IEEE Std 1876-2019 pdf download – IEEE Standard for Networked Smart Learning Objects for Online Laboratories.
4. First layer of standardization: Lab as a Service (LaaS) LaaS is a term derived from the XaaS series of terms, where“X” means anything and“aaS” refers to“as a Service.” In this paradigm, the assumption is that anything“X”is offered as a service over the Internet rather than at a physical space. LaaS refers to Laboratory as a Service, where a lab is abstracted and made remotely available through Internet as a service. In this clause, paradigm of LaaS is introduced, followed by the proposal for abstracting it as a lab as a service. 4.1 Introduction An online lab standardized as Lab as a Service (LaaS) provides services and integrates functionalities. A service represents, for instance, a sensor or an actuator that is made available to the outside world (i.e., the client) through Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Services are fully described and documented so that an interfacing client application can use them without additional explanation. A functionality is an internal behavior provided by the online lab. There may be communication between functionalities and the client interface through services but not necessarily. While the required services are fully described through A PIs, the functionalities are only recommended, and best practice guidelines are provided. For example, there can be an actuator service that enables the client application to set the voltage of a motor connected to the server, and a functionality that checks that the maximum voltage is not exceeded (and corrects it if needed). The actuator service is well described by the LaaS metadata, on the other hand the internal validation mechanism is left to the lab owner’ s discretion since it will be mainly ad-hoc. Still, such a mechanism must be implemented to help ensure that client applications will not break the server and the connected equipment. To summarize, a LaaS consists of a set of well-defined services that enable interoperability with external applications and internal functionalities.