Patents by Inventor Michio Nishikawa

Michio Nishikawa has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11338642
    Abstract: A vehicle cabin air conditioning system includes a cabin indoor air conditioner and an individual air conditioner configured to condition air in a target space inside a cabin. The individual air conditioner includes a blower, a heat generator, a supply port, and an exhaust port. The supply port supplies one of a cold air cooled with the heat generator and a warm air heated with the heat generator to the target space. The exhaust port provides the other of the cold air and the warm air to outside of the target space. The cabin indoor air conditioner includes a cabin blower, a temperature control unit, and a suction port through which air is sucked for the temperature control unit. An air flow path is provided to guide air sent from the exhaust port of the individual air conditioner to the suction port of the cabin indoor air conditioner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tatsuhiro Suzuki, Michio Nishikawa, Shigeru Kawano, Akane Kuroda
  • Publication number: 20210260967
    Abstract: A compact air conditioner includes a compressor, a condenser, a decompressor, an evaporator, a blower, an air conditioner case, and a controller. The air conditioner case defines a cool air chamber and a warm air chamber and is configured to direct a condensed water generated in the evaporator toward the warm air chamber. When an amount of the condensed water in the air conditioner case is greater than a predetermined amount, the controller is configured to execute at least one of a first control to decrease a flow rate of an air sent to the condenser by the blower or a second control to narrow an area of a front surface of the condenser, and at least one of a third control to increase a rotational speed of the compressor or a fourth control to reduce an opening degree of a valve of the decompressor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 12, 2021
    Publication date: August 26, 2021
    Inventors: Takahiro SAKAGUCHI, Michio NISHIKAWA, Shigeru KAWANO, Tatsuhiro SUZUKI
  • Publication number: 20210053416
    Abstract: A vehicle cabin air conditioning system includes a cabin indoor air conditioner and an individual air conditioner configured to condition air in a target space inside a cabin. The individual air conditioner includes a blower, a heat generator, a supply port, and an exhaust port. The supply port supplies one of a cold air cooled with the heat generator and a warm air heated with the heat generator to the target space. The exhaust port provides the other of the cold air and the warm air to outside of the target space. The cabin indoor air conditioner includes a cabin blower, a temperature control unit, and a suction port through which air is sucked for the temperature control unit. An air flow path is provided to guide air sent from the exhaust port of the individual air conditioner to the suction port of the cabin indoor air conditioner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 26, 2020
    Publication date: February 25, 2021
    Inventors: Tatsuhiro SUZUKI, Michio NISHIKAWA, Shigeru KAWANO, Akane KURODA
  • Publication number: 20210039476
    Abstract: A vehicle cabin air conditioning system has an individual air conditioner for conditioning air in a target space in a cabin. The individual air conditioner has a blower, a suction port, a heat generator, and a supply port. The heat generator concurrently generates cold heat and warm heat inside the housing. At least one of the cold air cooled with the cold heat and the warm air heated with the warm heat is supplied from the supply port to the target space. The vehicle cabin air conditioning system has a thermal load reducing unit and a supply flow path. The thermal load reducing unit adjusts the temperature of air sucked from the suction port in order to reduce the thermal load in the heat generator. The supply flow path guides the air controlled in temperature by the thermal load reducing unit to the suction port.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 26, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Tatsuhiro SUZUKI, Michio NISHIKAWA, Shigeru KAWANO, Akane KURODA
  • Patent number: 10899198
    Abstract: A heater core for performing heat exchange between a coolant and ventilation air to be blown to the interior of a vehicle so as to heat the ventilation air is disposed in a water circulation circuit for circulating a coolant in an engine EG for outputting driving force necessary to move the vehicle. When the temperature of the coolant discharged from the engine EG is low, a heat transport refrigeration cycle device, serving as a heat transport unit for absorbing heat from a downstream coolant at a position downstream more than the heater core and dissipating the heat absorbed from the downstream coolant to an upstream coolant at a position upstream more than the heater core, is operated to increase the temperature of the coolant introduced into the heater core until the temperature of the coolant reaches the temperature necessary to heat the interior of the vehicle, without operation of the engine EG.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2021
