Doctoral School

Reading date: 01/12/2025

• MAJORAL OLLER, GENÍS: Designing Robust Transport Policy Mechanisms for Multiple Economic and Institutional Settings under Uncertainty
  
  Author: MAJORAL OLLER, GENÍS
  Thesis file: (contact the Doctoral School to confirm you have a valid doctoral degree and to get the link to the thesis)
  Programme: DOCTORAL DEGREE IN CIVIL ENGINEERING
  Department: Barcelona School of Civil Engineering (ETSECCPB)
  Mode: Article-based thesis
  Deposit date: 01/10/2025
  Reading date: 01/12/2025
  Reading time: 12:00
  Reading place: UPC Campus Nord, ETSECCPB, C/ Jordi Girona 1-3, edificio C1, Sala 002, Barcelona
  Thesis director: SAURI MARCHAN, SERGI
  Thesis abstract: Transport planning and policymaking increasingly face wicked problems. The era of planning under greenfield conditions is gone, and new policies must be implemented within a complex, dynamic society, navigating challenges that range from climate change to rapid technological shifts, often with contradictory stakeholder demands. Despite extensive research on individual policy topics, the field lacks an integrated framework for the policy design process itself, leading to interventions that are vulnerable to failure or overlooked risks.This doctoral thesis addresses the challenge of designing more robust transport policies from multiple perspectives. The researched carried out aims at providing the foundation for a more systemic approach to policymaking. Such a framework approaches policymaking from a higher level, aiming to generate guidance to more robust policies by systematically addressing common failure mechanisms, and transferring policy knowledge between different interventions and settings, yet sensitive to specific contexts.To do so, a bottom-up policy analysis is proposed, by building a taxonomy of transport policy clusters from the combination of transport policymaking domains (transport system characteristics) and policy instruments. Then, a Transport Policy Failure Mechanism Framework is derived from multiple sources of information and serves as a diagnostic tool to identify the root causes of policy vulnerability.After that, following an inductive approach, the framework application to four case studies synthesizes findings against failure mechanisms and leads to the primary contribution of this work: a two-tiered set of design principles. These are a set of foundational principles from the case studies, and stemming from that the thesis conducts a subsequent synthesis to derive higher order overarching principles. These reveal more general and hidden recurring patterns across multiple and varied settings, that may help test policy design to enhance its robustness.The case studies carried out to do so revolve around an e-commerce tax to consumer, technological innovation for container terminal automation, superblocks, and road freight decarbonization. Ultimately, the thesis proposes a new approach to move the discussion from ad-hoc problem-solving to a systemic discipline of policy design science, where both a systematic approach to design and the generalization of principles to ensure robustness can be embedded in new way of policymaking.
  

• MARTORELL PONS, LLUÍS: IGA application on crashworthiness CAE analysis including advanced plasticity and ductile fracture
  
