Embedded controller design for portable fuel cell

This paper develops an embedded controller to elaborately monitor and manage critical operational parameters for high-reliability portable fuel cells. Specifically, a novel control strategy consisting of several concurrent control loops is proposed to raise the overall power generation efficiency and safety of the portable fuel cells. Based on low-power and low-cost Microchip 16-bit microprocessor (PIC18F4520), the elaborate embedded controller is successfully implemented and validated under various conditions. Experimental results verify the portable fuel cell based on the proposed embedded controller is feasible and practical.