Abstract
The VST (VLT Survey Telescope), a 2.6 m class Alt-Az telescope in installation phase on Cerro Paranal in Northern Chile, at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) site, is provided with a distributed control system based on electro-mechanical actuators, aimed at implementing the main mirror active optics. Due to the requirement of dissipated power reduction under the mirror, a regulated power bus has been chosen, avoiding the use of voltage regulators mounted on the actuators control board. Because the parallel connection of the all control boards power lines makes this solution critical from the point of view of cabling drop voltage and fault propagation, a Power Distribution System (PDS) provided with remote monitoring and control capabilities has been designed. The PDS configuration is based on several Power Distribution Boxes (PDBs), connected in two separate benches. The harness accommodation was estimated by means of 3D CAD, to evaluate the length of the single power connections. The cabling drop voltage was verified by means of PSpice simulation. The single PDS bench has been provided with drop voltage remote sensing function for all the power supply voltages, while the single PDB has been provided with control and monitoring electronics to disconnect via tele-command the faulty control boards and to monitor in real time voltages and current consumption.
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