Fuel transfer system for a nuclear reactor

A system for transferring fuel assemblies between a fuel handling building and a nuclear reactor wherein the fuel handling building includes new and spent fuel pits and an operating deck on the top surface of walls forming said pits, a reactor containment area separated from said building by a containment wall, and a canal adapted to be filled with water extending from said pits to the reactor containment area to permit submerged movement of the fuel assemblies between the building and the nuclear reactor comprising:

• said canal being arranged to extend through said wall and a valve mounted therein for selectively establishing communication between said building and containment area;
• a base supporting rails which extend from the building through the canal into the containment area;
• a car on said rails and means connected with the car for providing car linear movement between the fuel handling building and containment area;
• a fuel assembly handling container rotatably mounted at its midpoint on said car;
• first and second power actuating means respectively mounted on the base in the fuel handling building and the containment area, each of said actuating means including a reciprocable arm associated with the container for rotating it between vertical and horizontal positions;
• thereby permitting loading and unloading of a fuel assembly therein and facilitating movement of the car through the canal;
• car position indicating means for determining the position of said car in the fuel building and in said containment area, said position indicating means including car position indicators on said operating deck connected with switches mounted on said base and at locations where said car is to be stopped at its extreme ends of travel;
• and
• an actuator on said car which cooperates with said switches connected to said car position indicators to thereby show on the operating deck the position of said car;
• said car position indicating means further includes actuators on said container and switches on said base adapted by said actuators to show the vertical and horizontal orientation of said container.