There is disclosed a vehicle air conditioner which is capable of enlarging an effective range of a dehumidifying and heating mode to environmental conditions and smoothly dehumidifying and heating a vehicle interior. A vehicle air conditioner 1 executes a dehumidifying and heating mode in which a controller lets a refrigerant discharged from a compressor 2 radiate heat in a radiator 4, and decompresses the refrigerant by which heat has been radiated and then lets the refrigerant absorb heat in a heat absorber 9 and an outdoor heat exchanger 7, the controller decreases an outdoor blower voltage FANVout of an outdoor blower 15 and decreases an air volume into the outdoor blower 15 in a case where a temperature Te of the heat absorber 9 is high even when the controller adjusts a valve position of an outdoor expansion valve 6 into a lower limit of controlling in a situation in which a temperature TCI of the radiator 4 is satisfactory.

There is disclosed a vehicular air-conditioning device of a so-called heat pump system which eliminates or decreases noise generated when an opening/closing valve opens at a changing time of an operation mode. The vehicular air-conditioning device executes a heating mode to let a refrigerant discharged from a compressor 2 radiate heat in a radiator 4, decompress the refrigerant by which heat has been radiated, and then let the refrigerant absorb heat in an outdoor heat exchanger 7, and a dehumidifying and heating mode to open a solenoid valve 22 in a state of the heating mode, decompress at least a part of the refrigerant flowing out from the radiator and then let the refrigerant absorb heat in a heat absorber 9. When the heating mode changes to the dehumidifying and heating mode, the controller decreases a radiator pressure or a pressure difference before and after the solenoid valve to a predetermined value or less, and then opens the solenoid valve 22.

A vehicular air conditioner includes an air conditioning, a heater core, a heat pump cycle unit, a temperature detector, and a controller. The heat pump cycle unit includes a first inside heat exchanger disposed downstream of the heater core in a flow direction of a conditioning air, a second inside heat exchanger disposed upstream of the heater core in the flow direction of the conditioning air, and an outside heat exchanger. The temperature detector is configured to detect a passage air temperature, the passage air temperature being a temperature of the conditioning air that has passed through the heater core. The controller is configured to selectively switch a circuit layout of the heat pump cycle unit between a cooling circuit, a heating circuit, and a dehumidifying-heating circuit based on the passage air temperature.

A method for operating a refrigeration system for a vehicle with a refrigerant circuit comprising a heat exchanger, wherein the heat exchanger is flowed through by a controllable environmental air flow (L) and can be operated as refrigerant condenser or gas cooler for a refrigeration system operation.

A method for controlling a refrigeration system of a vehicle includes a circuit containing a refrigerant, a compressor, and first and second evaporators which are connected in parallel to the compressor, and a first expansion valve arranged upstream the first evaporator that regulates a pressure drop of the refrigerant before the first evaporator, and a second expansion valve arranged upstream the second evaporator that regulates a pressure drop of the refrigerant before the second evaporator, and a condenser arranged downstream the compressor between the compressor and the first and second expansion valves. The method includes controlling a total opening of the first expansion valve and the second expansion valve, based on a temperature and a pressure of the refrigerant which refrigerant temperature and refrigerant pressure are measured downstream the first and second evaporators at a position between the first and second evaporators and the compressor.

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are provided for detecting and responding to a moisture condition of an autonomous vehicle (AV). In some examples, an AV fleet management device may detect a moisture condition within AV based on sensor data received from the AV. In some aspects, in response to detecting the moisture condition, the AV fleet management device may determine, based on the sensor data, that a humidity level within the autonomous vehicle exceeds a threshold humidity level or a wet surface within the autonomous vehicle is present. In some cases, a drying procedure may be determined or selected for reducing the humidity level or drying the wet surface within the autonomous vehicle.

A method for defogging a window of a vehicle includes steps of automatically selecting a climate control system operating mode and determining a risk of window fogging. The climate control system operating mode is selected from an outside air mode, an air-conditioning mode, and a defrost mode. A controller determines the risk of window fogging according to one or more inputs, and the same or a different controller may automatically select the climate control system operating mode. The controller is configured to increase a climate control system blower speed to increase a rate of airflow provided by the currently-actuated climate control system operating mode. The controller may sequentially advance the climate control system operating mode through the outside air mode, air-conditioning mode, and defrost mode.

A method for defogging a window of a vehicle includes steps of automatically selecting a climate control system operating mode and determining a risk of window fogging. The climate control system operating mode is selected from an outside air mode, an air-conditioning mode, and a defrost mode. A controller determines the risk of window fogging according to one or more inputs, and the same or a different controller may automatically select the climate control system operating mode. The controller is configured to increase a climate control system blower speed to increase a rate of airflow provided by the currently-actuated climate control system operating mode. The controller may sequentially advance the climate control system operating mode through the outside air mode, air-conditioning mode, and defrost mode.

When performing dehumidification heating of a space to be air-conditioned, a refrigeration cycle device is switched to a refrigerant circuit in which a flow of a refrigerant flowing out of an interior radiator is branched, and one of the branched refrigerants is decompressed by an interior expansion valve to evaporate in an interior evaporator, while the other of the branched refrigerants flows into a high-pressure side refrigerant passage of an internal heat exchanger and is then decompressed by an exterior expansion valve to evaporate in an exterior heat exchanger. Further, in the refrigerant circuit, a flow of the refrigerant flowing out of the interior evaporator and a flow of the refrigerant flowing out of the exterior heat exchanger are merged into a low-pressure side refrigerant passage of the internal heat exchanger. Thus, the refrigerant flowing into the interior evaporator is prevented from becoming a liquid-phase refrigerant having an unnecessarily high degree of supercooling, thereby achieving appropriate dehumidification heating.

An air conditioner for a vehicle includes a pump that draws and discharges a heat medium, a cooler core that exchanges sensible heat between the heat medium and ventilation air into a vehicle interior to cool and dehumidify the ventilation air, a heat-medium and outside-air heat exchanger that exchanges sensible heat between the heat medium and outside air, a compressor adapted to draw and discharge a refrigerant in a refrigeration cycle, a heat-medium cooling heat exchanger that cools the heat medium by exchanging heat between a low-pressure side refrigerant in the refrigeration cycle and the heat medium, and first and second switching valves that switch between a first dehumidification mode for circulation of the heat medium between the cooler core and the heat-medium cooling heat exchanger and a second dehumidification mode for circulation of the heat medium between the cooler core and the heat-medium and outside-air heat exchanger.