CN113917767A

CN113917767A - Vehicle-mounted camera device, vehicle-mounted camera assembly and vehicle

Info

Publication number: CN113917767A
Application number: CN202111212296.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 翟德深; 王春雷; 张思凯; 陈娟; 王瑛; 巨小倩; 李展; 王昌银; 梁鹏; 吴小龙; 张永忠
Original assignee: BOE Technology Group Co Ltd; Beijing BOE Sensor Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: BOE Technology Group Co Ltd; Beijing BOE Sensor Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-10-18
Filing date: 2021-10-18
Publication date: 2022-01-11

Abstract

The invention relates to a vehicle-mounted camera device, a vehicle-mounted camera assembly and a vehicle. The vehicle-mounted camera device comprises a camera and a light adjusting plate; the light adjusting plate has a first state and a second state, wherein the light adjusting plate is transparent in the first state, and the light adjusting plate is in a set color in the second state; the lens direction of the camera faces the light adjusting plate. The lens direction of the camera of the vehicle-mounted camera device faces the light modulation plate, and the light modulation plate can shield and hide the camera, so that the camera is not exposed outside. The arrangement can protect the camera on one hand and reduce the probability of damage of the camera due to physical collision; on the other hand, the camera can be prevented from being polluted by external dust; moreover, even if the camera loosens and falls off due to vehicle bump, the camera cannot fall on the road. Meanwhile, the light adjusting plate is in the first state, so that the light adjusting plate is transparent, light can freely penetrate through the light adjusting plate, and the normal work of the camera cannot be hindered.

Description

Vehicle-mounted camera device, vehicle-mounted camera assembly and vehicle

Technical Field

The invention relates to the field of perception of a vehicle to surrounding objects through a camera, in particular to a vehicle-mounted camera device, a vehicle-mounted camera assembly and a vehicle.

Background

Existing vehicles are typically equipped with a camera for imaging outside the vehicle to assist the driver in perceiving the relationship between the vehicle and the outside, such as the distance between the vehicle and an external object. As for the arrangement position of the camera on the vehicle, the camera is generally arranged at the rear part of the vehicle body and is used for realizing the function of backing images, so that a vehicle driver can better acquire the information at the rear part of the vehicle in the backing process; in some vehicles, a camera is also arranged at the front part of the vehicle body, and the camera arranged at the rear part of the vehicle body jointly act to realize a 360-degree panoramic image function, so that a driver can sense information of all sides around the vehicle body through the camera.

As for the camera provided at the rear of the vehicle body, it is generally provided at a trunk handle of the vehicle. Trunk handle department generally has the shape to the indent, sets up the camera in this department, can hide the camera to a certain extent, makes the people can not see the camera under the normal posture of standing, simultaneously, also can avoid camera protrusion in automobile body surface, reduces because the risk of protrusion and damage.

For the camera arranged at the front part of the vehicle body, the camera is generally arranged at an air inlet grille of the vehicle, a black plastic piece is generally arranged at the air inlet grille, and the color of the camera component is consistent with that of the plastic piece, so that the aim of visually hiding the camera can be fulfilled to a certain extent; meanwhile, the camera is arranged at the lattice opening of the air inlet grille, so that a certain effect of protecting the camera can be achieved.

In summary, the existing method for arranging the camera on the vehicle has the following problems:

first, both the camera arranged at the rear part of the vehicle body and the camera arranged at the front part of the vehicle body are actually exposed, and the surface of the lens of the camera is easily polluted by dust.

Secondly, under the effect of external force or when jolting is great in the vehicle driving process, the camera all has the risk that becomes flexible and drops, and once the camera drops, will drop on the road, must purchase the part and can install again on the vehicle.

Thirdly, whether the camera is arranged at the rear part of the vehicle body or the front part of the vehicle body, certain purposes of hiding and protecting the camera are achieved depending on some specific design features of the vehicle body, such as the trunk handle and the air inlet grille mentioned above. However, with the development of automobile technology and design, especially the popularization trend of electric automobiles, more and more automobiles realize the opening and closing of a trunk in an automatic (key control or infrared induction and the like) mode without depending on a trunk handle, and many automobiles cancel the trunk handle during the design; there are also more and more vehicles, in particular electric vehicles, which are designed without the air intake grill. In such development trend and progress, how to arrange the camera and achieve the purpose of hiding and protecting the camera becomes a technical problem at present.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a vehicle-mounted camera device, a vehicle-mounted camera assembly and a vehicle, and aims to solve at least one of the technical problems that a camera mounted on the vehicle in the prior art is exposed outside, is easily polluted by dust, is easily loosened and falls off, and is mounted on a trunk handle or an air inlet grille.

The invention provides a vehicle-mounted camera device, which comprises a camera and a light adjusting plate; the light modulation plate has a first state and a second state, wherein the light modulation plate is transparent in the first state, and the light modulation plate is in a set color in the second state; the lens direction of the camera faces the light adjusting plate.

Wherein the set color of the light modulation panel in the second state is consistent with the body color of the area adjacent to the light modulation panel on the vehicle.

Wherein, the light modulation board is dye liquid crystal light modulation glass.

The dye liquid crystal dimming glass comprises a first substrate and a second substrate which are arranged in a box, wherein a liquid crystal layer is formed between the first substrate and the second substrate, and dichroic dyes with set colors are mixed in the liquid crystal layer; a first electrode is formed on the first substrate, and a second electrode is formed on the second substrate; a first signal line and a second signal line are formed on the first substrate, and the first signal line is connected with the first electrode; conductive adhesive is formed between the first substrate and the second substrate, one end of the conductive adhesive is connected with the second signal line, and the other end of the conductive adhesive is connected with the second electrode.

Wherein, a partial area of the projection of the second electrode on the surface of the first electrode is positioned outside the first electrode, and the projection of the conductive adhesive on the surface of the first electrode is positioned in the partial area; the second signal line extends to the partial area and is connected with the conductive adhesive.

The dichroic dye mixed in the liquid crystal layer comprises one or at least two of red, green, blue, orange and yellow dichroic dyes which are mixed according to a set proportion;

the red, green, blue, orange and yellow dichroic dyes are azo-based and/or anthraquinone-based dyes.

The light adjusting plate further comprises two toughened glass layers, and the two toughened glass layers are respectively located on one side of the first substrate, back to the second substrate, and on one side of the second substrate, back to the first substrate.

The invention provides a vehicle-mounted camera assembly, which comprises the vehicle-mounted camera device; the vehicle-mounted camera assembly comprises a shell, the shell is provided with a cavity with an opening facing one side, the camera is arranged in the cavity, and the light adjusting plate covers the opening of the cavity.

The light adjusting plate is fixedly connected with the shell, a supporting column is arranged in the concave cavity, and the supporting column is abutted to the light adjusting plate.

The shell is provided with a hole communicated with the cavity, and an external signal line connected with the camera and the light modulation plate penetrates through the hole.

The vehicle provided by the invention comprises the vehicle-mounted camera device or the vehicle-mounted camera assembly.

Wherein the light modulation panel is in a first state when the vehicle is reversing; and/or the light modulation board is in a first state when the distance between the vehicle and the surrounding objects is less than a set value; and/or the light modulation panel is in the first state when the vehicle is operating in a driver assistance or automatic driving mode.

Wherein the vehicle comprises a plurality of the on-board camera devices or on-board camera assemblies; the vehicle-mounted camera devices or the vehicle-mounted camera assemblies are respectively arranged on a front vehicle body and/or a rear vehicle body and/or a side vehicle body and/or an external rear view mirror of the vehicle.

Compared with the prior art, the vehicle-mounted camera device, the vehicle-mounted camera assembly and the vehicle provided by the embodiment of the invention have the following advantages:

according to the vehicle-mounted camera device provided by the embodiment of the invention, the lens direction of the camera faces the light modulation plate, and after the vehicle-mounted camera device is mounted on a vehicle, the light modulation plate can shield and hide the camera, so that the camera is not exposed outside and is isolated from the outside. By the arrangement, on one hand, the camera can be protected, so that an external object cannot contact and collide with the camera, and the probability of damage to the camera due to physical collision is reduced; on the other hand, the light adjusting plate isolates the camera from the outside, and can also prevent the surface of the lens of the camera from being polluted by outside dust or other impurities and influence the camera to image the external surrounding environment; moreover, even if the camera is loosened and falls off when the bumping in the driving process of the vehicle is large, the camera cannot fall on the road. Meanwhile, although the light modulation plate is positioned in front of the camera, the light modulation plate is in the first state to be transparent, and at the moment, light can freely penetrate through the light modulation plate, so that the requirement of imaging of the camera is met, and the normal work of the camera is not hindered; and when the camera need not be to external surrounding environment formation of image, can control the light modulation board and make it be in the second state, at this moment, the light modulation board presents and sets for the colour, can shelter from the camera, avoids the camera directly to expose to avoid destroying the visual uniformity on vehicle body surface.

