Abstract:
A fuel cartridge is provided. The fuel cartridge capable of reliably suppressing fuel leakage and realizing improved safety. The fuel cartridge includes a cartridge body having a fuel supply port, and a seal member for directly closing the fuel supply port. The cartridge body has an atmosphere communication port, and the seal member directly closes the fuel supply port and the atmosphere communication port.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application JP 2007-339155 filed in the Japanese Patent Office on Dec. 28, 2007, the entire contents of which is being incorporated herein by reference. 
     BACKGROUND 
     The present application relates to a fuel cartridge used for a fuel cell. 
     A fuel cell has a configuration in which electrolyte is disposed between an anode electrode (fuel electrode) and a cathode electrode (oxygen electrode). Fuel is supplied to the anode electrode, and oxidant is supplied to the cathode electrode. An oxidation reduction reaction that the fuel is oxidized by the oxidant occurs, and the chemical energy of the fuel is converted to electric energy. 
     By keeping on supplying the fuel and oxidant, such a fuel cell can continuously generate power. The fuel cell is therefore expected as a new power source for a portable electronic device, different from primary and secondary cells of related art. Specifically, since a fuel cell generates power by using the chemical reaction between the fuel and the oxidant, by using oxygen in the air as the oxidant and keeping on supplying the fuel from the outside, the fuel cell can be continuously used as a power source unless a trouble occurs. Therefore, a miniaturized fuel cell may be a high-energy-density power source necessitating no charging and suitable for a portable electronic device. 
     As a method of replenishing fuel to the fuel cell from the outside, an interchangeable fuel cartridge is used. A fuel cartridge in which a container body that contains fuel is housed in a package member has been proposed (refer to, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-224989). 
     SUMMARY 
     However, in the technique described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-224989, there is the possibility that fuel leaks in the unopened package member due to vibration at the time of distribution or fluctuations in the environment temperature or atmospheric pressure. The technique has a serious shortcoming in safety. 
     It is therefore desirable to provide a fuel cartridge capable of reliably suppressing fuel leakage and realizing increased safety. 
     According to an embodiment, there is provided a fuel cartridge including a cartridge body having a fuel supply port, and a seal member for directly closing the fuel supply port. 
     In the fuel cartridge of the embodiment, the fuel supply port in the cartridge body is directly closed with the seal member. Therefore, the fuel supply port is reliably sealed, and fuel leakage is suppressed. 
     According to the fuel cartridge of an embodiment, since the fuel supply port in the cartridge body is directly closed with the seal member, the fuel leakage can be suppressed reliably, and safety is increased. 
     Additional features and advantages are described herein, and will be apparent from the following Detailed Description and the figures. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is a diagram showing the appearance of a fuel cartridge as a first embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a diagram showing the configuration of the cartridge body illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram showing a state where the cartridge body illustrated in  FIG. 1  is housed in a package member. 
         FIGS. 4A to 4C  are diagrams showing a method of opening the fuel cartridge illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 5  is a diagram showing the appearance of a fuel cartridge as a second embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  is a diagram showing the configuration of a cartridge body illustrated in  FIG. 5 . 
         FIGS. 7A to 7C  are diagrams for explaining a method of opening the fuel cartridge shown in  FIG. 5 . 
         FIG. 8  is a diagram showing a modification of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 9  is a diagram showing another modification of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 10  is a diagram showing an example of the shape of a seal member adhered to the cartridge body illustrated in  FIG. 8 . 
         FIG. 11  is a diagram showing a modification of  FIG. 10 . 
         FIG. 12  is a diagram showing an example of the shape of the seal member adhered to the cartridge body illustrated in  FIG. 9 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Embodiments of the present application will be described in detail hereinbelow with reference to the drawings. 
     First Embodiment 
       FIGS. 1 and 2  show the appearance of a fuel cartridge as a first embodiment of the present invention. A fuel cartridge  1  is an interchangeable fuel cartridge used for a fuel cell mounted as a power source of a portable electronic device such as a cellular phone, a notebook-sized PC (personal computer). The fuel cartridge  1  is constructed different from a power generation module (not shown) of the fuel cell, and is coupled to the power generation module of the fuel cell via a fuel supply pipe (not shown) or the like so that fuel is supplied. The fuel cartridge  1  contains, for example, methanol or the like as the fuel in a cartridge body  10  having a rectangular shape (rectangular parallelepiped shape). 
     The cartridge body  10  has, for example, a thickness of about  6  mm and is made of a metal material such as aluminum or stainless steel or a resin material such as PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or polypropylene (PP). In a top face  10 A of the cartridge body  10 , a fuel supply port  11  for injecting fuel into the cartridge body  10  or transmitting the fuel from the cartridge body  10  to a fuel cell (not shown) is provided. The fuel supply port  11  is directly closed with a seal member  20 . With the configuration, in the fuel cartridge  1 , fuel leakage can be reliably suppressed against vibrations at the time of distribution and fluctuations in the environment temperature or atmospheric pressure, so that safety can be increased. 
