As online enrollment booms, some faculty members in technical fields across the country are trying to answer the question, "How do we teach THIS online?"

In Associate Professor Ismail Fidan's case, his subject matter — manufacturing and industrial technology— could not be more hands-on. His students need to learn how to design components, create prototype parts and implement manufacturing improvements. On-campus MIT students simply schedule laboratory time. Soon, online students scattered across the country can do the same.

Fidan joined with Nasir Ghani, assistant professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, to propose a remotely accessible, Internet-based rapid prototyping lab that recently received National Science Foundation funding totaling $125,000. First, the TTU lab will be open to Tennessee Board of Regents technology centers and community colleges to entice students to pursue classes in technical fields. Eventually, access to the lab will be open to students at schools across the nation willing to partner with TTU.

"Remote access laboratories are a critical component to improving distance learning in the engineering fields," says Fidan. "Through Internet-based controls, interactive tutorials and scheduling, we can introduce cutting-edge technology to a more diverse group of students and get them excited."

The excitement on campus began a few years ago when Fidan established the Rapid Prototyping Lab. The RP machine is in simplest terms a 3-D copier. It produces a solid, physical model from a digital design sent to the machine from a computer.
Using liquid, powder or sheet materials, an RP machine produces physical objects from the design by laying down thin, horizontal cross sections of paper, metal and composites layer by layer. Much like a paper copier passes back and forth to produce a copy, the RP machine passes back and forth, each time adding a thin layer and building up the model.

Knowledge of how to apply RP to the development of new products is essential in most engineering, technology, design and manufacturing curricula. There are some web-based tutorial courses at a few institutions, but no remote labs. Ghani, whose expertise is in networking and interfacing issues, will break ground by creating TTU's ability to open the lab to remote sites.

In the remote RP setup, distance education students will be able to control their project from another location and view camera images to assist in solving issues with lab set-up and part production. The students' prototyped parts will be mailed to them.

Since establishing the RP Lab, Fidan has looked for ways to reach beyond his classroom for students and teachers interested in learning to operate this equipment. He led an NSF-funded workshop for area high school and technology teachers last summer.

"We taught them how using this specialized piece of equipment can enhance the realism and excitement in their classroom," says Fidan.

With the United States losing ground to international competitors in K-16 STEM topics — science, technology, engineering and mathematics — drawing online students into these fields is becoming increasingly important. Even though most courses around the country use traditional prototyping methods, such as crafting objects out of wood or cardboard, the manufacturing industry is looking for employees who are trained in RP technology.

"Prototype development is a vital stage in the overall process design, and RP technology became common in industry in the 1990s, because it shortens production time," says Fidan. "Almost 90 percent of my undergraduate students did not know about RP concepts until we established this lab. We want to reach out to other students in the region, and eventually nationwide, to share what we've learned."