1
MARVEL: A mixed- eali y lea ning en i onmen
o oca ional aining in mecha onics
Die e Mülle *, J. M. Ma ins Fe ei a+
*Resea ch Cen e ARTEC - B emen Uni e si y, Ge many
[email p o ec ed]men.de
+Faculdade de Engenha ia (FEUP) - Uni e si y o Po o, Po ugal
[email p o ec ed]
Abs ac
Mecha onics is an a ea ha me ges mul idisciplina y
knowledge coming om mechanical enginee ing, elec on-
ics and compu e echnology. Voca ional aining in
mecha onics equi es he eaching o ‘mul i-skills’ in
a ious lea ning con ex s, as well as a good blend o
lea ning in he class oom and p ac ical aining in wo k
su oundings. This pape p esen s he con ibu ion o
MARVEL o mee hese a ge equi emen s. The aim o
he MARVEL p ojec is o implemen and e alua e lea n-
ing en i onmen s o mecha onics in oca ional aining,
allowing s uden s ubiqui ous access o physical wo kshops
and labo a o y acili ies om emo e places. The p ojec
will co e concep s ha me ge eal and i ual as well as
local and emo e wo lds in eal ime. We desc ibe a con-
cep o expe ien ial lea ning which p oposes a ‘mix’ o
i ual lea ning sessions ( emo e labs, simula ions) in
combina ion wi h lea ning in eal labs o e en a he
wo kplace.
Keywo ds: mecha onics, oca ional aining, expe ien ial
lea ning, i ual and emo e labo a o ies, dis ibu ed
lea ning en i onmen s, e-lea ning, mixed eali y
1. In oduc ion
Mecha onics is he syne gis ic combina ion o p eci-
sion mechanical enginee ing, elec onic con ol and
in o ma ion echnology, wi h he objec i e o design-
ing p oduc s and manu ac u ing p ocesses. I ela es
o he design o sys ems, de ices and p oduc s aimed
a achie ing an op imal balance be ween basic me-
chanical s uc u e and i s o e all con ol (B adley e
al, 2000). Mecha onic de ices a e cu en ly o g ea
impo ance in almos all sec o s.
The mul idisciplina y concep s ha me ge in o
mecha onic enginee ing equi e an academic educa-
ion p o iding a p ope balance be ween esea ch and
de elopmen abili ies, as well as skilled wo ke s and
echnicians ained o manu ac u ing, implemen a-
ion and se ice p o ision in hei p o essional a ea.
Thus in many coun ies new job p o iles and he co -
esponding oca ional aining concep s o mecha-
onics ha e been c ea ed as a mix o mechanical,
elec ical and ICT knowledge (IVTO 2003). Com-
pa ed o specialized job-p o iles such as mechanics o
elec icians, oca ional aining in mecha onics e-
qui es he eaching o ‘mul i-skills’ in di e en lea n-
ing con ex s, as well as a good blend o lea ning in
he class oom and wo k- ela ed aining.
Voca ional aining colleges oge he wi h indus y
a e con on ed wi h he need o de elop and in eg a e
heo e ical and p ac ical lea ning sequences ha a e
able o ul il he demands o mul i-skilled echni-
cians and skilled wo ke s. The claim o wo k- ela ed
lea ning based on he in e lea ing o heo e ical
lea ning and lea ning by p ac ical wo k and expe i-
men a ion is ob ious (A well e al, 1997). Acco d-
ingly he e is a g owing need o inno a i e lea ning
concep s, capable o suppo ing he necessa y educa-
ion and aining pla o ms. E-lea ning sys ems and
i ual lea ning sessions ( emo e labs, simula ions)
ex ending o eal labs o e en o he wo kplace a e
able o con ibu e signi ican ly o a success ul ou -
come o his lea ning p ocess. The cu en gene a ion
o e-lea ning en i onmen s does no ye p o ide an
in eg a ed solu ion (comp ising pedagogical, echni-
cal and o ganiza ional aspec s) able o mee hese
equi emen s in oca ional aining. Cul u al di e -
ences and simila i ies conce ning lea ning and col-
labo a ion s yles may be de ised, bu we e no ye
su icien ly in eg a ed in o cu icula, cou sewa e and
eaching me hods.
