Contact Professor Saba Al-Rubaye
- Tel: +44 (0) 1234 754887
- Email: S.Alrubaye@cranfield.ac.uk
Areas of expertise
- Aeronautical Systems
- Autonomous Systems
- Communications Systems
- Electric and Hybrid Vehicles
- Industrial Automation
- Systems Engineering
- Vehicle Health Management
Background
Professor Dr. Saba Al-Rubaye, Canadian professional, currently serves as the Professor Chair in Telecommunications and Autonomous Systems at the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Cranfield University, and is also an expert at the UK Telecoms Innovation Network. She leads the development of 6G technologies and their applications in future communication networks, particularly in support of smart air mobility. With over 20 years of experience in both academia and industry, Prof. Al-Rubaye has published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers and has a proven record of driving innovative solutions in design, testing, consultation, leadership, and program development.
She has been actively involved in various high-profile projects funded by Innovate UK, Research England, EPSRC, the Department for Transport, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the U.S. government. Notably, Prof. Al-Rubaye contributed to establishing the hardware-in-the-loop testbed for smart grid communications and system integration at Quanta’s Sustainable Technology Integration Laboratory (QT-STIL) in Toronto, Canada. These initiatives have played a key role in fast-tracking the adoption and integration of emerging technologies into future communication networks.
Prof. Al-Rubaye contributed to the development of industry standards, including IEEE P1932.1 for License/Unlicensed Interoperability and IEEE P1920.2 for Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications for Unmanned Aircraft Systems. Her research has been widely recognized, winning best technical paper awards at the IEEE Vehicular Technology conferences in 2011 and 2015, and the best paper awards at the IEEE DASC conference in 2020, 2021, and 2024.
Prof. Al-Rubaye has held leadership roles at various international conferences, including serving as a general co-chair and TPC co-chair. She has delivered tutorials and talks at prestigious IEEE events like ICC and VTC, and has been invited to speak at renowned institutions such as the Communications Research Centre (CRC) of Canada, IEEE Toronto Chapter, and IEEE UK Chapter. Prof. Al-Rubaye is a Chartered Engineer (CEng), a member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (MIET), a Life Senior Member of IEEE.
Research opportunities
Telecommunications and Autonmous Systsm research group focusing on modelling, simulation, and testing, and all the aspects which addresses the new generation of emerging technology and integration capabilities:
6G Wirelss Communications
TN/NTN Systsm Intergation
Antenna Desing & Beamforming
Secure and Resilient Networks
Integrated Sensing and Communications
Digital Twin Pltform for Space & Air Mobility
AI/ML Algorithems for Decision Making
Connected Mobility and Transport
Excellent Postdoc & PhD candidates can contact me directly with CV and research topic to enquire about joining my research group
Workshop
keynote speaker in the "Women in Telecoms" in CHEDDAR Symposium and Industry, London 2025
keynote Speaker in IEEE Smart Mobility 2024, Canada
keynote Speaker in Future Networks World Forum, 2024, Dubai
keynote Speaker and panellist at IEEE ICC 2024, Denver, USA
keynote Speaker and panellist at IEEE PIMRC 2023, Toronto, Canada
Chairing and organising a new workshop for 6G Networks at IEEE ICC 2020, Irland
DARTeC conference - Speakers for Future Connectivity Challenge Digital Aviation Conference
Group Alumni (Staff/PhD)
Dr Anirudh Warrier - UAV Handover & Mobility
Dr Huw Whitworth - Connectivity & Security
Dr Morad Mousa - 5G/NR UAV Positioning
Dr Abdulmohsan Aloseel- Embedded system security
Dr Nasr Abosata -Distributed Sensors for Industrial Applications
Dr Aminah Ahmed- Intelligent Traffic Systems
Dr Mumin Ozpolat- UAS Networking
Dr Vahid Towhidlou- UAS Communications
Dr Ali Jihad - Wireless Antenna Design
Miss Hanieh Ahmadi- 6G Wierless Communications
External Examiner
Examiner for PhDs in telecommunications institute, university of Aveiro, Portugal
Current activities
Project- Advanced Air Mobility Ecosystems- Phase III
Co-Investigator & Technical lead - Prof Saba Al-Rubye
Sponsor- Innovation UK- Future Flight Challenges
Total Project Funded - £9.5 million
Partners- Atkins, Vertical Aerospace, Virgin Atlantic, Heathrow, Skyports, NATS, Bristol Airport, Connected Places Catapult, Cranfield University
Shaping The Future of Advanced Air Mobility in the South West of England- For more info
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Project- Advanced Air Mobility- Phase II
(PREPARE FOR COMMERCIAL EVTOL AIRCRAFT SERVICES)
Co-Investigator & Technical lead- Prof Saba Al-Rubye
Sponsor- Innovation UK- Future Flight Challenges
Total Project Funded £2.5m
Partners- Atkins, Vertical Aerospace, Skyports, NATS, Connected Places Catapult, Cranfield University, Neuron
An industry consortium aiming to demonstrate air taxi service in the South West region of England in response to the UK government's Future of Flight Challenge. This project will 'significantly accelerate the introduction of AAM in the UK'.
Shaping The Future of Advanced Air Mobility in The South-west of England- For more info
Test Field Trial at Cranfield Airport - Video
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Project Rise
Principal Investigator & Technical lead- Prof Saba Al-Rubye
Sponsor- Innovation UK- Future Flight Challenges
Total Project Funded £ 500,000
Partners- Dronecloud, Sky-drones, Cranfield University and Skyports
The scheme project aims to integrate evolving Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM), the drone version of Air Traffic Control (ATM), with the control systems on-board drones to Unlock the future of drone operations through integration. Focusing on the approvals process and air traffic management (ATM) for flying within airspace controlled by an Air Navigation Service Provider (ANSP), integrating across a combined stack of independent software and hardware.
More info about Project Rise Website
Filed test trials at Cranfield Airport- Video
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Project - Unmanned Aircraft Systems Authentication System
Principal Investigator & Technical lead- Prof Saba Al-Rubye
Sponsor- Innovation UK- Future Flight Challenges
Total Project Funded £ 500,000
Partners- ANGOKA, Cranfield University and Connected Places Catapult
The Unmanned Aircraft Systems Authentication System (UASAS) project brings together Cranfield, ANGOKA and Connected Places Catapult collaborators to create an authentication system that will provide a trusted identification service for drone usage. This system will protect communications from potentially devastating cyberattacks. Trusted identification will allow organisations to ensure that drones are flying in the right zones and without adverse effects to other parties, increasing overall confidence in drone technology.
Enabling Secure Authentication for Unmanned Aircraft Systems- Event Video
Cranfield Airport- UASAS- Test Field Demonstration - Video
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Project Smart Airport
Principal Investigator and Technical lead- Prof Saba Al-Rubye
Sponsor- Department for Transport ( DfT )
Total Project Funded £ 135,000
Partners- NCC-Group & Cranfield University
The main aim of this project is to build end to end ecosystem for Smart Airports based on the use of digital twin and intelligent systems such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT), sensors and devices configured for specific purposes in different areas in order to control, manage and plan their operations in a centralised digital environment.
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Project Digital Aviation Connectivity & Security
Principal Investigator and technical lead- Prof Saba Al-Rubye
Sponsor- Department for Transport ( DfT )
Total Project Funded £ 135,000
Partners- Thales & Cranfield University
The digital transformation envisaged by the Future Flight Challenge is redefining expectations around connectivity, security, communication system and control. Across civil and military air platforms, manned and unmanned, digital data drives everything - and the safety, effectiveness and efficiency of every mission depends on it.
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Inmarsat - Connectivity
Co-Investigator and technical lead- Prof Saba Al-Rubye
Sponsor- Inmarsat
Total Project Funded £ 100,000
Partners_ Inmarsat & Cranfield University
The aim is to create roadmap for future aviation connectivity
Cranfield- Inmarsat Roadmap --- Digital Aviation Roadmap
For more info download the report from the link below:
Digital Now: Why the future of aviation starts with connectivity - Inmarsat-Cranfield
Clients
Thales
Atkins
Inmarsat
Honeywell
Ankoga
DroneCloud
Sky-Drone
Skyports
NCC-Group
Satellite Applications Catapult
EPSRC
Innovation UK
Department for Transportation (DfT)
