This work presents a method for preventing faults in cables prior to their happening, e.g.due to wire ageing and mounting xtures. The proposed method focus in large diametercables delivering high currents in aircraft. However, this method could be useful in otherscenarios where wiring problems could cause critical problems such as in nuclear powerplants, automobiles or trains.The method consists of a sensor embedded in the cable. The sensor is made of severalthin wires wrapped around the insulator of the monitoring cable in a mesh grid pattern.The cable with the embedded sensor is then covered with a second layer of insulation.Measuring the equivalent resistance of the sensor, allows to determine the health of thecable, as a fault would also damage the sensor changing its equivalent resistance. Cha ngfaults, e.g. caused by wires rubbing against each other or bare wiring contact to groundor with the chassis of the vehicle, are analysed. The sensor equivalent resistance for eachtype of fault and its distance from the measurement system is characterized, enablinglocalization and prevention of wiring malfunctions.A complete prototype of the system is described, including the hardware and softwarecomponents of the sensor.Additionally, the system is tested to verify operation in a environment similar to theone experienced in an aircraft.This work was developed as part of an internship in the company Active SpaceTechnologies.
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