Have you ever used an educational kit? “Of course yes”. All of us have used educational kits, like pencil box, geometry box, Lab kits etc in our school & colleges. But this is not all, educational kits are available on professional levels as well, for projects like, microprocessor controlled circuits, solar based applications, sensors based modules, prototyping of robots and many more. In this article we shall explore some of the advances in the world of educational kits.
The level 1 educational kit, are packages of basic education materials (pens, pencils, notebooks, etc.) that have been designed as part of a preparedness strategy to support schooling. On early stages of engineering studies the kits we used are consists of some basic measurement equipments like, multi-meters, AC/DC power supplies, mechanical tools like, tweezers, switches, cables etc, and other basic devices. With the advances of studies & learning, the functionality & advancement in educational kits increases drastically. Today kits have extended their applications area to diversify fields like, making industrial prototypes, testing of commercial designs, customized solutions designing & implementation, trial runs & demonstration of new innovations and sometimes helps in virtual testing of highly sensitive applications.
Defining educational kits is actually very simple “A Set of equipments or gadgets helps in understanding & testing facts & ideas on a practical platform”.
The evolution of Educational Kits
The 1970s and 1980s were great times for electronics kits, as at that time, India has startedup with manufacturing electronics in-house attracting people to new gadgets & technologies and the educational trend was transformed from electrical to electronics engineering field. Electronics was in a state of rapid transition. Integrated circuits were displacing many individual components, and surface-mount assembly was moving beyond hobbyist capability. Moreover, automated assembly meant commercial products could be manufactured for less than packaging an equivalent kit. All new innovations push students & hobbysists to explore more about technology, giving birth to a drastically increasing market of educational kits. At this point of time, kits are mainly limited to the electrical applications & lkab equipments. With the evoluation of microprocessors and age of computers in late 80s a new era of electronics began. The Altair computer captured the fascination of many, who now could design and build their own computers. Soon, though, commercial home computers hit the market and lessened the incentives for building your own from scratch. For some years thereafter hobbyists contented themselves mostly with buying board-level components to customize their machines. Late 90s was the time of electronic revolution in India,and same for the kits. By that time, designing & development of electronics has became a essential part of education & Industrial revolution in India is pushing customised desiged setups.Till now educationbal & testing kits are a very important of Indian electronics industry.
Significance of Educational Kits
With the evolution of time & increasing trends towards high upgraded & smart electronics gadgets & Systems, it is required at all levels of education & industries to bring something new, innovative & better than previous every time. Whether it a technical course, students are required to make complex circuits on RF or microwave PCBs or embedded circuits, or at a industrial level challenge is to upgrade a existing production line to a robotics line with highly crucial parameters. Such time of applications cannot afford, designing & testing on real shop floor or using practice parameters. Here comes the requirement of educational kits. Use of educational kits is no more limited to hobbyists’ & researchers, but the edge has been extended to industrial level R&Ds. Some of the advantages experienced by using educational kits are as follows:
Interactive & User-Friendly: A robot can perform faster than a human being, we all know that, but what if we can design our own robot, te it on our specific application and experience the difference. Here is this facility provided by kits. The educational kits, helps us understand & learn what we study on practical basis. Apart, the kits available today comes with a user manual or instruction kit, that makes it very easy to be used even by a beginner.
Safe performance: Imagine a project employs a heavy duty AC or DC machine, or hazardous consumables or ultra high power ratings. Testing any such full-furnished projects includes a high a risk rate. Such projects can be tested and even demonstrated on virtual levels or conceptual levels using Kits & software available with us.
Easy fault diagnosis: Creating a project from an idea includes a process of trying and trying again till a successful prototype is drafted. Executing each step with industrial products & process with make the entire process very long, difficult & expensive. The designing & testing circuits available enables the designer, creating a draft on software, test every aspect on virtual level or on test kits, in which it is easy to replace the components & change the configurations.
