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DE-102025144864-A1 - VEHICLE AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM

DE102025144864A1DE 102025144864 A1DE102025144864 A1DE 102025144864A1DE-102025144864-A1

Abstract

A vehicle air conditioning system according to the present invention comprises: a flow path 10 through which interior air from a vehicle interior and/or exterior air from a vehicle exterior can flow; at least one humidity control device 20 provided in the flow path 10, wherein the humidity control device 20 is configured to adsorb and desorb moisture; an HVAC unit 30, which includes a throttle valve 52 configured to adjust a percentage of the supplied quantities of the introduced interior air and the exterior air; and a control unit 40 configured to control the humidity control device 20 and the HVAC unit 30. The control unit 40 controls the throttle valve 52 so that the quantity of supplied interior air is greater than the quantity of supplied exterior air, while the HVAC unit 30 performs heating and the humidity control device 20 performs dehumidification.

Inventors

  • Takafumi Hamada

Assignees

  • NGK INSULATORS, LTD.

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20251031
Priority Date
20241111

Claims (13)

  1. Vehicle air conditioning system comprising: a flow path (10) through which interior air from a vehicle interior and/or exterior air from a vehicle exterior can flow; at least one humidity control device (20) provided in the flow path (10), wherein the humidity control device (20) is configured to adsorb and desorb moisture; an HVAC unit (30) comprising a throttle valve (52) configured to adjust a percentage of the supplied quantities of interior air and exterior air; and a control unit (40) configured to control the humidity control device (20) and the HVAC unit (30), whereby the control unit (40) controls the damper (52) so that the amount of indoor air supplied is greater than the amount of outdoor air supplied, while the HVAC unit (30) performs the heating and the humidity control device (20) performs the dehumidification.
  2. Vehicle air conditioning system according to Claim 1 , wherein the control unit (40) controls the throttle valve (52) such that during the operation of heating by the HVAC unit (30) and dehumidification by the humidity control device (20), a percentage of the amount of supplied indoor air is 55% or more.
  3. Vehicle air conditioning system according to Claim 1 , wherein the control unit (40) controls the throttle valve (52) such that during the operation of heating by the HVAC unit (30) and dehumidification by the humidity control device (20), a percentage of the amount of supplied indoor air is 70% or more.
  4. Vehicle air conditioning system according to one of the Claims 1 until 3 , wherein the humidity control device (20) is provided on a downstream side of the throttle valve (52) in the HVAC unit (30).
  5. Vehicle air conditioning system according to one of the Claims 1 until 3 , wherein the humidity control device (20) is provided on an upstream side of the HVAC unit (30).
  6. Vehicle air conditioning system according to one of the Claims 1 until 5 , wherein the HVAC unit (30) includes a condenser (32) and the condenser (32) is connected to a heat pump circuit.
  7. Vehicle air conditioning system according to one of the Claims 1 until 6 , wherein the flow path (10) on a downstream side of the humidity control device (20) branches into a first flow path (11) for allowing the inflow of interior air and/or exterior air into the vehicle interior and a second flow path (12) for allowing the outflow of interior air and/or exterior air to the vehicle exterior, and wherein the vehicle climate control system further comprises a first valve (60) configured to switch the flow of interior air and/or exterior air between the first flow path (11) and the second flow path (12).
  8. Vehicle air conditioning system according to one of the Claims 1 until 7 , wherein the humidity control device (20) comprises: an adsorption section containing an adsorbent configured to adsorb moisture at a temperature below or equal to a predetermined temperature and to desorb the adsorbed moisture when the temperature exceeds the predetermined temperature; and a heating medium or heating structure configured to heat the adsorption section.
  9. Vehicle air conditioning system according to Claim 8 , wherein the humidity control device (20) comprises: a honeycomb structure (21) with an outer circumferential wall (22) and partitions (25) provided on an inner side of the outer circumferential wall (22), the partitions (25) defining a plurality of cells (24), each of the cells (24) extending from a first end face (23a) to a second end face (23b) of the honeycomb structure (21) to form a flow path for air; an adsorption layer (26) containing the adsorbent, the adsorption layer (26) being on a surface of each of the partitions (25) is provided; and an electrode pair (27a, 27b) is provided on the first end face (23a) and the second end face (23b) of the honeycomb structure (21) or on the outer circumferential wall (22) parallel to an expansion direction of the cells (24) of the honeycomb structure (21).
  10. Vehicle air conditioning system according to Claim 9 , wherein at least the partitions (25) of the honeycomb structure (21) are made of a material with a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) property.
  11. Vehicle air conditioning system according to Claim 8 , wherein the humidity control device (20) has a flow path for air and a flow path for a heating medium adjacent to the flow path for air, and wherein the adsorption section is provided in the flow path for air.
  12. Vehicle air conditioning system according to Claim 8 , wherein the humidity control device (20) comprises: a honeycomb structure (21) with an outer perimeter wall (22) and partitions (25) provided on an inner side of the outer perimeter wall (22), the partitions (25) defining a plurality of cells (24), each of the cells (24) extending from a first end face (23a) to a second end face (23b) of the honeycomb structure (21) to form a flow path for air; an adsorption layer (26) containing the adsorbent, the adsorption layer (26) being provided on a surface of each of the partitions (25); and a heating device provided on an upstream side of the honeycomb structure (21).
  13. Vehicle air conditioning system according to one of the Claims 1 until 12 , where the vehicle climate control system is used for an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle or a plug-in hybrid vehicle.

