Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Denso Corporation

Nippon Soken, Inc.

Other

Yuichi Sakajo

Keigo Suematsu

Takashi Koyama

Yoshiaki Naganuma

Sadahisa Onimaru

Hisayoshi Sakakibara

Yukikatsu Ozaki

Takahiro Yamafuji

Masanori Uehara

Ryo Yoshioka

Hiroyuki Imanishi

Kota Manabe

Shin Nishida

Tomotaka Ishikawa

Toshio Morikawa

Toshiyuki Kawai

Kazuhide Uchida

Osamu Yumita

Takashi Yamada

Hirohito Matsui

Masashi Takagi

Hiromi Tanaka

Ken Matsunaga

Nobukazu Mizuno

Hideshi Izuhara

Yuji Ishikawa

Tomoya Katoh

Ikuyasu Kato

Kouji Mori

Naoto Hotta

Masakazu Ozaki

Tooru Tanaka

A fuel cell system includes a water supply unit configured to supply water from a first water storage unit to a second water storage unit, and a water usage unit uses water in the second water storage unit. The first and second water storage units store produced water form the fuel cell. When the amount of water stored in the first water storage unit exceeds a first predetermined value and the amount of water stored in the second water storage unit is smaller than a second predetermined value, water is supplied from the first water storage unit to the second water storage unit. When water is being used by the water usage unit, water is supplied from the first water storage unit to the second water storage unit even when the amount of water stored in the second water storage unit is not smaller than the second predetermined value.

Fuel cell system

A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell, a water storage unit configured to store water recovered from the fuel cell and be able to drain the stored water, a water usage unit configured to use the water in the water storage unit, and a control unit configured to control a drain of the water from the water storage unit. The control unit is configured to, when a first predetermined time has elapsed since a last drain of the water from the water storage unit, drain the water from the water storage unit. The control unit is configured to, when it is predicted that the water in the water storage unit is used by the water usage unit within a second predetermined time shorter than the first predetermined time, not drain the water from the water storage unit even when the first predetermined time has elapsed since the drain of the water from the water storage unit.

A fuel cell vehicle air-conditioning apparatus includes: a cooling system that adjusts a temperature of a fuel cell; a waste heat collection unit that collects at least a part of waste heat from the fuel cell and uses the collected waste heat to heat a cabin interior of the fuel cell vehicle; and a heat creation unit that creates heat for heating the fuel cell vehicle. The fuel cell vehicle air-conditioning apparatus calculates a fuel consumption amount required for the fuel cell to generate a total power generation amount, which is a sum of a heating power generation amount and a travel power generation amount, calculates an optimum temperature, which is a temperature of the fuel cell at which the fuel consumption amount reaches a minimum, and controls the cooling system such that the temperature of the fuel cell reaches the optimum temperature.

Fuel cell vehicle air-conditioning apparatus and control method thereof

The vehicle control apparatus configured to control a vehicle includes a fuel cell configured to supply electric power to the vehicle; an air conditioning mechanism having a heater core; a first medium circuit; a radiator installed in the first medium circuit; a bypass circuit formed in the first medium circuit to make a bypass flow of the cooling medium bypassing the radiator; a regulation valve installed in the first medium circuit to regulate a ratio of a flow rate of the cooling medium going through the radiator to a flow rate of the cooling medium going through the bypass circuit; a second medium circuit; a cooling medium circulation pump installed in at least one of the first medium circuit and the second medium circuit; a temperature acquisition module; a warm-up controller; and a state switchover structure.

Vehicle control apparatus and vehicle control method

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 system includes: a fuel cell having laminated cells; a measuring unit that measures an impedance of the cell and a purging unit that performs purging to discharge residual water from a gas passage. The cell includes a wet region and a dry region which are set depending on a distribution of water in the cell when the purging is executed so as to set a total amount of water in the fuel cell to be a necessary amount of water to start up the fuel cell; the measuring unit measures the impedance at a local portion located at a boundary portion between the wet region and the dry region in the cell; and the purging unit terminates the purging when the impedance measured by the measuring means is larger than a predetermined reference threshold value.

Fuel cell system capable of performing gas purge to adjust amount of water therein

A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell, an operation controller and an air-conditioning mechanism. In response to a heating request for the air-conditioning mechanism during ordinary operation where the fuel cell is operated at an operating point on a current-voltage characteristic curve of the fuel cell, the operation controller compares a heat value-based required current value with an output-based required current value. When the output-based required current value is equal to or greater than the heat value-based required current value, the operation controller causes the fuel cell to be operated at an operating point on the current-voltage characteristic curve. When the output-based required current value is smaller than the heat value-based required current value, the operation controller controls the operating point of the fuel cell to an operating point of lower power generation efficiency than that of the operating point on the current-voltage characteristic curve.

This fuel cell system is for suppressing a backflow of water from an exhaust pipe outlet that discharges a reactant-off gas, without decreasing the performance and fuel consumption of a fuel cell, the exhaust pipe being configured to switch between a main discharge pipe and a sub discharge pipe by a switching means to discharge the reactant-off gas. The sub discharge pipe includes a rising gradient portion formed to incline upwards above a gradient of the main discharge pipe and a falling gradient portion formed to incline downwards at the downstream of the rising gradient portion. The switching valve switches to allow the reactant-off gas to be discharged from the main discharge pipe if an amount of reactant-off gas to be discharged is equal to or above a threshold value of an amount of discharge, and allow the reactant-off gas to be discharged from the sub discharge pipe if the amount of reactant-off gas to be discharged is below the threshold value of the amount of discharge.

