Multi-Reactor Control Room for Remote Monitoring and Maintenance
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Solution Overview
Problem
The maintenance and monitoring of nuclear reactors are complex and costly due to the continuous presence of highly qualified personnel required for numerous and dispersed reactors, especially in the case of Small Modular Reactors (SMR), leading to high operational expenses.
Innovation Solution
A centralized or distributed control system for multiple nuclear reactors, incorporating sensors, monitoring, and planning systems with a human-machine interface, allowing remote monitoring and planning of maintenance operations, and assigning criticality levels to operations, ensuring secure data exchange and automation of routine tasks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a dedicated control room and operating team are assigned to each nuclear reactor, then the monitoring and control of each reactor can be ensured with high reliability, but the operational costs increase significantly when managing multiple dispersed reactors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple dedicated control rooms and operating teams into a single shared control room that can monitor and control multiple reactors simultaneously. This consolidation maintains reliable monitoring through integrated systems while dramatically reducing operational costs by eliminating redundant personnel and infrastructure for each individual reactor.
Solution Approach 2:
The control room is designed with universal functionality to handle multiple reactors of different types and configurations. The system incorporates multi-functional equipment and standardized interfaces that can adapt to various reactor designs, allowing a single control room to perform the roles of multiple dedicated control rooms while maintaining appropriate reliability for each reactor type.
2Reliability
If highly qualified and experienced personnel are deployed to each reactor site, then the technical expertise required for complex reactor operations is ensured, but the cost and complexity of maintaining multiple specialized teams increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple specialized personnel teams into a single integrated operating team that collectively possesses the required technical expertise for all reactor types. This unified team works from a centralized control room with access to comprehensive knowledge bases and expert systems, maintaining high technical competence while reducing the complexity of managing multiple separate specialized teams.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces intermediary tools such as expert systems, automated diagnostic software, and knowledge management platforms that bridge the gap between fewer personnel and the complex technical requirements of multiple reactors. These intermediaries provide specialized expertise on-demand, allowing a smaller team to maintain high technical competence across diverse reactor configurations.
3Ease of operation
If repetitive and frequent maintenance steps are performed manually by operating personnel, then the maintenance operations can be executed with human judgment and adaptability, but the risk of human error increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service capabilities through automated monitoring and diagnostic functions that can perform routine maintenance tasks without human intervention. Sensors and control systems automatically detect conditions requiring maintenance, execute standardized maintenance procedures, and verify completion, thereby eliminating human error in repetitive tasks while preserving human judgment for exceptional cases.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms where the control system continuously monitors reactor parameters, compares them against predefined thresholds and historical data, and automatically triggers maintenance procedures when anomalies are detected. This closed-loop feedback system ensures consistent, error-free execution of maintenance steps while allowing human operators to override or adjust actions based on broader contextual understanding.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a device for controlling a plurality of nuclear reactors, comprising, for each nuclear reactor, a plurality of sensors for measuring operating parameters as well a system for controlling the nuclear reactor.