Patents by Inventor Kunihiro Ukai

Kunihiro Ukai 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: 9647287
    Abstract: The fuel cell system includes a hydro-desulfurizer that removes a sulfur compound in raw material gas; a raw material gas heating unit that heats raw material gas before the raw material gas enters the hydro-desulfurizer; a reformer that generates reformed gas using the raw material gas that has passed through the hydro-desulfurizer; a fuel cell that generates electric power using the reformed gas from the reformer as fuel; a combustor that combusts fuel unused in the fuel cell; an exhaust gas channel through which exhaust gas generated in the combustor flows; and a housing that is provided in a part of the exhaust gas channel and houses the raw material gas heating unit and the hydro-desulfurizer, in which exhaust gas flowing through the housing undergoes heat exchange with the raw material gas heating unit and the hydro-desulfurizer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: PANASONIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toru Sukawa, Kunihiro Ukai
  • Publication number: 20170092969
    Abstract: A solid oxide fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell unit including a solid oxide fuel cell and a mixer, the solid oxide fuel cell including an anode gas passage and a cathode gas passage, the mixer mixing an anode off gas discharged from the anode gas passage and a cathode off gas discharged from the cathode gas passage; a power-generating raw material supply device operative to supply a power-generating raw material to the fuel cell unit; a combustible gas passage, which extends from the power-generating raw material supply device to a downstream end of the anode gas passage; an oxidizing gas supply device operative to supply an oxidizing gas to the cathode gas passage; and a controller operative to, after electric power generation by the fuel cell unit is stopped, control the power-generating raw material supply device to supply the power-generating raw material in a volume more than or equal to a volume of the combustible gas passage to the combustible gas passage, and concurrently control the oxidizing g
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 9, 2015
    Publication date: March 30, 2017
    Inventors: Yasushi KANEKO, Shigenori ONUMA, Kunihiro UKAI, Akinori YUKIMASA, Hiroshi SHIRAHAMA, Toshiharu OTSUKA, Hiromi KITA, Taiichiro SAKAMOTO, Toshiharu OOE
  • Publication number: 20170062853
    Abstract: A hydrogen generating apparatus includes a reformer that reforms fuel and generates reformed gas containing hydrogen, a combustor that heats the reformer, an exhaust gas path which covers the surroundings of an outer wall of the reformer and through which combustion exhaust gas from the combustor flows, and a reformed gas path through which the reformed gas sent from the reformer toward the combustor flows. The reformer is arranged on a flame forming side of the combustor, and a gas flow within the reformer in a portion thereof where the gas flow contacts the outer wall of the reformer is opposed to a flow of the combustion exhaust gas in the exhaust gas path in a portion thereof where the combustion exhaust gas contacts the outer wall of the reformer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 5, 2016
    Publication date: March 2, 2017
    Inventors: TAKASHI KAKUWA, KUNIHIRO UKAI, TATSUO FUJITA
  • Publication number: 20170047601
    Abstract: A solid-oxide fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell unit including a solid-oxide fuel cell including an anode gas channel and a cathode gas channel and a mixer; an electric power generation raw material supplier; a combustible gas channel extending from the electric power generation raw material supplier to a downstream end of the anode gas channel; an oxidizing gas supplier; and a controller operative to, after electric power generation of the fuel cell unit is stopped, control the electric power generation raw material supplier to supply to the combustible gas channel the electric power generation raw material, the amount of which compensates for contraction of gas in the combustible gas channel due to temperature decrease of the fuel cell unit and also control the oxidizing gas supplier to supply the oxidizing gas to the cathode gas channel in accordance with the supply of the electric power generation raw material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 9, 2015
    Publication date: February 16, 2017
    Inventors: Shigenori ONUMA, Yasushi KANEKO, Kunihiro UKAI, Akinori YUKIMASA, Yosuke AKAGI, Takeshi SAITO
  • Patent number: 9515329
    Abstract: A fuel cell system including a fuel cell; a cathode air heat exchanger configured to perform heat exchange between a cathode exhaust gas and the air to be supplied to the cathode to transfer a part of heat energy of the cathode exhaust gas to the air; a desulfurization unit configured to remove a sulfur component from a raw material supplied to the desulfurization unit; and a reformer configured to generate a reformed gas which is the fuel from steam and the raw material from which the sulfur component has been removed by the desulfurization unit; and the cathode exhaust gas which has lost a part of the heat energy by the heat exchange in at least the cathode air heat exchanger, is supplied to the desulfurization unit, to heat the desulfurization unit by the heat energy of the cathode exhaust gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2016
