Systems-level approach

Systems-level approaches were defined more than 60 years ago with the application of general systems theory to various scientific fields including chemistry and life sciences with emphasis on morphogenesis (von Bertalanffy 1968 Friboulet and Thomas 2005). In the sixties, concepts derived from Ilya Prigogine s dissipative structures theory were also applied to biochemical oscillation and morphogenesis (Friboulet and Thomas 2005). In the seventies, numerical analyses of biochemical systems were developed which could represent a first step into modem systems biology (Hammer et al. 2004 Aderem 2005). 

LISBOA, C. ERIGSON, M. CARRO, L. System level approaches for mitigation of long duration transient faults in future technologies. In IEEE EUROPEAN TEST SYMPOSIUM, 12., ETS 2007, Freibuig, DEU. Proceedings... Los Alamitos, USA IEEE Computer Society, 2007, pp. 165-170. 

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is the preeminent method for the estimation of the complete carbon and water footprints associated with products, including energy resources. LCA is a system-level approach that accounts for all such activities from cradle to grave , with well-defined guidelines specified by ISO [1]. In addition to permitting environmental comparisons of alternative energy sources, LCA facilitates the elucidation of the relative environmental impacts of particular operations over the life cycle of the product under investigation. 

Kim IK, Rolda A, Siewers V, Nielsen J. (2012). A systems-level approach for metabolic engineering of yeast cell factories. FEMS Yeast Res, 12, 228-248. 

In general, ensuring a safe product begins at cell level and ends with the user. The IEEE 1625 and 1725 standards committees have recently focused on conveying the concept that Li-ion battery-pack safety is a function of the entirety of the cell, pack, system design and manufacture [8,9]. A system-level approach thus becomes very essential in addressing the safety of Li-ion batteries. System-level safety includes the combination of cell, battery pack, host device, power supply or adapter end user/environment, and each of these aspects has a role to play in ensuring pack safety. 

In addition to catalytic approaches to dealing with the poisoning effects of reformate, there are system-level approaches that sometimes employ nanostructured materials for dealing with the purity requirement of PEMFCs. These include the use of nanostructured separation membranes that can purify the reactant streams not only of CO, but also of other poisons such as hydrogen sulfide [19]. 

Figure 4.1 Systems-level approach for characterizing MFC/BES microbial communities. Adapted from Maron et al. [1].

For every different vehicle concept and market situation, all potential benefits and challenges have to be investigated one by one in as much detail as required by the series-development process of the automotive industry. Only a system-level approach can lead to a final conclusion on the relevant points and the priorities associated to each one. Extensive tests of CMS installed in test vehicles (passenger cars and in commercial vehicle) has been carried out by the German Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt). The details and the outcomes of these tests are discussed in chapter Camera-Monitor Systems as a Replacement for Exterior Mirrors in Cars and Trucks . 

The state of the art of safety cases for computer based systems has to be addressed within the context of regulation and system level approaches to safety. A strac-tured approach to safety cases for computer based systems has been developed that addresses both the reasoning that safety properties are satisfied as well as pro-... 

Stacking an assembly of individual EFCs is the most direct system-level approach to increasing power generation and is more flexible and universal than simply increasing the electrode size of a single-cell EFC. 

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