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The characteristics of large logistics buildings are their long spans and the ability to take heavy loads. Usually, PC components are used for their frames to ensure quick construction. However, the erection of most pin jointed PC structures increases the time and the cost incurred for ensuring structural stability and construction safety. To solve this problem, “smart” frames have been developed, which have tapered steel joints at both ends of the PC components. A smart frame with the moment frame concept not only assures structural stability and construction safety, but it also simplifies and quickens the erection because of its tapered joint detail. The purpose of this study is to compare the erection time and cost effects of the steel connected PC components for heavily loaded long-span logistics buildings with the existing PC frames. For this study, we selected a logistics building constructed with PC components and redesigned it as the smart frame, and the erection simulations were performed. We analyzed the time reduction effects of the smart frame. Our results confirmed that the use of the smart frame reduced the erection time and cost practically. Our investigations will help develop the erection simulation algorithms for smart frames.

Tendon-driven mechanisms are adopted in remote handling manipulators to reduce the weight of the distal parts of the manipulator while maintaining the handling performance. This study considered several approaches to the design of a gripper system for telemanipulators. According to the requirements of the specified tendon-driven mechanism, the connecting position of the spring system on the gripper mechanism was obtained, and kinematic influence coefficient analysis was performed to select the proper spring stiffness. The results showed that the tension force generated by the selected spring module is relatively constant in the gripper’s motion range; the spring module is advantageous for the semi-automatic gripper motion of servo-based tendon-driven manipulators performed in non-accessible experimental facilities which handles many types of sensitive measuring devices with hazardous materials. The motion performance of the proposed gripper module was comparatively verified with a commercialized gripper system which has similar specifications. Additionally, an eye-in-hand camera was also designed to obtain an active-view through a gripper for efficient teleoperation. This gripper system uses a modular-type camera head that can be changed remotely and a proper camera angle to achieve an intuitive view of the remote site. The designed camera system was tested in a large-scale confined cell facility remotely and verified the practical usability for remote handling manipulators.

The Advanced spent fuel Conditioning Process Facility (ACPF) at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) has recently been successfully renovated. One of the highlights of this renovation project was the installation of a small argon compartment within the atmospheric hot cell of the facility. Even though a crane system was considered necessary for the remote handling of the processing equipment inside the argon compartment, no suitable commercial cranes were available. This was because a limited amount of space had been reserved for the installation of the crane. Moreover, a master-slave manipulator (MSM), the only available means of maintenance of the crane, was unable to reach it in the limited workspace. To address the difficulties in the design of this crane, in this study, a remote actuation mechanism is devised where the mechanical and electrical parts of the crane system are separated, positioned far away from each other, and connected through power transmission shafts. This approach has two main advantages. First, the electrical parts can be placed inside the workspace of the MSM, hence allowing for remote maintenance. Second, the space occupied by the electrical parts and their cables, which are separate from the crane in the proposed design, can be considered and exploited in designing the mechanical parts of the crane. This enables the construction of a short, special crane in order to maximize the workspace. Furthermore, the mechanical parts for the MSM located outside the workspace are designed to possess a high safety margin to ensure durability. An accurate servo-control system is also developed based on absolute positioning measurement. This allows for the safer performance of perform through automatic operation.

With rising fuel costs and the depletion of fossil fuels, electric vehicles of high efficiency has been increasing interest. although high-performance battery continually is developing, Electric vehicles is not satisfied with the characteristics of the environment. In this study, By using the current fuel economy testing methods(5-cycle test), until the fully discharged battery electric vehicles is evaluated for a variety of environmental and operating conditions. As a result, Electric vehicles showed a low energy consumption efficiency in low temperature and rapid acceleration, deceleration in the operating environment compared with normal temperature.

Background The advanced spent fuel conditioning process facility (ACPF) of the irradiated materials examination facility (IMEF) at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) has been renovated to implement a lab scale electrolytic reduction process for pyroprocessing. The interior and exterior structures of the ACPF hot cell have been modified under the current renovation project for the experimentation of the electrolytic reduction process using spent nuclear fuel. The most important aspect of this renovation was the installation of the argon compartment within the hot cell. Method For the design and system implementation of the argon compartment system, a full-scale mock-up test and a three-dimensional (3D) simulation test were conducted in advance. The remodeling and repairing of the process cell (M8a), the maintenance cell (M8b), the isolation room, and their utilities were also planned through this simulation to accommodate the designed argon compartment system. Results and conclusion Based on the considered refurbishment workflow, previous equipment in the M8 cell, including vessels and pipes, were removed and disposed of successfully after a zoning smear survey and decontamination, and new equipment with advanced functions and specifications were installed in the hot cell. Finally, the operating area and isolation room were also refurbished to meet the requirements of the improved hot cell facility.

Excavation of underground space in soft ground implicate to the structure, such as subsidence. As a result, it has been acting as a serious risk to the stability of the roads and facilities. Therefore, in order to stabilize the soil stabilization and reinforcement of the structure, we have been using a number of methods and injecting material. In this study, we compared and analyzed the amount of subsidence regarding the ground reinforcement during underground excavation in soft ground by performing model test. And three-dimensional numerical analysis was performed using FLAC 3D. The subsidence was simulated numerically according to the tunnel excavation. The subsidence results of the model tests and numerical analyzes were relatively consistent. Thus comparing the ground subsidence by varying the reinforcement area on the numerical analysis was analyzed. As a results, three-dimensional numerical simulation could be regarded to simulate better on the ground subsidence by various kinds of underground excavation and it can be used as a material of subsidence prevention methods.

Surely fuel economy(F.E.) label is needed to meet consumer`s right to know. Korea has developed and adopted F.E. correction equation similar to the feeling, because consumer complain about F.E. label higher than they feel. Recently, through continuous research and development high-efficiency & performance green car like HEV, PHEV and EV are being sold. In this situation, it is needed to know whether the current equation can reflect a part of their improved technic or not. In this paper, to review current equation through test using hybrid vehicles on 5-cycle SOC, correction equation and F.E were discussed. The result show HEV didn`t meet the SOC error standard on US06. Also, HEV has bigger F.E. difference between FTP-75 and 5-cycle than conventional vehicles. However, the correction equation that include HEV almost same with current one.

As the interest on the air pollution is gradually rising up at home and abroad, automotive and fuel researchers have been working on the exhaust emission reduction from vehicles through a lot of approaches, which consist of new engine design, innovative after-treatment systems, using clean (eco-friendly alternative) fuels and fuel quality improvement. This research has brought forward various main issues : whether PM emissions should be regulated for diesel and gasoline vehicles and whether gasoline and LPG powered vehicles can be further neglected from PM emission inventories. Finally, the greenhouse gas(CO 2 , CH 4 , N 2 O) regulation has been discussed including automotive emission regulation. The greenhouse gas and emissions (PM) particle of automotive had many problem that cause of ambient pollution, health effects. This paper discussed the influence of LPG fuel on automotive cold startability and exhaust emissions gas. Also, this paper assessed emission characteristics due to the test temperature. These test temperature were performed by dividing the temperature of the test mode and the lowest local temperature in winter. Through this study, the correlation of cold startability, exhaust emission and greenhouse gas emission was analyzed. Key words : LPLi (Liquid phase LPG injection), Greenhouse Gas(CO

In this study, remote handling strategies for a large-scale argon cell facility were considered. The suggested strategies were evaluated by several types of field test. The teleoperation tasks were performed using a developed remote handling system, which enabled traveling over entire cell area using a bridge transport system. Each arm of the system had six DOFs (degrees of freedom), and the bridge transport system had four DOFs. However, despite the dexterous manipulators and redundant monitoring system, many operators, including professionals, experienced difficulties in operating the remote handling system. This was because of the lack of a strategy for handling the installed camera system, and the difficulty in recognizing the gripper pose, which might fall outside the FOV (field of vision) of the system during teleoperation. Hence, in this paper, several considerations for the remote handling tasks performed in the target facility were discussed, and the tasks were analyzed based on ergonomic factors such as the workload. Toward the development of a successful operation strategy, several ergonomic issues, such as active/passive view of the remote handling system, eye/hand alignment, and FOV were considered. Furthermore, using the method for classifying remote handling tasks, several unit tasks were defined and evaluated.

We describe the development of teleoperated robotic cleaning systems for use in a highly radioactive zone of a hot-cell. As the hot-cell is active, direct access to the in-cell by human workers is not possible because of the nature of the high radioactivity of spent nuclear fuel. The teleoperated robotic cleaning systems were designed and developed to clean up or decontaminate a contaminated floor of the in-cell in a remote manner, thereby completely eliminating human interaction with hazardous radioactive contaminants. These robotic cleaning systems are classified into two systems depending on the task environment they are applied to - ROCCS (RObotic Contamination Collection System)-I and-II. We present the environmental, functional, mechanical design considerations, controls and capabilities of the developed teleoperated robotic cleaning systems.

