Control apparatus for nuclear reactor

Claim 1

IN A NUCLEAR REACTOR HAVING AN ARRAY OF ELONGATED NUCLEAR FUEL BARS DISPOSED IN SPACED RELATIONSHIP IN A PLURALITY OF PARALLEL ROWS, A FIRST MECHANICAL LINKAGE MEANS INTERCONNECTING THE BARS IN EACH ROW AND OPERABLE IN A FIRST DIRECTION FOR SIMUTANEOUSLY CHANGING THE POSITIONS OF THE BARS WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER IN EACH ROW, SAID FIRST MECHANICAL LINKAGE MEANS INCLUDING A SUPPORTING ROD FOR EACH ROW UPON WHICH THE FUEL BARS OF EACH ROW ARE MOUNTED FOR LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT THEREOVER, AND SAID LINKAGE INCLUDING MEANS FOR DISPLACING ALL THE FUEL BARS SIMULTANEOUSLY IN THE LONGITUDINAL DIRECTION OF SAID SUPPORTING RODS, AND A SECOND MECHANICAL LINKAGE MEANS OPERATIVE SIMULTANEOUSLY BUT IN A DIRECTION SUBSTANTIALLY AT RIGHT ANGLES TO SAID FIRST DIRECTION TO VARY THE SPACED RELATIONSHIP OF THE SUPPORTING RODS FOR THE ROWS OF FUEL BARS WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER, SAID SECOND MECHANICAL LINKAGE MEANS INTERCONNECTING SAID SUPPORTING RODS WITH ONE ANOTHER FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY MOVING ALL OF SAID SUPPORTING RODS SELECTIVELY TOWARD AND AWAY FROM EACH OTHER, WHEREBY THE OPERATION OF BOTH MECHANICAL LINKAGE MEANS MOVES THE ROWS OF FUEL BARS RELATIVELY TO EACH OTHER IN AND ALSO MOVES THE FUEL BARS RELATIVELY TO EACH OTHER IN THEIR RESPECTIVE ROWS TO VARY THE AREA OCCUPIED BY SAID ARRAY OF FUEL BARS.