Cogeneration apparatus

• US 7,615,878 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2005
• Issued: 11/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Takaishi, Toshimitsu, Eguchi, Hiroyuki, Shimizu, Motohiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Ponomarenko; Nicholas
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cuevas; Pedro J
• Application Number:
  US11/575,342
• Publication Number:
  US 20070251469A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,544 Days
• Field of Search: 290/2, 290/10
• US Class Current: 290/10
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 5/02 the devices using heat
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 29/06 peculiar to engines driving electric generators
• CPC Class Codes: F02G 2280/20 Rotary generators
• CPC Class Codes: F02G 5/02 Profiting from waste heat of exhaust gases
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 9/08 requiring starting of a prime-mover
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 20/14 Combined heat and power generation [CHP]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/12 Improving ICE efficiencies

Abstract

A cogeneration system that is operated in system connection is disconnected from the system and operated independently at a power failure of the system. A power generator 1 driven by an engine E is connected to a system 9. A water-cooling device 13 recovers exhaust heat of the engine E. When an operating switch 20 is switched, to its independent operation mode for an independent operation apart from the system 9, the upper limit of the target rotation speed Ntgt of an electronic governor 16 is increased over that at system connection operation, thereby the engine speed can be increased, and the maximum output point of the power generator 1 is increased for operation. When a power failure of the system 9 is detected by a power failure detecting unit 21, an operation mode judging unit 19 outputs a judgment result similar to that at the moment when the independent operation mode is instructed and increases the upper limit of the target engine speed Ntgt, and turns off a connection switch 7 to disconnect the system connection.

Claims

1. A cogeneration apparatus having an engine, an electric generator driven by the engine, a system linkage control unit which links an electric power generation output from the electric generator with a power system, and an exhaust heat recovery unit which recovers exhaust heat from the engine, comprising:

means for raising an upper limit of a rotating speed of the engine to an upper limit higher than that in a system linkage state to enable to perform an operation at a raised maximum output point of the electric generator in an independent operation state in which the cogeneration apparatus is operated independently of the system, said means comprises;

means for supplying a signal that corresponds to a value higher than the upper limit in the system linkage state to a stepping means, said stepping means controls the rotating speed of the electric generator in the independent operation state to said value.

2. The cogeneration apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an electricity failure detecting means for the system, and a control means for switching the operation to the independent operation in response to detection of electricity failure by the electricity failure detection means and releasing the system linkage.

3. The cogeneration apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the engine is started when the engine is unoperated in electricity failure in the power system.