Functional Verification of Radiation Hardened Electronics for Robotics in Nuclear Environments
There is a rapidly growing demand for robotic RM systems which are able to support future nuclear applications currently in development. This paper covers the testing and verification of radiation hardened electronics via a representative test bench utilising components currently used in irradiated environments relevant to nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, nuclear decommissioning, and high energy physics. Tests utilise an analogue of a fusion remote handling system to compare the relative effectiveness of a resolver-to-digital system using Rad-Hard-By-Design technology with respect to a conventional system utilising pre-existing, industry standard COTS components. Tests demonstrate the effectiveness of rad-hard by design systems, with errors comparable to conventional systems currently used in industrial settings. The error range seen in the resolver system was measured to be on the order of 0.05 degrees, allowing accurate digitisation of resolver signals within radiation environments. This demonstrates the capabilities of the rad-hard by design motion components as an in-situ digitisation system when considering the rated radiation tolerance quoted to be $>$1MGy. Results suggest that use of this system within high gamma environments will require little to no compromise in terms of performance and may be suitable as a drop-in replacement for existing systems.