Gas filling system and gas filling method

Abstract

To provide a gas filling system and a gas filling method, which can reduce the scale of a pressurizing unit and an accumulation unit.SOLUTION: A gas filling system includes a pressurizing unit 20 for pressurizing a gas supplied from portable storage containers 5, an accumulation unit 30 for accumulating the gas pressurized by the pressurizing unit 20, and a supply unit 4 for filling the gas supplied from the accumulation unit 30 to a filling object by means of a pressure difference. The gas filling system includes a first inflow inlet 6A to which the portable storage container 5 is detachably attachable, a second inflow inlet 6B to which the portable storage container 5 is detachably attachable, gas supply lines 7A, 7B, 70 for supplying the gas from the first inflow inlet and the second inflow inlet to the supply unit, and a control unit 9 that sets one having a lower filling pressure between the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inflow inlet 6A and the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inflow inlet 6B as a low-pressure bank and the other of them as a high-pressure bank and switches the gas to be supplied to the supply unit 4 in the order of the low-pressure bank, the accumulation unit 30 and the high-pressure bank.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a gas filling system and a gas filling method for supplying gas to a filling target.

Background Art

[0002] Among gas filling systems for supplying gas to a filling target, the differential pressure filling method that supplies high-pressure gas stored in a pressure accumulation unit to a fuel tank of the filling target due to a pressure difference is the most widespread. By adopting the differential pressure filling method, it is not necessary to install gas production equipment within the site, so equipment costs and floor area can be reduced. The filling target is, for example, a fuel cell vehicle (FCV: Fuel Cell Vehicle), and in this case, the gas to be supplied is hydrogen gas.

[0003] Referring to FIG. 7, a gas filling system that supplies gas to a fuel tank 11 of a filling target 1 by the differential pressure filling method generally includes a boosting unit 2 that boosts the gas, a pressure accumulation unit 3 that accumulates the boosted gas, and a supply unit 4 that supplies the gas accumulated in the pressure accumulation unit 3 to the filling target 1, which are configured in series. And a method of switching and filling the high-pressure bank 3H, medium-pressure bank 3M, and low-pressure bank 3L provided in the pressure accumulation unit 3 (bank switching method) is also becoming widespread (for example, refer to Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, in the prior art of the differential pressure filling method in which the pressure boosting unit 2, the accumulator unit 3, and the supply unit 4 are connected in series, the gas filling capacity is determined by the capacity scale of the pressure boosting unit 2 and the accumulator unit 3. Therefore, at the time of introducing the equipment, the scale of the compressor and the accumulator is set based on the future forecast of gas demand, resulting in the problem of high equipment costs.

[0006] When FCVs are popularized, the popularization of hydrogen filling equipment (gas filling system) and the introduction of FCVs have a so-called "chicken and egg" relationship, facing the dilemma of having to make upfront investments, and the equipment cost has become an entry barrier.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and aims to provide a gas filling system and a gas filling method that solve the above-mentioned problems and can reduce the scale of the pressure boosting unit and the accumulator unit.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] The gas filling system of the present invention includes a pressure boosting unit that boosts the gas supplied from a portable storage container, an accumulator unit that accumulates the gas boosted by the pressure boosting unit, and a supply unit that fills the filling target with the gas supplied from the accumulator unit or the portable Formula storage container by differential pressure. The gas filling system is characterized in that the portable storage container has a detachable first inlet, another portable storage container has a detachable second inlet, a gas supply line that supplies gas from the first inlet and the second inlet to the supply unit, and among the portable storage containers connected to the first inlet and the portable storage containers connected to the second inlet, the one with the lower filling pressure is set as the low-pressure bank, and the other is set as the high-pressure bank. A control unit that switches the path so that gas is supplied to the supply unit in the order of a path in which gas is supplied to the supply unit without being boosted from only the low-pressure bank, a path in which gas is supplied only from the accumulator unit, and a path in which gas is supplied to the supply unit without being boosted from only the high-pressure bank. Furthermore, in the gas filling system of the present invention, the accumulator unit may be filled by supplying gas from the low-pressure bank to the pressure boosting unit. Furthermore, in the gas filling system of the present invention, when the portable storage container is newly connected to the first inlet or the second inlet by replacement, regardless of the filling pressure of the portable storage container and the other portable storage container, the portable storage container may be used as the high-pressure bank, and the other portable storage container may be used as the low-pressure bank. Also, the gas filling method of the present invention is a gas filling method in which a gas supplied from a portable storage container is pressurized and stored in a pressure accumulation unit, and the gas supplied from the pressure accumulation unit or the portable Formula storage container is differentially pressure-filled into a filling target by a supply unit. A first inlet and a second inlet to which respective individual portable storage containers are connected are provided, and the portable storage container connected to the first inlet and the other portable storage container connected to the second inlet are used. The lower filling pressure of the two is defined as the low-pressure bank, and the other is defined as the high-pressure bank. For the supply unit, a path through which gas is supplied without being pressurized only from the low-pressure bank, a path through which gas is supplied only from the pressure accumulation unit, and a path through which gas is supplied without being pressurized only from the high-pressure bank. The path is switched so that gas is supplied to the supply unit in this order.

