality factor of 4 at frequency up to 3 GHz.
ContributorsWu, Hao (Author) / Yu, Hongbin (Thesis advisor) / Bakkaloglu, Bertan (Committee member) / Cao, Yu (Committee member) / Chickamenahalli, Shamala (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Zinc oxide (ZnO), a naturally n-type semiconductor has been identified as a promising candidate to replace indium tin oxide (ITO) as the transparent electrode in solar cells, because of its wide bandgap (3.37 eV), abundant source materials and suitable refractive index (2.0 at 600 nm). Spray deposition is a convenient and low cost technique for large area and uniform deposition of semiconductor thin films. In particular, it provides an easier way to dope the film by simply adding the dopant precursor into the starting solution. In order to reduce the resistivity of undoped ZnO, many works have been done by doping in the ZnO with either group IIIA elements or VIIA elements using spray pyrolysis. However, the resistivity is still too high to meet TCO's resistivity requirement. In the present work, a novel co-spray deposition technique is developed to bypass a fundamental limitation in the conventional spray deposition technique, i.e. the deposition of metal oxides from incompatible precursors in the starting solution. With this technique, ZnO films codoped with one cationic dopant, Al, Cr, or Fe, and an anionic dopant, F, have been successfully synthesized, in which F is incompatible with all these three cationic dopants. Two starting solutions were prepared and co-sprayed through two separate spray heads. One solution contained only the F precursor, NH 4F. The second solution contained the Zn and one cationic dopant precursors, Zn(O 2CCH 3) 2 and AlCl 3, CrCl 3, or FeCl 3. The deposition was carried out at 500 °C; on soda-lime glass in air. Compared to singly-doped ZnO thin films, codoped ZnO samples showed better electrical properties. Besides, a minimum sheet resistance, 55.4 Ω/sq, was obtained for Al and F codoped ZnO films after vacuum annealing at 400 °C;, which was lower than singly-doped ZnO with either Al or F. The transmittance for the Al and F codoped ZnO samples was above 90% in the visible range. This co-spray deposition technique provides a simple and cost-effective way to synthesize metal oxides from incompatible precursors with improved properties.
ContributorsZhou, Bin (Author) / Tao, Meng (Thesis advisor) / Goryll, Michael (Committee member) / Vasileska, Dragica (Committee member) / Yu, Hongbin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Advancements in mobile technologies have significantly enhanced the capabilities of mobile devices to serve as powerful platforms for sensing, processing, and visualization. Surges in the sensing technology and the abundance of data have enabled the use of these portable devices for real-time data analysis and decision-making in digital signal processing (DSP) applications. Most of the current efforts in DSP education focus on building tools to facilitate understanding of the mathematical principles. However, there is a disconnect between real-world data processing problems and the material presented in a DSP course. Sophisticated mobile interfaces and apps can potentially play a crucial role in providing a hands-on-experience with modern DSP applications to students. In this work, a new paradigm of DSP learning is explored by building an interactive easy-to-use health monitoring application for use in DSP courses. This is motivated by the increasing commercial interest in employing mobile phones for real-time health monitoring tasks. The idea is to exploit the computational abilities of the Android platform to build m-Health modules with sensor interfaces. In particular, appropriate sensing modalities have been identified, and a suite of software functionalities have been developed. Within the existing framework of the AJDSP app, a graphical programming environment, interfaces to on-board and external sensor hardware have also been developed to acquire and process physiological data. The set of sensor signals that can be monitored include electrocardiogram (ECG), photoplethysmogram (PPG), accelerometer signal, and galvanic skin response (GSR). The proposed m-Health modules can be used to estimate parameters such as heart rate, oxygen saturation, step count, and heart rate variability. A set of laboratory exercises have been designed to demonstrate the use of these modules in DSP courses. The app was evaluated through several workshops involving graduate and undergraduate students in signal processing majors at Arizona State University. The usefulness of the software modules in enhancing student understanding of signals, sensors and DSP systems were analyzed. Student opinions about the app and the proposed m-health modules evidenced the merits of integrating tools for mobile sensing and processing in a DSP curriculum, and familiarizing students with challenges in modern data-driven applications.
