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Tank gauging system and methods

  • US 4,748,846 A
  • Filed: 04/14/1987
  • Issued: 06/07/1988
  • Est. Priority Date: 10/14/1982
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A system for determining the amount of liquid in a tank comprising:

  • (a) support member;

    (b) a plurality of ultrasonic reflectors spaced at predetermied distances from each other along said support member, so that each of said reflectors lies at a predetermined height above the bottom of said tank;

    (c) transducer means positioned below said reflectors and located underneath the surface of and within said liquid in said tank and at a known height spaced from and above the bottom of said tank, said transducer means being operable for transmitting ultrasonic energy upwardly through said liquid towards the underside of said surface and for forming data signals representing the reflections of said transmitted energy off of the submerged ones of said plurality of reflectors and off of the surface of said liquid, and(d) control means for operating said transducer means, said control means including signal processing means for receiving said data signals from said transducer means, signal detection circuitry coupled to said signal processing means and including means for varying detection sensitivity in a predetermined sequence of successive steps of increasing sensitivity until said data siganls representing reflection of said transmitted energy off of said surface of said liquid are received and detected, means for computing an average velocity of said ultrasonic energy in said liquid from said detected data signals representative of reflections from the highest one of said submerged reflectors, for computing the height of said surface of said liquid from said bottom of said tank utilizing said computed average velocity and for thereby determining the amount of liquid in said tank.

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