A Federation of Remote Laboratory OERs: Grid of VISIR systems through PILAR Project

Abstract

Today's educational needs require tools with neither geographical nor temporal restrictions. These tools also have to help students to reach the knowledge and provide them with the skills that the labor market demands. To achieve this goal, the technical areas rely on the contribution that laboratory practices provide. However, traditional laboratory practices, carried out in person at the institution, are limited due to the requirements of both their exploitation and their provision. For this reason, educational institutions have opted for remote laboratories (RLs) as the educational tool to provide the benefits of experimentation in real environments, either as an accompaniment to face-to-face activity or as the only mean of experimentation in real environments. Although RLs provide exclusive benefits <<24/7 availability, integration of Information and Communication Technologies (ITCs), etc.>>, they also present limitations derived from the technology involved <<hardware and software>>; PILAR project << Platform Integration of Laboratories based on the Architecture of VISIR>> was conceived under this premise. PILAR proposes a federation of 5 Virtual Instrument Systems in Reality (VISIR) systems. VISIR is a RL for wiring and measuring electrical and electronics circuits in a simulated workbench. PILAR aims to create a grid of laboratories shared and accessed by all participants, expanding and empowering the existing systems to a new level of service and capacity.