Visual Inspection Submersible for Nuclear Power Plant

Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV) are currently in use for visual inspections within reactor pressure vessels (RPV). In boiling water reactors (BWR), there is a complex RPV consisting of structures which are not disassembled during outages. To inspect the large volume of the RPV and associated components, the inspection vehicle must be compact and easily maneuverable. Toshiba has developed an ROV for the purpose of visual inspections in BWRS. This paper describes this ROV, the most compact visual inspection submersible yet manufactured and used in a BWR.