Automated fueling information tracking and fuel hedging
First Claim
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1. A method for determining an amount of fuel to load into an aircraft, the method comprising:
- receiving fueling information, wherein the fueling information includes information related to available fuel capacity of the aircraft at the end of a flight and prices of fuel at a plurality of locations to which the aircraft is to fly;
receiving flight plan information for the aircraft for a next flight;
determining an optimal amount of fuel to load into the aircraft based on the received fueling information and the received flight plan information; and
providing fueling instructions to the aircraft based on the determined optimal amount.
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Abstract
An automated system collects information related to various factors that affect fuel costs, and determines an optimal amount of fuel to be loaded on an aircraft. Information related to an aircraft'"'"'s fuel efficiency is collected from the aircraft; price information is collected for the stops made by the aircraft; and flight plan information is collected for each flight. The collected information is used to determine or estimate the fuel requirements of the aircraft and an optimal amount of fuel to load onto the aircraft at a location.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A method for determining an amount of fuel to load into an aircraft, the method comprising:
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receiving fueling information, wherein the fueling information includes information related to available fuel capacity of the aircraft at the end of a flight and prices of fuel at a plurality of locations to which the aircraft is to fly;
receiving flight plan information for the aircraft for a next flight;
determining an optimal amount of fuel to load into the aircraft based on the received fueling information and the received flight plan information; and
providing fueling instructions to the aircraft based on the determined optimal amount. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A system for determining an amount of fuel to load into an aircraft, the system comprising:
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means for receiving fueling information, wherein the fueling information includes information related to available fuel capacity of the aircraft at the end of a flight and prices of fuel at a plurality of locations to which the aircraft is to fly;
means for receiving flight plan information for the aircraft for a next flight;
means for determining an optimal amount of fuel to load into the aircraft based on the received fueling information and the received flight plan information; and
means for providing fueling instructions to the aircraft based on the determined optimal amount. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A system for determining an amount of fuel to load into an aircraft, the system comprising:
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a fleet of aircraft each including;
a fuel data manager to obtain fueling information, wherein the fueling information includes information related to available fuel capacity of the aircraft at the end of a flight, and at least one wireless communication unit, coupled to the fuel data manager, to selectively transmit the fueling information; and
a computer system communicatively coupled to the fleet of aircraft, the computer system including;
a fuel cost indexer to receive price information of fuel for a plurality of locations to which the fleet of aircraft flies, a datastore to store fueling information received from the fleet of aircraft, and a fuel hedger component to determine an optimal amount of fuel to load into each aircraft of the fleet of aircraft based on the stored fueling information, the price information and flight plan information for each aircraft'"'"'s next flight. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification