Vehicle seat air-conditioner and vehicle temperature controller

• US 7,828,050 B2
• Filed: 08/26/2005
• Issued: 11/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/02/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Esaki, Hidenori
• Primary Examiner(s): Ciric; Ljiljana (Lil) V
• Application Number:
  US11/213,594
• Publication Number:
  US 20060060344A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,901 Days
• Field of Search: 165/41, 165/42, 165/43, 165/44, 165/202, 165/203, 165/204, 165/287, 622/44, 297/180.11, 297/180.12, 297/180.13, 297/180.14, 297/180.1
• US Class Current: 165/202
• 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 2001/003 Component temperature regulation using an air flow
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/5628 coming from the vehicle ventilation system, e.g. air-conditioning system
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/5635 coming from the passenger compartment
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/5825 by hooks, staples, clips, snap fasteners or the like

Abstract

A vehicle seat air-conditioner includes a seat on which an occupant sits, a seat temperature adjustment device that adjusts the temperature of a conditioned gas, a blower that supplies the conditioned gas to the seat, a seat covering layer provided on a surface of the seat and facing the seated occupant, and a flow channel provided on an underside of the seat covering layer that pass the conditioned gas that is introduced by the blower. The vehicle seat air-conditioner is adapted to convey heat of the conditioned gas to an occupant side of the seat covering layer by directly blowing out a portion of the introduced conditioned gas to the occupant side of the seat covering layer, and to perform heat exchange with the occupant side of the seat covering layer by circulating a portion of a remainder of the conditioned gas through the flow channel.

Claims

1. A vehicle seat air-conditioner, comprising:

a seat adapted to receive an occupant;

a seat temperature adjustment device that adjusts a temperature of a conditioned gas;

a blower that supplies the conditioned gas to the seat;

a seat covering layer defining an outer surface of the seat;

a cushion body that is covered by the seat covering layer, said seat covering layer being pulled into a tack groove provided in said cushion body so as to be fixed;

a flow channel defined by a space between said cushion body and said seat covering layer, and extending along a surface of said seat, said flow channel receiving the conditioned gas from the blower, and,

a blow-out hole formed in said seat covering layer and connected to said flow channel, the conditioned gas flowing through said flow channel being blown out through said blow-out hole toward the occupant, wherein

said seat covering layer conveys heat of the conditioned gas flowing through said flow channel to the occupant, and

the vehicle seat air-conditioner is adapted to convey heat from the conditioned gas to the occupant by either;

directly blowing out the conditioned gas to the occupant, or

performing heat exchange between the conditioned gas flowing through said flow channel and the occupant via said seat covering layer.

2. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of blow-out holes which are formed in said seat covering layer, wherein

an opening area of the blow-out holes in a sitting region of said seat covering layer varies with a surface pressure distribution therein, wherein said surface pressure distribution is due to sitting of the occupant on said sitting region.

3. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 2, further comprising:

an induction passage fluidly connected to the flow channel to supply the conditioned gas to the flow channel; and

a discharge passage fluidly connected to the flow channel to remove the conditioned gas from the flow channel, wherein the discharge passage is distinct from the blow-out holes.

4. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 3, wherein the discharge passage provides for a flow of the conditioned gas in a direction that is generally in a direction opposite to a direction of a flow of the conditioned gas through the blow-out holes.

5. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 3, wherein the discharge passage provides for a flow of the conditioned gas in a direction that is generally in a direction opposite to a direction of a flow of the conditioned gas through the induction passage.

6. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 2, wherein

the opening area of the blow-out holes increases when a surface pressure due to sitting of the occupant increases.

7. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 1, wherein

the blower is disposed inside of a side support provided on a side of a sitting region in the seat.

8. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 7, wherein the tack groove extends along a width direction of the seat, and

the vehicle seat air-conditioner is adapted to introduce the conditioned gas into the flow channel by connecting a blow-out portion of the blower to the tack groove.

9. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 7, wherein

the flow channel is formed by thread-like fiber that is capable of expanding and contracting in a thickness direction of the seat.

10. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the flow channel extends in a direction generally parallel to the seat covering layer.

11. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 1, further comprising a discharge passage connected to the flow channel that discharges the conditioned gas supplied to the flow channel from an underside or backside of a cushion body to an outside.

12. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the seat covering layer has a two-layer structure which consists of a cushion sheet on the inner or cushion body side, and a less breathing cover sheet which is made of a less breathing material than the cushion sheet on the outer or occupant side.

13. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 12, further comprising a plurality of blow-out holes which are formed in both the cushion sheet and the less breathing cover sheet.

14. A vehicle temperature controller comprising:

a vehicle seat air-conditioner comprising;

a seat adapted to receive an occupant;

a seat temperature adjustment device that adjusts a temperature of a conditioned gas;

a blower that supplies the conditioned gas to the seat;

a seat covering layer defining an outer surface of the seat;

a cushion body that is covered by the seat covering layer, said seat covering layer being pulled into a tack groove provided in said cushion body so as to be fixed;

a flow channel defined by a space between said cushion body and said seat covering layer, and extending along a surface of said seat, said flow channel receiving the conditioned gas from the blower, and,

a blow-out hole formed in said seat covering layer and connected to said flow channel, the conditioned gas flowing through said flow channel being blown out through said blow-out hole toward the occupant, wherein

said seat covering layer conveys heat of the conditioned gas flowing through said flow channel to the occupant, and

the vehicle seat air-conditioner is adapted to convey heat from the conditioned gas to the occupant by either;

directly blowing out the conditioned gas to the occupant, or

performing heat exchange between the conditioned gas flowing through said flow channel and the occupant via said seat covering layer;

a cabin air-conditioner that adjusts a cabin temperature; and

an integrated control device that carries out integrated control of the seat temperature adjustment device and the cabin air-conditioner.

15. The vehicle temperature controller according to claim 14, wherein

the integrated control device corrects upward a target control temperature of the cabin air-conditioner when the seat is in a cooled state by the seat temperature adjustment device.

16. The vehicle temperature controller according to claim 14, wherein

the integrated control device corrects downward a target control temperature of the cabin air-conditioner when the seat is in a heated state by the seat temperature adjustment device.

17. The vehicle temperature controller according to claim 14, wherein

the blower is disposed inside of a side support provided on a side of a sitting region in the seat.

18. The vehicle temperature controller according to claim 17, wherein

the integrated control device corrects upward a target control temperature of the cabin air-conditioner when the seat is in a cooled state by the seat temperature adjustment device.

19. The vehicle temperature controller according to claim 17, wherein

the integrated control device corrects downward a target control temperature of the cabin air-conditioner when the seat is in a heated state by the seat temperature adjustment device.