Patent ID: 7582372

Claim:
A pressure regulator for fuel cells, which is disposed in a discharge line for discharging an oxidizing agent supplied to a cathode of fuel cells, for controlling a discharged amount of the oxidizing agent to regulate the pressure of the oxidizing agent in the cathode, comprising: an opening for passing said oxidizing agent therethrough; a valve body for opening or closing said opening; a resilient member for urging a rotational shaft to which said valve body is connected, to turn in a direction to open said opening, wherein said rotational shaft is supported by a bearing; a sealing member disposed between said bearing and said opening, wherein the sealing member comprises a first lip inclined away from the opening and a second lip inclined toward the opening; a limiting member for limiting an angular position of the valve body which is turned by said resilient member, to keep said opening fully open; a non-contact type motor energizable for turning said valve body in a direction to close said opening against resilient forces of said resilient member, wherein when the non-contact type motor is de-energized, the opening is fully open for discharging water from the fuel cells without consuming electric power; and an opening sensor for detecting a magnetic field from a magnet embedded in said rotational shaft thereby to detect an angular position of said rotational shaft.