History ieee ottawa section



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HISTORY - IEEE OTTAWA SECTION1
The history of the IEEE in Ottawa is the story of the people and institutions and industries that created one of the largest concentrations of information communications technology in the world.
For example, the IEEE Canada Showcase of Canadian Engineering Achievements2 includes the following projects that were based in the Ottawa area, and involved many IEEE members.
Radar3, radio4, electronic music5, Telidon6, the Crash Position Indicator7, the Alouette8, Anik9 and ISIS10 satellites, the pacemaker11, and the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory 12.
According to the Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation (OCRI) “Ottawa boasts the highest percentage of university graduates in Canada and the second largest concentration of science and technology employment of 316 North American cities, surpassed only by California's Silicon Valley”13. The development of the “high tech” community, which some termed “Silicon Valley North” is outlined in the book “Silicon Valley North: A High-Tech Cluster of Innovation and Entrepreneurship”, edited by Larisa V. Shavina14.
Institutions
Ottawa is the location of a number of Engineering and Scientific Research and Development Institutions in which IEEE members have played a large role.15
These Institutions consist of:

  • the Communications Research Centre, or CRC, located in the west end of Ottawa;

  • the Bell Northern Research Laboratories (BNR) located nearby;

  • the National Research Council16, located in the east end of Ottawa;

  • Carleton University and The University of Ottawa, each of which has very active programs in electrical engineering, communications and computer technologies;


Laboratories
CRC17 consists of three Laboratories: the Communications Laboratory, the Electronics Laboratory, and the Radio Physics Laboratory. It originated in the 1950’s as the Defence Research Telecommunications Establishment18, which was the home of extensive ionospheric HF communications research19, which led to advanced HF radio communications systems and through the development of Alouette2021 – a top-side ionospheric sounding satellite - to Canada’s Space Program22; the JANET meteor-burst communications23; one of the very first large-scale transistor test sites: the DRTE computer24; and Telidon25, Canada’s videotex system that led to the NAPLPS standard for videotex and teletext26, and many other projects27.
Bell Northern Research Laboratories28 were founded in 1961. Many major innovations in digital telephony and data communications originated at this site.29 Among these were the X.25 DataPac network (circa 1964) 30 and packet switching (1974).
Public data communications and ISDN are described in an article by D. E. Sproule entitled “Public Digital Data Communications In Canada: the First 15 Years”, a chapter in “Canadian Developments in Telecommunications: An Overview of Significant Contributions”, edited by T. L. McPhail and D. C. Coll, published by the University of Calgary in 1986. Notes on significant Canadian developments, such as Telidon, cable TV, channel equalization, JANET, and HF communications are presented there as well. A paper by Roy M. Dohoo, long time DRB research manager, on the development of Canadian satellite communications is presented. Elmer Hara reviews the state of fibre optic communications; and Asrar Sheikh, then of Carleton University, described the future of mobile wireless communications.
The Radio and Electrical Division of the National Research Council of Canada (REED/NRC)31 32 was the locale of early work on radar, meteor burst communications, and a host of other related activities.

As far as power generation is concerned, Ottawa was the site of the first electric power generation station in Ontario.33 The Ottawa River and its tributaries, particularly the Madawaska River, have continued to provide hydro-electric power to the region343536. Ottawa is also reasonably close to Chalk River, the site of Atomic Energy of Canada’s research station, where the Candu reactors were developed.



Universities and Colleges

Both Carleton University and the University of Ottawa have strong academic and research programs in IEEE-related fields. As well, both have strong IEEE Student Branches (http://www.ieee.engsoc.org/; http://www.ewh.ieee.org/sb/ottawa/uottawa/, http://www.ewh.ieee.org/sb/ottawa/algonquin/ about_memberships.htm).

At Carleton University the academic entities involved include the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering (http://www.sce.carleton.ca/dept/index.shtml) and the Department of Electronics (http://www.doe.carleton.ca/). Prominent Faculty, recognized by the IEEE as Fellows include Professors David Coll, David Falconer, Murray Woodside, and Yiyan Wu in Systems and Computer Engineering and Professors Boothroyd, Copland, and Nakhla in Electronics; while at the School of Information Technology and Engineering at the University of Ottawa (http://www.site.uottawa.ca/eng/index.html), Professors Dubois, Georganas, Mouftah, and Petriu have been so recognized.

Algonquin College offers more than 100 full-time programs, including certificates, diplomas, graduate programs and bachelor degrees in applied studies. Our degree programs provide the best of both worlds, combining the practical application of college education with the theoretical and critical foundations of university learning.


Programs in the School of Advanced technology include:

Bachelor of Applied Technology (Photonics), Computer Programmer, Computer Systems Technology (Networking), Microelectronics Manufacturing, Technical writer, Wireless Mobility Telecommunications Engineering Technology, Computer Engineering Technology (Computer Science), Electro-Mechanical Engineering Technician (Robotics), Geographic Information Systems, and Electrical Engineering Technology.


Algonquin also offers Collaborative Bachelor of Information Technology degrees in partnership with Carleton University in Interactive Multimedia Design and in Network Technology.
IEEE People
The IEEE Ottawa Section is the home to many renowned engineers and scientists37. For example, nine of our members have been recipients of the McNaughton Medal. They are John T. Henderson (1969), Robert H. Tanner (1974), John H. Chapman (1970), William J. M. Moore (1991), Nicholas Georganas (2000), and Hussein Mouftah (2006). Bob Tanner38 was with BNR, and was Director of the Canadian Region of IEEE and in 1972 was the first non-US citizen to be President of the IEEE. John Chapman39, who was with DRTE, is recognized as the Father of the Canadian Space Program. Bill Moore40, who worked in NRC on power systems, was Chair of the Section in 1966.

David Vice41 and David Falconer42 are both Fessenden Medal43 44winners.

David Vice was “An electrical engineer who worked for Nortel Networks for 37 years … helped mastermind a move to digital switching that transformed the Bell Canada subsidiary into an industrial powerhouse”45. He was a Queen’s University graduate who obtained his M.Eng. from Carleton University.

Vice received the 1988 A.D. Dunton Alumni Award of Distinction from Carleton's Alumni Association.46 He received the 2000 Reginald A. Fessenden Award "for initiating programs in satellite communications, radio and optical fibre transmission equipment, and for leading global expansion of Nortel Networks". He received the award from Celia Desmond, whose IEEE ties are described below.

The Toronto Globe and Mail, in an October 18, 2008 article47 following his death, wrote that

“David Vice was one of the smartest people in the phone business. An electrical engineer who worked for Nortel Networks for 37 years, he helped mastermind a move to digital switching that transformed the Bell Canada subsidiary into an industrial powerhouse.”

Other Presidents of BNR with IEEE ties included Donald A. Chisholm and Walter Frederick Light.

Donald A. Chisholm48

A brilliant physicist who worked on the U.S. Apollo space program, Mr. Chisholm came to be known as the father of the digital world. At age 44, he became the first president of Bell-Northern Research Laboratories Ltd., which was formed when the R&D departments at Bell and Northern Electric were merged.

By the time he left the company, 75 per cent of Nortel's sales came from internally developed products, up from 10 per cent when he arrived. During his tenure, the company embarked on an ambitious project known as Digital World, that sought to create a full line of digital switching and transmission products. Digital World products would go on to revolutionize the telecommunications business and laid the foundations for the Internet.

He also oversaw the creation of the DMS-100 in 1979, the first fully digital central office switch capable of handling up to 100,000 telephone lines, which would become a major source of Nortel's revenue for more than 15 years and one of the most influential inventions in the history of the company.



Walter Frederick Light4950

After 25 years at Bell Canada, Mr. Light took over as president of Northern Electric in 1974 and instituted a culture that stressed low-cost production, market-driven technology and the retention of its best employees. In 1979, he took over the CEO's post when the company still enjoyed a two-year lead over its competitors in the telecom switching market. Mr. Light guided Northern into a head-on collision with IBM over its Open Protocol Enhanced Networks project and oversaw the creation of the Displayphone, one of the first attempts by any technology company to marry the telephone with early personal computers.

