i-doit at the Max-Planck-Institut for Plasma Physics

ASDEX Upgrade: Fusion Research Made in Europe

The Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics is considered one of the leading and largest facilities for researching energy generation through nuclear fusion. Worldwide outstanding projects such as Wendelstein 7-X in Greifswald were developed by its more than 1,100 employees.

Another project of the Max Planck Institute is "ASDEX Upgrade" (Axially Symmetric Divertor Experiment). This facility is one of the largest German experimental setups alongside Wendelstein 7-X. More than 40,000 plasma ignitions have been conducted here since 1991. With ASDEX Upgrade, aspects of plasma physics are being investigated that are relevant for the fusion reactor ITER currently under construction and its future successor DEMO. The experiments conducted here aim to answer questions about future electrical energy generation through nuclear fusion under power plant-like conditions.

The data for this facility are indeed impressive. With a diameter of 5 meters and a weight of 800 tons, a fusion plasma is heated to 100 million degrees with a heating output of up to 27 megawatts. Since the facility's construction, the power supply and auxiliary heating systems, as well as measurement and control equipment, have been continuously expanded. This led to an enormous inventory of devices and systems available to scientists. With the increasing number of installations, complexity necessarily increased as well. It became increasingly difficult to maintain an overview of individual devices, their arrangement, and dependencies. This led to the decision to introduce a new inventory management system. The choice fell on i-doit.

What Led to the Decision for i-doit?

Many of the project's data could have been captured in Excel. However, such spreadsheets are primarily one thing: static. Efficiently maintaining the data, and especially automating it, is only possible with enormous effort. Another disadvantage: The lifecycle of a system, all changes, innovations, and updates are difficult to map with Excel. It was therefore clear that a database solution must be deployed to meet the high requirements for documentation and automation.

Organisation: Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics
Industry: ASDEX Upgrade, Basic Research in Plasma Physics
Employees: approx. 1.100
Built: 1991
Number of Experiments Conducted: over 40.000

Evaluation of Suitable Solutions

While various solutions for inventory management were being examined, the team at the Max Planck Institute realized that the problems to be solved were also familiar in another area: IT. It quickly became clear that a Configuration Management Database would be the appropriate solution. During an evaluation process, various CMDB solutions were thoroughly tested. i-doit pro was convincing across the board. Ultimately, the high flexibility, extensibility, and many integrated interfaces were decisive.

These Criteria Were Important for the Decision:

• Scalability of database size and number of objects
• Multilingual (German and English)
• Browser-based and thus largely independent of operating systems or the installation of special software
• On-premise installation
• Data stored on a local server, not in a foreign cloud
• Single Sign-On with central employee ID
• Hierarchical permissions for reading, writing, preventing unauthorized manipulation of datasets
• Data backup and archiving with change tracking
• Regular updates with new features, bug fixes, and change history, also taking into account user suggestions
• Good and fast support

Fusion Facility ASDEX Upgrade: Plasma, Divertor, Plasma Vessel (with numerous observation ports),
Main Magnetic Field Coils and their Support Structure. (Graphic: MPI for Plasma Physics, Mathias Dibon)
Source: https://www.ipp.mpg.de/bilder/asdex

The Fusion Facility ASDEX Upgrade in Garching
(Photo: MPI for Plasma Physics, Jan Michael Hosan)
Source: https://www.ipp.mpg.de/bilder/asdex

Setup and Commissioning of i-doit Pro

For the operation of i-doit, installation on a dedicated server was chosen. Access control was implemented with Single Sign-On, allowing employees to use their familiar login credentials. Through i-doit pro's granular rights system, all requirements of the Max Planck Institute could be met to control information access as needed.
Introducing i-doit at a research facility like ASDEX Upgrade is not a typical IT project. The IT-oriented concept of i-doit pro had to be adapted, whereby the software could demonstrate its flexibility. The focus was primarily on capturing diagnostic units, switch cabinets, sensors, and actuators. For these assets, custom object type classes were defined and created in advance via the WebGUI.

