Ventilation message display system and method for a vehicle
First Claim
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1. In a vehicle having a ventilation system with a recirculation mode, a message system for the vehicle comprising:
- a display device;
an HVAC sensor operable to generate a signal indicating whether the ventilation system is in the recirculation mode;
a control unit coupled to the HVAC sensor and the display device, the control unit being operable to receive the signal from the HVAC sensor, being operable to detect when the recirculation mode is active by monitoring the signal, and being operable to detect a first condition in which a predefined time period has elapsed while the HVAC system has been in the recirculation mode, and in response to detecting that the first condition is satisfied, being operable to generate the display of an alert message on the display device.
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Abstract
A ventilation display system determines when a ventilation system has remained in recirculation mode for a predefined time, and in response generates a stale air alert message inside the cab of a truck. The system can generate messages alerting the driver that the HVAC system has switched into recirculation mode, and alerting the driver that the recirculation mode has remained active for the predefined time. When equipped with a CO2 sensor, the system can generate air quality messages based on either the status of the recirculation mode or the level of CO2 in the cab of the truck or both.
34 Citations
12 Claims
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1. In a vehicle having a ventilation system with a recirculation mode, a message system for the vehicle comprising:
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a display device; an HVAC sensor operable to generate a signal indicating whether the ventilation system is in the recirculation mode; a control unit coupled to the HVAC sensor and the display device, the control unit being operable to receive the signal from the HVAC sensor, being operable to detect when the recirculation mode is active by monitoring the signal, and being operable to detect a first condition in which a predefined time period has elapsed while the HVAC system has been in the recirculation mode, and in response to detecting that the first condition is satisfied, being operable to generate the display of an alert message on the display device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. In a truck with a cab and an HVAC system with a recirculation mode to recirculate air through the cab, a message display system comprising:
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a CO2 sensor operable to sense CO2 level inside the cab and operable to generate a first signal indicating that the CO2 level has reached a predefined threshold; a HVAC sensor operable to generate a second signal indicating whether the HVAC system is in the recirculation mode; an instrumentation control unit including a display device and an input device; the instrumentation control unit being in communication with the CO2 sensor to receive the first signal, the instrumentation control unit being operable to monitor the first signal from the CO2 sensor to detect whether the CO2 level in the cab has exceeded the predefined threshold, and being operable to generate a first warning message in response to receiving the first signal; and the instrumentation control unit also being in communication with the HVAC sensor to receive the second signal, the instrumentation control unit being operable to monitor the second signal from the HVAC sensor to detect whether the HVAC system is in recirculation mode, being operable to keep track of elapsed time when the recirculation mode is active, and being operable to generate a second warning message when the HVAC system has remained in recirculation mode for a predefined time.
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8. In a cab of a truck having a ventilation system that recirculates air in the cab in a recirculation mode, a method for monitoring air quality and generating air quality messages, the method comprising:
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monitoring a ventilation system control circuit to detect when the ventilation system is placed in the recirculation mode; detecting when the ventilation system is placed in recirculation mode; tracking the elapsed time that the ventilation system is in the recirculation mode; and when the elapsed time reaches or exceeds an activating time, displaying a stale air alert message in the cab of the truck. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12)
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Specification