JP3928606B2 - Air conditioner for vehicles - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioner that controls air conditioning in a passenger compartment based on the skin temperature of an occupant detected by a non-contact temperature sensor.

  2. Description of the Related Art A vehicle air conditioner that detects an occupant's skin temperature using an infrared camera that captures a thermal image without contact is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior art documents related to the invention of this application include the following.
JP 2001-315519 A

  By the way, the infrared camera is expensive, and it is difficult to use a plurality of infrared cameras in order to separately detect the skin temperature of the occupant seated in the driver's seat, the passenger seat, and the left and right rear seats of the vehicle. is there.

  Therefore, it is necessary to detect the temperature of all passengers in the driver's seat, passenger seat, and left and right rear seats using a single infrared camera. In order to detect the temperature of all passengers in the passenger compartment with a single infrared camera, it is necessary to increase the number of temperature detection elements constituting the thermal image sensor and use an imaging lens with a wide angle of view. In addition to the cost of the camera, there is a problem that when a wide-angle lens is used, the amount of light incident from the periphery of the temperature detection region through the periphery of the lens decreases, and the detection accuracy of the thermal image decreases.

The direction of the thermal image pickup means is offset from the direction in which the conditioned air is blown by the louver, and the direction of the thermal image pickup means is interlocked with the direction of the movable louver by the movable louver drive control means that changes the direction of blowing the conditioned air to the left and right. Change left and right.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to accurately detect the temperatures of all passengers in the vehicle interior using an inexpensive infrared camera.

  FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment, FIG. 2 is a sectional view of an air conditioning unit of the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an instrument panel portion of a vehicle. 2 and 3, an outside air inlet 11 and an inside air inlet 12 are provided upstream of the air conditioning unit 10, and the ratio of the outside air to the inside air sucked by the intake door 13 is adjusted. Air sucked from both the suction ports 11 and 12 is blown to the downstream of the air conditioning unit 10 by the blower fan 14, and heat is first exchanged by the evaporator 15 to become cold air.

  The flow path of the conditioned air is divided into two downstream of the evaporator 15. One is a flow path 17 that passes through the heater core 16, and the air that passes through the flow path 17 undergoes heat exchange by the heater core 16 and becomes warm air. The other is a flow path 18 that bypasses the heater core 16, and the air passing through the flow path 18 is cold air that has passed through the evaporator 15. An air mix door 19 is provided at the branch point of the two flow paths 17 and 18, and the air mixture door 19 is controlled to adjust the ratio of the air passing through both the flow paths 17 and 18 to control the air conditioning. The temperature of the wind, that is, the blowing temperature is determined.

  The conditioned air whose blowing temperature is adjusted by the air mix door 19 is blown out from the ventilator 20, the defroster 21 and the foot blowing port 22 into the vehicle interior. A vent door 23, a differential door 24, and a foot door 25 are provided at these outlets 20, 21, and 22, respectively, and an outlet for conditioned air is selected.

  The ventilator 20 branches to outlets such as a driver's seat center vent 20a, a passenger seat center vent 20b, a driver seat side vent 20c, a passenger seat side vent 20d, a rear seat right center vent 20e, and a rear seat left center vent 20f. Is done. The driver seat side center vent 20a is provided with a door 28 for adjusting the amount of blown air, and the passenger seat side center vent 20b is provided with a door 29 for adjusting the amount of blown air. The rear seat right center vent 20e and the rear seat left center vent 20f are provided with doors 30 for adjusting the amount of blown air.

  In this embodiment, an example is shown in which the blown air volume from the rear seat right center vent 20e and the rear seat left center vent 20f is collectively adjusted by the door 30, but the rear seat right center vent 20e and the rear seat left center are shown. A door may be provided for each of the vents 20f, and the blowout air volume may be adjusted independently on the left and right.

  In this embodiment, an example is shown in which the amount of air blown out from the driver's seat side center vent 20a, the passenger seat side center vent 20b, and the rear seat center vents 20e and 20f is independently adjusted. The temperature of the conditioned air blown from the mouth may be adjusted independently for each vent outlet. In this case, the air mix door 19, the heater core 16, and the flow paths 17 and 18 described above may be provided for each vent outlet, and the outlet temperature may be adjusted by the air mix door for each vent outlet.