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Michio Nishikawa, Atsushi Inaba, Hiroaki Kawano, Naoya Makimoto
  • Patent number: 10371419
    Abstract: A vehicle air conditioning apparatus includes: at least one processor programmed to control a flow rate of at least one of a heat medium and outside air flowing through a heat medium-to-outside air heat exchanger such that a temperature of blast air cooled in an air-cooling heat exchanger is adjusted toward a first target temperature, and to control a flow rate of a refrigerant discharged from a compressor such that a temperature of blast air, which has been adjusted in at least one of the air-cooling heat exchanger and an air-heating heat exchanger and which is blown out into a vehicle interior, is adjusted toward a second target temperature. Accordingly, a surface temperature of the air-cooling heat exchanger and the temperature of the blast air into the vehicle interior can be properly controlled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2019
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norihiko Enomoto, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Michio Nishikawa, Yoshiki Katoh, Kengo Sugimura, Takashi Yamanaka, Masamichi Makihara
  • Patent number: 10232702
    Abstract: A heat medium discharge side of a first pump and a heat medium discharge side of a second pump are connected to a first switching valve in parallel. Heat medium inlet sides of the respective target devices for heat exchange included in a first target device group for heat exchange are connected to a first switching valve in parallel. The heat medium inlet side of the first pump and the heat medium inlet side of the second pump are connected to a second switching valve in parallel. The heat medium outlet sides of the respective target devices for heat exchange included in the first target device group for heat exchange are connected to the second switching valve in parallel. Furthermore, switching is performed between a state of circulation of the heat medium between the first pump and the target device, and a state of circulation of the heat medium between the second pump and the target device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Michio Nishikawa, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Norihiko Enomoto
  • Patent number: 10183548
    Abstract: In a thermal management system for a vehicle, a first switching valve is connected to at least one device in a group of a plurality of devices, a heat medium discharge side of a first pump, and a heat medium discharge side of a second pump in parallel with each other; and a second switching valve is connected to at least one device in the device group, a heat medium suction side of the first pump, and a heat medium suction side of the second pump in parallel with each other. Heat medium circulating through a first device included in the device group allows to flow through the second device. One side of a heat medium inlet side and a heat medium outlet side of the second device is connected to between one of the first switching valve and the second switching valve and the first device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 22, 2019
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norihiko Enomoto, Michio Nishikawa, Nobuharu Kakehashi
  • Patent number: 10155428
    Abstract: A refrigeration cycle device has a compressor, a radiator, an auxiliary heat exchanger, a decompressor, an evaporator, and an interior heat exchanger. The auxiliary heat exchanger performs a heat exchange between refrigerant and air and causes the refrigerant to radiate heat. The evaporator performs a heat exchange between air and refrigerant after being decompressed in the decompressor before the air is heated in the auxiliary heat exchanger. The interior heat exchanger has a first heat exchanging portion and a second heat exchanging portion and performs a heat exchange between refrigerant flowing in the first heat exchanging portion and refrigerant flowing in the second heat exchanging portion. The first heat exchanging portion is disposed in a refrigerant path between the radiator and the decompressor and is connected to the auxiliary heat exchanger in series. The second heat exchanging portion is disposed in a refrigerant path between the evaporator and the compressor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 18, 2018
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kota Sakamoto, Shin Nishida, Michio Nishikawa
  • Patent number: 9878594
    Abstract: A thermal management system for a vehicle includes a first pump and a second pump, temperature adjustment target devices, heat exchangers, numerous flow paths including a first pump arrangement flow path, a second pump arrangement flow path, and device arrangement flow paths, a first switching portion for allowing the numerous flow paths to selectively communicate with each other, a second switching portion for allowing the numerous flow paths to selectively communicate with each other, and a reserve tank for storing therein heat medium. The reserve tank is configured to set the pressure of the liquid surface of the stored heat medium to a predetermined pressure (e.g., atmospheric pressure), and is connected to one flow path of the numerous flow paths.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norihiko Enomoto, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Michio Nishikawa, Masamichi Makihara, Kazutoshi Kuwayama, Yoshiki Katoh, Kengo Sugimura
