Building Better Autonomous Vehicles

Despite continued advances, many issues still remain as to how to best design and operate autonomous vehicles.

Six Ohio State faculty from the departments of electrical and computer engineering, and computer science and engineering are working to integrate multidisciplinary advances in software, sensing and control, and modeling to address current weaknesses in autonomous vehicle design. Professors Ümit Özgüner, Ashok Krishnamurthy, Füsun Özgüner, Keith Redmill, Paul Sivilotti and Bruce Weide are working to scale up the capabilities of fully autonomous vehicles so that they are capable of operating in mixed-traffic urban environments with many other vehicles, including those driven by humans. Their research is funded with a $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s Cyber-Physical Systems program. A key issue the researchers must address is the human component, including how humans make decisions and how to predict their future actions. “The central bulk of our work is looking at specific scenarios where the existence of humans throws a wrench into your nice, automated world and figuring out how to design your way around that,” says Ümit Özgüner, principal investigator and professor, electrical and computer engineering. Ashok Krishnamurthy, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, has created a learning, probabilistic framework that analyzes vehicle data in order to deduce what the driver is going to do. “I believe that the model is an important step in knowing how to understand driver behavior,” he says. “Right now it’s only looking at very restrictive situations, but within those it seems to have a good deal of predictive power.” Füsun Özgüner, professor of electrical and computer engineering, leads the real-time and trust-aware computing portion of the project. “Some of the vehicles will have many sensors to sense the environment,” she says. “I am responsible for developing a computer architecture that can quickly process all that

information…It has to be small, fast, and use a reasonable amount of power.” She is also researching wireless communication between vehicles to enable sharing of pertinent information, especially in the case of road obstructions or dangerous conditions. This, however, evokes the issue of cyber security and how to prevent malicious use of such networks. “We developed a concept called trust aware computing,” Füsun Özgüner explains. “You sort of calculate the trust value for all the other cars around you, just like humans do in their relationships. And it’s dynamic, you keep updating it based on new data.” Much of the project testing is conducted on an indoor testbed called SimVille which allows for small-scale, repeatable tests with real and virtualized sensors, robots and scenarios. “I was happy that we could test ideas on a semi-virtual world and reach meaningful results for the real world,” says Ümit Özgüner. “We transfer some of those results to cars that we test on campus.” Ultimately, the researchers hope their work will lead to safer autonomous vehicles, including automobiles, service robots used in hospitals and rescue robots used after disasters.

Points of Pride

2 Chair’s Message 3 Statistics4–5 Research Highlights6 Awards & Honors 7 New Faculty8 Student Awards

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

2011-2012 Annual Report

$21.6 million research expenditures

2011-12

11th best value

nationwide

59 ECE Faculty

inside

Testing of both virtual and real robots occurs in an on-site indoor testbed.

2 Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering Annual Report 2011-2012

The growth in enrollment in both the undergraduate and graduate programs

continued in 2011-2012. Undergraduate enrollment grew from 714 in autumn 2010 to 820 in autumn 2011. Graduate enrollment reached another record with student numbers growing from 362 to 410 over the same time period. Research expenditures remained strong at $21.6 million for the 2011-2012 academic year. With the growth in enrollment and research funding within the department, there has been a decision by the college to invest in the department. I expect our faculty size to continue to grow over the next few years. This growth will be in all three faculty categories (tenure-track, research and clinical). Over the past year we have hired one clinical faculty member (Keith Redmill), three research faculty members (Chi-Chih Chen,

Aaron Arehart and Tyler Grassman) and four tenure track faculty members (Kubilay Sertel, Guoqiang Li, Lori Dalton and Yuejie Chi). Of the four tenure track hires, three were made jointly with departments in the College of Medicine. The shift to multidisciplinary research is one that we are well aware of, and these joint hires with medicine will position the department well to take advantage of future national initiatives in engineering and medicine. My expectations for the coming year are to hire another seven faculty members, with five of those being tenure track. I fully expect faculty growth to continue for several more years given the stated goal of the university to increase faculty size by eight to 10 percent over the next few years.