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2. The MARVEL P ojec
Ou Eu opean p ojec "Vi ual Labo a o y in Mecha-
onics: Access o Remo e and Vi ual E-Lea ning"
(MARVEL) deals wi h he abo e men ioned e-
qui emen s. The aim o MARVEL is o implemen
and e alua e lea ning en i onmen s o mecha onics
in oca ional aining, allowing s uden s ubiqui ous
access o physical wo kshops and labo a o y acili ies
om dis ibu ed and emo e loca ions. The gene al
idea behind MARVEL is o p o ide a eal ime en i-
onmen ha me ges eal and i ual, as well as local
and emo e lea ning spaces. Telema ics, emo e and
mixed eali y echniques a e used coope a i ely
wi hin a ne wo k ha includes colleges, indus y
pa ne s, and na ional bodies dealing wi h ce i ica-
ion and s anda disa ion issues.
The MARVEL conso ium is led by he Resea ch
Cen e ARTEC a he Uni e si y o B emen in Ge -
many and b ings oge he ins i u ions and companies
om six Eu opean coun ies. Pa ne s om echnical
colleges, uni e si ies and na ional bodies a e: Highe
Technical Ins i u e (Nicosia, Cyp us), Be u sbildende
Schulen II Delmenho s (Ge many), Bildungswe k
de Niede sächsischen Wi scha , (Ge many), Uni-
e si y o Po o – FEUP (Po ugal), Sco ish Quali i-
ca ions Au ho i y (UK) and Wes Lo hian College
(Li ingson, UK). The indus y pa o he conso ium
is ela ed o au oma ion echnology, obo ics and
aining echnology, and includes Zenon S.A. Robo -
ics and In o ma ics (G eece) and Fes o Didac ic
GmbH & Co. (Ge many). The Hau e Ecole Val-
aisanne om Swi ze land is in ol ed in he p ojec as
an associa ed pa ne .
The MARVEL p ojec is in ended o s imula e
lea ning concep s ha may help he s uden s in he
ollowing ways:
- By p o iding access o emo e lab acili ies and
wo kplaces in eal ime om di e en loca ions,
b inging mo e ‘ eali y’ in o he class oom wi h
he pe spec i e o a be e in eg a ion o lea ning
and wo king, heo y and p ac ice.
- By making a ailable expe imen -based b idges
o eal, angible media, ools and sys ems, in ad-
di ion o heo e ical cou se con en s ha may
con inue o be dis ibu ed ia adi ional e-
lea ning pla o ms.
- Sha ing lab esou ces and wo kplace acili ies
om di e en loca ions will imp o e eaching
and lea ning and achie e be e usage o e-
sou ces by sha ing dis ibu ed and highly expen-
si e equipmen .
- Fu he mo e, he MARVEL p ojec will o e
oppo uni ies o acili a e aining o pe sons
wi h disabili ies and o he people wi h special
needs.
The MARVEL p ojec e alua es and makes a ailable
wo king examples o emo ely accessible p ac ical
en i onmen s, including e-lea ning and s uden as-
sessmen ma e ials o he ollowing applica ion
ields: obo ics, modula p oduc ion sys ems and
p ocess con ol. The wo kplan o he p ojec includes
he c ea ion o ac ual demons a ion models (lea ning
scena ios and en i onmen s) o e alua ion pu poses.
The main a ge g oups o MARVEL a e s uden s
in oca ional aining and employees o companies
whe e lea ning is in eg a ed in o he daily ac i i ies.
The main eaching subjec s a e sys em con ol, main-
enance, p ocess moni o ing, au oma ion echnology
o ne wo ked mecha onic plan s, and machine y.
Lea ning scena ios on he basis o emo e echniques
( ele-se ices) will play a key ole in ou p ojec .
