This paper discusses the development of a prototype Resource Optimizing, Access Delimited (ROAD) laboratory for energy conversion, electric machines, power systems, and signal processing courses. The ROAD laboratory is a remote experimentation facility that combines hardware and software systems to provide clients (student users) unsupervised round-theclock access into the energy conversion laboratory (host) through computer networks. The full development version of the software interface will

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... ffer engineering programs the option of setting up their laboratory as a local host, or enabling access to a remote host that might be equipped with hardware not available in the local laboratory. This new educational tool offers worldwide access to an energy conversion lab facility, provide an infrastructure for carrying on true collaborative learning, and serve as an ideal facility for performing machinery-related experiments in distance learning programs. Index Terms--Remote laboratory, energy conversion, distance learning.