  • Patent number: 9827824
    Abstract: A first-pump arrangement flow path, temperature-adjustment target-device arrangement flow paths, and a second-pump arrangement flow path are connected to a communication flow path in this order from one end side to the other end side of the communication flow path. A first heat exchanger is disposed in the first-pump arrangement flow path among numerous flow paths, which is connected to the communication flow path at a position on a side of the first-pump arrangement flow path, rather than the flow path in which a second heat exchanger is disposed. The switching portion is operated to establish communication between plural flow paths, starting from the flow path connected to the communication flow path at the position closest to the one end side among the numerous flow paths, up to the flow path connected to the communication flow path at an n-th position counted from the one end side among the numerous flow paths.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norihiko Enomoto, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Michio Nishikawa
  • Publication number: 20170326947
    Abstract: A refrigeration cycle device has a compressor, a radiator, an auxiliary heat exchanger, a decompressor, an evaporator, and an interior heat exchanger. The auxiliary heat exchanger performs a heat exchange between refrigerant and air and causes the refrigerant to radiate heat. The evaporator performs a heat exchange between air and refrigerant after being decompressed in the decompressor before the air is heated in the auxiliary heat exchanger. The interior heat exchanger has a first heat exchanging portion and a second heat exchanging portion and performs a heat exchange between refrigerant flowing in the first heat exchanging portion and refrigerant flowing in the second heat exchanging portion. The first heat exchanging portion is disposed in a refrigerant path between the radiator and the decompressor and is connected to the auxiliary heat exchanger in series. The second heat exchanging portion is disposed in a refrigerant path between the evaporator and the compressor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2015
    Publication date: November 16, 2017
    Inventors: Kota SAKAMOTO, Shin NISHIDA, Michio NISHIKAWA
  • Patent number: 9796241
    Abstract: A vehicle temperature control apparatus for controlling temperature of a temperature control object, which is at least one of inside air of a vehicle compartment and a vehicle component, includes a heat capacitive element capable of storing heat, a refrigeration cycle in which heat is absorbed from a low temperature side and is dissipated to a high temperature side, a heat exchanger that causes the heat capacitive element to exchange heat with refrigerant of the refrigeration cycle, and a heat dissipation portion which dissipates heat in the refrigerant of the refrigeration cycle to the temperature control object. Thus, a temperature control by using the heat capacitive element can be effectively performed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masayuki Takeuchi, Hiroshi Kishita, Yasumitsu Omi, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Hideaki Okawa, Kouji Miura, Michio Nishikawa
  • Patent number: 9744827
    Abstract: A heat medium circulation equipment, a first pump, and a second pump are connected to a first switching valve and a second switching valve. A heater core is connected to at least one of the first switching valve and the second switching valve, and connected to a heat medium circuit. A state, in which the heat medium discharged by a third pump flows into the heater core, is selected by switching of a switching device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Michio Nishikawa, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Norihiko Enomoto, Yoshiki Katoh, Kengo Sugimura
  • Patent number: 9657861
    Abstract: A flow passage switching unit includes side-by-side arranged rotary valve parts. The valve part includes a casing, side walls, a peripheral wall, first fluid ports, a second fluid port, a rotary shaft, and a valving element. A flow passage, through which the first fluid ports and the second fluid port selectively communicate, is formed by rotation of the valving element. The unit includes a driving mechanism driving each valving element by its corresponding predetermined rotation angle. The driving mechanism includes one driving source, and a motive power transmission member transmitting rotation motive power of the driving source respectively to the valve parts. Motive power of the driving source is transmitted to each rotary shaft of the valve parts to drive each valving element to a position, which position of the valving element relative to the first and second fluid ports is different from one another among the valve parts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norihiko Enomoto, Michio Nishikawa, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Kengo Sugimura, Yoshiki Katoh
  • Patent number: 9650940
