Integrating Reservations and Queuing in Remote Laboratory Scheduling

Remote laboratories (RLs) have become increasingly seen as a useful tool in supporting flexible shared access to scarce laboratory resources. An important element in supporting shared access is coordinating the scheduling of the laboratory usage. Optimized scheduling can significantly decrease access waiting times and improve the utilization level of RL resources, with associated reductions in per-use costs. Current RL systems have typically supported scheduling based on either reservations or queuing, though rarely both. In this paper, we investigate issues that arise when a single RL resource (or pool of resources) supports both modes for gaining access, and how these two approaches can be effectively integrated. This research analyzes the scheduling algorithm utilized by the Sahara RL system to investigate any limitations that affect the system utilization. We identify a number of current issues and propose specific modifications to address them. The proposed modifications will lead to increased utilization and improved student experiences.