Big Data Analytics for Pipe Damage and Risk Identification

In this thesis, Inception V3, a convolutional neural network model from Google, was partially retrained to categorize pipeline images based on their damage modes. The images for different damage modes of the pipeline were simulated through MATLAB to represent image data collected from in-line pipe inspection. The final convolutional layer of the model was retrained with the simulated pipeline images using TensorFlow as the base platform. First, a small-scale retraining was done with real images and simulated images to compare the differences in performance. Then, using simulated images, a 2^5 full factorial design of experiment and individual parametric studies were performed on five different chosen parameters, including training steps, learning rate, batch size, training data size and image noise. The effect of each parameter on the performance of the model was evaluated and analyzed. It is crucial to understand that due to the nature of the experiment, the learnings may or may not apply to neural network models trained for other tasks. After analyzing the results, the effects and trade-offs for each parameter are discussed in detail. In addition, a method of predicting the training time was proposed. Based on the findings, an optimized model was proposed for this training exercise, with 1180 training steps, a learning rate of 0.01, a batch size of 100 and a training data set of 200 images. The optimized model reached 87.2% accuracy with a training time of 2 minutes and 6 seconds. This study will enhance our understanding in applying machine learning techniques in damage and risk identification.