The dynamic model of a remote controlled sprayer using skid-steering method is presented as a state equation. The precision tracking of the remote controlled sprayer is difficult to realize due to sensor noise. In this paper, we propose the extended Kalman filter (EKF) algorithm to compensate for the odometric sensor noise. To demonstrate the performance of the proposed algorithm, simulations which represent a real working sprayer in a greenhouse are performed. The results show the improved localization accuracy obtained by using the proposed algorithm.

The global warming of the Korean Peninsula proceeds most rapidly in the world and its abnormal climate is more deepening. In the result of the surged electricity consumption by intense heat of summer and severe cold of winter, electricity supply and demand status is in hard situation. Currently, the supply of natural gas is increased because natural gas has the lowest greenhouse-gas emissions among the existed fossil fuel. Natural gas cooling has a lot of advantage such as decreasing electricity peak, reducing construction expenses in additional power plant, operating natural gas storage facilities efficiently, and playing a role as distributed generations. Therefore, this study analyzes the economic feasibilities of gas cooling as an alternative for electric power load management.

Objective: The aim of this study is ergonomic analysis of tele-operation tasks using modified remote handling devices dedicated to the cell of PRIDE(PyRoprocess Integrated inactive DEmonstration facility) in KAERI(Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute). Background: Tele-operation manipulators of the PRIDE are applied to perform the remote handling and management of pyroprocessing facilities. Generally, these kinds of systems are composed of master-slave system and its peripherals installed along a wall or ceiling of the cell, and the manipulators transmit the user's own motion to grippers directly. However, a user convenience and intuitiveness while operating the manipulators have not been fully considered in research fields. Method: This study tries to analyze the ergonomic performance of remote handling manipulators in the developed cell facility. It was included that the analysis of operator's capability for his/her own motion range of upper arm while manipulating the MSM, considerations of its manipulation margin and related tool modifications to improve the remote handling performance. Conclusion: The test results of several remote handling tasks performed in PRIDE are represented, and adequate operation strategies for the tele-operation system of hot-cell type facilities are proposed. Application: The knowledge represented in this study can be utilized to improve a tele-operation system operated in a large-scale hot-cell system.

In this work, an on-the-move (OTM) antenna which is mounted on ground vehicles and is used for communication between vehicle and satellite was studied. Since vehicles move during communication, active antenna line-of-sight (LOS) stabilization is a core technology to guarantee satellite communication quality. Stabilization control of the antenna LOS which is driven by a motor coupled with gears and flexible driving shafts was investigated. In consideration of the finite stiffness of the shaft and disturbance torque due to vehicle motion coupled with gear ratio, a stabilization control is proposed. The proposed control is based on an integral sliding mode method (SMC). Since this SMC is robust and chatter free, it gives fine stabilization performance and is easy to implement without consideration of wear and tear on actuators. The feasibility of the proposed control design was verified along with some simulation results.

Department of New Materials Eng., Chungbuk National University, Cheungju 361-763, Korea(Received May 18, 2012 ; revised June 28, 2012 ; accepted June 28, 2012)Abstract‘Jikjisimcheyocheal (Jikji afterwards)’ is known as a first book printed by the metal type in the world..The metal type used for printing this book has not been found yet. To help for replicating the original metaltype, it is required to investigate the composition analysis of the copied metal type. In this study, the com-position analysis and thermodynamic care for replicating of ancient metal type was performed on the basisof an analytical reports concerned with the ancient metal type which made after Jikji printing. Metal typeswere made by remelting and casting of the mother alloy which came from a cast of a mixed metals inaccordance with the composition revealed in the literatures. Change of composition during remelting of motheralloy and casting of metal was detected by the EDS analysis. The reasons for variation in composition werediscussed by metallurgical and thermodynamic point of view, and a mixing ratio of metals to get the originalcomposition of ancient metal type is suggested. Some attention should be paid on mixing, melting and castingof metals to get an objected composition for copy of ancient metal type.

This study was to investigate the unsuitable rate of the storage facilities, the changes in corrosion process over time after installation according to the status, the time to install the facilities, years elapsed after facilities installation, inspection of methods and motivation, and so on, based on the results of the inspection at the petroleum storage facilities conducted by domestic soil-relate specialized agency to derive optimal management plans which meet the status of soil contamination facilities. The results showed that the facilities more than 5 years after the initial leak test at the time of the installation need to be inspected periodically by considering costs of leak test and remediation of polluted soil. The inspection period can be decided by cost and leak test methods showing discrepancies for the results obtained from individual test whether it was direct or indirect. To compensate these matters, we suggested that the direct inspection method on regular schedule is recommended. On the other hand, the inspection can be voluntarily completed to ease burden of the results by inspection or equivalent level to this inspection method. Also, it may need improved construction supervision and performance test system to minimize the occurrence of the nature defects in installing the facilities as well as the upgrade program for the facilities during intervals of inspection period.

This study was to build the database by collecting the results of legal leak test and self-test conducted by the owners of soil contamination facilities at soil-related specialized agency to grip objective status on soil contamination facilities and evaluate classification results. The results of the study showed that the unsuitable rate of business unit is 53.6%, the business with leak that could cause actual pollution is 25.7%, the unsuitable rate of the voluntary self-test is 57.3%, that of the compulsory inspection is 17.2% depending on the test motivation, that of the direct-test is 58.9%, and that of the indirect-test is 22.5% depending on the test methods. There was a significant difference between the test motivation conducted and the test methods applied. From the results of the unsuitable reasons obtained we could assume that about 20% of the whole target tanks became potential sources with natural defects occurred when such tanks were made, and 2.2% of the whole tankers examined that persisting period was caused by progressing corrosion below the minimum thickness.

A bridge-transported bilateral master–slave servo manipulator system called the Bridge-Transported Dual-Arm Servo-Manipulator (BDSM) was developed for remote manipulation at the Pyroprocess Integrated Inactive Demonstration (PRIDE) facility. Its many innovative design concepts include a motion-decoupled, cable-drive mechanism, fully counterbalanced linkage structure, and interface system for easy attachment/detachment of the arms during remote maintenance. In addition, the manipulator is mounted at the end of a novel redundant-drive extensible telescopic boom with a synchronized compact cabling management system. The BDSM is currently installed in the Remote Handling Evaluation Mock-up (RHEM), where it has successfully completed operating tests with a remote control system incorporating a bilateral force-reflection controller. Good tracking performance was confirmed regardless of the payload, allowing highly transparent control. The system is thus expected to achieve its design goals in dexterous remote handling tasks in PRIDE. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

In this paper, we propose a simultaneous intrinsic and extrinsic parameter identification of a hand-mounted laser-vision sensor (HMLVS). A laser-vision sensor (LVS), consisting of a camera and a laser stripe projector, is used as a sensor component of the robotic measurement system, and it measures the range data with respect to the robot base frame using the robot forward kinematics and the optical triangulation principle. For the optimal estimation of the model parameters, we applied two optimization techniques: a nonlinear least square optimizer and a particle swarm optimizer. Best-fit parameters, including both the intrinsic and extrinsic parameters of the HMLVS, are simultaneously obtained based on the least-squares criterion. From the simulation and experimental results, it is shown that the parameter identification problem considered was characterized by a highly multimodal landscape, thus, the global optimization technique such as a particle swarm optimization can be a promising tool to identify the model parameters for a HMLVS, while the nonlinear least square optimizer often failed to find an optimal solution even when the initial candidate solutions were selected close to the true optimum. The proposed optimization method does not require good initial guesses of the system parameters to converge at a very stable solution and it could be applied to a kinematically dissimilar robot system without loss of generality.

A Structure Health Monitoring (SHM) system needs a real-time remote data acquisition system to monitor the status of a structure from anywhere via Internet access. In this paper, we present a data acquisition system that monitors up to 40 Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors remotely in real-time. Using a TCP/IP protocol, users can access information gathered by the sensors from anywhere. An experiment in laboratory conditions has been done to prove the feasibility of our proposed system, which is built in special-purpose monitoring system.

In this work, a bilateral control for a master-slave manipulator system which will be used for handling objects contaminated by radioactivity has been addressed. The links of manipulators are driven independently by individual motors installed on the base and the driving torque is transmitted through pre-tensioned tendons. The measurable variables are the positions and rates of master/slave motors. In the consideration of the flexibility of the power transmission tendon and available measurements for control, we proposed an optimal static output feedback control for possible bilateral control architecture. The system model is reduced to guarantee the controllability and observability which are necessity for the static output feedback control by using modal analysis. Based on the reduced model, the control gains are determined to attenuate vibration in the sense of optimality. The feasibility of the proposed control design was verified along with some simulation results.

