Fuel Economy Display

[Quitsa]

I don't have my new TZT system up and running yet but I am hoping you can answer a couple of questions which will determine whether I install another instrument display.

In the manual, the "Tank Level Display" shows that it will have data boxes for fuel quantity, fuel rate, and fuel economy. I assume from other posts that without tank level senders installed, the "fuel quantity" field would be blank since there is no way at present to manually input fuel level. Is that still the case?

Next, is it safe to assume that with a twin engine installation, the TZT will combine the fuel rate data on the NMEA2000 network to show combined fuel rate for both engines? What is the precision with which the fuel rate data is shown? One decimal place, two, whole numbers?

Finally, I assume the unit is taking the GPS speed data and the fuel rate (hopefully from both engines) and using that to calculate the fuel economy field. What is the precision on that? Anything less than two decimal places is not very informative on a boat that gets only about 0.70 nmpg. Can the number of places be customized?

Thanks

 

[Johnny Electron]

You posted in 2012 that you were connecting your TZT up to a Cummings, now you have a system that you haven't installed? Are you an installer/dealer? Are you in the Furuno USA sales and support area?

 

[Quitsa]

No I am a plain old customer who is somewhat technically oriented. I posted the earlier question trying to help a friend with his installation. In the meantime, this fall I decided to junk the electronics from one of your competitors that were installed in my boat and am in the process of replacing it with a new TZT-based system. My boat also has Cummins engines with Smartcraft and a NMEA 2000 interface as it happens.

My old boat had a NavNet 3D system, the one before that had a NavNet VX2, and the one before that a first generation NavNet. I did the installation on those system but a dealer is doing the new installation. The new installation will have two TZT14s, a TZT9, a DRS12, an DFF1-UHD. and a 711C autopilot so I hope that qualifies me as a good customer. As I said in my post, I am trying to figure out whether to add an instrument display that can show some of the NMEA 2000 data if I won't be able to get what I want in the data boxes on the TZTs.

 

[Johnny Electron]

In the manual, the "Tank Level Display" shows that it will have data boxes for fuel quantity, fuel rate, and fuel economy. I assume from other posts that without tank level senders installed, the "fuel quantity" field would be blank since there is no way at present to manually input fuel level. Is that still the case?

If you have tank sensors (PGN 127505) fully populated (Fluid type, Level, Capacity) and engine PGN 127489 (total fuel flow) then you would see fuel quantity, tank levels, fuel rate, etc...This is all very helpful with the functions of display fuel max range and fuel range ring.

We have asked Japan to allow a user to input tank capacity manually and they seem to be agreeable. We hope to see this as a software change. You would most likely still need some sort of tank level to determine how much of that overall (manually input) capacity has been used/left. We will just have to see once the software has been changed.

Next, is it safe to assume that with a twin engine installation, the TZT will combine the fuel rate data on the NMEA2000 network to show combined fuel rate for both engines?

Yes, the total fuel rate would be the total being reported by both engines.
Values will be in whole numbers such as liters per hour fuel rate. Considering the large fuel consumption of most boats and the poor precision of tank level devices (as you pointed out before in a prior posting), there is little benefit to going beyond whole numbers.

 

[Quitsa]

Thanks, looks as though I will need to use another approach unless the next software version makes some changes to this function.

 

[Anonymous]

Johnny,
I am glad to see that Japan is considering a software update that will allow the manual input of fuel on board. I am using a NEMA 2000 FloScan fuel monitoring system that outputs PGN 127489. I can therefore see fuel usage on any of my three TZT 14 displays. I have two 500 gallon fuel tanks with sight tubes (no sender will work in this size and shape tank). If I could enter the total fuel on board the TZT should be able to deduct the fuel used (per PGN 127489) and simply calculate the remaining fuel on board. I realize that it cannot distinguish between the two fuel tanks, but this is a minor inconvenience. It seems to me that a simple software addition should be able to show remaining fuel capacity without the need for any tank senders.

Thanks.

 

[Anonymous]

Johnny,
Just a quick follow up. FloScan outputs Gallons per hour as well as Total Gallons consumed to a NEMA 2000 network. The PGN outputs are 65280, 65281,127489 and 127497. A manual input to the TZT of total fuel on board (as a starting point) less the total gallons consumed (per the appropriate PGN sentence) should result in remaining fuel on board.

 

[Johnny Electron]

We have new software pending to support the next gen of Sirius/XM weather and other enhancements. I don't think we will see the manual tank capacity input in that version. The discussions on this came too late for them to put it in that version but the next should make some changes that offers a little more flexibility.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the info Johnny,
Just a quick question regarding the next gen Sirius Weather. I am currently using a BBWX2 for weather as well as an expander for my HUB 101 (I need the four extra ports). What type of improvements can we expect from the next gen Sirius. Also, will the new Furuno device be an Ethernet port switch like the BBWX2. In other words, how difficult will it be to upgrade to the next gen weather.

 

[Johnny Electron]

I really wish I knew, but very little information has been released on the next gen receiver. I do know that it will NOT offer any hub ports like the BBWX2. I would expect details at the coming Miami boat show in February.