SYSTEM AND METHOD OF VEHICLE FUEL QUANTITY MANAGEMENT
First Claim
1. A method for vehicle fuel quantity management, comprising:
- accessing first operator input data indicative of at least one first operator input, said at least one first operator input including at least one of fuel cost, trip time, route beginning and ending points to define a route, and maximum vehicle speed;
accessing predetermined vehicle parameter data indicative of at least one predetermined vehicle parameter, said at least one predetermined vehicle parameter including at least one of vehicle mass, vehicle drag, vehicle rolling resistance, tire circumference, front area of vehicle, powertrain torque loss, vehicle tank capacity, and engine friction;
accessing road terrain data indicative of at least one road terrain element, said at least one road terrain element including at least one of speed limit changes, off ramp locations, fueling locations, road grade, air density, position, elevation, and traffic congestion;
performing a first fuel assessment to determine a preliminary route fuel quantity based on said predetermined vehicle parameter data, said road terrain data, and said first operator input data;
determining a first fuel quantity to optimize freight weight based on said first fuel assessment;
accessing current vehicle operating condition data and current road terrain data indicative of at least current vehicle speed, current road grade, and current fueling locations;
performing a second fuel assessment to determine at least one recommended fueling stop location and at least one recommended fuel amount; and
generating electronic recommendation signals corresponding to said determined at least one recommended fueling stop location and at least one recommended fuel amount and communicating said recommendation signals to a receiver.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Systems and methods of vehicle fuel quantity management are provided to assist in determining an optimal quantity of fuel to carry on-board a vehicle. Certain routes are sufficiently short so to not require a completely filled fuel tank to traverse. Additionally, most routes have an abundance of vehicle fueling stations that provide ample refueling opportunities, thus permitting an operator to carry less fuel than might be required to complete a route. Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure balance initial fuel loading and fuel stops to optimize the amount of freight weight that can be carried for a given route. The benefit is increased freight efficiency in transporting cargo from source to destination while maintaining drivability.
53 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A method for vehicle fuel quantity management, comprising:
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accessing first operator input data indicative of at least one first operator input, said at least one first operator input including at least one of fuel cost, trip time, route beginning and ending points to define a route, and maximum vehicle speed; accessing predetermined vehicle parameter data indicative of at least one predetermined vehicle parameter, said at least one predetermined vehicle parameter including at least one of vehicle mass, vehicle drag, vehicle rolling resistance, tire circumference, front area of vehicle, powertrain torque loss, vehicle tank capacity, and engine friction; accessing road terrain data indicative of at least one road terrain element, said at least one road terrain element including at least one of speed limit changes, off ramp locations, fueling locations, road grade, air density, position, elevation, and traffic congestion; performing a first fuel assessment to determine a preliminary route fuel quantity based on said predetermined vehicle parameter data, said road terrain data, and said first operator input data; determining a first fuel quantity to optimize freight weight based on said first fuel assessment; accessing current vehicle operating condition data and current road terrain data indicative of at least current vehicle speed, current road grade, and current fueling locations; performing a second fuel assessment to determine at least one recommended fueling stop location and at least one recommended fuel amount; and generating electronic recommendation signals corresponding to said determined at least one recommended fueling stop location and at least one recommended fuel amount and communicating said recommendation signals to a receiver. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A system adapted for vehicle fuel quantity management, comprising:
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an operator input module containing data indicative of at least one operator input, said at least one operator input including at least one of fuel cost, trip time, route beginning and ending points to define a route, and maximum vehicle speed; a vehicle parameter module containing data indicative of at least one predetermined vehicle parameter, said at least one predetermined vehicle parameter including at least one of vehicle mass, vehicle drag, vehicle rolling resistance, tire circumference, front area of vehicle, powertrain torque loss, vehicle tank capacity, and engine friction; a road terrain element module containing data indicative of at least one road terrain element, said at least one road terrain element including at least one of speed limit changes, off ramp locations, fueling locations, road grade, air density, position, elevation, and traffic congestion; a vehicle operating condition module containing data indicative of at least current vehicle speed; and a vehicle fuel quantity management module adapted to; perform a first fuel assessment to determine a preliminary route fuel quantity based on said predetermined vehicle parameter data, said road terrain data, and said operator input data; determine a first fuel quantity to optimize freight weight based on said first fuel assessment and operator input data; and perform a second fuel assessment to determine at least one recommended fueling stop location and at least one recommended fuel amount. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A computer program product comprising a computer useable medium having stored thereon computer-readable program code for vehicle fuel quantity management, the computer-readable program code comprising:
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computer-readable program code for accessing data indicative of at least one first operator input, said at least one first operator input including at least one of fuel cost, trip time, route beginning and ending points to define a route, and maximum vehicle speed; computer-readable program code for accessing data indicative of at least one predetermined vehicle parameter, said at least one predetermined vehicle parameter including at least one of vehicle mass, vehicle drag, vehicle rolling resistance, tire circumference, front area of vehicle, powertrain torque loss, vehicle tank capacity, and engine friction; computer-readable program code for accessing data indicative of at least one road terrain element, said at least one road terrain element including at least one of speed limit changes, off ramp locations, fueling locations, road grade, air density, position, elevation, and traffic congestion; computer-readable program code for determining route grade and speed profile vectors for the defined route based on said first operator input data, predetermined vehicle parameter data, and said road terrain data; computer-readable code for performing a first fuel assessment to determine a preliminary route fuel quantity based on the defined route grade and speed profile vectors, said predetermined vehicle parameter data, road terrain data, and said first operator input data; computer-readable program code for accessing data indicative of at least one second operator input including at least one of a number of fuel stops and desired fuel buffer; computer-readable program code for determining a first fuel quantity to optimize freight weight based on said first fuel assessment and said second operator input data; computer-readable program code for accessing current vehicle operating condition data and current road terrain data indicative of at least current vehicle speed, current road grade, and current fueling locations; computer-readable program code for performing a second fuel assessment to determine at least one recommended fueling stop location and at least one recommended fuel amount; and computer-readable program code for communicating said optimized vehicle speed and communicating said at least one recommended fueling stop location and at least one recommended fuel amount to a display. - View Dependent Claims (23)
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Specification