He received the Order of Canada in 1986 and the computer and electrical engineering at Queen's University is named in his honour.

“If you don't make the right decisions,” he told The Globe in 1983, “you won't be in business. If you hesitate, someone will leapfrog you. And mistakes – well, when you make them, you have to abort. We've aborted, but I won't tell you what.”



Celia L. Desmond51

Celia L. Desmond is one of the IEEE Ottawa Section’s most dedicated IEEE members. Section Chair (1984-85), Celia was awarded the Donald J. McLellan Award for meritorious service to IEEE Communications Society, the Engineering Institute of Canada John B. Sterling Medal in May 2000, and the IEEE Millennium award. She is a Senior Member of IEEE.


Celia’s IEEE positions include:

  • 2008 Project Director for Certification in Wireless Engineering Technology for IEEE, managing a team of over 100 people in 8 different development areas

  • 2007 Director and Secretary of IEEE

  • 2006 IEEE Vice President – Technical Activities

  • 2002-2003 President of IEEE Communications Society

  • 2001 President of IEEE Canada, and Region 7 Director

  • 1997-1998 Division III Director.

  • IEEE Canada Foundation Board member and previous Donations Chair.

She is currently a member of the IEEE Governance Committee a standing committee of the Board of Directors responsible for reviewing proposed amendments to IEEE’s governing documents to assure clarity, consistency, and legal compliance. The committee makes recommendations to the Board of Directors on matters affecting governance, including, but not limited to, the IEEE Constitution, Bylaws, Policies and other related governing documents.

Ms Desmond is the President of World Class-Telecommunications, a company that provides training, consulting and management skills in the telecommunications engineering and business environment. Celia Desmond helped establish a Masters of Engineering in Telecommunications program at University of Toronto, which started in September 1998. She created and manages a continuing education Certificate program in Telecommunications Management, at the University of Toronto. WC-T manages a program for entrepreneurs offered through Ontario Society of Professional Engineers. WC-T provided expert witness support to industry as recently as January 2003. Celia Desmond has lectured internationally on Programs for Success in Today’s Changing Environment, on Project Management at Steven's Institute of Technology and also on telecommunications at University of Toronto, and at Ryerson.

Celia holds M. Eng. (Carleton), B.Sc. Mathematics & Psychology, Ontario Teaching Certificate and PMP certification. Celia has taught kindergarten, high school, and university at Ryerson School of Business, Stevens Institute of Technology, and University of Toronto.

Celia Desmond helped establish a Masters of Engineering in Telecommunications program at University of Toronto, which started in September 1998. She created and manages a continuing education Certificate program in Telecommunications Management, at the University of Toronto. WC-T manages a program for entrepreneurs offered through Ontario Society of Professional Engineers. WC-T provided expert witness support to industry as recently as January 2003. Celia Desmond has lectured internationally on Programs for Success in Today’s Changing Environment, on Project Management at Steven's Institute of Technology and also on telecommunications at University of Toronto, and at Ryerson. She is the author of two books on telecommunications management: Comsoc Pocket Guide to Managing Telecommunications Projects and Project Management for Telecommunication Managers.

She is a member of the IEEE Foundation52 as described in the following write-up (2006):


Celia L. Desmond, M. E.E., SM IEEE
President, World Class - Telecommunications
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
c.desmond@ieee.org

Celia Desmond is President of World Class - Telecommunications, which provides training in management skills in business and telecommunications engineering environments. She was instrumental in creating a Masters Program and a Certificate Program at University of Toronto. She has lectured internationally on programs for success in today's changing environment. At Stentor Resource Centre Inc. she was instrumental in establishing the Stentor culture and processes, and in obtaining buy-in from the employees to adopt and grow the new organization. She developed and implemented processes for service/product development and for project governance. As Director - Industry Liaison, she was the external technical linkage to the Stentor owner companies, their customers, and the international technical community In various positions at Bell Canada, Celia provided strategic direction to corporate planners, ran technology and service trials, standardized equipment, and issued guidelines for the member companies. In Celia's previous line positions, her groups provided technical and project management support to large business clients. She is author of Project management for Telecommunications Managers, published by Kluwer Academic Publishers (now Springer).

