Local Frictions in the Energy Transition: Design Anthropology for the Emergence of Energy Communities

Critical challenges in energy transitions are social and cultural – not just technical and economic. This paper shares research in an interdisciplinary consortium developing an innovative smart energy system, and demonstrates the value of ethnography in supporting energy transitions and local energy communities. Our fieldwork illuminated...

A 115.1 TOPS/W, 12.1 TOPS/mm²Computation-in-Memory using Ring-Oscillator based ADC for Edge AI

Analog computation-in-memory (CIM) architecture alleviates massive data movement between the memory and the processor, thus promising great prospects to accelerate certain computational tasks in an energy-efficient manner. However, data converters involved in these architectures typically achieve the required computing accuracy at the expense...

CIM-based Robust Logic Accelerator using 28 nm STT-MRAM Characterization Chip Tape-out

Spin-transfer torque magnetic random access memory (STT-MRAM) based computation-in-memory (CIM) architectures have shown great prospects for an energy-efficient computing. However, device variations and non-idealities narrow down the sensing margin that severely impacts the computing accuracy. In this work, we propose an adaptive referencing...

Accelerating RRAM Testing with a Low-cost Computation-in-Memory based DFT

Emerging non-volatile resistive RAM (RRAM) device technology has shown great potential to cultivate not only high-density memory storage, but also energy-efficient computing units. However, the unique challenges related to RRAM fabrication process render the traditional memory testing solutions inefficient and inadequate for high product quality...

System Design for Computation-in-Memory: From Primitive to Complex Functions

In recent years, we are witnessing a trend moving away from conventional computer architectures towards Computation-In-Memory (CIM) based on emerging memristor devices. This is due to the fact that the performance and energy efficiency of traditional computer architectures can no longer be increased at the same pace as before. The main barriers...

Dealing with Non-Idealities in Memristor Based Computation-In-Memory Designs

Computation-In-Memory (CIM) using memristor devices provides an energy-efficient hardware implementation of arithmetic and logic operations for numerous applications, such as neuromorphic computing and database query. However, memristor-based CIM suffers from various non-idealities such as conductance drift, read disturb, wire parasitics,...

KrakenOnMem: A Memristor-Augmented HW/SW Framework for Taxonomic Profiling

State-of-the-art taxonomic profilers that comprise the first step in larger-context metagenomic studies have proven to be computationally intensive, i.e., while accurate, they come at the cost of high latency and energy consumption. Table Lookup operation is a primary bottleneck of today's profilers. In this paper, we first propose TL-PIM, a...

Referencing-in-Array Scheme for RRAM-based CIM Architecture

Resistive random access memory (RRAM) based computation-in-memory (CIM) architectures are attracting a lot of attention due to their potential in performing fast and energy-efficient computing. However, the RRAM variability and non-idealities limit the computing accuracy of such architectures, especially for multi-operand logic operations....

Grappling with Diversity in Research Through Design

Since its introduction, Research through Design (RtD) has taken on a wide variety of forms. Currently, there is a lack of clarity about what connects and separates different RtD approaches. Several attempts have been made to clarify these matters, often in the form of a top-down categorization. Here we start on a different path, one that is open...

EthnoVis: Developing an interactive visualization as a designerly tool and process of longitudinal data analysis and communication

In this paper, we report on an interactive visualization that served multiple purposes and diverse roles in a research-through-design (RtD) study. The visualization is part of the study on the sociocultural factors that shape energy exchanges between households. It showcases an ethnographic data combined with quantitative logs collected for<br/...

Trailing edge serrations: Effect of their flap angle on flow and acoustics

Trailing edge serrations have been proven to work as a passive noise reduction device. Nevertheless, they have also previously been found to increase noise in a particular frequency range, argued in earlier research to be due to the misalignment of the serrations with the direction of the flow in the wake. It emerges as a high-frequency noise...

Enabling "new" practices of renewable energy sharing: A cross-cultural approach

Local generation, distribution and consumption of renewable energy within neighborhood is an emerging application context for the concept of `sharing'. This position paper introduces a cross-cultural approach to enable `new' social practices of renewable energy sharing in neighborhoods. The approach is being developed based on ongoing field...

'Electric City': Uncovering Social Dimensions and Values of Sharing Renewable Energy through Gaming

With the advent of Smart Energy Systems and Energy Cooperatives in the Netherlands and elsewhere, sharing of renewable energy within neighbourhoods is likely to gain wide prominence in the near future. Today the concept of 'Energy Sharing' is often limited to householders 'selling' their surplus of locally generated energy to the energy grid....