CN111717162A

CN111717162A - Moving body

Info

Publication number: CN111717162A
Application number: CN202010170447.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 中岛匡贵; 田口龙马
Original assignee: Honda Motor Co Ltd
Current assignee: Honda Motor Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-03-22
Filing date: 2020-03-12
Publication date: 2020-09-29
Anticipated expiration: 2040-03-12
Also published as: JP7082080B2; JP2020152329A; CN111717162B

Abstract

The invention provides a moving body which can effectively and simply realize defogging/antifogging. The moving body includes a monitoring device capable of monitoring an environment around the moving body through a window member defining light transmission properties inside and outside the moving body, a heating device for heating a portion of the window member within a monitoring area of the monitoring device, an air conditioning device for conditioning air in the moving body, and a control device for controlling driving of the heating device and the air conditioning device, the heating device includes a first heating part and a second heating part that can be independently driven by the control device, the first heating unit is provided at a position upstream of the air-conditioned air from the air-conditioning apparatus with respect to the second heating unit, the control device preferentially drives the first heating unit of the first heating unit and the second heating unit when the air conditioner is in an operating state.

Description

Moving body

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to a mobile body including a monitoring device.

Background

A vehicle includes a monitoring device capable of monitoring a surrounding environment in the vehicle (see patent document 1). Such a monitoring device is provided on the windshield inner wall side, and can monitor the condition outside the vehicle through the windshield. Patent document 1 describes that a heater formed of an electric heating wire is provided as a heating device together with a monitoring device to remove fogging of a windshield such as dew condensation, frost, and ice.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2018-118617

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

In order to effectively achieve removal of fogging (defogging) or difficulty in generation of fogging (fogging prevention), further improvement in control in the above-described structure is required. This is not limited to vehicles, and is also the same for ships and the like.

An example of the present invention aims to achieve defogging/antifogging effectively and relatively simply.

Means for solving the problems

One aspect of the present invention relates to a moving body including a monitoring device capable of monitoring an environment around the moving body through a translucent window member that defines inside and outside of the moving body, a heating device that heats a portion of the window member within a monitoring area of the monitoring device, an air conditioning device that conditions air in the moving body, and a control device that controls driving of the heating device and the air conditioning device, the heating device includes a first heating part and a second heating part that can be independently driven by the control device, the first heating unit is provided at a position upstream of the air-conditioned air from the air-conditioning apparatus with respect to the second heating unit, the first heating unit of the first heating unit and the second heating unit is preferentially driven when the air conditioner is in an operating state.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, defogging/antifogging can be effectively and relatively simply realized.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining a configuration example of a vehicle according to the embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of the configuration of the in-vehicle electronic component.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram for explaining an example of a part of the structure in the vehicle.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart for explaining an example of the control content of the control device.

Fig. 5 is a timing chart for explaining an example of the control content of the control device.

Description of the reference numerals

1: a vehicle (moving body); 12F, a window member; 14. an air conditioning device; 151. a monitoring device; 152. a heating device; 1521. an upstream-side heating section; 1522. a downstream side heating section; 16: and a control device.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and all combinations of features described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the invention. Two or more of the plurality of features described in the embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. The same or similar components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof is omitted.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a vehicle 1 of the embodiment. In the drawings, an X axis, a Y axis, and a Z axis orthogonal to each other are shown for easy understanding of the structure (the same applies to other drawings described later). The X direction corresponds to the vehicle body front-rear direction, the Y direction corresponds to the vehicle body left-right direction or the vehicle width direction, and the Z direction corresponds to the vehicle body up-down direction. In the present specification, expressions of front/rear, left/right (side), up/down, vehicle body inside/vehicle body outside (vehicle interior/exterior), and the like indicate relative positional relationships with respect to the vehicle body 10.

The vehicle 1 is a four-wheeled vehicle including a pair of left and right front wheels 11F and a pair of left and right rear wheels 11R, but the number of wheels is not limited to this. The vehicle 1 is an electrically powered vehicle provided with a battery BT, but may be additionally provided with an internal combustion engine. The battery BT uses a secondary battery such as a lithium ion battery, and stores electric power for supply to corresponding elements in the vehicle 1.

