Abstract
In this chapter, we describe the design and implementation of a Pedagogical Innovation Center (PIC) at the Polytechnic of Porto. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted our day to day lives, our businesses, the world trade and movements. Education was not spared. In fact, it was one of the sectors most heavily affected by COVID-19 pandemic. Teachers were forced, from night to day, to adjust a purely face-to-face teaching style, to a 100\% online set. This is known as emergency remote teaching. Several difficulties have arisen both for teachers and students. The first had to structure all their teaching materials from scratch, had to design and apply new assessment methods, and struggled to get their students' motivation. On their side, the students lacked engagement, social interaction with peers and teachers, the ability to have a more autonomous learning style. © 2023, IGI Global. All rights reserved.

Abstract
The underwater environment has some structures that still need regular inspection. However, the nature of this environment presents a number of challenges in achieving accurate vehicle position and consequently successful image similarity detection. Although there are some factors - water turbidity or light attenuation - that degrade the quality of the captured images, visual sensors have shown a strong impact on mission scenarios - close range operations. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to study whether these data are capable of addressing the aforementioned underwater challenges on their own. Considering the lack of available data in this context, a typical underwater scenario was recreated using the Stonefish simulator. Experiments were conducted on two predefined trajectories containing appearance scene changes. The loop closure situations provided by the bag-of-words (BoW) approach are correctly detected, but it is sensitive to some severe conditions.

Abstract
These are the short papers proceedings of the 3rd Symposium of Applied Science for Young Researchers – SASYR. This scientific event welcomed works by junior researchers on any research topic covered by the following three research centers: ADiT-lab (from IPVC, Instituto Politécnico de Viana do Castelo), 2Ai (from IPCA, Instituto Politécnico do Cávado e do Ave) and CeDRI (from IPB, Instituto Politécnico de Bragança). The main objective of SASYR is to provide a friendly and relaxed environment for young researchers to present their work, discuss recent results, and develop new ideas. In this way, this event offered an opportunity for the ADiT-lab, 2Ai, and CeDRI research communities to gather synergies and promote collaborations, thus improving the quality of their research. The SASYR 2023 took place at Instituto Politécnico do Cávado e do Ave, Barcelos, Portugal, on the 11th of July, 2023.

Abstract
This paper presents a study on the use of gamified educational escape rooms to foster the teaching-learning process of computer programming, based on an user type taxonomy. The ultimate goal of this work is to identify and validate the most suitable gamification elements and mechanics for each user profile, providing case studies that illustrate their implementation. The main contribution of this work is to guide the design process of educational escape rooms in any domain, by considering the needs, preferences, and motivations of different user types.

Abstract

Abstract
The efficient application of phytochemical products in agriculture is a complex issue that demands optimised sprayers and variable rate technologies, which rely on advanced sensing systems to address challenges such as overdosage and product losses. This work developed a system capable of processing different tree canopy parameters to support precision fruit farming and environmental protection using intelligent spraying methodologies. This system is based on a 2D light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor and a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver integrated into a sprayer driven by a tractor. The algorithm detects the canopy boundaries, allowing spray only in the presence of vegetation. The spray volume spared evaluates the system's performance compared to a Tree Row Volume (TRV) methodology. The results showed a 28% reduction in the overdosage of spraying product. The second step in this work was calculating and adjusting the amount of liquid to apply based on the tree volume. Considering this parameter, the saving obtained had an average value for the right and left rows of 78%. The volume of the trees was also monitored in a georeferenced manner with the creation of a occupation grid map. This map recorded the trajectory of the sprayer and the detected trees according to their volume.