Fuel management issues continue to plague pilot decision making. To assist, Radiant Technology has introduced its Bingo4, a noninvasive device that shows the presence or absence of liquid in a tank.
The Bingo4 is slightly larger than a quarter. It is designed to mount on the outside of a tank, and using ultrasonic technology, give a solid indication of the presence of liquid at the point of attachment, according to company officials.
“I am always looking for ways to improve pilot safety and reduce cockpit workload,” said James Wiebe, CEO of Radiant. “Bingo4 combines ease of installation, along with a simple green/red, yes/no, indication of the presence of fuel.”
The sender includes a flashing status LED, and is useful for installations where the pilot can see the tank and sender installation. The sender transmits a continuous stream of serial data, and an optional “serial data to LED” panel display converter is also available.
With dimensions of 0.6″ x 0.7″, this display mounts behind the panel, requiring only two holes for the LEDs to poke through, according to Wiebe. One LED is green (liquid present) and the other is red (liquid absent).
The distance between the sender and the display may be lengthened by using any standard USB cable (not included).
Included with the unit is special epoxy and also coupling gel. The coupling gel may be used to test the placement of the unit before making a permanent bond.
The unit is available for order immediately for experimental and authorized LSA installations, and may be available by STC in the future for general aviation aircraft.
Pricing:
- Bingo4 Sender with USB port: $130 (USB is used for power input only)
- Bingo4 Sender and panel display: $180.
- During the launch month of September 2020, these products are available for a discount of 50%, with prices of $65 and $90.
This would be very useful attached to a tank that is not easily checked, like an oil tank on a radial, the coolant header tank on a Rotax 9xx, hydraulic oil level in a retract gear power pack, and possibly the oil level in the crankcase. But this may not work well since the oil is being splashed around a lot.
As a fuel level sensor, with the fuel sloshing, it will be flashing on and off until the fuel is below the sensor level, so it would take some interpreting to make sense of the flashing rate.
I’m confused- how is it useful to know if there’s some fuel or no fuel? If there’s no fuel, the engine won’t run….
The idea is that the sensor is positioned on the tank to alert the pilot when the fuel level is down to his ‘reserves’ level. It may be 1 hour of fuel or more…?
Gauges can’t accurately indicate when there is 10-15 gallons remaining.
Yes but FAA Regs required that the gauges work correctly at only one value … zero. And Advisory Circulars recommend that be checked every five years.
Given that most wings have a good bit of dihedral it follows that the fuel tank is sitting at an angle. This sensor could be placed at or near the outermost part of the tank.and indicate when the fuel is getting critically low. I am not sure how much fuel is left in the tank of most aircraft as it varies with tank shape/size/dihedral angle but when the floor of the outer portion goes dry I think that would be a good time to find a fueling stop real soon.
“reduce cockpit workload” The other worn-out cliche that needs to die is “improves situational awareness”. Whenever I see either these, I know I’m reading BS.