Smart Charging in Smart Cities
Panel Chair: Chris Mi, Fellow IEEE & SAE, Distinguished Professor, San Diego State University
Panelists: Dr. Anna Stefanopoulou, Chair Professor, University of Michigan, Dr. Jianning Dong, Associate Professor with the Department of Electrical Sustainable Energy at Delft University of Technology, Roberto PETRELLA, Ph.D. Professore Associato, Università degli Studi di Udine, Partick Aiguo Hu, Professor, University of Auckland, Dr. Theofanis Raptis, National Research Council, Pisa, Italy
Dr. Chris Mi is the Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at San Diego State University. He is a Fellow of IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers). He is also the Director of the US Department of Energy-funded Graduate Automotive Technology Education (GATE) Center for Electric Drive Transportation at SDSU. He was previously a faculty member at the University of Michigan-Dearborn from 2001 to 2015, and an Electrical Engineer with General Electric from 2000 to 2001. He also served as the CTO of 1Power Solutions from 2008 to 2011, and CTO of EV Safe Charger, Inc. from 2021. Dr. Mi received his Ph. D from the University of Toronto, Canada, in 2001. Dr. Mi has published five books, 200+ journal papers, 130 conference papers, and 20+ issued and pending patents. He served as Editor-in-Chief, Area Editor, Guest Editor, and Associate Editor of multiple IEEE Transactions and international journals, as well as the General Chair of over ten IEEE international conferences. Dr. Mi has won numerous awards, including the “Distinguished Teaching Award” and “Distinguished Research Award” from the University of Michigan-Dearborn, IEEE Region 4 “Outstanding Engineer Award,” IEEE Southeastern Michigan Section “Outstanding Professional Award,” and SAE “Environmental Excellence in Transportation (E2T) Award.” He is the recipient of three Best Paper Awards from IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics and the 2017 ECCE Student Demonstration Award. In 2019, he received the Inaugural IEEE Power Electronics Emerging Technology Award. In 2022, he received the Albert W. Johnson Research Lectureship and was named the Distinguished Professor, the highest honor given to an SDSU faculty member, and only one award is given each year. Most recently, he received the 2023 IEEE PELS Vehicle and Transportation Systems Achievement Award, the IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications Best Paper Award, and the SDSU Innovator of the Year Award. In 2024, he received the prestigious Alumni Distinguished Faculty Award from SDSU.
Dr. Anna Stefanopoulou is the William Clay Ford Professor of Technology at the University of Michigan. Her training is in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering (91 Diploma NTUA, Athens) and in Electrical Engineering (94 MS, 96 PhD, UMICH, Ann Arbor). She was also an assistant professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, a visiting scholar at ETH, Zurich, and a technical specialist at Ford Motor Company. She has been recognized as a Fellow of the ASME, IEEE, and SAE. Her recent awards are the 2024 Nyquist Lecture, the 2019 AACC Control Engineering Practice Award (“for the modeling, analysis, and control of advanced vehicle powertrain systems”), the 2018 ASME Charles Stark Draper Innovative Practice Award (for advancing engine, fuel cell, and battery management), and the 2017 IEEE Control System Technology award (for advanced battery management system accounting for electro-thermo-mechanical phenomena). She has served on two U.S. National Academy committees (2015 and 2020), which were formed upon the request of the U.S. Congress to report on vehicle fuel economy standards and the transition to electrification. She has advised and mentored more than 50 Ph.D. students and co-authored with them a book, 25 U.S. patents, and more than 400 publications (seven of which have received awards) on the estimation and control of engines, fuel cells, and batteries.
Dr. Roberto Petrella was born in Pescara (Italy), in 1971. He received the master’s degree in electronic engineering, with full marks and honors, and the Ph.D. degree from the University of L’Aquila, Italy, in 1996 and 2001, respectively. In November 2006, he was an Assistant Professor with the University of Udine, Italy, and became an Associate Professor in 2016. He is the Co-founder of Koala Electronics s.r.l., a spin-off of the University of Udine dealing with electronic power electronic converters and electrical drives. From September 2021 he also joined Silicon Austria Labs GmbH as a part-time staff scientist in the Division “Power Electronics”, working on several research and industrial project in the power electronics and electrical drives field. His main research interests include advanced modelling and control of power electronic converters and electrical drives, high-frequency resonant converters, multi-phase and multi-level converters and related modulation strategies, power electronic converters and drives for electric/hybrid vehicles, renewable-energy generation systems and steel industry (medium voltage high power). He has co-authored about 120 technical papers and one international patent. He served IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications as Associate Editor from 2017 to 2021. He received two prize papers from the Industrial Drives Committee of the IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition in 2009 and 2017, and one outstanding presentation Award from the IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference in 2014. He was a Plenary Speaker at the IEEE International Electric Machines and Drives Conference, Chicago, USA, in 2013. He was involved in the organization of several international conferences as track co-chair, chairman, reviewer and member of the organizing committee.
Dr. Jianning Dong (IEEE Senior Member) is currently an Associate Professor with the Department of Electrical Sustainable Energy at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), Delft, The Netherlands. He received his BSc and PhD degrees in electrical engineering in 2010 and 2015, respectively, both from Southeast University, Nanjing, China. His PhD research focused on the integrated design of high-speed permanent magnet machines for turbo-machinery. In 2016, he worked at the McMaster Automotive Resource Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada, as a Post-Doctoral Researcher, where he researched electromagnetic field-induced acoustic noise in electric machines. In October 2016, he joined the DC Systems, Energy Conversion and Storage (DCE&S) Group at TU Delft as an Assistant Professor. In 2025, he was promoted to Associate Professor at TU Delft. His research interests include electromechanical energy conversion and contactless power transfer, through which he applies knowledge to applications such as transportation electrification and renewable energy. He has worked on several EU and dutch national projects on wireless electric-vehicle charging, aircraft electrification, renewable energy generation, and high-performance electromagnetic actuators. He has supervised more than ten PhD students, seven of whom work on wireless power transfer. He also teaches several BSc and MSc courses related to electromagnetics, electric machine dynamics, and control.
Dr. Theofanis P. Raptis is a Senior Researcher at the National Research Council of Italy. He received his PhD in Computer Engineering from the University of Patras, Greece, and holds the Italian National Scientific Habilitation as Full Professor in Information Processing Systems. He has authored over 90 publications in journals, conference proceedings, and books, focusing on industrial, wirelessly powered, and sensor networks. He is regularly involved in the organization committees of international conferences sponsored by IEEE and ACM, in the areas of networking, computing, and communications. He has contributed a technical report on wireless crowd charging in smart cities to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and has received multiple StandICT Fellowships for his work in this field. In 2024, he was selected among the IEEE Computer Society’s “Computing’s Top 30 Early Career Professionals”. He has served on the Editorial Board of Ad Hoc Networks (Elsevier), and as Associate Editor for IET Networks (Wiley) and IEEE Access..
Dr Aiguo Patrick Hu migrated to New Zealand at the end of 1996 from Xian, China. Before that he worked as a lecturer, the director of the electrical section of the China-Italy Cooperative Technical Training Center in Xian, and later the general manager of a technical development company. He holds 50+ patents in wireless power transfer and micro-computer control technologies, has published more than 300 referred journal and conference papers, authored the first monograph on wireless/contactless power transfer, and contributed 4 book chapters on electrical machines and wireless power transfer systems. Patrick served as the Deputy Head of Department (Research), the past Chair of the IEEE New Zealand North Section, Chair of IEEE North Joint Industrial Electronics and Industry Applications Chapter. He was the founding President of Xian Jiaotong Univ New Zealand Alumni Association, and now the Treasurer of NUS (National University of Singapore) Auckland Alumni Chapter, and Chairman of New Zealand Chinese Scientists Association. Patrick was also the Head of Research/CTO of PowerbyProxi (Sold to Apple Inc in 2017, https://www.zdnet.com/article/apple-buys-wireless-charging-firm-aims-for-effortless-device-recharging/), and an executive editor of the Journal of Wireless Power Transfer, Cambridge Univ Press (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/wireless-power-transfer).
Intelligent Sensing and Data-Driven Innovation – How Can They Help Smart Cities?
Panelists: Dr. Rakesh Kumar, Dr. Anil Roy, Dr. Georges Zissis, Dr. Surekha Deshmukh, and Dr. Anjali Diwan (Moderator of the Panel)
Smart cities rely on a continuous flow of high-quality data to optimize resources, improve citizen services, and achieve sustainability goals. Intelligent sensing technologies generate vast streams of information, but the true value emerges only when these datasets are curated, shared, and transformed into actionable insights. This panel brings together experts from data platforms, sensor technologies, energy transition, and city planning to discuss how datasets can enable innovation and citizen engagement. Panelists will explore challenges in data collection, interoperability, privacy, and standardization, while highlighting opportunities where open datasets and intelligent sensing can accelerate energy transition, enhance urban resilience, and empower communities. The discussion will emphasize why accessible, reliable, and FAIR datasets are the foundation of smart city innovation.
