Remote laboratory

• US 6,813,473 B1
• Filed: 05/02/2002
• Issued: 11/02/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Science-On-Line
• Original Assignee: Science-On-Line
• Inventors: Bruker, Dov
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheng, Joe H.
• Application Number:
  US10/048,699
• Time in Patent Office: 915 Days
• Field of Search: 434/118, 434/307.R, 434/308, 434/315, 434/316, 434/320, 434/322, 434/323, 434/342, 434/350, 434/362, 434/365, 434/432, 434/276, 463/22, 463/23, 463/48, 705/3, 705/40, 345/338, 345/339, 345/419, 345/421, 345/424, 345/473, 345/520, 345/521, 700/11, 700/17, 700/56, 700/83, 700/86, 702/22, 702/25, 702/27, 702/19, 707/102, 707/104.1, 706/11, 706/45, 706/47, 706/60, 706/927, 708/142, 708/250, 708/802, 709/321, 422/67, 422/68.1, 600/300, 73/32.R, 436/43, 436/48, 435/5, 356/73, 427/2.11
• US Class Current: 434/350
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/02 of the type wherein the student is expected to construct an answer to the question which is presented or wherein the machine gives an answer to the question presented by a student

Abstract

Teaching apparatus, which includes an experimental setup (50) at a laboratory site (32) and a teaching setup at a teaching facility (12) remote from the laboratory site. The laboratory site includes one or more experimental controls (38) for varying one or more parameters of an experiment performed by the experimental setup, one or more monitoring device (42, 44) which capture information relating to the experiment, and a first communications interface (34) which couples the experimental controls and monitoring devices to a network (28). The teaching setup includes a second communication interface (22) coupled to exchange data via the network with the first communication interface, a display (26) which receives and displays the information captured by the one or more monitoring device, and a physical representation (16) of at least a part of an experimental setup, including at least one of the experimental controls, so that an operator (14) at the teaching facility controls an aspect of an experiment at the laboratory site using the physical representation, and receives results of the experiment by means of the display.

Claims

1. Teaching apparatus, comprising:

an experimental setup at a laboratory site comprising;

one or more experimental controls for varying one or more parameters of an experiment performed by the experimental setup;

one or more monitoring devices, which capture information relating to the experiment; and

a first communications interface, which couples the experimental controls and monitoring devices to a network; and

a teaching setup at a teaching facility remote from the laboratory site, comprising;

a second communications interface, coupled to exchange data via the network with the first communications interface;

a display, which receives and displays the information captured by the one or more monitoring devices; and

a physical representation of at least a part of an experimental setup, including at least one of the experimental controls, so that an operator at the teaching facility controls an aspect of the experiment at the laboratory site using the physical representation, and receives results of the experiment by means of the display.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, and comprising a computer at the laboratory site, which operates the one or more experimental controls.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the computer stores the results of the experiment.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more experimental controls are operated by a second operator, other than the operator at the teaching facility.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more experimental controls comprise one of a group of controls consisting of a rotatable knob, a slideable control, and a switch.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more monitoring devices comprise one or more video cameras which generate one or more images of the experimental setup.

7. Apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the one or more video cameras are operated by the one or more experimental controls.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more experimental controls comprise one or more robot positioning devices which adjust the one or more parameters of the experiment.

9. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display comprises a graphic user interface comprising controls enabling the operator to control the experimental setup.

10. Apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the graphic user interface comprises a graphical presentation of the results.

11. Apparatus according to claim 1, and comprising a computer at the teaching facility which stores the results of the experiment.

12. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the experimental setup comprises a plurality of substantially independent experiments.

13. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a second operator, other than the operator at the teaching facility, controls the aspect of the experimental setup.

14. Apparatus according to claim 1, and comprising apparatus at the teaching facility which is used in conjunction with the experimental setup to make experimental measurements.

15. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the laboratory site is remote from the Earth'"'"'s surface.

