VSA Bylaws

Preamble

The VLSI Systems and Applications Technical Committee (VSA-TC) is a Technical Committee of the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society (IEEE-CASS).

The VSA-TC is a subsidiary organization of the IEEE-CASS and is governed by the rules and regulations of the IEEE and by the constitution of the IEEE-CASS, which take precedence over these bylaws in case of conflict.

Purpose

The goal of the VSA-TC is to promote research and education in the field of digital VLSI systems and its applications in electrical engineering, computer science and engineering, and related fields. System design aspects include design of architectures, algorithms, developing theory, design methodologies, and implementation, as they relate to design of VLSI systems and systems-on-chips. Application areas include, but are not limited to, signal processing, communications, wireless, networking systems, video, multimedia, radar, optical, nanotechnologies, biotechnology, and other emerging technologies.

Membership

The committee shall have two officers: Chair, and Secretary (who will also act as Chair-Elect). Each will serve a two-year term.

Membership in the VSA-TC is open to any IEEE CASS member. A candidate can be nominated for membership in the TC by any one of the TC members. A nominated candidate is reviewed by the officers and can be invited to attend the meeting of the TC, held every year at ISCAS, as a guest. Membership is approved by a majority of members voting in favor of the candidate. The voting may take place at the TC meeting held at ISCAS or electronically at other specified times.

Membership in the TC meeting is considered to be ACTIVE if the member attends the TC meeting at ISCAS, or participates in TC related activities such as reviewing papers for conferences or workshops supported by, or are of interest to, the TC, or by serving on the editorial boards of the Transactions and Journals of the society. If a member becomes inactive for a period of two years, the secretary of the TC will remind the member about his/her inactivity. If a member remains inactive for three years, then the member will be automatically removed from the TC.

Emeritus membership may be given to a retired TC member who contributed significantly for the TC as Chair, EiC of CAS Journals, CAS Committee Members, CAS Board of Governors, and other equivalent positions.

Meeting

The committee shall meet every year at ISCAS. The committee may meet at other times at conferences or workshops which are organized by the TC members. All business requiring committee approval will be conducted during a TC meeting or by email voting arranged by the Secretary.

Quorum

Presence of one-third committee members at a TC meeting shall constitute a quorum. If less than a quorum attend a TC meeting, tentative actions may be taken which will become effective after subsequent ratification, either at a meeting or electronically. For voting by members at large by email, voting by one-half of the committee members shall constitute a quorum.

Duties and Election of Officers

The Chair will preside over the TC meetings and will be responsible for all interactions with the Circuits and Systems (CAS) society. The chair will be responsible for recommending Associate Editors for various transactions, for nominating candidates for distinguished lecturers, for endorsing tutorials and special sessions for ISCAS, and for nominating candidates for awards of the society. Every year, the Chair will report the committee’s activities to the CAS society. The chair may be assisted by sub-committees for collecting candidates for various nominations such as editorships or society awards. The chair and members of these sub-committees will be appointed by the Chair of the Technical Committee.

The Secretary will record the minutes of the TC meetings and will maintain the roll of the committee. The Secretary will be the point of contact for the committee’s membership nominations. The secretary will also act as the Chair-Elect of the society. The Secretary will be elected by the members of the committee present at the committee’s meeting. If the committee cannot meet in any year, or if one of the current officers resigns before any of the committee meetings, the secretary can be elected by voting conducted by electronic mail.

The Secretary will be the chair of the committee immediately after the committee meeting at the second ISCAS following the ISCAS of his/her election. The secretary will be the chair of the committee if the current chair resigns before his/her term expires.

The TC will maintain a web site which will be under the control of the Chair and the Secretary.

Activities

The committee will be responsible for nominating individuals for CAS society awards, including prize paper awards of the society. The committee will organize tutorials and special sessions at ISCAS. The committee members will help in the reviewing of papers for ISCAS. The committee members will also recommend candidates for associate editorships of various Journals and Transactions of the society. The committee will assist in organizing special issues for CAS society’s journals, and in technical program committees of conferences and workshops of interest to the TC.

Amendments

Amendments to these bylaws can be made by a two-thirds vote cast by the committee members present at the meeting or by a two-thirds vote by members at large via email. Any member can introduce an amendment provided that the two officers of the committee have been notified at least one month before the committee meeting.