By Electronic Signal Processing Circuitry (e.g., Plural Redundant Circuits) Patents (Class 376/215)
  • Patent number: 11256243
    Abstract: Methods and systems for detection in an industrial Internet of Things (IoT) data collection environment with intelligent data collection and equipment package adjustment for oil and gas equipment are disclosed. An example monitoring system for data collection in an oil and gas production environment can include a data collector communicatively coupled to a plurality of input channels connected to data collection points operatively coupled to at least one piece of equipment of an equipment package of the oil and gas production environment. The system further includes a data acquisition circuit to interpret detection values from the plurality of input channels and a data analysis circuit to utilize an expert system diagnostic tool to identify an off-nominal process state based on the detection values. The system may further include a response circuit to adjust an equipment package parameter in response to the off-nominal process state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 22, 2022
    Assignee: Strong Force loT Portfolio 2016, LLC
    Inventors: Charles Howard Cella, Gerald William Duffy, Jr., Jeffrey P. McGuckin, Mehul Desai
  • Patent number: 11209808
    Abstract: A method for generating a multi-layer predictive model includes collecting historical observable data from one or more pieces of equipment of a same type, wherein the historical observable data is collected at different hierarchical levels of the one or more pieces of equipment; collecting operational state indications of the pieces of equipment corresponding to the collected historical observable data; generating, from the collected historical observable data, a set of operational state models, wherein each operational state model corresponds to one of the different hierarchical levels; and generating, from outputs of the set of operational state models, a top-level operational model for the piece of equipment. The top-level operational model is operable to determine maintenance and replacement timing for the piece of equipment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 28, 2021
    Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I, L.P.
    Inventors: Rudolph Mappus, Mark Morris
  • Patent number: 11087567
    Abstract: Disclosed are systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable medium for determining an auxiliary power unit health indicator. The system may receive at least one field data of an auxiliary power unit, transforming the field data into at least one corrected field data, filtering the at least one corrected field data into at least one filtered field data, calculating at least one offset field data from the at least one filtered field data, determining a health indicator of the auxiliary power unit based on the at least one offset field data, and determining a maintenance procedure for the auxiliary unit based on the health indicator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL S.R.O.
    Inventors: Lukas Palaj, Lukas Vesely, Jan Neuzil
  • Patent number: 11017907
    Abstract: A nuclear reactor protection system includes a plurality of functionally independent modules, each of the modules configured to receive a plurality of inputs from a nuclear reactor safety system, and logically determine a safety action based at least in part on the plurality of inputs; and one or more nuclear reactor safety actuators communicably coupled to the plurality of functionally independent modules to receive the safety action determination based at least in part on the plurality of inputs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignees: NuScale Power, LLC, Rock Creek Innovations, LLC
    Inventors: Gregory Wayne Clarkson, Rufino Ayala, Jason Pottorf
  • Patent number: 10955810
    Abstract: A computer-implemented method includes: monitoring, by a computing device, communication flows within an industrial processing system; identifying, by the computing device, a hazardous command based on monitoring the communication flows, wherein identifying the hazardous command includes running a simulation with the communication flows as an input to the simulation; generating, by the computing device, a set of one or more mitigating commands based on identifying the hazardous command; and outputting, by the computing device, the set of one or more mitigating commands to components within the industrial processing system, wherein outputting the set of the one or more mitigating commands reduces a level of hazard caused by the hazardous command.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2021
    Assignee: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Gregory J. Boss, Andrew R. Jones, Charles S. Lingafelt, Kevin C. McConnell, John E. Moore, Jr.
  • Patent number: 10767886
    Abstract: A building management system includes building equipment, a sensor, and a saturation detector. The building equipment is configured to operate at an operating capacity to drive a variable state or condition of a building zone toward a setpoint. The operating capacity and the setpoint vary over time. The sensor is in the building zone and is configured to provide a zone measurement of the variable state or condition of the building zone. The saturation detector is configured to determine whether the operating capacity is in a non-transient region for a threshold amount of a time period upon determining that an error for the building zone exists for the time period, and, in response to a determination that the operating capacity is in the non-transient region for at least the threshold amount of the time period, indicate the time period as a saturation period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: Johnson Controls Technology Company
    Inventors: Anas W. I. Alanqar, Matthew J. Ellis, Michael J. Wenzel
  • Patent number: 10718727
    Abstract: The claimed method and system develops accelerated aging test protocols for a component of a process control device, such as a polymeric component of a valve assembly, where the accelerated aging test protocol is specifically developed in response to expected operating conditions to be used during operation of the process control device in a process plant installation. Test data from the developed accelerated aging tests is analyzed to determine a projected lifetime profile of the component that profiles the component through failure under those expected operating conditions. Particular profiling for polymeric features includes oxidation failure profiling and other fatigue conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2020
    Assignee: FISHER CONTROLS INTERNATIONAL LLC
    Inventors: Ted Dennis Grabau, Meredith Bell
  • Patent number: 10643273
    Abstract: A method for performing actions of an auction of a product or service through a communication network including sending to a plurality of sellers product or service specifications with an upset price wherein the plurality of sellers present a plurality of offers in homogenous manner for auction; receiving the plurality of offers; storing the plurality of offers in a database of communication network; receiving, from a plurality of buyers, purchase proposals for the product or service, the proposals being determined for each of the offers of the plurality of sellers; storing purchase proposals in the database; processing the purchase proposals and determining a plurality of lots, each of the lots of the plurality of lots being constituted by the plurality of purchase proposals received for each of the offers of the plurality of offers; and monitoring the moment when one of the sellers of the plurality of sellers buys a respective lot of the plurality of lots thereby defining the opportune moment, in the course
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2020
    Inventor: Luciano Trindade de Sousa Monteiro
  • Patent number: 10643187
    Abstract: Disclosed is a computer-implemented method for maintenance planning for an aircraft. The method includes retrieving, via a processor, a data transmission comprising a plurality of component faults from an aircraft processor while the aircraft is in flight. The processor executes, using a prediction engine, a predictive fault list based on the component faults. The predictive fault list includes a plurality of weighted predictions of authentic component faults and nuisance component faults. The processor prioritizes the weighted predictions of authentic component faults, and generates a maintenance checklist prioritized based on the weighted prediction of authentic component faults. The processor then outputs the prioritized maintenance checklist on an operatively connected maintenance planning device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2020
    Assignee: KIDDE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    Inventors: Mohammad Adil Barkat, Vivek Karan, Pradeep Kumar Nandakumar
  • Patent number: 10636052
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for implementing automated online promotion testing in an efficient and platform-agnostic manner are disclosed. A test management module interacts with a concept generator module, a promotion analytics module, and agnostically interacts with promotion administering platforms to automatically generate, administer, and analyze a large number of test promotions to online consumers in a manner that minimizes labor-intensive changes to the promotion administering platforms.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignee: Eversight, Inc.
    Inventors: David Moran, Michael Montero
  • Patent number: 10619760
    Abstract: Securing communications from a process plant to a remote system includes a data diode disposed there between that allows data to egress from the plant but prevents ingress of data into the plant and its associated systems. Process plant data from the secure communications is then analyzed to detect conditions occurring at process plant entities in the process plant using various machine learning techniques. When the process plant entity is a valve, the mode of operation for the valve is determined and a different analysis is applied for each mode in which a valve operates. Additionally, the process plant data for each valve is compared to other valves in the same process plant, enterprise, industry, etc. Accordingly, the health of each of the valves is ranked relative to each other and the process plant data for each valve is displayed in a side-by-side comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2020
    Assignee: FISHER CONTROLS INTERNATIONAL LLC
    Inventor: Shawn W. Anderson
  • Patent number: 10578667
    Abstract: Methods and systems automatically detect, classify and/or mitigate sensor errors using partial qualitative and quantitative knowledge of the subsystems. In various examples, sensor fault detection is performed with a custom designed representation scheme covering causality, correlation, system of equality and inequalities, and an associated logic. The logic is described by a set of algorithmic steps to iteratively assign trustworthiness level of sensors. Sensor fault classification is performed by combining mathematical and statistical techniques that can be utilized to expose bias, drift, multiplicative calibration error, precision degradation and spike error. Sensor fault mitigation is also performed on identified bias, drift, multiplicative calibration error, precision degradation and spike error.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2020
    Assignee: ROLLS-ROYCE plc
    Inventors: Lily Rachmawati, Yuhai Xue
  • Patent number: 10573421
