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At least 55 records · Page 3

Design methods for fault-tolerant finite state machines

VLSI electronic circuits are increasingly being used in space-borne applications where high levels of radiation may induce faults, known as single event upsets. In this paper we review the classical methods of designing fault tolerant digital systems, with an emphasis on those methods which are particularly suitable for VLSI-implementation of finite state machines. Four methods are presented and will be compared in terms of design complexity, circuit size, and estimated circuit delay.

Niranjan, Shailesh↗

Automating Testing of DUNE Electronics via a Finite State Machine

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is a flagship international collaboration designed to study neutrinos tiny, nearly massless particles that may hold answers to fundamental questions about the Universe. Fermilab s Robotic Test Stand (RTS) plays a critical role in ensuring the quality of approximately 50,000 Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) chips that will be used in DUNE s massive liquid argon detectors. These electronics will be inside the cryostat; therefore, they will need to have a high yield of working chips and low noise. To improve the automation and reliability of the RTS, this project focused on designing and implementing a Python-based finite state machine (FSM) to manage chip handling workflows. The FSM was developed as a modular software framework to coordinate robotic arm movements, manage chip tray positions, and monitor system states during testing. Key features include robust error handling routines, a pause/resume system for safe mid-cycle interruptions, and a simulation mode for iterative testing without hardware dependencies. The system was designed to prepare for seamless integration with RTS hardware components such as the robotic arm and vision system. This integration will streamline collaboration and enable efficient deployment of updates across the six total institutions performing testing. The outcomes of this internship contribute to Fermilab s mission to advance high-energy physics and support the DOE s national goals by directly improving the testing of equipment to be used in DUNE. The project also provided valuable experience in software design and contributing to the success of DUNE.

Kang, Caleb [William Rainey Harper Coll.]↗

Automating Testing of DUNE Electronics via a Finite State Machine

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is a flagship international collaboration designed to study neutrinos—tiny, nearly massless particles that may hold answers to fundamental questions about the Universe. Fermilab’s Robotic Test Stand (RTS) plays a critical role in ensuring the quality of approximately 50,000 Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) chips that will be used in DUNE’s massive liquid argon detectors. These electronics will be inside the cryostat; therefore, they will need to have a high yield of working chips and low noise. To improve the automation and reliability of the RTS, this project focused on designing and implementing a Python-based finite state machine (FSM) to manage chip handling workflows. The FSM was developed as a modular software framework to coordinate robotic arm movements, manage chip tray positions, and monitor system states during testing. Key features include robust error handling routines, a pause/resume system for safe mid-cycle interruptions, and a simulation mode for iterative testing without hardware dependencies. The system was designed to prepare for seamless integration with RTS hardware components such as the robotic arm and vision system. This integration will streamline collaboration and enable efficient deployment of updates across the six institutions performing testing. The outcomes of this internship contribute to Fermilab’s mission to advance high-energy physics and support the DOE’s national goals by directly improving the testing of equipment to be used in DUNE. The project also provided valuable experience in software design and contributing to the success of DUNE.

Kang, Caleb [Fermilab]↗

Method and system employing finite state machine modeling to identify one of a plurality of different electric load types

A system is for a plurality of different electric load types. The system includes a plurality of sensors structured to sense a voltage signal and a current signal for each of the different electric loads; and a processor. The processor acquires a voltage and current waveform from the sensors for a corresponding one of the different electric load types; calculates a power or current RMS profile of the waveform; quantizes the power or current RMS profile into a set of quantized state-values; evaluates a state-duration for each of the quantized state-values; evaluates a plurality of state-types based on the power or current RMS profile and the quantized state-values; generates a state-sequence that describes a corresponding finite state machine model of a generalized load start-up or transient profile for the corresponding electric load type; and identifies the corresponding electric load type.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Colloidal State Machines as Smart Tracers for Chemical Reactor Analysis

A widely utilized tool in reactor analysis is passive tracers that report the residence time distribution, allowing estimation of the conversion and other properties of the system. Recently, advances in microrobotics have introduced powered and functional entities with sizes comparable to some traditional tracers. This has motivated the concept of Smart Tracers that could record the local chemical concentrations, temperature, or other conditions as they progress through reactors. Herein, the design constraints and advantages of Smart Tracers by simulating their operation in a laminar flow reactor model conducting chemical reactions of various orders are analyzed. It is noted that far fewer particles are necessary to completely map even the most complex concentration gradients compared with their conventional counterparts. Design criteria explored herein include sampling frequency, memory storage capacity, and ensemble number necessary to achieve the required accuracy to inform a reactor model. Cases of severe particle diffusion and sensor noise appear to bind the functional upper limit of such probes and require consideration for future design. The results of the study provide a starting framework for applying the new technology of microrobotics to the broad and impactful set of problems classified as chemical reactor analysis.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Practical State Machine Replication with Confidentiality

We study how to enable arbitrary randomized algorithms in Byzantine fault-tolerant (BFT) settings. We formalize a randomized BFT protocol and provide a simple and efficient construction that can be built on any existing BFT protocols while adding practically no overhead. We go one step further to revisit a confidential BFT protocol (Yin et al., SOSP '03). We show that their scheme is potentially susceptible to safety and confidentiality attacks. We then present a new protocol that is secure in the stronger model we formalize, by extending the idea of a randomized BFT protocol. Our protocol uses only efficient symmetric cryptography, while Yin et al.'s uses costly threshold signatures. We implemented and evaluated our protocols on microbenchmarks and real-world use cases. We show that our randomized BFT protocol is as efficient as conventional BFT protocols, and our confidential BFT protocol is two to three orders of magnitude faster than Yin et al.'s, which is less secure than ours.

Duan, Sisi↗

State Machine Operation of Complex Systems

SQMS, affiliated with Fermilab, is one of five research centers funded by the DOE dedicated to the development and deployment of advanced quantum computers and sensors. The objective of our research was to devise an experimental design for quantum transduction, with the aim of facilitating the development of a distributed quantum network to connect quantum computers over large distances.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