Adaptive controller for an automotive HVAC system

In a multi-zone climate control system for a vehicle comprising a passenger seat occupancy detector at each of a plurality of passenger seats for generating a respective seat occupancy signal indicative of an occupancy condition of a respective seat, a plurality of control units, each of said control units associated with a respective passenger seat location for selecting desired climate settings for each said location, and a controller in operative communication with each control unit and each passenger seat occupancy detector, a method of operating the climate control system comprising the following steps:

• determining the occupancy status of each passenger seat as a function of said passenger seat occupancy detectors;
• controlling the climate at each occupied passenger location according to the desired climate settings for each said respective location;
• turning off each control unit at a respective unoccupied passenger location;
• when operating a respective control unit in an automatic mode, detecting a manual override of said automatic mode parameter settings;
• storing a transient thermal condition event associated with said manual override input;
• and
• adaptively modifying an automatic mode compensation coefficient in response to said manual override input as a function of said transient thermal condition event and said manual override.