CN113085486A

CN113085486A - Integrated air curtain system for vehicle and vehicle

Info

Publication number: CN113085486A
Application number: CN202110478754.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 蔡云飞
Original assignee: Daimler AG
Current assignee: Mercedes Benz Group AG
Priority date: 2021-04-30
Filing date: 2021-04-30
Publication date: 2021-07-09

Abstract

The invention relates to an integrated air curtain system for a vehicle and the vehicle. The vehicle is configured with an air conditioning system having an air outlet located near the window. The inflatable curtain system comprises a sensing unit and a control unit, wherein the sensing unit is designed for sensing information indicating the opening degree of a vehicle window, and the control unit is designed for controlling the working states of the air conditioning system and the air outlet based on the sensed information indicating the opening degree of the vehicle window. When the information indicating the opening degree of the vehicle window is at least partially open, the control unit turns on the air conditioning system and adjusts the air outlet angle of the air outlet to face the vehicle window, so that a blocking air curtain is generated at the opening part of the vehicle window. The air curtain system starts the air conditioning system and adjusts the angle of the air outlet to form an air barrier at the window of the vehicle by utilizing the air outlet near the window of the existing air conditioning system in the vehicle when the window of the vehicle is opened, so that mosquitoes, dust, rain, snow and the like are prevented from entering the vehicle as much as possible.

Description

Integrated air curtain system for vehicle and vehicle

Technical Field

The invention relates to the field of automobile equipment, in particular to an integrated air curtain system for a vehicle.

Background

At present, automobiles become indispensable tools for transportation, and the development of automobiles is more and more advanced. The following problems are common during the driving of automobiles: when the windows are opened, dust, rain, snow (if rain, snow) can enter the vehicle, potentially affecting the driver's driving and reducing the comfort of the passengers and driver. In addition, when the window is opened, mosquitoes can enter the vehicle to cause people in the vehicle to be easily bitten by the mosquitoes, the mosquitoes can not be completely expelled out of the vehicle by window opening ventilation in the driving process of the vehicle, the comfort of passengers and drivers is influenced in the mosquito expelling process and the mosquitoes are bitten by the mosquitoes, and the attention of the drivers is not concentrated to cause the hidden danger of safe driving.

At present, an air conditioning system has become a necessary configuration for a vehicle, which is used for adjusting the temperature in the vehicle, and also used for defrosting, defogging, and the like. Air conditioning system in the car can include evaporimeter and warm braw core usually, and wherein, the evaporimeter can link to each other with compressor, condenser and capillary, and air conditioning system can also include preceding air-blower and air inlet duct, and one side of preceding air-blower can also be provided with the air intake, and wind can enter into the air inlet duct from the air intake under the effect of preceding air-blower in, and the wind in the air inlet duct can carry out the heat exchange with the evaporimeter to form cold wind, and discharge via the inside air outlet of vehicle through the air outlet duct. The warm air core can set up the rear side at the evaporimeter, and the wind through the evaporimeter can selectively pass through the warm air core, and the wind through the warm air core must pass through the evaporimeter, and wind can carry out the heat exchange with the warm air core in order to form hot-blast and discharge through the air outlet of air outlet duct via vehicle inside.

Disclosure of Invention

An object of the present invention is to solve at least one of the above problems and disadvantages in the prior art.

A first aspect of the present invention provides an integrated air curtain system for a vehicle, the vehicle being provided with an air conditioning system having an air outlet located near a window, the integrated air curtain system for a vehicle comprising a sensing unit designed to sense information indicative of a window opening and a control unit designed to control operating states of the air conditioning system and the air outlet based on the sensed information indicative of the window opening, wherein when the information indicative of the window opening is at least partially open, the control unit turns on the air conditioning system and adjusts an air outlet angle of the air outlet toward the window to produce a blocking air curtain at the open portion of the window.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the control unit may be further designed for adjusting at least one of a wind speed, a wind volume and a wind pressure of the wind outlet based on the sensed information indicative of the window opening.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the control unit may communicate with a control switch for controlling the window to receive an instruction to change a window opening degree from the control switch, and control an operating state of the integrated air curtain system for a vehicle based on the instruction.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the outlet vent may include a first outlet vent provided on a portion of an instrument desk of the vehicle near the window.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the air outlet may further include a second air outlet disposed inside a door where the window is located and below the window.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the air outlet may further include a third air outlet disposed inside a door where the window is located and above the window.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the sensing unit may be a distance sensor for sensing an opening degree of the window.

According to an exemplary embodiment, when the information indicating the window opening degree is off, the control unit may turn off the air conditioning system or adjust the air outlet angle of the air outlet such that it no longer faces the window.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the integrated inflatable curtain system for a vehicle according to the present invention may be manually enabled or disabled by a vehicle user on demand, or may be designed to be automatically enabled or disabled when certain conditions are met.

A second aspect of the invention provides a vehicle which may include an air conditioning system and an integrated air curtain system for a vehicle as described above.

