JP2023140685A - Hydrogen gas leakage prevention device - Google Patents

Abstract

To reduce hydrogen gas leakage while reducing cutoff of unnecessary hydrogen gas at collision in a fuel-cell vehicle in which a tank is arranged outside a side member in a longitudinal direction of the fuel-cell vehicle.SOLUTION: A hydrogen gas leakage prevention device 1 comprises a pair of side members 3 arranged apart from each other in a longitudinal direction of a fuel cell vehicle 100 while extending in a cross direction of the vehicle 100, and a hydrogen gas storage tank 10 arranged outside the side member 3 in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle 100. In this device, the hydrogen gas circulation from the tank 10 to a pipeline 20 is cut off by a cutoff valve 50 when collision of the vehicle 100 is detected by a collision detection sensor 40 arranged outside the pipeline 20, through which the hydrogen gas in the tank 10 circulates, in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle 100. Thereby, leakage of hydrogen gas can be reduced at the time of collision while reducing cutoff of unnecessary hydrogen gas.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to a hydrogen gas leak prevention device.

If a severe collision occurs in a fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV), it is necessary to shut off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping in order to prevent hydrogen gas from leaking. On the other hand, in the event of a minor collision that allows the fuel cell vehicle to run, if the flow of hydrogen gas from the hydrogen tank to the piping is cut off, the fuel cell vehicle will be unable to run, and the fuel cell vehicle will Affects vehicle users and traffic around the fuel cell vehicle. Therefore, there is a need for a technology that can reduce hydrogen gas leakage while reducing unnecessary hydrogen gas interruption during a collision.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for reducing leakage of hydrogen gas during a collision when the fuel cell vehicle is a passenger car. In the fuel cell vehicle of Patent Document 1, a tank is disposed between a pair of side members that extend in the front-rear direction of the fuel cell vehicle and are spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle. The fuel cell vehicle disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a cutoff valve that cuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping when a predetermined acceleration is detected by the existing G sensor.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-82793

By the way, in the above-mentioned technology, when the fuel cell vehicle is a passenger car, the tank and piping are arranged between side members that are less affected by a collision. On the other hand, when the fuel cell vehicle is a truck or the like, the tank is placed outside the side members of the ladder frame in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle, so when the fuel cell vehicle is in a side collision with a passenger car, etc. The location of the collision is close to the tank, and the impact of the collision is large. Therefore, even in fuel cell vehicles in which the tank is placed outside the side members in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle, there is a need for technology that can reduce hydrogen gas leakage while reducing unnecessary hydrogen gas cutoff in the event of a collision. There is.

Accordingly, the present invention aims to reduce hydrogen gas leakage while reducing unnecessary cutoff of hydrogen gas in the event of a collision in a fuel cell vehicle in which a tank for storing hydrogen gas is placed outside the side members in the left and right direction of the fuel cell vehicle. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a hydrogen gas leak prevention device that can reduce hydrogen gas leakage.

The present invention includes a pair of side members that extend in the front-rear direction of the fuel cell vehicle and are spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle, and a pair of side members that are arranged outside the side members in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle. , a tank that stores hydrogen gas, a collision detection sensor that is placed outside the fuel cell vehicle in the left-right direction from the piping through which the hydrogen gas in the tank flows, and that detects a collision of the fuel cell vehicle; This hydrogen gas leak prevention device includes a shutoff valve that shuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping when a car collision is detected.

According to this configuration, the pair of side members extend in the front-rear direction of the fuel cell vehicle and are spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle; In a hydrogen gas leak prevention device equipped with a hydrogen gas leakage prevention tank that stores hydrogen gas, a collision detection sensor that is placed outside the fuel cell vehicle in the left-right direction from the piping through which the hydrogen gas in the tank flows detects the occurrence of a fuel cell vehicle. When a collision is detected, a shutoff valve shuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping, so the tank that stores hydrogen gas is placed outside the side members in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle. In a fuel cell vehicle, leakage of hydrogen gas can be reduced while reducing unnecessary cutoff of hydrogen gas at the time of a collision.

In this case, it is preferable to further include a plastically deformable member that is disposed outside the collision detection sensor in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle and that plastically deforms in response to external force.

