Greg Clark, British Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, was at INESC TEC searching for scientific and engineering expertise, not only from the fundamental science point of view, but also for support in creating startups.

Responsible for the development of the economic policy of the United Kingdom, whose main goal is described in the industrial strategy, the British Secretary of State is focused on areas that are considered relevant for the short and medium-term of the British Government, in which artificial intelligence and big data are represented. The remaining areas focus on the ageing of society, sustainable growth and the future of mobility.

Considering the priorities of the Secretary of Sate, as well as his former experience with the science portfolio, the British Government showed interest in knowing INESC TEC and its expertise in several fields of mutual interest for both countries.

The purposes of the visit

During the visit of 23 November, the British Secretary of State declared that the commitment to create startups is part of the industrial strategy of the United Kingdom and since he was familiar with INESC TEC's work in this area, he believed it was a good opportunity to create closer ties with the institution. Since 1989, INESC TEC launched 19 spinoffs to the market.

“Technology transfer to the market is one of the mottoes of our institution. In 2018 alone, we have launched four spinoffs to the market: SafeCloud Technologies, Ubirider, iHandU and WeSENSS. These numbers clearly show our strategy in this area”, explains José Manuel Mendonça, Chairman of INESC TEC's Board.

According to the British Secretary of State, “INESC TEC has an excellent  reputation in the United Kingdom, and for that reason, I wanted to meet an institution which has a very similar agenda to the one of the United Kingdom, regarding the reposition of the industries of the future, not only through research, but also through applications and by creating startups”.

The visit began by presenting INESC TEC’S Laboratory of Smart Grids and Electric Vehicles, followed by a closed meeting.

Besides the Secretary of State Greg Clark, Christopher Sainty, British Ambassador to Portugal, Tim Figures, Adviser to the Secretary of State and Hugo Marques, Head of Economics and Prosperity were present, representing the British Government. Representing the Portuguese institutions, besides the Chairman of INESC TEC, José Manuel Mendonça, and the Members of the institution José Carlos Caldeira, Rui Oliveira and Luís Seca, António Ferreira, Member of the Executive Board of FEUP, Luís Miguel Pinho, Pro-President of the Polytechnic Institute of Porto, Clara Gonçalves, Executive Director of UPTEC, Paulo Santos, CEO of Ubirider and João Paulo Cunha, CEO of iHandU, were also present.

Greg Clark was impressed by the existing multidisciplinary of the institution

Even though the British Secretary of State already knew INESC TEC, he didn’t hide the fact that he was very impressed with what he saw and heard. 

“I was very impressed with the degree of collaboration across disciplines, across institutions, between the different levels of research – from the very pure scientific research to the applications in industry. This is a real powerhouse, with a lot of different departments and teams coming together, so the whole is greater than the sum of the parts”, declared the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy of the United Kingdom at the end of the visit.

The partnerships of INESC TEC with institutions of the United Kingdom

Over the years, INESC TEC has already established partnerships with more than 60 British institutions in several fields of competence from the telecommunications and multimedia to technology transfer, computer science, power and energy and artificial intelligence. These partnerships were formalised in different ways, whether through collaboration in European projects, or through direct provision of services or even through the publication of scientific papers. Some of the UK’s entities with which INESC TEC has already established partnerships are BBC, Fujitsu, General Electric and Imperial College London.

The researchers mentioned in this news piece are associated with UP-FEUP U.Minho and IPP-ISEP.

INESC TEC participated for the first time, with its own stand, in the largest European event of the power system sector, the European Utility Week (EUW) 2018, which took place in Vienna (Austria) from 6 to 8 November. 

Being placed in the Pavilion of Portugal (promoted by EnergyIN), the INESC TEC stand presented a set of technologies associated with TEC4ENERGY, the institution's initiative for facing the great challenges posed by the energy sector. The several INESC TEC's clusters of scientific expertise were also presented, the emphasis being put on the multidisciplinarity and the ability to generate science-based innovation, supported by the successful partnerships with the industry. The SGEV - Smart Grids and Electrical Vehicles Laboratory -, the laboratory infrastructure that supports not only INESC TEC's applied research but also the manufacturers of electrical components, was also presented.

Luís Seca, member of INESC TEC’s Board and one of the representatives of the institution in the event, stresses the "strategic focus on the internationalisation of INESC TEC's expertise, in the prospect of acquiring more partnerships and also to identify the medium-term challenges posed by the market which will support the research strategy of the institution". Every year, the EUW welcomes more than 13 thousand professionals related to the energy field, originating from more than 100 countries, with a representation of about 2 thousand utilities and 600 booths.

Also representing INESC TEC in this event were Ricardo Bessa, assistant coordinator of the Centre for Power and Energy Systems (CPES) who was also one of the speakers in the hub sessions organised by the EUW18, Filipe Ribeiro, assistant coordinator of the Centre for Telecommunications and Multimedia (CTM) and Clara Gouveia and Luís Miguel Miranda, senior researchers from CPES.

The technologies presented at TEC4ENERGY

Seven technologies were present in INESC TEC's stand - a drone for inspecting electrical assets, a platform to induce behaviours in order to increase the energy efficiency and the corresponding sensor for measuring comfort levels in a building (e.g. temperature, CO2), a Home Energy Management System, a smart inverter for photovoltaic solar panels and energy storage, a long-range wireless communication solution for high seas, a smart power meter with wireless communications for real-time monitoring and an optical sensor for electrical current metering.

The drone present at the EUW18 was developed by the Centre for Robotics and Autonomous Systems (CRAS) for EDP Labelec and aims at inspecting and monitoring assets in the grid in an autonomous way. The disruptive nature of this solution is set on the scientific expertise of the institution, namely the autonomous robotics, which used the fusion of sensors, the integration of systems, navigation and control and perception in order to create a prototype of what may be a solution with a giant impact on the market.

The "gamification" platform and the measurement sensor of indicating variables of comfort are being developed by the Centre for Power and Energy Systems and by the Centre for Information Systems and Computer Graphics (CSIG) under the European project FEEdBACk. This project gathers a consortium of eight international partners and is led by INESC TEC. This solution is about the energy efficiency areas, smart houses and buildings and behavioural prediction, its development being anchored in INESC TEC's scientific expertise in the human/machine interface design, sensors, behavioural sciences and data science fields.

The Home Energy Management System (HEMS) was initially developed under the European project AnyPLACE, also led by INESC TEC, and has been being optimised under the scope of another European project, InteGrid, with INESC TEC also being responsible for its technical coordination. This system, created by CPES' researchers, allows the optimised management of electrical consumption of homes, having in consideration the lowest cost and the greater use of existing renewable resources, always taking into account the users' preferences.

The smart inverter for photovoltaic solar panels and energy storage which was also presented, is a device that ensures the integration of solar panels and batteries in power grids but, unlike the other existing solutions in the market, is capable of reacting to the resource availability and to the conditions of the power grid in an autonomous way, becoming an important asset in the so-called SmartGrid. These inverters have been being tested under some European projects, most notably the European project SENSIBLE and which, after being thoroughly tested in a lab environment, are inserted in a real demonstrator at the Valverde parish, in Évora.

The wireless communication solution presented at the event was developed by CTM under the project MARECOM and aims at making broadband internet available for high seas, being shaped as an alternative to the satellite communications that are used nowadays. Among the main innovations of this technology, there is the bit-rate (higher than 10 mbps), well above the usual values of satellite communications, and the low latency of offshore communications.

