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This paper aims at evaluating the possibility of using wearable mobile mapping solutions as a tool for detecting deflections in timber floors. These construction systems are prone to present this type of damage due to the mechanical properties of the wood (relatively low flexural stiffness and creep behaviour). During this study we have evaluated the chance of introducing an additional stage to the general workflow. This stage is devoted to reduce the noise of the 3D point cloud by using the Statistical Outlier Removal filter in combination with a noise-reduction filter such as the Anisotropic filter, the PointCleannet or the Scored-based denoised networks (Deep Learning methods). According with our results, the use of this strategies improves the quality of the 3D point cloud form a qualitative and quantitative point of view. However, these improvements seem to be not sufficient for using this product as a universal source of information for deflection analysis. In this sense, and according with the sensor and study case exploited, this type of point clouds could be used in floors with 5-8-meter length and a relative deflection of about L/200 or higher.

Many masonry historical bridges are still under service, particularly in Europe. Their significant cultural value, key role in transportation network systems and deterioration condition requires assessing their safety with respect to different scenarios, particularly earthquakes, which masonry structures are inherently vulnerable. This assessment requires collecting detailed information such as geometry, material properties, boundary conditions and existing damages to construct reliable numerical models. However, their significant cultural value prevents conducting destructive and even minor-destructive tests. The structural assessment of Barcelos Bridge, a medieval stone masonry arch bridge in northern Portugal, by means of a numerical approach is discussed in the current article. In this regard, a 3D advanced finite element model was prepared, in which the external geometry and internal morphology were extracted from laser scanning and ground penetrating radar survey, respectively. Then, outcomes of indirect sonic tests were adopted to characterize material characteristics and dynamic properties (i.e. frequencies and mode shapes) obtained from ambient dynamic identification were employed to update the FE model. Two load scenarios including gravity and lateral transversal loadings were taken into account to assess the performance of the bridge. Thus, incremental nonlinear pushdown and pushover analyses were performed, which resulted in evaluating current safety level of the bridges and possible failure modes., (undefined)

Bridges present valuable assets for the rail network by providing cross critical links such as waterways, valleys, and other types of facilities. However, these types of structures, during their life-cycle, are exposed to several threats such as natural hazards and deterioration. In fact, the lack of maintenance can lead to large consequences either for the structure, such as the partial or total collapse of the system, or for people. To assess the condition state of bridges, several performance indicators, of both quantitative and qualitative nature, have been proposed over these last decades by several researchers. Such indicators present a valuable information about the actual condition of the bridge to avoid undesirable consequences. These performance indicators are assessed over time through predictive models and can be determinist or probabilistic. The latter has been largely applied once they allow considering uncertainties associated with deterioration of the bridge. It is known that the deterioration of an infrastructure it is due to progressive deterioration (e.g., corrosion of the reinforcement, cracking of the concrete) and shock deterioration (e.g. earthquakes, collisions, floods). The idea of this paper is then to analyse a railway bridge and develop a framework that can consider gradual degradation to develop an optimal maintenance schedule.

A management system is a decision-making tool that uses mathematical models to predict the future condition of the infrastructures as well as to make recommendations to the project managers. Generally, an infrastructure management system shall include a system for processing and analysing data, predicting deterioration, proposing maintenance actions, forecasting costs, obtaining optimal solutions and defining strategies that considers the political and economic constraints. The focus on this paper will be the module regarding the definition of cost-models. During its life cycle, bridges are exposed to several issues that can compromise their functionality. In this way, performing maintenance and rehabilitation actions and establishing cost models are very important tasks to keep the bridge functions according to the demands of the society. In the field of bridge engineering, the cost models can be used for different purposes such as the definition of optimum maintenance policies and project investment alternatives. Also, they are very important for the decision-making process once they cover several aspects related to the decisions about the system’s performance and decisions that are influenced by social-economic aspects. Hence, the idea of this paper is to discuss different approaches of how the cost-models are evaluated over a life cycle of a bridge due different scenarios of maintenance and rehabilitation with an application to a case study., The authors would like to thank to ISISE – Institute for Sustainability and Innovation in Structural Engineering and FCT – Portuguese Scientific Foundation under the iRail PhD program. The last author also like to thank to CONSTRUCT – Institute of R&D in Structures and Construction. Also, authors would like to thank to GEG- Engineering Structures for Life by providing the case study.

