An invention relates to picking, storing, and transporting of products. One objective is to reduce or eliminate manual work, or unnecessary process stages. The invention concerns a trailer for a delivery of the products, wherein the trailer comprises an attachment point for attaching the trailer to a road vehicle, a body with wheels, and a wall attached to the body. The wall includes openings to a trunk that is limited by at least the body and the wall. The trailer comprises closures to cover and disclose the openings, and the trailer is configured to open a first closure in response to a correct identifier. The trailer is further configured to receive a cart to a storing place so that, at the storing place, the cart holds a first repository besides the first opening and a second repository besides the second opening.

A method for controlling a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system of an autonomous vehicle includes determining a vehicle operating status and operating the HVAC system according to the determined vehicle operating status. A control module comprising a sensor array and at least one controller operatively coupled to the sensor array and to the HVAC system controls operation of the HVAC system according to the determined vehicle operating status. The vehicle operating status is selected from one of vehicle occupied-in use, vehicle unoccupied-use requested, and vehicle unoccupied-standby. The HVAC system is operated at an operating setting providing a reduced energy consumption in a vehicle whose operating status is vehicle unoccupied-standby. The reduced energy consumption operating setting is determined according to a constant offset value or according to a variable offset value determined by inputs provided by the sensor array.

A method for optimizing climate control in an autonomous vehicle. The method includes receiving a ride request for an autonomous vehicle from a customer. A desired temperature for an interior of the autonomous vehicle may be determined based on the ride request. The current temperature of the vehicle interior may then be adjusted such that the current temperature substantially matches the desired temperature when the autonomous vehicle reaches the customer. The temperature of the vehicle interior may be allowed to deviate from the desired temperature, within a pre-determined temperature deviation range, when the autonomous vehicle is unoccupied. A corresponding system and computer program product are also disclosed and claimed herein.

Controlling a vehicle includes determining that an occupancy status of the vehicle is unoccupied, estimating a remaining unoccupied time, and controlling a climate-control system according to climate-control parameters based on at least the occupancy status and the remaining unoccupied time. A climate-control parameter is a value or set of values for an attribute or attributes of vehicle climate control, such as a power status for the climate-control system as a whole, a target temperature for a passenger cabin, power statuses corresponding to individual climate zones of the passenger cabin, and target temperatures for the individual climate zones.

A vehicle that operates in an autonomous driving mode and includes: an occupant sensing unit that is configured to sense an occupant inside the vehicle; and at least one processor configured to: determine, through the occupant sensing unit, whether the vehicle is occupied; and in a state in which the vehicle operates in the autonomous driving mode, control one or more in-vehicle devices based on a determination of whether the vehicle is occupied.

An air conditioning system for an electric transport vehicle supplied by an electrical supply network includes at least one actuator for the production of heat or cold, and a regulator configured in order to generate at least one operating command applied to the at least one actuator as a function of values for parameters representing the climatic conditions, the actuator delivering an average power over a predetermined time period. The regulator are configured in order to generate at least one operating command applied to at least one actuator as a function moreover of the value for a parameter relating to at least one electric transport vehicle supplied by the electrical supply network, the value for the parameter indicating that electrical energy is consumed by the at least one electric transport vehicle or that electrical energy is produced by the at least one electric vehicle.

A control apparatus for a vehicle includes an air conditioner configured to perform pre-air-conditioning for previously air-conditioning an inside of a vehicle cabin before a user gets in the vehicle. The control apparatus includes: a determining unit configured to, when the air conditioner is performing the pre-air-conditioning, determine whether an operation of a heating device or cooling device is required, the heating device and the cooling device being mounted on the vehicle to improve comfort of the user; and a device control unit configured to operate one of the heating device and the cooling device, whose operation is determined to be required by the determining unit.

Methods, systems, and apparatus for managing climate control. The control system includes one or more sensors that are configured to measure sunload energy. The control system includes a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) unit that is configured to output air with an airflow rate into the cabin of the vehicle. The electronic control unit is configured to obtain the amount of sunload energy and obtain a blower map based on the amount of sunload energy. The electronic control unit is configured to determine the airflow rate based on the obtained blower map and an expected temperature. The electronic control unit is configured to control the airflow rate to adjust an air temperature within the cabin of the vehicle to reach the expected temperature therefore increasing the fuel efficiency.

A vehicle air-conditioning system includes a cold-air circulation section in which indoor air of a vehicle is cooled via heat exchange with a refrigerant and is again supplied to a passenger compartment, a hot-air circulation section in which the indoor air is raised in temperature via heat exchange and is then again supplied to the passenger compartment, a purification circulation section in which the indoor air is introduced and purified and is then again supplied to the passenger compartment, and a refrigerant circulation section in which the refrigerant circulates to undergo heat exchange with the cold-air circulation section and the hot-air circulation section. The vehicle air-conditioning system separates an indoor air flow-path from an outdoor air flow-path to block outdoor air when performing air conditioning, and performs air conditioning of the passenger compartment using only the indoor air without entry of the outdoor air.

A refrigeration system and a start control method for a refrigeration system. The refrigeration system includes: a refrigeration loop having an exhaust port of a compressor, a condenser, a throttle element, an evaporator, and a suction port of the compressor connected in sequence by using a flow path; wherein a first valve is disposed between the throttle element and the condenser, and the first valve is at least capable of cutting off a refrigerant flow from the throttle element to the condenser; and a second valve is disposed close to the suction port of the compressor, and the second valve is used to control on/off of a flow path between the evaporator and the compressor. Starting load of the refrigeration system according to the present invention can be effectively reduced, so that the power and size of a drive component for providing power can also be reduced.