This paper proposes a design method of 2-D variable IIR digital filters with high frequency tuning accuracy. In the proposed method, a parallel complex allpass structure is used as the prototype structure of the 2-D variable digital filters in order to obtain low sensitivity characteristic. Because the proposed 2-D variable digital filter is composed of first-order complex allpass sections connected in parallel, the proposed variable digital filter possesses several advantages such as low sensitivity characteristic in the passband, simple stability monitoring and high parallelism. In order to improve the frequency tuning accuracy of the proposed variable digital filter, each first-order complex allpass section is substituted by a new first-order complex allpass section with low sensitivity characteristic. Moreover, the coefficient sensitivity analysis of a 2-D parallel complex allpass structure is presented. Numerical examples show that the proposed 2-D variable IIR digital filter has high tuning accuracy under the finite coefficient wordlength.

Space-time turbo codes have both advantages of space-time codes and turbo codes, and the space-time turbo code proposed by Su and Geraniotis is known to achieve full coding rate and full antenna diversity. This paper presents some improvements of their space-time turbo code in a two-antenna configuration. We first propose a new condition for full antenna diversity which imposes less constraints on the interleaver. Next, by applying a method used to improve turbo trellis-coded modulation to the space-time turbo code, we propose a new decoding algorithm which utilizes more precise estimates on extrinsic information. Simulation results show that the proposed condition assures full antenna diversity and the new decoding algorithm provides a better performance than that of Su and Geraniotis'.

Today, many audiovisual delivery systems, including video streaming and video conferencing, are being developed for use over a range of networking technologies, the differing characteristics of which pose problems for service level interoperability. Multimedia transcoding is one means to provide interoperability between different types of audiovisual terminals and between terminals that connect to different networks. In this paper, we will present a multimedia transcoder system, which provides interoperability between video conferencing terminals on IP networks and mobile terminals on mobile networks.

This article presents a three-step method for designing linear phase FIR filters with signed-powers-of-two (SPT) coefficients. In Step one, a prototype optimal FIR filter is designed by the Remez exchange algorithm. In Step two, a scaling factor is selected by employing simple ad-hoc rules. In Step three, each coefficient of the prototype filter is scaled by the scaling factor and is quantized coarsely as the canonic-signed-digit (CSD) representation. Then, a mixed-integer-linear-programming (MILP) algorithm is applied to three least significant digits (LSDs) of the filter's coefficients to reduce the number of SPT terms. Design examples demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is able to produce linear phase fixed-point FIR filters using fewer SPT terms than the existing methods under the same normalized peak ripple magnitude (NPRM) specification.

This paper presents an optimum antenna diversity combining method associated with despreading that employs Minimum Mean Square Error (MMSE) combining over the frequency domain in a frequency-selective fading channel for forward link Orthogonal Frequency and Code Division Multiplexing (OFCDM) wireless access, in order to achieve the maximum radio link capacity. Simulation results considering various propagation channel conditions elucidate that the antenna diversity combining method with Equal Gain Combining (EGC) subsequent to the despreading employing MMSE combining based on pilot symbol-assisted channel estimation and interference power estimation can decrease the required average received signal energy per bit-to-background noise power spectrum density ratio (Eb/N0) the most, taking into account the impact of the inter-code interference. Furthermore, we clarify that the required average received Eb/N0 for the average packet error rate of 10-2 employing the diversity combining scheme with EGC after despreading with MMSE combining is improved by approximately 0.3 dB compared to the diversity combining scheme with EGC before despreading with MMSE combining at the number of code-multiplexing of 24 for the spreading factor of 32 in a 24-path Rayleigh fading channel.

Face detection from cluttered images is very challenging due to the wide variety of faces and the complexity of image backgrounds. In this paper, we propose a neural network based approach for locating frontal views of human faces in cluttered images. We use a radial basis function network (RBFN) for separation of face and non-face patterns, and the complexity of RBFN is reduced by principal component analysis (PCA). The influence of the number of hidden units and the configuration of basis functions on the detection performance was investigated. To further improve the performance, we integrate the distance from feature subspace into the RBFN. The proposed method has achieved high detection rate and low false positive rate on testing a large number of images.