ContributorsRajan, Deepta (Author) / Spanias, Andreas (Thesis advisor) / Frakes, David (Committee member) / Turaga, Pavan (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
With robots being used extensively in various areas, a certain degree of robot autonomy has always been found desirable. In applications like planetary exploration, autonomous path planning and navigation are considered essential. But every now and then, a need to modify the robot's operation arises, a need for a human to provide it some supervisory parameters that modify the degree of autonomy or allocate extra tasks to the robot. In this regard, this thesis presents an approach to include a provision to accept and incorporate such human inputs and modify the navigation functions of the robot accordingly. Concepts such as applying kinematical constraints while planning paths, traversing of unknown areas with an intent of maximizing field of view, performing complex tasks on command etc. have been examined and implemented. The approaches have been tested in Robot Operating System (ROS), using robots such as the iRobot Create, Personal Robotics (PR2) etc. Simulations and experimental demonstrations have proved that this approach is feasible for solving some of the existing problems and that it certainly can pave way to further research for enhancing functionality.
ContributorsVemprala, Sai Hemachandra (Author) / Saripalli, Srikanth (Thesis advisor) / Fainekos, Georgios (Committee member) / Turaga, Pavan (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
This thesis discusses control and obstacle avoidance for non-holonomic differential drive mobile vehicles. The two important behaviors for the vehicle can be defined as go to goal and obstacle avoidance behavior. This thesis discusses both behaviors in detail. Go to goal behavior is the ability of the mobile vehicle to go from one particular co-ordinate to another. Cruise control, cartesian and posture stabilization problems are discussed as the part of this behavior. Control strategies used for the above three problems are explained in the thesis. Matlab simulations are presented to verify these controllers. Obstacle avoidance behavior ensures that the vehicle doesn't hit object in its path while going towards the goal. Three different techniques for obstacle avoidance which are useful for different kind of obstacles are described in the thesis. Matlab simulations are presented to show and discuss the three techniques. The controls discussed for the cartesian and posture stabilization were implemented on a low cost miniature vehicle to verify the results practically. The vehicle is described in the thesis in detail. The practical results are compared with the simulations. Hardware and matlab codes have been provided as a reference for the reader.
ContributorsChopra, Dhruv (Author) / Rodriguez, Armando A (Thesis advisor) / Tsakalis, Konstantinos (Committee member) / Si, Jennie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
In contemporary society, sustainability and public well-being have been pressing challenges. Some of the important questions are:how can sustainable practices, such as reducing carbon emission, be encouraged? , How can a healthy lifestyle be maintained?Even though individuals are interested, they are unable to adopt these behaviors due to resource constraints. Developing a framework to enable cooperative behavior adoption and to sustain it for a long period of time is a major challenge. As a part of developing this framework, I am focusing on methods to understand behavior diffusion over time. Facilitating behavior diffusion with resource constraints in a large population is qualitatively different from promoting cooperation in small groups. Previous work in social sciences has derived conditions for sustainable cooperative behavior in small homogeneous groups. However, how groups of individuals having resource constraint co-operate over extended periods of time is not well understood, and is the focus of my thesis. I develop models to analyze behavior diffusion over time through the lens of epidemic models with the condition that individuals have resource constraint. I introduce an epidemic model SVRS ( Susceptible-Volatile-Recovered-Susceptible) to accommodate multiple behavior adoption. I investigate the longitudinal effects of behavior diffusion by varying different properties of an individual such as resources,threshold and cost of behavior adoption. I also consider how behavior adoption of an individual varies with her knowledge of global adoption. I evaluate my models on several synthetic topologies like complete regular graph, preferential attachment and small-world and make some interesting observations. Periodic injection of early adopters can help in boosting the spread of behaviors and sustain it for a longer period of time. Also, behavior propagation for the classical epidemic model SIRS (Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Susceptible) does not continue for an infinite period of time as per conventional wisdom. One interesting future direction is to investigate how behavior adoption is affected when number of individuals in a network changes. The affects on behavior adoption when availability of behavior changes with time can also be examined.
