Cies Fuel Floats

[Bob - S50]

CiES makes magnetically based fuel floats that are supposed to be more accurate and consistent than the resistance based floats we currently use.  Their floats are currently used in Cirrus aircraft.

 

Just for grins I wrote and asked if they plan to make their floats available for older certified aircraft, specifically Mooney.  They wrote back and said they have a design and verbal agreement with Mooney so stand by.

 

Combined with a compatible indicator such as that made by Aerospace Logic, it could finally give us a reliable and accurate fuel gauge.

 

Just saying.

 

Bob

[larryb]

Do you know any details about their design? My boat has a magnetically based float. It's a series of reed switches inside a plastic tube with a magnet float that slides up and down. The downside is, it only reads in 1/8 tank increments. So the gauge is constantly bouncing between settings as the boat moves in the water. Hopefully they have a better design than this.

[Bob - S50]

Do you know any details about their design? My boat has a magnetically based float. It's a series of reed switches inside a plastic tube with a magnet float that slides up and down. The downside is, it only reads in 1/8 tank increments. So the gauge is constantly bouncing between settings as the boat moves in the water. Hopefully they have a better design than this.

Here is their website:

 

http://www.ciescorp.com/

 

They say:

 

"A CiES Fuel Level Sender utilizes at minimum 3 to 4 times more information to characterize your tank and deliver improved information over a traditional resistive gauge and offers demonstrable improvements over capacitive fuel level systems."

 

and

 

"This CiES Fuel Level Sender technology has the following characteristics that make it ideal for aviation applications:

• Accurate and reliable
• Mechanically robust – no wiping or sliding contacts
• Intrinsically safe – no electrical contact to the fuel system – passive measurement
• Wear-free operation
• Reading independent of voltage input
• Accuracy independent of mechanical tolerances,
• Extended temperature range"

and

 

"3,800 distinct points for 80 degrees of travel possible"

 

It is apparently based on the fact that the resistance of a material changes when it is exposed to a magnetic field.

 

Bob

[orionflt]

EI offers magnetic float sensors for the MVP-50 and CGR-30, I installed them in my C model and I love them.

Brian

[Bob - S50]

EI offers magnetic float sensors for the MVP-50 and CGR-30, I installed them in my C model and I love them.

Brian

I saw that on Aircraft Spruce.  The only problem is that the info says they only work with EI instruments.

 

Bob