Projects

Research funding (more than 2.5M€)

Principal Investigator of the following projects:

2002 NATO cooperation program (INVOTAN). Fellowship for incoming researcher, Funding: €10 000.

2003 NATO cooperation program (INVOTAN). Fellowship for incoming researcher, Funding: €10 000.

2003-2007 STABISAT-Attitude Motion, Passive and Semi-Passive Stabilization Systems of Satellites. Funding: €25 000 from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT).

2005-2006 Cooperation with the Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics, Moscow. Funding: €6 300 from FCT (Portugal-Russia Cultural Agreement).

2005-2008 COMSA - Power-Saving Control of Satellite Motion. Funding: €22 550 from FCT and the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER).

2005-2008 Passive and Hybrid Control Systems for Attitude and Orbital Satellite Motion. Cooperation between UBI, Technological Institute of Aeronautics, Brazil, and the National Institute for Space Research, Brazil, in the framework of the bilateral program Portugal-Brazil. Funding €23 000 from FCT and CAPES.

2007-2011 CODIS – Space Systems Dynamics and Control. Funding €80.000 from FCT, FEDER, the Portuguese Operational Program for Competitiveness Factors (COMPETE), and the Portuguese Strategic Reference Framework (QREN).

2008 ODySS – Orbital Dynamics of Space Systems, Cooperation with the Dorodnitsyn Computing Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics, Moscow. Funding €2 300 from FCT (Portugal-Russia Cultural Agreement).

2008-2010 CAST – Centre for Aerospace Science and Technologies, FCT Base funding €82 500.

2008-2012 DyCSol – Dynamics and Control of a Solar Sail. Cooperation with FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). Funding €5 000 from Portuguese University Rectors’ Council and DAAD (Portugal-Germany Integrated Actions).

2010-2013 ODySSea - Orbital Dynamics of Space Systems. Funding €148 620 from FCT, FEDER, COMPETE, and QREN.

2011-2017 Strategic Project C-MAST – Centre for Mechanical and Aerospace Science and Technologies. Funding €110 642 (2011-2013); €38 315 (2014); €243 432 (2015-2017) from FCT.

2017-2020 EMaDeS – Energy, Materials, and Sustainable Development. Funding: 1 370 135,23€ from CCDRC and FEDER.

UBI Team Coordinator in the following projects:

2017-2020 INFANTE – Satellite for marine applications and communications based on constellations. Total funding: 9.25M€, UBI: €297 055 (PROGRAMAS MOBILIZADORES, Portugal2020, ANI).

2019-2020 3-AMADEUS 3-Axis Magnetic Attitude Demonstration Experiment for a Unit Spacecraft, CEiiA and UBI.

2020 - 2023 MAGAL Constellation - Setting the cornerstone of a future ocean and climate change monitoring constellation, based on radar altimeter data combined with gravity and ocean temperature and salinity measurements. Business R&D - Cooperation Projects, International Partnerships, UT-Austin, FEDER, Portugal2020. Total funding: €1 294 540.39, UBI: €96 321.38.

Leading Research Fellow in the following projects:

2013-2015 Special Visiting Researcher, project conducted in the National Institute for Space Research in the framework of Brazilian Program “Science without Frontiers”.

2020-2021 Leading Research Fellow, Project “Study of Small Satellite Formation Flying Dynamics and Control” in the Moscow Center of Fundamental and Applied Mathematics (Russian National Program).

2020-2022 Leading Research Fellow, Project “The development of integrated optimization method and mathematical model of the spacecraft movement in ultra-low planets’ orbits” developed in Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI, Moscow, Russia) and funded by the Russian Science Foundation in the priority area of its activities “Fundamental and Exploratory Scientific Research on the Instructions of the President of the Russian Federation” (grants for leading scientists).

External funding for projects in Education (more than 400K€)

2005-2016 Coordinator of the International Workshop and Advanced School “Spaceflight Dynamics and Control”. Funding: €23 300 from Foundation for Scientific Community Support, FCT (2005-2008, 2010-2016); €14 600 from Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (Superior Education Development Program 2008, 2011); €6 400 from Luso-American Foundation for Development (2010, 2011, 2012), €12 000 from PROESPAÇO.

2002-2004 Task lider for “Multimedia applications and engineering education” in the Project SAMURAI: Serviços e Aplicações Multimédia em Ambiente Hospitalar, Universitário e Urbano, Funding €288 000 – Program PRAI-CENTRO, PI: Fernando J. Velez. Partners: UBI, Hospital of Cova da Beira, PT Inovação.

2004-2007 DEM-UBI Coordinator at the Project SEMENTE: Sistemas e Métodos de Ensino Usando Tecnologias de Informação Avançadas. Funding: €274 256 – Operational Program “Information Society” - POSI. Partners: Faculty of Health Science (FCS-UBI), Department of Electromechanical Engineering (DEM-UBI), Hospital of Cova da Beira, SA, Secondary School Campos Melo (Covilhã).

2007-2008 PI of the Project UBI-Active Learning. Funding €198 000 from the Operational Program Society of Knowledge, as an Innovative Project in Superior Education.

2018-2021 UBI Team coordinator of the Project NANOSTAR - Collaborating platform for the creation of nano European student satellites. Total funding: 2.3M€, UBI 150K€ (SUDOE, SOE2/P1/F0684).

Advising of Post-Doctoral Research

2009-2010 Dr Mª Cecília Pereira de Faria, “Dynamics of Solar Sail Stucture,” joint project with Technological Institute for Aeronautics (ITA), Brazil. ITA coordination by L. Góes.

2013 Dr Anatoli Khodorov, “Structural analysis of Space Energy Collector”.

2013 Dr Stepan Tkachev, “Study of angular motion and attitude control strategies for two-body system connected by 2DOF hinge”.

2013 Dr Dmitry Roldugin, “Study of the dynamics of the satellite subjected to gravitational and control magnetic torque”.

2014-2015 Dr Denilson Paulo Souza dos Santos, “Dynamics and Control of Space Tether System”. Joint project with INPE, Brazil. INPE coordination by A.F.B.A. Prado.

2017 - 2020 Dr Vasily Nikonov, “Tethered Space Systems”.

2018 - 2020 Dr Aaron Aw, “Space Tether Tension Control”.

2018 - 2020 Dr Dmitry Roldugin, “Mission INFANTE: orbit maintenance”.

2019 - 2020 Dr Danil Ivanov, “Mission INFANTE: attitude control”.

Advising of PhD Dissertations (concluded)

July 2009 Maria Cecília Pereira de Faria, “Orbital Dynamics and Attitude Control of a Compound Solar Sail,” Bilateral Portugal-Brazil Cooperation Program FCT-CAPES Fellowship. Currently Assistant Professor at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

November 2010 Ana Mª Vale Seabra, “Parameter Optimization of Mechanical Systems and Applications.” Currently Assistant Professor at the Viseu Polytechnic Institute, Portugal.

June 2012 Susana Valentina Martins Dias, “Differential Games and Stabilization.” FCT Research Grant Fellow. Currently Assistant Professor at the Viana de Castelo Polytechnic Institute, Portugal.

January 2013 Ricardo Luís da Costa Gama, “Stability of Solutions of Differential Inclusions by Averaging Method.” Currently Assistant Professor at the Viseu Polytechnic Institute, Portugal.