Conservative availability analyses including dependent failures in redundant I&C-systems with recurrent tests

In this paper analytic formulae are derived to estimate conservatively the unavailability of a two out of four digital safety Instrumentation and Control (I&C) system with recurrent tests. The analytic formulae disclose the influence of the different parameters on the system’s unavailability. In particular, the choice of a proper test interval is essential to guarantee the required low unavailability. The extraordinary self-checking capabilities of digital systems are taken into account by use of an appropriate failure model together with the treatment of dependent failures of the integrated software–hardware system. The underlying methodology is approved by licensing experts of nuclear facilities in Germany.     

Coordination in networks: An economic equilibrium analysis

Networks utilizing modern communication technologies can offer competitive advantages to those using them wisely. But due to the existence of network effects, planning and operating cooperation networks is difficult. In this paper, the strategic situation of individual agents deciding on network participation is analysed. A systematic equilibrium analysis using computer-based simulations reveals principal solution scenarios for network agents and shows that network cooperation problems might frequently be not as difficult to resolve as often feared. In particular, strategic situations are identified showing that a majority of individuals might be better off getting the optimal solution from a central principal and that in many cases simple information intermediation can solve the start-up problem notorious in network economics.     

Photoresist application for the LIGA process

 Fabrication of high aspect ratio structures requires the use of a photoresist able to form a mold with vertical sidewalls. Thus the photoresist should have a high selectivity between the exposed and the unexposed area in the developer. It should be relatively free from stress when applied in thick layers necessary to make high aspect ratio structures. PMMA (Poly Methyl Methacrylate) is the photoresist of choice in the LIGA process, mainly for its ability to hold vertical sidewalls for tall structures. It is applied to the substrate by a glue-down process in which a pre-cast, high molecular weight, sheet of PMMA is attached to the plating base on a substrate. The applied photoresist is then milled down to the precise height by a fly-cutter prior to pattern transfer by x-ray exposure. The requirement that the applied layer be relatively free from stress dictates the choice of glue-down over casting. The substrate preparation steps, as well as the conditioning of the PMMA sheet prior to the glue-down, are done, in part, to reduce the stress in the glued down sheet of photoresist. The cutting of the PMMA sheet in the fly-cutter requires specific operating conditions as well as particular cutting tools to avoid introducing any stress and the resultant crazing of the photoresist. Received: 25 August 1997/Accepted: 3 September 1997     

Anti-scattering X-ray grid

 Various optical or x-ray applications require reduction of scattered radiation on the imaging detector to produce sharper images. The scattered radiation is reduced when the radiation impacting on the detector is from a chosen small solid angle. This requires a mask in front of the detector with small holes and high aspect ratio. We are applying the SLIGA process to perform a proof-of-principle demonstration with the capability of making a large and high area anti-scattering grid. The approach is by assembling and stacking small pieces of grid. To maintain high throughput of the desired radiation, the wall of the grid has to be thin. We designed and fabricated four grid patterns all with 20 μm thick walls and 80 μm×80 μm holes. The individual pieces were 210 μm high and made of nickel. The pieces were assembled and stacked to make a 5 mm×5 mm grid 2.1 mm high. Much larger grids can be made by the SLIGA process, which was chosen because of its capability to fabricate high aspect ratio devices with precision. Received: 25 August 1997/Accepted: 24 October 1997     

Cryofixation of epithelial cells grown on sapphire coverslips by impact freezing

Rapid cryofixation of cells cultured on coverslips without the use of chemical fixatives has proved advantageous for the immunolocalization of antigens by electron microscopy. Here, we demonstrate the application of sapphire‐attached tissue culture cells (PtK2 epithelial cells and mouse myoblasts) to metal‐mirror impact freezing. The potential of the Leica EM‐CPC cryoworkstation for routine freezing and for safe transfer of the cryofrozen samples into a sapphire disc magazine for freeze‐substitution (SD‐FS unit) has been exploited. Subsequently, the SD‐FS unit has been tested for its use in methanol freeze‐substitution and low temperature embedding for immunoelectron microscopy. The structural preservation of Lowicryl HM20‐embedded cells has been assessed as being free of damage by large ice crystals.     