     The seal member  20  has, for example, a sealing part  21  adhered to the fuel support port  11  and its vicinity and an operating part  22  provided at one end of the sealing part  21 . The sealing part  21  is adhered by a proper method such as thermal fusion bonding, ultrasonic fusion bonding, or resin adhesion using an adhesive in accordance with the shape and material of the cartridge body  10 . The operating part  22  is provided to apply a peel force to the sealing part  21  at the time of peeling the sealing part  21  from the cartridge body  10 . Since the internal pressure of the cartridge body  10  is increased by methanol contained in the cartridge body  10  which is warmed, preferably, the seal member  20  resists such rise in the internal pressure. 
     The seal member  20  is made of a material having a high barrier property against the fuel. Concretely, the seal member  20  is a resin film made of one material or a mixture of two or more materials selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, ethylene-vinylalcohol copolymer resin, polyamide resin, polyglycolic acid, polypropylene, polyvinylalcohol, polyacrylonitrile, cellophane, polycarbonate, polystyrene, polyvinylidene chloride, and polyvinyl chloride. A laminate film obtained by adhering metal foil of aluminum or the like to the resin film may be also used. Further, a member obtained by forming a vapor deposition layer made of one or more materials selected from a metal such as aluminum, a metal compound such as aluminum oxide (alumina), and silicon dioxide (silica). 
     Such a cartridge body  10  is housed in a bag-shaped package member  30  as shown in  FIG. 3 . The package member  30  is provided to protect the cartridge body  10  at the time of distribution and prevent unintended peeling of the seal member  20  and the like. For example, the package member  30  has a thickness of 100 μm and is formed by an aluminum laminate film obtained by adhering a resin film, aluminum foil, and a resin film in this order. The package member  30  may not be provided depending on the structure of the seal member  20 . 
     Preferably, the package member  30  is coupled to the operating part  22  of the seal member  20  for the reason that the peel force can be applied to the operating part  22  when the package member  30  is opened and separated from the cartridge body  10 . Even if the fuel splashes to the outside at the time of peeling off the seal member  20  and opening the fuel support port  11 , the splash fuel is received by the packaging member  30  so that the hands and cloth of the user and the like are prevented from becoming dirty. 
     For example, the fuel cartridge  1  may be manufactured as follows. 
     First, the cartridge body  10  made of the above-mentioned material is prepared, and fuel is injected from the fuel supply port  11 . By adhering the sealing part  21  of the seal member  20  made of the above-described material to the fuel supply port  11  and its vicinity, the fuel supply port  11  is directly closed. As the method of adhering the seal member  20 , a proper method such as thermal fusion bonding, ultrasonic fusion bonding, or resin adhesion using an adhesive may be used in accordance with the shape and material of the cartridge body  10 . 
     Subsequently, as necessary, the package member  30  made of the above-described material is prepared to wrap the cartridge body  10  to which the seal member  20  is adhered. In such a manner, the fuel cartridge  1  shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3  is completed. 
     In the fuel cartridge  1 , the fuel supply port  11  is directly closed with the seal member  20 . Consequently, accidental leakage in the package member  30  when the package member  30  is not opened is reliably suppressed, and safety improves. 
     At the time of opening the fuel cartridge  1 , as shown in  FIGS. 4A to 4C , by pulling the operating part  22  provided at one end of the sealing part  21  to apply the peel force to the sealing part  21 , the seal member  20  is peeled from the cartridge body  10  and the fuel supply port  11  is opened. 
     In an embodiment, at the time of opening the fuel cartridge  1 , the fuel supply port  11  in the cartridge body  10  is directly closed with the seal member  20 . Consequently, fuel leakage can be reliably suppressed against vibrations at the time of distribution and fluctuations in the environment temperature or atmospheric pressure, and safety is increased. 
     Second Embodiment 
       FIGS. 5 and 6  show the appearance of a fuel cartridge as a second embodiment of the present invention. In a fuel cartridge  1 A, in the top face  10 A of the cartridge body  10 , the fuel supply port  11  and an atmosphere communication port  12  are provided. The fuel supply port  11  and the atmosphere communication port  12  are directly closed with the seal member  20 . With the configuration, in a manner similar to the first embodiment, fuel leakage can be reliably suppressed and safety is increased. Except for the above, the fuel cartridge  1 A of the second embodiment is constructed similar to that of the first embodiment and is manufactured similarly. Therefore, the same reference numerals are designated to the same components. 
     The sealing part  21  of the seal member  20  is one component member and covers both the fuel supply port  11  and the atmosphere communication port  12 . The operating part  22  similar to that of the first embodiment is provided at one end of the sealing part  21 . 
