Patents by Inventor Masaaki Matsusue

Masaaki Matsusue 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).

  • Publication number: 20110244350
    Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide a fuel cell system capable of improving accuracy of water content estimation during a standstill. A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell having a plurality of single cells laminated together and an estimating unit for estimating residual water content distributions in a fuel gas flow channel and an oxidation gas flow channel and a moisture content distribution in an electrolyte membrane in a cell plane of each single cell while taking into consideration water transfer that occurs between an anode electrode and a cathode electrode via the electrolyte membrane. The estimating unit estimates a residual water content of the fuel gas flow channel during a standstill from a shutdown to a restart of the fuel cell system based on temperature information on each single cell acquired during the standstill.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 17, 2011
    Publication date: October 6, 2011
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masahiro OKUYOSHI, Masaaki MATSUSUE, Masashi TOIDA
  • Publication number: 20110217611
    Abstract: It is an object of the invention to improve the accuracy of estimating a moisture content and suppress an effect of remaining water at the startup of the fuel cell system. A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell including a cell laminate; an estimating unit for estimating a residual water content distribution in the reactant gas flow channel and a moisture content distribution in the electrolyte membrane in a cell plane of each single cell while taking into consideration water transfer that occurs between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode via the electrolyte membrane; and an operation control unit for, based on an estimation result from the estimating unit, setting a scavenging time used in a scavenging process for the fuel cell after the fuel cell system is shut down.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 12, 2011
    Publication date: September 8, 2011
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masahiro OKUYOSHI, Masaaki MATSUSUE, Masashi TOIDA
  • Patent number: 7794888
    Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel cell system that is capable of sensing unintended gas leakage from a discharge control means based on odor. A fuel cell system is provided with a bypass passage 32 connecting a fuel offgas passage 30 at inlet of a odorant removal unit 40 to the fuel offgas passage 30 in the vicinity of outlet of the odorant removal unit 40, and the fuel cell system facilitates the removal of odor from the discharged fuel offgas, by closing a bypass valve 33 in conjunction with opening a purge valve 31, and suppresses the removal of odor, by opening the bypass valve 33 in conjunction with stop of discharge of fuel offgas caused by closing the purge valve 31.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2010
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Yokoyama, Osamu Yumita, Masaaki Matsusue, Takahide Izutani, Keigo Suematsu, Shuji Hirakata, Hiroshi Fujitani
  • Publication number: 20090317675
    Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel cell system that is capable of sensing unintended gas leakage from a discharge control means based on odor. A fuel cell system is provided with a bypass passage 32 connecting a fuel offgas passage 30 at inlet of a odorant removal unit 40 to the fuel offgas passage 30 in the vicinity of outlet of the odorant removal unit 40, and the fuel cell system facilitates the removal of odor from the discharged fuel offgas, by closing a bypass valve 33 in conjunction with opening a purge valve 31, and suppresses the removal of odor, by opening the bypass valve 33 in conjunction with stop of discharge of fuel offgas caused by closing the purge valve 31.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 2, 2007
    Publication date: December 24, 2009
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Yokoyama, Osamu Yumita, Masaaki Matsusue, Takahide Izutani, Keigo Suematsu, Shuji Hirakata, Hiroshi Fujitani
  • Publication number: 20090110990
    Abstract: Disclosed is a hydrogen supply apparatus which can mix an odorant with hydrogen gas even at a low temperature and can detect the leakage of the hydrogen gas. The apparatus comprises a gas storage portion which stores hydrogen gas therein, an odorant-addition portion which adds an odorant to the hydrogen gas fed from the gas storage portion, and a temperature control portion which controls the temperature of at least one of the hydrogen gas stored in the gas storage portion, the hydrogen gas fed from the gas storage portion and the odorant.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 6, 2006
    Publication date: April 30, 2009
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Takahide Izutani, Tatsuaki Yokoyama, Syuuji Hirakata, Osamu Yumita, Hiroshi Fujitani, Keigo Suematsu, Masaaki Matsusue, Nobuo Watanabe, Katsuhiko Oshikawa, Katsuhiko Hirose, Takumi Kuwahara, Atsushi Matsuba