Chemistry: electrical current producing apparatus – product – and – Having magnetic field feature
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-15
2004-01-06
Kalafut, Stephen (Department: 1745)
Chemistry: electrical current producing apparatus, product, and
Having magnetic field feature
C429S010000, C180S193000, C705S028000, C705S412000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06673479
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a network communication system and method to enable the real time buying and selling of electricity generated by fuel cell powered vehicles and/or stationary fuel cells.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
There are many serious environmental concerns regarding internal combustion engines employed in motor vehicles. Such engines cause irreversible pollution, operate at low efficiencies, and require the combustion of non-renewable fossil fuels. In response to this pollution crisis, car manufacturers are working diligently at developing alternative energy systems, which do not require combustion reactions.
Alternatives to internal combustion engine powered motor vehicles have included various types of electric vehicles. Typical electrical vehicles are powered by nickel cadmium batteries which are rechargeable by stationary direct current power supplies. These systems suffer from many disadvantages. Since the batteries require constant recharging, these cars are not well suited for driving long distances. Additionally, these types of cars generally are not adapted for highway driving, as they are considered to be underpowered. Moreover, due to the weight of the batteries, these types of cars tend to be heavy, which in turn impairs their performance. With current technology, such electronically powered cars are prohibitively expensive.
Various hybrid vehicles have been proposed. Typically, hybrid vehicles have two power sources and are intended to improve overall fuel efficiency. A basic design principle for many hybrid vehicles is based on the concept that power demands for a car or another vehicle fluctuate over a wide range; thus, the intention is to provide one, efficient power source that provides a certain base power requirement and another power source that provides the additional power required to meet peak power requirements.
One type of hybrid vehicle utilizes a combination of a fuel cell and an internal combustion engine to provide sufficient power to propel the vehicle. However, using current technology, such vehicles are expensive to manufacture and operate. Furthermore, since a typical vehicle is only used for a small fraction of the time, the fuel cell is underutilized. Accordingly, without a secondary use for the fuel cell, the high capital cost of the fuel cell is not justified.
Different types of fuel cells including proton exchange membranes, solid oxides, high temperature fuel cells, and regenerative fuel cells have been explored for use in motor vehicles. Currently, most of the research is directed towards a proton exchange membrane fuel cell comprising an anode, a cathode, and a selective electrolytic membrane disposed between the two electrodes. In a catalyzed reaction, a fuel such as hydrogen is oxidized at the anode to form cations (protons) and electrons. The ion exchange membrane facilitates the migration of protons from the anode to the cathode. The electrons cannot pass through the membrane and are forced to flow through an external circuit thus providing an electrical current. At the cathode, oxygen reacts at the catalyst layer, with electrons returned from the electrical circuit, to form anions. The anions formed at the cathode react with the protons that have crossed the membrane to form liquid water as the reaction product. Typically, a combustion reaction is not involved. Accordingly, fuel cells are clean and efficient.
One drawback associated with the known prior art fuel cell systems, however, is that they are not economically viable for use in a vehicle. Typically a vehicle requires a fuel cell with a power rating of at least 20 kW to be able to meet propulsion demands. Given the current production costs for fuel cells, a fuel cell power unit of sufficient size for a car represents a significant investment and in effect, greatly increases the initial cost of the car. Even though there are significant fuel cost savings with a fuel cell power unit, the ongoing savings throughout the lifetime of the car do not justify the higher initial capital costs of current fuel cell technology.
Several proposals for addressing this problem can be found in issued patents. U.S. Pat. No. 5,858,568 provides for off-board use of the electricity generated from at least one stationary fuel cell powered vehicle. U.S. Pat. No. 5,767,584 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,107,691 both disclose inventions for generating electrical power from multiple stationary fuel cell powered vehicles parked in a parking lot. All of these inventions are based on the realization that a fuel cell power unit of a car represents a significant power source, and unlike a conventional combustion engine, can efficiently generate electrical power that can be readily taken off the vehicle for use elsewhere. Furthermore, a fuel cell can generate electricity virtually free of pollution, whereas an internal combustion engines produces green house gases which contributes to acid rain. Moreover, unlike conventional gas engines, the wear and tear from additional use of a fuel cell is quite small. Thus with suitable financial incentives, it is believed that vehicle owners would effectively be prepared to rent out the power unit of a vehicle simply as an electrical generator, when the vehicle is not in use. Payments made for use of a vehicle's fuel cell power unit effectively provides the subsidies necessary to justify the higher initial capital costs of the fuel cell powered vehicle. A further consideration is that fuel cell engines are powerful, typically in the range of 20 kw to 40 kw, so that the power of the order of Megawatts would be generated from a small number of vehicles. To enable power to be recovered from a large number of vehicles, the intention is to provide a suitable facility at a parking lot or the like.
According to U.S. Pat. No. 6,107,691, a parking lot is equipped with individual docking stations, each providing a fuel line, and an electrical receptacle for connection to an electric cable. An electric power grid is electrically connected to the electrical receptacles in the parking lot for transferring direct current (DC) electrical power from the fuel cells in the parked vehicles to an electric power collection station. The electric power collection station is then electrically connected to the electrical power grid for transfer of electric power after conversion to alternating current (AC) to the end user. At least one inverter is provided in the electric power collection station for converting the DC electric power to AC electric power. In this distributed energy system, parked vehicles can be operated and the resulting energy harnessed and distributed through an electric power grid to provide electrical power for local or distant use.
Although the known prior art systems describe some of the technical aspects of the distributed energy system, these known proposals do not specifically address the overall communication system and method required for this system to work properly and efficiently; in particular, they fail to provide systems and methods for accounting for fuel used and electricity generated. Clearly, as compared with any fixed generating plant, a vehicle-borne fuel cell unit is mobile, and this presents unique requirements such as identifying the vehicle, and providing metering and billing for fuel consumed and electricity generated by the vehicle. Without an overall communication network, it is conceivable that the participants in such a scheme would have to separately negotiate contracts before receiving all of the relevant information. For example, an owner of a fuel cell powered vehicle may have to set or agree to an electricity supply price, or vice versa a fuel price. In this scenario, the fuel cell powered vehicle faces a disadvantage of having to negotiate a contract without all of the relevant information required for economic power generation. This type of uncertainty leads to an inefficient energy market. Additionally, there would be substantial accounting and record keeping complexities.
Conventionally many utiliti
Hardwick Aaron
McArthur Grant
Bereskin & Parr
Hydrogenics Corporation
Kalafut Stephen
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