Insulator detection and recognition of explosion based on convolutional neural networks

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) equipped with high definition (HD) cameras can obtain a large number of detailed inspection images. The insulator is an indispensable component in the transmission lines. Detecting insulator in image video quickly and accurately can provide a reliable basis for the ranging and the obstacle avoidance flight of UAV close to the tower and transmission line. At the same time, the insulator is a serious threat to the safety of the power grid due to the multiple faults of the insulator, and the computer technology should be fully utilized to diagnose the fault. Detection of the insulator images with the complex aerial background is implemented by constructing a convolutional neural network (CNN), which has the classic architecture of five modules of convolution and pooling, two modules of fully connected layers. In this paper, we propose a recognition algorithm for explosion fault based on saliency detection, which uses the trained network model to extract the features. Then, we put the saliency maps into a self-organizing feature map (SOM) network and build the mathematical module via super pixel segmentation, contour detection and other image processing methods. The test shows that the algorithm can reduce the error that may be caused by manual analysis. It also demonstrates that the detection of the insulator and the recognition of explosion fault can effectively improve the efficiency and intelligence level.