Telecommunication Instructional Modeling System: Difference between revisions

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'''TIMS''', or '''Telecommunication Instructional Modeling System''', is an [[Electronics|electronic device]] invented by Tim Hooper and developed by Australian engineering company Emona Instruments that is used as a [[Telecommunication|telecommunications]] trainer in educational settings and universities.<ref>{{Cite journalthesis|type=Master's thesis |last=Sarfaraz |first=Maysam |date=2011-05-01 |title=EDUCATIONALEducational APPLICATIONSApplications OFof PARTIALPartial RECONFIGURATIONReconfiguration OFof FPGASFPGAs|url=https://scholar.utc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1052&context=theses|journalpublisher=Thesis from University of Tennessee at Chattanooga}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite book|last=Silva|first=Mário Marques da|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A6x-DwAAQBAJ&q=emona+tims&pg=PT23|title=Cable and Wireless Networks: Theory and Practice|date=2018-09-03|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-1-4987-5154-4|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Conference|first=American Society for Engineering Education|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vmRGAAAAYAAJ&q=emona+tims|title=ASEE Annual Conference Proceedings|date=2004|publisher=American Society for Engineering Education|language=en}}</ref>

== History ==

TIMS was designed at the [[University of New South Wales]] by Tim Hooper in 1971. It was developed to run student experiments for electrical engineering communications courses.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|date=2017|title=Using Telecommunication Instructional Modelling System (TIMS) in Communications Systems Course|url=https://peer.asee.org/using-telecommunication-instructional-modelling-system-tims-in-communications-systems-course.pdf|journal=American Association for Engineering Education|volume=Paper ID #18924}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hooper|first=T. L.|date=1973-08-01|title=Telecommunications Systems Modeling in the Laboratory|url=https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/4320828|journal=IEEE Transactions on Education|volume=16|issue=3|pages=148–152|doi=10.1109/TE.1973.4320828|bibcode=1973ITEdu..16..148H|issn=1557-9638}}</ref> Hooper’s concept was developed into the current TIMS model in the late 1980s.<ref>{{Cite web|title=NJIT- EE495 : Introduction to Modeling with TIMS|url=https://web.njit.edu/~gilhc/EE495/TIMS.htm|access-date=2021-08-13|website=web.njit.edu}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal|last=Breznik|first=Alfred|date=2004-01-30|title=Hands-on learning system for Wireless laboratory courses|url=https://peer.asee.org/hands-on-learning-system-for-wireless-laboratory-courses.pdf|journal=Proceedings of the 2004 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition|pages=9.658.1–9.658.5}}</ref> In 1986, the project won a competition organized by [[Electronics Australia]] for development work using the [[Texas Instruments TMS320]].<ref name=":6">{{cite journal |last1=Wierer |first1=Jay |last2=Chandler |first2=Edward |title=Analog and Digital Communications Laboratory Experiments Using Emona TIMS |journal=2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition Proceedings |date=June 2011 |pages=22.203.1–22.203.12 |doi=10.18260/1-2--17484 |s2cid=54537460 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name=":7" /> Emona Instruments also received an award for TIMS at the fifth Secrets of Australian ICT Innovation Competition.<ref name=":7">{{Cite web|title=Sticisce avstralskih Slovencev - Slovenian network in Australia|url=http://www.glasslovenije.com.au/aktualno/emonaAward2007.htm|access-date=2021-07-08|website=www.glasslovenije.com.au}}</ref>

== Methodology ==

[[File:TIMS methodology diagram.jpg|alt=TIMS Methodology Diagram|thumb|371x371px|TIMS Methodology Diagram]]