Also developed by CTM was the smart power meter with wireless communication for real-time monitoring of power grids. These metering modules can be applied into advanced metering infrastructures, telemetry, monitoring and automation while the expertise on wireless networks associated to CTM being vital to their development.

The optical sensor for electrical current metering was developed by INESC TEC's Centre for Applied Photonics (CAP) under an international partnership, being applied into a Brazilian power grid operator. It is a low cost, compact and light sensor, for a non-intrusive current metering in power distribution systems.

INESC TEC's participation in the hub sessions

On 7 November, Ricardo Bessa did a presentation in the hub session regarding the theme of digitalisation and under the European project InteGrid entitled "Consumption Data as Driver for New Business Models".
Under the theme "Energy Analytics for Smart Grids and Flexibility Management", several aspects were discussed such as the real-time improvement of low voltage power grids through the data exploration from the power meters, modelling of the flexibility of waste water processes for answering emergency demands and prediction of the multi-temporal flexibility of household consumers.

The EUW represents, essentially, a platform for interacting with professionals from the power systems area, stimulating the emergence of new challenges and the creation of new partnerships, which will naturally bring new projects as well.

The researchers mentioned in this news piece are associated with INESC TEC.

Two of the most technologically advanced ports in the world are Portuguese. The Ports of Leixões and Viana do Castelo, managed by the Port Authority of the Ports of Douro, Leixões and Viana do Castelo (APDL), were the pilot in an innovation project led by INESC TEC and TRIEDE TTI. The tool 3Port makes it possible not only to manage the different needs and business processes of port authorities in an integrated way, but also to interact with the general public, which can see, in real time, what is happening in the port (http://livemap.apdl.pt).

How does the 3Port work?

The goal is for this solution to become an essential tool for the technical services to support and adequately manage processes. With this innovation, which adds value to the port and its activity, strategic areas are interconnected, and structured data are provided and shared in a georeferenced context.

The 3Port is based on eight modules, seven of which are used by the port – hydrography (dredging and navigable areas), port traffic, domain (licenses and concessions), studies and construction work, prevention and security, environment, and registration and assets –, and one is used by the public. Most of these modules have been introduced for the first time in the process management of the Ports of Leixões and Viana do Castelo.

This technology transfer triangle composed of INESC TEC (producer of the innovation), TRIEDE TTI (producer of the solution) and APDL (user of the solution and the one identifying the requirements) makes these ports some of the most innovative worldwide in terms of R&D.

The modules

Hydrography makes it possible to calculate/map the service quotas (navigability) and to calculate silting/sedimentation rates and sediments dredged, characterising all dredging operations.

Port Traffic makes it possible to monitor the port traffic in real time, and to plan and optimise resources (tug boats, bollards, cranes, navigation) when piloting the vessels (mooring and departure manoeuvres).

The Domain (licenses and concessions) module manages and registers the licenced/concession areas, and monitors the port authority’s jurisdiction area.

The Studies and Construction Work module manages, registers and monitors all construction work, as well as all the studies conducted and post-construction monitoring.

All far as Prevention and Security are concerned, the module includes an Internal Security Plan for the port, veering and to support the mitigation of an accident or incident, from the time the alert is given to the time the problem is solved. Also, it provides a homogenous and simplified access to internal security cameras, regardless of the manufacturer or model. Finally, this module manages and provides offline access to critical information.

In the Environment module, the tool characterises, in an environmental way, the port’s area of influence, and collects data in real time using sensors, which makes it possible to provide indicators and issue alerts.

The module Registration and Assets, which is the Foundation of the entire system, makes it possible to define the spatial organisation of the port authority, as well as the background information, and to optimise the use of the existing infrastructure  in the port.

The Public area, based on the Live Map module, is basically used as a marketing tool, allowing the user to visualise, in real time, boat traffic in the port. It combines public information with Panoramio (photos), Google and Facebook.

The public component of the 3Port Live Map works not only in computers, but also in tablets and smartphones without having to download an app. This happens because the system adapts to the browser in any mobile device.

The advantages of 3Port

The 3Port is advantageous and promotes a sustainable growth because it supports decision-making and gains in efficiency, while reducing operational costs.

“Another advantage is that the solution adapts itself to the port’s processes and not the other way around. Moreover, the solution is interoperable, which means that it does not replicate information, but rather accesses the location of the information, interacting, in an integrated fashion, with the remaining tools in the port’s ecosystem,” explains Lino Oliveira, the INESC TEC researcher responsible for the project, which took two years to develop.

Based on open source web technologies, the 3Port homogenously integrates both the internal systems in the port and the public information systems.

The goal is to export the 3Port

The goal for now is to export the solution to Brazil, Angola, Chile and Peru.

“We have already presented the 3Port in four Brazilian states, as well as in Luanda (Angola), Valparaíso (Chile) and Callao (Peru), and the international feedback has been tremendous. In Brazil, for instance, we were told that they did not know any solution remotely similar to ours. Besides these four countries, we want to export our solution to the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) and to Latin America”, states Mauro Ferreira, the person in charge of the project at TRIEDE TTI.

The INESC TEC researcher mentioned in this article is associated with the following partner institution: INESC TEC.

A team of INESC TEC researchers and students from the Porto School of Engineering (ISEP) won the Eurathlon Grand Challenge in Piombino, Italy, an international competition of robots used for search and rescue operations, which took place between 17 and 25 September. The ISEP-INESC TEC Aerial Robotics Team participated in the competition with aerial robots and, in the final challenge, they competed in partnership with an underwater robotics team from the University of Girona, Sapin, and with the German company which competed with land robots.

INESC TEC reserachers also won 2nd place in the competition

The Portuguese participation also featured a team of researchers from INESC TEC’s Centre for Robotics (in collaboration with ISEP and the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto) – the ICARUS team – which presented maritime robots, having won second place in the final test with the underwater robot MARES and the surface robot ROAZ. It is important to stress that this last team included reseachers who are working on the European search and rescue project, as well as researchers from five European institutions.

“We were invited to participate in this competition with robots that operate in water scenarios through European project ICARUS. Our robots support search and rescue operations in large catastrophe scenarios”, explains Aníbal Matos, researcher at INESC TEC and professor at FEUP, who participated in the euRathlon. 

The ICARUS (Integrated Components for Assisted Rescus and Unmanned Search Operations) is a European project that brings together 24 partners from nine countries – Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Poland –, with a budget of 17 million euros. The project started in February 2012 and will be concluded in January 2016.

The goal with this project is to develop robotic tools that will aid search and rescue teams, and can be used both on land and at sea. These robots are innovative because they can be used in crisis scenarios, such as in natural disasters.

What is the euRathlon Grand Challenge?

Organised by an international consortium, the Eurathlon Grand Challenge featured 18 teams from 21 countries, in a total of 150 participants. For the first time worldwide, this robotics competition consisted of simulating a search and rescue scenario inspired by the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan, involving land, air and underwater robots.

The Portuguese participation in this international mega challenge – the Eurathlon Grand Challenge – was a demonstration of Portugal’s innovative engineering. Other than winning first and second places, the national teams have also won additional awards in technical competitions and other scenarios.

The INESC TEC researcher mentioned in this article is associated with the following partner institution: INESC TEC, FEUP and ISEP.

Regional innovation policies – this was the main theme of the international seminar organised by INESC TEC that brought to the city of Porto 120 experts from all over the world. The 7^th International Seminar on Regional Innovation Policies (RIP 2012), which took place on 11 and 12 October, is proof of INESC TEC’s capacity to bring to bring to Portugal international and socially relevant initiatives.

Regions discussed in international seminar

Regions and innovation policies were the main theme of the 7^th edition of the RIP. The event took place at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP) and brought to Portugal 120 experts – from academia, interface institutions, companies and public administration – from 22 different countries, such as the USA and Kazakhstan. The international meeting, organised by INESC TEC’s Innovation and Technology Transfer Unit (UITT), was part of a cycle of conferences promoted by the Regional Innovation Policies network, set up by the Universities of Porto, Salzburg, Cantabria, Napier Edinburgh, Agder and Lund. The role that policies can play in improving and making the best of the specificities of each region, as well as in creating and operating an innovation and competitiveness strategy for regions were the issues highlighted at the event.

How is it possible to turn each region’s features into economic value and into a differentiating factor for innovation generated and promoted at the universities, companies and R&D institutes? How can regional policies empower territories? How can the different players work to develop a common innovation strategy? These were the questions that participants tried to answer during the two-day event. The programme included five invited speakers: Björn Asheim (CIRCLE – University of Lund, Sweden), David Wolfe (University of Toronto, Canada), Knut Koschatzky (Fraunhofer ISI, Germany), Marko Torkkeli (Lappenraanta University of Technology, Finland) and Augusto Mateus (Augusto Mateus & Associados, Portugal). The role that regional agencies play in terms of development in Canada and the position of Scandinavian Higher Education Institutions were some of the specific cases addressed in the five plenary sessions in the Programme.

Being innovative in innovation

Other than the plenary sessions, other parallel sessions formed a diversified programme which included a visit to INESC TEC. The participants were clearly impressed by the new electric mobility and microgeneration laboratory at INESC TEC. Augusto Mateus was the one in charge of closing the RIP 2012. For this professor, “those who look at the University of Porto and INESC TEC can only believe that the north of Portugal has potential and is driven by creativity”. Policies are much more effective at a regional level and “not the big, general and ‘pretty’ agendas that never get implemented”, Augusto Mateus believes.

At a regional level there is much more proximity between decision-makers, and therefore it is easier to go from planning to implementing. The purpose of this meeting was to confirm that the potential is in the regions. According to Augusto Mateus, “only this way can Portugal get out of this economic crisis”. Regional policies should “innovate in innovation” adopting a “downside strategy so that it is possible to find better solutions for development at lower costs”, he adds. This is the path to effectively put innovation in agendas and thus “create things that are useful to society”, he concludes. INESC TEC’s contribution to innovation in northern Portugal seems, therefore, unquestionable as this institution is known for transferring relevant knowledge – and incubating companies –, and applying it in a way that promotes economic growth that society can benefit from.

Have your say

• Mário Rui Silva (RIP 2012 Chairman, Professor at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Porto – FEP)

“For the 7^th edition of the RIP, I would like to highlight the number, diversity and quality of the participants: more than 100 people from over 20 countries, including internationally renowned members of academia and high quality consultants representing the European Commission and several Governments. This confirms the relevance of the regions when it comes to implementing and managing Innovation Systems. Furthermore, industry and service clusters are better structured at a regional level and the proximity between important players is the best way to build bridges between knowledge and economy.

On this last aspect, and speaking as a founding member of the international network that promotes these seminars, I would like to stress that the message transmitted to me by participants is that INESC TEC’s dimension and solid activity in the technology transfer domain and in the relationship between university and industry are at the level of the best practices worldwide.

• Andreia Passos (UITT/INESC TEC, organização local RIP 2012)

“INESC TEC is a multidisciplinary R&D centre located in the north of Portugal (a peripheral region in Europe). The choice of INESC TEC to organise the 7th edition of the RIP confirms the institution’s key role in empowering regions in terms of innovation, and mainly competitive innovation, and also in establishing connections between scientific and technological knowledge, economy and society.

By bringing an event such as the RIP to the city of Porto, INESC TEC confirmed its position as an important entity in the country’s Scientific and Technological System and in the Regional Innovation Policies network (set up by European institutions which are known worldwide for their social and economic research on regional policies and innovation). This was also an opportunity to bring to the forefront the follower regions – regions with structural weaknesses which also follow specialisation logics that can and should be systemically developed by the different regional players in order to create real competitive advantages to the region.

The overall balance is extremely positive: over 75% of the participants were foreign and all of them gave high quality contributions. Furthermore, worldwide renowned experts on the Conference’s themes attended this event and this was an to promote a critical discussion on territories, regional policies and innovation.”

• Björn Asheim (University of Lund, Sweden)

“The RIP seminar has become one of the most important forums for discussion of regional innovation policies. Innovation has become one of the most important contemporary global challenges, as the lack of economic growth and policies to achieve such growth characterise larger parts of Southern Europe, and can result in severe social and political problems. Thus, innovation policy, especially on the regional level, has never been more important in Europe than today, and the need for increased knowledge of and insight on how regional innovation policies should be formulated and successfully implemented is evident among politicians and practitioners. Therefore the seminar has a very important role to play in disseminating such knowledge among researchers and practitioners in Europe and internationally. The seminar in Porto made a great contribution to achieving this important aim and followed up on the successful seminars organised in Norway (University of Agder) in 2010 and Sweden (Lund University) in 2011 in a very convincing way.”

The Associate Laboratory was represented at the convention by managers of the Telecommunications and Multimedia Unit (UTM), the Information and Computer Graphics Systems Unit (USIG) and the Manufacturing Systems Engineering Unit (UESP). INESC TEC’s Optoelectronics and Electronic Systems Unit (UOSE), the Robotics and Intelligent Systems Unit (ROBIS), the Research Centre in Real-Time and Embedded Computing Systems (CISTER) and the High-Assurance Software Laboratory (HASLab) also saw at the ASD Convention an opportunity to divulge their projects and to confirm their position in the Aeronautics, Space and Defence areas. At the Convention, participants had the opportunity to establish a number of promising contacts with other companies, not only at the stand, but also in B2B meetings. The aim was to promote future partnerships.
  

This Convention is the largest and most important event in this area in Europe, involving every year representatives of associations from different European countries. This year the event involved more than a thousand members, including 530 delegates representing European Associations,  representatives of European associations, in addition to members of the boards of Directors of Prime Contractors, European Commissioners and members of the European Parliament, as well as companies from different non-European countries, namely Brazil and the USA.

For the first time, the Convention also included a Technological Forum which offered a real opportunity for networking and idea sharing between companies, universities and research centres.

The initiative was organised by the Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP) and by the Association of Defence, Armament and New Technology companies (DANOTEC).

The first intelligent surveillance robot in the world was developed by INESC TEC’s Robotics and Intelligent Systems Unit (ROBIS), Telecommunications and Multimedia Unit (UTM) and Information and Computer Graphics Systems Unit (USIG), and caught the attention of all visitors who kept trying to interact and communicate with the robot.

