Patents Examined by Marc E. Norman
  • Patent number: 11648822
    Abstract: A heat management device may include: a first heat circuit in which first heat medium circulates; a second heat circuit in which second heat medium circulates; a first radiator disposed in the first heat circuit; a second radiator disposed in the second heat circuit; and vehicle equipment exchanging heat with the first heat medium. The first and the second radiator may be disposed such that the first heat medium and the second heat medium are able to exchange heat with each other, the first heat medium may be heated by heat exchange between the first and the second heat medium in a case where a temperature of the second heat medium flowing into the second radiator is higher than a temperature of the first heat medium flowing into the first radiator, and the first heat medium heats the vehicle equipment by exchanging heat with the vehicle equipment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignees: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA, SUBARU CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshio Hasegawa, Hiroki Tashiro, Makoto Ikegami
  • Patent number: 11650608
    Abstract: A smart-home device may include an energy-storage element that stores energy harvested from an environmental system; a power wire connector and a return wire connector; and switching elements configured to operate in a first state where the switching elements create a connection between the power and the return; and a second state where the switching elements interrupt the connection between the power and return. The smart-home device may also include a circuit that controls the switching elements, where the circuit is configured to detect a zero-crossing of a current received through the power wire connector; wait for a first time interval after the zero-crossing is detected; after an expiration of the first time interval, enable active power stealing for a second time interval; and after an expiration of the second time interval, disable active power stealing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: Google LLC
    Inventors: Daniel Adam Warren, Michael Mitchell
  • Patent number: 11644208
    Abstract: An air conditioner and a method for detecting an incorrectly connected pipe in an air conditioner are provided. The air conditioner may detect an incorrectly connected pipe by performing a serial pipe inspection when three or less indoor units are connected to an outdoor unit through pipes and performing a group pipe inspection when four or more indoor units are connected to the outdoor unit through the pipes. The structure may enable detecting the incorrectly connected pipe among pipes connecting the outdoor unit to the indoor units within a shorter time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2023
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventors: Min Suk Kwak, Gilun Hwang
  • Patent number: 11644199
    Abstract: A central controller for controlling power consumption in a thermal energy system is disclosed, the energy system may include a plurality of heat pump assemblies and a plurality of cooling machine assemblies, each heat pump assembly being connected to a thermal energy circuit comprising a hot conduit and a cold conduit via a thermal heating circuit inlet connected to the hot conduit and via a thermal heating circuit outlet connected to the cold conduit, each cooling machine assembly being connected to the thermal energy circuit via a thermal cooling circuit inlet connected to the cold conduit and via a thermal cooling circuit outlet connected to the hot conduit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2023
    Assignee: E.ON SVERIGE AB
    Inventors: Per Rosén, Jacob Skogström, Helen Carlström, Bengt Lindoff
  • Patent number: 11644202
    Abstract: An air conditioner includes a main body including a body fan, a heat exchanger, and a body housing. A ventilation hose connects the main body to outdoor air. A ventilation module is attached to an outer side of the body housing, and includes a ventilation fan. The ventilation module switches between an exhaust mode in which indoor air is exhausted to the outdoors through the ventilation hose and an air supply mode in which outdoor air is supplied to the main body through the ventilation hose.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2023
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Sungjune Cho, Seonuk Na, Hyungmo Koo, Youjae Kim, Joonhyoung Kim, Hyunah Kim, Jaehyoung Sim, Eomji Jang, Dongho Cho
  • Patent number: 11634005
    Abstract: A method of controlling a temperature altering element within a seating assembly of a vehicle comprising: presenting a vehicle including a seating assembly including a temperature altering element, a controller in communication with the temperature altering element, the controller including a Pre-established Predictive Activation Model setting forth rules governing the activation of the temperature altering element as a function of data relating to Certain Identifiable Conditions, and a user interface configured to allow the temperature altering element to be manually activated or deactivated; occupying the seating assembly with a first occupant; collecting data relating to the Certain Identifiable Conditions while the first occupant is occupying the seating assembly; determining, by comparing the collected data to the rules of the Pre-established Predictive Activation Model, whether the collected data satisfies the rules of the Pre-established Predictive Activation Model so as to activate the temperature alt
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 4, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: David Ostrowski, Elizabeth Anne Manwell, William G. Herbert, Mohan John
  • Patent number: 11623497
    Abstract: An air conditioning unit for a recreational vehicle including a first heater and a second heater, and configured to initiate a heating operation including analyzing an interior temperature and an exterior temperature, determine an operating mode of the air conditioning unit, and controlling the first heater and the second heater according to the determined operation mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2023
    Assignee: Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc.
