This paper presents a novel framework for classifying ongoing conditions in centrifugal pumps based on signal processing and deep learning techniques. First, vibration signals are acquired from the centrifugal pump. The acquired vibration signals are heavily affected by macrostructural vibration noise. To overcome the influence of noise, pre-processing techniques are employed on the vibration signal, and a fault-specific frequency band is chosen. The Stockwell transform (S-transform) is then applied to this band, yielding S-transform scalograms that depict energy fluctuations across different frequencies and time scales, represented by color intensity variations. Nevertheless, the accuracy of these scalograms can be compromised by the presence of interference noise. To address this concern, an additional step involving the Sobel filter is applied to the S-transform scalograms, resulting in the generation of novel SobelEdge scalograms. These SobelEdge scalograms aim to enhance the clarity and discriminative features of fault-related information while minimizing the impact of interference noise. The novel scalograms heighten energy variation in the S-transform scalograms by detecting the edges where color intensities change. These new scalograms are then provided to a convolutional neural network (CNN) for the fault classification of centrifugal pumps. The centrifugal pump fault classification capability of the proposed method outperformed state-of-the-art reference methods.
Keywords: centrifugal pump; convolutional neural network; fault diagnosis; rotating machinery; stockwell transform; vibrational signals.