Advantages of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, since the portable storage container serves as a pressure accumulation unit, the scale of the pressure accumulation unit can be reduced, and the capacity of the pressure boosting unit 20 only needs to satisfy the pressure boosting filling function from the low-pressure bank to the pressure accumulation unit 30 functioning as the medium-pressure bank, resulting in the effect that the scale of the pressure boosting unit 20 can be reduced.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Next, embodiments for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter simply referred to as "embodiments") will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, components having the same functions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0012] Referring to FIG. 1, the gas filling system of the present embodiment is applied as a hydrogen filling facility called a hydrogen station that supplies hydrogen gas to the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1, with the fuel cell vehicle (FCV: Fuel Cell Vehicle) as the filling target 1.

[0013] The gas filling system has a first inlet 6 to which the portable storage container 5 is detachable A and a second inlet 6 B and a pressure boosting unit 20 for boosting the gas, a pressure accumulating unit 30 for accumulating the gas boosted by the pressure boosting unit 20, a supply unit 4 for supplying the gas to the filling target 1, and a gas supply line 7 0 、7 1 、7 2 、7 3 、7 A 、7 B and a gas supply line 7 0 、7 1 、7 3 、7 A 、7 B and on-off valves 8 0 、8 1 、8 3 、8 A 、8B and an on-off valve 8 0 、8 1 、8 3 、8 A 、8 B and a control unit 9 for controlling the opening and closing thereof.

[0014] The control unit 9 is an arithmetic processing circuit such as a microcomputer including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. A control program for controlling the operation of the gas filling system is stored in the ROM. The control unit 9 reads out the control program stored in the ROM and expands the control program in the RAM, thereby controlling the opening and closing of the on-off valve 8 0 、8 1 、8 3 、8 A 、8 B .

[0015] The control unit 9 functions as a medium-pressure bank for the accumulator unit 30, and functions as a high-pressure bank for either one of the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A and the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B , and functions as a low-pressure bank for the other, and supplies gas to the filling target 1 via the supply unit 4.

[0016] The portable storage container 5 is composed of a single gas cylinder, a cartridge in which a plurality of gas cylinders are aggregated, a trailer in which large cylinders are bundled, etc., and functions as a transport container for gas manufactured in an industrial plant or the like. The portable storage container 5 is transported in a state where the gas is filled at a pressure higher than the upper limit pressure of the gas to be filled in the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1, and is connected to the first inlet 6 A and the second inlet 6 B . The filling pressure P 1MAX (for example, 800 bar) at full tank in the portable storage container 5 is the filling pressure P 3MAXIt is set higher than (for example, 350 bar). The portable storage container 5 also includes a pressure gauge (not shown) for detecting the filling pressure, and the first inlet 6 A The filling pressure P of the portable storage container 5 connected to 1A and the second inlet 6 B The filling pressure P of the portable storage container 5 connected to 1B are notified to the control unit 9.