2.1. T aining needs in mecha onics
A majo goal in mecha onics aining is ha s uden s
ha e o acqui e heo e ical and ope a ional knowl-
edge and p ac ical compe encies in e ms o echnical
co e skills. This ype o skills gene ally ela es o he
assembly and se ice o complex machines, plan s
and sys ems, in he ield o plan cons uc ion and
mechanical enginee ing, and in hose companies ha
pu chase and ope a e such mecha onic sys ems.
Because o hei complexi y, mecha onic compo-
nen s and sys ems can o en only be ins alled and
ope a ed in combina ion wi h suppo and a e -sale
se ices: specialis know-how and – in he case o
main enance o epai wo k – skilled cus ome sup-
po by he manu ac u e ’s specialis s a e equi ed.
Acco dingly he e is a g owing need o quali ied
se ice pe sonnel in mecha onics, compa ed o pu e
mechanics o elec onic con ol echnologies, wi h
he ollowing quali ica ions and skills:
- knowledge abou po en ial and p obable causes
o mal unc ioning in mecha onic sys ems
(cause-e ec ela ionships),
- handling bo h unce ain y and complexi y in so-
phis ica ed mecha onics sys ems,
- knowledge abou sys em- ela ed se ice p oce-
du es and ools.
Mecha onic componen s can easily be in eg a ed in o
elema ic en i onmen s suppo ing such concep s as
emo e diagnosis and main enance ( ele-se ice). In a
su ey conduc ed by VDI-Nach ich en, one o he
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mos impo an enginee ing magazines in Ge many,
ele-se ices we e conside ed as he key se ice o
he u u e (VDI 1999) (Wes kämpe e al. 2002).
Such demands imply u he quali ica ion needs o
skilled wo ke s, echnicians and enginee s. The mos
impo an aspec s o conside a e he ollowing:
- ins alling and using ele-se ice sys ems, se ice
so wa e and emo e diagnosis sys ems,
- c ea ing and ope a ing communica ion access
poin s,
- acqui ing da a o ele-se ice pu poses,
- p o iding ele-se ices in di e en ne wo k and
communica ion s uc u es.
The inc easing dissemina ion o mecha onic sys ems
in combina ion wi h ( ele-) se ices also c ea es he
need o new quali ica ions in non- echnical so
skills (Maßbe g e al, 2000). In con as o ‘ adi-
ional’ p o essions, expe s in mecha onics a e de-
ployed in a ela i ely b oad ange o ac i i ies ha
span di e en sec o s o indus y. They ypically
wo k in locally dis ibu ed eams and coo dina e hei
wo k amongs hemsel es. This equi es no only
compe en handling o ools and me hods o diagno-
sis, main enance, moni o ing and epai , bu abo e all
he abili y o communica e e ec i ely wi h o he s
(e.g. cus ome s, use s, ins alle s) wi h he help o
compu e -aided means o communica ion. Skilled
se ice echnicians mus sol e he ‘mu ual knowledge
p oblem’, o example by in eg a ing he know-how
o o he s in o de o accomplish hei goals using
app op ia e ools (e.g. elec onic con e encing o
g oupwa e applica ions). Special ocus mus be
placed on accessing dis ibu ed in o ma ion om
supplie s, cus ome s and manu ac u e s o e he
In e ne .
Besides no mal communica ion p oblems, one
should no unde es ima e he ole o language ba ie s
ha may a ise when pe o ming wo k asks. T aining
in o eign languages, especially in English, seems o
be e y impo an in oca ional aining o mecha-
onics. In addi ion o adequa e o eign language
compe ence, ‘in e cul u al compe ence’ is also an
impo an so skill, enabling se ice pe sonnel o be
awa e o cul u al di e ences be ween Eu opean and
o he coun ies, o example in Asia o Sou h Ame -
ica.
