Control method for a computing hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a control method and device of a computing hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, an electronic device, a computing hardware thermal management system, an autonomous vehicle, a computer readable storage medium and a computer program product, and relates to the technical field of intelligent transportation, in particular to the technical field of autonomous driving. The system comprises: a circulating air duct; a circulating air fan; an exhaust air valve, an intake air valve, a refrigeration device, a heating device and a heat exchange device of computing hardware arranged in the circulating air duct in sequence; a temperature monitoring device; an atmospheric monitoring device; and an electronic device configured to control the opening and closing states of the exhaust air valve, the intake air valve, the refrigeration device and the heating device based on the ambient temperature, the temperature of the air inlet side of the heat exchange device and the atmospheric quality parameter. The present disclosure can provide a reliable and efficient thermal management solution for the computing hardware of the autonomous vehicle and make it applicable to harsh environmental conditions.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of intelligent transportation technology, and more particularly to the field of autonomous driving technology. Specifically, it relates to a control method and device for a computing hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, an electronic device, a computing hardware thermal management system, an autonomous vehicle, a computer-readable storage medium, and a computer program product. Background Technology

[0002] Autonomous vehicles rely on the collaborative efforts of artificial intelligence, visual computing, radar, monitoring devices, and global positioning systems to drive the vehicles without the need for actual human operation, and represent one of the main development directions for future intelligent transportation.

[0003] How to provide a reliable and efficient thermal management solution for the computing hardware of autonomous vehicles and make it suitable for harsh environmental conditions is a technical problem that urgently needs to be solved by those skilled in the art.

[0004] The technical means described in this section are not necessarily those previously conceived or employed. Unless otherwise specified, no technical means described in this section should be assumed to be prior art simply because it is included in this section. Similarly, unless otherwise specified, the issues mentioned in this section should not be considered to be generally accepted in any prior art. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This disclosure provides a control method and apparatus for a computing hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, an electronic device, a computing hardware thermal management system, an autonomous vehicle, a computer-readable storage medium, and a computer program product.

[0006] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a control method for a computational hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle is provided, wherein,

[0007] The computing hardware thermal management system includes: a circulating air duct; a circulating fan located in the circulating air duct; an exhaust air valve, an intake air valve, a cooling device, a heating device, and a heat exchange device for computing hardware located sequentially in the circulating air duct; a temperature monitoring device for monitoring the ambient temperature outside the autonomous vehicle and the intake side temperature of the heat exchange device; and an atmospheric monitoring device for monitoring atmospheric quality parameters outside the autonomous vehicle.

[0008] The control method includes: acquiring ambient temperature, air inlet temperature, and air quality parameters; and controlling the opening and closing states of the exhaust valve, air inlet valve, refrigeration device, and heating device based on the ambient temperature, air inlet temperature, and air quality parameters.

[0009] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a control device for a computational hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle is provided, wherein...

[0010] The computing hardware thermal management system includes: a circulating air duct; a circulating fan located in the circulating air duct; an exhaust air valve, an intake air valve, a cooling device, a heating device, and a heat exchange device for computing hardware located sequentially in the circulating air duct; a temperature monitoring device for monitoring the ambient temperature outside the autonomous vehicle and the intake side temperature of the heat exchange device; and an atmospheric monitoring device for monitoring atmospheric quality parameters outside the autonomous vehicle.

[0011] The control device includes: an acquisition unit configured to acquire ambient temperature, air inlet side temperature, and air quality parameters; and a control unit configured to control the opening and closing states of the exhaust valve, air inlet valve, refrigeration device, and heating device based on the ambient temperature, air inlet side temperature, and air quality parameters.

[0012] According to one aspect of this disclosure, an electronic device is provided, comprising: at least one processor; and a memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, the instructions being executed by the at least one processor to enable the at least one processor to perform the control method described in the foregoing aspect.

[0013] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a thermal management system for computing hardware applied to an autonomous vehicle is provided, comprising: a circulating air duct; a circulating fan disposed in the circulating air duct; an exhaust air valve, an intake air valve, a cooling device, a heating device, and a heat exchange device for computing hardware sequentially disposed in the circulating air duct; a temperature monitoring device for monitoring the ambient temperature outside the autonomous vehicle and the intake side temperature of the heat exchange device; an atmospheric monitoring device for monitoring atmospheric quality parameters outside the autonomous vehicle; and electronic equipment according to the foregoing aspect.

[0014] According to one aspect of this disclosure, an autonomous vehicle is provided, comprising: computing hardware; and a computing hardware thermal management system according to the foregoing aspect.

[0015] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is provided storing computer instructions configured to cause a computer to perform the control method described in the foregoing aspect.

[0016] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a computer program product is provided, comprising a computer program, wherein the computer program, when executed by a processor, implements the control method described in the foregoing aspect.

[0017] According to one or more embodiments of this disclosure, a reliable and efficient thermal management solution can be provided for the computing hardware of autonomous vehicles, enabling it to be used in harsh environmental conditions.

[0018] It should be understood that the description in this section is not intended to identify key or essential features of the embodiments of this disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Other features of this disclosure will become readily apparent from the following description. Attached Figure Description

[0019] The accompanying drawings exemplify embodiments and form part of the specification, serving together with the textual description to explain exemplary implementations of the embodiments. The illustrated embodiments are for illustrative purposes only and do not limit the scope of the claims. Throughout the drawings, the same reference numerals refer to similar but not necessarily identical elements.

