Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Nippon Soken, Inc.

Denso Corporation

Ikuyasu Kato

Keigo Suematsu

Takashi Yamada

Yuji Ishikawa

Kazuo Yamamoto

Takashi Yamamoto

Shigeki Hasegawa

Yuichi Sakajo

Junichi Shirahama

Masahiro Shiozawa

Osamu Hamanoi

Hideki Kubo

Koichiro Yamashita

Chiaki Mizutani

Miho Hatazaki

Takuya Hashimoto

Ryo Akagawa

Katsuya Matsuoka

Kazuo Horibe

A fuel cell monitoring device includes: an impedance measuring part measuring an impedance at each fuel cell and an impedance at a fuel cell stack as a whole; a water content estimating part calculating a water content estimated value at each fuel cell using a gas diffusion resistance obtained from a measurement result about the impedance at each fuel cell, and calculating a water content reference estimated value indicating a water content in each fuel cell using a gas diffusion resistance obtained from a measurement result about the impedance at the fuel cell stack as a whole; and a determining part detecting at least either the occurrence of deterioration of catalyst in the fuel cell or the occurrence of a distribution failure of reactive gas at the fuel cell by determining based on the magnitude of the water content estimated value relative to the water content reference estimated value.

Fuel cell monitoring device and method of determining state of fuel cell

A current measurement device includes a measurement part that is constituted by including a resistance part having a predetermined electric resistance value and a pair of current collector parts for extracting a potential difference generated by a current that flows the resistance part; a potential difference detector that is connected to the pair of current collector parts and detects a potential difference generated in the resistance part; and a current detector that detects the current that flows through the inside of a fuel cell. The measurement part is disposed to be integrated with one separator of the pair of separators and the pair of current collectors is disposed so as to overlap with the resistance part when seen from a direction orthogonal to the stacking direction of the cells.

Current measurement device

In a fuel cell monitoring device, a gas-diffusion resistance calculation section calculates a gas-diffusion resistance Rindicating a difficulty of diffusing reaction gas to a catalyst layer in a fuel cell based on a gas reaction resistance Rcalculated by a resistance calculation section. A second diffusion resistance calculation section calculates a second diffusion resistance Rvarying depending on a dried-up in the fuel cell based on a proton transfer resistance Rcalculated by the resistance calculation section. A first diffusion resistance calculation section calculates a first diffusion resistance Rvarying depending on a flooding in the fuel cell by subtracting the second diffusion resistance Rfrom the gas-diffusion resistance R. A water content calculation section calculates a water content of the fuel cell based on the first diffusion resistance. A recovery control section adjusts the water content in the fuel cell based on the calculated water content.

Fuel cell monitoring device

A fuel cell stack comprises a stack of three or more fuel cells, each having an assembly in which an anode electrode and a cathode electrode are respectively joined to either side of an electrolytic membrane. The anode electrode is provided nearer to one end, in the stack direction of the fuel cell, than the cathode electrode. Temperature regulating parts for regulating the temperature of the anode electrode of one fuel cell of any two adjacent fuel cells and the cathode electrode of the other fuel cell are disposed at a plurality of positions arranged in the stack direction. The provided temperature regulating parts perform temperature regulation so that the heat dissipating capability of the anode electrode is different in the stack direction from that of the cathode electrode.

Fuel cell stack

A collision detecting apparatus (1) comprises a pair of deformation sensor (2) and G sensor (3) having output signals to be supplied to a control circuit (19). When a door outer panel (18) is deformed by collision of a vehicle, the deformation sensor (2) is turned on. Meanwhile, the door, when received an impact force, will be subjected to a large G sufficient to turn on the G sensor (3). Thus, the control circuit (19) generates an actuation signal for exploding an air bag only when the sensors (2) and (3) generate ON signals. However, when the door outer panel (18) is manually pushed or swung for opening/closing operation, only one of these two sensors (2) and (3) is turned on. Hence, the control circuit (19) does not generate the actuation signal, thereby surely detecting the collision of the vehicle and preventing the air bag from being erroneously exploded.

Collision detecting apparatus operable in response to deformation and

Growing community of inventors

Obu, Japan

Ikuyasu Kato