    Abstract: An atomic power plant operation system for assisting the operation of an atomic power generation plant is provided with: an operation monitoring system which monitors and controls the operation of the atomic power generation plant; an abnormality indication monitoring system which, on the basis of an operation history of the atomic power generation plant, monitors an indication of abnormality in the atomic power generation plant; an abnormality diagnosis system which, on the basis of a result of abnormality indication that has been detected, makes an abnormality diagnosis for the atomic power generation plant; and a maintenance system for performing maintenance and management of the atomic power generation plant, wherein the systems are communicably connected, and the abnormality diagnosis system provides the maintenance system with the result of the abnormality diagnosis of the atomic power generation plant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2020
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kenji Mashio, Takae Yamashita, Takashi Azuma, Susumu Shiizuka, Junichi Nishitani, Masafumi Utsumi, Jun Shibuya
  • Patent number: 10395495
    Abstract: A security system and method for restricting access to recreation venues by a person who caused an incident at a recreation venue (22). The system includes a mobile communications device (12) having a camera and a GPS chip, and a computer processor (14) configured to receive an incident record (24) from the mobile communications device and broadcast over a communications network (16) the incident record to a plurality of recreation venues within a predetermined area. The incident record includes an image of the person and a record of the incident type.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2019
    Inventors: David Fennell, Justin Crosbie
  • Patent number: 10352973
    Abstract: A method for computer-assisted determination of usage of electrical energy produced by a power generation plant such as a renewable power generation plant is provided. The method uses a plurality of neural networks having a different structure or being learned differently for calculating future energy amounts produced by a power generation plant. To do so, the energy outputs of the power generation plant forecasted by the plurality of the neural networks are used to build histograms. Based on the histograms, energy amounts for different confidence levels describing the likelihood of the availability of the energy amount are determined, and different uses are assigned to different energy amounts. Energy amounts having a higher likelihood of availability in the future are sold at higher prices than other energy amounts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2019
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Per Egedal, Ralph Grothmann, Thomas Runkler, Volkmar Sterzing
  • Patent number: 9945894
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides systems and methods for detecting arc faults. For some embodiments, arc faults are detected from waveforms that are acquired and processed, preferably using an Average Magnitude Difference Function (AMDF). The characteristics of the waveform provide an indication of whether or not an arcing fault occurred.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2018
    Assignee: INNOVATIVE SCIENTIFIC SOLUTIONS, INC.
    Inventor: Dennis F. Grosjean
  • Patent number: 9886835
    Abstract: In a method for estimating a remaining lifetime of a solenoid coil of a valve controller operating in a process control system, a record of a duration of activation of the solenoid coil is maintained during operation of the solenoid coil. An operating temperature of the solenoid coil is determined. An estimate of the remaining lifetime of the solenoid coil is generated based on the duration of activation of the solenoid coil and the operating temperature of the solenoid coil.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2018
    Assignee: AUTOMATIC SWITCH COMPANY
    Inventors: Bruce R. Penning, Bruce Rigsby
  • Patent number: 9761335
    Abstract: A method for monitoring changes in the boron concentration in the coolant of a reactor during a nuclear plant outage that applies temperature compensation to the source range detector output. The method then monitors the compensated output signal to identify changes in the detector count rate above a preselected value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Company LLC
    Inventors: Michael C. Prible, Andrew M. Bunker, Michael D. Heibel
  • Patent number: 9748008
    Abstract: A nuclear power plant control system (3) is provided with detection units (30a to 30d) which detect phenomena that occurs in a nuclear power plant for each of four systems, a trip control device (20) which starts, in the case where a signal that indicates an occurrence of the phenomenon is input from at least a predetermined number of signal lines out of signal lines of two systems, processing corresponding to the phenomenon, and majority circuits (50a and 50b) which are provided for each signal line of the two systems and each output, in the case where the phenomenon is detected by N or more detection units out of the detection units (30a to 30d), a signal that indicates an occurrence of the phenomenon to a corresponding signal line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2017
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventor: Hiroshi Fujimoto
  • Patent number: 9735603
    Abstract: The invention relates to a control facility, and the associated control method, for an energy storage battery (2) intended to be coupled to an intermittent electrical production source for providing an electrical energy network with a total electrical power approximating a total power setpoint (Prod (T)) according to a production plan, the control facility (1) is adapted for determining a reference trajectory of the state of charge of the battery (SOC_ref(t)) on the basis of a modeling of the battery (5) and of an optimized battery setpoint (Pbatt(T)), said optimized battery power setpoint (Pbatt(T)) being determined on the basis of the total power setpoint (Prod(T)), and the control facility (1) is adapted for implementing a closed-loop regulation of the state of charge of the battery so as to force the state of charge (SOC(t)) to follow the reference trajectory of the state charge of the battery (SOC_ref(t)).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: ELECTRICITE DE FRANCE
    Inventors: Chady Kharrat, Ala Ben-Abbes
  • Patent number: 9719881
    Abstract: A device receives information, associated with civil structures, that includes temperature information associated with the civil structures, pressure information associated with the civil structures, stress information associated with the civil structures, vibration information associated with the civil structures, or displacement information associated with the civil structures. The device performs an analysis of the information associated with the civil structures via one or more analytics techniques, and generates analysis information based on the analysis of the information associated with the civil structures. The analysis information identifies a potential issue with at least one of the civil structures, and the device provides the analysis information for display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: VERIZON PATENT AND LICENSING INC.
