JP2009183120A - Vehicle control system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To maintain high output from a fuel cell body in the operational condition of the fuel cell body in which a membrane electrode assembly is inevitably dried. <P>SOLUTION: An operation under a condition in which a membrane electrode assembly 21 is inevitably dried is predicted in advance, using a navigation device 70. An air flow rate is controlled so that the water content of the membrane electrode assembly 21 becomes high to an extent that does not cause flooding before the operation under the above condition is started. A proper level of water content is accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly 21 to prevent deterioration in the capability of the fuel cell body 11 due to drying. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle control system for a fuel cell drive vehicle.

  In general, the unit structure of a fuel cell is a structure in which a membrane electrode assembly (MEA) is sandwiched between separators, and the membrane electrode assembly is Nafion (registered trademark, manufactured by Dupon). An electrolyte membrane made of a solid polymer membrane such as the above is sandwiched between a cathode electrode and an anode electrode. Air is supplied to the cathode electrode from an air supply unit, and fuel gas is supplied to the anode electrode. Each electrode has a structure in which a diffusion layer and a reaction layer are laminated.

In the membrane electrode assembly, hydrogen ions (H ⁺ ; protons) and electrons are generated from the fuel by an electrochemical reaction in the anode reaction layer. Protons move in the electrolyte membrane in the form of H ₃ O ⁺ accompanied by water molecules toward the cathode reaction layer. Further, the electrons flow through the load connected to the fuel cell system and flow into the cathode reaction layer. On the other hand, in the cathode reaction layer, water is generated from oxygen, protons and electrons contained in the air. The fuel cell system can continuously generate an electromotive force by continuously performing such an electrochemical reaction.
Please refer to Patent Document 1 as a document related to the present invention.
JP 2002-343396 A

The performance of the fuel cell main body varies depending on the operating environment as shown in FIG. That is, if the fuel cell body can be operated in an optimal temperature and humidity environment, high performance can be obtained and fuel consumption can be reduced.
For this reason, it is desirable to precisely control the temperature and humidity, but it is difficult to precisely control the temperature and humidity in the fuel cell body mounted on the vehicle because it is affected by output changes and outside air temperature and humidity. It is. In particular, when high output continues or when the outside air temperature is high, moisture is inevitably reduced from the membrane electrode assembly of the fuel cell body, and this wet state is maintained and controlled to optimum operating conditions. It is difficult.

The electrode material constituting the membrane electrode assembly is made of a porous material and easily contains moisture. Therefore, when the fuel cell body is operated at a higher humidity than the optimum humidity, water generated by the power generation reaction is accumulated. If the accumulated amount of moisture is too large, the gas supply to the catalyst is hindered and a so-called flooding phenomenon occurs. On the other hand, the membrane / electrode assembly containing water appropriately can obtain a high output for a while even if the fuel cell body is operated under the condition that the membrane / electrode assembly is inevitably dried (see FIG. 2). This is because the accumulated moisture is vaporized under dry conditions and humidifies the solid polymer electrolyte membrane.
The operation continuation time during which high output can be maintained depends on the water content of the membrane electrode assembly, and the water content can be controlled by the type / volume of the electrode material and / or the porosity of the electrode material.
From the above, if the operation under the condition that the membrane electrode assembly is inevitably dried can be predicted in advance, the cooling water is set so that the humidity is high enough to prevent flooding before the operation under that condition is started. It is preferable that moisture is appropriately accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly by controlling the temperature and the air flow rate. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the performance of the fuel cell body from being deteriorated due to drying.

