Method, system, and technology for preconditioning a vehicle interior

An electric vehicle, comprising:

• a battery system;
• a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system;
• and
• a control system connected to the HVAC system, wherein the control system is configured to:
• obtain an ambient temperature associated with the electric vehicle;
• based on the obtained ambient temperature, override one or more settings of the HVAC system including to change a blower mode setting, wherein the blower mode setting includes one of a panel mode, a bi-level mode, and a defrost mode;
• initiate preconditioning of an interior of the electric vehicle using the HVAC system, wherein the preconditioning includes:
• a first phase where a first output from the HVAC system is provided for a first period of time;
• and
• a second phase where a second output from the HVAC system is provided for a second period of time;
• and
• wherein the first phase has a first set of HVAC settings and the second phase has a second set of HVAC settings, wherein the first phase is selected from a plurality of first phase preconditioning options based on the ambient temperature corresponding to a temperature band of the first phase, wherein each of the plurality of first phase preconditioning options corresponds to different ones of a plurality of temperature bands, and wherein each of the plurality of first phase preconditioning options has different values for one or more of the first set of HVAC settings.

A method for re-configuring an electric vehicle for preconditioning, the electric vehicle comprising an interior, a control system, a battery system, and a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system, the method comprising:

• configuring the control system to:
• receive an indication of a departure time;
• obtain an ambient temperature associated with the electric vehicle;
• send a signal to the HVAC system to override a current setting of the HVAC system during charging of the battery system based at least in part on the indication of the departure time and the ambient temperature;
• and
• operate the HVAC system to precondition the interior to a desired temperature or temperature range by the departure time, including to precondition in:
• a first phase having a first set of HVAC settings where a first output from the HVAC system is provided for a first period of time;
• and
• a second phase having a second set of HVAC settings where a second output from the HVAC system is provided for a second period of time;
• wherein the first phase is selected from a plurality of first phase preconditioning options based on the ambient temperature corresponding to a temperature band of the first phase, wherein each of the plurality of first phase preconditioning options corresponds to different ones of a plurality of temperature bands, and wherein each of the plurality of first phase preconditioning options has different values for one or more of the first set of HVAC settings.