The machine protection system for the Fermilab Accelerator Science and Technology Facility

The Machine Protection System (MPS) for the Fermilab Accelerator Science and Technology Facility (FAST) has been implemented and tested. The system receives signals from several subsystems and devices which conveys the relevant status needed to the safely operate the accelerator. Logic decisions are made based on these inputs and some predefined user settings which in turn controls the gate signal to the laser of the photo injector. The inputs of the system have a wide variety of signal types, encoding methods and urgencies for which the system is designed to accommodate. The MPS receives fast shutdown (FSD) signals generated by the beam loss system and inhibits the beam or reduces the beam intensity within a macro-pulse when the beam losses at several places along the accelerator beam line are higher than acceptable values. TTL or relay contact signals from the vacuum system, toroids, magnet systems etc., are chosen with polarities that ensure safe operation of the accelerator from unintended events such as cable disconnection in the harsh industrial environment of the experimental hall. A RS422 serial communication scheme is used to interface the operation permit generator module and a large number of movable devices each reporting multi-bit status. The system also supports operations at user defined lower beam levels for system commissioning. The machine protection system is implemented with two commercially available off-the-shelf VMEbus based modules with on board FPGA devices. The system is monitored and controlled via the VMEbus by a single board CPU.