Patent Number: 052873900
Section: claims

1. An alarm system for alerting the operator of a nuclear power plant of abnormal operating conditions, the plant including a plurality of process parameter sensors each of which generates a condition signal for a given process parameter, wherein the alarm system comprises: a digital processor including means responsive to the condition signals, for computing a single representative condition signal for the parameter;  a display interface coupled to the digital processor, the interface including,  means for storing a complete message for each abnormal parameter condition that can activate an alarm tile;  means for associating each abnormal parameter condition and its stored complete message, with one tile image, whereby at least some of said tile images have a plurality of abnormal parameters conditions associated therewith;  touch sensitive means associated with each tile image, whereby the operator can acknowledge an activated tile image by touching said activated tile image;  means responsive to the touch sensitive means, for retrieving from said means for associating and displaying simultaneously on said display interface the complete messages for each parameter abnormal condition that caused the activation of the acknowledged tile image.  the display interface can generate at least two sequential pages of information, said first screen area of tile images being on the first page, and  the means for retrieving and displaying the complete messages, can replace the tile images in the first screen area of the first page with a second page defining said second screen area containing the display of the complete messages for each abnormal condition parameter that caused the activation of the acknowledged tile.  a first number of discrete, activatable alarm tiles clustered within a display area of the control room;  means for storing a second number of discrete messages corresponding respectively to a second number of possible abnormal conditions of a like number of operating parameters in the power plant and associating each message with one of the alarm tiles such that at least some of the alarm tiles have a plurality of messages associated therewith;  means for monitoring the condition of each said parameter and activating the alarm tile upon the occurrence of an abnormal condition;  means for alerting the operator by audible tone that a new alarm has been activated in the display area;  means for informing the operator about the nature of the abnormal condition, by presenting a brief cue to the operator on the activated alarm tile;  means for the operator to acknowledge the new alarm, by touching the activated alarm tile;  means responsive to the acknowledgement touch, for guiding the operator toward corrective action by presenting in the display area, each message that is associated with the existing alarm status of the tile that was acknowledged, and thereafter confirming whether correction of the abnormal condition has occurred by presenting in the display area, each message associated with the reset alarm status of the tile that was acknowledged.  a first display containing a plurality of alarm tile images;  means for selecting one of the tile images; and  a second display containing at least one message that is uniquely associated with only said selected one of the tile images. 2. The alarm system of claim 1, wherein the number of abnormal parameter conditions having respective complete messages is greater than the number of tile images in the first screen area, and the alarm system includes, 3. The alarm system of claim 2, wherein 4. The alarm system of claim 3, wherein the display interface has a third page, and the system has means for retrieving and displaying on the third page of said display interface from said means for associating, all the complete messages for the parameters that are associated with the acknowledged tile image. 5. The alarm system of claim 3, wherein the second display page includes a tile image of only the tile that was acknowledged on the first page. 6. The alarm system of claim 4, wherein the third display page includes a tile image of only the tile that was acknowledged on the first page. 7. An alarm system in the operator's control room of a nuclear power plant, comprising: 8. The system of claim 7, including means for selecting a particular tile in said display area and displaying all messages that are associated with the selected tile. 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the display of all messages includes a status code adjacent each message associated with an existing alarm tile. 10. An alarm display device for a nuclear power plant, comprising 11. The alarm display device of claim 10, wherein the first display is in a first area of one display page and the second display is in a second area of said one display page. 12. The alarm display device of claim 10, wherein the first display is on a first display page and the second display is on a second display page of the display device.