Abstract
Flipped Classroom approach was implemented in an Automation course with around 100 students. Videos focused on GRAFCET topics were given to students prior to class and problem-based challenges were solved in class by the students in a collaborative way. The teacher’s role was to guide students in their learning process. The goal was to identify students’ behavior regarding this learning approach, and the videos in particular, by using questionnaires. Result analysis shows a positive feedback from students motivating teachers to enlarge this learning approach to other courses. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021.

Abstract
Practice is of the essence in Engineering courses. A relevant question in control engineering education is: How to close the gap between theory and practice? Once subjects are introduced in theoretical classes, students want to know about its practical use. Thus, it is important to introduce theoretical control concepts with practical experiments, enabling students to easily test and validate the theory. An Arduino based temperature control laboratory (TCLab) is deployed in this study as a portable kit providing students with a simple and effective means to test some feedback control techniques. Teaching/learning experiments are proposed involving proportional, integral and derivative controllers with Feedforward and Cascade control structures. Preliminary results achieved in a Portuguese university are presented. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021.

Abstract
The study analyzed several instruments of the master-integrated course in Electrical and Computer Engineering at a Portuguese Public University. The institutional drivers responsible for adopting new methodologies in the course were evaluated. A case study was carried out with a qualitative approach based on mixed methods: a statistical analysis applied to textual corpus and complemented by content analysis. As a result, two classes of content analysis emerged: skills and knowledge expected from students; and aspects of training in Electrical Engineering and the study cycle. Seven drivers were identified for the adoption of new methodologies in the course, based on the theories of diffusion of innovation and institutional theory: training, development, competence, study cycle, new, technology, and UC. Each of these drivers has its outcomes, 16 in total, which shows the effects perceived by the teachers, course coordinators and evaluators.

Abstract
While living in a digital era, both teachers and students of Engineering Courses were not ready for the drastic change associated with the Covid-19 first confinement (March 2020). This forced change from a presential mode to a fully on-line mode provided teaching/leaning difficulties as well as new opportunities. Moreover, as most engineering courses require laboratory practice, on-line teaching raised additional challenges. This paper reports two different experiences in two different Control Engineering university courses in the North of Portugal. The goal is to share some learning tools that are particularly relevant in the pandemic time we are living: pocket-sized laboratory kits that students can easily take home and experience real-world control contents; an open Mural that can serve as an exchange of knowledge. Perceptions received both from students and lecturers regarding these two experiments are presented.

Abstract
Innovative teaching-learning methodologies in the fields of Control, Automation and Robotics are of great interest to researchers, educators and students. Nowadays there is a wide range of technological options available that can be used to improve learning and motivate students in their knowledge acquisition and skills development. Concepts such as Pocket-Sized Labs, Virtual and Remote Labs, as well as Web-Based Learning, are increasingly included in the teaching-learning processes, where students are expected to acquire their knowledge as active and central elements in the entire process. This article focuses on the review of various teaching-learning methodologies in the fields of Control, Automation and Robotics, taking several aspects into account: the portability and low cost of devices and applications, the possibility of autonomous and distance learning and centering of the learning process in the student. The conclusions drawn allow us to state that it is possible to apply innovative, effective and motivating methodologies with tools, devices and applications that are both low-cost and easy to access. It can also be inferred that the future of teaching demands a radical departure from the traditional methodologies, as well as taking advantage of technologies and students' skills to use and put them into practice.

Abstract
Multiple traveling salesman problem (mTSP) is a variant of the famous and standard traveling salesman problem, an NP-hard problem in combinatorial optimization. This kind of problem can be solved using exact methods but usually results in high exponential computational complexities. Heuristics and metaheuristics are required to overcome this shortcoming. This study proposes a hybrid method based on the Genetic Algorithm, Ant Colony Optimization, and 2-opt to improve the solution. Computational results with some benchmark instances are provided and compared with other published studies. In three instances, the proposed technique provides better results than the best-known solutions reported in the literature.