BioCAS Bylaws

Goal

The goal of the Biomedical Circuits and Systems (BioCAS) Technical Committee is to foster research, development, education and industrial dissemination of knowledge relating to the emerging field of microelectronics and nanotechnology in biological and medical applications. The activity is genuinely multidisciplinary, drawing upon knowledge and expertise from fields such as lifesciences, medicine, nanotechnology, in addition to areas more traditionally associated with the CAS society such as analog and digital circuits and systems.

Membership

Membership of the BioCAS Technical Committee is open to any member of the IEEE. A nomination for membership by an active member including a CV of the candidate is required and shall either be circulated before a general meeting or announced at a general meeting.  The applicants shall either be present at the meeting and present themselves or shall have a verifiable track record of significant and recent activity in the field of BioCAS. Membership is approved by a majority of active members present at the Committee’s general meetings if the nomination has been announced beforehand, or by e-mail vote following within a month of the meeting if the nomination is announced at the meeting. A member is removed from the committee if he/she does not show any participation in the BioCAS TC activities for three consecutive years between the annual committee meetings. BioCAS TC activities include official functions for the BioCAS track at the IEEE ISCAS, the IEEE BioCAS conference, and the IEEE Transactions on BioCAS, participation in the annual general meeting and contributing to the TC’s annual report.

At any time, the Committee shall have four officers: the Chair, the Secretary, the Chair Elect and the Past Chair. All officers serve two-year terms.

Meetings

The annual meeting of the committee will be held at the International Symposium of Circuits and Systems (ISCAS). Any business requiring Committee approval will be transacted at the annual meeting. Outside of the annual meeting, the three Officers can, upon a majority vote, undertake unplanned business on behalf of the Committee, provided that these activities do not require formal committee approval and that they be reported to the Committee at the next meeting.

Duties and Election of Officers

Chair

The Chair presides over committee meetings and is responsible for all interactions with the CAS Society. With the assistance of the Secretary, he/she is responsible for reporting the activities of the Committee to the CAS Board of Governors on a timely basis. The Chair is also responsible for recommending Associate Editors for the CAS Transactions.

The Chair is not directly elected, but assumes the chairmanship immediately after the ISCAS following his/her two-year term as Chair Elect. The Chair must be a member of both the Committee and of the Circuits and Systems Society. The Chair serves a two-year term.

Past Chair

The Past Chair is responsible for organizing any and all BIOCAS Technical Committee-sponsored special sessions and workshops at ISCAS. He/She is also responsible for assisting the Chair in transacting the business of the committee.

The Past Chair is not directly elected, but assumes his/her position immediately after the ISCAS following his/her two-year term as Chair. The Past Chair must be a member of both the Committee and of the Circuits and Systems Society. The Past Chair serves a two-year term.

Chair Elect

The Chair Elect is responsible for organizing any and all BIOCAS Technical Committee-sponsored special sessions and workshops at ISCAS. He/She is also responsible for assisting the Chair in transacting the business of the committee.

The Chair Elect will be elected by majority vote of the members of the Committee present at the annual meeting falling in the first year of the term of the current chair. The Chair Elect must be a member of the Committee and of the Circuits and Systems Society. He/She assumes the Chair Elect position immediately after the ISCAS of his/her election and serves a two-year term. The Chair Elect assumes the chairmanship of the Committee after the ISCAS following his/her two-year term.

Secretary

The Secretary, who will also act as the Treasurer for the Technical Committee, will record the minutes of the yearly meeting and maintain the roll of the committee. The Secretary will be the contact point for the Committee’s nominations for CAS Society awards and for nominating transactions papers in the field of Biomedical Circuits and Systems for the Best Paper Awards.

The Secretary will be elected by the membership of the Committee present at the annual meeting falling in the second year of the term of the current Secretary. He/She will serve for a two -year term commencing immediately after the ISCAS of his/her election. The Secretary must be a member of both the BIOCAS Technical Committee and the Circuits and Systems Society.

Activities

The Committee will be responsible for nominating individuals for the various CAS society Awards, and for nominating deserving papers in the area of BioCAS for each of the CAS Society’s Best Paper Awards. Every active Committee member will be solicited by the Secretary to submit potential nominees. The Officers will decide the names to be submitted to the CAS Award Committees from the names submitted by the members.

The Committee will aim at organizing a special session and/or workshop at each ISCAS. The Chair Elect or Past Chair will be responsible for organizing this activity at the ISCAS following the annual meeting where he/she assume his/her position. The Chair is expected to assist in the organization, but final responsibility lies with the Chair Elect or Past Chair.

The Committee will recommend new Associate Editors for the Transactions of the Society in the fields relating to BioCAS to the Editorial Board of the CAS Society. The Committee will accept nominations for these positions and review them at an annual meeting preceding the term of the incoming editors. The Chair will be responsible for learning when each Editorial Board will be formed and for soliciting nominations from the Committee membership in a timely manner.

The Committee may engage in other activities such as editing reprint books, the organizing of special issues of an IEEE publication, workshops, conferences, and other publication activities in the area of BioCAS.

Amendments

Future amendments to these bylaws will be by a majority vote from the Committee members present at an annual meeting or from majority of the members at large through mail. Any bylaw amendment can be introduced at the Committee meeting, provided that at least one of the three Officers has been notified at least one month prior to the Committee meeting. Approval by the three Officers is not necessary, but notification is required. An approved amendment will take effect the day following the conclusion of the annual meeting where it was approved.