Compressed sampling and memory

A method, comprising:

• sampling an analog input signal by using a continuous-time extrema locator to identify an extrema of the analog input signal at an instantaneous Nyquist sampling rate of the analog input signal such that the analog input signal is compressed as compared to a global Nyquist sampling rate of the analog input signal;
• generating an extrema pulse for the extrema of the analog input signal;
• and
• in response to the extrema pulse:
• storing a potential value of the analog input signal in an analog or digital memory;
• and
• storing a time segment value in the analog or digital memory, wherein different time segment values are stored in association with different extrema pulses, and further wherein the potential values of the analog input signal and the associated time segment values comprise a compressed representation of the analog input signal.

A device, comprising:

• a network node;
• a wakeup event detector that generates a wakeup trigger signal for the network node based on a predetermined signal response of an analog signal generated by a sensor;
• a continuous-time extrema locator circuit that identifies an extrema of the analog signal and generates an extrema pulse for the extrema of the analog signal;
• and
• an analog or digital memory that stores, in response to the extrema pulse, a time segment and a potential value of the analog signal, wherein different time segment values are store in association with different extrema pulses, and further wherein the potential values of the analog signal and the associated time segment values comprise a compressed representation of the analog signal.