The vehicle 1 further includes

window members

12F and 12R that define the inside and outside of the vehicle. The

window members

12F and 12R may be made of a light-transmitting material (e.g., glass, resin, or the like). In the figure, the window member 12F is shown as a windshield, a front window, or a front windshield, and the window member 12R is shown as a rear window, or a rear glass, but other window members such as a side window, a side glass, or the like may be provided. In the vehicle cabin (cabin), the seat SH is shown as a driver's seat for the sake of easy illustration, but other seats may be provided in the cabin.

The cabin front structure 13 including an instrument panel and the like is provided with an operation unit 19 for a user (mainly a driver) to perform a predetermined operation input. In the figure, the steering wheel is shown as a typical example of the operation unit 19, but the operation unit 19 includes various other operation members, and the concept of the operation input to the operation unit 19 includes a related operation directly or indirectly accompanied by the driving operation. As an example of this association operation, an operation for air conditioning management of a cabin can be cited.

As shown in fig. 1, the vehicle 1 further includes an air conditioner 14, an electronic component 15, and a control device 16. The air conditioner 14 may have a known structure. For example, the air conditioner 14 includes an evaporator, a compressor, a condenser, pipes connecting these components to form a flow path for a refrigerant, and various valves provided in the flow path. The air conditioner 14 includes a blower fan that generates a predetermined airflow as air-conditioned air, a fan motor that drives the blower fan, a heater core that heats the air-conditioned air, and the like.

In addition, the air conditioning device 14 further includes an air conditioning duct 141 and a defrosting duct 142, and a door mechanism (e.g., a flap door, a swing door, or the like) for switching from which the conditioned air is sent. The defrosting duct 142 is an air outlet that sends out the air-conditioning air toward the window member 12F/blows the air-conditioning air to the window member 12F, and is mainly aimed at defogging/antifogging of the window member 12F. Here, the air-conditioning duct 141 is a blow-out port other than the defrosting duct 142, and is mainly used for air-conditioning management of the cabin. Therefore, the air conditioner 14 may be configured to include a cabin air blowing unit for blowing air from the air conditioning duct 141 and a defogging/antifogging air blowing unit (defrosting device) for blowing air from the defrosting duct 142. In the figure, a single air-conditioning duct 141 provided in the cabin front structure 13 is shown, but a plurality of air-conditioning ducts 141 are generally provided so as to be able to send conditioned air toward the user and the periphery thereof (for example, the rear or the lower rear).

The user can control the state of the air conditioner 14 by an operation input to the operation unit 19. In the air conditioner 14 in the operating state or the driving state, the user can select which of the

ducts

141 and 142 the conditioned air is to be sent out from by an operation input to the operation unit 19. For example, the user can input a predetermined operation to the operation portion 19 to send out the air-conditioned air from one of the

ducts

141 and 142 or send out the air-conditioned air from both. The driving force of the air conditioner 14 (the air volume of the conditioned air) can also be adjusted by the user's operation input to the operation unit 19.

Fig. 2 (a) is a front view showing the structure of the electronic component 15. Fig. 2 (B) is a sectional view of the electronic component 15 at a cut line d1-d1 in fig. 2 (a). Fig. 2 (B) shows a state in which the air-conditioned air 142W from the defrosting duct 142 flows along the window member 12F toward the electronic component 15. The electronic component 15 includes a monitoring device 151 capable of monitoring the surrounding environment of the vehicle through the window member 12F and a heating device 152 capable of heating the window member 12F, and is disposed close to the inner wall (vehicle interior side surface) of the window member 12F.

The monitoring device 151 uses a camera capable of capturing an image of the surrounding environment, and in the present embodiment, the monitoring device 151 includes a device main body 1510, a detection unit 1511, and a base member 1512. The detection unit 1511 uses a known imaging sensor such as a CCD/CMOS image sensor, and the detection unit 1511 can detect or image the surrounding environment (in the case of the front side of the vehicle 1 in the present embodiment). The main body 1510 incorporates a processor that processes the detection result of the detection unit 1511, and the processing result of the processor is output as image data to the control device 16 described later.

