Arrangement for conducting experiments at one location while situated at another
This article is about the use of telecommunications in conducting experiments. For India's virtual labs project, see
Virtual Labs (India). For the online project "Virtual Laboratory. Essays and Resources on the Experimentalization of Life, 1830-1930", see
Virtual Laboratory.
Remote laboratory (also known as online laboratory or remote workbench) is the use of
telecommunications to remotely conduct real (as opposed to
virtual) experiments, at the physical
location of the operating technology, whilst the
scientist is utilizing
technology from a separate geographical location. Remote laboratory comprehends one or more
remote experiments.[1]
Relax time constraints, adapting to pace of each student, if there was insufficient time in lab
Relax geographical constraints, disregarding the physical locality of the student
Economies of scale, as sharing labs allows sharing of large fixed costs of traditional buildings
Improve quality of experiment, as it can be repeated to clarify doubtful measurements in lab
Improve effectiveness, as student may improve effectiveness of time spent at lab by rehearsal
Improved safety and security, as no risk of catastrophic failure
Researchers from the
Labshare describe the advantages as being:
Increasing accessibility to laboratories by a factor of 4 within 3 years, since current lab utilization is less than 10%
Decrease fixed and variable expenditure by 50%, since faculty budget spends between 15 and 40% on lab infrastructure and personnel, around $400m per year
Improve learning objectives and outcomes to support better learning
Enhance sharing of knowledge, expertise and experience
Another benefit is that this technology can be integrated into
Moodle,[3] which is probably the most used
learning management system around the world.
Disadvantages
The disadvantages differ depending on the type of remote laboratory and the topic area.
The general disadvantages compared to a proximal (hands on) laboratory are:
Lack of hands on trouble shooting and debugging experience.
Lack of equipment setup experience.
Future direction
Current system capabilities include:
Online session booking, utilizing a
database and online interface
^Callaghan, Harkin, Maguire (2007). "Paradigms in Remote Experimentation", International Journal of Online Engineering (iJOE), Vol 3, No 4 (2007)
[1]
^Ferreira, Sousa, Nafalski, Machotka, Nedic (2010). "Collaborative learning based on a
micro-webserver remote test controller", Bridgeport, University of South Australia, p. 10.
Arrangement for conducting experiments at one location while situated at another
This article is about the use of telecommunications in conducting experiments. For India's virtual labs project, see
Virtual Labs (India). For the online project "Virtual Laboratory. Essays and Resources on the Experimentalization of Life, 1830-1930", see
Virtual Laboratory.
Remote laboratory (also known as online laboratory or remote workbench) is the use of
telecommunications to remotely conduct real (as opposed to
virtual) experiments, at the physical
location of the operating technology, whilst the
scientist is utilizing
technology from a separate geographical location. Remote laboratory comprehends one or more
remote experiments.[1]
Relax time constraints, adapting to pace of each student, if there was insufficient time in lab
Relax geographical constraints, disregarding the physical locality of the student
Economies of scale, as sharing labs allows sharing of large fixed costs of traditional buildings
Improve quality of experiment, as it can be repeated to clarify doubtful measurements in lab
Improve effectiveness, as student may improve effectiveness of time spent at lab by rehearsal
Improved safety and security, as no risk of catastrophic failure
Researchers from the
Labshare describe the advantages as being:
Increasing accessibility to laboratories by a factor of 4 within 3 years, since current lab utilization is less than 10%
Decrease fixed and variable expenditure by 50%, since faculty budget spends between 15 and 40% on lab infrastructure and personnel, around $400m per year
Improve learning objectives and outcomes to support better learning
Enhance sharing of knowledge, expertise and experience
Another benefit is that this technology can be integrated into
Moodle,[3] which is probably the most used
learning management system around the world.
Disadvantages
The disadvantages differ depending on the type of remote laboratory and the topic area.
The general disadvantages compared to a proximal (hands on) laboratory are:
Lack of hands on trouble shooting and debugging experience.
Lack of equipment setup experience.
Future direction
Current system capabilities include:
Online session booking, utilizing a
database and online interface
^Callaghan, Harkin, Maguire (2007). "Paradigms in Remote Experimentation", International Journal of Online Engineering (iJOE), Vol 3, No 4 (2007)
[1]
^Ferreira, Sousa, Nafalski, Machotka, Nedic (2010). "Collaborative learning based on a
micro-webserver remote test controller", Bridgeport, University of South Australia, p. 10.