Conducting remote instructor-controlled experimentation

• US 20030207243A1
• Filed: 01/31/2003
• Published: 11/06/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hong Shen, Michael Shur, Tor Fjeldly
• Original Assignee: Hong Shen, Michael Shur, Tor Fjeldly
• Inventors: Fjeldly, Tor, Shur, Michael, Shen, Hong
• Granted Patent: US 6,932,611 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 434/322
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 23/00 Models for scientific, medical, or mathematical purposes, e.g. full-sized devices for demonstration purposes in the nature of toys A63H
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 23/183 for circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/00 Electrically-operated educational appliances working with questions and answers G09B7/00; simulators G09B9/00; advertising or displaying in general G09F
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/00 Electrically-operated teaching apparatus or devices working with questions and answers mechanically operated G09B3/00; computing arrangements G06F

Abstract

The invention includes a method for a client to remotely conduct a laboratory experiment using a remote computer communicating with a host computer in a computer network. The experiment is stimulated by a set of input variables and provides a set of dependent output variables. The method includes the steps of an instructor setting up the experiment at a central location, determining a tolerance band for each input variable of the experiment, and restricting a range of each tolerance band. The instructor enters into the host computer a program to run the experiment, including the set of input variables, and the range of each tolerance band for each input variable. The client remotely access the experiment using the remote computer. The instructor enables the client to conduct the experiment and simultaneously limits the client to the range of each tolerance band.

Claims

1. A method of a client (122) to remotely conduct a laboratory experiment (118) using a remote computer (120) communicating with a host computer (110) in a computer network (126), the experiment including a set of output variables dependent on a set of input variables, comprising the steps of:

(a) setting up by an instructor (112) the experiment (118) at a central location;

(b) determining by the instructor (112) a tolerance band for each input variable of the experiment;

(c) restricting by the instructor (112) a range of each tolerance band determined in step (b);

(d) entering into the host computer (110) a program to run the experiment (118) set up in step (a) and the range of each tolerance band restricted in step (c);

(e) remotely accessing the experiment (118) by the client (122) using the remote computer (120); and

(f) enabling the client (122) to conduct the experiment (118) and simultaneously limiting the client (122) to the range of each tolerance band restricted in step (c).

2. The method of claim 1 including:

(g) providing results of the experiment at a remote location of the client; and

(h) concurrently providing results of the experiment at the central location of the instructor.

3. The method of claim 1 in which step (a) includes simulating a circuit having the set of output variables and the set of input variables, and interfacing the set of output variables and the set of input variables to the host computer;

and

step (c) includes restricting by the instructor the range of each tolerance band for each of the input variables from the host computer.

4. The method of claim 3 in which interfacing the sets of output variables to the host computer includes converting at least one of the variables from an analog form into a digital form and at least another of the variables from a digital form into an analog form.

5. The method of claim 4 in which converting the variables is performed inside the host computer.

6. The method of claim 4 in which converting the variables is performed outside of the host computer.

7. The method of claim 1 in which step (e) includes enabling the client to select a value of at least one input variable of the experiment, if the value is within the limited range of a respective tolerance band of the input variable.

8. The method of claim 7 including:

conducting the experiment in response to the selected value of the input variable, and

displaying a graph of at least one output variable as a function of the selected value of the input variable.

9. The method of claim 1 in which step (a) includes setting up by the instructor the experiment using one of (a) a circuit and (b) a program simulation of a circuit.

10. The method of claim 1 in which step (e) includes remotely accessing the experiment by the client using the Internet;

and

step (f) includes enabling the client to conduct the experiment by running the experiment at the central location.

11. The method of claim 1 in which the client is a student under instruction from the instructor.

12. The method of claim 11 including exchanging dialogue between the student and the instructor using the computer network.

13. The method of claim 12 including providing homework to the student in response to the dialogue exchanged between the student and the instructor using the computer network.

14. The method of claim 1 in which step (d) includes interfacing the program with a server in the host computer, and

step (e) includes remotely accessing the experiment by the client using a web browser in the remote computer.

15. A method of a client (122) to remotely conduct a laboratory experiment using a computer network (126) connected between a remote computer (120) having a web browser (214) and a host computer (110) having a server (224), the method comprising the steps of:

(a) locating structural components and systems of the experiment (118) at a central location;

(b) entering into the host computer (110) a program to run the structural components and systems of the experiment in which the program includes a plurality of input parameters (116) to stimulate the experiment (118);

(c) interfacing the server (224) of the host computer (110) to the program stimulating the experiment (118) at the central location;

(d) remotely accessing the experiment by the client using the web browser (214) in the remote computer (120) to access the server of the host computer;

(e) providing to the client from the server of the host computer (110) the plurality of input parameters to stimulate the experiment;

(f) selecting at least one of the plurality of input parameters on the web browser of the remote computer (120);

(g) enabling the client to perform the experiment at the central location in response to the input parameter selected in step (f); and

(h) running the experiment at the central location using the program residing in the host computer (110) after enabling the client in step (g).

16. The method of claim 15 in which step (b) includes entering the plurality of input parameters into the host computer including input variables to stimulate the experiment, and restricting each of the input variables to a tolerance band.

17. The method of claim 15 in which step (h) includes starting the stimulation of the experiment by the client using the web browser in the remote computer, and running the experiment at the central location free-of any program residing in the remote computer.

18. The method of claim 15 in which the client is a student under instruction from an instructor, and step (h) includes restricting the running of the experiment by the instructor at the central location.

19. The method of claim 15 in which step (g) includes transmitting a password from the remote computer to the host computer and verifying the password in the host computer.

20. The method of claim 15 in which the computer network includes a plurality of remote computers connected to the host computer, each remote computer operated by a client, and each client performing concurrently steps (d) through (h), the method including the steps of:

(i) receiving a request to conduct an experiment from each client;

(j) stacking each request received in step (i) in a task queue of the host computer; and

(k) executing each request stacked in step (j) based upon a predetermined criteria stored in the host computer.