Fuel cell unit

Abstract

To provide a technique of easily attaching a plurality of cell monitors to a plurality of fuel battery cell.SOLUTION: A fuel battery unit comprises: a cell stack having a plurality of fuel battery cells laminated along a first direction; a stacking case that houses the cell stack and includes an open to a second direction vertical to a first direction; a plurality of cell monitors that is arranged along the first direction in the stacking case while having a pair of contact points for a voltage detection electrically connected to each fuel battery cell, and is attached to the cell stack from the second direction; and a fixing member that is detachably attached to the stacking case via the open, and fixes integrally the plurality of cell monitors to the stacking case.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The technology disclosed in this specification relates to a fuel cell unit.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a fuel cell unit. This fuel cell unit has a cell stack in which a plurality of fuel cells are stacked, and a plurality of cell monitors attached to the cell stack. Each cell monitor has a pair of contacts for voltage detection that are electrically connected to the fuel cell, and is electrically connected to one corresponding fuel cell. Each cell monitor is provided with a protrusion that locks onto the fuel cell and a lever operation part for operating the protrusion.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the above configuration, for each fuel cell, it is necessary to operate the lever operation part of the cell monitor to attach the cell monitor to the fuel cell. This specification provides a technique for easily attaching a plurality of cell monitors to a plurality of fuel cells.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The technology disclosed in this specification is embodied in a fuel cell unit. In its first aspect, the fuel cell unit includes a cell stack having a plurality of fuel cells stacked along a first direction, a stack case that houses the cell stack and has an opening in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, a plurality of cell monitors each having a pair of contacts for voltage detection electrically connected to the fuel cells, arranged along the first direction within the stack case, and attached to the cell stack from the second direction, and a fixing member detachably attached to the stack case through the opening and fixing the plurality of cell monitors to the stack case collectively.

[0006] In the above configuration, a plurality of cell monitors are arranged along the first direction, which is the stacking direction of the fuel cells, and are collectively fixed to the stack case by the fixing member. According to such a configuration, the work of assembling a plurality of cell monitors can be easily performed. Further, since each cell monitor is fixed to the stack case, relative displacement among the cell monitor, the fuel cell, and the stack case can be effectively suppressed.

[0007] In a second aspect, in the first aspect, the stack case may have an attachment surface that faces the opening and extends along the first direction. In this case, the fixing member may be configured to be detachable from the attachment surface and may have a shape extending in the first direction while facing the attachment surface. Further, each of the plurality of cell monitors may have a clamping portion clamped between the attachment surface and the fixing member. According to such a configuration, after arranging the clamping portion of each cell monitor on the attachment surface of the stack case, the fixing member is attached to the stack case, so that the plurality of cell monitors can be collectively fixed to the stack case.

[0008] In a third aspect, in the second aspect, each of the plurality of cell monitors may further have a main body portion that holds a pair of contacts. In this case, the clamping portion may protrude from the main body portion in a third direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction. Note that the direction in which the main body portion is provided is not particularly limited. For example, the main body portion may be provided along a direction parallel to the second direction, or may be provided along a direction forming a predetermined angle (for example, 45 degrees or 60 degrees) with the second direction. According to such a configuration, as long as the clamping portion is attached in parallel to the mounting surface regardless of the direction in which the main body portion is provided, the plurality of cell monitors can be collectively fixed to the stack case.

[0009] In a fourth aspect, in the third aspect, a part of the main body portion and a part of the clamping portion may be integrally formed of a resin material. In this case, the other part of the clamping portion may be made of a metal material and may be in contact with both the mounting surface and the fixing member. For example, if the entire clamping portion is made of a resin material, creep deformation is likely to occur in the clamping portion sandwiched between the fixing member and the mounting surface of the cell case. On the other hand, if a part of the clamping portion is made of a metal material and the metal material part is sandwiched, the creep deformation occurring in the clamping portion is suppressed, so that the cell monitor can be stably fixed over a long period of time.

