Patents by Inventor Jeffrey S. Chen

Jeffrey S. Chen has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 5985474
    Abstract: An integrated system includes a fuel cell assembly for supplying electrical power to a building, a furnace having a heating chamber and a heat exchanger for supplying heat to the building, and a reformer for providing a supply of reformate directly to the furnace and the fuel cell assembly. The system may include a controller for apportioning the supply of reformate to the fuel cell assembly and to the furnace in response to heating and electrical power needs of the building. In another embodiment, an integrated system includes a fuel cell assembly for providing electrical power to a building, a reformer/furnace unit comprising a chamber and a heat exchanger for providing heat to a building, and wherein fuel is reformed/oxidized in a fuel-rich environment in said chamber to produce a supply of reformate for said fuel cell assembly, and in a fuel-lean environment in said chamber for releasing heat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 1998
    Date of Patent: November 16, 1999
    Assignee: Plug Power, L.L.C.
    Inventors: Jeffrey S. Chen, Wenhua Huang, William P. Acker