A vehicle air-conditioning device includes: an air-conditioning device having an all-seat air-conditioning mode in which air-conditioned air is blown out to occupants of all seats in a vehicle cabin and an individual air-conditioning mode in which the air-conditioned air is blown out to some of the occupants of all seats; a selection device used to select the all-seat air-conditioning mode and the individual air-conditioning mode; and a controller configured to control the air-conditioning device in an air-conditioning mode selected in the selection device. When the vehicle is activated by a remote starter device configured to remotely activate the vehicle, the controller controls the air-conditioning device by switching the air-conditioning mode to the all-seat air-conditioning mode even when the air-conditioning mode selected at previous turning-off of an ignition device is the individual air-conditioning mode.

A computer-implemented process for controlling a vehicle interior includes detecting a previously defined situation that relates to an undesirable environmental condition of the vehicle interior, and assessing both a risk level and an urgency level, based on a vehicle sensor input. The process also includes generating a vehicle command based upon the detected previously defined situation, the assessed risk level, and assessed urgency level, and executing the generated vehicle command to control at least one of an engine, a window, and a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) unit to modify an environmental condition of the vehicle interior.

The auxiliary AC system includes a temperature measurement device configured to generate a variable output based on an air temperature in an environment proximate to the AC system and a compressor control circuit communicably coupled to a variable speed motor. The compressor control circuit is configured to receive the variable output from the temperature measurement device, determine that the output indicates a change in the air temperature, and generate a control signal for the variable speed motor, the control signal including a current having a magnitude depending on the extent of the change to vary a rate at which a compressor pressurizes a refrigerant vapor.

The present disclosure provides a method including determining an operational mode of a vehicle based on data accumulated from at least one vehicle information system associated with the vehicle; selecting one of a plurality of power consumption profiles for the vehicle based on the determined operational mode; and applying the selected one of the power consumption profiles to the vehicle.

Methods, systems, and technologies for preconditioning an interior/cabin of a vehicle using a control system and an HVAC system. The preconditioning can include heating or cooling the interior/cabin to a desired temperature or temperature range, and/or maintaining the interior/cabin at the desired temperature or temperature range once reached, e.g., prior to departure/operation of an associated vehicle. The preconditioning can be initiated and/or controlled based on an estimated or selected departure time, and/or can be performed in multiple phases that use different operation of the HVAC system to manage heat transfer and power use. The preconditioning can also be adjusted based on a rate of battery charging to facilitate a desired battery charge prior to departure.

Systems and method for charging the battery of an electric vehicle (EV) and climatically controlling the inside cabin of the electric vehicle are described. The methods include detecting that an EV is electrically connected to a charging station and then determining the current temperature inside the EV. Climatic user preferences can be retrieved and used to determine a desired climate inside the cabin when the user returns to the vehicle. Using the desired climate inside the cabin to determine an estimated charge, where the estimated charge is sufficient to both obtain the desired climate inside the cabin by the time the users return and have the battery of the vehicle charged to an acceptable level.

A method for operating a heat pump for a motor vehicle is proposed, wherein the heat pump comprises a refrigerant circuit with a refrigerant, an ambient heat exchanger, a compressor, a heating heat exchanger, and a throttle. The method comprises determining an expected start time of a charging process of a motor vehicle battery and determining a maximum dew point undershoot and/or a maximum frost mass. The method further comprises operating the heat pump such that the maximum dew point undershoot and/or the maximum frost mass are reached within a predefined time period before the expected start time.

An apparatus, a system, and a method for controlling an in-car temperature of an autonomous vehicle are provided. The control server determines an expected in-car temperature according to a re-riding time of each of one or more parking positions corresponding to a destination or a re-riding position of an autonomous vehicle, selects an optimal parking position or a temporary parking position based on the expected in-car temperature and an outdoor air temperature according to the re-riding time, transmits information about the optimal parking position or the temporary parking position to the autonomous vehicle. The controller of the autonomous vehicle is configured to perform autonomous driving and autonomous parking depending on the information about the optimal parking position or the temporary parking position, recognizes a voice of a user, determines autonomous driving related control corresponding to the voice of the user, and performs the autonomous driving related control corresponding to the voice of the user.

Methods and systems are provided for heat sanitizing a vehicle. In one example, a method may include, while receiving power from an external power source and responsive to receiving a request for cleaning an interior of a vehicle, operating an electric heater of a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system to heat the interior above an upper threshold temperature for a first threshold duration using the power received from the external power source. In this way, the HVAC system may be advantageously used to expose the vehicle interior to temperatures that kill or inactive microbes while vehicle battery power and fuel are conserved by using power supplied from the external power source.

A method for controlling a comfort component of a vehicle includes setting a comfort component, while a passenger is occupying the vehicle, to an active state to adjust a temperature within the vehicle to a passenger desired temperature based on receiving an input from the passenger. The method further includes maintaining, after the passenger exited the vehicle, the comfort component in an active state based on a likelihood of the passenger returning to the vehicle satisfying an active state condition. The method still further includes capturing, after the passenger exited the vehicle, an image of a person approaching the vehicle via one or more sensors of the vehicle. The method also includes adjusting the comfort component from the active state to a default state based on an identity of the person being different from an identity of the passenger, the identity of the person being determined based on the image.