Heating system for vehicle switchable between non-contact and contact heating priority modes

• US 10,583,713 B2
• Filed: 05/26/2015
• Issued: 03/10/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Sagou, Yasuhiro, Kako, Hideaki, Ishikawa, Kimitake, Oide, Hiroyasu, Seki, Hideki
• Primary Examiner(s): Bosques, Edelmira
• Assistant Examiner(s): Decker, Phillip
• Application Number:
  US15/309,214
• Publication Number:
  US 20170080779A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,750 Days
• Field of Search: 237 2 R, 237 12, 237 2 A, 237 28
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00285 for vehicle seats vehicle seats with heating or ventilation means independent from the HVAC system of the vehicle B60N2/56
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00292 for steering wheels steering wheels with heating or ventilation means independent from the HVAC system of the vehicle B62D1/065
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/0073 Control systems or circuits characterised by particular algorithms or computational models, e.g. fuzzy logic or dynamic models
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/2215 the heat being derived from electric heaters
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/2218 controlling the operation of electric heaters
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/2226 Electric heaters using radiation
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/2227 Electric heaters incorporated in vehicle trim components, e.g. panels or linings
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 2001/224 automatic operation, e.g. control circuits or methods
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 2001/2243 manual operation, e.g. remote control or timer
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 2001/2265 related to the quantity of heat produced by the heater
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 2001/2293 Integration into other parts of a vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/88 Optimized components or subsystems, e.g. lighting, actively controlled glasses

Abstract

A heating system for a vehicle includes: a heater for non-contact heating that emits radiation heat by heat supplied from its heat generating part, which generates heat upon energization, to give warmth to an occupant in a state where a body of the occupant is not in contact with the heater; a heater for contact heating that generates heat upon energization to give warmth to the occupant in a state where the body of the occupant is in contact with the heater; and a control device that controls operations of the heater for contact heating and the heater for non-contact heating. The control device adjusts a heating output provided by the heater for contact heating and a heating output provided by the heater for non-contact heating, and controls the operations. Therefore, the occupant can enjoy a sense of heating that is not stereotypical, and achieve energy saving.

Claims

1. A heating system for a vehicle, the heating system being disposed in the vehicle to give warmth to an occupant of the vehicle and comprising:

a heater for non-contact heating that emits radiation heat by heat supplied from a heat generating part, which generates heat upon energization, to give warmth to the occupant by heating a first region of a body of the occupant that is not in contact with the heater for non-contact heating;

a heater for contact heating that generates heat upon energization to give warmth to the occupant by heating a second region the body of the occupant that is in contact with the heater for contact heating;

a control device that controls operations of the heater for contact heating and the heater for non-contact heating, wherein the control device adjusts a heating output provided by the heater for contact heating and a heating output provided by the heater for non-contact heating, and controls the operations to be switchable between;

a non-contact heating priority mode to make larger the heating output of the heater for non-contact heating than the heating output of the heater for contact heating; and

a contact heating priority mode to make larger the heating output of the heater for contact heating than the heating output of the heater for non-contact heating; and

a temperature detector that detects a temperature of each part of the body of the occupant, wherein

the control device is configured to

detect a lower-temperature region and a higher-temperature region of the body of the occupant based on the temperature of each part of the body of the occupant detected by the temperature detector,

determine whether the detected lower-temperature region corresponds to the first region or the second region of the body of the occupant,

control the heater for non-contact heating and the heater for contact heating to operate in the non-contact heating priority mode in response to determining that the detected lower-temperature region corresponds to the first region of the body of the occupant, and

control the heater for non-contact heating and the heater for contact heating to operate in the contact heating priority mode in response to determining that the detected lower-temperature region corresponds to the second region of the body of the occupant.

2. The heating system for the vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the temperature detector is an infrared sensor that detects infrared radiation emitted from the occupant and

the control device

analyzes by comparing the temperature detected from the each part of the body of the occupant, based on the infrared radiation emitted from the occupant, with each other to identify the lower-temperature region among the each part of the body of the occupant, and the higher-temperature region among the each part of the body of the occupant.

3. The heating system for the vehicle according to claim 1, wherein:

the first region is a foot part of an occupant of the vehicle, and

the second region is a trunk part or a buttock part of the occupant.

4. The heating system for the vehicle according to claim 1, wherein:

the control device is configured, in the non-contact heating priority mode, to control to restrict the heating output of the heater for contact heating to be lower than the heating output in a state immediately before entering into the non-contact heating priority mode, and

the control device is configured, in the contact heating priority mode, to control to restrict the heating output of the heater for non-contact heating to be lower than the heating output in a state immediately before entering into the contact heating priority mode.

5. The heating system for the vehicle according to claim 1, wherein:

the control device is configured, in the non-contact heating priority mode, not to operate the heating output of the heater for contact heating, and

the control device is configured, in the contact heating priority mode, not to operate the heating output of the heater for non-contact heating.

6. A heating system for a vehicle, comprising:

a heater for non-contact heating that emits radiation heat by heat supplied from a heat generating part, which generates heat upon energization, to give warmth to the occupant by heating a first region of a body of the occupant that is not in contact with the heater for non-contact heating;

a heater for contact heating that generates heat upon energization to give warmth to the occupant by heating a second region of the body of the occupant that is in contact with the heater for contact heating;

a control device that controls operations of the heater for contact heating and the heater for non-contact heating, wherein the control device adjusts a heating output provided by the heater for contact heating and a heating output provided by the heater for non-contact heating, and controls the operations to be switchable between;

a non-contact heating priority mode to make the heating output of the heater for non-contact heating larger than the heating output of the heater for contact heating; and

a contact heating priority mode to make the heating output of the heater for contact heating larger than the heating output of the heater for non-contact heating; and

a temperature detector that detects a temperature of a plurality of regions on the body of the occupant, wherein

the control device is configured to

compare the temperature detected from the plurality of regions on the body of the occupant to identify a lower-temperature region among the plurality of regions on the body of the occupant, and a higher-temperature region among the plurality of regions on the body of the occupant,

determine whether the identified lower-temperature region corresponds to the first region or the second region of the body of the occupant,

control the heater for non-contact heating and the heater for contact heating to operate in the non-contact heating priority mode in response to determining that the detected lower-temperature region corresponds to the first region of the body of the occupant, and

control the heater for non-contact heating and the heater for contact heating to operate in the contact heating priority mode in response to determining that the detected lower-temperature region corresponds to the second region of the body of the occupant.

7. The heating system for the vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the first region is a foot part of an occupant of the vehicle and the second region is a trunk part or a buttock part of the occupant.

8. The heating system for the vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the control device is configured to:

reduce the heating output of the heater for contact heating in the non-contact heating priority mode; and

reduce the heating output of the heater for non-contact heating in the contact heating priority mode.

9. The heating system for the vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the control device is configured not to operate the heater for contact heating in the non-contact heating priority mode and not to operate the heater for non-contact heating in the contact heating priority mode.