WORKSHOP (2 days)
ONLINE LABORATORIES: NEEDS AND EXPERIENCES IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION
PRESENTERS
Michael E. Auer (Carinthia Tech Institute Villach, Austria)
Doru Ursutiu (University "Transylvania" of Brasov, Romania)
DESCRIPTION
Laboratories are important elements in science, engineering and technical education. They allow the application and
testing of theoretical knowledge in practical learning situations. Active working with experiments and problem solving does
help learners to acquire applicable knowledge that can be used in practical situations. That is why courses in the sciences
and engineering consider laboratory experimentation as an essential part of educating students. Experimentation and
experience-based learning (learning by doing) is also performed in many other subject areas, for example in economics
where students lead virtual companies and compete on a simulated market.
However, nowadays experiments have become more and more complex. As a result, the demand for specialized and
expensive equipment has increased. Only some large research centers and perhaps some universities can afford such
equipments and even these institutions can only have a limited amount of what is desired. Online laboratories make all
this available via the Internet and are important applications in the new domain of Online Engineering.
Online laboratories can be divided into two main groups, software simulations and laboratories made up of real hardware
equipment.
Active learning by means of online labs is extremely valuable for higher education or distance workers. Users in the
workplace can access remote laboratories without having to travel. This flexibility is important for e-learning, project-based
education and lifelong learning. This workshop shows a ready to use grid architecture based on a semantic web portal
and service broker platform including experiment applications for the use in different levels of education.
Users need only a Web browser, tools for development of own labs are open software, easy to install and to use.
.
MATERIALS
Data projector, sound speakers, broadband Internet connection, attendees should bring their own notebooks.
DELIVERY MODE
The workshop is facilitated by a team of internationally recognized experts in the field of online engineering. Workshop
modules involve a combination of theory and practice with active doing (working in small groups and interacting with
workshop leaders).
We will provide DVDs with the materials of the workshop, but also with additional documents, tools and demonstrations.
WORKSHOP OUTLINE
 Day 1
o Welcome, Introductions and Workshop Expectations
o Kick-off Presentations
o Remote Lab Environments
o Examples of Good Practice
o Discussion
 Day 2
o Innovative Teaching Methods with Online Labs
o Online Lab Design Cookbook
o Working Session and Reflections
o Final Reflections, Conclusions and Workshop Evaluation
COSTS
 Travel, hotel and per diem expenses
 Workshop leaders’ honoraries
 Workshop materials
WORKSHOP LEADERS’ BIOS
Michael E. Auer
Michael E. Auer (m.auer@cti.ac.at) is a Professor of Electronics Engineering in the Systems Engineering department of
Carinthia Tech Institute Villach, Austria and Founder, President and CEO of the International Association of Online Engineering
(IAOE). He has also a teaching position at the University of Klagenfurt, Austria and works as a visiting professor at some
universities worldwide. Michael Auer is a senior member of IEEE and member of VDE, IGIP, etc., author or co-author of more
than 170 publications and leading member of numerous national and international organizations in the field of online
technologies. He is founder and general chair of the annual International Conference “Interactive Computer aided Learning”
(ICL, www.icl-conference.org), chair of the steering committees of the annual International Conferences “Remote Engineering
and Virtual Instrumentation” (REV, www.rev-conference.org) and “IEEE Engineering Education” (EDUCON, www.educonconference.org) as well as chair or member of the Program Committees of several international conferences and workshops. In
2009 he was appointed as member of the Advisory Board of the European Learning Industry Group (ELIG, http://www.elig.org ).
Furthermore he is chair of the Advisory Board of the International E-Learning Association (IELA, www.ielassoc.org ) and member
of the Board of Consultants of the International Centre for Innovation in Education (ICIE, http://www.icieparis.net ).
Michael Auer has experience in leading of several national and international projects in the fields of remote engineering and technology supported learning.
Under his guidance international teams developed a Joint European Master Study Program “Remote Engineering” (EU project MARE) and a Joint European
Bachelor Study Program “Information Technology” (EU project BIT2010).
He is editor-in-chief of the International Journals of “Online Engineering” (iJOE, www.i-joe.org ), “Emerging Technologies in Learning” (iJET, www.i-jet.org ) and
“Interactive Mobile Technolgies” (iJIM, www.i-jim.org ). Furthermore he acts as an associated editor for Middle and Eastern Europe of the “European Journal of
Open and Distance Learning” (EURODL, www.eurodl.org ). In September 2009 he was appointed as president elect of the International Society for
Engineering Education (IGIP).
Doru Ursutiu
Prof.Dr.Phys. Doru Ursutiu (udoru@unitbv.ro) is the manager of the Center for Valorization and Transfer of Competence CVTC
from „Transilvania” University of Brasov (http://fizica.unitbv.ro/cvtc) and director of CVTC Creativity Laboratory. He completed
his studies of Physics at the „Babes-Boliay” University from Cluj, Romania and is specialised in Open and Distance Learning
(LOLA course - Hariot Watt University UK) and Noise in Electronic Systems.
The key qualifications of Prof. Ursutiu are Physics, Electronics (with a doctorate in Noise and Fluctuations in Electronic Systems
and Devices), Graphical Programming, Remote and Virtual Instrumentation.
He is member of Executive Committee - Central European Chapter of Association for the Advancement of Computing in
Education (AACE) and President and one of the initiators of International Association of Online Engineering (IAOE). In the same
time he is member of the Scientific Committees and reviewer for many international conferences and publications (ICL, IMCL,
EURODL, iJOE, iJIM, IJ-SoTL, etc.) and participated and coordinated a high number of EU projects (TEMPUS, NATO, Minerva,
SOCRATES, etc.).