JP7031237B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to an air conditioner mounted on a vehicle.

In recent years, studies have been conducted on air conditioners that can perform finer control in order not only to maintain the temperature inside the vehicle interior at a preset target temperature but also to maintain a comfortable feeling of heat for the occupants. There is. For example, in the air conditioning device described in Patent Document 1 below, the temperature of the air conditioning air blown into the vehicle interior is adjusted while using a plurality of information such as the wind speed and the amount of clothing.

Japanese Patent No. 3498356

It is known that the feeling of heat felt by an occupant is influenced by six factors including temperature, humidity, radiation, wind speed, metabolic rate, and clothing amount. In other words, if all the above six elements can be accurately detected, it is possible to accurately calculate the feeling of heat based on these.

The air conditioner described in Patent Document 1 is provided with a wind speed sensor at a position near the outlet for the purpose of detecting the wind speed, which is one of the above six elements. However, in order to accurately calculate the feeling of warmth felt by the occupant, it is necessary to accurately detect the wind speed in the vicinity of the occupant's body, especially in the vicinity of the exposed skin, instead of the wind speed in the vicinity of the outlet. be. However, since it is not realistic to provide a wind speed sensor in the vicinity of the occupant, it is difficult to accurately detect the wind speed at such a position.

In addition, the wind speed in the vicinity of the outlet and the wind speed in the vicinity of the occupant's body are often different from each other. Therefore, when the thermal sensation is calculated based on the wind speed in the vicinity of the outlet, the thermal sensation different from the actual one is calculated. As a result, it is likely that air conditioning will not be properly controlled.

It is an object of the present disclosure to provide an air conditioner capable of calculating the feeling of heat felt by an occupant with high accuracy.

The air-conditioning device according to the present disclosure is an air-conditioning device (10) mounted on a vehicle (MV), which is an air-conditioning control unit (110) for adjusting the blowing of air-conditioning air toward the vehicle interior of the vehicle, and a vehicle occupant. A thermal sensation calculation unit (120) for calculating the thermal sensation felt by the air conditioner is provided. When the heat sensation is calculated by the heat sensation calculation unit, the air conditioning control unit adjusts the air-conditioning air blowout so that the air-conditioning air does not directly hit at least the exposed skin of the occupant. The wind adjustment control is performed. In the air conditioning transient state where the heat load in the vehicle interior is large, the air conditioning control unit does not perform wind adjustment control.

In such an air conditioner, when the heat sensation is calculated by the heat sensation calculation unit, the air conditioning control unit performs wind adjustment control. The wind adjustment control is a control that adjusts the air-conditioning air blowout so that the air-conditioning air does not directly hit at least the part of the occupant whose skin is exposed. Therefore, when the heat sensation is calculated by the heat sensation calculation unit, the wind speed in the vicinity of the exposed portion of the occupant's skin is approximately 0.

That is, when the above wind adjustment control is performed, the wind speed in the vicinity of the occupant becomes known. Therefore, it is possible to calculate the feeling of heat felt by the occupant with high accuracy as compared with the case based on the wind speed in the vicinity of the outlet.

According to the present disclosure, there is provided an air conditioner capable of calculating the feeling of heat felt by an occupant with high accuracy.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of an air conditioner according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting the state of the vehicle interior. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing executed by the control device. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an aspect of wind adjustment control.

Hereinafter, the present embodiment will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In order to facilitate understanding of the description, the same components are designated by the same reference numerals as possible in the drawings, and duplicate description is omitted.

The configuration of the air conditioner 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. The air conditioner 10 is mounted on the vehicle MV (see FIG. 2), and is a device for air-conditioning the interior of the vehicle MV. As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioner 10 includes an air conditioner mechanism unit 200, an operation unit 210, and a control device 100.

The air-conditioning mechanism unit 200 is a mechanism part for air-conditioning the interior of the vehicle. The air-conditioning mechanism unit 200 includes a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, an evaporator, a blower for sending out air, a swing louver for adjusting the direction of the air-conditioned air blown out, and the like (all of them). (Not shown) is included. Since a known configuration of the air conditioning mechanism unit 200 can be adopted, specific illustrations and explanations thereof will be omitted. The operation of the air conditioning mechanism unit 200 is controlled by the control device 100 described later.

The operation unit 210 is a part that receives an operation for changing the operation of the air conditioner 10 from the occupant. As shown in FIG. 2, the operation unit 210 is provided on the instrument panel IP. By operating the operation unit 210, the occupant can, for example, switch ON / OFF of the air conditioner, adjust the wind speed of the air conditioner, and the like. Such an operation unit 210 may be configured by a plurality of mechanical switches, or may be configured as a touch panel screen.