A cooling system is provided. The cooling system includes: a fuel cell; a cooling circuit configured to circulate a coolant medium to cool the fuel cell; an air conditioning circuit configured to circulate the coolant medium, the air conditioning circuit having a heat exchanger to execute heat exchange between the coolant medium and air to be sent to a room; a switching unit configured to switch between a connected state and a disconnected state; and a controller configured to control operation of the cooling system, wherein when the controller switches a state of the cooling system from the disconnected state to the connected state, irrespective of conditions in the cooling system, the controller executes operation of the cooling system in a flow rate control mode whereby the ratio (LL) of a first flow rate (L) to a second flow rate (L) is set to or above a prescribed value, wherein the first flow rate (L) represents the flow rate of the coolant medium flowing through the cooling circuit, and the second flow rate (L) represents the flow rate of the coolant medium flowing through the air conditioning circuit.

Cooling system

A fuel cell system is equipped with a drive motor, a fuel cell, and a controller. The controller performs normal electric power generation under a condition that the fuel cell is not warmed up, warm-up electric power generation with lower electric power generation efficiency than normal electric power generation, and controls performance of warm-up electric power generation on a basis of a predetermined index on a necessity to warm up the fuel cell. The controller controls an operation state of the fuel cell during warm-up electric power generation on a basis of a correlation between the system loss required for warm-up of the fuel cell and a warm-up output required for driving of a load including the drive motor during warm-up of the fuel cell.

Fuel cell system and method of controlling the same

A fuel cell system has a fuel cell, an air-refrigerant heat exchanger, and primary and secondary expansion valves. The air-refrigerant heat exchanger performs heat exchange between exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell and a refrigerant in a refrigeration cycle. The primary expansion valve reduces the pressure of the refrigerant at an upstream side of the air-refrigerant heat exchanger. The secondary expansion valve reduces the pressure of the refrigerant at a downstream side of the air-refrigerant heat exchanger. While the air-refrigerant heat exchanger performs the heat-exchange from the air to the refrigerant, the primary expansion valve controls a reduced magnitude of the pressure of the refrigerant so that a temperature of the refrigerant is set to a specified value within a range of 0&#xb0; C. to 5&#xb0; C., preferably set to 0&#xb0; C., at which water component contained in the air does not freeze.

A combustion type heater of this invention includes fuel distribution means for distributing a fuel to the whole surface of a wick disposed upstream of the wick in a fuel passage. The fuel distribution means comprises fuel distribution grooves and a fuel dispersion plate having a large number of holes bored therein. The fuel distribution means can quickly supply the fuel to the whole surface of the wick. To shorten the heating time of the wick, the heater of the present invention uses a wick heating glow plug outside an ignition glow plug or a planar heater for heating the wick.

Combustion type heater

A reduction in the discharge voltage, caused due to a memory effect of a battery, is checked during a discharge operation. An initial discharge characteristic curve, representing an initial relationship between the discharge voltage and the discharge amount of the battery, is parallel shifted so as to coincide with the actual discharge condition, thereby obtaining an estimated discharge characteristic curve in a non-discharged region.

Residual capacity detecting apparatus for an electric vehicle's battery

A refrigerating system, using CO.sub.2 as a refrigerant, for an air conditioner for an automobile. A pressure at the outlet of the heat emitter 2 is controlled to a target value in accordance with the temperature of the refrigerant at the outlet of the heat emitter for obtaining an operation of the refrigerating system along the optimum control line .eta..sub.max. A pressure reducer 4 and a cooler 5 are provided on a branched passageway 28 branched from a refrigerant recirculating passageway 27 for injection. The cooler 5 is for obtaining a heat exchange between a flow of the refrigerant on the branched passageway 28 after being cooled by the pressure reducer and a flow of the refrigerant on the main passageway 27, thereby cooling the refrigerant directed to the evaporator. In a second aspect of the invention, a means is provided for increasing a target value of the pressure at the pressure reducer when a thermal load of the refrigerating system is high. In a third aspect, a series of pressure reducers are arranged on the main recirculating passageway. The second stage pressure reducer is controlled so as to obtain a desired value of degree of super heating at the inlet of the compressor.

Vapor compression type refrigerating system

A refrigerating system of vapor compression type operating at a super critical area, while obtaining an increased efficiency. The refrigerating system includes a pressure control means for controlling the temperature and the pressure at the outlet of a heat emitter. The pressure control valve responds to a pressure difference between the inlet pressure of the refrigerant to the pressure control valve and the pressure in an outwardly sealed chamber in which the refrigerant is filled such that, with respect to the volume of the chamber under closed condition of the pressure control valve, a density of the refrigerant is in a range between a density of a saturated liquid at a temperature of 0.degree. C. and a density at the critical point of the refrigerant. As a result, the pressure and the temperature at the outlet of the heat emitter is controlled substantially along the optimum control line .eta.max, resulting in an effective execution of a refrigerating cycle at the critical area.

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Toyohashi, Japan

Yuichi Sakajo