Customized project designing: Many sophisticated applications like, aeronautics, robotics and industry specific solutions, often require customized designs, making testing & trouble shooting, more difficult. Customized projects needs very precise utilities, specially designed circuits & layouts and sometimes, special components also. For designing & testing such projects, prototyping Kits are of great use, that enables designers, create 1 design or layout quickly and economically, Apart from this, in test & trouble shooting kits, helps the users to test each module individually & reduces the failure rated to final prototypes.
Economical & Re-Usable: For Students & hobbyists, economical and reusable kits are required, enabling them to create individual circuits & projects again and again with the existing utilities. Kits available in market, full-fill requirement in every aspect.
Robots are playing an increasingly vital role worldwide in helping manufacturers to boost their competitiveness. Capable of handling a multitude of tasks, from food packaging through to precision machining, today’s industrial robots can help educate the engineers of tomorrow to achieve a raft of benefits including enhanced productivity, improved product quality and reduced wastage.
Demand of Educational Kits
The educational & test kits are getting very popular in students & hobbyists in view of their reliability, flexibility, cost effectiveness & ease of use. Industrial use of test Kits is increasing drastically, in view of facility like, virtual designing, testing & demonstration, ease of prototyping & troubleshooting facility. Availability of high-end microprocessor & embedded kits helps professional’s to create & test industrial projects quickly & precisely. Apart we have robotic & aeronautic kits available that have made possible prototyping of space crafts, missiles & other highly sophisticated applications. We have seen a considerable increase in demand of educational kits, with the increasing trend of electronics around us and every time requirement of something new & innovative, that push designers to create & offers latest to the market.
Market Growth of Educational Kits
As the demand of educational kits is increasing so is the market of kits. As compared to early times, we have a much broader & dedicated applications educational kits are avaliable in market. The kits avaliable in market are comfortable to students and compatable to industrial prototyping applications, making kits an important part of designning & testing processes. For educational & industrial purpose kits are avaliable from leading manufcaturers of semiconductors & automation companies. Also, vendors are avaliable in market proving customized to meet specilized requirements.
Industries deals in educational kits
Scientech
1. Nvis 72 PCB Prototype Machine
With this new electro-mechanical utility, user can always escape cumbersome task of old PCB designing, which involves complicated etching and hectic drilling processes. Also, you get rid of dealing with chemicals which often spoil your hands. Provided with the USB connectivity, this machine can print your desired circuit on the PCB within minutes. Our sophisticated software provides simple and elegant interface which is user-friendly, and can even be operated by novice engineers and students. Nvis 72 PCB Prototype Machine is ideal to plot PCB for applications like, High power circuitry, Analog circuitry, Digital circuitry or RF and microwave circuitry.
2. Scientech 2138A Understanding of 3G communication System
Scientech Technologies Pvt. Ltd. Has introduced its Scientech 2138A understanding of 3G communication, which is android based 3G mobile development platform. The features that make it valuable are android OS based design, Tri-Band WCDMA and Quad-Band GSM/GPRS/EDGE 3G modem, GPS, Cortex A8 processor 7” capacitive touch screen with TechBook design. It is an unique designed standalone product with its specially designed GUI helps user to run set of various “AT” commands related to 3G GSM network, Voice Call, SMS, MMS, TCP/IP, HTTP, FTP, GPS (NMEA protocol) and many more other commands.
RS Components
1. Raspberry Pi B+ & Raspberry Pi Compute Module Kit
Raspberry Pi commonly called as miniature computer as it does everything that a PC can do, is one of the most popular open source hardware development platforms among students, hobbyist & electronic enthusiasts. Recently Raspberry Pi foundation has introduced two new members in the Raspberry Pi family – Raspberry Pi B+ and Raspberry Pi Compute Module Kit. Both these products are available with RS Components at very attractive prices. RS is the global authorized distributor of Raspberry Pi.
