Patents by Inventor Miki Abe

Miki Abe 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: 10938042
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell including an anode gas flow channel and a cathode gas flow channel and generating electricity from a hydrogen-containing anode gas of the anode gas flow channel and an oxygen-containing cathode gas of the cathode gas flow channel; an anode off-gas emission path through which an anode off-gas emitted from the anode gas flow channel flows; and a cathode off-gas emission path through which a cathode off-gas emitted from the cathode gas flow channel flows. After stoppage of generation of electricity by the fuel cell, gas purging is performed in which at least a part of the cathode off-gas emission path is purged with a hydrogen-containing gas having passed through a junction where the anode off-gas emission path and the cathode off-gas emission path meet each other. The hydrogen-containing gas contains at least either the anode gas or the anode off-gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Akinori Yukimasa, Yoshito Usuki, Miki Abe
  • Patent number: 10811704
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell, a first supply flow path, a second supply flow path, a recycle flow path, a circulator, a discharge flow path, a reservoir, a valve, and a controller. The controller opens the valve, determines an open time, for which the valve is opened to discharge the anode off gas, on the basis of the amount of water stored in the reservoir, the discharge time of water that flows through the discharge flow path to be discharged, and the discharge amount of the anode off gas that flows through the discharge flow path to be discharged, and closes the valve when an elapsed time for which the valve is opened reaches the open time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 20, 2020
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Miki Abe, Akinori Yukimasa, Junji Morita, Takehiko Ise, Yoshito Usuki
  • Patent number: 10693166
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell that generates electric power using fuel gas and oxidant gas, a fuel gas supply path through which the fuel gas is supplied to an anode inlet of the fuel cell, a recycle gas path through which anode off-gas discharged from an anode outlet of the fuel cell returns to the fuel gas supply path, and a pressure booster arranged in the recycle gas path, and the pressure booster is arranged above a confluence portion where the fuel gas supply path and the recycle gas path meet each other when gravity acts downward from above.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2020
    Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takehiko Ise, Akinori Yukimasa, Junji Morita, Miki Abe, Yoshito Usuki
  • Patent number: 10665878
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell which generates electric power by using a hydrogen gas and an oxidizing gas, a hydrogen gas supply route where the hydrogen gas to be supplied to an anode of the fuel cell flows, an anode off-gas discharge route for discharging an anode off-gas discharged from the anode of the fuel cell to outside, an anode off-gas discharge valve provided to the anode off-gas discharge route, and a controller which causes the anode off-gas discharge valve to be opened when a temperature of any of the hydrogen gas supply route, the anode of the fuel cell, the anode off-gas discharge route, and the anode off-gas discharge valve becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2020
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Junji Morita, Akinori Yukimasa, Takehiko Ise, Miki Abe, Yoshito Usuki
  • Patent number: 10305126
    Abstract: A fuel cell system including: a fuel cell that generates electricity; a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between an exhaust gas from the fuel cell and water; a heat dissipator that dissipates heat from the water; a circulation path along which the water circulates between the heat exchanger and heat dissipator; a circulation pump that circulates the water; a first detector that detects the temperature of the water flowing into the heat exchanger; a second detector that detects the temperature of the water flowing out from the heat exchanger; and a controller configured to adjust the circulation pump such that the temperature detected by the second detector becomes a first temperature, and, when the temperature detected by the first detector is equal to or greater than a threshold, adjust the circulation pump such that the temperature detected by the second detector becomes a second temperature higher than the first temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2019
    Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Miki Abe, Akinori Yukimasa
  • Patent number: 10144639
    Abstract: A method for operating a hydrogen generator includes producing a hydrogen-containing gas from a source gas fed from a hydrodesulfurizer and reforming water with a reformer; feeding part of the hydrogen-containing gas to the hydrodesulfurizer as a recycle gas, and removing a sulfur compound contained in the source gas with the hydrodesulfurizer; condensing water vapor contained in the recycle gas in a recycle-gas channel through which the recycle gas flows, and separating the resulting condensed water from the recycle-gas channel; and regulating the amount of reforming water fed to the reformer on the basis of the temperature of the reformer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 7, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Miki Abe, Akinori Yukimasa
  • Publication number: 20180301721
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell which generates electric power by using a hydrogen gas and an oxidizing gas, a hydrogen gas supply route where the hydrogen gas to be supplied to an anode of the fuel cell flows, an anode off-gas discharge route for discharging an anode off-gas discharged from the anode of the fuel cell to outside, an anode off-gas discharge valve provided to the anode off-gas discharge route, and a controller which causes the anode off-gas discharge valve to be opened when a temperature of any of the hydrogen gas supply route, the anode of the fuel cell, the anode off-gas discharge route, and the anode off-gas discharge valve becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined temperature.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 28, 2018
    Publication date: October 18, 2018
