Ceres Intellectual Property Company Limited

Continental Automotive Gmbh

Paul Barnard

Robert Morgan

Christian Thiel

James Herbst

Robert Leah

Christopher John Evans

Tomasz Domanski

Andrew Ballard

Bingtao Gao

Martin Schmidt

Ralf Johannes Lenninger

Matthew Harrington

Mark Selby

Tony Toher

Frank Foersterling

Simone Stefano Dozio

Oliver John Postlethwaite

James Devriendt

Bruce Girvan

Richard Dawson

Isaac Cottereau

Michael McLorn

Andrew Hazell

Farzad Barari

Simone Bertoni

Neville Haidar

Colin Bennett

Michael Mclorn

Frank Försterling

Chad Sharp

Joshua Ryley

Some embodiments include a method of generating an environment reference model for positioning comprising: receiving multiple data sets representing a scanned environment including information about a type of sensor used and data for determining an absolute position of objects or feature points represented by the data sets; extracting one or more objects or feature points from each data set; determining a position of each object or feature point in a reference coordinate system; generating a three-dimensional vector representation of the scanned environment aligned with the reference coordinate system including representation of the objects or feature points at corresponding locations, creating links between the objects or feature points in the three dimensional vector model with an identified type of sensor by which they can be detected in the environment; and storing the three-dimensional vector model representation and the links in a retrievable manner.

Environment model using cross-sensor feature point referencing

A fuel cell system comprising (i) at least one fuel cell stack () comprising at least one intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell, and having an anode inlet () and a cathode inlet () and (ii) a reformer () for reforming a hydrocarbon fuel to a reformate, and a reformer heat exchanger (); and defining: an anode inlet gas fluid flow path from a fuel source () to said reformer () to said fuel cell stack anode inlet (); a cathode inlet gas fluid flow path from an oxidant inlet () through at least one cathode inlet gas heat exchanger () to said reformer heat exchanger () to said fuel cell stack cathode inlet (); wherein said at least one cathode inlet gas heat exchanger () is arranged to heat relatively low temperature cathode inlet gas by transfer of heat from at least one of (i) an anode off-gas fluid flow path and (ii) a cathode off-gas fluid flow path; wherein said reformer heat exchanger is arranged for heating said anode inlet gas from said relatively high temperature cathode inlet gas to a temperature Tat the anode inlet that is below a temperature Tat the cathode inlet; and wherein oxidant flow control means () for controlled mixing of low temperature oxidant from the or each oxidant inlet () with high temperature cathode inlet gas to control a temperature Tat the cathode inlet () relative to a temperature Tat the anode inlet () and at a level higher than T.

Fuel cell systems and methods

The present invention is concerned with improved swirl burners, particularly, but not limited to, swirl burners used in fuel cell systems.

Fuel cell system and tail gas burner assembly and method

Some embodiments include a method of generating an environment reference model for positioning comprising: receiving multiple data sets representing a scanned environment including information about a type of sensor used and data for determining an absolute position of objects or feature points represented by the data sets; extracting one or more objects or feature points from each data set; determining a position of each object or feature point in a reference coordinate system; generating a three-dimensional vector representation of the scanned environment aligned with the reference coordinate system including representation of the objects or feature points at corresponding locations; creating links between the objects or feature points in the three-dimensional vector model with an identified type of sensor by which they can be detected in the environment; and storing the three-dimensional vector model representation and the links in a retrievable manner.

A method and a system for generating and updating a digital road description database containing object-based information about at least one of a road object, a road furniture object and a geographic object is disclosed. A vehicle is collecting ambient data like images along multiple sections of its path, generating third data sets comprising at least location information and detailed object-based information. The third data sets are forwarded to a server database. The database identifies common groups of object reference points in multiple vehicle path sections and generates alignment functions for matching and/or aligning the at least one group of object reference points in at least two of the vehicle path sections relating to the same part of the road. The same alignment function is applied to all other third data sets of the same vehicle path section. The database updates the fourth data sets in the database based on processing the third data sets.

