Liquid level sensor
First Claim
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1. A system for measuring the level of a liquid contained within a storage tank, comprising in combination:
- a target for being buoyantly supported by the liquid within the tank;
guide means for coupling to and guiding the movement of said target as it is displaced by any change in level of the liquid, said guide means including a first end thereof for being inserted into the liquid and a second end spaced therefrom so as to be outside of the liquid;
position calibration means coupled to said guide means and comprising a first stop means adjacent said first end and a second stop means spaced adjacent said second end so as to define calibrated limits of travel for said target as it moves along said guide means;
said guide means is removably coupled with the tank for allowing gravitational displacement and calibration of said target against said first stop means and against said second stop means; and
sensing means coupled to said guide means an in a known spatial relationship with the tank for acoustically sensing the distance to said target as it moves between said first and said second stop means, and thereby measuring the level of the liquid therein.
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Abstract
An apparatus and method for measuring the level of a liquid within a storage tank, including a target for being buoyantly supported near the surface of the liquid and an acoustic sensor for measuring the distance between a tank reference point and the target. The motion of the target induced by any change in level of the liquid is restrained along a known path so that the target distance is representative of the level of the liquid within the tank.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A system for measuring the level of a liquid contained within a storage tank, comprising in combination:
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a target for being buoyantly supported by the liquid within the tank; guide means for coupling to and guiding the movement of said target as it is displaced by any change in level of the liquid, said guide means including a first end thereof for being inserted into the liquid and a second end spaced therefrom so as to be outside of the liquid; position calibration means coupled to said guide means and comprising a first stop means adjacent said first end and a second stop means spaced adjacent said second end so as to define calibrated limits of travel for said target as it moves along said guide means; said guide means is removably coupled with the tank for allowing gravitational displacement and calibration of said target against said first stop means and against said second stop means; and sensing means coupled to said guide means an in a known spatial relationship with the tank for acoustically sensing the distance to said target as it moves between said first and said second stop means, and thereby measuring the level of the liquid therein. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A system for measuring the level of a liquid contained within a storage tank, comprising in combination:
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a target for being buoyantly supported by the liquid within the tank; a frame for defining therein an elongated chamber having a first end thereof submerged in the liquid for guiding therein the movement of said target in response to any change in the level of the liquid, position calibration means coupled to said frame, comprising a first calibration stop means adjacent said first end and a second calibration stop means spaced adjacent a second end of said chamber so as to define calibrated limits of travel for said target as it moves within said frame, and guide means removably coupled with the tank for allowing gravitational displacement and calibration of said target against said first stop means and against said second stop means, acoustic sensing means coupled in a known spatial relationship with said frame and the tank for acoustically sensing the distance to said target as it moves between said first and second calibration stop means and generating a location signal responsive thereto, and computation means coupled to said acoustic sensing means for calculating the level of the liquid within the tank. - View Dependent Claims (14)
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15. A method for measuring the level of a liquid within a storage tank, comprising the steps of:
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buoyantly supporting a target adjacent the surface of the liquid in the tank, guiding the movement of said target within a guide and along a known path in response to any change in level of the liquid, acoustically sensing the distance from the tank reference point to said target and generating a distance signal responsive thereto, converting said distance signal to provide a level signal representative of the level of the liquid with respect to the tank reference point, and initially calibrating said distance signal by removing said guide from the storage tank, gravitationally moving said target against a first stop adjacent a first end of said guide, gravitationally moving said target against a second stop spaced from said first end, and inserting said guide into said storage tank such that said first and second stops are maintained at a known spacing from said reference point. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17)
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Specification