On the other hand, a route to a destination is set in a navigation device mounted on a vehicle. The region where the fuel cell main body is operated under the condition that the membrane electrode assembly is inevitably dried in the set route can be predicted. For example, on a highway or an uphill road, a high load is applied to the fuel cell body, and the temperature rises and the membrane electrode assembly is dried. That is, the amount of water that evaporates is larger than the amount of water generated by the power generation reaction. Similarly, when the outside air temperature is high, the temperature of the air sent to the cathode electrode becomes high and the membrane electrode assembly is dried.
Therefore, an area (dry operation area) where the fuel cell body is operated under the condition that the membrane electrode assembly is inevitably dried on the route to the destination specified by the navigation device is extracted, and the vehicle is dried. When reaching a predetermined position before the operation region, the fuel cell main body is forcibly operated in the water storage operation mode. Here, in the water storage operation mode, the generated water is forcibly accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly. For example, by reducing the amount of air sent to the cathode electrode, the amount of water evaporated from the membrane electrode assembly is suppressed, and by reducing the amount of evaporated water from the amount of water generated by the power generation reaction, the membrane electrode Water can be accumulated in the joined body.
In addition, the temperature of the fuel cell main body is set low by adjusting the cooling water supply, the amount of water evaporated from the membrane electrode assembly is suppressed, and the gas sent to the cathode electrode and / or the anode electrode is humidified. By including (including supplying water in a liquid state), the water content of the membrane electrode assembly can be increased.

From the above, the first aspect of the present invention is defined as follows. That is,
A fuel cell device and a navigation device, a vehicle control system comprising a control device for controlling the operation of the fuel cell device according to a signal of the navigation device,
The fuel cell device includes a membrane electrode assembly, a separator, a fuel gas supply unit, and a fuel cell main body including an air supply unit,
A water storage operation mode for forcibly storing generated water in the membrane electrode assembly, a drying operation mode for forcibly drying the membrane electrode assembly, or a condition determined in advance according to the load of the fuel cell body An operation mode control unit for operating the fuel cell main body in a normal operation mode for driving,
The navigation device stores a route to the destination and identifies the current position of the vehicle on the route, and the control device extracts a dry operation region on the route stored by the navigation device, and the vehicle performs the dry operation. When the fuel cell main body is forcibly operated in the water storage operation mode when reaching a predetermined position before the region,
A vehicle control system characterized by the above.

According to the first aspect of the invention thus defined, the fuel cell main body is forced to store water in front of the region where the membrane electrode assembly is inevitably dried (dry operation region) and the dry operation region. It is operated in the operation mode. As a result, sufficient moisture is accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly before the vehicle reaches the dry operation region, and sufficient output can be maintained even if moisture begins to decrease from the membrane electrode assembly in the dry operation region. .
The timing when the fuel cell device is forced to enter the water storage operation mode is when the vehicle reaches a predetermined position before the dry operation region. Here, the predetermined position can be arbitrarily set according to the pore volume or the like of the membrane electrode assembly, and can be, for example, 5 to 10 km before the starting point of the drying operation region.
In the region from the start point to the dry operation region (forced water storage operation mode region), the fuel cell body is operated in the water storage operation mode, and moisture is accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly.

By comparing the road data of each road on the route stored by the navigation device with a predetermined condition, a dry operation region can be extracted on the route. For example, a highway or an automobile exclusive road is set as a dry operation area. When traveling on an expressway or the like, a high output is required of the fuel cell body and the temperature of the membrane electrode assembly rises, so that the amount of water evaporated from the membrane electrode assembly exceeds the amount of generated water. Similarly, the uphill road is also a dry operation area. For example, an uphill road with a climb gradient of 5 degrees or more is set as a dry operation region.
If the dry operation region is a short distance (for example, within 1 km), there is no need to forcibly switch the fuel cell device to the water storage operation mode in advance. This is because the membrane electrode assembly hardly dries up during such a short distance and the output of the fuel cell device hardly decreases.

Furthermore, when the navigation device can access the external information providing server via the Internet or the like, it is possible to predict the outside air temperature when the vehicle arrives at a predetermined point on the route (for example, a node that specifies a road). The temperature change at each point on the route can be acquired in advance from an external information providing server, and the temperature when the vehicle reaches can be predicted from the temperature change rate.
The external information providing server stores temperature histories on all roads based on data obtained from weather stations and other information sources.
The outside temperature (threshold) at which the membrane electrode assembly of the fuel cell body is inevitably dried depends on the specifications of the fuel cell body (pore volume of the membrane electrode assembly, average pore diameter, air volume to the cathode electrode, etc.) It is set arbitrarily. The threshold value of the outside air temperature can be set to 35 ° C., for example.

In the above invention, the fuel cell device is forcibly operated in the water storage operation mode at a predetermined position before the dry operation region, but depending on the road conditions, the membrane electrode bonding may be performed before reaching the dry operation region. The body may become saturated with water. When the membrane electrode assembly is saturated with water, the output of the fuel cell device decreases.
Therefore, as specified in the second aspect of the present invention, when the output of the fuel cell main body falls below a predetermined threshold (for example, 90% of the rated output), the operation of the water storage operation mode is terminated, and the normal operation mode or the dry operation is completed. It is preferable to switch to the operation mode.

Another aspect of the present invention is defined as follows. That is,
A fuel cell device and a navigation device, a vehicle control system comprising a control device for controlling the operation of the fuel cell in accordance with a signal of the navigation device,
A temperature prediction device for predicting the temperature of the destination at the time of arrival,
The fuel cell device includes a membrane electrode assembly, a separator, a fuel gas supply unit, and a fuel cell main body including an air supply unit,
A water storage operation mode for forcibly storing generated water in the membrane electrode assembly, a drying operation mode for forcibly drying the membrane electrode assembly, or a condition determined in advance according to the load of the fuel cell body An operation mode control unit for driving the fuel cell main body in a normal operation mode for driving,
The navigation device stores a route to the destination and identifies the current position of the vehicle in the route, and the control device is when the predicted temperature of the destination predicted by the temperature prediction device is below the freezing point, When the vehicle reaches a predetermined position before the destination, the fuel cell body is forcibly operated in a dry operation mode.
A vehicle control system characterized by the above.

According to the invention defined in this way, the moisture contained in the membrane electrode assembly of the fuel cell main body is reduced when arriving at the destination. If the outside air temperature is below the freezing point when the fuel cell main body is stopped, a stop operation (stack or pipe drying process) may be performed on the fuel cell main body to prevent freezing. At this time, if the moisture of the membrane electrode assembly is reduced in advance, the stop operation can be completed in a short time, and the power consumed by the stop operation can be saved.
Here, the fuel cell body is forcibly operated in the dry operation mode at a predetermined position before the destination, but depending on the road conditions, the membrane electrode assembly is excessively dried before reaching the destination. There is a risk that. When the membrane / electrode assembly becomes deficient in water, the output of the fuel cell main body decreases.
Therefore, it is preferable to end the operation in the dry operation mode and switch to the normal operation mode or the water storage operation mode when the output of the fuel cell body falls below a predetermined threshold (for example, 90% of the rated output).

Embodiments embodying the present invention will be described below.
FIG. 3 shows a vehicle control system 1 of the embodiment.
The vehicle control system 1 according to this embodiment includes a fuel cell device 10, a control device 50, and a navigation device 70.
The fuel cell device 10 includes a fuel cell main body 11 and an operation mode control unit 40.
The fuel cell main body 11 includes a cell unit 20, an air supply unit 31, a fuel gas supply unit 33, and a cooling unit 35.
The configuration of the cell unit 20 is schematically shown in FIG. The cell unit 20 includes a membrane electrode assembly 21. In this configuration, the solid polymer electrolyte membrane 22 is sandwiched between a cathode electrode 23 and an anode electrode 24. The electrolyte membrane 22 is a proton conductive ion exchange membrane made of a fluororesin (for example, Nafion (trade name)) having a perfluorocarbon sulfonic acid group, and exhibits good proton conductivity in a wet state. The cathode electrode 23 and the anode electrode 24 are each composed of a gas-permeable porous base material (diffusion layer) such as carbon cloth, carbon paper, carbon felt, and a reaction layer formed on one surface of the diffusion layer. The reaction layer is in contact with the electrolyte membrane 22, and a catalyst made of platinum or the like is supported on the reaction layer. A diffusion layer made of a porous substrate has a water absorbing ability.

