Sensor Node Processor With Low-Power For Networked Sensor Utilities

Internet of Things, also known as IOT describes applications and devices that capture and transmit data for daily routine life. Processes and sensor devices that will support the IOT needs to be small in size but yet high on utility, energy efficient and versatile. Now researchers have introduced a sensor processor node that holds the ability to sense intelligently around with the use of ultra-low levels of energy power1.

The application of IOT ranges from biomedical signal processing to applications in environmental sensing and monitoring of vehicle status. Most of such devices are small in size that implies that they consume very less amount of power. It is specifically a big challenge for the processors that collect the information from sensors and analyze it as demanded by their power.

“There is a limitation of power sources space and this result in a critical power budget at per level of the micro watt, says Xin Liu. “At such a level, the design of the processor becomes a challenging task especially when there is a need to achieve ultra-low power consumption while maintaining extensive functions.”

As a known fact the lower the operating voltage, the lesser is the overall consumption of energy and hence less utilization of energy sources. There are ultra-low voltage circuit and system designing techniques adopted by the research team of the Institute of Microelectronics. The team utilizes such techniques to develop distinct hardware accelerators for extraordinary energy-efficient signal processors for capturing data from sensors.

A further core advancement is possible by adopting a more wise approach for acquiring the signal and by using the knowledge about the detailed sensor signals. In most of the applications, these sensor signals get converted into sudden spikes that are processed finely with the use of cognitive data gathering technologies. The benefit of such techniques is that they hamper or slow down the overall volume of information that is required by the processor by about 40 percent of the previous requirement. It results in a massive reduction of power consumed by each application.

With the aid of such techniques, the researchers have been fortunate to develop a sensor node design of processor that possesses the ability to operate on extremely low operating voltages, which is as low as 0.5 volts. The amount of energy used is about 29 to 39 picoJoule for each operation cycle.

Conclusion – As per Liu, “The evolving IOT units play a crucial role to offer supportive solutions to the Singapore Smart Nation initiative in an extensive assortment of applications. Also, our team of researchers intends to develop highly energy-efficient hardware systems and circuits. It is essential to attain high performance, excellent energy efficiency, enhanced level of security and artificial intelligence.” Now the thing is to see how well the chip that is based on cognitive sensing technology and which is designed for the sensor node processor is able to perform and serve utilities for various types of applications.