[0020] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an exemplary system in which various methods described herein may be implemented according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0021] Figure 2A A schematic diagram is shown of a computing hardware thermal management system for autonomous vehicles operating in an internal circulation state, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 2B A schematic diagram is shown of a computing hardware thermal management system for autonomous vehicles, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, operating in an external circulation state;

[0023] Figure 3 A flowchart illustrating a control method for a computational hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0024] Figure 4 A structural block diagram of a control device for a computational hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, is shown; and

[0025] Figure 5 A structural block diagram of an exemplary electronic device that can be used to implement embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0026] The exemplary embodiments of this disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, including various details of the embodiments to aid understanding, and should be considered merely exemplary. Therefore, those skilled in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications can be made to the embodiments described herein without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Similarly, for clarity and brevity, descriptions of well-known functions and structures are omitted in the following description.

[0027] In this disclosure, unless otherwise stated, the use of terms such as "first," "second," etc., to describe various elements is not intended to limit the positional, temporal, or importance relationships of these elements; such terms are merely used to distinguish one element from another. In some examples, the first element and the second element may refer to the same instance of that element, while in other cases, based on the context, they may refer to different instances.

[0028] The terminology used in the description of the various examples in this disclosure is for the purpose of describing particular examples only and is not intended to be limiting. Unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise, an element may be one or more unless the number of elements is specifically limited. Furthermore, the term "and / or" as used in this disclosure covers any one of the listed items and all possible combinations thereof.

[0029] Autonomous vehicles are intelligent vehicles that use high-performance computing hardware to drive in place of a human driver. The computing hardware, acting as the "brain" of an autonomous vehicle, needs to analyze and process large amounts of data transmitted from devices such as cameras and radar in real time.

[0030] With the development of autonomous driving technology, the performance of computing hardware is becoming increasingly advanced, but this also brings more heat generation and increasingly complex environmental conditions. For example, in some fully driverless engineering vehicles, because they are not equipped with a driver's cab and a matching air conditioning system, the computing hardware can only be exposed to the external environment for natural heat dissipation. This results in poor heat dissipation and makes the computing hardware more susceptible to damage from harsh external environments.

[0031] Based on this, the present disclosure provides a control method and apparatus, electronic device, computing hardware thermal management system, autonomous vehicle, computer-readable storage medium and computer program product for a computing hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, which can provide a reliable and efficient thermal management solution for the computing hardware of autonomous vehicles and enable it to be suitable for harsh environmental conditions.

[0032] The embodiments of this disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0033] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an exemplary system 100 in which the various methods and apparatus described herein can be implemented according to embodiments of this disclosure is shown. Reference Figure 1 The system 100 includes a motor vehicle 110, a server 120, and one or more communication networks 130 that couple the motor vehicle 110 to the server 120.

[0034] In embodiments of this disclosure, the motor vehicle 110 may include a computing device according to embodiments of this disclosure and / or be configured to perform a method according to embodiments of this disclosure.

[0035] Server 120 may run one or more services or software applications that enable the communication control methods for the vehicles disclosed herein. In some embodiments, server 120 may also provide other services or software applications, which may include non-virtual environments and virtual environments. Figure 1 In the configuration shown, server 120 may include one or more components that implement the functions performed by server 120. These components may include software components, hardware components, or combinations thereof that can be executed by one or more processors. A user of motor vehicle 110 may sequentially interact with server 120 using one or more client applications to utilize the services provided by these components. It should be understood that various different system configurations are possible and may differ from system 100. Therefore, Figure 1 This is an example of a system used to implement the various methods described herein, and is not intended to be limiting.

[0036] Server 120 may include one or more general-purpose computers, special-purpose server computers (e.g., PC (personal computer) servers, UNIX servers, mid-range servers), blade servers, mainframe computers, server clusters, or any other suitable arrangement and / or combination. Server 120 may include one or more virtual machines running a virtual operating system, or other computing architectures involving virtualization (e.g., one or more flexible pools of logical storage devices that can be virtualized to maintain virtual storage devices for servers). In various embodiments, server 120 may run one or more services or software applications that provide the functionality described below.

[0037] The computing unit in server 120 can run one or more operating systems, including any of the aforementioned operating systems and any commercially available server operating system. Server 120 can also run any of a variety of additional server applications and / or middleware applications, including HTTP servers, FTP servers, CGI servers, JAVA servers, database servers, etc.

[0038] In some implementations, server 120 may include one or more applications to analyze and merge data feeds and / or event updates received from vehicle 110. Server 120 may also include one or more applications to display data feeds and / or real-time events via one or more display devices of vehicle 110.

[0039] Network 130 can be any type of network well known to those skilled in the art, and can support data communication using any of a variety of available protocols (including, but not limited to, TCP / IP, SNA, IPX, etc.). By way of example only, one or more networks 130 can be satellite communication networks, local area networks (LANs), Ethernet-based networks, token ring networks, wide area networks (WANs), the Internet, virtual networks, virtual private networks (VPNs), intranets, extranets, blockchain networks, public switched telephone networks (PSTNs), infrared networks, wireless networks (including, for example, Bluetooth, WiFi), and / or any combination of these with other networks.

[0040] System 100 may also include one or more databases 150. In some embodiments, these databases may be used to store data and other information. For example, one or more of the databases 150 may be used to store information such as audio files and video files. The data repository 150 may reside in various locations. For example, a data repository used by server 120 may be local to server 120, or it may be located away from server 120 and may communicate with server 120 via a network-based or dedicated connection. The data repository 150 may be of different types. In some embodiments, the data repository used by server 120 may be a database, such as a relational database. One or more of these databases may store, update, and retrieve data from and from the database in response to commands.

