Nathan J English, 42Brighton Twp, MI

2023001, Jan 19, 2023

Jul 14, 2021

17/375890

- Detroit MI, US
Cameron Paul SMITH - Milford MI, US
Anthony James DONATELLI - Waterford MI, US
Nathan John ENGLISH - Auburn Hills MI, US
Tanay Kalpej PATEL - Rochester MI, US

B60H 1/32
B60H 1/00

A control system includes a refrigerant recovery module and at least one of a valve control module and a compressor control module. The refrigerant recovery module is configured to generate a refrigerant recovery signal to initiate a recovery of refrigerant from a first heat exchanger of a thermal system for an electric vehicle, and to stop the refrigerant recovery based on a temperature of refrigerant circulating through the first heat exchanger. The valve control module is configured to open a first valve to allow refrigerant to flow through the first heat exchanger in response to the refrigerant recovery signal. The compressor control module is configured to increase a speed of a compressor disposed upstream from the first heat exchanger in response to the refrigerant recovery signal.

2023001, Jan 19, 2023

Jul 14, 2021

17/305753

- Detroit MI, US
Nathan J. English - Auburn Hills MI, US
Anthony J. Donatelli - Waterford MI, US
Cameron P. Smith - Milford MI, US
Tanay K. Patel - Rochester MI, US

GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC - Detroit MI

B60H 1/00
B60H 1/32
B60H 1/03

Presented are joint active thermal management (JATM) systems with heat exchanger storage of surplus refrigerant, methods for making/operating such systems, and vehicles equipped with such systems. A JATM system includes a coolant loop that fluidly connects to a vehicle battery system for pumping thereto coolant, an oil loop thermally coupled to the coolant loop and fluidly connected to a vehicle powertrain system for pumping thereto oil, and a refrigerant loop thermally coupled to the coolant loop and operable to circulate refrigerant for heating/cooling a passenger compartment. An electronic controller determines if a current amount of refrigerant in the refrigerant loop exceeds a calibrated threshold for the current operating mode of the JATM system. If so, the controller determines if one of the refrigerant loop's heat exchangers is available to store excess refrigerant. If the heat exchanger is available, the refrigerant loop stores excess refrigerant in the available refrigerant heat exchanger.

2021037, Dec 9, 2021

Jun 5, 2020

16/894137

- Detroit MI, US
Lawrence P. Ziehr - Clarkston MI, US
Nathan J. English - Auburn Hills MI, US

B60H 1/00
B60H 1/22
B60H 1/32

Thermal management in a vehicle involves a compressor to output a refrigerant in vapor form for circulation in a refrigerant loop. A thermal management system includes a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system in the refrigerant loop including an evaporator and an HVAC condenser, and an exterior condenser in the refrigerant loop configured to vent heat to an exterior of the vehicle. A first variable refrigerant flow valve (RFV) controls a flow rate of the refrigerant output by the compressor into the HVAC condenser, and a second RFV controls a flow rate of the refrigerant output by the compressor into the exterior condenser. A controller controls the first RFV and the second RFV based on a target output temperature for the HVAC condenser.

2021037, Dec 2, 2021

Jun 2, 2020

16/890146

- Detroit MI, US
Cameron P. Smith - Milford MI, US
Kyle Holihan - South Lyon MI, US
Michael H. Carlson - Farmington Hills MI, US
Nathan J. English - Auburn Hills MI, US
Lawrence P. Ziehr - Clarkston MI, US

B60H 1/32
B60H 1/00
B60H 1/22

A thermal management method and system in a vehicle include a chiller to cause heat transfer between a coolant loop that defines a path in which a coolant circulates and a refrigerant loop that defines a path in which a refrigerant circulates. The system includes an electronic expansion valve (EXV) in the refrigerant loop to control a flow of the refrigerant into a first part of the chiller, and a coolant pump in the coolant loop to control a flow of the coolant into a second part of the chiller. A controller controls the EXV and the coolant pump based on a target amount for the heat transfer.