“The general public and children in particular were very interested and even fascinated by the robot. These are the researchers of the future and considering that the main objective of the NEI 2012 was to divulge projects, I believe that it was very successful", states João Lisboa Pinto (ROBIS), a member of the team presenting the Surveillance Robot. Nelson Rodrigues considers that the audience gave a “warm welcome” to the robot. “In that relaxed environment it was really interesting to demonstrate the interaction between machines and humans", he adds.

Another project presented by INESC TEC was the “Semantic Pacs” software, which is used in the breast cancer field. Designed by INESC TEC’s Telecommunications and Multimedia Unit (UTM), the project “caught the eye of women mostly”, according to Inês Domingues. The “WalkinSense”, a device developed by Tomorrow Options (an INESC TEC/FEUP spin-off company), was also presented at this edition of NEI 2012.

INESC TEC’s Optoelectronics and Electronic Systems Unit (UOSE) provided a “hands-on” experience to the most curious visitors. “The audience was invited to perform optical fibre fusion similarly to what the telecommunication installers do at our homes”, states Diana Viegas, a researcher at UOSE. The members of UOSE also presented a temperature monitoring system using Bragg networks developed by FiberSensing (an INESC TEC spin-off company). According to Diana Viegas, “this was a wonderful experience which made it possible show visitors what our work is about”.

Besides INESC TEC, many other scientists from the most prestigious research centres in Portugal participated in this event, displaying the work that they develop daily. According to researcher Inês Domingues, this was also an opportunity to understand “the real impact that these projects have on the population”, something that “is quite encouraging for us as researchers”.

But the NEI 2012 was more than demonstrations and experiments outdoors. The initiative also included a set of concerts where the musicians’ bodies were studied thermographically. Visitors also had the opportunity to visit the different museums at the Reitoria building of the University of Porto.

Platform developed by researchers of LIAAD is called ‘Conta-me Histórias’

The new Portuguese news aggregation platform is called “Conta-me histórias” and received EUR 10 thousand for the first place under the Arquivo.pt Prizes 2018.

The award ceremony took place in the afternoon on 3 July , at the Science Summit 2018, in the plenary session "New frontiers of the digital age in Europe and in the world", which was attended by the Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation of the European Commission, Carlos Moedas.

There is a trial version (beta) of ‘Conta-me Histórias’ only available in Portuguese. The platform was developed by Ricardo Campos, researcher of INESC TEC’s Laboratory of Artificial Intelligence and Decision Support (LIAAD) and Professor at the Polytechnic Institute of Tomar, Arian Pasquali and Vitor Mangaravite, also researchers of INESC TEC’S LIAAD, Alípio Jorge, coordinator of INESC TEC’S LIAAD and Professor at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto, and Adam Jatwot, Professor at the Kyoto University.

With “Conta-me Histórias” the user can freely search on any topic and also try some predefined examples.  As a way of ensuring the plurality and the diversity of the sources of information, 'Conta-me Histórias' uses several electronic sources of news, including newspapers and national portals.

The obtained results can be explored using a timeline that allows users to navigate between different periods of time, and thus obtaining contextual information on a certain subject.

Who are the main beneficiaries of this platform?

“Being a tool based on news, this application may be in the interest of any user, from journalists who want to have quick access to a contextual set of information, to politicians or advisors who want access to possible inconsistencies that a particular opponent expressed on any subject or even students interested in obtaining detailed and historical information on a particular topic. Basically, any user interested in quickly understanding the main actors of an event, their relations, motivations, and journeys over time, without having to read the whole sources of data”, explains the researcher Ricardo Campos.

How did the project emerge?

Among the factors that motivated the emergence of this project are the increase in the number of publications and consequent increase in the volumes of data (big data), which makes it almost impossible for the ordinary citizen to understand the storyline of a news over time without auxiliary tools.

The INESC TEC’s researcher believes that 'Conta-me Histórias' is an important contribution to a more transparent democracy, strengthening a free and democratic access to information, based on facts and generally free of filters, since it uses different sources of news.

The Portuguese band Xutos & Pontapés were the inspiration

"The name 'Conta-me Histórias' is a tribute to the song of the Portuguese band Xutos & Pontapés, with the intention of portraying one of the goals of the project, that is, to tell stories to the user. Just like the lyrics of the song, the stories had to be related to something that he didn't see or to something that he doesn’t remember.", concludes the researcher of LIAAD. 

About the Arquivo.pt Prize

Launched for the first time this year, the Arquivo.pt prizes aim at rewarding innovative scientific works that use the information preserved by Arquivo.pt, a public research infrastructure that enables the search and access to files from the web pages archived since 1996. In this first edition, which had 27 participants, the prize went to the project 'Conta-me Histórias', a web technology that allows the user to create a temporal narrative on any subject from news archived in Arquivo.pt.

The researchers mentioned in this news piece are associated with INESC TEC, the Polytechnic Institute of Tomar and UP-FCUP.

Ciência 2018 is the latest edition of the annual meeting of Portuguese researchers. It aims at promoting a broad debate on the main topics and challenges of the scientific agenda in order to stimulate not just the participation but also the interaction between researchers, the business sector and the general public. INESC TEC was present in the event in several fronts, integrating the entire meeting that took place in Lisbon and having South Africa as the guest country.

This event “is a great evidence of the dynamics that our scientific system has, of its quality and of the great contribute that it can provide” declared António Costa, the Portuguese Prime Minister, in the first day of the meeting that took place at the Lisbon Congress Centre between 2 and 4 July. The meeting was promoted by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in collaboration with the National Agency for Scientific and Technological Culture and the Parliament's Committee on Education and Science, with the institutional support of the Government through the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education.

Carlos Moedas, the European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation was also present and he also highlighted the importance of bringing encouragement to the Portuguese scientific community. “It is necessary to celebrate the Portuguese science, which is constantly improving. There are more and more proposals of Portuguese scientists. We have so much more Portuguese science that is proving itself to the world.”

This year, the programme was based on 17 Sustainable Development Objectives of the United Nations for 2030 with the purpose of revealing the need to further develop the research and innovation, while strengthening the communication and dialogue mechanisms recognised as increasingly important so that the knowledge and technology inputs can be supported by the society.

“Science is the future”

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa described this initiative as “an exciting event” that is being run in a “creative, innovative, lively and future-oriented environment and that’s good because science is the future”. The President of the Portuguese Republic therefore wanted to praise this initiative and “to live intensively a meeting that is supposed to raise awareness on all Portuguese scientific community”.

Under the open debates to the community on strategic challenges for science and innovation, INESC TEC was present in several panels and debates with the participation in different areas, covering subjects such as data science, energy, biomedicine and robotics applied to agriculture.

Rui Oliveira, member of INESC TEC’s Board, was part of the panel that on the first day was dedicated to the structuring program AIR Centre entitled "Implementing the Atlantic International Research Centre: on the progress achieved" with the "AIR DataNET” communication. 

On the other hand, Filipe Neves dos Santos, collaborator of the Centre for Robotics in Industry and Intelligent Systems (CRIIS), brought the presentation «Robotics and Intelligent systems for Portuguese agriculture and forestry context» to the debate on Industry, Innovation and Infrastructures, especially dedicated to Robotics and Advanced Computing and Communication Systems.

Ana Maria Mendonça, collaborator of the Centre for Biomedical Engineering Research (C-BER) presented the SCREEN-DR project with the communication «From data to quality assessment and pathology detection» to the participants of the panel that presented the information and communication technologies under the CMU Portugal Program. A case study on screening of diabetic retinopathy».

