An Internet-based Remote-access Approach to Undergraduate Laboratory Education
Esche, S. K. & Chassapis, C.
Engineering Education without Boundaries, Proceedings of the 1998 Fall Regional Conference of the Middle Atlantic Section of ASEE, Washington, DC, USA, November 6 - 7, 1998, pp. 108-113.
Abstract
Typically, access to undergraduate student laboratories is limited. To satisfy the demand of large student populations, the time in the laboratory allotted per student is usually reduced. This means that the students do not receive as much contact with the laboratory setups as would be desirable. This problem can be solved by a shift of paradigm of laboratory teaching that would allow for more flexibility in administering preparatory instruction for the laboratory experiments and in performing the experimental work itself. An internet-based remote-access interactive approach to laboratory instruction is proposed in this paper. In this approach, the students will be able to remotely access the laboratory facility and connect to the computer controlled laboratory setup of interest. The approach is highlighted by presenting a remotely accessible torsional vibration setup that is implemented into a system dynamics laboratory. The benefits of the proposed laboratory implementation are among others that more students can be exposed to experimental experiences, the strain on laboratory class schedules is released, and self-learning of the students is promoted.