| CPC B63G 8/001 (2013.01) [B60L 53/126 (2019.02); B60L 53/305 (2019.02); B60L 53/65 (2019.02); B60L 53/66 (2019.02); H01M 8/04201 (2013.01); B63G 2008/004 (2013.01)] | 21 Claims |
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9. An autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) 100, comprising:
an onboard computing system 150 comprising a processor, the computing system 150 comprising instructions executable by the processor to provide a system manager module 160;
a power system 120 configured to provide electric power to operating units of the AUV;
the power system 120 comprising a power generation subsystem 122 in electrical communication with a power storage subsystem 124, the power system 120 configured to operate in a charging cycle;
the power generation subsystem 122 comprising a fuel cell charging system 130, the fuel cell charging system 130 comprising an air breathing subsystem 140 changeable between an open condition and closed condition, in the open condition the air breathing subsystem 140 in open communication with atmospheric air when the AUV 100 is located at the ocean surface, the air breathing subsystem 140 comprising intake air passed into the AUV 100 from the external atmosphere, in the closed condition the air breathing subsystem 140 closed to prevent intake air from passing into the AUV 100 from the external atmosphere;
the fuel cell charging system 130 comprising an onboard supply of hydrogen gas 182 delivered to a fuel cell 132;
the fuel cell 132 receiving the intake air, the fuel cell 132 receiving the hydrogen gas, the fuel cell 132 configured to perform fuel cell process operation with the oxygen in the intake air and with the hydrogen gas, the fuel cell process operation generating electric energy and waste water output from the fuel cell 132;
the power storage subsystem 124 comprising a chargeable battery subsystem 136 configured to store electric energy output from the fuel cell 132; and
the system manager module 160 configured to control the AUV 100 to ascend to the surface from submerged operation to perform a charging period of the charging cycle, the system manager module 160 configured to control the AUV 100 to descend from the surface to submerged operation to perform a discharging period to power operations of the AUV 100,
hydrogen storage 182 volume independent of oxygen storage.
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