Abstract
Portuguese footwear industry has improved dramatically to become one of the main world players. This work is part of a project in cooperation with a large footwear company, operating a new automated assembly equipment, integrating various lines. Balancing such lines implies going from an almost manual preparation executed by experienced operators, to a planning supported by optimisation systems. These complex mixed-model lines have distinctive characteristics, which make balancing a unique problem. The paper proposes the ASBsm – Assembly System Balancing Solution Method, a new method that integrates a constructive heuristic and an improvement heuristic, which takes inspiration from Tabu Search. The solutions obtained, based on real instances, are quite encouraging when compared with other effected factory solutions. Consequently, the balances obtained by ASBsm are now being implemented and articulated with sequencing methods. © IFIP International Federation for Information Processing 2017.

Abstract
In this paper, the impacts of an incentive-based Demand Response, i.e., Ancillary Service DR (ASDR), and a price-based DR, i.e., Time of Use (ToU), are revealed in a restructured power system which has some wind farms. This network is designed based on the pre-emptive market which is a day-ahead market with a balancing market prognosis. It is a proper mechanism to deal with the stochastic nature of non-dispatchable and outage of all units of the network. With Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) method, several scenarios are generated in order to tackle the variability and uncertainties of the wind farms generation. The impacts of merging ASDR and ToU are investigated through running a two-stage stochastic security constrained unit commitment (SCUC), separately

Abstract

Abstract
Simple statistical models were developed to relate available meteorological data with daily river discharge (RD) for rivers not influenced by melting of ice and snow. In a case study of the Vouga River (Portugal), the RD could be determined by a linear combination of the recent (P (R)) and non-recent (P (NR)) atmospheric precipitation history. It was found that a simple linear model including only P (R) and P (NR) cannot account for low RD. The model was improved by including non-linear terms of precipitation that accounted for the water loss. Additional improvement of the models was possible by including average monthly air temperature (T). The best model was robust when up to 60% of the original data were randomly removed. The advantage is the simplicity of the models, which take into account only P (R), P (NR) and T. These models can provide a useful tool for RD estimation from current meteorological data.

Abstract
This paper presents the work performed in the implementation of an underwater simulation environment for the development of an autonomous underwater vehicle for the exploration of flooded underground tunnels. In particular, the implementation of a laser based structured light system, multibeam sonar and other robot details were addressed. The simulation was used as a relevant tool in order to study and specify the robot multiple sensors characteristics and placement in order to adequately survey a realistic environment. A detailed description of the research and development work is presented along with the analysis of obtained results and the benefits this work brings to the project.

Abstract
AbstractParkin and PINK1 function in a common pathway to clear damaged mitochondria. Parkin exists in an auto-inhibited conformation stabilized by multiple interdomain interactions. The binding of PINK1-generated phospho-ubiquitin and the phosphorylation of the ubiquitin-like (Ubl) domain of Parkin at Ser65 release its auto-inhibition, but how and when these events take place in cells remain to be defined. Here we show that mutations that we designed to activate Parkin by releasing the Repressor Element of Parkin (REP) domain, or by disrupting the interface between the RING0:RING2 domains, can completely rescue mutations in the Parkin Ubl that are defective in mitochondrial autophagy. Using a FRET reporter assay we show that Parkin undergoes a conformational change upon phosphorylation that can be mimicked by mutating Trp403 in the REP. We propose a hierarchical model whereby pUb binding on mitochondria enables Parkin phosphorylation, which, in turn, leads to REP removal, E3 ligase activation and mitophagy.