Patent ID: 8261862
Filing Date: 2012-09-11
Classification: B60K,B60L,B60W,Y02T

Abstract:
1. A drive apparatus for a vehicle, comprising: an engine to be coupled to a drive wheel of the vehicle to generate drive power for the vehicle; a generator motor to be coupled to an output shaft of the engine and the drive wheel; a battery; a power control unit which selects one of: (i) a charge mode in which the generator motor is operated as a generator to charge the battery with electric power generated by the generator motor, and (ii) an assist mode in which electric power is supplied to the generator motor from the battery, and the generator motor is operated as an electric motor to supplement an output of the engine; and a power generation unit which is electrically connected to the battery and the power control unit, and which has a fuel cell which is disposed in an exhaust gas passage of the engine to generate electric power using only combusted exhaust gas of the engine as fuel; wherein the power generation unit comprises a heat generating device which comprises a junction portion where one end portion of a P type thermoelectric transducing member and one end portion of an N type thermoelectric transducing member are connected, and generates electric power with a Seebeck effect; wherein the junction portion is associated with the fuel cell in the exhaust gas passage; and wherein another end portion of the P type thermoelectric transducing member and another end portion of the N type thermoelectric transducing member are located outside the exhaust gas passage.