[0010] In the fifth aspect, in the fourth aspect, a part of the clamping portion made of a resin material may have a plate-like shape that spreads between the mounting surface and the fixing member. In this case, another part of the clamping portion made of a metal material may have a columnar shape that penetrates a part of the clamping portion having a plate-like shape. According to such a configuration, in the clamping portion of the cell monitor, the columnar portion made of a metal material is clamped between the fixing member and the mounting surface of the stack case. By combining the plate-like portion formed of a resin material and the columnar portion made of a metal material, a clamping portion in which creep deformation is suppressed can be realized with a simple structure. However, the specific structure of the clamping portion is not particularly limited. As another embodiment, for example, the clamping portion may have a structure in which a plate-like portion formed of a resin material is covered with a sleeve-like portion made of a metal material.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

Examples

[0012] With reference to the drawings, the fuel cell unit 10 of the embodiment will be described. The fuel cell unit 10 of this embodiment is mounted on a fuel cell vehicle (for example, an automobile, a bus, a truck, a train) or a stationary fuel cell device. Note that the fuel cell unit 10 may be mounted on various moving bodies other than vehicles (for example, ships and airplanes).

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, the fuel cell unit 10 includes a plurality of fuel cells 12. Each fuel cell 12 generates electricity by causing a chemical reaction between a fuel gas and an oxidizing gas inside it. Each fuel cell 12 is arranged parallel to the front-rear direction and the up-down direction, and the plurality of fuel cells 12 are stacked along the left-right direction. The stacked plurality of fuel cells 12 constitute a cell stack 14. Although not particularly limited, in the fuel cell unit 10 of this embodiment, hydrogen gas is used as the fuel gas and air is used as the oxidizing gas.

[0014] Note that the specific configuration of the fuel cell 12 is not particularly limited. For example, the fuel cell 12 may include a membrane electrode gas diffusion layer assembly (MEGA), a support frame, and a pair of separators. In this case, the membrane electrode gas diffusion layer assembly may include an electrolyte membrane, an anode catalyst layer, a cathode catalyst layer, an anode gas diffusion layer, and a cathode gas diffusion layer.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 1, the fuel cell unit 10 further includes a stack case 16. The stack case 16 is a housing member that houses the cell stack 14. The stack case 16 includes a bottom wall 16a and four side walls 16b that extend upward from the outer peripheral edge of the bottom wall 16a. The stack case 16 has an opening 16c at the top. The stack case 16 further includes a mounting surface 16d. The mounting surface 16d protrudes from one of the four side walls 16b toward the inside (here, the rear) of the stack case 16. Further, the mounting surface 16d faces the above-described opening 16c and extends along the left-right direction. Although not particularly limited, two of the four side walls 16b that face each other in the left-right direction may be end plates.

[0016] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the fuel cell unit 10 further includes a plurality of cell monitors 18. Each of the plurality of cell monitors 18 is configured to be detachable from the corresponding fuel cell 12 and is attached to the cell stack 14 from above. The plurality of cell monitors 18 are arranged along the left - right direction within the stack case 16.

[0017] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, each of the plurality of cell monitors 18 includes a pair of contacts 20. The pair of contacts 20 are contacts for voltage detection and are electrically connected to each electrode of the corresponding fuel cell 12. In this regard, the pair of contacts 20 may be directly connected to each electrode of the corresponding fuel cell 12, or may be electrically connected to a pair of separators sandwiching the fuel cell 12. Thereby, the voltage output by the corresponding fuel cell 12 is applied to the pair of contacts 20 of the cell monitor 18. A wire harness 22 is connected to the cell monitor 18, and the pair of contacts 20 are electrically connected to an external cell voltage monitor (not shown) via the wire harness 22. The cell voltage monitor monitors the voltage of each of the plurality of fuel cells 12 based on the voltage input from each of the plurality of cell monitors 18.

[0018] As shown in FIGS. 1 - 3, each of the plurality of cell monitors 18 further includes a main body portion 24 and a clamping portion 26. The main body portion 24 holds a pair of contacts 20 inside thereof. The main body portion 24 generally has a rectangular parallelepiped shape extending in the vertical direction. The clamping portion 26 protrudes from the main body portion 24 toward the front. In the fuel cell unit 10 of the present embodiment, the clamping portion 26 of each cell monitor 18 is clamped between the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 and a fixing member 28 described later.

[0019] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the clamping portion 26 has a resin portion 26a and a metal portion 26b. The resin portion 26a is integrally formed of a resin material together with the main body portion 24. The resin portion 26a has a plate-like shape that extends between the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 and the fixing member 28. The metal portion 26b is made of a metal material such as stainless steel, for example. The metal portion 26b has a columnar shape and penetrates the plate-like resin portion 26a in the vertical direction. As a result, the metal portion 26b is in contact with both the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 and the fixing member 28. That is, the clamping portion 26 is clamped by the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 and the fixing member 28 at the metal portion 26b.

