Office Action 3: Notice of Allowance (2025-12-18)

CLAIMS:
Amendments to the Claims:

The following listing of claims will replace all prior versions, and listings, of claims in the application:

1\. (Currently Amended) A method of determining one or more fuel characteristics of an aviation fuel suitable for powering a gas turbine engine of an aircraft, the method comprising:determining a mass of a fuel being loaded, or which has been loaded, onto the aircraft;
determining a corresponding volume of the fuel; and
determining one or more fuel characteristics of the fuel based on the determined mass and volume, wherein the one or more fuel characteristics are determined by either or both of (i) comparing a value derived from the determined fuel mass and fuel volume to values in a lookup table and (ii) calculating a deviation of a value derived from the determined fuel mass and fuel volume from an expected value, and
the one or more fuel characteristics determined include any one or more of:(i) a hydrocarbon distribution of the fuel;
(ii) a percentage of sustainable aviation fuel in the fuel; and (iii) an aromatic hydrocarbon content of the fuel.

2\. (Original) The method of claim 1, wherein determining the one or more fuel characteristics comprises calculating a fuel density based on the determined fuel mass and fuel volume.
3\. (Original) The method of claim 1, wherein:

a) determining the mass of the fuel comprises measuring a mass flow rate at a point within a fuel supply line used to convey fuel to one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft; and/or b) determining the volume of the fuel comprises measuring a volume flow rate at a point within a fuel supply line used to convey fuel to one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft.
4\. (Previously Presented) The method of claim 1, wherein:a) determining the mass of the fuel comprises measuring the mass and/or a change in the mass of any one or more of: the aircraft; one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft; a fuel tanker vehicle from which the fuel is supplied; and a storage vessel from which the fuel is supplied to the aircraft; and/or b) determining the volume of the fuel comprises measuring the volume and/or a change in the volume of fuel stored in one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft and/or stored in a fuel storage vessel from which the fuel is supplied to the aircraft.
5\. (Canceled)
6\. (Previously Presented) The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more fuel characteristics include an indication that the fuel is a fossil fuel.
7\. (Original) The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more fuel characteristics are further determined based on a signal indicative of the temperature of the fuel.
8\. (Currently Amended) A fuel characteristic determination system for determining one or more fuel characteristic of an aviation fuel suitable for powering a gas turbine engine of an aircraft, the system comprising:
a fuel characteristic determination module comprising a processor programmed to:

receive a fuel mass signal indicative of a mass of the fuel being loaded, or which has been loaded, onto the aircraft;
receive a fuel volume signal indicative of a volume of fuel being loaded, or which has been loaded, onto the aircraft; and determine one or more fuel characteristics of the fuel based on the fuel volume and fuel mass signals, wherein the one or more fuel characteristics are determined by either or both of (i) comparing a value derived from the indicated fuel mass and fuel volume to values in a lookup table and (ii) calculating a deviation of a value derived from the indicated fuel mass and fuel volume from an expected value, and
the one or more fuel characteristics determined include any one or more of:(i) a hydrocarbon distribution of the fuel;
(ii) a percentage of sustainable aviation fuel in the fuel; and (iii) an aromatic hydrocarbon content of the fuel.

9\. (Previously Presented) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 8, wherein the processor of the fuel characteristic determination module is programmed to calculate a density of the fuel based on the fuel mass signal and the fuel volume signal.

10\. (Original) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 8, further comprising:a mass sensor arranged to measure a mass of the fuel, wherein the fuel mass signal is received from the mass sensor; and/or a volume sensor arranged to measure a volume of fuel, wherein the fuel volume signal is received from the volume sensor.

11\. (Original) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 10, wherein:

the mass sensor is a mass flow rate meter; and/or the volume sensor is a volume flow rate meter.

12\. (Previously Presented) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 11, wherein the mass flow rate meter is arranged to measure mass flow rate at a point within a fuel supply line used to convey fuel to one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft.

13\. (Original) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 11, wherein the volume flow rate meter is arranged to measure a volume flow rate at a point within a fuel supply line used to supply fuel to one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft.

14\. (Previously Presented) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 8, wherein a) the fuel mass signal is based on a measured mass and/or change in the mass of any one or more of: the aircraft; one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft; a fuel tanker vehicle from which the fuel is supplied; and a storage vessel from which the fuel is supplied to the aircraft; and/or b) the fuel volume signal is based on a measured volume and/or change in the volume of fuel stored in one or more fuel tanks on board the aircraft and/or stored in a fuel storage vessel from which the fuel is supplied to the aircraft.

15\. (Canceled)

16\. (Previously Presented) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 8, wherein the one or more fuel characteristics include an indication that the fuel is a fossil fuel.

17\. (Previously Presented) The fuel characteristic determination system of claim 8, wherein the processor of the fuel characteristic determination module is further programmed to determine the one or more fuel characteristics based on a signal indicative of the temperature of the fuel.

18\. (Previously Presented) A method of operating an aircraft having a gas turbine engine, the method comprising:determining one or more fuel characteristics using the method of claim 1; and
operating the aircraft according to the determined one or more fuel characteristics.
19\. (Previously Presented) The method according to claim 18, wherein operating the aircraft according to the one or more fuel characteristics comprises:a) modifying a control parameter of the aircraft in response to the determined one or more fuel characteristics; and/or b) providing a fuel having different fuel characteristics during refuelling of the aircraft.

20\. (Original) An aircraft comprising the fuel characteristic determination system of claim 8, further comprising a control system arranged to control operation of the aircraft according to the one or more fuel characteristics determined by the fuel characteristic determination system.

21\. (New) A fuel characteristic determination system for determining one or more fuel characteristic of an aviation fuel suitable for powering a gas turbine engine of an aircraft, the system comprising:a fuel characteristic determination module comprising a processor programmed to:
receive a fuel mass signal indicative of a mass of the fuel being loaded, or which has been loaded, onto the aircraft;
receive a fuel volume signal indicative of a volume of fuel being loaded, or which has been loaded, onto the aircraft; and

determine one or more fuel characteristics of the fuel based on the fuel volume and fuel mass signals, wherein the one or more fuel characteristics are determined by calculating a deviation of a value derived from the indicated fuel mass and fuel volume from an expected value.

OFFICE ACTION:
Notice of Pre-AIA  or AIA  Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-4, 6-14, and 16-21 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
i.	In claims 1 and 8, the cited prior art of record fails to anticipate and/or render obvious, either solely or in combination, a fuel characteristic determination system for determining one or more fuel characteristic of an aviation fuel suitable for powering a gas turbine engine of an aircraft comprising, among other features,
a fuel characteristic determination module comprising a processor programmed to:
determine one or more fuel characteristics of the fuel based on the fuel volume and fuel mass signals, by either or both of (i) comparing a value derived from the indicated fuel mass and fuel volume to values in a lookup table and (ii) calculating a deviation of a value derived from the indicated fuel mass and fuel volume from an expected value, and
the one or more fuel characteristics determined include any one or more of:
(i) a hydrocarbon distribution of the fuel;
(ii) a percentage of sustainable aviation fuel in the fuel; and
(iii) an aromatic hydrocarbon content of the fuel.
In claim 21, the cited prior art of record fails to anticipate and/or render obvious, either solely or in combination, a fuel characteristic determination system for determining one or more fuel characteristic of an aviation fuel suitable for powering a gas turbine engine of an aircraft comprising, among other features,
a fuel characteristic determination module comprising a processor programmed to:
determine one or more fuel characteristics of the fuel based on the fuel volume and fuel mass signals, wherein
the one or more fuel characteristics are determined by calculating a deviation of a value derived from the indicated fuel mass and fuel volume from an expected value.
ii.	Claims 2-4, 6-7, 9-14, and 16-20 are allowed at least by virtue of their respective dependency upon an allowable base claim.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion

APPLICANT REBUTTAL: REMARKS
Claims 1-4, 6-14, and 16-21 are pending in this application. By this Amendment, claims
1 and 8 are amended, claims 5 and 15 are canceled, and claim 21 is added. Support for the amendments may be found in the original claims, so no new matter is added.
Entry of the amendments is proper under 37 CFR §1.116 because the amendments: (a) place the application in condition for allowance for the reasons discussed herein; (b) do not raise any new issue requiring further search and/or consideration; (c) do not present any additional claims without canceling a corresponding number of finally rejected claims; and (d) place the application in better form for appeal, should an appeal be necessary. The amendments are necessary and were not earlier presented because they are made in response to arguments raised in the final rejection. Entry of the amendments is thus respectfully requested. I.    Claim Rejections under 35 U.S.C. §103
The Office:
" rejects claims 1-2, 7-10, 14, and 17-20 under 35 U.S.C. §103 as allegedly being
obvious over U.S. Patent No. 4,809,174 to Momenthy ("Momenthy") in view of
U.S. Pub. No. 2022/0120599 to Galati et al. ("Galati") and further in view of U.S.
Pub. No. 2020/0216188 to Drancea et al. ("Drancea");
" rejects claims 3-4 and 11-13 under 35 U.S.C. §103 as allegedly being obvious
over Momenthy in view of Galati and Drancea and further in view of U.S. Pub.
No. 2017/0292457 to Selstad ("Selstad"); and
" rejects claims 5-6 and 15-16 under 35 U.S.C. §103 as allegedly being obvious over
Momenthy in view of Galati and Drancea and further in view of U.S. Pub. No.
2015/0191667 to Dubois et al. ("Dubois").
Applicant respectfully traverses these rejections.
The Office compares fuel density to the recited "one or more fuel characteristics." Office Action, P5. Claims 1 and 8 each require the "one or more fuel characteristics" to be derived from other values, particularly "fuel mass" and "fuel volume." On the other hand, the Momenthy reference (and Galati for that matter) determines fuel density
directly
by way of a densitometer. Momenthy, C3:L13-15; Galati, 1[0050]. And while the Office contends on page
6 of the Office Action that "another determining method is that density equals to mass divided by volume, https://www.britannica.com/science/density, thus once mass and volume of the fuel are known, density can be calculated based on the determined mass and volume," the Office provides no rationale about why the person of ordinary skill in the art would have modified Momenthy (and Galati) to depart from their direct measurements of density. A simple statement that "mass and density of the fuel are important parameters in an aircraft fuel supply system," as made by the Office on page 6 of the Office Action, is insufficient, especially since Momenthy and Galati already disclose obtaining fuel density.
Applicant accordingly submits that the Office's §103 rejections are in error. But in the interest of expediting prosecution, claims 1 and 8 are amended to recite, respectively, the features of claims 5 and 15. The Office alleges in connection with claim 5 only that the cited references disclose the third alternative for the "one or more fuel characteristics," i.e., "(iii) an aromatic hydrocarbon content of the fuel." The Office particularly contends that "the energy content of the jet fuel is interpreted to be aromatic content of the fuel." Office Action, P17. But even if this were correct, which Applicant does not concede, Momenthy discloses that its energy content per unit quantity E is determined by way of the following linear function: E = xD + y. Momenthy, C3:L30-38. This energy content is therefore not disclosed as being "determined by either or both of (i) comparing a value derived from the determined fuel mass and fuel volume to values in a lookup table and (ii) calculating a deviation of a value derived from the determined
fuel mass and fuel volume from an expected value," as required by claims 1 and 8, nor has the Office set forth any reason why it would have been obvious to the person skilled in the art to have calculated Momenthy's energy content differently.
Amended claims 1 and 8 are therefore allowable over Momenthy, Galati, and Drancea. Selstad and Dubois provide no additional teachings of relevance. And because the remaining rejected claims are likewise allowable at least for their dependence from claim 1 or claim 8, withdrawal of the §103 rejections is respectfully requested. II.   New Claims
Claim 21 is similar to prior claim 8, but it is modified from that claim 8 to recite that "the one or more fuel characteristics are determined by
either or both of (i) comparing a value derived from the determined fuel ma
ss
and fuel volume to values in a lookup table and (ii)
calculating a deviation of a value derived from the determined fuel mass and fuel volume from an expected value." After having acknowledged the failings of Momenthy and Galati here, the Office turns to Drancea, which discloses that "[o]ther manners for determining fuel density in the tanks are contemplated,
including via one or more look-up table(s) or schedule(s),
among other possibilities." Drancea,  1[0069] (emphasis added). The cited references are thus only alleged to disclose alternative (i) in prior claim 8, so Applicant submits that claim 21 overcomes at least the current rejections by deleting that alternative and thereby requiring that the "one or more fuel characteristics" be determined by calculating the recited "deviation." Consideration and allowance of claim 21 are thus respectfully requested. III.  Conclusion