The control device 100 is a device for controlling the overall operation of the air conditioner 10. The control device 100 is configured as a computer system including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. The control device 100 has an air conditioning control unit 110, a heat sensation calculation unit 120, a heat sensation calculation unit 120, a clothing amount detection unit 130, a metabolism amount detection unit 140, and a preference determination unit 150 as functional control blocks. And have.

The air conditioning control unit 110 is a unit that adjusts the blowing of air conditioning air toward the vehicle interior by controlling the operation of the air conditioning mechanism unit 200, which will be described later. The air conditioning control unit 110 adjusts the wind direction, wind speed, and temperature of the air conditioning wind. Further, the air conditioning control unit 110 also controls to switch the outlet which is the outlet of the air conditioning air.

The thermal sensation calculation unit 120 is a portion that calculates the thermal sensation felt by the occupant of the vehicle MV. The thermal sensation calculated by the thermal sensation calculation unit 120 is represented by a numerical value in five stages in the present embodiment. Specifically, +2 to indicate "hot", +1 to indicate "slightly hot", 0 to indicate "just right", -1 to indicate "slightly cold", and "cold". The feeling of heat is calculated as one of the values shown in -2 and 2.

The heat sensation calculation unit 120 calculates the heat sensation based on six elements including air temperature, humidity, radiation, wind speed, metabolic rate, and clothing amount. "Temperature" is the temperature of the air inside the vehicle. The air temperature is detected by the air temperature sensor 31, which will be described later. "Humidity" is the humidity of the air inside the vehicle. The humidity is detected by the humidity sensor 32 described later. "Radiation" is the intensity of radiant light (infrared rays) incident on the occupant's body in the vehicle interior. The radiation is detected by the solar radiation sensor 33 and the thermal image camera 34, which will be described later.

The "wind speed" is the wind speed in the vicinity of the occupant's body, especially in the vicinity of the exposed part of the skin. As will be described later, in the air conditioner 10 according to the present embodiment, the above wind speed may be temporarily set to 0 when the feeling of heat is calculated.

"Metabolism amount" is the amount of heat generated by the human body activity of the occupant. The metabolic amount is detected based on, for example, the distribution of the skin temperature of the occupant detected by the thermal image camera 34 described later. Instead of such an embodiment, a dedicated sensor (for example, a heart rate sensor) for detecting the amount of metabolism may be provided in the vehicle MV.

The "clothing amount" is the amount of clothing worn by the occupant. In the present embodiment, the amount of clothing is detected based on the information input by the occupant to the input device (not shown). Instead of such an embodiment, the vehicle MV may be provided with a dedicated sensor (for example, a CMOS camera that captures an occupant) for detecting the amount of clothing.

As a specific method for calculating the feeling of heat based on the above six elements, various conventionally known methods can be used. Therefore, the specific method of calculating the heat sensation by the heat sensation calculation unit 120 will be omitted.

The heat sensation calculated by the heat sensation calculation unit 120 is used for the control of the air conditioning mechanism unit 200 performed by the air conditioning control unit 110. The air-conditioning control unit 110 controls the operation of the air-conditioning mechanism unit 200 so that the feeling of heat felt by the occupant is comfortable.

The clothing amount detecting unit 130 is a portion that detects the clothing amount of the occupant. As described above, the clothing amount detecting unit 130 detects the clothing amount based on the information or the like input by the occupant to the input device (not shown). The amount of clothing of the occupant detected by the amount of clothing detection unit 130 is input to the heat sensation calculation unit 120 and is used for calculating the heat sensation.

The metabolism amount detection unit 140 is a part that detects the metabolism amount of the occupant. As described above, the metabolism amount detection unit 140 detects the metabolism amount based on the distribution of the skin temperature of the occupant detected by the thermal image camera 34 and the like. For example, when the detected skin temperature is high, the amount of metabolism is detected as a high value. The metabolic amount of the occupant detected by the metabolic amount detecting unit 140 is input to the thermal sensation calculation unit 120 and used for calculating the thermal sensation.

The preference determination unit 150 is a unit for determining whether or not the occupant prefers that the air-conditioned air directly hits the skin. The preference determination unit 150 makes the determination based on the operation performed by the occupant on the operation unit 210. For example, when the air conditioner 10 is operating in the automatic mode (mode in which the wind speed is automatically adjusted) and an operation for lowering the wind speed is performed, "the occupant is informed that the air conditioning wind directly hits the skin. I don't like it. " On the contrary, when the operation for increasing the wind speed is performed, it is determined that "the occupant prefers that the air-conditioned wind directly hits the skin".

