Abstract:
A secondary heating system for heating the interior of a motor vehicle having an independent electrical circuit and coolant pump that utilizes maximum latent heat usage from a shut down engine to conserve fuel. Weight sensors are provided in the seats to detect the presence of a passenger therein and activate said system once the engine is turned off. The secondary heating system of the present invention further includes a periodic shut down at preset intervals to extend battery usage.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates generally to the automotive heating systems and, more specifically, to a secondary heating system that will continue to supply heat to the interior of a vehicle after the engine has been turned off. 
         [0003]    In cold weather people are frequently required to keep the engine running while waiting for someone or when the driver exits the vehicle and a passenger remains inside among other such circumstances. This is inefficient and results in wasted fuel. The present invention overcomes these shortcomings by providing a secondary heating system with its own electrical circuit and coolant pump to circulate heated engine fluid from the engine to the heater to allow for maximum latent heat usage without wasting fuel to keep the engine running. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Prior Art 
         [0005]    There are other heating systems designed for motor vehicles. While these heating systems may be suitable for the purposes for which they were designed, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention, as hereinafter described. 
       SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
       [0006]    The primary object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles to continue to supply heat to the interior thereof once the engine is turned off. 
         [0007]    Another object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles that will conserve fuel by negating the need to idle the engine when the driver or a passenger remain inside when the vehicle is parked. 
         [0008]    Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles having an independent electrical circuit. 
         [0009]    Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles having an independent coolant pump to circulate the heated engine fluid from the engine. 
         [0010]    Another object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles incorporating sensor means for detecting the presence of passengers that will activate the secondary heating system once the engine is turned off or remain inactive when the vehicle is empty. 
         [0011]    An additional object of the present invention is to provide said sensor taken from the group of weight sensors, infrared sensors and proximity sensors. 
         [0012]    Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles that when activated is set to briefly turn off for predetermined intervals for a preset amount of time to conserve and extend the electrical power of the battery. 
         [0013]    Still another object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles that shuts down once battery power reaches a preset low charge to prevent draining the battery to an insufficient level for restarting the vehicle. 
         [0014]    Another object of the present invention is to provide a secondary heating system for motor vehicles incorporating one way check valves to regulate the directional flow of fluid therein. 
         [0015]    Additional objects of the present invention will appear as the description proceeds. 
         [0016]    The present invention overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art by providing a means for heating the interior of a motor vehicle having an independent electrical circuit and coolant pump that utilizes maximum latent heat usage from a shut down engine to conserve fuel. Weight sensors are provided in the seats to detect the presence of a passenger therein and activate said system once the engine is turned off. The secondary heating system of the present invention further can include a periodic shut down at preset intervals to extend battery usage. 
         [0017]    The foregoing and other objects and advantages will appear from the description to follow. In the description reference is made to the accompanying drawing, which forms a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments will be described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. In the accompanying drawing, like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views. 
         [0018]    The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is best defined by the appended claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
         [0019]    In order that the invention may be more fully understood, it will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing in which: 
           [0020]      FIG. 1  is an illustrative view of the present invention. 
           [0021]      FIG. 2  is a diagram view of the prior art. 
           [0022]      FIG. 3  is a diagram view of the present invention. 
           [0023]      FIG. 4  is a diagram view of the present invention. 
           [0024]      FIG. 5  is a diagram view of the present invention applied to a hybrid or electric vehicle. 
           [0025]      FIG. 6  is a flow chart of the present invention. 
           [0026]      FIG. 7  is a graph of the operation of prior art and of the present invention. 
           [0027]      FIG. 8  is another graph of the operation of prior art and of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE REFERENCED NUMERALS 
       [0028]    Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views, the figures illustrate the Secondary Heating System of the present invention. With regard to the reference numerals used, the following numbering is used throughout the various drawing figures. 
