CN116057740A - Method for detecting at least one critical situation of a fuel cell - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for detecting at least one critical state (SS) of a fuel cell (100), comprising the following steps: at least one operating parameter (BP) of the fuel cell (100) is monitored, the monitored at least one operating parameter (BP) is compared with a critical parameter (SP) of a critical database (SD), the monitored operating parameter (BP) is associated with a critical state (SS) from the critical database (SD) on the basis of the comparison, and the associated critical state (SS) is output by means of an output module (50).

Description

Method for detecting at least one critical situation of a fuel cell

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a method for identifying at least one critical situation of a fuel cell, an identification device for performing such a method and a computer program product for performing such a method.

Background

It is known that fuel cells operate under different operating conditions. In addition to operating as stably as possible, there are phases of start-up, shut-down or phases with low or no load conditions and phases with dynamic load changes. Depending on the current operating phase, the respective operating parameters represent different load conditions of the fuel cell. In a known possible design, the fuel cell is operated at the inspection station under different operating conditions. The work on the test bench allows the permanent load of the fuel cell to be determined by testing and the individual components of the fuel cell to be subsequently designed in accordance with the identified load and the adjustment concept to be developed for the subsequent application work of the fuel cell. Here, it may be a component of an individual fuel cell, such as its membrane or its catalyst, and/or a component of a fuel cell system, such as its air compressor or its humidification unit.

A disadvantage of the known solutions is that although monitoring of the operating parameters of the fuel cell takes place at the inspection station, no additional information about possible damage to the fuel cell can be monitored. In contrast, the fuel cell is at least partially damaged during operation on the test stand, in order to obtain information about the damage and to identify and avoid or delay this damage during subsequent operation of the fuel cell at the application site. The test costs are high.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the present invention is to at least partially eliminate the abovementioned disadvantages. The object of the invention is in particular to monitor the damage status of a fuel cell in a manner that is as simple as possible in order to reduce and/or avoid damage.

The above-mentioned object is achieved by a method having the features of claim 1, an identification device having the features of claim 12 and a computer program product having the features of claim 15. Other features and details of the invention come from the dependent claims, the description and the figures. The features and details described in relation to the method according to the invention are also obviously applicable in relation to the identification device according to the invention and the computer program product according to the invention, and vice versa, so that the disclosure concerning these inventive aspects is always cross-referenced or cross-referenced.

According to the invention, a method is used for identifying critical conditions of a fuel cell. The method comprises the following steps:

monitoring at least one operating parameter of the fuel cell,

comparing the monitored at least one operating parameter with critical parameters of a critical database,

correspondingly assigning the monitored operating parameters to critical conditions from a critical database based on the comparison,

-outputting the corresponding critical condition by means of an output module.

The method of the present invention is based on known monitoring of fuel cell operating parameters. Such an operating parameter may be, for example, an electrical operating parameter such as the current or the corresponding operating voltage of the fuel cell or the individual fuel cell modules. However, other operating parameters, such as the throughput of the respective operating gas and/or its gas composition, temperature, pressure, etc., may also be acquired as operating parameters. In principle, the operating parameters in the sense of the present invention are in particular parameters which are measurable directly and/or indirectly on the fuel cell and/or the fuel cell system.

If the method according to the invention is preferably used on an inspection bench of a fuel cell, in particular as many operating parameters as possible are acquired in order to obtain a maximally thorough simulation of the operating conditions and the corresponding critical conditions in the fuel cell. In this case, sensors for measuring operating parameters which are present in the fuel cell system can be used. It is also possible to provide additional sensors as part of the identification means to base the inventive method on a more comprehensive profile containing more operating parameters.

In the known solutions, the measured operating parameters are monitored manually in order to infer possible fuel cell damage during operation on the test table by manual analysis of the fuel cell system after the test run, while the method according to the invention is based on further processing of the monitored operating parameters during the test run, i.e. during operation on the test table. The monitored operating parameters are now associated with the critical parameters of the critical database. In other words, the method of the present invention uses a critical database in which there is a relationship between the operating condition and the critical condition.

