Photoreal Fuel Status Gauge
---------------------------
History
-------
This gauge came about because I got tired of flying long distance routes and
trying to figure out if I was going to have enough fuel to make it or not.
As you are probably aware, many FS aircraft do not come close to their real
world counterparts when it comes to fuel usage and range. Many fall far short,
although some have ridiculously long ranges, as well.
This gauge will allow you to accurately assess your fuel status enroute and plan
your flight (altitudes, speeds, etc.) accordingly. So now there is no excuse for
"running out of gas"! :-)
Installation
------------
1) Copy the .gau files to your FS98\Gauges directory. Do not change the name of
the .gau files or they will no longer to work.
2) Edit the panel.cfg file for each panel that you want to use the gauge. You
can add it in one of two ways, either A) as an additional gauge on an existing
subpanel or B) as a new subpanel containing only the fuel status gauge. If you
do not have room on the existing panel layout, use method B). If you are not
familiar with editing the panel.cfg file, see the FS98 FAQ on SurClaro for
instructions on how it's done. Make sure to make a copy of the panel.cfg file
before you edit it, just in case.
3) Method A - just add a line similar to the following to the end of the list
of gauges on the panel.
gaugeXX=TC.FuelStatusPR, x-pos, y-pos, size
where
XX is the next sequential gauge number.
x-pos is the horizontal position for the upper left hand corner of the
gauge in pixels.
y-pos is the vertical position for the upper left hand corner of the
gauge in pixels.
size is the size of the gauge in pixels. 150 is a good value, if it fits.
So, if the current file goes up to gauge12, then the line might look like this.
gauge13=TC.FuelStatusPR, 762, 668, 150
You will have to experiment with the x, y, and size parameters to get it where
you want it.
4) Method B - For each panel for which you wish to use the gauge, place the file TC.FuelStatus.bmp in the panel subdirectory and edit the panel config file as
follows:
Add the following to the end of the Window Titles section of the file:
[Window Titles]
.
.
.
windowXX=Fuel Status (where "XX" is the next available window number)
Add the following to the end of the file:
[windowXX] (where "XX" is the same number you used above)
file=TC.FuelStatus.bmp
size_mm=150
window_size_ratio=1.0
position=6
visible=0
ident=88 (this number must be unique)
gauge00=TC.FuelStatusPR,0,0,150
If the next available window number was "5", the entries would look like this:
Note: The "ident" number shown above may have to be changed. It must be unique.
The file B737_400_Panel.cfg in the zip file shows an example of this method.
5) You should be all set. Load the a/c and panel. If you installed using
method B, activate the gauge using the "Views-Instrument Panel" menu or via
the shift-number keys. A subpanel will appear containing the gauge and you
can then move or resize it as desired.
Usage
-----
The gauge markings can be a bit hard to read depending on the size used for it
on a given panel, so here are the markings and their functions:
Low Fuel(LED) H/L Press(LED)
International Instruments
DATA DISPLAY
Fuel
Flow(LED) Rem(LED) Used(LED) TtoE(LED) Press(LED)
PRG(Switch) Stop(Switch) PRG(Switch)
Low Fuel(LED) - Flashes red when fuel is below 10% of capacity.
Solid red if below 5%. In addition an audible
alarm will sound every 60 seconds, if under 5%.
If you click on the led, the audible alarm will
be disabled. Clicking again re-enables it.
H/L Press(LED) - Fuel pressure seems to only be available in FS98 for helos.
Therefore, this led will light red when fuel dumping is in progress.
It will light yellow when fuel loading is in progress.
Flow(LED) - Click once to display fuel flow in gallons per hour.
Click again to display fuel flow in pounds per hour.
If you are using the metric system units will be shown in
liters or kilograms per hour.
Rem(LED) - Click to display remaining fuel quantity in gallons.
Click again to display remaining fuel quantity in pounds.
If you are using the metric system units will be shown in
liters or kilograms.
If less than 10% remains, the value will be shown in yellow,
if less than 5%, in red.
Used(LED) - Click to display fuel used in gallons.
Click again to display fuel used in pounds.
If you are using the metric system units will be shown in
liters or kilograms.
The readout can be reset by right clicking on the led.
TtoE(LED) - Click to display time to empty (hh:mm). If less than 1 hour,
the value will be shown in yellow, if less than 30 minutes,
in red.
Press(LED) - Fuel pressure seems to only be available in FS98 for helos.
Click to display range in NM. Click again to display ground speed.
Click a third time to display true airspeed.
PRG - These switches control fuel loading/dumping of the left and
right tanks. If you have FS6IPC installed, this feature will
be available, otherwise it will not.
Fuel Loading
------------
Clicking either PRG switch with the right mouse button begins
loading fuel onto the aircraft. The right switch loads fuel into
the right tanks, the left switch loads fuel into the left tanks.
Clicking again stops the loading process. When fuel is being
loaded into any of the tanks, the H/L Press led will be lit yellow.
Fuel is first loaded into the aux tanks (if available) and then the
mains. It takes approximately 5 minutes to fill the aux tanks and
another 5 minutes to fill the mains. To load fuel into the center
tank, use the center Stop switch.
The loading process will automatically terminate if the aircraft
leaves the ground, if any of the engines are started or when the
tanks reach 100% of capacity. A tone will sound if the loading
process is terminated due to any of these conditions.
You cannot load fuel if your tanks are full, if you are not on
the ground, or if any of your engines are running or being started.
Again, a tone will sound.
When the fuel loading process is terminated, the Fuel Used display
is automatically reset to zero.
Inflight Refueling
------------------
Inflight refueling is controlled the same way as fuel loading on
the ground, by right clicking on the PRG or Stop switches.
You must be in level flight to begin refueling or a tone will
sound. In addition, you must remain on the same heading and
+/-50 feet of the same altitude or the refueling will cancel,
simulating a disconnect from the refueling boom. Again, a tone
will sound.
Refueling can be terminated manually be clicking on each of the
PRG switches, or automatically when the tanks are full.
When the refueling process is terminated, the Fuel Used display
is automatically reset to zero.
Fuel Dumping
------------
Clicking the PRG switch with the left mouse button opens the
fuel dump valves. The right switch opens the valves for the right
tanks, the left switch opens the valves for the left tanks.
Clicking again closes the valves. When any of the valves are open,
the H/L Press led will be lit red. It takes approximately 5 minutes
to dump full tanks. To dump fuel from the center tank, use the
center Stop switch.
The dump will automatically terminate if the aircraft descends
below 3500 ft. AGL or when the tanks reach 5% of capacity.
A tone will sound if the dump is terminated due to any of
these conditions.
You cannot start a fuel dump if your tanks are below 5%, if
you are on the ground, or below 3500 ft. AGL. Again, a tone
will sound.
Stop - This switch controls fuel loading/dumping of the center tank. If you
have FS6IPC installed, this feature will be available, otherwise it
will not. See the description above for usage.
Legal
-----
Copyright(c) 1999 Thomas W. Corson - all rights reserved.
This gauge is freeware and may not be incorporated into any commercial package or panel
for which money is charged without the author's permission. It may not be uploaded to
any web site or BBS for which money is charged, not may it be included in any CD or other
electronic media for which money is charged without the author's permission. It may,
however, be incorporated into any freeware panel as long as this readme file is included
in the package.
Credits
-------
Thanks to Dean Mountford for supplying the original backgound image (from
mov-maps.zip).
Special thanks to beta testers Roy Chaffin, Sam Kalachoras, Dave Ledeen, and
Jacques Ranger.
Enjoy,
Tom Corson
corson@infodyn.com
If you have problems with the above email address, try infodyn@rahul.net
