Evaluation of an expert system at a plant simulator

The Emergency Operating Procedures Tracking System (EOPTS) is an expert system developed by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) for boiling water reactor (BWR) plants. The EOPTS introduces expert system technology to the nuclear plant control room as a means to interpret and compile emergency procedure logic into a compact, fast-running operator aid. The system is intended to relieve some of the considerable burden placed on operators when dealing with complicated transients requiring operator intervention and in following complex emergency operating procedures (EOPs). The main objective of this project was to evaluate the EOPTS and determine whether or not an operator aid of this type could noticeably improve the response time of control room crews to multifailure scenarios. A secondary objective was to collect data on how crew performance was affected.