MULTI-FUEL VEHICLE STRATEGY
First Claim
1. A method, comprising:
- (a) determining, by a computer, a current spatial location of a vehicle, the vehicle having at least differing first and second fuels for a common engine of the vehicle;
(b) determining, by the computer, at least one of fuel availability, fuel pricing information and routing information for one or more fuel dispensers within a determined range of the vehicle; and
(c) based on the determined at least one of fuel availability, fuel pricing information and routing information, determining, by the computer, a fuel strategy involving at least one of the first and second fuels.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention discloses a method and enabling apparatus for integrating a new fuel or fuels into an operating transportation system in a continuous, seamless manner. The method disclosed overcomes the economic risk associated with developing a new fuel when there is little or no fuel distribution infrastructure in place for the new fuel.
Integrating a new fuel into an existing transportation system can be implemented with two enabling technologies. The first is an engine capable of operating seamlessly on multiple fuels. The second is a system of determining a driving strategy that makes the transition from one fuel to another seamless to the driver. A compact, high-performance gas turbine engine is an enabling apparatus of the above strategy. The system of driving strategy disclosed herein allows the operator of the vehicle or the fleet manager to minimize operational costs by estimating the best combination of fuels, fuel dispensers and driving strategies. By carrying at least one readily available fuel, the operator is free of infrastructure shortcomings for other fuels that may be less expensive or have superior emissions characteristics. The vehicle operator can therefore efficiently manage the use of on-board fuels as well as efficiently manage the driving schedule and route to achieve the lowest overall operating costs.
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Citations
50 Claims
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1. A method, comprising:
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(a) determining, by a computer, a current spatial location of a vehicle, the vehicle having at least differing first and second fuels for a common engine of the vehicle; (b) determining, by the computer, at least one of fuel availability, fuel pricing information and routing information for one or more fuel dispensers within a determined range of the vehicle; and (c) based on the determined at least one of fuel availability, fuel pricing information and routing information, determining, by the computer, a fuel strategy involving at least one of the first and second fuels. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 40)
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10. A system, comprising:
a computer operable to; (a) determine a current spatial location of a vehicle, the vehicle having at least differing first and second fuels for a common engine of the vehicle; (b) determine at least one of fuel and pricing information for one or more fuel dispensers within a determined range of the vehicle; and (c) based on the determined at least one of fuel and pricing information, determine a fuel strategy involving at least one of the first and second fuels. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method, comprising:
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(a) determining, by a computer, a current spatial location of a vehicle comprising a fuel; (b) determining, by the computer, a plurality of fuel dispensers within a determined range of the current vehicle location; (c) for each fuel dispenser, determining, by the computer, at least one of a price for the fuel, a fuel consumption, and a cost to drive to the respective fuel dispenser from the current vehicle location; and (d) presenting, by a computer and to the operator, at least one of the fuel price, the fuel consumption, the driving cost, a recommendation of a fuel dispenser of the plurality of fuel dispensers, and a ranking of at least some of the plurality of fuel dispensers. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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26. A vehicle, comprising:
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a first fuel in a first fuel tank, the first fuel having an octane rating ranging from about 60 to about 120; a first fuel in a first fuel tank, the first fuel having a specific energy, expressed as a low heat value, ranging from about 10 million joules per kilogram to about 60 million joules per kilogram; a second fuel in a second fuel tank, the second fuel having a cetane number from about 10 to about 100; a second fuel in a second fuel tank, the second fuel having a specific energy, expressed as a low heat value, ranging from about 10 million joules per kilogram to about 60 million joules per kilogram; one of a turbine and microturbine engine; and a fuel injection system operable to provide selectively to the engine the first fuel in the substantial absence of the second fuel, the second fuel in the substantial absence of the first fuel, and a mixture of the first and second fuels. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28)
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29. A vehicle, comprising:
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a first fuel in a first fuel tank; a second fuel in a second fuel tank, the first and second fuels having differing compositions; one of a turbine and microturbine engine; and a fuel injection system operable to provide selectively to the engine the first fuel in the substantial absence of the second fuel, the second fuel in the substantial absence of the first fuel, and a mixture of the first and second fuels, wherein at least one of the following is true; (a) a volume of the second fuel tank to the volume of the first fuel tank is in the range of from about 0.3;
1 to about 1;
1; and(b) an available fuel energy of the first fuel in the first fuel tank to the second fuel in the second fuel tank is in the range of from about 2.5;
1 to about 10;
1. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32)
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33. A method, comprising:
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(a) providing a vehicle, the vehicle carrying first and second fuels, the first fuel being commonly available and the second fuel not being as commonly available as the first fuel and wherein a fuel injection system can provide selectively to a common engine at least one of a selected one of the first and second fuels and a selected combination of the first and second fuels; (b) determining, by a processor-executable on-board satellite positioning module, a current spatial location of the vehicle; (c) determining, by the processor, at least one of fuel and pricing information for one or more fuel dispensers within a determined range of the vehicle; and (d) based on the determined at least one of fuel and pricing information, determining, by the processor, a fuel strategy involving at least one of the first and second fuels. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 41)
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42. A system, comprising:
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a processor operable to; determine a current spatial location of the vehicle, the vehicle comprising a commonly available first fuel and a less commonly available second fuel, a common engine, and a fuel injection system to provide selectively to the engine a selected one of the first and second fuels; and a processor operable to; determine at least one of fuel and pricing information for one or more fuel dispensers within a determined range of the vehicle; and based on the determined at least one of fuel and pricing information, determine a fuel strategy involving at least one of the first and second fuels. - View Dependent Claims (43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49)
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50. A method, comprising:
providing a vehicle, the vehicle carrying first and second fuels, the first fuel being commonly available and the second fuel not being as commonly available as the first fuel and wherein a fuel injection system can provide selectively to a common engine at least one of a selected one of the first and second fuels and a selected combination of the first and second fuels without regard to the cetane number or octane rating of the first and second fuels or a selected combination of the first and second fuels.
Specification