[0017] The pressure boosting unit 20 is composed of a compressor (gas compressor) for compressing gas, and the accumulator unit 30 is composed of a stationary accumulator tank for accumulating gas. The pressure boosting unit 20 boosts (compresses) the gas supplied from the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A or the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B . The pressure boosting unit 20 boosts (compresses) the gas to a pressure lower than the filling pressure at full tank in the portable storage container 5, and fills the boosted gas into the accumulator unit 30. Therefore, the filling pressure P 2MAX at full tank in the accumulator unit 30 is 1MAX a value lower than the filling pressure P at full tank in the portable storage container 5. The accumulator unit 30 also includes a pressure gauge (not shown) for detecting the filling pressure, and the filling pressure P 2 of the accumulator unit 30 is notified to the control unit 9.

[0018] The supply unit 4 is a dispenser equipped with a gas supply hose 41 connected to the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1, and fills the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1 until the set filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) is reached. The supply unit 4 also has a function of receiving the filling pressure P 3 from the filling target 1 to the fuel tank 11, and the received filling pressure P 3 is notified to the control unit 9 together with the filling specified value S.

[0019] The upstream side of the gas supply line 7 0 for supplying gas to the supply unit 4 is A the gas supply line 7 connected to the first inlet 6 A and B the gas supply line 7 connected to the second inlet 6 Bbranches into two, and the gas supply line 7 0 is provided with an on-off valve 8 0 in the gas supply line 7 A is provided with an on-off valve 8 A in the gas supply line 7 B is provided with an on-off valve 8 B each of which is attached.

[0020] The gas supply line 7 0 The on-off valve 8 0 in the upstream side of is a branch path to the pressure boosting unit 20, the gas supply line 7 1 is provided, and the gas supply line 7 1 is provided with an on-off valve 8 1 which is attached. Also, from the pressure boosting unit 20 to the accumulator unit 30, the gas is supplied through the gas supply line 7 2 . And the gas supply line 7 3 which is the outflow path of the gas from the accumulator unit 30, 0 is joined to the gas supply line 7 0 on the downstream side of the on-off valve 8 3 and the gas supply line 7 3 is provided with an on-off valve 8

[0021] Next, the gas filling operation to the accumulator unit 30 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. Note that the gas filling operation to the accumulator unit 30 is executed while the filling operation to the filling target 1 is not being performed. Also, the on-off valves 8 0 , 8 1 , 8 3 , 8 A , 8 B are assumed to be closed in the initial state.

[0022] The control unit 9 determines whether the filling pressure P 2 of the accumulator unit 30 is equal to the filling pressure P 2MAX when full (P 2 = P 2MAX ) (step S101). If P 2 = P 2MAX in step S101, the control unit 9 ends the process without executing the gas filling operation to the accumulator unit 30.

[0023] In step S101, if P 2 <P 2MAX is the case, the control unit 9 determines whether at least one of the filling pressure P of the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A and the filling pressure P of the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 1A is less than the filling pressure P at full capacity in the accumulator 30 (step S102). In step S102, if P B and P 1B are both not less than P 2MAX , the control unit 9 ends the process without performing the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30. 1A and P 1B are both not less than P 2MAX is not less than, the control unit 9 ends the process without performing the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30.

[0024] In step S102, if either or both of P 1A and P 1B are less than P 2MAX , the control unit 9 compares P 1A with P 1B to determine whether P 1A is less than P 1B (step S103).

[0025] In step S103, if P 1A <P 1B is the case, the control unit 9 opens the on-off valves 8 A , 8 1 (step S104), and supplies gas from the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A , 7 0 , 7 1 to the pressure boosting unit 20 through the route (gas supply line 7 A ) shown by the thick line in Fig. 3(a).

[0026] Next, the control unit 9 drives the pressure boosting unit 20 (step S105) and starts filling the accumulator 30 with gas.

[0027] Next, the control unit 9 monitors the attainment of P 2 to P 2MAX (step S106), and monitors P 1A to P1min Monitor the arrival (step S107). That is, it is determined whether or not the accumulator 30 has become full in step S106. Also, P 1min is a criterion for determining whether or not the portable storage container 5 has become empty, and in step S107, it is determined whether or not the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A has become empty.

[0028] In step S106, when P 2 = P 2MAX and the accumulator 30 becomes full, the control unit 9 stops driving the booster unit 20 (step S108) and closes the on-off valves 8 A , 8 1 (step S109) to end the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30.

