Fuel control system and associated method
First Claim
1. A fuel control system, comprising:
- at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of a vehicle;
a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device;
a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device;
at least one fuel measurement device configured to measure at least one of a fuel flow rate or a fuel volume of at least one of the primary fuel or the alternate fuel provided to the at least one valve device; and
an electronic controller configured to control the at least one valve device to selectively direct a mixture of the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the measured fuel flow rate and/or the measured fuel volume of the primary fuel and/or the measured alternate fuel.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A fuel control system and method for providing fuel to an internal combustion engine are provided. The fuel control system generally includes at least one valve device structured to deliver a fuel supply to the engine, a first fuel source structured to provide a primary fuel to the valve device, a second fuel source structured to provide an alternate fuel to the valve device, and an electronic controller structured to control the valve device. The electronic controller controls the valve device as a function of various data to selectively deliver the primary fuel and the alternate fuel to generate a fuel supply, e.g. as a mixture of the two fuels. The data used to control the fuel supply may include GPS data, engine data, environmental data, and/or other operational data.
53 Citations
31 Claims
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1. A fuel control system, comprising:
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at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of a vehicle; a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device; at least one fuel measurement device configured to measure at least one of a fuel flow rate or a fuel volume of at least one of the primary fuel or the alternate fuel provided to the at least one valve device; and an electronic controller configured to control the at least one valve device to selectively direct a mixture of the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the measured fuel flow rate and/or the measured fuel volume of the primary fuel and/or the measured alternate fuel. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A fuel control system, comprising:
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at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of vehicle; a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device; and a second fuel source measurement device configured to measure a volume of the alternate fuel in the second fuel source; and an electronic controller configured to control the at least one valve device to selectively direct the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the volume of the alternate fuel in the second fuel source. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23)
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24. A fuel control system, comprising:
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at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of a vehicle; a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device; at least one fuel measurement device configured to measure at least one of either the primary fuel or the alternate fuel provided to the at least one valve device; and an electronic controller configured to control the at least one valve device, based on user preferences, to selectively direct a mixture of the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the measured primary fuel and/or the measured alternate fuel.
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25. A fuel control system, comprising:
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at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of a vehicle; a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device; at least one fuel measurement device configured to measure at least one of either the primary fuel or the alternate fuel provided to the at least one valve device; a global positioning system (GPS) receiver; and an electronic controller configured to; receive GPS data transmitted from the GPS receiver; and control the at least one valve device, according to the GPS data, to selectively direct a mixture of the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the measured primary fuel and/or the measured alternate fuel.
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26. A fuel control system, comprising:
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at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of a vehicle; a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device; a primary fuel measurement device configured to measure the primary fuel provided to the at least one valve device; an alternate fuel measurement device configured to measure the alternate fuel provided to the at least one valve device; and an electronic controller configured to control the at least one valve device to selectively direct a mixture of the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the measured primary fuel and/or the measured alternate fuel.
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27. A fuel control system, comprising:
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at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of a vehicle; a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device; at least one fuel measurement device configured to measure at least one of either the primary fuel or the alternate fuel provided to the at least one valve device; and an electronic controller configured to; control the at least one valve device to selectively direct a mixture of the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the measured primary fuel and/or the measured alternate fuel; and provide an indication of an amount of use of the alternate fuel by the engine.
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28. A fuel control system, comprising:
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at least one valve device configured to direct fuel to an engine of vehicle; a first fuel source configured to provide a primary fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source configured to provide an alternate fuel to the at least one valve device; a second fuel source measurement device configured to measure a flow rate of the alternate fuel from the second fuel source; and an electronic controller configured to control the at least one valve device to selectively direct the primary fuel and the alternate fuel through the valve device to the engine based on the flow rate of the alternate fuel from the second fuel source. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31)
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Specification