NanoMorphware

HRL's "brain-like" microcircuitry

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:58:00 +0000

HRL Labs is one of the recipients of funding for DARPA's SyNAPSE project. A recent press release (below) discusses their recent efforts in constructing a new type of neuromorphic computer architecture based on a novel nanoscale device that functions as an artificial synapse which sounds similar to the memristor.

MALIBU, Calif., October 25, 2009—HRL Laboratories, LLC, announced today it will continue groundbreaking work developing electronics that simulate the cognitive capabilities and efficiencies of the biological brain as part of the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency's SyNAPSE program, or Systems of Neuromorphic Adaptive Plastic Scalable Electronics. HRL is leading a group of industry and university laboratories with expertise in core areas of neuro and cognitive science in this pioneering endeavor.

The research marks a dramatic departure from the conventional programmable paradigm of existing computing machines. The goal of the SyNAPSE program is to bridge biology and electronics and establish an entirely new paradigm for creating intelligent machines that can interact with, react to, and actually learn from their environments.

The HRL team's ultimate goal is to build a low-power, compact electronic chip combining a novel analog circuit design and a neuroscience-inspired architecture that can address a wide range of cognitive abilities—perception, planning, decision making and motor control. In the initial phase of the SyNAPSE program, which started in October 2008, the team began to translate the neuronal and synaptic functions of the biological brain into similar microelectronic functions, ultimately designing and fabricating the base components—the neurons and synapses that will form the core of the microcircuitry of these intelligent machines.

"Our research progress in this area is unprecedented," said DARPA program manager Todd Hylton, Ph.D. "No suitable electronic synaptic device that can perform critical functions of a biological brain like spike-timing-dependent plasticity has ever before been demonstrated or even articulated."

The HRL team addressed two of the hardest problems in the initial phase: the density and endurance of the synaptic elements. A novel nanoscale device was developed that can function as a synapse while matching synaptic densities of 10 billion synapses per square centimeter with an endurance of more than 100 million cycles. "Like brain circuit elements, which also have limited lifecycles, we needed to demonstrate that the microcircuits made from these electronic synapses and neurons would last for a period of time," said Dr. Narayan Srinivasa, senior scientist at HRL and principal investigator for SyNAPSE. "We were able to show that this tiny device, which will function as a synapse, could last for five to seven years at an average operating speed of 10 Hz."

In the upcoming phase of the program, the base elements developed in the initial phase will be combined into a very-high-density, interconnecting microelectronic "fabric." "While in the initial phase we were designing cellular elements of the brain, now we're going to begin developing the microcircuits of the brain in hardware," Srinivasa said.

###

HRL Laboratories, LLC, Malibu, California (www.hrl.com) is a corporate research-and-development laboratory owned by The Boeing Company and General Motors specializing in research into sensors and materials, information and systems sciences, applied electromagnetics, and microelectronics. HRL provides custom research and development and performs additional R&D contract services for its LLC member companies, the U.S. government, and other commercial companies.

Memristive transfer functions

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 02:02:00 +0000

Adaptive control is used to adjust the responses of a system as conditions change. However, when adaptive control systems are based on conventional microprocessor architectures there is an implicit delay depending upon the processor speed. Memristor electronics offers an alternative approach to adaptive control capable of integrating memory with parallel processing capabilities. My latest patent (US 7609086) teaches a memristive circuit configuration providing such adaptive control which is not limited by a particular processor speed.

Knol on History of Memristor Electronics

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 01:16:00 +0000

I wrote a knol discussing the history of Bernard Widrow's memistor (1960), Leon Chua's memristor (1971), HP Labs recent paper on a solid state memristor (2008), and possible future impacts of memristors available at this link.

Reconfigurable drive circuit using memristive materials

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 02:09:00 +0000

My eighth patent (US Patent 7,576,565) related to circuit designs using memristor materials issued this week. This patent focuses on circuit architectures used to generate pulse drive waveforms in which both the amplitude and the timing of the pulses can be reconfigured by altering the states of resistance switches in a crossbar array. One area where I think this will be particularly advantageous is in improving the real time responsiveness and the learning capability of robotic systems since the design integrates the memory and signal processing functions in contrast to conventional control systems which often segregate memory from processing.

Memistors vs. Memristors

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 23:09:00 +0000

I recently came across an interesting technical report published in 1960 describing "memistors" as a new type of circuit element. Although this memistor is not the same as the memristor which was originally proposed by Leon Chua in 1971 the similarities are very interesting and the memistor formed the basis for ADALINE (ADAptive LInear NEurons) circuits which were commercialized briefly by a company called the Memistor Corporation in the 1960's. Some interesting trivia in that Ted Hoff, who invented the microprocessor at Intel, was a co-developer of the memistor.

