A system with high resolution for analogue recording and digital processing of measured values in fusion research

Complexity and amount of physical and technical data to be recorded during TEXTOR operation require support of a powerful computer system for data acquisition, analysis, storage and display. Most of the physical quantities are recorded digitally and stored online on the computer's mass storage devices for further processing. In addition to the scientific objectives, monitoring and maintenance, interface problems and machine faults rise complex measurement problems for the manyfold technical components of the device. Here, a high temporal resolution of the order 100 kHz sampling rate is required over a period of 4 sec for several parallel signal channels, which would cause a large amount of data to be stored and processed using pure digital recording methods. However, it is in the nature of the problem that only small but previously unknown parts of the information are of relevance. An inexpensive way of combining a high resolution long range recording with moderate overhead for digital processing and storage was found by using a hybrid system of an analogue tape recorder combined with a computerized digital acquisition and processing system. This paper describes the complete recording and processing system consisting of the tape recorder, the time code generator, the tape search control unit and the digital data acquisition and computer system. We describe the operational experience obtained so far and display typical examples. (orig./GG)