UK Sellafield nuclear power plant embarks on an ambitious test. To monitor radiation levels more effectively, they’re currently testing a four-legged robot. This collaborative effort between the trades, insurance, and AI is designed to improve safety standards and increase efficiency in dangerous settings. Smart construction The trial is using a four-legged robotic system known as Spot. It was custom built to master difficult landscapes and perform crucial duties.
Spot is outfitted with a long, extendable arm that supports a specialized swabbing tool designed by RAICo. This novel device, which is attached to the robot, replicates the swabbing movement usually made by human operators, allowing the robot to swab more quickly. The RAICo swabbing tool allows for targeted surface sampling. This ensures safe, quality data collection in environments where human interaction may not be safe.
The project comes on the heels of a successful – and world-first – trial implemented at the Joint European Torus (JET) facility in Culham, Oxfordshire, late last year. Deon Bulman, a second mate, manages the plant’s remotely operated vehicle (ROV) equipment. According to him, Spot’s speed, adaptability, and responsiveness let it operate in an environment that would be too dangerous for human workers.
She used the example of the robot’s haptic feedback feature to showcase its benefits. This new innovation allows for greater control and precision to take place during the swabbing process. “Those capabilities support faster, safer, and more cost-effective decommissioning operations,” he noted.
Every day, the health physics team at Sellafield does hundreds of surface swabs. They collect important information that guides decommissioning decisions and maintains public safety by addressing safety standards. The adoption of Spot into these procedures has the potential to create a profound change in how radiation monitoring is conducted throughout the facility.
Dr. Kirsty Hewitson, director of RAICo, welcomed the continued partnership with Sellafield. The results from this trial are expected to contribute to “pushing forward the adoption of advanced robotics in the nuclear sector,” according to Bulman.