Sílvio Mendes | 110 anos do Técnico

Author Archive

Episode 51: The 1st piece of reinforced concrete

Friday, June 17th, 2022

The Civil Engineering Museum, at Técnico, hosts a piece of a compound with more than a century that bears witness to the first reinforced concrete building in Portugal, dated 1898 – the Fábrica de Moagem do Caramulo, in Almada, which was rebuilt after a fire that occurred one year before. Only 20 years later, reinforced concrete would become of paramount importance for construction in Portugal, including the Técnico Alameda campus, in Lisbon.

This piece of reinforced concrete, which consists of a steel rod and cement, arrived at Técnico in the 1990s, and measures nearly a span.

Acknowledgements:
José Manuel Gaspar Nero
Júlio Appleton
Museu de Civil

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 50: Portugal, the Hydro Glider

Friday, June 10th, 2022

Built by Artur Varela Cid, as a student at Técnico, the “Portugal” reached an altitude of 140 meters on its maiden flight in 1934. Near the Doca do Bom Sucesso, at Torre de Belém, in Lisboa, “Portugal” became the third hydro glider to fly around the world, at a time when the knowledge of aeronautics was developing at a great pace. It flew a second and last time in Póvoa de Santa Iria and from there it went into rest, but since then it is also part of engineering history and of Portuguese aeronautics. It made an invaluable contribution to the knowledge of the aerodynamic components of flight and also presented itself as a valuable teaching tool for aviation instructors. Since 2016, it is on display at the Museu do Ar, in Alverca, surrounded by powered aircrafts.

Acknowledgements:
Luís Braga Campos
Gonçalo Carneiro
Mota Raposo
Rita Amaral
Museu do Ar

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 49: Herculano de Carvalho’s hand crank calculating machine

Friday, June 3rd, 2022

With Swedish origins, in the 1930s, this hand-cranked calculating machine occupied a prominent place on the desk of António Herculano de Carvalho (Director of Técnico between 1938 and 1942). Capable of multiplying, dividing, adding and subtracting, it was the best resource of its time, based on wheels and cranks, about 30 cm wide and weighing approximately 10 kg. The calculating machine occupies a prominent place in the history of Técnico’s Analysis Laboratory, which Herculano de Carvalho also directed, and is a testament to the research work that the engineer developed in the areas of water analysis but also nuclear energy.

Acknowledgements:
Carlos Albuquerque
Maria Cândida Vaz
Cristina Vaz

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 48: The AGVs: from Feira da Ladra to ITER

Friday, May 27th, 2022

How far can an idea go? The first AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicle) were born from a Técnico course created in the 1980s, using the ingenuity of skate wheels and windshield motors purchased at Feira da Ladra, automatically guided. Or the “cangalho” in the affectionate term of its authors. From Técnico to industry it was a small step, with the technology being adapted to create four complex robots for the automatic transport of materials in the factories of the Efacec company. In the 1990s, the scale multiplied again and the knowledge of Técnico / ISR (Institute for Systems and Robotics) would be selected to apply to vehicles (true trucks measuring 8.5 meters long, 2.5 meters wide and 3 meters high) that will have the mission of maintaining the walls of the giant nuclear fusion reactor of ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor), one of the largest scientific projects in the area.

Acknowledgements:
Carlos Pinto Ferreira
Isabel Ribeiro
Jorge Couto

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 47: The IST_Board

Friday, May 20th, 2022

In 2006, the vision and urgency of a project by Técnico professors and students would give rise to a technological solution for an international company that would become a sales phenomenon. The “IST_Board” (prototype name), a data acquisition board, allowed Técnico students to go deeper into their automation work, which included the programming of small robots, the “rasteirinhos”, testing the principles of autonomous driving. The execution of the USB card, which would allow data sharing between laptops and robots, was taken over by National Instruments, which, inspired by Técnico’s needs, would build one of the best-selling products in the years that followed. The company would launch a range of products aimed at Universities. Portugal and Técnico were pioneers.

