A new interpretable fault diagnosis method based on belief rule base and probability table

Abstract

It is vital to establish an interpretable fault diagnosis model for critical equipment. Belief Rule Base (BRB) is an interpretable expert system gradually applied in fault diagnosis. However, the expert knowledge cannot be utilized to establish the initial BRB accurately if there are multiple referential grades in different fault features. In addition, the interpretability of BRB-based fault diagnosis is destroyed in the optimization process, which reflects in two aspects: deviation from the initial expert judgment and over-optimization of parameters. To solve these problems, a new interpretable fault diagnosis model based on BRB and probability table, called the BRB-P, is proposed in this paper. Compared with the traditional BRB, the BRB-P constructed by the probability table is more accurate. Then, the interpretability constraints, i.e., the credibility of expert knowledge, the penalty factor and the rule-activation factor, are inserted into the projection covariance matrix adaption evolution strategy to maintain the interpretability of BRB-P. A case study of the aerospace relay is conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.