Real-time beamforming using high-speed FPGAs at the Allen Telescope Array

Abstract A contact probing system for surface imaging and real-time signal measurement of deep sub-micron integrated circuits is discussed. The probe fits on a standard probe-station and utilizes a conductive atomic force microscope tip to rapidly measure the surface topography and acquire real-time highfrequency signals from features as small as 0.18 micron. The micromachined probe structure minimizes parasitic coupling and the probe achieves a bandwidth greater than 3 GHz, with a capacitive loading of less than 120 fF. High-resolution images of submicron structures and waveforms acquired from high-speed devices are presented.

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Low-Cost High-Speed Techniques for Real-Time Simulation of Power Electronic Systems

10.21236/ada485330 ◽

2007 ◽

Author(s):

R. E. Crosbie ◽

J. J. Zenor ◽

R. Bednar ◽

D. Word ◽

N. G. Hingorani

Keyword(s):

Real Time ◽

High Speed ◽

Low Cost ◽

Electronic Systems ◽

Power Electronic ◽

Real Time Simulation ◽

Time Simulation

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Accelerating laser processes with a smart two-dimensional polygon mirror scanner for ultra-fast beam deflection

Advanced Optical Technologies ◽

10.1515/aot-2021-0014 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Florian Roessler ◽

André Streek

Keyword(s):

Energy Distribution ◽

Real Time ◽

Laser Processing ◽

High Speed ◽

Beam Deflection ◽

Two Dimensional ◽

Heat Accumulation ◽

Field Programmable ◽

Drill Holes ◽

Average Laser

Abstract In laser processing, the possible throughput is directly scaling with the available average laser power. To avoid unwanted thermal damage due to high pulse energy or heat accumulation during MHz-repetition rates, energy distribution over the workpiece is required. Polygon mirror scanners enable high deflection speeds and thus, a proper energy distribution within a short processing time. The requirements of laser micro processing with up to 10 kW average laser powers and high scan speeds up to 1000 m/s result in a 30 mm aperture two-dimensional polygon mirror scanner with a patented low-distortion mirror configuration. In combination with a field programmable gate array-based real-time logic, position-true high-accuracy laser switching is enabled for 2D, 2.5D, or 3D laser processing capable to drill holes in multi-pass ablation or engraving. A special developed real-time shifter module within the high-speed logic allows, in combination with external axis, the material processing on the fly and hence, processing of workpieces much larger than the scan field.

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Development of Real-Time Time Gated Digital (TGD) OFDR Method and Its Performance Verification

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s21144865 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (14) ◽

pp. 4865

Author(s):

Kinzo Kishida ◽

Artur Guzik ◽

Ken’ichi Nishiguchi ◽

Che-Hsien Li ◽

Daiji Azuma ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Real Time ◽

Optical Fibers ◽

High Speed ◽

Oil And Gas ◽

Scattered Light ◽

Oil And Gas Industry ◽

High Signal ◽

Chirp Pulse ◽

Sound Waves ◽

Industry Applications

Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) in optical fibers detect dynamic strains or sound waves by measuring the phase or amplitude changes of the scattered light. This contrasts with other distributed (and more conventional) methods, such as distributed temperature (DTS) or strain (DSS), which measure quasi-static physical quantities, such as intensity spectrum of the scattered light. DAS is attracting considerable attention as it complements the conventional distributed measurements. To implement DAS in commercial applications, it is necessary to ensure a sufficiently high signal-noise ratio (SNR) for scattered light detection, suppress its deterioration along the sensing fiber, achieve lower noise floor for weak signals and, moreover, perform high-speed processing within milliseconds (or sometimes even less). In this paper, we present a new, real-time DAS, realized by using the time gated digital-optical frequency domain reflectometry (TGD-OFDR) method, in which the chirp pulse is divided into overlapping bands and assembled after digital decoding. The developed prototype NBX-S4000 generates a chirp signal with a pulse duration of 2 μs and uses a frequency sweep of 100 MHz at a repeating frequency of up to 5 kHz. It allows one to detect sound waves at an 80 km fiber distance range with spatial resolution better than a theoretically calculated value of 2.8 m in real time. The developed prototype was tested in the field in various applications, from earthquake detection and submarine cable sensing to oil and gas industry applications. All obtained results confirmed effectiveness of the method and performance, surpassing, in conventional SM fiber, other commercially available interrogators.

