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Profileimage by Marcos Santos Hardware / Software / Firmware Developer from SoPaulo

Marcos Santos

São Paulo
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Last update: 26.05.2023

Hardware / Software / Firmware Developer

Company: Opus Equipamentos ltda.
Graduation: Curso Técnico Integrado – Engenharia Elétrica / Eletrônica -- Escola Técnica Padre Landell de Moura - February 1975 – November 1978
Hourly-/Daily rates: show
Languages: English (Full Professional) | Portuguese (Native or Bilingual) | Spanish (Limited professional)

Keywords

Attachments

msantos-0123_180523.pdf

Portfolio

Portfolio @ Github

Skills

This profile lists the activities carried out during the last 20 years as a systems developer and architect using software and hardware engineering procedures. Such activities had the necessary technical/theoretical foundation in the research and industrial areas, built over another 20 years of intense work in technical support and consultancy to several companies in several countries.

The data presented in this profile are supported and interrelated to a source code base of applications and engineering diagrams used as a demonstration of instruments and systems developed and in operation on laboratory benches today.

To access this information and as this page does not allow the use of cross-reference links, please download the PDF document below using (ctrl-c/ctrl-v):

URL with condensed profile: https://msantrax.github.io/msantos_0123.pdf
Github repositories land page : https://msantrax.github.io


Once reviewing the document, use the internal links in the skills panels to navigate to the activity (blue numbers), project (green numbers) or certifications (red Greek letters). There you will find information that supports the declared skill.

From there, you can use the external links to access the respective source code repositories and engineering diagrams, course completion certificates, and published peer-reviewed work that support the activity. Links to results on self-training and assessment sites (such as HakerEarth's CodeMonk for code challenges and Aptitude for general and behavioral validations) will be provided if relevant to the activity.

As the task of balancing between precision and synthesis in describing 40 years of intense work in several technical areas is an enormous task, two documents are provided. Use the compact or detailed version as per your need and its links to switch between versions.

Project history

08/2019 - Present
System Architect - ASVP Project - Surface Area by Adsorption Isotherms.
Opus Equipamentos Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project ASVP
Development of a system to provide all needs to manage analytical instruments such as surface area by gas adsorption and particle size by laser scanning. Composed by :
  • Custom S.O. : Debian @ Arm hosted on Raspberry 4B or iMx/RT20 (or PC)  
  • User Interface : All JavaFX. Including Window Manager, Android-like widgets/tools, Material-like LAF. - see simpler version @  - PP200
  • Calculation core/server : Repository of libraries and functions used to do the hard work on instruments math & statistical tasks. The base language is Python (obviously) with Pandas and Scipy. Interfaces with Java UI above via sockets. - see MongoDB interface + Entity Manager & Compiler to it @  PServer_d
  • Calculation Interface/Research: Browser based hook used to help university research people create new functions. Currently uses Jupyter notebooks interfacing with calc. core above.
  • Remote access to calculation core and instrument tools : uses a custom https server (Jetty) to host Angular 7 apps in the local version. It was tested as a portal hosted at Google Cloud. Both Computer engine (with custom image uploaded plus load balance to 4 lanes) and Firebase version passed proof of concept phase. URL is Sorptionlab server - see frontend @  Temps1
  • Hardware/Firmware and RTOS : uses NXP FRDM K64 Arm M4 core running custom return on completion state machines written in C/C++ (Arm GNU). - see examples @ github.com/msantrax/lgt8 and github.com/msantrax/Picno2 - Interfaces with the user SO via RS232 presently but drivers to talk ethernet/MQTT may be used from our past projects (Android app on tablets see @  Virna7
Ongoing research and not yet implemented are: A simple neural perceptron (Python) to help qualify adsorption isotherms prior analytic procedures and a real-time image pre-processing & feature-id on the edge to help dynamic particle size determination.
05/2014 - Present
System Architect - Analytical Instruments support platform.
Opus Equipamentos Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Observing customer's requests in the past 20 years while developing systems for research and industry led to the following general initiatives/products being implemented (please use the link to go to the associated project and see better details):
  • A custom, ruggedized, and clean Operational System based on Open Source Debian Linux to attend to the key concepts of freedom (no recurrent activation / no third parties), trust (all source code available / no eavesdropping), and simplicity (no useless gadgets or drivers loaded). See on projects ASVP and PP200.
  • A clean and fast desktop window manager resembling the successful Android canvas and activities management.  A distraction-free, well-known look and feel and dynamic error check environment proved to raise the analyst performance effectively  - See  PP200 project. 
  • An independent heavy-lift analytical core (Python - Scikit-learn and Pandas) providing services to implement AI strategies through Statistical Inference, Data Cleaning, Estimation, and Machine-learning. Note that it is real-time on the edge data processing (no fancy Tableau dashboards). Project ASVP has halved the expected analysis time (more than one hour). See ASVP
  • A browser-based Research Server (Jupyter Notebooks) and IPython script executor on the analytical core to enable researchers to implement their theories and procedures. So no need to call for software upgrades; implementation is immediate. This server can be hosted on any Kubernetes managed clusters living on Google Cloud or IBM Watson environments, enabling genuine research cooperation or human resources administration.
  • A  robust hardware with very low MTBF was possible using a solid foundation in hardware development resources (quality IDEs and design tools),  focus on well-known CPU cores (NXP ARM Cortex),  stable toolchains (open source GNU GCC/Linker), use of FPGA when needed, the use of well-documented analog components and vendor design support tools, and a good simulation environment ( PSpice   MatLab ). 
  • To do the legacy code interface always needed when retrofitting old instruments, the reverse engineering tasks were well supported by good tools like IDA Hex Rays, Wireshark, S010 Editor, JTAG probes among many others. The time spent to understand the inner workings of the linking, map and booting processes on several O.S. along with some assembler proved to be substantially valuable.
04/2015 - 06/2017
System Architect - Project AutoDensity - Pycnometry by gas volumetry compliant to ASTM D-2856 and ASTM D-6683
Opus Equipamentos Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project AutoDensity
Objective: provide hardware, firmware, and analytical user interface to operate a pycnometer able to measure density on ores/cement by gas volumetry compliant to standard ASTM D-2856 and ASTM D-6683. Technologies are :
  • Hardware: All electronics (digital and analog), PCB design, and mechanical drawing were developed in-house. -- Tools used : Proteus8, SolidWorks, and Texas Instruments. - sample drawings @  Picno2
