Modeling a telecommunication platform for remote access to virtual laboratories

Explosive growth of Web-based applications has been witnessed over the past few years. Customers are moving more and more towards multi-step business-to-business and customer-to-business services. Many innovative approaches have been designed for several purposes including educational facilities. This paper introduces a telecommunication platform for heterogeneous network interoperability. Such a platform will operate within a scientific and technological virtual laboratory framework. The main concept relies upon a generic virtual laboratory from which other specific laboratories might be instantiated. Acting as a server, the proposed telecommunication platform should be able to allow remote access for clients using different media, networks, and platforms, with a minimum level of quality of service and reliability. Designed as a multi-layered model, this platform can be seen as a valuable and open component paving the way for further developments and extensions in distance learning.