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Rapid Foreign Object Detection System on Seaweed Using VNIR Hyperspectral Imaging

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s21165279 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (16) ◽

pp. 5279

Author(s):

Dong-Hoon Kwak ◽

Guk-Jin Son ◽

Mi-Kyung Park ◽

Young-Duk Kim

Keyword(s):

Object Detection ◽

Real Time ◽

Hyperspectral Imaging ◽

High Speed ◽

Detection System ◽

Imaging Techniques ◽

Foreign Object ◽

Subtraction Method ◽

Foreign Objects ◽

Time Operation

The consumption of seaweed is increasing year by year worldwide. Therefore, the foreign object inspection of seaweed is becoming increasingly important. Seaweed is mixed with various materials such as laver and sargassum fusiforme. So it has various colors even in the same seaweed. In addition, the surface is uneven and greasy, causing diffuse reflections frequently. For these reasons, it is difficult to detect foreign objects in seaweed, so the accuracy of conventional foreign object detectors used in real manufacturing sites is less than 80%. Supporting real-time inspection should also be considered when inspecting foreign objects. Since seaweed requires mass production, rapid inspection is essential. However, hyperspectral imaging techniques are generally not suitable for high-speed inspection. In this study, we overcome this limitation by using dimensionality reduction and using simplified operations. For accuracy improvement, the proposed algorithm is carried out in 2 stages. Firstly, the subtraction method is used to clearly distinguish seaweed and conveyor belts, and also detect some relatively easy to detect foreign objects. Secondly, a standardization inspection is performed based on the result of the subtraction method. During this process, the proposed scheme adopts simplified and burdenless calculations such as subtraction, division, and one-by-one matching, which achieves both accuracy and low latency performance. In the experiment to evaluate the performance, 60 normal seaweeds and 60 seaweeds containing foreign objects were used, and the accuracy of the proposed algorithm is 95%. Finally, by implementing the proposed algorithm as a foreign object detection platform, it was confirmed that real-time operation in rapid inspection was possible, and the possibility of deployment in real manufacturing sites was confirmed.

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Prevention of Mountain Disasters and Maintenance of Residential Area through Real-Time Terrain Rendering

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13052950 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (5) ◽

pp. 2950

Author(s):

Su-Kyung Sung ◽

Eun-Seok Lee ◽

Byeong-Seok Shin

Keyword(s):

Real Time ◽

Graphics Processing Units ◽

High Speed ◽

Large Scale ◽

Civil Engineering ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Sampled Data ◽

Residential Areas ◽

Terrain Rendering ◽

Mountain Disasters

Climate change increases the frequency of localized heavy rains and typhoons. As a result, mountain disasters, such as landslides and earthworks, continue to occur, causing damage to roads and residential areas downstream. Moreover, large-scale civil engineering works, including dam construction, cause rapid changes in the terrain, which harm the stability of residential areas. Disasters, such as landslides and earthenware, occur extensively, and there are limitations in the field of investigation; thus, there are many studies being conducted to model terrain geometrically and to observe changes in terrain according to external factors. However, conventional topography methods are expressed in a way that can only be interpreted by people with specialized knowledge. Therefore, there is a lack of consideration for three-dimensional visualization that helps non-experts understand. We need a way to express changes in terrain in real time and to make it intuitive for non-experts to understand. In conventional height-based terrain modeling and simulation, there is a problem in which some of the sampled data are irregularly distorted and do not show the exact terrain shape. The proposed method utilizes a hierarchical vertex cohesion map to correct inaccurately modeled terrain caused by uniform height sampling, and to compensate for geometric errors using Hausdorff distances, while not considering only the elevation difference of the terrain. The mesh reconstruction, which triangulates the three-vertex placed at each location and makes it the smallest unit of 3D model data, can be done at high speed on graphics processing units (GPUs). Our experiments confirm that it is possible to express changes in terrain accurately and quickly compared with existing methods. These functions can improve the sustainability of residential spaces by predicting the damage caused by mountainous disasters or civil engineering works around the city and make it easy for non-experts to understand.

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Module to Support Real-Time Microscopic Imaging of Living Organisms on Ground-Based Microgravity Analogs

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11073122 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 3122

Author(s):

Srujana Neelam ◽

Audrey Lee ◽

Michael A. Lane ◽

Ceasar Udave ◽

Howard G. Levine ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Real Time ◽

High Speed ◽

Simulated Microgravity ◽

Image Acquisition ◽

Time Lapse ◽

Moving Frames ◽

Cell Functions ◽

Microgravity Simulation ◽

Division Cell ◽

Over Time

Since opportunities for spaceflight experiments are scarce, ground-based microgravity simulation devices (MSDs) offer accessible and economical alternatives for gravitational biology studies. Among the MSDs, the random positioning machine (RPM) provides simulated microgravity conditions on the ground by randomizing rotating biological samples in two axes to distribute the Earth’s gravity vector in all directions over time. Real-time microscopy and image acquisition during microgravity simulation are of particular interest to enable the study of how basic cell functions, such as division, migration, and proliferation, progress under altered gravity conditions. However, these capabilities have been difficult to implement due to the constantly moving frames of the RPM as well as mechanical noise. Therefore, we developed an image acquisition module that can be mounted on an RPM to capture live images over time while the specimen is in the simulated microgravity (SMG) environment. This module integrates a digital microscope with a magnification range of 20× to 700×, a high-speed data transmission adaptor for the wireless streaming of time-lapse images, and a backlight illuminator to view the sample under brightfield and darkfield modes. With this module, we successfully demonstrated the real-time imaging of human cells cultured on an RPM in brightfield, lasting up to 80 h, and also visualized them in green fluorescent channel. This module was successful in monitoring cell morphology and in quantifying the rate of cell division, cell migration, and wound healing in SMG. It can be easily modified to study the response of other biological specimens to SMG.

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