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Top1. Introduction
Emerging technologies with different capabilities providing access to internet resources as services in the field of education is becoming popular day-by-day. When it comes to exploring various aspects of transforming laboratory course delivery, integration of internet-based technology plays a major role. One such area of focus is the evolution of remote laboratory integrated with Internet of Things (IoT) enabling distance and lifelong learning (Tobarra, L, 2020). Remote experimentation has become a challenge to support lifelong learning activities. Universities have adopted remote experimentation delivery to students in distance learning environments for electronic courses over the years (F. G. Loro, 2016).
Internet of Things (IoT) is an emerging concept which is going to affect our life style in a big way. The need to include IoT based laboratories in the undergraduate engineering curriculum follows the global trend towards outcome-based education (E. Lindsay, 2009) (A. Chevalier, 2017) (L. Gomes, 2009). In this paper, the conversions of existing automation laboratories in the institutions to IoT enabled laboratories which can be operated remotely are presented. The concept of remote laboratory is not a substitute to physical laboratory but a complementary to it. These laboratory infrastructures will allow the students to gain competencies and skills by conducting experiments remotely while still perceiving the actual laboratory work (Ramya. M. V, 2020).
It starts with tackling the challenges and then designing the laboratory experiments to enable the IoT laboratories made available for every department by intranet and internet, the data exchange is controlled by the IoT cloud systems. The project based learning approach is adopted to conduct laboratory by the students, where students can create different applications using the laboratory equipment which enhances individual thinking and skill level. The development and implementation of IoT laboratory for existing laboratories of engineering education which offers real experiments to be conducted without time and place limitations and enable students work on various laboratories even when they are at home through their mobile or laptops. The PLCs, Industrial PC and Hydraulics laboratories are considered for IoT enabled Laboratory. Figure 1 Shows architecture of such improved laboratories.
Figure 1. Architecture of IoT enabled Laboratories and Systems
The term IoT refers to the interaction and communication between devices that produce and exchange data related to real-world objects (i.e. things). In other words, IoT is all about connecting anyone or anything at any time and at any place. IoT is not a single novel technology; rather several complementary technologies are integrated leads to several IoT applications like smart cities, smart grids, smart homes, smart vehicles etc., which bridges the gap between the virtual and physical world. These applications encompass technologies such as Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID), wireless sensor networking, nano-technology for miniaturization, cloud computing, also this technology enable monitoring of vital parameters like garbage level, temperature, carbon monoxide level, humidity and other parameters in the environment and also improves production and monitoring of industrial process for better quality and productivity, this technology in the near future dominate every vital areas including energy monitoring, inventory control, process control, safety and security etc.,