Fuel Cell Vehicles

Abstract

To provide a fuel cell vehicle that can avoid detecting leakage of fuel gas from a filling nozzle of a gas filling station at the time of filling fuel gas, and can suitably detect leakage of fuel gas from a gas filling port provided on the vehicle side.SOLUTION: A fuel cell vehicle 10 includes a fuel cell stack 14, a fuel tank 20 that stores fuel gas to be supplied to the fuel cell stack 14, a tank chamber 24 that houses the fuel tank 20, a gas filling port 52 for filling the fuel tank 20 with fuel gas from outside a vehicle, a filling lid box 50 having an accommodation chamber 57 and a lid member 58 and provided above the tank chamber 24, a fuel gas sensor 32 arranged in the tank chamber 24, and a duct 60 that communicates the accommodation chamber 57 and the tank chamber 24.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a fuel cell vehicle equipped with a fuel tank and a fuel gas sensor. [Background technology]

[0002] In a fuel cell vehicle, for example, a fuel gas tank (hydrogen tank) is arranged in the rear of the vehicle (in the trunk or under the floor). Various measures have been taken to detect fuel gas leaks in fuel cell vehicles. For example, the vehicle hydrogen detection device disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a hydrogen sensor provided near the hydrogen fill port. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2010-20910 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In Patent Document 1, a hydrogen sensor is placed near the hydrogen filling port. Therefore, when hydrogen gas is filled, the hydrogen sensor may detect a minute hydrogen leak from the filling nozzle of the gas filling station (hydrogen station). In this case, unnecessary notifications are sent to the user, reducing user convenience.

[0005] In view of the above, the present invention aims to provide a fuel cell vehicle that can avoid detecting fuel gas leakage from the filling nozzle at a gas filling station when filling with fuel gas, and can preferably detect fuel gas leakage from a gas filling port provided on the vehicle side. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is a fuel cell vehicle comprising a fuel cell stack, a fuel tank for storing fuel gas to be supplied to the fuel cell stack, a tank chamber for accommodating the fuel tank, a gas filling port for filling the fuel tank with fuel gas from outside the vehicle, a storage chamber for accommodating the gas filling port, a filling lid box having a lid member that can open and close the storage chamber and is provided above the tank chamber, a fuel gas sensor arranged in the tank chamber, and a duct that connects the storage chamber to the tank chamber. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the fuel cell vehicle of the present invention, it is possible to avoid detecting fuel gas leaks from the filling nozzle at a gas filling station when filling fuel gas, and if a fuel gas leak occurs from a gas filling port provided on the vehicle, the gas leak can be detected appropriately. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic plan view of a fuel cell vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a main portion of a fuel cell vehicle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] As shown in FIG. 1, a fuel cell vehicle 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention has a fuel cell system 12 mounted thereon.

[0010] The fuel cell system 12 includes a fuel cell stack 14. The fuel cell stack 14 is disposed in a motor room 18 near the front wheels 16f, 16f. The fuel cell stack 14 has a plurality of fuel cells 22 stacked in a horizontal direction (the direction of arrow B) or in the direction of gravity.

[0011] The fuel cell 22, for example, has a membrane electrode assembly sandwiched between a pair of separators (not shown). The membrane electrode assembly has a cathode electrode provided on one side of a solid polymer electrolyte membrane and an anode electrode provided on the other side. An oxidant gas (e.g., air) is supplied to the cathode electrode, while a fuel gas (e.g., hydrogen gas) is supplied to the anode electrode, and power is generated by an electrochemical reaction between oxygen in the air and the hydrogen gas. The fuel cell stack 14 is connected to a fuel gas supply device 23 that supplies fuel gas, as well as an air supply device (not shown) that supplies air, and a cooling medium supply device (not shown) that supplies a cooling medium.

[0012] A fuel tank 20 is disposed between the rear wheels 16r, 16r. Although only one fuel tank 20 is provided in Fig. 1, a plurality of fuel tanks 20 may be provided. When a plurality of fuel tanks 20 are provided, the capacities of the plurality of fuel tanks 20 may be different from each other.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel tank 20 is disposed at the bottom of the fuel cell vehicle 10. Specifically, the fuel tank 20 is accommodated in a tank chamber 24 provided at the bottom of the fuel cell vehicle 10. The tank chamber 24 is formed by an under-panel 26 and a cover 28 disposed below the under-panel 26. The under-panel 26 is a portion that covers the upper part of the fuel tank 20. The under-panel 26 has a ceiling wall 27 that faces the fuel tank 20 at a position above the fuel tank 20. The cover 28 is a portion that covers the lower part of the fuel tank 20. The cover 28 is provided with an opening 30 (or a gap) that communicates between the tank chamber 24 and the outside of the vehicle.

