A Compact Data Acquisition and Control Terminal for Particle Accelerators

The present trend towards automation of information-processing in particle accelerators dictates the need for a thorough evaluation of the method used in collection and dissemination of this information. A compact, remote terminal for use in automatic data acquisition and control of particle accelerators will be described. The terminal may be controlled by either special-purpose digital logic or by a central control computer. Interfacing to the various accelerator equipment is provided through analog and on-off control and monitoring modules. The detailed design of the logical portion of the remote terminal, in regard to data format, instruction, and command decoding, will be discussed. The method of selection of the appropriate module interface for completion of the desired function will also be treated. In addition, the equipment-interfacing design criteria resulting from actual implementation on accelerator devices will be discussed.