Dr. Anil K. Roy, a faculty of Plaksha University, Mohali (India) is an alumnus of IIT Delhi and IIT Roorkee. He obtained his PhD degree in Physics from IIT Delhi in 1993. Prior to joining Plaksha, he taught at DA-IICT (Gandhinagar, India) for 22 years. He also worked at Centre for Theoretical Studies at Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (India) during 1993-94 followed by the Optical Fiber Group at IIT Delhi (India) till 1996. His main academic interests are sensors, Internet of Things, image processing, fiber optics, semiconductor physics, and applications of technologies for humanitarian challenges. He is a senior member of IEEE, a member of Optica (formerly Optical Society of America) and a member of Optical Society of India. He is currently the President-elect of IEEE Sensors Council (2024-2025) which is the largest technical council of IEEE. He was also the Chair of IEEE Conference Publications Committee (2019-2020). Some of the notable awards which he won are: 2019 IEEE India Council Section Chair Lifetime Achievement Award, 2017 IEEE Sensors Council Meritorious Service Award, 2012 IEEE MGA Leadership Award and 2010 IEEE Region 10 Outstanding Volunteer Award.
Dr. Rakesh Kumar is a semiconductor industry veteran, an entrepreneur, and an educator. He is the founder, President and CEO of TCX Technology Connexions. Rakesh educates and mentors potential engineering entrepreneurs at UCSD. He has authored the book “Fabless Semiconductor Implementation”, published by McGraw Hill. He is an IEEE Life Fellow and was inducted into the IEEE Technical Activities Hall of Honor in 2018. At IEEE he is currently Chair of Future Directions, DataPort and has been President of the Solid-State Circuits Society (2012-13) in addition to numerous other leadership roles. He was Vice Program Chair for the 2017 Sections Congress. During 40+ years in the semiconductor industry he has been VP&GM at Cadence Design and has held various technical and management positions at Unisys and Motorola. He received the Ph.D. M.S. and B.S diplomas in EE from the University of Rochester, and IIT Delhi, and an Executive “MBA” from UCSD.
Dr. Surekha Deshmukh has over 22 plus years of professional experience. Her current role is Domain Consultant, Sustain-ability Practice, TCS, Pune. Dr Surekha is senior member of IEEE and Chair of IEEE Pune Section and Chair- PES India Chapters Council. She also served as a Member of IEEE’s Climate Change Committee (CCIRCC) and chair of Sub Committee of CCIRCC–Global Visibility. She has published 35 papers till date on areas of interest including Sustainability, Climate Change, Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics, Electrical Safety, Electric Vehicles, Power Market, Power System Operation and Control, Reliability Analysis and Smart Grid. Dr Surekha is awarded with “Outstanding Volunteer Award” of IEEE India Council-2020, Women in Power Award 2021, IEEE PES Outstanding Engineer Award 2022. Women In Engineering Recognition by IEEMA-from ELECRMAMA in Feb 2023. Dr Surekha remarkably contributed at global IEEE events as Resource person, Tutorial speaker, keynote speaker, Session chair, Panelist etc.
Prof. Georges Zissis, PhD, SMIEE, Vice-Rector Toulouse 3 University (2020-23). Born in Athens in 1964, has graduated in 1986 from Physics department of University of Crete in general physics. He got his MSc and PhD in Plasma Science in 1987 and 1990 from Toulouse 3 University (France). He is today a full Professor in Toulouse 3 University (France). His primary area of work is in the field of Light Systems Science and Technology. He is especially interested in the sustainable smart lighting systems; system and metrology issues for solid-state lighting systems; standardization and quality issues for light sources; impact of lighting to energy, environment, quality of life, health and security; illumination and lighting. He is director of “Light & Matter” research group of LAPLACE that enrolls 20 researchers. He won in December 2006 the 1st Award of the International Electrotechnical Committee (IEC) Centenary Challenge for his work on mesopic vision standardization for urban lighting systems (in conjunction with IEEE, IET and the Observer). In 2009, he won the Energy Globe Award for France, and he got the Fresnel Medal from the French Illuminating Engineering Society. He was President IEEE Industrial Application Society (2019-20), and President of the Power Electronics, Electronics, Optoelectronics and System section of the French National Council of Universities (2014-19). He initiated and currently chairs the IEEE Smart Lighting Initiative under IEEE Future Directions umbrella.
Dr. Anjali Diwan is an Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Computer Engineering at Marwadi University, India. Her expertise lies in Computer Vision, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning, and she actively mentors students on interdisciplinary research projects. Dr. Diwan has held several leadership roles within IEEE at the Gujarat section, Region 10, and global levels, and currently serves as a Steering Committee Member of IEEE DataPort. She is a strong advocate for open data and reproducible research and regularly promotes the use of IEEE DataPort for collaborative innovation. In addition to her academic and professional roles, she also mentors and supports startups, contributing to the growth of early-stage innovations and entrepreneurial initiatives.
