• The Journal of the Institute of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.167-173
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• 2020

A lot of research has been done on pipe climbing robots to investigate the aging pipe structures of nuclear power plants and petrochemical plants. Nevertheless, most of the research on pipe climbing robots focused on the structural design and foundational motion control of pipe climbing robots. So, For the operator to control the pipe climbing robot, it has many difficulties to climb the pipe and avoid obstacles by manual operation. In this paper, propose an algorithm that recognizes obstacle by using camera images of pipe climbing robots, estimates the distance between pipe climbing robots and obstacles, and determines the position where pipe climbing robots can catch pipes to avoid obstacles between pipes.

• 제어로봇시스템학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.105.4-105
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• 2002

The development of a teleoperated mobile robot, Kaerot/m2, has been described. Kaerot/m2 consists of three subsystems - a 4 wheeled mechanism with the dual reconfigurable crawler arms, a thermal image monitoring system , and an extendable long reach mast. The mechanical design, control system of Kaerot/m2 in terms of remote inspection operation at a high radiation level of the Calandria face environment has been shown. Kaerot/m2 is capable of detecting the degraded locations of the Calandria face in a remote manner.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
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• 2002.06e
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• pp.153-156
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• 2002

The remotely operated underwater robotic vehicle system has been required to inspect some objects such as baffle former bolts and remove foreign objects in reactor vessel of nuclear power plant. In this paper, we have designed the remotely operated underwater robotic vehicle system that includes a long reach arm that is composed of 4 joints to remove foreign objects in a narrow space, a camera for visual test, instrument sensors for vehicle positioning, 4 thrusters for underwater navigation of vehicle, and supervisory control system implemented with industrial PC that includes robot simulator that has the functions of real time visualization, robot work planning and etc.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.454-460
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• 2015

Acoustic emission (AE) is one of the promising methods for detecting the formation of stress corrosion cracks (SCCs) in laboratory tests. This method has the advantage of online inspection. Some studies have been conducted to investigate the characteristics of AE parameters during SCC propagation. However, it is difficult to classify the distinct features of SCC behavior. Because the previous studies were performed on slow strain rate test or compact tension specimens, it is difficult to make certain correlations between AE signals and actual SCC behavior in real tube-type specimens. In this study, the specimen was a AISI 304 stainless steel tube widely applied in the nuclear industry, and an accelerated test was conducted at high temperature and pressure with a corrosive environmental condition. The study result indicated that intense AE signals were mainly detected in the elastic deformation region, and a good correlation was observed between AE activity and crack growth. By contrast, the behavior of accumulated counts was divided into four regions. According to the waveform analysis, a specific waveform pattern was observed during SCC development. It is suggested that AE can be used to detect and monitor SCC initiation and propagation in actual tubes.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Pressure Vessels and Piping
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.13-19
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• 2015

Steam generator is one of the most important component of nuclear power plant, and it's integrity and reliability are to be assured to high level by pre-service inspection and in-service inspection. To improve the reliability of steam generator heat exchanger tubes and to secure the management of nuclear power plant safely, KHNP CRI recently has developed eddy current testing system for steam generator. KHNP CRI have performed a series of experimental verification and field application to confirm the performance of the developed ECT system in accordance with ASME Code requirements. The ECT system consists of a remote data acquisition unit, an ECT signal acquisition and analysis software, a water chamber robot controller and a probe push-puller. In this paper, we will details of the developed ECT system and the software and their experimental performance. And also we will report the field applying performance and the issues for further steps.

• 제어로봇시스템학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2004.08a
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• pp.1516-1519
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• 2004

A tele-operated robot should be used to maintain and inspect nuclear power plants to reduce the radiation exposure to the human operators. During an overhaul of the nuclear power plants in Korea, a ROV(Remotely Operated Vehicle) may enter a cold-leg connected to the reactor to examine the state of the thermal sleeve and it's position in the safety injection nozzle. To measure the positions of the thermal sleeve or scratches from the video images captured during the examination, the camera parameters should be identified. However, the focal length of the CCD camera could be increased to a close up of the target and the aspect ratio and the center of the image could also be varied with capturing devices. So, it is desired to self-calibrated the intrinsic parameters of the camera and capturing device with the video images captured during the examination. In the video image of the safety injection nozzle, two or more circular grooves around the nozzle are shown as ellipse contours. In this paper, we propose a camera self-calibration method using a single image containing two circular grooves which are the greatest circles of the cylindrical nozzle whose radius and distance are known.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.7
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• pp.1524-1531
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• 2020

The aim of this work is to develop a Geiger-Muller (GM) detector system for robot to look for a radioactive source in case of a nuclear emergency or in a high radiation environment. In order to find a radiation source easily, a detector system, including 3 detectors, was designed to search γ-ray radiation sources autonomously. First, based on GEANT4 simulation, radiation dose rates in 3 Geiger-Muller (GM) counters were simulated at different source-detector distances, distances between detectors and angles. Various sensitivity analyses were performed experimentally to verify the simulated designed detector system. A mono-energetic ¹³⁷Cs γ-ray source with energy 662 keV and activity of 1.11 GBq was used for the observation. The simulated results were compared with the experimental dose rate values and good agreements were obtained for various cases. Only based on the dose rates in three detectors, the radiation source with a specific source activity and angle was localized in the different location. A method was adopted with the measured dose rates and differences of distances to find the actual location of the lost γ-ray source. The corresponding angles of deviation and detection limits were calculated to determine the sensitivity and abilities of our designed detector system. The proposed system can be used to locate radiation sources in low and high radiation environments.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Pressure Vessels and Piping
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.62-70
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• 2019

The APR1400 reactor may be operated for a long time under high temperature and pressure conditions, causing damage to the stud holes and causing stud bolts and holes to stick. The present practice is to manually remove the anti-sticking agent and foreign matter remaining in the APR1400 reactor stud hole and to visually check the surface condition of the thread to check the damage status of the threads. In the case of the APR1400 reactor stud holes, manually cleaning the threads increases the risk of radiation exposure and operator's fatigue. To avoid this, the autonomous mobile robot is used to automatically clean the reactor stud holes. The purpose of this study is to optimize the cleaning performance of the mobile robot by looking at the behavior of the surface roughness of the stud surface cleaned by the brush attached to the mobile robot due to changes in brush material, thickness of wire, and rotation speed. A microscopic approach to the surface roughness of the flank is needed to investigate the effects of the newly proposed brush of the autonomous mobile robot on the thread holes. According to this experiment, it is reasonable to use STS brush rather than Carbon one. Optimal operating conditions are derived and the safety of APR1400 reactor stud holes maintenance can be improved.

• 제어로봇시스템학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.43.6-43
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• 2002

$\textbullet$ KAEROT/m1 with an omni-directional planetary wheel mechanism for the narrow corridor. $\textbullet$ KAEROT/m2 can pass over the ditch with specially designed four wheel of a re-configurable crawler. $\textbullet$ Stereo imaging system with master manipulator enhancing the tele-presence. $\textbullet$ Small hybrid dosimeter detecting radiation dose and dose rate simultaneously.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Technology Engineers
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.125-137
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• 2000

In this paper we propose a new approach to the development of the automatic vision system to examine and repair the steam generator tubes at remote distance. In nuclear power plants workers are reluctant of works in steam generator because of the high radiation environment and limited working space. It is strongly recommended that the examination and maintenance works be done by an automatic system for the protection of the operator from the radiation exposure. Digital signal processors are used in implementing real time recognition and examination of steam generator tubes in the proposed vision system. Performance of proposed digital vision system is illustrated by simulation and experiment for similar steam generator moldel.