top of page

Keynotes:

Ash_PICTURE.jpg

Abubakar Sadiq Hussaini
Interim Dean & Reader In Telecommunications Engineering, School of Engineering, American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola, Adamawa State – Nigeria. 

Keynote title: The Evolution of Mobile Technologies and Its Impact on Business & Lifestyle

Summary: The telecommunication network is evolving. The evolution of the technologies started way back in the 1980’s, with the introduction of 1G - First Generation Mobile Telecommunication - an analogue technology network, which was originally designed to carry voice, just human voice. But it also had inherent challenges, such as security, roaming and so on. In light of these challenges, in 1991, in Finland, 1G was replaced by 2G – Second Generation Digital Mobile Telecommunication. 2G was for digital voice call plus messaging.  It was very secure, but did not support data/Internet or email. The voice calls were digitally encrypted. For better Internet connection via mobile phones/devices, 3G technology (Third Generation) was launched in 2003. It was designed for multimedia (video, data, music) communication with better Internet experience and enabling seamless global roaming. Again for faster broadband Internet, 4G – Fourth Generation or Long Term Evolution was launched and offers download speeds three times faster than 3G. The 4G is an Internet protocol phone.  The next future generation of telecommunication is 5G and is based on the Internet of Things (IoT), where devices and sensors become active nodes and agents on the web that allow these to access the Internet to perform remote management functionalities. The 5G will be the first cellular network technology to transform our lives. The 5G technology will transform businesses, from smart tractors in agriculture to smart robots in manufacturing.  Some of the exciting applications it will enable are: autonomous vehicles; industrial Internet of things (IIoT); metropolitan Internet of things (MIoT - Smart Cities); home Internet of things (HIoT); Internet of everything (IoE); virtual & augmented Reality.
 
Biography: Interim Dean & Reader In Telecommunications Engineering, School of Engineering, American University of Nigeria, AUN; Chairman, Telecoms & Wireless Technologies, School of IT & Computing, AUN; Coordinator SDP Projects, School of IT & Computing, AUN; Chairman, Administrative Affairs Committee, AUN Senate; Principal Advisor, AUN Honor Society. Member, Board of Trustees/Lead-STI (Science, Technology, Innovation), IYA PATU Foundation. Head of Programmes/Director at Commonwealth ITU Group (CIG), UK; actively participating in the ITU activities of the Radiocommunication, Telecommunication Standardization and the Telecommunication Development Sections. He is Senior Researcher and project development manager with the 4TELL research group at Instituto de Telecomunicações, Aveiro, Portugal; Visiting Researcher at University of Bradford, UK; He was a visiting Assistant Professor/Senior Lecturer at Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola, Nigeria; He was Microwave Radio Transmission Operations & Maintenance Senior Engineer with Nigerian Telecommunication Limited (NITEL), Abuja, Nigeria. (10years); Nominated by the Nigerian Government to Vie for the Post of Secretary-General of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) in August, 2018 – (Nigeria’s Candidate for the position of “Secretary General, African Telecommunications Union (ATU)” - 2018). He was inspired by a desire to create a system that can prevent kidnapping and abduction in schools in Nigeria. Led the team and design & develop ‘’Yawo Anti-Abduction Emergency Response System (YA-AERS)’’. YA-AERS is an innovative, state-of-the-art design that uses Radio Frequency Spectrum to broadcast alert messages freely without using mobile phone services, signal, internet, over a long-distance range. YA-AERS is the brainchild of six AUN ICT faculty and students and two external telecom engineering experts. A key player in the processes/activities leading to the National Universities Commission (NUC's) Resource Visitation and Subsequent Approval for the New Engineering Programs at American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola – July, 2019. Coordinated and led the successful National Universities Commission (NUC's) re-accreditation of all Programs of School of IT & Computing (SITC), at the American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola – November, 2018. Built a large ecosystem around FD-SOI in Europe – 2018. Developed architecture and technologies for implementing agile radio frequency (RF) transceiver capacities for future radio communication products. He was Senate Committee of the University of Bradford, UK; received his Post Graduate Diploma (PGD) in Electrical/Electronic Engineering from Bayero University, Kano in 2005; received his MSc in Radio Frequency Communication Engineering from the University of Bradford (UK) in 2007; and his PhD in Telecommunications Engineering from University of Bradford, UK in 2012. He is a member of IEEE, IET, ENF, and Optical Society of America; has contributed to numerous publications and is involved in European and CELTIC research projects. His research interests include Radio Frequency System Design and High-Performance RF-MEMS Tunable Filters with specific emphasis on energy efficiency and linearity; Renewable Energy (wind, solar, hydropower, ocean energy, and geothermal), Smart Grid, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, Power Plants & Equipment; Robotics, Nanotechnology,  Internet of Things (IoT),  Artificial Intelligence (AI),  Embedded Systems,  Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Software Defined Radio, Cognitive Radio (CR), Radio Resource Management (RRM), Mobile for Development (mHealth or Mobile Health, mAgric or AgriTech, Mobile Money, and Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation) and Optical Communications. His achievements include the design of energy efficient Power Amplifier at 3.5GHz (Mobile WiMAX Frequency); design of High-Performance RF-MEMS Tunable Filters with tuning range from GSM 1.8GHZ to LTE 2.6GHz; design of Millimeter Wave Antenna for 5G Applications; design and development of a “Radio over Fiber” optical transceivers (1550nm Wavelength) in which the frequency limitations of quantum well lasers in direct RF to Light transponding was investigated.  Successfully attained several European projects, amongst the projects are MOBILIA (2009-2011), ARTEMOS (2011-2014), CORTIF (2014-2016), THINGS2DO (2014-2018), and 5GWAR (2019-2021). Have participated actively in events, conferences and seminars organized by the Information Society Technology (IST) research program, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), and European Nano Electronics Forum. He participated in several annual European project reviews. His collective role is to defend the project objectives, and results to a panel of examiners that are considered European experts in their respective technical field. He served as a workshop organizer and a workshop chair. He is a TPC member and reviewer for many international conferences and journals. He is a guest editor for an IET Science, Measurement & Technology special issue, a guest editor for MDPI Electronics Engineering Journal -"Microwave and Wireless Communications" special issue, a guest editor for Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing, Hindawi Journal, special issue, and also a guest editor for Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences (CMES) Journal, special issue.