System and method of matching of road data objects for generating and updating a precision road database

A method and a system of a two-step object data processing by a vehicle and a database for generating and updating a digital road description database containing object-based information about road objects is disclosed. First, the server database comprises fourth data sets and generates and forwards first data sets to the vehicle, which are related to the area of interest of the vehicle. The vehicle is collecting a plurality of ambient data sets at least along a specific section of its path. It is performing the first step of object data processing by evaluating a selection of the plurality of ambient data sets and generating at least one second data set comprising at least location information and detailed object-based information. It further generates third data sets containing differences between the object-based information of the second data sets and the object-based information of the first data sets and forwards the third data sets to the server database. The server database performs the second step of object data processing comprising at least statistical evaluation and post processing to update the fourth data sets in the server database based on the third data sets.

System and method of a two-step object data processing by a vehicle and a server database for generating, updating and delivering a precision road property database

Swirl burner with fuel injection upstream and downstream of the swirler

The present invention is concerned with improved fuel cell systems and methods. The present invention provides an intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell (IT-SOFC) system comprising: (i) at least one fuel cell stack comprising at least one intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell, and having an anode inlet, a cathode inlet, an anode off-gas outlet, a cathode off-gas outlet, and defining separate flow paths for flow of anode inlet gas, cathode inlet gas, anode off-gas and cathode off-gas; and (ii) a steam reformer for reforming a hydrocarbon fuel to a reformate, and having a reformer inlet for anode inlet gas, a reformer outlet for exhausting anode inlet gas, and a reformer heat exchanger; and defining: (a) an anode inlet gas fluid flow path from a fuel source to said steam reformer to said at least one fuel cell stack anode inlet; (b) an anode off-gas fluid flow path from said at least one fuel cell stack anode off-gas outlet to a fuel cell system exhaust; (c) a cathode inlet gas fluid flow path from an at least one oxidant inlet to said reformer heat exchanger to said at least one fuel cell stack cathode inlet; and (d) a cathode off-gas fluid flow path from said at least one fuel cell stack cathode off-gas outlet to said fuel cell system exhaust; wherein said reformer heat exchanger is a parallel-flow heat exchanger in fluid flow communication with (i) said at least one oxidant inlet and said at least one fuel cell stack cathode inlet, and (ii) said fuel source and said at least one fuel cell stack anode inlet, and is arranged for exchanging heat between said cathode inlet gas and said anode inlet gas.

Fuel cell stack and steam reformer systems and methods

A fuel cell system comprising a controller, a temperature sensor that has a physical presence in a conduit within the system to measure the temperature of the fluid at a point within the conduit (T) and a wall temperature sensor for sensing a temperature of a wall of the conduit (T). The controller takes Tand Tas inputs and applies an equation with known constants to calculate measurement error of Tbased on the local flow temperature and geometry and arrives at a calculated temperature. The equation may be applied iteratively until the difference between the calculated temperature and Tis below an acceptable value when the calculated temperature can then be assumed to be an accurate representation of the actual gas temperature at the Tmeasurement point. The direction of calculation is controlled by the relative difference between Tand T.

Temperature measuring method

A boiler unit () housed in an enclosure, the boiler unit () configured to receive a solid state combined heat and power generating device (). The boiler unit () comprises a heating device () to produce heat; and a control unit () to independently control each of the heating device () and the solid state combined heat and power generating device (). The boiler unit () is operable without the solid state combined heat and power generating device () being present.

Boiler unit

The present invention is concerned with improved fuel cell stack assemblies, and methods of operation of a fuel cell stack assembly, particularly with improved gas flow and thermal management.

Fuel cell stack flow hood air flow using an air distribution device

Fuel cell stack flow hood

A system and method are provided for exchanging heat in fuel cell systems () in which the anode and cathode off-gases are provided with separated flow paths. In one embodiment, where a fuel cell stack () has separate anode and cathode off-gas flow paths, separate anode off-gas from the at least one fuel cell stack () and at least one heat transfer fluid are passed through a first heat exchange element () to exchange heat between the anode off-gas and the heat transfer fluid. The cathode off-gas exiting the at least one fuel cell stack is then combined with the anode off-gas from the heat exchange element () in a burner and burned.

Fuel cell heat exchange systems and methods

Growing community of inventors

West Sussex, United Kingdom

Paul Barnard