18 Sep Buses Drive On With the FG4 Fuel Gauge for CNG Vehicles
Manufacturers are increasingly turning to reliable and simple to use Innovec products. Here is an example of such as it is used on State buses throughout Australia.
CUSTOMER CHALLENGE
Innovec was approached by the NSW STA (State Transit Authority) which operates Public Transport Buses across the Sydney Region. The STA had purchased a large quantity of buses from a European manufacturer to be powered from CNG (Compressed Natural Gas). The buses only had a driving range of 200Km. The buses were fitted with a fuel Gauge with a European LED display. This fuel gauge which may have performed fine in Northern Europe but in the higher ambient temperature and humidity of a Sydney summer suffered from over-heating in service with result the display went blank after one hour of operation meaning the fuel quantity could not be determined. This was deemed unacceptable to the STA.
PRODUCT SOLUTION
To solve this problem, the Innovec development team developed an entirely new product to suit the needs of the STA buses.
The FG4 was equipped with an encapsulated power supply module that would operate from 12-36 volts (much more advanced than the ageing model). The FG4 also has a Blue OLED display which equates to a lower power need, very easy to read high brightness display and thus ran much cooler. The fuel gauge also incorporates a low alarm relay. When the low alarm is activated the fuel gauge display shows Low Fuel Pressure to alert the driver!
MANUFACTURERS HAVE COME TO RELY ON INNOVEC TO SOLVE ONGOING RELIABILITY PROBLEMS OF ELECTRONIC INSTRUMENTATION. THE FG4 IS ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF INNOVEC’S INNOVATION.
RESULTS ACHIEVED
A cool running system is an essential asset for natural gas-run buses, they have a limited range, and need an accurate, easily read display for the driver and a reliable alarm system so as to avoid being left on low fuel away from a re-fueling station. Especially for an agency as accountable as the STA, reliability is a crucial aspect of why they turned to Innovec.
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