Fault detection and diagnostic system

Project Title

Fault detection and diagnostic system

Project Area of Specialization Electrical/Electronic EngineeringProject Summary

In the 21st century due to the growing population and industries energy demand is on the rise. Moreover, fulfilling the increasing demand environmental problem is also a big challenge due to the burning of fossil fuels. So, all the existing infrastructure needs to be improved to an efficient system. Smart Grid is the step towards optimal power utilization.  A smart meter is one of the crucial parts of a smart grid which deals directly at the consumer end along with the option of net metering that gives power back to the grid when load consumption is low and production is high at the consumer e.g. Solar panels. This also saves power and reduces the energy cost for the consumer. Although smart meters are evolving very quickly in terms of the services and facilitation in home automation there is very less awareness and understanding regarding the common electrical faults on the user side. Quite often, the consumer has to wait a long time for the technical help to arrive, for a small fault which can easily be removed by the consumer. Especially, a technician may use this lack of awareness to charge an extra amount for removing even a small fault. Also, there is always a case of power theft, which is common in underdeveloped countries. Therefore, there is a need to design a fault diagnostic kit that can help the consumers to understand and diagnose the common faults.

 The research focus will be the development of a system that can facilitate the consumers/users to detect common faults and self-diagnose the reason behind these common faults in smart meters. In this research, a user-friendly prototype will be designed that is capable of identifying and analyzing some commonly occurring software and hardware problems in smart meters. Additionally, it will help the user to identify power theft and over-billing issues.

The proposed system will first acquire and analyze the data from the smart meter. Then, it will identify the fault based on mathematical models, and fault identification logic and take remedial action using modern control techniques e.g. State Estimators for fault detection and diagnostic action. Safety and reliability are absolutely important for modern sophisticated systems and technologies. Therefore, malfunction monitoring capabilities will be installed in the system for detection of incipient faults and anticipation of their impact on the future behavior of the system using fault diagnosis techniques. This will not only help the consumers to reduce the downtime on the premises but increase the overall awareness to better deal with electrical system faults and failures.

Project Objectives

The project aim is to design a fault detection and diagnostic system for a smart meter.

• The main objectives of the system are to identify and diagnose:
  • Load altering,
  • Overbilling issues
  • Power Failure
  • Calibration error
  • Subassembly malfunction
  • Subassembly failure
  • Power theft

Project Implementation Method

The prototype will consist of fault detection and diagnostic system. Two digital meters will be used for this purpose meter 1 and meter 2. Meter 1 is the main meter and meter 2 will be used as a backup meter. These meters can measure the current and voltages. This data will be displayed on a laptop or PC through a Data Acquisition Card (DAQ), which is an interface between meter and PC. DAQ card can operate at a maximum of 10 volts and 20 mA current, so two transformers will be used to scale down the current and voltage. LabView software will be used to make a simulation(logic) that detects seven Real-time faults, identify and diagnose them accordingl

Benefits of the Project

• Self-Independent at the consumer end
• Consumer awareness
• Tunes the meter for better performance of fault detection and diagnostics
•  Take pre-emptive measures to control the damage. It will protect the system from disaster
•  Reduce Downtime and take quick action

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

Hardware:

• WIFI Smart Switch Electricity Meter (Main Meter):

            (model# ZMAi-90) (Range: 90-250VAC, 50/60HZ,60 A, 1200imp/kwh)

• Backup Meter:

             (model#KWS-AC300-10A), (Range:50-300VAC,10A)

• NI DAQ Card (NI USB 6001)
• Transformer (Max Range:10VAC,20mA) LabVIEW

Software:

• LabVIEW
• NI LabView Modules (Sound and Vibration, Math Script, Advanced Signal Processing, Real Time Module, Digital Filter Design, Control Design and Simulation)

Final Deliverable of the Project HW/SW integrated systemCore Industry Energy Other Industries Others Core Technology Artificial Intelligence(AI)Other Technologies OthersSustainable Development Goals Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, Sustainable Cities and CommunitiesRequired Resources

Item Name	Type	No. of Units	Per Unit Cost (in Rs)	Total (in Rs)
			Total in (Rs)	80000
Smart Meter (Digital Meter)	Equipment	1	12000	12000
NI DAQ Card (NI USB 6001)	Equipment	1	50000	50000
Backup Meter	Equipment	1	8000	8000
Transformer	Miscellaneous	1	10000	10000
Smart Meter (Digital Meter)	Equipment	0	0	0
NI DAQ Card (NI USB 6001)	Equipment	0	0	0
Backup Meter	Equipment	0	0	0
Transformer	Miscellaneous	0	0	0
Smart Meter (Digital Meter)	Equipment	0	0	0
NI DAQ Card (NI USB 6001)	Equipment	0	0	0
Backup Meter	Equipment	0	0	0
Transformer	Miscellaneous	0	0	0