The base member 1512 is a bracket for fixing the body 1510 and the detection portion 1511 to the vehicle body 10 and fixing the heating device 152 described later. The substrate 1512 includes an abutment portion 1512a and a recessed portion 1512 b. The contact portion 1512a is in contact with the inner wall of the window member 12F, and is fixed to the window member 12F via an adhesive material, for example.

The recessed portion 1512b is recessed from the contact portion 1512a, and has a substantially triangular or trapezoidal shape in plan view or front view. An opening is provided in a rear portion of the recessed portion 1512b, thereby exposing the detection surface of the detection portion 1511. That is, the base 1512 faces the inner wall of the window member 12F at the recessed portion 1512b, and forms a space SP1 with the window member 12F, and the detection surface of the detection portion 1511 is located in the space SP 1. As is clear from fig. 2 (B), the space SP1 is formed so as to narrow from the rear side toward the front side in side view.

With such a configuration, the monitoring device 151 can monitor the surrounding environment (in the case of the front side of the vehicle 1 in the present embodiment) through the window member 12F. The upper surface of the recessed portion 1512b is subjected to surface processing for suppressing reflected light, and for example, a concave-convex shape may be provided, but coloring treatment may be performed for a predetermined color in an attached manner or an alternative manner.

A portion of the window member 12F within the monitoring area of the monitoring device 151 (and the peripheral portion thereof) is defined as a portion 12F 1. In the present embodiment, the portion 12F1 corresponds to a portion above and in front of the space SP 1. Here, as described above, the rear portion of the recessed portion 1512b is provided with an opening for exposing the detection surface of the detection portion 1511. As is apparent from fig. 2 (B), a gap is formed between the distal end of the recessed portion 1512B and the window member 12F. Therefore, the space SP1 is not substantially sealed and communicates with the vehicle interior.

However, in the space SP1, since it is surrounded by the window member 12F and the base member 1512, the flow of gas (air) tends to be stagnant, and depending on the environment (mainly temperature and humidity) of the vehicle 1, fogging may easily occur in the portion 12F 1. As a typical example, the fogging may occur due to adhesion of water droplets or the like when the humidity of the cabin is relatively high and the temperature of the window member 12F is relatively low.

The heating device 152 includes an upstream heating section 1521, a downstream heating section 1522, and a driver 1520 that drives them. The

heating portions

1521, 1522 are provided in parallel on the upstream side and the downstream side of the air-conditioned air 142W, respectively. That is, the heating portion 1521 is provided at a position upstream of the air-conditioned air 142W with respect to the heating portion 1522, in other words, the heating portion 1522 is provided at a position downstream of the air-conditioned air 142W with respect to the heating portion 1521. The driver 1520 is a heater driver capable of driving one or both of the

heating portions

1521 and 1522.

The

heating units

1521 and 1522 are provided in the recessed portion 1512b of the substrate 1512, and heat the portion 12F1 with gas (air) in the space SP 1. Accordingly, when the air conditioner 14 is in an operating state, the gas flowing into the space SP1 through the gap between the distal end of the recessed portion 1512b and the window member 12F is heated by the heater 1521 and/or 1522, thereby heating the portion 12F 1. When the air conditioner 14 is in an operating state, the gas in the space SP1 flows out from the opening at the rear of the recessed portion 1512b (the opening exposing the detection surface of the detection portion 1511) in accordance with the inflow of the gas into the space SP 1.

In this way, the heating device 152 removes the fogging of the portion 12F1 and/or prevents the portion 12F1 from fogging (in this specification, the heating device may be simply referred to as "defogging/anti-fogging"). The heating device 152 may be configured to generate a desired amount of heat in each of the

heating portions

1521 and 1522. In the present embodiment, as the

heating portions

1521 and 1522, a configuration is adopted in which a heater wire is built in the recessed portion 1512b and the heater wire is energized by the actuator 1520 to generate heat. A current based on the power of the battery BT is supplied to the heating wire through a driver 1520. In this way, the

heating portions

1521 and 1522 may be provided inside the recessed portion 1512b or on the back surface (lower surface) of the recessed portion 1512 b.