         [0029]      10  Secondary Heating System of the present invention 
         [0030]      12  motor vehicle 
         [0031]      14  air vent 
         [0032]      16  engine 
         [0033]      18  electrical circuit 
         [0034]      20  coolant pump 
         [0035]      22  timer device 
         [0036]      24  sensor 
         [0037]      26  fan 
         [0038]      28  prior art 
         [0039]      30  heating system 
         [0040]      32  cabin radiator 
         [0041]      34  flow chart of  10   
         [0042]      36  battery 
         [0043]      38  one-way valve 
         [0044]      40  primary water pump 
         [0045]      42  heat 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0046]    The following discussion describes in detail one embodiment of the invention. This discussion should not be construed, however, as limiting the invention to those particular embodiments, practitioners skilled in the art will recognize numerous other embodiments as well. For definition of the complete scope of the invention, the reader is directed to appended claims. 
         [0047]      FIG. 1  is an illustrative view of the present invention. Shown is the present invention being a secondary heating system  10  for maintaining the heating level in a vehicle  12  for a passenger through the air vents  14  while the engine  16  is turned off and not using fuel, this is done by utilizing a second electrical circuit  18  to power a second coolant pump  20  with a timer device  22  activated by weight sensors  24  to circulate the heated fluid from the engine  16 , while operating the fan  26  and other associated heating equipment and is also electrically powered by the same circuit. This system allows for maximum latent heat usage from the shut down engine  16  without wasting fuel to keep the engine running. 
         [0048]      FIG. 2  is a diagram view of the prior art  28 . Shown is the prior art representing the typical heating system  30  of a motor vehicle whereby when the engine  16  is turned off the flow of heat  42  from the primary water pump  40  to the cabin radiator  32  by the fan  26  is turned off as well. Also shown is the battery  36 . 
         [0049]      FIG. 3  is a diagram view of the present invention  10 . Shown is the present invention having an additional heater pump  20  added in line to the engine  16  to be utilized in circulating the coolant in the vehicles heating system  28  to continue circulating and distributing the remaining latent heat  42  from the fan  26  and cabin radiator  32  in the engine  16  after the primary water pump  40  has been shut down. A timer device  22  and sensor  24  are in electrical communication with the battery  36  at all times. 
         [0050]      FIG. 4  is a block diagram of the present invention  10 . Shown is the heating system  30  having an additional heater pump  20  added on a parallel system whereby an secondary pump  20  and control system is added to the existing systems primary water pump  40  in order to allow for circulation of heating fluid to deliver heat  32  through the fan  26  and cabin radiator  32  even after the engines  16  main circulation system is shut down by means of the secondary pump  20 . Operation of the secondary system is regulated by at least one cabin sensor  22  and one way check valves  24 . 
         [0051]      FIG. 5  is a diagram view of the present invention  10  applied to a hybrid or electric vehicle. Shown is the present invention having a secondary heater pump  20  added on a parallel system whereby an additional pump and control system is added to the existing heater system  30  in order to allow for circulation of heat  32  even after the battery  36  and motor&#39;s main circulation system is shut down by means of an additional separately operated pump. A timer device  22  and sensor  24  are in electrical communication with the battery  36  and one way check valves  38  regulate the directional flow of fluid within the system. 
         [0052]      FIG. 6  is a flow chart  34  of the present invention. Shown is the present invention being a heating system that utilizes a secondary pump system to circulate coolant in order to harness latent heat in a shut down engine and in the case of a hybrid or electric vehicle, from latent battery heat. Additionally shown is the present invention having a sensor to indicate if the heating is needed and a passenger is present in the vehicle after shut down. Finally the present invention also has circuitry that will ensure that sufficient power is left in the battery to facilitate a restarting of the engine before the battery is drained beyond the point of properly powering a starter motor. 
         [0053]      FIG. 7  is a graph of prior art and of the operation of the present invention  10 . Shown is a chart depicting the difference between the heat output of a standard vehicles heating system after the vehicle has been turned off, and the heat output of a vehicle using the system of the present invention with a brief restart to produce a long lasting efficient heat output. 
         [0054]      FIG. 8  is a graph of the operation of the present invention  10 . Shown is a chart depicting a vehicle with the present invention installed operating its heat without using the present invention for the first  7  minutes, then activating the secondary pump to recirculate the fluid to harness the latent heat of the engine and bring the heat&#39;s output temperature back up to close to the level from where it started. 
         [0055]    It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together may also find a useful application in other types of methods differing from the type described above. 
         [0056]    While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. 
         [0057]    Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention.