NOBUGS 2026

Title: Toward Autonomous Beamline Operation: Early Integration of a Beamline Agent in BLISS at PETRA P25

Abstract:
Automation remains a central objective in modern synchrotron beamline operation, promising improved efficiency, reproducibility, and user accessibility. At the P25 beamline of PETRA III, we are taking initial steps toward this goal by introducing a beamline agent designed to operate within the BLISS control environment.

This contribution presents the current status of the beamline agent, which is still in an early development phase but already demonstrates the ability to perform nontrivial experimental tasks. In particular, the agent can autonomously execute procedures such as slit alignment, combining domain knowledge with adaptive decision-making. These capabilities illustrate the potential of agent-based approaches to move beyond scripted automation toward more flexible and intelligent control strategies.

We provide an overview of how the beamline agent is integrated into the BLISS ecosystem, including its interaction with hardware abstractions, command interfaces, and data acquisition workflows. Emphasis is placed on architectural choices that allow the agent to operate transparently alongside existing control mechanisms while remaining extensible for future capabilities.

While the system is not yet production-ready, these early results highlight a promising direction toward the long-term vision of fully automated beamlines. This work aims to share insights, challenges, and lessons learned with the NOBUGS community, and to encourage discussion on how agent-based solutions can reshape beamline software and experimental practice.