Here, when the driving force of the air conditioner 14 (the air volume of the conditioned air) is increased, the inflow amount of the gas into the space SP1 becomes large. When the driving force (heat generation amount) of the heating device 152 is increased, the portion 12F1 of the window member 12F is rapidly heated through the space SP 1. Therefore, when summarized from the viewpoint of defogging/antifogging, if the driving force of the air conditioner 14 and/or the heating device 152 is increased, the defogging/antifogging can be more effectively achieved.

In the present embodiment, the control device 16 is an ECU (electronic control unit) including a CPU (central processing unit), a memory, and an external communication interface, and performs drive control of each element of the vehicle 1 based on a predetermined program. In another embodiment, the control device 16 may be a semiconductor device such as a PLD (programmable logic device) or an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit). That is, the functions of the control device 16 described in the present specification may be realized by either hardware or software.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing a part of the system configuration of the vehicle 1. The control device 16 transmits and receives signals to and from several elements provided in the vehicle 1, and performs drive control of these elements based on, for example, an operation input to the operation unit 19 by a user.

For example, the control device 16 controls the driving of the air conditioner 14. This drive control includes, for example, adjustment of the driving force of the air conditioner 14 (the air volume of the air-conditioned air) and is performed based on an operation input to the operation unit 19 by the user. The adjustment of the driving force of the air conditioner 14 can be achieved by changing the rotation speed of the blower fan, for example.

The control device 16 receives information (image data in the present embodiment) indicating the surrounding environment from the monitoring device 151, and performs predetermined driving assistance based on the information. The driving assistance here refers to so-called automatic driving in which at least a part of driving operations (typically, acceleration, braking, and steering) are performed on the control device 16 side rather than the driver side, in addition to information necessary and useful for driving the driver.

Further, the control device 16 controls the driving of the heating device 152. The heating device 152 is driven by the control device 16 based on satisfaction of a predetermined condition described later, but may be driven in response to an operation input to the operation unit 19 by the user.

For convenience of explanation, although the control device 16 is shown as a single unit in fig. 3, the control device 16 is often configured to have a plurality of ECUs that are capable of communicating with each other and that are each provided at a corresponding position on the vehicle body 10. Each ECU may be configured by mounting one or more electronic components on a mounting board.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the control content of the control device 16. The outline of the flowchart is that the heating device 152 is driven based on the evaluation result of the fogging degree of the window member 12F, and at this time, when the air conditioner 14 is in an operating state, the upstream heating unit 1521 of the

heating units

1521 and 1522 is preferentially driven. These operations are performed by the control device 16 mainly executing a predetermined program by the CPU. Here, the air conditioner 14 is in an operating state in which, as one aspect, air blowing by the defrosting duct 142 is performed.

In step S1010 (hereinafter, simply referred to as "S1010". the same applies to the other steps), the degree of fogging of the portion 12F1 of the window member 12F is evaluated. This evaluation includes, in addition to the evaluation of the actual degree of fogging (whether or not actual fogging) at the time of the evaluation, the evaluation or prediction of the degree of fogging in the near future (whether or not there is a possibility of fogging in the near future). These evaluations can be performed by a known method, and for example, the actual fogging degree can be evaluated by performing predetermined image analysis on image data that is a monitoring result of the monitoring device 151. The degree of fogging in the near future can be evaluated based on the temperature outside the vehicle and/or the humidity inside the vehicle.

In S1020, it is determined whether the evaluation result in S1010 satisfies a prescribed condition. If it is determined based on the evaluation result in S1010 that there is a possibility of actual fogging or fogging in the relatively near future, the routine proceeds to S1030. On the other hand, if it is not determined that there is a possibility that the mist actually forms or forms in the near future, the present flowchart is ended.