4, the code | symbol 26 shows an air flow path, and air is supplied from the air supply part 31 (refer FIG. 3). In the air flow path 26, air flows in the vertical direction of the drawing. The air supply unit 31 includes a fan, for example, and blows air. The air supply amount by the air supply unit 31 is controlled by the drive control unit 37. A humidifier can be added to the air supply unit 31. As the humidifier, a type that supplies water to the cathode electrode 23 in a liquid state or a type that supplies water vapor to the cathode electrode 23 can be selected.
If the amount of air supplied from the air supply unit 31 is reduced, the amount of water evaporated from the cathode electrode 23 decreases. Therefore, if the amount of evaporation falls below the amount of water generated during the power generation reaction, the membrane electrode assembly 21 Will accumulate moisture. On the other hand, if the amount of air supplied from the air supply unit 31 is increased, the amount of water evaporated from the cathode electrode 23 increases. Therefore, if the amount of evaporation exceeds the amount of water generated during the power generation reaction, the membrane electrode assembly 21 is dried.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 27 denotes a fuel gas passage, and a fuel gas such as hydrogen gas is supplied from the fuel gas supply unit 33. In the fuel gas channel 26, the fuel gas flows in the vertical direction of the drawing and is returned to the fuel gas supply unit 33. The fuel gas supply unit 33 includes a circulation pump, for example, and circulates the fuel gas. The amount of fuel gas supplied by the fuel gas supply unit 33 is controlled by the drive control unit 37. A humidifier can be added to the fuel gas supply unit 33.
Reference numeral 28 in FIG. 4 denotes a separator, and reference numeral 29 denotes an insulating material.

Reference numeral 35 in FIG. 3 denotes a cooling unit, and the cooling water is circulated between the cell unit 20. When the cooling function of the cooling unit 35 is strengthened and the temperature of the cell unit 20 is lowered, the amount of water evaporated from the membrane electrode assembly 21 is reduced, and moisture is accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly 21. On the other hand, when the cooling function of the cooling unit 35 is weakened and the temperature of the cell unit 20 is increased, the amount of water evaporated from the membrane electrode assembly 21 increases and the membrane electrode assembly 21 is dried.
The operation of the cooling unit 35 is controlled by a drive control unit 37.

The drive control unit 37 controls driving of the air supply unit 31, the fuel gas supply unit 33, and the cooling unit 35 so that the operation mode specified by the operation mode control unit 40 is set.
In the normal operation state of the cell unit 20, the operation mode control unit 40 selects the normal operation mode. The drive control unit 37 specifies the air amount, fuel gas amount, and cooling capacity to be supplied to the cell unit based on the load of the cell unit 20 and the temperature of the cell unit 20. The air supply unit 31 is controlled to achieve the specified air amount, the fuel gas supply unit 33 is controlled to have the specified fuel gas amount, and the cooling unit 35 is controlled to have the cooling capacity.
Even in this normal operation mode, depending on the magnitude of the load required for the cell unit 20 and the conditions of the outside air, a state in which moisture is reduced from the membrane electrode assembly 21 or a state in which water is stored can be taken.
FIG. 5A shows the relationship between the predicted operating environment to the destination and the temperature of the cell unit 20 and the operating humidity when the normal operation mode is executed. Here, the operating humidity is calculated from the difference between the amount of generated water and the moisture dried from the membrane electrode assembly, and when the operating humidity is in the optimum humidity range, the wet state of the membrane electrode assembly is kept good. The cell unit 20 generates power with high efficiency. As is clear from FIG. 5A, the temperature of the cell unit 20 increases on the highway and the uphill road, and as a result, the operating humidity falls below the optimum humidity range, and the membrane electrode assembly is dried. In this specification, such a state is referred to as a state in which the membrane electrode assembly is inevitably dried.

When the operation mode control unit 40 selects the water storage operation mode, the drive control unit 37 reduces the air supply amount of the air supply unit 31 so that water is accumulated particularly in the cathode electrode 23 of the membrane electrode assembly 21. In this embodiment, the air supply amount (air volume) in the water storage operation mode is 80% of that in the normal operation mode. Thereby, the amount of air evaporation from the cathode electrode 23 is suppressed, and moisture is accumulated in the cathode electrode 23 from the balance with the amount of generated water.
The reduction rate of the air supply amount can be arbitrarily set, and the membrane electrode assembly 21 is also reduced by controlling the cooling unit 35 and reducing the temperature of the cell unit 20 together with the reduction of the air supply amount. Can accumulate moisture.

