International Conference on Engineering Education and Research "Progress Through Partnership" © 2004 VSB-TUO, Ostrava, ISSN 1562-3580 1 LABORATORIES IN ENGINEERING COURSES VIA INTERNET Mamane Moustapha DODO AMADOU École de technologie supérieure, 1100 Notre-Dame St. West, Montreal (Quebec) Canada H3C 1K3, dodoamad@yahoo.com Hamadou SALIAH-HASSANE Télé-université, 4750 Henri-Julien Avenue, Suite 100, Montreal (Quebec) Canada H2T 3E4, saliah@teluq.uquebec.ca Maarouf SAAD École de technologie supérieure, 1100 Notre-Dame St. West, Montreal (Quebec) Canada H3C 1K3, msaad@ele.etsmtl.ca KEYWORDS: e-Learning, Simulation, Control System, Remote Laboratory, Virtual Laboratory, Tele- operation ABSTRACT: This paper first presents an approach that makes it possible to create automatic control simulation applications with flexible interfaces. This approach provides the trainer with facilities to generate learner applications according to a given teaching scenario. In order to illustrate the proposed approach, we present an application that allows simulation of a physical process. This application can be used during the laboratory session if adequate material for real experimentation is not available. On the other hand, if adequate material is available, the application can be used for the pre-laboratory period. In the second part of the paper, we present an application that allows remote access via a FieldPoint system to a Virtual Laboratory for controlling the temperature and/or the level of a water tank of a hydraulic workbench. LabVIEW software was used to run these applications. 1 INTRODUCTION In universities offering engineering courses, students carry out real experiments in order to verify certain theoretical concepts. Consequently, running real experiments is of major importance for engineering students. However, running real experiments does present some disadvantages. The required equipment can be expensive, the number of tests is often limited in order to prevent premature damage of the equipment and/or to limit the consumed energy by the latter, visualizing some phenomena is impossible because this can lead to the destruction of equipment, etc. In order to overcome these disadvantages, in the last few years, some universities have proposed learning applications that simulate the behavior of studied physical processes. If the university isn't equipped with the material needed for real experiments, the laboratory session would be limited to simulation. On the other hand, if this material is available, these applications are used for the pre-laboratory period in order to better prepare students for real experiments. These applications can become adequate teaching tools if they have an interface for the trainer and another for the learner. Under these conditions, one must develop applications with flexible interfaces. But currently, virtual laboratories are now proposed thanks to Internet accessibility [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. These laboratories make it possible to carry out remote experiments with real equipment, i.e. without being physically on site where the equipment is installed, hence providing several universities with the opportunity of using the same equipment. This paper presents first an example of an Automatic Control simulation application that has a flexible interface, and secondly an application that allows remote access via a FieldPoint system to a Virtual Laboratory for controlling the temperature and/or the level of a water tank of an hydraulic workbench. The LabVIEW software was used to run these applications.