  Author: MARTORELL PONS, LLUÍS
  Thesis file: (contact the Doctoral School to confirm you have a valid doctoral degree and to get the link to the thesis)
  Programme: DOCTORAL DEGREE IN CIVIL ENGINEERING
  Department: Barcelona School of Civil Engineering (ETSECCPB)
  Mode: Normal
  Deposit date: 16/10/2025
  Reading date: 01/12/2025
  Reading time: 12:00
  Reading place: Sala Zienkiewich (CIMNE) Building C1, UPC - Campus North, Gran Capitan S/N 08034 Barcelona
  Thesis director: ROSSI BERNECOLI, RICCARDO | BARBU, LUCIA GRATIELA
  Thesis abstract: In the contemporary automotive engineering landscape, increasing demands for efficiency, safety, and sustainability have intensified the pressure on development processes. The reduction of the overall duration of the development of a new vehicle is a key focus for the manufacturers. Despite significant advancements in both Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) technologies, these domains remain disconnected, resulting in information loss, workflow inefficiencies, and extended development cycles. While Isogeometric Analysis (IGA) has emerged as a promising approach to bridge this divide by maintaining geometric exactness throughout the analysis chain, its practical implementation in industrial contexts remains low, mainly relegated to investigation on its use but not application in actual production projects.This thesis analyzes the automotive CAD and CAE processes to identify current barriers to IGA implementation by addressing the full spectrum of implementation challenges, from technical limitations to workflow integration and cultural adoption barriers. The focus is on crashworthiness applications but Noise, Vibration, and Harshness (NVH) applications is also explored. The methodology adopted in this work follows a multi-faceted approach. First, a historical analysis of CAD and CAE evolution in automotive applications reveals the fundamental origins of their disconnection. Second, the industrial material testing and modeling for crash simulations is explored, a novel material characterization framework is developed, introducing the Non-Isochoric Plasticity Assessment (NPA) methodology to identify when materials deviate from the traditional assumptions of plasticity, and the use of pressure-dependent plasticity models. Third, numerical investigations identify and analyze the "Cross-Talk effect" in trimmed IGA, culminating in the development of a detection algorithm. Finally, case studies demonstrate the application of IGA in real automotive components, establishing workflow guidelines for industrial implementation.This research aims to reduce the gap between academic IGA research and industrial IGA application by providing insights for both communities. For academic researchers, it highlights the technical, operational, and cultural barriers that currently prevent widespread implementation. For industrial practitioners, it offers a roadmap for incremental IGA adoption that respects existing workflows while leveraging the advantages of the technology. By addressing both theoretical capabilities and practical limitations, this work establishes a foundation for more integrated automotive development processes that can respond to the increasing complexity of vehicle design and performance requirements.
  

• PONTÓN MARTINEZ, JOSE LUIS: Learning Data-driven Character Animation for Avatars in Virtual Reality
  
  Author: PONTÓN MARTINEZ, JOSE LUIS
  Thesis file: (contact the Doctoral School to confirm you have a valid doctoral degree and to get the link to the thesis)
  Programme: DOCTORAL DEGREE IN COMPUTING
  Department: Department of Computer Science (CS)
  Mode: Normal
  Deposit date: 27/10/2025
  Reading date: 01/12/2025
  Reading time: 11:00
  Reading place: Sala d'Actes Manuel Martí Recober (Edifici B6, Planta 0)
  Thesis director: ANDUJAR GRAN, CARLOS ANTONIO | PELECHANO GOMEZ, NURIA
  Thesis abstract: The accelerating trend of remote interaction, driven by globalization and digital communication, underscores the need for richer, more immersive virtual collaboration. While current 2D video platforms enhance communication, Virtual Reality (VR) offers the unique potential for truly natural 3D interaction. Accomplishing this, however, critically depends on accurately representing human motion and achieving presence within virtual environments.This thesis addresses the challenge of achieving real-time, high-fidelity, and perceptually natural full-body self-avatar animation within VR environments using consumer-grade tracking devices. Accurate self-avatars are fundamental for inducing a strong Sense of Embodiment and enabling effective non-verbal communication, yet current methods often struggle with the inherent sparsity and variability of available sensor data.We first address fundamental aspects of animation fidelity and perceptual realism, and introduce methodologies for precise avatar skeleton adjustment, which significantly mitigate issues arising from mismatches between a user's physical proportions and their virtual representation. We also study various interaction metaphors to minimize visual discrepancies between real controllers and virtual hands, thereby enhancing user embodiment and task performance. These studies underscore the importance of accurate animation and lay the groundwork for learning-based approaches to achieve natural and temporally coherent motion from sparse inputs, overcoming the limitations of traditional inverse kinematics.Building upon these insights, the thesis explores the development of data-driven reconstruction methods that can handle diverse and ambiguous sensor inputs. We propose a novel deep learning-based system that accurately reconstructs full-body poses from minimal consumer-grade VR trackers, effectively addressing the underdetermined nature of this problem. Recognizing the inherent one-to-many mapping problem in sparse input, where a single input can correspond to multiple plausible poses, we then explore the potential of generative AI. Our work demonstrates how Variational Autoencoders (VAEs) can enable fine-grained control and adaptability to variable sensor configurations through latent space optimization, while diffusion models facilitate multimodal reconstruction from novel sensor types, such as pressure-sensing insoles.
  