In S1030, it is determined whether or not the air conditioner 14 is in an operating state. If the air conditioner 14 is in the inactive state (if operation is suppressed), the process proceeds to S1040. On the other hand, when the air conditioner 14 is in the operating state, the process proceeds to S1050.

In S1040, if it is determined in S1030 that the air conditioner 14 is in the stopped state, both the

heating units

1521 and 1522 are driven, and the process proceeds to S1080. As described above, when the driving force of the air conditioner 14 and/or the heating device 152 is increased, defogging/antifogging can be more effectively achieved. Therefore, when both of the

heating units

1521 and 1522 are driven with respect to the state in which the air conditioner 14 is in the stopped state, the defogging/antifogging action is improved.

In S1050, the upstream heating unit 1521 is driven in response to the determination in S1030 that the air conditioner 14 is in the operating state. Accordingly, the air flowing into the space SP1 by the operation of the air conditioner 14 is heated, and accordingly, the portion 12F1 of the window member 12F is heated, and defogging/antifogging is performed. As will be described in detail later, the upstream heating unit 1521 is driven to defrost/antifog the air-conditioned air 142W on the upstream side, and the air-conditioned air 142W, which may have a temperature drop on the upstream side, is heated by the upstream heating unit 1521 and flows to the downstream side. This can appropriately achieve defogging/antifogging and prevent wasteful driving of the heating device 152.

In S1060, it is determined whether or not the fogging degree is sufficiently improved. This determination may be made by, for example, evaluating the fogging degree after a predetermined time has elapsed after S1050 by the same method as that of S1010 described above. If the degree of fogging is not sufficiently improved even after the predetermined time has elapsed, the process proceeds to S1070, whereas if the degree of fogging is sufficiently improved after the predetermined time has elapsed or if the predetermined time has not elapsed, the process proceeds to S1080.

In S1070, the downstream heating unit 1522 is further driven in response to a determination in S1060 that the degree of fogging has not sufficiently improved. That is, in S1050, the upstream heating unit 1521 is preferentially driven, but if the effect is not sufficient, the downstream heating unit 1522 is further driven. This improves the defogging/antifogging effect insufficient for driving the upstream heating portion 1521 in S1050.

In S1080, it is determined whether defogging/antifogging is completed. This determination may be performed, for example, by the same method as S1010 described above, but may be performed based on the elapsed time from the start of driving of the heating device 152. The elapsed time may be a fixed value or a variable value based on the temperature outside the vehicle and/or the humidity inside the vehicle. The process proceeds to S1090 when the defogging/antifogging is completed, and otherwise returns to S1030.

In S1090, heating device 152 is stopped (operation is suppressed), and the flowchart ends. In general, the window member 12F can include a heat insulating layer as an intermediate layer, and therefore, once the inner wall of the window member 12F becomes hot, the above-described fogging is less likely to occur. Therefore, S1090 (the rest of the heating device 152) can also be performed promptly after completion of the defogging/antifogging. On the other hand, as another embodiment, S1090 may be omitted (the heating device 152 may be maintained in the operating state) after the completion of the defogging/antifogging, and in this case, the antifogging action by the heating device 152 is continued.

Fig. 5 (a) and 5 (B) are timing charts for explaining an example of the control content of the control device 16 based on the above-described flowchart. The horizontal axis in the figure is a time axis, and the vertical axis indicates the evaluation result (referred to as an evaluation value D.) of the degree of fogging obtained in S1010, the state of the upstream heating unit 1521, and the state of the downstream heating unit 1522.

The evaluation value D is set to a numerical value indicating the fogging ease of the window member 12F. For example, numerical values that increase in the order of the case of being determined as actually fogging, the case of being determined as not actually fogging but being likely to fogging in the relatively near future, and the case of being determined as not actually fogging nor being likely to fogging in the relatively near future are given as the evaluation value D. That is, it can be said that the greater the evaluation value D, the higher the necessity of performing defogging/antifogging. The evaluation value D is a numerical value here, but may be a value that can represent the relative relationship between the fogging ease and may be provided by a predetermined code using, for example, a letter, a symbol, or the like.