Instead of such an embodiment, the above determination may be performed based on the information input by the occupant to the dedicated input device. Examples of such an input device include a voice input device, a mechanical switch, a touch panel screen, and the like.

The vehicle MV is provided with a plurality of sensors as sensors for detecting the situation in the vehicle interior. These sensors include a temperature sensor 31, a humidity sensor 32, an illuminance sensor 33, and a thermal image camera 34.

The air temperature sensor 31 is a sensor for detecting the air temperature in the vehicle interior. The air temperature sensor 31 is provided, for example, in a duct (not shown) for introducing the air in the vehicle interior into the air conditioning mechanism unit 200. As described above, the air temperature detected by the air temperature sensor 31 is input to the control device 100 and used by the heat sensation calculation unit 120 to calculate the heat sensation.

The humidity sensor 32 is a sensor for detecting the humidity in the vehicle interior. The humidity sensor 32 is provided, for example, in a duct (not shown) for introducing air in the vehicle interior into the air conditioning mechanism unit 200. As described above, the humidity detected by the humidity sensor 32 is input to the control device 100 and used by the heat sensation calculation unit 120 to calculate the heat sensation.

The solar radiation sensor 33 is a sensor for detecting the intensity and direction of sunlight incident on the vehicle interior through the window glass. The solar radiation sensor 33 is provided, for example, at a position in the vehicle interior near the windshield. The intensity of sunlight detected by the solar radiation sensor 33 is used for calculating the radiation incident on the occupant, and is used for the calculation of the thermal sensation by the thermal sensation calculation unit 120.

The thermal image camera 34 is a sensor that detects the surface temperature of an object in the vehicle interior based on radiation (infrared rays) from the object. As shown in FIG. 2, the thermal image camera 34 is installed on the upper surface of the instrument panel IP. The thermal image camera 34 generates a thermal image showing the temperature distribution in the vehicle interior based on the intensity distribution of radiation arriving from each part in the vehicle interior. The temperature distribution shown in the thermal image is used for calculating the radiation incident on the occupant together with the intensity of sunlight detected by the solar radiation sensor 33, and is used for the calculation of the thermal sensation by the thermal sensation calculation unit 120.

The configuration of the vehicle interior will be described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 shows a state in which the driver M1 who is a occupant is seated in the driver's seat ST1 in the vehicle interior and is driving. Although the passenger seat ST2 is provided next to the driver's seat ST1 (on the left side), the passenger is not seated in the passenger seat ST2 in the state of FIG.

As shown in the figure, five outlets 251, 252, 253, 254, and 255 are formed in the instrument panel IP provided on the front side. All of these are openings formed as outlets when the air-conditioning air generated by the air-conditioning mechanism unit 200 is blown into the vehicle interior. It should be noted that another outlet may be provided at a position different from these.

The outlet 251 is formed at a position on the front side of the driver's seat ST1 and on the right side. The outlet 252 is formed at a position on the front side of the driver's seat ST1 and on the left side. The outlets 251 and 252 are openings for blowing air-conditioned air toward the driver M1 seated in the driver's seat ST1.

However, swing louvers (not shown) for adjusting the wind direction of the conditioned air are provided in each of the outlets 251 and 252. Therefore, by changing the direction of the swing louver, it is possible to make the state in which the air-conditioned air blown out does not directly hit the driver M1.

The outlet 253 is formed at a position on the front side of the passenger seat ST2 and on the right side. The outlet 254 is formed at a position on the front side of the passenger seat ST2 and on the left side. The outlets 253 and 254 are openings for blowing air-conditioned air toward passengers seated in the passenger seat ST2.

Each of the outlets 253 and 254 is also provided with a swing louver (not shown) for adjusting the wind direction of the conditioned air. Therefore, by changing the direction of the swing louver, it is possible to make the air-conditioned air blown out so as not to directly hit the passenger.

The outlet 255 is formed at a position centered in the left-right direction of the instrument panel IP, that is, a position between the driver's seat ST1 and the passenger seat ST2 when viewed from the rear side. The outlet 255 is an opening for blowing air-conditioned air toward a rear seat (not shown). The outlet 255 is also provided with a swing louver (not shown) for adjusting the wind direction of the air conditioning air.

The orientation of the swing louvers provided in each of the outlets 251, 252, 253, 254, and 255 is automatically changed by the individually provided electric actuators. Each swing louver is a part of the air conditioning mechanism unit 200, and its operation is controlled by the air conditioning control unit 110. The air conditioning control unit 110 can individually change the direction of each swing louver.

The contents of the processing executed by the control device 100 will be described with reference to FIG. The series of processes shown in FIG. 3 is repeatedly executed by the control device 100 every time a predetermined control cycle elapses.