According to this configuration, the plastically deformable member disposed outside the collision detection sensor in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle plastically deforms in response to external force. Therefore, in the event of a mild collision where the plastic deformation of the plastically deformable member is small, the collision detection sensor placed inside the fuel cell vehicle in the left-right direction from the plastically deformable member will not detect the collision of the fuel cell vehicle, and the shutoff valve will close. Since the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping is not interrupted, unnecessary interruptions of hydrogen gas can be reduced in the event of a minor collision. On the other hand, in the event of a severe collision in which the plastically deformed member is largely plastically deformed, a collision detection sensor placed inside the fuel cell vehicle in the left-right direction than the plastically deformed member detects the collision of the fuel cell vehicle via the plastically deformed member. A collision is detected and the shutoff valve shuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping, reducing hydrogen gas leakage in the event of a severe collision.

In this case, it is preferable that the tank support member for supporting the tank is further provided, and the plastically deformable member is plastically deformed by a smaller external force than the tank support member.

According to this configuration, the plastically deformable member is plastically deformed by a smaller external force than the tank support member that supports the tank, so in the event of a severe collision, the tank support member that supports the tank is deformed and the piping is damaged. , the plastically deformed member is plastically deformed, the collision detection sensor detects a collision of the fuel cell vehicle via the plastically deformed member, and the shutoff valve shuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping. leakage can be reduced more effectively.

Further, it is preferable that the shutoff valve is disposed at a connection between the hydrogen gas outlet of the tank and the piping.

According to this configuration, the shutoff valve is placed at the connection between the hydrogen gas outlet of the tank and the piping, so it is possible to reduce the effects of damage to the piping in the event of a collision, and further reduce the leakage of hydrogen gas. .

According to the hydrogen gas leak prevention device of the present invention, in a fuel cell vehicle in which a tank for storing hydrogen gas is arranged outside the side member in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle, unnecessary hydrogen gas can be cut off in the event of a collision. It is possible to reduce leakage of hydrogen gas while reducing the amount of hydrogen gas.

(A) is a plan view showing the arrangement of a fuel cell vehicle tank equipped with a hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to an embodiment, and (B) is a side view of (A). FIG. 2 is a plan view showing details of FIG. 1(A). FIG. 1 is a front view showing a hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to an embodiment. (A) is a front view when a minor collision occurs in a fuel cell vehicle equipped with the hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to the embodiment, and (B) is a value detected by the collision detection sensor in the state of (A). (C) is a front view when a severe collision occurs in a fuel cell vehicle equipped with the hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to the embodiment, and (D) is a graph showing changes in the state of (C). 3 is a graph showing changes in values detected by the collision detection sensor of FIG.

Hereinafter, a hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail using the drawings. As shown in FIGS. 1(A), 1(B), and 2, the hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 of the present embodiment is applied to fuel cell vehicles (FCEVs), which are freight vehicles such as trucks and pickup trucks, and bus vehicles. :Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle)100. The fuel cell vehicle 100 generates power by chemically reacting hydrogen and oxygen, and uses the generated power to drive an electric motor.

The skeleton of the fuel cell vehicle 100 is composed of a ladder frame 2. The ladder frame 2 is arranged between a pair of side members 3 extending in the front-rear direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100 and spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100; It includes a plurality of cross members 4 that extend in the left-right direction of 100 and connect a pair of side members 3.

The fuel cell vehicle 100 is disposed outside the side member 3 in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100, and includes a plurality of tanks 10 for storing hydrogen gas for power generation. The tank 10 is arranged under the floor of the loading platform along the extending direction of the side member 3, with its longitudinal direction parallel to the front-rear direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100. In the example of FIG. 1(B), the fuel cell vehicle 100 includes a tank 10' between the cabin and the cargo platform. The tank 10' is arranged with its longitudinal direction parallel to the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100.

As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel cell vehicle 100 includes a tank support member 30 that supports the tank 10. The tank support member 30 has a neck mount part 31 that supports the longitudinal end of the tank 10. As shown in FIG. 3, the tank 10 has a hydrogen gas outlet 11 at a longitudinal end thereof. A pipe 20 through which hydrogen gas stored in the tank 10 flows is connected to the tank 10 .