  The defroster 21 is branched to outlets such as the front defroster 21a and the side defroster 21b. The foot outlet 22 is branched into a front foot outlet 22a and a rear foot outlet 22b. The fresh vent passage 26 is a passage that directly guides the cool air that has passed through the evaporator 15 to the ventilator 20. When the fresh vent door 27 is opened by an occupant in order to eliminate the moist feeling of the head during heating operation, the cool air is ventilated. Introduced into.

  In FIG. 1, an operating unit 31 of an air conditioner is provided on an instrument panel of a vehicle. The operation unit 31 includes an air conditioner switch, a fan switch, a blowout port switch, a defrost switch, an inside / outside air switching switch, a display device, and the like. The room temperature setter 32 is a setter that sets the vehicle interior temperature. Sensors for detecting the air temperature of each part are installed in the vehicle. The outside air temperature sensor 33 detects the outside air temperature, the inside air temperature sensor 34 detects the vehicle interior temperature, and the solar radiation sensor 35 detects the amount of solar radiation. Further, the suction temperature sensor 36 detects the temperature of the air that has passed through the evaporator 15, the refrigerant temperature sensor 37 detects the inlet refrigerant temperature of the evaporator 15, and the water temperature sensor 38 detects the engine coolant temperature. The opening sensor 39 detects the opening of the air mix door 19.

  The infrared camera 40 configures a thermal image sensor by arranging a large number of temperature detection elements in a two-dimensional plane in a matrix, and collects infrared rays radiated from an object such as an occupant in a vehicle cabin with an imaging lens (not shown). Then, a thermal image indicating the temperature distribution in the passenger compartment is formed on the thermal image sensor, and the temperature distribution in the passenger compartment is detected. The thermal image processing circuit 41 detects the skin temperature of each occupant in the driver seat, the passenger seat, and the left and right rear seats based on the temperature distribution in the passenger compartment detected by the infrared camera 40.

  The field angle of the infrared camera 40 is not a wide field angle but a general field angle, and the number of temperature detection elements is also a general number. Therefore, as described above, it is not possible to accurately detect a wide range of temperature distribution in the passenger compartment as compared with a wide-angle infrared camera having a large number of temperature detection elements. Details will be described later.

  The controller 42 is composed of peripheral parts such as a CPU 42a, ROM 42b, RAM 42c, A / D converter 42d, etc., and includes various operation information from the operation unit 31, a vehicle interior set temperature set by the room temperature setter 32, and sensors 33 to 39. Based on the detected outside air temperature, vehicle interior temperature, solar radiation amount, intake air temperature, refrigerant temperature, cooling water temperature, air mix door opening, etc., compressor 43, intake door actuator 13m, air mix door actuator 19m, Vent door actuator 23m, driver seat side center vent door actuator 28m, passenger seat side center vent door actuator 29m, rear seat center vent door actuator 30m, differential door actuator 24m, foot door door Tutor 25m, Fresh vent door actuator 27m, Blower fan motor 14m, Driver side center vent louver / actuator 44m, Passenger side center vent louver / actuator 45m, Rear seat right center vent louver / actuator 46m, Rear seat left center vent Controls the louver actuator 47m.

  FIG. 4 shows the detection range of the temperature distribution in the vehicle interior when an infrared camera (IR (Infrared) camera) with a narrow angle of view is installed in the center of the front center of the vehicle interior or in the center of the instrument panel. In the figure, it is assumed that a driver is in the driver's seat on the steering 48 side, and an occupant is in the passenger seat and the left and right rear seats. As shown in (a), if it is attempted to detect the temperature of the driver's occupant and the right rear seat occupant with the narrow-angle infrared camera, the temperatures of the passenger's occupant and the left rear occupant cannot be detected, and (b) If the temperature of the passengers on the left and right of the rear seat is detected as shown in Fig. 3, the temperatures of the driver's seat and the passenger on the passenger's seat cannot be detected. Further, as shown in (c), the temperatures of the passenger on the passenger seat and the passenger on the left rear seat When trying to detect, the temperature of the driver's seat and the right rear seat occupant cannot be detected.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, the infrared camera 40 with a narrow angle of view is driven to scan, and a wide temperature distribution in the passenger compartment, that is, the temperature of all passengers in the passenger compartment, particularly the skin temperature of the passengers, is detected.

