»   Workpackages

 »   WP 3.1 Virtual Laboratory and teleimmersion

Prowadzący »	Prof. Ryszard W. Adamiak - IChB PAN, Poznań Prof. Krzysztof Zieliński - ACK CYFRONET AGH, Kraków
Co-executor »	PŁ-CK
Start date »	1 Dec, 2002
Ending date »	31 Oct, 2004

The aim of this task is to define and implement general tools (layers) enabling the realization of the conception of a virtual laboratory that facilitates and accelerates studying, discussions, conducting common research and, finally, remote, physical access to laboratory equipment of scientific centers. This idea is particularly attractive in case of empirical studies and technologies, especially: physics, chemistry, structural biology, experimental medicine or engineering.

Task realization will make the scientists and engineers work with their projects much easier through remote events simulation, experimental data interpretation and, in specific cases, performing real experiments in a laboratory specially applied for that purpose. Research will concentrate on the following issues:

• Virtual Laboratory - creating universal architecture (the current progress may be seen on the VLab Web page)
• Teleimmersion (what is teleimmersion?)
• Access to data and data storage

The general layer of the software will be built to be adjustable to perform preliminary tests for optimal protocol choice, and then to perform experiments using technical and scientific computational software. It has to assure access to data originating from many heterogeneous sources of information. Mass storage systems will become the main source of information. Data processing will be managed and monitored by an individual experimenter or - thanks to the possibilities provided by virtual laboratory - by a distributed team of researchers working in their own laboratories.

In the next step of the project it will be important to combine the simulation, computer science and computational facilities with real access to measurements using laboratory equipment, especially such unique equipment which is not accessible for smaller scientific centers. This task will create a possibility of opening a virtual laboratory for performing real experiments basing on complex laboratory equipment, the technology of which enables both processor control of the apparatus and generating experimental data on the system output. Further processing of the output data may be performed on the virtual laboratory level.

Within the confines of the project it is planned to prepare a testbed installation of the Virtual Laboratory of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy. The project assumes preparing a conception of a virtual laboratory on the basis of two spectrometers with different resolution capabilities (300 and 600 MHz). With the aid of the upper software layer, obtained experimental results will allow to prepare such data as: determining the structure of examined compounds, access to large-scale computations, visualization and the possibility of visual communication between research workgroups.