A NEURAL NETWORK APPROACH TO THE DETECTION OF INCIPIENT FAULTS ON POWER DISTRIBUTION FEEDERS

A high-impedance fault is an abnormal event on an electric power distribution feeder which can not be easily detected by conventional overcurrent protective devices. This paper describes a neural network strategy for the detection of this type of incipient fault. Neural networks are particularly well-suited for solving difficult signal processing and pattern recognition problems. An optimization technique allows a network to “learn” rules for solving a problem by processing a set of example cases. The data preprocessing required to set up the training cases and the implementation of the neural network itself are described in detail. The potential of the neural network approach is demonstrated by applying the detection scheme to high-impedance faults simulated on a model distribution system. © 1990 IEEE