JP2007073255A - Apparatus with built-in fuel cell - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus with a built-in fuel cell preventing moisture and fuel gas infiltrating into it from a gap of a power source wiring wired in a fuel-cell housing case. <P>SOLUTION: The apparatus with a built-in fuel cell operated by a power supplied from the fuel cell has a built-in fuel cell 2, and connected to an electric circuit 11 through the power source wiring 9. The apparatus is provided with a fuel cell housing case 6 sealing and housing the fuel cell 2, a through-hole 14 for passing the power source wiring 9 fitted in penetration of the fuel cell housing case 6, and a space part 8 fitted on the way of the through-hole 14. The space part 8 prevents moisture and fuel gas generated from the fuel cell leaking out of the gap between the through-hole and the power source wiring from moving to the electric circuit inside the apparatus. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a device incorporating a fuel cell.

  A fuel cell has high power generation efficiency because a fuel such as hydrogen or methanol is electrochemically reacted with oxygen to directly obtain electric energy from chemical energy. Among fuel cells, solid polymer membrane fuel cells can be operated near room temperature, are suitable for miniaturization, and have been devised for use as power sources for portable devices such as notebook computers and mobile phones. Yes. This is used in place of a primary battery such as an alkaline battery or a secondary battery such as a lithium ion battery, and a battery that is mounted and used inside the apparatus has also been proposed (Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  A fuel cell generates electric power by a chemical reaction between hydrogen or methanol as a fuel and oxygen, but water is generated as a product of the chemical reaction. For this reason, when it is used in the apparatus, it is necessary to prevent the generated water vapor from accumulating inside the apparatus and causing condensation to adversely affect the reliability of the apparatus. Fuel cells use fuels such as hydrogen and methanol during power generation. The fuel cell is made with a sufficiently safe structure so that these fuels do not leak outside from the fuel cell.

However, since hydrogen is a flammable gas, methanol easily volatilizes at room temperature and becomes a flammable gas. Therefore, there is a possibility of leakage even from a very small gap, and fuel leaks in the unlikely event. It is an important issue to apply double or triple safety measures. In addition, there is an electric circuit inside the device, and when a spark is generated due to a small spark generated when an electrical contact such as a switch or relay operates, or a part of the circuit is short-circuited due to failure, etc. There is a possibility of ignition of the above flammable gases. In addition, there are many places where gas tends to stay in the device due to its structure, and it is a particularly important issue to take safety measures so that flammable fuel gas does not enter the device. .
JP-A-9-213359 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-185781

  In a device that operates with a built-in fuel cell, there has been proposed a method for preventing moisture generated when the fuel cell generates electricity into a device portion (inside the device) in which an electric circuit and other components are stored. ing. For example, in order to prevent the fuel from entering the apparatus when the fuel leaks from the fuel cell, there is a method of storing the fuel cell in a completely partitioned fuel cell storage case. If the fuel cell storage case is made of a material that does not transmit moisture or fuel, it is possible to prevent moisture or leaked fuel in the storage case from entering the inside of the apparatus.

  However, since the electric circuit inside the apparatus receives power supply from the fuel cell, it is necessary to connect power wiring between the inside of the apparatus and the fuel cell. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a wiring hole in the fuel cell storage case for a portion through which the power wiring is passed. After wiring, the gap formed in the wiring hole can be closed with a sealing material or the like. However, if the device is moved for a long time using a fuel cell, if moisture or fuel enters the device through a gap created by deterioration of the sealing material, etc., it may cause a failure or accident. Is an important issue. When hydrogen is used as a fuel, countermeasures are particularly important because hydrogen leaks from a very small gap.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a portable device that operates with a built-in fuel cell. However, no consideration is given to the fact that water vapor generated when the fuel cell generates power enters the apparatus. Further, no consideration is given to a method for preventing leakage of fuel hydrogen due to a malfunction of the fuel cell into the apparatus.

  Patent Document 2 relates to a polymer electrolyte fuel cell system provided with a hydrogen gas cylinder. In order to prevent moisture in the exhaust air during fuel cell power generation from forming condensation on the outer surface of the device, and to eliminate the risk of explosion due to unreacted hydrogen during power generation, A blower is attached to. However, in this method, since it is necessary to attach a blower, there is a problem that when the method is applied to a portable small device equipped with a fuel cell, the device becomes large and heavy.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and has a simple structure and prevents moisture and fuel gas from entering the inside of the apparatus from the gap between the power supply wires wired to the fuel cell storage case. The present invention provides a fuel cell built-in device with high reliability and safety.

