Development of a remote laboratory infrastructure and LMS for mechatronics distance education

Abstract

The problem in schools with mechatronics programs is not only their low student capacity but also their theoretical-content-dominated curricula. However, the manufacturing industry needs highly-talented technical personnel with a lot of practice in this field. E-Learning Education for Mechatronics Remote Laboratory, EDUMEC, offers practical-content-dominated courses over the Internet. The situations and expectations of the target groups were designated using surveys to constitute the educational concepts for the e-mechatronics program and experiments. The target groups are students in vocational schools or engineering classes; engineers or technicians who have completed formal education in mechanical engineering, electrical/electronic engineering, or other technical fields; employers; and teachers. For training, a special multi-lingual e-learning platform has been built in a user-friendly environment with a Learning Management System (LMS). This paper presents the design and implementation of the remote laboratory and LMS. In addition, evaluations by the students who participated in the training are presented.