Amerigon

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Alternative Fuel Vehicles Choose CCS®

Amerigon has been commercializing thermoelectric products since 1999. Amerigon and its subsidiary, BSST, have 30 patents issued related to the core development of thermoelectrics and potential applications. The traditional use of CCS has been to provide added occupant comfort. However recently, automotive manufacturers have begun to investigate the role CCS systems can play in overall HVAC schemes with the goal of decreasing CO₂ emissions and improving fuel economy. If a driver or passenger can “turn down” the air because the CCS is providing adequate cooling benefits, then there may be a net fuel savings as well as a reduction in CO₂ emissions.

Air conditioning systems negatively impact hybrid vehicle range, reducing fuel economy by an average of almost 22 percent1. Honda Motor Company uses the system in four seating positions in its FCX Clarity hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle for both comfort, as well as to potentially reduce the air conditioning load on the engine. Other alternative fuel vehicles offering CCS are the Lexus 600 hL hybrid and Cadillac Escalade Hybrid.

¹Data from US Department of Energy Advanced Vehicle Testing (http://avt.inl.gov/hev.shtml)

You can view all vehicles offering CCS by clicking here.

Thermoelectrics and Vehicle HVAC

Millions of consumers are enjoying the Climate Control Seat® for all-season comfort. The seat is so satisfying to drivers and passengers because it delivers heating and cooling directly to where people want it: warming up a cold leather seat in the winter or cooling down a hot and steamy one in the summer.

In this way, the seat is an efficient method of delivering heating and cooling. It can be considered an "anchor point" in an overall strategy of heating and cooling in a car.

Today's air conditioning in a vehicle accounts for a large percentage of fuel use, cutting fuel economy by up to 15 to 20 percent. The National Renewable Energy Lab conducted a study that showed using a ventilated seat can cut air conditioning use in a vehicle by four percent, which translates to a national fuel savings of almost a quarter of a billion gallons of gasoline.2

Thermoelectrics Goal to Reduce Energy Consumption, Engine Load, Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Instead of cooling an entire vehicle when not all seats are occupied, a zonal approach to providing heating and cooling could save fuel and range. To cool or heat a section of the vehicle – providing comfort to where it is needed – is a much more efficient system.

Amerigon BSST subsidiary is partnering with the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a highly-efficient thermoelectric heating and cooling system for automobiles. Ford Motor Company was selected to lead the project with partners including Visteon, the DOE’s National Energy Renewable Laboratory, and Ohio State University, along with BSST. BSST's role is to design and develop the thermoelectric core of the heating and cooling system.

Thermoelectrics are a good solution for vehicle HVAC for these reasons:

• Thermoelectrics can be controlled individually, and left off in unoccupied locations. Occupant sensors can be used to activate occupied zones.
• Thermoelectrics can be distributed within the interior of the car due to the small size of the devices.
• The engine does not need to be running to drive a compressor as required with a conventional air conditioning system. Thermolelectrics can accommodate emission and fuel-saving features such as turning engines off during portions of the drive cycle.

Thermoelectric zonal systems can be used in conjunction with a downsized conventional HVAC system. With advances in thermoelectrics made at the system level from Amerigon's subsidiary BSST, and continuing advances in thermoelectric materials, there is a viable future for thermoelectrics in vehicle HVAC systems.

You can read more about the future use of thermoelectric devices in automobiles by reading Broader Use of Thermoelectric Systems in Vehicles.

²Research paper at http://www.nrel.gov/vehiclesandfuels/ancillary_loads/pdfs/37693.pdf

Climatic Sleep System™

Analogous to the CCS in the automobile, Amerigon's heat and cool bed is being developed to provide all-season comfort to your bedroom. Heating and cooling a home accounts for 45% of a household's annual energy usage. Instead of heating and cooling the entire house or room, providing temperature control to exactly where it is needed has a potential cost savings in the energy usage in a house.

The DOE estimates a cost savings of $40-$100 per year by adjusting your thermostat 10-15% for an 8 hour period. By cooling or heating your bed as you sleep, this reduction in overall home energy use is possible.

Home Energy Usage from the DOE: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/consumer/tips/home_energy.html