ContributorsDey, Anindita (Author) / Sundaram, Hari (Thesis advisor) / Turaga, Pavan (Committee member) / Davulcu, Hasan (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Humans have an inherent capability of performing highly dexterous and skillful tasks with their arms, involving maintaining posture, movement and interacting with the environment. The latter requires for them to control the dynamic characteristics of the upper limb musculoskeletal system. Inertia, damping and stiffness, a measure of mechanical impedance, gives a strong representation of these characteristics. Many previous studies have shown that the arm posture is a dominant factor for determining the end point impedance in a horizontal plane (transverse plane). The objective of this thesis is to characterize end point impedance of the human arm in the three dimensional (3D) space. Moreover, it investigates and models the control of the arm impedance due to increasing levels of muscle co-contraction. The characterization is done through experimental trials where human subjects maintained arm posture, while perturbed by a robot arm. Moreover, the subjects were asked to control the level of their arm muscles' co-contraction, using visual feedback of their muscles' activation, in order to investigate the effect of the muscle co-contraction on the arm impedance. The results of this study showed a very interesting, anisotropic increase of the arm stiffness due to muscle co-contraction. This can lead to very useful conclusions about the arm biomechanics as well as many implications for human motor control and more specifically the control of arm impedance through muscle co-contraction. The study finds implications for the EMG-based control of robots that physically interact with humans.
ContributorsPatel, Harshil Naresh (Author) / Artemiadis, Panagiotis (Thesis advisor) / Berman, Spring (Committee member) / Helms Tillery, Stephen (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Digital sound synthesis allows the creation of a great variety of sounds. Focusing on interesting or ecologically valid sounds for music, simulation, aesthetics, or other purposes limits the otherwise vast digital audio palette. Tools for creating such sounds vary from arbitrary methods of altering recordings to precise simulations of vibrating objects. In this work, methods of sound synthesis by re-sonification are considered. Re-sonification, herein, refers to the general process of analyzing, possibly transforming, and resynthesizing or reusing recorded sounds in meaningful ways, to convey information. Applied to soundscapes, re-sonification is presented as a means of conveying activity within an environment. Applied to the sounds of objects, this work examines modeling the perception of objects as well as their physical properties and the ability to simulate interactive events with such objects. To create soundscapes to re-sonify geographic environments, a method of automated soundscape design is presented. Using recorded sounds that are classified based on acoustic, social, semantic, and geographic information, this method produces stochastically generated soundscapes to re-sonify selected geographic areas. Drawing on prior knowledge, local sounds and those deemed similar comprise a locale's soundscape. In the context of re-sonifying events, this work examines processes for modeling and estimating the excitations of sounding objects. These include plucking, striking, rubbing, and any interaction that imparts energy into a system, affecting the resultant sound. A method of estimating a linear system's input, constrained to a signal-subspace, is presented and applied toward improving the estimation of percussive excitations for re-sonification. To work toward robust recording-based modeling and re-sonification of objects, new implementations of banded waveguide (BWG) models are proposed for object modeling and sound synthesis. Previous implementations of BWGs use arbitrary model parameters and may produce a range of simulations that do not match digital waveguide or modal models of the same design. Subject to linear excitations, some models proposed here behave identically to other equivalently designed physical models. Under nonlinear interactions, such as bowing, many of the proposed implementations exhibit improvements in the attack characteristics of synthesized sounds.
ContributorsFink, Alex M (Author) / Spanias, Andreas S (Thesis advisor) / Cook, Perry R. (Committee member) / Turaga, Pavan (Committee member) / Tsakalis, Konstantinos (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013