The LABNET-Server Software Architecture For Remote Management Of Distributed Laboratories: Current Status And Perspectives

Abstract

The availability of a wide range of instrumentation that can be remotely controlled, and the possibility to access the Internet with cheap and fast xDSL lines have encouraged the design of tele-measurement platforms by means of which researchers, instructors and students can exploit the facilities offered by complex and expensive laboratories. Although the market offers several solutions to remotely manage equipment, little attention has been paid to the hardware and software architectures devoted to distance learning experimental environments. The paper presents the architectural approach, and the related implementation, which was proposed and developed within two projects funded by the Italian Ministry of Education, University, and Research (MIUR). Both projects were aimed at building the experimental test-beds, which include very heterogeneous equipment, and at developing an open system architecture for their actual managing. Specifically, the attention is focused on the supervising central unit, which represents a crucial and critical element of the system. The software implementation of the central unit is described in detail, as concerns both the data structures adopted and the protocol machine. The results of some performance tests are shown to highlight the efficiency of the proposed solution.