Picture_Prof Gaya.jpg

Prof. Umar Ibrahim Gaya,
Coordinating Director Science Infrastructure (CDSI),
National Agency f
or Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI)
Abuja – Nigeria.


Keynote title: Technology Facilitation and Transfer - Are we on the right track?

Summary: Technology transfer is a multifaceted endeavour that has not been handled appropriately among academia, managers, entrepreneurs, and even governments. In this paper, we highlight the ABC of the technological gap between the developed and developing countries, how this gap can be closed through a twin technology transfer strategy. The constraints affecting the effectiveness of technology transfer coordination framework were examined.  Fitter and richer criteria for the issues yearning for attention were drafted herein based on theory and lessons from others experiences. An honest reflection was made on the need for technology facilitation at all levels, including international cooperation, in order to have robust capacity for absorption of frontier technologies, and mastery of existing technologies.
 
Biography: Professor Umar Ibrahim Gaya is presently the Coordinating Director Science Infrastructure (CDSI) at the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), on leave from Bayero University, Kano. He holds the title of Ciroman Gaya, a high chief at the Gaya Emirate Council, Kano. He received a B.Sc. (Hons.) Chemistry from University of Maiduguri, M.Sc. Analytical Chemistry from Bayero University and PhD Catalysis from Universiti Putra Malaysia. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the latter, and subsequently at the Department of Petroleum and Chemical Engineering, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Chemists of Nigeria (ICCON), the Chemical Society of Nigeria (SCN), and a member of the American Chemical Society (ACS). His research works have delivered novel methods of fabrication of low-dimensional semiconductor materials (1D, 2D) for photoresponsive applications. He has published many highly cited articles in top-tier journal and a scientific monograph. He has co-authored some local university policies which includes a research policy and an intellectual property policy.

1st Sp.jpg

Prof. BO LIU
University of Glasgow, Scotland


Keynote title: Automated Design of Microwave Antennas: An AI-powered Approach

Summary: Antennas designated for present-day and future applications such as 5G and 6G communications must fulfill stringent design specifications in terms of operational bandwidth, gain, radiation pattern, efficiency, and others. Conventional guidelines for antenna designs are often insufficient for the practical design of such contemporary antennas. This is mainly due to their complexity in terms of topological profiles, material composition, and electromagnetic characterization. Therefore, there is a present need for antenna designers to engage novel methodologies that allow for the efficient design exploration of modern antennas. This presentation provides a first-hand practical insight into state-of-the-art AI-driven antenna design methodologies, making previously impossible challenging design cases to be finished in a semi-automated and efficient manner.
 
Biography: Bo Liu received the B.Eng. degree from Tsinghua University, China, in 2008 and the Ph.D. degree from University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Belgium, in 2012. Currently, he is a Professor of Electronic Design Automation at University of Glasgow. He is a Fellow of IET and a Senior Member of IEEE. His research focuses on novel data-driven optimization and machine learning algorithms for electronic (analog ICs and systems, microwave devices, and micro-electromechanical systems) design and their real-world applications. More information can be found at https://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/engineering/staff/boliu/

Mohamed LASHAB
Larbi Ben M’hidi University, Oum El Bouaghi, Algeria

Keynote title: Antenna and Sensors Based on Artificial Materials

Summary: Metamaterials are artificial structures that offer electric and magnetic properties that are not found in nature, such are negative permittivity and negative permeability. These properties are used in antennas design in order to obtain ultrawide bandwidth, high gain, and electrically small structures. The appearance of artificial materials such as meta-materials and chirals was by the end of 19th century, the application of these artificial materials on microwave engineering has begun ten years later, the technological advances on the application of these structures is still in progress.This talk will first present historical and physical properties of artificial materials, second technological fabrication of meta-materials, finally application of meta-materials on antennas, microwave structures and chemical or biological sensors.


