Water leaks can be hard to hear
React AI were contracted by our client to advise on water leak classification based on acoustic signals. Our client has world-leading hydrophones which operate in groups and can accurately locate leaks by correlating the signals received across two hydrophones.
Detecting whether a signal is a large or small leak, however, is another matter: leak noise is often viewed in the industry as effectively random, since it varies day-to-day with water pressure; and small leaks rushing through a small hole can be just as loud as large leaks flowing more slowly through a larger hole. Our client wanted advice on using machine learning to classify the acoustic signals received: ideally directly to flow rate, though both pipe size and material offer useful guidance on which leaks are likely to be major.