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shigenori Onuma, Kunihiro Ukai, Takehiro Maruyama
  • Patent number: 9492777
    Abstract: A hydrogen generation device of the present invention comprises a first path (31) used to supply a raw material to a reformer (1) through at least a first desulfurization unit (2); a second path (32) used to supply the raw material to the reformer (1) through only the second desulfurization unit (3); a switch unit (6); a flow control unit (8) which selectively enables or inhibits a flow of the hydrogen-containing gas generated in the reformer 1 toward the second desulfurization unit (3); and a controller (12) configured to execute processing in such a manner that in at least either a time point before generation of the hydrogen-containing gas is stopped, or start-up, the switch unit 6 performs switching to select the first path (31), and the flow control unit (8) enables the flow of the hydrogen-containing gas, while the reformer 1 is generating the hydrogen-containing gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2016
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Chie Harada, Hidenobu Wakita, Seiji Fujihara, Tomoyuki Nakajima, Kunihiro Ukai
  • Publication number: 20160322652
    Abstract: A heat exchanger, in which heat is exchanged between first and second mediums, includes a housing that includes a first inlet and a first outlet, an internal member that divides a space in the housing into first and second chambers, and first and second external channels, through which the first medium flows, in the respective first and second chambers. The internal member includes a diverging hole that divides the first medium into flows through the first and second external channels, a converging hole that allows the divided first medium to converge, a second inlet, a second outlet, and an internal channel through which the second medium flows. The first and second external channels each include a first bent portion bent inwardly at a peripheral portion of the first or second chamber. The internal channel includes a second bent portion bent inwardly at a peripheral portion of the internal member.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 16, 2016
    Publication date: November 3, 2016
    Inventors: HIDEKI NAKATA, KUNIHIRO UKAI, MASAKAZU AOKI, NORIO KATSUSHITA
  • Publication number: 20160293981
    Abstract: A solid oxide fuel cell system includes: an igniting portion configured to ignite a raw material when starting up the solid oxide fuel cell system; a raw material supply portion configured to supply the raw material; a reforming air supply portion configured to supply reforming air; and an electric power generation air supply portion configured to supply electric power generation air. When starting up the solid oxide fuel cell system, the raw material supply portion supplies the raw material, and the electric power generation air supply portion supplies the electric power generation air. The igniting portion ignites the raw material. After the ignition, the reforming air supply portion supplies the reforming air. With this, the safety can be increased in consideration of characteristics in respective phases from the start-up of the solid oxide fuel cell system until the electric power generation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 9, 2015
    Publication date: October 6, 2016
    Inventors: Osamu SAKAI, Tatsuo FUJITA, Kunihiro UKAI, Takashi KAKUWA, Taiichiro SAKAMOTO, Toshiharu OOE
  • Publication number: 20160156050
    Abstract: A method for operating a fuel cell system including a fuel feeder supplying fuel, a reformer producing a hydrogen-containing gas by a reforming reaction using a reaction gas other than the fuel and the fuel supplied from the fuel feeder, a fuel cell which includes a cathode and an anode and which generates electricity using an oxidant gas supplied to the cathode and the hydrogen-containing gas supplied from the reformer to the anode, a combustor which combusts an anode off-gas discharged from the anode to produce a combustion gas, a temperature detector detecting the temperature of the combustion gas, and a storage device storing a preset target temperature profile, the target temperature profile including the temporal change in target temperature of the combustion gas in the operation of the fuel cell system, includes controlling the flow rate of the fuel supplied from the fuel feeder to the reformer in the operation such that the temperature detected by the temperature detector becomes equal to a target tem
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 27, 2015
    Publication date: June 2, 2016
    Inventors: TAKEHIRO MARUYAMA, KUNIHIRO UKAI
  • Publication number: 20160156048
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a reformer, a raw-material supplier, a desulfurizer, a flow controller, a vapor supplier, a fuel cell, a combustor, and a controller. After the raw-material supplier supplies a raw material at the startup of the fuel cell system, the controller causes the combustor to combust the raw material exhausted as off-gas from the fuel cell, subsequently causes the flow controller to allow gas exhausted from the reformer to flow through a recycle gas passage, and thereafter causes the vapor supplier to supply vapor, or the controller causes the flow controller to allow the gas exhausted from the reformer to flow through the recycle gas passage, subsequently causes the combustor to combust the raw material exhausted as the off-gas from the fuel cell, and thereafter causes the vapor supplier to supply the vapor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 11, 2015