[0014] A fuel gas sensor 32 is disposed in the tank chamber 24. Specifically, the fuel gas sensor 32 is disposed (fixed) on the ceiling wall 27. The fuel gas sensor 32 detects a fuel gas leak, and sends a detection signal to the fuel cell ECU 34. When the fuel gas sensor 32 detects a fuel gas leak, the fuel cell ECU 34 displays the detection signal on the monitor 36, as shown in FIG. 1. This notifies the user of the fuel gas leak.

[0015] The fuel tank 20 stores high-pressure fuel gas (e.g., hydrogen) and has a fuel gas flow port 38 formed at an end thereof. A fluid device 40 is connected to the fuel gas flow port 38. The fluid device 40 has valves including an on-off valve (main stop valve) 42 and joints.

[0016] One end of a fuel gas supply pipe 44 is connected to the fluid device 40 via, for example, a joint, and the other end of the fuel gas supply pipe 44 is connected to the fuel gas supply device 23 (see FIG. 1). A regulator 46 is provided in the fuel gas supply pipe 44 adjacent to the fluid device 40.

[0017] One end of a fuel gas filling pipe 41 is connected to the fluid device 40. The other end of the fuel gas filling pipe 41 is connected to a gas filling port 52, which is an external connection port arranged in a filling lid box 50.

[0018] The gas filling port 52 is configured so that a filling nozzle 54 can be connected to it in order to fill the fuel tank 20 with fuel gas from outside the fuel cell vehicle 10. An airtight seal member 53 is provided inside the gas filling port 52 to prevent fuel gas from leaking from the gas filling port 52. The filling nozzle 54 is installed in a gas filling station (hydrogen station), and is manually (or automatically) connected to the gas filling port 52.

[0019] The filling lid box 50 is disposed above (at a higher position) than the tank chamber 24. Therefore, the gas filling port 52 is disposed above the tank chamber 24. The filling lid box 50 has a box body 56 having an opening 56a capable of receiving a filling nozzle 54, and a lid member 58 for opening and closing the opening 56a of the box body 56. The internal space of the box body 56 forms an accommodation chamber 57 for accommodating the gas filling port 52. The box body 56 has a wall portion 56b facing the opening 56a (or the lid member 58 in a closed state), and the gas filling port 52 is fixed to the wall portion 56b.

[0020] The lid member 58 can freely open and close the accommodation chamber 57 to the outside of the vehicle. When the lid member 58 is closed, the accommodation chamber 57 is in a sealed or semi-sealed state. When a lid switch (not shown) is operated by a user, the lid member 58 opens and closes.

[0021] The fuel cell vehicle 10 further includes a duct 60 that connects the storage chamber 57 of the filling lid box 50 with the tank chamber 24. The duct 60 is a pipe for guiding the fuel gas from the storage chamber 57 to the tank chamber 24 in the event that the fuel gas leaks from the filling nozzle 54 to the storage chamber 57. The duct 60 has a first end 60a connected to the filling lid box 50 and a second end 60b connected to the ceiling wall 27 of the tank chamber 24.

[0022] The first end 60a of the duct 60 is a gas inlet, and opens into the storage chamber 57 at a position above the gas filling port 52. Therefore, the first end 60a is located above the tank chamber 24. The duct 60 communicates with the storage chamber 57 at the first end 60a. The first end 60a of the duct 60 is located above the second end 60b. The first end 60a of the duct 60 is provided at the highest position in the duct 60.

[0023] The duct 60 communicates with the tank chamber 24 at the second end 60b. The second end 60b of the duct 60 is a gas outlet, and is provided at the lowest position of the duct 60. The second end 60b is disposed above the highest position of the fuel tank 20. The second end 60b is disposed at a position adjacent (near) the fuel gas sensor 32 (more specifically, the detection unit 32a of the fuel gas sensor 32). The horizontal distance between the second end 60b of the duct 60 and the detection unit 32a of the fuel gas sensor 32 is preferably, for example, 50 mm or less.

[0024] The operation of the fuel cell vehicle 10 thus configured will be described below.

