Optimized Ensemble Extreme Learning Machine for Classification of Electrical Insulators Conditions

The classification of distinct problems of insulators in the distribution networks is a task that requires operator's experience. The applications of techniques to automate the inspection of electrical systems with the objective of detecting faults in insulators have shown to be reasonable alternatives to improve reliability in power grid. In this paper, based on the development of an experimental setup, signals are acquired considering three distinct faults in insulators. In this case, 13.8 kV (rms) is applied in drilled, contaminated, and good insulators considering an ultrasound detector connected to a computer. In the sequence, a multiclass classification method is proposed considering the ensemble of classifiers. The method considers the association of five distinct techniques, Bottom-Up segmentation, wavelet energy coefficient, principal component analysis, and particle swarm optimization associated with ensemble extreme learning machine (EN-ELM). Named optimized ensemble extreme learning machine, the present approach outperforms the original EN-ELM method. Finally, results show significant increase in robustness and faster training procedure when compared to classical approaches.