Simulation platform for remote participants in fusion experiments

One of the major challenges in remote participation in fusion experiments is the control from remote locations of the data acquisition and treatment process. In an optimum situation, the remote researcher should be able to control the data acquisition configuration parameters, and data processing, specifying the results that must be returned to him. The simulation platform presented here, allows the researcher to develop and test complex algorithms in a high level graphical language (LabVIEW), which includes powerful data processing libraries. These algorithms will be downloaded later into the data acquisition system. Furthermore, the platform allows the simulation of hardware data acquisition, which include the following points: (a) simulation of channel configuration from one or several data acquisition cards (channels used, sample frequencies, etc.), (b) generation of buffered simulated data (it is also possible the use of raw data, acquired in previous experiments, as simulated data), and (c) reproduction of hardware behavior (except, of course, in terms of real time behavior and real data). For this purpose, Virtual Instruments (VIs) libraries written in LabVIEW will be provided to the remote developers. These VIs will be replaced later, in the data acquisition system, by their homologous VIs that actually interface with the hardware. This facility will allow remote researchers to verify the correct behavior of their own data processing algorithms before downloading them into the data acquisition system.