Robotics and Von Neumann's Bottleneck

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 19:41:00 +0000

Last week I attended a conference on Cybernetics in which I presented a paper describing a memristor crossbar architecture performing an analog variation of the XNOR function to achieve pattern recognition for robotics. One of my main points during my talk was that the Von Neumann architecture, which dominates modern computing, is not efficient to provide robotics with real-time reactions or pattern recognition comparable to that found in human or other biological species. I think that the underlying problem results from the segregation of memory circuitry from data processing circuitry which results in an intrinsic delay (i.e. the Von Neumann bottleneck). In order to move beyond this problem new circuit elements that integrate the capabilities of both data storage and data processing in a single device are necessary. The recent developments involving memristors seem to me to be the key to such integration.

Parallel Electron Beam Lithography Stamps

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:10:00 +0000

Electron beam lithography is typically limited to scientific investigation or small volume production since it is so much slower than optical lithography. However, using a high density of electron emitting sources the speed of e-beam lithography can be scaled up which is the approach taken by companies such as Multibeam Systems and Mapper Lithography.

I have had a few of my patents issue recently teaching nanostructured electron emission tips formed on the surface of a stamp structure to perform a form of parallel electron beam lithography.

US Patent 7,425,715 - Digital parallel electron beam lithography stamp

This patent teaches an addressing system for a high density array of carbon nanotube electron emitters controlled to generate a digital mask for patterning a substrate.

US Patent 7,550,747 - Parallel electron beam lithography stamp

This patent teaches a patterned array of carbon nanotube electron emitters which replicate a mask pattern and a second array of carbon nanotubes forming an alignment reference with a target substrate.

Knol on Business Landscape for Memristor Electronics

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 16:40:00 +0000

I recently put together an analysis of some of the companies involved in the development of memristor electronics available at this link.

Memristor Presentation at Cybernetics Conference

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:11:00 +0000

The 6th annual International Conference on Cybernetics and Information Technologies will be held July 10-13 in Orlando, Florida. I will be giving a presentation on the memristor and pattern recognition circuit architectures based on memristors. The abstract is below.

Abstract:

Pattern recognition solutions based on software are often limited by the speed of data transfer between memory and processor circuitry. Solutions based on application specific electronics are usually faster but are limited in adaptability to new patterns. These deficiencies in pattern recognition present a hurdle in further developing new applications in robotics. Last year researchers at HP Labs have noted a connection between hysteretic resistance behavior of some thin film oxides with the “memristor,” a fundamental circuit element originally predicted in 1971 which possesses both data storage and signal processing capabilities. The present article describes the memristor and presents an example of a memristor pattern recognition circuit architecture combining the optimum characteristics of software and hardware pattern recognition solutions.

Memristors at TechConnect2009

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 16:27:00 +0000

The Nanotech/Cleantech conference and trade show is scheduled this year for Houston, Tx on May 3-7. I have a poster presentation regarding one of my memristor-based pattern recognition circuit architectures and a presentation at TechConnect2009 describing my patented technologies.

The Missing Memcapacitor Found

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 19:53:00 +0000

Last week Leon Chua published a new paper (available here) describing memcapacitors and meminductors as new theoretical circuit elements along side the memristor. I posted a knol based on a new framework for memadmittance and memimpedance I came up with based on Chua's paper.

An Introduction to Memimpedance and Memadmittance Systems Analysis

Memristor Symposium Presentation on LinkedIn

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 07:22:00 +0000

For those who use LinkedIn I have posted a powerpoint copy of my presentation at UC Berkeley on my profile page (http://www.linkedin.com/in/blaisemouttet). I am also working on some memristor-related presentations and posters for some conferences this summer which I may post there.

Licensing fee update scheduled for 01/01/2009

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 14:26:00 +0000

Due to recent interest in my circuit designs for hysteretic resistance materials in signal processing and pattern recognition and issuance of additional patents I am scheduling an increase in the cost of licenses for Jan. 01, 2008. The current license agreement can be found here and currently offers a running royalty rate of 4% convertible with a paid-up license option.

Memristor Symposium on YouTube

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 23:22:00 +0000

I recently had an opportunity to discuss some of my ideas on memristor applications at a symposium on memristors held at UC Berkeley and meet the originators of the memristor concept Leon Chua and Steve Kang as well as HP researchers Stan Williams and Greg Snider who are developing memristors for RRAM. Video of the symposium is available on Youtube at this link (my portion starts at 1:25:25).

Memristor and Memristive Systems Symposium

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:13:00 +0000

This Friday there is a symposium on memristors at Berkeley during which I will be giving a short talk on potential applications of memristors in analog electronics. (link)

Nano-Net 2008

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 13:13:00 +0000

At an upcoming conference in Boston (Sept. 14-16) concerned with the intersection between nanotechnology and network/communication theory I have a short paper entitled "Proposal for Memristors in Signal Processing."

