Bearing Fault Diagnosis Using a Hybrid Fuzzy V-Structure Fault Estimator Scheme

Bearings are critical components of motors. However, they can cause several issues. Proper and timely detection of faults in the bearings can play a decisive role in reducing damage to the entire system, thereby reducing economic losses. In this study, a hybrid fuzzy V-structure fuzzy fault estimator was used for fault diagnosis and crack size identification in the bearing using vibration signals. The estimator was designed based on the combination of a fuzzy algorithm and a V-structure approach to reduce the oscillation and improve the unknown condition’s estimation and prediction in using the V-structure method. The V-structure surface is developed by the proposed fuzzy algorithm, which reduces the vibrations and improves the stability. In addition, the parallel fuzzy method is used to improve the robustness and stability of the V-structure algorithm. For data modeling, the proposed combination of an external autoregression error, a Laguerre filter, and a support vector regression algorithm was employed. Finally, the support vector machine algorithm was used for data classification and crack size detection. The effectiveness of the proposed approach was evaluated by leveraging the vibration signals provided in the Case Western Reserve University bearing dataset. The dataset consists of four conditions: normal, ball failure, inner fault, and outer fault. The results showed that the average accuracy of fault classification and crack size identification using the hybrid fuzzy V-structure fuzzy fault estimation algorithm was 98.75% and 98%, respectively.