Fleet fuel control - different vehicles, one reliable picture

Fifteen passenger cars, several vans, a truck and machines working on construction sites. They all consume fuel, but fuel control looks different in each of these groups.

In a passenger car, we use information provided by the vehicle and fuel purchase documents. In a truck, two connected tanks sometimes need to be taken into account. In a construction machine, there are also tilts, vibrations, an irregular tank shape and work in an area with poor network coverage.

The owner, however, needs consistent answers: how much fuel was purchased, how much was refueled, how much was consumed and whether there were any losses that require explanation.

Fuel control in a mixed fleet therefore requires matching the measurement method to the vehicles and their operating conditions. At Multiflota, we combine our own probes and telemetry devices, installer experience, calibration and data analysis. Behind this solution is our own design department and 30 years of team experience.

Factory fuel measurement - what does it show, and what can it miss?

In many vehicles, factory fuel level measurement uses a float placed in the tank. Its readings go to the vehicle electronics and are used, among other things, to show the fuel level to the driver. A telemetry system can use this data if it is available for reading.

However, you need to check when the vehicle makes it available.

In many installations, after the ignition is switched off, the relevant systems go into sleep mode and current readings stop reaching the telematics. The tracker itself may still operate, but not receive new fuel data.

Imagine a car parked on Friday evening. Over the weekend, fuel disappears from the tank. If the system does not receive measurements while parked, it may only notice the change on Monday, after the vehicle system is restarted.

You can then see the difference between the last reading before the stop and the first one after it ends. However, there is no record of the event timeline. It is not known exactly when the loss occurred or whether it was one draw-off or several smaller ones.

Refueling with the ignition switched off can look similar. After readings resume, a higher fuel level appears, but the change in the reading itself does not define the exact moment of refueling.

Four fleet groups, different measurement needs

A shared system should account for differences between vehicles instead of hiding them under one name: "fuel control".

This approach makes it possible to cover the fleet with one system while staying aware of what can be measured in each vehicle and how reliably.

Trucks - one tank does not always show the full situation

A truck may have one fuel tank or several. Tanks can be independent or connected. In a connected system, fuel can move between them while driving and while parked.

A level drop in one tank therefore does not have to mean fuel has been lost from the vehicle. At the same time, the level in the other tank may be rising.

If the system observes only one tank or analyzes each tank separately without taking their connection into account, it may misinterpret such changes. The owner then receives an alarm even though the fuel is still in the vehicle.

The Multiflota measurement system enables fuel monitoring in one, two or even three tanks at the same time, also while parked. We match the measurement and data interpretation method to their configuration.

Both information about individual tanks and the total amount of fuel matter. Only this kind of picture makes it possible to distinguish fuel moving within the system from refueling or a loss.

Construction machines - the fuel level also changes without refueling or draw-off

A bulldozer works on flat ground and then drives onto a slope. The fuel moves inside the tank. The probe stays in the same place, but it is surrounded by a different height of fuel column.

In a 600-liter tank, such a change can be significant. With a low amount of fuel and a large tilt, the measurement point may be exposed. A reading close to zero then does not mean the tank is empty.

Simply installing the probe in the middle of the tank does not solve every problem. The tank shape, baffles, amount of fuel, tilt direction and machine movement all matter. There are also vibrations and fuel sloshing during work.

That is why a momentary probe reading cannot be uncritically turned into the message: "fuel has disappeared".

The measurement system must account for the course of changes and the conditions in which they occur. In difficult conditions, a reliable estimate of the event size may require additional readings or stabilizing the machine. Tank calibration is essential, but it does not remove the effect of every tilt on its own.

For the user, it is important that the system can distinguish a suspicious event from a measurement disturbance and does not present an uncertain reading as an exact number of liters.

In-house probe, telemetry device and calibration

The probe measures the fuel level in a specific place. To determine volume on this basis, the geometry of the specific tank must be taken into account.

Tanks can be rectangular, irregular and fitted to the free space in the machine. The same level increase does not always correspond to the same number of liters. That is why the system requires calibration after installation.

At Multiflota, we have our own fuel probes, telemetry devices, installers and calibration equipment. The probe communicates digitally with the telemetry device, and we develop the entire system as one cooperating solution.

This gives us the ability to work on how measurements are obtained and processed. Our design department can analyze a problem together with installers, taking into account how devices behave in a specific machine.

