[en] The versatility of drones is one of the strengths that have led to the rapid development of this technology, as they adapt relatively easily to new applications, presenting considerable advantages such as greater energy efficiency, longer life and a significant lower operation cost than manned systems. The current applications of the drones, in addition to the military, are very wide and varied. The nuclear industry represents an important area of opportunity for drones, mainly in response to radiological emergencies, since in this case there is a latent risk of the general population being exposed to high radiation doses. Drones can be used in environments with high chemical and radiological toxicity without endangering human lives. Some of the possible applications of the drones in a nuclear power plant are: perimeter surveillance in physical security, where equipped with a high definition camera can be used as support to physical security systems in general; visual inspection at sites, structures, equipment and pipelines, etc., as part of preventive maintenance in order to avoid the loss of material due to corrosion, oxidation, cracking, subsidence; the visual inspection through thermo-graphic images to be able to detect hot spots in some critical element; measurement and radiological mapping on surfaces to maintain monitoring of radiological safety at nuclear power plant facilities; the monitoring of environmental parameters and the Environmental Impact Assessment to obtain important information to determine the environmental impact of a given area; and accident support by providing information that allows staff to size the magnitude of the damage. (Author)

[en] En 2011, Mexico won the Colombian international tender for the renewal of instrumentation and control of the IAN-R1 Reactor, to Argentina and the United States. This paper presents the design criteria and the development made for the new digital control system installed in the Colombian nuclear reactor IAN-R1, which is based on a redundant and diverse architecture, which provides increased availability, reliability and safety in the reactor operation. This control system and associated instrumentation met all national export requirements, with the safety requirements established by the IAEA as well as the requirements demanded by the Colombian Regulatory Body in nuclear matter. On August 20, 2012, the Colombian IAN-R1 reactor reached its first criticality controlled with the new system developed at Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ). On September 14, 2012, the new control system of the Colombian IAN-R1 reactor was officially handed over to the Colombian authorities, this being the first time that Mexico exported nuclear technology through the ININ. Currently the reactor is operating successfully with the new control system, and has an operating license for 5 years. (Author)