3D Laser Range Scanner for Design Verification

To ensure adherence to their non-proliferation treaty obligations, States are required to declare design information on all new and modified facilities, which are under safeguards, and to ensure that the accuracy and completeness of the declaration is maintained for the life of the facility. It is the obligation of the IAEA to verify that the design and purpose of the as-built facility is as declared and that it continues to be correct. These activities are referred to as Design Information Examination and Verification (DIE/DIV) and can be divided into three steps: 1) examination of the declared design documents; 2) collection of information on the as-built facility using various methodologies; and 3) comparison of the “as-built” facility with the declared information. Although methodologies have been available for DIV, they have not provided the level of continuity of knowledge needed for the lifetime of the facility. This paper addresses a newly applied methodology to be used by inspectors to document the “as-built” design, compare it with the initial declared design and provide reference documentation for the lifetime of the facility in order to detect or confirm design changes. The new DIV methodology makes use of a 3-D laser-scanning device, accepting both range data (i.e., distance measurements), and visual data (e.g., photographs). The system provides semi-automated software tools to compare the acquired “as-built” and the approved design models. Both software and hardware are designed to cover a wide range of distances between 1mm to 200m. This includes the 3D modelling of buildings, large objects, e.g., fuel containers, or very small pipes. Use of this system will provide the inspector with an improved capability to make conclusions on initial DIE/DIV and provide for an increased level continuity of knowledge throughout the lifetime of the facility.