    Inventors: JUNJI MORITA, AKINORI YUKIMASA, TAKEHIKO ISE, MIKI ABE, YOSHITO USUKI
  • Publication number: 20180175409
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell including an anode gas flow channel and a cathode gas flow channel and generating electricity from a hydrogen-containing anode gas of the anode gas flow channel and an oxygen-containing cathode gas of the cathode gas flow channel; an anode off-gas emission path through which an anode off-gas emitted from the anode gas flow channel flows; and a cathode off-gas emission path through which a cathode off-gas emitted from the cathode gas flow channel flows. After stoppage of generation of electricity by the fuel cell, gas purging is performed in which at least a part of the cathode off-gas emission path is purged with a hydrogen-containing gas having passed through a junction where the anode off-gas emission path and the cathode off-gas emission path meet each other. The hydrogen-containing gas contains at least either the anode gas or the anode off-gas.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 1, 2017
    Publication date: June 21, 2018
    Inventors: AKINORI YUKIMASA, YOSHITO USUKI, MIKI ABE
  • Publication number: 20180159157
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell that generates power through electrochemical reaction between fuel gas and oxidant gas, a fuel gas supply path for supplying the fuel gas to an anode of the fuel cell, an offgas discharge path for discharging offgas from the anode of the fuel cell, a recycle gas path bifurcated from the offgas discharge path at a bifurcation and then joining the fuel gas supply path, a flow rate adjuster that is provided on the recycle gas path and adjusts a flow rate of gas flowing through the recycle gas path, a purge valve provided on the offgas discharge path downstream of the bifurcation, and a controller that controls the flow rate adjuster so that an internal pressure of the offgas discharge path upstream of the purge valve is positive.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 29, 2017
    Publication date: June 7, 2018
    Inventors: YOSHITO USUKI, AKINORI YUKIMASA, JUNJI MORITA, TAKEHIKO ISE, MIKI ABE
  • Publication number: 20180159158
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell that generates electric power using fuel gas and oxidant gas, a fuel gas supply path through which the fuel gas is supplied to an anode inlet of the fuel cell, a recycle gas path through which anode off-gas discharged from an anode outlet of the fuel cell returns to the fuel gas supply path, and a pressure booster arranged in the recycle gas path, and the pressure booster is arranged above a confluence portion where the fuel gas supply path and the recycle gas path meet each other when gravity acts downward from above.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 29, 2017
    Publication date: June 7, 2018
    Inventors: TAKEHIKO ISE, AKINORI YUKIMASA, JUNJI MORITA, MIKI ABE, YOSHITO USUKI
  • Publication number: 20180151897
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell, a first supply flow path, a second supply flow path, a recycle flow path, a circulator, a discharge flow path, a reservoir, a valve, and a controller. The controller opens the valve, determines an open time, for which the valve is opened to discharge the anode off gas, on the basis of the amount of water stored in the reservoir, the discharge time of water that flows through the discharge flow path to be discharged, and the discharge amount of the anode off gas that flows through the discharge flow path to be discharged, and closes the valve when an elapsed time for which the valve is opened reaches the open time.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 21, 2017
    Publication date: May 31, 2018
    Inventors: MIKI ABE, AKINORI YUKIMASA, JUNJI MORITA, TAKEHIKO ISE, YOSHITO USUKI
  • Publication number: 20180151902
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell that generates electricity by an electrochemical reaction of a fuel gas with an oxidant gas; a supply channel that supplies the fuel gas to an anode; a recycle channel that supplies an anode off-gas discharged from the anode, as the fuel gas, to the supply channel; a discharge channel that is connected to the recycle channel between the anode and the circulation pump, that is arranged in the recycle channel, and that discharges the anode off-gas to outside; a controller that brings a purge valve, that is provided on the discharge channel, into an open state and determines whether a purge operation to discharge the anode off-gas to the outside is abnormal, and performs an operation to decrease a flow rate of the fuel gas supplied to the anode when determining that the purge operation is abnormal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 21, 2017
    Publication date: May 31, 2018
    Inventors: JUNJI MORITA, AKINORI YUKIMASA, TAKEHIKO ISE, MIKI ABE, YOSHITO USUKI
  • Patent number: 9966620
    Abstract: A hydrogen generator has: a reformer that produces hydrogen-containing gas from raw material gas through reforming; a temperature detector that detects the temperature of the reformer; a hydro-desulfurizer that removes sulfur from the raw material gas through hydrodesulfurization; a recycle flow passage through which recycle gas as a portion of the hydrogen-containing gas is supplied to the hydro-desulfurizer; a raw material gas flow detector that detects the flow rate of the raw material gas, the raw material gas flow detector located somewhere in a flow passage for the raw material gas upstream of a junction of the recycle gas and the raw material gas; and a controller that controls the flow rate of the recycle gas in accordance with the temperature of the reformer, the flow rate of the raw material gas, and the flow rate of the recycle gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2018
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Miki Abe, Akinori Yukimasa
  • Publication number: 20170162890
