Walking robot tested in Finnish repository : Corporate

The ANYmal robot walks through Onkalo's underground tunnels (Image: Tapani Karjanlahti / Posiva)

A four-legged robot designed for autonomous operation in challenging environments has been put through its paces at a depth of more than 400 metres in the tunnels of the Onkalo underground used nuclear fuel repository near Olkiluoto, Finland.

A research team led by the Swiss robotics company ANYbotics visited Olkiluoto in June to test the functionality of its ANYmal robot in underground facilities. The test was organised by Euratom - the European Atomic Energy Community - together with Finnish radioactive waste management company Posiva Oy.

‍The ANYmal robot has been under development for many years. The roots of the ANYbotics company go back to the Swiss Institute of Technology, EHT. A group of researchers from the educational institution built the first four-legged robot back in 2009, and ANYbotics was founded for the commercialisation of this technology in 2016.

The ANYmal robot uses laser sensors and cameras to observe the environment and can locate its own position very precisely. By combining observation data with location data - such as a map or area scan data - it can plan its navigation route independently when necessary.

Posiva said Onkalo offered a unique framework for the robot to move, noting that there are tunnels in other parts of the world, but no other underground disposal facility has yet been built.

During the test, the robot - measuring 93cm in length, 53cm in width and 89cm in height and weighing about 50kg - travelled through the tunnels of Onkalo for about 1.5 hours. With a fully-charged battery, the robot can operate for up to 2 hours. The purpose was to test how far the robot can travel in Onkalo conditions with one charge, and whether there are any terrains in the tunnel where the robot would not be able to advance.

For the test, the robot first "walked" the planned route by remote control, and scanned the map into its internal system. In the test itself, the robot moved along the scanned route autonomously, although all the time in the line of sight with the research team. It was also available for remote control at any moment, for example in case of danger. Various safety functions were programmed into the robot. For example, it went around the obstacles on the route from a certain safety distance and stopped when something came into its safety area.

Authorities are interested in the use of robots for the reason that a robot can reach places that are inaccessible to humans, for example for nuclear material protection inspection work. Carrying out nuclear safeguards with the help of a robot is also of interest to Posiva, the company said. Robots can also be used in rescue operations and industry. They can be equipped with different devices for different tasks, such as optical and thermal cameras, microphones, gas or radiation detectors.

A video of the ANYmal robot in Onkalo can be found here.Researched and written by World Nuclear News  Source: - World Nuclear News

Read More........→October 30, 2023

Sun's 'killer flare' won't end earth

Hindustan Times: For all the doomsayers predicting that the world will come to an end in 2012, at least one of the potential reasons for earth's destruction has been knocked off. US space agency NASA has said a gigantic solar 'killer flare' will not devastate earth. Many people have been worrying about the  gigantic 'killer flare' which could be hurled by the sun and finish off life on earth. But the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) says there simply isn't enough energy in the sun to send a killer fireball 93 million miles away. Given the fact that solar activity is currently ramping up its standard 11-year cycle, there is a belief that 2012 could be coinciding with such a flare. But this same solar cycle has occurred over the millennia. Anyone over the age of 11 has already lived through such a solar maximum with no harm. Besides, the next solar maximum is predicted to occur in late 2013 or early 2014, not 2012, according to a NASA statement. This is not to say that space weather can't affect our planet. The explosive heat of a solar flare can't reach our globe, but electromagnetic radiation and energetic particles can. Solar flares can temporarily affect signal transmission from, say, a Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite to earth causing it to be off by many yards. Another phenomenon produced by the sun could be even more disruptive. Known as a coronal mass ejection (CME), these solar explosions propel bursts of particles and electromagnetic fluctuations into earth's atmosphere. Those fluctuations could induce electric fluctuations at ground level that could blow out transformers in power grids. The CME's particles can also collide with crucial electronics onboard a satellite and disrupt its systems. In an increasingly technological world, where almost everyone relies on cell phones and GPS controls not just your in-car map system but also airplane navigation and the extremely accurate clocks that govern financial transactions, space weather is a serious matter. But it is a problem the same way hurricanes are a problem. One can protect oneself with advance information and proper precautions. During a hurricane watch, a homeowner can stay put ... or he can seal up the house, turn off the electronics and get out of the way Source: Hindustan Times

