Abstract
A problem faced by oil companies is the maintenance of the location register of pipelines that cross the surf zone, the regular survey of their location, and also their inspection. A survey of the state of art did not allow identifying operating systems capable of executing such tasks. Commercial technologies available on the market also do not address this problem and/or do not satisfy the presented requirements. A possible solution is to use robotic systems which have the ability to walk on the shore and in the surf zone, subject to existing currents and ripples, and being able to withstand these ambient conditions. In this sense, the authors propose the development of a spider crab biologically inspired robot to achieve those tasks. Based on these ideas, this work presents a biomechanical study of the spider crab, its modeling and simulation using the SimMechanics toolbox of Matlab/Simulink, which is the first phase of this more vast project. Results show a robot model that is moving in an "animal like" manner, the locomotion, the algorithm presented in this paper allows the crab to walk sideways, in the desired direction.

Abstract
The presented work allowed the creation of a quadruped robot model (with flexible body, its legs and its hip and knee joints) in the virtual simulation program SimmechanicsTM. The final objective is to use this simulation model to optimize quadruped robot locomotion. The model developed accepts different gaits by direct introduction of the angular positions of the knee and hip joints. Feet-ground interaction was also modelled using a theoretic model described in the literature.

Abstract
The European Project Semester (EPS) is a one-semester capstone project/internship programme offered to engineering, product design and business undergraduates by 18 European engineering schools. EPS aims to prepare future engineers to think and act globally by adopting project-based learning and teamwork methodologies. The EPS@ISEP programme – the EPS programme provided by ISEP – the School of Engineering of the Polytechnic Institute of Porto – started in 2011 and has since welcomed 3rd and 4th year mobility students during the spring semester. In particular, sustainable development is a pervasive concern within EPS projects. It was in this context that, in 2012, a team of EPS@ISEP students decided to develop a water disinfection system. While the technical goal of the project was to design and develop a fluid disinfection system for removing bacteria, viruses and seaweeds, the overall objective was far more ambitious: to help students learn, develop and adopt sustainable practices for their future professional life. The system was intended to be a simple and effective solution for water treatment and recycling. At a larger scale, the project contributes to the preservation of the planet's fresh water resources and to the improvement of the population’s health by eliminating harmful microorganisms from the water. This challenge was, by itself, motivational and exposed the team to new learning experiences. The team found several approaches for water treatment and, after a detailed analysis, decided to adopt Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation for the removal of microorganisms. This multidisciplinary real world problem drove the team during the semester. The team surveyed and compared different methods for water cleansing and recycling, chose one approach and, then, designed, built and tested the prototype. In addition, the students also addressed marketing, sustainability as well as the ethic and deontological issues regarding the proposed solution while developing cross-cultural understanding, teamwork and communication skills. The project provided an excellent opportunity to foster the concept of sustainable development amongst students.

Abstract
Due to the difficulty of building and making control tests in real robots, it is usual to first have a simulated model that provides a good approach of a real robot's behaviour. The importance of a good control system in execution of a planned trajectory inspired this work, whose purpose is to design a control system for a quadruped robot and test its performance.

Abstract
This paper provides an overview of the development of a selforiented solar mirror (SOSM) project within the European Project Semester (EPS) at Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto (ISEP). While the main objective of the EPS@ISEP project-based educational framework is to foster teamwork, communication, interpersonal and problem solving skills in an international, multidisciplinary engineering environment, the goal of the SOSM is to track and reflect the Sun radiation onto a pre-defined area. In the spring of 2017 a group of five students chose to develop a proof-of-concept domestic SOSM called SUNO. The students undertook project supportive modules in Ethics, Sustainability, Marketing and Project Management together with project coaching meetings to assist the development of SUNO. The paper details this process, describing the initial project definition, the research of current technologies, the designing, the manufacturing and testing of the SUNO prototype, and discusses what the students gained from this learning experience. © 2017 Association for Computing Machinery.

Abstract
One line of research and development in robotics receiving increasing attention in recent years is the development of biologically inspired walking robots. The purpose is to gain knowledge of biological beings and apply that knowledge to implement the same methods of locomotion ( or at least use the biological inspiration) on the machines we build. It is believed that this way it is possible to develop machines with capabilities similar to those of biological beings in terms of locomotion skills and energy efficiency. One way to better understand the functioning of these systems, without the need to develop prototypes with long and costly development, is to use simulation models. Based on these ideas, this work concerns the biomechanical study of the spider crab, using the SimMechanics toolbox of Matlab/Simulink. This paper describes the anatomy and locomotion of the spider crab, its modeling and control and the locomotion simulation of a crab within the SimMechanics environment.