Vehicle Seat Temperature Profiles for Hands-Free Comfort Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing number of vehicle functions can distract drivers, leading to hazardous situations due to the need for them to manage multiple systems simultaneously, including climate control, which can divert attention from driving and increase stress.
Innovation Solution
A method for automatically controlling the temperature of vehicle compartment components using power profiles adapted to user needs, learned through machine learning algorithms, allowing the system to adjust temperatures without driver intervention, focusing on driving by reducing the need for micro-adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the driver manually controls the climate system temperature adjustments, then the user can customize the temperature to their preferences, but the driver's attention is diverted from driving and stress increases
Solution Approach 1:
The climate system automatically adjusts temperature based on detected user presence and pre-stored power profiles without requiring driver input. The system serves itself by autonomously selecting and executing appropriate heating or cooling profiles when a user is detected in the vehicle seat, eliminating the need for manual temperature control operations.
Solution Approach 2:
Power profiles representing different heating or cooling strategies are pre-stored in the control unit based on typical user preferences and environmental conditions. When a user is detected, the system immediately retrieves and applies the appropriate pre-prepared profile without requiring real-time driver decisions, thus preventing distraction while maintaining customization benefits.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple vehicle functions are made available to enhance driving experience, then user comfort and experience improve, but the number of controls increases and driver workload increases
Solution Approach 1:
The climate control system operates autonomously by detecting user presence and automatically selecting appropriate temperature adjustment strategies from pre-stored profiles. This self-service operation eliminates the need for driver interaction with climate controls, reducing workload while preserving the versatility of temperature adjustment capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple temperature control strategies and user preferences are merged into a unified automatic control system that selects the appropriate profile based on detected conditions. This consolidation allows the system to provide diverse climate control options without requiring separate manual controls for each scenario, simplifying the driver's interaction while maintaining adaptability.
3Extent of automation
If automatic temperature control is implemented using pre-stored power profiles, then driver distraction is reduced and attention can focus on driving, but the system requires complex control logic and user profile management
Solution Approach 1:
Complex temperature control strategies and user preferences are pre-calculated and stored as power profiles in the control unit before driving scenarios occur. The automatic control logic simply retrieves and executes the appropriate pre-prepared profile based on detected user presence and environmental conditions, reducing the complexity of real-time decision-making while maintaining high automation capability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enhances user experience by maintaining a comfortable vehicle temperature automatically, reducing driver distraction and stress, as the system learns and adapts to user preferences over time, ensuring efficient heating or cooling based on detected user presence and environmental conditions.
Implementation Method 1
The vehicle component is heated or cooled once a user is detected
Implementation Method 2
The vehicle component is heated or cooled once a user is detected
Data Source
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AI summary
The disclosed subject matter generally relates to a method for controlling the temperature of a vehicle compartment component. With the proposed method, the vehicle component is heated or cooled once a user is detected, using power profiles that are adapted to fit the user's needs. The heating or cooling is only activated when it is needed, and the power profiles ensures that the temperature of the vehicle component is adjusted according to profiles that closely mimics a typical user's desired heating or cooling profile. The above advantages are obtained by insights in typical usage pattern in heating or cooling of vehicle interior components identified in studies. It was realized that most users initially desire heating or cooling the vehicle interior component according to a first power profile and subsequently, after a time duration, adjusts the heating to second power profile. The user does not have to spend time and attention on adjusting the heat of the vehicle interior component.