JP2009193695A - Fuel cell vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fuel cell vehicle for warming up a battery without newly installing a heat source such as an electric heater. <P>SOLUTION: The fuel cell vehicle 1 includes a fuel cell 10, a battery 21, and a battery box 20 to house the battery 21, and the battery box 20 is installed on the rear side of the vehicle to the fuel cell 10. Furthermore, the fuel cell vehicle 1 includes a battery temperature sensor 29 which detects battery temperature T<SB>BATT</SB>, a fan 24 which introduces air into the battery box 20 from a suction port of a suction part 22 installed on the fuel cell 10 side of the battery box 20 and adjusts the temperature of the battery, and a control device 40 to execute a battery warming-up control which, when the temperature detected by the battery temperature sensor 29 is a prescribed determination temperature or less, controls the fan 24 and warms up the battery 21. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel cell vehicle. Specifically, the present invention relates to a fuel cell vehicle capable of warming up a battery without providing a new heat source.

  In a fuel cell vehicle using a fuel cell as a power source, a battery is used to supply power to auxiliary equipment when starting the fuel cell or to supplementarily supply power to a drive motor during acceleration of the vehicle. Installed. However, when the battery is at a low temperature, such as when starting below freezing, the internal resistance is large, and the efficiency of both charging and discharging of the battery is reduced, so that fuel efficiency and acceleration performance are deteriorated.

Therefore, for example, in Patent Document 1, an electric heater is provided on the upstream side of the flow path of air flowing into the battery, and the air flowing into the battery is heated by this electric heater, so that the battery is warmed up in a short time. A warming device is shown.
JP 2003-341448 A

  However, in the heating apparatus shown in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to secure a space for providing an electric heater in the vehicle. For this reason, the comfort in a vehicle interior is impaired or it costs.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described points, and an object thereof is to provide a fuel cell vehicle capable of warming up a battery without newly providing a heat source such as an electric heater.

The present invention includes a fuel cell (for example, a fuel cell 10 described later) that generates power, a battery (for example, a battery 21 described later) that stores electric power generated by the fuel cell, and a battery box (for example, a battery 21 (for example, described later)). A battery box 20), which will be described later (for example, fuel cell vehicles 1, 1A, which will be described later), the battery box being provided on the vehicle rear side with respect to the fuel cell, and the battery Temperature detecting means (for example, a battery temperature sensor 29 described later) for detecting the temperature of the battery (for example, a battery temperature T _BATT described later), and an intake port (for example, described later) provided on the fuel cell side of the battery box. A temperature adjustment device (air intake port 22) for adjusting the temperature of the battery by introducing air into the battery box. Eg to a fan 24) which will be described later, during which the fuel cell is generating power, the temperature the temperature detected by the detecting means a predetermined judgment temperature (e.g., when it is determined temperature T _TH) following later And a temperature adjustment device control means (for example, a control device 40 described later) for executing battery warm-up control for controlling the temperature adjustment device to warm up the battery.

According to the present invention, a battery box is provided on the rear side of the vehicle with respect to the fuel cell, and air is introduced into the battery box from an intake port provided on the fuel cell side of the battery box, whereby the temperature of the battery is increased. A temperature adjustment device for adjusting the temperature was provided. Thus, the battery can be warmed up by using, as a heat source, the fuel cell that has generated heat as a result of power generation, and introducing the air heated by the heat source into the battery box using the temperature adjustment device. Thus, according to the present invention, the battery can be warmed up without providing a new heat source or securing a new space for providing the heat source. Moreover, the energy cost concerning warming up of a battery can be reduced by warming up a battery using the heat which generate | occur | produced by generating electric power.
In addition, when the temperature of the battery detected by the temperature detection means is equal to or lower than a predetermined determination temperature while the fuel cell is generating power, battery warm-up control is performed to control the temperature adjustment device to warm up the battery. Execute. Thus, the battery can be efficiently warmed up by controlling the temperature adjusting device only when the battery needs to be warmed up.