After installation, we calibrate the system to link probe readings with the amount of fuel in the tank. Then it is important to check how the measurement behaves during real operation.

The goal is reliable information about fuel status, refueling and losses, as well as a basis for assessing consumption. A suspicious drop should not be automatically counted as fuel burned, just as a momentary level change should not be treated as a draw-off.

Measurement while parked lets you respond during the event

In trucks and construction machines equipped with our properly powered probe system, measurement does not have to end when the ignition is switched off.

This is an important difference. If fuel starts disappearing while parked, the system can start analysis while the event is still in progress. The user does not have to wait until the machine is started in the morning.

In Multiflota, we separate two stages:

• A warning about a suspicious change lets you take interest in the vehicle or machine.
• The verification result shows whether the loss was confirmed and what its estimated size is.

A quick warning gives you a chance to react. Further analysis helps determine what the measurements show and reduce false alarms.

Passenger cars - a small top-up is a different challenge

We use a different approach for passenger cars. In our solution, we do not install additional fuel probes in them. We use available vehicle data and compare it with purchase documents.

Factory measurement does not always make it possible to reliably identify a small refueling. Adding two or five liters to a 60-liter tank can be difficult to detect because of reading resolution, smoothing and measurement conditions.

Such situations may occur, for example, when an employee refuels after a private trip. The lack of a clear jump on the chart alone is not proof that refueling did not take place.

Multiflota uses invoice and receipt scanning to compare fuel purchase information with what the system recorded in the vehicle. Comparing quantity, purchase time, location and available readings helps detect matches and discrepancies that require checking.

That is why reliable control means combining information and showing what can be confirmed and what requires clarification.

Delivery vehicles require a solution matched to their design

Vans and delivery vehicles can operate in very different conditions: on routes between cities, in local deliveries or while supporting construction sites.

We do not assume in advance that every one of them should be monitored in the same way. We check the availability of factory data, tank design, the possibility of installing additional measurement and the user's needs.

A company focused mainly on controlling refueling costs may need a different solution than a vehicle left overnight in a place where detecting losses while parked is the top priority.

The measurement method should match the problem the customer wants to solve.

Without connectivity, even good measurement will not arrive on time

Fuel measurement and alarm delivery are two separate elements.

The device can take readings, but if it has no network connection, the user will not receive a remote warning in real time. Sending stored data later makes it possible to recreate the event, but it does not replace the ability to react while it is happening.

This applies, among other things, to work in forests, excavations and remote sections of roads under construction. Being near a highway or city also does not guarantee good coverage everywhere.

That is why, when selecting a solution, we consider the fleet's operating area, communication conditions and device installation. It is also necessary to define how the system behaves after losing connection, whether it stores measurements and how it makes them available once connectivity returns.

Fuel control covers the entire chain: measurement, recording, transmission, analysis and information for the user. Each of these elements affects the final result.

When a measurement raises doubts, we check the cause

Implementation does not end with installing a probe and providing access to the application.

If the readings do not match what is happening in the vehicle or machine, diagnostics are needed. The cause may be installation, calibration, fuel behavior in the tank, the electrical system or operating conditions.

At Multiflota, we listen to the report and analyze the problem in relation to the specific equipment. When an on-site inspection is needed, our technicians check the installation and measurements using their own equipment. If necessary, we recalibrate and verify system operation.

The explanation "that's just how this machine is" does not solve the customer's problem. Its design is the starting point for determining what needs to be changed and what measurement reliability can be achieved in the given conditions.

Our own design department, installers and measurement facilities allow us to work on the cause of the problem and then check the effect of the changes introduced.

Fuel control across the entire fleet starts with understanding it

One company may simultaneously need to control small refuelings in passenger cars, monitor two truck tanks and detect losses in a machine parked overnight on a construction site.

A shared report makes sense when data from each of these groups has been obtained using the right method. That is why we start with the vehicles, tanks, usage patterns and workplaces. Only then do we select the measurement and analysis method.

Our approach is based on the team's 30 years of experience, our own devices and probes, a design department and the work of installers. We combine these competencies to provide information that helps explain discrepancies, plan refueling and respond to suspicious events.

Let's talk about your fleet. We will match the fuel control method to passenger cars, delivery vehicles, trucks and machines, as well as to the conditions in which they actually work.