Vehicle air comfort system and method

Abstract

Vehicle air comfort systems and methods. The systems and methods may comprise: (1) a plurality of flow tunnels for passage of a heat-transfer fluid; (2) a thermoelectric cooler in thermal communication with the flow tunnels for thermally conditioning the heat-transfer fluid in the flow tunnels; (3) an air inlet for receiving unconditioned air; (4) a thermal exchange assembly for facilitating thermal exchange between the thermally conditioned heat-transfer fluid and the unconditioned air to result in conditioning of the air; and (5) an air outlet for outputting the conditioned air into the vehicle.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A vehicle air comfort system comprising:
 a plurality of flow tunnels for passage of a heat-transfer fluid;   a thermoelectric cooler in thermal communication with the flow tunnels, wherein the thermoelectric cooler is operable to thermally condition the heat-transfer fluid in the flow tunnels;   an air inlet for receiving unconditioned air;   a thermal exchange assembly operable to facilitate thermal exchange between the thermally conditioned heat-transfer fluid and the unconditioned air, wherein the thermal exchange results in the conditioning of the unconditioned air; and   an air outlet for outputting the conditioned air into the vehicle.   
     
     
         2 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the conditioning comprises cooling the unconditioned air. 
     
     
         3 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 2 , wherein the thermal conditioning comprises cooling the heat-transfer fluid, and wherein the thermal exchange comprises the transfer of heat from the unconditioned air to the thermally conditioned heat transfer fluid. 
     
     
         4 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the conditioning comprises heating the unconditioned air. 
     
     
         5 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 4 , wherein the thermal conditioning comprises heating the heat-transfer fluid, and wherein the thermal exchange comprises the transfer of heat from the thermally conditioned heat transfer fluid to the unconditioned air. 
     
     
         6 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises a plurality of fins operable to dissipate thermal energy from the thermoelectric cooler. 
     
     
         7 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises a thermoelectric cooler exhaust for outputting dissipated thermal energy from the thermoelectric cooler. 
     
     
         8 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the thermal exchange assembly comprises:
 a fluid inlet for receiving the thermally conditioned heat transfer fluid;   a body for facilitating thermal exchange between the thermally conditioned heat transfer fluid and the unconditioned air; and   a fluid outlet for outputting the heat transfer fluid after the thermal exchange.   
     
     
         9 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the thermal exchange assembly is a radiator. 
     
     
         10 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises a tubing network operable to place the flow tunnels in fluid communication with the thermal exchange assembly. 
     
     
         11 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 10 , wherein the tubing network is a closed-loop circuit. 
     
     
         12 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 10 , wherein the tubing network further comprises a pump for facilitating the transport of the heat-transfer fluid through the tubing network. 
     
     
         13 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the heat-transfer fluid is a coolant. 
     
     
         14 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises one or more fans for facilitating the movement of conditioned or unconditioned air. 
     
     
         15 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 14 , wherein the one or more fans move unconditioned air from the air inlet to the thermal exchange assembly. 
     
     
         16 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 14 , wherein the one or more fans move conditioned air from the thermal exchange assembly to the air outlet. 
     
     
         17 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises a pre-cool unit for pre-cooling the unconditioned air. 
     
     
         18 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises one or more filter units for filtering the conditioned or unconditioned air. 
     
     
         19 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises an evaporator unit for humidifying the conditioned or unconditioned air. 
     
     
         20 . The vehicle air comfort system of  claim 1 , wherein the vehicle is a truck.