Fuel cell vehicle

• US 7,086,492 B2
• Filed: 08/22/2003
• Issued: 08/08/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Kawasaki, Satoshi, Ono, Tohru, Hiruta, Yukio
• Primary Examiner(s): Dickson, Paul N.
• Assistant Examiner(s): WEBB, TIFFANY LOUISE
• Application Number:
  US10/646,236
• Publication Number:
  US 20040035632A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,082 Days
• Field of Search: 180/68.5, 180/279, 180/284, 180/282, 180/283, 180/271, 180/274, 180/277, 307/10.7
• US Class Current: 180/274
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 1/04 of the electric storage means for propulsion exchanging batteries for electric propulsion of vehicles B60L53/80; for auxiliary purposes only B60R16/04; supplying batteries to, or removing batteries from, vehicles B60S5/06
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0007 Measures or means for preventing or attenuating collisions
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/66 Arrangements of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/71 Arrangement of fuel cells within vehicles specially adapted for electric vehicles
• 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 fuel cell vehicle driven by generated electric power of a fuel cell comprises a fuel cell box disposed underneath a floor for storing therein the fuel call, G sensors for detecting a deformation of a vehicle body sideward of the fuel cell box, and a shut-off valve for closing a supply side piping of a hydrogen gas supplied to the fuel cell when a predetermined amount of deformation or the vehicle body is detected by the G sensors.

Claims

1. A fuel cell vehicle driven by generated electric power of a fuel cell, the vehicle comprising:

a fuel cell box disposed under a floor of the fuel cell vehicle for storing the fuel cell;

a deformation detecting sensor for detecting an amount of a deformation of a vehicle body sideward of the fuel cell box; and

a protection device for implementing a predetermined protecting operation of the fuel cell when the deformation detecting sensor detects a predetermined amount of deformation of the vehicle body.

2. A fuel cell vehicle as set forth in claim 1, wherein the deformation detecting sensor comprises a plurality of acceleration sensors, and wherein the vehicle body deformation amount is obtained based on a difference in travel of a vehicle body calculated from accelerations detected by the respective acceleration sensors.

3. A fuel cell vehicle as set forth in claim 1, wherein the deformation detecting sensor is a stroke sensor provided at a side of the fuel cell box.

4. A fuel cell vehicle as set forth in claim 2, wherein the deformation detecting sensor comprises two acceleration sensors, one sensor disposed substantially at the center of the vehicle, the other sensor disposed on a side of the vehicle.