Gauging method for a plastic fuel tank of a hybrid vehicle

• US 9,523,600 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2012
• Issued: 12/20/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Plastic Omnium Advanced Innovation and Research
• Original Assignee: Inergy Automotive Systems Research (Societe Anonyme) (Solvac SA)
• Inventors: Criel, Bjorn, Cuvelier, Vincent
• Primary Examiner(s): Macchiarolo, Peter
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kolb, Nathaniel
• Application Number:
  US14/356,734
• Publication Number:
  US 20140298885A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,504 Days
• Field of Search: 73/17.3, 73291-334
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 23/00 Indicating or measuring liquid level or level of fluent solid material, e.g. indicating in terms of volume or indicating by means of an alarm
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 25/0084 for measuring volume
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 25/20 of apparatus for measuring liquid level

Abstract

A gauging method for a plastic fuel tank mounted on a hybrid vehicle, the tank including a reservoir including a gauge for measuring an amount of fuel in the tank, the method including: measuring the amount of fuel in the tank using the gauge; estimating deformation of the tank using at least one sensor onboard the vehicle; and correcting the amount measured by the gauge based on the estimated deformation.

Claims

1. A gauging method for a plastic fuel tank mounted on a hybrid vehicle, the tank including a gauge that allows a volume of fuel present in the tank to be measured, the method comprising:

measuring the volume of fuel present in the tank using the gauge;

estimating a deformation of the tank using at least one on-board sensor carried on board the vehicle, the at least one on-board sensor including a working-life meter; and

correcting the volume measured by the gauge based on the estimated deformation.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the tank is made of PEHD or high density polyethylene and includes a barrier layer of EVOH or ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one on-board sensor is also used on the vehicle for a function other than gauging, or is used for testing a fuel system.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, further using a pressure sensor or a temperature sensor.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, using at once a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, and the working-life meter.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one on-board sensor is associated with the fuel tank.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, using calibration tables, and/or curves, and/or formulae obtained by experimental measurement and/or numerical simulation.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7, applied to the fuel system by a processor that may be incorporated into an on-board computer of the vehicle or by a processor specific to the fuel system.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the calibration tables, curves, and/or formulae are stored in a memory of the processor and at least one software package uses these to correct a value read by the gauge and to calculate the volume of fuel present in the tank.

10. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the tank includes plural sensors, and wherein the plural sensors are connected to the vehicle on-board computer using an electrical network.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the vehicle on-board computer includes plural distinct physical entities carrying information between them using electrical networks containing analog connections, digital connections, or field buses that are multiplexed.