[0041] In some embodiments, one or more of the databases 150 may also be used by an application to store application data. The databases used by the application may be of different types, such as key-value stores, object stores, or regular stores supported by a file system.

[0042] Motor vehicle 110 may include sensors 111 for sensing the surrounding environment. Sensors 111 may include one or more of the following sensors: a visual camera, an infrared camera, an ultrasonic sensor, a millimeter-wave radar, and a lidar (LiDAR). Different sensors can provide different detection accuracy and range. Cameras may be mounted in front of, behind, or at other locations on the vehicle. Visual cameras can capture the situation inside and outside the vehicle in real time and present it to the driver and / or passengers. In addition, by analyzing the images captured by the visual cameras, information such as traffic light indications, intersection conditions, and the operating status of other vehicles can be obtained. Infrared cameras can capture objects in night vision conditions. Ultrasonic sensors may be mounted around the vehicle to measure the distance of objects outside the vehicle using the strong directionality of ultrasound. Millimeter-wave radar may be mounted in front of, behind, or at other locations on the vehicle to measure the distance of objects outside the vehicle using the characteristics of electromagnetic waves. LiDAR may be mounted in front of, behind, or at other locations on the vehicle to detect the edges and shape information of objects, thereby performing object recognition and tracking. Due to the Doppler effect, the radar device can also measure the speed changes of the vehicle and moving objects.

[0043] The motor vehicle 110 may also include a communication device 112. The communication device 112 may include a satellite positioning module capable of receiving satellite positioning signals (e.g., BeiDou, GPS, GLONASS, and GALILEO) from satellite 141 and generating coordinates based on these signals. The communication device 112 may also include a module for communicating with a mobile communication base station 142. The mobile communication network can implement any suitable communication technology, such as current or emerging wireless communication technologies (e.g., 5G technology) like GSM / GPRS, CDMA, and LTE. The communication device 112 may also have a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) module, configured to enable vehicle-to-the-world communication, for example, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication with other vehicles 143 and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication with infrastructure 144. Furthermore, the communication device 112 may also have a module configured to communicate with a user terminal 145 (including but not limited to smartphones, tablets, or wearable devices such as watches) via, for example, a wireless local area network conforming to the IEEE 802.11 standard or Bluetooth. Using the communication device 112, the motor vehicle 110 can also access the server 120 via the network 130.

[0044] The motor vehicle 110 may also include a control unit 113. The control unit 113 may include a processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a graphics processing unit (GPU), or other dedicated processors, that communicates with various types of computer-readable storage devices or media. The control unit 113 may include an autonomous driving system for automatically controlling various actuators in the vehicle. The autonomous driving system is configured to control the powertrain, steering system, and braking system of the motor vehicle 110 (not shown) via multiple actuators in response to inputs from multiple sensors 111 or other input devices to control acceleration, steering, and braking respectively, without human intervention or with limited human intervention. Some processing functions of the control unit 113 can be implemented via cloud computing. For example, some processing can be performed using an onboard processor while other processing can be performed using cloud computing resources. The control unit 113 may be configured to perform methods according to this disclosure. Furthermore, the control unit 113 may be implemented as an example of a computing device on the motor vehicle side (client) according to this disclosure.

[0045] Figure 1 The system 100 can be configured and operated in various ways to enable the application of the various methods and apparatus described in this disclosure.

[0046] like Figure 2A and Figure 2B As shown, some embodiments of this disclosure provide a computing hardware thermal management system 200 for use in autonomous vehicles.

[0047] The computing hardware thermal management system 200 of this embodiment includes: a circulating air duct 210; a circulating fan 211 disposed in the circulating air duct 210; an exhaust air valve 212, an intake air valve 213, a cooling device 214, a heating device 215 and a heat exchange device 216 disposed sequentially in the circulating air duct 210 and the computing hardware 250; a temperature monitoring device 217 for monitoring the ambient temperature outside the autonomous vehicle and the intake side temperature of the heat exchange device 216; an atmospheric monitoring device 218 for monitoring the atmospheric quality parameters outside the autonomous vehicle; and an electronic device 500 for performing system control functions.

[0048] Temperature monitoring device 217 may include one or more temperature sensors. Atmospheric monitoring device 218 may include one or more sensors for monitoring at least one atmospheric quality parameter, such as humidity, pH, air pollution index, etc.

[0049] Electronic device 500 is configured to control the opening and closing states of exhaust valve 212, intake valve 213, refrigeration device 214 and heating device 215 based on ambient temperature, intake side temperature and air quality parameters.

[0050] In some embodiments of this disclosure, the electronic device 500 is configured to control the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, based on ambient temperature, air intake side temperature, and air quality parameters.

[0051] The computing hardware thermal management system 200 operates in an internal circulation comfort mode (such as...). Figure 2A As shown), exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 are closed, and cooling device 214 and heating device 215 are closed. In the internal circulation cooling mode, the computer hardware thermal management system 200 has exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 closed, cooling device 214 is on, and heating device 215 is off. In the internal circulation heating mode, exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 are closed, cooling device 214 is off, and heating device 215 is on. In the external circulation mode, exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 are on, and cooling device 214 and heating device 215 are off (as shown). Figure 2B (As shown).

[0052] In this embodiment, the specific type of autonomous vehicle is not limited, and it can be an autonomous vehicle of various levels with different degrees of automation. In some embodiments, the autonomous vehicle is a fully unmanned engineering vehicle, such as an unmanned excavator, an unmanned mining truck, an unmanned bulldozer, an unmanned road roller, etc. Since no human driver or operator is required, such vehicles can be equipped with a driver's cab and a matching air conditioning system.

