Web-Based Simulation: Evolution or Revolution?

ACM Transactions on Modeling and Computer Simulation, Vol. 10, No. 1, January 2000, Pages 3–17

A Prototype of Web-Based Simulation Environment (WEBSIM)

Computer simulation is the discipline of designing a model of an actual or theoretical physical system, executing the model on a computer, and analysing the execution output. Among the popular simulation tools are Mil3 Opnet, Mathworks MATLAB and even self-developed simulation program (using language such as Pascal, Fortran and C/C++). However, these simulation tools have limitations such as platform dependent, expensive cost, maintenance difficulties and limited in reusability. One of the methods to overcome this limitation is by implementing web-based simulation. Web-based simulation allows simulation to be carried out over the Internet using a standard web browser. The usage of web browsers make the Internet a very user-friendly environment by integrating all related resources into a single tool that eliminates the steep learning curve for novice simulation users. In this thesis, we present the web-based simulation environment project (Websim). Websim uploads a simulation program (developed using C/C++) in binary format, generates a web-interface for the program and allows users to access the simulation program y 1<1 the Internet. The results generated from the simulation program would be translated into an image file. Finally, the Image file is embedded into an HTML file, and returned to Websim users. Websim is mainly developed using the combination of CGI and Javascript technologies. The server-side CGI scripts, written in Perl process the various requests from users, while the chent-side Javascript is used to perform user inputs validations. Thus, lessen the workload of the server and tighten the security. Websim is able to receive the simulation program m executable format and provide a web interface for it. This gives the flexibility and convenience of using the programming language of choice for the simulation modeller, and to integrate it with the web. Besides that, Websim also allows the storage of simulation program on a web server, thus could act as an online store for simulation programs. This permits the sharing of simulation program over the Internet, to an exclusive user groups or to the general public. Finally, Websim could act as a teaching tool in school and universities, especially for courses involving modelling and simulation. It allows teaching and learning to be done through the Internet, hence could assist students in having a better understanding on certain topics or concepts

Interactive Web-Based Simulation for Supply Chain Education

Knowledge economies are based on the concept of knowledge transfer between education institutes and stakeholders. In response, the significant move away from traditional teaching methods to the emerging paradigm of eLearning has become increasingly in evidence across many academic disciplines. To assist in the transition from traditional learning to eLearning, more interactive and virtually orientated teaching aids are needed. This chapter introduces a simulation-based learning framework that integrates web-based simulation and a web content management hierarchy model. Using the complex subject of supply chain management as a case study, the new framework allows users to examine various real-life strategic management scenarios, encourages group work and has remote access capabilities for distance learning. Interactive learning is facilitated using the web-based simulation portal, enabling instructors to demonstrate the complexity of decisions in multiple criteria environment and also show the users the impact of strategies on performance. Supply chain simulation creates an animated experience and better understanding of system dynamics including risk. The framework assists in the knowledge and skills transfer between third-level education institutes and their stakeholders, primarily industry partners and the wider communit

The use and evaluation of a simulation game to teach professional practice skills to undergraduate Architecture students

Architects are currently grappling to exploit new forms of communication made possible with developments in internet communication. At the same time, the construction industry is in a state of flux as novel project management systems are being introduced. Students need to understand the first principles of project management within the context of our changing environment. One of the best ways for students to learn about the legalities of the construction process is through role play and simulation, but there is a Catch 22. Unless students have a basic understanding of project management, the contractual process can be confusing and intimidating. Even fifth and sixth year architecture student are reluctant to ask practitioners questions, for fear of appearing ignorant. This paper describes the use of a web-based simulation game to deliver the Management, Practice and Law syllabus to Architecture Students. The web-based game allows students to critically observe the transformation of designs into buildings through the exploration of the contract management process. A questionnaire survey was used to assess the efficacy of the simulation game as a learning tool, and in particular the effectiveness of the web-based simulation in facilitating the development of professional practice skills in undergraduate Architecture students. The initial results of the assessment indicate that the simulation game is both a useful and complementary adjunct to traditional teaching and learning methods, as observed through the evaluation of outcomes, and helpful in developing generic professional practice skills of undergraduate students. Further game development will require more formal evaluation over a series of uses

Web-based simulation of systems described by partial differential equations

Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works. M. Alfonseca, and, H. Vangheluwe, "Web-based simulation of systems described by partial differential equations", in Proceedings of the Winter Simulation Conference, 2001, pp. 629 - 636.This paper describes how to take advantage of Internet services and object technology to solve 2D partial differential equations (PDEs) in a distributed manner. This is accomplished by means of a distributed object oriented continuous simulation language designed by our research group, called OOCSMP, and a Java (and C++) generating compiler for this language (called C-OOL). We also describe a graphical mesh generator, which produces OOCSMP code. The mesh generator may be invoked from the simulation model allowing the generation of domains and meshes during model execution. The simulation of heating moving pieces is shown, in the single machine case, and in the distributed caseThis paper has been sponsored by the Spanish Interdepartmental Commission of Science and Technology (CICYT), project number TEL1999-018

