A new spatial angle assembly method of the ICF target

Abstract

The designs of inertial confinement fusion (ICF) targets, which field on ShenGuang III, are becoming more complex and more stringent in terms of assembly precision. A key specification of these targets is the spatial angle alignment accuracy. To meet these needs, we present a new spatial angle assembly method, using target part's 3D model-based dual orthogonal camera vision, which is better suited for the flexible automation of target assembly processes. The two-hands structure micromanipulate system and dual orthogonal structure visual feedback system were investigated by considering the kinematics, spatial angle measuring, and motion control in an integrated way. In this paper, we discuss the measurement accuracy of spatial angle assembly method, which compared the real-time image acquisition with the redrawing 2D projection. The result shows that the assembly method proposed is very effective and meets the requirements of angle assembly accuracy, which is less than 1 • . Also, this work is expected to contribute greatly to the advancement of other target microassembly equipments.

Review of HPLSE special issue on target fabrication

“…Efficient offline production of freestanding thin plastic foils for laser-driven ion sources [13] 5. A new spatial angle assembly method of the ICF target [3] 6. An investigation progress toward Be-based ablator materials for the inertial confinement fusion [4] 7. Review on high repetition rate and mass production of the cryogenic targets for laser IFE [5] 8.…”

“…Submissions for the special issue covered the invited topics and also branched out into broader areas and capabilities. Papers described research on: techniques for the production of targets for inertial confinement fusion (ICF) [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] , micro-assembly [3,8,9] , liquid targets [10] , systems for delivery of targets at high repetition rates [5,11,12] , fundamental target fabrication processes [2,4,[13][14][15][16] , low density materials [15,17,18] and metrology methods [7,18,19] . In addition, there were three important review papers [1,5,12] that give an excellent snapshot of the current capabilities across the world.…”

“…A range of papers that cover the design of the targets from a review of the developments in China [1] to recent work in the United States including the manufacture of diameter fill tubes [2] and subsequent ice layering. The assembly of targets using precision multi-axis manipulators [3, 8] ; and the relevance of this assembly process to other target micro-assembly processes are published. Papers on ablator materials including different beryllium copper/carbon compound mixes [4] and the fundamental physical properties of the films and coatings were published.…”

“…Assembly techniques for the manufacture of complex assemblies for ICF experiments on the National Ignition Facility (NIF) [8] and ShenGuang III [3] were presented with emphasis on robotic assembly as a route to increase accuracy and throughput. In addition the delivery of targets to large facilities such as the Orion laser is presented with focus on gas-filled targets [9] .…”

Single lens sensor and reference for auto-alignment

“…Previous alignment methods typically required two optical sensors, one for the beam position and the other for its pointing angle. In certain situations, considering space or budget limitations, such as in outer space or vacuum chambers [16] , high temperatures or cryogenic environments, and high radiation situations, the sensor needs to be very small or lightweight. We propose a sensor with only one lens, one plate, and one camera, which improves on the previous methods by including a type of sensor with one camera [17] .…”