  FIG. 5 shows a front view of the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a, and FIG. In this embodiment, an infrared camera (IR camera) 40 is installed at the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a, and the direction of the infrared camera 40, that is, the direction of the louver 51 that changes the direction of the blowing air to the left and right, that is, Change the optical axis of the imaging lens. The louver drive motor 44m drives the louver 51 to the left and right via the drive mechanism 52, and changes the direction of the blowing air to the left and right. The infrared camera 40 is connected to a drive mechanism 52, and the optical axis of the camera 40 changes in conjunction with the direction of the louver 51 to scan a wide range in the vehicle interior. Note that a louver 53 that changes the direction of the blowing air up and down is also installed at the outlet 20a. In this embodiment, the louver 53 that changes the direction of the blowing air up and down is set manually.

  By the way, the louver 51 of the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a can change the wind direction only within a narrow range in which the driver's seat occupant is blown by the blowing air. Therefore, if the direction of the infrared camera 40, that is, the optical axis of the imaging lens is matched with the direction of the blowing air by the louver 51 of the driver seat side center vent outlet 20a, the infrared camera 40 is scanned over a wide range in the vehicle interior. I can't.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the optical axis of the lens of the infrared camera 40 is offset from the direction of the blown air by the louver 51 of the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a. FIG. 7 shows the relationship between the range of air blown by the louver 51 at the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a (“wind hitting range” in the figure) and the imaging range of the infrared camera 40 (“detection range” in the figure). Indicates.

  As shown in (a), when the direction of the wind blown by the louver 51 faces the right shoulder of the driver's seat occupant, the driver's seat occupant and the right rear seat occupant enter the detection range of the infrared camera 40. Further, as shown in (b), when the direction of the blowing wind by the louver 51 is directed toward the driver's seat occupant, the left and right rear seat occupants are within the detection range of the infrared camera 40. Furthermore, as shown in (c), when the direction of the blowing air blown by the louver 51 faces the left shoulder of the driver's seat occupant, the passenger seat and the left rear seat occupant enter the detection range of the infrared camera 40.

  The amount of offset between the optical axis of the infrared camera 40 and the direction of the blowout wind of the louver 51 is such that the change of the “detection range” of the infrared camera 40 with respect to the change of the “wind range” by the louver 51 is The optimum offset amount that can cover the passengers. In the example shown in FIG. 7, the offset amount is set so that the “wind contact range” of the blown wind from the louver 51 and the “detection range” of the infrared camera 40 are completely separated. In this case, the occupant within the detection range of the infrared camera 40 is not exposed to the conditioned air, so the occupant's skin temperature can be accurately detected without being exposed to the conditioned air, and the optimum air conditioning is performed based on the accurate skin temperature. realizable.

  It should be noted that the offset amount may be set so that the “detection range” of the infrared camera 40 overlaps the “wind contact range” of the blown wind by the louver 51. However, in this case, the temperature distribution in the overlap range, that is, in the “detection range” of the infrared camera 40, excluding the “wind contact range” of the blown wind is extracted, and air conditioning control is performed based on the extracted temperature distribution. Need to do. By doing so, it is possible to detect the skin temperature of an occupant who is not exposed to the conditioned air, and to realize optimal air conditioning based on the accurate skin temperature.

