GAS SUPPLY MODULE AND GAS SUPPLY SYSTEM

A gas supply module includes: a plurality of tanks; a solenoid valve; an intermediate flow path; a merging portion; a gas discharge flow path; a pressure measuring device; and a control unit. The control section controls the solenoid valve of any one of the solenoid valves to the open state at the start of the gas discharge, controls the solenoid valve to the closed state at the end of the gas discharge, and records the pressure measured by the pressure measuring device as the pressure of the tank provided with the solenoid valve controlled to the closed state.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present application relates to a gas supply module and a gas supply system.

2. Description of Related Art

A fuel cell is a device that generates electricity by using hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen used for power generation is usually stored in a hydrogen tank, and is supplied to a fuel cell at the time of power generation.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2022-68652 (JP 2022-68652 A) discloses a hydrogen supply device that supplies hydrogen gas to a fuel cell in a fuel cell system. The hydrogen supply device of JP 2022-68652 A has a plurality of hydrogen tanks, an on-off valve provided to each of the hydrogen tanks, and a control unit that controls the on-off valve. In operation of the fuel cell, the control unit selects hydrogen tanks in order from the hydrogen tanks that are not the hydrogen tank having the largest capacity, and controls the respective on-off valves so that the hydrogen gas is supplied from the selected hydrogen tanks to the fuel cell.

JP 2022-68652 A describes that using such a hydrogen supply device makes it possible to prolong the life of the hydrogen supply device.

SUMMARY

In some cases, a gas supply module including a plurality of hydrogen tanks is used for filling hydrogen into a hydrogen tank provided in a fuel cell system. In such a gas supply module, the pressure in the hydrogen tank is monitored. The pressure of each hydrogen tank is measured by a pressure sensor provided in each hydrogen tank. However, if a pressure sensor is provided to each hydrogen tank, there is a problem that the configuration of the device becomes complicated.

In view of the above circumstances, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide a gas supply module and a gas supply system capable of reducing the number of pressure measuring devices.

The present disclosure provides, as one aspect for solving the above problem, a gas supply module that includes: a plurality of tanks filled with gas; a solenoid valve that is provided in each of the tanks and controls release of the gas filled in the tank; and an intermediate flow path extending toward a downstream side from each of the tanks via the solenoid valve; a merging portion connected to a plurality of the intermediate flow paths; a gas discharge flow path extending toward the downstream side from the merging portion; a pressure measuring device provided on the merging portion or on the downstream side of the merging portion; and a control unit that controls opening and closing of the solenoid valve.

The control unit controls, at a start of gas discharge, any one of the solenoid valves to be in an opened state, and, controls, at an end of the gas discharge, the solenoid valve to be in a closed state and records a pressure measured by the pressure measuring device as a pressure of the tank including the solenoid valve that is controlled to be in the closed state.

The present disclosure provides, as one aspect for solving the above problem, a gas supply system including: a plurality of the gas supply modules; a plurality of devices including a fuel cell system; and a server connected to the gas supply modules via a network.

The gas supply modules are paired with the respective devices, and the server stores device requirement information including a gas quantity and a minimum pressure required for an operation of each of the devices.
The server obtains gas supply module information including a gas quantity and a pressure of each of the tanks included in each of the gas supply modules.
The server compares the gas supply module information with the device requirement information in each of the pairs, and determines a pair having the gas supply module not satisfying a requirement of the device.
In a group of the pairs having the gas supply module not satisfying the requirement of the device, the server compares the gas supply module information of the gas supply module of one of the pairs with the device requirement information of another pair of the pairs, and searches for the gas supply module that satisfies the requirement of the device of the other pair.

According to the gas supply module of the present disclosure, the number of pressure measuring devices can be reduced. Further, according to the gas supply system of the present disclosure, the gas supply module can be operated efficiently.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Gas Supply Module

The gas supply module of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the gas supply module100which is an embodiment.FIG.1shows a block diagram of a gas supply module100.

The gas supply module100includes a plurality of tanks10, a solenoid valve20provided in each of the plurality of tanks10, an intermediate flow path30extending downstream from each of the plurality of tanks10via the solenoid valve20, a merging portion40connected to the plurality of intermediate flow paths30, a gas discharge flow path50extending downstream from the merging portion40, a pressure measuring device60, and a control unit70for controlling opening and closing of the solenoid valve.

The tank10is filled with gas. The type of the gas is not particularly limited, but is, for example, a fuel gas used in a fuel cell. Examples of the fuel gas include hydrogen and a reformed gas. The capacity and the number of the tanks10are not particularly limited, and may be appropriately set according to the purpose.

The solenoid valve20is provided in each of the plurality of tanks10, and is an on-off valve that controls the release of the gas filled in the tank10. The opening and closing of the solenoid valve20is performed by the control unit70. The type of the solenoid valve20is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a solenoid valve.

Intermediate Flow Path30

The intermediate flow path30is a flow path extending downstream from each of the plurality of tanks10via the solenoid valve20. As shown inFIG.1, the intermediate flow path30connects the respective tanks10and the merging portion40.

The merging portion40is a member connected to the plurality of intermediate flow paths30. The number of the merging portion40is not particularly limited, and may be one or two or more. If there is one merging portion40, all intermediate flow path30are connected to one merging portion40. In the case where two or more merging portions40are provided, at least one intermediate flow path30is connected to one merging portion40, and the merging portions40are connected to each other. However, the number of merging portions connected to the gas discharge flow path50is one.FIG.1shows an embodiment with two merging portions40. As shown inFIG.1, the merging portions40are connected to each other, and the gas discharge flow path50is connected to one merging portion40.

Gas Discharge Flow Path50

The gas discharge flow path50is a flow path extending from the merging portion40to the downstream side. The other end of the gas discharge flow path50may be connected to the outside.

Pressure Measuring Device60

The pressure measuring device60is a device that measures the pressure of the gas discharged from the tank10. The pressure measuring device60is provided downstream of the merging portion40or the merging portion40. Accordingly, the number of pressure measuring devices60provided in the gas supply module100can be reduced.

The reason for this will be described later.

The control unit70is a device that controls opening and closing of the solenoid valve20. The control unit70is a computer such as an Electronic Control Unit (ECU).

The control unit70is characterized in that, at the start of gas discharge, one solenoid valve20of the solenoid valves20is controlled to be in an open state, and at the end of gas discharge, the solenoid valve20is controlled to be in a closed state, and the pressure measured by the pressure measuring device60is recorded as the pressure of the tank10including the solenoid valve20controlled to be in a closed state.

As described above, the control unit70controls one solenoid valve20of the solenoid valves20to be in the open state and the other solenoid valve20to be in the closed state at the start of gas discharge. That is, the gas supply module100is always controlled to release gas from one tank10. Therefore, when the tank10for discharging the gas is changed from one tank10to another tank10, the solenoid valve20of one tank10is changed to the closed state, and then the solenoid valve of the other tank10is changed to the open state. With such control, the pressure of the merging portion40and the gas flowing downstream thereof becomes equal to the pressure of the tank10provided with the solenoid valve20in the open state at all times. Therefore, at the end of the gas discharge, the solenoid valve20is controlled to be in the closed state, and the pressure measured by the pressure measuring device60is recorded, whereby the pressure of the tank10including the solenoid valve20controlled to be in the closed state can be specified. As described above, the control unit70can always monitor the pressure of each tank10by controlling the gas supply module100as described above.

Conventionally, in a gas supply module, a technique for monitoring the pressure of each tank is known, and a pressure measuring device is provided in each tank. That is, conventionally, the number of tanks and the number of pressure measuring devices are the same. On the other hand, in the gas supply module100, the number of the pressure measuring devices60can be reduced to at least one by performing the above-described control. This simplifies the device configuration and reduces the installation cost.

FIG.2shows changes with time in the pressure of each tank10when four tanks10(tanks11to14) are used in this order. InFIG.2, for the sake of clarity, the dotted line indicating the pressure measurement value and the solid line indicating the pressure of each tank10are described apart from each other, but these lines actually overlap each other. As shown inFIG.2, when the solenoid valve20of one tank10is in the open state, the solenoid valve20of another tank10is controlled to be in the closed state. In the case where the four tanks10are used in this manner in order, the pressure measurement value when the solenoid valve20of each tank10is changed to the closed state indicates the pressure of each tank10. Therefore, it can be seen fromFIG.2that the gas supply module100can monitor the pressure of each tank10even if the number of pressure measuring devices60is reduced.

FIG.3shows the flow rate over time when four tanks10(tanks11to14) are used in this order. The flow rate was measured in the gas discharge flow path50. As shown inFIG.3, it can be seen that the gas supply module100can maintain an appropriate flow rate even when the four tanks10are used in sequence.

The gas supply module100may generally be used as a pressure accumulator of a simple filling device that supplies gas to a tank provided in a fuel cell system. Accordingly, the gas supply module100may be in a transportable form.

The gas supply module of the present disclosure has been described with reference to one embodiment. According to the gas supply module of the present disclosure, the number of pressure measuring devices can be reduced.

Gas Supply System

The gas supply system of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the gas supply system1000which is an embodiment.FIG.4shows a schematic diagram of the gas supply system1000.

