Apparatus and method for power demand distribution in fuel cell vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10913375-B2
Application number	US-201815997970-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 5, 2018
Priority date	Nov 27, 2017
Publication date	Feb 9, 2021
Grant date	Feb 9, 2021

Abstract

An apparatus for power demand distribution in a fuel cell vehicle includes: a battery management system calculating an allowable battery power that a battery can supply; a power demand distribution controller configured to derive a vehicle demand power including a drive motor demand power required by the drive motor, and determine a value corresponding to a vehicle demand power minus the allowable battery power being scaled down or the drive motor demand power, as a fuel cell demand output; and a fuel cell controller configured to drive the air compressor feeding the air to the fuel cell to enable a fuel cell to generate the fuel cell demand output calculated by the power demand distribution controller.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for power demand distribution in a fuel cell vehicle having a fuel cell, a battery, and a drive motor operating by power supplied from the fuel cell and the battery, the apparatus comprising:
a battery management system calculating an allowable battery power that the battery can supply;
a power demand distribution controller configured to derive a vehicle demand power including a drive motor demand power required by the drive motor, and determine a value obtained by subtracting the allowable battery power being scaled down from the vehicle demand power or a value corresponding to the drive motor demand power, as a fuel cell demand output; and
a fuel cell controller configured to drive an air compressor feeding air to the fuel cell to enable the fuel cell to generate the fuel cell demand output calculated by the power demand distribution controller,
wherein the power demand distribution controller scales down the allowable battery power by multiplying a scaling factor gradually increasing as time passes by the allowable battery power.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein, when the air compressor is in a stopped state, the power demand distribution controller determines the value obtained by subtracting the allowable battery power being scaled down from the vehicle demand power, as the fuel cell demand output.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein, when the air compressor is not in a stopped state, but in a low speed operating state with a speed lower than a predetermined reference revolution speed, the power demand distribution controller determines the value corresponding to the drive motor demand power, as the fuel cell demand output.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein, when the air compressor is not in the stopped state, but in the low speed operating state with the speed lower than the predetermined reference revolution speed, the power demand distribution controller determines a greater value between a value obtained by subtracting the allowable battery power from both the drive motor demand power and the vehicle demand power and the value corresponding to the drive motor demand power, as the fuel cell demand output.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein, when the air compressor is not in a stopped state, but in a low speed operating state with a speed lower than a predetermined reference revolution speed, the power demand distribution controller determines a greater value between a value obtained by subtracting the allowable battery power from both the drive motor demand power and the vehicle demand power and the value corresponding to the drive motor demand power, as the fuel cell demand output.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising an auxiliary machinery power consumption calculator calculating power consumed by an auxiliary machinery being supplied with power from the fuel cell or the battery, wherein the power demand distribution controller calculates the vehicle demand power by adding the drive motor demand power and the power consumed by the auxiliary machinery.

7. A method of power demand distribution in a fuel cell vehicle having a fuel cell, a battery, and a drive motor operating by power supplied from the fuel cell and the battery, the method comprising:
deriving drive motor demand power required by the drive motor on the basis of a vehicle speed and an opening ratio of a vehicle accelerator;
receiving allowable battery power that the battery can supply;
confirming an operating status of an air compressor feeding air to the fuel cell; and
determining, on the basis of the operating status of the air compressor, a value obtained by subtracting the allowable battery power being scaled down from the vehicle demand power including the drive motor demand power or a value corresponding to the drive motor demand power, as a fuel cell demand output,
wherein, when the air compressor is confirmed being in the stopped state at the confirming the operating status of the air compressor, the allowable battery power is scaled down by multiplying a scaling factor gradually increasing as time passes by the allowable battery power at the determining the fuel cell demand output.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein at the confirming the operating status of the air compressor, it is determined whether the air compressor is in a stopped state, and then when the air compressor is not in the stopped state, it is determined whether the air compressor is in a low speed operating state with a speed lower than a predetermined reference revolution speed.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein, when the air compressor is confirmed being in the stopped state at the confirming the operating status of the air compressor, the value obtained by subtracting the allowable battery power being scaled down from the vehicle demand power including the drive motor demand power is determined as the fuel cell demand output at the determining the fuel cell demand output.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein, when the air compressor is confirmed being in the low speed operating state with the speed lower than the predetermined reference revolution speed at the confirming the operating status of the air compressor, the value corresponding to the drive motor demand power is determined as the fuel cell demand output at the determining the fuel cell demand output.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein, when the air compressor is confirmed being in the low speed operating state with the speed lower than the predetermined reference revolution speed at the confirming the operating status of the air compressor, a greater value between a value obtained by subtracting the allowable battery power from both the drive motor demand power and the vehicle demand power and the value o-corresponding to the drive motor demand power is determined as the fuel cell demand output at the determining the fuel cell demand output.

12. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
driving the fuel cell by feeding hydrogen and air to the fuel cell on the basis of the fuel cell demand output, subsequent to the determining the fuel cell demand output;
deriving an allowable fuel cell power that can be output from the fuel cell, subsequent to the driving the fuel cell; and
deriving an allowable drive motor power that can be provided to the drive motor on the basis of the allowable battery power and the allowable fuel cell power, and determining a final driving torque of the drive motor on the basis of the allowable drive motor power.

Assignees

• Hyundai Motor Co Ltd
• Kia Motors Corp

Inventors

• Yoon Sung Gone
• Lee Seung Heon

Classifications

• H01M10/48

  Accumulators combined with arrangements for measuring, testing or indicating the condition of cells, e.g. the level or density of the electrolyte (constructional details of current conducting connections for detecting conditions inside cells or batteries, e.g. details of voltage sensing terminals, H01M50/569) · CPC title

• B60L58/30 Primary

  for monitoring or controlling fuel cells · CPC title

• B60L50/75

  using propulsion power supplied by both fuel cells and batteries · CPC title

• B60L2240/423

  Torque · CPC title

• B60L2240/12

  Speed · CPC title