PurposeHot‐cells are shielded structures protecting individuals from radioactive materials. The purpose of this paper is to propose a design approach for a hot‐cell simulator using digital mock‐up (DMU) technology and combining Haptic guided complex robotic manipulation for assembly tasks in a virtual environment.Design/methodology/approachThe principal reason for developing a simulator was to explore the feasibility of hot‐cell structure design and collision‐free assembly process. For this, a simulation design philosophy has been proposed that includes DMU facility offering the ability of analyzing the operations and performing complex robotic manipulations in the virtual hot‐cell environment. Furthermore, enhanced Haptic mapping for tele‐manipulation is proposed for training and guidance purposes.FindingsFrom the analysis and task scenarios performed in virtual simulator, the optimal positions of the manipulators and need of (bridge transport dual arm servo‐manipulators) type were identified. Operation tasks were performed remotely using virtual hot‐cell technology by simulating the scenarios in the DMU reducing the overall operation cost and user training. The graphic simulator substantially reduced the cost of the process and maintenance procedure as well as the process equipment by providing a pre‐analysis of whole scenario for real manipulation.Originality/valueThis research tries to contribute to the virtual hot‐cell design philosophy. Tele‐operated complex robotic operations in DMU technology are performed in virtual hot‐cell. The simulator provides improved Haptic guidance with force and torque feedback enhancing the realism of virtual environment.

In this study, a composite behavior of stone columns reinforced in a soft ground, Sabkha, has been evaluated by performing a series of field measurements and numerical analyses. Field load tests were performed to verify the effect of the composite ground reinforced by stone columns in Kayan, Saudi. The settlement measured in the field test was compared with the settlement calculated by the Priebe method and the numerical analysis using ABAQUS. It is found that the settlement estimated using the Priebe method significantly overestimated the settlement measured in the field test. In addition, it is confirmed that consideration of confining effect exerted by surrounding adjacent stone columns in a numerical simulation is indispensable to estimate accurately the settlement of stone column composite ground.

This paper introduces the design of a bridge transport system with a telescopic tube for positioning equipment to perform remote handling tasks in a radioactive facility. It consists of an extensible and retractable telescopic tube assembly for z-direction motion, a cabling system for management of power and signal cables, and a trolley system for transverse motion and accommodating servo drives. The working environment for the bridge transport system with the telescopic tube requires strict geometrical constraints, including a short height, short telescopic tube length when retracted, and a long stroke. These constraints were met by solving a nonlinear programming problem involving the optimal dimensions. This paper introduces a cabling system for effective management of cables with changeable lengths to accommodate telescopic motions and a selection guide for servo drives that are sufficient to drive the system.

In this work, a bilateral control for a master-slave manipulator system which will be used for handling objects contaminated by radioactivity has been addressed. The links of manipulators are driven independently by individual motors installed on the base and the driving torque is transmitted through pre-tensioned tendons. The measurable variables are the positions and rates of master/slave motors. In the consideration of the flexibility of the tendon and available measurements for control, we proposed an optimal static output feedback control for possible bilateral control architecture. By using modal analysis, the system model is reduced to guarantee the detectability which is a necessity for the static output feedback control design. Based on the reduced model, the control gains are determined to attenuate vibration in the sense of optimality. The feasibility of the proposed control design was verified along with some simulation results.

The paper proposes a new duplexing scheme, which is called the hybrid division duplex (HDD), that is suitable for fourth-generation mobile communication systems. The proposed mobile communication system is much more flexible and efficient in providing asymmetric data service and managing intercell interference by exploiting the advantages of both time division duplex (TDD) and frequency division duplex (FDD) schemes. The HDD scheme has a pair of frequency bands such as the FDD, performing a TDD operation using one of the bands in such a manner that allows for simultaneous FDD and TDD operations. Considering the properties of the HDD system architecture, frequency hopping orthogonal frequency division multiple (OFDM) access is adopted in one band for the TDD operation and code division multiple access (CDMA) in the other band for the FDD uplink operation. The important advantage of the HDD scheme is the robustness against cross time slot interference that is inherent to the TDD system, which is caused by the asynchronous downlink/uplink switching boundaries among all neighbor cells. From the simulation results, the proposed system can achieve approximately 7% and 30% improvement with regard to the downlink and uplink throughput, respectively, as compared to the conventional TDD system under cell-independent downlink/uplink traffic asymmetries. It demonstrates that the HDD scheme is a viable solution for future communication systems that are projected to have a cell-independent asymmetric-traffic-supported hierarchical cell structure.

