Virtual and Augmented Reality in the Nuclear Plant Lifecycle Perspective

Abstract

The paper presents a subset of the research and development performed over the last decade by the OECD Halden Reactor Project (HRP) using virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) in design, operation, maintenance and decommissioning to solve real world problems in the nuclear plant lifecycle. The use of VR in training at Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant (LNPP) in Russia started in 1999 with the introduction of VR technology developed by Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) for the training and presentation of procedures related to safe operation and maintenance of the refuelling machine. At Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP) in Ukraine, the establishment of the Chernobyl Decommissioning Visualisation Centre (CDVC) was started in 2007. The CDVC will be used for planning, training and presentation of dismantling procedures. In the future, the CDVC will also offer calculation of the occupational dose. VR has proven to be an effective technology for better communicating the layout of project proposals in design of control rooms. AR can be used to supplement reality by blending the physical and the virtual in the actual physical environment. IFE has developed a practical solution for using the AR technology. The paper also discusses how and for what areas the VR and AR applications can contribute to the nuclear safety for symbiosis and sustainability. Finally, IFE’s plans for future use of VR and AR technologies in a nuclear plant lifecycle perspective are discussed.