Blended Intensive Programme
in Embedded Systems

12-16 February, 2024, Online

11-15 March, 2024, Coimbra, Portugal

Embedded Systems

Embedded systems refer to specialized computing systems designed to perform dedicated functions within larger systems or devices. Unlike general-purpose computers, embedded systems are tailored to execute specific tasks efficiently and reliably. They are embedded into a variety of everyday devices and applications, such as consumer electronics, industrial machines, medical devices, automotive systems, and more. Embedded systems play a vital role in the functionality of numerous modern technologies, enhancing efficiency, automation, and overall performance in various industries.

Key characteristics of embedded systems include their real-time operation, where they must respond to stimuli within a specific time frame, and their integration into a host system to control or monitor its functionality. These systems often have resource constraints, such as limited processing power, memory, and energy consumption, making optimization a crucial consideration in their design. In spite of these stringent resource constraints, embedded systems are used in increasingly complex applications, demanding the use of advanced AI techniques and massively distributed operation in the Internet of Things and Edge Computing.

About The Event

The Coimbra Institute of Engineering (ISEC) from Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra (IPC) and partners are organizing a Blended Intensive Program (BIP) in Embedded Systems. This BIP will address topics relevant to Embedded System development, including hardware and software design, networking and applications. Topic complexity will range from introductory to more specialized, including applications in robotics, energy control, artificial intelligence, internet of things (IoT) and edge computing. An invited speaker from the industry will be featured, and a visit to an industrial partner is also planned. Several social activities are also planned, including a BIP dinner and guided tour.

The teaching methodology includes online sessions and presential lectures and workshops, where the students will have the opportunity to explore the discussed topics in a practical laboratory setting. Students will be challenged to develop some practical projects that will allow them to apply and practice the knowledge they acquire during the BIP.

Target Audience and Credits

The BIP target audience includes late Bachelor and early Master students in the area of Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering and similar programmes. The BIP is worth 3 ECTS.

Speakers

Thomas Herpoel

Thomas Herpoel herpoelt@helha.be

Thomas Herpoel has been a research engineer in electronics at CeREF Technique since 2017. He has been working on various project, including motor control for space applications and embedded devices in the automotive sector. His current project is about the efficient application of machine learning models in ultra low power embedded systems. He also serves as a lecturer in power electronics and embedded programming at the Engineering School of HELHa College, in addition to being a trainer for continuing education courses for the IFPC.

Rolf Schuster

Rolf Schuster rolf.schuster@fh-dortmund.de

Rolf is a telecoms- and IT-industry leader with a broad set of experiences from executive roles in large international corporations as well as start-up companies. Currently, Rolf is holding the computer science chair on Embedded Software at the Fachhochschule Dortmund, Germany. His research focus is Edge Computing. Before Rolf was the Director of the Open Edge Computing Initiative, which brings together worldwide leading telecom companies, to shape the global eco-system of Edge Computing. Rolf has published numerous books and articles in the area of video processing, e-business, innovation management, internet payment systems and edge computing.

Janusz Jakubiak

Janusz Jakubiak janusz.jakubiak@pwr.edu.pl

I am an assistant professor at Wrocław University of Science and Technology, in the Department of Cybernetics and Robotics. My research is related with mobile robots systems. It focuses on motion planning and control, robotic system integration, and coordination of groups of robots. My interests involve the application of embedded systems and new advanced sensors to complex robotic systems.

Pablo Garcia

Pablo Garcia garciafpablo@uniovi.es

Pablo García (Senior Member, IEEE) was born in Luanco, Asturias, Spain. He received the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Oviedo, Gijon, Spain, in 2001 and 2006, respectively. In 2004, he was a Visiting Scholar with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA. In 2013, he was a Visiting Scholar with The University of Nottingham, Nottingham, U.K. He is currently a Full Professor with the Department of Electrical, Electronics, Communications and Systems Engineering, University of Oviedo. Since 2022, he has been with the Spanish Research Agency as the Manager for international projects in the Energy and Transport division area. His research interest includes control of grid-tied power converters for distributed resources integration and particularly for the control of grid-tied battery energy storage systems, parameter estimation, optimization of distributed resources, and digital signal processing for real-time embedded systems. He is the coauthor of near 40 journal papers and 80 conference papers. Dr. García was a recipient of the 2005 IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications, Third Place Prize Paper Award, three IEEE Industry Applications Society Conference prize paper awards in 2006, 2010, and 2016, respectively and one EPE Conference Award in 2018 and was also a fellowship for the national research and training program by the Ministry of Science and Technology in Spain, from 2002 to 2006. He is a member of the LEMUR research group. He has been the Principal Investigator of 50 projects with companies, one European H2020, and four national funded projects. He is the co-founder of the ENFASYS startup, focused on the development of solutions for the integration of energy storage and collaborative self-consumption applications.

Islam Mahmoud Hassan

Islam Mahmoud Hassan islam@uniovi.es

Islam El-Sayed was born in Zagazig, Egypt, in 1984. He received the B.Sc. degree in electrical engineering from Zagazig University, Zagazig, in 2006, and the Ph.D. degree from the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Systems Engineering, University of Oviedo, Gijón, Spain, in 2012. His ongoing research is connected with the application of big data, and visual analytics to power systems analysis. He also works in the development of techniques to allow the massive penetration of new technologies like the Internet of Things in low-voltage distribution systems.

Fernanda Coutinho

Fernanda Coutinho fermaco@isec.pt

Fernanda Coutinho is a Professor at the Coimbra Institute of Engineering. She concluded her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering at University of Coimbra in the area of Medical Robotics. She has been responsible for teaching activities in the area of embedded systems for almost 30 years. Her current research interests include medical devices, metrology, robotics, and embedded systems. She is a Researcher at the Institute of Systems and Robotics from University of Coimbra (ISR-UC) and at RCM2+ Research Centre for Asset Management and Systems Engineering from Polytechnic of Coimbra, and she is also the Workshop Leader for Robotics at TUMO Coimbra. She is the Institutional Representative of ISEC at the Euclides Network and the Chair of the Erasmus+ BIP in Embedded Systems.

João Cunha

João Cunha jcunha@isec.pt

João Cunha is a Professor at the Department of Informatics and Systems Engineering, ISEC, Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra. With a PhD in Informatics Engineering from the University of Coimbra, he has been teaching courses at both Bachelor and Master levels, focusing on Software Engineering, Project Management, Software Testing, Computer Architecture, Real-Time Systems, and Systems Reliability. He has a background in research and knowledge transfer, contributing to projects with academic institutions and companies in areas such as dependability, embedded systems, project management, and software quality.

João Durães

João Durães jduraes@isec.pt

João Durães is as professor at the ISEC/IPC where he is responsible for Object Oriented Programming and Operating Systems Courses. He has been with the ISEC since 1995, having been involved in courses related to Software Engineering and Programming at general. He received his B.S., M.Sc., and PhD in Informatics Engineering from the University of Coimbra in 1994, 1999, and 2006 respectively. He has a long-standing involvement with the Software and Systems Engineering research group of the Centre for Informatics and Systems of the University of Coimbra since 1994, first a as graduate student and then as a full member. His research areas are mainly focused on software reliability, and his contributions and published works include novel techniques and models concerning software fault injection, dependability benchmarking and security evaluation, and participated on several national and European research projects in this area.

José Alberto Fonseca

José Alberto Fonseca jaf@microio.pt

Jose Fonseca has been Associate Professor of Electronics at University of Aveiro from 2000 to 2023. In 1998 he was one of the founders of Microio, a company specialized in Integrated Management and Embedded Systems. At the University and at his research unit, the Telecommunications Institute, he worked in industrial communication systems, distributed embedded systems and real-time systems. He published more than 100 papers in those subjects, several book chapters and organized several international conferences of IFAC and IEEE. Microio was a former spin-off company of the University of Aveiro, founded in 1998. Microio develops embedded systems and integrates those with communications and software to create integrated management systems for education and enterprises. Its main activity is in secondary schools and universities. In the former market Microio holds 80% of the Portuguese establishments serving more than 1 million users. Microio also works for large companies such as post, motorway and food and beverage companies developing vending, smart locker and communication solutions.

Marco Silva

Marco Silva msilva@isec.pt

He has a degree in Industrial Electronic Engineering from the University of Minho and a master's degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Coimbra. He is currently an Assistant at the Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra. His main research interests are development of electronic and embedded systems, biomedical devices, and intelligent transportation systems.