    Inventors: Ashok N. Srivastava, Fu-Kuo Chang
  • Patent number: 9721680
    Abstract: A method of operating a nuclear reactor is provided. The method includes defining a layer increment of a deposit layer modeling a deposit on a heat transfer surface of the nuclear reactor; periodically updating a thickness of the deposit layer by adding the layer increment to the deposit layer; recalculating properties of the deposit layer after each layer increment is added to the deposit layer; determining a temperature related variable of the heat transfer surface as a function of the recalculated properties of the deposit layer; and altering operation of the nuclear reactor when the temperature related variable of the heat transfer surface reaches a predetermined value. A method of modeling a deposit on a heat transfer surface of a nuclear reactor is also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: AREVA Inc.
    Inventors: Mihai G. M. Pop, Joseph R. Wyatt, John C. Griffith
  • Patent number: 9697575
    Abstract: A method and system for dynamically routing electric power in real time in accordance with parameters submitted by buyers and sellers of electric power using a feedback control scheme. A control node is arranged for receiving the parameters via a wide area network and to generate a route plan based on the parameters as well as current supply and demand in a network. The control node is also connected to the transmission and distribution systems to dynamically route electric power between matched buyers and sellers to effect the route plan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2017
    Inventors: Alex Mashinsky, Chi K. Eng
  • Patent number: 9606160
    Abstract: A method for detecting a sensor that is stuck in range includes computing a variation value for each of a first signal and a second signal generated by a respective first and second sensor, wherein the first and second signals are correlated signals. The variation value for each of the first and second signals is computed for the same diagnostic period, such that when one of the first and second sensors is generating a signal which is stuck in range during the diagnostic period, the signal stuck in range will be characterized by a variation value which is much less than the variation value of the correlated signal. The magnitude of difference between the variation values of the first and second signals can be compared to a predetermined fault threshold to diagnose a sensor stuck in range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC
    Inventors: David S. Ochs, Brian A. Welchko
  • Patent number: 9589683
    Abstract: A reactor shutdown system includes a reactor, a control-rod drive unit that can drive a control rod in pulling and inserting directions with respect to a fuel assembly, a power source that can supply power to the control-rod drive unit, and a power converter that is provided between the control-rod drive unit and the power source, in which when power supply is cut off, the control-rod drive unit inserts the control rod into the fuel assembly to stop nuclear reaction in the reactor, and the reactor shutdown system includes a reactor trip breaker provided between the power converter and the control-rod drive unit, a safety protection-system device that controls the reactor trip breaker to cut off power supply to the control-rod drive unit, and a CCF device that controls the power converter to cut off power supply to the control-rod drive unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Assignees: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD., MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi Fujimoto, Hironobu Shinohara, Yasutake Akizuki, Toshiki Fukui, Yuichi Tanaka, Shinji Kiuchi, Hiroshi Shirasawa, Toshiaki Matsumura
  • Patent number: 9570203
    Abstract: A nuclear power plant controlling system is provided in which the thermal limit can be brought close to the full limit of operation restrictions by automatic control. The system includes a thermal limit monitor, including a receiver configured to receive a first signal, a prospective time deriving unit configured to derive a prospective time for the first signal to arrive at the full limit, a judging unit configured to judge a remaining time to the prospective time, a compensating unit configured to compensate the first signal based on a second signal, a first transmitter configured to transmit a first instruction to vary a rate factor of the first and second signals by synchronizing the compensation, and a second transmitter configured to transmit a second instruction to hold the first or second signal after arriving at the full limit or at a threshold that is just before the full limit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2017
    Assignee: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA
    Inventors: Tsuyoshi Masugi, Kiyoteru Suzuki, Surman Yoshinaga, Atsuhiko Koizumi
  • Patent number: 9443267
