Patent · US Active

Fuel cell vehicle

US8960344B2 · kind B2 · utility

4Cited by
8References
3Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateApr 16, 2012
Grant dateFeb 24, 2015
Priority date
Expiry dateApr 16, 2032

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY02T90/40
  • WIPO fieldTransport
  • WIPO sectorMechanical engineering

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to efficiently mount a fuel cell system below a floor of a vehicle rear portion and to protect the fuel cell system when a forward impact force acts on a vehicle rear portion. To achieve this, a fuel cell vehicle in which a fuel cell system includes a gas tank is configured to store a fuel gas and a fuel cell unit formed by integrating a fuel cell stack, an intake duct, and an exhaust duct, the gas tank is disposed in a space below a rear floor connected to a front floor via a vertical wall portion and adjacent to the vertical wall portion, and the fuel cell unit is disposed behind the gas tank. In the fuel cell vehicle, an axle beam extending in a vehicle width direction and connecting left and right rear wheels to each other is disposed behind the gas tank, the fuel cell unit is disposed between the axle beam and a rear bumper, and vertical walls of front and rear portions of the fuel cell stack are covered with at least one of an upstream portion of the intake duct and a downstream portion of the exhaust duct.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.