Knol on Memristor Electronics

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 00:50:00 +0000

Recently I had another article rejected from IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology. Some of the peer reviewers provided feedback noting that I did not cite enough prior references and suggested that I should use a circuit simulation tool to verify the operability of the design.

However, Google's recent release of their "Knol" project gives me an alternative way to publish and maybe attract some attention to my circuit design ideas. I'm working on a new article on applications of memristors here which is related to some of my patents. While of course not as prestigious as an IEEE article at least it gives me an opportunity to present my ideas in a forum for others to easily access.

Fourth Patent Issued - US 7,391,235

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 20:04:00 +0000

My fourth patent issued this week directed to a programmable resistance switch crossbar circuit combined with operational amplifier circuitry useful to applications such as programmable waveforms, reconfigurable filters, and communication switching.

Some of my other patent applications have had final rejections issued by the PTO. US2007/0257704 is directed to a method of reconfiguring a programmable crossbar signal processor in which the claims were amended during prosecution to distinguish the claimed method from reconfiguration of programmble logic arrays as performed in the prior art. However, the Examiner made the rejection final with prior art directed to programmble logic (in contrast to the claim language) so I may have to appeal this one. US2007/0233761, on the other hand, is directed to a programmable crossbar array used in an arithmetic processor. The Examiner made a rejection based on an optical crossbar switching array used for arithmetic processing that is alleged to be obviously convertible to a resistance switching crossbar array (despite that the reference appears to teach away from electronic based configurations). This one is under appeal.

While I'm still trying to get some papers published discussing my technology most of the journals I've submitted to have either rejected the submission for being outside the scope of the journal or for not having sufficient scientific merit since no experimental or computational result is included (the papers were directed to a new technology not a new measurement). One exception was the 2008 NSTI conference which published a paper I wrote on logicless computation with crossbar arrays.

Recently I was contacted by a representative of Ocean Tomo about auctioning one of my patents (US 7,342,413) related to scanning probe interconnects for nanowire crossbar arrays which may have some benefits to ultrahigh density non-volatile memory. Although I have no interest in this approach it is good to know that some of my patents are attracting attention. Hopefully, companies interested in licensing my patents will find similar value in my technology as I spread the word.

Patent Licensing Information

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Wed, 28 May 2008 16:46:00 +0000

In recent years there has been an acceleration in the development of new materials used in electronics design. Much of the focus has been on nanomaterials due to the trend of scale reduction predicted by Moore's Law. However, another area of interest is in reconfigurable materials which are capable of changing state based on an applied threshold voltage or current. So far the two main proposals for applications attempting to exploit such materials are non-volatile memory (RRAM) and some programmable logic designs but there are a variety of other application areas such as signal processing, pattern recognition, control systems, and programmable waveform circuitry which may also benefit by more adaptive designs using these materials. The development of "memristor" material by HP has drawn increased attention to the potential of such applications. In addition, as described in my paper "Logicless Computational Architectures with Nanoscale Crossbar Arrays" the use of resistance switching materials in crossbar arrays connected to analog processing circuitry offers an alternative computational paradigm with advantages to large number computation and parallel processing capabilities.

Over the past few years I have developed a variety of circuit designs based on the exploitation of resistance switching materials for signal processing, pattern recognition, control systems, arithmetic processing, and programmable waveforms. For those interested in my technology I am currently offering a licensing deal covering all of my patents based on resistance switching materials used in the noted applications. As an incentive to attract companies willing to invest at this early stage the license deal includes a 4% running royalty that can optionally be converted to a one-time paid-up license. Thus if a product is developed based on my patents which is seen to be particularly valuable the license may be bought out without further royalty payments. However, this option will only be available to the first few companies interested in development and commercialization of the technology.

For information on particular ones of my issued or pending patents see the following links:

Issued Patents

Pending Patent Applications

For further information I can be contacted at:

Blaise Mouttet
4201 Wilson Blvd. 110-364
Arlington, Va 22203
(571) 345-8890
blaise_mouttet@yahoo.com

Non-final rejection (11/418,057) and allowance (11/790,713)

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:26:00 +0000

I received a non-final rejection this week from my patent application 11/418,057 directed to an electron beam nanotip array configured for lithography. Conventionally while electron beam lithography has advantages over optical lithography in terms of resolution it is a slow process making it inconvenient for large scale applications. My patent application teaches forming a high resolution vertical array of nanotips (such as carbon nanotubes) operated in parallel that can be digitally controlled to pattern a target more quickly. Similar electron emitting CNT arrays have been applied in the prior art to field emission displays and the Examner made a rejection based on some of these references. However, slight modification of the claims should be able to overcome the rejections.

Another of my patent application 11/790,713 directed to programmable impedance material used in a signal processor was also allowed this week. This patent may have some relevance to future applications based on memristor and similar materials.

