Underwater inspection robot—AIRIS 21®

Highly reliable, cost-effective and extended examination coverage are three big demands for newly developed ISI equipment. AIRIS 21 (Advanced Inspection System for Reactor Pressure Vessel and Internals) which is a state-of-the-art next generation device, has been developed to reply to these demands. The device can reduce the inspection cost and increase the reliability and inspection coverage. The AIRIS 21 swims in the water toward an area to be inspected and sticks to the vessel wall using two propellers. After it sticks on the wall, the spinning speed of propellers is controlled to keep the device on the wall with constant vacuum force. Then it travels on the wall freely by two driving wheels and one caster wheel. This manner of new examination system is quite different from the other conventional BWR-ID systems. This new inspection system is dramatically reduced its size [W550×L600×H55 (mm)] and weight [13.6 (kg)] compared with conventional system, and also saves ISI from being a critical path work because it needs no special tools, such as a large crane for handling. With AIRIS 21, it is possible to perform ID inspection of RPV welds in parallel with fuel shuffling and other core activities.