JP2006145304A - Instrument for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an instrument for a vehicle capable of demonstrating a design formed near the center section of a dial without adding a particular light source, by forming the translucent design near the center section surrounded by the periphery of the dial having a translucent display section. <P>SOLUTION: The instrument 10 for the vehicle comprises the dial 13 that is arranged to cover an opening 11 of a housing 12 and has the translucent display section 14 pointed by the needle 17 in the periphery, the light source 20 arranged in the housing 12, and a reflecting member 22 that is arranged between the dial 13 and the light source 20 so as to cover the light source and reflect radiation light from the light source 20 to the display section 14. The instrument 10 for the vehicle has a translucent auxiliary display section 15 in the inward section surrounded by the periphery of the dial 13. The reflecting member 22 is provided with a window 24 allowing the radiation light from the light source 20 to transmit towards the auxiliary display section 15. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a pointer-type vehicle instrument, and more particularly, to a vehicle instrument that displays a display unit such as a scale formed of a translucent portion on a dial plate and a numerical value attached to the scale with backlight light. .

As a conventional pointer-type vehicle meter, there is a vehicle meter with a black face type ring illumination (see, for example, Patent Document 1). According to this prior art, the scale formed by the translucent part and the numerical value attached thereto are formed in the peripheral part of the dial arranged so as to cover the opening formed in the housing of the instrument. The housing contains a light source and a light guide member that receives light from the light source. The light emitted from the light source to the inside of the light guide member is efficiently guided to the peripheral portion of the dial by internal reflection of the light guide member, and a scale composed of a light transmitting portion formed on the peripheral portion and attached thereto. Irradiate the numerical value from the back of the dial.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-197671 (page 4-5, FIG. 4)

  However, if the light guide member is arranged so as to cover the light source in the vicinity of the center portion of the dial, the light guide member prevents light from being emitted from the light source toward the vicinity of the center portion of the dial. Even if a light-transmitting design is formed near the center of the dial, the design is clearly displayed by the backlight that transmits light from the light source. Cannot be seen.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a translucent design in the vicinity of the central portion surrounded by the peripheral portion of the dial plate on which the translucent display portion is formed, and without adding a special light source. An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle instrument that can clearly show a design formed in the vicinity of the central portion.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a housing having a boss portion for receiving the rotating shaft of the pointer and provided with an opening surrounding the boss portion, the housing is disposed so as to cover the opening, and the peripheral portion includes the boss portion. A dial plate provided with a translucent display portion indicated by a pointer, a light source disposed in the housing, and disposed between the dial plate and the light source so as to cover the light source and from the light source A vehicular instrument comprising a reflective member that reflects radiated light toward the display unit, wherein an auxiliary display unit having translucency is formed in an inner part surrounded by the peripheral part of the dial. In addition, the reflecting member is formed with a window that allows transmission of the radiated light from the light source toward the auxiliary display unit.

  In the first aspect of the present invention, a part of the irradiation light from the light source is formed by the reflecting member so as to have a translucent display portion such as a scale displayed by the pointer or a numerical value attached to the scale. Directed toward the peripheral portion of the dial, the display portion in the peripheral portion of the dial is irradiated from the back surface of the dial by reflected light from the reflecting member. Further, another part of the light emitted from the light source is directed to the auxiliary display part formed in the inner part of the dial through the window formed in the reflecting member, and the auxiliary display part is directed from the back of the dial. Irradiate.

  Therefore, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the scale formed on the peripheral portion of the dial and the display portion such as the numerical value attached thereto and the inner portion surrounded by the peripheral display portion are formed. Since the light source for each backlight for the auxiliary display unit can be used together, the auxiliary display unit formed on the inner part of the dial without using a dedicated backlight source for each. This auxiliary display can be illuminated from the back of the dial without adding a new light source for the dial. Therefore, for example, a new design that displays the unit of the peripheral display unit on the auxiliary display unit can be formed, and this design can be illuminated by the backlight from the light source, so without adding a new light source, This design can be clearly displayed.

  As the reflection member, a light guide member made of a translucent material that allows light to pass through is used, and a light reflection surface is formed on the inner surface of the light guide member facing the light source by a reflection means such as white paint. Can be configured.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the vehicular instrument according to the first aspect, the auxiliary display portion receives indirect illumination from the light source by reflected light of the light passing through the window.

  According to the second aspect of the invention, since the new design of the auxiliary display unit can be displayed by the indirect illumination light, the design of the auxiliary display unit can be clearly displayed with uniform brightness without unevenness of brightness. .

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the vehicular instrument according to the second aspect, the auxiliary display portion is formed at a position above the light source, and the window is disposed closer to the center of the dial than the light source. Of the light emitted from the light source, the light passing through the window is reflected and directed to the auxiliary display unit.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the window that allows the transmission of light toward the auxiliary display unit is formed closer to the center of the dial than the light source, so that the window, the light source, and the auxiliary display unit are provided. Since they are arranged with a positional shift without being aligned on a straight line, indirect illumination of the auxiliary display unit is possible with a relatively simple configuration.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle instrument according to the third aspect, the reflecting member is formed integrally with the boss portion, and extends from the top of the boss portion in a direction away from the dial. A vertical wall that extends from the lower edge of the vertical wall toward the periphery of the dial, and from the outer edge of the flat portion to the periphery of the dial covering the light source And an umbrella portion having an arcuate cross section, wherein the window is formed in an arc shape along the flat portion.

  Further, the invention according to claim 5 is the vehicle instrument according to claim 4, wherein the radiated light from the light source through the window toward the vertical wall is reflected by the vertical wall and above the umbrella portion. It is directed to the auxiliary display unit arranged.

  According to invention of Claim 4 and 5, an umbrella part has the arc-shaped cross section extended toward the peripheral part of a dial plate, and the said annular flat part formed continuously in the inner edge of this umbrella part is the said. Because the window is formed, the reflected light toward the outer edge of the umbrella, that is, reflected toward the periphery of the dial without reducing the amount of reflected light toward the periphery of the dial Radiation that is not used can be used as the backlight of the auxiliary display section. Accordingly, the light from the light source that has passed through the window formed on the reflecting member is reflected toward the auxiliary display portion by the vertical wall formed on the reflecting member, thereby displaying the peripheral portion of the dial plate with a relatively simple configuration. Indirect illumination of the auxiliary display unit is possible without causing a decrease in the amount of illumination light on the unit.

  According to the present invention, as described above, a new design can be formed near the center of the dial without adding a new light source, and the design can be clearly displayed by transmitted light. If necessary, a new design can be applied near the center of the dial without adding a light source, and this design can be clearly displayed.

  The present invention will be described below with reference to illustrated embodiments.

  1 and 2 show an example in which the present invention is applied to a pointer-type speedometer that displays the traveling speed of a vehicle.

  In the example shown in FIG. 1, the speedometer 10 according to the present invention includes a housing 12 in which a substantially circular opening 11 obtained by cutting a part of a circle with a straight edge is formed, and the opening 11 of the housing. And a dial 13 attached to the housing 12 so as to cover it. A display portion 14 such as a scale 14 a indicating the traveling speed and a numerical value 14 b indicating the value of the scale is formed around the dial 13.

  As is well known in the art, the dial 13 is provided with this desired background color by forming an opaque print layer on the transparent substrate for the dial 13 by multicolor printing. The display unit 14 is formed of a light-transmitting part that is formed by extracting the printed layer, as in the conventional case. By projecting the transparent portion of the dial 13 from the surface 13a of the dial 13, the scale 14a can be formed by the projecting transparent portion.

  In addition, an auxiliary display portion 15 made of a translucent portion is formed in the inner portion of the dial 13 on which the display portion 14 is formed. The auxiliary display portion 15 can be formed by a printed layer extraction portion similar to the display portion 14, and in the example shown in the drawing, is composed of English letters “Km / h” indicating a speed per hour which is a unit of the display speed.

  A motor 16 that operates in accordance with the speed of the vehicle is disposed at the center of the display unit 14, and a pointer 17 that indicates the display unit 14 is fixed to a rotating shaft 16a of the motor. Is installed. In order to protect the dial plate 13 and the hands 17, although not shown, a transparent cover is attached to the housing 12.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the housing 12 includes, for example, an upper housing member 12a and a lower housing member 12b each made of a synthetic resin material. The upper housing member 12a is formed with an opening 11 in which the dial 13 is mounted. Between the upper housing member 12a and the lower housing member 12b, a motor 16 (see FIG. 1) and the electric circuit thereof are provided. A circuit board 19 is provided. A light source 20 made of a light emitting element such as a bean ball or a light emitting diode is provided on the surface of the circuit board 19 facing the upper housing member 12a.

  A cylindrical boss portion 21 is integrally formed in the center portion of the upper housing member 12a so as to allow the rotation shaft 16a of the motor 16 to pass therethrough, and the light source 20 is disposed in the vicinity of the boss portion 21. . An auxiliary display unit 15 is formed immediately above the light source 20.

  The boss portion 21 is integrally formed with a reflecting member 22 that reflects light on the surface. The reflection member 22 can be formed by forming a reflection film with, for example, white coating on the surface of the synthetic resin material portion formed in the same manner as the boss portion 21.

  The reflecting member 22 is spaced from the top of the boss portion 21 and is spaced from the top, toward the circuit board 19 between the boss portion 21 and the light source 20, that is, a cylindrical upright wall 22 a extending in a direction away from the dial 13. And an annular flat portion 22b extending from the lower edge of the upright wall 22a spaced from the circuit board 19 toward the peripheral portion of the dial plate 13 and covering the upper side of the light source 20 from the outer edge of the flat portion. And an umbrella portion 22c extending toward the peripheral portion. As clearly shown in FIG. 2, the umbrella portion 22 c has an arcuate cross-sectional shape that increases the distance from the circuit board 19 toward the peripheral portion of the dial 13, its outer edge 22 d, and further outward A light emission port 23 that is open in an arc along the peripheral display portion 14 is formed between the peripheral portion 22d and the peripheral portion 22d.