Acknowledgements:
Carlos Cardeira
Carlos Gomes
Mário Ramalho

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 46: The punch card machine

Friday, May 13th, 2022

The image of Técnico students reading on the steps of the Main Building marked the institution during the 1980s. But more than a passion for literature, it showed the wait for reports on their computer programming work. The process was analog, using cards that were punched so they could then be read by the IBM 360 computer. It could take hours, or days if errors were found, and all 1st year students at Técnico went through this. It is the opposite of the real-time programming that is done today, but not everything was a disadvantage. It was crucial to think before programming and it may be important to do other things [like reading and going to the movies] during the programming period. “While we’re doing it, the brain continues to program.”

Acknowledgements:
Custódio Peixeiro
Mário Ramalho
Teresa Vazão

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 45: ‘Raposa’, a robot for search and rescue

Friday, May 6th, 2022

Created to help save lives in a disaster context, RAPOSA is a small robot (length approx. 70cm, width 50cm and height by up to 15cm), flattened, with cog wheels reminiscent of a war tank. Analyze the context, go up and down stairs, move around rubble with autonomy and agility and bring light and voice to potential victims of disasters while they wait for help. Between 2003 and 2005 he joined juntou Técnico professors and researchers / Institute For Systems and Robotics (ISR), IDMind, and engeeniers / firefighters of the ‘Regimento Sapadores de Bombeiros de Lisboa’. From the partnership was born this powerful “operational” capable of arriving first and doing what humans cannot.

Acknowledgements:
António Pato
Isabel Ribeiro
Rodrigo Ventura
Paulo Alvito
Pedro Lima
ID Mind
ISR

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 44: Técnico’s 100th Anniversary Serigraphs

Friday, April 29th, 2022

The celebrations of Técnico’s 100th Anniversary, in 2011, also served as a pretext for a renovation of the Main Building and with it appeared two works of art by the painter Ana Vidigal which, still today, welcome those who enter the building. The serigraphs of the Centenary of Técnico are two large panels, made with collages from cutouts of frames of comics of the 1930s, which translate the diversity of Técnico. The stories around this moment also recall the exhibition “House of Secrets” that created a maze of lockers in the lobby of the Main Building. It was the largest School of Engineering in the country to return to the renaissance spirit of Alfredo Bensaude and to dialogue with works of art.

Acknowledgements:
Ana Vidigal
Palmira Silva

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 43: José Pedro Martins Barata’s Hand Drawings

Friday, April 22nd, 2022

There are 25 educational hand drawings that explore, with art and a sense of humor, the history of building systems, building sections and their techniques and layouts, among other references to the universe of Architecture. Created by José Pedro Martins Barata, in the early 90s, to support the classes of the former Territory Engineering course, they are a reflection of the creativity of this former professor at Técnico. Eleven of them are, in their original size, on the walls of the meeting rooms of the Department of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Georesources (DECivil). A reproduction of 25 drawings in A3 size – which explore a period that goes from the 17th century to the 70s of the 20th century – was published in a limited edition object-book by the publisher of Técnico – IST Press. In the genesis of the work, a mission prevails: that the drawings can continue to be shown in classes, maintaining their initial function.

Acknowledgements:
José Pedro Martins Barata
António Faria
Margarida Coimbra
Nuno Matos Silva
Teresa Heitor
IST Press
Departamento de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e Georrecursos (DECivil)

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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Episode 42: The Plaster Models

Friday, April 15th, 2022

With over a century of history, the Técnico plaster models are probably unique in the world. They were made in Paris, by young people who were part of an illegal religious congregation at the time. The plaster models were brought to Portugal and were part of Técnico history, namely in architecture and civil engineering teaching. Today, there are twelve duly restored plaster models in the Civil Engineering Museum, but some are missing from this collection. Some of them may (or may not) have been used as throwing weapons in a clash between students after April 25 revolution.

Acknowledgements:
António Lamas
Nuno Matos Silva
Paulo Mota
Magali Devif (Directora dos Arquivos Lasallienes)
Museu de Engenharia Civil

Episode only available in Portuguese in: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Anchor.fm

Further reading and additional audio in the Portuguese version of this webpage.

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