For example, reaching the no-load voltage (as a result of an excessively low load condition (no-load mode)) is a load condition of the fuel cell. Such a low-load situation can be identified on the basis of electrical operating parameters, in this case for example a no-load voltage. In order to identify the respective load situation, the operating parameter, in this case the corresponding low electrical load situation, is compared with a threshold parameter, in this case a corresponding limit value for the electrical operating parameter. Thus, if the monitored electrical operating parameter in this example exceeds the limit value for the relevant electrical critical parameter, the operating condition is assigned a corresponding associated critical condition from the critical database by the method according to the invention. In the sense of the present invention, a critical parameter in principle means a limit value for the operating parameter associated therewith. If, for example, a voltage is detected as an operating parameter, the respective detected voltage value is compared with a limit value in the form of a critical parameter. An evaluation of the measured operating parameters in relation to the critical parameters can thus be carried out. Exceeding the limit value may then trigger the allocation of the critical condition, whereas the allocation of the critical condition is not performed while the limit value is being observed. Critical conditions can thus be identified and output automatically based on the measured operating parameters.

Within the scope of the present invention, the critical conditions are in principle any form of mechanical, electrical, physical, chemical and/or other form of load which is higher than the normal load in the normal operation of the fuel cell. For example, the critical condition may be the physical load of a membrane within the fuel cell. If, for example, a pressure differential exists between the two sides of the diaphragm, the pressure differential causes the thermal barrier film to deform and thereby physically critical. For conditions where critical conditions are maintained for a certain period of time, the result may be reversible and/or irreversible damage to the respective associated component. The possible lesions will also be explained in detail later with respect to the lesion type and critical time period.

In this context, it is preferable in the sense of the invention that a plurality of different critical situations are present in the critical database. This means that at least one critical parameter is stored in the critical database, for example in the form of a table, for at least one critical situation, which represents a limit between normal operation and critical operation for a specific critical situation. Thus, whether or not a respective critical condition exists is indicated by comparing the measured operating parameter with at least one critical parameter in a critical database according to the present invention. It may be a one-dimensional relationship, but may also be a multidimensional and/or complex relationship. The operating parameters and/or the critical parameters can also be stored in the critical database in several times for different critical situations. The critical conditions may also relate to individual components of the fuel cell. For example, a particular critical condition may be excessive loading of the membrane within the fuel cell. Overload of the diaphragm may, for example, lead to mechanical damage to the diaphragm, thinning or cracking of the diaphragm. Such critical conditions can now be identified and assigned by monitoring of the operating parameters and comparison with the critical parameters.

Another possible way of critical situation is for example the chemical and/or physical loading of the catalyst material arranged in the fuel cell. Thus, for example, a chemical change of the catalyst, which is reversible or irreversible, can take place under the corresponding operating parameters. The threshold state corresponding to the chemical change state of the catalyst can be assigned by comparison with the threshold parameter according to the operating parameter.

Based on the above explanation, it can be seen that many distinct and mutually independent critical conditions can be identified independently of the actual measured operating parameters. However, as will be explained further below, it is also possible to consider the relationships of the individual critical situations, i.e. the lateral relationships between critical situations, critical parameters and/or operating parameters. For example, it is possible to identify different critical situations on the basis of the operating parameters and the associated critical parameters. If, for example, the operating voltage of an individual fuel cell drops below a minimum value, this may lead to a comparison with two or more corresponding limit values of the critical parameter and thus also two or more critical conditions may be identified. The core idea of the invention is here again clearly seen in that, in particular, the relationship between the monitoring of the operating parameters and their adverse effects on the fuel cell is identified and provided to the user of the method according to the invention.

As a result, the critical condition to which the correspondence belongs is outputted by the method of the present invention. Unlike the known solutions, it is now no longer necessary to damage or deliberately damage the fuel cell during operation on the inspection table. In contrast, it is sufficient if during operation on the inspection station, the measured operating parameters can be detected by the corresponding assignment to the critical situation and output to the operator of the inspection station.

In addition to the application on the inspection station, it is also pointed out that the method according to the invention can obviously also be used in the active normal operation of a fuel cell in order to improve the regulation of the fuel cell, in particular in the form of control or regulation. Significant advantages are achieved in particular when, on the basis of the method steps according to the invention, corresponding control mechanisms for the fuel cell are established on the test bench and are implemented for normal operation.

It is also to be noted that the method of the invention is in principle applicable to any form of fuel cell. In particular, fuel cell system systems in SOFC configuration or PEM configuration may be used in the use of the method of the present invention.

The method according to the invention is in particular a very flexible extended development tool, in particular outside the fuel cell system, which is relevant for dangerous operating conditions and damage notices. From the prior art, a different fixed, integrated solution in a fuel cell system is known, the purpose of which is to directly influence the operation of the fuel cell system, in order to thereby reduce or avoid damage.

In particular, a plurality of operating parameters are used, monitored and distributed in the method according to the invention. The operating parameters are preferably also flexible to expand.

The advantage is provided when the corresponding critical situation in the method according to the invention is output together with the result of the comparison of the operating parameters and the critical parameters by means of the output module. In principle, it is sufficient in the method according to the invention for the result to contain information about critical situations, i.e. for example, the currently active damage scenario. But for further evaluation the additional information is significant to the operator. Thus, for example, a relationship between the currently measured operating parameter and the corresponding critical parameter in the form of a limit value that is available in this way is helpful. Thus, it is possible to recognize qualitatively that a predetermined corresponding critical situation exists, and to evaluate the critical situation quantitatively, either manually or automatically. Thus, for example, in this embodiment, it can be detected whether an operating parameter exceeds a limit value in the form of a critical parameter only by a small difference or exceeds a corresponding limit value. In many critical situations, the extent to which the limit value is exceeded is generally linked to the extent of the damaging effect in such application situations. This therefore allows a better and clearer identification of the respective control relationships associated with the respective critical situations, not only qualitatively, but also quantitatively, when the fuel cell is operating on the inspection table. This is used in particular in combination with a limit overrun time in the form of a critical time period, as will be explained further below.

Advantages are also achieved when in the method according to the invention at least one control recommendation is output by means of the output module for the critical situation associated with the respective assignment in order to exclude and/or mitigate the critical situation. Here, the regulatory recommendation can also be designed not only qualitatively, but also quantitatively. The regulation recommendation here also uses a critical database and in particular uses the lateral correlation between the different critical situations already mentioned. In general, regulatory recommendations in the sense of the present invention are generally proposals for regulatory interventions for bringing one or more operating parameters back into the allowable limit range. In the simplest case, the control recommendation is output, for example, when the limit value for the electrical critical parameter is below, in order to increase the corresponding electrical operating parameter so that the limit value for the critical parameter is again above. This allows, in a qualitative way, the corresponding critical conditions identified by this way to be relieved again by changing the fuel cell operation. However, if the transverse dependence is additionally also taken into account, it is also possible in an indirect manner to produce an influence in the form of a control intervention, for example as a result of a change in the physical operating parameters of the fuel cell, which likewise or better influences the alleviation or elimination of the critical situation. Apart from the active control interventions recommended by means of such control, it is possible here to identify not only the hazard relationship between the working situation and the critical situation, but also in which way the personnel on the inspection station avoid the critical situation in the future or how the influence of the critical situation can be excluded or reduced when present. This allows to enhance the understanding of the way in which the fuel cell works in relation to possible critical conditions and in this way to improve the design of the various constituent parts of the fuel cell and to develop an optimized control system for the normal operation of the fuel cell.

It is also noted that the method of the present invention is independent of the actual configuration of the fuel cell. The damage mechanism and thus the relation between the operating parameters, the critical parameters and the critical database are therefore preferably universally applicable to the very different configurations of the fuel cell. This allows the inventive method to be used with very different fuel cell configurations without adaptation or with only minor adjustments to individual values. This is particularly permitted in that, in addition to the critical parameters based on the physical model, the characteristic model and the sensitivity model of the fuel cell are also empirically determined and stored in a critical database. Accordingly, the inspection station equipped with the method according to the invention can thus be used flexibly and universally for different variants of different fuel cells and in this way brings the advantages according to the invention for a number of different inspection situations and different objects to be inspected.

In the method according to the invention, advantages are also achieved if the damage type is output by means of the output module in accordance with the associated critical situation. In general, the type of damage refers to the form of damage caused by operation under critical conditions. It may be a reversible and/or irreversible injury. If, for example, critical conditions are associated with the fuel cell membrane load, the risk of delamination of the membrane can be output as a type of damage, for example. Another type of damage under higher fuel cell membrane loads is, for example, membrane thinning or the occurrence of cracks or nicks in the membrane. The critical situation can thus correspond not only to the respective component under load, but also to the type of damage that may be present or that is likely to occur when further operation is performed under the current critical situation. This also allows for a greater degree of awareness to be provided for use by an operator on the inspection station. In particular, a quantitative risk assessment can thus also be achieved, which allows the operator to assess different critical conditions with respect to the associated damage type and the consequent risk of fuel cell loading. This type of damage may also be referred to as a critical condition fingerprint. This type of damage is in particular a measurable and/or provable type of damage and can occur in addition to the already described delamination of the catalyst or its thinning as well as in the form of a physical and/or chemical structural change of the catalyst. One type of damage that may occur is also the undesirable generation of gases, the undesirable generation of liquids, or the undesirable release of metal ions in the fuel cell.

Advantages are also provided when in the method according to the invention, in particular by means of the monitoring module, a critical time period is measured in which a fuel cell is in at least one critical state. The critical time period in the sense of the present invention is here a measurable time period during which the fuel cell is operated in critical conditions. The critical time period thus begins when the permissible limit range is exceeded by the respective critical parameter being a limit value and ends as soon as the associated operating parameter again enters the permissible limit range. The critical time period may thus also consist of a plurality of individual critical time periods. The critical time period is preferably specific to a critical situation, in particular to a certain type of damage. Each different critical time period may thus be acquired for a different type of lesion. This allows to ensure that the wear time of the respective load components of the fuel cell can be measured during the critical period. Thus, with respect to the multiple-mentioned diaphragm thinning example, operating conditions at critical conditions of diaphragm damage result, during operating modes at such critical conditions, higher diaphragm loads result in thinning thereof. Depending on the starting thickness of the membrane, this mode of operation can thus be performed for different periods of time until the membrane becomes thin so that it cracks or punctures. If the critical time period is now monitored in a quantitative manner, a quantitative description can be made of the duration required before the occurrence of the associated damage type in the respective critical situation. This is important in particular when it is desired to infer the normal operation and accordingly information about how the corresponding membrane thickness should be designed for the normal operation and the usual total operating time of the fuel cell is required. Additional information is thus also obtained in a quantitative manner, which brings about significant advantages when designing the constituent parts of the fuel cell and/or when designing the corresponding control algorithm.

It is also advantageous if in the method according to the invention the comparison of the operating parameters, in particular in the comparison module, with the critical parameters is performed in a quantitative manner. In addition to being above or below the limit value as critical parameter in principle, this also results in the deviation effect allowing a corresponding determination of the damage condition to be quantified in a quantitative manner. In particular, this quantitative comparison is correlated with the critical time in the preceding paragraph. This allows determining the extent of damage, which quantitatively considers not only the period of time of the critical condition, but also the extent of damage of the critical condition. Comparison with maximum load limits, in particular maximum load limits that are non-regenerative, allows irreversible fuel cell damage to be identified from such critical conditions and correspondingly recorded, reduced or even avoided.

In the method according to the invention, it is also advantageous if at least one lateral influence on the further critical parameter and/or the further critical situation is taken into account, in particular in the assignment module for the respective critical situation. This lateral influence can also be understood as a lateral relation between critical conditions. The chemical loading of the catalyst may, for example, additionally be that of a membrane. Such a double loading results in a corresponding correlation of two or more critical conditions together with corresponding damage types from the operating parameters, for example the chemical concentration values of the gas components. It is also possible that the lateral influence mutually enhances the critical condition of the fuel cell. It is also possible to identify the critical mechanism of balancing actions in the same critical database by a combination of the associations. Thus, for example, it is conceivable that a damage condition for one critical condition provides a balancing effect on another critical condition. Such extremely complex relationships based on distinct fuel cell operating conditions can only be identified by using the method of the present invention, since they provide said relationships to the operator of the inspection station by outputting the corresponding critical conditions to which they belong. The actual state of the critical condition of the fuel cell is thus fully represented, compared to the independent view according to the known manual method.

