An Assessment of Remote Laboratory Experiments in Radio Communication

Today´s electrical and computer engineering graduates need marketable skills to work with electronic devices. Hands-on experiments prepare students to deal with real-world problems and help them to comprehend theoretical concepts and relate these to practical tasks. However, shortage of equipment, high costs, and a lack of human resources for laboratory maintenance and assistance decrease the implementation capacity of hands-on training laboratories. At the same time, the Internet has become a common networking medium and is increasingly used to enhance education. In addition, at many sites, existing experimental systems are typically underutilized. These cost and efficient exploitation constraints can be resolved by the use of remote laboratories accessible through the Internet that can be shared and used at flexible times and from various locations. This paper is a description of a systematic assessment effort of the efficiency of remote laboratories in radio communication. The labs are offered to graduate and undergraduate students, and hands-on and remote experiences are compared. A dedicated remote experimentation system, eComLab, was developed to support the effort.