Constant voltage control method and system of fuel cell vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017331125-A1
Application number	US-201615297899-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 19, 2016
Priority date	May 12, 2016
Publication date	Nov 16, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

A constant voltage control method for a fuel cell vehicle includes: determining whether vehicle state information satisfies a cold start condition when the fuel cell vehicle is started; starting constant voltage control on a fuel cell when the vehicle state information satisfies the cold start condition; comparing an RPM of an air blower for supplying air to the fuel cell with a predetermined stop control condition; and terminating the constant voltage control on the fuel cell when the RPM of the air blower satisfies the predetermined control-stopping condition.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A constant voltage control method for a fuel cell vehicle, the method comprising:
determining, by a control unit, whether vehicle state information satisfies a cold start condition when the fuel cell vehicle is started; starting, by the control unit, constant voltage control on a fuel cell when the vehicle state information satisfies the cold start condition; comparing, by the control unit, an RPM of an air blower for supplying air to the fuel cell with a predetermined control-stopping condition; and terminating, by the control unit, the constant voltage control on the fuel cell when the RPM of the air blower satisfies the predetermined control-stopping condition.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the cold start condition occurs when an internal fuel cell stack temperature included in the vehicle state information is a predetermined reference temperature or less.

3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising: after starting the constant voltage control,
estimating, by the control unit, a minimum necessary heating value on the basis of the vehicle state information; and continuing the constant voltage control, by the control unit, until a heating value of the fuel cell, accumulated from a time the vehicle is started, exceeds the minimum necessary heating value.

4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the minimum necessary heating value is estimated from a temperature, a current and a voltage of the fuel cell when the vehicle is started.

5 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising: before comparing the RPM of the air blower with the predetermined control-stopping condition,
comparing, by the control unit, the RPM of the air blower with a predetermined control-maintaining condition; and maintaining, by the control unit, the constant voltage control on the fuel cell when the RPM of the air blower satisfies the predetermined control-maintaining condition.

6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the control-stopping condition is that a rate of change of the RPM of the air blower is a predetermined reference rate of change or more, and the control-maintaining condition is that the rate of change of the RPM of the air blower is less than the reference rate of change.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the control-stopping condition is that a sensed RPM of the air blower is a predetermined reference RPM or less.

8 . A constant voltage control system for a fuel cell vehicle, comprising:
a fuel cell; an air blower supplying air to the fuel cell; and a control unit determining whether vehicle state information satisfies a cold start condition when the fuel cell vehicle is started, starting constant voltage control on the fuel cell when the vehicle state information satisfies the cold start condition, and terminating the constant voltage control on the fuel cell when an RPM of the air blower satisfies a predetermined control-stopping condition as a result of comparing an RPM of the air blower with the predetermined control-stopping condition.

9 . The system of claim 8 , wherein the control unit compares the RPM of the air blower with a predetermined control-maintaining condition before comparing the RPM of the air blower with a predetermined control-stopping condition, and maintains constant voltage control on the fuel cell when the RPM of the air blower satisfies the predetermined control-maintaining condition.

10 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the control-stopping condition is that a rate of change of the RPM of the air blower is a predetermined reference rate of change or more, and the control-maintaining condition is that the rate of change of the RPM of the air blower is less than the reference rate of change.

11 . A non-transitory computer readable medium containing program instructions executed by a processor, the computer readable medium comprising:
program instructions that determine whether vehicle state information satisfies a cold start condition when a fuel cell vehicle is started; program instructions that start constant voltage control on a fuel cell when the vehicle state information satisfies the cold start condition; program instructions that compare an RPM of an air blower for supplying air to the fuel cell with a predetermined control-stopping condition; and program instructions that terminate the constant voltage control on the fuel cell when the RPM of the air blower satisfies the predetermined control-stopping condition.

Assignees

• Hyundai Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kim Dae Jong
• Kim Ki Chang
• Lee Jung Jae
• Yeom Sang Chul

Classifications

• B60L58/31

  for starting of fuel cells · CPC title

• H01M8/0488

  of fuel cell stacks · CPC title

• H01M2250/20

  Fuel cells in motive systems, e.g. vehicle, ship, plane · CPC title

• H01M8/04302

  applied during start-up · CPC title

• H01M8/04225

  during start-up · CPC title