Development of a Data Acquisition Control System for the First NBI on EAST

Neutral beam injection （NBI） heating is one of the most efficient auxiliary plasma heating methods for fusion devices. The data acquisition control system （DACS） with PXI （pe- ripheral component interconnect extensions for instrumentation） data acquisition card for the first NBI system in the experimental advanced superconducting tokamak （EAST） is presented in this paper. As an important sub-system, DACS is designed to obtain physical measurement signals in the EAST NBI system and to deal and store these data with the Lempel-Ziv-Oberhumer （LZO） lossless data compression algorithm, as well as offer convenient data call-back and access inter- faces to the user for examining and analyzing the data. Experimental results show that accurate data will ensure that researchers correctly analyze it and then properly adjust the experimental parameters or operation, so DACS should take a large step in improving experimental efficiency. Tile hardware and software sections are briefly presented in this paper, and now this system has been tested to be able to work reliably and steadily.     

Remote Control for the HT-7 Distributed Data Acquisition System

HT-7 is the first superconducting tokamak device for fusion research in China. Many experiments have been done in the machine since 1994, and lots of satisfactory results have been achieved in the fusion research field on HT-7 tokamak^[1]. With the development of fusion research, remote control of experiment becomes more and more important to improve experimental efficiency and expand research results. This paper will describe a RCS (Remote Control System),the combined model of Browser/Server and Client/Server, based on Internet of HT-7 distributed data acquisition system (HT7DAS). By means of RCS, authorized users all over the world can control and configure HT7DAS remotely. The RCS is designed to improve the flexibility, opening, reliability and efficiency of HT7DAS. In the paper, the whole process of design along with implementation of the system and some key items are discussed in detail. The System has been successfully operated during HT-7 experiment in 2002 campaign period.     

Data Processing and Acquisition System for the HT-7 Multipulse Thomson Scattering Diagnostic

This article describes the data processing and acquisition system for the HT-7 multipulse Thomson scattering diagnostic. An eight-pulse laser is used in the Thomson scattering system to obtain electron temperature profiles at eight different times throughout an entire plasma discharge. The major components of the diagnostic system consist of a multipulse iNd-glass laser,a photodetector‘‘s subsystem, a calibration set and a CAMAC data processing and acquisition system. The data processing software along with LeCroy 2250L will perform the data acquisition.In order to simplify the operation and extend the capability of its compatibility with other math softwares, the processing software has been improved by the authors. The new software based on the VC easily utilizes some math softwares to calculate the electron temperature. The new software is simpler and more operational than the old one.     

A Web-Based System for Remote Data Browsing in HT-7 Tokamak

HT-7 is the first superconducting tokamak device for fusion research in China.Many experiments have been performed on the HT-7 tokamak since 1994 with numerous satisfactory results achieved in the fusion research field. As more and better communication is required with other fusion research laboratories, remote access to experimental data is becoming increasingly important in order to raise the degree of openness of experiments and to expand research results. The web-based remote data browsing system enables authorized users in geographically different locations to view and search for experimental data without having to install any utility software at their terminals. The three-tier software architecture and thin client technology are used to operate the system effectively. This paper describes the structure of the system and the realization of its functions, focusing on three main points： the communication between the participating tiers, the data structure of the system and the visualization of the raw data on web pages.     

The development of data acquisition and processing application system for RF ion source

As the key ion source component of nuclear fusion auxiliary heating devices, the radio frequency(RF) ion source is developed and applied gradually to offer a source plasma with the advantages of ease of control and high reliability. In addition, it easily achieves long-pulse steady-state operation. During the process of the development and testing of the RF ion source, a lot of original experimental data will be generated. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a stable and reliable computer data acquisition and processing application system for realizing the functions of data acquisition, storage, access, and real-time monitoring. In this paper, the development of a data acquisition and processing application system for the RF ion source is presented. The hardware platform is based on the PXI system and the software is programmed on the Lab VIEW development environment. The key technologies that are used for the implementation of this software programming mainly include the long-pulse data acquisition technology, multithreading processing technology, transmission control communication protocol, and the Lempel–Ziv–Oberhumer data compression algorithm. Now, this design has been tested and applied on the RF ion source. The test results show that it can work reliably and steadily. With the help of this design, the stable plasma discharge data of the RF ion source are collected,stored, accessed, and monitored in real-time. It is shown that it has a very practical application significance for the RF experiments.     

