Delivering authentic experiences for engineering students and professionals through e-labs

Abstract

Use of leading industrial technology in `remote experiments' and `virtual laboratories' delivers authentic experiences to engineering students. Both types of learning resources can easily be shared between universities or industrial partners, leading to dramatic reductions in the costs associated with development, construction, operation and maintenance of traditional laboratory set-ups; however, each is characterised by inherent advantages and disadvantages. We compare and contrast remote experiments and virtual labs, using two case studies: `Cambridge Weblab', a remote experiment built by the Computational Modeling (CoMo) Group at the University of Cambridge and `SRM web-suite', a virtual lab developed by CMCL innovations. The Cambridge Weblab remote experiment uses a Siemens SIMATIC PS7 industrial interface to control a chemical reactor, yielding authentic experiences of industrial practices for students. A variety of pedagogical approaches employed by institutions using the Weblab are also discussed in this paper. The SRM web-suite uses an advanced engine design tool that simulates fuels, combustion and emissions in conventional and advanced internal combustion engines. The detailed simulations have been precisely tailored for training and educational settings. The web-suite labs provide students and engineering professionals with experience using the latest industry-standard technology, whilst supporting a wide range of educational goals e.g. undergraduate courses in combustion engines or chemical reaction engineering and advanced courses in futuristic fuels or powertrain engineering. We also assess the potential impact of these learning resources within the pan-European Library of Labs (LiLa) framework. Ultimately, we demonstrate that remote experiments and virtual laboratories are complementary, that there is significant potential for future integration of the two technologies, and that both can benefit from the latest industrial technologies.