The vehicle-mounted camera assembly provided by the embodiment of the invention comprises the vehicle-mounted camera device and has the same beneficial effects as the vehicle-mounted camera device. Moreover, the camera and the light modulation plate are integrally installed on the shell, so that all the components of the vehicle-mounted camera device such as the camera and the light modulation plate become an integral part assembly, and when the vehicle-mounted camera device is assembled on a vehicle, the vehicle-mounted camera device can be installed as a whole, and the vehicle-mounted camera device is more convenient to use.

The vehicle provided by the embodiment of the invention comprises the vehicle-mounted camera device or the vehicle-mounted camera assembly, and has the same beneficial effects as the vehicle-mounted camera device and the vehicle-mounted camera assembly.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly described below, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art that other drawings can be obtained according to the drawings without inventive exercise.

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a vehicle-mounted camera device and a vehicle-mounted camera assembly in an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a top view of a dye liquid crystal tinted glass;

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the direction M-M in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the direction N-N in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of liquid crystal molecules and dichroic dye molecules in a liquid crystal layer when the dye liquid crystal toning glass is in a first state;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of liquid crystal molecules and dichroic dye molecules in the liquid crystal layer when the dye liquid crystal toning glass is in a second state;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the arrangement of tempered glass layers in the light control panel;

fig. 8 is a schematic view of a state in which the in-vehicle camera device or the in-vehicle camera assembly is disposed on the front vehicle body or the rear vehicle body;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the vehicle camera device or vehicle camera assembly disposed in the exterior rearview mirror;

fig. 10 is a control diagram of the working process of the camera and the light modulation board in the reversing scene of the vehicle.

In the figure:

10-a camera; 20-a light adjusting plate; 30-a housing;

201-a first substrate; 202-a second substrate; 203-liquid crystal layer; 204-a first electrode; 205-a second electrode; 206 — a first signal line; 207-second signal line; 208-conductive glue; 209-non-conductive glue; 210-a flexible circuit board; 211-printed circuit board; 212-a tempered glass layer;

301-a cavity; 302-support column.

Detailed Description

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are some, but not all, embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments, which can be obtained by a person skilled in the art without any inventive step based on the embodiments of the present invention, are within the scope of the present invention.

Embodiments of an in-vehicle camera device, an in-vehicle camera assembly, and a vehicle according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(1) Embodiments of the vehicle Camera device

Referring to fig. 1, the vehicle-mounted camera device provided in the present embodiment includes a camera 10 and a light modulation panel 20. The light modulation panel 20 has a first state in which the light modulation panel 20 is transparent and a second state in which the light modulation panel 20 has a set color. The lens direction of the camera 10 is directed toward the light modulation panel 20.

As described above, the light modulation panel 20 has the first state and the second state, and the two states can be switched according to the following rule: when the camera 10 needs to image the external surroundings, the light modulation panel 20 is in the first state, and when the camera 10 does not need to image the external surroundings, the light modulation panel 20 is in the second state.

In the vehicle-mounted camera device in the embodiment, the lens direction of the camera 10 faces the light modulation plate 20, and after the vehicle-mounted camera device is mounted on a vehicle, the light modulation plate 20 can shield and hide the camera 10, so that the camera 10 is not exposed outside and is isolated from the outside. By the arrangement, on one hand, the camera 10 can be protected, so that an external object cannot contact or collide with the camera, and the probability of damage to the camera 10 due to physical collision is reduced; on the other hand, the light modulation board 20 isolates the camera 10 from the outside, and can also prevent external dust or other impurities from polluting the lens surface of the camera 10 and influencing the imaging of the camera 10 on the external surrounding environment; moreover, even if the camera 10 loosens or falls off when the vehicle runs in a large bump, the camera will not fall on the road. Meanwhile, although the light modulation plate 20 is positioned in front of the camera 10, the light modulation plate 20 is in the first state, so that the light modulation plate 20 is transparent, and at this time, light can freely penetrate through the light modulation plate 20, thereby meeting the imaging requirement of the camera 10 and not hindering the normal operation of the camera 10; and when the camera 10 need not be to external surrounding environment formation of image, can control light modulation board 20 and make it be in the second state, at this moment, light modulation board 20 presents and sets for the colour, can shelter from camera 10, avoids camera 10 directly to expose to avoid destroying the vision uniformity on vehicle body surface.

