Gail Erten, Ph.D.

Ph.D. Electrical Engineering

California Institute of Technology, California, USA (1993)

Thesis title: Analog VLSI Architecture for Stereo Correspondence

M.S. Electrical Engineering

California Institute of Technology, California, USA  (1991)

B.S. Electrical Engineering

Stanford University, California, USA (1985)

2006-present

Director of Research and Development

Optical Physics Company ( www.opci.com)

Calabasas, California, USA

Technology innovation, R&D, and business development in high precision optics  

1993-2006

Advanced Development Projects Manager

IC Tech, Inc. ( www.ic-tech.com)

Okemos, Michigan, USA

Principal Investigator of over twenty research and development projects since 1995.

R&D funds procurement from government agencies totaling over $4 million.

Technology innovation, R&D in VLSI, biologically inspired and biomedical electronics, intelligent signal processing, human machine interfaces, and speech applications.

Project planning, resource allocation and management.

Supervising up to 10 interns, engineers, and PhD. students.

Setting research and development goals and tracking progress.

Areas of technical focus:

1-       Digital and analog VLSI integrated sensing and processing designs,

2-       Biologically inspired algorithms, architectures, sensors and actuators,

3-       CMOS based light sensing, especially low light, including starlight,

4-       Audio and speech signal enhancement and reconstruction,

5-       Voice interface systems design and applications,

6-       User authentication and identity theft prevention, and

7-       Audio visual embedded software applications.

1991-1993

Microelectronics Laboratory, California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California, USA

Research Assistant

Developed several neurocomputing and image processing architectures and demonstrated them with actual implementations in analog and analog/digital hybrid VLSI.

Completed doctoral dissertation describing the analytical foundations and algorithmic base of a stereo correspondence architecture, along with test results from its VLSI implementation.

1985-1989

VLSI Development Department, NCR

Rancho Bernardo, California, USA

Principal Design Engineer

Designed, maintained and upgraded two custom NCR9800 IC's, a master co-processor and memory interface chip.

Involved in many aspects of manufacturing support.

Gained knowledge and experience in the development, design and implementation of conventional processor architectures in custom VLSI. 

Gained knowledge and experience with design automation tools for functional and circuit verification and system integration.   

Served one year as management trainee in a Manager Staff position specializing in continuous process improvement

1993

Founder, IC Tech, Inc. ( www.ic-tech.com)

Okemos, Michigan, USA

Managing all technical and business activities for multiple R&D projects.

Attracting commercialization partners to the company.

IC Tech, Inc. has recently been featured on the Department of Defense Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) website as an "SBIR Success Story."

1998

Co-Founder, Clarity Technologies, Inc. ( www.claritycvc.com)

Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA

Provided seed technology for speech enhancement using blind signal separation methods

Served as President and later as Chief Technology Officer

Clarity Technologies, Inc. was acquired in March 2005 for $17.1 million in cash by Cambridge Silicon Radio (CSR) of Cambridge, UK, a wireless solutions provider and leading supplier of Bluetooth technology.  

1995-2006

Adjunct Assistant Professor

Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE)

Michigan State University (MSU)

East Lansing, Michigan, USA

Interaction and collaboration with a distinguished body of faculty members, both within and outside the ECE Department and School of Engineering.

Joint research projects with the university, as listed under the heading Research Contracts and Grants

Presentations and seminars to faculty and graduate students

Patent Number

Title

1

6,879,082

Electromagnetic positioning

2

6,803,738

Magnetic actuation and positioning

3

6,768,515

Two architectures for integrated realization of sensing and processing in a single device

4

6,735,482

Integrated sensing and processing

5

6,691,073

Adaptive state space signal separation, discrimination and recovery

6

6,625,587

Blind signal separation

7

6,236,862

Continuously adaptive dynamic signal separation and recovery system

Publication Number

Title

1

20040223391

Integrated realization of sensing and processing

2

20030178901

Electromagnetic positioning

3

20030072460

Directional sound acquisition

4

20030061049

Synthesized speech intelligibility enhancement through environment awareness

5

20020116197

Audio visual speech processing

6

20020116187

Speech detection

7

20020009203

Method and apparatus for voice signal extraction

8

20010030668

Method and system for interacting with a display

9

60/399,074

Dynamic user authentication

10

60/678,698

Method for manipulating listener perceived distance to voice source in speech signals

