Keywords
Citation
(2001), "APS gives vision to the nuclear industry", Sensor Review, Vol. 21 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/sr.2001.08721baf.003
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2001, MCB UP Limited
APS gives vision to the nuclear industry
APS gives vision to the nuclear industry
Keywords: Machine vision, Nuclear
APS Vision, a UK-based company specialising in automatic inspection systems, is working with the nuclear industry to facilitate safety inspections and surveillance at its power stations.
Cameras are used extensively in the nuclear industry during routine maintenance. APS Vision has designed software allowing nuclear facilities far greater flexibility in the imaging hardware they can use for inspection systems.
The software is a follow-on from work by APS Vision enabling operators to grab, manipulate and annotate images from cameras operated in off-load reactors or fuel handling cells. The images are then stored in a database which enhances QA records and allows easier offline assessment (see Figure 1).
Adam Brown, a systems engineer at APS, said, "Our software allows the nuclear installations to get the most out of their cameras. It also allows them to spot potential problems more easily".
Figure 1 APS
Vision has designed software allowing nuclear facilities far greater flexibility
in the imaging hardware they can use for inspection systems
APS Vision develop custom-built automatic inspection equipment for use in many manufacturing sectors. Adam Brown said, "Human quality control is often both unreliable and impractical. We provide systems which can detect faults at the early stages of production, saving time and money for our clients".
The company has just moved to bigger premises in the Sunderland Business and Innovation Centre. The move follows a winning succession of contracts from companies in the UK including TRW, one of the world's leading automotive manufacturers.
Contact: Adam Browning, APS Vision Ltd, Business & Innovation Centre, Enterprise Park East, Wearfield, Sunderland SR5 2TA, UK. Tel: (0191) 516 6233; Fax: (0191) 516 6234; Web: www.apsvision.com