Low-Power Radio Low-Power Radio Frequency Distributed Frequency Distributed

AgentsAgentsRami Abielmona

Prof. Maitham Shams

95.575

April 3, 2002

Project Presentation

Main ObjectivesMain Objectives

The main objectives of this project are

Building a low-power, high-speed network of agents capable of processing a proprietary algorithm used to locate each other in the shortest amount of time, and with acceptable accuracy;

Verifying the functionality of the distributed network through simulation and system testing;

Studying the integration of the system onto working prototypes, with specific investigations of the major architectures;

Investigating the use of the agents in a parallel architecture for faster tracking purposes.

System ArchitectureSystem Architecture

Figure 1

System Tasks (1)System Tasks (1)

System Architecture Delineation

Work on the system architecture in order to iron out any of the major design decisions, that would prevent the realization of the on-board ASIC;

Module Selection

Select the different modules that are to be utilized in both components, basing the decision on several factors, such as time, money and complexity;

Tool Selection

Select the tools that are to be used in the design of both the ASIC and the board itself;

System Operation Definition

Define the system operation as will be seen in the prototype;

System Tasks (2)System Tasks (2)

Module/System Simulation (Currently)

Simulate both the modules and the overall system in order to guarantee functional and timing adherence before realization;

Module/System Realization

Implement and integrate the various modules together to realize the entire system;

Verification

Test and verify the various modules. This step is actually done after every module realization or integration, but is grouped here for simplicity;

Prototype Configuration

Build the working prototype and test it to ensure correct functionality

Project ScheduleProject Schedule

Sample Open QuestionSample Open Question

Figure 2

A sample economical decision that has to be made involves the sensors and actuators on the board, and their

interfacing with the ASIC. Refer to figure 2 for a sample decision that has to be made.

Discussion of Discussion of TechniquesTechniques

Currently investigating the use of a radar scheme, a patch antenna scheme or a rectangular sweeping scheme for wireless communication

Came up with a simple geolocational algorithm to measure the distances between the agents

Studying architectural level low-power design techniques such as parallelism and pipelining

Came up with an encryption/decryption scheme in order to correctly identify each agent, filtering out noise and unwanted bounce-back signals

Radar SchemeRadar Scheme

Figure 3

RF Transceiver RF Transceiver ArchitectureArchitecture

Figure 4

ReferencesReferences

[1] C. Andren, “A Brief Tutorial on Spread Spectrum and Packet Radio,” Technical Brief, May 1996.

[2] J. Israelsohn, “On the edge of geolocation,” EDN, March, 2002.

[3] Texas Instruments, “Single-chip RF Transceiver,” SLAS213G, May 2001.

[4] K. Hwang, “Advanced Computer Architecture: Parallelism, Scalability, Programmability,” McGrawHill: New York, 1993.

[5] M.K. Simon, J. Omura, R. Scholtz, and K. Levitt, “Spread Spectrum Communications Vol. I, II, III,” Rockville, MD. Computer Science Press, 1985.

[6] R. H. Katz, “CS 294-7: Digital Modulation,” University of California, Berkeley, 1996.

Questions/CommentsQuestions/Comments

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