Message from the Chair

Transforming Undergraduate Education

With new, modern lab spaces and a completely redesigned curriculum, the Department of Electrical and Computer

Engineering is transforming the way its undergraduate students are educated in laboratory courses. ECE’s award-winning new lab model exploits technology to expose undergraduate students to advanced concepts early, and empowers self-guided learning on state-of-the-art equipment through video instruction and carefully designed lab manuals. Calling the ECE-approach a game changer in undergraduate education, Texas Instruments partnered with the department and provided $160,000 to support the effort. The new undergraduate lab environment is home to redesigned lab courses in analog electronics, power electronics and microcontrollers. The space includes 39 lab benches, each with the same state-of-the-art equipment utilized by industry, including oscilloscopes from Agilent, power supplies and signal generators from Rigol, and iPads that provide step-by-step instructional videos and custom lab materials. Experienced students help the assigned teaching assistant for each course by serving as lab monitors who use specially prepared documentation to provide guidance and staff the lab space. Together, these changes enable the department to offer courses to more students per term than ever before. “We’re really treating our undergraduates differently than most universities,” says Associate Professor Furrukh Khan, who leads the implementation of ECE’s new lab model. “We’re providing early exposure to advanced electrical and computer engineering concepts.” In addition to students gaining experience with state-of-the-art technologies and equipment, industry will benefit from ECE’s new initiative by being able to hire graduates who are more experienced than ever before. Ohio State ECE graduates entering the workforce will already be trained on critical software and equipment.

Chair Robert Lee

Students working in ECE Open Spaces, the department’s newest lab environment that exploits technology and introduces undergraduates to advanced concepts early.

MS PhD

Total Number of Graduate Students (Au 2011)

198 212

New Applicants 974 560

Number Admitted 209 112

Number Enrolled 95 34

Average GRE (quantitative) 757 782

Totals: 31 61 69 169

0

20

40

60

80

100

MSPhD

BSECE in Cptr. Eng.BSECE in Elec. Eng.

Spring 2012Winter 2012Autumn 2011Summer 2011

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Student Statistics

Degrees Conferred 2011-2012

Graduate Student Overview 2011-2012

Percentage of Graduate Students Enrolled by Country

Other - 13%

Korea - 4%

Turkey - 6%

India - 16%

US - 26%

China - 35%

A student researcher at work in the new Hyperspectral Engine Lab for Integrated Optical Systems, funded in part by a $3 million grant.

The Ohio State Buckeye Electric Motorcycle Race Team, led by ECE students, holds the title of fastest collegiate electric motorcycle.

More than 100 ECE undergraduate students were among the 10,600 who earned degrees spring 2012–the largest spring quarter graduating class ever–during Ohio State’s final quarter commencement.

4 Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering Annual Report 2011-2012

Fueled by the increasing popularity of online services—from online banking to video sharing—and cloud

computing, the number and size of computer data centers continues to grow. As the number of data centers increases, so does the amount of energy needed to power them. In addition to high electricity bills and significant environmental implications, increased power consumption may lead to system failures caused by power capacity overload or overheating. With the cost to power data centers now outpacing the cost to equip them, Xiaorui Wang, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, sees an enormous opportunity to improve both the efficiency and the reliability of data centers.

Consisting of thousands to hundreds of thousands of servers, data centers accounted for roughly two percent of the total energy consumed nationwide in 2010, according to an analysis by Jonathan Koomey, a research fellow at Stanford University. In the race to build these centers, speed and functionality have taken precedence over efficiency. “US data centers had an annual energy bill of $8.4 billion dollars in 2011. We hope to cut it by half, or more,” says Wang. “That’s a big potential impact.” Wang and his research team focus on power and thermal management for all classes of computers—from desktops and laptops to smartphones to data centers—in order to make them much more energy efficient and reliable. Data centers are a particularly good example of just how much room there is for improvement. Servers consume too much power, even while idling. Cooling consumes 40 to 50 percent of power and temperature points must be set extra low due to the lack of a good mechanism to monitor and correct hot spots. In addition, seven to 18 percent of energy is lost during power conversion.

“The three major components in data centers are all wasting too much energy, so we are looking at each of them to make the entire data center consume much less power,” says Wang. Wang first became inspired to conduct research in this area during a summer internship at IBM Austin Research Lab in Texas. “Together with my mentors at IBM, we designed a power-control algorithm that has made a real impact on IBM’s server business,” explains Wang. “I was inspired by that real impact, on a real industry, and decided that this area is something very important that I can definitely contribute to.” The server-level control loop which Wang developed that summer was adopted as the basis of the power-capping feature used in the IBM Active Energy Manager product. It provides power control for 13 IBM server models and is now shipped in more than a billion dollars’ worth of IBM servers every year. Since then, Wang’s group has developed a complete hierarchical power-control framework for datacenters that addresses each layer, from an individual microprocessor, to a server, to a server rack, to the entire data center. “The power control framework is the most important research outcome of our lab,” he explains. Today, Wang and his team of 10 PhD students are working on multiple research projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), Office of Naval Research (ONR), Microsoft Research and IBM. He is the principal investigator for five ongoing NSF projects to design and develop power/thermal control and energy optimization algorithms at different levels. The levels range from multi-core microprocessors, to virtualized servers, to a single data center, up to a network of cloud-scale data centers deployed across the world. Various applications are also being considered, such as multi-tier web services, real-time task scheduling, networked embedded applications and database management systems. Wang also manages two ONR funded projects to develop energy-efficient embedded systems and real-time sensor applications. Wang’s research achievements have been widely recognized. In 2012, his paper on hierarchical power control for large-scale data centers was featured as the spotlight paper for the January 2012 issue of the IEEE Transactions on Parallel and Distributed Systems. Wang also received the ONR Young Investigator Award in 2011, the NSF CAREER Award in 2009, the Power-Aware Computing Award from Microsoft Research in 2008, and the IBM Real-Time Innovation Award in 2007. Improving the energy efficiency and thermal management of smartphones is another of Wang’s key research areas. Better batteries will not be the miracle cure to the energy bottleneck for smart phones, he says. Considering energy and thermal management early in the design, however, will be key. “We hope to help make the battery lifetime of smart phones last at least as long as traditional cell phones, or even longer,” says Wang.

