Virtualisation of engineering discipline experiments for an Internet-based remote laboratory

Abstract

A comprehensive survey on the Internet based virtualisation of experiments is presented, covering several individual as well as collaborative efforts in various engineering disciplines. From this survey it could be concluded that there is a pressing need to develop full-fledged remote laboratory experiments for integrated directly into engineering curricula. The paper subsequently summarises the experiences of authors during the design, evolution and implementation of virtualisation for a number of engineering experiments, enabling these to be accessed through the Internet as virtual experiments. It also covers the features required to give the 'feel' of performing experiments, inclusion of learning components, incorporation of easy navigation, testing of effectiveness of learning, and development of useful feedback mechanisms. A detailed feedback analysis from prospective learners is presented on the effectiveness of the virtual laboratory.