Fuel cell vehicle

• US 7,007,766 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2001
• Issued: 03/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Iwasaki, Yasukazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Ellis, Christopher P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): AVERY, BRIDGET D
• Application Number:
  US10/069,015
• Publication Number:
  US 20020136935A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,652 Days
• Field of Search: 180/65.1, 180/65.2, 180/65.3, 180/65.4, 180/165, 180/65.8
• US Class Current: 180/65.29
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/75 using propulsion power supplied by both fuel cells and batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/30 for monitoring or controlling fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/33 by cooling
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/34 by heating
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/40 for controlling a combination of batteries and fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2250/20 Fuel cells in motive systems, e.g. vehicle, ship, plane
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04455 of cathode reactants at the inlet or inside the fuel cell
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04656 of auxiliary devices, e.g. batteries, capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04753 of fuel cell reactants
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04955 Shut-off or shut-down of fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/50 Fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/40 Application of hydrogen technology to transportation, e.g. using fuel cells

Abstract

A CO sensor (250) which detects CO contained in the air supplied to a fuel cell (200) by a compressor (202), and a sensor (206) which detects the state of charge (SOC) of a battery (207), are provided in a fuel cell vehicle. A controller (254) controls operation and stop of the fuel cell based on CO concentration and the state of charge of the battery (207), and stops operation of the fuel cell (200) at a lower CO concentration the higher the state of charge of the battery (207).

Claims

1. A fuel cell vehicle, comprising:

a fuel cell which generates power using fuel gas containing hydrogen;

an air feeder which draws in untreated air from outside the vehicle and supplies the untreated air to the fuel cell;

a fuel supply device which supplies fuel gas to the fuel cell;

a motor which drives the vehicle with power generated by the fuel cell;

a storage battery which stores power generated by the fuel cell and power regenerated by the motor, and supplies the stored power to the motor;

a sensor which detects a toxic substance contained in the untreated air supplied by the air feeder, the toxic substance causing the performance of the fuel cell to decrease;

a sensor which detects the state of charge of the battery; and

a processor programmed to control operation and stop of the fuel cell based on the result of detecting the toxic substance and the state of charge of the battery.

2. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the processor is further programmed to stop operation of the fuel cell at a lower toxic substance concentration the higher the state of charge of the battery.

3. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the processor is further programmed to operate the fuel cell when the state of charge of the battery is less than a first reference value, and to stop the fuel cell when the state of charge of the battery is greater than a second reference value which is greater than the first reference value, regardless of the toxic substance detection result.

4. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the processor is further programmed to operate or stop the fuel cell based on the time average value of the toxic substance concentration, and the state of charge of the battery.

5. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the sensor which detects the toxic, substance concentration is a sensor which detects carbon monoxide.

6. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the processor is further programmed to determine whether to operate or stop the fuel cell by looking up a map which sets an operating region and a stop region of the fuel cell having the toxic substance concentration and state of charge of the battery as parameters.

7. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the fuel supply device comprises a reformer which generates hydrogen, and the processor is further programmed to control operation or stop of the fuel cell by controlling the operation of the reformer.

8. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the fuel supply device supplies stored hydrogen to the fuel cell, and the processor is further programmed to operate or stop the fuel cell by controlling the supply of hydrogen from the fuel supply device to the fuel cell.

9. The fuel cell vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the air feeder has an inlet port and the sensor is positioned to sense the untreated air drawn in at the inlet port.