In the first step S01 of the process, it is determined whether or not the air conditioning is in a transient state. The "air conditioning transient state" is a state in which the heat load in the vehicle interior is large. Examples of such an air-conditioning transient state include a state in which the temperature inside the vehicle interior is extremely high (or low), such as immediately after the occupant gets on the vehicle MV.

In step S01, if a predetermined period has not elapsed since the vehicle MV was started, it may be determined that the air conditioning is in a transient state. Further, when the air temperature in the vehicle interior is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature (for example, 40 ° C or higher) or lower than the predetermined temperature (for example, 10 ° C or lower), it may be determined that the air conditioning is in a transient state. .. Further, the determination may be made based on the skin temperature of the occupant detected by the thermal image camera 34.

If it is determined that the air conditioning is in a transient state, the process proceeds to step S04 described later. When it is determined that the air conditioning is not in a transient state, that is, the heat load in the vehicle interior is relatively small, the process proceeds to step S02.

In step S02, the preference determination unit 150 makes a determination. If it is determined that the occupant prefers that the air-conditioned air directly hits the skin, the process proceeds to step S04 described later. If the determination is not made as described above, the process proceeds to step S03.

In step S03, wind adjustment control is executed. The "wind adjustment control" is a control performed by the air conditioning control unit 110, and is a control for adjusting the blowing air of the air conditioning air so that the air conditioning air does not directly hit at least the part of the occupant whose skin is exposed. That is.

A specific example of wind adjustment control will be described with reference to FIG. In each of FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 4C, a state in which the vehicle interior is viewed from above is schematically drawn.

FIG. 4A shows the state before the execution of the wind adjustment control. In this state, air conditioning air is blown out from the outlets 251 and 252 on the driver's seat ST1 side. On the other hand, since there is no occupant in the passenger seat ST2, no air conditioning air is blown from the outlets 253 and 254 on the passenger seat ST2 side. Further, as shown by the arrows, the direction of the air-conditioned air blown from the outlets 251 and 252 is adjusted so as to be directed toward the driver M1. Therefore, a part of the air-conditioned air blown out directly hits the part of the driver M1 where the skin is exposed (for example, the neck, the arm, etc.).

FIG. 4B shows an example of the state when the wind adjustment control in step S03 is being executed. In this state, the conditioned air is continuously blown out only from the outlets 251 and 252, but the wind direction is changed by the operation of the swing louver. Specifically, the air-conditioned air blown out from the outlet 251 is blown toward the space on the right side of the driver M1. Further, the air-conditioned air blown out from the outlet 252 is blown toward the space on the left side of the driver M1. As a result, none of the air-conditioned air blown out directly hits the body of the driver M1 (including the clothing portion where the skin is not exposed).

FIG. 4C shows another example of the state when the wind adjustment control in step S03 is being executed. In this state, the air-conditioning air blown out from the air outlets 251 and 252 is stopped, and instead, the air-conditioned air is blown out from the air outlets 253 and 254 toward the passenger seat ST2. That is, the outlet from which the conditioned air is blown out is switched from the outlets 251 and 252 in which the occupant (driver M1) is present to the outlets 253 and 254 in which the occupant is not present. As a result, even in the example of FIG. 4C, the air-conditioned air blown out does not directly hit the body of the driver M1 (including the clothing portion where the skin is not exposed).

In this way, the wind adjustment control may be performed by changing the wind direction of the conditioned air as shown in FIG. 4 (B), and the outlet for which the conditioned air is blown is switched as shown in FIG. 4 (C). It may be done by.

The explanation will be continued by returning to FIG. In step S04 following step S03, the heat sensation calculation unit 120 calculates the heat sensation. As already mentioned, here, the feeling of heat is calculated based on six factors including temperature, humidity, radiation, wind speed, metabolism, and clothing amount.

When the process proceeds to step S04 via step S03, the wind speed in the vicinity of the exposed skin of the occupant (driver M1) is approximately 0 due to the execution of the wind adjustment control as described above. It has become. Therefore, the calculation of the feeling of heat in step S04 is performed under the condition that the wind speed is 0.

If the occupant's skin is exposed to the air-conditioned wind, it is difficult to accurately calculate the wind speed in the vicinity of the exposed portion of the occupant's skin. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately calculate the feeling of heat felt by the occupant and realize comfortable air conditioning based on this.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, when the heat sensation is calculated by the heat sensation calculation unit 120, the air conditioning control unit 110 executes the wind adjustment control, and the conditioned air is applied to at least the portion of the occupant where the skin is exposed. Is in a state where it does not hit directly. Therefore, by using a known wind speed (that is, 0), the feeling of heat can be calculated with high accuracy, and comfortable air conditioning can be realized based on this.

