Vacuum controls and interlocks

The vacuum control system is, in most cases, a subset of the general control system of an accelerator. As such, it shares the architecture and communication infrastructure of the main control system. Considered as a ‘slow process’ to control in the frame of accelerators, the vacuum control system can be built using commercial industrial controllers (PLCs). A data driven approach allows for changes in configuration without changing the software code but at the expense of a solid database. Modelling the equipment allows for easy adaptation of a variety of control units with the same functionality but different physical interfaces. It also allows for a uniform display of the available data and status values. Interlocks are required to protect the vacuum equipment itself against abnormal conditions, but also to protect other systems, like RF, which need a good vacuum to operate. They are an integral part of any vacuum control system.