Nissan Motor Company Limited

Renault S.a.s.

Takeaki Obata

Nobutaka Takahashi

Keisuke Suzuki

Yoshitaka Deguchi

Michihiko Matsumoto

Kazuhide Shimada

Masahiro Arai

Hayato Chikugo

Takao Kawasaki

Ikuhiro Taniguchi

Yoshitomo Asai

Musashi Yamaguchi

Tadashi Matoba

Eisuke Fukushima

The fuel cell system includes a fuel cell including a cell stack configured to have a reforming catalyst for generating hydrogen from hydrocarbon, a first flow path configured to supply a fuel containing hydrocarbon to the cell stack, and a second flow path configured to supply an oxidant gas to the cell stack such that the oxidant gas flows oppositely or orthogonally to the fuel. The control method for the fuel cell system including: detecting a temperature of a discharged oxidant gas that is the oxidant gas discharged from the second flow path; and performing a temperature control of the fuel cell based on the temperature of the discharged oxidant gas.

Fuel cell system and control method for fuel cell system

According to a control method for a hybrid vehicle that is caused to run by a drive motor as a load being supplied with electric power of a battery and electric power generated by an electric generator, a total distance to empty is calculated on the basis of a shortage of a generating power output of the electric generator with respect to a required running power output and an amount of charge remaining in the battery. Specifically, a length of time for which the shortage of the generating power output of the electric generator with respect to the required running power output is covered by the amount of charge remaining in the battery is calculated, and a distance that the hybrid vehicle can run for this length of time is set as a total distance to empty.

Total distance to empty informing device provided in hybrid vehicle

A method of controlling the hybrid vehicle in which electric power of the battery and electric power generated by an electric generator are supplied to a drive device, a running load of the drive motor is estimated on the basis of the driver's requirement, and a first distance to empty that allows for running in a state where the estimated running load is fulfilled is calculated on the basis of an amount of charge remaining in the battery and an amount of fuel remaining used to drive the fuel cell. Then, a required running distance is estimated on the basis of the driver's requirement, and, on the basis of the first distance to empty and the required running distance, a necessary energy replenishment operation is notified to the driver.

Method and device for controlling hybrid vehicle

A fuel cell system includes a target pressure setting unit configured to periodically and repeatedly set a target upper limit pressure and a target lower limit pressure as a target pressure of anode gas. An upper limit pressure setting unit is configured to set the smaller one of an upper limit value based on durability performance and an upper limit value based on output performance as an upper limit pressure of the anode gas. The target pressure setting unit sets a value smaller than the upper limit value as the target upper limit pressure when the upper limit value based on the durability performance of the fuel cell is selected as the upper limit pressure of the anode gas, and sets a pressure higher than the upper limit value as the target upper limit pressure when the upper limit value based on the output performance is selected.

Fuel cell system

A control device and method for a fuel cell system accurately learns output characteristics of fuel cell even when the output characteristics of fuel cell change due to changes in fuel cell temperature. The method and device generate power by supplying fuel and oxidant gases. The control device has a memory portion that memorizes output characteristics of fuel cell that change with the temperatures of fuel cell, and that become the base output characteristics, for each of the temperatures. An output characteristics learning portion learns the relationship between the output characteristics that become the base output characteristics and the actual output characteristics of fuel cell. The output characteristics learning portion prohibits learning when an actual current is less than a first predetermined current and more than a second predetermined current.

Control device and a control method for a fuel cell system

A power generation control system for a fuel cell, which includes: a unit () for computing a target output power of the fuel cell; a unit () for taking output power from the fuel cell based on the computed target output power; a unit () for computing an output parameter for controlling supply of reactant gas to the fuel cell as a signal preceding in time the target output power; and a unit () for controlling an operating point for the supply of reactant gas based on the computed output parameter.

Power generation control system for fuel cell

A fuel cell system capable of learning its current-voltage characteristics precisely in a short time even when the current-voltage characteristics of a fuel cell varies due to reduction of a catalyst of an oxidizing agent electrode during the stop of operation of the fuel cell system. A controller () learns current-voltage characteristics of a fuel cell stack (), detects the amount of variation in voltage of current-voltage characteristics before a stop of power generation and those after restart of power generation, and corrects the learnt value of the current-voltage characteristics by the amount of variation in voltage.

Controller for fuel cell system

A fuel cell system and related method are disclosed having a system controllerthat executes enthalpy calculation based on status signals, related to anode off-gas and cathode off-gas, detected by a temperature detector, a pressure detectorand a humidity detectorfor thereby predicting a combustion temperature of a combustorduring purging. In the presence of a predicted combustion temperature exceeding an upper limit, cathode off-gas is increased in volume to limit a combustion temperature of the combustorto a value below the upper limit value.

Fuel cell system and related method

A control apparatus comprises a target steering angle operation unit for operating target steering angles of front wheels and rear wheels, a steering increase/steering return determination unit for determining as to whether steering wheel manipulation is in an increasing state or in a return state, a target rotation center azimuth operation unit for operating a target rotation center azimuth so that a rotation center azimuth &thgr; is decreased in a case of steering increase and a rotation center azimuth &thgr; is increased in a case of steering return, a vehicle behavior estimation unit for estimating a vehicle behavior based on the target rotation center azimuth, a corrected target rotation center azimuth operation unit for operating a corrected target rotation center azimuth so that the vehicle behavior does not exceed a specified value, and a corrected target steering angle operation unit for operating a corrected target steering angle realizing the corrected target rotation center azimuth.

Apparatus for controlling steering angles of front rear wheels of vehicle

Unless the steering operation quantity detected by a steering quantity detection unit indicates that the vehicle is advancing almost rectilinearly, an approach disallowed area present toward the outer side of the turning vehicle relative to the front of the vehicle along the advancing direction, such as a road boundary, a blocking wall or a white line, is detected by an approach disallowed area detection unit. A mode judging unit judges that a steering angle limit mode is set if an approach disallowed area has been detected. An &agr; calculating unit calculates an angle &agr; formed by the orientation of the approach disallowed area boundary and the orientation of the vehicle. In the steering angle limit mode, a target front steering angle calculating unit performs an arithmetic operation by imposing a limit on the absolute value of the target steering angle for the front of the vehicle along the advancing direction so as to ensure that the absolute value does not exceed the maximum value of approximately &agr;.

Apparatus for and method of steering vehicle

A reference steering angle achieved when the steering operation quantity is sustained at a constant value is calculated in correspondence to the steering operation quantity. A decision is made as to whether the vehicle is in a turn-contracting state, in which the direction of a steering operation matches the direction of a change made in the steering operation or a turn-expanding state in which the direction of the steering operation is opposite from the direction of the change made in the steering operation. If the vehicle is determined to be in a turn-contracting state, the target steering angles for the front wheels and the rear wheels are calculated by correcting the reference steering angle so as to achieve a smaller steering center elevation angle. If, on the other hand, the vehicle is determined to be in a turn-expanding state, target steering angles for the front wheels and the rear wheels are calculated by correcting the reference steering angle so as to achieve a larger steering center elevation angle. The steering angles at the front wheels and the rear wheels are adjusted independently of one another so as to match the steering angles with the target steering angles thus calculated.

Vehicle front/rear wheel steering angle control apparatus and vehicle front/rear wheel steering angle control method

In an intake-air quantity control apparatus for an internal combustion engine with a variable valve timing system, an electronic engine control module has a microprocessor programmed to perform selecting one of a first control mode in which an intake-air quantity of the engine is controlled by adjusting the throttle opening, and a second control mode in which an intake-air quantity of the engine is controlled by adjusting the intake-valve closure timing. The microprocessor is programmed to perform a number of calculating and setting steps regarding the intake-air quantity and in-take valve closure timing.

Intake-air quantity control apparatus for internal combustion engine with variable valve timing system

An intake air control system for an engine having an air intake passage, a throttle valve in the intake passage and an intake valve for selectively opening and closing communication between the intake passage and a cylinder. The control system determines target intake passage pressure and target intake air amount in accordance with engine operating conditions. A target throttle opening is set in accordance with both the target pressure and the target intake air amount. The throttle valve is then driven to the target opening. Intake passage pressure is detected and a target intake valve open/close timing is determined in accordance with both the detected intake passage pressure and the target intake air amount. The intake valve is then driven in accordance with the target open/close timing.

Intake air control system of internal combustion engine

An intake-air quantity control apparatus for an internal combustion engine with a variable valve timing system associated with at least an intake valve, comprises a control unit controlling an intake-air quantity of air entering the internal combustion engine based on at least one of an intake valve open timing and an intake valve closure timing of the intake valve. The control unit determines a desired internal pressure in an intake-air passage based on a predetermined operating parameter, and detecting an operation delay-time fluctuation rate for at least the intake valve. A desired intake-air quantity is arithmetically calculated on the basis of engine operating conditions. The control unit includes a compensation section which compensates for the desired internal pressure based on at least one of the operation delay-time fluctuation rate and the desired intake-air quantity to produce a compensated internal pressure. A throttle opening is controlled depending on both the compensated internal pressure and the desired intake-air quantity. Also, the intake valve open timing and the intake valve closure timing are controlled depending on both the compensated internal pressure and the desired intake-air quantity.

When an air conditioner is turned on during homogeneous operation, an equivalence ratio correction factor &Dgr;&phgr; is increased sharply and suddenly in such a manner as to show a jump for thereby increasing an engine output torque, and thereafter is decreased gradually with increase of a cylinder intake air quantity, whereby to maintain the engine output torque constant. However, when switching to a homogeneous mode occurs in the middle of the above control, switching to proper torque correction is not carried out at the time of a homogeneous combustion mode, i.e., torque correction by the use of ignition timing but the torque correction by the equivalence ratio correction factor &Dgr;&phgr; continuously. By this, in contrast to the case in which the torque correction is switched to one that is carried out by the use of ignition timing correction quantity, a sharp and sudden variation of engine output torque can be prevented. In the meantime, after completion of the torque correction by the above mentioned control, the torque correction at the time of the homogeneous combustion mode is carried out by ignition timing correction. Further, when the combustion mode is switched to stratified combustion during execution of torque correction by ignition timing correction at the time of the homogeneous combustion mode, the torque correction is switched to one that is carried out by the use of the equivalence ratio correction factor simultaneously with switching of the combustion mode.

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Yokohama, Japan

Takeaki Obata