Digital, memory and mixed-signal test engineering education: five centres of competence in Europe

The launching of the EuNICE-Test project was announced two years ago at the first DELTA Conference. This project is now completed and the present paper describes the project actions and outcomes. The original idea was to build a long-lasting European Network for test engineering education using both test resource mutualisation and remote experiments. This objective is fully fulfilled and we have now, in Europe, five centres of competence able to deliver high-level and high-specialized training courses in the field of test engineering using a high-performing industrial ATE. All the centres propose training courses on digital testing, three of them propose mixed-signal trainings and three of them propose memory trainings. Taking into account the demand in test engineering, the network is planned to continue in a stand alone mode after project end. Nevertheless a new European proposal with several new partners and new test lessons is under construction

A DEEP LEARNING APPROACH FOR THE RECOGNITION OF URBAN GROUND PAVEMENTS IN HISTORICAL SITES

Urban management is a topic of great interest for local administrators, particularly because it is strongly connected to smart city issues and can have a great impact on making cities more sustainable. In particular, thinking about the management of the physical accessibility of cities, the possibility of automating data collection in urban areas is of great interest. Focusing then on historical centres and urban areas of cities and historical sites, it can be noted that their ground surfaces are generally characterised by the use of a multitude of different pavements. To strengthen the management of such urban areas, a comprehensive mapping of the different pavements can be very useful. In this paper, the survey of a historical city (Sabbioneta, in northern Italy) carried out with a Mobile Mapping System (MMS) was used as a starting point. The approach here presented exploit Deep Learning (DL) to classify the different pavings. Firstly, the points belonging to the ground surfaces of the point cloud were selected and the point cloud was rasterised. Then the raster images were used to perform a material classification using the Deep Learning approach, implementing U-Net coupled with ResNet 18. Five different classes of materials were identified, namely sampietrini, bricks, cobblestone, stone, asphalt. The average accuracy of the result is 94%

Test engineering education in Europe: the EuNICE-Test project

The paper deals with a European experience of education in industrial test of ICs and SoCs using remote testing facilities. The project addresses the problem of the shortage in microelectronics engineers aware with the new challenge of testing mixed-signal SoCs far multimedia/telecom market. It aims at providing test training facilities at a European scale in both initial and continuing education contexts. This is done by allowing the academic and industrial partners of the consortium to train engineers using the common test resources center (CRTC) hosted by LIRMM (Laboratoire d'Informatique, de Robotique et de Microelectronique de Montpellier, France). CRTC test tools include up-to-date/high-tech testers that are fully representative of real industrial testers as used on production testfloors. At the end of the project, it is aimed at reaching a cruising speed of about 16 trainees per year per center. Each trainee will have attend at least one one-week training using the remote test facilities of CRTC

PEDESTRIAN PATHFINDING in URBAN ENVIRONMENTS: PRELIMINARY RESULTS

With the rise of urban population, many initiatives are focused upon the smart city concept, in which mobility of citizens arises as one of the main components. Updated and detailed spatial information of outdoor environments is needed to accurate path planning for pedestrians, especially for people with reduced mobility, in which physical barriers should be considered. This work presents a methodology to use point clouds to direct path planning. The starting point is a classified point cloud in which ground elements have been previously classified as roads, sidewalks, crosswalks, curbs and stairs. The remaining points compose the obstacle class. The methodology starts by individualizing ground elements and simplifying them into representative points, which are used as nodes in the graph creation. The region of influence of obstacles is used to refine the graph. Edges of the graph are weighted according to distance between nodes and according to their accessibility for wheelchairs. As a result, we obtain a very accurate graph representing the as-built environment. The methodology has been tested in a couple of real case studies and Dijkstra algorithm was used to pathfinding. The resulting paths represent the optimal according to motor skills and safety

Vibrio neptunius Produces Piscibactin and Amphibactin and Both Siderophores Contribute Significantly to Virulence for Clams

