Upgrade history and present status of the general control system for the Materials and Life Science Experimental Facility at J-PARC

Sakai, Kenji ; Oi, Motoki ; Haga, Katsuhiro  ; Kai, Tetsuya   ; Nakatani, Takeshi ; Kobayashi, Yasuo*; Watanabe, Akihiko*

For safely and efficiently operating a spallation neutron source and a muon target, a general control system (GCS) operates within Materials and Life Science Experimental Facility (MLF), GCS administers operation processes and interlocks of many instruments for various operation statuses. It consists of several subsystems such as an integral control system (ICS), interlock systems (ILS), shared servers, network system, and timing distribution system (TDS). Although GCS is an independent system that controls the target stations, it works closely with the control systems of other facilities in J-PARC. Since the first beam injection in 2008, GCS has operated stably without any serious troubles after modification based on commissioning for operation and control. Then, significant improvements in GCS such as upgrade of ICS by changing its framework software and function enhancement of ILS were proceeded until 2015, in considering sustainable long-term operation and maintenance. In recent years, many instruments in GCS have replaced due to end of production and support of them. In this way, many modifications have been proceeded in the entire GCS after start of beam operation. Under these situation, it is important to comprehend upgrade history and present status of GCS in order to decide its upgrade plan for the coming ten years. This report will mention upgrade history, present status and future agenda of GCS.