Ultrasonic fuel level monitoring device
First Claim
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1. A method of determining the level of liquid mass in a storage tank by use of an externally mounted ultrasonic transducer, comprising:
- transmitting pulses of acoustical energy at an operating frequency into the liquid mass;
timing the arrival of return echoes of the transmitted pulses; and
altering the operating frequency of the transmitted pulses by,transmitting pulses a plurality of times at the operating frequency into the liquid mass,determining whether each transmitted pulse results in a miss count or in an echo,determining a miss count versus echo ratio,determining if the ratio is acceptable, andresetting the operating frequency.
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Abstract
The invention describes a method of altering the transmitted frequency used in an ultrasonic ranging system for liquid level measurement in a fuel tank. The frequency agility of the system is an important component of performing liquid level measurement in an enclosed vessel.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A method of determining the level of liquid mass in a storage tank by use of an externally mounted ultrasonic transducer, comprising:
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transmitting pulses of acoustical energy at an operating frequency into the liquid mass; timing the arrival of return echoes of the transmitted pulses; and altering the operating frequency of the transmitted pulses by, transmitting pulses a plurality of times at the operating frequency into the liquid mass, determining whether each transmitted pulse results in a miss count or in an echo, determining a miss count versus echo ratio, determining if the ratio is acceptable, and resetting the operating frequency. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method of determining the level of liquid in a storage tank by use of an externally mounted ultrasonic transducer comprising:
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determining an operating frequency for the ultrasonic transducer by, establishing a range of frequencies to be tested, testing a plurality of frequencies from the range to determine if each frequency generates an echo, determining the widest subrange of frequencies that each generated an echo, and setting the operating frequency as a frequency within the widest subrange of frequencies; transmitting pulses of acoustical energy into the liquid mass at the operating frequency; and timing the arrival of echoes of the transmitted pulses. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9)
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10. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer readable instruction code for performing a method of determining the level of liquid mass in a storage tank by use of an externally mounted ultrasonic transducer, the method comprising:
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transmitting pulses of acoustical energy at an operating frequency into the liquid mass; timing the arrival of return echoes of the transmitted pulses; and altering the operating frequency of the transmitted pulses by, transmitting pulses a plurality of times at the operating frequency into the liquid mass, determining whether each transmitted pulse results in a miss count or in an echo, determining a miss count versus echo ratio, determining if the ratio is acceptable, and resetting the operating frequency. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer readable instruction code for performing a method of determining the level of liquid in a storage tank by use of an externally mounted ultrasonic transducer, the method comprising:
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determining an operating frequency for the ultrasonic transducer by, establishing a range of frequencies to be tested, testing a plurality of frequencies from the range to determine if each frequency generates an echo, determining the widest subrange of frequencies that each generated an echo, and setting the operating frequency as a frequency within the widest subrange of frequencies; transmitting pulses of acoustical energy into the liquid mass at the operating frequency; and timing the arrival of echoes of the transmitted pulses. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification