JP6417982B2 - Industrial vehicle - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an industrial vehicle equipped with a fuel cell.

  Fuel cells have attracted attention as a power source for vehicles, and some have been put into practical use. In a fuel cell, a fuel gas containing hydrogen and an oxidant gas containing oxygen are supplied to a pair of electrodes to generate electric energy by an electrochemical reaction. In fuel cells, it is known that hydrogen, which is a reaction gas, is slightly discharged due to permeation and leakage from each component. In such a case, measures are taken to discharge hydrogen from the exhaust port to the outside of the case (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-140163 A

  By the way, when a fuel cell is mounted on, for example, an industrial vehicle, it is necessary to discharge the hydrogen in the case containing the fuel cell system out of the case and prevent the discharged hydrogen from staying around the vehicle. In particular, in an industrial vehicle equipped with a fuel cell system below the driver's seat, it is required that the hydrogen exhaust port is not blocked by an operator or the like.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to such problems existing in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to suitably discharge the hydrogen in the case housing the fuel cell system from the exhaust port to the outside of the vehicle. It is to provide an industrial vehicle that can.

  An industrial vehicle that solves the above problems includes a fuel cell, a heat medium passage through which a heat medium that circulates in the fuel cell, a radiator that is provided in the heat medium passage and performs heat exchange, and an air flow with respect to the radiator. In an industrial vehicle in which a case containing a fuel cell system having a heat exchanger fan is mounted below a driver's seat, the case exhausts a gas containing hydrogen in the case to the outside of the vehicle And a heat radiating air outlet for discharging the heat radiating air of the radiator after heat exchange, and the exhaust port is disposed above the heat radiating air port, and the exhaust port and the heat radiating air port Is arranged.

  According to the above, in an industrial vehicle in which the fuel cell system is mounted below the driver's seat, the gas containing hydrogen in the case can be discharged from the side of the vehicle to the outside of the vehicle together with the heat radiation of the radiator. it can. As a result, the exhaust port is not blocked by an operator in the driver's seat and the like, so that the discharge of hydrogen is not hindered, and the hydrogen is discharged together with the heat radiation from the radiator. Accordingly, hydrogen is diffused to the outside of the vehicle more quickly and can be suitably discharged to the outside of the vehicle.

In the industrial vehicle, the exhaust port may be disposed at least above the radiator.
According to the above, the radiator can more efficiently discharge the gas containing hydrogen staying in the upper part of the fuel cell system to the outside of the vehicle with the radiating air.

  In the industrial vehicle, the exhaust port is connected to an exhaust pipe that guides the gas in the case to the exhaust port, and the exhaust pipe allows permeation of the liquid while suppressing gas penetration. The member is good to be arranged.

According to the above, even if the exhaust port is provided on the side of the vehicle, water and dust can be prevented from entering the fuel cell system by the waterproof function and the dust-proof function of the transmission member.
In the industrial vehicle, the exhaust pipe may be provided with a protective member capable of suppressing intrusion of a solid while allowing gas and liquid to pass between the exhaust port and the transmission member.

  According to the above, fixed foreign matters such as mud that enter the exhaust port from the outside of the vehicle are prevented from entering by the protection member, so that the transmission member can be protected.

  According to the present invention, hydrogen in the case housing the fuel cell system can be suitably discharged from the exhaust port to the outside of the vehicle.

The side view of a forklift. The schematic block diagram of a fuel cell system. The schematic diagram explaining the flow of the gas in the case which accommodated the fuel cell system.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of an industrial vehicle will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 1, a forklift 10 as an industrial vehicle is provided with a mast 12 at a front portion of a machine base frame 11 constituting a vehicle body. The mast 12 is equipped with a fork 13 that can be lifted and lowered via a lift bracket 14, and the fork 13 is lifted and lowered together with the lift bracket 14 by an expansion and contraction operation of the lift cylinder 15. Four support columns 16 are erected on the machine base frame 11, and the front support column 16 is formed integrally with the head guard 17. A cab 18 is constituted by a space surrounded by the columns 16 and the head guard 17. A driver's seat (seat) 19 is disposed in the cab 18.

Drive wheels 20 (front wheels) are provided at the front lower part of the vehicle body, and the power of a driving motor (not shown) mounted on the vehicle body is transmitted to the drive wheels 20.
As shown in FIG. 1, a storage chamber 23 of the fuel cell system 21 is disposed below the cab 18 of the vehicle body. The fuel cell system 21 is housed in the housing chamber 23 in a state of being housed in a rectangular box-shaped case 22 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel cell system 21 includes a fuel cell 24, a hydrogen supply unit 25 that supplies hydrogen to the fuel cell 24, and an air supply unit 26 that supplies air to the fuel cell 24. The fuel cell 24 in the present embodiment is a polymer electrolyte fuel cell, and reacts with hydrogen supplied from the hydrogen supply unit 25 and oxygen in the air supplied from the air supply unit 26 to generate direct current electric power. Generate energy. The electric power generated by the fuel cell 24 is supplied to a load F such as a traveling motor connected to the fuel cell system 21.

  In addition, an electric double layer type capacitor 27 as a power storage device is electrically connected to the fuel cell 24 via a DC / DC converter 28 so as to be in parallel with the fuel cell 24. The capacitor 27 is charged by receiving power from the fuel cell 24 via the DC / DC converter 28. The DC / DC converter 28 converts electric power of a predetermined voltage generated by the fuel cell 24 into a predetermined voltage. A voltmeter 29 that detects the voltage of the capacitor 27 is connected between the capacitor 27 and the DC / DC converter 28 so as to be in parallel with the capacitor 27.

  The hydrogen supply unit 25, the air supply unit 26, the DC / DC converter 28, and the voltmeter 29 are electrically connected to a controller 30 that controls the fuel cell system 21. The controller 30 controls the start and stop of power generation and the amount of power generated. The controller 30 controls the DC / DC converter 28 so as to convert the voltage of the electric power generated by the fuel cell 24 into a predetermined voltage suitable for charging the capacitor 27.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel cell system 21 includes a cooling mechanism 31 that cools the fuel cell 24 by circulating a heat medium for cooling to the fuel cell 24. As shown in FIG. 3, the cooling mechanism 31 generates an air flow with respect to the heat medium passage 34 through which the heat medium flows, the radiator 32 that is provided in the heat medium passage 34 and performs heat exchange, and the radiator 32. And a heat exchanger fan 33 for cooling the heat medium in the radiator 32. The case 22 of the fuel cell system 21 is provided with a supply port 35 for supplying air to the radiator 32. The supply port 35 is disposed in front of the heat exchanger fan 33. The supply port 35 is formed in the case 22.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel cell system 21 includes a discharge mechanism 36 that discharges the gas containing hydrogen in the case 22 to the outside of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 3, the discharge mechanism 36 includes an exhaust port 37 for discharging a gas containing hydrogen and a heat radiating air port 38 for discharging heat radiating air. The exhaust port 37 and the radiating air port 38 are provided in the case 22 of the fuel cell system 21. In this embodiment, a plurality of exhaust ports 37 and heat radiating air ports 38 are provided on the same case wall constituting the case 22 and open side by side in the vertical and horizontal directions on the case wall. Further, in this embodiment, the exhaust port 37 and the heat radiating air port 38 are opened so as to be positioned on the side of the forklift 10 when the case 22 is accommodated in the accommodating chamber 23 of the machine frame 11.

  The exhaust port 37 is disposed above the radiator 32 and is disposed above the heat radiating air port 38. The exhaust port 37 is opened at the tip of an exhaust pipe 39 installed in the case 22. The exhaust pipe 39 has a hydrogen permeable membrane 40 as a permeable member capable of suppressing the permeation of liquid while permeating gas. The exhaust pipe 39 includes a protective member 41 between the exhaust port 37 and the hydrogen permeable membrane 40 that can suppress the intrusion of solids while transmitting gas and liquid.

  The heat radiating air vent 38 is disposed in front of the radiator 32. Further, the heat radiating air vent 38 is formed in the case 22. The exhaust port 37 and the heat radiating air port 38 are opened by a case wall facing the case wall with the supply port 35 opened and the radiator 32 interposed therebetween.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the machine base frame 11 is provided with a discharge port 43 for discharging the radiated air of the radiator 32 after heat exchange to the outside of the vehicle. The discharge port 43 is formed in the machine base frame 11 so as to face the exhaust port 37 and the heat radiating air port 38 provided in the case 22 of the fuel cell system 21. That is, the discharge port 43 is provided in the machine base frame 11 located on the side of the forklift 10.

Hereinafter, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.
As shown in FIG. 3, when the heat exchanger fan 33 is driven, outside air outside the case 22 of the fuel cell system 21 is introduced into the case 22 through the supply flow path Y1. The outside air introduced into the case 22 is guided to the radiator 32 by the flow path Y2 and exchanges heat with the heat medium in the radiator 32 to become radiating air. The radiating air is discharged from the radiating air port 38 of the case 22 to the outside of the case 22 through the flow path Y2, and is discharged from the discharge port 43 of the machine base frame 11 to the outside of the vehicle.

  Hydrogen in the case 22 of the fuel cell system 21 is lighter than the outside air (air) introduced into the case 22 through the supply port 35. For this reason, the hydrogen in the case 22 is guided to the exhaust pipe 39 by the exhaust flow path Y <b> 3 while staying in the upper part of the case 22. Then, the hydrogen guided to the exhaust pipe 39 passes through the hydrogen permeable membrane 40 and the protective member 41 disposed in the exhaust pipe 39 and is discharged from the exhaust port 37 to the outside of the case 22, and the machine frame 11 is discharged from the outlet 43 to the outside of the vehicle. At this time, the hydrogen discharged to the outside of the vehicle forms a mixed flow path Y4 with a part of the heat radiated air discharged through the heat radiating air port 38 of the case 22. Thereby, the hydrogen discharged from the discharge port 43 is diffused by the radiating air without staying around the discharge port 43.