TIMS uses a block diagram-based interface for experiments in the classroom. It can model mathematical equations to simulate electric signals, or it can use block diagrams to simulate telecommunications systems.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite journalbook|last=Breznik|first=Alfred|date=2004-10-01|title=TIMS-301 USER MANUAL|url=http://ecelabs.njit.edu/ece489/misc/tims301_user_manual.pdf|journalpublisher=Emona Instruments Pty Ltd}}</ref> It uses a different hardware card to represent functions for each block of the diagram.<ref>{{Cite journalthesis|type=Master's thesis|last=Purani|first=Abhilash M.|date=2010-04-23|title=ANAn EVALUATIONEvaluation OFof LOWLow COSTCost FPGA-BASEDBased SOFTWARESoftware DEFINEDDefined RADIOSRadios FORfor EDUCATIONEducation ANDand RESEARCHResearch|url=https://scholar.utc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1509&context=theses|journalpublisher=A Thesis Presented for the Master of Science Degree the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga}}</ref>

TIMS consists of a server, a chassis, and boards that can emulate the configurations of a telecommunications system.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sandoval|first=Jose R Santamaria|date=2020-04-01|title=Application of the EMONA TIMS platform for the Telecomunications Engineering career at UNED Costa Rica|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/349042618|journal=Engineering Education}}</ref> It uses electronic circuits as modules to simulate the components of [[Analog communication|analog]] and [[Digital Communications System|digital communications systems]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last=Khan|first=Muhammad Ajmal|date=2018-06-01|title=Enhancing Students' Lab Experiences using Simulink-based Pre-Labsof Corresponding Hardware-based Labs|url=http://people.cst.cmich.edu/yelam1k/asee/proceedings/2018/1/69.pdf|journal=Proceedings of the 2018 ASEE North Central Section Conference}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journalthesis |type=Bachelor's thesis|last=Sakovičs|first=Ričards|date=2019|title=Digital-to-analog and Analog-to-digital Converter Operational Research|url=https://nda.rtu.lv/en/view/24448|journalpublisher=Riga Technical University Graduate Papers}}</ref> The modules can perform different functions such as signal generation, [[signal processing]], signal measurement, and [[digital signal processing]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

=== Variants ===

The block diagram approach to modeling the mathematics of a telecommunication system has also been ported across to other domains.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journalthesis|lasttype=JosefMaster's Bc.thesis|firstlast=Jeřábek|first=Josef|date=2008-11-02|title=Optimalizace telekomunikačního výukového prostředí|url=https://www.vutbr.cz/www_base/zav_prace_soubor_verejne.php?file_id=7588|journalpublisher=Vysoké učení technické v Brně}}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite journalbook|lastlast1=Veettil|firstfirst1=Binesh Puthen|last2=Payne|first2=David|last3=Bagnall|first3=Darren|last4=Cetin|first4=Ediz|datetitle=2020-12-01 IEEE International Conference on Teaching, Assessment, and Learning for Engineering (TALE) |titlechapter=Quantifying and Improving Student Engagement with Remotely Accessible Laboratory Project Hardware (RALPH) |url=https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9368478|journaldate=2020 IEEE International Conference on Teaching, Assessment, and Learning for Engineering (TALE)-12-01|pages=714–718|doi=10.1109/TALE48869.2020.9368478|isbn=978-1-7281-6942-2|s2cid=229209526}}</ref>

=== Simulation ===

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=== Remote access ===

It can be used by multiple students at once across the internet or LAN via a browser based client screen. This utilises a statistical time division multiplexing architecture in the control unit. The method is applied both to Telecommunications and Electronics Laboratories (known as netCIRCUITlabs).<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":8" /><ref>{{Citation |last1=Manfredini |first1=Carlo |title=Multi-user Remote Access Hardware Labs for Wireless and Electronics Undergraduate Courses |date=2024 |work=Online Laboratories in Engineering and Technology Education: State of the Art and Trends for the Future |pages=499–518 |editor-last=May |editor-first=Dominik |url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-70771-1_25 |access-date=2025-03-13 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer Nature Switzerland |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-70771-1_25 |isbn=978-3-031-70771-1 |last2=Breznik |first2=Alfred |last3=Jordan |first3=Patrick |last4=Galli |first4=Carlos |editor2-last=Auer |editor2-first=Michael E. |editor3-last=Kist |editor3-first=Alexander|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

== V References ==

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[[Category:1971 establishments]]

[[Category:Electronics]]

[[Category:Electrical engineering]]

[[Category:Telecommunications]]