Control system for the Neutron Therapy Facility at Fermilab

Author

Shea, M.F. ; Florian, R.J. ; Goodwin, R.W. ; Lennox, A.J. ; Shea, D.M.

Author_Institution

Fermi Nat. Accel. Lab., Batavia, IL, USA

fYear

1989

fDate

20-23 Mar 1989

Firstpage

1660

Abstract

A new real-time control and calibration system has been installed at the Fermilab Neutron Therapy Facility. An IBM-PC/AT user console is networked to the VME-bus-based front-end computers using a token-ring local area network. Two 68000-based single-board computers are used in the front-end station to isolate the time-critical dose measurement and accumulation tasks from the network functions. The system is fabricated from commercially available computer, memory, and data acquisition cards. Software in the front-end processors is written in assembly language, but application programs for the IBM-PC/AT are written in Turbo Pascal. Chamber calibration, beam calibration, and patient dose delivery functions are all controlled through the IBM-PC/AT by the radiation therapists. Records of each treatment are printed automatically after the prescribed dose is delivered

Keywords

control systems; particle accelerator accessories; physics computing; radiation therapy; 68000-based single-board computers; Fermilab Neutron Therapy Facility; IBM-PC/AT user console; Turbo Pascal; VME-bus-based front-end computers; beam calibration; calibration; chamber calibration; computer cards; data acquisition cards; front-end; memory cards; network functions; patient dose delivery functions; radiation therapists; real-time control; time-critical dose measurement; token-ring local area network; Calibration; Computer networks; Control systems; Data acquisition; Local area networks; Medical treatment; Neutrons; Real time systems; Time factors; Transfer functions;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Particle Accelerator Conference, 1989. Accelerator Science and Technology., Proceedings of the 1989 IEEE

Conference_Location

Chicago, IL

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/PAC.1989.72886

Filename

72886