A refrigeration cycle apparatus is mounted in a vehicle and has a circulation circuit through which a refrigerant circulates. The apparatus includes a refrigerant amount calculating unit and an operating state determining unit. The refrigerant amount calculating unit acquires a physical quantity and calculates an amount of the refrigerant. The operating state determining unit determines, based on traveling conditions of the vehicle, whether the vehicle is in an operating state in which the refrigerant circulating in the circulation circuit becomes a stable state. The refrigerant amount calculating unit calculates the amount of the refrigerant when the operating state determining unit determines that the vehicle is in the operation state.

A thermal fuse activation assembly for a clutch includes a thermal fuse. The thermal fuse has a body containing a temperature sensitive member. The temperature sensitive member is configured to activate upon a predetermined temperature. The thermal fuse activation assembly further includes a heat sink is thermally coupled to the thermal fuse.

A system comprising a refrigeration engine (132) and regulator (250, 350, 450, 550, 650) positioned within a housing (144, 244), the regulator (250, 350, 450, 550, 650) controlling fuel to the engine through a fuel line (354), a lock-off valve connected to the regulator (250, 350, 450, 550, 650) to shut off fuel supply through the regulator (250, 350, 450, 550, 650), a controller operably connected to the lock-off valve and/or the regulator (250, 350, 450, 550, 650), a guide (462, 562) positioned within the housing (144, 244) and proximate to the refrigeration engine (132), the regulator (250, 350, 450, 550, 650), and/or the fuel line (354) to direct gases leaking from the refrigeration engine (132), regulator (250, 350, 450, 550, 650), and/or at least one fuel line (354), and a methane sensor (566, 666A) positioned within the guide (462, 562) to detect the presence of methane within the guide (462, 562) that is directed by the guide (462, 562), the methane sensor (566, 666A) in communication with the controller and configured to transmit a signal to the controller when methane is detected by the methane sensor (566, 666A). The controller performs a safety action when the signal from the methane sensor (566, 666A) is received.

A vehicle-mounted cooling system includes an air-conditioning refrigerant circuit including a refrigerant passage, a compressor, a heat source-side heat exchanger and a use-side heat exchanger, a battery, and a battery cooling unit cooling the battery using the refrigerant. A control device controls a drive state of the compressor in response to an air-conditioning request and a battery cooling request. The control device includes an abnormality determination unit configured to determine whether an abnormality has occurred in the air-conditioning refrigerant circuit, and a control mode change unit configured to perform, under a situation where the battery cooling request has occurred and it is determined that an abnormality has occurred in the air-conditioning refrigerant circuit, a change of a refrigerant-circulation control mode while permitting the battery cooling unit to continuously cool the battery based on the refrigerant, the refrigerant-circulation control mode representing how the refrigerant is circulated in the air-conditioning refrigerant circuit.

A method for determining a level of refrigerant charge in a cooling circuit of an air-conditioning system and a module for leak detection are provided. The method includes determining a total quantity of refrigerant contained in the cooling circuit of the air-conditioning system solely based on data internal to the air-conditioning system.

A method for controlling a vehicle air-conditioning system and a vehicle air-conditioning system, the method includes acquiring an actual degree of superheat, a preset degree of superheat and a degree of opening of an electronic expansion valve; determining, according to the actual degree of superheat, the preset degree of superheat and the degree of opening of the electronic expansion valve and whether the electronic expansion valve is in a fault state; and outputting a control signal to an executive control mechanism to adjust a parameter of a device in a vehicle air-conditioning system, which influences the variation of the actual degree of superheat, so as to adjust the degree of superheat of the vehicle air-conditioning system.

An air conditioning apparatus includes an electric compressor, an inverter, a temperature detection element, and an ECU. The electric compressor compresses a refrigerant drawn from a refrigerant intake port and discharges the refrigerant from a refrigerant discharge port. The inverter is integrated with the electric compressor so as to be cooled by the drawn refrigerant, and operates the electric compressor according to a control signal. The temperature detection element detects a temperature of the inverter. The ECU outputs a control signal to control the inverter. The ECU performs any one or both of a control for reducing a self-cooling amount of the electric compressor and a control for increasing a self-heat generation amount of the inverter with respect to the inverter when the temperature detected by the temperature detection element is lower than a predetermined reference temperature.

There is disclosed a vehicle air conditioner which can effectively eliminate occurrence of excess or lack of an amount of a refrigerant to be circulated in an internal cycle mode. A controller changes and executes a heating mode, a dehumidifying and heating mode, an internal cycle mode, a dehumidifying and cooling mode, and a cooling mode. When an amount of the refrigerant to be circulated is excessively large in the internal cycle mode, a controller executes a refrigerant sealing mode to seal a refrigerant in an outdoor heat exchanger 7, and when the amount of the refrigerant to be circulated is insufficient, the controller executes a refrigerant discharge mode to discharge the refrigerant from the outdoor heat exchanger 7.

A control method of an air conditioning system for compressor protection includes, when an air conditioner turn-on request is present, determining, by a controller, whether a compressor operating condition is satisfied from a refrigerant state of an air conditioner, when the compressor operating condition is determined as being satisfied, determining, by the controller, whether the vehicle is in a state of being unattended for a long period of time using information collected from a vehicle, when the vehicle is determined as being in a state of being unattended for a long period of time, performing, by the controller, pre-run control for operating the compressor in a predetermined minimum load condition; and when a pre-run operating time for which the compressor is operated in a minimum load condition reaches a predetermined pre-run holding time, interrupting, by the controller, the pre-run control with respect to the compressor.

A vehicle air conditioner is provided which is capable of detecting a refrigerant lack accompanying a refrigerant leakage and the like over time at the earliest possible stage and protecting a compressor. The vehicle air conditioner is provided with a compressor 2, a radiator 4, an outdoor expansion valve 6, and a heat absorber 9. The vehicle air conditioner holds normal time data indicating a relation between the number of revolutions NC of the compressor and a discharge refrigerant temperature Td thereof when a sufficient amount of refrigerant is filled in a refrigerant circuit R. The present invention calculates a discharge refrigerant temperature estimated value Tdst in normal time from the normal time data on the basis of a current number of revolutions NC and compares the discharge refrigerant temperature estimated value Tdst with a current discharge refrigerant temperature Td to determine a refrigerant lack of the refrigerant circuit.