[0020] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the fuel cell unit 10 further includes a fixing member 28. The fixing member 28 has a shape that extends in the left-right direction, such as a plate, for example. The fixing member 28 is detachably attached to the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 through the opening 16c of the stack case 16. In the fuel cell unit 10 of the present embodiment, the fixing member 28 collectively fixes a plurality of cell monitors 18 to the stack case 16. At this time, the fixing member 28 faces the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 and is parallel to the mounting surface 16d. Although not particularly limited, two through holes are provided in the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 of the present embodiment, and both end portions of the fixing member 28 are fixed to the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 by a fastening tool 30 such as a bolt that penetrates these through holes. Note that the fixing member 28 does not necessarily have to be a plate, and may have another shape that extends in the left-right direction, such as a bar, for example. Also, the method of fixing the fixing member 28 to the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 is not particularly limited.

[0021] In the above-described configuration, a plurality of cell monitors 18 are arranged along the left-right direction, which is the stacking direction of the fuel cell cells 12, and are collectively fixed to the stack case 16 by the fixing member 28. According to such a configuration, the work of assembling the plurality of cell monitors 18 can be easily performed. Further, since each cell monitor 18 is fixed to the stack case 16, relative displacement among the cell monitor 18, the fuel cell cell 12, and the stack case 16 can be effectively suppressed.

[0022] Note that the left-right direction (left or right) in this specification is an example of the first direction in the present technology, the upward direction in this specification is an example of the second direction in the present technology, and the frontward direction in this specification is an example of the third direction in the present technology.

[0023] Note that the specific shape of the cell monitor 18, particularly the specific configuration of the clamping portion 26, is not particularly limited. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, in a cell monitor 18 of a modified example, the clamping portion 126 has a plate-shaped resin portion 126a and a sleeve-shaped metal portion 126b, and the resin portion 126a may be covered by the sleeve-shaped metal portion 126b. Even in such a configuration, the metal portion 126b contacts both the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 and the fixing member 28. Thereby, the clamping portion 126 is clamped between the mounting surface 16d of the stack case 16 and the fixing member 28 by the metal portion 126b. Therefore, creep deformation occurring in the clamping portion 126 is suppressed, and the cell monitor 18 can be stably fixed over a long period.

[0024] In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the main body portion 24 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape extending in the vertical direction. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, in a cell monitor 118 of a modified example, the main body portion 124 may be provided along a direction forming a predetermined angle (for example, 45 degrees or 60 degrees) with the second direction. Even with such a configuration, since the clamping portion 26 is attached parallel to the mounting surface 16d, the plurality of cell monitors 18 can be collectively fixed to the stack case 16.

[0025] As described in detail above with several specific examples, these are merely illustrative and do not limit the scope of the claims. The technology described in the claims includes various modifications and changes to the specific examples illustrated above. The technical elements described in this specification or the drawings exhibit technical utility either alone or in combination.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0026] 10: Fuel cell unit 12: Fuel cell 14: Cell stack 16: Stack case 16a: Bottom wall 16b: Side wall 16c: Opening 16d: Mounting surface 18, 118: Cell monitor 20: Contact 22: Wire harness 24, 124: Main body 26, 126: Clamping part 26a, 126a: Resin part 26b, 126b: Metal part 28: Fixing member 30: Fastener

Claims

1. A cell stack having a plurality of fuel cell cells stacked along a first direction; A stack case that houses the cell stack and has an opening in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; A plurality of cell monitors each having a pair of contacts for voltage detection electrically connected to the fuel cell cells, arranged along the first direction within the stack case, and attached to the cell stack from the second direction; A fixing member detachably attached to the stack case through the opening and collectively fixing the plurality of cell monitors to the stack case; Comprising; The stack case has an attachment surface that faces the opening and extends along the first direction; The fixing member is configured to be detachable from the attachment surface and has a shape that extends along the first direction while facing the attachment surface; Each of the plurality of cell monitors has a clamping portion clamped between the attachment surface and the fixing member; A fuel cell unit.

2. Each of the plurality of cell monitors further has a main body portion that holds the pair of contacts; The fuel cell unit according to claim 1, wherein the clamping portion protrudes from the main body portion in a third direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction.

3. A part of the main body portion and a part of the clamping portion are integrally formed of a resin material; The other part of the clamping portion is made of a metal material and is in contact with both the attachment surface and the fixing member. The fuel cell unit according to claim 2.

4. The part of the clamping portion made of the resin material has a plate-like shape that spreads between the attachment surface and the fixing member; The other part of the clamping portion made of the metal material has a columnar shape that penetrates the part of the clamping portion having the plate-like shape. The fuel cell unit according to claim 3.

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