A Bayesian Optimization AdaBN-DCNN Method with Self-Optimized Structure and Hyperparameters for Domain Adaptation Remaining Useful Life Prediction

The prediction of remaining useful life (RUL) of mechanical equipment provides a timely understanding of the equipment degradation and is critical for predictive maintenance of the equipment. In recent years, the applications of deep learning (DL) methods to predict equipment RUL have attracted much attention. There are two major challenges when applying the DL methods for RUL prediction: (1) It is difficult to select the prediction model structure and hyperparameters such as network depth, learning rate, batch size, and etc. (2) The developed prediction model is domain dependent, i.e., it can only give good prediction performance in one data domain (one particular type of working conditions and fault modes). In order to meet the challenges, a novel RUL prediction method developed using a deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) combined with Bayesian optimization and adaptive batch normalization (AdaBN) is presented in this paper. The proposed RUL prediction model is validated by the turbofan engine degradation simulation dataset provided by NASA. The prediction results show that the proposed prediction model provides better prediction results than model structures obtained by random search and grid search. The results also show that the domain adaptation capability of the prediction model has been improved.