Raspberry Pi B+ (RS Stock# 811-1284) like its predecessor (Raspberry Pi Type B) is powered by Broadcom BCM2835 SoC and VideoCore IV GPU. It is supported by 512MB RAM and runs on Linux Operating System. Raspberry Pi B+ is better as compared to its predecessor in terms of connectivity, physical design, power consumption and it has more GPIOs. Raspberry Pi B+ has 4 USB ports, Micro SD card slot, Single 3.5mm 4 Pole A/V Socket, 4 mounting holes for better salability, 40 GPIOs, and up-to 30% less power consumption. It is available with RS Components at a price of INR2900 (0% Sales Tax, Free Shipping)
Raspberry Pi Compute Module Kit (RS Stock # 813-4164) features a Compute Module & an IO board as two essential sub-modules along with other accessories like Camera & Display Adaptor, Cables, and Power Supply. Compute Module is a slice from a Raspberry Pi Type B available in a small form factor of DDR2 SODIMM. It retains all processing power of Raspberry Pi Type B (with BCM2835 SoC, 512 Mbyte of RAM) and 4GB eMMC on-board flash memory but outsources all its peripherals to IO Board. IO board provides full flexibility of BCM2885 SOC because of the availability of more GPIOs & interfaces. Raspberry Pi Compute module kit is ideal for a embedded systems labs in universities and any electronic R&D lab. It is available at a special introductory price of INR16,800 (0% Sales Tax, Free Shipping)
Here are some reasons why Raspberry Pi is popular among students/academia. It is a very low cost device, students can simply connect a Raspberry Pi with a TV (for display), USB keyboard & mouse and can do everything from word processing, internet browsing to playing HD videos, multimedia games etc. Using Raspberry Pi Students can learn programming in languages like Scratch & Python. Raspberry Pi let students do lots of innovative projects. Raspberry Pi is a programmable board which allows users to develop innovative applications. There are GPIOs available on Raspberry Pi where user can connect external peripherals, sensors and carry out lots of projects. Literature, technical resources/material available on Raspberry Pi. Being a community/open-source platform there are lots of open source projects, application notes and technical resources available online to get started on Raspberry Pi. You can find lots of Raspberry Pi technical resources on www.designspark.com.
2. Red Pitaya – Oscilloscope, Waveform Generator, Frequency & Spectrum analyzer and PID Controller ALL IN ONE
RED PITAYA (RS Stock# 800-7403) is an innovative single board, low cost, high spec, multifunctional and portable PCB based electronic Test & Measurement Device with WEB interface. It replaces expensive lab instruments and is available exclusively with RS Components. It is a programmable device powered by Xilinx Zynq7000 SoC that combines dual core ARM & FPGA and runs on Linux. It features Oscilloscope, Waveform Generator, Frequency & Spectrum analyzer, PID controller as standard applications (functionalities). Source code for all these applications/functionalities are available online that let users to design customized applications using different programming languages. With all these features and powerful functionalities Red Pitaya is available with RS Components for INR42500only (0% Sales Tax, Free Shipping). In academia/colleges Red Pitaya addresses two folds objective 1) it can be used in a lab as a multifunctional T&M device; there is no need for expensive T&M instruments anymore 2) Students & Faculty can do WEB & embedded application programming, FPGA, signal processing, machine vision applications, MATLAB applications on Red Pitaya. Hence it can be used as a great teaching/learning tool in embedded systems labs and for carrying out research projects.
Intel Corporation & Panasonic Ltd.
Panasonic, CTL and M&A Technology new Intel Reference Design-Based Products
Panasonic, CTL and M&A Technology announce education-specific products based on Intel reference designs – the Intel Education 2 in 1 and Education Chromebook at the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) 2014 conference in Atlanta. The Panasonic 3E, the first product to market using the Intel Education 2 in 1 reference design, is a purpose-built education device for K-12 students featuring a thermometer probe, on-board cameras and an add-on lens to enable interactive, STEM-centered learning. The CTL Education Chromebook and M&A Education Chromebook are the first products to market using the Intel Education reference design for Chromebook, which provides students with long battery life1 for all-day learning and the ability to multitask, open multiple tabs and support offline learning.