Jorge Barreiros

Jorge Barreiros jmsousa@isec.pt

Jorge Barreiros is an Adjunct Professor at ISEC, the Engineering School of the Polytechnic of Coimbra. He has a Ph.D. in Computer Science, specializing in Software Engineering. His interests include software requirements, software architecture and design, advanced data structures, software testing and quality assurance, and he is experienced with low-level embedded programming, real-time kernels and real-time systems.

Pedro Amaro

Pedro Amaro amaro@isec.pt

Pedro Nogueira Amaro, has a degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Coimbra (1991) and a Master's degree from the Technical University of Lisbon/ Instituto Superior Técnico (2004). He obtained his PhD degree from the University of Coimbra in 2015, in the specialty of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Computers. He was a researcher at the Energy Management Laboratory (UC), Nuclear Fusion Center (CFN/IST), and Inesc-ID Candence Lisbon Center. He has been a professor at the Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Coimbra since 1996. He was an integrated member and collaborator of the Institute of Systems and Robotics - Coimbra. He is currently a member of CERNAS - Center for Natural Resources, Environment and Society as a researcher. He is interested in the areas of Embedded Systems/Electronic Systems, Internet of Things systems, as well as the implementation of digital circuits in FPGAs.

Sérgio Correia

Sérgio Correia scorreia@ipportalegre.pt

Prof. Sérgio D. Correia received his Diploma in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Coimbra, Portugal, in 2000, his Master's Degree in Industrial Control and Maintenance Systems from Beira Interior University, Covilhã, Portugal, in 2010, and the Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Coimbra, Portugal, in 2020. Currently, he is an Associate Professor at the Portalegre Polytechnic University, Portugal. He is also a Researcher at COPELABS - Cognitive and People-centric Computing Research Center, Lusofona University of Humanities and Technologies, Lisbon, Portugal, and VALORIZA - Research Center for Endogenous Resource Valorization, Portalegre Polytechnic University, Portalegre, Portugal, and has worked with several private companies for more than 20 years. His current research interests are Embedded Artificial Intelligence, Soft Computing, Embedded Systems, and Computer Architecture, topics on which he is an editor of several scientific journals, collaborator at several International Conferences, and guest professor at several European universities.

Online Program

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Fernanda Coutinho

Welcome session

Fernanda Coutinho, Polytechnic of Coimbra

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Fernanda Coutinho

Embedded Systems Primer

Fernanda Coutinho, Polytechnic of Coimbra

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Thomas Herpoel

USB devices on embedded Systems - Part 1

Thomas Herpoel, HELHa University

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João Durães

C Language Primer

João Durães, Polytechnic of Coimbra

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Jorge Barreiros

Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS)

Jorge Barreiros, Polytecnic of Coimbra

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Rolf Schuster

Edge Computing - Introduction

Rolf Schuster, Dortmund University

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Sérgio Correia

Quantization Methods for Efficient Neural Networks Inference

Sérgio Correia, Polytechnic of Portalegre

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Thomas Herpoel

Porting Machine Learning on microcontrollers

Thomas Herpoel, HELHa University

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Islam Mahmoud Hassan

IoT from Pins to Pixels

Islam Mahmoud Hassan, Oviedo University

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Janusz Jakubiak

ROS2: bridging desktop and embedded systems - Part 1

Janusz Jakubiak, Wrocław University of Science and Technology

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Pablo Garcia

Applications of embedded systems for the integration of distributed energy resources in the electrical grid: state of the art and future perspectives

Pablo Garcia, Oviedo University

In-person Program

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Reception Ceremony

ISEC Representatives and Fernanda Coutinho

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Industrial Partner Presentation

José Alberto Fonseca, MicroIO

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Coffee-break

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Janusz Jakubiak

ROS2: bridging desktop and embedded systems - Part 2

Janusz Jakubiak, Wrocław University of Science and Technology

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Lunch break

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Parallel Workshop

Track 1

Pedro Amaro

Field-Programmable Gate Arrays in Embedded System Development

Pedro Amaro, Polytechnic of Coimbra

Track 2

Marco Silva

Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Design

Marco Silva, Polytechnic of Coimbra

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Pablo Garcia

Embedded Systems for Energy

Pablo Garcia, University of Oviedo

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Coffee-break

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Parallel Workshop

Track 1

Islam Mahmoud Hassan

Simplified IoT: Solutions with the Node-RED platform

Islam Mahmoud Hassan Oviedo University

Track 2

Thomas Herpoel

USB devices on embedded Systems - Part 2

Thomas Herpoel, HELHa University

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Lunch break

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Parallel Workshop

Track 1

Marco Silva

Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Design

Marco Silva, Polytechnic of Coimbra

Track 2

Pedro Amaro

Field-Programmable Gate Arrays in Embedded System Development

Pedro Amaro, Polytechnic of Coimbra

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Rolf Schuster

Edge Computing – Challenges and Solutions

Rolf Schuster, Dortmund University

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Coffee-break

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Sérgio Correia

Embedded Artificial Intelligence - A Case Study

Sérgio Correia, Polytechnic of Portalegre

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Lunch break

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Parallel Workshop

Track 1

Thomas Herpoel

USB devices on embedded Systems - Part 2

Thomas Herpoel, HELHa University

Track 2

Islam Mahmoud Hassan

Simplified IoT: Solutions with the Node-RED platform

Islam Mahmoud Hassan, Oviedo University

to

Parallel Workshop

Track 1

Thomas Herpoel

Porting Machine Learning on microcontrollers

Thomas Herpoel, HELHa University

Track 2

João Cunha

Agile Methodologies for Embedded Software Development

João Cunha, Polytechnic of Coimbra

to

Parallel Workshop

Track 1

João Cunha

Agile Methodologies for Embedded Software Development

João Cunha, Polytechnic of Coimbra

Track 2

Thomas Herpoel

Porting Machine Learning on microcontrollers

Thomas Herpoel, HELHa University

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Visit to industrial Partner

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Parallel Workshop

Track 1

Student Project: Development and Testing

Track 2

Student Project: Development and Testing

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Lunch break

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Parallel Workshop

Track 1

Student Project: Development and Testing

Track 2

Student Project: Development and Testing

Social event

Dinner

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Project presentations

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Coffee-break

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Evaluation and Farewell Cerimony

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Lunch break

Social event

Guided Tour

Event Venue

Coimbra Institute of Engineering, Coimbra, Portugal

Download traveling information

Hotel 1

HOTEL IBIS

6 minutes/2 Km from ISEC

Booking:h1672@accor.com

Address: Hotel Ibis Coimbra Centro, n°70 Edificio Topazio, Avenida Emídio Navarro, 3000-150 Coimbra

Bus: 24T at “Coimbra Parque”; 33 at Avenida Emídio Navarro

Hotel 2

RIVER SUITS HOTEL

5 minutes /3,6 km from ISEC

Booking:geral@riversuites.pt

Address: Av. João das Regras 82, 3040-266 Coimbra, Portugal

Bus: 24T (cross Santa Clara’s bridge to “Coimbra Parque”); 33 at Avenida Emídio Navarro

Hotel 3

HOTEL ASTORIA

7 minutes/3 Km from ISEC

Booking:astoria@almeidahotels.com

Address: Av. Emidio Navarro nº 21 · 3000-150 · Coimbra

Bus: 24T at “Coimbra Parque”; 33 at Avenida Emídio Navarro

Hotel 1

HOTEL ALMEDINA

8 minutes/4 Km from ISEC

Booking:manager@almedinacoimbra.com

Address: Comfort Inn Almedina-Coimbra, Av. Fernão de Magalhães, 199, 3000-176 Coimbra

Bus: 24T at “Palácio da Justiça”

Hotel 1

HOTEL TIVOLI

8 minutes/4 Km from ISEC

Booking:sandra.bem@tivolihotels.com

Address: João Machado Street • 3000-226 • Coimbra • Portugal

Bus: 24T at “Palácio da Justiça”



Host

Coimbra Institute of Engineering from Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra, supported by the European Commission and Euclides Network

Co-organizers

Haute École Louvain en Hainaut (HELHa), Belgium

Fachhochschule Dortmund, University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Germany

Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland

University of Oviedo, Spain

Portalegre Polytechnic University, Portugal

Contact Us

Dália Pires (International Relations Office of ISEC)

ri@isec.pt

Fernanda Coutinho (Chair)

fermaco@isec.pt