Development, implementation, and assessment of a web-based power electronics laboratory

A Web-based laboratory exercise with remote access is presented, through which a student of Electrical/Electronic Engineering is introduced in both a theoretical and practical way, to many fundamental aspects of power electronics. The system is flexible and can expand the range of laboratory exercises where fullscale laboratories are not feasible. In the electrical environment, limits can be placed on voltages and currents for safety reasons. Prelaboratory investigations allow students to take an active involvement in the learning process by addressing some challenging and critical aspects of the design before approaching the physical system. Further understanding is gained by studying the circuit in a Web-based, interactive power electronics seminar (WES) by simulating the circuit using PSpice and then analyzing the control and feedback issues with MATLAB. In the final stage, a real power converter is tested remotely over the Web, and the cycle of design, simulation, and test is completed using Web-based tools.