    Abstract: A system and a computer-implemented method for providing a prepaid amount of energy, are provided. The system includes a source node that receives a message authorizing a disbursement of the prepaid amount of energy at a receiver node. The payment for the prepaid amount of energy is made using a receiver node identifier associated with the receiver node that receives the discrete amount of energy. The source node receives input voltage from a power source for the duration that corresponds to the payment amount for energy. The input voltage provided by the power source is transformed into a micro-grid voltage that is distributed to the receiver node in a point-to-point wiring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventor: Benjamin M. Davis
  • Patent number: 9338017
    Abstract: A method for controlling a transmitter, comprising: awaking and initiating the transmitter by a trigger signal generated by a timer; detecting whether the transmitter receives an input control parameter from outside of the transmitter, and if yes, updating an input control parameter stored in the transmitter by using the received input control parameter; reading the input control parameter currently stored in the transmitter; performing operations based on the read input control parameter so as to control the transmitter to select one sensor signal from a plurality of sensor signals, amplify the selected sensor signal with a gain within a first gain range, and output the amplified sensor signal; and after determining that the transmitter has accomplished a task specified by the read input control parameter, resetting the timer, and entering into a sleeping state until the timer generates the trigger signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2016
    Assignee: Delta Electronics (Shanghai) CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Ziyu Zhu, Dazhong Zhai
  • Patent number: 8995601
    Abstract: An axial power distribution control device includes an axial offset calculation unit 52, a parameter calculation unit 53, and an axial offset determining unit 55. The axial offset determining unit 55 predicts whether a core axial offset of the power distribution is increased or decreased after a current time, based on a major axis of an ellipse drawn by the xenon parameter and the iodine parameter calculated by the parameter calculation unit 53 and the xenon parameter and the iodine parameter at the current time. This makes it possible to predict a change of the axial offset of the power distribution of a reactor for suppressing a xenon oscillation in the reactor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayuki Kauchi, Masatoshi Nagai
  • Publication number: 20140314194
    Abstract: This invention relates to a control method for a pressurised water nuclear reactor, said reactor comprising a core generating thermal power; means of acquiring magnitudes representative of core operating conditions (thermal power, temperature of the primary coolant); said method comprising a step to regulate the temperature of the primary coolant if the temperature of the primary coolant for a given thermal power is outside a predefined set temperature interval (?TREF) depending on the reactor power, said set temperature interval (?TREF) being characterised by a variable amplitude (?T) on a thermal power range between N % and 100% nominal power, where N is between 0 and 100; a zero amplitude at 100% nominal power; a zero amplitude at N % nominal power; said regulation not taking place while the temperature of the primary coolant is inside said temperature interval (?TREF) for a given thermal power.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 26, 2012
    Publication date: October 23, 2014
    Inventors: Jennifer Martin, Jean Lucien Mourlevat, Alain Grossetete, Pierre Barthelet
  • Patent number: 8792604
    Abstract: To predict xenon oscillation at the present time and later. For this purpose, as an axial offset of a power distribution of a reactor is represented by AOp, an axial offset of a power distribution based on xenon distribution is represented by AOx, and an axial offset of a power distribution based on an iodine distribution is represented by AOi, a parameter DAOpx(=AOp?AOx) and a parameter DAOix(=AOi?AOx) are described by a relational expression of a trigonometric function and an exponential function using an angular frequency of xenon oscillation. Next, phases with respect to initial values of the parameters DAOpx and DAOix are obtained (Step S101). The parameter DAOpx and the parameter DAOix expressed by the obtained phase and a coefficient of the relational expression obtained from this phase are plotted on an X coordinate and a Y coordinate, respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2014
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Yoichiro Shimazu
  • Publication number: 20140177772
    Abstract: Provided is an apparatus for controlling a gain according to a water level change rate of a steam generator in nuclear power plants.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2013
    Publication date: June 26, 2014
    Applicant: KEPCO ENGINEERING & CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, INC.
