Working of Remote Labs

LabVIEW® virtual instrumentation has been the primary used tool, and this software has become a powerful resource for the development of e-learning environments, particularly at the development stage.

A laptop computer equipped with LabVIEW® software is located at the actual laboratory where the experiment is performed. This is the server computer where the virtual instruments are developed for the control of the experiment execute.  Additional hardware was employed for the implementation of the system, namely a data acquisition (DAQ) board and a webcam, both connected to USB ports of the server computer, as well as signal conditioning circuits for the conversion of software instructions into the required power actions on the laboratory equipment. The webcam allows video communication with the laboratory, displaying images through the computer interface in order to monitor the experiment. Using the LabVIEW® web server, the experiment is available on the Internet, and it can be accessed from anywhere providing that the user has a computer (client computer) with an Internet connection.

Three different experiments were implemented in the web-based system developed. The experiments proposed are the control of an electro-pneumatic system, the control of AC motors, and the manipulation of residential electrical circuits. The first one is performed at the industrial automation laboratory of the main campus, whereas the other two are conducted at the electric machines laboratory. A laptop computer, a DAQ board, and a webcam were used for each of the experiments. The laboratory equipment and additional hardware required for each experiment are permanently installed at the laboratories of the main campus, but they can be accessed by students from campuses in other cities, sharing the available resources.

Author: 64 IT-A Nandita Patra