Memristor - the key to strong A.I. ?

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:12:00 +0000

Hewlett Packard's Information and Quantum Systems Lab recently reported on the physical realization of a new circuit element that combines the aspects of a resistor and a memory device called a memristor (see EETimes article). The "memristor" developed by HP is noted as a dual layer of titanium dioxide thin films that possesses hysteretic behavior so that the resistance can by switched by an order of magnitude of 1000 and which possesses qualities making it analogous to a neuron. Although thin film oxides used in variable resistance materials have been previously reported, they have primarily been suggested for non-volatile memory applications rather than for signal processing or pattern recognition applications. However, my various patents and patent applications teach a variety of electronic circuit configurations that implement resistance variable materials used in crossbars to construct pattern recognition circuitry, programmable control systems, waveform generation devices, arithmetic processing circuitry, and a variety of other applications.

Also of interest is this patent application from Samsung which appears to disclose the dual TiO2 resistance switching material and effect.

Logicless Computational Architectures using Nanoscale Crossbar Arrays

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 19:51:00 +0000

So far my efforts at attracting companies interested in developing products based on my inventions have not gone well. While my professors at George Mason University have offered some positive feedback on some of my ideas the "not invented here" syndrome seems alive and well in many corporations. My current strategy is to publish some technical papers based on my ideas and use these papers to attract interest and corporate sponsorship in further development of the technology I am proposing. My first effort in this direction is a poster that I am presenting at the upcoming 2008 NSTI conference.

The poster describes a new type of computational system based on resistance switching crossbars. Greg Snider of Hewlett-Packard and Nantero have already made some suggestion for using crossbars for computational purposes but these suggestions have so far been limited to attempts at reproducing basic logic gates. The problem with that approach is that to create full-adders and more complex arithmetic systems multiple "tiles" of the crossbars need to be interconnected with each tile only performing the function of a single logic gate. The approach discussed in my paper instead uses a single crossbar to perform 4 bit addition using a hybrid analog/digital approach. In addition, my approach may be more easily integrable with microscale electronic components and provide some advantages in integrating data storage functions with data processing functions. Hopefully this paper and future papers that I am currently attempting to get published will at least give me some more credibility when attempting to attract companies to commercialize my ideas.

Notice of Allowance - U.S. Application 11/790,712

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 21:07:00 +0000

Another of my continuations received a notice of allowance from the PTO on 3/27/2008. This patent focuses on a symmetrical crossbar structure with dual rectification layers to make reprogramming of resistance switching material easier.

Non-final rejection 11/395,232

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 21:17:00 +0000

This is one of my patent application dealing with an alternative type of computational processor based on resistance switch crossbars. One of the advantages of my approach is that it is feasible to use the same circuits for storing data that are used in numerical processing which would save time in transferring data as opposed to more conventional processing circuits.

The examiner made the base rejection relying on an obviousness type rejection attempting to combine an optical crossbar processor with components from prior art electrical crossbars. The rejection is actually somewhat hilarious since the base reference explicitly notes that it is directed to optical rather than electrical circuitry and the combination basically destroys the function of the base reference. I explained this in my response and if the examiner is crazy enough to make the rejection final I guess it will be time for an appeal.

My background

noreply@blogger.com (blaisemouttet) — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 20:27:00 +0000

About 10 years ago I was working as a color copier/printer technician for Canon in midtown Manhatten while obtaining my undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering. The ranges of technologies that go into printers is actually quite diverse requiring knowledge of mechanics, electronics, optics, chemistry, and digital imaging. While working as a printer technician I really got an appreciation for the intricate nature of engineering design and for innovation in general and had a desire to learn more about innovation as a topic in it's own right. However, most graduate studies are not really focused on innovation as a topic in and of itself (and at the time I did not have the money for graduate school anyway). I figured that if I really wanted to learn about innovation a good strategy would be to get a job with the U.S. patent office (USPTO) and learn about the process from the inside. I spent about 5 years at the USPTO examining patent applications involving inkjet technologies and learning about emerging technologies involving microelectromechanical systems and nanomaterials and eventually got to contribute to patent classification projects involving these technologies. It was actually a great opportunity to study technological trends and get the "big picture" of how technology is changing.

After leaving the USPTO I went to graduate school at George Mason with a focus on further studying nanomaterials in electronics and worked on developing my own ideas for innovation resulting in several patent application (which is the topic of this blog). Many of my innovations are somewhat radical departures from conventional approaches to many electronic systems such as a logicless computational architecture using a hybrid of digital and analog circuitry and the use of parallel arrays of electron emitters in a nanoimprint stamp as an alternative to optical lithography using masks. However, I'm betting that my approaches will win out in the long run as the traditional electronic methodologies become more difficult and expensive to keep up with the continually desired increase in scalability and functionality required for electronics in the coming decade. Time will tell.