The goal of this project is to develop 3D virtual replicas of common engineering laboratory experiments that can improve learning impact and broaden access to engineering laboratory materials for undergraduate students. The virtual laboratory improves the learning impact in that users have a safer means to explore the experiments and can view the experimental equipment and setup in ways that are not possible in real-world laboratories. Additionally, users are free to repeat the experiments as many times as they want without consuming additional real-world materials or laboratory time costs. Further, the virtual laboratory allows users to make mistakes safely and learn from both successful and incorrect experiments; such "learning by exploring via negative examples" is currently not feasible in real-world laboratories due to safety and time constraints.
This research team aims to continue developing interfaces for engineering labs, specifically four 3D virtual gaming strength of materials laboratories including Beam Bending, Column Buckling, Fatigue, and Pressure vessel tests. Together with the three completed virtual simulations developed in the first phase of the project, they cover all the learning outcomes of the Strength of Materials Lab course and complete the transformation of the improved learning experience for this specific lab. This learning model could easily be expanded to include interfaces for other subject labs such as mechanical engineering, chemistry, biology, physics, and others.
Commercialization of Virtual Laboratories I-Corps Team 352 PI: Dr. James Werner Mentor: Dr. Jon Preston Entrepreneurial Lead: Dr. Wasim Barham Our I-Corp program team consists of Dr. James P. Werner, Dr. Jon Preston and Dr. Wasim Barham. The program exposed us to the resources and methods for developing a small business startup company through the program developed by Steve Blank and supported by the online management system Launch Pad Central. As part of the I-Corps program we were to seek out potential clients and industry partners that could offer knowledge and provide strategic information to help us build a business model for marketing our new technology to clients needing our product. Our technological development consisted of a software package developed for simulating Strength of Materials testing machines for educational purposes. This virtual lab simulation was designed to offer better access to lab course experience, while improving student learning and providing a lower cost option to institutions that lacked access to the industry machines normally used in testing. We began our investigations and interview process by interacting with professionals in the gaming industry, and machine manufacturing companies that produced the machines that our virtual lab simulated for engineering education. Over the course of the five-week program, we interviewed 91 professionals from these and other industries, including leaders in academic administration, management from online content management system companies, and professors that would potentially use our software for improved learning and assessments in their field. We embraced Steve Blank’s approach to building a startup business, and through this process we underwent a philosophical change in our approach to disseminating our technology to the market. Our initial goal was to market the software to gaming companies who could purchase and refine many of the tools we had developed. We also initially believed that we could market it to the machine manufactures that we thought would package our software with the sale of their machines to universities. We quickly learned that the gaming companies didn’t see any financial gain associated with educational game development, and the machine manufacturers saw our developments as a competition rather than an ally in their business ventures. So we pivoted our focuses towards content management companies and assessment coordinators in higher education who would find value in the tools we built into educational gaming simulations. We discovered that these assessment tools built into the learning interface were highly desirable. These tools could help assess student learning, and gather data about student achievement in academic programs. This information is used for student and program evaluations, and accreditation purposes. We learned that administrators and professors mostly gather this type of information manually and often lack time and access to data to give accurate reports. The virtual labs we’ve developed have the ability to impact the resources for laboratory learning environments by provide alternative resources for learning experiences. The interface is a complete simulation of the laboratory components, including machines, materials and computer calculation systems. By utilizing these, and future customized versions of the labs that could be developed for engineering and other disciplines based on needs, programs could supplement the physical lab, which would provide extended learning. In the case of programs that are unable to afford or obtain the lab machines, the interface could be used to teach the entire lab at greatly reduced cost to the college. We identified during the I-Corps program that community colleges had significant interests in utilizing this technology to provide courses and materials that are often difficult for these institutions to obtain. In addition, the ability to collect specific data sets pertaining to student performance, understanding of material, and overall success/fail rates could impact the resources needed for data collection at institutions that employ customized versions of our technology. The I-Corps project itself was a significant professional development event. The information gathered about our own approach to technological development and dissemination has had a significant impact on our approach to research development. The experience also led to us changing our focus so that the software could be disseminated to a broader range of administrative entities, as opposed to a smaller select group of programs interested in virtual education. In our final I-Corps self-assessment we are very confident in the future of our technology. During the I-Corps experience we engaged a number of potential clients and partners interested in working with our developments. These included creative partners such as NOVA, learning management system companies, and assessment coordinators at various 2 and 4-year universities. While we are not starting a company immediately following the I-Corps program, we are currently seeking funding from two sources to secure further development of the technology. These resources will fund broader dissemination, as well as product development for the specific needs of target clients.
