Slow-control systems for experiments in particle and accelerator physics often require 10s to 100s of channels for monitoring and controlling instruments such as thermocouples, pressure gauges, heaters, instrument relays, and interlocks over long periods of time. Especially for large distributed systems, taking control over many channels has integration challenges, including cable management and modular flexibility. This system (WiDAQ) – a custom slow-control system that features wireless data transfer, modular architecture, low cost per module, live web monitoring, and long-term data storage – was designed to address those issues.
The WiDAQ system development is funded by the University of Chicago College Innovation Grant. Developed in collaboration with Blinky Lite.