Celia is the 2006 IEEE Vice President - Technical Activities. She is also Vice President Membership for IEEE Engineering Management Society. She was 2002-2003 President of IEEE Communications Society. In 2000-2001 Celia was President of IEEE Canada, and she served her second term on the Board of Directors of IEEE as Region 7 Director. She was 1997-1998 Division III Director. She has twice served in the IEEE Audit Committee, including serving as Chair, and actively participated in numerous other TAB, RAB, IEEE and Society committees. She was 2004 Chair of the IEEE Transnational Committee. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the IEEE Canada Foundation since 2004, where she is the Donations Chair. Celia was awarded the Donald J. McLellan Award for meritorious service to IEEE Communications Society, the Engineering Institute of Canada John B. Sterling Medal in May 2000, and the IEEE Millennium award. She is a Senior Member of IEEE.

Celia holds a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering from Carleton University, a B.Sc. in Mathematics & Psychology from Queens University, an Ontario Teaching Certificate, and a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. Celia has taught kindergarten, high school, and at three universities, Ryerson School of Business, Stevens Institute of Technology, and University of Toronto.











David D. Falconer

Professor David Falconer of Carleton University is a distinguished IEEE Fellow. He received the B.A. Sc. degree in Engineering Physics from the University of Toronto in 1962 and the S.M. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from M.I.T. in 1963 and 1967 respectively. After a year as a postdoctoral fellow at the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden he was with Bell Laboratories, Holmdel, New Jersey from 1967 to 1980, as a member of the technical staff and later as group supervisor. During 1976-77 he was a visiting professor at Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden. Since 1980 he has been with Carleton University, where he is now Professor Emeritus and Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering. He was awarded IEEE Communications Society Prize Paper Awards in Communications Circuits and Techniques in 1983 and 1986. He was a co-recipient of the IEEE Vehicular Technology Transactions best paper of the year award in 1992. From 1981 to 1987 he was Editor for Digital Communications of the IEEE Transactions on Communications. He was Director of Carleton’s Broadband Communications and Wireless Systems (BCWS) Centre from 2000 to 2004. He was the Chair of Working Group 4 (New Radio Interfaces, Relay-Based Systems and Smart Antennas) of the Wireless World Research Forum (WWRF) in 2004 and 2005. He received the Canadian Award for Telecommunications Research in 2008, and he is one of the two winners of the 2008 IEEE Technical Committee on Wireless Communications Recognition Award. This award, given every year by the IEEE Technical Committee on Wireless Communications (TWC), recognizes researchers with outstanding achievements and contributions in the area of wireless and mobile communications theory, systems, and networks.


Colin Franklin
Colin Franklin53 is a leading pioneer of the Canadian Space Program54. He was appointed to the Order of Canada in 1990. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and Fellow of the City and Guilds Institute of London. He was the 1996 recipient of the annual Alouette Award from the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute. In 1994, on the 50th anniversary of the IEEE Ottawa Section, he received the IEEE "Pioneers in Technology" Award for "Leadership in the establishment of Canada's satellite program". He was the 2002 recipient of the annual John H. Chapman Award of excellence from the Canadian Space Agency. The Award is the ultimate recognition of the individuals behind the Canadian Space program. The Award highlights an outstanding achievement, its socio-economic benefits and the recipient's merits.
The IEEE Canada citation for Dr. Franklin’s award of the EIC Julian C. Smith Medal55 reads as follows56:
“Colin Franklin was chief electrical engineer for Canada’s first satellite, the Alouette topside sounder, named by the Canadian government as one of the ten most outstanding achievements of Canadian engineering in the country’s first century. He was subsequently chief engineer for the ISIS series of scientific satellites and head of the Space Electronics Laboratory at the Defence [sic] Research Telecommunications Establishment (DRTE) in Ottawa. In 1993, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers designated the Alouette / ISIS program an International Milestone of Electrical Engineering. After fulfilling the role of chief engineer on the very successful ISIS satellites, Colin Franklin became Project Manager for the communications technology satellite Hermes, the forerunner of the direct-to-home TV broadcast satellites.