ABB Robotics package
Learn with ABB – Robotic package for education
ABB’s robotic package for education provides valuable opportunities for both students and teachers. Schools need an affordable means of teaching modern manufacturing concepts to encourage more students to move into the engineering and manufacturing sectors. With ABB’s robotic packages for education, classrooms across the world can explore these applications and expand their understanding of today’s industrial environment.ABB’s robotic package for education is designed to give students an insight into, How industrial robots operate, the design and control principles of industrial robots, the design and control principles of robotic work cells, programming ABB robots using the offline programming software, RobotStudio and robotic cell hazards, health and safety and maintenance requirements
LEGO Mars Curiosity rover kit
After analyzing the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover project, Lego learned that Mars Rover has niche appeal and strong demand from the space and education communities. The product aligns well with the LEGO Group’s mission to ‘inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow.’ The Lego model is designed by Lego CUUSOO user “Perijove,” a mechanical engineer who worked on the actual Curiosity rover at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The model is likely to have a fully articulated arm, deployable mast, and a working rocker-bogie suspension system “that allows the rover to climb over large rocks and keep all six of its wheels on the ground.”.
Embedded Artists AB
LPC2148 EDUCATION BOARD
Embedded Artists (EA) ensures simpler and shorter design & development cycles when using NXP processors, by providing reliable products, services and knowledge to our customers. Embedded Artists’ LPC2148 Education Board is the perfect board if you want to start learning about ARM7 microcontrollers. The board contains many interesting and useful experiments.
Tesca Technologies Pvt Ltd
UPS TRAINER KIT – 10914 Code
The UPS trainer is a very versatile training system, has been designed to explain a very interesting and frequently used switching based power supply – The UPS (Uninterrupted Power Supply). The product is designed keeping in mind that a student can understand each block of UPS in a very easy way. Various test points have been provided so that one can check inputs and outputs of each block contained. Being different from a conventional block diagram internal structure of blocks is also shown. AVR (Automatic Voltage Regulator) is presented in such a way that a student can readily understand its functioning and pin configuration.
Akshay Aerosports Private Limited
AKSHAY ROCKET , Do It Yourself Complete Kit,
A model rocket, also known as low power rocket, is a small rocket designed to reach low altitudes (usually to around 100–500 m (300–1500 ft) for a 30 g model) and recovered by a variety of means. They are constructed of paper, wood, plastic and other lightweight materials. The kit contains all materials required to make a working model, which can go up to a height of 600 ft.
Vinytics Peripherals
VS – LED & VS-LCD series
Vinytics a all lob solution provider, offers VS-LED/LCD Kit. In the kit the the complete circuit is printed on single PCB. There are nicro switch for faults creations. Section wise different coloured screen printed circuit on the PCB for easy understanding of functions of different sections. Manual attached.
Salicon Nano Technology Pvt. Ltd.
Digital Communication Trainer
Established in the year 2002, Salicon has gained prominence as a developer of Educational learning systems. Digital communication trainner offered by Salican technologies is a tranning kit having different type of Digital Modulation & Demodulation Trainers for study of different digital modulation Principal and its application.
Naugra Exports
Electronics Kit from, Naugra Exports, an ISO 9001-2000 company and award winner Year 2013 award for the excellence in export. The Kit is specially designed for testing & demo purpose of electronics fundamentals & circuits. The kit is suitable for all applications in elementary school level till colleges, technical institutes and universities.
Techno Gravity Solutions
Myra Robo-Kit
Techno Gravity Solutions, fondly known as TGS, is an Indian domestic firm conceptualized by 2 individuals who desire to create a development center & platform for aspiring students in the field of Robotics, Electronics and Embedded Systems. Myra is multi-utility, feature-rich, customizable device which is educational, operational and competitive. The Myra Robo-kit are avaliable in more than 30 designs possible like, Football player, Bulldozer, Pick up and place, Sumo Robot, Racing Car, Rickshaw (2 types), Tumble-topple, Helicopter washer, Plus design & drive or may be 3 vertex design & drive.
Conclusion
Education is no more limited to books & colleges, with rapid changing electronics world, the way of teaching & trainning has been changed and now a days, self-learning with kits is a very comman thing. Educational kits are avaliable startsifrom tools and lasts to robotics dsign tools, as\nd we will have some kits for tranning of satellites & defense equipments. This developing trends signifies the increasing trends of our young generation to learn & explore and create a new dynamic gadegetic world ahead.