Also in the space dedicated to the CMU Portugal Programme, Eduardo Marques, researcher of the Centre for Research in Advanced Computing Systems (CRACS) presented a new tool entitled «Hyrax: Crowd-Sourcing Mobile Devices to Develop Edge Clouds».

Finally, João Peças Lopes, Director of INESC TEC, addressed the theme «Global Energy Grid Interconnections» in the panel dedicated to the Renewable and Accessible Energies.

INCoDe: National Digital Competences Initiative

The event also reserved a daily time to present the National Digital Competences Initiative or the INCoDe programme, which has Pedro Guedes de Oliveira has coordinator, also a Consultant for INESC TEC's board, with a total of eight expository sessions.

Sofia Marques da Silva and Nuno Feixa Rodrigues, assistant coordinators of the programme, presented and coordinated the sessions about "Inclusion" and "Education", respectively.

In the session entitled "AI Enabled Applications: challenges for our common digital future", the coordinator of the Laboratory of Artificial Intelligence and Decision Support (LIAAD), Alípio Jorge, made a communication concerning the theme «Data Science and Artificial Intelligence».

In the session about Qualification/Specialization, there was Ângelo Martins' participation with the theme "SWitCH: Requalification for IT using PBL on steroids" and Ana Paiva's, who presented project ASTROLÁBIO.

Luís Paulo Santos, researcher of the Centre for Information Systems and Computer Graphics (CSIG) presented «HP Visualisation» in a round table discussion, about the theme “Towards a top-class European Advanced Computing Infrastructure”.

Presentation of the partnership with UT Austin

Still on the promotion of other structuring programmes, a workshop organised by UT Austin Portugal entitled "UT Austin and Portugal - Emerging Challenges of Knowledge" was held on 4 July.

This session had an introduction with the presentation of the new areas of the programme by José Manuel Mendonça, President of INESC TEC’s Board and Interim National Director of the UT Austin Portugal Program. In this workshop, João Claro, president of INESC TEC's Executive Commission, was invited to present the initiatives to be developed under the University Technology Enterprise Network (UTEN), one of the new areas of the UT Austin Portugal Program.

A space for exhibitions

Under the scope of the exhibition space dedicated to scientific demonstrations, INESC TEC presented a stand where it showed some technologies exhibited in the communications, as well as projects with potential interest for the audience of the event.

In the heath, C-BER presented two projects: SCREEN-DR and VR2MARKET, represented by the researchers Diego Wanderley and Adrian Galdran. The first project aims at developing a platform to help in the detection of the Diabetic Retinopathy. The second one consists in a mobile wearable health surveillance monitoring product for first response and other hazardous professions.

In the area of the industrial production systems, the following digital technologies were highlighted: Twin for Complex Systems in Industry 4.0, namely the paper of Centre for Enterprise Systems Engineering (CESE), with the new layouts of the production system and operation models of the several manufacturing plants of IKEA, and of the Centre for Industrial Engineering and Management (CEGI), which introduced the new layout of Fashion and Sports Retailer Warehouse that was applied in Sonae SR warehouses, both represented by Cátia Barbosa, researcher of CESE.

Exhibition of works in posters

To present the work that is developed at INESC TEC is one of the desired goals with the participation in the Science Summit. In this regard, six posters written by INESC TEC's researchers were presented.

In the Computer Science field, Paula Branco, Luís Torgo and Rita P. Ribeiro, researchers from LIAAD, presented the poster with the title «Utility-based Predictive Analytics».

Still in Computer Science, and through the work developed by the Centre for Information Systems and Computer Graphics (CSIG), with António Correia, Hugo Paredes and Benjamim Fonseca, along with Daniel Schneider, the poster with the theme "SciCrowd: An Experimental Crowd-Computing System Prototype for Scientific Discovery» was presented. A second poster of the same Centre, with the collaboration of António Correia, Hugo Paredes and Benjamim Fonseca, entitled «Mapping Dynamics and Evolving Patterns in Collaborative Computing Research: A Scientometric Analysis».

Regarding the Industry and Innovation cluster, the researchers of CRIIS Rafael Arrais, Luís Rocha, Héber Sobreira, Germano Veiga and António Paulo Moreira participated with the paper «DM4Manufacturing: Aligning Manufacturing Decision Making with Advanced Manufacturing Technologies».

The Networked Intelligent Systems cluster was represented by the researchers of the Centre for Telecommunications and Multimedia (CTM), Eduardo Almeida, Rui Campos and Manuel Ricardo with the poster «A Network Planning Algorithm for Traffic-Aware Flying Backhaul Mesh Networks».

The Energy field was represented by the work entitled «Data Visualization Applied to Power Systems» of Mário Pereira, researcher of the Centre for Power and Energy Systems (CPES).

“People are the most important asset”

According to Manuel Heitor, the Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education, the most important asset of this meeting “are the people and the free exchange of ideas between researchers”, since we are now facing “a particularly critical moment in the development of the science maturity in Portugal”.

Ciência 2018 had 92 sessions, 565 communications, 690 posters and 82 demonstrations. In addition to the annual reflection on the state of the Science and Technology in Portugal and Europe, the approximately 4,000 participants were drawn into open debates on new scientific opportunities and challenges, which made the main goal fulfilled: to draw the attention to Science.

The researchers mentioned in this news piece are associated with INESC TEC, UP-FEUP, UP-FCUP, UMinho and UTAD.

Scientific Advisory Board evaluates INESC Porto’s work positivelY

INESC Porto’s intervention in the industry and companies, its relevant scientific production and the quality of its human resources were some of the points that were considered on the last evaluation carried by the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). Following the motto “From Knowledge Production to Knowledge Valorisation”, INESC Porto is on the right track to continue its success. However, SAB recommends that INESC Porto defines more a concrete vision, mission and goals for the institution over the next years. After the last visit that took place in 2006, last October, this international Board of experts sought to get to know the work developed by the six R&D Units and by the two autonomous groups that are an integrant part of INESC Porto LA (Associated Laboratory).

Today, INESC Porto is more mature than it was in 2006. That was the conclusion of the Scientific Advisory Board. This group of internationally acknowledged researchers is periodically invited to help in INESC Porto’s self-evaluation, as well as to contribute to the definition of a strategy for the institution on the short and medium-term. Their visit focused on the activities developed between 2003 and 2007 and the aim was to prepare the institution for the governmental assessment that determines whether the statute of Associated Laboratory is to be maintained.

Fundamental Competences and Recommendations

INESC Porto’s varied nature, which combines scientific excellence with its intervention in the industrial and entrepreneurial sectors, is a critical factor for its competitiveness. The human resources, characterised by SAB as “young and vibrant”, are another key factor for the differentiation in this institution of “cutting-edge” activity. According to SAB, INESC Porto’s scientific production has increased exponentially at a rate that is higher than the increase in the number of researchers. At the same time, this scientific production was followed by a successful technology transfer infrastructure. In fact, eight startups were launched. According to SAB, these are reasons for INESC Porto to find new ways to improve in these two fronts. As such, INESC Porto should strive to increase the number of publications in scientific journals, as well as to establish INESC Porto representatives for the Industry, Services and Community.

Today, INESC Porto’s awareness and international acknowledgement are higher than in 2006. That is confirmed by the external markets where the institution participates and by the number of international academics and doctoral students that the institution has managed to attract. Provided with financial soundness, INESC Porto should now promote the dynamic collaboration between the different R&D Units in order to increase the institution’s efficiency and swiftness. These connections should be extended to the whole Associated Laboratory and the integration of LIAAD and CRACS should be an institute wide effort.

The evaluation

UTM (Telecommunications and Multimedia Unit) – SAB identified the existence of three subareas of activity: Physics, Networks and Services/Applications. The Unit should invest in integrated projects that are capable of exploiting the complementary technicalcapacities between these three subareas.

USE (Power Systems Unit) – This Unit should establish mechanisms that will enable it to protect and expand its leadership, as well as to define its strategic expansion plan. At the level of human resources, SAB believes that USE should create the conditions to attract a strong core of scientific researchers.

UESP (Manufacturing Systems Engineering Unit) – This Unit has clear academic credentials (combinatorial and meta-heuristics). The Unit should focus its efforts on the definition of goals for its sustained growth.

UOSE (Optoelectronics and Electronic Systems Unit) – SAB highlighted the fact that this Unit has been able to incorporate all the recommendations of the last evaluation. At the same time, the Unit has a clear strategic plan for the next four years.

USIC (Information and Communication Systems Unit) – This Unit was encouraged to continue its excellent work at the levels of industry and services. The cooperation with other components of the Associated Laboratory - USE, UTM, LIAAD, CRACS, among others – should be a priority.

UITT (Innovation and Technology Transfer Unit) – INESC Porto’s most recent Unit is viewed by SAB as a relevant development for the institution. The work at the level of support to the other Units at INESC Porto and the valorisation of R&D in the entrepreneurial environment were highlighted.

LIAAD (Laboratory of Articifial Intelligence and Decision Support) and CRACS (Center for Research in Advanced Computing Systems) – These two research groups constitute large potential sources and opportunities for INESC Porto LA. However, SAB warns that some challenges should be taken into consideration, such as the geographical distance, the differences in organisational culture, or even situations of negative competition.

Interview with SAB

The 2008 SAB included José Principe (U. of Florida, President), Leonardo Chiariglione (Telecom Italia Lab), Faramarz Farahi, (U. of North Carolina), Tomás Gomez (U. Pontificia Comillas Madrid), Michel Schöll (CNAM), Gerald Bernard Sheblé (Portland State U.), John O’Reilly (University College of London), José A. B. Fortes (U. of Florida) and Maarten van Someren (Universiteit van Amsterdam).

BIP gathered these experts’ opinions on Portugal, Porto and, of course, on INESC Porto.

José Carlos Príncipe (University of Florida, USA)

INESC Porto: I believe that this is a unique institution and I know plenty of them. In my opinion, this is due to the singular integration of university advantages in order solve the problems in the industry. And that is quite hard to do because it requires people to divorce their academic areas in order to focus on the problem. Then, the aim is to find the area that is required in order to solve that problem. And many people can’t make that leap.

Porto: It is the city where I was born. It’s a city I know quite well. Here I know what goes on inside people’s minds. Therefore, it’s a city I enjoy very much.

Portugal: I enjoy Portugal a lot as well. Sometimes, Portugal is like a vaccine. When I’m homesick, I come to Portugal and I’m vaccinated. Then, I can travel again.

Faramarz Farahi (University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA)

INESC Porto: I think that the institution carries out many practical activities and applications in comparison with other R&D institutions.

Porto: I love Porto, its people, its national beauty and very beautiful architecture. But more than anything else, I love its people.

Portugal: Although I’ve seen other places, the impression that I have is that Portugal is Porto.

Tomás Gomez (University Pontificia Comillas Madrid, Spain)

INESC Porto: I think this is an outstanding institution here in Portugal because the technology results that they get, the contracts with the industry and the quality of the research carried out at the institution are amazing. Very good.

Porto: I think it’s a kind of a mix between old and new, houses, neighbourhoods, and, on the other hand, there is the natural side of Porto – the Douro River, the sea. The place is wonderful.

Portugal: I think Portugal is a very nice country and the people are very nice and friendly. Also, I think that the country is quickly developing.

Michel Schöll (CNAM - Le Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, France)

INESC Porto: When I think of INESC Porto, I think of the Porto branch and about the city of Porto, and not about INESC.

Porto: Growing, dynamic, kind, seducing.

Portugal: I think Porto is a good sample of Portugal.

John O’Reilly (University College of London, United Kigndom)

INESC Porto: I believe that very good science is taken through to application at INESC Porto.

Porto: What comes to my mind is that I need more time to see the city of Porto. It should be arranged next time. Porto is a very nice city.

Portugal: I love Portugal. I’ve been here many times and I could live here, but I have a small problem – I don’t speak Portuguese. Now, seriously, what I like the most about the Portuguese people is that they are very friendly.

Gerald Bernard Sheblé, INESC Porto Fellow (Portland State University, USA).

INESC Porto: When I think of INESC Porto, I think of the excellence that Peças Lopes, Matos and others have brought to the energy industry.

Porto: Porto is fascinating, a fun place to be. It should think of itself better as a tourist attraction because it is not an ugly city as many people tell me.

Portugal: I think Portugal is very interesting because you still have history around you. It has not been hurt by war and there are too many things to go and see.

Maarten van Someren (Universiteit van Amsterdam, Netherlands)

INESC Porto: I think INESC Porto is building a very good bridge between science and industry in Portugal. Everybody has this problem of making this bridge and in evidence there is really no other institute that can be compared to this one. They are either more scientific or more applied.

Porto: I’ve been here a couple of times before. I like the centre a lot and I find it changes very fast. I’ve been here, I think, four times over the last 5 or 6 years and it is getting wealthier, more modern and busier than it was before. It’s a rapid change.

Portugal: I have only been to Porto. This is all I know about it, this is all Portugal.

José A. B. Fortes (University of Florida, USA)

INESC Porto: INESC Porto is a unique model of research and technology transfer, not only in Portugal, but also in Europe.

Porto: This is a city where people work hard, a city that has been changing dramatically over the last few years.

Portugal: I believe that this is a country in transition, a country that is more and more part of Europe.

Leonardo Chiariglione (Digital Media Lab, Italy)

INESC Porto: When I think of INESC Porto, I think of an example of a research institution that doesn’t emerge from a very large and developed country, but still manages to achieve a high level and to cause an impact on its economy.

Porto: It’s a great city, a city I would like to visit more often.

Portugal: I’ve been here about maybe 20-30 times, so it’s one of the countries I like the most.

The birth and the godparents

A survey on communication at INESC Porto that took place in May of 2000 revealed the need to create an internal vehicle of information that kept the collaborators informed every month on the activities and projects carried out at INESC Porto, promoting, at the same time, the feeling of belonging.

Thus the Bulletin of INESC Porto, also known as BIP, was born. In that same survey, the collaborators were asked to provide a name for a hypothetical informative bulletin. Few people know that José Silva Matos (UTM) and João Cardoso (UESP) suggested the name “BIP”. The Board approved and thus our bulletin was baptised.

The team produced issue number zero in October 2000 and some dozens of editions that followed that first issue were set up by Vladimiro Miranda, Sandra Pinto, José Carlos Sousa, Rute Ferreira (this strong group still holds today), José Luís Santos (UOSE) and João José Pinto Ferreira (UESP). The joyous meetings for the first issues took place at INESC Porto’s previous building, located at the Praça da República.

The corners of the house

Surely few people remember the first issues, which were exclusively internal. From those previous editions, we remember the “Classified Adds” where people advertised cars and computers, the “Jorge de Sena Gallery” where our collaborators showed their artistic tendencies, or even the “Tribune” that counted on the most illustrious guests outside INESC Porto.

One of the most successful sections is still Biptoon. Drawn exclusively by Rute Ferreira, Biptoon has been evolving throughout time and it continues to provide amusement with every issue of BIP. Other than this ex-libris from BIP, the two articles of opinion written by two INESC Porto collaborators every month make us very proud. Yes, because no one expected that there could be such literary talent in an institution of engineers and technicians.

Of course we cannot forget the most informative part of the Bulletin. We will never forget the “News”, the “Highlight” and the “Special Report”, such as our emotional farewell to the unforgettable Regina Freitas or professor Lourenço Fernandes, the awarding of Associated Laboratory statute to INESC Porto, the Board’s restructuring, and many others that make the history of our institution. And with BIP, they will be remembered forever. Then, there is also the “Editorial” which provides us with thoughts on current events, or the “Gallery of the Uncommon” with some really extraordinary stories. The “Job for the Boys and Girls” section would be disappointed if we didn’t mention it.

More than just providing information

The most recent collaborators may think that BIP is nothing more than an electronic edition available at INESC Porto’s website, but the truth is that our bulletin has been involved in several initiatives to promote culture and internal communication. In fact, throughout all these years, we have organised photography, poetry and anecdote competitions, we have promoted discussions with external guests, and we have also thrown a multicultural snack with the precious help of our foreign collaborators.

In fact, the people who read BIP get to know what happens at INESC Porto – new projects, results, awards, graduations, the Board’s last decisions or even internal changes. At the same time, the readers can reflect on a co-worker’s article, or even get to know a new collaborator. At the same time, it is possible to have fun with the uncommon situations and with the cartoons, to find employment opportunities, or even to say happy birthday to that cute co-worker upstairs… so, BIP strives to be a diverse vehicle of information.

Initially thought as an internal medium only, after issue number 15, BIP became available on the Internet as well. However, the giant leap took place in April 2006 when the Bulletin started being translated into English every three months. After that, information regarding BIP was disseminated in Faculties and Universities from 25 different countries every month.

The workers

Every month, usually during the first week, Vladimiro Miranda (DIP), Sandra Pinto (Communication Service), Joana Ferreira (Communication Service), Rita Pacheco (Communication Service), Rute Ferreira (USE), José Carlos Sousa (SIG), António Lucas Soares (UESP), Teresa Andrade (UTM) and Paulo Marques (UOSE) meet in order to decide what should be included in the next edition of BIP.

Honestly, we must confess that these meetings are the funniest part of producing BIP. When we manage to gather the whole team, we sometimes spend three deliciously funny hours planning the edition.

But what would BIP be without its readers? We are very grateful to all of them for having followed BIP from the start. Our present to them is the new image of the Bulletin, designed by Rita Mendes. With this new graphic design, our intention is to renew the intention of informing INESC Porto’s collaborators, always striving to mantain our credibility, without ever forgetting the entertainment component.

The team speaks out

BIP – What is your favourite section of BIP? Why?

VLADIMIRO MIRANDA – Biptoon because it is the maximum expression of irreverence, allowing BIP to stand out when compared to similar bulletins. For the same reasons, I also enjoy the Free Nonsense and Have your Say sections – they are the genuine expression of individual feeling, without any kind of censorship or limit and, therefore, it is what we are – human beings in a house of extraordinary merits. And, of course, I enjoy the Editorial section because I write it and in it I place my heart (and sometimes my reason).

SANDRA PINTO - Biptoon is fantastic and inevitable. However, there are other enjoyable sections, such as the Gallery of the Uncommon, or even the Special Report. In the most serious sections, I enjoy the Highlight and News sections. Although they are informative, they are different from publications in similar institutions in a sense that they are not presumptuous and “grey” (I hope!). When I read the editorials, I am astonished how some people can be so brilliant.

RUTE FERREIRA – Biptoon because I draw it!!

TERESA ANDRADE – Highlight, News and Biptoon. The first because it shortly highlights some of the projects and initiatives carried out INESC Porto; the second because it allows us to have a general idea of each unit’s initiatives; and the third because it is enjoyable.

RITA PACHECO - Biptoon because it always makes me laugh and because of its originality in a publication with a largely technical component; Highlight because it combines relevant information about INESC Porto in a single article; and Editorial because it is a bit of literature flavour in a technical environment such as INESC Porto’s.

JOANA FERREIRA – Biptoon is, without a question, my favourite section in a sense that it gives us a comic look over what happens at INESC Porto.

LUCAS SOARES – News, Have Your Say and Biptoon. The first two because they fulfill BIP’s informative role in both senses. Biptoon, because it is a unique irreverent section.

PAULO MARQUES – Special Report, Highlight and News. The three sections let us know what really happens at INESC Porto.

JOSÉ CARLOS SOUSA – My favourite “dish” is News, with Highlight, followed by Biptoon with a pinch of humour. The first two ingredients taste like knowledge, and the other one tastes like irreverence.

BIP –Who would you invite to become part of the team? Why?

VM – I would like to have José Luís Santos back on the team. For many years, he worked as our “laughter meter”: if he didn’t laugh with something, including something serious, he would cut that out of BIP... Do you remember? That worked really, really well.

SP – The writer Luis Sepúlveda, who I met a couple of weeks ago, because he portrays the current world with realism without mincing the words, exposing the wrongs that affect us from a human, social and ecological point of view. He would be an asset to the team.

RF – My co-workers from USE because our sense of humour is unique.

TA – Professor Pimenta Alves because he has a wide vision of everything that goes on at INESC Porto, in the Faculty and outside, particularly in the media, combined with a great sensitivity for relevant matters. Also, he has a vast set of relevant knowledge.

RP – I would invite José Carlos Dores since he is quite unique and so he would provide us with some original ideas. And also because he is one of the people I like the most at INESC Porto.

JF – I would invite Lídia Vilas-Boas for her working ability.

LS – I would invite Jorge Pinho de Sousa because he is an enlightened obstinate.

PM – Ireneu Dias. Even though he is always busy, he has nice ideas.

JCS – I believe that any other collaborator could be part of the team because the culture of this publication is already rooted in each of its readers.

BIP – Why is BIP better when compared to similar publications?

VM – BIP is genuine and it is not the owner’s voice. At the same time, there is a general quality in its diversity, allowing it to be appreciated under different perspectives and different audiences: internal, national and foreign. Then, it is ours, it is us.

SP – It is light, fresh, without academic titles. It is not politically correct or the Board’s voice. It is informal, yet educational. It is different, honest and authentic.

RF – BIP is better because we do it…

TA – BIP is objective in the presentation of the news, which is combined with its diversity and good humour.

RP - BIP can combine the most technical and formal part of INESC Porto, with a unique and comic component (Gallery of the Uncommon or Biptoon). Therefore, BIP is different from the rest.

JF – BIP is more innovative, bolder, more dynamic, informative and appealing. Summing up, BIP is better!

LS – I don’t know if BIP is better or not... the most positive factor, in my point of view, is the fact that it never became the “official” voice of the institution.

PM – I don’t know any similar publications. However, BIP has a broader nature relatively to newsletters, such as the newsletter from the University of Porto, since it includes sections such as Have Your Say, Gallery of the Uncommon, Free Nonsense and Biptoon.

JCS – BIP manages to maintain a balanced mix between information and humour.

BIP – Do you like being part of BIP’s team? Why?

VM – I love it: on one hand, every issue is successful and, on the other hand, we have the monthly meetings for the production of BIP that are very enjoyable and make me laugh. I’m happy to have such excellent friends brought together by fate in order to create a wonderfully fun team.

SP – I like it a lot and I’m proud to be part of this team since the first issue. I am fortunate for witnessing BIP’s growth, overcoming obstacles like a baby does. And all of this is only possible due to the talented team that produces it.

RF – I kind of like it! :) The meetings are generally funny and I really enjoy having the opportunity to draw Biptoon.

TA – What a question ;-) I enjoy it for several reasons: it is an opportunity to get to know what happens at INESC Porto and also to get to know the units’ collaborators better, who, most of the time, I don’t know. Although my participation is small (for personal reasons, I think – not all of us have the communicative skills that Rute, Sandra, Zé-Carlos and professor Valdimiro have ;-) ), it is always an opportunity to contribute to a more positive goal. BIP’s meetings always take place in a relaxed and funny environment!

RP – Yes, because I feel that I’m part of a publication that has been growing and maturing throughout the years, a publication that managed to captivate readers, not only at INESC Porto, but also outside.

JF – I like it a lot. It is very gratifying to be part of a project that was born at INESC Porto, a project that is a communication reference as far as R&D is concerned.

LS – BIP’s meetings are always very relaxing. On the other hand, there are serious debating moments where we become aware of the importance of certain matters.  

 PM – I enjoy being part of the team and I am honestly sorry for not being able to participate more, including for not attending more meetings. Maybe my participation should be reconsidered so that other person who contributes more can be part of the team.

JCS - Yes, because collaborating with BIP’s team is sheer fun and relaxation. And, other than that, there is balance in the team – if someone says “kill”, the other one says “skin”.

BIP – What do you wish for BIP over the next years?

VM – I wish that BIP would transform itself in order to be the same, being better.

SP – My wish is that BIP continues to improve with every edition. May it continue to carry out self-criticism so that it can grow and evolve even more.

RF – My wish for BIP is that it continues to evolve.

TA – I wish that BIP continues to be dynamic and to have good ideas and that its visibility continues to increase. I also wish that all the collaborators continue to easily and readily participate and that BIP continues to be seen as a point of reference for the dissemination of news both internally and externally.

RP – I wish that BIP’s success and visibility continue to increase and that the participation of the readers becomes more active through the submittal of comments that will help the team improve this publication.

JF – Energy, creativity, team spirit and plenty of success!

LS – I wish that BIP always seeks to surprise. If it stops doing so, it will become yet another institutional bulletin.

PM – I believe that we must find a way to increase the reciprocal knowledge on what each unit does within INESC Porto as far as science is concerned. When I say this, I mean that there should be articles that describe the work that is carried out at the institution, in a way that is understandable for everyone, some sort of "science for dummies".

JCS – I wish that BIP would win a Pulitzer prize. Also, I wish that the new comment system (only internal for now) will bring a new dynamics to BIP so that it continues its path towards success. From my part, I’m still waiting for a "science for dummies" or "(un)complicating science" section. I’m sure we would all learn a lot from it.

We wouldn’t be fair if we didn’t mention the unconditional commitment from António Carlos Sá (SIG), who supports the electronic version of BIP, month after month. We thank you for your professionalism, patience and dedication.

Do you like BIP’s new image? Send us your opinion and suggestions to boletim-bip@inescporto.pt. Help us improve communication at INESC Porto.

This Activity Report describes the main projects developed by INESC Porto’s units. The External Advisory Board revised the report before was is handed in to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) on 31 October.

José Carlos Príncipe (University of Florida, USA) is the president of the Scientific Advisory Board that also included the following members: Faramarz Farahi (University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA) who assessed the Optoelectronics and Electronic Systems Unit (UOSE); Tomás Gomez (University Pontificia Comillas in Madrid, Spain) who assessed the Power Systems Unit (USE); Michel Schöll (INRIA – Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique, France) assessed the Information and Communication Systems Unit (USIC); Leonardo Chiariglione (Digital Media Lab, Italy) assessed the Telecommunications and Multimedia Unit (UTM); John O’Reilly (University College of London, United Kingdom) assessed the Innovation and Technology Transfer Unit (UITT), and finally Gerald Bernard Sheblé, INESC Porto Fellow (Portland State University, USA).

José A. B. Fortes (University of Florida, USA) and Maarten van Someren (Universiteit van Amsterdam, Netherlands) represented INESC Porto’s Associated Laboratory groups for the first time.

The Scientific Advisory Board’s last visit to INESC took place in April 2006.

Jorge Pinho de Sousa said that this event  was an opportunity to present and discuss innovative management practices, such as “the development of collaboration and collaborative networks, or even lean methods for the output of goods and services”.

UESP's coordinator even considers that these innovative management practices allow companies to reach efficiency and flexibility levels that will lead to their success in dynamic and unpredictable environments. Therefore, successful cases of companies that have invested in this area were discussed during the meeting’s two days in order to encourage solutions that are adjusted to the realities of the participant organisations.

Innovation at the levels of Organisation, People, Technology and Society were the four themes discussed during the two-day conference that was an opportunity to promote the sharing of knowledge, experiences and opinions in the context of innovation and entrepreneurial management.

ERIMA - the European Research in Innovation and Management Alliance, from which INESC Porto is partner, aims at the establishment of a “European Network of Excellence” that includes the universities and the research centres that play an active role in this area, promoting new theories, methodologies and techniques related to Innovation and Management.

This proposal in the area of “Internet Architectures and Networking” (IAN) has a cooperative access as central theme, and it is already in the final evaluation stage.

Organised by the Directorate General of the European Community, the biannual event ICT 2008 is one of the most relevant forums in the context of European research, gathering innovators and researchers, as well as legislators and leaders from all over Europe dedicated to topics related to digital technologies.

The event will take place in Lyon from 25 to 27 November 2008.

For more information on this event, please go to the official website of “ICT 2008”.

The objective of this honorary statute is to establish closer relationships between INESC Porto LA’s researchers and internationally acknowledged scientists, associating the institution’s name to these personalities.

It is also expected that this association to worldwide acknowledged personalities will lead to an increase in the standards of demand and quality of the research work carried out by the institute. In fact, this investment was the result of a set of requests for stays and sabbatical leaves by the most important members in the Science field at a worldwide level, thanks to the prestige that INESC Porto LA has gained over its 20 years of activity.

The selection of Fellows follows two criteria: the member should be a worldwide renowned scientific and exceptional person; at the same time, the member should have a collaboration or connection with INESC Porto LA. Thus, in this context, the title of Fellow will work as an acknowledgement of the contribution provided to the institution.

José Carlos Príncipe has been president of INESC Porto LA’s External Scientific Advisory Board for several years. On the other hand, Armando Leite da Silva continued collaborating with the institution after working there as a staff scientist. In conclusion, Gerald Sheblé has been dividing his time, for several years, between top North American universities and INESC Porto LA.