    Inventors: See Chae JEONG, Ju Han LEE, Jong Joo SOHN, Myung Jun SONG, Chan Eok PARK
  • Patent number: 8699653
    Abstract: A control strategy for a pressurized water nuclear reactor that employs separate, independent control rod banks for respectively controlling Tavg and axial offset within corresponding deadbands. The strategy does not permit the control banks controlling reactor core power and the control banks controlling axial offset to move together, but normally gives preference to the control banks controlling the Tavg except when a demand signal is received simultaneously by both independent control rod banks to move in a same direction, in which case, the control bank compensating for the axial offset is given preference.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Company, LLC
    Inventors: Keith J. Drudy, Norman P. Mueller, Elijah A. Richter
  • Patent number: 8656301
    Abstract: An information display system (10) comprises computing hardware (30) coupled to a graphical screen interface. (50) The system (10) further includes one or more interface modules (70) including local data processing thereat for receiving input data streams (S1 to SN). Moreover, the computing hardware (30) is operable to execute one or more software products for generating a software environment presented in operation on the graphical screen interface (50). Furthermore, the computing hardware (30) is operable when executing the one or more software products to present a representation of one or more of the input data streams (S1 to SN) in one or more graphical windows (100, 110, 120A to 120F) within the software environment as provided on the graphical screen interface (50).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2014
    Assignee: Epsis AS
    Inventors: Jan-Erik Nordtvedt, Jørgen Hosøy
  • Publication number: 20130301771
    Abstract: A nuclear power plant control system (1) includes a control button (21) which receives an operation for controlling a control target device (40), a notification lamp (12) which notifies that a control signal corresponding to the operation received by the control button (21) arrives at a predetermined position on a path connected from a control panel (20) to the control target device (40), and a control signal inhibition unit (33) which inhibits a control signal from arriving at the control target device (40) in midstream between the predetermined position on the path and the control target device (40) in response to an operation received by a test permission button (11).
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 21, 2011
    Publication date: November 14, 2013
    Applicant: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Fujimoto, Hironobu Shinohara, Yasutake Akizuki, Toshiki Fukui, Yuichi Tanaka, Shinji Kiuchi, Hiroshi Shirasawa
  • Publication number: 20130266107
    Abstract: The invention relates to methods for protecting a nuclear reactor core, such as a boiling water reactor core, from fuel and cladding damage due to thermal hydraulic instability in extended operating power flow conditions and, in particular, when an extended power uprate is implemented. The methods employ existing licensed stability methodologies and incorporated minor changes, e.g., to the Average Power Range Monitor (APRM)-based trip system to preclude operation inside the stability vulnerable region of the power/flow map. The APRM-based trip system is modified to set down the APRM flow-biased scram line when core flow is less than a predetermined core flow to prevent the core from entering an unstable region of operation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 13, 2013
    Publication date: October 10, 2013
    Applicant: WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC COMPANY LLC
    Inventor: WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC COMPANY LLC
  • Patent number: 8553829
    Abstract: The invention is principally directed to a reduced order model, XEDOR, facilitating the prediction of and the diagnostics of pellet-clad interaction stress-corrosion-cracking failure of nuclear fuel rods. The invention more particularly relates to assessment of susceptibility to PCI failure for guidance in the design of fuel loading in nuclear reactors. The invention additionally relates to the protection against PCI failure by providing operational information to operators of a nuclear reactor during power maneuvering, including predictive calculations prior to executing power maneuvers. Additionally, the invention relates to the diagnostics of an event suggesting a possible PCI cladding failure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: Areva NP SAS
    Inventor: Yousef Farawila
  • Publication number: 20130202074
    Abstract: A control system allows controlling a nuclear facility in an evacuation area. The control system includes a control device in ordinary use disposed in a non-evacuation area, an emergency control device—for emergency in the evacuation area, a plant control facility connectable to the control device—and the emergency control device, a signal switching unit that switches from a normal coupling to an emergency coupling based on an emergency switch signal, a first selector switch in the non-evacuation area, a second selector switch-in the evacuation area, an AND circuit configured to output the emergency switch signal to the signal switching unit in the case where the emergency switch signal is input from the first selector switch and the emergency switch signal is input from the second selector switch.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 13, 2011
    Publication date: August 8, 2013
    Applicant: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Fujimoto, Hironobu Shinohara, Yasutake Akizuki, Toshiki Fukui, Yuichi Tanaka, Shinji Kiuchi, Hiroshi Shirasawa
  • Publication number: 20130177119
    Abstract: A nuclear power plant control system includes control devices, and the control devices 30a and 30b each include arithmetic units that respectively execute arithmetic processing in parallel independently, based on detection results of detection units, and each output a control signal to control a countermeasure unit in accordance with an arithmetic result of the arithmetic processing, a transmission unit that sends out the control signal to the countermeasure unit, when the control signal is outputted from at least one of the arithmetic units, and a system management unit that performs control so as to inhibit the control signal outputted by the arithmetic unit as a test object from being sent out from the transmission unit while maintaining a state where the other arithmetic operation executes the arithmetic processing independently, when a test of either of the control devices is conducted.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 21, 2011
    Publication date: July 11, 2013
    Applicant: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Shinji Kiuchi, Hironobu Shinohara, Yasutake Akizuki, Toshiki Fukui, Hiroshi Shirasawa
  • Publication number: 20130170595
    Abstract: A controller for producing a nuclear reactor shutdown system trip signal in response to at least one detector signal. The controller includes a signal conditioning module receiving the at least one detector signal and outputting a measured flux signal. A rate module generates a rate signal from the measured flux signal. A comparator circuit compares the rate signal to a trip setpoint and generates a first trip signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2011
    Publication date: July 4, 2013
    Applicant: ATOMIC ENERGY OF CANADA LIMITED
    Inventor: Majid Borairi
  • Patent number: 8467491
    Abstract: The feedwater controller of a nuclear power plant having three or more feedwater pumps supplying water to the reactor vessel, electric motors driving the feedwater pumps and electric power converters connected to the electric motors is equipped with a flow rate controller and a trip compensation means. The flow rate controller calculates a flow rate to the reactor vessel based on a detected value indicating a condition of the nuclear power plant and a preset value of the water level of the reactor vessel, and generates a rotation speed command signal for the electric motors based on the flow rate command signal. The trip compensation means increases the rotation speed of the electric motors not having tripped if one of the feedwater pumps trips.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2013
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventor: Shinya Tominaga
  • Patent number: 8433029
    Abstract: In one embodiment, the method includes determining the safety limit minimum critical power ratio using the operating limit minimum critical power ratio, a change-in-critical-power-ratio distribution bias and a change-in-critical-power-ratio distribution standard deviation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2013
    Assignee: Global Nuclear Fuel—Americas, LLC
    Inventor: James Edward Fawks, Jr.
  • Publication number: 20130028364
    Abstract: An accelerator-driven subcritical breeding reactor is operated with a neutron multiplication coefficient as large as possible in order to require a small input power from the accelerator, reducing its dimension and hence its cost and complexity. The beam-generated spallation neutron yield then becomes comparable to the fraction of delayed neutrons from the fissioned elements. This can be exploited to ensure an accurate on-line determination of the reactivity. Resulting changes can be adjusted with the help of neutron absorbing control rods and/or variations of the proton current. In addition, the temperature variations during operation can be continuously monitored and adjusted in order to avoid that the subcritical systems approaches too closely the (delayed) criticality condition and that the neutron multiplication coefficient remains within acceptable limits.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 29, 2010
    Publication date: January 31, 2013
    Applicant: JACOBS E&C LIMITED
    Inventor: Carlo Rubbia
  • Publication number: 20120219101
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for assisting in the operation of a nuclear reactor, which comprises the steps of: establishing a request using a man/machine interface (31) interacting with a dedicated operation assistance computer (32) and using a three-dimensional neutron computation code (32a) solving the diffusion equation, referred to as the operation assistance code; unidirectionally transmitting, from a system (10) for monitoring the operation of the reactor core to said operation assistance computer (32), a set of data (13) which are representative of the hardware, geometric, and neutron characteristics of the core, as well as the operating conditions of the core, said data (13) being determined by a three-dimensional neutron code (12) updating the isotope balance of the core during fuel depletion and periodically solving the diffusion equation online, referred to as the monitoring code, said monitoring code (12) being installed on a second separate computer, referred to as the monitoring co
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 20, 2010
    Publication date: August 30, 2012
    Inventors: Annalisa L'Abbate, Anastasie Lefebvre De Rieux, Jean-Lucien Mourlevat