  • Firmware: Used [Opus-Developed] Antares4 platform (over MBED drivers to ARM/M4) to the stand-alone version and [Opus-Devel] Antares5 platform (over NXP drivers to ARM/K64) to computer-assisted version. See MBED on GNU ARM-EABI C/C++ project codes @  Picno2
  • Computer Application: The user interface used first the already established [Opus-Devel] Analytical Platform (Java Swing on Netbeans 8.0) working on Windows or Linux. After a big client (CVRD/Brazil) requested to make a multi-instrument interface, it was rebuilt using the new [Opus-Devel] Analytical platform (JavaFX), becoming then project AD100/AD200 after the associated upgrade of hardware and firmware.
04/2014 - 02/2016
System Architect - Project LGT8 - Precision Polishing & Lap to Geological Samples
Opus Equipamentos Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project LGT8
Objective: provide hardware, firmware, and analytical user interface to operate a pycnometer able to measure density on ores/cement by gas volumetry compliant to standard ASTM D-2856 and ASTM D-6683. Technologies are :
  • Hardware: All electronics (digital and analog), PCB design, and mechanical drawing were developed in-house. -- Tools used : Proteus8, SolidWorks, and Texas Instruments. - sample drawings @  Picno2
  • Firmware: Used [Opus-Developed] Antares4 platform (over MBED drivers to ARM/M4) to the stand-alone version and [Opus-Devel] Antares5 platform (over NXP drivers to ARM/K64) to computer-assisted version. See MBED on GNU ARM-EABI C/C++ project codes @  Picno2
  • Computer Application: The user interface used first the already established [Opus-Devel] Analytical Platform (Java Swing on Netbeans 8.0) working on Windows or Linux. After a big client (CVRD/Brazil) requested to make a multi-instrument interface, it was rebuilt using the new [Opus-Devel] Analytical platform (JavaFX), becoming then project AD100/AD200 after the associated upgrade of hardware and firmware.
02/2013 - 10/2014
System Architect - Blaine - Cement/Ore fineness by Blaine technique compliant to the standard ABNT 16372
Opus Equipamentos Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project Blaine
Objective: provide hardware, firmware, and analytical user interface to operate a device able to measure powders' fineness by using a Blaine technique compliant to the standard ABNT 16372. Technologies are :
  • Hardware: Interface electronics to a customer-provided test jig were made. A commercial SoC MIcrochip Mips 32 bits core was used as an instrument microcontroller.
  • Firmware: A dedicated single event loop program was compiled using the Microchip IDE and the associated X32 C/C++ toolchain.
  • Computer Application: The user interface used the Opus-based analytical platform (Java Swing on Netbeans 8.0) working exclusively on Linux so it could be embedded. Code may be found @ GitHub/PP100
After a requested project upgrade, the especifications gave birth to the PP200 platform with a dedicated and specialized Linux O.S. tailored to analytical instruments, capable to work on different architectures (ARM, x86) and with Android-like window manager and distraction-free operation. Code may be found  @  - PP200
06/2009 - 04/2011
System Architect - Centauro - controlled atmosphere induction furnace to metal/ceramic materials
Opus Equipamentos Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project Centauro
Objective: provide hardware to create a controlled atmosphere induction furnace to metal/ceramic materials capable of operating over 1500°C for extended periods of time. Technologies are :
  • Hardware: Mechanical design using SolidWorks, PCB design using Proteus 8, Mosfet switching design using SPICE by Texas dev tools, RF coupling study using HFSS  Maxwell.
 The project was on hold after prototyping due lack of funds. Drawings and PCB designs may be found  @  - Centauro
08/2008 - 02/2010
System Architect - Vehicle Dynamics - Vehicle's sensor network data.
Opus Equipamentos Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project Vehicle Dynamics
Objective: provide hardware, firmware, and analytical user interface to retrofit a Jurid instrument used to capture a vehicle's sensor network data. Technologies are :
  • Hardware: Interface electronics in a single Eurocard PCB were done. It used a tandem of two MIcrochip Mips 8 bits cores as an instrument microcontroller. One core provided the real-time management of the sensors event bus, and the other managed to sequence the reactive answers to promises requested by the analytical software. This way, the time resolution of the process was kept down to hundreds of microseconds. The interface with the analytical computer was done by regular RS232.
  • Firmware: Both programs were compiled using the Microchip IDE and the X08 toolchain. They were also compliant with the MISRA standard and were fuzzy tested according to the automotive recommendations.
  • Computer Application: The user interface used the Opus-based analytical platform (Java Swing on Netbeans 8.0) working on Windows. A local version of a Postgresql server was used to store analytical results. All documentation and sample code are @  - Vehicle Dynamics except by the sensor grid refs. that was moved to Control-e project. 
