Presented are joint active thermal management (JATM) systems with heat exchanger storage of surplus refrigerant, methods for making/operating such systems, and vehicles equipped with such systems. A JATM system includes a coolant loop that fluidly connects to a vehicle battery system for pumping thereto coolant, an oil loop thermally coupled to the coolant loop and fluidly connected to a vehicle powertrain system for pumping thereto oil, and a refrigerant loop thermally coupled to the coolant loop and operable to circulate refrigerant for heating/cooling a passenger compartment. An electronic controller determines if a current amount of refrigerant in the refrigerant loop exceeds a calibrated threshold for the current operating mode of the JATM system. If so, the controller determines if one of the refrigerant loop's heat exchangers is available to store excess refrigerant. If the heat exchanger is available, the refrigerant loop stores excess refrigerant in the available refrigerant heat exchanger.

An embodiment of the present invention provides a vehicle heat pump system including a compressor configured to compress and circulate a refrigerant, a condenser configured to condense the compressed refrigerant, a first expansion valve configured to expand the condensed refrigerant, an evaporator configured to evaporate the refrigerant expanded by the first expansion valve by allowing the refrigerant to exchange heat with a coolant, a cabin cooler configured to cool a vehicle interior by allowing the coolant having passed through the evaporator to exchange heat with air, and a radiator configured to allow the coolant for cooling an electrical component to exchange heat with outside air, in which the coolant having passed through the radiator flows into the evaporator in a heating mode.

An evaporator apparatus for a refrigeration cycle of an HVAC system or a refrigeration system is disclosed that includes: a primary evaporator pathway for a working fluid of the refrigeration cycle extending through a primary expansion device and a primary evaporator; a secondary evaporator pathway for the working fluid in parallel with the primary evaporator pathway and extending through a secondary expansion device and a secondary evaporator; a coolant circuit for cooling a device, the secondary evaporator configured for heat exchange between the working fluid and process fluid of the coolant circuit; and a controller configured to control: the primary expansion device to maintain a target superheat of working fluid at a primary control location downstream of the primary evaporator; and the secondary expansion device based on monitoring a temperature of process fluid to maintain a target temperature of process fluid at a coolant control location in the coolant circuit.

A thermal management system includes a high-temperature side heating medium circuit, a low-temperature side heating medium circuit, a device heating medium circuit, a circuit connection portion and a circuit switch unit. The circuit switch unit switches between an operation mode in which a heating medium that passed through the low-temperature side heating medium circuit is circulated through any one of the high-temperature side heating medium circuit and the device heating medium circuit via the circuit connection portion and an operation mode in which the high-temperature side heating medium circuit, the low-temperature side heating medium circuit, and the device heating medium circuit are connected via the circuit connection portion, and the heating medium is circulated through a heat generation device, a device heat exchange unit, a heating unit, and a heater core.

An integrated thermal management circuit for vehicles, includes a refrigerant line configured so that a refrigerant subsequently flows into a compressor and a refrigerant heater, the refrigerant discharged from the refrigerant heater passes through an internal condenser or an integrated chiller and then flows into an external condenser, and the refrigerant discharged from the external condenser passes through the integrated chiller or an evaporator and then flows into the compressor, a battery cooling line configured so that a coolant circulates between a battery and an integrated radiator or the integrated chiller, an electronic part cooling line configured so that the coolant circulates between an electronic driving unit and the integrated radiator or the integrated chiller, and a heat radiation control valve provided between the refrigerant heater and the internal condenser on the refrigerant line and configured to control an amount of heat radiated by the internal condenser.

A thermal management system control method for a vehicle, may include: (A) a process in which a controller determines whether a pre-cooling mode is selected according to data detected from a data detector before track driving of the vehicle, and operates an air conditioner; (B) a process in which the controller, when the process (A) is completed, operates a battery chiller expansion valve to cool a battery module according to the data detected from the data detector; and (C) a process in which the controller, when the process (B) is completed, determines whether the evaporator is frozen and then thaws the evaporator or controls an evaporator expansion valve, and terminates the control.

Disclosed are an apparatus and a method for controlling electrical loads of a vehicle. The apparatus may include a high-voltage load that receives a high voltage from a high-voltage battery to perform an operation thereof, a low-voltage load that receives a low voltage from a low-voltage battery to perform an operation thereof, and a controller that mutually organically controls an output of the high-voltage load and an output of the low-voltage load based on a control level set by a user.

A thermal management system includes a refrigerant loop, a battery coolant loop, and a motor coolant loop. The refrigerant loop includes a compressor selectively communicating with at least two of a condenser, an evaporator, and a heat exchanger. The battery coolant loop includes a first bypass path connected to the heat exchanger. The motor coolant loop includes a second bypass path connected to the radiator. A valve package includes ten outer ports and eight inner channels. Three outer ports connect to the heat exchanger, one of which being connected to the first bypass path. Two outer ports connect to the power supply system. Two outer ports connect to the powertrain system. Three outer ports connect to the radiator, one of which being connected to the second bypass path. Eight of the ten outer ports selectively communicate with four of the eight inner channels.

A cooling system for electric vehicles, which enables air to be efficiently removed from a cooling circuit due to optimal placement of a reservoir tank, includes a first cooling circuit configured to cool a battery by coolant that circulates in accordance with operation of a first circulation pump and exchanges heat with a first heat exchange module, a second cooling circuit configured to cool a PE module using coolant that circulates in accordance with operation of a second circulation pump and exchanges heat with a second heat exchange module, the second cooling circuit being configured so that the coolant in the first cooling circuit circulates through the second cooling circuit, and a reservoir tank, which is continuously connected to the first and second cooling circuits to remove air in the coolant flowing through each of the first and second cooling circuits in the reservoir tank.

Methods, systems, devices and apparatuses for a charging apparatus for a vehicle. The charging apparatus includes a first sensor configured to measure or detect a temperature of the electronic device. The charging apparatus includes at least one of a blower, a bypass valve or a vent configured to adjust the temperature of the electronic device or a surface of a charging pad. The charging apparatus includes a processor coupled to the first sensor and the at least one of the blower, the bypass valve or the vent. The processor is configured to determine that the temperature of the electronic device exceeds a first threshold temperature. The processor is configured to control the at least one of the blower, the bypass valve or the vent to increase or decrease the temperature of the electronic device or the surface of the charging pad.