Saving Energy One Computer at a Time

Much of the testing for Xiaorui Wang’s research is performed on a two server rack testbed facility in Dreese Laboratories.

6 Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering Annual Report 2011-2012

ECE Alumni Receive Distinguished Alumni AwardsThree electrical and computer engineering alumni—Constantine Balanis, Eric Evans and Manu Mehta—each received a 2012 Distinguished Alumnus Award from The Ohio State University College of Engineering. Constantine Balanis (PhD ’69) has been a professor at Arizona State University since 1983. In 1991 he was named Regents’ Professor of electrical engineering. His research interests are in low- and high-frequency methods for antennas propagation, and scattering; smart antennas for wireless communication; penetration and scattering of High Intensity Radiated Fields (HIRF); and multipath propagation. He is the “architect” of the ASU Electromagnetic Anechoic Chamber and is a Life Fellow of the IEEE.

Eric Evans (’83, MS ’85, PhD ’88) was appointed director of MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory in July 2006. Previously, he served as head of the laboratory’s Air and Missile Defense Technology Division, where his responsibilities included program activities with discrimination, radar open systems,

sensor technology and measurements at the Reagan Test Site in the Marshall Islands. Evans also has served as the leader of the Air Defense Techniques Group, where he was responsible for Navy programs related to area air defense, ship self-defense and overland cruise missile defense. He is a fellow of the IEEE and a member of the AIAA. Manu Mehta (’80, MS ’82) is president and CEO of Metabyte Inc., a top IT services company utilized by Fortune 500 and mid-market businesses worldwide, which he founded in 1993. Metabyte is responsible for inventing DVR technology. Its MbTV technology powers set-top boxes, which are used by Time Warner, Cox, Adelphia, and other cable providers. Prior to founding Metabyte, Mehta worked for Texas Instruments for more than eight years. At TI, he worked in various roles in marketing and business development of semiconductor and systems products. He was also named to the 2012 list of 100 Buckeyes You Should Know by the Ohio State Alumni Association.

Faculty Awards and Honors Bradley Clymer, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and biomedical informatics, received a 2012 Ohio State Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching. Clymer, who joined Ohio State’s faculty in 1987, continually receives high marks from students who commend his willingness to help, his presentation of complex materials and the array of resources he provides. Colleagues say his student-focused approach comes across in his ability to challenge students and stimulate critical thinking, the personalized and caring way he supports students, and the amount of time he works on behalf of students outside the classroom.

Jin-Fa Lee, professor of electrical and computer engineering, received a 2012 Ohio State Distinguished Scholar Award. The first to employ vector finite element methods for solving real-life electromagnetic problems, Lee is a worldwide authority in computational electromagnetics, an essential part of the design of wireless/radio communication

components that fueled the wireless revolution. Lee’s toolset, marketed as HFSS, was the first commercial three-dimensional finite elements computer-aided design program. Today, it has become the industry standard for the RF/microwave engineering community.

Jin Wang, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, received the 2011 IEEE Power Electronics Society Richard M. Bass Outstanding Young Power Electronics Engineer Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement in the field of power electronics by an engineer under age 35. His current research interests include high-voltage and high-power converter/inverters, integration of renewable energy sources, and electrification of transportation. Before joining the department in 2007, Wang worked at the Ford Motor Company as a core power electronics engineer and contributed to the traction drive design of the Ford Fusion Hybrid. John Volakis, Chope Chair professor and director of the ElectroScience Laboratory, received the 2011 Chen-To Tai Distinguished Educator Award from the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society. He was recognized for “exemplary contributions as an inspiring teacher and mentor, and for advancing electromagnetic technology.” Volakis’ research interests are in antennas, computational methods, novel radio frequency materials, multi-physics engineering, electromagnetic compatibility and interference, and bioelectromagnetics.

