Alert method relating to remaining fuel amount of fuel cell system and fuel cell system using the same

• US 8,153,314 B2
• Filed: 09/22/2003
• Issued: 04/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Umayahara, Kenji, Hirakata, Shuji
• Primary Examiner(s): Kelly, Cynthia H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILLS, MONIQUE M
• Application Number:
  US10/664,857
• Publication Number:
  US 20040062963A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,123 Days
• Field of Search: 701/29, 701/1, 701/123, 701/22, 180/65.3, 429/12, 429/13, 429/22, 429/24, 429/429, 429/434, 429/443, 429/515, 429/25, 429/34, 429/23
• US Class Current: 429/429
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/26 Rail vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/10 DC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/36 Temperature of vehicle components or parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/622 by satellite navigation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/72 Charging station selection relying on external data
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/10 by alarm
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/12 by confirmation, e.g. of the input
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/24 by lever actuation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/52 drive range estimation, e.g. of estimation of available travel distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/54 Energy consumption estimation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0053 relating to fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/04 Cutting off the power supply under fault conditions protective devices and circuit arrangements in general H01H; H02H
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/51 characterised by AC-motors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/30 for monitoring or controlling fuel cells
• 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 8/04223 during start-up or shut-down; Depolarisation or activation, e.g. purging; Means for short-circuiting defective fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04228 during shut-down
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04303 : applied during shut-down
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/0432 : Temperature; Ambient temperature
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04388 : of anode reactants at the inlet or inside the fuel cell
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04626 : of auxiliary devices, e.g. batteries, capacitors
• 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 10/72 : Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 : Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/40 : Application of hydrogen technology to transportation, e.g. using fuel cells

Abstract

An alert method capable of preventing problems due to excessive lowering of a remaining fuel amount of a fuel cell system is provided. The alert method includes the following steps of: switching over operation/stopped states of the fuel cell system, detecting that the state of the fuel cell system is switched over to a stopped side, and communicating information related to the remaining fuel amount to a user when fuel of the fuel cell system is consumed in a state where the switch is switched over to a stopped side. According to the alert method, information related to the remaining fuel amount is communicated to the user when fuel is consumed by the fuel cell system while in a practically stopped state. Therefore, it is possible to prevent excessive lowering of the remaining fuel amount of the fuel cell system.

Claims

1. An alert method relating to a remaining fuel amount of a fuel cell system comprising:

switching from an operation state of the fuel cell system to a stopped state of the fuel cell system;

detecting that the fuel cell system is switched to a stopped state; and

communicating information related to the remaining fuel amount when fuel of the fuel cell system is consumed to an information terminal of a user located at a point away from a moving body that the fuel cell system is disposed on, when the fuel cell system is switched to the stopped state, wherein

the communicating information related to the remaining fuel amount further comprises at least generating an alert for the user when fuel of the fuel cell system is consumed and the remaining fuel amount falls to an alert generating level, and

the alert is sent to an information terminal of the user using wireless communication.

2. The alert method of claim 1, wherein

generating the alert for the user is implemented when fuel is consumed due to the fuel cell system performing a heat-retention operation.

3. The alert method of claim 1, wherein

generating the alert for the user is implemented multiple times in response to the remaining fuel amount.

4. The alert method of claim 1, wherein

the fuel cell system is mounted in a moving body, and

the alert includes information related to at least one of a remaining fuel amount, a possible remaining heat-retention operation time of the fuel cell system, a possible remaining running mileage of the moving body, vehicle position information, a distance to the nearest fuel station and a route information to nearest fuel station.

5. The alert method of claim 4, wherein

the alert generating level is set such that the possible remaining running mileage of the moving body includes a margin with respect to the distance to the nearest fuel station.

11. The alert method of claim 1, wherein the remaining fuel amount is reduced when fuel of the fuel cell system is consumed in the stopped state when the fuel cell system is switched to the stopped state.

12. The alert method of claim 1, wherein the information terminal is selected from the group consisting of cellular phone, PDA, personal computer and house phone.

13. The alert method of claim 1, wherein the information related to the remaining fuel amount is at least one of a tank pressure and a tank weight.

6. An alert method relating to a remaining fuel amount of a fuel cell system mounted in a moving body comprising:

switching from an operation state of the moving body to a stopped state of the moving body;

detecting that an ignition switch of the moving body is switched to the stopped state; and

communicating information related to the remaining fuel amount to a user when fuel of the fuel cell system is consumed when the ignition switch is switched to the stopped state to an information terminal of a user at a location away from the moving body using wireless communication.

7. The alert method of claim 6, wherein

communicating information to the user is conducted at every fixed time period.

8. The alert method of claim 6, wherein

communicating information to the user is conducted when the remaining fuel amount falls to an alert generating level.

9. The alert method of claim 6, wherein

communicating information to the user is conducted in response to a request from the user.

10. The alert method of claim 6, wherein

the fuel cell system stops consumption of the fuel in response to a system stop command after receiving the system stop command from the user.