The Kynix Blog

Clinical breast examinations can save women's lives, but, as doctors-in-training, new residents sometimes aren't thorough or experienced enough to detect potentially cancerous abnormalities.Now, future physicians could learn to give high-quality breast exams with help from high-tech sensors developed by University of Wisconsin-Madison engineers."This whole project is about facilitating the training of residents," says Hongrui Jiang, Lynn H. Matthias Professor in Engineering and Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor in electrical and computer engineering.The project is working toward creating small fingertip sensors that can measure the pressure and hand motions used by physicians when probing for lumps. New residents will be able to compare their own exams against standards established from experienced doctors, and obtain feedback on whether or not they are being sufficiently thorough.Experienced clinicians long have been looking for an effective tool to establish standards for high-quality breast exams. Dr. Carla Pugh, the Susan Behrens, MD Professor of Surgical Education and a professor of industrial and systems engineering at UW-Madison, has attempted for years to create such a device, but the available sensing technology simply couldn't capture all of the subtle motions necessary for performing a comprehensive breast examination."They were using commercial products—but the sensors were not very good," says Jiang. "Commercial sensors have serious limitations."While some of the existing devices could quantify direct pressure reasonably well, nothing existed that could also measure the side-to-side and circular motion that real-world clinical procedures entail. So Pugh approached Jiang for help."It was very hard; we couldn't figure out a nice way to handle the problem until a year ago, when we had an 'aha' moment," says Jiang.Jiang and his student, Jayer Fernandez, realized that one traditional capacitive sensor alone couldn't possibly measure all of the necessary parameters. Instead, they fashioned a device that integrates information from four overlapping components to quantify pressure and shear from all three dimensions.That novel approach earned Fernandez top honors at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' prestigious Sensors Conference in fall 2016. Fernandez gave a brief, informal presentation to a panel of experts, who were impressed by the capabilities of the device."I've never done an elevator pitch before, but it went well. People asked me a lot of interesting questions. I described why our sensor is more sensitive to the force range that we're looking at and gives us a nice way to do the readout in different directions," says Fernandez.Currently the researchers are working to further miniaturize the sensor, and to combine data from multiple devices at once. They will continue to collaborate with Pugh and other clinicians to develop the most useful device for working doctors."There's a real need to improve physician training," says Jiang. "We didn't realize there was such a clinical need. It's a very challenging problem, but very interesting and very significant." Reference:OVM7695-RAEAOV09726-A40A-1DOV05633 

Microfluidic platforms have revolutionized medical diagnostics in recent years. Instead of sending blood or urine samples off to a laboratory for analysis, doctors can test a single drop of a patient's blood or urine for various diseases at point-of-care without the need for expensive instruments. Before the sample can be tested however, doctors need to insert specific disease-detecting biomolecules into the microfluidic platform. While doing so, it has to be ensured that these biomolecules are well-bound to the inside of the device to protect them from being flushed out by the incoming sample. As this preparatory step can be time-consuming, it would be advantageous if microfluidic platforms could come pre-prepared with specific biomolecules sealed inside. However, this sealing process requires exposure of the device components to high energy or 'ionized' gas and whether biomolecules can survive this harsh process is unknown.To answer this question, researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) have created a novel sensor that detects biomolecules more accurately than ever before. This sensor was used to demonstrate that biomolecules can be successfully sealed within microfluidic devices. The results have profound implications for healthcare diagnostics and open up opportunities for producing pre-packaged microfluidic platform blood or urine testing devices.Traditionally, metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) sensors are used to detect the binding of biomolecules to a surface by measuring changes in charge. Comprised of a silicon semiconductor layer, a glass insulator layer and a gold metal layer, these sensors are incorporated in an electric circuit with the biomolecule sitting in an electrolyte-filled plastic well on top of the sensor. If you then apply a voltage and measure current, you can work out the charge from the capacitance reading given off. Biomolecules with different charges will give you different capacitance readings, enabling you to quantify the presence of biomolecules.The novel sensor created by researchers in OIST's Micro/Bio/Nanofluidics Unit, measures charge using the same technique as conventional sensors but has the additional function of measuring mass. Instead of having a solid gold metal layer, the so-called nano-metal-insulator semiconductor (nMIS) sensor has a layer of tiny gold metal islands. If you shine light on these nanostructures, the surface electrons start oscillating at a specific frequency. When biomolecules are added to these nanoislands, the frequency of these oscillations change proportional to the mass of the biomolecule. Based on this change, you can use this technique to measure the mass of the biomolecule, and confirm whether it survives exposure to ionized gas during encapsulation within the microfluidic platform."We made a simple sensor that can answer very complex surface chemistry questions," says Dr. Nikhil Bhalla who worked on the creation of the nMIS sensor.Measuring two fundamental properties of surface chemical reactions on the same device means that researchers can be far more confident that biomolecules have been successfully encapsulated within the microfluidic platform. A measurement of charge or mass alone could be misleading, making it look like biomolecules have bound to a surface when in fact they have not. Having more than one technique in the same device means that you can switch from one mode to the other to see if you have the same result."Scientists have to validate one reaction with multiple techniques to confirm that an observation is authentic. If you've got a sensor that enables the detection of two parameters on a single platform, then it is really beneficial for the sensing community," says Dr. Bhalla."By combining these two simple measurement techniques into one compact platform, it opens doors to create portable and reliable sensing technologies in the future", adds PhD student Shivani Sathish.In a proof-of-concept experiment, by combining information about both the mass and charge of the biomolecule, the scientists were able to show that a common biomolecule survives exposure to ionized gas at a specific energy level. A single reading of charge alone gives a misleading result, but looking at the complementary parameters together allows for more accurate biomolecule detection.This novel nMIS sensor could be used to create microfluidic platforms that test for various diseases. By measuring charge and mass using the nMIS sensor, researchers can ensure that disease-detecting biomolecules are successfully sealed and functional inside the testing device."It would be like a pre-packaged pregnancy test," says Professor Amy Shen, head of OIST's Micro/Bio/Nanofluidics Unit. "If there is already something adsorbed then all you have to do is introduce whatever sample you are using, such as urine or blood." Reference:ADXRS620BBGZLPY410ALTRADXRS649BBGZ