Because se ices a e p ima ily imma e ial, he
quali y assessmen made by cus ome s is highly de-
penden on hose employees who pe o m such se -
ices. Fo his eason, echnicians mus also be
ained in cus ome o ien a ion – o a g ea e ex en
han p oduc ion wo ke s, o example – wi h an em-
phasis on communica ion aining and cus ome -
cen ed ac ion.
In ela ion o eal wo k asks, he aining o non-
echnical skills such as eamwo k, he abili y o com-
munica e in o eign languages, in e cul u al compe-
ence and cus ome o ien a ion, will be an impo an
goal in he MARVEL lea ning scena ios. Wo king
wi h emo e expe imen s, collabo a ion in dis ibu ed
eams and communica ion in a o eign language wi h
s uden s om a pa ne college may help o de elop
and ain hese skills.
2.2. Lea ning scena ios
The lea ning scena ios conside ed in MARVEL ad-
d ess a ious mecha onics sys ems, bu will concen-
a e ini ially on p ocess con ol, obo ic sys ems and
compu e in eg a ed manu ac u ing. A b ie cha ac-
e isa ion o hese lea ning scena ios is p esen ed
below in able 1.
Lea ning scena ios Se ings and
cou se ials
1 P ocess con-
ol
P ocess moni o -
ing, con ol and
main enance o a
ull-scale sola
plan
2 Robo ics
Con igu a ion and
p og amming o a
obo sys em
3Compu e
in eg a ed
manu ac u ing
Diagnosis and
main enance o
mecha onic sys-
ems
Class oom-only
and a ious ypes
o mixed class-
oom-wo kplace
lea ning se ings,
including emo e
expe imen s and
eaching ses-
sions wi h eams
om pa ne
colleges in mo e
han one coun y.
Table 1: MARVEL lea ning scena ios
Ou i s lea ning scena io is illus a ed in igu e 1
and equi es he s uden s o sol e di e en wo k-
based lea ning asks, ela ed o p ocess moni o ing
and con ol o a ull-scale sola plan . The ha dwa e
se up o he sola plan consis s o ou di e en sola
collec o panels (ins alled on he oo o he labo a-
o y building) in combina ion wi h wo ho wa e
anks ha a e connec ed in se ies. The i s ank
se es as a ho wa e bu e . The second ank is only
necessa y i he e is no enough ene gy om he col-
lec o panels, and an ex a gas hea e is equi ed o
wa m up he wa e . The sola hea ing sys em is con-
olled con inuously by a p og ammable logic con-
olle (PLC), connec ed ia a ieldbus o abou 40
senso s ( o empe a u e, olume low, e c.) and nu-
me ous ac ua o s ( al es, pumps and se omo o s).
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The PLC has an E he ne I/O module o p o ide e-
mo e access o he eal p ocess ia an In e ne -based
connec ion. To supe ise he beha iou o he o e all
sys em, he da a acqui ed is s o ed con inuously on a
se e and may be moni o ed emo ely. The p ocess
in e ace – enabling s uden s o access he p ocess
and ead o modi y pa ame e s – is ealized wi h he
SCADA package WinCC.
Figu e 1: Real and emo e i ual sys em
Va ious expe imen s ha e al eady been e alua ed in a
local se ing wi h lea ning g oups om he Technical
College in Delmenho s (Ge many) whe e he sola
plan is ins alled (in his se ing he s uden s and he
p ocess ha dwa e a e in he same building). A dis-
ibu ed lea ning se ing will also be e alua ed, whe e
s uden s o he Highe Technical Ins i u e (HTI) in
Nicosia (Cyp us) access he same labo a o y equip-
men emo ely. A eache om Delmenho s , assum-
ing he ole o a ele- u o , will suppo hese lea ning
sessions ia he In e ne . In a hi d se ing wo dis-
ibu ed lea ning g oups (one in Delmenho s and he
o he one in Nicosia) will collabo a e ia he In e ne
and sol e a ypical main enance ask, equi ing hem
o p og am and/o con igu e he PLC. Fo sa e y ea-
sons, hei abili y o modi y pa ame e s emo ely is
limi ed, and he lea ning ask will be supe ised by a
eache a each si e. As a complemen a y ac ion o
his dis ibu ed se ing, he college in Nicosia will
hold a join eaching session wi h he Delmenho s
college, using hei local pilo sola ene gy con e -
sion sys em. S uden s analyse and il e ou ypical
cha ac e is ics o he wo di e en ins alla ions, by
exchanging p ocess da a and sys em in o ma ion
be ween hei colleges.