Before i-doit was used productively in the Torus Hall, over 100 well-documented devices served as test objects. The data for these devices was available in spreadsheet documents that could be imported as CSV files in one operation.

For diagnostic devices and installations in the Torus Hall, no such documents existed. The missing data was and is being manually supplemented. To ensure a uniform structure and naming of objects, currently only one employee is authorized to create new objects. The detailed information about individual devices is collected by the "owners" in lists and then imported into i-doit via bulk import.

Capturing Infrastructure and Services

The relationship concept of the i-doit CMDB is also used at ASDEX Upgrade. A diagnostic unit is defined as a location through a local relationship, with the components "switch cabinet" and the associated "laser" linked to it.
In addition to these local relationships, functional dependencies (services) are also mapped, as known from the

IT environment. Certain services are only available when all participating components are functioning. At ASDEX Upgrade, the evaluation of video material is a very important service. This service is only available when all components from the camera head to the evaluation processor work smoothly.

A special feature of functional dependencies is that a component can be used in multiple services. Through the use of the i-doit CMDB, responsible employees can now see at a glance which components are affected by the maintenance of a system. They are able to develop preventive and corrective measures.

Requirements for Cabling and Recording of Measurement Signals

Beyond pure infrastructure recording, signal paths are a crucial criterion in research. In a complex facility like ASDEX Upgrade, hundreds of sensors are used, such as temperature, pressure, and flow meters. Traceability is essential here.

At any time, information must be available about which sensor sends its signal to which system or signal transmission space. The signals are isolated, filtered, amplified, and then digitized to various recording, control, and protection systems.

i-doit offers the possibility of documenting the cabling for each asset. Additionally, a distinction is made between inputs and outputs. This allows the entire measurement chain with its cabling to be mapped true to the original.

Even the cables used are uniquely identified by assigning a cable number. At the Max Planck Institute, the final destination for the measurement signal (scientific database) is also created as a virtual object. This makes it possible to show where the data is ultimately stored after processing. As additional support, the i-doit pro Floorplan add-on is used. On each floor, transformers and other devices are precisely placed to obtain a quick overview of every level.

A view into the plasma vessel of the fusion device ASDEX Upgrade (2015).
(Photo: MPI für Plasmaphysik, Volker Rohde)
Source: https://www.ipp.mpg.de/bilder/asdex

ASSIGNMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES

Given the large number of technical devices, it is essential to define responsibilities. For this purpose, the existing standard category "Contact Assignment" is utilized. This category is used to assign both operators and users, as well as those responsible for maintenance and operations. However, instead of linking individual users as contacts, groups are assigned in this case.

This solution offers a significant advantage: in the event of personnel changes, the administrative effort is minimized. Users are simply removed from the respective group, and new employees are added. The groups and their assignments remain unchanged.

In day-to-day operations at ASDEX Upgrade, each group decides how extensively they document information about components. The principle is straightforward: the more relevant information is available, the easier it becomes to analyze the root cause of any issues. This approach aligns with the interests of the groups.

An additional positive effect was observed during the equipment inventory in the torus hall. It was discovered that the responsibility for approximately 350 items was unclear. For these objects, contact persons can now be identified, and the continued use of the equipment clarified. This way, the implementation of i-doit contributes to greater transparency.

THE FUTURE OF I-DOIT IN THE ASDEX UPGRADE PROJECT

Following the successful rollout of the i-doit CMDB, critical information about existing systems is now centrally accessible. All employees have standardized access to parameters and the status of equipment through the CMDB. Links, maintenance intervals, and responsible contacts are visible at a glance, along with overview diagrams and equipment images.

Initially, i-doit was intended solely for documenting electrical components in the torus hall. However, its scope has since expanded to include all transformers at the Garching site. Additionally, i-doit is now used to document all irradiated components leaving the torus hall, ensuring compliance with existing radiation protection requirements.

Source: All photos used are from the press portal of the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, Garching.