Bake-Out Mobile Controls for Large Vacuum Systems

Large vacuum systems at CERN (Large Hadron Collider - LHC, Low Energy Ion Rings - LEIR...) require bake-out to achieve ultra-high vacuum specifications. The bake-out cycle is used to decrease the outgassing rate of the vacuum vessel and to activate the Non-Evaporable Getter (NEG) thin film. Bake-out control is a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) regulation with complex recipes, interlocks and troubleshooting management and remote control. It is based on mobile Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) cabinets, fieldbus network and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) application. The CERN vacuum installations include more than 7 km of baked vessels; using mobile cabinets reduces considerably the cost of the control system. The cabinets are installed close to the vacuum vessels during the time of the bake-out cycle. Mobile cabinets can be used in any of the CERN vacuum facilities. Remote control is provided through a fieldbus network and a SCADA application