Specifically, the set color of the light modulation panel 20 in the second state coincides with the body color of the area on the vehicle adjacent to the light modulation panel 20. When the light modulation panel 20 is in the second state, the area where the camera 10 and the light modulation panel 20 are located can be integrated into the vehicle body color of the surrounding area, and the area and the surrounding area form a whole visual body.

As shown in fig. 2 to 4, the light modulation panel 20 may be specifically a dye liquid crystal light modulation glass. The dye liquid crystal light control glass comprises a first substrate 201 and a second substrate 202 which are arranged in a cell, a liquid crystal layer 203 is formed between the first substrate 201 and the second substrate 202, liquid crystal molecules are arranged in the liquid crystal layer 203, and dichroic dyes with set colors are mixed in the liquid crystal molecules, as shown in fig. 5 and 6 (a bright-state rod-shaped structure in the liquid crystal layer shown in fig. 5 and 6 is a liquid crystal molecule, and a dark-state rod-shaped structure in the liquid crystal layer is a dichroic dye molecule). A first electrode 204 is formed on a side of the first substrate 201 facing the second substrate 202, and a second electrode 205 is formed on a side of the second substrate 202 facing the first substrate 201. The first electrode 204 and the second electrode 205 are transparent electrodes, and specifically, ITO (indium tin oxide) electrodes may be preferable.

By applying a voltage to the first electrode 204 and the second electrode 205, the liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer 203 can be controlled in posture, and the liquid crystal molecules in a specific posture can restrict the same or associated certain posture maintained by the dichroic dye molecules; when the voltages applied to the first electrode 204 and the second electrode 205 are changed, the liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer 203 oscillate, and the dichroic dye molecules are also driven to synchronously oscillate to a corresponding angle. Specifically, when the liquid crystal molecules and the dichroic dye molecules constrained by the liquid crystal molecules are in the state shown in fig. 5, light can be transmitted from one side of the liquid crystal layer 203 to the other side through the liquid crystal layer 203, and at this time, the dye-liquid crystal light modulation glass is in the first state; when the liquid crystal molecules and the dichroic dye molecules constrained by the liquid crystal molecules are in the state shown in fig. 6, light cannot pass through the liquid crystal layer 203 and cannot be transmitted from one side of the liquid crystal layer 203 to the other side, and at this time, the dye-liquid crystal light control glass is in the second state.

Specifically, the dichroic dye of a set color mixed in the liquid crystal layer 203 includes one of dichroic dyes of red, green, blue, orange, and yellow colors, or is mixed of at least two thereof in a set ratio. The red, green, blue, orange and yellow dichroic dyes may be selected from azo-based and/or anthraquinone-based dyes. By selecting the type of dye from red, green, blue, orange and yellow dyes and configuring the selected dyes in corresponding proportions, the color exhibited by the dye-liquid crystal light regulating glass in the second state can be controlled. For example, if it is necessary to control the color of the dye liquid crystal light control glass in the second state to be blue, it is only necessary to select a dichroic dye of blue to be mixed into the liquid crystal molecules, and if it is necessary to control the color of the dye liquid crystal light control glass in the second state to be a color other than the above-mentioned color, it is usually possible to select dichroic dyes of blue, orange and yellow, or dichroic dyes of red, green and blue, and to adjust the ratio of the respective color dyes so that the dye liquid crystal light control glass in the second state can exhibit the desired colors.

Specifically, the first substrate 201 and the second substrate 202 are boxed by the non-conductive adhesive 209, the first electrode 204 is located in the boxed region, and partial regions (left and right side regions in fig. 3) of the second electrode 205 extend out of the boxed region. The first substrate 201 has a first signal line 206 and a second signal line 207 formed thereon. The first signal line 206 is connected to the first electrode 204, and as shown in fig. 3, the first signal line 206 extends from a lower frame region of the first substrate 201 (where it is connected to the flexible circuit board 210) to a box-forming region of the first substrate 201, and is connected to the first electrode 204. The second signal line 207 is connected to the second electrode 205, and as shown in fig. 3, the second signal line 207 extends from the lower frame region of the first substrate 201 to the frame regions on the left and right sides of the first substrate 201; meanwhile, a conductive adhesive 208 is formed between the first substrate 201 and the second substrate 202, the conductive adhesive 208 is located in the left and right side frame areas of the first substrate 201 and the second substrate 202, and the portion of the second signal line 207 located in the left and right side frame areas and the conductive adhesive 208 are located outside the box forming area; in the vertical direction in fig. 3, the conductive paste 208 corresponds to the portions of the second signal line 207 extending into the frame areas on the left and right sides of the first substrate 201, and corresponds to the portions of the second electrode 205 extending from the left and right sides to form the box area, that is, one end of the conductive paste 208 is connected to the second signal line 207, and the other end is connected to the second electrode 205. In other words, a partial region of the projection of the second electrode 205 on the surface of the first electrode 204 is located outside the first electrode 204, and the projection of the conductive adhesive 208 on the surface of the first electrode 204 is located in the partial region; and the second signal line 207 extends to the partial region to be connected with the conductive paste 208.