Transmit diversity, a key technique derived against multi-path mitigation in wireless communication system, is examined and discussed. Especially, we present an approach to investigate perfect/imperfect channel detection when the maximal ratio receiver combined scheme (MRRC) and a simple transmit diversity scheme (STD) are used in the wireless systems, which provide remarkable schemes for diversity transmission over Rayleigh-fading channels using multiple antennas. In order to effectively make use of the transmit diversity techniques, the same approach is extended to process the situation of one transmit antennas and N receive antennas in MRRC scheme (1 N MRRC) and two transmit antennas and N receive antennas in STD scheme (2 N STD). The effects of perfect/imperfect channel detection and the diversity reception with independent and correlated Rayleigh-fading signals are evaluated and compared carefully.

In this paper, we propose and evaluate a new channel assignment scheme for a micro-cellular network integrating data and conversational services. The channel assignment scheme combines handover processing depending on terminal speed with a preemptive scheme. High-speed terminals take over the channels of data terminals upon entering a full cell, while the data terminals are put in a queue until new resources are available. Simulating several variations of the scheme, allowing both fast moving data and voice terminals to preempt data terminals yielded the best result. Suspension time for fast moving data terminals was reduced dramatically, reducing the disadvantage caused by a high number of handovers. The cost was a small increase in blocking probability for new terminals.

We investigated the suppression of multiuser interference in uplink multicarrier CDMA systems using the minimum mean squared error combining (MMSEC) method. In MMSEC, many pilot symbols are required to converge the weight vectors, and if we use just a few pilot symbols, the performance cannot be improved very much. We therefore developed a method for calculating weight vectors for MMSEC that uses just a few pilot symbols. The impulse responses of all users are first estimated using the pilot symbols in the time domain and modulated by a discrete Fourier transform. Next, the correlation matrices and correlation vectors are estimated from the impulse responses and the spreading codes of all users. Finally, the weight vectors that are obtained from the correlation matrices and correlation vectors are multiplied by the received signal to suppress the multiuser interference. The results of computer simulations indicated that the bit-error-ratio performance obtained using this method was better than that obtained when using the conventional fading compensation scheme or when using conventional MMSEC with the recursive least squares algorithm.

A procedure to remove redundancies in sequential circuits is proposed using strongly unreachable states, which are the states with no incoming transitions. Test generation is used to find undetectable faults related to two or more strongly unreachable states. Experimental results show the new procedure can find more redundancies of sequential circuits.

This paper proposes a test generation method using a compacted test table and a test generation method using a compacted test plan table for RTL data path circuits with DFT where hierarchical test generations are applicable. Moreover, a heuristic algorithm for a compacted test plan table generation is proposed. The proposed methods could shorten test lengths for some RTL data path circuits compared with the conventional hierarchical test generation method.

Test compression/decompression is an efficient method for reducing the test application cost. In this paper we propose a test generation method for obtaining test-patterns suitable to test compression by statistical coding. In general, an ATPG generates a test-pattern that includes don't-care values. In our method, such don't-care values are specified based on an estimation of the final probability of 0/1 occurrence in the resultant test set. Experimental results show that our method can generate test patterns that are able to be highly compressed by statistical coding, in small computational time.

This paper presents a test vector modification method for reducing average power dissipation during test application for a full-scan circuit. The method first identifies a set of don't care (X) inputs of given test vectors, to which either logic value 0 or 1 can be assigned without losing fault coverage. Then, the method reassigns logic values to the X inputs so as to decrease switching activity of the circuit during scan shifting. Experimental results for benchmark circuits show the proposed method could decrease switching activity of a given test set to 45% of the original test sets in average.

