An Electric and Electronic Circuit Remote Laboratory in a Control Course

Abstract

Control courses are important parts of the curricula of Control & Automation Engineering and Electrical Engineering. In this area, as in Engineering curricula in general, experimentation is of paramount importance. Engineering curricula have always had many lab classes for students to perform experiments – lab classes were hosted in traditional brick and mortar environments. The current status of technology allows for experiments to remotely be performed. Remote Labs are used in many institutions over the world as well as Virtual Labs. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, these solutions have gained greater importance. This work addresses the use of an Electric and Electronic Circuit Lab in a Control Course to perform Analog Simulations. It introduces the characteristics of the Remote Lab as well as the way it was used to enhance the learning of systems of different natures. This Remote Lab had been in use at the institution since the second semester of 2016 but in Electric Circuits and General Electricity courses. The Institution has been implementing other Remote Labs too. This work focuses the school years of 2020 and 2021, and addresses the plans for the near future. The main topics to be discussed are: the context at the University, the Control Course, the technological tools that have been in use for many years and how Remote Labs in general have been used. VISIR – Virtual Instrument Systems in Reality, the Remote Lab for Electric and Electronic Circuits is briefly described.