The integrated air curtain system for the vehicle according to the various embodiments of the invention utilizes the air outlet of the existing air conditioning system in the vehicle, which is positioned near the window, when the window is at least partially opened, the air conditioning system is started, and the air outlet angle of the air outlet is adjusted to face the window to form the blocking air curtain at the opening part of the window, so that mosquitoes, dust, rain, snow and the like are prevented from entering the vehicle as much as possible, and the comfort and the safety of the driver and passengers in the vehicle are improved. The air curtain system is integrated in the existing air conditioning system in the car, so that the cost is reduced, and the flexibility is high.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an integrated inflatable curtain system for a vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary workflow diagram of an integrated inflatable curtain system for a vehicle according to one embodiment of the invention.

The figures are purely diagrammatic and not drawn to scale, and moreover they show only those parts which are necessary in order to elucidate the invention, while other parts may be omitted or merely mentioned briefly. That is, the present invention may include other elements in addition to the elements shown in the drawings.

Detailed Description

While the present invention will be fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which contain preferred embodiments of the invention, it will be understood before this description that one of ordinary skill in the art can, of course, modify the disclosure herein while obtaining the technical effects of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description will be that of one of ordinary skill in the art having had the benefit of the present disclosure only and is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed.

Furthermore, in the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the invention. It may be evident, however, that one or more embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in schematic form in order to simplify the drawing.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an integrated inflatable curtain system for a vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention. The vehicle may be equipped with a conventional air conditioning system (not shown). Typically, the air conditioning system will have an air outlet located near the window. For example, in the embodiment shown in fig. 1, the outlet ports include first outlet ports 1, 2 respectively provided at both sides of an instrument desk 6 of the vehicle near a window. In addition, in some vehicles, the air outlet of the air conditioning system may further include second air outlets 3, 4 respectively disposed inside the

doors

5, 7 where the corresponding windows are located and below the windows. Obviously, the second outlet vents 3, 4 are also located in the vicinity of the respective windows. In this embodiment, the second outlet vents 3, 4 may extend along the lower edge of the vehicle window. The number, size, etc. of the first outlet and/or the second outlet may vary according to different types and styles of vehicles.

The integrated air curtain system according to this embodiment may include a sensing unit and a control unit (both not shown). The sensing unit is used for sensing information indicating the opening degree of the window and transmitting the sensed information to the control unit. The control unit controls the working state of the air conditioning system and the working state of the air outlet of the air conditioning system based on the received information indicating the opening degree of the vehicle window. Specifically, when the information indicating the window opening degree is at least partially open, the control unit controls the air conditioning system to be turned on and adjusts the outlet air angle of the outlet air port toward the window, particularly the open portion of the window, to generate a blocking curtain at the open portion of the window, thereby preventing flying insects, dust, and rain and snow (if it rains or snows) from outside from entering the vehicle through the open window. On the other hand, when the information indicating the opening degree of the car window is closed, the control unit can control the air conditioning system to be closed so as to save energy consumption, or adjust the air outlet angle of the air outlet so that the air outlet angle is not towards the opened car window any more, but for example, towards other directions so as to meet the normal air conditioning air outlet requirement of people in the car. The control unit may be integrated in an Electronic Control Unit (ECU) of the vehicle or may be a separate onboard controller.

In this embodiment, the control unit may further adjust at least one of a wind speed, a wind amount, and a wind pressure of the outlet based on the received information indicating the window opening degree. For example, when the information indicating the window opening degree indicates that the opening degree of the window is large, the control unit may increase at least one of the wind speed, the wind amount, and the wind pressure of the outlet port such that the strength of the blocking curtain is sufficient to completely cover the open portion of the window, and when the information indicating the window opening degree indicates that the opening degree of the window is small, the control unit may decrease at least one of the wind speed, the wind amount, and the wind pressure of the outlet port by an appropriate amount to ensure that the energy consumption is reduced while the blocking curtain completely covers the open portion of the window. In addition, the control unit can also control the working state of the air outlet duct communicated with the air outlet based on the received information indicating the opening degree of the car window, for example, the cross section of the air outlet duct, the air volume entering the air outlet duct, the air speed, the air pressure and the like are controlled, so that the air outlet intensity at the air outlet can be correspondingly controlled. In addition, the outlet air temperature of the outlet air can be the temperature previously set by the air conditioning system and can be adjusted by the air conditioning system in a conventional manner, and the outlet air temperature can also be controlled to be the preset air curtain temperature by the control unit.

It should be noted that the number, size and arrangement of the air outlets may be flexibly arranged according to the pipelines of the existing air conditioning system in the vehicle, and are not limited to those given in the above embodiments. For example, in some other embodiments of the invention, the air outlet located near the window may further comprise a third air outlet (not shown) located inside the

vehicle door

5, 7 in which the window is located and above the window. For example, the third outlet vent may extend along an upper edge of the vehicle window. The third outlet may be provided in a plurality and spaced along the upper edge of the window, for example above the window. In other embodiments of the invention, the vent may also be located inside the door and on the left and/or right side of the window, for example extending along a substantially vertical edge on either or both sides of the window. Furthermore, the air outlet may also be provided on the vehicle body, for example on a portion of the vehicle body above a window. In summary, in addition to or as an alternative to conventional vents (e.g. the first and

second vents

1, 2, 3, 4 shown in fig. 1) of a vehicle air conditioning system, further vents having any suitable number, size and arrangement and controlled by the control unit may be added or provided separately at any suitable location near the window for the purpose of creating an air curtain barrier and/or improving air barrier efficiency at the window.