Simila se ings a e planned o he emaining
MARVEL eaching scena ios. All lab assignmen s
and exe cises will be suppo ed by web-based lea n-
ing ma e ials in he o m o ‘ i ual books’. The
pedagogical con en s a e based on exis ing in o ma-
ion shee s, lea ning ask desc ip ions, and o he
sou ces ha a e al eady a ailable in digi al o m.
Gene ally speaking, he lea ning se ings e e ed
abo e add ess he ollowing lea ning objec i es:
1. Theo e ical knowledge and ope a ional compe-
ence o moni o complex p ocesses om emo e
loca ions (using IT- ools o p ocess moni o ing
and con ol).
2. Theo e ical knowledge and ope a ional compe-
ence o ind ou he e iciency o di e en sys-
em con igu a ions (using IT- ools o da a acqui-
si ion).
3. Compe ence o main ain complex sys ems (e. g.
inding aul s) wi h IT ools and adequa e me h-
ods.
4. Abili y o collabo a e wi h echnicians speaking a
di e en language, and ha ing di e en cul u al
and p o essional backg ounds (e. g. in a company
wi h se e al b anch o ices all o e Eu ope).
By s udying he e ec s o eaching and lea ning
h ough emo e echniques and ele-coope a ion ools
in hese di e en lea ning scena ios, he ollowing
issues a e in es iga ed as pa o he e alua ion:
Web-based lea ning ma e ial
‚ i ual books‘
Labo a o y
( eal physical sys em)
Lea ne s a emo e place
( i ual sys em)
Remo e access
(moni o ing, op imisa ion,
con igu a ion, con ol...)
PLC
Fieldbus
E he ne
Lab de ices
(sola hea ing
sys em) In e ne
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1. Will he p oposed pedagogical amewo k mee
he MARVEL unc ionali y and usabili y c i e-
ia?
2. To which ex en will he needs o s uden s, as
well as hose o hei cu en and u u e employ-
e s and o oca ional colleges, be sa is ied, as a
esul o he highe lexibili y o c ea e lea ning
se ings?
3. Does he linking o i ual and eal sys ems (i.e.
i ual and eal lea ning objec s, as well as ab-
s ac class oom and conc e e wo kplace se ings)
imp o e he pedagogical e ec i eness o he
lea ning p ocess?
4. Wha ele an cul u al di e ences can be ob-
se ed?
5. Which pa icula ad an ages and disad an ages
a e c ea ed by he new lea ning en i onmen and
lea ning se ings, ega ding cul u al di e ences
be ween he pa icipa ing coun ies?
Da a om he e alua ion p ocess will be ga he ed by
means o ques ionnai es and in e iews aimed a s u-
den s, eache s, and indus ial expe s.
3. Educa ional concep
The educa ional concep behind ou app oach com-
bines expe ien ial and collabo a i e lea ning. In line
wi h he cons uc i is pa adigm, s uden s a e con-
on ed wi h lea ning si ua ions whe e hey can lea n
om conc e e expe iences in a si ua ed con ex .
Lea ning asks o igina e om enginee ing p ac ice
and wo k si ua ions, so he s uden does no acqui e
his / he knowledge exclusi ely om he eache .
Fu he mo e, s uden s a e encou aged o wo k in
dis ibu ed g oups. Collabo a i e lea ning p omo es
so skills in eam wo k and emo e collabo a ion.
The MARVEL app oach emphasizes he combina ion
o i ual lea ning sessions ( emo e labs, simula ions)
and di ec “hands-on” expe imen s in local labs o a
he wo kplace.
