A pneumatic muscle actuator driven manipulator for nuclear waste retrieval

This paper describes the development of a prototype tele-operated rig for the retrieval of radioactive material (spent Magnox fuel) from underwater storage ponds. The ‘robotic’ mechanism developed for the task combines the established and accepted manual manipulation system with new pneumatic muscle...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Control engineering practice 2001, Vol.9 (1), p.23-36
Main Authors: Caldwell, D.G., Tsagarakis, N., Medrano-Cerda, G.A., Schofield, J., Brown, S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Actuators
Nuclear applications
Robotics
Tele-operation
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Summary:This paper describes the development of a prototype tele-operated rig for the retrieval of radioactive material (spent Magnox fuel) from underwater storage ponds. The ‘robotic’ mechanism developed for the task combines the established and accepted manual manipulation system with new pneumatic muscle actuators (pMA), that provide the controlled, flexible and robust energy input replacing direct human operation. This paper covers all aspects of the tele-operational system but focuses on the benefits of using pMA drives. Results show the capacity of the actuators to manoeuvre heavy loads accurately through large work volumes.
ISSN:0967-0661
1873-6939
DOI:10.1016/S0967-0661(00)00073-3