In this paper, a useful technique is proposed for realizing high speed IDDQ tests. By using the technique, load capacitors of the CMOS logic gates can be charged quickly, whose output logic values change from L to H by applying a test input vector to a circuit under test. The technique is applied to built-in IDDQ sensor design and external IDDQ sensor design. It is shown experimentally that high speed IDDQ tests can be realized by using the technique.

This paper proposes an operation-region model for analyzing and testing analog and mixed-signal circuits, which is based on observation of change in MOSFET operation regions. First, the relation between the change in MOSFET operation regions and the fault behavior of a mixed-signal circuit containing a bridging fault is investigated. Next, we propose an analysis procedure based on the operation-region model and apply it to generate the optimal input combination for testing the circuit. We also determine which transistors should be observed in order to estimate the circuit behavior. Since the operation-region model is a method for modeling circuit behavior abstractly, the proposed method will be useful for modeling circuit behavior and for analyzing and testing many kinds of analog and mixed-signal circuits.

In this paper, a new test method is proposed for detecting open defects in CMOS logic ICs. The method is based on supply current of ICs generated by supplying time-variable supply voltage and electric field from the outside of the ICs. Also, test input vectors for the test method are proposed and it is shown that they can be generated more easily than functional test methods based on stuck-at fault models. The feasibility of the test is examined by some experiments. The empirical results promise us that by using the method, open defects in CMOS ICs can be detected.

Recent physiological studies on synaptic plasticity have shown that synaptic weights change depending on fine timing of presynaptic and postsynaptic spikes. Here, we show that a phenomenon similar to stochastic resonance with respect to background noise is observed on spike-timing dependent synaptic plasticity (STDP) that can contribute to stable propagation of precisely timed spikes in a multi-layered feedforward neural network.

This paper presents an iterative algorithm for decoding product codes based on syndrome decoding of component codes. This algorithm is devised to achieve an effective trade-off between error performance and decoding complexity. A simplified list decoding algorithm, which uses a modified syndrome decoding method, for linear block codes is devised to deliver soft outputs for iterative decoding of product codes. By adjusting the size of the list, the decoder can achieve a proper trade-off between decoding complexity and performance. Compared to the other iterative decoding algorithms for product codes, the proposed algorithm has lower complexity while offers at least the same performance, which is demonstrated by analyses and simulations. The proposed algorithm has been simulated for BPSK and 16-QAM modulations over both the additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) and Raleigh fading channels. This paper also presents an efficient scheme for applying product codes and their punctured versions. This scheme can be implemented with variable packet size and channel data block.

The EB tester line delay fault localization algorithm for combinational circuits is proposed where line delay fault probabilities are utilized to narrow fault candidates down to one efficiently. Probabilities for two main causes of line delay faults, defects of contact/vias along interconnections and crosstalk, are estimated through layout analysis. The algorithm was applied to 8 kinds of ISCAS'85 benchmark circuits to evaluate its performance where the guided probe (GP) diagnosis was used as the reference method. The proposed method can cut the number of probed lines to about 30% in average compared with those for the GP method. The total fault localization time was 31% of the time for the GP method and was 6% less than that of our previous method where the fault list generated in concurrent fault simulation is utilized.

In this paper, we propose an equalizer for indoor infrared wireless systems using on-off keying code-division multiple-access (OOK-CDMA). The proposed equalizer has a decision-feedforward filter to mitigate the effects of inter symbol interference (ISI) at the previous chip position of the sampling instant. We evaluate the performance of indoor infrared wireless systems using OOK-CDMA with three kinds of equalizers: the decision-feedback qualizer (DFE), the feedforward equalizer (FE), and the proposed equalizer. To estimate the impulse response, we use the training sequence that alternates '1' and '0' sequentially. Among three kinds of equalizers, we show that the system with the proposed equalizer can achieve the best bit error rate (BER) performance at high bit rate, while the system with the FE achieves the best BER performance when the bit rate is low.