As shown in FIG. 3, the hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 includes, in addition to the side member 3 and tank 10 described above, a collision detection sensor 40 that detects a collision of the fuel cell vehicle 100. The collision detection sensor 40 is arranged outside the fuel cell vehicle 100 in the left-right direction with respect to the pipe 20 through which the hydrogen gas of the tank 10 flows. In the example of FIG. 3, the collision detection sensor 40 is installed on the lower surface of the outer end of the fuel cell vehicle 100 in the left-right direction of the tank support member 30 that supports the tank 10 from below.

For example, the collision detection sensor 40 detects a collision of the fuel cell vehicle 100 when the value detected by the collision detection sensor 40 exceeds a threshold value. The value detected by the collision detection sensor 40 includes the acceleration of the collision detection sensor 40 and the amount of change in speed in a certain period of time. Further, the value detected by the collision detection sensor 40 includes the impact and external force applied to the collision detection sensor 40. When the collision detection sensor 40 detects an external force applied to the collision detection sensor 40, the collision detection sensor 40 simply detects the presence or absence (on and off) of the external force applied to the collision detection sensor 40, and the collision detection sensor 40 A collision of the fuel cell vehicle 100 may be detected when it is detected that an external force is applied to the fuel cell vehicle 100 (when it is turned on).

The hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 includes a cutoff valve 50 that cuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank 10 to the pipe 20 when the collision detection sensor 40 detects a collision of the fuel cell vehicle 100. The cutoff valve 50 is arranged at a connection between the hydrogen gas outlet 11 of the tank 10 and the pipe 20. The cutoff valve 50 is, for example, a solenoid valve.

The threshold value of the collision detection sensor 40 at which the cutoff valve 50 shuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank 10 to the pipe 20 is appropriately set according to the degree of damage caused by the collision at which the flow of hydrogen gas should be cut off. However, the threshold value of the collision detection sensor 40 may not be changeable due to specifications. Therefore, in this embodiment, the degree of damage caused by a collision that should interrupt the flow of hydrogen gas is also adjusted by adjusting the input to the collision detection sensor 40 by the structure around the collision detection sensor 40.

The hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 is disposed outside the collision detection sensor 40 in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100, and includes a plastically deformable member 60 that plastically deforms in response to external force. The hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 further includes the tank support member 30 described above that supports the tank 10 , and the plastically deformable member 60 is plastically deformed by a smaller external force than the tank support member 30 .

The extent to which the plastically deformable member 60 is plastically deformed can be determined by, for example, a test using a moving deformable barrier (MDB) imitating the colliding object 200 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. It is assumed that the strength of the plastically deformable member 60 is adjusted based on the speed at the moment of collision of the deformable barrier.

Specifically, for example, the plastically deformable member 60 has such strength that the plastically deformable member 60 does not locally break during a mild collision in which the pipe 20 is not damaged during a collision and the fuel cell vehicle 100 can travel. The intensity has been adjusted. On the other hand, for example, in the event of a severe collision in which the piping 20 is damaged during a collision and hydrogen gas leaks, the plastic deformation member 60 will be plastically deformed to such a strength that it will be plastically deformed at a targeted position that pushes the collision detection sensor 40. The strength of member 60 is adjusted.

As described above, when a severe collision of a fuel cell vehicle occurs, it is necessary to cut off the flow of hydrogen gas. On the other hand, in the event of a minor collision that allows the fuel cell vehicle to run, if the flow of hydrogen gas is cut off, the fuel cell vehicle will become unable to run, and the user of the fuel cell vehicle and the fuel cell Affects traffic around the car. Therefore, there is a need for a technology that does not interrupt the flow of hydrogen gas in the event of a minor collision, that is, a technology that can distinguish between on and off sensing.

The conventional technology for determining whether sensing is on or off during a minor collision is as follows. That is, in a large bus vehicle, the tank and acceleration sensor are mounted in the ceiling so that there is no impact even if the bus is collided with a passenger car or the like. In passenger cars, the tank is located between the side members at the center of the vehicle. The acceleration sensor is shared with the sensing of the Supplemental Restraint System (SRS), and a system is used in which the signal of the acceleration sensor is subjected to logic calculations by an ECU (Electronic Control Unit). The tank and piping are placed in a location where they will not be affected by a collision, and a sensing system is used that allows for advanced on/off switching.