[Abstract] Vibrio neptunius is an inhabitant of mollusc microbiota and an opportunistic pathogen causing disease outbreaks in marine bivalve mollusc species including oysters and clams. Virulence of mollusc pathogenic vibrios is mainly associated with the production of extracellular products. However, siderophore production is a common feature in pathogenic marine bacteria but its role in fitness and virulence of mollusc pathogens remains unknown. We previously found that V. neptunius produces amphibactin, one of the most abundant siderophores in marine microbes. In this work, synthesis of the siderophore piscibactin was identified as the second siderophore produced by V. neptunius. Single and double mutants in biosynthetic genes of each siderophore system, piscibactin and amphibactin, were constructed in V. neptunius and their role in growth ability and virulence was characterized. Although the High Pathogenicity Island encoding piscibactin is a major virulence factor in vibrios pathogenic for fish, the V. neptunius wild type did not cause mortality in turbot. The results showed that amphibactin contributes more than piscibactin to bacterial fitness in vitro. However, infection challenges showed that each siderophore system contributes equally to virulence for molluscs. The V. neptunius strain unable to produce any siderophore was severely impaired to cause vibriosis in clams. Although the inactivation of one of the two siderophore systems (either amphibactin or piscibactin) significantly reduced virulence compared to the wild type strain, the ability to produce both siderophores simultaneously maximised the degree of virulence. Evaluation of the gene expression pattern of each siderophore system showed that they are simultaneously expressed when V. neptunius is cultivated under low iron availability in vitro and ex vivo. Finally, the analysis of the distribution of siderophore systems in genomes of Vibrio spp. pathogenic for molluscs showed that the gene clusters encoding amphibactin and piscibactin are widespread in the Coralliilyticus clade. Thus, siderophore production would constitute a key virulence factor for bivalve molluscs pathogenic vibrios.This work was supported by grants AGL2017-86183-R (AEI/FEDER, EU), RTI2018-093634-B-C21/C22 (AEI/FEDER, EU) and PID2019-103891RJ-100 (AEI) from the State Agency for Research (AEI) of Spain. AGL2017-86183-R and RTI2018-093634-B-C21/C22 were co-funded by the FEDER Programme from the European Union. Work in University of Santiago de Compostela was also supported by grants GRC2018/018 and 2021-CP112, and in University of A Coruña by grant GRC2018/039 from Xunta de Galicia (Spain). FG was financed with a fellowship ‘Programa de formación de recurso humano de alto nivel doctorado en el exterior’ granted by Colciencias and the government of Norte de Santander, Colombia. LA was financed with a fellowship (ED481A-2019/081) from Xunta de Galicia (Spain), co-financed by ESF (European Social Fund)Xunta de Galicia; GRC2018/018Xunta de Galicia; 2021-CP112Xunta de Galicia; GRC2018/039Xunta de Galicia; ED481A-2019/08

Identification of Key Functions Required for Production and Utilization of the Siderophore Piscibactin Encoded by the High-Pathogenicity Island irp-HPI in Vibrionaceae

This article belongs to the Collection Microbial Virulence Factors[Abstract] Piscibactin is a widespread siderophore system present in many different bacteria, especially within the Vibrionaceae family. Previous works showed that most functions required for biosynthesis and transport of this siderophore are encoded by the high-pathogenicity island irp-HPI. In the present work, using Vibrio anguillarum as a model, we could identify additional key functions encoded by irp-HPI that are necessary for piscibactin production and transport and that have remained unknown. Allelic exchange mutagenesis, combined with cross-feeding bioassays and LC-MS analysis, were used to demonstrate that Irp4 protein is an essential component for piscibactin synthesis since it is the thioesterase required for nascent piscibactin be released from the NRPS Irp1. We also show that Irp8 is a MFS-type protein essential for piscibactin secretion. In addition, after passage through the outer membrane transporter FrpA, the completion of ferri-piscibactin internalization through the inner membrane would be achieved by the ABC-type transporter FrpBC. The expression of this transporter is coordinated with the expression of FrpA and with the genes encoding biosynthetic functions. Since piscibactin is a major virulence factor of some pathogenic vibrios, the elements of biosynthesis and transport described here could be additional interesting targets for the design of novel antimicrobials against these bacterial pathogens.M.B. was supported by grant PID2019-103891RJ-100 from MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 (Spain). The work was also supported by grants RTI2018-093634-B-C21/C22 from MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/FEDER “A way to make Europe”. Work in University of Santiago de Compostela and University of A Coruña was also supported by grants GRC2018/018 and GRC2018/039, respectively, from Xunta de Galicia and BLUEBIOLAB (0474_BLUEBIOLAB_1_E), Programme INTERREG V A of Spain-Portugal (POCTEP). L.A. also thanks Xunta de Galicia for a predoctoral fellowship co-funded with the European Social Fund (ED481A-2019/081)Xunta de Galicia; GRC2018/018Xunta de Galicia; GRC2018/039Xunta de Galicia; ED481A-2019/08

Selective Detection of Aeromonas Spp. By a Fluorescent Probe Based on the Siderophore Amonabactin

[Abstract] Amonabactins, the siderophores produced by some pathogenic bacteria belonging to Aeromonas genus, can be used for the preparation of conjugates to be imported into the cell using their specific transport machinery. Herein, we report the design and synthesis of a new amonabactin-based fluorescent probe by conjugation of the appropriate amonabactin analogue to sulforhodamine B (AMB-SRB) using a thiol-maleimide click reaction. Growth promotion assays and fluorescence microscopy studies demonstrated that the AMB-SRB fluorescent probe was able to label the fish pathogenic bacterium A. salmonicida subsp. salmonicida through its outer membrane transport (OMT) protein FstC. The labelling of other Aeromonas species, such as the human pathogen A. hydrophila, indicates that this probe can be a very useful molecular tool for studying the amonabactin-dependent iron uptake mechanism. Furthermore, the selective labelling of A. salmonicida and other Aeromonas species in presence of other fish pathogenic bacteria, suggest the potential application of this probe for detection of Aeromonas in water and other fish farming samples through fluorescence assays.This work was supported by grants RTI2018-093634-B-C21/C22 from the State Agency for Research (AEI) of Spain, cofunded by the FEDER Programme from the European Union (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/FEDER). M.B. was supported by grant PID2019-103891RJ-100 from MCIN/AEI (Spain). Work in University of Santiago de Compostela and University of A Coruña was also supported by grants GRC2018/018 and GRC2018/039, respectively, from Xunta de Galicia and BLUEBIOLAB (0474_BLUEBIOLAB_1_E), Programme INTERREG V A of Spain-Portugal (POCTEP). D.R-V. thanks Xunta de Galicia (Spain) for a predoctoral fellowship. J.C.-S. thanks to the FPU National Program (FPU16/02060) of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities for a predoctoral fellowshipXunta de Galicia; GRC2018/018Xunta de Galicia; GRC2018/03