When the process proceeds to step S04 without going through step S03, a value calculated based on the rotation speed of a blower (not shown) is used as the wind speed used for calculating the feeling of heat. Instead of such an embodiment, the feeling of heat may be calculated using the value detected by the wind speed sensor provided in the vicinity of the outlet 251 or the like.

In step S05 following step S04, air conditioning control by the air conditioning control unit 110 is executed based on the feeling of heat calculated in step S04. Here, the operation of the air conditioning mechanism unit 200 is controlled so that the value of the feeling of heat approaches 0, which indicates “just right”.

As described above, in the air conditioning device 10 according to the present embodiment, the air conditioning control is executed in advance when the feeling of heat is calculated, so that the air conditioning air is applied to at least the portion of the occupant whose skin is exposed. Is not directly hit. This makes it possible to accurately calculate the feeling of heat.

In the example described with reference to FIG. 4, when the wind adjustment control is executed, the air-conditioned wind does not directly hit any part of the occupant's body. Instead of such an aspect, when the wind adjustment control is executed, the wind direction and the outlet are switched so that the air-conditioned wind directly hits only the surface of the clothes (that is, the part where the skin is not exposed) of the occupant's body. May be. Even in such an embodiment, the same effect as that described above can be obtained.

In the present embodiment, the air conditioning control unit 110 does not perform wind adjustment control in the air conditioning transient state (that is, in the case of Yes in step S01) in which the heat load in the vehicle interior is large. The reason is that there is a high possibility that all occupants feel "hot" or "cold" in the transition state of air conditioning, so it is not necessary to accurately calculate the feeling of heat and perform detailed air conditioning control. Is.

In the present embodiment, when the preference determination unit 150 determines that the occupant prefers that the air conditioning wind directly hits the skin, the air conditioning control unit 110 does not perform wind adjustment control. As a result, it is possible to prevent the occupant who likes the wind from feeling uncomfortable because the air-conditioned wind does not hit the occupant due to the wind adjustment control.

The present embodiment has been described above with reference to specific examples. However, the present disclosure is not limited to these specific examples. These specific examples with appropriate design changes by those skilled in the art are also included in the scope of the present disclosure as long as they have the features of the present disclosure. Each element included in each of the above-mentioned specific examples, its arrangement, conditions, a shape, and the like are not limited to those exemplified, and can be appropriately changed. The combinations of the elements included in each of the above-mentioned specific examples can be appropriately changed as long as there is no technical contradiction.

MV: Vehicle 10: Air conditioner 110: Air conditioning control unit 120: Thermal sensation calculation unit

Claims (4)

An air conditioner (10) mounted on a vehicle (MV).
The air-conditioning control unit (110) that adjusts the air-conditioning air blowout toward the passenger compartment of the vehicle, and the air-conditioning control unit (110).
A thermal sensation calculation unit (120) for calculating the thermal sensation felt by the occupant of the vehicle is provided.
When the heat sensation is calculated by the heat sensation calculation unit, the air conditioning control unit may use the air conditioning control unit.
Wind adjustment control, which is a control for adjusting the air-conditioning air blowout so that the air-conditioning air does not directly hit at least the part of the occupant whose skin is exposed, is performed.
In the air-conditioning transient state in which the heat load in the vehicle interior is large, the air-conditioning control unit is an air-conditioning device that does not perform the wind adjustment control . The air conditioning control unit
The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the wind adjustment control is performed by changing the wind direction of the air conditioner. The air conditioning control unit
The air-conditioning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air-conditioning control is performed by switching the air-conditioning outlet from which the air-conditioning air is blown out. An air conditioner (10) mounted on a vehicle (MV).
The air-conditioning control unit (110) that adjusts the air-conditioning air blowout toward the passenger compartment of the vehicle, and the air-conditioning control unit (110).
A thermal sensation calculation unit (120) for calculating the thermal sensation felt by the occupant of the vehicle is provided.
When the heat sensation is calculated by the heat sensation calculation unit, the air conditioning control unit may use the air conditioning control unit.
Wind adjustment control, which is a control for adjusting the air-conditioning air blowout so that the air-conditioning air does not directly hit at least the part of the occupant whose skin is exposed, is performed.
Further provided with a preference determination unit (150) for determining whether or not the occupant prefers that the air-conditioned wind directly hits the skin.
When the occupant prefers that the air-conditioning wind directly hits the skin, the air-conditioning control unit is an air- conditioning device that does not perform the air-conditioning control.

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