Boson Fuel Sensor System for Heavy Duty Diesel Vehicles

Third-party Fuel Sensor

Note

This feature is available for customers in Mexico.

The Boson Fuel Sensor System helps you monitor real-time fuel levels in diesel vehicles—especially in models that don’t natively report this data to Samsara, like many Hino and Isuzu trucks. With direct integration into your Samsara dashboard, this system provides the visibility you need to help detect fuel theft and spot abnormal consumption.

This system is ideal for fleets with diesel vehicles that either lack native fuel reporting or need more granular data than what’s available from factory sensors. It works with both standard and custom fuel tanks.

The Boson system consists of two main components, installed by certified Boson technicians:

• Fuel Sensor Rod: Installed inside your vehicle’s fuel tank, this rod detects real-time fuel levels.

• Phoenix Data Reader: This device collects data from the sensor rod and transmits it to your Samsara Vehicle Gateway (VG34, VG54, or VG55) using the J1939 communication protocol. Boson will provide a J1939-compatible cable.

Schedule Installation

To schedule installation and ensure the correct hardware is provided, complete the following:

1. Submit the Boson referral form to request installation.

   After submission, Boson will typically respond within 48 hours to schedule the installation.

2. Measure the vertical height of the fuel tank.

   

3. Provide the tank height to Boson when they reach out to schedule installation.

   This measurement ensures the correct sensor rod is selected.

Boson Installation Process

Boson technicians are responsible for installing the fuel sensor system on the vehicle and performing the following steps to connect it to your Samsara Vehicle Gateway:

1. A hole is drilled into the top of each fuel tank, and the Fuel Sensor Rod is inserted and mounted using a gasket and SAE 5-bolt pattern. If the vehicle has two tanks, a second sensor is installed using the same method.

2. Each sensor is connected to a Phoenix Data Reader, which consolidates fuel level signals.

3. The Phoenix Reader is mounted inside the vehicle in a dry, protected location.

4. Install the Fuel Sensor Rod using the provided gasket and bolts.

5. Route the sensor cables to the Phoenix Data Reader.

6. The Phoenix Reader is connected to the Samsara Vehicle Gateway using a J1939-compatible cable.

   After installation, the system begins transmitting fuel level data to Samsara. For dual-tank vehicles, only the primary tank’s data displays in the dashboard.

   Figure 1: Example single tank installation

   Figure 2: Example dual tank installation

   	Description
   	Samsara Vehicle Gateway
   	J1939-compatible cable
   	Boson Phoenix CAN Reader
   	Fuel Tank

System Behavior and Requirements

The following system characteristics summarize how it behaves after installation, including compatibility requirements and known constraints:

• Single-tank visibility: Samsara displays fuel level data as a single value per vehicle. If a vehicle has two fuel sensors installed, the dashboard will show the average fuel level from both tanks.

• LLS protocol compatibility: The Phoenix Reader can connect to existing in-tank sensors that use the Linear Leveling System (LLS) protocol.

• Real-time data transmission: Fuel data is not stored or recovered if the Phoenix Reader disconnects from the gateway.

• Fleet-grade durability: Designed to perform in conditions with heat, vibration, humidity, and variable diesel fuel quality.