Auxiliary heating system for vehicles
First Claim
1. A vehicle comprising:
- an ignition status signal with a Run state in which an engine of the vehicle is running and an Off state in which the engine is not running;
an auxiliary heater having a Parking mode for heating a passenger cabin of the vehicle when the ignition status signal is in the Off state;
an auxiliary heater controller having a user-configurable setting for selectably entering the Parking mode when the ignition status signal enters the Off state; and
a manual interface responsive to a user to provide user commands to the auxiliary heater controller including setting commands during the Run state for determining the user-configurable setting and a cancel command during the Off state for terminating the Parking mode.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An auxiliary heating system for a vehicle interacts with an ignition controller having a Run state in which an engine of the vehicle is running and an Off state in which the engine is not running. An auxiliary heater has a Parking mode for heating a passenger cabin of the vehicle when the ignition controller is in the Off state. An auxiliary heater controller has a user-configurable setting for selectably entering the Parking mode when the ignition controller enters the Off state. A manual interface is responsive to a user to provide user commands to the auxiliary heater controller including setting commands during the Run state for determining the user-configurable setting and a cancel command during the Off state for terminating the Parking mode.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A vehicle comprising:
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an ignition status signal with a Run state in which an engine of the vehicle is running and an Off state in which the engine is not running; an auxiliary heater having a Parking mode for heating a passenger cabin of the vehicle when the ignition status signal is in the Off state; an auxiliary heater controller having a user-configurable setting for selectably entering the Parking mode when the ignition status signal enters the Off state; and a manual interface responsive to a user to provide user commands to the auxiliary heater controller including setting commands during the Run state for determining the user-configurable setting and a cancel command during the Off state for terminating the Parking mode. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for auxiliary heating of a vehicle cabin, comprising:
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manually selecting an enabled or disabled setting for automatic heater parking activation; detecting initiation of an Off state by removal of an ignition key; initiating the heater parking activation to heat the cabin if the enabled setting is selected; monitoring a manual interface for a cancel command while the parking activation continues with the key removed; and terminating parking activation upon receiving a cancel command.
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13. A method of operating an auxiliary heater for a cabin of a vehicle, wherein the vehicle has an ignition controller with a Run state and an Off state, the method comprising:
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manually selecting an enabled or disabled setting for automatic activation of the auxiliary heater via a manual interface; detecting initiation of the Off state; activating a Parking mode of the auxiliary heater upon detection of the Off state if the enabled setting is selected, wherein the Parking mode comprises; checking for available energy for powering the auxiliary heater and a sufficiently cold temperature; turning on the auxiliary heater to heat the cabin if a sufficient available energy and a sufficiently cold temperature are detected; and turning off the auxiliary heater after a predetermined duration; monitoring the manual interface for a cancel command while the Parking mode and the Off state continue; and terminating the Parking mode upon receiving a cancel command. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification