SIMULATION | ENGINEERING
Simulators as a design tool
Dynamic simulation is being introduced earlier in engineering life cycles, allowing for better validation and faster development. By Jean-Christophe Blanchon and Guillaume Hemery
Jean-Christophe Blanchon
Industry and Energy, R&D manager at CORYS
Above: ELVEES platform Photo credit: CORYS
IN DESIGNING A NEW NUCLEAR power plant, a full-scope simulator (FSS) is developed alongside and is necessary for the training of plant operators. It is also often used as supporting tool when performing integrated system validation before the plant is commissioned. By 2000, it had become clear that the simulators could be a substantial asset in validating in instrumentation and control (I&C) systems. The integration capabilities of simulation platforms like ALICES®
, developed by CORYS, Guillaume Hemery
Systems Engineering Core Team Stream Lead “Robust Design and Simulation” at Framatome’s I&C BU
were used to co-simulate the detailed design I&C at the same time as the simulator process models were developed and refined. The process usually begins with integrating the
specifications in the form of executable models. When the teams have made sufficient progress in the implementation, they can switch to an emulator of the target technology. The ultimate step is the ‘hardware in the loop’ with a direct connection between the simulator and the cabinets.
Do it simpler, but do it sooner Unfortunately the simulator becomes operational late in the project lifecycle and it cannot apply to the upstream design, which would help to define the expectations and the missions of the plant. To meet these new needs the simulator provider has to
completely change its mindset. The end user, who would previously have been an operator comfortable in the control room, is now a multi-skilled team of designers. The accuracy of the models is no longer the problem. Assumptions must be checked and this can quite often lead to the generation of a new simulator.
30 | November 2021 |
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CORYS and Framatome took up this challenge with ELVEES
(Early Launch of Validation via an Evolving Engineering Simulator), developing an evolving engineering simulator strategy starting in 2018. The simulator in its early steps is a lower-fidelity engineering simulator, accessible to the design teams during the project’s basic design phase. It supports early and iterative validation of both the engineered set of operator displays (shown on multiple desktop screens at each operator’s workstation and serving as the plant’s main human/machine interface) and of I&C systems. This initially lower-fidelity simulator evolves, in parallel with the project and the increasing design maturity of the deliverables.
The applied strategy is focused on the deliverables of the
Framatome I&C business unit, rather than centring on the plant’s fluid and steam systems, as commonly happens with the FSS. ELVEES evolves in five steps (see illustration), each
compliant with systems engineering principles and ensuring digital continuity with current design practices. Step 1 – Validation of operator displays: drafted using a standard graphic editor, the displays are imported into the ELVEES environment with three clicks. Validations guided by human factors engineering (HFE) can be conducted in a dynamic environment of sufficient fidelity. Full-fledged plant behaviour cannot yet be represented, but the characteristics of the representation provided by each of the simulated displays are duly reflected and can be viewed and evaluated. Implemented displays can be imported using their native file type.
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