Design of an Ethernet-Based Control System for the CSRH Antenna Arrays

The Chinese Spectral Radioheliograph (CSRH) is a radio synthesis imaging telescope dedicated to observe the sun, working on multiple frequencies in a centimeter-to-decimeter range. The CSRH-I system includes an antenna array composed of 40 antenna elements (400MHz-2GHz), and the CSRH-II has 60 antennas (2GHz-15GHz). All of the antennas must be under unified control in many working modes such as adjusting pointing of each antenna, tracking specified sources, and system calibration. In this paper we explore a design of a unified-control system based on Ethernet for the CSRH antenna arrays. A Distributed Control System (DCS) is preferred for the design given the required individual or unified control of the antennas. From the comparison of an Ethernet to field buses in various aspects, we think an Ethernet can meet the requirements of the CSRH antenna control system. We finally analyze some key issues to be probably encountered in practice.