[0053] The computing hardware thermal management system 200 of this disclosure can automatically switch between internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode according to the ambient temperature of the autonomous vehicle, the atmospheric quality parameters of the environment, and the air inlet temperature of the heat exchange device 216. This enables thermal management of the computing hardware 250 under different operating conditions, which is not only efficient and energy-saving, but also effectively protects the computing hardware 250 from the damage of the external harsh environment. It can be applied to relatively harsh environmental conditions, such as outdoor environments with heavy dust or pollutants.

[0054] In this embodiment, the circulating air duct 210 is annular. The circulating fan is normally open after the computing hardware thermal management system 200 is enabled. When open, the exhaust valve 212 allows air inside the circulating air duct 210 to be discharged outside the circulating air duct 210. When open, the intake valve 213 allows air outside the circulating air duct 210 to enter the circulating air duct 210.

[0055] The heat exchange device 216 of the computing hardware 250 may be, for example, fins or microchannels, and may be a factory configuration for the computing hardware product; this disclosure does not specifically limit its use. Since the heat exchange device 216 of the computing hardware 250 exchanges heat with the chip (not shown in the figure) of the computing hardware 250, the inlet temperature of the heat exchange device 216 of the computing hardware 250 can be used to reflect the operating temperature of the computing hardware 250.

[0056] Cooling device 214 provides cooling to the air within the circulating air duct 210 to cool the computing hardware 250. The specific type of cooling device 214 is not limited; for example, it can be the cold end of a thermoelectric cooler or an evaporator. Heating device 215 provides heat to the air within the circulating air duct 210 to heat the computing hardware 250. The specific type of heating device 215 is not limited; for example, it can be the hot end of a thermoelectric cooler or a thermistor (Positive Temperature Coefficient, PTC). The specific location of heating device 215 within the circulating air duct 210 is not limited; for example, it can be located between the circulating fan 211 and the heat exchange device 216. In some embodiments, heating device 215 and cooling device 214 can be integrated into one unit, for example, integrated into a thermoelectric cooler, using the cold end of the thermoelectric cooler as the cooling device and the hot end of the thermoelectric cooler as the heating device.

[0057] like Figure 2A and Figure 2B As shown, in some embodiments of this disclosure, the computing hardware thermal management system 200 further includes a filter device 219 and / or a dehumidifier 221 disposed on the air intake side of the air intake valve 213. The filter device 219 can filter the air entering the circulation duct 210 through the air intake valve 213, thereby improving the cleanliness of the intake air. The dehumidifier 221 can dehumidify the air entering the circulation duct 210 through the air intake valve 213, thereby keeping the inside of the circulation duct 210 dry. In this way, not only can damage to the computing hardware 250 be further reduced, but it is also beneficial to maintain the circulation duct 210 and other internal facilities, thereby improving the reliability of the system and extending the service life of the system.

[0058] In some embodiments of this disclosure, the exhaust valve 212 is a pressure stabilizing valve. When the air pressure in the circulating air duct 210 exceeds the pressure threshold designed for the pressure stabilizing valve, air will be discharged outward through the exhaust valve 212, thereby releasing some pressure to maintain the air pressure balance in the circulating air duct 210. This can improve the stability and reliability of the system operation.

[0059] like Figure 2A and Figure 2BAs shown, in some embodiments of this disclosure, the cooling device 214 is the cold end of a semiconductor cooler. The computing hardware thermal management system 200 also includes a coolant circulation system 230. The semiconductor cooler includes a liquid cooling heat dissipation device 2140 for dissipating heat from its hot end, which is located in the coolant circulation system 230. The coolant circulation system 230 generally also includes a radiator 232, a cooling fan 231, a pump, a coolant tank, etc. (not all components are shown in the figure). It can be controlled by the electronic device 500 to start working when the cooling device 214 is turned on and to stop working when the cooling device 214 is turned off.

[0060] In some other embodiments of this disclosure, the refrigeration device may also be an evaporator, and the computational hardware thermal management system further includes a refrigerant circulation system, wherein the evaporator is located in the refrigerant circulation system. The refrigerant circulation system generally includes a compressor, evaporator, condenser, flow control valve, etc., and this disclosure does not limit its specific construction.

[0061] This disclosure also provides a control method for a computing hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, wherein the computing hardware thermal management system can be any of the computing hardware thermal management system 200 described above. Figure 2A , Figure 2B and Figure 3 As shown, the control method includes the following steps S31 and S32.

[0062] In step S31, the ambient temperature, the air inlet side temperature, and the air quality parameters are obtained.

[0063] In step S32, based on ambient temperature, air inlet side temperature and atmospheric quality parameters, the opening and closing states of exhaust valve 212, air inlet valve 213, refrigeration device 214 and heating device 215 are controlled.

[0064] In some embodiments, in step S32, the computing hardware thermal management system 200 can be controlled to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode.

[0065] In the internal circulation comfort mode, the computational hardware thermal management system 200 closes the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213, and shuts off the cooling unit 214 and the heating unit 215 (e.g.). Figure 2A(As shown); In the internal circulation cooling mode, the exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 of the computing hardware thermal management system 200 are closed, the cooling device 214 is on, and the heating device 215 is off; In the internal circulation heating mode, the exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 are closed, the cooling device 214 is off, and the heating device 215 is on; In the external circulation mode, the exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 are on, and the cooling device 214 and heating device 215 are off (as shown). Figure 2B (As shown).

[0066] In this embodiment, the system can automatically switch between internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode based on the ambient temperature of the autonomous vehicle, the atmospheric quality parameters of the environment, and the air intake temperature of the heat exchange device 216. This enables thermal management of the computing hardware 250 under different operating conditions, which is not only efficient and energy-saving, but also effectively protects the computing hardware from the damage of the external harsh environment. It is suitable for relatively harsh environmental conditions, such as outdoor environments with heavy dust or pollutants.

[0067] The specific content of the air quality parameters is not limited. For example, it can include at least one of humidity, pH, and air pollution index. It can be selected in combination with the specific type of autonomous vehicle, the protection level of the computing hardware itself, and the climate characteristics of the environment in which the autonomous vehicle is located.

[0068] In some embodiments, in step S32, based on ambient temperature, air inlet side temperature, air quality parameters, and air inlet side first temperature threshold T11, air inlet side second temperature threshold T12, air inlet side third temperature threshold T13, first ambient temperature threshold T21, and second ambient temperature threshold T22, the computing hardware thermal management system 200 is controlled to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, wherein T11 < T12 < T13, and T21 < T22.

[0069] The above thresholds can be determined after comprehensively considering factors such as the specific type of autonomous vehicle, the operating temperature range of the computing hardware 250, and the climatic characteristics of the environment in which the autonomous vehicle is located.

[0070] In some embodiments, the ambient temperature can be divided into three temperature levels: “low”, “suitable”, and “high” based on T21 and T22, and the air intake side temperature can be divided into four temperature levels: “low”, “suitable”, “relatively high”, and “very high” based on T11, T12, and T13.

[0071] The following examples illustrate different operating modes of the computing hardware thermal management system 200.

[0072] In some embodiments, step S32 includes: in response to the air inlet side temperature T1 satisfying: T11≤T1≤T12, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in an internal circulation comfort mode.

[0073] In the internal circulation comfort mode, the computational hardware thermal management system 200 closes the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213, and shuts down the cooling unit 214 and the heating unit 215. Since the inlet temperature of the heat exchanger 216 is at the "suitable" temperature level, the internal circulation comfort mode is adopted, and the airflow in the circulation duct 210 is driven by the circulation fan 211.

[0074] In some embodiments, step S32 includes: in response to the air intake side temperature T1 satisfying: T1 > T13, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in an internal circulation heat dissipation mode.

[0075] In the internal circulation cooling mode, the computing hardware thermal management system 200 closes the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213, turns on the cooling device 214, and turns off the heating device 215. Since the intake side temperature of the heat exchange device 216 is at a "very high" temperature level, the internal circulation cooling mode is used. The cooling device 214 provides cooling capacity, and the circulating fan 211 drives the airflow within the circulating duct 210, thereby efficiently cooling the computing hardware.

[0076] In some embodiments, step S32 includes: in response to the atmospheric quality parameters not being within the acceptable range and the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T1 < T11, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in internal circulation heating mode.

[0077] In the internal circulation heating mode, the computing hardware thermal management system 200 closes the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213, shuts off the cooling device 214, and turns on the heating device 215. Since the inlet temperature of the heat exchange device 216 is at a "low" temperature level and the atmospheric quality parameters are unacceptable, the use of external air for heating the computing hardware is not considered. In this case, heat is provided by the heating device 215, and the airflow within the circulation duct 210 is driven by the circulating fan 211, thereby efficiently heating the computing hardware.

[0078] In some embodiments, step S32 includes: in response to the atmospheric quality parameters being within the acceptable range, and the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T1 < T11, and the ambient temperature T2 satisfying: T2 < T21, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in the internal circulation heating mode.

[0079] Since the inlet temperature of the heat exchanger 216 is at a "low" temperature level, and although the air quality parameters are qualified, the air temperature (i.e., ambient temperature) is lower than the inlet temperature, the use of external air to heat the computing hardware is not considered. In this case, the heating device 215 provides heat and the circulating fan 211 drives the airflow in the circulating duct 210 to heat the computing hardware efficiently.

[0080] In some embodiments, step S32 includes: in response to the atmospheric quality parameters being within the acceptable range, and the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T12<T1≤T13, and the ambient temperature T2 satisfying: T2≤T22, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in external circulation mode.

[0081] In external circulation mode, the computing hardware thermal management system 200 operates with exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 open, while the cooling unit 214 and heating unit 215 are closed. Since the intake air temperature of the heat exchanger 216 is at a "high" temperature level, the atmospheric quality parameters are acceptable, and the ambient temperature (i.e., low) is at a "suitable" temperature level, external air can be used to dissipate heat from the computing hardware. In this scenario, exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 are open, and the circulating fan 211 drives external air through intake valve 213 into the circulating air duct 210, where it flows and exits through exhaust valve 212.

[0082] In some embodiments, step S32 includes: in response to the atmospheric quality parameters being within the acceptable range, and the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T1 < T11 and T1 < T2, and the ambient temperature T2 satisfying: T2 ≥ T21, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in external circulation mode.

[0083] In the external circulation mode, the computing hardware thermal management system 200 operates with exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 open, while the cooling unit 214 and heating unit 215 are closed. Since the intake temperature of the heat exchanger 216 is at a "low" temperature level, the atmospheric quality parameters are acceptable, and the ambient temperature (i.e., suitable or "high") is at a "suitable" or "high" temperature level, and is higher than the intake temperature, external air can be used to heat the computing hardware. In this scenario, exhaust valve 212 and intake valve 213 are open, and the circulating fan 211 drives external air through intake valve 213 into the circulating air duct 210, where it flows and exits through exhaust valve 212.

[0084] It can be seen that when using the external atmosphere to dissipate heat or heat the computing hardware, the operating state of the system hardware is basically the same, and there is no need to turn on the cooling device 214 or the heating device 215, thereby reducing the energy consumption of these devices.

[0085] In some embodiments of this disclosure, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in external circulation mode includes: controlling both the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213 to be fully open. That is, the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213 are open to a degree of 1 when they are open.

[0086] In other embodiments of this disclosure, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system 200 to be in an external circulation mode includes:

[0087] Based on the ambient temperature and the intake air temperature, the first target opening K1 of the exhaust valve 212 and the second target opening K2 of the intake valve 213 are determined, wherein 0 < K1 ≤ 1, 0 < K1 ≤ 1; and

[0088] Based on the first target opening degree K1 and the second target opening degree K2, control the opening state of the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213.

[0089] In this embodiment, the opening of the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213 is automatically adjusted based on the ambient temperature and the intake side temperature, thereby achieving proportional opening of the exhaust valve 212 and the intake valve 213, which can achieve a more gentle cooling or heating of the computing hardware.

[0090] In some embodiments of this disclosure, the on / off states of some key components of the computing hardware thermal management system under different operating conditions are compared in Table 1 below:

[0091]

[0092]

[0093] Table 1 Comparison of the opening and closing states of some key components of the computational hardware thermal management system under different operating conditions.

[0094] This disclosure also provides a control device for a computing hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, wherein the computing hardware thermal management system can be the computing hardware thermal management system 200 of any of the above embodiments. Figure 4 As shown, the control device 400 includes:

[0095] Acquisition unit 401 is configured to acquire ambient temperature, inlet air temperature, and air quality parameters; and

[0096] Control unit 402 is configured to control the opening and closing states of exhaust valve, intake valve, refrigeration device and heating device based on ambient temperature, intake side temperature and atmospheric quality parameters.

[0097] In some embodiments, the control unit 402 can control the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode.

[0098] In the internal circulation comfort mode, the exhaust and intake air valves of the computing hardware thermal management system are closed, and the cooling and heating devices are off. In the internal circulation cooling mode, the exhaust and intake air valves are closed, the cooling device is on, and the heating device is off. In the internal circulation heating mode, the exhaust and intake air valves are closed, the cooling device is off, and the heating device is on. In the external circulation mode, the exhaust and intake air valves are open, and the cooling and heating devices are off.

[0099] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, an electronic device is also provided, including: at least one processor; and a memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, the instructions being executed by the at least one processor to enable the at least one processor to perform the control method of the foregoing embodiments.

[0100] The control device or electronic device according to the embodiments of this disclosure can provide a reliable and efficient thermal management solution for the computing hardware of autonomous vehicles and enable it to be suitable for harsh environmental conditions.

[0101] This disclosure also provides an autonomous vehicle, including computing hardware and a computing hardware thermal management system according to any of the foregoing embodiments. The specific type of autonomous vehicle is not limited, and it can be an autonomous vehicle of various levels with different degrees of automation. In some embodiments, the autonomous vehicle is a fully unmanned engineering vehicle, such as an unmanned excavator, an unmanned mining truck, an unmanned bulldozer, an unmanned road roller, etc.

[0102] refer to Figure 5The present invention describes a structural block diagram of an electronic device 500 that can serve as a server or client of the present disclosure, which is an example of a hardware device that can be applied to various aspects of the present disclosure. The electronic device is intended to represent various forms of digital electronic computer devices, such as laptop computers, desktop computers, workstations, personal digital assistants, servers, blade servers, mainframe computers, and other suitable computers. The electronic device can also represent various forms of mobile devices, such as personal digital processors, cellular phones, smartphones, wearable devices, and other similar computing devices. The components shown herein, their connections and relationships, and their functions are merely illustrative and are not intended to limit the implementation of the present disclosure described and / or claimed herein.

[0103] like Figure 5 As shown, the electronic device 500 includes a computing unit 501, which can perform various appropriate actions and processes according to a computer program stored in a read-only memory (ROM) 502 or a computer program loaded from a storage unit 508 into a random access memory (RAM) 503. The RAM 503 may also store various programs and data required for the operation of the electronic device 500. The computing unit 501, ROM 502, and RAM 503 are interconnected via a bus 504. An input / output (I / O) interface 505 is also connected to the bus 504.

[0104] Multiple components in electronic device 500 are connected to I / O interface 505, including: input unit 506, output unit 507, storage unit 508, and communication unit 509. Input unit 506 can be any type of device capable of inputting information to electronic device 500. Input unit 506 can receive input digital or character information and generate key signal inputs related to user settings and / or function control of electronic device, and may include, but is not limited to, a mouse, keyboard, touchscreen, trackpad, trackball, joystick, microphone, and / or remote control. Output unit 507 can be any type of device capable of presenting information, and may include, but is not limited to, a monitor, speaker, video / audio output terminal, vibrator, and / or printer. Storage unit 508 may include, but is not limited to, hard disk and optical disk. Communication unit 509 allows electronic device 500 to exchange information / data with other devices through computer networks such as the Internet and / or various telecommunications networks, and may include, but is not limited to, modems, network cards, infrared communication devices, wireless communication transceivers, and / or chipsets, such as Bluetooth devices, 1302.11 devices, WiFi devices, WiMax devices, cellular communication devices, and / or the like.