  • Patent number: 8248739
    Abstract: An electrical switching apparatus is for another apparatus including a number of insulators, a number of temperature sensors operatively associated with the number of insulators, and a number of conductors operatively associated with the number of insulators. The electrical switching apparatus includes a number of separable contacts, an operating mechanism structured to open and close the separable contacts, a number of sensors structured to sense a number of currents flowing through the separable contacts and through the conductors, a processor structured to input the sensed currents from the sensors, and an output. The processor calculates at least one of: (a) a thermal age of the other apparatus from a number of sensed temperatures from the temperature sensors, and (b) the thermal age of the other apparatus from the sensed currents. The output includes the thermal age of the other apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 21, 2012
    Assignee: Eaton Corporation
    Inventor: Lawrence B. Farr
  • Publication number: 20120140864
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method of operating a Boiling Water Reactor, having the steps of analyzing LPRM signals for oscilliatory behavior indicative of neutron-flux-coupled density wave oscillations, determining if oscilliatory behavior is present in the signals; initiating a reactor protective corrective action if the oscilliatory behavior is determined, and in addition, initiating corrective actions if neutron uncoupled oscillations are possible. Detecting the later is performed through analytically determined exclusion zone on the power flow map or by on-line stability calculations for several high power channels.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 7, 2012
    Publication date: June 7, 2012
    Inventors: Yousef M. FARAWILA, Douglas W. PRUITT
  • Patent number: 8185836
    Abstract: An apparatus generating a graphical image of a core of a boiling water reactor (BWR) using at least one data set of channel deformation data including: a computer system including a display device for presenting the graphical image and a processor generating the graphical image using the at least one data set; the graphical image of the core includes symbolic representations of control blades arranged in the core, indicia identify each control blade, and indicia regarding deformation of channels adjacent each control blade, and a viewer software tool executed by the processor which accesses the at least one data set and determines a location in the core of the control blades and channels, and correlates the deformation data with the channels for display on the graphical image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 22, 2012
    Assignee: Global Nuclear Fuel - Americas LLC
    Inventors: Atul Arun Karve, James Brian Smith, John R. Burr, Angelo Peter Chopelas, Gerald A. Potts, Mark A. Dubecky
  • Patent number: 7920667
    Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide an accumulator including a flow damper which is capable of performing a control so that a vortex may not be formed in a vortex chamber at the time of a large flow injection without requiring huge labors and fabrication costs. The flow damper is configured of a colliding jet controller (a bevel or a projection) for controlling a colliding jet composed of a jet from a large flow pipe and a jet from a small flow pipe flowing into a vortex chamber at the time of a large flow injection so that the colliding jet may proceed directly to an outlet without forming a vortex in the vortex chamber. The colliding jet controller is provided at a junction of an inner surface of the small flow pipe and an inner surface of the vortex chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2011
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Tadashi Shiraishi
  • Patent number: 7912170
    Abstract: A protection system for a nuclear boiling water reactor may include a device configured to monitor reactor power; a device configured to monitor reactor pressure; a device configured to determine a power-dependent high reactor pressure setpoint, based on the monitored reactor power; and a device configured to initiate a protection system action when the monitored reactor pressure is greater than the power-dependent high reactor pressure setpoint. The power-dependent high reactor pressure setpoint that corresponds to at least one value of percent power in an operating domain of the reactor may be less than the power-dependent high reactor pressure setpoint that corresponds to 100% reactor power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2011
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: Randall Howard Jacobs
  • Patent number: 7881421
    Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide an accumulator including a flow damper which is capable of performing a control so that a vortex may not be formed in a vortex chamber at the time of a large flow injection without requiring huge labors and fabrication costs. The flow damper is configured of a colliding jet controller (a bevel or a projection) for controlling a colliding jet composed of a jet from a large flow pipe and a jet from a small flow pipe flowing into a vortex chamber at the time of a large flow injection so that the colliding jet may proceed directly to an outlet without forming a vortex in the vortex chamber. The colliding jet controller is provided at a junction of an inner surface of the small flow pipe and an inner surface of the vortex chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2011
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Tadashi Shiraishi