System and method for directing an airflow into a sensor enclosure
摘要
說明書
Furthermore, the controller 196 may, in addition to, or instead of, regulating the rotation speed of the fan 192, regulate an amount of air entering from the AC vent 194, for example, depending or based on how much cooling is required for one or more of the sensors of the sensor system 180. For example, the controller 196 may regulate the amount of air entering into the AC vent 194 based on one or more of, or any combination of, the speed of the autonomous vehicle, the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 190, the external temperature, the difference between the temperature measured by the temperature sensor 190 and the external temperature, or based on an internal temperature of the LiDAR system 182 or the cameras 184 (which may indicate how heavily the LiDAR system 182 or the cameras 184 are being used). For example, the controller 196 may regulate the amount of air entering into the AC vent 194 by adjusting a size of an opening of the AC vent 194 (e.g., a radius of the opening of the AC vent 194), or by regulating an amount of cool air extracted into the AC vent 194. In another embodiment, the controller 196 may regulate an amount of air entering from the AC vent 194 based on the rotation speed of the fan 192. For example, in one embodiment, if the rotation speed of the fan 192 is increased, the controller 196 may reduce the amount of air entering into the AC vent 194 because adequate cooling of the sensor system 180 may already be provided by the fan 192. In one embodiment, the controller 196 may select between using the fan 192 and the AC vent 194 to cool the sensor system 180, based on which method is more energy efficient. On the other hand, if the operation of the fan 192 at high rotation speed itself generates heat internally for the fan 192, the controller 196 may increase the amount of air entering into the AC vent 196 to provide cooling for the fan 192. Thus, the controller 196 may increase the amount of air entering into the AC vent 194 as the rotation speed of the fan 192 is increased.