A pyroprocessing technology is being developed at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute. This technology development is conducted in a completely sealed argon cell where, as the cell is active, human operators' access to the in-cell is not possible owing to the nature of the toxicity of argon gas. Relevant processing equipment installed inside the cell should be operated and maintained in a fully remote manner by using remote handling systems. This paper describes the procedures of evaluating the processing equipment from the remote operation and maintenance viewpoints from the design stage to the fabrication using evaluation systems such as a simulator and an evaluation mock-up. The remote operability and maintainability of the design models of the processing equipment were evaluated in a simulator. The fabricated processing equipment was tested in an evaluation mock-up before being installed in the argon cell. The evaluation results conducted on the 3D models of electro-refining processing equipment in a simulator and the fabricated electrolytic reduction processing equipment in an evaluation mock-up are also demonstrated.

This paper introduces a manipulator that is under development as a remote maintenance tool in the argon-filled cell of PRIDE, a nuclear facility. This remote manipulator was designed to be able to operate in areas where other remote equipment such as a mechanical master-slave manipulator or bridge-transported dual servo manipulator cannot reach. The remote maintenance tool can be used to support the maintenance of process and cell equipment. In this paper, the mechanical design and manufacturing of the remote manipulation tool are addressed.

A 6.4Gb/s TX-interleaving (TI) technique at sub-1V supply voltage is implemented with 25nm DRAM process for the future mobile DRAM interface which requires 51.2 GBps (2X Bandwidth of LPDDR4). A newly proposed 2-channel TX interleaving technique with a bootstrapping switch can save power consumption drastically by eliminating repeaters, while operating at 6.4 Gb/s with 40 % enhancement of I/O power efficiency compared to that of the LPDDR4.

This study develops a haptic display model which is an indispensable for the force generation in the virtual environment. In developing the haptic display model, a Proxy concept and a Karnopp friction model are utilized to generate the reaction force and the friction force. Also this study develops a 2 D.O.F. remote wiping system. This system is composed of a 2 D.O.F. master manipulator, a force sensor equipped 2 D.O.F. slave manipulator and a real time controller. With the developed remote wiping system, this study identifies the friction characteristic of the aluminum, acryl and rubber plate. The results are used as the dynamic friction coefficient of the haptic display model. This study shows the efficiency of the developed haptic display model by the comparison between the friction characteristic of the haptic display with the developed haptic display model and the friction characteristic of the real aluminum, acryl and rubber plate.

In this paper, we describe the design of a novel crane system for use in a small argon hot-cell where only a mechanical master-slave manipulator (MSM) within the limitation is available for the maintenance of the crane. To get a practically achievable solution for the design problem, we devised a remote actuation mechanism in which the electrical parts of the crane are separated from the mechanical parts and installed inside the workspace of the MSM for remote maintenance. Even though the design concept does not provide a thoroughly sufficient solution because the mechanical parts are placed out of the MSM's workspace, the durability of the mechanical parts can be easily increased if they have a high safety margin. Therefore, the concept may be one of best solutions for our special crane system. In addition, we developed a servo-control system based on absolute positioning technology; therefore, it is possible for us to perform the given tasks more safely through an automatic operation.

In this paper, we describe the PRIDE Facility which has an installed remote handling system for the remote operation and maintenance of processing equipment. Processing equipment is operated in intense radiation fields as well as at high temperature. Thus, the equipment is operated in a remote manner and should be designed with consideration of remote handling and maintenance. An analysis and evaluation of the remote handling was carried out using a graphic simulator and physical mockup. This simulator is a virtual facility of a pyroprocessing mock-up facility. The simulator is designed to include all of the processing equipment, utilities, remote maintenance and handling devices and auxiliary devices or tools, in the form of virtual models necessary for the pyroprocessing technology implementation in a virtual facility environment. The use of this device for operation and maintenance to assess the results is reflected in its modifications of the device. The evaluation of the modified device was carried out in a physical mockup.

