Programmable Remote Laboratory for Mobile Robots

Abstract

As mobile robots become more popular, more remote laboratories (RL) using mobile robots are being developed for online education. However, in most current RL for mobile robots, the control which users have over the robot is limited by the pre-programmed controlled algorithms. This limitation creates a gap in the learning experience of the students. This paper proposes an implementation of a fully programmable remote laboratory for mobile robots into a web application. In the RL user-interface, students are able to implement and execute their C++ source code and see the results in real-time through a live feed webcam. The AJAX technology is used to transfer data between the web application and web server, making it possible to execute the code. This application is designed to provide students with interactive tools and a contextual learning scene, making this research of significant relevance to online engineering education by providing students with direct programming experience on remote laboratory website.