Advantages are also brought about when the comparison and/or assignment step does not use a neuronal network in the method of the invention. In particular, they do not use artificial intelligence, but are based on algorithms, in particular physical and chemical relationships. They are formed by the experience of the fuel cell builder and stored in the critical database as an association in the form of critical parameters according to the empirical values. The existing knowledge of the relationship is thus stored in the comparison and distribution step without using a neuronal network. It is possible, however, to use a neural network, for example as an information source and/or training data, for creating the critical database.

Advantages may also be brought about when the method steps are repeated in the method according to the invention periodically, in particular continuously. The method according to the invention is preferably used for continuous monitoring of fuel cells, in particular on an inspection bench. This allows the fuel cell to be placed in very different operating conditions and to simulate the future normal operating mode accordingly on the inspection bench. This in turn allows information from the operation on the inspection table to be used to design the individual components of the fuel cell in an improved manner and to design regulatory mechanisms for the proper operation of the fuel cell from a regulatory technology point of view.

Further advantages are obtained when in the method of the invention the at least one operating parameter and/or critical parameter is adjusted with one or more weighting coefficients at the time of the comparison and/or the allocation. This allows the results of the inventive method to be adapted to different application situations. The adjustment by means of the weighting factors can be performed automatically by this method, for example on the basis of individual operating parameters. Manual adjustment by an operator may also be implemented. The effect is here adjustable in the same way as in the basic algorithm already described. In other words, in this way, different load conditions can be provided not only by appropriate adjustment of the operation on the test table, but also in terms of evaluation by the method according to the invention by means of the weight coefficients adjusted accordingly.

It may further be advantageous in the method according to the invention to carry out a determination of at least one damage on the fuel cell, wherein a comparison of a certain damage to the outputted critical situation and an adjustment of the critical database are carried out. In principle, the method of the invention is based on the existing knowledge of the relationship between critical conditions, critical parameters and operating parameters. At the end of the inspection process on the inspection table, however, a manual inspection can be performed as to whether the fuel cell actually has been damaged due to the actual manner of operation on the inspection table. The damage conditions that occur are now compared with certain expected damage conditions based on the execution of the method according to the invention. Deviations and confirmations of certain damage conditions may lead to an adjustment of the critical database, so that the critical database and the associations it contains are always further improved during the use of the method according to the invention. There is thus feedback on the critical database which provides a preferably continuous learning for the method of the invention.

Another subject of the invention is an identification device for identifying at least one critical condition of a fuel cell. The identification device has a monitoring module for monitoring at least one operating parameter of the fuel cell. In addition, a comparison module is provided for comparing the monitored at least one operating parameter with a critical parameter of the critical database. Furthermore, the identification device has an allocation module for allocating the operating parameter to be monitored to the critical situation from the critical database based on the comparison. Finally, the identification device also has an output module for outputting the associated critical situation. The inventive monitoring module, the inventive comparison module, the inventive distribution module and/or the inventive output module are preferably designed here for carrying out the inventive method. These modules may be part of a separate checking device, for example independent of the fuel cell or the controller of the fuel cell, but may alternatively be integrated into the fuel cell in the form of a separate stack or into the entire fuel cell system, for example in the form of an integrated fuel cell controller.

Advantages can be brought about when the monitoring module in the identification device according to the invention has its own sensor element separate from the fuel cell. The monitoring module is thus able to collect its own operating parameters which have not yet been measured by the fuel cell itself. Such identification devices are used in particular on inspection tables for fuel cells.

It may also be advantageous in the identification device according to the invention for the monitoring module to have at least one sensor element as part of the fuel cell. This allows a sensor that uses a fuel cell, so that the identification device can be designed more cheaply and simply. In particular, in the case of detection of operating parameters in inaccessible sections of the fuel cell, such operating parameters can be taken into account in the method according to the invention in this way.

Another subject of the invention is a computer program product comprising instructions which, when the computer runs the program, cause the computer to carry out the steps of the method of the invention. The computer program product of the invention thus brings about the same advantages as explicitly described in connection with the method of the invention.

The identification means may advantageously be integrated in, for example, a standard controller of the vehicle.