[0025] 1, in the fuel gas supply device 23, fuel gas drawn from the fuel tank 20 is supplied to the fuel cell stack 14 through the fuel gas supply pipe 44 under the action of a regulator 46. An air supply device (not shown) supplies air to the fuel cell stack 14 using an air pump or the like, and a cooling medium supply device (not shown) supplies a cooling medium to the fuel cell stack 14 using a pump or the like.

[0026] Therefore, in each fuel cell 22, fuel gas is supplied to the anode electrode, while air is supplied to the cathode electrode. Therefore, in the membrane electrode structure, the fuel gas supplied to the anode electrode and the oxidant gas (oxygen in the air) supplied to the cathode electrode are consumed by an electrochemical reaction in the electrode catalyst layer, generating electricity. This supplies power to a driving motor (not shown), enabling the fuel cell vehicle 10 to run.

[0027] A fuel gas sensor 32 is disposed in the tank chamber 24. Therefore, if fuel gas leaks from the fuel tank 20, the fuel gas is detected by the fuel gas sensor 32. In this case, a signal from the fuel gas sensor 32 is transmitted to the fuel cell ECU 34, and the user is notified of the fuel gas leakage via the monitor 36 or the like.

[0028] The fuel tank 20 is filled with fuel gas at a gas filling station (hydrogen station).

[0029] 2, when a lid switch (not shown) is operated by a user, the lid member 58 is opened (see the lid member 58 in phantom lines). When a user connects a filling nozzle 54 to a gas filling port 52 in the filling lid box 50, fuel gas is adjusted to a desired flow rate and supplied to the gas filling port 52. Therefore, the fuel gas passes through the fuel gas filling piping 41 and is filled into the fuel tank 20 via the fluid equipment 40.

[0030] When filling of the fuel gas into the fuel tank 20 is completed, the filling nozzle 54 is detached from the gas filling port 52 and taken out from the filling lid box 50. Then, the lid member 58 is closed by manual or automatic operation.

[0031] In this case, the fuel cell vehicle 10 provides the following advantages.

[0032] As described above, the fuel cell vehicle 10 includes the filling lid box 50 having the accommodation chamber 57 disposed above the tank chamber 24 and accommodating the gas filling port 52, the fuel gas sensor 32 disposed in the tank chamber 24, and the duct 60 connecting the accommodation chamber 57 to the tank chamber 24. With this configuration, if fuel gas leaks from the gas filling port 52, the fuel gas can be guided to the tank chamber 24 via the duct 60, and the fuel gas leakage can be detected by the fuel gas sensor 32 disposed in the tank chamber 24. More specifically, this is as follows.

[0033] When the fuel cell vehicle 10 is traveling, the vehicle body lower part becomes negative pressure due to the traveling wind. Since the tank chamber 24 has an opening 30 (or a gap), the tank chamber 24 also becomes negative pressure when the vehicle is traveling. On the other hand, since the lid member 58 of the filling lid box 50 is closed when the vehicle is traveling, the inside of the filling lid box 50 (the storage chamber 57) becomes positive pressure due to the leakage of fuel gas from the gas filling port 52. Therefore, when the fuel cell vehicle 10 is traveling, the pressure of the tank chamber 24 becomes lower than the pressure of the storage chamber 57 (a pressure difference occurs). The storage chamber 57 and the tank chamber 24 are connected via a duct 60. Therefore, the fuel gas is sucked from the storage chamber 57 to the tank chamber 24 due to the pressure difference between the storage chamber 57 and the tank chamber 24. The fuel gas guided to the tank chamber 24 in this manner is detected by the fuel gas sensor 32 arranged in the tank chamber 24.

[0034] Thus, according to the fuel cell vehicle 10, when fuel gas leakage from the gas filling port 52 occurs, the fuel gas is sucked from the accommodation chamber 57 of the filling lid box 50 into the tank chamber 24 via the duct 60 by utilizing the negative pressure created in the tank chamber 24 under the vehicle by the wind while the vehicle is running. This makes it possible to actively guide the fuel gas leaking from the gas filling port 52 to the fuel gas sensor 32 and detect the fuel gas leakage.

[0035] Furthermore, fuel gas leaking from the gas filling port 52 can be detected without providing the fuel gas sensor 32 near the gas filling port 52. That is, in both cases where fuel gas leaks from the fuel tank 20 and where fuel gas leaks from the gas filling port 52, the fuel gas leakage can be detected by the fuel gas sensor 32 arranged in the tank chamber 24. Therefore, there is no need to provide another fuel gas sensor near the gas filling port 52.