    Publication date: June 2, 2016
    Inventors: Yasushi KANEKO, Kunihiro UKAI
  • Publication number: 20160149247
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a desulfurizer that removes a sulfur compound in a raw material, a fuel cell unit that performs electric-power generation using fuel obtained by reforming a raw material from which the sulfur compound is removed and electric-power generation air supplied, a combustion exhaust gas passage through which combustion exhaust gas generated by combusting fuel not utilized for the electric-power generation in the fuel cell unit is emitted, a combustion exhaust gas container that is connected to the combustion exhaust gas passage and accommodates the desulfurizer inside the combustion exhaust gas container, a purifier that removes carbon monoxide included in the combustion exhaust gas, and an air heat exchanger that performs heat exchange of the combustion exhaust gas and the electric-power generation air supplied to the fuel cell unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 27, 2015
    Publication date: May 26, 2016
    Inventors: HIROMI KITA, KUNIHIRO UKAI, TORU SUKAWA
  • Patent number: 9290385
    Abstract: A hydrogen generation apparatus (100) includes: a reformer (10) configured to generate a hydrogen-containing gas by using a raw material and steam; a raw material passage (21) through which the raw material that is supplied to the reformer (10) flows; a hydrodesulfurizer (13) provided downstream from a most downstream valve (11) on the raw material passage (21) and configured to remove a sulfur compound from the raw material; a sealer (15) provided on a passage (24) downstream from the reformer (10) and configured to block communication between the reformer (10) and the atmosphere; and a depressurizer (16) provided on the raw material passage (21) at a portion connecting the hydrodesulfurizer (13) and the reformer (10) and configured to release, to the atmosphere, pressure in the reformer (10) that has increased after the sealer (15) is closed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kiyoshi Taguchi, Tomoya Takeuchi, Kunihiro Ukai
  • Patent number: 9257712
    Abstract: In a fuel cell system of the present invention, a reformed gas generated in a reformer (R1) being activated is supplied to a fuel cell stack (F1), and an off-gas discharged from the fuel cell stack (F1) is supplied to a heat supply device (B2) provided for a reformer (R2) being deactivated. By activating at least one reformer (Rn), all of a plurality of reformers (Rn) can be warmed-up. Therefore, energy consumption in a standby state can be suppressed, and the fuel cell system can be started-up quickly in emergencies. The reformed gas may be supplied to the heat supply device (B2) instead of the off-gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 4, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yasuo Takebe, Kunihiro Ukai
  • Patent number: 9246345
    Abstract: A power supply system of the present invention includes: a power generation system (101); a power storage unit (107) configured to supply electric power to the power generation system (101) and an external electric power load (105); and a controller (110) configured to, in a case where it is predicted that at least one of the sum of activation electric power of the power generation system (101) and power consumption of the external electric power load (105) when activating the power generation system (101) and the sum of stop electric power of the power generation system (101) and the power consumption of the external electric power load (105) when stopping the power generation of the power generation system (101) exceeds the upper limit electric power receivable from an electric power system (104), supply the electric power of the power storage unit (107) to at least one of the power generation system (101) and the external electric power load (105) such that the electric power amount supplied from the elect
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2016
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kunihiro Ukai, Hiroaki Kaneko
  • Patent number: 9184455
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a reformer configured to generate a hydrogen-containing gas through a reforming reaction by using a raw material and steam; a raw material supply device configured to supply the raw material to the reformer; a steam supply device configured to supply the steam to the reformer; a temperature detector configured to detect a temperature of the reformer; a fuel cell configured to generate electric power by using the hydrogen-containing gas; a combustor configured to combust the hydrogen-containing gas discharged from the fuel cell to heat the reformer; and a controller configured to, while controlling the raw material supply device such that the temperature detected by the temperature detector becomes a target temperature, control the steam supply device such that a change rate of a steam supply amount to the reformer becomes less than a change rate of a raw material supply amount to the reformer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 10, 2015
    Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kunihiro Ukai, Tomoya Takeuchi
  • Publication number: 20150311553
    Abstract: The present invention provides a fuel cell system using combustion heat for an evaporator and a desulfurizer effectively. The fuel cell system comprises a combustor, a reformer, a fuel cell, a first cathode air heating part, a desulfurizer and an evaporator. A mixture of oxygen and gas which is contained in fuel is combusted in the combustor. A combustion exhaust gas generated in the combustor flows in the fuel cell system in such a manner that the combustion exhaust gas gives thermal energy to the reformer, the first cathode air heating part, the desulfurizer, and the evaporator in this order.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 8, 2015
    Publication date: October 29, 2015
    Inventors: MIKI DOHKOSHI, KUNIHIRO UKAI, TAKEHIRO MARUYAMA
  • Publication number: 20150270559
    Abstract: A fuel cell system comprises a fuel cell configured to generate electric power through a power generation reaction by using fuel supplied to an anode and cathode air supplied to a cathode; a cathode air heat exchanger configured to perform heat exchange between a cathode exhaust gas which is air discharged after the air has been used in the fuel cell and the air to be supplied to the cathode to transfer a part of heat energy of the cathode exhaust gas to the air; a desulfurization unit configured to remove a sulfur component from a raw material supplied to the desulfurization unit; and a reformer configured to generate a reformed gas which is the fuel from steam and the raw material from which the sulfur component has been removed by the desulfurization unit; and the cathode exhaust gas which has lost a part of the heat energy by the heat exchange in at least the cathode air heat exchanger, is supplied to the desulfurization unit, to heat the desulfurization unit by the heat energy of the cathode exhaust gas.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2014
    Publication date: September 24, 2015
    Inventors: Shigenori Onuma, Kunihiro Ukai, Takehiro Maruyama
  • Publication number: 20150263369
    Abstract: The fuel cell system includes a hydro-desulfurizer that removes a sulfur compound in raw material gas; a raw material gas heating unit that heats raw material gas before the raw material gas enters the hydro-desulfurizer; a reformer that generates reformed gas using the raw material gas that has passed through the hydro-desulfurizer; a fuel cell that generates electric power using the reformed gas from the reformer as fuel; a combustor that combusts fuel unused in the fuel cell; an exhaust gas channel through which exhaust gas generated in the combustor flows; and a housing that is provided in a part of the exhaust gas channel and houses the raw material gas heating unit and the hydro-desulfurizer, in which exhaust gas flowing through the housing undergoes heat exchange with the raw material gas heating unit and the hydro-desulfurizer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 5, 2015
    Publication date: September 17, 2015
    Inventors: TORU SUKAWA, KUNIHIRO UKAI
  • Patent number: 9124100
    Abstract: A power supply system according to the present invention includes a control device (110) which is configured such that if it is predicted that the sum of start-up power for a power generation system (101) and electric power consumed by an external electrical load (105) at start-up of the power generation system (101) and/or the sum of stopped-period power for the power generation system (101) and electric power consumed by the external electrical load (105) at stopping of power generation of the power generation system (101) exceed upper limit power, up to which an electric rate is kept to a relatively low unit price, and that the electric rate is to be changed to a relatively high unit price, then the control device (110) performs control of supplying electric power stored in an electrical storage unit (107) to at least one of the power generation system (101) and the external electrical load (105) in order to prevent the amount of electric power supplied from a power grid (104) from exceeding the upper limi
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2015
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kunihiro Ukai, Hiroaki Kaneko
  • Patent number: 9116528
    Abstract: A hydrogen generation apparatus (100) includes: a reformer (1) configured to generate a hydrogen-containing gas by causing a reforming reaction of a raw material; a combustor (2) configured to heat the reformer; and a controller (5) configured to set a controlled temperature of the reformer to a first temperature when an oxygen concentration in the raw material is in a first state where the oxygen concentration is relatively low, and change the controlled temperature of the reformer to a second temperature higher than the first temperature when the oxygen concentration in the raw material is in a second state where the oxygen concentration is relatively higher than the oxygen concentration in the first state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2015
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kunihiro Ukai, Tomoya Takeuchi