Upgraded data service system for HT-7 Tokamak

A data service system plays an indispensable role in HT-7 Tokamak experiment. Since the former system doesn＇t provide the function of timely data procession and analysis, and all client software are based on Windows, it can＇t fulfill virtual fusion laboratory for remote researchers. Therefore, a new system which is simplified by three kinds of data servers and one data analysis and visualization software tool has been developed. The data servers include a data acquisition server based on file system, an MDSplus server used as the central repository for analysis data, and a web server. Users who prefer the convenience of application that can be run in a Web Browser can easily access the experiment data without knowing X-Windows. In order to adjust instruments to control experiment the operators need to plot data duly as soon as they are gathered. To satisfy their requirement, an upgraded data analysis and visualization software GT-7 is developed. It not only makes 2D data visualization more efficient, but also it can be capable of processing, analyzing and displaying interactive 2D and 3D graph of raw. analyzed data by the format of ASCII, LZO and MDSplus.     

Experiment and Operation of a LHCD—35kV／2.8MW／1000s High—Voltage Power Supply on HT—7 Tokamak

A-35kV/2.8MW/1000s high-voltage power supply(HVPS) for HT-7 superconducting tokamak has been built successfully.The HVPS is scheduled to run on a 2.45 GHz/1MW lower hybrid current drive(LHCD)^[1] system of HT-7 superoonducting tokamak before the set-up of HT-7 superconducting tokamak in 2003.The HVPS has a series of advantages such as good steady and dynamic response,logical computer program controlling the HVPS without and fault,operationa panel and experimental board for data acquisition.which both are grounded distinctively in a normative way to protec the main body of HVPS along with its attached equipments from dangers.Electric power cables and other control cables are disposed reasonably,to prevent singals from magnetic interference and ensure the precision of signal transfer.This paper involves the experiment and operation of a 35kV/2.8 MW/1000s HVPS^[2] for 2.45 GHz/1 MW LHCD system.The reliability and feasibility of the HVPS has been demonstrated in comparison with experimental results of original design and simulation data.     

Remote measurement of low-energy radiation based on ARM board and ZigBee wireless communication

We propose a system for remote measurement of low-energy radiation, which is implemented using an ARM board and a Zig Bee module. The ARM STM32 F103 board employs a horizontal and vertical moving CMOS camera for front-end data acquisition. The camera can detect radiation over different coordinates given by latitude and longitude in a determined area. For image processing, we used the subtraction–summation algorithm based on gradient multiplication and edge detection. Compared to algorithms such as the max grayscale value, subtraction–summation, and whole summation, the improved subtraction–summation algorithm filters noise and removes the background grayscale value of the whole image to attain higher accuracy, stronger anti-interference ability, and better consistency to determine the radiation dose. We dedicated one port of the transmission module to send data through the STM32 F103 board, whereas another port is connected to the Zig Bee module for data reception. By employing this architecture, we achieved low power consumption and fast response in the remote data transmission.Overall, the proposed system performs the remote measurement of low-energy radiation with stability andreliability, which is required for critical scenarios such as the remote detection of nuclear radiation.     

A Hybrid Heating Method for the HT-7U Coils during Vacuum-Pressure Impregnation

1. IntroductionA program to design and fabricate a tokamakphysics experimental device of HT-7U using superconducting coils has been undertaken by the institute of Plasma Physics, the Chinese Academy of Sciences .The aim of HT-7U is to develop a scientificbasis for a low--cost, clean and continuously operating TOkamak fusion reator. The HT-7U magnet system consists of 16 magnets in the toroidal field (TF)system and 6 pairs of magnets in the poloidal field(PF) system located symmetricall…     

Development and Integration of a Data Acquisition System for SST-1 Phase-1 Plasma Diagnostics