In this case, a battery charge / discharge amount calculating means (for example, a control device 40 described later, and means for executing step S1 in FIG. 3) for calculating the charge / discharge amount of the battery (for example, battery charge / discharge amount Q _BATT described later). The temperature adjusting device control means preferably determines whether or not to execute battery warm-up control based on the charge / discharge amount calculated by the battery charge / discharge amount calculation means.

  According to this invention, the charge / discharge amount of the battery is calculated, and it is determined whether or not to execute the battery warm-up control based on the battery charge / discharge amount. The amount of heat generated from a battery increases as the amount of charge or discharge increases. For this reason, by calculating the charge / discharge amount of the battery, it is possible to indirectly know the temperature increase rate of the battery, that is, the future battery temperature. According to the present invention, it is possible to make an earlier and more reliable determination by determining the execution of the battery warm-up control based on the charge / discharge amount of the battery, as compared with the case where only the battery temperature is determined.

  In this case, the fuel cell, the battery box, and the temperature adjusting device include a vehicle floor panel (for example, a floor panel 30 described later) and an under cover (for example, an below-described under cover) provided below the floor panel. It is preferably provided in a single space formed between the covers 32 and 32A).

  According to the present invention, the fuel cell, the battery box, and the temperature adjusting device are provided in a single space formed between the floor panel and the under cover. Thereby, the air warmed by generating electricity with the fuel cell can be retained in a single space. Therefore, the efficiency of warming up the battery can be further improved.

In this case, after the battery warm-up control is started, the temperature adjusting device control means starts a predetermined determination time (for example, a determination time described later) in a state where the temperature of the battery is lower than the temperature at the start of the battery warm-up control. When t _TH ) has elapsed, it is preferable to stop the battery warm-up control.

  According to the present invention, after the battery warm-up control is started, the battery warm-up control is stopped when the predetermined determination time has passed in a state where the battery temperature is lower than the temperature at the start of the battery warm-up control. Thus, by executing the battery warm-up control, it is possible to prevent the battery temperature from excessively decreasing.

  According to the present invention, the battery can be warmed up by using, as a heat source, the fuel cell that has generated heat by generating electricity, and introducing the air heated by the heat source into the battery box by the temperature adjustment device. Thus, according to the present invention, the battery can be warmed up without providing a new heat source or ensuring a new space for providing the heat source. Moreover, the energy cost concerning warming up of a battery can be reduced by warming up a battery using the heat which generate | occur | produced by generating electric power. Further, the battery can be efficiently warmed up by controlling the temperature adjusting device only when the battery needs to be warmed up.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a fuel cell vehicle 1 according to the present embodiment.
The fuel cell vehicle 1 includes a fuel cell 10 that generates power by reacting a reaction gas, a battery box 20 that houses a battery 21, and a control device 40.

The fuel cell 10 and the battery box 20 are provided below the floor panel 30, which is the floor of the compartment of the fuel cell vehicle 1, that is, outside the compartment. More specifically, a center console 31 formed in a convex shape toward the vehicle interior side is provided at the center of the floor panel 30 in the vehicle width direction, and the fuel cell 10 includes the center console 31. Is provided inside. Further, the battery box 20 is provided on the vehicle rear side with respect to the fuel cell 10 with the right side in FIG.
The fuel cell 10 and the battery box 20 are covered from the bottom by an under cover 32 provided below the floor panel 30. Thereby, the fuel cell 10 and the battery box 20 are accommodated in a single space formed between the floor panel 30 and the under cover 32.

The fuel cell 10 has a stack structure in which, for example, several tens to several hundreds of cells are stacked. Each cell is configured by sandwiching a membrane electrode structure (MEA) between a pair of separators. The membrane electrode structure is composed of two electrodes, an anode electrode (anode) and a cathode electrode (cathode), and a solid polymer electrolyte membrane sandwiched between these electrodes. Usually, both electrodes are formed of a catalyst layer that performs an oxidation / reduction reaction in contact with the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and a gas diffusion layer in contact with the catalyst layer. The fuel cell 10 generates power by an electrochemical reaction when hydrogen gas is supplied to the anode electrode (anode) side and air containing oxygen is supplied to the cathode electrode (cathode) side by a reaction gas supply device (not shown). . The electric power generated by the fuel cell 10 is supplied to a drive motor (not shown).
The fuel cell 10 is connected to a fuel cell temperature sensor 11 that detects the temperature T _FC of the fuel cell 10, and a detection signal from the fuel cell temperature sensor 11 is input to the control device 40.

The battery 21 stores power generated by the fuel cell 10, regenerative power from the drive motor during deceleration, and the like. The electric power stored in the battery 21 is appropriately supplied to the drive motor according to the operating state.
The battery 21 is connected to a battery current sensor 28 for detecting the output current I _BATT of the battery 21 and a battery temperature sensor 29 as temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature T _{BATT of the} battery 21. Detection signals from the battery current sensor 28 and the battery temperature sensor 29 are input to the control device 40.

  The battery box 20 has a substantially box shape, and a battery 21 is accommodated therein. The battery box 20 is provided with an intake portion 22 and an exhaust portion 23 for ventilating the inside of the battery box 20.

FIG. 2 is a top view showing a schematic configuration of the fuel cell vehicle 1.
The intake portion 22 is provided in the battery box 20 with its intake port facing the fuel cell 10 side. As a result, the air around the fuel cell 10 warmed by generating power can be introduced into the battery box 20 via the intake portion 22. Further, here, it is preferable that no obstacle is provided between the intake port of the intake section 22 and the fuel cell 10 when air around the fuel cell 10 is introduced.
The exhaust unit 23 is provided at a position facing the intake unit 22 in the battery box 20.

  A fan 24 is provided at the exhaust port of the exhaust unit 23 as a temperature adjusting device that exhausts air inside the battery box 20 to the outside. That is, by controlling the fan 24, the air around the fuel cell 10 can be introduced into the battery box 20 through the intake port of the intake unit 22, and the temperature of the battery 21 can be adjusted.

Here, the relationship between the temperatures of the fuel cell 10, the battery box 20, and the battery 21 will be described.
First, immediately after the fuel cell vehicle 1 is started, these temperatures have the following relationship.
Fuel cell temperature = battery box temperature = battery temperature = outside air temperature

Next, when the power generation of the fuel cell 10 is started after the fuel cell vehicle 1 is started, the temperature rise rate of the fuel cell 10 is faster than the temperature rise rate of the battery 21, so that these temperatures have the following relationship. .
Fuel cell temperature> Battery box temperature> Battery temperature> Outside air temperature That is, the temperature of the fuel cell 10 is higher than the temperature of the battery 21. Therefore, the battery 24 can be warmed up by driving the fan 24 in such a state and introducing the air around the fuel cell 10 into the battery box 20.

  Returning to FIG. 1, the control device 40 controls the fan 24 based on inputs from the fuel cell temperature sensor 11, the battery current sensor 28, the battery temperature sensor 29, and the like, and warms up the battery 21. Execute control.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure for controlling the fan by the control device. The control shown in this flowchart is performed every predetermined time while the fuel cell is generating power.

In step S1, a charge / discharge amount Q _BATT of the battery is calculated based on the battery output current I _BATT detected by the battery current sensor, and the process _proceeds to step S2.
In step S2, it is determined whether the battery charge / discharge amount Q _BATT is equal to or _smaller than a predetermined determination amount _QTH. If this determination is YES, the process proceeds to step S3, and if NO, the process proceeds to step S5. More specifically, if in step S2, based on the charging and discharging of the battery temperature increase rate of the battery also increases with increases, the calculated battery charge and discharge amount Q _BATT is equal to or less than the reference amount Q _TH If it is determined that the battery warm-up control needs to be executed, the process proceeds to step S3. If the battery charge / discharge amount Q _BATT is larger than the determination amount Q _TH, it is determined that the battery warm-up control need not be executed and step S5 is performed. Move on.