On the other hand, when a freight vehicle such as a truck is used as the fuel cell vehicle 100, the tank 10 is arranged outside the side member 3 in the ladder frame 2 in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100, as described above. When the fuel cell vehicle 100 is side-impacted by a passenger car or the like, the location of the collision is close to the location of the tank 10, and the impact of the collision is large. Therefore, it is even more important to determine whether sensing is on or off depending on the speed of the colliding passenger car or the like.

Further, when the fuel cell vehicle 100 is a truck or the like, the position where the tank 10 is mounted is limited depending on the degree of freedom of the loading platform, the comfort of the cabin, etc. Furthermore, if the fuel cell vehicle 100 is a truck or the like, the required amount of hydrogen gas to be carried increases due to the mileage problem, and the number of tanks 10 naturally increases. In the advanced sensing system used in conventional passenger cars as described above, it is necessary to install an acceleration sensor for each tank 10, which results in an excessive number of acceleration sensors and a large amount of new development effort. and costs are required.

On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, the pair of side members 3 extend in the front-rear direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100 and are spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100; In the hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 which is disposed outside the vehicle 100 in the left-right direction and includes a tank 10 for storing hydrogen gas, the hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 is located outside the fuel cell vehicle 100 in the left-right direction than the pipe 20 through which the hydrogen gas of the tank 10 flows. When a collision of the fuel cell vehicle 100 is detected by the collision detection sensor 40 disposed on the outside, the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank 10 to the pipe 20 is shut off by the shutoff valve 50.

That is, in this embodiment, in order to cut off the flow of hydrogen gas before an external force is input to the pipe 20 where hydrogen gas is most likely to leak, the collision detection sensor is placed outside the pipe 20 in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100. 40 are placed. Therefore, in the fuel cell vehicle 100 in which the tank 10 for storing hydrogen gas is arranged outside the side member 3 in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100, it is possible to reduce the unnecessary cutoff of hydrogen gas in the event of a collision, and to store the hydrogen gas. Leakage can be reduced.

Here, since the threshold value of the collision detection sensor 40 may not be changeable due to specifications, in this embodiment, the input to the collision detection sensor 40 is adjusted by the structure around the collision detection sensor 40. However, the degree of damage caused by a collision that would cut off the flow of hydrogen gas is adjusted.

A collision in which the colliding object 200 collides at a relatively low speed, the piping 20 is not damaged at the time of collision, and the fuel cell vehicle 100 can travel is defined as a mild collision. In a minor collision, cutting off the flow of hydrogen gas will affect the user of the fuel cell vehicle 100 and the traffic around the fuel cell vehicle 100 . Therefore, in the case of a minor collision, it is important that the collision detection sensor 40 does not detect a value exceeding the threshold value and does not detect a collision of the fuel cell vehicle 100.

On the other hand, for example, a collision in which the piping 20 is damaged and hydrogen gas leaks during the collision is defined as a severe collision. In severe collisions, it is necessary to shut off the flow of hydrogen gas from tank 10 to piping 20 to prevent hydrogen gas leakage. Therefore, in a severe collision, it is important that the collision detection sensor 40 detects a value exceeding the threshold value and detects the collision of the fuel cell vehicle 100.

According to this embodiment, the plastically deformable member 60 disposed outside the collision detection sensor 40 in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle 100 plastically deforms in response to external force. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 4(A) and 4(B), in a mild collision caused by the collision object 200, when the plastic deformation of the plastic deformation member 60 is small, the fuel The collision detection sensor 40 disposed inside the battery vehicle 100 in the left-right direction does not detect a value exceeding the threshold value, and the cutoff valve 50 does not shut off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank 10 to the pipe 20, so in the event of a minor collision. Unnecessary cutoff of hydrogen gas can be reduced.

That is, as described above, the plastic deformation member 60 has such strength that the plastic deformation member 60 does not locally break during a mild collision in which the pipe 20 is not damaged during a collision and the fuel cell vehicle 100 can travel. Since the strength of the collision detection sensor 40 is adjusted, the collision detection sensor 40 does not detect a value exceeding the threshold value, the flow of hydrogen gas is not interrupted, and the fuel cell vehicle 100 can run, so the fuel cell vehicle 100 can safely be placed on the road shoulder, etc. This makes it possible to minimize the impact on the user of the fuel cell vehicle 100 and the traffic around the fuel cell vehicle 100.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4(C) and FIG. 4(D), in the case of a severe collision in which the plastically deformable member 60 is largely plastically deformed, the plastically deformable member 60 is placed inside the fuel cell vehicle 100 in the left-right direction. The collision detection sensor 40 detects a value exceeding the threshold value via the plastically deformed member 60 that has been largely plastically deformed, and the cutoff valve 50 shuts off the flow of hydrogen gas from the tank 10 to the pipe 20. Leakage of hydrogen gas can be reduced.

In other words, as described above, in the event of a severe collision in which the piping 20 is damaged and hydrogen gas leaks, the strength is such that the plastically deformable member 60 is plastically deformed at a targeted position that pushes the collision detection sensor 40. Since the strength of the plastically deformable member 60 is adjusted, the collision detection sensor 40 is directly pushed by the plastically deformable member 60 as the plastically deformable member 60 plastically deforms at the targeted position.

Therefore, the value detected by the collision detection sensor 40 increases, and when the value detected by the collision detection sensor 40 exceeds the threshold value, a collision is detected and the cutoff valve 50 closes the tank 10 before the piping 20 is damaged. The flow of hydrogen gas to the pipe 20 is started to be cut off. Therefore, even if the subsequent collision progresses and the piping 20 is damaged, the leakage of hydrogen gas will be kept to a minimum, and the impact on the user of the fuel cell vehicle 100 and the traffic around the fuel cell vehicle 100 will be minimized. It is possible to keep it to a minimum.

Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, the plastically deformable member 60 is plastically deformed by an external force that is smaller than that of the tank support member 30 that supports the tank 10, so the tank support member 30 that supports the tank 10 is deformed in the event of a severe collision. Before the piping 20 is damaged, the plastically deformed member 60 is plastically deformed, the collision detection sensor 40 detects a value exceeding the threshold value via the plastically deformed plastically deformed member 60, and the shutoff valve 50 deforms the piping from the tank 10. Since the flow of hydrogen gas to 20 is blocked, leakage of hydrogen gas can be more effectively reduced.

Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, the cutoff valve 50 is disposed at the connection between the hydrogen gas outlet 11 of the tank 10 and the pipe 20, so that the influence of damage to the pipe 20 in the event of a collision can be reduced. Leakage of hydrogen gas can be further reduced. The hydrogen gas leak prevention device 1 of this embodiment described above can be realized with a simple configuration using a relatively small number of collision detection sensors 40 even if there are many tanks 10, and can be realized with relatively little labor and cost.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and can be implemented in various forms. For example, the arrangement and number of tanks 10, the arrangement and shape of piping 20, and the shape and material of plastically deformable member 60 are changed as appropriate.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Hydrogen gas leak prevention device, 2... Ladder frame, 3... Side member, 4... Cross member, 10, 10'... Tank, 11... Outlet, 20... Piping, 30... Tank support member, 31... Neck mount part , 40... Collision detection sensor, 50... Shutoff valve, 60... Plastic deformation member, 100... Fuel cell vehicle, 200... Collision object.

Claims (4)

a pair of side members extending in the front-rear direction of the fuel cell vehicle and spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle;
a tank that stores hydrogen gas and is located outside the side member in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle;
a collision detection sensor that is arranged outside the fuel cell vehicle in the left-right direction of the pipe through which the hydrogen gas of the tank flows, and that detects a collision of the fuel cell vehicle;
a shutoff valve that shuts off the flow of the hydrogen gas from the tank to the piping when the collision detection sensor detects a collision of the fuel cell vehicle;
Hydrogen gas leak prevention device equipped with The hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to claim 1, further comprising a plastically deformable member that is disposed outside the collision detection sensor in the left-right direction of the fuel cell vehicle and that plastically deforms in response to external force. further comprising a tank support member that supports the tank,
The hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to claim 2, wherein the plastically deformable member is plastically deformed by a smaller external force than the tank support member. The hydrogen gas leak prevention device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the cutoff valve is disposed at a connection between the hydrogen gas outlet of the tank and the piping.

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