Skip to main content

Low-cost remote health care is goal of doctoral computer science graduate


December 18, 2012

Designing safe and low-cost medical devices can result in dependable and affordable health care locally and globally, says Ayan Banerjee, who is graduating with a doctorate in computer science from the School of Computing, Informatics and Decision Systems Engineering, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.

Banerjee’s dissertation research was in safety analysis and verification of cyber-physical systems (CPS), which is a computing unit embedded in a physical environment. One of the potential uses of CPS is the development of medical devices that can be implanted in or worn on the human body for real-time, continuous patient monitoring.

It can result in early disease detection, reduced human error, facilitate home-based care, and reduce the need for the physical presence of medical personnel except in emergencies.

“Dependable remote health care with unrestricted patient mobility can significantly improve the state of the art in public health,” says Banerjee. “It will reduce cost, increase affordability, and save lives.”

After earning a bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering from Jadavpur University, India, Banerjee decided to join ASU under the guidance of Sandeep Gupta, a professor in Computer Science and Engineering and an advisor to ASU’s IMPACT (Intelligent, Mobile, Pervasive Applications & Computing Technologies) lab. Banerjee was awarded a Science Foundation of Arizona (SFAz) Graduate Research Fellowship for the quality of his research, and then worked as a research assistant to Gupta.

As part of the IMPACT lab, Banerjee has explored cutting-edge computer technologies, including formal modeling and analysis, sensor networks, embedded systems, pervasive health monitoring, energy-efficient cloud computing, and the safety and sustainability of cyber-physical systems.

“My parents and my wife supported me immensely throughout my PhD career and made my years at school enjoyable,” he says. “The only difficulties I had to overcome were the fundamental research problems I was trying to solve.”

“Graduation means a lot to me,” continues Banerjee. “This is a result of five years of hard work and sacrifice, and I dedicate all my success to my parents.”

Banerjee will continue his research at ASU as a postdoctoral scholar.

Michele St George, michele.stgeorge@asu.edu
Graduate College