When the operation mode control unit 40 selects the drying operation mode, the drive control unit 37 increases the air supply amount of the air supply unit 31 so that the cathode electrode 23 of the membrane electrode assembly 21 is dried. In this embodiment, the air supply amount (air volume) in the drying operation mode is 200% of that in the normal operation mode. Thereby, the amount of air evaporation from the cathode electrode 23 is promoted, and the water content of the cathode electrode 23 is reduced from the balance with the amount of generated water.
The rate of increase of the air supply amount can be arbitrarily set, and the membrane electrode assembly 21 can also be set by increasing the temperature of the cell unit 20 by controlling the cooling unit 35 independently of the increase of the air supply amount or independently of this. Can be dried.

As shown in FIG. 6, the control device 50 includes a water storage operation region extraction unit 51, a switching point setting unit 53, a mode switching command unit 55, and a cell output monitoring unit 57.
The navigation device 70 specifies and stores a route to the destination based on a general-purpose program. A communication interface is attached to the navigation device 70, and information can be acquired from the external information providing server 90 via a communication line 80 such as the Internet. The external information providing server 90 stores the temperature history (temperature change over time) at a node point that identifies the start point and end point of the road in the navigation map data based on the weather station announcement data.
The navigation device 70 can predict the arrival time at each node point. Thereby, the control device 50 reads the temperature history of each node point on the route from the external information providing server 90, reads the predicted arrival time from the navigation device 70 to each node point, and the temperature of each node point in the predicted arrival time. Predict. The prediction method is arbitrary, but can be predicted by extrapolation based on the temperature history.

Next, operation | movement of the vehicle control system 1 of an Example is demonstrated based on the flowchart of FIGS.
In step 1, the navigation device 70 is turned on to set a route to the destination.
In step 3, a region (drying operation region) where the membrane electrode assembly 21 of the cell unit 20 is inevitably dried in the set route is extracted.

Details of the operation in step 3 are shown in FIG.
In step 31, the control device 50 acquires road data of a road on the route set by the navigation device 70. The road data includes the type of road (whether it is a highway, a car road, or a general road) and the inclination angle of the road.
Therefore, in step 32, the types of all roads on the route are determined, and if an expressway or a motorway is included, the road is recognized as a dry operation region (step 37). In step 33, the gradient of the road is determined. If the gradient is an uphill road having a gradient of 5 degrees or more, the process proceeds to step 34. In step 34, it is determined whether or not the climbing road continues for 1 km or more. If the climbing road continues for 1 km or more, the process proceeds to step 37 and the road is recognized as a dry operation area.

In step 35, the outside air temperature at the predicted arrival time at each node point on the route is predicted. When the region where the outside air temperature in the predicted arrival time exceeds 35 ° C. continues for 1 km or more (see step 36), the region is recognized as the drying operation region.
In step 34 and step 36 described above, the region is recognized as a dry operation region when the uphill road or the high-temperature outside air continues for 1 km or more. However, even if there is no continuation of 1 km or more, for example, step 34 and step are performed within 5 km. If the area of YES in 36 is 1 km or more, the 5 km area can be recognized as the drying operation area.

Returning to FIG. 7, in step 5, a forced water storage operation mode region is set.
When the drying operation area is extracted in step 3, the switching point setting unit 53 of the control unit 50 marks a point 10 km ahead from the starting point of the drying operation area, and the forced water storage is performed from the point to the starting point of the drying operation area. This is the operation mode area.

In step 7, it is determined whether or not the current position of the vehicle is within the forced water storage operation mode region set in step 5. When the vehicle is located in the forced water storage operation mode region, the process proceeds to step 9, and the control device 50 sends a mode switching command signal to the operation mode control device 40 by the mode switching command unit 55. When the vehicle is not located within the forced water storage operation mode region, the process proceeds to step 11 and the normal operation mode corresponding to the load applied to the cell unit 20 is executed.
Details of the operation of step 9 are shown in FIG.
In step 91, the output of the air supply unit 31 is reduced to create a state in which moisture is accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly 21. For example, (1) on the general road shown in FIG. 5B, the operation mode of the cell unit 20 is forcibly switched from the normal operation mode to the water storage operation mode at a switching point 10 km before the starting point of the expressway. That is, the cell unit 20 is operated in the normal operation mode before the switching point (outside the forced water storage operation mode region). Since the load is small on the general road, the operation is performed under the condition that the temperature of the cell unit 20 is made as high as possible and the wet state of the membrane electrode assembly 21 is maintained in order to increase the efficiency. Thereafter, when entering the forced water storage operation mode region, the drive unit controls at least one output of the air supply unit 31, the fuel gas supply unit 33, and / or the cooling unit 35, and the operation humidity is set to the upper limit of the optimum humidity range. Make it high. As a result, moisture is accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly 21. At this time, the output of the cell unit 20 is somewhat low, but a sufficient output is ensured for a vehicle traveling on a general road.

If water is excessively accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly 21, the output of the cell unit 20 may be reduced, which may hinder general road travel. Therefore, in step 92, when the output of the cell unit 20 falls below a predetermined threshold value, the forced water storage operation mode is canceled and the cell unit 20 is operated in the normal mode (step 94).
The threshold value serving as an index for canceling the forced water storage operation mode can be arbitrarily set, but in this embodiment, the output of the cell unit 20 at the start of the forced water storage operation mode is used as a reference and exceeds 90%. When it falls below, the forced water storage operation mode is canceled and the normal operation mode is restored. Or in order to prevent flooding reliably, it can also be set as dry operation mode.

  When the vehicle enters the drying operation region (the highway in FIG. 5), the cell unit 20 is operated in the normal operation mode (step 11), and the membrane electrode assembly 21 is inevitably dried. Here, when the vehicle passes through the forced water storage operation mode region, a sufficient amount of moisture is accumulated in the membrane electrode assembly 21, so that the membrane electrode junction is consumed by consuming the accumulated moisture. The body 21 will maintain its optimal wet state for a long time. Therefore, the high output of the cell unit 20 can be maintained even on the expressway.

  Other embodiments will be described below. The hardware configuration is the same as in the above embodiment. The control will be described based on the flowcharts shown in FIGS. In the flowchart of FIG. 10, the same steps as those in the flowchart of FIG.

In step 101 of FIG. 10, the temperature of the destination at the predicted arrival time is predicted. The prediction method can be performed in the same manner as the prediction of the node point of the road data. That is, the temperature history of the destination is acquired from the external information providing server 90, and the temperature at the predicted arrival time of the destination is predicted from the temperature history by extrapolation.
In step 103, it is verified whether or not the predicted temperature of the destination within a predetermined time from the predicted arrival time, for example, within 24 hours, is less than the freezing point (0 ° C.). In 105, a forced drying operation mode region is set. That is, the switching point setting unit 53 of the control unit 50 marks a point 10 km before the destination, and the area from the point to the destination is the forced drying operation mode region.

When the vehicle is located in the forced drying operation mode region in step 107, the process proceeds to step 109, and the switching command unit 55 of the control device 50 sends a mode switching signal to the operation mode control device 40.
Details of the operation of step 109 are shown in FIG.
In step 1091, the output of the air supply unit 31 is increased to create a state in which the moisture in the membrane electrode assembly 21 is reduced. For example, the operation mode of the cell unit 20 is forcibly switched from the normal operation mode to the drying operation mode at a switching point 10 km before the destination shown in FIG. When entering the forced drying operation mode region, the drive unit controls the output of at least one of the air supply unit 31, the fuel gas supply unit 33, and / or the cooling unit 35 to lower the operating humidity below the upper limit of the optimum humidity range. . Thereby, the water | moisture content of the membrane electrode assembly 21 will reduce. At this time, the output of the cell unit 20 is somewhat low, but a sufficient output is ensured for a vehicle traveling on a general road.

If the membrane electrode assembly 21 is excessively dried, the output of the cell unit 20 may be reduced, which may hinder travel on a general road. Therefore, in step 1092, when the output of the cell unit 20 falls below a predetermined threshold, the forced drying operation mode is canceled and the cell unit 20 is operated in the normal mode (step 1094).
Although the threshold value serving as an index for canceling the forced drying operation mode can be arbitrarily set, in this embodiment, the output of the cell unit 20 at the start of the forced drying operation mode is used as a reference, and is lower than 20%. When the forced drying operation mode is canceled, the normal operation mode is restored. It can also be set as the water storage operation mode which recovers from a dry state to a sufficient wet state quickly.

