Abstract
The variations of the temperature field in a passenger compartment were measured by using a HSI true color image processing system and TLC(Thermochromic Liquid Crystal) solution. This temperature measurement technique was proved to be useful for analyzing the ventilation flow. The flow field in the passenger compartment was visualized using a particle streak method with pulsed laser light sheet. The temperature field and flow field in the passenger copartment were affected significantly by the ventilation mode. The panel-vent mode heating had shorter elapse time to reach a uniform temperature than the foot-vent mode under the same ventilation condition and nonuniformity inside the passenger compartment could be minimized effectively by using the bilevel heating mode. The temperature increase rate in the rear passenger compartment was iower than the front compartment, especially in the vicinity of the rear seat occupants' knee level.