Sellafield’s health physics team has achieved amazing strides in radiation monitoring. They recently completed their initial test of a custom-built sampling swab customized for a quadrupedal robot. The trial aims to explore the robot’s ability to safely and efficiently monitor radiation levels in areas containing radioactive materials. This initiative is just one piece of a larger effort to improve safety standards and create better decommissioning plans and procedures.
Meet Spot, the robot innovating the way we swab. Its big, extendable arm is actuated with the RAICo swabbing tool so that it can duplicate the swabbing action typically performed by human laborers. Each day, Sellafield’s health physics team conducts hundreds of swabs on various surfaces to keep track of radiation levels. The advent of robotic technology has the potential to transform their operations.
Deon Bulman, head of Sellafield’s remotely operated vehicle equipment, said that using Spot in dangerous areas would mean fewer human workers are put at risk. He added that the robot’s dexterity and speed makes it highly suitable for use in places too dangerous for human operators.
“Those capabilities support faster, safer, and more cost-effective decommissioning operations.” – Deon Bulman
The RAICo attachment not only enhances the robot’s swabbing capabilities but provides ‘haptic feedback’. This new feature gives operators improved control and precision during the swabbing process. With this solution, Spot is able to safely and efficiently collect critical data while reducing risk to personnel.
The successful test at Sellafield follows a similar trial carried out at the Joint European Torus facility in Culham, Oxfordshire. There, researchers presented the robot’s potential to keep track of dangerous radiation levels. Ongoing trials at Sellafield seek to identify how best robotics can be combined with existing decommissioning plans. These new initiatives will help improve safety industry-wide in the process.
Dr. Kirsty Hewitson, director of RAICo, was excited about the future of robotics in the nuclear space. Bulman emphasized the importance of these advancements, stating they are “pushing forward the adoption of advanced robotics in the nuclear sector.”