System And Method For Controlling Temperature In An Automotive Vehicle
First Claim
1. A system for controlling temperature in an automotive vehicle having a driver-side area, a front passenger-side area, and a climate control system with at least one interface to allow a user to select a driver-side temperature setting and a passenger-side temperature setting, the system comprising:
- a seat occupancy sensor at the front passenger-side area of the vehicle for generating a sensor signal indicative of passenger seat occupancy in the passenger-side area; and
at least one computer-based controller configured to respond to the sensor signal by executing software instructions stored in computer memory to control the climate control system of the vehicle;
wherein the climate control system distributes conditioned air according to the driver-side temperature setting to both the driver-side and passenger-side areas when the passenger-side area is unoccupied.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method is provided for controlling temperature in an automotive vehicle having a driver-side area, a front passenger-side area, and a climate control system with at least one interface. The interface allows a user to select a driver-side temperature setting and a passenger-side temperature setting. The system includes a seat occupancy sensor and at least one computer-based controller. In operation, the seat occupancy sensor generates a sensor signal indicative of passenger seat occupancy in the passenger-side area of the vehicle. Based on the sensor signal, the controller controls the climate control system. When the passenger-side area is unoccupied, the climate control system distributes conditioned air according to the driver-side temperature setting to both the driver-side and passenger-side areas.
15 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A system for controlling temperature in an automotive vehicle having a driver-side area, a front passenger-side area, and a climate control system with at least one interface to allow a user to select a driver-side temperature setting and a passenger-side temperature setting, the system comprising:
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a seat occupancy sensor at the front passenger-side area of the vehicle for generating a sensor signal indicative of passenger seat occupancy in the passenger-side area; and at least one computer-based controller configured to respond to the sensor signal by executing software instructions stored in computer memory to control the climate control system of the vehicle; wherein the climate control system distributes conditioned air according to the driver-side temperature setting to both the driver-side and passenger-side areas when the passenger-side area is unoccupied. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A system for controlling temperature in an automotive vehicle having a cabin compartment with a driver-side area and a front passenger-side area, the system comprising:
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a climate control system including at least one interface to allow a user to select a driver-side temperature setting for the driver-side area of the vehicle and a passenger-side temperature setting for the passenger-side area of the vehicle; a temperature sensor in the cabin compartment of the vehicle, the temperature sensor sensing a temperature in the cabin compartment and generating a temperature signal indicative of the temperature in the cabin compartment; a seat occupancy sensor at the front passenger-side area of the vehicle, the seat occupancy sensor generating a sensor signal indicative of passenger seat occupancy in the passenger-side area; and at least one computer-based controller including a processor operable to execute software instructions, a computer memory operable to store software instructions accessible by the processor, and a set of software instructions stored in the memory to determine the passenger seat occupancy based on the sensor signal, to determine the temperature in the passenger-side area based on the temperature signal, and to generate at least one control signal based on the passenger seat occupancy and the temperature signal to control the climate control system of the vehicle; wherein the climate control system distributes conditioned air according to the driver-side temperature setting to both the driver-side and passenger-side areas so long as the passenger seat occupancy indicates that the passenger-side area of the vehicle is unoccupied and until the controller determines that the temperature sensor has sensed a temperature within a threshold value of the driver-side temperature setting. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17)
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18. A method of controlling temperature in an automotive vehicle having a driver-side area and a front passenger-side area, the method comprising:
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receiving a sensor signal indicative of passenger seat occupancy in the passenger-side area; and determining the passenger seat occupancy based on the sensor signal; and generating at least one control signal based on the passenger seat occupancy to control distribution of conditioned air according to a driver-side temperature setting to both the driver-side and passenger-side areas of the vehicle when the passenger seat occupancy indicates that the passenger-side area is unoccupied. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification