Abstract
This paper presents a collaborative mobile manipulator assembly station, which uses force control to surpass the positional uncertainties arising from unstructured work environments and positional errors of the mobile platform. For this purpose, the use case of an internal combustion engine for the automotive industry was considered. Several force control heuristics relying on blind searches using oscillations and/or environment exploration were developed and implemented. Particular attention was given to the orientation errors of the mobile platform, as it was proved that they have a significant impact on the assembly task. The proposed heuristics showed great potential for the use case at hand. Particularly, when the orientation error of the platform is limited to +/- 2 degrees, the oscillation method complemented by environment exploration was able to surpass a maximum translation error of 32.3mm, whereas the environment exploration complemented by orientation correction was able to surpass an error of 73.3mm. Moreover, a generalization strategy was proposed, intending to expand the scope of the developed heuristics to other assembly applications.

Abstract
Radon gas is the largest source of public exposure to naturally occurring radioactivity. However, radon is also a useful tracer for understanding atmospheric processes, assessing the accuracy of chemical transport models, and enabling integrated emissions estimates of greenhouse gases. A sound metrological system for low level atmospheric radon observations is therefore needed for the benefit of the atmospheric, climate and radiation protection research communities. To this end, here we present a new calibration method for activity concentrations below 20 Bq m(-3) and a prototype of the first portable radon monitor capable of achieving uncertainties of 5% (at k = 2) at these concentrations. Compliance checking of policy-driven regulations regarding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is an essential component of climate change mitigation efforts. Independent, reliable 'top down' methods that can be applied consistently for estimating local- to regional-scale GHG emissions (such as the radon tracer method (RTM)) are an essential part of this process. The RTM relies upon observed radon and GHG concentrations and measured or modeled radon fluxes. Reliable radon flux maps could also significantly aid EU member states comply with European COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 2013/59/EURATOM. This article also introduces the traceRadon project, key aims of which include outlining a standardized approach for application of the RTM, creating infrastructure with a traceability chain for radon concentration and radon flux measurements, and developing tools for the validation of radon flux models. Since radon progeny dominate the terrestrial gamma dose rate, the planned traceRadon activities are also expected to improve the sensitivity of radiation protection early warning networks because of the correlation known to exist between radon flux and ambient equivalent dose rates.

Abstract
In this article, we investigate the secure spectral efficiency of an ultrareliable low-latency communication system, where communications occur with short packets due to delay constraints, so that a finite blocklength formulation is considered. In addition, we assume that no feedback channel is available to implement automatic repeat request schemes, so that packet replication (PR) and interface diversity (ID) strategies are used to improve performance, which are then compared in terms of physical-layer security while considering a Nakagami-m fading channel. Furthermore, we assume no knowledge of the instantaneous channel state information at Alice, neither with respect to Bob nor Eves, while the position of multiple colluding eavesdroppers are specified according to a Poisson point process. Numerical results show that the joint optimization of the blocklength, the transmit power, and the amount of information bits per codeword are crucial to maximize the secure spectral efficiency. In addition, we also show that ID outperforms the PR strategy in most scenarios when the number of replications/interfaces increases.

Abstract
Li-ion battery State-of-Charge (SOC) estimation is a complex challenge for battery management systems designers, due to the battery's non-linear behaviour at different operating conditions and ageing levels. As a possible solution, multiple machine learning models have been proposed for SOC estimation throughout the years. These provide an advantage over model-based methods, as they do not require a deep knowledge and study of the battery's internal behaviour. However, many of these proposed models could not be considered due to their complexity. The high number of required stored parameters and/or elevated memory consumption during estimation may pose challenges to the application of these methods. Therefore, in this paper, several feedforward neural network models are proposed for SOC estimation, with an efficient method for online input preprocessing and low parameter requirement in storage. These models are simulated and validated using battery data, taken at different temperatures with several driving cycles and charge cycles, achieving lowest estimation Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) of 1.096% over the whole validation dataset.

Abstract

Abstract
It is indisputable that technology is present in everyday life. In this digital era, brands need to adapt to the changing pace of the needs and desires of society to distinguish themselves from their adversaries, especially in the electronic environment. Hence, they must have well-defined and successful marketing and advertising strategies to achieve a place on the podium of preference of consumers. This work intends to understand how the communication strategies of Apple and Samsung affect the decisions of consumers in Portugal to buy electronic devices. To this end, a survey was conducted, and the responses of 700 individuals who reside in Portugal were analysed through descriptive and inferential (chi-square test of independence) statistics. The survey results show that cost-benefit, price, technical specifications, and performance are the characteristics that weigh the most when purchasing electronic devices, as well as the perceived prestige of the brand. Additionally, an association was found between having only one device and having more products of the brand, with Apple users having more frequently more than one of the brand's products than Samsung users. We thus concluded that Apple consumers are more loyal. It was also found that the store where the devices are brought is not independent, in Portugal, of the brand of the devices. Apple users buy more brand products from the brand store, both physical and online, than Samsung users. Finally, advertisements and word-of-mouth were found to be fundamental for consumers to acknowledge brand devices, and the degree in which this happens is also not independent of the brand, in Portugal, as a chi-square independence test showed.