Companies have developed the industry’s first intelligent always-on visual sensor specifically designed to overcome the power and cost constraints of vision processing for IoT applications. The companies will showcase the WiseEye IoT sensor at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2017, January 5-8, 2017 in Las Vegas.The WiseEye IoT sensor solution is purpose-built from the ground up with always-on, low power visual sensing in mind. By integrating Himax’ unique low power CMOS Imager Sensor, CEVA’s low power vision DSP technology and emza’s unique machine vision algorithms, the result is a powerful solution capable of detecting, tracking and recognising its environment in an extremely efficient manner using a few milliwatts of power.This disruptive sensor allows low-cost IoT systems to employ advanced always-on intelligence which can, among other things, detect, track and identify objects, people and animals. This intelligence is applied locally on the device, passing only relevant information up to the network.This is fundamental to reducing the bandwidth and cost of deploying visual sensing networks. Target applications include virtual assistants, wearable devices, connected home sensors, residential security, protection of elderly, automotive, smart buildings systems and smart city infrastructure.“Our image sensors have long been among the leanest in the industry in terms of power consumption. We have leveraged our vast expertise to develop an ultra-low power sensor specifically for IoT,” said Amit Mittra, CTO of Himax Imaging.“Our collaboration with CEVA and emza tightly integrates our sensor with the best-in-class processor and machine vision that allows us deliver a truly unique always-on, contextually aware sensor solution that is affordable for almost every application.”“Machine vision based sensors enhance the intelligence and functionality of any device, and our WiseEye IoT solution aims at bringing these capabilities to the vast and largely untapped IoT space,” said Yoram Zylberberg, CEO of emza Visual Sense. “In Himax and CEVA we have two of the leading experts in sensors and vision processing, and the ideal partners to realise the industry’s first always-on intelligent visual sensor.”“Low power intelligent vision processing is a key component of our strategy to enable a smarter, connected world, and we’re excited to work with emza and Himax to introduce a unique and revolutionary solution for always-on intelligent visual sensing,” said Ilan Yona, vice president and general manager of the Vision Business Unit at CEVA.“A purpose-built solution such as the WiseEye IoT will help to truly realise the potential of machine vision in IoT by delivering the performance and battery life at a price point that supports mass deployment.”Reference:OVM7695-RAEAOV09726-A40A-1DMT9V011P11STC:B  

The sensor offers a five-fold increase in proximity detection over previous-generation devices. The sensor’s integrated long-distance proximity sensor, ambient light sensor, and 940nm infrared-emitting diode (IRED) eliminate the need for additional light barriers and optical alignment of the IR emitter and photo diode.The device’s small outline saves space and gives design engineers greater flexibility in where and how they locate the sensor.A 16-bit, high-resolution ambient light sensor offers excellent sensing capabilities with sufficient selections to fulfill most applications whether a dark or high-transparency lens design.The devices offer individual programmable high- and low-threshold interrupt features to allow designers to best utilise resources and power on the microcontroller.For the 8-bit proximity-sensing function, VCNL4100 has a built-in intelligent cancelation scheme that eliminates background light issues. The device’s smart persistence scheme prevents false judgment of proximity sensing due to ambient light noise.It provides temperature compensation of -40 to +85 degrees Celsius to keep the output stable under changing temperature.Designers can easily operate proximity and ambient light sensor functions via the device’s I2C (SMBus-compatible) interface protocol.The device operates on a supply voltage range of 2.5V to 3.6V in a lead-free, RoHS-compliant 8.0 × 3.0 × 1.8mm package.Reference:T141AM61STMPE1208SQTRQT1101-ISG 

