Virtual Collaboration Laboratories

KIT LBRG Project "Virtual Collaboration Laboratories" funded by the state

For many years, processes and machines have been completely digitalized, controlled, and optimized on the computer. Measurement and simulation data are collected and, recently also increasingly, merged. Modern education of students in the natural and engineering sciences must, therefore, be oriented to this development and provide an understanding that spans the disciplines. Currently, students are being introduced to measurement and simulation technology separately in the context of practical courses and lectures. Additionally, this also requires the physical presence of students and teachers on-site in the respective well-equipped, expensive, and personnel-intensive laboratories. On the other hand, virtual platforms already exist, based on modern 3D visualization technology, which would enable the cooperation of different disciplines in a decentralized way, intuitively and cost-effectively. Their further development and application is the declared goal of the project of the team headed by Dr. Mathias J. Krause, consisting of mathematicians and engineers from the Mannheim University of Applied Sciences (Prof. Dr. M. Rädle) and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (Prof. Dr. W. Dörfler, Prof. Dr.-Ing. H. Nirschl). Specifically, existing VR/AR hardware technologies are made available for teaching via apps on standard mobile phones. This brings together virtual simulation and measurement technology beyond the own location and thus enables a modern interdisciplinary and practical education.