Vehicle air conditioner

• US 9,188,357 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2011
• Issued: 11/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Hirai, Shinichirou, Sagou, Yasuhiro, Maeda, Manabu, Kataoka, Takuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Norman, Marc
• Assistant Examiner(s): RUSSELL, DEVON L
• Application Number:
  US13/068,739
• Publication Number:
  US 20110284202A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,643 Days
• Field of Search: 165/41, 165/202, 165/203, 165/204, 165/209
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00742 by detection of the vehicle occupants' presence; by detection of conditions relating to the body of occupants, e.g. using radiant heat detectors
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00842 the system comprising a plurality of damper doors; Air distribution between several outlets
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00849 for selectively commanding the induction of outside or inside air B60H1/00842 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 2001/00192 to left and right part of passenger compartment
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/10 Occupancy
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/12 Position of occupants

Abstract

A vehicle air conditioner includes a heating heat exchanger, a first temperature adjustment mechanism for adjusting a temperature of air to be blown toward a driver'"'"'s seat side in a vehicle compartment, and a second temperature adjustment mechanism for adjusting a temperature of air to be blown toward a front-passenger'"'"'s seat side in the vehicle compartment. In the vehicle air conditioner, the first and second temperature adjustment mechanisms are controlled to perform a one-seat priority mode control such that the temperature of air to be blown toward the front-passenger'"'"'s seat side is lower than the temperature of air to be blown toward the driver'"'"'s seat side, when only the driver is in the vehicle compartment and the heating condition is determined as the air conditioning state.

Claims

1. An air conditioner for a vehicle, the air conditioner comprising:

an air conditioning unit that includes a heating heat exchanger configured to heat air to be blown into a vehicle compartment, a first temperature adjustment mechanism configured to adjust a temperature of air to be blown toward a driver'"'"'s seat side in the vehicle compartment, and a second temperature adjustment mechanism configured to adjust a temperature of air to be blown toward a front-passenger'"'"'s seat side in the vehicle compartment;

an occupant determining part that determines whether only a driver is on a driver seat as an occupant in the vehicle compartment;

a mode determining part that determines whether an air conditioning state on the driver'"'"'s seat side is a heating condition; and

a controller including the first and second temperature adjustment mechanisms to perform a one-seat priority mode control in which the temperature of air to be blown toward the front-passenger'"'"'s seat side is lower than the temperature of air to be blown toward the driver'"'"'s seat side, when the occupant determining part determines that only the driver is in the vehicle compartment and the heating condition is determined as the air conditioning state, wherein

the second temperature adjustment mechanism includes an upper-side temperature adjustment portion configured to adjust the temperature of air blown toward an upper side of the front-passenger'"'"'s seat, and a lower-side temperature adjustment portion configured to adjust the temperature of air blown toward a lower side of the front-passenger'"'"'s seat, and

in the one-seat priority mode control in which the temperature of air to be blown toward the front-passenger'"'"'s seat side is made lower than the temperature of air to be blown toward the driver'"'"'s seat side, the controller controls the lower-side temperature adjustment portion to be cooler, as compared with the upper-side temperature adjustment portion.

2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein

the air conditioning unit is provided with a face air outlet from which conditioned air is blown toward an upper side of the front-passenger'"'"'s seat side in the vehicle compartment,

the controller causes the face air outlet to be closed in the one-seat priority mode control in which the temperature of air to be blown toward the front-passenger'"'"'s seat side is made lower than the temperature of air to be blown toward the driver'"'"'s seat side.