As design rules shrink, lithographers incorporate complex resolution enhancement techniques (RETs) that enable lithographers to extend existing lithographic processes to print features smaller than the wavelength of light used — a process called sub-wavelength lithography. These enhancements include optical proximity correction (OPC) and phase shift mask (PSM) technology, which together reduce the size and fine-tune the shape of features on the wafer. During the photolithography patterning process, marginal RET designs can print as out-of-focus features-or not print at all, creating open circuits that translate to electrical failures within the device. Two major variables, which affect the pattern printed on the wafer, are focus and exposure (dose). A number of techniques are used today to identify the process window accurately like Focus Exposure Matrix (FEM), CD SEM1 and Process Window Qualification (PWQ). These techniques enable lithographers to understand the consequences of operating near the boundaries of the process window — allowing more informed decisions about whether to redesign the reticle or fine-tune inline defect and CD monitoring efforts to minimize the impact of the systematic defects on device yield. Particularly in back end of line (BEOL) After Develop Inspect (ADI) layers, nuisance defects (such as defects that are not visible on scanning electron microscope, defects on dummy structures, or other defects that do not affect yield) are so common, that sampling a statistically significant number of defects of interest (DOI) for PWQ becomes very time consuming and involves a lot of human effort. This paper describes the use of Design Based Classification (DBC) together with an AutoPWQ technique to improve time to results and to monitor BEOL ADI layers for process window drift. The combination of AutoPWQ + DBC method was compared to AutoPWQ alone as well as to FEM with manual sampling.

A simple and cost-effective MUSE (multiple sub-Nyquist sampling encoding) to NTSC (National Television System Committee) converter, in which two LSIs using 0.7- mu m CMOS technology are utilized for video and audio processing, respectively, has been developed. Three display modes, ZOOM and WIDE modes for 4:3 NTSC TV and FULL mode for 16:9 widescreen TV are provided. Typical output images according to the three display modes of the MUSE-to-NTSC converter are shown. The converter provides two different NTSC video outputs, composite and separated Y/C. Two-channel audio output of CD (compact disc) quality is provided. Various functions such as color blanking, screen up/down in WIDE mode, left/right screen in ZOOM mode, and still/strobe image are also provided. >

A prototype of a master-slave servo manipulator system has been developed for the use in the PRIDE (PyRoprocess Integrated inactive DEmonstration) facility. The PRIDE facility is designed to have an argon-atmosphere cell which prohibits direct access by human operators. Therefore, all the operation and maintenance of the process equipment is performed remotely through a master-slave manipulation. In this paper, we describe a motion-decoupled joint design of a cable-driven mechanism, a weight balancing analysis, and an interface system. The prototype manipulator system has been installed at a mock-up facility and the performance test of the manipulator system is currently carried out.

The remote operation in nuclear facilities is essential field since human access is restricted due to the effects of high radiation. Using a haptic device in the roll of a master manipulator enhances the throughput and the reliability of the simulation because of the kinetic sense of reality. This paper describes a 3D graphic based simulator system to simulate the nuclear facilities. The human interface of a virtual arm using a haptic device is proposed to improve the reality during the remote operation of the apparatuses in virtual nuclear facilities. The results of experiments of virtual arm operation in a virtual nuclear facility with the haptic device are evaluated in this paper.

A bridge transport system with telescopic motion was developed to transport servo-manipulator for remote handling tasks in PyRoprocess Integrated inactive DEmonstration facility (PRIDE). The bridge transport system consists of telescope, trolley system, cabling management system, girder and rotation interface. The telescope of the bridge transport system was designed as a cylindrical pipe-based tube type in order to increase bending and twisting rigidity and it has a long extended length and short retracted length. The cabling management system was design to have compact size but to accommodate changed cable length according to telescopic motion. All drive modules were designed to have spare modules to prepare for emergency. As design verification process, structural analysis was performed on some important modules. Currently, the bridge transport system with telescopic motion is installed at a test bay in KAERI, and it is being tested.

A Bridge transported Dual arm Servo-Manipulator (BDSM) was designed to use in a hot-cell at Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI). The slave of BDSM can handle a 25 kgf payload object in any posture. The position error resulting from gravity force produces the unnecessary force that the operator does not have to feel. Therefore, gravity force for remote tools or repair equipment must be compensated. Time Delay Control (TDC) is one of the effective and robust control methods when uncertain dynamics or unpredictable disturbances exist. TDC uses past observation of the system's response which is used to cancel the effect of unknown parameters. TDC is applied for a simple one degree of freedom master-slave system, which can improve the position control performance effectively by compensating for gravity force.