Expe ien ial lea ning seeks o in ol e he lea ne s
in a conc e e expe ience. One o he main exponen s
o expe ien ial lea ning is Da id A. Kolb (Kolb
1984), who p oposes a lea ning heo y comp ising
ou main s ages, as illus a ed in igu e 2: conc e e
expe iences, e lec i e obse a ion, abs ac concep-
ualiza ion, and ac i e expe imen a ion. Based on he
wo k o Piage , Dewey and Lewin, Kolb explo es he
in e p e a ion o conc e e expe iences and he lea n-
ing s yles in ol ed in doing so. In his model he
p ocess begins wi h an expe ience (1), which is ol-
lowed by e lec ion (2). The e lec ion is hen assimi-
la ed in o a heo y (3) and inally hese new (o e-
o mula ed) hypo heses a e es ed in new si ua ions
(4). The model is a ecu ing cycle wi hin which he
lea ne es s new concep s and modi ies hem as a
esul o e lec ion and concep ualiza ion ac i i ies.
(1) Conc e e
expe ience
(2) Re lec i e
obse a ion
(4) Ac i e
expe imen a ion
(3) Abs ac
concep ualisa ion
Fu he
e lec i e
obse a ion
Figu e 2. Expe ien ial lea ning cycle
Ac ion and e lec ion a e he co e a ibu es o lea n-
ing h ough expe ience o expe ien ial lea ning. This
equi es a eaching me hodology in which s uden s
a e engaged in doing ac i i ies and e lec ing on wha
hey did. Ou knowledge acquisi ion echniques a e
based on i ual and emo e labs, simula ions, o eal
li e expe iences in local labs and wo k spaces. We y
o maximize he lea ning e ec i eness by looking o
he igh mix o such me hods.
Combining lab expe imen s wi h i ual lea ning is
ully compa ible wi h he concep o expe ien ial
lea ning, because lab expe imen s a e used as a lea n-
ing aid, ins ead o cons i u ing a lea ning goal by
hemsel es. Lab expe imen s and p ac ical exe cises
p o ide a 'hands-on' app oach o lea ning. They allow
a lea ne o 'expe ience' da a in a mo e amilia o m,
since he p ac ical expe imen p oposed o he s u-
den s enables hem o 'obse e and e lec ' on wha
hey ha e jus wi nessed. Each expe imen may he e-
o e be seen as a s a ing poin on he way ha will
lead hem o unde s and i s unde lying heo e ical
p inciples.
The collabo a i e app oach associa ed wi h ou
lea ning scena ios is impo an because he s uden s
- acqui e a ious so -skills, such as he abili y o
wo k in eams and o achie e objec i es in coop-
e a ion wi h o he s;
- lea n o communica e wi h each o he using
echnical exp essions ha a e speci ic o hei
p o essional domain;
- lea n o in eg a e he know-how o o he s in o -
de o accomplish a gi en wo k ask;

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- acqui e emo e collabo a ion skills, when he
eam wo k is ca ied ou om se e al loca ions
simul aneously.
In many cases wo king in g oups is also much close
o eal wo k si ua ions, when compa ed wi h isola ed
lea ning. As desc ibed abo e his is pa icula ly e i-
den when conce ning he p o ision o a ious se -
ices associa ed wi h mecha onic sys ems.
4. F om emo e labs o in e linked eal and
i ual lea ning spaces
Labo a o y exe cises play a undamen al ole in ou
lea ning se ings. Local labs a e no mally he bes
way o ge a i s hands-on expe ience wi h he ope a-
ion o labo a o y de ices o cons uc i e exe cises.
