Patents by Inventor Raphael Zwick

Raphael Zwick 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: 20250219494
    Abstract: A turbomachine, in particular for a fuel cell system of a vehicle, such as a utility vehicle, has a rotor shaft, an expander wheel fastened on the rotor shaft, and an air bearing arrangement, which is configured to support the rotor shaft rotatably about a rotor axis, wherein a flow path is formed between the expander wheel and the air bearing arrangement. A flow generator is arranged in the flow path between the air bearing arrangement and the expander wheel and configured to generate, depending on a rotation of the rotor shaft, an air flow directed toward the expander wheel, for the purpose of building up a blocking pressure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 20, 2025
    Publication date: July 3, 2025
    Inventors: Janik Ricke, Raphael Zwick
  • Publication number: 20240413360
    Abstract: A fuel cell system (100) is provided for a vehicle, in particular for a commercial vehicle (200), having a fuel cell (1) with a cathode-side inlet (3) and a cathode-side outlet (5), a compressor (7) connected in a fluid-conducting manner to the inlet (3) of the fuel cell (1) and having a compressor shaft (9), an expander (11) with an expander shaft (13) and is connected in a fluid-conducting manner to the outlet of the fuel cell (1), and a control unit arrangement (25) for actuating the compressor (7) and the expander (11), where the expander shaft (13) and the compressor shaft (9) are mechanically decoupled from one another. Also disclosed is a control unit arrangement (25) configured to directly influence the operating state of the fuel cell system (100) by actuating the expander (11).
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2022
    Publication date: December 12, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Raphael Zwick, Arne Knoblauch
  • Publication number: 20240413364
    Abstract: A compressor system is provided for a fuel cell system having at least one compressor stage with an electric motor. The compressor stage is set up to suck in and compress an air mass flow along a fluid path using the motor and to discharge the compressed air mass flow as a reactant feed. The compressor system also has a control unit configured to determine a current for supplying the electric motor and a rotational speed of the electric motor or a frequency of the current of the electric motor. In addition, the control unit is configured to ascertain a theoretical air mass flow value in the fluid path as a function of the current and the speed or as a function of the current and the frequency, and to control the motor as a function of the theoretical air mass flow value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2022
    Publication date: December 12, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventor: Raphael Zwick
  • Publication number: 20240097167
    Abstract: A compressor arrangement for a fuel cell system, such as a vehicle fuel cell system, has at least one compressor stage configured to draw in a mass-flow of air, compress it, and deliver the compressed mass-flow. A compressor control system is configured to control the compressor stage, to be connected for signal exchange with a fuel cell control system, and to receive from the fuel cell control system control commands in the form of one or more reference variable signals. The reference variable signal contains a mass-flow target value signal, the compressor arrangement comprises a sensor arrangement with a mass-flow sensor for detecting the air mass-flow as a control variable. The compressor control system is connected for signal exchange with the sensor arrangement and is configured to generate a control signal for the compressor stage as a function of the control variable and the reference variable.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2022
    Publication date: March 21, 2024
    Applicant: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventor: Raphael Zwick
  • Patent number: 8876644
    Abstract: The pump unit has a pump and a hybrid drive. The pump comprises a pump housing and a pump shaft. The hybrid drive comprises an electric motor and a driveshaft connection to a driveshaft. The electric motor and the driveshaft connection are each in driving mechanical functional connection with the pump shaft by way of a planetary gearset for driving the pump shaft. A stator of the electric motor is at least partially integrated in the pump housing. A rotor of the electric motor is mechanically connected fixed to a sun gear of the planetary gearset. The driveshaft connection is mechanically connected fixed to a ring gear of the planetary gearset. The pump shaft is mechanically connected fixed to a planetary carrier of the planetary gearset.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2014
    Assignee: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Gernot Riegert, Raphael Zwick, Mario Harscher