The reference value D is used for determination in S1020_TH1When D > D_TH1(D≥D_TH1) If so, the process proceeds to S1030. In the determination of S1080, another reference value D is used_TH2When D < D_TH2(D≤D_TH2) If so, the process proceeds to S1090.

In the example of (a) in fig. 5, for example, at time T10, the evaluation value D reaches the reference value D_TH1The upstream heating section 1521 is driven (S1050). Defogging/antifogging is performed by the driving of the upstream heating portion 1521, and the evaluation value D decreases with the passage of time. Thereafter, at time T11, the evaluation value D reaches the reference value D_TH2And the driving of the upstream heating portion 1521 is suppressed (S1090).

In the example of fig. 5 (B), after the upstream heating portion 1521 is driven at the time T10 (after S1050), the evaluation value D does not sufficiently decrease at the time T20 after a predetermined time has elapsed (S1060), and the downstream heating portion 1522 is driven accordingly (S1070). Thereafter, at time T21, the evaluation value D reaches the reference value D_TH2And driving of the

heating portions

1521, 1522 is suppressed (S1090).

The above-described flowchart may be partially changed without departing from the scope of the invention, and for example, other steps may be added or the order of the steps may be changed.

For example, although S1030 is assumed to be entered into one of S1040 and S1050 depending on whether the air conditioner 14 is in the stopped state or the operating state for easy understanding, the determination of S1030 may be performed based on whether or not the driving amount of the air conditioner 14 is equal to or less than a reference value. For example, the process may proceed to S1040 when the driving force of the air conditioner 14 is equal to or less than the reference value, or proceed to S1050 otherwise.

For example, when both

heating portions

1521 and 1522 are driven in S1040, the drive of one of them (i.e., heating portion 1522) on the upper side in the vertical direction may be suppressed in S1090 thereafter, without suppressing the drive of both of them. Since the heated gas generally moves from the lower side to the upper side, according to such a control method, useless driving of the heating device 152 can be prevented, and defogging/antifogging can be continuously performed.

Further, for example, in S1050, the upstream heating portion 1521 of the

heating portions

1521 and 1522 is driven, but the downstream heating portion 1522 may be driven by a relatively small driving force. In other words, in S1050, the upstream heating section 1521 of the

heating sections

1521 and 1522 may be driven preferentially, and the upstream heating section 1521 may be driven at least with a larger driving force than the downstream heating section 1522. In this case, the magnitude relationship of the driving forces of the

heating portions

1521 and 1522 can be typically determined based on the total heat generation amount and the power consumption thereof. Thus, priority as used herein means relative predominance in time and/or effectiveness.

For example, as another embodiment, S1060 and S1080 may be performed in the order of them, or may be performed substantially in parallel as another embodiment. Therefore, for example, the evaluation value D quickly reaches the reference value D after S1050_TH2In the case of (3), S1080 may be performed without S1060.

According to the control method described above, when the air conditioner 14 is in an operating state, the upstream heating unit 1521 of the

heating units

1521 and 1522 is driven. As a result, the portion 12F1 of the window member 12F is defogged/fogged by the air-conditioned air 142W on the upstream side, the air-conditioned air 142W which may have a temperature decrease on the upstream side is heated by the upstream heating portion 1521 to flow to the downstream side, and the portion 12F1 of the window member 12F is defogged/fogged by the heated air-conditioned air 142W on the downstream side. Thereby, defogging/antifogging can be appropriately achieved. Incidentally, by suppressing the driving of the downstream heating portion 1522, wasteful driving of the heating device 152 can be prevented, and the power consumption of the battery BT can be reduced. Thus, the defogging/antifogging of the window member 12F can be effectively and relatively easily achieved.

