The Technological Poles, situated both in italy and abroad, are structures wich are available to the students and equipped with all the technologies to follow distance-learning courses, to partecipate in didactic activities via video-conference as well as being a real meeting point to host the carried out of exams person, not to mention meetings and seminars with the teachers and tutors.

The Technological Poles make available to the students technologies, didactic course material, and pc and rapid access to the Internet. Various Technological Poles are new active both in Italy and abroad, with interconnections with receiving and trasmitting satellite antennas

The Technological Poles offer the student a physical meeting place for overcoming the isolation in which the distance learner can often find himself. They are breeding grounds of innovation in traditional universities and can also be set up in companies for carrying out staff training and updating services.

In particular the Technological Pole:

 

• Promotes and coordinates design, relation and development activities within the territorial framework of its competence;
• Is in charge of the Distance Learning Office, at disposal of all the students enrolled;
• Activates multi-medial positions and provides for the upkeep of the network and technological plants;
• Implements and coordinates the local web site and updates it continuously, according to the specific needs of the students;
• Coordinates and plans the promotion and orientation activities, also those on-line, locally based.

Equipment

It is important to note that Technological Pole uses the UNINETTUNO e-learning platform which is a web application rich of multi-media materials; therefore it is important to have a Broadband Internet connection.

Several Personal Computers must be available for the users; the number must be proportioned to the total number of the students. Each personal computer must have the following minimum requirements: screen resolution 1024x768  pixel, a 3 GHz processor, 512 MB RAM, 80 GB HD,   DVD RW;

An Integrated System(Hardware/Software) of Video Conference will allow the users of the Technological Pole to interact with the other centers of UNINETTUNO. The Video Conference System must support the H323 standard protocol for videoconference over Internet and it must have a public IP address.

A Large Display will serve two functionalities: it will allow the students to follow demonstration of a Tutor and it will allow all theusers to follow a videoconference.For a Large Display either a LCD Monitor of 40-50 inch or a projector with a screen can be used.

A TV set with a satellite antenna and decoder will allow the users to follow all the schedules broadcasted by UNINETTUNO Free on Air on the channels RAI NETTUNO SAT 1 and RAI 2.

Technical data: Satellite: HotBird 13° Est; Frequency: 11804,2 MHz; Polarisation: vertical; SymbolRate: 27,5 Msym/s; FEC: 02/3
The television receiver can also be the one integrated in the LCD Monitor.

The Technological Pole is completed with the Servers that allow the Personal Computers to access Internet. If the Technological Pole is not inside an already existent LAN; the Servers shall perform the following tasks: Firewall, Proxy, Domain Controller. Switches and Ethernet cables will complete the LAN.

Example of architectural layout

Below there are some graphical indications for a Technological Pole. In these drawings

Example of a Technological Pole: Rabat

In Rabat (Morocco), at the Morocco Secrétarait d´Etat chargé de la Formation Professionnelle, it has been established a fully functional Technological Pole of UNINETTUNO.

Below there are some pictures of the Technological Pole in Rabat.