Modern cable-fault-location methods

The modern method of effective cable-fault location is to establish an approximate fault locality and then to accurately confirm the fault position. The paper reviews fault-location methods developed over the past few years, these have proved to be very accurate and generally quicker than classical methods. The main causes of failure are analysed and, since the majority of cable faults occur on the electricity-supply distribution systems, the scope is limited to the location of faults on h.v. and m.v. cables and associated pilot cables. Present equipment limitations mean that a complete fault-location system is achieved only by combining different equipment and different methods. However, until a reliable universal fault locator has been developed, cable-fault location will remain an art rather than a science, particularly in the field of m.v./l.v. cable faults. Future developments are suggested for locating faults on m.v. networks which generally present a special problem.