Speaker: Nirwan Ansari, Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) DATE: Thursday, March 19, 2020 TIME: Refreshments/Registration/Networking: 06:00 p.m.; Seminar: 06:30 p.m. – 07:30 p.m. PLACE: Ciena Optophotonics Lab (room T129), School of Advanced Technology, Algonquin College, 1385 Woodroffe Ave, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K2G 1V8. PARKING: Parking at Lots 8 and 9 after 5 p.m. is $5 flat rate, pay at a machine and display the ticket on your dashboard. Please respect restricted areas. ADMISSION: Free. Registration required. Please register by e-mail contacting: Wahab Almuhtadi. Abstract In mobile access networks, different types of Internet of Things (IoT) devices (e.g., sensor nodes and smartphones) will generate vast traffic demands, thus dramatically increasing the traffic loads of their connected access nodes, especially in the 5G era. Mobile edge computing enables data collected by IoT devices to be stored in and processed by local fog nodes as well as allows IoT users to access IoT applications via these nodes at the same time. In this case, the communications latency critically affects the response time of IoT user requests. Owing to the dynamic distribution of IoT users, drone base station (DBS), which can be flexibly deployed over hotspot areas, can potentially improve the wireless latency of IoT users by mitigating the heavy traffic loads of macro BSs. Drone-based communications poses two major challenges: 1) DBS should be deployed in suitable areas with heavy traffic demands to serve more users; 2) traffic loads in the network should be allocated among macro BSs and DBSs to avoid instigating traffic congestions. Therefore, we propose a TrAffic Load baLancing (TALL) scheme in such drone-assisted fog network to minimize the wireless latency of IoT users. In the scheme, we divide the problem into two sub-problems and design two algorithms to optimize the DBS placement and user association, respectively. Extensive simulations have been set up to validate the performance of TALL. Bio Dr. Nirwan Ansari, Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), received his Ph.D. from Purdue University, MSEE from the University of Michigan, and BSEE (summa cum laude with a perfect GPA) from NJIT. He is a Fellow of IEEE and a Fellow of National Academy of Inventors. He authored Green Mobile Networks: A Networking Perspective (Wiley-IEEE, 2017) with T. Han, and co-authored two other books. He has also (co-)authored more than 600 technical publications. He has guest-edited a number of special issues covering various emerging topics in communications and networking. He has served on the editorial/advisory board of over ten journals including as Associate Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Wireless Communications Magazine. His current research focuses on green communications and networking, cloud computing, drone-assisted networking, and various aspects of broadband networks. He was elected to serve in the IEEE Communications Society (ComSoc) Board of Governors as a member-at-large, has chaired some ComSoc technical and steering committees, is current Director of ComSoc Educational Services Board, has been serving in many committees such as the IEEE Fellow Committee, and has been actively organizing numerous IEEE International Conferences/Symposia/Workshops. He is frequently invited to deliver keynote addresses, distinguished lectures, tutorials, and invited talks. Some of his recognitions include several excellence in teaching awards, a few best paper awards, the NCE Excellence in Research Award, several ComSoc TC technical recognition awards, the NJ Inventors Hall of Fame Inventor of the Year Award, the Thomas Alva Edison Patent Award, Purdue University Outstanding Electrical and Computer Engineering Award, the NCE 100 Medal, and designation as a COMSOC Distinguished Lecturer. He has also been granted more than 40 U.S. patents.

