How to open a local electronics laboratory for remote access
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Transcript of How to open a local electronics laboratory for remote access
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A tutorial on the VISIR Open Lab Platform and an invitation to join the VISIR Community
How to open a local electronics laboratory for remote access
04/20/231 REV 2009
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Outline of the presentation of the VISIR Open Laboratory Platform
Introduction and background to VISIR Demonstration of an existing VISIR Lab The aim of the VISIR project Overview of the Open Lab platform How to join the VISIR project Conclusions and further development
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Local Electronics Laboratory for Undergraduate Education at BTH
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• 16 students share 8 identical workbenches• Open during 4 hour supervised classes only• Students need much more time in the laboratory
Instructor’s desk
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Background
In 1999 a remote laboratory project was started to supplement local instructional laboratories and to provide free access to expensive experimental equipment
Today laboratories in electronics, security, radio and signal processing are online and used in regular courses for students who can be on campus or off campus
At the end of 2006 a disseminating project, VISIR, was started
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Why Starting with Laboratories for Electrical Experiments?
Instructional laboratories for electrical experiments contain the same equipment at most universities – a de facto standard
They are easy to open for online access preserving the context
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The VISIR Open Electronics Laboratory
Internet
Web ServerClient PC
Client PCResistance
Op amp
Demonstrations
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VISIR Benefits to Students
Free access to the experimental equipment used in the laboratory classes from anywhere
Safe experimenting within limits set by the teacher
Excellent for practising laboratory work 24/7
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VISIR Benefits to Universities
Supervised laboratory classes for off-campus students using appropriate teleconferencing tools can be offered
The students can do much laboratory work on their own
Low-cost individaul assessment of laboratory work possible
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The Aim of the VISIR Project
Is establishing a VISIR Community of collaborating universities/organizations further developing the platform and sharing equipment and course material
Is distributed laboratories where the workbenches are set up by members of the Community
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The VISIR Open Laboratory Platform Software Distribution
A public subversion repository with all software modules are available (http://svn.openlabs.bth.se/trac/)
Members of the VISIR Community will be granted write access to branches in the repository
Write to the trunk is limited and will require code review
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Laboratory Course Administration
Different roles such as administrator, teacher and student are defined and they have different access rights
Time reservation for laboratory classes as well as for the students’ own experiments are provided
The web interface is used to introduce courses, lab sessions, personal accounts etc.
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Online Workbench
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Distributed Instruments
XML, TCP/IP
Client computerside
EquipmentServer side
IVI compliantdriver
It is possible to use a virtual front panel depicting one instrument model to control a different instrument model as long as the performance of the real instrument is equal or better than the performance of the depicted instrument.
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VISIR Standards
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Agilentpanels
Tektronixpanels
NI Softpanels
IVI compliantfunctions
GPIB
PXI
LXI
Universityselector
Studentselector
XML based protocols
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Instrument functionality defined by IVI Foundation
8 instrument classes are now defined– DC power supply, DMM, function generator, oscilloscope,
power meter, RF signal generator, spectrum analyzer, and switch
Base Class Capabilities– common across most of the instruments available in the
class Class Extension Capabilities
– groups of functions, attributes, and attribute values that represent more specialized features of an instrument class
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Instrument drivers
VISIR recommends IVI drivers The VISA standard is accepted too but the
instrument functions should be those defined by the IVI standard
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Virtual Instrument Shelf
A virtual instrument shelf is needed because other universities use other models in their local laboratories or want, for example, LabVIEW style front panels
It should be possible for students to select the instrument models they are used to or want to become familiar with
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Example of Virtual Instrument shelf
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The VISIR Switching Matrix Supports
Novices practicing wiring and experimenting on simple circuits described in instruction manuals
Advanced students testing ready-made complex circuits and using the matrix to move the test probes
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The Switching Matrix
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Switching Matrix Performance
The function generatorNI PXI-5402 generates1 MHz square wave.
The oscilloscopeNI PXI-5112 displaysThe data
Bandwidth test on a matrix with 8 boards04/20/2321 REV 2009
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How to Join the VISIR Community and Set up a Workbench
Download the software and instructions published at http://svn.openlabs.bth.se/trac
Buy the PXI hardware from National Instruments
The switching matrix is commercially available
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Competences Required to Implement a VISIR Online Workbench
Experience of analog electronics, PXI, and LabVIEW
IT experience (Web, PHP, MySQL, XML, C++, FLASH etc.)
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Further development of the VISIR platform
Additional virtual front panels depicting instrument models used in the VISIR community
Interface to a learning management system such as Moodle
Adding new tools for communication between people in the laboratory
A VISIR grid laboratory based on web services
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