eDSPLab: remote laboratory for experiments on DSP applications

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a remote lab and a web‐based teaching environment which provides access for remote control of Digital Signal Processors (DSP device) and real instrumentation. The framework, named eDSPLab, has been designed using LabVIEW for debugging and testing Digital Signal Processing (DSP) experiments in a real lab without physical and temporal restrictions, and it has been integrated as a service in a modern e‐learning application domain and a Learning Management System (LMS) to reinforce its utility.

Design/methodology/approach

A literature review is presented to provide background to the progressive role that DSP and DSP devices play in Information and Communications Technology (ICT)‐demanded job profiles, and the role that a computer‐mediated environment plays in modern teaching methodologies. The web service access control architecture is defined.

Findings

The paper provides new insights into the use of the Internet for laboratory teaching.

Research limitations/implications

This research was limited to one particular remote lab. Results could be extended if students' perceptions and their acceptance of the new e‐learning technology are examined using an information system theory, such as the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM).

Originality/value

This paper fulfils a need for adapting the teaching methodology applied in an undergraduate Advanced Microprocessor course of the Telecommunication Engineering degree at the University of Seville, Spain, allowing the development of laboratory experiments anywhere and anytime, avoiding one of the problems in lab training: the low number of laboratory working places in relation to the high number of enrolled students. The system developed has been successfully used during the last academic years in a course involving more than 200 students.

Citation

Barrero, F., Toral, S. and Gallardo, S. (2008), "eDSPLab: remote laboratory for experiments on DSP applications", Internet Research, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 79-92. https://doi.org/10.1108/10662240810849603