[0105] The computing unit 501 can be a variety of general-purpose and / or special-purpose processing components with processing and computing capabilities. Some examples of the computing unit 501 include, but are not limited to, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), various special-purpose artificial intelligence (AI) computing chips, various computing units running machine learning model algorithms, a digital signal processor (DSP), and any suitable processor, controller, microcontroller, etc. The computing unit 501 performs the various methods and processes described above. For example, some embodiment methods can be implemented as computer software programs tangibly contained in a machine-readable medium, such as storage unit 508. In some embodiments, part or all of the computer program can be loaded and / or installed on the electronic device 500 via ROM 502 and / or communication unit 509. When the computer program is loaded into RAM 503 and executed by the computing unit 501, one or more steps of the embodiment methods described above can be performed. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the computing unit 501 can be configured to perform the embodiment methods described above by any other suitable means (e.g., by means of firmware).

[0106] This disclosure also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions configured to cause a computer to perform the steps of any of the methods described in the foregoing embodiments.

[0107] Furthermore, this disclosure also provides a computer program product, including a computer program, wherein when the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the steps of the methods of any of the foregoing embodiments.

[0108] Various embodiments of the systems and techniques described above herein can be implemented in digital electronic circuit systems, integrated circuit systems, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application-specific standard products (ASSPs), systems-on-a-chip (SoCs), payload-programmable logic devices (CPLDs), computer hardware, firmware, software, and / or combinations thereof. These various embodiments may include implementations in one or more computer programs that can be executed and / or interpreted on a programmable system including at least one programmable processor, which may be a dedicated or general-purpose programmable processor, capable of receiving data and instructions from a storage system, at least one input device, and at least one output device, and transmitting data and instructions to the storage system, the at least one input device, and the at least one output device.

[0109] Program code used to implement the methods of this disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. This program code may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that when executed by the processor or controller, the program code causes the functions / operations specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may be executed entirely on a machine, partially on a machine, as a standalone software package partially on a machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0110] In the context of this disclosure, a machine-readable medium can be a tangible medium that may contain or store a program for use by or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. A machine-readable medium can be a machine-readable signal medium or a machine-readable storage medium. A machine-readable medium can be, but is not limited to, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatus, or devices, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of machine-readable storage media include electrical connections based on one or more wires, portable computer disks, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), optical fiber, portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0111] To provide interaction with a user, the systems and techniques described herein can be implemented on a computer having: a display device for displaying information to the user (e.g., a CRT (cathode ray tube) or LCD (liquid crystal display) monitor); and a keyboard and pointing device (e.g., a mouse or trackball) through which the user provides input to the computer. Other types of devices can also be used to provide interaction with the user; for example, feedback provided to the user can be any form of sensory feedback (e.g., visual feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback); and input from the user can be received in any form (including sound input, voice input, or tactile input).

[0112] The systems and technologies described herein can be implemented in computing systems that include backend components (e.g., as a data server), or computing systems that include middleware components (e.g., an application server), or computing systems that include frontend components (e.g., a user computer with a graphical user interface or web browser through which a user can interact with embodiments of the systems and technologies described herein), or any combination of such backend, middleware, or frontend components. The components of the system can be interconnected via digital data communication of any form or medium (e.g., a communication network). Examples of communication networks include local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), and the Internet.

[0113] Computer systems can include clients and servers. Clients and servers are generally located far apart and typically interact via communication networks. Client-server relationships are created by computer programs running on the respective computers and having a client-server relationship with each other. Servers can be cloud servers, servers in distributed systems, or servers incorporating blockchain technology.

[0114] It should be understood that the various forms of processes shown above can be used to rearrange, add, or delete steps. For example, the steps described in this disclosure can be performed in parallel, sequentially, or in a different order, as long as the desired result of the technical solution disclosed in this disclosure can be achieved, and this is not limited herein.

[0115] While embodiments or examples of this disclosure have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the methods, systems, and devices described above are merely exemplary embodiments or examples, and the scope of the invention is not limited by these embodiments or examples, but only by the granted claims and their equivalents. Various elements in the embodiments or examples may be omitted or replaced by their equivalents. Furthermore, the steps may be performed in a different order than that described in this disclosure. Further, various elements in the embodiments or examples may be combined in various ways. Importantly, as the technology evolves, many elements described herein can be replaced by equivalents that appear after this disclosure.

Claims

1. A control method for a computational hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, wherein, The computing hardware thermal management system includes: a circulating air duct; a circulating fan installed in the circulating air duct; an exhaust air valve, an intake air valve, a cooling device, a heating device, and a heat exchange device for computing hardware sequentially installed in the circulating air duct; a temperature monitoring device for monitoring the ambient temperature outside the autonomous vehicle and the intake side temperature of the heat exchange device; and an atmospheric monitoring device for monitoring the atmospheric quality parameters outside the autonomous vehicle. The control method includes: The ambient temperature, the air inlet temperature, and the air quality parameters are obtained; and Based on the ambient temperature, the air inlet temperature, and the atmospheric quality parameters, the opening and closing states of the exhaust valve, the air inlet valve, the refrigeration device, and the heating device are controlled, including: based on the ambient temperature, the air inlet temperature, the atmospheric quality parameters, and the first air inlet temperature threshold T11, the second air inlet temperature threshold T12, the third air inlet temperature threshold T13, the first ambient temperature threshold T21, and the second ambient temperature threshold T22, controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, wherein T11 < T12 < T13, and T21 < T22. And among them, In the internal circulation comfort mode, the exhaust valve and the intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are closed, and the cooling device and the heating device are also closed. In the internal circulation cooling mode, the exhaust valve and the intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are closed, the cooling device is turned on, and the heating device is turned off. In the internal circulation heating mode, the exhaust valve and intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are closed, the refrigeration device is closed, and the heating device is turned on. In the external circulation mode, the exhaust valve and the intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are open, while the refrigeration device and the heating device are closed.