  According to this embodiment, when the temperature of the destination at the time of arrival is predicted to be lower than the freezing point, the water content of the membrane electrode assembly can be reduced before reaching the destination. Thereby, the drying process at the time of a stop of operation can be completed in a short time.

  The present invention is not limited to the description of the embodiments of the invention. Various modifications may be included in the present invention as long as those skilled in the art can easily conceive without departing from the description of the scope of claims.

The relationship between the humidity of a fuel cell main body and an output is shown. The relationship with the output of the humidity of a fuel cell main body is shown. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the vehicle control system of an Example. It is sectional drawing which shows the detail of a cell part. The relationship between the road and the temperature and humidity of the cell part is shown. It is a block diagram which shows the detail of a control apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the vehicle control system of an Example. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of the extraction method (step 3 of FIG. 7) of a dry operation area | region. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of execution (step 9 of FIG. 7) of forced water storage driving | operation mode. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the vehicle control system of another Example. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of execution (step 109 of FIG. 10) of forced drying operation mode.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle control system 10 Fuel cell apparatus 11 Fuel cell main body 20 Cell part 21 Membrane electrode assembly 22 Solid polymer electrolyte membrane 31 Air supply part 33 Fuel gas supply part 35 Cooling part 37 Drive control part 40 Operation mode control part 50 Control apparatus 51 Water Storage Operation Area Extraction Unit 53 Switching Point Setting Unit 55 Mode Switching Command Unit 57 Cell Output Monitoring Unit 70 Navigation Device

Claims (5)

A fuel cell device and a navigation device, a vehicle control system comprising a control device for controlling the operation of the fuel cell device according to a signal of the navigation device,
The fuel cell device includes a membrane electrode assembly, a separator, a fuel gas supply unit, and a fuel cell main body including an air supply unit,
A water storage operation mode for forcibly storing generated water in the membrane electrode assembly, a drying operation mode for forcibly drying the membrane electrode assembly, or a condition determined in advance according to the load of the fuel cell body An operation mode control unit for operating the fuel cell main body in a normal operation mode for driving,
The navigation device stores a route to the destination and identifies the current position of the vehicle on the route, and the control device extracts a dry operation region on the route stored by the navigation device, and the vehicle performs the dry operation. When the fuel cell main body is forcibly operated in the water storage operation mode when reaching a predetermined position before the region,
A vehicle control system characterized by the above.   When the fuel cell main body is forcibly operated in the water storage operation mode, the control device detects the output of the fuel cell main body, and when the detected output falls below a predetermined threshold, the forced water storage operation mode The vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle control system is released. A temperature prediction device for predicting the temperature at the time of arrival at the destination is further provided,
When the predicted temperature of the destination predicted by the temperature prediction device is below the freezing point, the control device forcibly dries the fuel cell main body when the vehicle reaches a predetermined position before the destination. Drive in mode,
The vehicle control system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by the above. A fuel cell device and a navigation device, a vehicle control system comprising a control device for controlling the operation of the fuel cell in accordance with a signal of the navigation device,
A temperature prediction device for predicting the temperature of the destination at the time of arrival,
The fuel cell device includes a membrane electrode assembly, a separator, a fuel gas supply unit, and a fuel cell main body including an air supply unit,
A water storage operation mode for forcibly storing generated water in the membrane electrode assembly, a drying operation mode for forcibly drying the membrane electrode assembly, or a condition determined in advance according to the load of the fuel cell body An operation mode control unit for driving the fuel cell main body in a normal operation mode for driving,
The navigation device stores a route to the destination and identifies the current position of the vehicle in the route, and the control device is when the predicted temperature of the destination predicted by the temperature prediction device is below the freezing point, When the vehicle reaches a predetermined position before the destination, the fuel cell body is forcibly operated in a dry operation mode.
A vehicle control system characterized by the above.   When the fuel cell main body is forcibly operated in the dry operation mode, the control device detects the output of the fuel cell main body, and cancels the forced dry operation mode when the detected output falls below a predetermined threshold. The vehicle control system according to claim 4, wherein:

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