• RODRIGUEZ FERRANDEZ, IVAN: Mixed software/hardware-based fault-tolerance techniques for complex COTS system-on-chip in radiation environments
  
  Author: RODRIGUEZ FERRANDEZ, IVAN
  Thesis file: (contact the Doctoral School to confirm you have a valid doctoral degree and to get the link to the thesis)
  Programme: DOCTORAL DEGREE IN COMPUTER ARCHITECTURE
  Department: Department of Computer Architecture (DAC)
  Mode: Normal
  Deposit date: 01/10/2025
  Reading date: 01/12/2025
  Reading time: 09:00
  Reading place: C6-E101
  Thesis director: KOSMIDIS, LEONIDAS | TALI, MARIS
  Thesis abstract: This thesis titled “Mixed Software/Hardware-based Fault-tolerance Techniques for Complex COTS System-on-Chip in Radiation Environments" explores the challenges and solutions for integrating high-performance Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) System-on-Chip (SoC) technologies, specifically GPUs, into space applications. These automotive-grade systems offer significant computational capabilities but face unique challenges in radiation-intense environments typical of space. The research investigates these challenges and proposes solutions to enhance the reliability of such systems. A key component of the thesis involves the comprehensive evaluation of modern embedded GPUs under space-like conditions, including exposure to proton and heavy-ion radiation. This analysis identifies vulnerabilities such as Single Event Effects (SEE) , which can cause faults like Single Event Upset (SEU), Single Event Functional Interrupt (SEFI), and Single Event Latch-up (SEL). To support these evaluations, the author develops the OBPMark suite, an open-source benchmark tailored for assessing the performance and efficiency of GPUs in space-specific computational tasks. To address the faults identified, the thesis proposes innovative software-based fault mitigation strategies. These include the design of fault-tolerant GPU kernels and middleware solutions that improve error detection and recovery. The effectiveness of these methods is demonstrated through both simulation and radiation testing. Additionally, the research presents hardware-level innovations, such as the development of application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and specialized printed circuit boards (PCBs), to enhance system resilience without compromising performance. This work significantly contributes to the field of space computing by creating a robust framework for evaluating and mitigating radiation effects in complex COTS SoCs. It bridges the gap between the cost-effectiveness and performance of commercial technologies and the reliability demands of space-grade applications. The findings of this thesis pave the way for the adoption of high-performance embedded GPUs in future space missions.
  

• YI, TIEYAN: UAV SAR Interferometry: ARBRES-X Data
  
  Author: YI, TIEYAN
  Thesis file: (contact the Doctoral School to confirm you have a valid doctoral degree and to get the link to the thesis)
  Programme: DOCTORAL DEGREE IN SIGNAL THEORY AND COMMUNICATIONS
  Department: Department of Signal Theory and Communications (TSC)
  Mode: Normal
  Deposit date: 04/11/2025
  Reading date: pending
  Reading time: pending
  Reading place: pending
  Thesis director: MALLORQUI FRANQUET, JORDI JOAN
  Thesis abstract: Small UAVs are attractive SAR platforms, but their unstable trajectories and imperfect GPS/IMU logs introduce significant motion errors that degrade image quality. The ARBRES-X system employs wide-beam, high-squint acquisitions that favor short-aperture observations, while simultaneously reducing sensitivity to motion errors. This thesis first reviews the fundamentals of SAR imaging and cross-track interferometry, then analyzes the ARBRES-X system characteristics in detail, with particular attention to how short apertures and wide beams affect processing. The accuracy requirements for platform state in SAR imaging and cross-track interferometry are quantified, revealing that off-the-shelf INS solutions are insufficient. To address this gap, a motion-error estimation algorithm is proposed and validated using simulated data. Building on these results, an end-to-end processing framework for SAR imaging and cross-track interferometry is developed and applied to ARBRES-X data. The framework produces highly coherent interferograms, and differential interferograms clearly detect PARC phase changes induced by controlled deformation, in close agreement with theoretical predictions. In addition, a speed optimization method suitable for short-aperture imaging is also demonstrated.