Features

The modular integratedvideo system (MIVS):A new generation ofvideo surveillance equipmentNew video units are going to be deployedin safeguarded nuclear facilities around the world

by K.-J. Gartner and E.W. Dawes

O"ver the years, one of the "workhorses" of theIAEA's safeguards system has been an 8-mm filmcamera used for surveillance purposes at manysafeguarded nuclear facilities around the world.*Recently, however, the Agency has been moving awayfrom the use of these units in favour of advanced videosystems that today have taken over the market. Produc-tion of 8-mm film and cameras has been virtually discon-tinued worldwide. The Agency's transition to modernvideo systems, and the replacement of aging 8-mmcameras in some 290 nuclear facilities, has proven to bea challenging and difficult effort in terms of technology,quality assurance, cost effectiveness, and scheduling.

This article describes the development of three alter-nate video systems to replace the 8-mm film camerabeing developed through IAEA safeguards support pro-grammes with Japan, the Federal Republic of Germany,and the United States. It reviews the progress made invarious areas, and describes the features and advantagesof one system — the modular integrated video system(MIVS) — which is going to be deployed as a primarysafeguards tool through the 1990s.

Development of alternate video systems

The availability of alternate video systems beingdeveloped under the safeguards supports programmes isbecoming an increasingly important factor. Presently,the readiness of each of the three countries' systemsvaries, reflecting both different conceptual approachesand starting times for research and development:

• MIVS is the United States entry which begandevelopment in the mid-1980s under an agreementbetween the IAEA and the United States; Sandia

Mr Gartner is a staff member in the IAEA Department of Safeguards.Mr Dawes is an expert from the United States serving in theDepartment.

* The camera system was manufactured by Minolta.

IAEA BULLETIN, 1/1990

The MIVS, shown here without its protective cover, features mod-ules that can be easily maintained. Shown from top to bottom are thecontrol module, the display module, and two modules for video taperecorders.

National Laboratories (SNL), in Albuquerque, NewMexico, was the prime design contractor. MIVS uses8-mm video recorder technology and an innovativevideo authentication system. After intensive testing andenhancement, the IAEA recently placed an order for50 production units. Units are about to be deployed innuclear facilities throughout the world.

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Features

• The Japanese entry is called COSMOS, whichstands for compact surveillance and monitoring system.Production units are expected to be available in 1991following completion of development evaluations nowbeing done.

• The Federal Republic of Germany has almostfinished development of a system called the TamperResistant TV-link. (TRTL). This is a multi-camerasystem with video signal authentication for each videochannel and a single console.

The Agency is considering all three entries but ismoving ahead with MIVS deployment based upon itsfeatures, reliability, and the availability of productionunits. In view of this, the remainder of this articlereviews the MIVS.

Mission and requirements

During the 18 years of experience with the applica-tion of 8-mm film cameras for safeguards surveillancepurposes, the camera unit matured into a highly reliable,economic, and user friendly system.* Many years oftechnical effort and a continuous improvement of thelogistics for the product were necessary to accomplishthis.

Since 1976 the IAEA has also gained experiencewith compact closed circuit television systems(CCTV).** These offer several advantages over 8-mmfilm cameras, including higher picture capacity andquality, higher light sensitivity, date and time annota-tion, and lower sensitivity against radiation.***Moreover, CCTV facilitates immediate on-site reviewof the recorded information without burdensome filmprocessing.

MIVS will become one of the primary safeguards sur-veillance tools through the late 1990s. Recognizing theimportance of this new equipment, personnel from theIAEA and SNL embarked on a joint effort to assuresuccess in all phases of the MIVS project. Theseincluded design development, test verification, selectionof a manufacturer, and the use of advanced field logisticsand replacement practices to guarantee that a high levelof reliability would be maintained. (See box for a sum-mary of major activities.)

Organizing for success

Because of the importance of the film camera replace-ment activity, a special temporary working group was

established in July 1988. This group had to developrecommendations for the co-ordination of activitiesrequired for the replacement process, which started in1989 and will end in 1994. The group was composed ofstaff experienced in system development, safeguardsoperations, quality assurance, and procurement. Neces-sarily, substantial cross-functional and inter-organizational activities were involved in the initiative.

The group had direct responsibility for all the actionsrequired to define and develop recommendations cover-ing project tasks, resource requirements, project sched-ules, and allocation of responsibilities. In January 1989,the overall programme for implementation wasapproved. All activities to execute the programme arenow being conducted through normal line management.The group's chairman continues to monitor and reporton progress and specific issues as necessary.