In this embodiment, the sensing unit is, for example, a distance sensor for sensing the opening degree of a window; of course, any sensor known in the art or any sensor that may be suitable may be used.

In this embodiment, the control unit may communicate with a control switch for controlling a window to receive an instruction to change a window opening degree from the control switch, and control an operating state of the integrated air curtain system for a vehicle based on the instruction. For example, when a command to open a window (including opening from a fully closed state or further opening from a partially open state) or partially close a window is received from a control switch, the integrated curtain system for a vehicle is activated or the original activation state of the integrated curtain system for a vehicle is maintained. In the system activation state, the sensing unit senses information indicating a window opening degree, and the control unit controls the air conditioning system and the outlet vent to form a blocking curtain at the window opening portion based on the information. And when receiving a command of completely closing the vehicle window at one time from the control switch, stopping the integrated air curtain system for the vehicle and entering a standby state. The control switch may for example be a window control button arranged near the window, for example on the inside of the door.

The integrated air curtain system for a vehicle according to the present invention may be manually enabled or disabled by a vehicle user as desired (e.g., by operating a control button provided at a vehicle console); it is also contemplated that the system may be automatically enabled or disabled when certain conditions are met, such as being enabled by default and in a standby state, and automatically disabled when the air conditioning system is turned on by an occupant of the vehicle for normal temperature and humidity conditioning functions.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary workflow diagram of an integrated inflatable curtain system for a vehicle according to one embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 2, first, the integrated air curtain system for a vehicle is in an active and standby state; the integrated air curtain system for the vehicle is activated when the window is opened from a fully closed state, for example, when the control unit receives a window opening instruction from a control button for the window; then the control unit starts the air conditioning system, the sensing unit senses information indicating the opening degree of the vehicle window, and the control unit adjusts the air outlet angle of the air outlet near the vehicle window based on the sensed information, so that a blocking air curtain is generated at the opened vehicle window; while adjusting the air outlet angle, the control unit may adjust at least one of an air volume, a wind pressure, and a wind speed of the air outlet accordingly based on the sensed information indicating the window opening degree to ensure that an open portion capable of covering the window is generated; when the window is closed, for example, when a command to completely close the window at one time is received from a control button for the window, the integrated air curtain system for a vehicle controls the air conditioning system to stop, and the integrated air curtain system for a vehicle enters a standby state, in which case the control unit may also turn off the air conditioning system accordingly.

The above embodiments describe that the blocking air curtain is formed at the opened window, but those skilled in the art may also conceive that when the door and/or the skylight are opened, the air conditioner outlet originally arranged or additionally arranged near the door/the skylight is also used to generate the blocking air curtain at the opened door/the skylight, so as to prevent the outside flying insects, dust, rain, snow and the like from entering the vehicle interior through the opened door/the skylight as much as possible.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described above are exemplary and can be modified by those skilled in the art, and that the structures described in the various embodiments can be freely combined without conflict in structure or principle.

Having described preferred embodiments of the present invention in detail, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims, and the invention is not to be limited to the embodiments illustrated in the description.

Claims

1. An integrated curtain system for a vehicle, the vehicle being provided with an air conditioning system having an air outlet located near a window, the integrated curtain system for a vehicle comprising a sensing unit and a control unit, the sensing unit being designed to sense information indicative of a window opening, the control unit being designed to control the air conditioning system and an operating state of the air outlet based on the sensed information indicative of the window opening, wherein when the information indicative of the window opening is at least partially open, the control unit turns on the air conditioning system and adjusts an air outlet angle of the air outlet toward the window to produce a blocking curtain at the open portion of the window.

2. The integrated curtain system of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to adjust at least one of a wind speed, a wind volume, and a wind pressure of the outlet based on the sensed information indicative of window opening.

3. The integrated curtain system for a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit communicates with a control switch for controlling the window so as to receive an instruction to change a window opening degree from the control switch, and controls an operating state of the integrated curtain system for a vehicle based on the instruction.

4. The integrated curtain system of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the air outlet comprises a first air outlet disposed on a portion of an instrument panel of the vehicle proximate the window.

5. The integrated curtain system of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the air outlet further comprises a second air outlet disposed inside a door in which the window is located and below the window.

6. The integrated curtain system of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the air outlet further comprises a third air outlet disposed inside a door in which the window is located and above the window.

7. The integrated inflatable curtain system for vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the sensing unit is a distance sensor for sensing an opening degree of the window.

8. The integrated air curtain system for vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein when the information indicating the window opening degree is off, the control unit turns off the air conditioning system or adjusts the outlet air angle of the outlet port such that it no longer faces the window.

9. The integrated inflatable curtain system for vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the integrated inflatable curtain system for vehicle is manually enabled or disabled by a vehicle user on demand, or is designed to be automatically enabled or disabled when a certain condition is satisfied.

10. A vehicle comprising an air conditioning system and an integrated air curtain system for a vehicle as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9.