     In the seal member  20 , as shown in  FIG. 7A , distance L 2  between the operating part  22  and a second sealing part  21 B for sealing the atmosphere communication port  12  is preferably shorter than distance L 1  between the operating part  22  and a first sealing part  21 A for sealing the fuel supply port  11 . Peel resistance of the second sealing part  21 B may be lower than that of the first sealing part  21 A. With such a configuration, the peel force applied to the operating part  22  is transmitted more easily to the second sealing part  21 B for sealing the atmosphere communication port  12  than to the first sealing part  21 B for sealing the fuel support port  11 . As shown in  FIG. 7B , the atmosphere communication port  12  is opened earlier than the fuel supply port  11 . Therefore, discharge of the fuel due to the internal pressure in the cartridge body  10  can be suppressed, and fuel leakage at the time of opening is prevented. 
     Such a cartridge body  10  is housed in the package member  30  (shown in  FIG. 3  but not shown in  FIGS. 5  to  FIGS. 7A to 7C ) similar to that of the first embodiment. 
     In the fuel cartridge  1 A, the fuel supply port  11  and the atmosphere communication port  12  are directly closed with the seal member  20 . Consequently, accidental leakage in the package member  30  when the package member  30  is not opened is reliably suppressed, and safety improves. 
     At the time of opening the fuel cartridge  1 A, by pulling the operating part  22  provided at one end of the sealing part  21  to apply the peel force to the sealing part  21 , the seal member  20  is peeled from the cartridge body  10 . In the seal member  20 , the distance L 2  between the operating part  22  and the second sealing part  21 B for sealing the atmosphere communication port  12  is set to be shorter than the distance L 1  between the operating part  22  and the first sealing part  21 A for sealing the fuel supply port  11 . Therefore, the peel force applied to the operating part  22  is transmitted more easily to the second sealing part  21 B for sealing the atmosphere communication port  12  than to the first sealing part  21 B for sealing the fuel support port  11 . Therefore, as shown in  FIG. 7B , the atmosphere communication port  12  is opened first. After the internal pressure of the cartridge body  10  becomes equal to the atmospheric pressure, as shown in  FIG. 7C , the fuel supply port  11  is opened. Therefore, even if the internal pressure of the cartridge body  10  is higher than the atmospheric pressure due to a change in the temperature or atmosphere pressure, there is no possibility of fuel leakage from the fuel supply port  11 . Also in the case where gas such as air is sealed together with the fuel in the cartridge body  10 , there is no possibility that the fuel leaks from the fuel support port  11  due to expansion pressure of the internal gas. 
     As described above, in a second embodiment, the fuel supply port  11  and the atmosphere communication port  12  in the cartridge body  10  are directly closed with the seal member  20 . Consequently, like the first embodiment, fuel leakage can be reliably suppressed against vibrations at the time of distribution and fluctuations in the environment temperature or atmospheric pressure, and safety is increased. 
     In an embodiment, the case where the fuel supply port  11  and the atmosphere communication port  12  are formed in the top face  10 A of the cartridge body  10  has been described. The positions of the fuel supply port  11  and the atmospheric communication port  12  are not limited. The positional relations between the fuel supply port  11  and the atmosphere communication port  12  are not limited. For example, as shown in  FIG. 8 , the fuel supply port  11  may be provided in the top face  10 A of the cartridge body  10 , and the atmosphere communication port  12  may be provided in a side face  10 B. For example, as shown in  FIG. 9 , the fuel supply port  11  may be provided in the top face  10 A of the cartridge body  10 , and the atmosphere communication port  12  may be provided in another side face  10 C. 
     The shape of the seal member  20  is not limited as long as it can close both of the fuel supply port  11  and the atmosphere communication port  12  by one component member. For example, in the case of  FIG. 8 , the seal member  20  may be adhered to the top face  10 A and the side face  10 B of the cartridge body  10  as shown in  FIG. 10 , or the seal member  20  may be adhered to the top face  10 A and the side faces  10 C and  10 B of the cartridge body  10  as shown in  FIG. 11 . In the case of  FIG. 9 , the seal member  20  may be adhered to the top face  10 A and the side face  10 C of the cartridge body  10  as shown in  FIG. 12 . 
     Although the present application has been described by using the embodiments, the present application is not limited to the foregoing embodiments but may be modified in a variety of suitable ways. For example, in the foregoing embodiments, the configurations of the cartridge body  10 , the seal member  20 , and the package member  30  have been concretely described. However, other configurations may be also employed. For example, the shape of the cartridge body  10  is not limited to the rectangular shape (rectangular parallelepiped) described in the embodiments but may be another shape such as a cylindrical shape. 
     For example, the materials and thicknesses of the components and the method of adhering the seal member  20  described in the foregoing embodiments are not limited. Other materials, other thicknesses, and other adhering methods may be employed. 
     Further, a liquid fuel contained in the cartridge body  10  is not limited to methanol but may be another liquid fuel such as ethanol or dimethyl ether. 
     It should be understood that various changes and modifications to the presently preferred embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present subject matter and without diminishing its intended advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appended claims.