In step S3, the battery temperature T _BATT detected by the battery temperature sensor is equal to or smaller than a predetermined judgment temperature T _TH. If this determination is YES, the process proceeds to step S4, and if NO, the process proceeds to step S5.

In step S4, battery warm-up control is executed, that is, the fan is driven, the battery warm-up control execution flag is updated to “1”, and this process ends. Here, the battery warm-up control execution flag is a flag indicating that the battery warm-up control is being executed, and is updated to “0” in step S5 described later and step S14 in FIG. The battery warm-up control execution flag is set to “0” immediately after turning on the ignition switch.
In step S5, the battery warm-up control is stopped, that is, the fan is stopped, the battery warm-up control execution flag is updated to “0”, and this process is terminated.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure of stop control of battery warm-up control by the control device. This stop control is performed every predetermined time.
In step S11, it is determined whether or not the battery warm-up control flag is “1”. If this determination is YES, the process proceeds to step S12, and if this determination is NO, this process ends.
In step S12, it is determined whether or not the battery temperature is low. Here, the battery temperature low state indicates a state in which the battery temperature T _BATT detected by the battery temperature sensor is equal to or lower than the battery initial temperature, with the battery temperature at the start of battery warm-up control as the battery initial temperature. If this determination is YES, the process proceeds to step S13, and if this determination is NO, this process ends.
In step S13, it is determined whether or not a predetermined determination time _{tTH has} elapsed in a battery temperature low state. If this determination is YES, the process proceeds to step S14, and if this determination is NO, this process ends.
In step S14, the battery warm-up control is stopped, that is, the fan is stopped, the battery warm-up control execution flag is updated to “0”, and the stop control is terminated.

According to the fuel cell vehicle 1 of the present embodiment, the following effects can be achieved.
A battery box 20 is provided on the rear side of the vehicle with respect to the fuel cell 10, and air is introduced into the battery box 20 from an intake port of an intake portion 22 provided on the fuel cell 10 side of the battery box 20. A fan 24 for adjusting the temperature of the battery 21 is provided. Thereby, the fuel cell 10 that has generated heat by generating electricity is used as a heat source, and the air warmed by the heat source is introduced into the battery box 20 by the fan 24, whereby the battery 21 can be warmed up. Thus, according to this embodiment, the battery 21 can be warmed up without providing a new heat source or securing a new space for providing the heat source. Moreover, the energy cost concerning the warming-up of the battery 21 can be reduced by warming up the battery 21 using the heat generated by the power generation.
When the temperature T _{BATT of the} battery 21 detected by the battery temperature sensor 29 is equal to or lower than the determination temperature T _TH while the fuel cell 10 is generating power, the fan 24 is controlled to warm up the battery 21. Execute battery warm-up control. Thus, the battery 21 can be efficiently warmed up by controlling the fan 24 only when the battery 21 needs to be warmed up.

Further, the charge / discharge amount Q _BATT of the battery 21 is calculated, and it is determined whether or not the battery warm-up control is executed based on the battery charge / discharge amount Q _BATT . The amount of heat generated from the battery increases as the amount of charge or discharge increases. For this reason, by calculating the charge / discharge amount Q _BATT of the battery, it is possible to indirectly know the temperature increase rate of the battery. According to the present embodiment, the determination of execution of the battery warm-up control based on the charge / discharge amount Q _BATT of the battery 21 makes it possible to make an earlier and more reliable determination as compared with the case where only the battery temperature T _BATT is determined. can do.

  Further, the fuel cell 10, the battery box 20, and the fan 24 are provided in a single space formed between the floor panel 30 and the under cover 32. Thereby, the air warmed by generating electricity with the fuel cell 10 can be retained in a single space. Therefore, the efficiency of warming up the battery 21 can be further improved.

In addition, after the battery warm-up control is started, when the determination time t _{TH has} elapsed with the battery 21 being lower than the battery initial temperature, the battery warm-up control is stopped. Thus, by executing the battery warm-up control, it is possible to prevent the battery temperature from excessively decreasing.