  Next, the louver 51 of the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a where the infrared camera 40 is installed is located at the position shown in FIG. Drive control is performed to stop at the position where the occupant enters. As a result, the skin temperature of the driver can be detected immediately after the start of the next air conditioning, and the target blowout air temperature, air volume, air outlet, etc. are set immediately for the driver who is always seated during vehicle operation. Optimum air conditioning control can be started.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating air conditioning control according to an embodiment. The operation of the embodiment will be described with reference to this flowchart. The air conditioning control program is stored in the ROM 42b of the controller 42. When the air conditioner switch of the operation unit 31 is turned on in step 1, the CPU 42a of the controller 42 starts air conditioning control and proceeds to step 2.

  In step 2, the louver driving motor 44m drives the louver 51 of the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a to change the direction of the blowing air to the left and right, and the infrared camera 40 is driven to change the direction of the camera, that is, imaging. Change the optical axis of the lens left and right. In subsequent step 3, based on the temperature distribution data in the passenger compartment detected by the infrared camera 40, the thermal image processing circuit 41 detects the skin temperature of each seat occupant in the passenger compartment.

  Next, the vehicle interior set temperature set by the occupant is read from the room temperature setter 32 in step 4, and the vehicle interior temperature is detected by the internal air temperature sensor 34 in step 5. In step 6, the vehicle interior set temperature is corrected by the occupant's skin temperature to determine the vehicle interior target temperature, and based on the deviation between the vehicle interior target temperature and the actual vehicle interior temperature, the blowout temperature, air volume, and blowout of the conditioned air Determine your mouth. In step 7, the air mix door 19 of the air conditioning unit 10 is driven and controlled to adjust the temperature of the blown air to the target value, and the vent door 23, the driver side center vent door 28, the passenger side center vent door 29, and the rear seat center. The vent door 30, the differential door 24, and the foot door 25 are driven and controlled to adjust the air volume of the air outlet and the air flow, thereby controlling the air conditioning.

  When using an air conditioning unit that can individually adjust the air-conditioning air blowing temperature and air volume for each seat occupant, the individual air-conditioning target is adjusted for each seat occupant by correcting the passenger cabin set temperature based on the occupant's skin temperature. The temperature may be determined, and the blowout temperature and the air volume of the conditioned air may be determined based on the deviation between the target temperature and the actual passenger compartment temperature.

  In step 8, it is confirmed whether or not the air conditioner switch of the operation unit 31 is turned off. If turned off, the process proceeds to step 9; otherwise, the process returns to step 2 to repeat the above-described processing. When the air conditioner switch is turned off, the louver drive motor 44m is driven and controlled in step 9, and the direction of the louver 51 and the infrared camera 40 is stopped at the position where the driver's seat occupant enters the detection range of the infrared camera 40. After the driving of the louver 51 and the camera 40 is stopped, air conditioning is stopped in step 10.

  As described above, according to the embodiment, the air conditioning unit 10 that heats or cools the inside air or the outside air sucked from the inlet and blows the conditioned air from the plurality of outlets into the vehicle interior, and the driver seat side center vent outlet 20a. The louver 51 is arranged in a matrix and includes a movable louver 51 that changes the blowing direction of the conditioned air to the left and right, a louver drive motor 44m that drives and controls the movable louver 51, and a plurality of temperature detection elements. An infrared camera 40 that captures the thermal image of the camera, a thermal image processing circuit 41 that detects the occupant temperature based on the thermal image captured by the infrared camera 40, and a passenger temperature detected by the thermal image processing circuit 41. And a controller 42 for controlling the temperature and air volume of the conditioned air blown from the air conditioning unit 10. Since the moving motor 44m changes the direction of the infrared camera 40 to the left and right in conjunction with the direction of the movable louver 51, the number of temperature detection elements is large, without using an expensive infrared camera with a wide angle of view. An inexpensive infrared camera can be used to accurately detect the temperature of all passengers in the passenger compartment.

  Further, the infrared camera 40 is installed in the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a, and the direction of the infrared camera 40 is changed to the left and right by the louver drive motor 44m of the outlet 20a, and thermal images of all seats in the passenger compartment are taken. As a result, at least the skin temperature of the driver's seat occupant can be detected easily and reliably, and optimal air conditioning can be realized for the driver who is always seated during vehicle operation.

