Hybrid Timestamping Using Crystal and RC Oscillators for Shock-Resistant Precision

IF 2.8 2区工程技术 Q2 COMPUTER SCIENCE, HARDWARE & ARCHITECTURE

IEEE Transactions on Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Systems Pub Date : 2025-03-11 DOI:10.1109/TVLSI.2025.3544410

Ehab A. Hamed;Gordy Carichner;Delbert A. Green;Hun-Seok Kim;Inhee Lee

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Achieving precise timing in miniature systems attached to monarch butterflies is challenging due to the shock sensitivity of crystal oscillators (XOs) and the limited accuracy of RC oscillators. This brief proposes a hybrid timestamping technique that combines both oscillators as timers to deliver shock-resistant, high-accuracy timing. Three algorithms are evaluated to fine-tune a multiplier (M), the ratio of the two timers’ speeds, for improved responsiveness and robustness against temperature and voltage variations. The direct ratioing algorithm proves the most effective, determining the correct M within a single wake-up cycle and reducing time shift error by 145 times in a 12-h test, compared to using an RC timer alone. This work leverages the existing hardware and introduces new firmware, easily implementable using standard digital circuit design flows, to significantly enhance timing precision and shock resilience in millimeter-scale butterfly tracking systems, making a valuable contribution to the VLSI community.

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使用晶体和RC振荡器的混合时间戳用于抗冲击精度

由于晶体振荡器（xo）的冲击敏感性和RC振荡器的有限精度，在附着在帝王蝶上的微型系统中实现精确定时具有挑战性。本文提出了一种混合时间戳技术，该技术将两个振荡器结合为计时器，以提供耐冲击、高精度的计时。评估了三种算法来微调乘法器(M)，两个计时器速度的比率，以提高对温度和电压变化的响应性和鲁棒性。直接比例算法被证明是最有效的，在一个唤醒周期内确定正确的M，与单独使用RC定时器相比，在12小时的测试中将时移误差降低了145倍。这项工作利用现有硬件并引入新的固件，使用标准数字电路设计流程轻松实现，显着提高毫米级蝴蝶跟踪系统的定时精度和冲击弹性，为VLSI社区做出了宝贵的贡献。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

IEEE Transactions on Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Systems 工程技术-工程：电子与电气

CiteScore

6.40

自引率

7.10%

发文量

187

审稿时长

3.6 months

期刊介绍： The IEEE Transactions on VLSI Systems is published as a monthly journal under the co-sponsorship of the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society, the IEEE Computer Society, and the IEEE Solid-State Circuits Society. Design and realization of microelectronic systems using VLSI/ULSI technologies require close collaboration among scientists and engineers in the fields of systems architecture, logic and circuit design, chips and wafer fabrication, packaging, testing and systems applications. Generation of specifications, design and verification must be performed at all abstraction levels, including the system, register-transfer, logic, circuit, transistor and process levels. To address this critical area through a common forum, the IEEE Transactions on VLSI Systems have been founded. The editorial board, consisting of international experts, invites original papers which emphasize and merit the novel systems integration aspects of microelectronic systems including interactions among systems design and partitioning, logic and memory design, digital and analog circuit design, layout synthesis, CAD tools, chips and wafer fabrication, testing and packaging, and systems level qualification. Thus, the coverage of these Transactions will focus on VLSI/ULSI microelectronic systems integration.