  In order to solve the above problems, a fuel cell built-in device according to the present invention has a built-in fuel cell, the fuel cell is connected to an electric circuit through a power supply wiring, and operates by electric power supplied from the fuel cell. A fuel cell storage case for sealingly storing the fuel cell; a through hole for passing a power supply wiring provided through the fuel cell storage case; and provided in the middle of the through hole. It is characterized by having a space portion.

  The present invention provides an interior of an apparatus in which an electric circuit is provided from a gap in a through hole of a power supply wiring wired to a fuel cell storage case by providing a space portion in the middle of the through hole provided in the fuel cell storage case. In addition, it is possible to prevent moisture and fuel gas leaking from the fuel cell from entering.

  Further, in the present invention, since it is not necessary to attach a special part such as a blower, it is possible to minimize the increase in size and weight of the fuel cell built-in device, and it is also suitable for portable devices. A highly safe fuel cell built-in device can be provided.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.
The device of the present invention is a fuel cell built-in device that has a built-in fuel cell, which is connected to an electric circuit through a power supply wiring, and that operates with electric power supplied from the fuel cell. Preferably, the fuel cell is stored in a fuel cell storage case for storing the fuel cell provided in the device, and the electric circuit of the device is stored in the electric circuit storage portion. Preferably, the fuel cell is surrounded by a fuel cell storage case so as to be isolated from the electric circuit storage portion. Preferably, the fuel cell storage case has a through hole for passing a power supply wiring for supplying the power of the fuel cell to the electric circuit of the electric circuit storage unit, and a space portion is provided in the middle of the through hole. Yes.

  The space portion can accommodate moisture and fuel gas generated from the fuel cell that has leaked from the gap between the through hole and the power supply wiring due to deterioration of the seal between the through hole and the power supply wiring. Then, such moisture and fuel gas are released into the atmosphere, or moisture is collected with a hygroscopic material, and fuel is made into water with an oxidation catalyst. It can be prevented from moving.

The power supply wiring is connected to an electric circuit from a fuel cell through a through hole and a space provided in the fuel cell storage case.
The space portion has a ventilation portion that ventilates outside air.

It has a hygroscopic material inside the space portion.
A fuel oxidation catalyst is provided inside the space portion.
The fuel cell is characterized by operating with hydrogen or methanol as fuel.

  The fuel cell built-in device of the present invention is a device incorporating a fuel cell, and examples thereof include a digital camera, a digital video camera, a notebook computer, and a mobile phone.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples.
Example 1
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a device incorporating a fuel cell in Example 1. FIG. In this embodiment, a digital camera will be described as an example of a device incorporating a fuel cell. In the figure, 1 is a digital camera, 2 is a fuel cell built in the digital camera, 3 is an air intake, 4 is a vent, and 5 is a flash provided in the digital camera. The air intake 3 is for taking in air required when the fuel cell generates power. The function of the ventilation part 4 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing the inside of the apparatus incorporating the fuel cell in the first embodiment. In the figure, 6 is a fuel cell storage case, and 7 is the inside of the storage case in which the fuel cell is stored. The fuel cell storage case 6 is made of a material that does not allow water vapor or fuel (hydrogen, methanol, etc.) to pass through. The fuel cell 2 is completely covered and sealed with a fuel cell storage case 6, and the storage case interior 7 and the electric circuit storage unit 10 storing the electric circuit 11 of the digital camera are connected to a power supply wiring 9. It is completely isolated except for through-holes that pass through.

  The power supply wiring 9 is for taking out the power of the fuel cell, passes through the side wall 13 of the fuel cell storage case 6, and the power of the fuel cell is supplied to the electric circuit 11 and the strobe 5 in the electric circuit storage unit 10. Connected. When the through hole 14 for passing the power supply wiring 9 is provided in the fuel cell storage case, the space portion 8 is provided in the middle of the through hole. The side surface of the space portion 8 is formed so as to ventilate the outside air by the ventilation portion 4. The ventilation part 4 may be of any type as long as it is formed so as to allow gas to pass through, such as being covered with a mesh-like material through which air can pass, or covered with a gas-permeable polymer film.

  If there is a gap between the through-hole 14 opened in the fuel cell storage case and the power supply wiring for some reason such as deterioration of the sealing material or constituent material, moisture generated in the fuel cell storage case 6 and fuel Fuel leaked due to battery failure etc. diffuses into the gap. These moisture and fuel pass through the gap and enter the space portion 8 provided in the middle of the through hole 14. The space portion 8 is always ventilated by the ventilation portion 4, and moisture and fuel diffused from the inside of the storage case easily diffuse from the space portion to the outside air. Therefore, it is possible to prevent moisture and fuel from diffusing up to the electric circuit unit storage unit 10 of the apparatus. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a fuel cell built-in device with high reliability and safety that can prevent the electric circuit housing portion from being deteriorated by moisture or prevent ignition by fuel gas.