Since the conventional vehicle-mounted camera can have a small volume, the area required for shielding the light modulation panel 20 from the camera 10 is small, and is generally about 50 × 50 mm. Further, the space for mounting the camera on various vehicles is generally small, and therefore, the light modulation panel 20 also needs to have a small size to meet the requirement of installation in a compact, narrow and limited space. In the present embodiment, the second signal line 207 is itself disposed on the first substrate 201, but the connection between the second signal line 207 and the second electrode 205 can be achieved by the conductive paste 208 formed between the first substrate 201 and the second substrate 202, so that a signal can be input to the second electrode 205 through the second signal line 207; and the first signal line 206 and the second signal line 207, which are commonly disposed on the first substrate 201, may be connected to one flexible circuit board 210 (at the bonding area on the first substrate 201). Compared with the dye liquid crystal dimming glass in the prior art, in which signals are input to the first electrode 204 and the second electrode 205 through the respective flexible circuit boards 210 respectively bound to the first substrate 201 and the second substrate 202, in the embodiment, one flexible circuit board 210 and the printed circuit board 211 connected to the flexible circuit board 210 can be reduced, so that the space occupied by the dye liquid crystal dimming glass with the same size can be reduced. Although the light modulation board 20 is added to the vehicle-mounted camera device in the embodiment compared with the existing camera mounted on the vehicle, the occupied space of the vehicle-mounted camera device is not greatly increased, and the change of the occupied space compared with the existing vehicle-mounted camera is within an acceptable range, so that the vehicle-mounted camera device can meet the requirement of being mounted in a compact and narrow space on the vehicle.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 7, the light modulation panel 20 further includes two tempered glass layers 212, where the two tempered glass layers 212 are respectively located on a side of the first substrate 201 facing away from the second substrate 202 and a side of the second substrate 202 facing away from the first substrate 201. Between the first substrate 201 and the tempered glass layer 212 on the side, and between the second substrate 202 and the tempered glass layer 212 on the side, a PVB interlayer may also be provided.

In summary, in the vehicle-mounted camera device provided in this embodiment, the lens direction of the camera 10 faces the light modulation panel 20, and after the vehicle-mounted camera device is mounted on the vehicle, the light modulation panel 20 can shield and hide the camera 10, so that the camera 10 is not exposed outside and is isolated from the outside. By the arrangement, on one hand, the camera 10 can be protected, so that an external object cannot contact or collide with the camera, and the probability of damage to the camera 10 due to physical collision is reduced; on the other hand, the light modulation board 20 isolates the camera 10 from the outside, and can also prevent external dust or other impurities from polluting the lens surface of the camera 10 and influencing the imaging of the camera 10 on the external surrounding environment; moreover, even if the camera 10 loosens or falls off when the vehicle runs in a large bump, the camera will not fall on the road. Meanwhile, although the light modulation plate 20 is positioned in front of the camera 10, the light modulation plate 20 is in the first state, so that the light modulation plate 20 is transparent, and at this time, light can freely penetrate through the light modulation plate 20, thereby meeting the imaging requirement of the camera 10 and not hindering the normal operation of the camera 10; and when the camera 10 need not be to external surrounding environment formation of image, can control light modulation board 20 and make it be in the second state, at this moment, light modulation board 20 presents and sets for the colour, can shelter from camera 10, avoids camera 10 directly to expose to avoid destroying the vision uniformity on vehicle body surface.

(2) Embodiments of the vehicle Camera Assembly

In this embodiment, the in-vehicle camera assembly includes the in-vehicle camera device described in the above-described embodiment of the in-vehicle camera device. As shown in fig. 1, the vehicle-mounted camera assembly includes a housing 30, the housing 30 has a cavity 301 opened toward one side, the camera 10 is disposed in the cavity 301, and the light modulation plate 20 covers the opening of the cavity 301.

