Generic client-server interfaces for real-time remote automatic control laboratory

Abstract

This paper deals with e-learning design and development training courses, more precisely with remote training by practical activities of laboratory experiments (E-Lab). Indeed, the majority of remote training platforms offer theoretical courses and a few practical activities, which are essential in training theoretical Science and Technology. In order to share the costly equipment, in this work, we propose an open hardware/software architecture allowing remote access to a laboratory equipment by designing in Matlab two graphical interfaces using Internet/Intranet network and TCP/IP communication protocol. A real-time control and supervision is performed to carry out all the practical activity according to a pedagogical scenario elaborated by the trainer. The use of these interfaces is illustrated by educational sessions articulated on the Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) regulation and the Generalized Predictive Control (GPC) of temperature control system. The challenge of elaborating a remote practical activity with pedagogical effectiveness is accomplished in the above proposed solution. All the hardware and software that made available the remote experimentation platform give possibility to achieve others traditional activities in experimentation laboratory.