Fuel level sensor

Fuel sensors are a vital component for tracking the fuel levels of various vehicles and static tanks. With the help of platform algorithms, fuel consumption levels, refueling and discharges can be monitored through the data collected by these sensors. Efficient utilization of this data can lead to significant cost savings by preventing fuel losses and identifying vehicles with excessive fuel consumption, whose profits fail to meet expectations. By leveraging the insights provided by fuel sensors, you can stay ahead of any potential issues and optimize your fuel consumption, thereby boosting overall profitability.

Fuel level sensors come in various types and each serves a particular purpose. You can find detailed information about them in our Academy. For the purpose of this article, we will be focusing on the fuel operation of the platform. Additionally, we will be discussing the fuel sensor settings and the impact that they have on the overall fuel management process.

What the fuel sensor readings depend on

The accuracy of fuel data displayed is dependent on several factors including:

• The fuel level sensor - what kind and how well it is able to read from the tank, and how well it interacts with the GPS tracker.
• Tank sensor installation - if you have a non-standard tank or require a non-standard installation, it is best to consult with the manufacturer on how to install such a sensor.
• Device-side settings - make sure that the sensor is configured and the device sends its data to the platform. It is desirable not to do additional calibrations on the device side, but to do it directly on the platform.
• Settings on the platform side - not only the readings in the widgets depend on them, but also the operation of draining and refueling alerts and fuel level reports. By optimizing these settings, it becomes easier to identify anomalies and irregularities in fuel data readings that may require further attention.

Sensor creation

Fuel sensors are a type of measuring sensor that can be created on a GPS tracking platform. To create a fuel sensor, navigate to the Device Management section and click on the Sensors and Buttons panel. Next, click on the + icon and select "measurement sensor" from the dropdown menu.

Fuel sensor settings

Once you choose Fuel Level as the sensor type, additional settings will appear. The complete list of options for the fuel sensor includes:

• Sensor name - assign a clear and convenient name for the sensor. This name will be visible on widgets, reports, and rules to help you easily identify the sensor.
• Input - select the input from which the device transmits fuel data.
• Units – select a unit of measure.
• Accuracy - this refers to the specified percentage used to calculate the absolute error in tank volume. This error value will be used to compute the amount for refills and drains.
• Thresholds for drain detection - are used to define fuel consumption in reports. These thresholds differ depending on whether the report is built based on time or mileage.
  • By time - for reports based on time, maximum allowable flow rate is measured in units per hour and can be set in the sensor settings. If it is not set, the default value is 120 units per hour. This value should be set a few percentage points higher than the likely consumption rate during heavy loads or when the vehicle is ascending uphill. It is used when the X-axis on the graph is based on time.
  • By mileage - for reports based on mileage, the maximum allowable fuel consumption rate is measured in units per 100 km. This value must be manually entered and should not be based solely on the manufacturer's specified fuel consumption rate. We recommend conducting tests and verifying the actual fuel consumption rate recorded in the reports, then set the necessary values accordingly for maximum accuracy.
• Ignore in movement - the platform will automatically exclude any drains and refills that occur during movement from rules and reports. Movement is determined by the Parking Detection setting.
  • Drains – drains in movement will be excluded.
  • Refills – refills in movement will be filtered.
  • Filter timeout - This setting appears when the Ignore feature is enabled. It determines the timeout period in minutes that will be used to shorten the driving intervals for fuel filtering. This option can be helpful if the fuel level stabilizes only after some time has passed since refueling, and the vehicle has already started moving. This is more commonly seen in vehicles with large fuel tanks. The default setting for this feature is 5 minutes.
• Calibration table - this parameter is used to convert the sensor readings into desired units such as liters. Some sensor manufacturers may provide the conversion values for the table. However, in most situations, calibration will be necessary in order to achieve accurate readings.
  • Tank volume - is the maximum volume of the tank, which is specified in units in the calibration table. If calibration values are not specified, the default value of 100 is assumed, which indicates that the data is being transmitted in percentage.
  • Even if your sensor already sends data to the platform in liters, it is better to specify the calibration as 0 = 0 liters and maximum fuel tank capacity = X liters.
  • If it is a sensor that transmits fuel level information in percentages, specify calibration 0 = 0 liters and 100 = maximum fuel tank capacity in liters.
• Advanced settings - are below the calibration table.
  • Ignore values - values should be specified the same way they come to the platform from the device.
    • Less - the filter can be used to ignore any readings that fall below a certain threshold, X. This is helpful in situations where a sensor's readings may fall below a certain value. For example, a loose wire or a sensor that sends a reading of 0 when the ignition is switched off.
    • More - the filter can be used to ignore any readings that exceed a certain threshold, X. This is valuable when dealing with sensors whose readings may occasionally increase dramatically. For example, if an error is detected or if there is a higher voltage than expected.
  • Multiplier - multiply the resulting values by a certain coefficient. If you want to divide values, use decimals.

How fuel works on the platform

Receiving and processing fuel data

The platform reads and saves fuel sensor readings as they are received from the devices. Data from fuel sensors is only saved once a fuel sensor has been created in the system.

Filters for minima and maxima, calibration tables, and other sensor settings are only applied when the data is being output. As a result, you can change the settings at any time and rebuild the reports to see how the changes have affected the saved data. This provides flexibility in terms of configuration and ensures that the data is always up-to-date with the latest settings.

Drains and refills in rules

Rules for draining and refueling are based on the calibration table and absolute error, which is calculated as

tank volume * accuracy

The platform will record the last current reading of the sensor for a ten-minute span. Based on this reading, the following events will be triggered:

• If the fuel level has increased by more than the absolute error, a "filling" event will be recorded.
• If the fuel level has decreased by more than the absolute error, a "draining" event will be recorded.

For instance, if the tank capacity is 100 liters and the accuracy is 5%, a 5-liter change in fuel level within a 10-minute timeframe will trigger the rule.

Refills and drains in reports

The reporting system provides a more advanced method of analysis as it relies on a larger pool of saved data. All parameters are taken into account in the report analysis.

The platform uses the rate of fuel level decrease and absolute error to identify and register fuel drains. A "drain" occurs when the fuel level decreases by more than the absolute error within the specified thresholds for drains by time or mileage (if set). The threshold selected for analysis will determine the X-axis of the graph.

In the report, a "filling" event is recorded when the fuel level increases by more than the absolute error. The platform will group consecutive filling or draining events, meaning that if the same condition is triggered repeatedly, the platform will group them into a single large filling or draining event.

Ignoring refills and drains in motion

Once you have enabled one or both options for ignoring - the next algorithm will be used for reports and alerts in addition to standard:

• If a drain or refill started when the movement registered by the Parking detection settings - it will be filtered and not registered.
• If a drain or refill started when the device stopped without speed for less than configured in Parking detection settings - they will be filtered as well.
• If a device started to move and fuel level started to increase before Filter timeout - this refill will be registered.
• If a device was stopped for more time than specified in Parking detection settings and refill or drain started this moment - the platform will register that refill or drain for reports and rules.