The complexity of the programme required the appli-cation of an advanced personal computer software pack-age to achieve a well-structured and responsive projectplan which now covers more than 200 tasks.* The soft-ware contains proven and successful project manage-ment techniques. It can effectively and efficientlydevelop dependencies between tasks, i.e., the prece-dence relationships (links) of tasks, which make theproject structure responsive to any critical delays in theprogramme.

MIVS programme plan

In 1986 the Agency adopted an SNL-proposedprogramme plan which reflected 10 specific steps tomove MIVS all the way through successful fieldimplementation. The specific steps were initially definedby a 1982 advisory group as general activities requiredfor successful development and implementation ofsafeguards equipment. As applied to MIVS, these10 steps were broadly categorized as follows: identifica-tion of the need; assessment of State/facility operatorrequirements; formulation and approval of system speci-fication; formulation and approval of performance andreliability;certification test programme; prototype deve-lopment, testing, and demonstration; selection of a com-mercial supplier to manufacture 16 field evaluationunits; performance and reliability certification tests,including field evaluation; production ordering; andimplementation. * *

MIVS has now successfully advanced through thesestages and the first production unit has been installedon-site.

* "IAEA Film Camera Surveillance Development and Practice", byD.E. Rundquist and R.E. Kerr, ESARDA Proceedings (1980).

** "Future Trends in Compact TV Surveillance Systems", byK.-J. Gartner, B. Heaysman, and P. Vodrazka, INMM Proceedings(1985).

*** "Transition to CCTV Surveillance for Safeguards", by K.-J.Gartner, B. Heaysman, R.E. Kerr, and D.E. Rundquist, INMMProceedings (1987).

* "Replacement Programme Safeguards Surveillance Units", byK.-J. Gartner, INMM Proceedings (1989).

** "Program Plan for the Modular Integrated Video System", byK.-J. Gartner, B. Heaysman, R. Holt, and C.S. Sonnier, INMMProceedings (1986); and "The Modular Integrated Video System(MIVS) Program in Perspective", by S.L. Schneider, C.S. Sonnier,and K.-J. Gartner, INMM Proceedings (1988).

22 IAEA BULLETIN, 1/1990

Features

MIVS programme history, 1985-90: Summary of major activities

October 1985: An IAEA request is made for an MIVSprogramme task under the United States Support Programme.

February 1986: A proposal from Sandia National Laborato-ries (SNL) is submitted covering design and performancespecifications.

June 1986: A meeting at SNL finalizes the specifications.

July 1986: The IAEA's Deputy Director General forSafeguards formally accepts the specifications.

December 1986: An SNL proposed Certification Test Planis accepted by IAEA.

February 1987: An MIVS development prototype unit isdemonstrated at IAEA.

July 1987: An SNL contract for 16 units is signed with aeon-tractor. The units are to be used for reliability demonstrationand field test. Independent consultant planning begins for anMIVS low-risk transition system.

August 1987: SNL undertakes extensive VTR (Video TapeRecorder) testing.

March 1988: Sixteen MIVS units successfully pass the168-hour acceptance tests.

April 1988: A 5-month reliability test for 10 MIVS units startsat IAEA.

July 1988: The IAEA convenes a working group concerningthe replacement of existing film cameras with the new videosystem.

August 1988: MIVS computerized project planning isinitiated.

September 1988: The MIVS 5-month reliability test is con-cluded with successful results. A joint reliability statement isissued by IAEA and SNL.

November 1988: MIVS training for the IAEA inspectoratebegins.

December 1988: SNL/IAEA begin preparation of a requestfor bid document for MIVS production. SNL initiates MIVSdesign enhancements, and completes environmental testing oftwo MIVS units. A field commissioning test begins with the firstMIVS field installation.

February 1989: Field commissioning tests and inspectortraining continue.

April 1989: Request for bids for production of the MIVS areissued. The document includes special quality requirements.

June 1989: An SNL support function under the UnitedStates Support Programme is defined and approved.

July 1989: IAEA evaluation of prospective suppliers begins.An MIVS production contract is awarded.

August 1989: Further MIVS changes are made to enhanceproducibility.

September 1989: An initial "production prototype" unit isreceived by the contractor. Initial manufacturing and qualityplans are reviewed.

November 1989: The planning continues and includesspare parts logistics, projections of field reliability, IAEA testacceptance, and field installation practices.

December 1989: The first production unit is reviewed byIAEA at the contractor and shipped to the IAEA.

January 1990: The second and third production units areprepared for the preplanned environmental test.

February 1990: The first production unit is installed on site.

March 1990: The final version of the contractor's manufac-turing and quality plans are reviewed.

The MIVS was built by a team under contract to the IAEA at Aquila Technologies Group Inc. in the USA.

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Features

MIVS Low-Risk Transition System (LRTS)

As previously indicated, the importance and cost ofthe MIVS programme required that the Agency be confi-dent that low-risk had been achieved in MIVS transi-tional phases (transitional phases can be thought of as the10 steps outlined earlier).

In April 1987, a consultant was contracted under theUS safeguards support programme to work with IAEAstaff to draft such an LRTS*. The planning necessitatedan in-depth assessment of the risks associated with eachtransitional phase. In turn, this required the applicationof an existing best practice (or, if absent, the creation ofa new practice and application) until the risk wasminimized.

Use of this planning tool resulted in the identificationof 73 potential risks for the MIVS project, many ofwhich were already effectively covered by applied bestpractices and could therefore be discounted. Othersrequired the development of new and better practices forMIVS. These are in place and, with the exception ofsome residual work to be done on documentation andverification of the LRTS, this phase of the MIVS projectis considered complete.

Use of the LRTS tool proved to be invaluable, espe-cially as it applied to the production and implementationphases. The Agency is therefore planning to selectivelyapply the LRTS methodology to future equipmentdevelopment and implementation.

The MIVS production contractor

Before awarding the contract, the Agency's Depart-ments of Safeguards and Administration, assisted bydesign and quality assurance personnel from SNL,drafted a request for bid proposal. It included detailedrequirements for engineering services and maintenanceof high quality levels during MIVS manufacture.Requests for bids were then sent to several US andEuropean companies.

A major milestone was reached on 27 July 1989,when the Agency placed an order for production of theMIVS with Aquila Technologies Group Incorporated,Albuquerque, New Mexico. Selection of this companywas based on three factors: its major thrust was in thedevelopment of advanced video technology systemsemploying video disk and tape approaches; it hadunqualifiedly accepted the IAEA requirements formanufacturing, engineering, and quality controls asdetailed in the Agency's request for proposal and sup-porting quality documents; its bid price was highlycompetitive.

In support of the selected contractor, SNL wasappointed as the engineering and quality assurance over-sight body for the Agency at the production site. This

effort was administered under the US supportprogramme and further maintained through visits to theselected contractor by IAEA Department of Safeguardspersonnel. In turn, the contractor's senior managementhave visited the Agency twice since the contract wasawarded.

These efforts will continue for a substantial part ofthe decade as further MIVS and spare parts areproduced. In retrospect, these communication andco-ordination meetings have proven vital due to the com-plexity of the MIVS project.

Equipment design

MIVS is a microprocessor-controlled CCTV systemdesigned to operate at 5-minute intervals in an unat-tended surveillance mode over a 3-month inspection

Comparison of MIVS and 8-mm camera system

Characteristics8-mm camera(twin Minolta)

MIVS

* "Development of a Plan for Ensuring a Low-Risk Transition of theMIV System for Design, Test, Production into IAEA Implementa-tion", by E. Karlin, Report POTAS, Task D.60 (May 1989).

Recordingprinciple

Recorded scenesper single unit ofmedia

Inspection serviceinterval

Light sensitivity

Time/dateannotation

Camera location

Power supply

Field repairstrategy

Reliability

Investment costs

Running costsfilm-tape/90 days

Size (LxW xH)(mm2)

Operational weight

Two 8-mmfilm cameras

7200 (monochrome)3600 (colour)

25 days at a5-minute sceneinterval

Approximately25 lux

No

Fixed withrecording/controlin single console

2 dry-cell batteriesAA-size

Replace completesystem

0.98 at 90%confidence levelat 7000 scenes

About US $2300

US$10(unprocessed)

330x200x230

6.5 kg

Two 8-mmTV recorders

26 000 (mono-chrome)

90 days at a5-minute sceneinterval

Approximately0.05 lux

Yes

Can be up to 60 mfrom recording/control console

AC power,100-240 volt ACwith 3-hourbattery backup

Snap-in modulesfor display, power,and video taperecorder functions

Over 0.98 at 90%confidence levelat 26 000 scenes

About US $13 000

US $20

Control unit:640x500x160Camera:300x200x230

28 kg total

24 IAEA BULLETIN, 1/1990

Features

The MIVS went through extensive testing. Shown here is a technician testing the video tape recorder. (Credit: Aquila Technologies Group Inc.)

period.* It can be installed in those safeguarded facilitieswhere main system power is readily available, and insituations where it is desirable to have the TV cameraseparate from the recording and control equipment. Incase of a power failure, the system is equipped with abackup battery lasting at least 3 hours. (See accompany-ing table for the features and advantages of the MIVSover the 8-mm camera system.)