Turning his talents beyond project management and technical design, Colin chaired the NRC University Grants Committee for Electrical Engineering and produced the 1976 Department of Communications report leading to Canadian cooperation with the European Space Agency. He carried on at the Ministry of State for Science and Technology to contribute to plans for a Canadian Space Agency and for the first Long Term Space Plan which underwrote Canadian participation in the International Space Station and the Mobile Communications Satellite (MSAT) and the remote sensing RADARSAT-1. Colin later became Director General of Space Programs and then Director General of Space and Industry Development Programs in the Department of Communications.


In the last century our beloved country was bound together by rails of steel; today Canada is tied by space-borne communications and remote sensing, materially advanced by Colin Franklin. He dared to undertake very difficult challenges in space, and then exhibited brilliance in implementing the agreed projects. He inspired technical experts and laymen alike in demonstrating what Canada could achieve, and helped lay the groundwork for the next generation of space enthusiasts.”

John (Jack) Belrose
John (Jack) Belrose57 is one of Canada’s leading radio physicists. He is the holder of the Radio Club of America's (RCA) Armstrong Medal58
Jack Belrose and Walter Cronkite receive Armstrong Medal

Jack Belrose received the Radio Club of America's (RCA) Armstrong Medal at an awards banquet on November 16, 2007 in New York City.

Belrose was honoured to receive this award alongside Walter Cronkite, famous anchor of The CBS Evening News. "Thank you for giving me the Armstrong Medal. When I look at it, I will think perhaps I did contribute something, rather than nothing, to the book of knowledge." Belrose received the Award for his lifetime contributions and commitment in advancing radio communications. Jack Belrose had a 55-year career in radio sciences at the Communications Research Centre Canada and continues to work there as Emeritus Researcher. Belrose has written more than 150 paper and articles on the subjects of radio science and antennas and propagation. He is a licensed ham radio operator with the call sign VE2CV.

Recently, he has been researching the history of radio and has authored several papers recognizing the contributions of Canadian born Reginald Aubrey Fessenden (1866-1932) to the development of radio. Belrose has been member of the RCA for 15 years and was the first Canadian to be elected to the CRC Advisory Council for 2008-2009.

Jack Belrose received his BASc and MASc degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C. in 1950 and 1952. He joined the Radio Propagation Laboratory, of the Defence Research Board, Ottawa, ON in September 1951. While on an Athlone Fellowship he received his PhD degree from the University of Cambridge (PhD Cantab) in Radio Physics in 1958. From 1957 to present he has been with the Communications Research Centre (formerly Defence Research Telecommunications Laboratory), where until December 1998 he was Director of the Radio Sciences Branch. He continues to work at CRC (2 days/week) devoting his time to radio science research in the fields of antennas and propagation. Dr. Belrose was Deputy and then Chairman of the AGARD (Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development) Electromagnetic Propagation Panel from 1979-1983). He was a Special Rapporteur for ITURadiocommunications Study Group 3 concerned with LF and VLF Propagation. He is Technical Advisor to the American Radio Relay League, Newington, CT in the areas of radio communications technology, antennas and propagation; a Fellow and member of the Board of Directors of the Radio Club of America; and Life Senior Member of the IEEE (AP-S). He has been a licensed radio amateur since 1947 (present call sign VE2CV). He is the author or co-author of over 125 papers, articles, and technical correspondence letters written relevant to the fields of radio communications, radio science, antennas and propagation; author of 2-chapters in a Prentice-Hall book on Physics of the Earth’s Upper Atmosphere; author of a chapter in an IEE Publication The Handbook on Antenna Design; Lecturer and AGARD Lecture Series Director for four published lectures; and author of five papers concerned with the history of wireless communications.