    Abstract: A fuel cell system including: a fuel cell that generates electricity; a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between an exhaust gas from the fuel cell and water; a heat dissipator that dissipates heat from the water; a circulation path along which the water circulates between the heat exchanger and heat dissipator; a circulation pump that circulates the water; a first detector that detects the temperature of the water flowing into the heat exchanger; a second detector that detects the temperature of the water flowing out from the heat exchanger; and a controller configured to adjust the circulation pump such that the temperature detected by the second detector becomes a first temperature, and, when the temperature detected by the first detector is equal to or greater than a threshold, adjust the circulation pump such that the temperature detected by the second detector becomes a second temperature higher than the first temperature.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 21, 2016
    Publication date: June 8, 2017
    Inventors: Miki ABE, Akinori YUKIMASA
  • Publication number: 20160264413
    Abstract: A method for operating a hydrogen generator includes producing a hydrogen-containing gas from a source gas fed from a hydrodesulfurizer and reforming water with a reformer; feeding part of the hydrogen-containing gas to the hydrodesulfurizer as a recycle gas, and removing a sulfur compound contained in the source gas with the hydrodesulfurizer; condensing water vapor contained in the recycle gas in a recycle-gas channel through which the recycle gas flows, and separating the resulting condensed water from the recycle-gas channel; and regulating the amount of reforming water fed to the reformer on the basis of the temperature of the reformer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 7, 2016
    Publication date: September 15, 2016
    Inventors: MIKI ABE, AKINORI YUKIMASA
  • Publication number: 20160149244
    Abstract: A hydrogen generator has: a reformer that produces hydrogen-containing gas from raw material gas through reforming; a temperature detector that detects the temperature of the reformer; a hydro-desulfurizer that removes sulfur from the raw material gas through hydrodesulfurization; a recycle flow passage through which recycle gas as a portion of the hydrogen-containing gas is supplied to the hydro-desulfurizer; a raw material gas flow detector that detects the flow rate of the raw material gas, the raw material gas flow detector located somewhere in a flow passage for the raw material gas upstream of a junction of the recycle gas and the raw material gas; and a controller that controls the flow rate of the recycle gas in accordance with the temperature of the reformer, the flow rate of the raw material gas, and the flow rate of the recycle gas.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 27, 2015
    Publication date: May 26, 2016
    Inventors: MIKI ABE, AKINORI YUKIMASA
  • Patent number: 8213988
    Abstract: An information processing apparatus including an IC chip receiving, by communicating with a reader/writer, service data corresponding to a service provided via the reader/writer and processing the received service data, a SIM card holding section holding a SIM card which includes a card internal memory storing information and to which a unique number for identifying a subscriber is added and a control section storing in the card internal memory of the SIM card the service data processed by the IC chip in the communication with the reader/writer, reading the service data stored in the card internal memory of the SIM card and making the IC chip process the service data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Takayasu Kon, Miki Abe, Yoichiro Sako, Yasunori Kamada
  • Patent number: 8011588
    Abstract: There is provided an electronic wallet device using electronic value concerning a prescribed service by means of a non-contact type IC card capable of non-contact communication with an external unit, which includes a holding section to hold a plurality of non-contact type IC cards, an external communication antenna to perform non-contact communication with the external unit, a card communication antenna to perform non-contact communication with the non-contact type IC cards held in the holding section, a value storing section capable of storing electronic value, and a control section to receive a transaction request concerning the service from the external unit via the external communication antenna and, in response to the transaction request, transfer electronic value between the value storing section and at least one of the plurality of non-contact type IC cards via the card communication antenna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Takayasu Kon, Yasunori Kamada, Takashi Fukushima, Yoichiro Sako, Miki Abe, Masamichi Asukai, Taiji Ito, Akane Sano, Mitsuru Takehara
  • Patent number: 7980458
    Abstract: There is provided an electronic wallet device including a holding section to hold a plurality of non-contact type IC cards, an external communication antenna to perform non-contact communication with an external unit, a card communication antenna to perform non-contact communication with the IC cards held in the holding section, a card selecting section to select at least one IC card by narrowing down candidates for an IC card to be used for communication with the external unit from the plurality of IC cards based on a plurality of different card selection criteria, and a communication control section to connect the selected IC card with the external unit via the external communication antenna and the card communication antenna so that the selected non-contact type IC card and the external unit communicate with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Takayasu Kon, Yasunori Kamada, Takashi Fukushima, Yoichiro Sako, Miki Abe, Masamichi Asukai, Taiji Ito, Akane Sano, Mitsuru Takehara
  • Patent number: 7936877
    Abstract: It is an object to provide an efficient transfer of content data. In a case of transferring the content data from a data transfer device on a primary recording medium side to a data recording device to record the content data in a secondary recording medium, a data compression system and a bit rate that are conformable to the data recording device are compared with a data compression system and a bit rate of the content data to be sent, so that a required transfer processing is brought into realization according to a result of the comparison. For instance, when both the data compression systems are equal, and the bit rate of the content data is not more than the bit rate that is conformable to the data recording device, the content data is sent as it is in an encrypted compressed data state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Miki Abe, Eiichiro Morinaga, Takayasu Kon, Yasunori Kamada