LAUSR

Early fusion projects were small enough with so few control variables that it was possible to define and execute experiments without sophisticated software tools. The session leaders/engineers-in-charge knew the key settings well enough that they could tell that the experiment was “safe”. If something went wrong, then they learned to check for it in the future. As projects grew in size and experiments grew in complexity, the number of control variables grew significantly, and it became standard to use software tools to support the definition, set-up, validation and execution of experiment programs (i.e. the pre-planned set of tasks that defines what the machine must do). However, in all cases, the tools typically still only applied to the experiment. One of these tools is the familiar “plasma control system” (PCS) which is the real-time software that typically has responsibility for operating the fusion machine during a pulse. Other tools handle system configuration definition and experiment program editing. Future fusion projects like ITER and DEMO will be even more complex than current projects. The high infrastructure and human resource running costs means that these fusion projects will need to be efficient, and not waste resources or time. Such fusion projects will therefore benefit from a suite of integrated supervision and control software tools that facilitates the operation of the machine over its entire lifetime. These software tools would include a more capable PCS together with expanded system configuration definition and experiment program editing tools, and additional tools to support operations outside of the experimental phase.