Efficient Fault Detection and Categorization in Electrical Distribution Systems Using Hessian Locally Linear Embedding on Measurement Data

Abstract: Faults on electrical power lines could severely compromise both the reliability and safety of power systems, leading to unstable power delivery and increased outage risks. They pose significant safety hazards, necessitating swift detection and mitigation to maintain electrical infrastructure integrity and ensure continuous power supply. Hence, accurate detection and categorization of electrical faults are pivotal for optimized power system maintenance and operation. In this work, we propose a novel approach for detecting and categorizing electrical faults using the Hessian locally linear embedding (HLLE) technique and subsequent clustering with t-SNE (t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding) and Gaussian mixture model (GMM). First, we employ HLLE to transform high-dimensional (HD) electrical data into low-dimensional (LD) embedding coordinates. This technique effectively captures the inherent variations and patterns in the data, enabling robust feature extraction. Next, we perform the Mann-Whitney U test based on the feature space of the embedding coordinates for fault detection. This statistical approach allows us to detect electrical faults providing an efficient means of system monitoring and control. Furthermore, to enhance fault categorization, we employ t-SNE with GMM to cluster the detected faults into various categories. To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, we conduct extensive simulations on an electrical system integrated with solar farm. Our results demonstrate that the proposed approach exhibits effective fault detection and clustering across a range of fault types with different variations of the same fault. Overall, this research presents an effective methodology for robust fault detection and categorization in electrical systems, contributing to the advancement of fault management practices and the prevention of system failures.