  The correspondence between the constituent elements of the claims and the constituent elements of one embodiment is as follows. That is, the louver 51 is a movable louver, the louver drive motor 44m and the controller 42 are louver drive control means, the infrared camera 40 is a thermal image imaging means, the thermal image processing circuit 41 is an occupant temperature detection means, and the controller 42 is air-conditioned. Each of the control means is configured. In addition, as long as the characteristic function of this invention is not impaired, each component is not limited to the said structure.

  In the above-described embodiment, the infrared camera 40 is installed in the driver's seat side center vent outlet 20a, and is driven by the louver driving motor 44m of the outlet 20a to change the optical axis of the lens to the left and right. Although the example of detecting the temperature of the passenger in the passenger compartment has been shown, it is installed at the passenger vent side center vent outlet 20b and is driven by the louver driving motor 45m of the outlet 20b to change the optical axis of the lens to the left and right. The temperature distribution in the passenger compartment may be detected. Or when a movable louver is installed in the side vent outlet on the driver's seat side or the passenger seat side, an infrared camera may be installed in those outlets.

  In the embodiment described above, an infrared camera is used as an example of the thermal image capturing unit. However, the thermal image capturing unit is not limited to the infrared camera. For example, the temperature distribution is measured by measuring the heat rays generated from an object. It may be detected.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which the air-conditioning air blowing temperature, the air volume, and the air outlet are controlled based on the detection results of the outside air temperature sensor 33, the inside air temperature sensor 34, the solar radiation sensor 35, and the like. Instead of these sensors, the blowout temperature, air volume, and blowout port of the conditioned air may be controlled based on the temperature distribution in the passenger compartment detected by the infrared camera 40.

It is a figure which shows the structure of one embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the air-conditioning unit of one embodiment. It is a figure which shows the instrument panel part of the vehicle of one Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the detection range of the temperature distribution in a vehicle interior when the infrared camera (IR camera) of a narrow view angle is installed in the ceiling of the front center of a vehicle interior, or the center of an instrument panel. It is a figure which shows the installation method of the infrared camera of one embodiment. It is a figure which shows the installation method of the infrared camera of one embodiment. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the wind hit range from the driver's seat side center vent outlet of one Embodiment, and the detection range of an infrared camera. It is a flowchart which shows the air-conditioning control of one embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Air conditioning unit 20a Driver's seat side center vent outlet 40 Infrared camera 41 Thermal image processing circuit 42 Controller 44m Louver drive motor 51 Louver 52 Drive mechanism

Claims (4)

An air conditioning unit that heats or cools the inside air or outside air sucked from the suction port, and blows out the conditioned air from the plurality of blowout ports into the vehicle interior;
A movable louver that is installed at the air-conditioning air outlet and changes the air-conditioning air outlet direction left and right;
Louver drive control means for driving and controlling the movable louver;
Thermal image imaging means for arranging a plurality of temperature detection elements in a matrix and capturing a thermal image in the passenger compartment;
Occupant temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the occupant based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing means;
An air conditioner for a vehicle comprising air conditioning control means for controlling the temperature and air volume of air conditioning air blown from the air conditioning unit based on the passenger temperature detected by the passenger temperature detection means,
The direction of the thermal image capturing means is offset from the blowing direction of the conditioned air by the louver,
The vehicle air conditioner characterized in that the louver drive control means changes the direction of the thermal image capturing means left and right in conjunction with the direction of the movable louver. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1,
The air-conditioning control means controls the temperature and air volume of the air-conditioning air using the temperature of the occupant in a range where the air-conditioning air blown out from the outlet does not hit within the imaging range of the thermal image imaging means. A vehicle air conditioner. In the vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2 ,
The louver drive control means stops the orientation of the thermal image pickup means at a position where a driver's seat occupant enters the detection range of the thermal image pickup means when the air conditioning ends . In the vehicle air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The thermal image capturing means is installed in the driver's seat side center vent outlet, and the direction of the thermal image capturing means is changed to the left and right by the louver drive control means of the outlet, and thermal images of all seats in the passenger compartment are captured. The vehicle air conditioner characterized by the above-mentioned.

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