Navigating the Future of Smart Cities: Towards Sustainability, Resilience and Participation
Panelists: Prof. Panos Fitsilis, Asst. Prof. Christina Politi, Dr. Asterios Leonidis, Dr. Amin Anjomshoaa and Prof. Ioannis Chatzigiannakis (Moderator)
Professor Dr. Panos Fitsilis is a Full Professor at the Department of Business Administration, University of Thessaly, Greece, and Director of the Research Laboratory for Management, Digital and Educational Skills (MANDEIS). He also serves as Academic Coordinator of the “Software Design” module at the Hellenic Open University. He has extensive experience in the management of large-scale IT projects and has held senior management positions in both academia and industry. His research interests focus on Smart Cities and Smart Urban Ecosystems, as well as Industry 5.0, Business Information Systems, Educational Technology, and Software Project Management. Prof. Fitsilis has played a leading role in the development of methodologies, frameworks, and educational programs that advance the design and implementation of smart, sustainable, and resilient cities. He has been actively involved in European initiatives that bridge digital innovation with urban development, contributing to the international discourse on how data, digital skills, and emerging technologies can transform cities into more sustainable, citizen-centric environments.
Dr. Christina (Tanya) Politi is Associate Professor at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Peloponnese and Research Associate at University of Patras. Her work focuses on innovative technologies in digital infrastructures for IoT applications and smart cities, high performance wireless and wired technologies for networks. With respect to Smart and Metacities, Tanya supports activities that enable digital transformation and accelerate digital ecosystem integration in the region, especially looking beyond smart cities, while assisting the City of Patras with their participation in Digital and Intelligent City networks (Digital Cities Challenge and Intelligent Cities Challenge). She has been involved in the “Interconnected Smart Cities for Greece 2.0” project and together with Prof Spyros Denazis has been managing the “Metacities” Excellence Hub.
Dr. Amin Anjomshoaa is a senior researcher at the Institute for Data, Process, and Knowledge Management at the Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU Vienna). He also serves as Studio Director for both the Data Science Studio in Vienna and the SDIS Studio in Lower Austria. He is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow and an Erwin Schrödinger Fellow, with an accomplished track record as a researcher and project lead at several prestigious institutions. These include the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he led research in the Smart City domain, as well as the Complexity Science Hub Vienna, the National University of Ireland, Lero (Science Foundation Ireland), SBA Research Austria, and the Vienna University of Technology. He earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science from the Vienna University of Technology in 2009. His academic background also includes dual master’s degrees in software engineering & Internet Computing (2005) and Information Management (2007) from the same institution, along with a bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics from the University of Kerman. His research focuses on interdisciplinary, data-driven technologies, with expertise in areas such as the Semantic Web, Linked Data, Knowledge Graphs, Data Spaces, Smart Cities, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Machine Learning.
Dr. Asterios Leonidis is an Assistant Professor at the University of Crete and Affiliated Faculty at FORTH-ICS. His research lies in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), focusing on areas such as Extended Reality (XR), Human-Centered AI, Ambient Intelligence, IoT, and smart cities. He has extensive experience in designing and evaluating interactive technologies for domains including education, accessibility, and cultural heritage, with a strong emphasis on usability, natural interaction, and the societal impact of emerging technologies. He holds a Ph.D. in Information Systems and Human-Computer Interaction and an M.Sc. in Information Systems from the University of Crete. His work emphasizes inclusive and adaptive design principles, exploring both implicit and explicit interaction techniques that foster meaningful human–technology engagement. He has contributed to numerous national and European research projects, producing interactive systems that combine scientific rigor with real-world applicability. His ongoing research efforts seek to bridge technological innovation with human-centered values, ensuring that interactive systems remain accessible, inclusive, and relevant to diverse societal needs.
Prof. Ioannis Chatzigiannakis holds a PhD from the University of Patras (2003) in ad-hoc wireless mobile networks and a BEng from the University of Kent (1997) in Computer Systems Engineering. He is an Associate Professor at the “La Sapienza” University of Rome at the Department of Computer, Control and Management Engineering. He has co-authored over 150 scientific publications in areas related to dynamic distributed computing, internet of things, algorithm engineering and software systems. He has been a project manager and site leader for numerous research & development projects funded by the EU in the context of H2020, FP7, FP6, and EDA and has participated in the research & development teams of industrial projects. He has an active role in many open-source projects and regularly participates in open-source international events. He has started several technology-based start-ups related to the Internet-of-Things. He served as the Secretary of the European Association for Theoretical Computer Science (EATCS). He is a member of the ACM and IEEE.