Expression of adhesion molecules in the lower uterine segment during term and preterm parturition

Term and preterm cervical ripening and dilatation have similarities with an inflammatory reaction. Since cell adhesion molecules are involved in this process, investigations on the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1, endothelial leukocyte adhesion molecule-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, and platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule in the lower uterine segment and in vitro experiments on human umbilical vein endothelial cells were performed. In addition, current reports on expression of endothelial adhesion molecules by the uterine cervix were summarized. Cell adhesion molecule expression by lower uterine segment and uterine cervix in term and preterm parturition was measured using immunohistochemistry, enzyme immunoassay, and Northern blot analysis. Regulation of adhesion molecule expression was evaluated in vitro by indirect immunofluorescence and flow cytometry using human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Investigations in term parturition revealed that intercellular adhesion molecule-1, endothelial leukocyte adhesion molecule-1, and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 expression increases during parturition. In preterm labor, the expression of endothelial leukocyte adhesion molecule-1 and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 in the lower uterine segment increased. Expression of platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule did not change in term and preterm parturition. Expression of adhesion molecules was localized mainly on lower uterine segment vascular endothelial cells and to a smaller extent on leukocytes. In vitro experiments showed that expression of adhesion molecules by human umbilical vein endothelial cells can be stimulated by tumor necrosis factor-alpha, 17beta-estradiol, prostaglandin E(2), and the antigestagen onapristone. Progesterone exerted no stimulatory effect. Cervical ripening and dilatation during term and preterm parturition are associated with an increased expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules by lower uterine segment and uterine cervix. The expression can be modulated by pro-inflammatory cytokines, sex hormones, and prostaglandin E(2). Mechanisms controlling the extravasation of leukocytes may play a fundamental role in term and preterm parturition.     

Upregulation of osteopontin expression in renal cortex of streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats is mediated by bradykinin

The model of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes in Wistar rats was used to study the expression of osteopontin during development of diabetic nephropathy. Diabetes was confirmed by serum glucose levels exceeding 16 mmol/l during the experimental period of 12 weeks. During this period of time, diabetic nephropathy developed, as characterized by a reduced glomerular filtration rate (2.7 +/- 0.3 ml/min in controls vs. 1.7 +/- 0.1 ml/min in diabetic rats) and proteinuria (8.3 +/- 1.7 mg/24 h in controls vs. 22.0 +/- 4 mg/24 h in diabetic rats). Northern blot analysis revealed a time-dependent upregulation of renal cortical osteopontin expression reaching 138 +/- 6% of control levels after 2 weeks and 290 +/- 30% (mean +/- SE, n = 6-9) after 12 weeks. By immunostaining, the increased osteopontin expression could be located to the tubular epithelium of the renal cortex. Chronic treatment of animals with ramipril (3 mg/kg) during the 12-week experimental period led to a further increase in osteopontin mRNA expression in diabetic animals, amounting to 570 +/- 73% (mean +/- SE, n = 6) of controls. Increased levels of osteopontin were not associated with accumulation of monocyte/macrophages that were identified by the cell type specific monoclonal antibody ED-1. The increased osteopontin expression in ramipril-pretreated rats was abolished by application of the bradykinin B2-receptor antagonist, icatibant (0.5 mg/kg). In addition, increased osteopontin expression in diabetic rats, which did not receive any treatment after STZ injection, could as well be reduced by icatibant given for the final 2 weeks of the experimental period. These data suggest that a strong bradykinin B2-receptor-mediated upregulation of osteopontin occurs during the pathogenesis of experimental diabetic nephropathy in rats.     

Path-based clustering for grouping of smooth curves and texture segmentation

Perceptual grouping organizes image parts in clusters based on psychophysically plausible similarity measures. We propose a novel grouping method in this paper, which stresses connectedness of image elements via mediating elements rather than favoring high mutual similarity. This grouping principle yields superior clustering results when objects are distributed on low-dimensional extended manifolds in a feature space, and not as local point clouds. In addition to extracting connected structures, objects are singled out as outliers when they are too far away from any cluster structure. The objective function for this perceptual organization principle is optimized by a fast agglomerative algorithm. We report on perceptual organization experiments where small edge elements are grouped to smooth curves. The generality of the method is emphasized by results from grouping textured images with texture gradients in an unsupervised fashion.     

Approximation of graph edit distance based on Hausdorff matching

Graph edit distance is a powerful and flexible method for error-tolerant graph matching. Yet it can only be calculated for small graphs in practice due to its exponential time complexity when considering unconstrained graphs. In this paper we propose a quadratic time approximation of graph edit distance based on Hausdorff matching. In a series of experiments we analyze the performance of the proposed Hausdorff edit distance in the context of graph classification and compare it with a cubic time algorithm based on the assignment problem. Investigated applications include nearest neighbor classification of graphs representing letter drawings, fingerprints, and molecular compounds as well as hidden Markov model classification of vector space embedded graphs representing handwriting. In many cases, a substantial speedup is achieved with only a minor loss in accuracy or, in one case, even with a gain in accuracy. Overall, the proposed Hausdorff edit distance shows a promising potential in terms of flexibility, efficiency, and accuracy.