<Modification>
FIG. 5 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a fuel cell vehicle 1A according to a modification of the embodiment.
The fuel cell vehicle 1A of the modification is different from the fuel cell vehicle 1 of the above embodiment in the configuration of the under cover 32A.
The under cover 32A includes a first under cover 321A that covers the fuel cell 10 from its bottom, and a second under cover 322A that covers the battery box 20 from its bottom. Accordingly, the fuel cell 10 and the battery box 20 are housed in a single space formed between the floor panel 30, the first under cover 321A, and the second under cover 322A, as in the above embodiment.
According to this modification, the maintainability can be improved by configuring the under cover 32A with a plurality of covers.

In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment and Example, The deformation | transformation in the range which can achieve the objective of this invention, improvement, etc. are included in this invention.
In the above embodiment, the exhaust part 23 is provided at a position facing the intake part 22 in the battery box 20, but the position where the exhaust part is provided is not limited thereto.

In the above embodiment, the battery warm-up control is executed on the condition that the battery charge / discharge amount Q _BATT is equal to or less than the determination amount Q _TH and the battery temperature T _BATT is equal to or less than the determination temperature T _TH. Not limited to. For example, the fuel cell temperature T _FC detected by the fuel cell temperature sensor 11 is greater than a predetermined determination temperature T _thFc, as a condition for executing a battery warm-up control may be added to the above two conditions. By adding such conditions, it is possible to more effectively prevent the battery temperature from decreasing by executing the battery warm-up control.

Further, in the above embodiment, when the determination time t _{TH has} elapsed in the battery temperature lowered state after the battery warm-up control is executed, the battery warm-up control is stopped, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, an outside air temperature sensor that detects the outside air temperature may be further provided, and the battery warm-up control may be stopped when the outside air temperature detected by the outside air temperature sensor is equal to or lower than a predetermined determination temperature.

1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a fuel cell vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view which shows schematic structure of the fuel cell vehicle which concerns on the said embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the fan control by the control apparatus which concerns on the said embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the fan stop control by the control apparatus which concerns on the said embodiment. It is a side view which shows schematic structure of the fuel cell vehicle of the modification of the said embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,1A ... Fuel cell vehicle 10 ... Fuel cell 20 ... Battery box 21 ... Battery 22 ... Intake part 23 ... Exhaust part 24 ... Fan (temperature adjustment apparatus)
29 ... Battery temperature sensor (temperature detection means)
30 ... Floor panel 32, 32A ... Under cover 40 ... Control device (temperature adjusting device control means)

Claims (4)

A fuel cell for generating electricity;
A battery for storing electric power generated by the fuel cell;
A fuel cell vehicle comprising a battery box for housing the battery,
The battery box is provided on the vehicle rear side with respect to the fuel cell,
Temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the battery;
A temperature adjusting device that adjusts the temperature of the battery by introducing air into the battery box from an air inlet provided on the fuel cell side of the battery box;
Battery warm-up control for warming up the battery by controlling the temperature adjusting device when the temperature detected by the temperature detecting means is equal to or lower than a predetermined determination temperature while the fuel cell is generating power. And a temperature control device control means for executing the fuel cell vehicle. A battery charge / discharge amount calculating means for calculating the charge / discharge amount of the battery;
2. The fuel cell according to claim 1, wherein the temperature adjustment device control means determines whether or not to execute battery warm-up control based on the charge / discharge amount calculated by the battery charge / discharge amount calculation means. vehicle.   The fuel cell, the battery box, and the temperature adjusting device are provided in a single space formed between a vehicle floor panel and an under cover provided below the floor panel. The fuel cell vehicle according to claim 1 or 2. The temperature adjusting device control means includes:
After the battery warm-up control is started, the battery warm-up control is stopped when a predetermined determination time has passed in a state where the temperature of the battery is lower than the temperature at the start of the battery warm-up control. The fuel cell vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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