The above configuration is advantageous in a structure in which the window member 12F is disposed at a relatively small inclination angle in the side view. The tilt angle here means an angle between (at least the portion 12F1 of) the extending direction of the window member 12F and the X direction in the side view. When the inclination angle of the window member 12F is relatively small, the center portion of the monitoring area of the monitoring device 151 may be biased toward the upstream side of the conditioned air 142W of the portion 12F 1. Therefore, it is effective for the defogging/antifogging at the center portion to maintain the temperature of the gas flowing into the space SP1 on the upstream side by the operation of the air conditioner 14 by the upstream heating unit 1521.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the air conditioner 14 is in an operating state in which air blowing by the defrosting duct 142 is performed. However, even when air blowing is performed through the air conditioning duct 141, the same operation as described above can be said, except that the amount of air blown (the amount of air flowing into the space SP1 in accordance with this) is relatively small. Therefore, in the determination at S1030, the process may proceed to S1050 when the air blowing of at least one of

ducts

141 and 142 is being performed.

The air conditioner 14 may include an internal air circulation mode (a mode in which air inside the vehicle is circulated and air conditioning is performed) and an external air introduction mode (a mode in which air outside the vehicle is taken into the vehicle and air conditioning is performed) as its operation modes in many cases. The control of the control device 16 in the present embodiment can be adopted in either the internal air circulation mode or the external air introduction mode, but the external air introduction mode is more preferable in order to more effectively realize the defogging/antifogging.

In the embodiment, a camera is shown as the monitoring device 151 as a preferable example, but the contents of the embodiment can be applied to other devices having a monitoring function. For example, fogging of the window member 12F (water droplets adhering to the inner wall, etc.) may cause a change in the refractive index, and may cause a change in the monitoring region of the monitoring device 151. Therefore, the monitoring device 151 may also be a radar (millimeter wave radar) or a lidar (light Detection and ranging). The monitoring device 151 may be a device for monitoring the rear or side of the vehicle 1, and for example, the contents of the embodiment may be applied to defogging/antifogging of the window member 12R.

In the above description, for the sake of easy understanding, the respective elements are shown by names related to their functions, but the respective elements are not limited to having the contents described in the embodiments as the main functions, and may be provided in an auxiliary manner. For example, although the vehicle 1 is exemplified as a typical example in the present specification, the contents of the embodiment can be applied to an object (such as a ship) having no wheels, that is, to various moving bodies.

Several features of the above embodiments are summarized as follows:

a first aspect relates to a moving body (e.g., 1) including a monitoring device (e.g., 151) capable of monitoring an environment around the moving body through a light-transmissive window member (e.g., 12F) that defines inside and outside of the moving body, a heating device (e.g., 2) for heating a site (e.g., 12F1) in a monitoring area of the monitoring device in the window member, an air conditioning device (e.g., 14) that conditions air in the moving body, and a control device (e.g., 16) that controls driving of the heating device and the air conditioning device, wherein the heating device includes a first heating unit (e.g., 1521) and a second heating unit (e.g., 1522) that are independently drivable by the control device, the first heating unit being provided at a position upstream of air conditioning wind from the air conditioning device with respect to the second heating unit, when the air conditioner is in an operating state, the control device preferentially drives the first heating unit of the first heating unit and the second heating unit (e.g., S1050). By heating the air-conditioning air from the air-conditioning apparatus, which may have a temperature drop on the upstream side, by the first heating section and flowing the air-conditioning air to the downstream side, it is possible to appropriately achieve defogging/antifogging of the window member and prevent useless driving of the heating apparatus. Thus, defogging/antifogging of the window member can be effectively and relatively easily achieved. This arrangement is advantageous in a structure in which the window member is disposed at a comparatively small inclination angle in the side view.

In a second aspect, the monitoring device includes a detection unit (e.g., 1511) that detects the surrounding environment, and a base material (e.g., 1512) that is disposed so as to face an inner surface of the window member and that positions a detection surface of the detection unit in a space between the detection surface and the window member, the space being in communication with the inside of the moving body. This allows the air-conditioning air to flow into the space, and the defogging/antifogging can be appropriately performed.