The Ohio State University 7

Aaron R. Arehart, Research Assistant Professor Doctoral Institution: The Ohio State UniversityAaron Arehart has been conducting research in various capacities in the ECE department since 2000, most recently as a post-doctoral researcher. His main interests are characterization and identification of electrically-active defects in semiconductors. Recently, this has led to development of new techniques to characterize traps in gallium nitride-based high electron mobility transistors to identify defects responsible for degradation and reliability problems in these devices. Arehart is the author of 30 refereed publications and has been a member of IEEE since 2009.

Yuejie Chi, Assistant Professor Doctoral Institution: Princeton University Yuejie Chi joined Ohio State in August 2012 in a joint role with electrical and computer engineering and biomedical informatics. In addition to conducting research at Princeton, Chi has been a visiting scholar at Stanford University, Duke University and Colorado State University. She also completed research internships at Mitsubishi Electric Research Lab and Qualcomm, Inc. Chi’s research interests include high-dimensional data analysis, statistical signal processing, compressive sensing, machine learning, wireless communications and networks, and active sensing. Lori Dalton, Assistant Professor Doctoral Institution: Texas A&M University Lori Dalton joined Ohio State in August 2012 in a joint role with electrical and computer engineering and biomedical informatics. She was formerly a post-doctoral researcher at Texas A&M University, where she earned a PhD. Dalton’s research interests include genomic signal processing and pattern recognition with biological applications.

Tyler Grassman, Research Assistant Professor Doctoral Institution: University of California - San DiegoPrior to joining the ECE and MSE departments as a research faculty member, Tyler Grassman served as a post-doctoral researcher in the ECE department at Ohio State. His research interests include the development and integration of novel electronic and optoelectronic materials, and the study of their surfaces, interfaces, and defects, with a focus on photovoltaics and other clean energy and energy efficiency applications.

Guoqiang Li, Associate Professor Doctoral Institution: Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of SciencesGuoqiang Li joined the ECE department in January 2012 as an associate professor with a co-appointment in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science. He was previously a member of the faculty of the College of Optometry at the University of Missouri – St. Louis. His research interests include vision optics, biomedical optical imaging, electro-optical devices and holography.

Kubilay Sertel, Associate Professor Doctoral Institution: University of Michigan A new assistant professor in ECE, Kubilay Sertel has been a member of the ECE department since January 2003 as a research scientist at the ElectroScience Laboratory. He is a Senior Member of IEEE, and a member of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation and IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Societies. Sertel is also an elected member of URSI Commission B. His research interests include terahertz devices, sensors and systems; terahertz sensing and real-time high-sensitivity terahertz imaging.

Department Welcomes New Faculty

8 Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering Annual Report 2011-2012

205 Dreese Laboratories2015 Neil AvenueColumbus, OH 43210-127214450 017000 61801

ece.osu.edu

Chair, Electrical and Computer EngineeringDr. Robert Lee, lee@ece.osu.edu Editor & DesignerCandi Clevenger, clevenger.87@osu.edu

Selected International & National Student Awards, 2011-2012

Jonathan Doane Best student paper award, 2012 IEEE International Symposium on Antennas Kubilay Sertel, and Propagation and USNC-URSI National Radio Science Meeting John L. Volakis

Ahmed Fouda 2012 IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society Graduate Fellowship; Fernando Teixeira and SBC Presidential Fellowship, The Ohio State University Graduate School

Vivek Guruvenkata Best paper of R&D track, 2011 Wireless Innovation Forum Conference on Mohammed Ismail Communications Technologies and Software Defined Radio

Haedong Jang & First Place, Student Design Competition, 2012 IEEE MTT-S International Patrick Roblin Youngseo Ko Microwave Symposium

Andrew Kintz NASA Space Technology Research Fellowship Inder “Jiti” Gupta

Cong Li Best presentation award, 2012 IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference & Exposition Jin Wang

Digbijoy Nath 2012 Presidential Fellowship, The Ohio State University Graduate School Siddharth Rajan

Wenzhuo Ouyang Best student paper award, 2012 International Symposium on Modeling and Ness B. Shroff Optimization in Mobile, Ad Hoc, and Wireless Networks (WiOpt) Atilla Eryilmaz,

James Park Third place, Student Paper Competition, 2012 IEEE Radar Conference Joel Johnson

Mark Scott Best presentation award, IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference and Jin Wang Exposition (APEC) 2012

Nathan Smith Third Place, Antennas Measurement Techniques Association’s 2011 Student Chi-Chih Chen, Paper Contest John L. Volakis

Zheyu Wang Best Paper Award, IEEE International Workshop on Antenna Technology John L. Volakis

Dongyue Xue 2012 Presidential Fellowship, The Ohio State University Graduate School Eylem Ekici

Grant Yang 2012 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship Bradley Clymer

Student Award Advisor