[0036] On the other hand, when filling fuel gas at a gas filling station, a small amount of fuel gas may leak from the filling nozzle 54, which is equipment on the gas filling station side. However, fuel gas (hydrogen gas) has a low density and is light, so it moves upward, and since the cover member 58 is open, the fuel gas does not flow into the tank chamber 24 through the duct 60 (or the outside of the duct 60). Therefore, the fuel gas leaking from the filling nozzle 54 is not detected by the fuel gas sensor 32. This makes it possible to prevent erroneous detection of fuel gas leakage on the fuel cell vehicle 10 side when filling fuel gas.

[0037] In the fuel cell vehicle 10, the tank chamber 24 has a ceiling wall 27. The duct 60 has a first end 60a connected to the filling lid box 50 and a second end 60b connected to the ceiling wall 27. With this configuration, fuel gas leaking from the gas filling port 52 can be suitably guided to the tank chamber 24 while the vehicle is running.

[0038] In the fuel cell vehicle 10, the first end 60a of the duct 60 opens into the accommodation chamber 57 at a position above the gas fill port 52. With this configuration, fuel gas leaking from the gas fill port 52 inside the accommodation chamber 57 can be easily guided to the duct 60 while the vehicle is running.

[0039] In the fuel cell vehicle 10, the fuel gas sensor 32 is disposed on the ceiling wall 27, and the second end 60b of the duct 60 is disposed in a position adjacent to the fuel gas sensor 32. With this configuration, the second end 60b, which is the gas outlet of the duct 60, is disposed in the vicinity of the fuel gas sensor 32, so that the fuel gas introduced into the tank chamber 24 via the duct 60 from the accommodation chamber 57 in which the gas filling port 52 is disposed, can be suitably detected.

[0040] The above embodiment can be summarized as follows.

[0041] The above embodiment discloses a fuel cell vehicle (10) including a fuel cell stack (12), a fuel tank (20) for storing fuel gas to be supplied to the fuel cell stack, a tank chamber (24) for accommodating the fuel tank, a gas fill port (52) for filling the fuel tank with fuel gas from outside the vehicle, a storage chamber (57) for accommodating the gas fill port, a filling lid box (50) having a lid member (58) that can open and close the storage chamber and is provided above the tank chamber (24), a fuel gas sensor (32) arranged in the tank chamber, and a duct (60) that connects the storage chamber and the tank chamber.

[0042] In the above fuel cell vehicle, the tank chamber has a ceiling wall (27), and the duct has a first end (60a) connected to the filling lid box and a second end (60b) connected to the ceiling wall.

[0043] In the above fuel cell vehicle, the first end of the duct opens into the storage chamber at a position above the gas fill port.

[0044] In the above fuel cell vehicle, the fuel gas sensor is disposed on the ceiling wall, and the second end of the duct is disposed at a position adjacent to the fuel gas sensor.

[0045] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 10...Fuel cell vehicle 14...Fuel cell stack 20...Fuel tank 24...Tank room 32...Fuel gas sensor 52...Gas filler port 50...Filling lid box 57...Containment room 58...Cover member 60...Duct

Claims

1. A fuel cell stack; a fuel tank for storing a fuel gas to be supplied to the fuel cell stack; a tank chamber that accommodates the fuel tank; a gas fill port for filling the fuel tank with the fuel gas from outside the vehicle; a filling lid box having a storage chamber that accommodates the gas filling port and a lid member that can freely open and close the storage chamber, the filling lid box being provided above the tank chamber; a fuel gas sensor disposed in the tank chamber; a duct that communicates the storage chamber with the tank chamber and guides the fuel gas from the storage chamber to the tank chamber when the fuel gas leaks from the gas filling port; A fuel cell vehicle comprising: a cover that covers a lower portion of the fuel tank and has an opening or a gap that communicates between the tank chamber and the outside of the fuel cell vehicle; The tank chamber has a ceiling wall, The duct has a first end which is a gas inlet connected to the filling lid box and a second end which is a gas outlet connected to the ceiling wall, The first end is located above the second end.

2. 2. The fuel cell vehicle according to claim 1, The first end of the duct opens into the accommodation chamber at a position above the gas fill port.

3. 3. The fuel cell vehicle according to claim 1, the fuel gas sensor is disposed on the ceiling wall, A fuel cell vehicle, wherein the second end of the duct is positioned adjacent to the fuel gas sensor.

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