In a third aspect, the base material includes a portion (for example, 1512b) that is surface-processed so as to be able to suppress reflected light toward a monitoring region of the monitoring device. This also contributes to improvement in monitoring performance of the monitoring device.

In a fourth aspect, the heating device is provided at the portion of the base material subjected to the surface processing. This also contributes to an improvement in the suppression effect of reflected light.

In a fifth aspect, the heating device is provided on a back surface of the portion of the base material that has undergone surface processing. This also contributes to an improvement in the suppression effect of reflected light.

In the sixth aspect, when the operation of the air conditioner is suppressed, the control device drives both the first heating unit and the second heating unit (e.g., S1040). Thus, even when the operation of the air conditioner is suppressed, the defogging/antifogging of the window member can be appropriately realized.

In the seventh aspect, the control device suppresses the driving of one of the first heating unit and the second heating unit on the upper side in the vertical direction when a predetermined condition is satisfied after both of them are driven. Since the heated gas generally moves upward from below, according to the seventh aspect, the defogging/antifogging operation can be continuously performed while preventing wasteful driving of the heating device.

In the eighth aspect, when the air conditioner is in an operating state, the control device further drives the second heating unit when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the first heating unit is driven (for example, S1070). When the defogging/antifogging by the driving of the first heating section is insufficient, the defogging/antifogging can be realized by driving the second heating section as well.

In a ninth aspect, the control device drives the first heating unit with a larger driving force than the second heating unit when the air conditioning device is in an operating state. This makes it possible to preferably realize the first aspect.

In a tenth aspect, the monitoring device is a camera (e.g., 1511) for monitoring the front of the moving body, and the window member is a windshield (e.g., 12F). That is, the above-described embodiments can be preferably applied to a mobile body (typically, a vehicle) having a driving assistance function.

In an eleventh aspect, the mobile body is an electric vehicle (e.g., 1). This prevents wasteful driving of the heating device, and reduces power consumption of the battery.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A movable body characterized in that a movable body is provided,

the moving body includes:

a monitoring device capable of monitoring the surrounding environment of the moving body through a window member that defines the light transmittances of the inside and outside of the moving body;

a heating device for heating a portion of the window member within a monitoring area of the monitoring device;

an air conditioning device that performs air conditioning in the mobile body; and

a control device that controls driving of the heating device and the air conditioning device,

the heating device includes a first heating unit and a second heating unit that are independently drivable by the control device, the first heating unit being provided at a position upstream of the air-conditioned air from the air-conditioning device with respect to the second heating unit,

the control device preferentially drives the first heating unit of the first heating unit and the second heating unit when the air conditioner is in an operating state.

2. The movable body according to claim 1,

the monitoring device includes:

a detection unit that detects the surrounding environment; and

a base material disposed so as to face an inner surface of the window member and so as to position a detection surface of the detection unit in a space between the window member and the base material,

the space is communicated with the inside of the mobile body.

3. The movable body according to claim 2,

the base material includes a portion that is surface-processed so as to be able to suppress reflected light toward a monitoring region of the monitoring device.

4. The movable body according to claim 3,

the heating device is disposed on the surface-processed portion of the substrate.

5. The movable body according to claim 3,

the heating device is disposed on a back surface of the portion of the base material subjected to the surface processing.

6. The movable body according to claim 1,

the control device drives both the first heating unit and the second heating unit when the operation of the air conditioner is suppressed.

7. The movable body according to claim 6,

the control device suppresses driving of one of the first heating unit and the second heating unit on the upper side in the vertical direction when a predetermined condition is satisfied after both of them are driven.

8. The movable body according to claim 1,

when the air conditioner is in an operating state, the control device further drives the second heating unit when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the first heating unit is driven.

9. The movable body according to claim 1,

the control device drives the first heating unit with a driving force larger than that of the second heating unit when the air conditioner is in an operating state.

10. The movable body according to claim 1,

the monitoring device is a camera for monitoring the front of the moving body,

the window member is a windshield.

11. The movable body according to any one of claims 1 to 10,

the mobile body is an electric vehicle.