    Inventor: Richard Dustin Henderson
  • Patent number: 11619432
    Abstract: A heat pump system includes a compression device 12, a heat rejecting heat exchanger 14, an expansion device 18 and a heat absorbing heat exchanger 16; wherein the expansion device 18 provides a controllable degree of expansion. The heat pump system is operated in accordance with a method including determining a temperature indicative of frosting conditions on an exterior surface of the heat absorbing heat exchanger 16; operating the heat pump system in a first mode if the temperature indicative of frosting conditions is above a threshold value, and operating the heat pump system in a second mode if the temperature indicative of frosting conditions is within a range of temperatures that is below the threshold value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignee: CARRIER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Nicolas Fonte, Hugo Herry, Arnaud Veneziani
  • Patent number: 11614091
    Abstract: A method of feedthrough and overcurrent protection of a sealed compressor used in a transport climate control system (“TCCS”) is provided. The TCCS includes a climate control circuit with a sealed compressor. The sealed compressor includes an outer housing and an electrical motor within the outer housing. The method includes operating the sealed compressor to compress a working fluid by supplying electrical power to the electric motor of the sealed compressor via a sealed electrical feedthrough in the outer housing of the sealed compressor. The method also includes detecting an operating parameter of the sealed electrical feedthrough, and determining whether the sealed electrical feedthrough is in a melting condition based on the detected operating parameter. Also, the method includes adjusting operation of the climate control circuit upon determining that the sealed electrical feedthrough is in the melting condition until the sealed electrical feedthrough is no longer in the melting condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2023
    Assignee: Thermo King LLC
    Inventors: David J. Renken, Tony Spetz
  • Patent number: 11613153
    Abstract: An air conditioning device for an electric vehicle includes: a housing having an air conditioning passage connecting an air inlet port to an air discharge port; an evaporator, an air heater, and an electric heater, which are positioned in series in the air conditioning passage in the housing; and a bypass door positioned after the evaporator in the air conditioning passage in the housing and configured to selectively allow some of air passing through the evaporator to bypass the air heater and the electric heater to the air discharge port.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2023
    Assignees: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, KIA MOTORS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Gee Young Shin, Seung Sik Han, Dong Ho Kwon, Myung Hoe Kim
  • Patent number: 11613158
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an air conditioner for a vehicle, which includes an air-conditioning case (200), and at least one door (100) mounted to be opened and closed at a predetermined position, wherein the door (100) is formed integrally with an arm pivot (140), and the arm pivot (140) includes a pin part, and ribs formed integrally with both sides of the pin part to reinforce rigidity of the pin part and offset noise. The air conditioner further includes distortion preventing parts formed on a rotary shaft to be dented and to be crossed to each other, thereby reducing a transformation rate of the door and securing accuracy of the pin part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2023
    Assignee: HANON SYSTEMS
    Inventors: Jong Su Kim, Seong Seok Han, Jeong Jae Lee, Hyung Joo Kim, Hun Sang Lee, Heon Hur, Beom Ki Kim
  • Patent number: 11607927
    Abstract: A computer includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor to collect (a) ambient weather data, (b) vehicle speed data including at least one of a vehicle speed or an engine speed, and (c) operation data of a climate control subsystem of a vehicle, input the collected data to a regression program trained to output a predicted pressure of refrigerant of the climate control subsystem, the regression program trained with previously determined ambient weather data, data of a previous vehicle speed or a previous engine speed, and previous operation data of the climate control subsystem, determine an actual pressure of the refrigerant in the climate control subsystem, and actuate a component upon determining that a difference between the predicted pressure and the actual pressure falls below threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Sajjad Seyedsalehi, Vasiliy Krivtsov, William S. Johnston, Thomas Anthony Montgomery, Kevin Michael Swenskowski, Anatoliy Dubovitskiy, Mahtab Jahanbani Fard, Judy Jin
  • Patent number: 11609015
    Abstract: A multifunction adaptive whole house fan system can include a whole house fan to pull large volume of air through a building structure. The whole house fan can pull air from a motorized window or damper into the building structure and expel air through an attic. The system can monitor the environment to operate the whole house fan when desired conditions are present in coordination with other systems of the building structure to reduce overall energy consumption.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2023
    Assignee: QC MANUFACTURING, INC.
    Inventors: Dana Charles Stevenson, Dane Stevenson, Dustin Martin Stevenson
  • Patent number: 11609021
    Abstract: An air conditioner indoor unit, comprising a casing, and a fan casing, an electric heating assembly and a heat exchanger assembly which are disposed in the casing. The fan casing has a return air inlet and an air outlet, the electric heating assembly and the heat exchanger assembly are both disposed at the air outlet of the fan casing, and the electric heating assembly is located between the fan casing and the heat exchanger assembly. Further disclosed are an air conditioner control method, an air conditioner, and a storage medium. Since the electric heating assembly is disposed at the air outlet of the fan casing and between the fan casing and the heat exchanger assembly, the fan casing and the heat exchanger assembly can isolate a fire source that may be generated by the electric heating assembly when the electric heating assembly has a blow or other accident.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2023
    Inventors: Zhirong Hong, Bingshan Jiang, Zongmin Yue
  • Patent number: 11609022
    Abstract: The disclosure provides a networking method and a networking device for an air conditioner, and a terminal, wherein the networking includes: acquiring indoor unit information of a target air conditioner indoor unit of an air conditioner by a remote controller; matching an air conditioner outdoor unit corresponding to the target air conditioner indoor unit; and establishing a communication connection between the target air conditioner indoor unit and the matching air conditioner outdoor unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2023
    Assignee: Gree Electric Appliances, Inc. of Zhuhai
    Inventors: Jie Tang, Tieying Ye, Dongfeng Lai, Du Yang, Zhigao Lu
  • Patent number: 11597254
    Abstract: A ventilation device may include a housing, a fluid channel system, a heat exchanger, and a slider arrangement. The slider arrangement may include at least one first slider and at least one second slider arranged within the fluid channel system upstream of the heat exchanger and downstream of the heat exchanger respectively. The first and second slider may be guidable transversely with respect to at least one fluid flow. The first and second slider may each be actuatable via a respective pinion shaft. At least one of a volume flow and a mass flow of at least one fluid flow may be at least one of controllable and regulatable via actuation of the first slider. At least one of a predetermined fluid temperature and a predeterminable fluid temperature of a mixed fluid may be settable and at least two fluids may be mixable via actuation of the second slider.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2023
    Inventor: Walter Wolf
  • Patent number: 11585543
    Abstract: Example embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a control system for controlling an HVAC device where the control system includes a temperature sensor that provides a signal indicative of a temperature associated with the HVAC device, an orientation sensor that provides a signal indicative of an operating orientation of the HVAC device, and control circuitry that receives the temperature signal and the orientation signal from the orientation sensor. The control circuitry selects an operating thermal control set point from a plurality of stored thermal control set points based at least in part on an orientation signal, determines a temperature sensor input based on the temperature signal and compares the temperature sensor input to the operating thermal control set point, and operates the HVAC device based at least in part on that comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignee: Trane International Inc.
    Inventors: Neal Harrington, Thomas Gort, James R. M. Neal
  • Patent number: 11585551
    Abstract: A smart-home device may include a plurality of wire connectors configured to receive a plurality of signals from an environmental system; a plurality of diodes configured to receive the plurality of signals from the plurality of wire connectors, wherein at least two of the plurality of diodes have different voltage drops; and a power-stealing circuit that is configured to receive outputs of the plurality of diodes and to steal power through one of the plurality of wire connectors that is determined at least in part by the different voltage drops.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignee: Google LLC
    Inventors: Daniel Adam Warren, Michael Mitchell
  • Patent number: 11584190
    Abstract: A vehicular thermal management system includes: an indoor-air-conditioner disposed in a first vehicle body having a passenger space and including a compressor, a first condenser, an evaporator, a blower, and a refrigerant line; and a component-air-conditioner disposed in a second vehicle body combinable with the first vehicle body and including an electrical component line for cooling an electrical component of the vehicle and a first battery line for cooling a high-voltage battery including a chiller which extends toward the first vehicle body to be disposed behind the evaporator when the first vehicle body is combined with the second vehicle body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignees: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, KIA MOTORS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Sang Shin Lee, Man Ju Oh, Uk Il Yang, Jae Woong Kim, So La Chung
  • Patent number: 11571946
    Abstract: Methods of controlling transport climate control systems are provided to reduce the impact of their operation on the sleep of an occupant, who can be in a nearby sleeping space. Methods include obtaining occupant sleep status data, determining one or more operational parameters of the transport climate control system based on the occupant sleep status data, and operating the transport climate control system according to the one or more operational parameters to control when at least one of a motor, a compressor, a generator, or one or more fans are in operation during an occupant sleep state. The methods can be implemented by a controller of a transport climate control system or a control module for such a system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2023
    Assignee: Thermo King LLC
    Inventors: Matthew Srnec, Peter J. Loomis