FrpA Is the Outer Membrane Piscibactin Transporter in Vibrio Anguillarum: Structural Elements in Synthetic Piscibactin Analogues Required for Transport

Financiado para publicación en acceso aberto: Universidade da Coruña/CISUG[Abstract] Piscibactin (Pcb) is a labile siderophore widespread among Vibrionaceae. Its production is a major virulence factor of some fish pathogens such as Photobacterium damselae subsp. piscicida and Vibrio anguillarum. Although FrpA was previously suggested as the putative outer membrane transporter (OMT) for ferri-piscibactin, its role in piscibactin uptake was never demonstrated. In this work, we generated mutants of V. anguillarum defective in FrpA and analyzed their ability to use piscibactin as iron source. The results showed that inactivation of frpA completely disables piscibactin utilization, and the original phenotype could be restored by gene complementation, confirming that FrpA is the OMT that mediates ferri-Pcb uptake. Additionally, the ability of several Pcb thiazole analogues, with different configurations at positions 9, 10, and 13, to be internalized through FrpA, was evaluated measuring their ability to promote growth under iron deficiency of several indicator strains. The results showed that while those analogues with a thiazole ring maintain almost the same activity as Pcb, the maintenance of the hydroxyl group present in natural piscibactin configuration at position C-13 is crucial for Fe³⁺ chelation and, in consequence, for the recognition of the ferri-siderophore by the cognate OMT. All these findings allowed us to propose a Pcb analogue as a good candidate to vectorize antimicrobial compounds, through the Trojan horse strategy, to develop novel compounds against bacterial fish diseases.This work was supported by grants RTI2018-093634-B-C21/C22 (AEI/FEDER, EU), cofunded by the FEDER Programme from the European Union, and by Grant PID2019-103891RJ-100 (AEI) from the Agency for Research (AEI) of Spain. Work in University of Santiago de Compostela and University of A Coruña was also supported by grants GRC2018/018 and GRC2018/039, respectively, from Xunta de Galicia and BLUEBIOLAB (0474_BLUEBIOLAB_1_E), Programme INTERREG V A of Spain-Portugal (POCTEP). L.A. thanks Xunta de Galicia (Spain) for a predoctoral fellowship (ED481A-2019/081) co-financed by European Social Fund (ESF). Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer NatureXunta de Galicia; GRC2018/018Xunta de Galicia; GRC2018/039Xunta de Galicia; ED481A-2019/08

SCAN PLANNING OPTIMIZATION FOR OUTDOOR ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES

The protection and management of archaeological sites require from a deep documentation and analysis, and although hand measuring and documentation is the cheapest way for collecting data, laser scanner has been gradually integrated for the geometrical data capture since point clouds have a high quality in terms of accuracy, precision and resolution. Although acquisition with laser scanner is considered a quick process, scan planning is of high relevance when considering outdoor archaeological sites because of their large size and complexity. In this paper, an automatic methodology to optimize the number and position of scans in order to obtain a point cloud of high quality in terms of data completeness is proposed. The aim of the methodology is to minimize the number of scans, minimizing at the same time the estimated surveying time and the amount of repetitive acquired data. Scan candidates are generated by using a grid-based and a triangulation-based distribution, and results show a faster analysis when triangulation is implemented. The methodology is tested into two real case studies from Italy and Spain, showing the applicability of scan planning in archaeological sites

SCAN PLANNING AND ROUTE OPTIMIZATION FOR CONTROL OF EXECUTION OF AS-DESIGNED BIM

Scan-to-BIM systems have been recently proposed for the dimensional and quality assessment of as-built construction components with planned works. The procedure is generally based on the geometric alignment and comparison of as-built laser scans with as-designed BIM models. A major concern in Scan-to-BIM procedures is point cloud quality in terms of data completeness and consequently, the scanning process should be designed in order to obtain a full coverage of the scene while avoiding major occlusions. This work proposes a method to optimize the number and scan positions for Scan-to-BIM procedures following stop & go scanning. The method is based on a visibility analysis using a ray-tracing algorithm. In addition, the optimal route between scan positions is formulated as a travelling salesman problem and solved using a suboptimal ant colony optimization algorithm. The distribution of candidate positions follows a grid-based structure, although other distributions based on triangulation or tessellation can be implemented to reduce the number of candidate positions and processing time