Engineering & Research Projects

A showcase of real-world hardware, embedded systems, and scientific research projects developed across Swiss high-tech industry, research institutes, and university laboratories.

Project 1: Marine Sensing & Embedded Hardware Systems

Engineering Scope & Contributions

• Hardware Engineering & PCB Design:
  • Development and validation of sensor electronics engineered for long-term maritime deployment.
  • Low-noise analog front-ends, power regulation, and robust digital telemetry interfaces.
• Embedded Firmware & Commissioning Tools:
  • Embedded microcontroller firmware for sensor acquisition, health monitoring, and data transmission.
  • Architecture and implementation of automated test jigs and sensor commissioning tools to streamline production calibration.
• Environmental Robustness & Testing:
  • Environmental verification, vibration stress testing, and EMI/EMC compliance testing for marine certifications.

Technical Stack

Project 2: Point-of-Care Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Devices

Engineering Scope & Contributions

• Electronic Hardware Design:
  • Complete schematic design and multi-layer PCB layout using Altium Designer for ultra-fast thermal cycling, optical fluorescence measurement, and power management.
  • Precision analog signal acquisition circuitry for optical biosensors with high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).
  • Design for electromagnetic compatibility (EMC/EMI) and low-noise operational conditions.
• Mechanical & Packaging CAD:
  • CAD design for rapid prototyping (3D printing, CNC machining) through to injection-molding production housings.
  • Thermal management integration and mechanical tolerance verification.
• Regulatory, Procurement & Quality Control:
  • Component selection and strategic procurement complying with global supply chain availability and medical device standards.
  • Authorship of comprehensive manufacturing work instructions and formal Quality Control (QC) verification protocols.
• Validation & Testing:
  • Testbench setup for automated board bring-up, sensor calibration, thermal profiling, and biological assay repeatability.

Technical Stack

Project 3: Audio-Domain DSP using Antenna Arrays and Beamforming

Engineering Scope & Contributions

• Acoustic Array Architecture:
  • Spatial sensor placement and multi-channel microphone array integration.
  • Microelectronics and digital signal interface design for simultaneous high-fidelity acoustic sampling.
• Digital Signal Processing (DSP):
  • Implementation of adaptive beamforming algorithms (delay-and-sum, minimum variance distortionless response - MVDR).
  • Spatial filtering, noise suppression, and directional sound localization in reverberant indoor environments.
• Simulation & Verification:
  • Extensive algorithm simulation and performance analysis in MATLAB and Simulink before embedded target deployment.

Technical Stack

Project 4: Myoelectric (EMG) Signal Acquisition & FPGA Processing

Engineering Scope & Contributions

• Bioelectronics Hardware Design:
  • Multi-stage biopotential analog front-end (AFE) with instrumentation amplifiers, high CMRR (> 100 dB), active bandpass filtering (20 Hz - 500 Hz), and baseline wander suppression.
  • Schematic design and PCB fabrication for non-invasive surface EMG signal acquisition.
• FPGA Embedded Implementation:
  • Implementation of standard gradient descent algorithms on an embedded processor within Intel/Altera Quartus II for two-dimensional field sensor calibration.
  • Real-time implementation of a Dual Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) for high-precision tilt and state estimation.
• Biomedical Research & Peer-Reviewed Publications:
  • Experimental studies on the influence of ambient and muscle temperature variations on EMG spectral and onset characteristics, resulting in multiple IEEE and indexed journal publications.

Technical Stack