    Abstract: A vehicle thermal management system includes a heat medium-heat medium heat exchanger that exchanges heat between a first heat medium drawn into and discharged from a first pump and a second pump, and a second heat medium circulating through an engine cooling circuit. A first switching valve switches between a state in which the first heat medium discharged from the first pump flows, and another state in which the first heat medium discharged from the second pump flows, with respect to the plurality of devices and the heat medium-heat medium heat exchanger. The second switching valve switches between a state in which the first heat medium flows into the first pump, and another state in which the first heat medium flows into the second pump, with respect to the plurality of devices and the heat medium-heat medium heat exchanger.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Nobuharu Kakehashi, Yoshiki Katoh, Norihiko Enomoto, Michio Nishikawa, Kengo Sugimura
  • Patent number: 9649909
    Abstract: A first heat transfer medium circuit includes a first path and a second heat transfer medium circuit includes a second path are formed independently from each other by operating a first switching valve and a second switching valve in conjunction with each other to make each of multiple flow passages of a first flow passage group communicate with either the first path or the second path. The first and second heat transfer medium circuits in which the first path and the second path are connected to each other in series is formed by operating the first switching valve and the second switching valve in conjunction with each other to make each of the multiple flow passages of the first flow passage group communicate with both the first path and the second path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norihiko Enomoto, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Michio Nishikawa
  • Patent number: 9601787
    Abstract: A radiator cap is connected to a circulating circuit at a connecting point located upstream of a water pump in a flow direction of coolant and that regulates a pressure in the circulating circuit to be within a predetermined pressure range that is higher than or equal to an atmospheric pressure at the connecting point. A rotary valve is disposed in the circulating circuit at upstream of the connecting point of the radiator cap in the flow direction of coolant. Accordingly, a cavitation is restricted from occurring, and the water pump can perform enough efficiency. A communication passage that has an upstream end and a downstream end connected to the circulating circuit may be disposed instead of the radiator cap. In this case, a pressure regulating valve is disposed in the communication passage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignees: DENSO CORPORATION, TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Takurou Furukoshi, Michio Nishikawa, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Shunjiro Kikawa
  • Publication number: 20170050493
    Abstract: A heater core for performing heat exchange between a coolant and ventilation air to be blown to the interior of a vehicle so as to heat the ventilation air is disposed in a water circulation circuit for circulating a coolant in an engine EG for outputting driving force necessary to move the vehicle. When the temperature of the coolant discharged from the engine EG is low, a heat transport refrigeration cycle device, serving as a heat transport unit for absorbing heat from a downstream coolant at a position downstream more than the heater core and dissipating the heat absorbed from the downstream coolant to an upstream coolant at a position upstream more than the heater core, is operated to increase the temperature of the coolant introduced into the heater core until the temperature of the coolant reaches the temperature necessary to heat the interior of the vehicle, without operation of the engine EG.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 27, 2015
    Publication date: February 23, 2017
    Inventors: Michio Nishikawa, Atsushi Inaba, Hiroaki Kawano, Naoya Makimoto
  • Patent number: 9561704
    Abstract: First circulation portions switch a flow of a heat transfer medium such that one of the heat transfer media for two systems selectively circulates through a radiator flow path or a first bypass flow path. Second circulation portions switch the flow of the heat transfer medium such that the heat transfer media for the two systems selectively circulate with respect to a second flow path group. The first circulation portions and the second circulation portions are adapted to switch the flow of the heat transfer medium so as to form a first circulation circuit for allowing the heat transfer medium to circulate among a first flow path group, the second flow path group, and a first pump, as well as a second circulation circuit for allowing the heat transfer medium to circulate among the first flow path group, the second flow path group, and a second pump.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2017
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norihiko Enomoto, Nobuharu Kakehashi, Michio Nishikawa, Yasumitsu Omi, Takashi Yamanaka, Masayuki Takeuchi