A Full Scope Nuclear Power Plant Training Simulator: Design and Implementation Experiences

This paper describes the development of a full scope training simulator for a Spanish nuclear power plant. The simulator is based on a client/server architecture that allows the distributed execution in a network with many users to participate in the same simulation. The interface was designed to support the interaction of the operators with the simulator through virtual panels supported by touch screens with high fidelity graphic displays. The simulation environment is described including the extension added to facilitate an easy operation by instructors. The graphical interface has been developed using component software technology. The appropriate selection of hardware for visualization and interaction, in terms of cost and performance, resulted in a facility much less expensive than the classic hard panels replica simulators and, at the same time, able to fulfill most of the training requirements. The main features of the simulator are the distributed execution control of the models and the flexibility of design and maintenance of the interface. The benefits of virtual panels approach are the automatic switch reposition and tagging, configuration flexibility, low maintenance requirements, or capability to support multiple users distributed across the corporate intranet. After exhaustive validation and testing, the training sessions are being conducted successfully