Speaker: Dr. Mostafa Farrokhabadi, Director of Technology at BluWave-ai, Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada. DATE: Tuesday, March 17, 2020. TIME: Refreshments/Registration/Networking: 06:00 p.m.; Seminar: 06:30 p.m. – 07:30 p.m. PLACE: Ciena Optophotonics Lab (room T129), School of Advanced Technology, Algonquin College, 1385 Woodroffe Ave, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K2G 1V8. PARKING: Parking at Lots 8 and 9 after 5 p.m. is $5 flat rate, pay at a machine and display the ticket on your dashboard. Please respect restricted areas. ADMISSION: Free. Registration required. Please register by e-mail contacting: ajit.pardasani@ieee.org or branislav@ieee.org. MORE INFO: Ottawa ComSoc/CESoc/BTS Chapter website. Abstract A microgrid is defined as a group of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) and loads that act locally as a single controllable entity and can operate in both grid-connected and islanded modes. Microgrids are considered a critical link in the evolution from vertically integrated bulk power systems to smart decentralized networks, by facilitating the integration of DERs. Entities, such as government agencies, utilities, military bases, and universities around the world are deploying microgrids, and an increasing number of these systems are expected to be developed in the next decade. In general, stability in microgrids has been treated from the perspective of conventional bulk power systems. However, the nature of the stability problem and dynamic performance of a microgrid are considerably different than those of a conventional power system due to intrinsic differences between microgrids and bulk power systems, such as size, feeder types, high share of Renewable Energy Sources (RES), converter-interfaced components, low inertia, measurement devices such as Phase-Locked Loop (PLL), unbalanced operation, etc. This seminar discusses the findings of the award-winning IEEE PES Task Force on Microgrid Stability Definitions, Analysis, and Modeling, which defines concepts and identifies relevant issues related to stability in microgrids. The seminar presents definitions and classification of microgrid stability, considering pertinent microgrid features such as voltage-frequency dependence, unbalancing, low inertia, and generation intermittency. A few examples will be also presented, highlighting some of the stability classes discussed during the seminar. Bio Dr. Mostafa Farrokhabadi is the Senior Director of Technology at BluWave-ai, an internationally award-winning startup offering AI-enabled control and optimization solutions for smart grids. He has more than 8 years of experience in designing mission critical grid solutions for industry and academia, including technical leadership of a $6M international consortium in Electric Grid Modernization, and Smart Grid projects with Hatch and Canadian Solar. Mostafa has authored/co-authored several high-impact technical papers and patents on intelligent control and optimization of renewable-penetrated grids. Mostafa obtained his PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo. He has also studied and performed research in Sweden at KTH and Germany at KIT. During the course of his career, Mostafa has received multiple business, research, and teaching awards, including the prestigious University of Waterloo Doctoral Thesis Completion Award and Ottawa's Forty Under 40. Mostafa has also led the award-winning IEEE Power and Energy Society Task Force on microgrid stability, an international coalition of 21 researchers from 14 institutions investigating stability issues in microgrids. Currently, he serves as an Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

Speaker: Dr. Ibrahim Gedeon, CTO, TELUS DATE: Wednesday February 19, 2020. TIME: 11:30 a.m. – 01:30 p.m. PLACE: CENGN-,Centre of Excellence in Next Generation Networks, 555 Legget Dr Tower A Suite, Ottawa, ON, Canada K2K 2X3 ADMISSION: Event is free, but space is limited. Registration required. All participants must register in advance. Please follow the link to register https://events.vtools.ieee.org/m/20632. For more information, please contact: Register here, or contact Michael Lalonde michael.lalonde@ieee.org. Abstract Through an informal, open and candid discussion, Ibrahim will share a look into the various aspect of the journey to 5G. From industry trends on 5G and deployments globally to TELUS’ view and plans, the lunch and learn will explore the technology, security and applications required to deploy 5G right. Bio Ibrahim Gedeon is one of the global telecommunications industry's eminent thought leaders. He has carved out an international career by combining tremendous insight and skill as an applied scientist with a lighthearted and non-conventional approach to leadership. As Chief Technology Officer for TELUS a leading national telecommunications company in Canada, he is responsible for all technology development and strategy, security, service and network architecture, service delivery and operational support systems, as well as service and network convergence, and network infrastructure strategies and evolution. Under his leadership the TELUS wireless broadband network has become one of the best in the world. Ibrahim also serves on the board of the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions and the Institute for Communication Technology Management. He has a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from the American University of Beirut and a Master's in Electronics Engineering from Carleton University. In 2010, Ibrahim received a Honourary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of British Columbia. In 2014, he was elected as a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering (CAE) in recognition of his significant contributions to the field of engineering. He has been named five times to the Global Telecoms Business magazine's GTB Power 100, a list of the 100 most powerful and influential people in the telecoms industry. Ibrahim served in many IEEE executive and leadership posts on the Society, Region, Section, and Chapter level. He is currently the Senate Chair of IEEE Ottawa Section, the Industry Advisor of the IEEE Communications Society for the North America Region, and the Industry Advisor for the IEEE Consumer Electronics Society. Ibrahim is very well known a keynote speaker, he organized and hosted several national and international conferences. He was the General Chair of the 2012 IEEE International Conference on Communications - ICC2012 (IEEE Communications Society's flagship conference), and he is currently the General Chair of the 2021 IEEE International Conference on Communications - ICC2021 that will be held in Montreal on June 14-18, 2021. He received many awards, just to name few, the Consumer Electronics Society's Distinctive Exemplary Industry Leader Award in 2019, and the IEEE Canada's Outstanding Canadian Engineer Award in 2001.