Seat heater device

Abstract

It achieves energy savings without compromising the seater's comfort and warmth. [Solution] The seat heater device 10 includes a first heater 14 provided in a first area of ​​the first contact surface of the seat cushion portion of the vehicle seat that comes into contact with the occupant, which is close to the seat back portion, and a second area of ​​the second contact surface of the seat back portion that comes into contact with the occupant, which is close to the seat cushion portion; heaters 22 and 30 provided in the portion of the seat cushion portion other than the first area and in the portion of the seat back portion other than the second area; and a control unit 58 that, when the driving mode is eco mode, reduces the amount of heat generated by the heaters 22 and 30 to be less than the amount of heat generated by the first heater 14.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to a seat heater device.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a vehicle heating device that provides a heating device in a steering column of a vehicle and displaces a steering wheel so that the heating device approaches the lower body of an occupant during autonomous driving when the occupant's driving operation is not being performed. According to this vehicle heating device, energy savings can be achieved by enhancing the thermal sensation of the occupant.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Patent Document 1 is a technique for achieving energy savings in a steering heater, but energy savings are also desired in a seat heater. However, in a seat heater, it is difficult to change the distance between the heater and the seated person as in Patent Document 1, and another device is required to achieve energy savings.

[0005] This disclosure was made in consideration of the above facts, and an object thereof is to obtain a seat heater device that can achieve energy savings without impairing the thermal sensation of the seated person.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The seat heater device according to the first embodiment includes a first heater provided in a first area of ​​the seat cushion portion of the seat that comes into contact with the seat occupant, which is close to the seat back portion of the seat, and a second area of ​​the second contact surface of the seat back portion of the seat that comes into contact with the seat occupant, which is close to the seat cushion portion; a second heater provided in the portion of the seat cushion portion other than the first area and in the portion of the seat back portion other than the second area; and a control unit that, when the operating mode is eco mode, reduces the amount of heat generated by the second heater to be less than the amount of heat generated by the first heater.

[0007] When a person is seated in a seat, the degree of contact between the seat and the person is not uniform across the entire contact surface. Specifically, in the seat cushion, the degree of contact is higher in the first region of the first contact surface that is close to the seat back than in the other regions. Similarly, in the seat back, the degree of contact is higher in the second region of the second contact surface that is close to the seat cushion than in the other regions. Furthermore, the seater's sensitivity to warmth differs depending on the degree of contact; in areas with a high degree of contact, the seater is more likely to feel the heat from the heater, while in areas with a low degree of contact, the seater is relatively less likely to feel the heat from the heater, and reducing the amount of heat generated by the heater does not significantly reduce the seater's sense of warmth.

[0008] Based on the above, in the first embodiment, a first heater is provided in a first region of the seat cushion portion of the seat that is close to the seat back portion, and in a second region of the second contact surface of the seat back portion that is close to the seat cushion portion, while a second heater is provided in the portion of the seat cushion portion other than the first region and in the portion of the seat back portion other than the second region. When the operating mode is eco mode, the control unit reduces the amount of heat generated by the second heater to be less than the amount of heat generated by the first heater. In this way, by reducing the amount of heat generated by the second heater provided in the portion where the degree of contact between the seat and the occupant is low, energy saving can be achieved without impairing the occupant's sense of warmth. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] This disclosure has the effect of achieving energy savings without compromising the seater's comfort. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of a seat heater device. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view showing a vehicle seat equipped with a first heater, a second heater, and a third heater. [Figure 3] This is a flowchart showing the seat heater control process. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figure 1, the seat heater device 10 according to this embodiment includes a first heater unit 12, a second heater unit 20, and a third heater unit 28, and a seat heater ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 44 to which these heater units 12, 20, and 28 are connected, respectively. The seat heater device 10 is mounted in a vehicle.

[0012] The first heater unit 12 includes a first heater 14, a thermistor 16, and a heater drive unit 18. In the passenger compartment of a vehicle equipped with the seat heater device 10, a vehicle seat 36, as shown in Figure 2, is provided as a seat for the vehicle's occupants (seaters). Note that the vehicle seat is an example of a seat in this disclosure.

[0013] The vehicle seat 36 includes a seat cushion portion 38, a seat back portion 40, and a headrest portion 42. The headrest portion 42 is attached to the upper end of the seat back portion 40 in the vehicle's vertical direction. The lower end of the seat back portion 40 in the vehicle's vertical direction is attached to the rear end of the seat cushion portion 38 in the vehicle's longitudinal direction via a pivot mechanism (not shown), and the seat back portion 40 is rotatable around an axis along the vehicle's width direction relative to the seat cushion portion 38.

