Learning outcomes

This class aims at providing the fundamental knowledge for the design, implementation, development, management, and maintenance of hardware and software systems in biotechnological labs, both for research and production, and clinical labs. Starting from actual case studies, the main related topics are highlighted; then, each of them is addresses in detail from a theoretical and practical perspective. Finally, workshops with external speakers allow to meet companies and institutions which use this knowledge.

Program

Theory
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32 hours on the following topics:

Communications among systems
- Networks
- Protocols
- Machine-to-machine
Methods and devices for data acquisition, storage, and visualization
- Acquisition, calibration and errors
- Storage formats
- Storage devices
- Data visualization
Process management
- Concurrent and sequential processes
- Synchronization
- Deadlock
- Concurrent models: pipeline and farm
- Temporal constraints
- Queue networks
- Job scheduling
High performance computing
- Parallel architectures
- Digital Signal Processors (DSP)
- Cluster
- Programming techniques
Management of laboratory hardware
- Maintenance
- Supply chain management: inputs and outputs
- Overview of job risk management
Tracking methods
- Application scenarios
- Methods: bar codes, RFID, Active wireless tags
- EPCGlobal
- Architecture of a tracking system

Laboratory
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- Tools for network analysis
- Communications through Java
- Connection of services through a middleware layer.
- Visualization tools
- Example of biotech process automation (E-Wine Project)
- Example of biotech lab automation
- Machine virtualization and Linux setup.

Examination Methods

The examination consists of:

1) written test with questions about the theory and practice part of the class
2) project
- Bibliographic research (max 2 points, max 2 people)
- Implementation (max 3 points, max 3 people)

Updated list of titles on the teacher's web page

For the project, synergies are possibles with other classes, stage and thesis.

The final result (over 30 points) is computed by summing the result of both the written test and the project.

Teaching materials e documents

•   00.Calendario   (pdf, it, 33 KB, 01/06/10)
•   01.Presentazione del Corso   (pdf, it, 536 KB, 01/03/10)
•   02.Comunicazioni tra sistemi   (pdf, it, 7614 KB, 01/03/10)
•   03.Acquisizione, memorizzazione e visualizzazione dell'informazione   (pdf, it, 1150 KB, 24/03/10)
•   04.Tracciabilità automatica   (pdf, it, 1688 KB, 21/04/10)
•   A.Esercitazione su analisi di rete   (zip, it, 1098 KB, 29/03/10)
•   B.Esercitazione su visualizzazione dati   (zip, it, 3096 KB, 04/05/10)
•   Cbis.Soluz Esercit su tracciabilità   (pdf, it, 52 KB, 18/05/10)
•   C.Esercitazione su tracciabilità   (pdf, it, 98 KB, 10/05/10)
•   Dbis.Soluz Esercit su autom biotech   (zip, it, 6 KB, 07/06/10)
•   D.Esercitazione automatizzazione ricerca biotech   (zip, it, 92 KB, 18/05/10)
•   E.Esercitazione su virtualizzazione e Linux   (pdf, it, 1090 KB, 25/05/10)
•   F.Articoli sulla tracciabilità   (zip, it, 2979 KB, 10/05/10)
•   G.Presentazione progetto tracciabilità lieviti   (pdf, it, 1897 KB, 18/05/10)
•   H.Presentazione tool genomica comparativa   (pdf, it, 3015 KB, 18/05/10)
•   I.Esempi di domande di esame   (pdf, it, 61 KB, 27/07/10)