[0029] In step S107, when P 1A = P 1min and the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A becomes empty, an exchange notification is output from a display unit or a voice output unit (not shown) notifying that the portable storage container 5 with the lower filling pressure connected to the first inlet 6 A has become empty and needs to be exchanged (step S110), and the control unit 9 reaches step S108 to end the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30.

[0030] In step S103, when P 1A < P 1B is not satisfied, the control unit 9 opens the on-off valves 8 B , 8 1 (step S111) to supply gas from the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B 、7 0 、7 1 to the booster unit 20 through the route (gas supply lines 7 B ) shown by the thick line in Fig. 3(b).

[0031] Next, the control unit 9 drives the booster unit 20 (step S112) to start filling the accumulator 30 with gas.

[0032] Next, the control unit 9 monitors the arrival at P 2 of P 2MAX while monitoring the arrival at P 1B of P 1min (step S113). That is, in step S113, it is determined whether the accumulator 30 is full. Also, P 1min is a criterion for determining whether the portable storage container 5 has become empty. In step S114, it is determined whether the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B has become empty.

[0033] When P 2 = P 2MAX is reached in step S113 and the accumulator 30 becomes full, the control unit 9 stops driving the booster unit 20 (step S115) and closes the on-off valves 8 B , 8 1 (step S116) to end the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30.

[0034] When P 1B = P 1min is reached in step S114 and the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B becomes empty, an exchange notification indicating that the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B has become empty and needs to be exchanged is output from a display unit or a voice output unit (not shown) (step S117), and the control unit 9 reaches step S115 to end the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30.

[0035] By the above filling operation, if any of the portable storage containers 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A and the second inlet 6 B is not at least at the filling pressure P 2MAX at which the accumulator 30 is full, the gas supplied from the portable storage container 5 with the lower filling pressure is boosted and filled into the accumulator 30. Thereby, the accumulator 30 functions as a medium-pressure bank, and the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A and the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 BEither one of the portable storage containers 5 connected to P 2MAX is made to function as the above high-pressure bank, and the other is made to function as P 2MAX a low-pressure bank below and can function as such.

[0036] Next, the gas filling operation for the filling target 1 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. Note that the gas filling operation for the accumulator 30 described above ends when the filling operation for the filling target 1 starts. Also, the on-off valves 8 0 、8 1 、8 3 、8 A 、8 B are assumed to be closed in the initial state.

[0037] Prior to starting the filling of the filling target 1, the control unit 9 determines the filling pressure P A of the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 1A and the filling pressure P B of the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 1B to identify the portable storage container 5 that functions as the high-pressure bank and the portable storage container 5 that functions as the low-pressure bank. Hereinafter, P 1A >P 1B and it is assumed that the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A is identified as the high-pressure bank and the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B is identified as the low-pressure bank.

[0038] When the gas supply hose 41 of the supply unit 4 is connected to the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1 and receives an instruction to start filling, the control unit 9 determines whether the filling pressure P B of the portable storage container 5 (low-pressure bank) connected to the second inlet 6 1B exceeds the filling pressure P 3 of the fuel tank 11 in the filling target 1 (step S201).

[0039] If P 1B >P 3 in step S201, the control unit 9 opens the on-off valves 8 B 、80 By opening it (step S202), the route shown by the thick line in Fig. 5(a) (gas supply line 7 B , 7 0 ) supplies gas from the portable storage container 5 (low-pressure bank) connected to the second inlet 6 B to the supply unit 4, and starts differential pressure filling using the portable storage container 5 (low-pressure bank) connected to the second inlet 6 B .

[0040] Next, the control unit 9 monitors the attainment of the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) (step S203), and monitors the equilibrium between P 1B and P 3 (step S204).

[0041] When the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) is reached in step S203, the control unit 9 closes the on-off valves 8 B , 8 0 (step S205) and terminates the filling operation.

[0042] If the equilibrium between P 1B and P 3 is achieved without reaching the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) in step S203, it means that differential pressure filling using the portable storage container 5 (low-pressure bank) connected to the second inlet 6 B becomes impossible. Therefore, after closing the on-off valves 8 B , 8 0 (step S206), the control unit 9 opens the on-off valve 8 3 (step S207), and supplies gas from the accumulator 30 (medium-pressure bank) to the supply unit 4 through the route shown by the thick line in Fig. 5(b) (gas supply line 7 3 , 7 0 ) and starts differential pressure filling using the accumulator 30 (medium-pressure bank).

[0043] Note that if P 1B is less than or equal to P 3 in step S201, the control unit 9 checks if the filling pressure P 2 of the accumulator 30 (medium-pressure bank) is the same as the filling pressure P 3 of the fuel tank 11 in the filling target 1.Determine whether it exceeds (step S208), P 2 >P 3 If so, it also reaches step S207, and differential pressure filling using the accumulator 30 (medium-pressure bank) is started.

[0044] Next, the control unit 9 monitors the attainment of the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) (step S209), and P 2 and P 3 monitors the balance therebetween (step S210).

[0045] When the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) is reached in step S209, the control unit 9 closes the on-off valve 8 3 (step S211) and terminates the filling operation.

[0046] If the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) is not reached in step S210 and P 2 and P 3 are in balance, it means that differential pressure filling using the accumulator 30 (medium-pressure bank) has become impossible. Therefore, after the control unit 9 closes the on-off valve 8 3 (step S212), it opens the on-off valve 8 A , 8 0 (step S213), and supplies gas from the portable storage container 5 (high-pressure bank) connected to the first inlet 6 A , 7 0 through the route shown by the thick line in Fig. 5(c) (gas supply line 7 A ) to the supply unit 4, and starts differential pressure filling using the portable storage container 5 (high-pressure bank) connected to the first inlet 6 A .

[0047] In addition, in step S208, if P 2 is less than or equal to P 3 , the control unit 9 determines whether the filling pressure P A of the portable storage container 5 (high-pressure bank) connected to the first inlet 6 exceeds the filling pressure P 1A of the fuel tank 11 in the filling target 1 (step S214), P 3 >P 1A >P 3Even in such a case, the process reaches step S213, and differential pressure filling using the portable storage container 5 (high-pressure bank) connected to the first inlet 6 A is started.

[0048] Next, the control unit 9 monitors reaching the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) (step S215), and 1A monitors the equilibrium between P 3 and P

[0049] When the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) is reached in step S215, the control unit 9 closes the on-off valves 8 A and 8 0 (step S217) and ends the filling operation.

[0050] If the equilibrium between P 1A and P 3 is achieved without reaching the filling specified value S (quantity, pressure) in step S216, it means that the gas filling system has lost the ability for differential pressure filling. And since P A > P 3 > P 1B at the start of differential pressure filling using the portable storage container 5 (high-pressure bank) connected to the first inlet 6 1A > P 1B even at this point. Therefore, the control unit 9 outputs an exchange notification indicating that it is necessary to replace the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B functioning as the low-pressure bank from a display unit or a voice output unit (not shown) (step S218), and reaches step S217 to end the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30. When reaching step S217, the filling operation is ended. Note that when the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B is replaced with a full one in response to the exchange notification in step S218, P 1B > P 1A and the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A is switched to the low-pressure bank, and the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B is specified as the high-pressure bank.

[0051] Also, when P in step S214 1A is P 3 is less than or equal to, it means that the gas filling system does not have the ability of differential pressure filling. And at this point, P 1A > P 1B is true. Therefore, the control unit 9 outputs an exchange notification (step S219) notifying that it is necessary to replace the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 that functions as a low-pressure bank from a display unit or a voice output unit (not shown), and ends the process without starting the filling operation. When the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 is replaced with a full one in response to the exchange notification in step S219, P B > P B becomes true, the portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 1B > P 1A is switched to the low-pressure bank, and the portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 A is specified as the high-pressure bank. B

[0052] As described above, in both the gas filling operation to the accumulator 30 and the gas filling operation to the filling target 1, the gas in the portable storage container 5 (low-pressure bank) with the lower filling pressure is preferentially consumed, and the gas in the portable storage container 5 (high-pressure bank) with the higher filling pressure is conserved and maintained in a high state. Therefore, by incorporating the two portable storage containers 5 holding high-pressure gas themselves into the filling operation like a stationary accumulator 30 and automatically switching between the portable storage container 5 and the accumulator 30, the gas filling operation to the filling target 1 can be executed.

