Publications

As the post-PC era emerges, several new niches of computer system design are taking shape with characteristics that are quite different from traditional desktop and server regimes. One of the most interesting of these new design regimes is networked sensors. The networked sensor is enabled, in part, by "Moore's Law" pushing computing and storage into a smaller, cheaper, lower-power unit. However, three other trends are equally important: complete systems on a chip, integrated low-power communication, and integrated low-power devices that interact with the physical world. The combination of...

The rapid proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in both commercial and consumer applications in recent years raises serious concerns of public security, as the versatility of UAVs allow the platform to be easily adapted for malicious activities by adversarial actors. While interdiction methods exist, they are either indiscriminate or are unable to disable a large swarm of drones. Recent work in wireless communications, microelectromechanical systems, fabrication, and multi-agent reinforcement learning make UAV-based counter-UAV systems increasingly feasible - that is, defense...

Solar-powered actuation of a 15 mN electrostatic MEMS gripper was demonstrated while wirelessly triggered by IEEE 802.15.4 RF signals. The solar-powered gripper was shown to actuate at a rate of 640 um/s. The complete system is composed of three capacitors and three chips: MEMS gripper, microprocessor/crystal-free radio, and solar cell array/high voltage buffer. Control signals for the electrostatic inchworm motors originate from the 3x2x0.3 mm3 chip with an ARM Cortex-M0 microprocessor and are passed through 119V high voltage buffers. Power for all components, including the crystal-free...

Microrobots can someday be used as a tool to further expand investigative capabilities– for example, archeologists could use them to research buried cities such as the one in Tiwanaku, Bolivia, or emergency response workers could send robots ahead in search-and- rescue operations. The anatomy of a microrobot can be broken down into its body, brain and power. Typically, each subsystem is fabricated using a different process, creating the need for multi-chip assembly. Microrobots in the literature are often assembled post-process using methods such as wire bonding, silver epoxy, and flip-...