Basket assembly fixture
AssigneeSouthern California Edison Company
InventorsRick Busnardo, Robert Hill
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A basket assembly fixture is useful in the construction of a basket assembly for interring spent nuclear fuel rods. The basket assembly fixture has an elongate base and a pair of lifting beams disposed above the base. Lifting beam raising means are provided at both ends of the base to raise the pair of lifting beams. A transverse beam is provided below the two lifting beams and above the base. Transverse beam raising means are provided for raising the transverse beam.
Claims13
A basket assembly fixture useful in the construction of a basket assembly for interring spent nuclear fuel rods, the basket assembly fixture comprising:
- (a) an elongate base having a first end, an opposed second end and a longitudinal axis;
- (b) a pair of lifting beams disposed above the base and generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the base, each lifting beam having a first end and an opposed second end;
- (c) lifting beam raising means for alternatively raising and lowering both ends of each lifting beam;
- (d) lifting beam lateral shifting means for laterally shifting both ends of each lifting beam;
- (e) a transverse beam disposed generally horizontally above the frame, the transverse beam also being disposed below and generally perpendicular to the two lifting beams, the transverse beam having a first end and an opposed second end;
- and
- (f) transverse beam raising means for alternatively raising and lowering both ends of the transverse beam.
A method of preparing a basket assembly for interring spent nuclear fuel rods, the basket assembly comprising a plurality of support disks disposed parallel to one another and spaced apart from one another, the support disks all having at least two lifting beam apertures disposed therethrough, the method comprising the steps of:
- (a) disposing a plurality of basket assembly support disks on a basket assembly fixture comprising:
- (i) an elongate base having a first end, an opposed second end and a longitudinal axis;
- (ii) a pair of lifting beams disposed above the base and generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the base, each lifting beam having a first end and an opposed second end;
- (iii) lifting beam raising means for alternatively raising and lowering both ends of each lifting beam;
- (iv) lifting beam lateral shifting means for laterally shifting both ends of each lifting beam;
- (v) a transverse beam disposed generally horizontally above the frame, the transverse beam also being disposed below and generally perpendicular to the two lifting beams, the transverse beam having a first end and an opposed second end;
- and
- (vi) transverse beam raising means for alternatively raising and lowering both ends of the transverse beam;
- the plurality of basket assembly support disks being disposed in vertical planes within the frame of the basket assembly fixture with each of the pair of lifting beams being disposed generally horizontally through one of the lifting beam apertures in each of the support disks;
- (b) lifting the plurality of support disks away from the frame of the basket assembly fixture by raising the lifting beams using the lifting beam raising means;
- (c) vertically aligning the plurality of support disks using vertical alignment measuring means, the lifting beam raising means and the transverse beam raising means;
- (d) laterally aligning the plurality of support disks using lateral alignment measuring means and the lifting beam shifting means;
- (e) thereafter rigidly attaching the plurality of support disks to one another to form the basket assembly;
- and
- (f) thereafter removing the pair of lifting beams from the basket assembly and removing the basket assembly from the basket assembly fixture.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.