This project was also used to test the first Opus-based sensor grid compliant with IEEE 802.11. The modules used were the Microchip MRF401 on the 2.54 GHz. The pub/sub broker was Opus proprietary living on the computer application. Both Mesh and Node Master modes were tested and succeeded.
03/2005 - 11/2007
Developer - DGT100 - Microwave Digestion Device & Organic Synthesis/Catalysis
Antrax Tecnologia Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project DGT100
Objective: provide hardware and firmware to upgrade a microwave digestion device with a modern microcontroller and double the delivered power compared with similar devices. The technology used on these devices had to be changed to achieve the target and give a requested advantage over competitors.
  • The microwave cavity design was changed from a regular oven device (that demanded sample vessels built with expensive materials) to a focused mode (that required only normal steel vessels). To operate so, the Magnetron had to be pulse modulated, a synchronized circulator had to be implemented, and the waveguides were tuned to avoid reflection. The tools used were HFSS, SolidWorks, and INRIA SciLab. A prototype with six vessels delivered 4+ times more energy to a sample than the regular device and allowed true concurrent digestion cycles and different power levels to each vessel. 
That opened the opportunity to embrace the research of using the device to do effective Organic Synthesis/Catalysis using molecular resonance principles already learned from Microwave Spectroscopy since 85. Unfortunately, the project was put on hold due to a lack of funds and sponsorship. (but would gladly accept sponsoring offers nevertheless).
03/2002 - 04/2003
Developer - Iris - Inductively Coupled Plasma Spectrometer Optics replacement
Antrax Tecnologia Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project Iris
Objective: Refurbish an Inductively Coupled Plasma Spectrometer (ICP) Iris model from Thermo Jarrel, replace (and make compatible) his CCD Camera, and modify entrance optics (radial to axial). Technologies used :
  • The technics and theory to perform optical design and alignment of poly/monochromators used on UV/VIS spectrometers (learned skill since 85) were applied to recalculate the optical path to fit the new camera device.
  • A proprietary software tool using the Opus-based analytical platform was designed to help the dimensional corrections on the Echelle Optics and the design of new focusing devices chain to the optical entrance path. Calculations were also performed using Zeemax optical CAD (old version).
  • Redesign and programming of the camera timing and control FPGAs were done with Altera Quartus (old version). Pictures of the instrument under this process will be uploaded to GitHub.
08/1998 - 01/2001
Developer - Antares - Long-term Metallurgical Creep Tests compliant with the standard ISO 204 / ASTM E039
Antrax Tecnologia Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Project Antares
Objective: provide hardware, firmware, and analytical user interface to coordinate a pool of 10 instruments able to execute long-term Metallurgical Creep Tests compliant with the standard ISO 204 / ASTM E039. Technologies are :
  • Hardware: Each instrument received an entirely in-house designed 8051 microcontroller board associated with sensors front-end and power control interfaces able to maintain the furnace temperature up 960°C in a 2°C range and convert the signal from an LVDT sensor in submicron levels. The data network was based on an optoisolated RS485 bus and was compiled ising a mix of C (SDCC) and assembler. 
  • The user interface used first a VisualBasic (Antares2) based version and later was upgraded to use the Antrax based analytical Java platform. The first implementation of the analytical procedures designer canvas to help researchers develop their own methods (resembling MATLAB Multisim or INRIA Scicos but connected real-time with sensors) proved successful (become Antares3).
02/1997 - 07/1998
Developer - Medusa - LIMS Interface & Protocol converter to Analytical Instruments.
Antrax Tecnologia Ltda. (Industry and mechanical engineering, < 10 employees)
Medusa Project
Objective: Provide ways to intercept, filter, and transform analytical results from instruments unable to talk to enterprise database managers. Technologies are :
  • Hardware data converters were developed to capture from RS232, GPIB, Parallel Centronics, and bare metal proprietary thermal printers. The modules used 8051 cores and C compiled with SDCC and assembler.
  • On the corporate interface side, a concentrator and protocol modifier was used, written using QT C++ Framework, and hosted on Linux. A small and simple MySql DBServer was used as a buffer and public access port.

Certifications

Statistical Inference
Johns Hopkins University (Coursera)
2022
Practical Machine Learning
Johns Hopkins University
2022
Data Analytics for Lean Six Sigma
Amsterdam University
2022
Blockchain Basics
University at Buffalo - SUNY
2021

Local Availability

Only available for remote work
Profileimage by Marcos Santos Hardware / Software / Firmware Developer from SoPaulo Hardware / Software / Firmware Developer
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