2. The control method according to claim 1, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, including: In response to the intake air temperature T1 satisfying: T11≤T1≤T12, the computing hardware thermal management system is controlled to be in the internal circulation comfort mode.

3. The control method according to claim 1, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, including: In response to the condition that the air intake temperature T1 satisfies T1 > T13, the computing hardware thermal management system is controlled to be in the internal circulation cooling mode.

4. The control method according to claim 1, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, including: In response to the atmospheric quality parameter not being within the acceptable range and the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T1 < T11, the computing hardware thermal management system is controlled to be in the internal circulation heating mode.

5. The control method according to claim 1, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, including: In response to the atmospheric quality parameters being within acceptable ranges, the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T1 < T11, and the ambient temperature T2 satisfying: T2 < T21, the computing hardware thermal management system is controlled to be in the internal circulation heating mode.

6. The control method according to claim 1, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, including: In response to the atmospheric quality parameters being within acceptable ranges, the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T12<T1≤T13, and the ambient temperature T2 satisfying: T2≤T22, the computing hardware thermal management system is controlled to be in the external circulation mode.

7. The control method according to claim 1, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes: internal circulation comfort mode, internal circulation heat dissipation mode, internal circulation heating mode, and external circulation mode, including: In response to the atmospheric quality parameters being within acceptable ranges, and the air inlet temperature T1 satisfying: T1 < T11 and T1 < T2, and the ambient temperature T2 satisfying: T2 ≥ T21, the computing hardware thermal management system is controlled to be in the external circulation mode.

8. The control method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in the external circulation mode includes: Both the exhaust valve and the intake valve are fully open.

9. The control method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein, Controlling the computing hardware thermal management system to be in the external circulation mode includes: Based on the ambient temperature and the intake air temperature, determine the first target opening K1 of the exhaust valve and the second target opening K2 of the intake valve, wherein 0 < K1 ≤ 1, 0 < K1 ≤ 1; and Based on the first target opening degree K1 and the second target opening degree K2, control the opening state of the exhaust valve and the intake valve.

10. The control method according to claim 1, wherein, The air quality parameters include at least one of humidity, pH, and air pollution index.

11. A control device for a computational hardware thermal management system applied to an autonomous vehicle, wherein, The computing hardware thermal management system includes: a circulating air duct; a circulating fan installed in the circulating air duct; an exhaust air valve, an intake air valve, a cooling device, a heating device, and a heat exchange device for computing hardware sequentially installed in the circulating air duct; a temperature monitoring device for monitoring the ambient temperature outside the autonomous vehicle and the intake side temperature of the heat exchange device; and an atmospheric monitoring device for monitoring the atmospheric quality parameters outside the autonomous vehicle. The control device includes: The acquisition unit is configured to acquire the ambient temperature, the air inlet side temperature, and the air quality parameters; and The control unit is configured to control the opening and closing states of the exhaust valve, the intake valve, the refrigeration device, and the heating device based on the ambient temperature, the intake air temperature, and the atmospheric quality parameters. The control unit is further configured to: control the computing hardware thermal management system to be in one of the following modes based on the ambient temperature, the intake air temperature, the atmospheric quality parameters, and intake air temperature thresholds T11, T12, T13, T11 (first ambient temperature threshold), and T22 (second ambient temperature threshold), wherein T11 < T12 < T13, and T21 < T22. And among them, In the internal circulation comfort mode, the exhaust valve and the intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are closed, and the cooling device and the heating device are also closed. In the internal circulation cooling mode, the exhaust valve and the intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are closed, the cooling device is turned on, and the heating device is turned off. In the internal circulation heating mode, the exhaust valve and intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are closed, the refrigeration device is closed, and the heating device is turned on. In the external circulation mode, the exhaust valve and the intake valve of the computing hardware thermal management system are open, while the refrigeration device and the heating device are closed.

12. An electronic device, comprising: At least one processor; as well as A memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein, The memory stores instructions that can be executed by the at least one processor to enable the at least one processor to perform the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

13. A computational hardware thermal management system for autonomous vehicles, comprising: Circulating air duct; A circulating fan is installed in the circulating air duct; The exhaust valve, intake valve, refrigeration device, heating device, and heat exchange device of the computing hardware are sequentially arranged in the circulating air duct. Temperature monitoring equipment is used to monitor the ambient temperature outside the autonomous vehicle and the air inlet temperature of the heat exchange device; Atmospheric monitoring equipment for monitoring atmospheric quality parameters outside the autonomous vehicle; and The electronic device according to claim 12.

14. The computing hardware thermal management system according to claim 13, further comprising: A filter and / or dehumidifier is provided on the air inlet side of the air inlet valve.

15. The computing hardware thermal management system according to claim 13, wherein, The exhaust valve is a pressure-stabilizing valve.

16. The computing hardware thermal management system according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein, The cooling device is the cold end of a semiconductor cooler, and the computing hardware thermal management system further includes a coolant circulation system. The semiconductor cooler includes a liquid cooling device for dissipating heat from its hot end, and the liquid cooling device is located within the coolant circulation system; or The refrigeration device is an evaporator, and the computing hardware thermal management system further includes a refrigerant circulation system, wherein the evaporator is located in the refrigerant circulation system.

17. An autonomous vehicle, comprising: Computing hardware; as well as The computing hardware thermal management system according to any one of claims 13 to 16.

18. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions, wherein, The computer instructions are configured to cause the computer to execute the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

19. A computer program product comprising a computer program, wherein, When the computer program is executed by the processor, it implements the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

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