Web-based Simulation and Training Environment for Laparoscopic Camera Calibration

Endoscopic cameras are increasingly employed in image-guidance procedures, where the video images must be registered to data from other modalities. However, such cameras are susceptible to distortions, requiring calibration before images can be used for registration, tracking and 3D reconstruction. Camera calibration is learned in a laboratory setting, where configuring and adjusting the physical setup is tedious and not necessarily conducive to learning. A centralized resource that utilizes 3D interactive components needs to be available for training on camera calibration. In this project, a web-based training environment for camera calibration is implemented called SimCAM. SimCAM was developed using the Web Graphics Library (WebGL), Open Computer Vision (OpenCV) library, and custom software components. WebGL and OpenCV were used to simulate camera distortions and the calibration task. The main contributions include the implementation and validation of SimCAM. SimCAM was validated with a content validity study, where it was found to be useful as an introduction to camera calibration. Future work involves improving the supporting material and implementing more features, such as uncertainty propogation

Web-Based Simulation Games in Social Studies: A Media Analysis

This article explored two complimentary frameworks for utilizing web-based simulation games in social studies classrooms and applied them in a media analysis of a popular web-based civics simulation. McCall’s (2014) practical framework and Raphael, Bachen, Lynn, Mckee, and Baldwin-Philippi’s (2010) approach provided a thorough construct for effectively evaluating and utilizing simulation games in social studies classrooms. The Redistricting Game (USC Annenberg Center, n.d.) is detailed in light of these frameworks and analyzed for potential instructional use

Web-based simulation: a tool for teaching critical care nursing

Este estudo teve por objetivos desenvolver, implementar e avaliar uma simulação em terapia intensiva, utilizando a tecnologia web, para o ensino de graduação em enfermagem. Foi utilizada metodologia adaptada para construção de material instrucional em ambiente de ensino web, composta por três fases de avaliação (ergonômica, pedagógica e usabilidade), realizadas por webdesigners/programadores, docentes/enfermeiros e alunos do curso de graduação em enfermagem. Como instrumentos de pesquisa, foram aplicados três diferentes formulários de avaliação, baseados em escala Likert de cinco pontos, após a utilização da simulação. Os resultados apresentados nos formulários mostram análises positivas em todas as avaliações, destacando na avaliação pedagógica o estímulo ao aprendizado e na avaliação de usabilidade a satisfação dos alunos na utilização do ambiente e a facilidade de manuseio, traduzindo a indicação do uso dessa simulação para melhoria do processo ensino-aprendizagem.Este estudio tuvo por objetivos desarrollar, implementar y evaluar una simulación de terapia intensiva, utilizando la tecnología web, para la enseñanza de graduación en enfermería. Fue utilizada una metodología adaptada para la construcción de material de instrucción en ambiente de enseñanza web, compuesta por tres fases de evaluación (ergonómica, pedagógica y utilización), realizadas por webdesigners/programadores, docentes/enfermeros y alumnos del curso de graduación en enfermería. Como instrumentos de investigación, fueron aplicados tres diferentes formularios de evaluación, basados en la escala Likert de cinco puntos, después de la utilización de la simulación. Los resultados presentados en los formularios muestran análisis positivos en todas las evaluaciones, destacando en la evaluación pedagógica el estímulo al aprendizaje y en la evaluación de utilización la satisfacción de los alumnos al usar el ambiente y al constatar la facilidad del manoseo, traduciendo la indicación del uso de esa simulación en un proceso para mejorar la enseñanza y el aprendizaje.The objectives of this study were to develop, to implement and to evaluate a web-based simulation for critical care nursing, as a tool for teaching nursing students at the undergraduate level. An adapted methodology was used to develop teaching material in a web-based learning environment, consisting of three evaluation phases (ergonomic, pedagogical and usability), carried out by web-designers/programmers, nursing teachers/nurses, and undergraduate nursing students. The research tools used were three different evaluation forms, based on a five-point Likert scale, which were applied after using the simulation. The results garnered from the forms show positive analyses in every evaluation, with special emphasis on the encouragement of learning in the pedagogical evaluation period. In the usability evaluation, the highlight was on the students' satisfaction in using the environment and how easy it was to navigate. This shows the feasibility of using this simulation to improve the learning process

