Abstract: An apparatus for automatically loading one or more kinds of nuclear fuel pellets in fuel cladding tubes for producing nuclear fuel rods comprises at least one pellet transporting tray transferred from a tray stacking unit and provided with a plurality of grooves on which the fuel pellets are mounted, at least one pellet aligning tray provided with a groove selectively connected with one of the grooves of the pellet transporting tray at one end of the aligning tray, and a fuel cladding tube supporting device located in the vicinity of the other end of the aligning tray and adapted to support a number of fuel cladding tubes so that a selected one fuel cladding tube is operatively connected to the aligning tray. The fuel pellets are transferred from the transporting tray into the aligning tray by means of a pushing device and the row of the pellets transferred on the groove of the aligning tray is moved forwardly until it abuts against a stopping mechanism located in association with the aligning tray.

Abstract: A fuel assembly has a plurality of fuel rods arranged and held in parallel with one another in the cells of spacer assemblies arranged at suitable intervals. During the assemblying and transportation of the fuel assembly, flexible sleeves are inserted in respective cells such as to separate the fuel rods from parts provided on the walls of the cells, thereby protecting the fuel rod surfaces against any damage and scratch which may otherwise be caused due to interference between the fuel rod surface and the parts provided on the walls of the cell.

Abstract: An apparatus for inspecting the outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical object is disclosed, in which the light in slit form is radiated on the surface of an object such as a nuclear fuel pellet at an angle thereto, the light regularly reflected on the surface is detected by a detector, the detected image signal is quantized at threshold values higher and lower than an average level, and the binary signals are used to detect surface losses separately from an unground part and a metal inclusion as a first detection process.

Abstract: A surface defect inspection system comprises an image pick-up device for picking up an image by sequentially scanning the surface of an object two-dimensionally, a threshold circuit for quantizing the image signal produced from the image pick-up device as a binary code, a pattern feature extracting device for making calculations for extracting the features of image patterns from the quantized signal in synchronism with the scanning, and for temporarily storing the result of the calculations, a pattern region end decision device for deciding that individual pattern regions have ended in one direction, and a defect decision device for reading out from the pattern feature extracting device the result of the calculations on the pattern features corresponding to the positions each of the patterns in the direction perpendicular to the one direction each time of the decision that each pattern region has ended, so that the feature of each pattern scanned is compared with a predetermined reference, thus deciding and a