Hybrid vehicle fuel vapor management apparatus

A fuel vapor management apparatus for heating the interior of a motor vehicle capable of being powered by electricity or a liquid fuel, the apparatus comprising:

• a fuel tank for storing the liquid fuel to be supplied to an internal combustion engine;
• a canister for storing vapors released from the fuel tank;
• a heater in communication with the canister and adapted to combust the vapors stored therein to generate heated exhaust gases;
• a circuit for circulating coolant between a heating coil where the coolant absorbs heat from the heated exhaust gases generated by the heater and a heater core where at least a portion of the heat absorbed by the coolant may be transmitted to the interior of the vehicle;
• and
• a system controller adapted to receive a first input indicative of a demand for heat in the interior of the vehicle, a second input indicative of the state of charge of an electrical storage battery, and a third input indicative of a time interval since the canister was previously purged;
• the system controller signalling an ignitor to begin combustion in the heater if the first input indicates a demand for heat, the second input indicates the state of charge of the battery is high, and the third input indicates a time interval greater than a predetermined amount.