Aug-Labs: Redefining Scientific Education with Smartphone-Integrated Augmented Laboratories

Augmented reality has the potential to transform the way we approach science education by providing an immersive and interactive learning experience. In this paper a virtual laboratory application that uses augmented reality to provide an engaging and accessible learning experience to students is proposed and termed as AuG-Labs. The proposed system involves the use of digital markers, assets and 3D models. Aug-Labs is a standalone mobile application that allows students to access information related to experiments, and perform the experiments in a virtual environment, and also generate experimental results and reports. The effectiveness of the system is evaluated by performing subjective tests with a group of students who used the AR-based Aug-Labs platform. A post-session questionnaire was provided to the students based on the experiments. Results obtained after analysing the feedback in form of responses clearly showcase that the students had a better understanding of the concepts and enjoyed the learning experience more than the physical laboratory. The results suggest that the use of AR technology in educational laboratories can significantly improve the learning outcomes and can be an effective tool for educators to enhance the learning experience of students.