According to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) In the forklift 10 in which the fuel cell system 21 is mounted below the driver's seat 19, the gas containing hydrogen in the case 22 can be discharged from the side of the vehicle to the outside of the vehicle together with the heat radiation of the radiator. it can. As a result, the exhaust port 37 is not blocked by an operator at the driver's seat 19 or the like, so that the discharge of hydrogen is not hindered, and the hydrogen is discharged together with the heat radiation from the radiator 32. Accordingly, hydrogen is diffused to the outside of the vehicle more quickly and can be suitably discharged to the outside of the vehicle.

  (2) Further, by using the heat radiation, the hydrogen concentration can be diluted when the hydrogen in the case 22 is discharged. Thereby, the raise of the hydrogen concentration in the forklift 10 periphery can be suppressed.

  (3) The exhaust port 37 and the heat radiating air port 38 open to the same case wall constituting the case 22, and the exhaust port 37 is disposed above the heat radiating air port 38. As a result, the fuel cell system 21 can discharge the hydrogen discharged from the exhaust port 37 from the discharge port 43 together with the heat radiation without causing the hydrogen to stay in the case 22.

  (4) Since the exhaust port 37 is disposed above the installation position of the radiator 32, the heat radiation after the heat exchange with the heat medium in the radiator 32 is successfully performed on the hydrogen remaining in the upper portion of the case 22. It can be distributed. As a result, the hydrogen in the case 22 can be discharged more efficiently.

  (5) By providing the hydrogen permeable membrane 40 that allows hydrogen to pass through the exhaust pipe 39 but does not allow liquid to permeate, even if the exhaust port 37 is provided on the side of the vehicle, the waterproof and dustproof functions of the hydrogen permeable membrane 40 Intrusion of water and dust into the fuel cell system 21 can be prevented.

  (6) By providing the exhaust pipe 39 with the protective member 41 for the hydrogen permeable membrane 40, solid foreign matters such as mud that enter the exhaust port 37 from the outside of the vehicle are prevented from entering by the protective member 41. Therefore, the hydrogen permeable membrane 40 can be protected. In addition, as a foreign material which penetrate | invades from the exhaust port 37, a working tool, a worker's wearing tool etc. can be considered, for example, and the hydrogen permeable film 40 can be protected by the protective member 41 against such a foreign material.

In addition, you may change the said embodiment as follows.
The exhaust pipe 39 may be composed of only the hydrogen permeable membrane 40 and the exhaust port 37.
The exhaust pipe 39 may be configured with only the exhaust port 37.

The exhaust port 37 may be arranged at the same height as or below the installation position of the radiator 32. In this case, a part of the heat radiating air port 38 also serves as the exhaust port 37.
As long as it opens to the advancing direction of the flow path Y2 and the mixing flow path Y4, the discharge frame 43 which the machine base frame 11 has may be one.

O If the flow path Y2 and the mixing flow path Y4 are formed, the number of the heat radiating air vents 38 may be one.
The number of the exhaust ports 37 may be either single or plural. For example, the exhaust port 37 may be a single port formed in a long hole shape.

  The fuel cell system 21 may not include the exhaust pipe 39. For example, the exhaust port 37 may be formed in the case 22. In this case, the protective member 41 and the hydrogen permeable membrane 40 may be disposed so as to seal the exhaust port 37, for example.

  The case wall in which the exhaust port 37 and the heat radiating air port 38 are opened in the case 22 may be directly exposed to the outside of the vehicle. That is, in this case, the machine base frame 11 is not disposed in a portion facing the case wall.

  The industrial vehicle of the embodiment is the forklift 10, but may be another industrial vehicle. For example, the industrial vehicle may be towing.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Forklift, 11 ... Machine stand frame, 19 ... Driver's seat, 21 ... Fuel cell system, 22 ... Case, 24 ... Fuel cell, 32 ... Radiator, 33 ... Heat exchanger fan, 34 ... Heat medium passage, 37 ... Exhaust Mouth, 38 ... radiating air vent, 39 ... exhaust pipe, 40 ... hydrogen permeable membrane, 41 ... protective member.

Claims (4)

A fuel cell, a heat medium passage through which a heat medium circulating in the fuel cell flows, a radiator provided in the heat medium passage for exchanging heat, and a heat exchanger fan for generating an air flow with respect to the radiator, In an industrial vehicle in which a case containing a fuel cell system having
The case is
An exhaust port for discharging a gas containing hydrogen accumulated in the case due to permeation or leakage from the fuel cell component to the outside of the vehicle, and a heat dissipation air port for discharging the heat radiation of the radiator after heat exchange,
The exhaust port is disposed above the heat radiating air port,
The industrial vehicle, wherein the exhaust port and the heat radiating air port are arranged on a side of the vehicle. The exhaust port is disposed at least above the radiator ,
The industrial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the exhaust port and the heat radiating air port are opened side by side in the same case wall constituting the case .
An exhaust pipe that guides the gas in the case to the exhaust port is connected to the exhaust port,
The industrial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein a permeable member capable of suppressing intrusion of liquid while allowing gas to pass through is disposed in the exhaust pipe.   The industrial vehicle according to claim 3, wherein a protective member capable of suppressing intrusion of a solid while transmitting gas and liquid is disposed between the exhaust port and the transmission member in the exhaust pipe.