Description

AREA OF INVENTION The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioning system. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION For various vehicle types, such as cars, the demands for improving the vehicle interior are increasing. Specific requirements include reducing the amount of CO₂ inside the vehicle to decrease driver fatigue, regulating humidity levels, and eliminating harmful volatile components such as odors and allergens. Ventilation is an effective measure for meeting these requirements; however, in winter, ventilation results in significant heat loss, leading to reduced energy efficiency. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are particularly affected, as their range is considerably limited due to energy losses. As a method for solving the aforementioned problems, a vehicle cleaning system (vehicle air conditioning system) is proposed, comprising: a heating element (humidity control device) containing a honeycomb structure with an outer circumferential wall and partitions provided on an inner surface of the outer circumferential wall, the partitions defining a plurality of cells, each extending from one end face to the other end face of the honeycomb structure to form a flow path, wherein at least the partition is made of a material with PTC properties; an electrode pair comprising a first electrode provided on one end face and a second electrode provided on the other end face; and a layer containing a functional material provided on a surface of each partition; as well as an inlet pipe connecting a vehicle interior to an inlet end face of the heating element; and an outlet pipe with a first path (first flow path) connecting an outlet end face of the heating element to the vehicle interior, wherein the outlet pipe has a first path connecting an outlet end face of the heating element to a vehicle interior, and a second path (second flow path) connecting the outlet end face of the heating element to a vehicle exterior, and wherein the system includes a switching valve configured to change an airflow circulating through the outlet pipe between the first path and the second path (e.g. patent literature 1). On the other hand, an air conditioning system provided with an HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) unit that uses a heat pump cycle has been proposed as an air conditioning system capable of heating and cooling a vehicle (e.g. patent literature 2 and 3). STATE OF THE ART Patent literature [Patent literature 1] WO 2023/074202 A1[Patent literature 2] Japanese Patent No. 6746742 B[Patent Literature 3] Publication of the Japanese patent application no. 2016-097817 A SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problem to be solved by the invention In a vehicle climate control system that includes a humidity control device and an HVAC unit, the problem is that if the humidity control device dehumidifies the vehicle interior and at the same time a large amount of outside air is supplied by the HVAC unit during heating, excessive dehumidification of the vehicle interior can occur and energy consumption for heating can increase. This invention was developed to solve the problems described above. One object of the invention is to provide a vehicle air conditioning system that can reduce energy consumption while simultaneously ensuring adequate dehumidification performance during heating. Means to solve the problem As a result of extensive investigations into vehicle air conditioning systems with humidity control devices and HVAC units, it was found that the problems described above can be solved by controlling a throttle valve in the HVAC unit such that, during heating by the HVAC unit and dehumidification by the humidity control device, the amount of supplied indoor air is greater than the amount of supplied outdoor air. In other words, this invention can be explained as follows: <1> A vehicle air conditioning system that includes the following: a flow path through which interior air from a vehicle interior and/or exterior air from a vehicle exterior can flow; at least one humidity control device provided in the flow path, wherein the humidity control device is configured to adsorb and desorb moisture; an HVAC unit that includes a throttle valve configured to set a percentage of the amount of indoor air supplied and a percentage of the amount of outdoor air supplied; and a control unit configured to control the humidity control device and the HVAC unit, the control unit controls the throttle valve so that the amount of supplied indoor air is greater than the amount of supplied outdoor air, while heating is carried out by the HVAC unit and dehumidification is carried out by the humidity control device.<2> Vehicle air conditioning system according to <1>, wherein the control unit can control the throttle valve so that during the operation of heating by the HVAC unit and dehumidification by the humidity control device, a percentage of the amount of supplied interior air is 55% or more.<3> Vehicle air conditioning system according to