1 - Introduction

Summary

Scenario

Recent history of the electronic and computer industry can be viewed as three waves of revolutionary processes. The first revolution, making cheap computing power available via microprocessors in the 1970s, led to the PC industry of the 1980s. The cheap laser and fiber optics, which resulted in cheap bandwidth at the end of the 1980s, led to the Internet industry of the 1990s. The third wave, the sensor revolution at the end of the 1990s, will also provide for a new industry. Sensor revolution means that cheap sensor and MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical system) arrays are proliferating in almost all the conceivable forms. Artificial eyes, nose, ears, taste, and somatosensory devices as well as sensing all physical, chemical, and biological parameters, together with microactuators, etc. are becoming commodities. Thousands and millions of generically analog signals are produced waiting for processing. A new computing paradigm is needed. The cited technology assessment reads:

The long-term consequence of the coming sensor revolution may be the emergence of a newer analog computing industry in which digital technology plays a mere supporting role, or in some instances plays no role at all.

For processing analog array signals, the revolutionary Analogic Cellular Computer paradigm is a major candidate. The core of this computer is a Cellular Nonlinear/neural network (CNN), an array of analog dynamic processors or cells. The computer architecture is the CNN Universal Machine, with its various physical implementations. At the same time, Analogic CNN computers mimic the anatomy and physiology of many sensory and processing organs with an additional capability of stored programmability.