This study investigated the effect of the coach leadership style as perceived by athletes on team cohesion among elite futsal athletes. Participants were 120 athletes from the top-8 teams participating in the Paraná’s state Professional League 2013. Instruments used were the Leadership in Sport Scale and the Group Environment Questionnaire. For data analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Structural Equation Modelling were conducted, as well as Latent Profile Analysis. Results showed significant relationships between leadership style and both social (10%) and task cohesion (31%); in addition, the coach leadership style perceived by athletes characterized as democratic and based on social support, reinforcement and training-instruction influenced positively task cohesion (FL=0.55) and moderately social cohesion (FL=0.31). It is concluded that, for the futsal from the state of Parana, the coach’s leadership style based on democratic, reinforcement, social support and training-instruction behaviours is determinant to the development of task cohesion, however, does not have the same strong influence in social cohesion. Resumen: Este estudio investigó el efecto del estilo de liderazgo del entrenador percibido por los atletas sobre la cohesión del equipo entre los atletas de futsal de élite. Los participantes fueron 120 atletas de los ocho mejores equipos que participaran en la Liga Profesional del estado de Paraná-Brasil en 2013. Los instrumentos utilizados fueron la Escala de Liderazgo en el Deporte y el Cuestionario de Medio Ambiente Grupal. Para los análisis de datos, se realizaron análisis factorial confirmatoria, modelado de ecuaciones estructurales y análisis de perfil latente. Los resultados mostraron relaciones significativas entre el estilo de liderazgo y la cohesión social (10%) y la cohesión para tarea (31%); Además, el estilo de liderazgo del entrenador percibido por los atletas caracterizados como democráticos y basados en el apoyo social, el refuerzo y la instrucción de entrenamiento influyó positivamente en la cohesión de la tarea (FL = 0,55) y la cohesión social moderada (FL = 0,31). Se concluye que, para el futsal del estado de Paraná, el estilo de liderazgo del entrenador basado en comportamientos democráticos, de refuerzo, de apoyo social y de instrucción de entrenamiento es determinante para el desarrollo de la cohesión de la tarea, sin embargo, no tiene la misma influencia fuerte en la cohesión social. Resumo: Este estudo investigou o efeito do estilo de liderança do treinador, como percebido pelos atletas, sobre a coesão de grupo de atletas de futsal de elite. A amostra foi composta por 120 atletas das oito melhores equipes participantes da Série Ouro do Campeonato Paranaense de Futsal em 2013. Os instrumentos utilizados foram a Escala de Liderança no Esporte e o Questionário de Ambiente de Grupo. Para análise dos dados foram conduzidas a Análise Fatorial Confirmatória, Modelagem de Equações Estruturais e Análise de Perfil Latente. Os resultados mostraram relações significativas entre o estilo de liderança e a coesão social (10%) e coesão para tarefa (31%); além disso, o estilo de liderança do treinador, percebido pelos atletas, caracterizado como democrático e baseado no apoio social, no reforço e no treino-instrução influenciou positivamente a coesão para tarefa (FL = 0,55) e a coesão social (FL = 0,31). Concluiu-se que, para o futsal do estado do Paraná, o estilo de liderança do treinado baseado em comportamentos democráticos, de reforço, de apoio social e instrução ao treinamento é determinante para o desenvolvimento de coesão voltada a tarefa, entretanto, não tem a mesma influência forte na coesão social.

O trabalho teve como objetivo a avaliação da produtividade de três linhagens avançadas de pimenta do tipoJalapeño amarelo, assim como a determinação dos parâmetros de produção de sementes genéticas de linhagens e posterior avaliação da qualidade fisiológica dessas sementes. Suplemento. Trabalho apresentado no 53. Congresso Brasileiro de Olericultura, jul. 2014.

Suplemento. Trabalho apresentado na 53 Congresso Brasileiro de Olericultura, jul. 2014.

Schist constructions represent an important cultural, architectural and historical legacy in Europe, and particularly in Portugal, that urges to preserve. Included among the traditional Portuguese architectural heritage, there are many traditional buildings in schist masonry, distributed from North to South, varying the types of buildings, the constructive methodologies and even the material schist, which may vary in properties and characteristics, depending on the region where it is extracted. Over the years, this traditional architecture has implemented a sustainable construction through the use of natural materials available in the region, as today it is desired to implement in the contemporary construction practice. The constructive techniques and solutions of these traditional structures have been developed in direct relation with various factors as economic, environmental and social, adapting to different requirements over the time, originating a wide diversity of construction typologies that today exist in Portugal. The present study intends to describe and characterize the different building typologies of the traditional schist construction in Portugal mainland. Examples of more prominent constructions, considering its dimensions and/or patrimonial importance are presented and analyzed.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-29T14:10:06Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 tese_2567_DISSERTAÇÃO Avaliação Assistida Informatizada [OLIVEIRA, 2009].pdf: 2530115 bytes, checksum: a6482e6c1be7f15ecfb855bb7d7c7368 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-08-28 A identificação e a avaliação de crianças com desenvolvimento atípico configuram um processo muito importante para subsidiar as estratégias de ensino voltadas para a promoção do potencial de aprendizagem. O interesse em relação ao prognóstico de crianças com deficiência tem impulsionado o desenvolvimento de novas tecnologias e pesquisas relacionadas à avaliação, prevenção e intervenção. Neste contexto, torna-se relevante verificar com instrumentos adequados indicadores lingüísticos, cognitivos e comportamentais, para assim traçar metas a partir daquilo que elas podem aprender. Dessa forma, esta pesquisa teve por objetivo verificar se a avaliação assistida informatizada se apresenta como uma modalidade de diagnóstico mais prescritivo do desenvolvimento cognitivo, quando comparada à avaliação psicométrica, na aplicação em crianças com deficiência. Na modalidade assistida há ajuda do examinador para conduzir a criança a um melhor nível de desempenho cognitivo. Participaram dessa pesquisa 11 crianças que freqüentam uma instituição de atendimento clínico, em saúde, para crianças com deficiência, na Grande Vitória. Na avaliação psicométrica foram utilizados a Escala de Maturidade Mental Colúmbia computadorizada Colúmbiacomp e o Teste de Vocabulário por Imagens Peabody - TVIPcomp. Na avaliação assistida informatizada, foram aplicadas as três provas voltadas para as habilidades de classificação e raciocínio analógico: Exclusão de Objetos, Exclusão de Figuras Geométricas e Jogo de Analogia de Figuras, no ambiente informatizado SINDAPSI. Utilizou-se também os protocolos de registro de fatores afetivo-motivacionais e de operações cognitivas apresentados durante a tarefa. Na avaliação do comportamento, o Child Behavior Checklist CBCL foi respondido pelas mães. Dados documentais e dos instrumentos foram submetidos à análise estatística descritiva para verificar o desempenho das crianças nas duas formas de avaliação informatizada (psicométrica e assistida). Nos testes psicométricos, 64% das crianças alcançaram índice abaixo da média no TVIPcomp, e 55% médio-inferior no Columbiacomp. Em relação ao perfil de desempenho cognitivo, na Prova de Exclusão de Objetos computadorizada 55% das crianças foram avaliadas como não-mantenedoras. Na Prova de Exclusão de Figuras Geométricas computadorizada 55% da amostra foi classificada no perfil alto-escore, e no Jogo de Analogias de Figuras computadorizado 45% apresentou o perfil ganhador. A amostra demonstrou níveis de dificuldade na realização dos testes, tanto na modalidade psicométrica quanto assistida. Contudo, o desempenho nos testes assistidos foi relativamente melhor, evidenciando que o grupo se beneficiou da mediação, implementada na fase de assistência, para melhorar as habilidades cognitivas. Além disso, a apresentação informatizada dos testes apresentou-se como motivadora para a realização e persistência nas tarefas.

O Alentejo possui um vasto património construído em taipa, apesar de o recurso a esta técnica construtiva ter-se tornado residual nas últimas décadas. Este património tradicional gera alguma preocupação relativamente à sua segurança sísmica, uma vez que esta região apresenta uma perigosidade sísmica moderada e as construções em terra são geralmente associadas a uma vulnerabilidade sísmica elevada. Contudo, existe uma falta acentuada de conhecimento sobre o desempenho sísmico das construções tradicionais de taipa do Alentejo, não permitindo concluir sobre a sua estabilidade estrutural.Este trabalho pretende contribuir para uma melhor compreensão da vulnerabilidade sísmica das construções tradicionais de taipa do Alentejo através da aplicação de uma metodologia de avaliação simplificada do comportamento no plano e fora do plano das paredes de uma amostra de vinte edifícios. Esta metodologia incluiu o cálculo de índices geométricos e uma análise cinemática linear simples. O estudo realizado sugere que o comportamento sísmico destas construções beneficia das suas caraterísticas arquitetónicas tradicionais., An important rammed earth built heritage can still be found in Alentejo, despite its use became marginal during the last decades. This traditional heritage rises some level of awareness with regard to its seismic safety since this region is characterised by moderate seismic hazard and earth constructions are often associated with a high seismic vulnerability. Nevertheless, the existing knowledge is insufficient to correctly assess the seismic performance of traditional rammed earth constructions from Alentejo and conclude about their structural stability. This work contributes for a better comprehension of the seismic vulnerability of rammed earth constructions from Alentejo by means of a simplified methodology for assessment of the in-plane and out-of-plane behaviour of walls from twenty selected buildings. This methodology included the computation of geometry-based indexes and a simple linear kinematic analysis. The conducted study indicates that the seismic behaviour of these constructions benefits from their traditional architectonic features., OCI-01-0145-FEDER-007633; POCI-01-0145-FEDER-01673; PTDC/ECM-EST/2777/2014; SFRH/BD/131006/2017. FEDER através do Programa Operacional Fatores de Competitividade - COMPETE e por fundos nacionais através da Fundação para Ciência e a Tecnologia - FCT

Rammed earth buildings represent a considerable portion of the existing vernacular building stock of several countries and they are very common in the southern region of Portugal. The historical and architectural values of these constructions, along with their recognized high seismic vulnerability, have made the structural rehabilitation of earthen buildings a priority among the scientific community. Despite some recent studies, the prediction of the seismic response of these buildings is still a challenging task. This paper presents the results of a numerical investigation on the seismic behaviour of a representative rammed earth building located in Alentejo (South of Portugal). Numerical analyses are performed on a plain and a strengthened building, by means of an advanced finite element modelling approach. A low-cost textile reinforced mortar (LC-TRM) composite is adopted to strengthen the earthen construction. Pushover analyses by mass-based lateral load pattern are performed to investigate the effect of the adopted strengthening solution. The results are discussed in terms of capacity curves and failure mechanisms.

The sudden collapses in Italy (Civic Tower of Pavia 1989, Noto Cathedral, 1996) initiated the research into long term behaviour of historical masonry structures. Last decade, international ad hoc collaboration was established within several research institutes in Europe. The testing on masonry samples identified the creep behaviour as a possible cause of the collapse of historical masonry buildings. Secondly, research focused on the study of the factors affecting creep (rate of loading, stress level...) and efforts were made to set up the most suitable testing procedures to understand the phenomenon. The gained insight in the long term behaviour and its description by means of rheological models, is validated mainly by means of long term testing, identifying significant parameters (strain rate of secondary creep phase, damage parameters...). This contribution merges the ample experiences gathered over a period of more than 15 years and drafts a first guideline for a common description of the test setup, testing procedure, data-acquisition and -processing., The financial support provided by the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation through the POCI/ECM/58987/2004 project is gratefully acknowledged. The authors of KULeuven express their thanks to the Flemish Fund for Scientific Research (FWO) for the doctoral grant, offered to Els Verstrynge and highly appreciate the mutual collaboration with the different research institutes within this research area.