System for monitoring propane or other consumable liquid in remotely located storage tanks

Abstract

An improved apparatus and method for monitoring the levels of propane or other consumable liquid in remotely located storage tanks and coordinating delivery of liquid to those tanks, including an improved method of using the remote monitoring data to identify out-of-ordinary conditions at remote tanks, optimally schedule purchases or deliveries, improve safety, and more efficiently operate a propane dealership. More accurate and timely information concerning the status of customer tanks serves to improve operational efficiencies and increase safety. Data received from remote sensors can be collected and organized so that it is easily understood and utilized through the implementation of a user interface accessible via the Internet that allows the information to be presented in an efficient graphical and contextual fashion. Operational efficiencies can also be improved by calculating site-specific Degree-days and K-factors for each tank and by taking historical propane usage for each tank, weather conditions, and projected fuel usage into account.

Description

[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 668,211 filed on Apr. 2, 2005 and from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 683,465 filed on May 20, 2005, both of which are incorporated by reference.TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates to an improved system for delivering propane or other consumable liquid to and monitoring liquid levels in remotely located storage tanks. BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0003] Propane is a gas, a derivative of natural gas and petroleum. It is one of the many fossil fuels that are included in the liquefied petroleum (LP) gas family. Because propane is the type of LP-gas most commonly used in the United States, propane and LP-gas are often used synonymously. [0004] Under normal atmospheric pressure and temperature, propane is a gas. Under moderate pressure and / or lower temperatures, however, propane changes into a liquid. Because Propane takes up much less space in its liquid for...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0020] What is needed is an improved system for monitoring the levels of propane or other consumable liquid in remotely located storage tanks and to better coordinate delivery of liquid to those tanks.

[0021] An object of the invention, therefore, is to provide an improved apparatus and method for monitoring the levels of propane or other consumable liquid in remotely located stora

Problems solved by technology

Obviously, different size tanks and different usage rates for customers over a large area can make it very challenging for a dealer to keep all of his customers' tanks filled.

There are also significant safety concerns associated with propane tank levels since empty or overfilled tanks can be very dangerous.

Further, costs associated with delivery, including wages for delivery personnel and vehicle operation and fuel costs, are a significant portion of a dealer's operating expenses.

If the tank level was low, it would be refilled; if not, the delivery truck had essentially wasted a trip.

As could be expected, this highly inefficient practice contributed to higher costs, both for the dealer and the customers.

However, since an empty tank is a dangerous condition (plus it means the customer is out of fuel) delivery will need to be made before the 1375 Degree-days have elapsed.

Further, these types of forecasting methods cannot account for unexpected periods of higher or lower than normal propane usage.

Since this kind of forecasting is merely an estimate, a substantial margin of error must be built into the delivery schedule.

This results in more deliveries of lower amounts of propane and consequently higher dealer delivery costs.

All such methods in the prior art, however, necessarily depend upon various methods of forecasting a c

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