S uden s wo king in a local lab can di ec ly pe cei e
and in luence eali y. The ele ance o hap ic expe i-
ence o knowledge cons uc ion and skill de elop-
men has been a gued among pedagogical and psy-
chological expe s (MacKenzie, Ibe all 1994). Ac-
co dingly on- he-job- aining plays an impo an ole
in oca ional aining. Howe e , lea ning a he wo k-
place is no always easible: on- he-job- aining is
o en unplanned, co e s only pa s o a cu iculum
and equen ly p o ides no oom o concep ual
lea ning and abs ac ion. The e o e labo a o y exe -
cises and expe imen s a e a good comp omise. On he
o he hand he high cos o mode n equipmen and
sophis ica ed expe imen al se ups is some imes p o-
hibi i e o many ins i u ions ha ha e limi ed budg-
e s and esou ces.
Vi ual labo a o ies a e compu e -based simula-
ions o physical o o he eal-li e sys ems (e.g. eco-
nomic sys ems). Simula ions a e a e y app op ia e
way o illus a e he complex s uc u e o machines,
echnical sys ems and o he appa a us (Fishwick
1995). Simula ion has p o en o be a good echnique,
especially when he objec i e is o achie e amilia i y
and o d ill speci ic beha iou al esponses o mal-
unc ions o eme gency si ua ions. I is pa icula ly
impo an because i elimina es exposu e o isk in
po en ially dange ous ac i i ies. In mecha onics
he e a e many good ools a ailable o his pu pose,
namely o p ocess and obo ics simula ion. Bu on
he o he hand simula ions which come close o eal-
i y a e e y expensi e and o cou se we ha e no ools
o sys ems which can no be desc ibed by o mal
me hods o ma hema ical unc ions.
A emo e labo a o y p o ides access o expe i-
men s con olled by a compu e ( he lab se e ) ha
is linked up ia a local a ea ne wo k o he ac ual
labo a o y de ices and equipmen (Saliah 2000) (Es-
che 2002). Ins ead o di ec ly manipula ing he de-
ices and equipmen in he lab, he s uden s use a
global communica ions ne wo k (e.g. he In e ne ) o
in e ac wi h he se e . Remo e labo a o ies y o
combine he ad an ages o local labs wi h he lexi-
bili y o simula ion. They imp o e he a ailabili y o
lab acili ies and eal-li e wo kplaces, since he
physical p esence o he use is no mally no neces-
sa y. Schools, esea ch ins i u ions, echnological
supplie s and companies may sha e esou ces and
a ionalize cos s by se ing up ne wo ks o emo e
acili ies in hei a eas o ac i i y. Remo e lab-based
cou ses o e he oppo uni y o use acili ies om
emo e si es, wi hou eplica ing expensi e lab
equipmen a all eaching ins i u ions.
Remo e expe imen a ion can also suppo he de-
elopmen o impo an enginee ing skills like emo e
ope a ion, diagnosis, and main enance ( ele-se ice),
as e e ed ea lie in his pape . Remo e labo a o ies
a e cu en ly being de eloped and used a many
places a ound he wo ld, as shown by a ecen su ey
ha iden i ied 19 p ojec s (Teichmann 2002). The e
a e howe e some sho comings associa ed wi h e-
mo e labs / wo kbenches ia he In e ne , wi h ele-
ance o he loss o hap ic expe ience and conc e e-
ness. S uden s wo king in a local lab come in con ac
wi h conc e e a i ac s and can di ec ly ouch, see,
hea and smell he labo a o y de ices (Tu as, Wag-
ne 2002). This ull sensual expe ience o being in
he lab canno be p o ided by emo e labs whe e
s uden s in e ac wi h emo e de ices h ough a com-
pu e use in e ace. Böhle and Milkau (1988) em-
pi ically enligh ened he p oblem o diminishing con-
c e eness o a skil ul con ol o machines and he
accumula ion o expe ience. This is he eason why
emo e labo a o ies a e called by Ak an he “Second
Bes o Being The e” (Ak an e al 1996).
In ou app oach we y o combine simula ion
aining, emo e lab expe imen a ion and lea ning-by-
doing on eal-li e sys ems, o educe he p oblems o
ans e al be ween i ual and eal sys ems (Mülle
2001). The MARVEL p ojec ollows a new and
inno a i e pa adigm in aining and educa ion, by
suppo ing local and dis ibu ed lea ning based on
me ging i ual and eal labs and wo kshop acili ies.
Mixing angible objec s o eal wo k spaces wi h he
digi al ep esen a ion o in o ma ion spaces, is an
app oach ha wi nessed an inc easing in e es du ing
he las decade (Milg am, Kishino 1994). This con-
cep – also known as Mixed Reali y – p o ides a nea -
pe ec ma ch o ou equi emen s conce ning ele-
se ice and ele-lea ning, and as such is used by he
7
conso ium o mee he MARVEL lea ning objec i es
ha we e p esen ed in sec ion 1.2.
i ual
local
emo e
conc e e
expe ience e lec i e
obse a ion ac i e
expe imen-
a ion
abs ac
concep-
ualisa ion
SPACE
VIRTUALITY
CONTINUUM
LEARNING
ACTIVITIES
physical
Figu e 3: Dimensions o mixed eali y lea ning
spaces (Mülle 2001)
5. Conclusion
Lea ning by expe ience in a eal and social con ex is
mo e and mo e es ic ed in compu e ized i ual
en i onmen s. In his pape we p oposed a mixed-
eali y e-lea ning pla o m o oca ional aining in
mecha onics, by combining i ual lea ning sessions
( emo e labs, simula ions) wi h lea ning in eal labs
o e en a he wo kplace ( igu e 3). Mixed- eali y
lea ning en i onmen s will be able o ind an op imal
balance be ween i ual, emo e, and eal expe imen-
a ion sys ems, wi h he objec i e o p o iding he
bes pla o ms o suppo he acquisi ion o lea ning
con en s and p ac ical skills (Foss 2001).
The e a e o cou se limi a ions o he pedagogical
e ec i eness o emo e and i ual labs. The no el y
o emo e access o wo kbenches is a majo sou ce o
a ac ion o s uden s and eache s alike, bu i is im-
po an o conside some o he c i icism which occa-
sionally ends o ade away, in he p esence o o e -
es ima ed bene i s. The cos o se ing up and main-
aining emo e lab in as uc u es, and he insu i-
ciency o incomple eness ha a e inhe en o emo e
expe imen a ion (highe isk when compa ed o simu-
la ion, inabili y o con ey some manual skills ha a e
acqui ed when se ing up expe imen s in a eal lab),
a e jus wo main examples. Some o his c i icism
may sound excessi ely pessimis ic, bu i will help o
coun e balance he excessi e op imism ha is e-
quen ly ound in many o he cu en publica ions in
his ield. Su ice i o say ha emo e expe imen a-
ion is no a uni e sal solu ion able o gua an ee he
success ul ou come o any echnological o scien i ic
lea ning p ocess. I will howe e ind i s own place in
he lea ning chain, no as a eplacemen o simula ion
o eal expe imen a ion, bu a he as a complemen
ha may b ing an added alue in e ms o he peda-
gogical ou come. The e will be si ua ions whe e an
o e lapping o simula ion, emo e expe imen a ion,
and eal expe imen a ion, will be accep able, bu also
o he si ua ions whe e only pa o hese al e na i es
will make sense. As he echnology suppo ing i ual
and emo e expe imen a ion en i onmen s p og esses,
mixed en i onmen s will s a o become mo e com-
mon, pu ing oge he he bes ools ha a e able o
suppo he lea ning p ocess a any gi en momen .
Failing o bene i om echnological inno a ions
wi h a high pedagogical po en ial would be e en
wo se han ha ing o educe he expec a ions in he
case o o e es ima ed bene i s.
6. Acknowledgemen s
The MARVEL p ojec ecei es suppo om he
Eu opean Leona do da Vinci P og amme. The au-
ho s o his pape would like o hank he main con-
ibu o s o his wo k, Wol gang Hoell and Heino
Ma ens om Delmenho s Technical College, as
well as ou o he pa ne s in he MARVEL conso -
ium. Fo u he in o ma ion please isi he MAR-
VEL web si e a h p://www.ma el.uni-b emen.de.
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