Drawings

Other advantages, features and details of the invention come from the following description of embodiments of the invention with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 shows an embodiment of the method of the invention,

figure 2 shows another embodiment of the method of the invention,

figure 3 shows a further embodiment of the method of the invention,

figure 4 shows another embodiment of the method of the invention,

figure 5 shows a graphical representation of the course of the critical situation,

figure 6 shows a combination of different operating parameters,

fig. 7 shows an embodiment of the identification device of the present invention.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 schematically shows the process of the method according to the invention. Here a fuel cell 100 is provided in a schematic manner. It may be a separate fuel cell, a fuel cell stack or an entire fuel cell system. By means of a plurality of individual sensor elements 22, an operating parameter BP for the current operating conditions of the fuel cell 100 can be acquired. Such an operating parameter BP may in particular be an electrical operating parameter BP, a chemical operating parameter BP and/or a physical operating parameter BP. The sensor element 22 may be part of the fuel cell 100, but alternatively of the individual identification appliance 10.

The monitored and measured operating parameter BP is now supplied to the identification means 10. In particular in the form of a table or in the form of a model or a neuronal network, a critical database SD is provided in which the association between the operating parameters BP, the critical parameters SP and the critical conditions SS can be identified. The measured operating parameter BP is now associated with the critical parameter SP. The critical parameter SP is preferably a limit value below or above which the critical situation SS is associated as "present". It is therefore preferred to make a comparison with at least one critical parameter SP at least once for each operating parameter BP. However, advantages may also be brought about when two or more operating parameters BP are compared with two or more critical parameters SP associated accordingly to use in this way also a more complex association with one or more critical conditions SS in combination.

The result of the execution of the method according to the invention in fig. 1 is that the critical situation SS is now output, so that the operator of the inspection station for the fuel cell 100 obtains, in particular in a intuitively understandable manner, not only the operating parameters BP that can be interpreted manually, but also pre-interpretation results in the form of at least one critical situation SS. The result in the form of a critical situation SS can now be the basis for the further mode of operation of the fuel cell 100 on the inspection bench. But is advantageous in particular when this information is then taken into account correspondingly in designing the constituent components of the fuel cell 100 and/or in generating regulatory mechanisms for the normal operation of the fuel cell 100.

Fig. 2 shows a modification of the embodiment of fig. 1. Here, in addition to the critical situation SS, a correlation between the respective operating parameter BP and the associated critical parameter SP is also output. In particular, a quantization difference between the measured operating parameter BP or the associated critical parameter SP is also output here. This allows not only the principle existence of critical situations SS to be identified, but also the degree of quantitative association, i.e. the elevation of the associated critical parameter, to be demonstrated.

In the method according to fig. 3, in addition to the critical situation SS, a regulation recommendation KE is also output. Only the regulatory recommendation KE may be output to provide additional information to the operator as an intuitively understandable feature. However, the regulation recommendation KE can also be fed back into the current regulation mechanism of the fuel cell 100 in order to, inter alia, eliminate the identified critical situation SS or at least reduce its effect.

In fig. 4, an output damage type SA is added in addition to the critical state SS. As already explained, critical conditions SS may lead to different damage types SA. For example, higher internal pressures may create mechanical damage to the diaphragm. It is therefore a critical condition SS of the membrane with a damage type SA that cracks under overpressure. Another critical condition SS for the membrane is, for example, a load caused by chemical influence, which may cause the membrane to become thin. This thinning will also in extreme cases lead to cracking or perforation of the membrane, but here is a different type of damage SA than when bursting at overpressure.

Fig. 5 schematically shows the monitoring of the course of the operating parameter BP, in particular when the method according to the invention is used continuously. The time profile of the operating parameter BP is shown in fig. 5, which, in dependence on the associated critical parameter SP, is below the limit value of the critical parameter SP in a critical time period SZ. The critical time period SZ is monitored, output and in particular stored. If the operating parameter BP is below the limit value of the critical parameter SP a plurality of times, the individual critical time periods SZ may be added up to the entire critical time period. The definition of the critical time period SZ and its monitoring allows to identify the duration during which the fuel cell 100 is located in the respective critical condition SS. In particular, it can be distinguished in this way whether the fuel cell 100 is only temporarily in a critical state SS or a long-term load can lead to permanent damage of the fuel cell 100.

