MOCOBAB07
LLNL, Livermore, California, USA
The National Ignition Facility (NIF) at LLNL is a 2.0 Mega joule laser with ~100,000 control points managed by ~2,000 networked computers. The installation of the controls system began in 2002 with prototype controls for one quad. By 2004 the controls system build-out began and over the next 6 years the remainder was installed and activated. The NIF has now transitioned to a user facility with a 30 year operational lifespan. As with many large, long duration projects the controls system diversity has created maintenance issues and components have reached end-of-life. This requires the controls team to develop and execute a controls hardware refresh cycle to replace aging components before reliability issues interfere with facility operations. This refresh also affects the controls system software since modernization of controls hardware and operating system require corresponding software changes and possibly coding language changes. This talk addresses the NIF controls system maintenance and refresh strategy, including plans to evolve towards a more homogenous controls posture, and also discusses the extended schedule required to transition to the new platform base.