[0014] The first heater 14 is provided in the seat cushion portion 38 and the seat back portion 40 of the vehicle seat 36. Specifically, with respect to the seat cushion portion 38, the first heater 14 is provided near the surface of a first region (the area of ​​the seat cushion portion 38 indicated by solid hatching) that is close to the seat back portion 40 of the vehicle seat 36, among the first contact surfaces of the seat cushion portion 38 that come into contact with the occupant when seated. Furthermore, with respect to the seat back portion 40, the first heater 14 is provided near the surface of a second region (the area of ​​the seat back portion 40 indicated by solid hatching) that is close to the seat cushion portion 38, among the second contact surfaces of the seat back portion 40 that come into contact with the occupant when seated. Note that the first heater 14 is an example of the first heater in this disclosure. The thermistor 16 is provided at the location where the first heater 14 is installed in the seat cushion portion 38 or the seat back portion 40, and detects the temperature at the location where the first heater 14 is installed. The heater drive unit 18 also supplies power to the first heater 14 in response to instructions from the seat heater ECU 44 (control unit 58, described later).

[0015] The second heater unit 20 includes a second heater 22, a thermistor 24, and a heater drive unit 26. The second heater 22 is disposed near the surface of the seat cushion 38, excluding the first region of the first contact surface, as shown by the dashed hatching in Figure 2, and also near the surface of the seat back 40, excluding the second region of the second contact surface. The thermistor 24 is provided at the location of the second heater 22 in the seat cushion 38 or seat back 40, and detects the temperature of the location of the second heater 22. The heater drive unit 26 energizes the second heater 22 in response to instructions from the seat heater ECU 44 (control unit 58, described later).

[0016] The third heater unit 28 includes a third heater 30, a thermistor 32, and a heater drive unit 34. As shown by the dashed hatching in Figure 2, the third heater 30 is disposed near the surface of the side pads 38A, which are provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction of the seat cushion unit 38 so as to protrude upward in the vehicle vertical direction from the first contact surface, and is also disposed near the surface of the side pads 40A, which are provided at both ends in the vehicle width direction of the seat back unit 40 so as to protrude forward in the vehicle longitudinal direction from the second contact surface. The thermistor 32 is provided at the location of the third heater 30 in the seat cushion unit 38 or the seat back unit 40 and detects the temperature of the location of the third heater 30. The heater drive unit 34 energizes the third heater 30 in response to instructions from the seat heater ECU 44 (control unit 58, described later).

[0017] Note that the second heater 22 of the second heater section 20 and the third heater 30 of the third heater section 28 are examples of the second heater in this disclosure.

[0018] In addition, the seat heater ECU 44 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 46 and a memory 48 such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory). Further, the seat heater ECU 44 includes a non-volatile storage 50 such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) and an SSD (Solid State Drive), and an I / F (InterFace) unit 52. The CPU 46, the memory 48, the storage 50, and the I / F unit 52 are communicably connected to each other via an internal bus 54.

[0019] The first heater unit 12, the second heater unit 20, and the third heater 30 are connected to the I / F unit 52, and the air conditioner ECU 60 and the seat heater operation unit 62 are also connected thereto respectively. The air conditioner ECU 60 controls the operation of the air conditioner mounted on the vehicle. The seat heater operation unit 62 includes an on / off switch for turning on and off the operation of the seat heater device 10 and an operation mode changeover switch for switching the operation mode of the seat heater device 10.

[0020] Note that the seat heater device 10 is provided with each mode of a manual operation mode, an automatic operation mode, and an auto eco operation mode as operation modes, and the operation mode can be switched to any mode by operating the operation mode changeover switch. The manual operation mode is a mode in which the calorific value generated by each heater can be manually switched to any one of a plurality of stages (for example, three stages of Hi / Mid / Lo). The automatic operation mode is a mode in which the seat heater ECU 44 automatically controls the calorific value generated by each heater. The auto eco operation mode is a mode in which the seat heater ECU 44 (control unit 58 described later) automatically controls the calorific value generated by each heater so that the power consumption is reduced compared to the automatic operation mode.

[0021] Further, the storage 50 of the seat heater ECU 44 stores a seat heater control program 56. The CPU 46 functions as a control unit 58 by reading the seat heater control program 56 from the storage 50, expanding it in the memory 48, and executing the seat heater control program 56 expanded in the memory 48. When the operation mode of the seat heater device 10 is the auto eco operation mode (an example of the eco mode in the present disclosure), the control unit 58 makes the calorific value generated by the second heater 22 and the third heater 30 smaller than the calorific value generated by the first heater 14.

[0022] Next, as an operation of the present embodiment, the seat heater control process executed by the control unit 58 will be described with reference to FIG. 3. This seat heater control process is executed when the operation of the seat heater device 10 is turned on in the auto eco operation mode. The activation of the seat heater device 10 is not limited to the case where the on / off switch of the seat heater operation unit 62 is operated by the seated person. For example, when the vehicle air conditioner is activated in the heating mode by the air conditioner ECU 60, the operation may be automatically turned on.

[0023] In step 80 of the seat heater control process, which is the initial stage of heating by the seat heater device 10, the control unit 58 controls the energization of the first heater 14 by the heater drive unit 18 so that the temperature detected by the thermistor 16 matches the target temperature T1. Also, the heater drive unit 26 controls the energization of the second heater 22 so that the temperature detected by the thermistor 24 matches the target temperature T2. Further, the heater drive unit 34 controls the energization of the third heater 30 so that the temperature detected by the thermistor 32 matches the target temperature T3.

[0024] As for the energization control of the heaters 14, 22, and 30, for example, PID control can be applied, but other controls may also be used. Also, the target temperatures T2 and T3 may be any temperatures that satisfy T1≥T2, T3, and the target temperature T2 may be equal to or different from the target temperature T3.

[0025] In the next step 82, the control unit 58 determines whether the heating by the seat heater device 10 has reached the intermediate stage. Specifically, for example, if the elapsed time since the start of power supply control for heaters 14, 22, and 30 in step 80 is equal to or greater than a first predetermined time, it is determined that the heating by the seat heater device 10 has reached the intermediate stage. Alternatively, for example, parameters representing the operating status of the vehicle's air conditioning system may be obtained from the air conditioning ECU 60, and the above determination may be made based on the obtained parameters. An example of such parameters is the deviation ΔT between the target temperature and the actual room temperature when using the vehicle's air conditioning system. If the deviation ΔT falls below a first predetermined value, it may be determined that the heating by the seat heater device 10 has reached the intermediate stage. If the determination in step 82 is negative, step 82 is repeated until the determination is positive. If the determination in step 82 is positive, the process proceeds to step 84.

[0026] In step 84, the control unit 58 controls the energization of the first heater 14 by the heater drive unit 18 so that the temperature detected by the thermistor 16 matches the target temperature T1. For the second heater 22, the target temperature is lowered by temperature α, and the energization of the second heater 22 is controlled by the heater drive unit 26 so that the temperature detected by the thermistor 24 matches the target temperature (T2-α). Furthermore, for the third heater 30, the target temperature is lowered by temperature β, and the energization of the third heater 30 is controlled by the heater drive unit 34 so that the temperature detected by the thermistor 32 matches the target temperature (T3-β). Note that temperature α may be equal to or different from temperature β. By changing the target temperatures for heaters 22 and 30, the amount of heat generated by heaters 22 and 30 becomes smaller than the amount of heat generated by the first heater 14, and the energy consumption of the seat heater device 10 is reduced without impairing the seater's sense of warmth.

[0027] In step 86, the control unit 58 determines whether the heating by the seat heater device 10 has reached its final stage. Specifically, for example, if the elapsed time since the target temperature for heaters 22 and 30 was changed in step 84 is equal to or greater than the second predetermined time, it is determined that the heating by the seat heater device 10 has reached its final stage. Alternatively, for example, the control unit 58 may obtain a parameter representing the operating status of the vehicle's air conditioning system, such as the deviation ΔT between the target temperature and the actual room temperature, from the air conditioning ECU 60, and determine that the heating by the seat heater device 10 has reached its final stage if the deviation ΔT is less than or equal to the second predetermined value (provided that the second predetermined value < the first predetermined value). If the determination in step 86 is negative, step 86 is repeated until the determination is positive. If the determination in step 86 is positive, the process proceeds to step 88.

[0028] In step 88, the control unit 58 controls the power supply to the first heater 14 by the heater drive unit 18 so that the temperature detected by the thermistor 16 matches the target temperature T1, while turning off the power supply to the second heater 22 and the third heater 30. As a result, the amount of heat generated by the heaters 22 and 30 becomes zero, further reducing the energy consumption of the seat heater device 10 without compromising the seater's sense of warmth. When the seat heater device 10 is turned off, the execution of the seat heater control process ends.

[0029] As described above, the seat heater device 10 according to this embodiment includes a first heater 14 provided in a first area of ​​the seat cushion portion 38 of the vehicle seat 36 that is close to the seat back portion 40 and in a second area of ​​the second contact surface of the seat back portion 40 that is close to the seat cushion portion 38 that is close to the seat cushion portion 38, heaters 22 and 30 provided in the portion of the seat cushion portion 38 other than the first area and in the portion of the seat back portion 40 other than the second area, and a control unit 58 that reduces the amount of heat generated by the heaters 22 and 30 to less than the amount of heat generated by the first heater 14 when the driving mode is eco mode. This makes it possible to save energy without impairing the seater's sense of warmth.

[0030] In the above embodiment, an example of the second heater in this disclosure was described in which a second heater 22 and a third heater 30 are provided, but the third heater 30 can be omitted.

[0031] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the heating by the seat heater device 10 was divided into three stages: initial, intermediate, and final, and the control of the heaters 22 and 30 was switched at each stage. However, the invention is not limited to this, and for example, the "intermediate" stage may be subdivided into multiple periods, and the target temperature of the heaters 22 and 30 may be gradually lowered in each period. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0032] 10. Seat heater device 14. First heater (first heater) 22. Second heater (second heater) 30. Third heater (second heater) 58 Control Unit

Claims

[Claim 1] A first heater is provided in a first contact area of ​​the seat cushion portion of the seat that comes into contact with the occupant, which is close to the seat back portion of the seat, and in a second contact area of ​​the second contact area of ​​the seat back portion of the seat that comes into contact with the occupant, which is close to the seat cushion portion. A second heater is provided in the portion of the seat cushion other than the first region and in the portion of the seat back other than the second region. When the operating mode is eco mode, the control unit reduces the amount of heat generated by the second heater to be less than the amount of heat generated by the first heater, A seat heater device including [a specific component].

Images