Read More........→June 28, 2012

Next stop Mars: Nasa launches new Orion spacecraft, marks new era

The Delta IV Heavy rocket with the Orion spacecraft lifts off from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida. (Reuters/Steve Nesius)

Nasa's new Orion spacecraft streaked toward orbit Friday on a high-stakes test flight meant to usher in a new era of human exploration leading ultimately to Mars. The unmanned orbital journey began with a sunrise liftoff witnessed by thousands of Nasa guests eager to watch what the agency called "history in the making." "The star of the day is Orion," said Nasa Administrator Charles Bolden Jr., back for the second morning in a row. He called it "Day One of the Mars era." Orion's debut will be brief - just 4½ hours from launch to splashdown, with two orbits of Earth. But for the first time in 42 years, Nasa is sending a spacecraft built for humans farther than a couple hundred miles from Earth. The previous time was the Apollo 17 moon shot. And it's Nasa's first new vehicle for space travel since the shuttle. Friday's flight test brings Nasa "one step closer" to putting humans aboard Orion, Bolden said just before liftoff. Sluggish rocket valves and wind halted Thursday's launch attempt. Everything went Nasa's way Friday, and the Delta IV rocket blasted off with Orion as dawn broke. Nasa was aiming for a peak altitude of 3,600 miles (5,800 kilometers)on Orion's second lap around the planet, in order to give the capsule the necessary momentum for a scorchingly high-speed re-entry over the Pacific. Engineers want to see how the heat shield - the largest of its kind ever built - holds up when Orion comes back through the atmosphere traveling 20,000 mph (32,200 kph)and enduring 4,000 degrees (2,200 Celsius). The atmosphere at Kennedy Space Center was reminiscent of the shuttle-flying days. After more than three years since the last shuttle flight, Nasa reveled in all the attention. Roads appeared to be less jammed before dawn for try two, and Nasa was uncertain how many of the estimated 27,000 invited guests returned. Nonetheless, the press site remained jammed, the hotels packed and the excitement level high. "It's a big day for the world, for people who know and like space," Bolden said, observing the crowds. In Houston, Nasa's Mission Control took over the entire operation once Orion was aloft. The flight program was loaded into Orion's computers well in advance, allowing the spacecraft to fly essentially on autopilot. Flight controllers - all shuttle veterans - could intervene in the event of an emergency breakdown. And in the Pacific off the Mexican Baja coast, Navy ships waited for Orion's return. The spacecraft is rigged with 1,200 sensors to gauge everything from heat to vibration to radiation. At 11 feet (3.4 meters) tall with a 16.5-foot (5-meter) base, Orion is bigger than the old-time Apollo capsules and, obviously, more advanced. Nasa deliberately kept astronauts off this first Orion. Managers want to test the riskiest parts of the spacecraft - the heat shield, parachutes, various jettisoning components - beforecommitting to a crew. In addition, on-board computers were going to endure the high-radiation Van Allen belts; engineers wondered whether they might falter. Lockheed Martin Corp. already has begun work on a second Orion, and plans to eventually build a fleet of the capsules. The earliest that astronauts might fly on an Orion is 2021. An asteroid redirected to lunar orbit is intended for the first stop in the 2020s, followed by Mars in the 2030s. The company handled the $370 million test flight for Nasa from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, opting for the Delta IV rocket this time given its heft. It's the most powerful unmanned rocket in the US right now. The entire rocket and capsule, topped by a launch abort tower, stretched 242 feet and weighed 1.6 million pounds - an "incredible monster," according to Bolden. To push Orion farther out on future flights, Nasa is developing a megarocket known as Space Launch System or SLS. The first Orion-SLS combo will fly around 2018, again without a crew to shake out the rocket. Nasa's last trip beyond low-Earth orbit in a vessel built for people was the three-man Apollo 17 in December 1972. Orion will be capable of carrying four astronauts on long hauls and as many as six on three-week hikes. Dozens of astronauts, present and past, gathered at Kennedy for the historic send-off. One of them - Bolden - now leads Nasa. He called Mars "the ultimate destination of this generation," but said his three young granddaughters think otherwise, telling him, "Don't get hung up on Mars because there are other places to go once we get there." Source: Hindustan Times, Image: flickr.com

Read More........→December 16, 2014