The range maintained in stock for fast delivery is the general purpose high frequency 113 series comprising eight models with pressure measurement capabilities ranging 50-15,000psi and sensitivity ranging from 0.5-100mV/psi. Seven of the 113 series are ICP sensors requiring no signal conditioning with model 113B03 offering charge output for the highest measuring range to 15,000psi and sensitivity of 0.39pC/psi (±15%).Based on piezoelectric crystal technology, PCB’s pressure sensors are suitable for measuring dynamic pressure changes being able to detect the smallest of pressure fluctuations even in the presence of high static pressures. This makes them useful for transient measurements due to their high frequency responses and fast rise times. Applications include detection of pressure fluctuations in fuel lines and pipelines and cavitation from ship propellers. Dynamic pressure sensors can also be used in loud acoustic applications, for example, when measuring close to a F1 car as microphones are limited to a maximum of 174dB. Model 106B features a range of 8.3psi which is equivalent to 189dB and the company has other models that can exceed these levels.For applications in fracking, PCB offers a range of safe pressure sensors compatible with the long cables typically encountered in such environments. Additional applications include air blast and underwater explosion measurements, peak and total impulse, explosives research and structural loading, shock tube or closed bomb testing, wave velocity and/or time of arrival determinations and explosive testing.Model 105C02 is a subminiature ICP pressure sensor offering measurement range of 100psi with 50mV/psi sensitivity. This tiny sensor features a 17-42.5mm diameter diaphragm and is suitable for use in space restricted applications.Pressure sensors is backed by the company’s guarantee of Total Customer Satisfaction (TCS) and supported with a range of accessories including mounting adaptors to ensure best practice for a quality installation and avoidance of time consuming errors.Reference:13C5000PA4K19C050PA4KMLH100PGM01B 

New Yorker Electronics has introduced a series ruggedised aluminium electrolytic capacitors with welded seals, the MLSG in both Flatpack and Slimpack. This series targets compact power supply applications in military and aerospace, as well as other critical systems.Design enhancements and an electrolyte push the MLSG to nearly double the operating life of its predecessor, the MLSH, at no added cost.Two principal package profiles are offered in this technology, the MLSG Flatpack which measures just 0.5" thick and 1.75" wide and the MLSG Slimpack measuring 0.5" thick by 1" wide, both offered in lengths of 1.5, 2, 2.5 or 3".MLSG Flatpack welded seals capacitors can be made to withstand up to 50g vibrations (10g standard) and altitudes greater than 80,000ft. With stainless steel cases and near hermetic welded seals, they are built for extended duty in very harsh conditions. Especially noteworthy is that a high level of performance is maintained over the full operating temperature range. Capacitance retention at -55°C is very strong, with excellent high temperature performance up to 125°C. The new electrolyte system is fully REACH compliant, allowing application of the components in a broad range of applications where space efficiency and extraordinarily long life are required.A wide range of standard capacitance values from 220 to 24,000µF are available, with voltage ratings up to 250VDC. The unique flat package design does more than save space. It is easily cooled, and can offer flexibility in ganging two or more devices in ways that conventional electrolytics can’t.Options include High Vibration (HVMLSG), for performance to 50g, and High Reliability (HRMLSG), with burn-in at rated voltage and 85°C. Where a true glass-to-metal hermetic seal is required, CDE offers the MLSH Slimpack, which is similarly constructed in a flat stainless steel package. It is available in nine values, from 120 to 3,200µF, with ratings up to 250VDC.With a profile of 1x0.5", the MLSG Slimpack welded seals capacitors fit into the tightest of spaces and meet a DC test of 5,000 hours at rated voltage, 125°C. MLSG Slimpack is a perfect fit for military and aerospace applications requiring a low profile, rugged design and long-life. The MSGL Slimpack is also available in an HRMLSG type for high reliability burn-in – and is rated to vibration levels of 80g.Features and benefits5,000 hours at rated voltage of 125°CStainless steel caseWithstands more than 80,000ft. altitudeType HR, high reliability burn-inType HV, high vibration levelsFlatpack to 50g; Slimpack to 80gApplicationsAerospaceMilitaryCritical systemsPower suppliesReference:F17724102900MKP1841410254BFC246816474