16. Apparatus for performing an experiment at a teaching facility using an experimental setup at a laboratory site remote from the facility, the experimental setup including one or more experimental controls for varying one or more parameters of the experiment, one or more monitoring devices which capture information relating to the experiment, and a first communications interface which couples the experimental controls and monitoring devices to a network, the apparatus comprising:

a second communications interface, coupled to exchange data via the network with the first communications interface;

a display, which receives and displays the information captured by the one or more monitoring devices in order to enable a numerical measurement to be made; and

a physical representation of at least a part of the experimental setup, including at least one of the experimental controls, so that an operator at the teaching facility controls an aspect of the experiment at the laboratory site using the physical representation, and receives results of the experiment by means of the display.

17. Apparatus according to claim 16, and comprising a computer at the laboratory site, which operates the one or more experimental controls.

18. Apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the computer stores the results of the experiment.

19. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the one or more experimental controls are operated by a second operator, other than the operator at the teaching facility.

20. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the one or more experimental controls comprise one of a group of controls consisting of a rotatable knob, a slideable control, and a switch.

21. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the one or more monitoring devices comprise one or more video cameras which generate one or more images of the experimental setup.

22. Apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the one or more video cameras are operated by the one or more experimental controls.

23. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the one or more experimental controls comprise one or more robot positioning devices which adjust the one or more parameters of the experiment.

24. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the display comprises a graphic user interface comprising controls enabling the operator to control the experimental setup.

25. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the graphic user interface comprises a graphical presentation of the results.

26. Apparatus according to claim 16, and comprising a computer at the teaching facility which stores the results of the experiment.

27. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the experimental setup comprises a plurality of substantially independent experiments.

28. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein a second operator, other than the operator at the teaching facility, controls the aspect of the experimental setup.

29. Apparatus according to claim 16, and comprising apparatus at the teaching facility which is used in conjunction with the experimental setup to make experimental measurements.

30. Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the laboratory site is remote from the Earth'"'"'s surface.

31. A method for performing an experiment using an experimental setup at a laboratory site having one or more experimental controls for varying one or more parameters of the experiment, while controlling and monitoring the experiment at a teaching facility remote from the laboratory site, comprising:

providing one or more experimental controls and one or more monitoring devices at the laboratory site;

providing a physical representation of at least a part of the experimental setup, including at least one of the experimental controls, at the teaching facility;

responsive to operation of the physical representation of the experimental controls at the teaching facility, exchanging data between the laboratory site and the teaching facility via a network so as to vary one or more parameters of the experiment;

capturing information relating to the experiment using one or more monitoring devices at the laboratory site; and

transferring the captured information over the network for display at the teaching facility.

32. A method according to claim 31, wherein exchanging data between the laboratory site and the teaching site comprises allocating a level of access for the operation of the physical representation.

33. A method according to claim 31, wherein providing the one or more experimental controls comprises operating the one or more experimental controls by a computer at the laboratory site.

34. A method according to claim 31, wherein the operation of the physical representation is performed by at least one operator.

35. A method according to claim 31, wherein capturing information comprises generating one or more images of the experimental setup.

36. A method according to claim 31, wherein providing the one or more monitoring devices comprises providing one or more video cameras which are operated by the one or more experimental controls.

37. A method according to claim 31, wherein providing the one or more experimental controls comprises providing one or more robot positioning devices which adjust the one or more experimental controls.

38. A method according to claim 31, wherein transferring the captured information comprises displaying a graphic user interface comprising controls enabling the operator to control the experimental setup.

39. A method according to claim 33, wherein transferring the captured information comprises storing the results of the experiment in the computer.

40. A method according to claim 31, wherein transferring the captured information comprises storing the results of the experiment in a computer at the teaching facility.

41. A method according to claim 31, and comprising providing apparatus at the teaching facility which is used in conjunction with the experimental setup to make experimental measurements.