[0053] Also, since the gas in the portable storage container 5 (low-pressure bank) with the lower filling pressure is preferentially consumed, it becomes possible to replace the portable storage container 5 in a nearly empty state.

[0054] The control unit 9 specifies the newly connected portable storage container 5 as the high-pressure bank by the exchange, and switches the status of the portable storage container 5 that was previously operated as the high-pressure bank to the low-pressure bank. As a result, the portable storage containers 5 can be sequentially replaced while being rotated.​

[0055] The filling pressure P 2MAX That is, the pressure increasing capacity of the pressure increasing unit 20 is the filling pressure P 1MAX However, even with this setting, the filling pressure P 2MAX It is desirable that the portable storage container 5 identified as the high pressure bank is capable of filling the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1 to the maximum value of the specified filling value S. In this case, even if the portable storage container 5 identified as the high pressure bank loses the ability to fill the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1 to the specified filling value S, the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1 can be filled to the specified filling value S using the pressure accumulator 30 (medium pressure bank), although a boosting time is required.

[0056] In this embodiment, an example has been described in which two portable storage containers 5 are connected and one is used as a high-pressure bank and the other as a low-pressure bank. However, as shown in FIG. 6, it is possible to more suitably operate the system by using portable storage containers 5 other than the high-pressure bank and the low-pressure bank to which three or more portable storage containers 5 are connected as spare banks.

[0057] In the example shown in FIG. 0 The upstream side of the first inlet 6 A Gas supply line 7 connected to A and the second inlet 6 B Gas supply line 7 connected to B and the third inlet 6 C Gas supply line 7 connected to C and gas supply line 7 A There are 8 shutoff valves A But gas supply line 7 B There are 8 shutoff valves B But gas supply line 7 C There are 8 shutoff valves C The first inlet 6 A and second inlet 6 B If the portable storage vessels 5 connected to the CThe third portable storage container 5 connected thereto is used as a reserve bank. In this case, when the replacement of the portable storage container 5 becomes necessary (steps S110, S117, S218, S219), by automatically switching the status of the reserve bank to the high-pressure bank, it is possible to respond without replacing the actually emptied (low-pressure) portable storage container 5. Then, the replacement of the emptied (low-pressure) portable storage container 5 may be performed while operating with the other two portable storage containers 5, and operation with a margin can be performed.

[0058] As described above, this embodiment is a gas filling system including a boosting unit 20 that boosts the gas supplied from the portable storage container 5, a pressure accumulating unit 30 that accumulates the gas boosted by the boosting unit 20, and a supply unit 4 that performs differential pressure filling of the gas supplied from the pressure accumulating unit 30 to the filling target 1, wherein the portable storage container 5 has a detachable first inlet 6 A and a detachable second inlet 6 for the portable storage container 5 B and a gas supply line 7 that supplies gas from the first inlet and the second inlet to the supply unit A 、7 B 、7 0 and a portable storage container 5 connected to the first inlet 6 A and a portable storage container 5 connected to the second inlet 6 B wherein the one with the lower filling pressure is defined as the low-pressure bank, and the other is defined as the high-pressure bank, and a control unit 9 that switches the gas supplied to the supply unit 4 in the order of the low-pressure bank, the pressure accumulating unit 30, and the high-pressure bank. With this configuration, since the portable storage container 5 serves as the pressure accumulating unit 30, the scale of the pressure accumulating unit 30 can be reduced, and since one of the portable storage containers 5 is operated as a high-pressure bank that holds a high pressure capable of differential pressure filling, the capacity of the boosting unit 20 only needs to satisfy the boosting and filling function from the low-pressure bank to the pressure accumulating unit 30 that functions as a medium-pressure bank, and the scale of the boosting unit 20 can be reduced. As a result, the capacity scales of the boosting unit 20 and the pressure accumulating unit 30 are no longer the bottleneck of the filling capacity, and without impairing the filling capacity, the equipment of the gas filling system can be made smaller in scale and simpler in configuration.

