Vehicle air condition display device

• US 10,538,147 B2
• Filed: 03/17/2016
• Issued: 01/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/02/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Nakamura, Yuko, Yamamoto, Takeshi, Watanabe, Yoshinori
• Primary Examiner(s): Nieves, Nelson J
• Application Number:
  US15/562,629
• Publication Number:
  US 20180105023A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,405 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00871 Air directing means, e.g. blades in an air outlet construction of nozzles or air diffusers B60H1/34
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00985 Control systems or circuits characterised by display or indicating devices, e.g. voice simulators characterised by the input of sound using a voice synthesizer B60H1/00757; B60H1/00978 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/3414 with means for adjusting the air stream direction B60H1/345 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/345 with means for adjusting divergence, convergence or oscillation of air stream
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 37/00 Dashboards as road-vehicle superstructure sub-units B62D25/14
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 11/0229 for displays, e.g. cathodic tubes
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 11/0264 for control means

Abstract

A vehicle air condition display device used together with a vehicle air-conditioning apparatus includes a display unit and a display controller. The vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is capable of adjusting a direction of an air blown out from an outlet port in response to an operation made on an operation portion located away from the outlet port, and has a mechanism for adjusting a direction of the air blown out from the outlet port. The mechanism is located on upstream of the outlet port in a flow path of the air. The vehicle air condition display device includes a display unit disposed at a visually recognizable position from a driver'"'"'s seat in a vehicle compartment and a display controller displaying a direction of the air blown out from the outlet port on the display unit.

Claims

1. A vehicle air condition display device used together with a vehicle air-conditioning apparatus of a vehicle, wherein the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust a direction of an air blown out from an outlet port in response to an operation made on an operation portion located away from the outlet port, the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus has a louver for adjusting the direction of the air blown out from the outlet port, and the louver is located on upstream of the outlet port in a flow path of the air,

the vehicle air condition display device comprising:

a display disposed at a visually recognizable position from a driver'"'"'s seat in a vehicle compartment; and

a display controller displaying the direction of the air blown out from the outlet port on the display, wherein

the display controller displays a compartment image indicating the vehicle compartment on the display, and displays an air conditioning image indicating a state of an air conditioning provided by the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus in a superimposed manner on the compartment image at a position where the air conditioning is provided by the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus,

the display controller displays, as the air conditioning image, an air information image, which extends from the outlet port or from a periphery area of the outlet port in a blowing direction of the air, in the superimposed manner on the compartment image,

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust a degree of concentration and diffusion of the air blown out from the outlet port,

the air information image changes a width according to the degree of concentration and diffusion,

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust the direction of the air blown out from the outlet port to a direction heading a partial area selected from a face and peripheral area,

the face and peripheral area includes a face of a front seat occupant of the vehicle and a periphery area of the face of the front seat occupant,

the compartment image is a three-dimensional image showing the vehicle compartment viewed diagonally down from a rear part of the vehicle compartment,

in addition to the compartment image, the display controller displays, on the display, an air direction figure indicating a direction to which the air blown out from the outlet port is headed on the face and peripheral area in a superimposed manner on a face and peripheral area image,

the face and peripheral area image displayed on the display indicates the face and peripheral area of the front seat occupant viewed from a front side of the vehicle,

the vehicle is equipped with a camera detecting a face position of the front seat occupant, and

the display controller moves a position of a face image showing the face of the front seat occupant within the face and peripheral area image according to the face position of the front seat occupant detected by the camera.

2. The vehicle air condition display device according to claim 1, wherein

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust a volume of the air blown out from the outlet port, and

the air information image changes a length according to the volume of the air.

3. The vehicle air condition display device according claim 1, wherein

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus includes a plurality of outlet ports, including the outlet port,

the display controller displays a plurality of air information images, including the air information image, in the superimposed manner on the compartment image, and

each of the plurality of the air information images corresponds to the air blown out from each of the plurality of the outlet ports.

4. The vehicle air condition display device according to claim 1, wherein

the air conditioning image is displayed in a color corresponding to a temperature of the air conditioning provided by the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus.

5. The vehicle air condition display device according to claim 1, wherein

the display is positioned closer to a front side of the vehicle in the vehicle compartment compared with the operation portion.

6. A vehicle air condition display device used together with a vehicle air-conditioning apparatus of a vehicle, wherein the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust a direction of an air blown out from an outlet port in response to an operation made on an operation portion located away from the outlet port, the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus has a louver for adjusting the direction of the air blown out from the outlet port, and the louver is located on upstream of the outlet port in a flow path of the air,

the vehicle air condition display device comprising:

a display disposed at a visually recognizable position from a driver'"'"'s seat in a vehicle compartment; and

a display controller displaying the direction of the air blown out from the outlet port on the display, wherein

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust the direction of the air blown out from the outlet port to a direction heading a partial area selected from a face and peripheral area,

the face and peripheral area includes a face of a front seat occupant of the vehicle and a periphery area of the face of the front seat occupant,

the display controller displays, on the display, an air direction figure indicating a direction to which the air blown out from the outlet port is headed on the face and peripheral area in a superimposed manner on a face and peripheral area image,

the face and peripheral area image displayed on the display indicates the face and peripheral area of the front seat occupant viewed from a front side of the vehicle,

the vehicle is equipped with a camera detecting a face position of the front seat occupant, and

the display controller moves a position of an image showing the face of the front seat occupant within the face and peripheral area image according to the face position of the front seat occupant detected by the camera.

7. The vehicle air condition display device according to claim 6, wherein,

in addition to the face and peripheral area image on which the air direction figure is superimposed, the display controller displays a compartment image indicating the vehicle compartment on the display, and displays an air conditioning image indicating a state of an air conditioning provided by the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus in a superimposed manner on the compartment image at a position where the air conditioning is provided by the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus,

the compartment image is a three-dimensional image showing the vehicle compartment viewed diagonally down from a rear part of the vehicle compartment,

the display controller displays, as the air conditioning image, an air information image, which extends from the outlet port or from a periphery area of the outlet port in a blowing direction of the air, in the superimposed manner on the compartment image.

8. The vehicle air condition display device according to claim 7, wherein

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust a volume of the air blown out from the outlet port, and

the air information image changes a length according to the volume of the air.

9. The vehicle air condition display device according to claim 7, wherein

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to adjust a degree of concentration and diffusion of the air blown out from the outlet port, and

the air information image changes a width according to the degree of concentration and diffusion.

10. The vehicle air condition display device according to claim 7, wherein

the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus includes a plurality of outlet ports, including the outlet port,

the display controller displays a plurality of air information images, including the air information image, in the superimposed manner on the compartment image, and

each of the plurality of the air information images corresponds to the air blown out from each of the plurality of the outlet ports.