Exhaust state control device for fuel cell for mobile unit

摘要

An exhaust state control device for a fuel cell for a mobile unit includes an exhaust gas temperature sensor (17) that measures the temperature of exhaust gas in a discharge passage that discharges the exhaust gas from the main body of the fuel cell, and an ambient temperature sensor (19A) that measures the temperature of ambient air to which exhaust gas is to be discharged. If, based on the difference between the exhaust gas temperature and the ambient temperature, it is determined that white smoke is generated, it is determined whether a condition to reduce white smoke is satisfied. When a first condition is satisfied, a process to reduce white smoke is activated. When a second condition, which requires further reduction of white smoke than under the first condition, is satisfied, a process to suppress the generation of white smoke is activated.

主权项

1. An exhaust state control device for a fuel cell for a mobile unit that detects a state of exhaust gas from a fuel cell mounted on a mobile unit, comprising:
an exhaust gas temperature sensor that measures, as a state of the exhaust gas, a temperature of the exhaust gas in a discharge passage that discharges the exhaust gas from a main body of the fuel cell; an ambient temperature sensor that measures, as a state of the ambient air, a temperature of the ambient air to which the exhaust gas is to be discharged; a motion sensor that detects movement of the mobile unit; a white smoke generation determination section that determines whether white smoke is generated from generated water of the fuel cell based on a relationship between the state of exhaust gas and the state of ambient air; a condition determination section that determines whether a predetermined condition to reduce white smoke is satisfied based on a detection signal from the motion sensor when the white smoke generation determination section determines that white smoke is generated; a control section that activates a process to reduce white smoke if the condition determination section determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied; an operation state sensor that detects an operating state of an operating section that operates the mobile unit; a sensor that senses a surrounding environmental state of the mobile unit; and an ambient humidity sensor that measure a humidity of the ambient air to which the exhaust gas is to be discharged, wherein: the control section activates a process to reduce white smoke when the condition determination section determines that a first predetermined condition is satisfied; the control section activates a process to further reduce generation of white smoke than when the first predetermined condition is determined to be satisfied, if the condition determination section determines that a second predetermined condition is satisfied; the first predetermined condition is satisfied if either one of the conditions, where a moving speed of the mobile unit is determined to be at or below a predetermined value and where a visibility of white smoke around the mobile unit is determined to be higher than that in a reference environment, is satisfied; the second predetermined condition is satisfied if both the conditions, where the moving speed of the mobile unit is determined to be at or below the predetermined value and where the visibility of white smoke around the mobile unit is determined to be higher than that in the reference environment, are satisfied; the reference environment includes a daytime environment and a non-rainy environment; the condition determination section determines whether the predetermined condition to reduce white smoke is satisfied based on at least one of the detected moving state of the mobile unit, the detected operating state of the operating section that operate the mobile unit, and the detected surrounding environmental state of the mobile unit; the mobile unit is a vehicle; the operating state of the operating section is determined based on whether a headlight is on; the surrounding environmental state is determined based on at least one of: whether a darkness detection signal for an automatic light is on; whether a current time is after a sunset and before a sunrise; whether a signal from a global positioning system cannot be received; whether a wiper is on; whether a rain sensing signal is on; and whether a detection value of the ambient humidity sensor exceeds a predetermined value; and the condition determination section determines that the reference environment is the daytime, non-rainy environment and the humidity of the ambient air is less than the predetermined value if none of the determined states above is satisfied.