[0059] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, when the differential pressure filling is not performed on the filling target 1, the low-pressure bank preferentially supplies the boosting unit 20 to fill the accumulator unit 30. With this configuration, since the gas in the low-pressure bank is preferentially consumed, it becomes possible to replace the portable storage container 5 in a substantially empty state.

[0060] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the control unit 9 uses the portable storage container 5 newly connected to the first inlet 6 A or the second inlet 6 B as the high-pressure bank, and switches the status of the portable storage container 5 that has been previously operated as the high-pressure bank to the low-pressure bank. With this configuration, the portable storage containers 5 can be sequentially replaced while being rotated.

[0061] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the full filling pressure P 1MAX in the portable storage container 5 is set higher than the full filling pressure P 2MAX in the accumulator unit 30 at full capacity. With this configuration, the portable storage container 5 can be operated as the high-pressure bank.

[0062] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the full filling pressure P 2MAX in the accumulator unit 30 at full capacity is set to be able to fill the filling target 1 up to the maximum value of the filling specified value S. With this configuration, even if the portable storage container 5 specified as the high-pressure bank loses the ability to fill the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1 up to the filling specified value S, although a boosting time is required, the fuel tank 11 of the filling target 1 can be filled up to the filling specified value S using the accumulator unit 30 (medium-pressure bank).

[0063] The present invention has been described based on the embodiments. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that these embodiments are illustrative, and various modifications are possible for combinations of their respective components, etc., and such modifications are also within the scope of the present invention.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0064] 1 Filling target 2, 20 Pressure boosting section 3, 30 Accumulation section 4 Supply section 5 Portable storage container 6 A First inlet 6 B Second inlet 6 C Third inlet 7 0 , 7 1 , 7 2 , 7 3 , 7 A , 7 B , 7 C Gas supply line 8 0 , 8 1 , 8 3 , 8 A , 8 B , 8 C On-off valve 9 Control section 11 Fuel tank 41 Gas supply hose

Claims

1. A gas filling system comprising a pressure boosting unit that boosts the pressure of gas supplied from a portable storage container, a pressure accumulating unit that accumulates the gas boosted by the pressure boosting unit, and a supply unit that performs differential pressure filling of the gas supplied from the pressure accumulating unit or the portable storage container to a filling target, wherein: the portable storage container has a detachable first inlet; another portable storage container has a detachable second inlet; a gas supply line that supplies gas from the first inlet and the second inlet to the supply unit; among the portable storage container connected to the first inlet and the portable storage container connected to the second inlet, the one with the lower filling pressure is set as the low-pressure bank, and the other is set as the high-pressure bank, and a control unit that switches the path so that gas is supplied to the supply unit in the order of a path in which gas is supplied to the supply unit without being boosted from only the low-pressure bank, a path in which gas is supplied only from the pressure accumulating unit, and a path in which gas is supplied to the supply unit without being boosted from only the high-pressure bank. The gas filling system is characterized by comprising.

2. The gas filling system according to claim 1, wherein the pressure accumulating unit is filled by supplying gas from the low-pressure bank to the pressure boosting unit.

3. When a portable storage container is newly connected to the first inlet or the second inlet by replacement, the control unit sets the portable storage container as the high-pressure bank and the other portable storage container as the low-pressure bank regardless of the filling pressures of the portable storage container and the other portable storage container. The gas filling system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that.

4. A gas filling method in which gas supplied from a portable storage container is boosted and accumulated in a pressure accumulating unit, and the gas supplied from the pressure accumulating unit or the portable storage container is differentially pressure filled to a filling target by a supply unit, wherein: a first inlet and a second inlet to which respective individual portable storage containers are connected are provided; among the portable storage container connected to the first inlet and the other portable storage container connected to the second inlet, the one with the lower filling pressure is set as the low-pressure bank, and the other is set as the high-pressure bank, and the path is switched so that gas is supplied to the supply unit in the order of a path in which gas is supplied to the supply unit without being boosted from only the low-pressure bank, a path in which gas is supplied only from the pressure accumulating unit, and a path in which gas is supplied to the supply unit without being boosted from only the high-pressure bank. The gas filling method is characterized by that.

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