Fig. 6 shows that the method of the invention can also take into account more complex correlations. Thus, for example, a combination of the two operating parameters BP with the respective associated critical parameters SP can be achieved. It is also possible to influence QB laterally, so that the same operating parameter BP can be compared, for example, with two different limit values for different critical parameters SP. Alternatively or additionally, it is possible to combine the two operating parameters BP and the respective comparison with the particular associated critical parameter SP into a critical state SS. This critical situation SS can now also have a lateral influence QB on the other critical situation SS.

Fig. 7 schematically shows the structure of the identification appliance 10 of the present invention again. It is equipped with a monitoring module 20 which, by means of one or more sensor elements 22, can acquire and monitor an operating parameter BP. Next, in the comparison module 30, a comparison of the operating parameters BP with the critical parameters SP in the critical database SD is carried out as already described. The critical conditions SS may be dispatched from the critical database SD by means of the dispatch module 40 and subsequently output by the output module 50. These processes are the same as explained herein with reference to the previous figures. Such a recognition device is preferably designed at least in part as a computer program and is implemented on a corresponding computer.

The above description of embodiments describes the invention only within the scope of examples.

List of reference numerals

10. Identification device

20. Monitoring module

22. Sensor element

30. Comparison module

40. Distribution module

50. Output module

100. Fuel cell

SS critical condition

SA lesion type

sZ critical time period

BP operation parameter

SP critical parameter

SD critical database

KE regulatory recommendations

QB lateral influence

Claims (15)

1. A method for identifying at least one critical condition (SS) of a fuel cell (100), having the steps of:

monitoring at least one operating parameter (BP) of the fuel cell (100),

comparing the monitored at least one operating parameter (BP) with a critical parameter (SP) of a critical database (SD),

based on the comparison, the monitored operating parameter (BP) is assigned to a critical state (SS) from the critical database (SD),

-outputting the associated critical condition (SS) by means of an output module (50).

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the associated critical situation (SS) is output together with the result of the comparison of the operating parameter (BP) and the critical parameter (SP) by means of the output module (50).

3. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, with respect to the associated critical situation (SS), at least one regulatory recommendation (KE) is output by means of the output module (50) for eliminating and/or reducing the critical situation (SS).

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the damage type (SA) is output by means of the output module (50) in association with the associated critical situation (SS).

5. The method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a critical time period (SZ) during which the fuel cell (100) is in at least one critical state (SS) is detected, in particular by means of the monitoring module (20).

6. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the operating parameter (BP) is compared quantitatively with the critical parameter (SP), in particular in a comparison module (30).

7. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one transverse influence (QB) on the further critical parameter (SP) and/or the further critical condition (SS) is taken into account, in particular when the corresponding assignment is made in the assignment module (50) for the critical condition (SS).

8. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the comparison and/or the allocation step does not use a neuronal network.

9. The method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the method steps are repeated in a periodic manner, in particular in a continuous manner.

10. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one operating parameter (BP) and/or the critical parameter (SP) is/are adjusted using one or more weighting coefficients at the time of the comparison and/or the allocation.

11. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one damage on the fuel cell (100) is determined, wherein a certain damage is compared with the outputted critical situation (S) and the critical database (SD) is adjusted.

12. An identification device (10) for identifying at least one critical situation (SS) of a fuel cell (100), comprising a monitoring module (20) for monitoring at least one operating parameter (BP) of the fuel cell (100), a comparison module (30) for comparing the monitored at least one operating parameter (BP) with critical parameters (SP) of a critical database (SD), an allocation module (40) for allocating the monitored operating parameter (BP) to a critical situation (SS) from the critical database (SD) in dependence on the comparison, and an output module (50) for outputting the corresponding critical situation (SS).

13. The identification device (10) according to claim 12, characterized in that the monitoring module (20) has its own sensor element (22) separate from the fuel cell (100).

14. The identification device (10) of claim 12, wherein the monitoring module (20) has at least one sensor element (22) as part of the fuel cell (100).

15. A computer program product comprising instructions which when run by a computer cause the computer to perform the steps of a method having the features of one of claims 1 to 11.

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