The gas supply system1000includes a plurality of gas supply modules100, a plurality of devices200including a fuel cell system, and a server300connected to the plurality of gas supply modules100via a network.

Gas Supply Module100

As described above, in the gas supply module100, the pressure of each tank10is monitored. Therefore, the pressure of each tank10provided in the gas supply module100is recorded by the control unit70. Thus, the pressure of each tank10of the gas supply module100used in the gas supply system1000is known.

The gas supply system1000uses a gas supply module100. However, the gas supply module used in the gas supply system of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, a gas supply module in which the pressure of each tank is known may be used. For example, a conventional gas supply module may be used.

The conventional gas supply module is, for example, as follows. That is, the gas supply module includes: a plurality of tanks filled with gas; a solenoid valve provided in each of the plurality of tanks for controlling the discharge of the gas filled in the tanks; an intermediate flow path extending from each of the plurality of tanks to the downstream side via the solenoid valve; a merging portion connected to the plurality of intermediate flow paths; a gas discharge flow path extending from the merging portion to the downstream side; a pressure measuring device provided in each of the plurality of tanks; and a control unit for controlling the opening and closing of the solenoid valve.

The device200comprises a fuel cell system. The fuel cell system includes at least a fuel cell and a fuel gas tank (hydrogen tank). Since the fuel cell system is well known in the art, a description thereof will be omitted here. The device200may be, for example, a fuel cell electric vehicle.

In the gas supply system1000, one gas supply module100and one device200form a pair. By “pair” is meant the relationship that the gas supply module100is intended to supply gas (e.g., hydrogen) to a particular device200.

The server300is connected to the plurality of gas supply modules100via a network. The connection method of the network is not particularly limited. It may be a wired network or a wireless network. Also, the type of the network is not particularly limited.

Examples Include the Internet and WI-FI

The server300is a computer that optimizes the combination of the gas supply module100and the device200. Accordingly, the server300has device request information including the amount of gas and the minimum pressure required for the operation of each device200.

Optimization of the combination of the gas supply module100and the device200by the server300is performed as follows. (1) First, the server300obtains gas supply module information including the gas amount and pressure of each tank10included in each gas supply module100. The amount of gas in the tank10can be calculated from, for example, the capacity and pressure of the tank10. (2)Next, in each pair, the gas supply module information and the device requirement information are compared to determine a pair having a gas supply module that does not satisfy the device request. (3) Subsequently, in the set of pairs having gas supply modules that do not satisfy the requirements of the device200, the gas supply module information of one pair of gas supply modules100is compared with the device requirement information of the other pair of device200, and the gas supply module100that satisfies the requirements of the other pair of devices is searched. The search results may be displayed to be visible to the user.

By performing the steps (1) to (3), even if the gas supply module100does not satisfy the requirements of the device200in one pair, the other pair of device200to which the gas supply module100can be applied can be searched. Then, the user can efficiently operate the gas supply module100by appropriately replacing the gas supply module100based on the search result.

FIG.5shows a specific example of the gas supply system1000.FIG.5shows an example in which the gas supply modules A and B of the two pairs E and F and the devices C and D are used.

First, the pair E formed from the gas supply module A and the device C will be described. As shown inFIG.5, the gas supply module A is in use, and the pressures of the respective tanks1to4are 70 MPa, 35 MPa, 35 MPa, 35 MPa. Here, the minimum pressure required for the operation of the device C is 35 MPa. Thus, the tank1meets this requirement. However, the amount of gas required for the operation of the device C is not satisfied only by the tank1. Accordingly, the server determines that the pair E is a pair having the gas supply module A that does not satisfy the requirements of the device C.

Next, a pair F formed from the gas supply module B and the device D will be described. As shown inFIG.5, the gas supply module B is in use and the pressure of the respective tanks5to8is 5 MPa, 0.8 MPa, 0.8 MPa, 0.8 MPa. Here, the minimum pressure required for the operation of the device D is 0.8 MPa. Thus, the tank5meets this requirement. However, the amount of gas required for the operation of the device D is not satisfied only by the tank5. Accordingly, the server determines that the pair F is a pair having the gas supply module B that does not satisfy the requirements of the device D.

Next, the server compares the gas supply module information of the gas supply module A of the pair E and the device requirement information of the device D of the other pair F in the set of pairs E and F. Then, the gas supply module A of the pair E satisfies the requirements of the device D of the other pair F. Thus, the server can provide the user with this search result. The user can replace the gas supply module B with the gas supply module A based on the search result. Therefore, the gas supply module can be operated efficiently.

The gas supply system of the present disclosure has been described with reference to one embodiment. According to the gas supply system of the present disclosure, the gas supply module can be operated efficiently.