Contributions to web-based simulation software for sustainable energy systems

Motiviert durch den Bedarf an praxisorientierten Studien für die Energiewende befasst sich diese Dissertation in zehn Artikeln mit der Entwicklung, Evaluierung, Validieren, Anwendung und Abstraktion des multidimensionalen Entscheidungsunterstützungssystems NESSI. NESSI ist eine frei zugängliche, webbasierte Software zur Simulation von nachhaltigen Energiesystemen für Gebäude und Nachbarschaften. Mithilfe eines adaptierten Design Science Forschungsansatzes, wird NESSI in dieser Dissertation in fünf aufeinander folgenden Designzyklen speziell für Akteure in Entwicklungsländern weiterentwickelt. Für jeden Designzyklus wurden Anforderungen durch systematische Marktrecherchen, Literaturanalysen, Anwendertests und Experten- und Expertinneninterviews abgeleitet. Nach umfangreichen iterativen Programmierarbeiten wird jeder Designzyklus demonstriert, evaluiert und validiert, indem die Software in verschiedenen Kontexten in Entwicklungsländern eingesetzt wird. Weitere Methoden zur Verbesserung von NESSI waren Feedback von Gutachtern sowie Präsentationen auf nationalen und internationalen Veranstaltungen. Zur weiteren Demonstration von NESSI werden in zwei Artikeln umfangreiche Fallstudien in Thailand und Kolumbien beschrieben. Durch diese Entwicklungsarbeiten entstand ein zusätzlicher Artikel in Kooperation mit einem internationalen, interkontinentalen Projektteam, in dem die Weiterentwicklung des in NESSI integrierten Lastprofilgenerator RAMP dargelegt wird. In einem weiteren Artikel wird die Funktionsweise von NESSI vorgestellt, um dessen Vertrauenswürdigkeit und Transparenz zu fördern sowie globale Anwendungsmöglichkeiten zu verdeutlichen. Der letzte Artikel befasst sich mit entstehender Designtheorie. Ausgehend von NESSIs Entwicklungsprozess, werden sieben fundierte Designprinzipien für Entscheidungsunterstützungssystemen zur Unterstützung der gesellschaftlichen Nachhaltigkeitstransformation formuliert. Während des gesamten Entwicklungsprozesses hat sich gezeigt, dass das Entscheidungsunterstützungssystem NESSI die Energiewende bottom-up unterstützt, Stakeholder informiert und Menschen befähigt. Es werden jedoch auch einige Limitationen des Tools aufgrund von Simplifikationen aufgezeigt. Darüber hinaus werden die Herausforderungen bei der Entwicklung der Software erläutert, insbesondere in Bezug auf die Definition der Stakeholder, Forschung aus der Ferne, die Komplexität und Vertrauenswürdigkeit des Tools sowie die Bedeutung von Stakeholder-Netzwerken. Akteure und Forschende werden eingeladen, NESSI weiter zu verbessern, den Ansatz zu hinterfragen und gemeinsam ein verfeinertes Modell zu entwickeln, um die Energiewende bottom-up zu fördern und die Entwicklung gesellschaftlicher Nachhaltigkeit zu unterstützen.Motivated by the calls for more solution-oriented studies that contribute to the energy transition, this dissertation comprises of ten articles describing the development, evaluation, validation, application, and abstraction of the multi-criteria decision support system NESSI. NESSI is an openaccess, web-based software simulating energy systems for buildings and neighborhoods. Using an adapted design science research approach, NESSI is further developed in five consecutive design cycles specifically for actors in developing countries. For each design cycle, requirements were derived through systematic market research, literature analyses, user tests, and expert interviews. After extensive iterative programming works, each design cycle is demonstrated, evaluated, and validated by applying the software to suitable contexts in developing countries. Further methods to improve and validate NESSI included reviewer feedback as well as presentations at national and international events. Two articles describe extensive case studies situated in Thailand and Colombia to further demonstrate NESSI. This work led to a joint article, co-authored with an international project team, which presents the load profile generator RAMP and its integration into NESSI. Moreover, the functionality of the tool is introduced in a separate article to serve as a manual, to support transparency, trust, and credibility as well as to highlight the tool’s global applicability. In the last article, nascent design theory is derived by formulating seven grounded design principles with multiple design features for the wider application of bottom-up societal sustainability transformation. Throughout this development process, it was proven that the decision support system NESSI supports bottom-up energy transition, educates stakeholders, and empowers people. Nevertheless, several limitations regarding the tool’s restrictiveness are highlighted. Challenges during software development are elaborated on, especially in terms of the stakeholder definition, the remote research approach, the tool’s complexity and credibility as well as importance of stakeholder networks. Stakeholders and researchers are invited to further improve NESSI, challenge th