Abstract

Abstract
Line-following robots have the ability to recognize and follow a line drawn on a surface. Elements of their operating principles could be used in the evelopment of numerous autonomous technologies, with applications in education and industry. A simulator has been developed to aide in performing several trials in order to validate a project. By taking the Pololu 3pi Robot as the model, the proposed solution simulates its physical structure, behavior, and operations-being able to read lines on surfaces-enabling the user to observe the robot following the line according to the code used. This paper aims to validate the developed simulator as an alternative to ease the process of learning to use the 3pi platform applied in both educational and competitive environments.

Abstract
Line-following robots have the ability to recognize and follow a line drawn on a surface. It works based on a simple self-sustainable system composed with a set of sensors, motors and a controller. In order to get optimal performance in such robots, it's necessary to carry out several tests to evaluate the behavior in each trial. In the majority of cases, a new trial requires to upload a new program, thus slowing down the development of the line-following. This paper presents an approach to solve the inconvenience of having to upload a new program in each trial. It consists in merging multiple codes in to one to create a program that gives the user the ability to switch between them anytime inside Pololu's 3pi line follower platform.

Abstract

Abstract
The early classification of university students according to their potential academic performance can be a useful strategy to mitigate failure, to promote the achievement of better results and to better manage resources in higher education institutions. This paper proposes a two-stage model, supported by data mining techniques, that uses the information available at the end of the first year of students' academic career (path) to predict their overall academic performance. Unlike most literature on educational data mining, academic success is inferred from both the average grade achieved and the time taken to conclude the degree. Furthermore, this study proposes to segment students based on the dichotomy between the evidence of failure or high performance at the beginning of the degree program, and the students' performance levels predicted by the model. A data set of 2459 students, spanning the years from 2003 to 2015, from a European Engineering School of a public research University, is used to validate the proposed methodology. The empirical results demonstrate the ability of the proposed model to predict the students' performance level with an accuracy above 95%, in an early stage of the students' academic path. It is found that random forests are superior to the other classification techniques that were considered (decision trees, support vector machines, naive Bayes, bagged trees and boosted trees). Together with the prediction model, the suggested segmentation framework represents a useful tool to delineate the optimum strategies to apply, in order to promote higher performance levels and mitigate academic failure, overall increasing the quality of the academic experience provided by a higher education institution.

Abstract
Doctoral programmes are facing several challenges in modern societies. The societal role of the University, funded by the state, requires it to: a) increase the offer and admission of third cycle students; b) to reach industry/companies expectations; c) to ensure reasonable employability prospects for the PhD candidates. With the current demography, most candidates can only find a job in industry/companies. Therefore, significant pressure is being put on doctoral programmes to include transferable skills in their curriculum. This paper presents a course "Fit for Industry?" aiming at filling this need. The course design methodology is presented in detail. It includes: a) the involvement of industry since its inception; b) the joint identification of a small number of key competencies to be addressed; c) the inclusion of assessment and feedback mechanisms in its design; d) an immersive and international dimension. It was found that the course had a profound impact on the candidates' perceptions of industry and valued by industry participants. Other stakeholders, such as PhD supervisors, also had a positive perception. The paper concludes with recommendations for those willing to replicate the course locally.