Long pulse(of the order of 1000 s or more) SST-1 tokamak experiments demand a data acquisition system that is capable of acquiring data from various diagnostics channels without losing useful data(and hence physics information) while avoiding unnecessary generation of a large volume data.SST-1 Phase-1 tokamak operation has been envisaged with data acquisition of several essential diagnostics channels.These channels demand data acquisition at a sampling rate ranging from 1 kilo samples per second(KSPS) to 1 mega samples per second(MSPS).Considering the technical characteristics and requirements of the diagnostics,a data acquisition system based on PXI and CAMAC has been developed for SST-1 plasma diagnostics.Both these data acquisition systems are scalable.Present data acquisition needs involving slow plasma diagnostics are catered by the PXI based data acquisition system.On the other hand,CAMAC data acquisition hardware meets all requirements of the SST-1 Phase-1 fast plasma diagnostics channels.A graphical user interface for both data acquisition systems(PXI and CAMAC) has been developed using LabVIEW application development software.The collected data on the local hard disk are directly streaming to the central server through a dedicated network for post-shot data analysis.This paper describes the development and integration of the data acquisition system for SST-1 Phase-1 plasma diagnostics.The integrated testing of the developed data acquisition system has been performed using SST-1 central control and diagnostics signal conditioning units.In the absence of plasma shots,the integrated testing of the data acquisition system for the initial diagnostics of SST-1 Phase-1 operation has been performed with simulated physical signals.The primary engineering objective of this integrated testing is to validate the performance of the developed data acquisition system under simulated conditions close to that of actual tokamak operation.The data acquisition is synchronized with a clock and trigger provided by the central timing system.     

基于CAMAC总线的交替式数据采集及实时监控系统研究

进行了一种称为交替式数据采集及实时监控系统的研究。该系统不仅能实现以较高频率进行任意时间的数据采集，还能在放电过程中以图形方式实时显示等离子体的各种参数供实验人员在线分析及控制。     

Software for fast cameras and image handling on MAST

The rapid progress in fast imaging gives new opportunities for fusion research. The data obtained by fast cameras play an important and ever-increasing role in analysis and understanding of plasma phenomena. The fast cameras produce a huge amount of data which creates considerable problems for acquisition, analysis, and storage.

We use a number of fast cameras on the Mega-Amp Spherical Tokamak (MAST). They cover several spectral ranges: broadband visible, infra-red and narrow band filtered for spectroscopic studies. These cameras are controlled by programs developed in-house. The programs provide full camera configuration and image acquisition in the MAST shot cycle.

Despite the great variety of image sources, all images should be stored in a single format. This simplifies development of data handling tools and hence the data analysis. A universal file format has been developed for MAST images which supports storage in both raw and compressed forms, using either lossless or lossy compression. A number of access and conversion routines have been developed for all languages used on MAST. Two movie-style display tools have been developed—Windows native and Qt based for Linux.

The camera control programs run as autonomous data acquisition units with full camera configuration set and stored locally. This allows easy porting of the code to other data acquisition systems. The software developed for MAST fast cameras has been adapted for several other tokamaks where it is in regular use.     

Control System of Neutral Beam Injection on HT-7

Neutral Beam Injection control system (NBICS) is constructed to measure the plasma current, Magnet current, vacuum pressure, cryopump temperature, control water cooling, filament voltage, and power supply， etc. The NBICS, consisting mainly of a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) subsystem, data acquisition and processing subsystem and cryopump and vacuum pressure monitoring subsystem, has successfully been used on a NBI device. In this article, the design of NBICS on HT-7 is discussed and each subsystem is described in particular.In addition, some experimental results are reported which are very important data for further research related to the HT-7 tokamak.     

Preliminary Design of Control Network for HT-7U Tokamak Cryogenic System

In the course of the cryoplant modernization,a control network will be set up inorder to facilitate the control,the supervision,the centralized data acquisition and the alarmhandling of the cryogenic system for HT-7U tokamak.The paper introduces the preliminarydesign of control network based on the Controller Link Network for HT-7U tokamak cryogenic     

The EAST distributed data system

In this year, Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) has undergone the first tests successfully, and the EAST distributed data system has been reliably operated in the EAST experimental campaigns. This paper gives an overview of this system.The EAST distributed data system is based on the design of, and the experiences with the HT-7 data system; it is aimed to be a distributed, real-time and scalable system. The EAST distributed data system includes control subsystem, data acquisition subsystem and data service subsystem. Control subsystem provides remote control of the all data acquisition units, full information management and state monitoring; data acquisition subsystem that provide real-time and quasi-real-time data support for long-pulse operation consists of a set of autonomous data acquisition units which support autonomous operating and remote control. Data service subsystem is responsible for storing and publishing data.