In this paper an integrated approach for on-line induction motor fault detection and diagnosis is presented. The need to insure a continuous and safety operation for induction motors involves preventive maintenance procedures combined with fault diagnosis techniques. The proposed approach uses an automatic three step algorithm. Firstly, the induction motor stator currents are measured which will give typical patterns that can be used to identify the fault. Secondly, the eigenvectors/eigenvalues of the 3D current referential are computed. Finally the proposed algorithm will discern if the motor is healthy or not and report the extent of the fault. Furthermore this algorithm is able to identify distinct faults (stator winding faults or broken bars). The proposed approach was experimentally implemented and its performance verified on various types of working conditions. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.