Among his other achievements, Dr. Belrose is the champion whose efforts have led to the recognition of Reginald Fessenden as the founder of wireless telegraphy.59 His efforts have resulted in the award of an IEEE Milestone Event Award to commemorate Fessenden’s work, as described below:


BTS Supports IEEE Milestone Event Related to

Broadcasting

By Eric Wandel

BTS AdCom member and Principal Engineer Wavepoint Research, Inc. The IEEE Broadcast Technology Society (BTS) recently sponsored an IEEE Milestone Event Award Program at Brant Rock, Massachusetts, to commemorate what was billed as the “First Wireless Radio Broadcast” by Canadian-born American inventor Reginald A. Fessenden in 1906. This broadcast event took place on 24 December 1906, and is touted as the first radio broadcast for entertainment and music to the general public. Reginald Aubrey Fessenden is credited for years of development work leading to his building a complete system of wireless transmission and reception using amplitude modulation (AM) of continuous electromagnetic waves. The significance of this development was that it represented a revolutionary departure from transmission of dots and dashes in widespread use at the time. Dr. John S. Belrose was among presenters at the Milestone Event held on 13 September 2008, at Marshfield and Brant Rock, Massachusetts. [Editor’s Note: Belrose was the principle speaker, and the President of the IEEE Lewis Terman officiated. Lewis’ father was The Terman that wrote The Radio Engineers’ Handbook.]



Belrose spent a career as a researcher at Communications Research Center (CRC) in Canada, and he spoke of the history behind the development efforts of Fessenden. It is clear that Fessenden was a true broadcast engineer employing scientific methods to advance the level of understanding of radio transmission. Reportedly, on the night of 24 December 1906, Christmas Eve, Fessenden transmitted voice and music to an audience of listeners on ships up and down the East coast of the United States as far south as Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It was the first scheduled voice-and-music radio broadcast in history. A plaque was mounted on the tower base rock to commemorate the milestone (picture inset). The Broadcast Technology Society gives its salute to Reginald Fessenden for his accomplishment of helping to launch the broadcast industry. Attending on behalf of BTS were AdCom members Eric Wandel and James Fang as well as Publications Coordinator Jenn Barbato. More details about Fessenden as written by Dr. Belrose can be found at: http://ewh.ieee.org/reg/7/millennium/ radio/radio_radioscientist.html.
Dr. Belrose provided the following notes on the history of the IEEE and radio engineering, with some details of Ottawa Section members.

History of the IEEE

  • The American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE) was formed in 1884, in Boston;

  • The Society of Wireless Telegraph Engineers (SWTE) was formed on 25th February, 1907, and so it was the first group in United States, if not in the world, to get together to develop wireless communications;

  • The organization meeting of The Wireless Institute (TWI) was held on 10th March 1909;

  • The SWTE and TWI, after some discussion, consolidated to form the Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE) on 13th May 1912;

  • At that time the dominant organization of electrical engineers was the AIEE. In the first half of the 20th Century, wireless (radio) communications experienced great expansion, and there was clearly a need for an authoritative journal disseminating new results among practitioners. The Proceedings of the IRE (Proc IRE) was established in 1913. Alfred N. Goldstein, an honorary member of The Radio Club of America, which was founded on 2 January, 1909, was the editor of the Proc IRE, and he edited that Journal for 41 years;

  • Until about the 1940s the IRE was a relatively small engineering organization, but the growing importance of electrical communications and the emergence of the discipline of electronics resulted in negotiations about merging the IRE and the AIEE, in c1957, which resulted in the establishment of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) in 1963. December 1962 was the last issue of the Proc IRE, and January 1963 was the first issue of the Proc IEEE. Gone was radio from the title of the new organization, but the IEEE today has scores of Societies, the Antennas and Propagation Society is the one that Belrose actively participates in.

The forerunner of the IEEE A&P Society was known as the IRE Professional Group on Antennas & Propagation (PGAP), which was formed in 1949 --- and so the present A&P Society predates other Societies. Some Institute/Societies seem to want to tie themselves back to the beginning (as you know) --- 1884. It seems we can say however old we would like to be, but not older than 125 years.


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