Biography: Mohamed LASHAB received the D.E.S. degree (higher degree of education in electronics) from Constantine University, Algeria, in 1988, the M.Phil degree from Trent Polytechnic, Nottingham, England, in 1990, and the Ph.D. degree, in 2009. He joined Skikda University, Algeria, as a Senior Lecturer, in 1995, where he was teaching electrical circuit and electromagnetic principles. He started working on reflector antennas in 2004, by using moment method combined with wavelets.  Actually he is a professor in microwave structures at Larbi Ben M’hidi University, Oum El Bouaghi, Algeria. He becomes the head of the laboratory of research Electronics and New Technologies (ENT). His main research interests are horn antennas, planar antennas, electromagnetic sensors, and artificial materials such as meta-materials and chirals to improve antennas performance. He has published and co-authored more than 100 papers in scientific journals and conference proceeding since 2006. He is the member of editorial board of many journals, and the member of technical program committee / international advisory board / international steering committee.

Presentation1.png

Dr. Vivek Arya
Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering, FET, Gurukula Kangri, Haridwar, India

Keynote title: SIW Leaky Wave Antennas for Beam Scanning Applications

Summary: In microwave engineering, the leaky waves had been the most emerging field of research in last few decades. The basis for LWA is a guiding structure that allows the propagation of wave along the length of the antenna structure, with the wave leaking continuously along the structure. This type of antenna is classified into two categories, namely one dimensional and two dimensional LWAs. These LWAs radiate generally at the end fire direction and broadside direction to achieve the maximum scan angle for the radiation beam and these LWAs are uniform, quasi-uniform and periodic. Past advances include LWA designs that can scan to the endfire, LWA designs that can scan through the broadside, LWA designs that are conformal to the surfaces, and LWA designs that are capable of power recycling or include active elements. The most demanding and latest application of SIW LWA is beam scanning that played a very vital role for the development of LWAs.
SIW LWA that scan in both forward as well as backward direction  with high gain is suitable for radar and satellite applications.
 
Biography: Dr Vivek Arya is working as Assistant Professor in Faculty of Engineering & Technology, Gurukula Kangri (Deemed to be University) Haridwar, India. Dr. Arya is also Convener of Innovation Cell of Gurukula Kangri Deemed to be University &  he also acted as a Senior NSS Program Officer at University.  He did Ph.D on SIW Leaky Wave Antenna and completed M.Tech in Electronics and Communication Engineering  along with a gold medal and qualified the UGC NET exam. His research interests include  Antennas, SIW, Digital Image Processing and Optical Communication". He has authored one international book on "Image Compression Techniques Using MATLAB" and also published more than 45 research papers and chapters in reputed journals like IEEE, Springer, Wiley, MDPI. He has patented 8 inventions at national level as well as at international level. He has delivered various talks for different Universities at national as well international level on innovation, IPRs, patenting and emerging technologies.

WhatsApp Image 2023-09-13 at 17.04.45.jpg

Professor Rami Qahwaji
University of Bradford, UK

Keynote title: Innovations in Applied AI: from Space to Healthcare

Summary: Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques are leading innovations in a variety of real life-applications dealing with challenging real-life data that could be complex, big, multi-dimensional, multi-wavelength, noisy, incomplete, etc. This talk will briefly present our ongoing research and developments in space/satellite imaging, Biometrics and Digital Health in collaboration with industrial and healthcare partners. The talk will also focus on the extraction of meaningful information and knowledge representation, which is important for the development of different AI applications for prediction, security, diagnostic, etc.  

Biography: Rami Qahwaji is a Professor of Visual Computing at the University of Bradford. Rami is originally trained as an Electrical Engineer and had MSc in Control and Computer Engineering and PhD in AI and signal/image processing. He has been working with different industries in the fields of satellite/space imaging, 5G, communications, remote sensing, digital health and imaging, Biometrics, AI and data visualisation developing intelligent systems in collaboration with NASA, ESA, NHS and different SMEs. Rami is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (FIET), Charted Engineer (CEng), Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), IET technical assessor and sets on the IET’s Healthcare Sector Executive Committee. Rami attracted millions of pounds in research funding from various UK and European funding agencies. He has over 140 refereed Journal and Conference publications and has been invited to deliver many keynote speeches at national and international conferences. He has supervised 33 completed PhD projects and is an external examiner for several UK and international universities. He is heavily involved in the organisation of international activities and public engagement events

bottom of page