An overhead crane with telescopic motion was developed to transport servo-manipulator for remote handling tasks in the PyRoprocess Integrated inactive DEmonstration facility (PRIDE). The overhead crane consists of a telescope, trolley system, cabling management system, girder and rotation interface. The telescope of the overhead crane was designed as a cylindrical pipe-based tube type in order to increase the bending and twisting rigidity and it has a long extended length and short retracted length. The cabling management system was designed to be compact in size in order to accommodate the changed cable length according to the telescopic motion. All drive modules were designed to have spare modules in order to prepare for emergencies. As design verification process, structural analysis was performed on some important modules. Currently, the overhead crane is installed at a test bay in KAERI, and it is being tested.

In this paper, the design of a graphic simulator for use in pyroprocessing technology development is described. This simulator is a virtual facility of a pyroprocessing mock-up facility to be constructed later. The simulator will be designed to include all the Pyroprocessing equipment, utilities, remote maintenance and handling devices and auxiliary devices or tools, in the form of virtual models which are necessary for the Pyroprocessing technology implementation in a virtual facility environment. It will provide an efficient means for simulating and verifying the conceptual design, design developments, arrangements, and rehearsal of the pyroprocessing equipment from the viewpoint of remote operation and maintenance by use of its various virtual functions. It will also enable the trial and simulation of the pyroprocessing technology's development in a virtual process environment in advance. We present the current status of the graphic simulator development and also perform an analysis of remote operation for demonstration of process equipments in the PRIDE digital mockup.

In this paper, we describe the development of remote robotic systems for use in a nuclear environment at Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute. Remote robotic systems were designed and developed to be used in a highly radioactive zone of a hot-cell or a completely sealed argon gas cell because human workers cannot have access to the in-cell during a cell operation. These remote robotic systems are classified into two groups depending on the task environment that they are applied to — remote robotic cleaning systems and tele-manipulator system. Remote robotic cleaning systems are used to clean up the in-cell floor contaminated with radioactive contaminants in a fully remote manner. Tele-manipulator system is an electrically driven master-slave manipulators that are used for remote operation and maintenance of the pyroprocessing equipments installed inside the argon gas-filled cell. We present the design considerations, capabilities and application of the developed remote robotic systems.

A prototype of a master-slave servo manipulator system has been developed for the use in the PRIDE (PyRoprocess Integrated inactive DEmonstration) facility where the integrated performance of full pyroprocess flow will be verified. The PRIDE facility is designed to have an argon-atmosphere cell which prohibits direct access by human operators. Therefore, all the operation and maintenance of the process equipment is performed remotely through a master-slave manipulation. In this work, we present the development of a remote control system for a bridge transported dual arm servo-manipulator.

This study deals with the design and establishment of a modeling and simulation tool for an evaluation of the accessibility and operability of a remote manipulation in an advanced spent fuel conditioning process facility. This article describes different kinds of modules to analyze and evaluate the behavior of a manipulator and proposes a system architecture which illustrates an interface between its modules. The mathematical background in relation to forward and inverse kinematics for a virtual manipulator to access the devices is explained. To find out if a virtual manipulator by using a 6-DOF haptic device could access a failed part of pyroprocessing devices, and if a human operator could feel the force feedback when it collides with other objects when accessing a device, a case study was carried out.

In this paper, we describe the design of a simulator for use in Pyroprocessing technology development. This simulator is a virtual facility of a Pyroprocessing mock-up facility to be constructed later. The simulator will be designed to include all the Pyroprocessing equipment, utilities, remote maintenance and handling devices and auxiliary devices or tools, in the form of virtual models which are necessary for the Pyroprocessing technology implementation in a virtual facility environment. It will provide an efficient means for simulating and verifying the conceptual design, design developments, arrangements, and rehearsal of the Pyroprocessing equipment from the viewpoint of remote operation and maintenance by use of its various virtual functions. It will also enable the trial and simulation of the Pyroprocessing technology's development in a virtual process environment in advance. We present the current status of the simulator development and also demonstrate a case study of the simulator performed in its current development stage.

This paper describes the design and fabrication of a cable-driven dual arm master-slave servo-manipulator. The cable transmission has been selected because it greatly reduces the weight and friction, and it also allows realizing a backlash-free actuation. However, it causes a motion coupling problem due to unwanted motion interference at the joints. In this work, we solve this problem through a novel motion decoupling mechanism. Also, a simple balancing method based on potential energy equilibrium has been proposed to counterweight 3-axis motion such as pitch and roll of upper arm, and pitch of forearm.