Example 2
In the first embodiment, the space portion 8 is provided in the middle of the through hole for passing the power supply wiring, and further, the ventilation portion 4 is provided in the space portion 8, so that moisture and fuel gas diffused from the inside of the storage case can be removed. In the space portion 8, the air was diffused from the ventilation portion 4 to the outside air. For this purpose, it is necessary to provide the through hole at a position close to the surface of the device. However, the through hole may not necessarily be provided in this manner due to the structure of the device. Even in such a case, the present invention can be implemented. This example will be described in Example 2.

  Similarly to the first embodiment, the second embodiment will be described using a digital camera with a built-in fuel cell as an example. The perspective view of the digital camera in the second embodiment is the same as that in the first embodiment except that the ventilation portion 4 is not provided.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing the inside of the apparatus incorporating the fuel cell in the second embodiment. In the figure, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted. In the figure, 12 is a space portion in the second embodiment, and unlike the first embodiment, the ventilation portion 4 is not provided. Instead, a hygroscopic material and a fuel oxidation catalyst are contained in the space portion 12. Filled. The hygroscopic material may be any material that absorbs and retains moisture, such as a hygroscopic polymer. The fuel oxidation catalyst is a catalyst that oxidizes the fuel at room temperature, such as palladium or platinum, and the amount and the like are adjusted so that the fuel is oxidized under sufficiently mild conditions so as not to ignite. As the hygroscopic material and the fuel oxidation catalyst, those usually used can be used.

  Moisture generated in the fuel cell storage case (inside the storage case) if there is a gap between the through-hole opened in the fuel cell storage case and the power supply wiring for some reason, such as deterioration of the sealing material or constituent materials In addition, the fuel leaked due to the failure of the fuel cell or the like diffuses into the gap. These moisture and fuel pass through the gap and enter a space provided in the middle of the through hole. Since the space part is filled with a hygroscopic material and a fuel oxidation catalyst, the moisture that has entered the space part by diffusion is retained by the hygroscopic material, and the fuel is oxidized by the fuel oxidation catalyst and then generated as a result of the reaction. The retained water is retained by the hygroscopic material. Therefore, it is possible to prevent moisture and fuel from diffusing up to the electric circuit unit storage unit 10 of the apparatus. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a fuel cell built-in device with high reliability and safety that can prevent the electric circuit housing portion from being deteriorated by moisture or prevent ignition by fuel gas.

  In the fuel cell built-in device of the present invention, a space portion is provided in the middle of a through hole provided in the fuel cell storage case. As a result, it is possible to prevent moisture and fuel gas leaking from the fuel cell from entering the inside of the device provided with the electric circuit from the gap in the through hole of the power supply wiring wired to the fuel cell storage case. it can. Therefore, the fuel cell built-in device of the present invention can be used for a digital camera, a digital video camera, a notebook computer, a mobile phone and the like.

1 is a perspective view of a device incorporating a fuel cell in Example 1. FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the inside of the apparatus incorporating the fuel cell in Example 1. FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the inside of the apparatus incorporating the fuel cell in Example 2. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Digital camera 2 Fuel cell 3 Air intake 4 Ventilation part 5 Strobe 6 Fuel cell storage case 7 Storage case inside 8 Space part 9 Power supply wiring 10 Electric circuit storage part 11 Electric circuit 12 Space part 13 Side wall 14 Through-hole

Claims (6)

  A fuel cell built-in device, which is connected to an electric circuit through a power supply wiring and operates by electric power supplied from the fuel cell, the fuel cell housing for sealing and housing the fuel cell An apparatus with a built-in fuel cell, comprising: a case; a through-hole for passing a power supply wiring provided through the fuel cell storage case; and a space provided in the middle of the through-hole.   2. The fuel cell built-in device according to claim 1, wherein the power supply wiring is connected to an electric circuit from a fuel cell through a through hole and a space provided in the fuel cell storage case.   The fuel cell built-in device according to claim 1, wherein the space portion has a ventilation portion that ventilates outside air.   The fuel cell built-in device according to claim 1, further comprising a hygroscopic material inside the space portion.   The fuel cell built-in device according to claim 1, further comprising a fuel oxidation catalyst inside the space portion.   6. The fuel cell built-in device according to claim 1, wherein the fuel cell operates using hydrogen or methanol as a fuel.

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