Fault detection in induction motors and the impact on the kinematic chain through thermographic analysis

•This methodology allows both a non-invasive monitoring and diagnosis.•Temperature affectation of kinematic chain components is analysed.•Thermographic analysis for fault detection in the motor kinematic chain is established.•Thermographic coefficient indexes are proposed for severity diagnosis.

Thermographic analysis has been considered a technique that can be used in fault diagnosis with the advantage of being non-invasive and having a wide range of analysis. Nevertheless, other techniques such as motor current signature analysis (MCSA) and vibration analyses are still preferred. Regrettably, these techniques focus only on the detection of specific faults dismissing the repercussion of the induction motor parts and the elements of their kinematic chain. This work presents a methodology based on thermographic image segmentation for fault detection in induction motors, and the repercussion of these faults along the kinematic chain.

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