  In addition, an arc-shaped window 24 is formed in a region corresponding to the auxiliary display unit 15 (see FIG. 1) in the flat portion 22 b located on the center side of the light source 20 of the reflecting member 22.

  Most of the radiated light from the light source 20 covered above by the reflecting member 22 is directly irradiated light indicated by the arrow 25 and reflected light indicated by the arrow 26 reflected by the umbrella portion 22c, and the peripheral portion of the dial 13 The display unit 14 is directed toward the display unit 14 (see FIG. 1), and the display unit 14 is used as a backlight of the display unit 14 by irradiating the display unit 14 from the back surface 13 b of the dial 13.

  On the other hand, a part of the radiated light emitted from the light source 20 toward the central portion opposite to the peripheral portion where the display portion 14 of the dial 13 is provided passes through the window 24 as indicated by an arrow 27, The auxiliary display unit 15 is irradiated from the back surface 13b of the dial 13 by being reflected by the upright wall 22a. Therefore, the irradiation light 27 is used as a backlight of the auxiliary display unit 15.

  In the vehicle indicator 10 according to the present invention, as described above, the display unit 14 provided in the peripheral part of the dial 13 by the irradiation light from the light source 20 and the auxiliary provided in the vicinity of the central part of the dial 13. Since the display unit 15 can be irradiated from the back surface 13b of the dial 13 by the irradiation light from the light source 20, a special light source for the auxiliary display unit 15 is not necessary. In addition, since the light emitted from the light source 20 that is directed to the display unit 14 is not directed to the auxiliary display unit 15, the auxiliary display unit 15 is displayed without causing a reduction in the amount of light emitted from the display unit 14. Can do. Therefore, by applying a desired design to the auxiliary display unit 15 as necessary, the design of the auxiliary display unit 15 can be suitably displayed without adding a new light source.

  Moreover, the umbrella part 22c which covers the upper part of the light source 20 prevents that an irradiation light beam goes directly from the light source 20 to the auxiliary display part 15 formed above the light source. Since the irradiation with the reflected light 27 passing through is allowed, the auxiliary display unit 15 can be displayed with uniform light intensity without unevenness of brightness by indirect illumination with the reflected light 27.

  As described above, an example in which a single light source is used as the light source 20 has been described. However, if necessary, a plurality of light sources 20 may be annularly arranged around the boss portion 21 along the umbrella portion 22c. it can. Further, the reflection member can be formed of a light guide member that allows light to be guided, and a reflection paint can be applied to the inner surface thereof.

It is a top view which shows the meter for vehicles which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the principal part obtained along line II-II shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 (Vehicle meter) Speed meter 11 Opening part 12 Housing 13 Dial 14 Display part 15 Auxiliary display part 17 Pointer 21 Boss part 22 Reflective member 22a Upright wall of reflective member 22b Flat part of reflective member 22c Umbrella part of reflective member 24 window

Claims (5)

  A housing having a boss portion for receiving the rotating shaft of the pointer and provided with an opening surrounding the boss portion, and a translucent material disposed on the housing so as to cover the opening and indicated by the pointer on a peripheral portion A dial plate provided with a display unit, a light source disposed in the housing, and disposed between the dial plate and the light source so as to cover the light source, and radiated light from the light source is directed to the display unit An instrument for a vehicle comprising a reflecting member for reflecting, wherein an auxiliary display part having translucency is provided in an inner part surrounded by the peripheral part of the dial, and the light source is provided on the reflecting member. A vehicle instrument characterized in that a window is formed that allows transmission of radiated light from the light toward the auxiliary display section.   The vehicle instrument according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary display unit receives indirect illumination from the light source by reflected light of the light that has passed through the window.   The auxiliary display part is formed above the light source, the window is arranged closer to the center of the dial than the light source, and light passing through the window is reflected from the light emitted from the light source. The vehicle instrument according to claim 2, wherein the vehicle instrument is directed toward the auxiliary display unit.   The reflecting member is formed integrally with the boss portion, and extends from the top of the boss portion in a direction away from the dial, and from the lower edge of the vertical wall toward the periphery of the dial An annular flat portion extending from the outer edge of the flat portion to the periphery of the dial plate, extending toward the periphery of the dial, and having an arcuate cross section. The vehicle instrument according to claim 3, wherein the window is formed in an arc shape along the line.   The vehicle instrument according to claim 4, wherein radiated light directed from the light source through the window toward the vertical wall is reflected by the vertical wall and directed toward the auxiliary display unit disposed above the umbrella unit.

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