Book Chapters

[1]         Erten, G. ; Goodman, R.M. A Digital Neural Network Architecture Using Random Pulse Trains. Silicon Implementation of Pulse Coded Neural Networks.  Mona Zaghloul  Robert Newcomb  Jack L. Meador, editors, Kluwer Academic 1993.

Journal Papers

[1]          Salem, F. M., Waheed, K., Erten, G. Blind source recovery in a state-space framework: Algorithms for static and dynamic environments.  Neural Processing Letters.  Volume 21, Number 3, pp. 153-173.  June 2005.

[2]          Erten, G;  Salem, F.M. Voice output extraction by on-line signal separation and recovery. IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II, Vol 46, No. 7 Page(s): 915-922.   July 1999.

[3]          Erten, G;  Salem, F.M.  Real Time Realization of Early Visual Perception. Computers and Electrical Engineering, an International Journal, October 1999, Page(s): 379-407.

[4]          Erten, G.; Salem, F.M. Two Cellular Architectures for integrated realization of image sensing and processing on a single chip. International Journal of Circuits Systems and Computers, World Scientific Publishing Company, Vol 8, Nos 5&6 , Page(s): 637-659. 

[5]          Salem, F.M.; Wang, Y. and Erten, G.   Analog dendro-dendritic arrays with digital on-chip learning. International Journal of Circuits Systems and Computers, World Scientific Publishing Company, Vol 8, Nos 5&6, Page(s): 571-587. 

[6]          Salem, F.M.; Piwek, C.; Erten, G.; Grotjohn, T.; Asmussen, J.  Modeling of a plasma processing machine for semiconductor wafer etching using energy-functions-based neural networks.   IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology, Volume: 5 # 6,   Page(s): 598 -613

[7]          Erten, G.; Goodman, R.M. Analog VLSI implementation for stereo correspondence between 2-D images .   IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks, Volume: 7 #2 , Page(s):  266 -277

Conference Papers

[1]          Erten, G.  Audio Visual Speech Recognition.  First World Congress on Biomimetics and Artificial Muscles.   December 2002, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.

[2]          Erten, G.  Magnetically actuated socket.  First World Congress on Biomimetics and Artificial Muscles.   December 2002, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.

[3]          Erten, G.; Hagopian, S.  International Symposium on Nanobioscience.  Embedded sensor and processor circuits for DNA microarrays

[4]          .  Poster presentation.   May 2002, Detroit, Michigan, USA.

[4]          Salem, F.; Erten, G., and Waheed, K.  Blind Source Recovery: Algorithms for Static and Dynamic Environments, in Proc. of the INNS-IEEE International Joint Conference on Neural Networks, IJCNN, July 14-19, 2001,Page(s): 902-907 vol. 2.

[5]          Erten, G.; Hagopian, S.   Digital Cellular Image Sensor Processor (CISP) for Computing Image Functions on the Sensory Plane, Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems MWSCAS 2000.

[6]          Hagopian, S. ; Erten, G.  Programmable Convolution Array (PCA) chip for arbitrary image transforms on the sensory plane, Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems MWSCAS 2000.

[7]          Hagopian, S.; Erten, G.    Analog Cellular Image Sensor Processor (CISP), Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems MWSCAS 2000.

[8]          Paoletti, D.R.; Erten, G.  Enhanced silence detection in variable rate coding systems using voice extraction.  Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems MWSCAS 2000.

[9]          Erten, G.  Voice signal extraction for enhanced speech quality in noisy vehicle environments,  presented at the 18^th Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC) on October 26, 1999.  Awarded Best Paper of session.

[10]      Erten, G.  Integrated image sensor processor with on chip centroiding. Presented at the Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems (MWSCAS) held August 8-11, 1999 in Las Cruces, New Mexico, USA.

[11]      Erten, G.; Salem, F.M.  Modified Cellular Neural Network Architecture for integrated image sensing and processing. Proceedings of the IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1999. ISCAS '99, Volume 5, Page(s) 120-123.

[12]      Salem, F.M.; Erten, G.  State space framework for blind dynamic signal extraction and recovery.  Proceedings of the IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1999. ISCAS '99, Volume 5, Page(s) 66-69.

[13]      Erten, G.; Salem, F.M. Voice Output Extraction By Signal Separation Proceedings of the 1998 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1998. ISCAS '98.   Volume: 3 , Page(s): 5 -8.

[14]      Erten, G.; Salem, F.M. Cellular mixed signal pixel array for real time image processing.   Conference Record of the Thirty-First Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems & Computers, 1997.  Volume: 2 , Page(s): 1146 -1150.

[15]      Salem, F.M.; Erten, G.  Blind Signal extraction and Recovery in Dynamic Environments, Nonlinear Signal and Image Processing (NSIP '97), September 1997, MacKinaw Island, Michigan.

[16]      Erten, G.; Salem, F.M. Real Time Separation of Audio Signals Using Digital Signal Processors.  Proceedings of the 40th Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1997. Volume: 2 , Page(s): 1237 -1240.

[17]      Salem, F.M.; Gharbi, A.B.; Erten, G. Formulation and Algorithms for Blind Signal Recovery.  Proceedings of the 40th Midwest Symposium on  Circuits and Systems, 1997.   Volume: 2 , Page(s): 1233 -1236.

[18]      Erten, G.; Padgett, M.L.; Salem, F.M.  Neural networks and emerging technologies
Proceedings of the Fifth IEEE International Conference on Fuzzy Systems, 1996.,
Volume: 3 , Page(s): ICNN7 -ICN10.

[19]      Dongmo, J.M.; Salem, F.G.; Erten, G.  Adaptive fuzzy control of AC motors for electric vehicles and manufacturing systems. Proceedings of the 1996 IEEE International Symposium on Intelligent Control, 1996., , Page(s): 408 -413.

[20]      Salem, F.M.A.; Erten, G.; Vedula, S.; Hwa-Joon Oh.  Nonlinear projection to submanifolds using neural networks with circuit realization and its application to data reduction. 1996 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1996. ISCAS '96. Volume: 3 , Page(s): 578 -581.

[21]      Erten, G.; Gharbi, A.; Salem, F.; Grotjohn, T.; Asmussen, J.  Using neural networks to control the process of plasma etching and deposition. IEEE International Conference on Neural Networks, 1996, Volume: 2 , Page(s): 1091 -1096.

[22]      Erten, G.; Salem, F.M.  Programmable hybrid co-processor for real-time image understanding. Conference Record of the Twenty-Ninth Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems and Computers, 1995.  Volume: 2 , Page(s): 885 -888.

[23]      Salem, F.M.A.; Erten, G.  An adaptive neuro/fuzzy CMOS chip. 1995 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1995. ISCAS '95   Volume: 3 , Page(s): 2329

[24]      [24]   Salem, F.M.A.; Vedula, S.S.; Erten, G. Low Power Analog Chips for the Computation of the Maximal Principal Component IEEE World Congress on Computational Intelligence Neural Networks, 1994, Volume: 7 , Page(s): 4746 -4749

[25]      Vedula, S.S.; Salem, F.M.A.; Erten, G.  Subthreshold analog circuit for computing the maximal principal component of 3-D data.  1994 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1994. ISCAS '94,  Volume: 6 , Page(s): 371 -374

[26]      Erten, G.; Salem, F.M.A. Hybrid analog/digital VLSI chip for template matching.  Proceedings of the 37th Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 1994., Volume: 2 , Page(s): 868 -871