Modular concept and logistics. MIVS has a modularhardware structure to simplify maintenance and service.The two basic components of the MIVS are the cameramodule and the recording control unit. Both are con-tained in tamper-resistant housings which are kept underAgency seals.

The camera module consists of a CCD (charge cou-pled device) TV-camera and video authentication cir-cuitry. The recording control unit includes four moduleswhich can easily be replaced during normal inspection.These consist of one power supply module, one displaymodule, and two identical recorder modules. The powersupply module includes a universal AC/DC power sup-ply, a backup battery, and a paper printer for eventrecording, such as the number of recordings within the

inspection period and tamper events. The display mod-ule incorporates the complete system control, a liquidcrystal display (LCD) to support system set-up andinspection, and the receiving part of the authenticationcircuitry.

Video authentication. The camera module andrecording control unit are connected through a hybridcable (coaxial cable and a pair of copper wires) with amaximum length of 60 metres. The cable is assumed tobe accessible to third parties. Therefore, to assure thatthe video signals generated by IAEA TV cameras arerecorded without falsification, a sophisticated authenti-cation system is an integral part of MIVS.* Detectedevents that indicate tampering are recorded in a non-volatile memory and on video tape together with thevideo signal. All memory data are transferred to a paperprinter at each inspection visit.

Surveillance and redundant recorders. An importantcontributor to MIVS overall system reliability is itsvideo tape recorders (VTR) subsystem. Early in thedesign effort, it was recognized that these hard workingVTRs would require redundancy to assure maintenanceof MIVS surveillance.

* "A Video Authentication Technique", by C.S. Johnson, INMMProceedings (1987).

* "The Modular Integrated Video System (MIVS)", byS.L. Schneider and C.S. Sonnier, INMM Proceedings (1987).

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Features

The definition of surveillance maintenance isrigorous: the two VTRs alternately (and independently)record scenes and the requirement is that two successivescenes cannot be lost. Redundancy virtually assures thatthis will not occur from VTR mechanical or electronicfailure.

Conformance with this requirement was thoroughlyevaluated during the IAEA/SNL reliability tests of overthree million scenes recorded between April andSeptember 1988. Surveillance was never lost duringthis test. An additional 10 million scenes were recordedwith 165 VTRs by SNL in the 1986-89 period whileassessing the recorder's mechanical durability.

The analysis of this data, as well as that from VTRenvironmental tests, led to Agency development of amaintenance replacement policy of 2 years for VTRs inMIVS units deployed in the field. This policy also tookinto consideration issues of cost effectiveness.*

Surveillance record and review station. As an impor-tant part of the MIVS system, SNL developed a reviewstation to evaluate MIVS surveillance activities.**MIVS can record video scenes at any interval betweenl-to-99 minutes. Each recorded scene is annotated bytime and date, the scene number, and tamper events.

Four tamper events are defined: opening of the MIVSconsole; loss of electric power; video authenticationfailure; and trigger event recording.

The review station can process this information forthe inspector. It can summarize missed scenes, anytamper events, as well as any video loss exceeding15 seconds. The system can also be set up to automati-cally stop upon detecting one of these conditions, and toallow for manual verification, or it may update counts ofthe detected conditions without stopping.

As previously mentioned, all event data are alsostored in electronic memory. At the time of an inspec-tion visit, data is transferred to a paper printer to becomepart of the inspection report.

Summary

MIVS represents an important new surveillance sys-tem which is about to be deployed by the IAEA Depart-ment of Safeguards. Its development represents acollaborative, successful effort of government, privatefirms, and the Department of Safeguards.

Development and success were bolstered through theuse of tried and proven project and programme manage-ment techniques as well as application of the appropriateengineering and quality assurance tools.

As MIVS enters its deployment and implementationphase, there will be no slackening of these efforts.

* "Video Tape Recorder Reliability Requirements for the ModularIntegrated Video System (MIVS)", by E. Dawes, INMM Proceedings(1989).

** "Modular Integrated Video System (MIVS) Review Station", byM.L. Garcia, INMM Proceedings (1989).

26 IAEA BULLETIN, 1/1990