The vehicle-mounted camera assembly provided by the embodiment comprises the vehicle-mounted camera device described in the embodiment of the vehicle-mounted camera device, and has the same beneficial effects as the vehicle-mounted camera device. Moreover, the camera 10 and the light modulation plate 20 are integrally installed on the shell 30, so that all the components of the vehicle-mounted camera device such as the camera 10 and the light modulation plate 20 become an integral part assembly, and when the vehicle-mounted camera device is assembled on a vehicle, the vehicle-mounted camera assembly can be installed as a whole, and the vehicle-mounted camera device is more convenient to install.

Specifically, the light modulation plate 20 is fixedly connected with the housing 30, the supporting column 302 is arranged in the cavity 301, and the supporting column 302 abuts against the light modulation plate 20, so that a contact surface between one side of the light modulation plate 20, which is back to the supporting column 302, and the housing 30 can be tightly abutted against the housing 30, and the light modulation plate 20 and the housing 30 are more firmly fixed.

The housing 30 is provided with an opening communicating with the cavity 301, an external signal line connected to the camera 10 and the light modulation plate 20 passes through the opening, one end of the external signal line is connected to the camera 10 and the light modulation plate 20 in the cavity 301, and the other end of the external signal line is connected to a corresponding device.

(3) Embodiments of the vehicle

In this embodiment, the vehicle includes the in-vehicle camera apparatus described in the embodiment of the in-vehicle camera apparatus described above, or includes the in-vehicle camera assembly described in the embodiment of the in-vehicle camera assembly described above.

The vehicle provided by the embodiment, which includes the vehicle-mounted camera device described in the embodiment of the vehicle-mounted camera device, or includes the vehicle-mounted camera assembly described in the embodiment of the vehicle-mounted camera assembly, has the same beneficial effects as the vehicle-mounted camera device and the vehicle-mounted camera assembly.

In this embodiment, the vehicle includes a plurality of on-board camera devices or on-board camera assemblies; a plurality of on-vehicle camera device or on-vehicle camera assembly set up following position respectively: a front body and/or a rear body and/or a side body and/or an exterior rear view mirror of a vehicle. The camera 10 (the arrangement mode can be shown in fig. 8) arranged on the front vehicle body can acquire the image of the environment outside the vehicle at the front part of the vehicle, the camera 10 (the arrangement mode can be shown in fig. 8) arranged on the rear vehicle body can acquire the image of the environment outside the vehicle at the rear part of the vehicle, and the cameras 10 (the arrangement mode can be shown in fig. 9) arranged on the side vehicle body and the outside rearview mirror can acquire the images of the environment outside the vehicle at the two sides of the vehicle.

In the present embodiment, the light modulation panel 20 is in the first state when the vehicle is in: the vehicle is backed up, and/or the distance between the vehicle and the surrounding object is less than a set value, and/or the vehicle is operated in a driver-assisted or autonomous mode.

When the vehicle is backed and the distance between the vehicle and the surrounding object is smaller than the set value, the vehicle driver needs to know the external environment where the vehicle is located, at the moment, the light modulation board 20 is controlled to be in the first state, the camera 10 can acquire the image of the external environment of the vehicle through the light modulation board 20, the image is transmitted into the vehicle and displayed on a display screen in the vehicle for the vehicle driver to watch, so that the vehicle driver is assisted to back the vehicle or adjust the distance between the vehicle and the external object, and the vehicle is prevented from colliding with the external object. Specifically, taking a reverse scene of an automatic transmission vehicle as an example, as shown in fig. 10, when a sensor in the vehicle detects that the gear of the vehicle is switched to the R gear (i.e., reverse gear), a control signal is sent to control the switch controller, and the switch controller is turned on; the switch controller in the on state controls a power supply to supply power to an MCU (microprogrammed control Unit) of the vehicle and a control system of the vehicle-mounted camera device or the vehicle-mounted camera assembly, the MCU sends a digital signal to a DAC (digital-to-analog converter) module after being electrified, the DAC converts the received signal into a driving signal of the light modulation plate 20, and at the moment, the light modulation plate 20 is switched from the second state to the first state; meanwhile, the control system of the powered vehicle-mounted camera device or vehicle-mounted camera assembly controls the camera 10 to start working, and transmits the surrounding environment information outside the vehicle to the image processor in the form of electric signals, and the image processor converts the obtained electric signals into video signals to be displayed on a display in the vehicle. When a sensor in the vehicle detects that the gear of the vehicle is switched from the R gear to other gears, another control signal is sent to control the switch controller to be switched off, the switch controller in the off state controls the power supply to stop supplying power to the MCU of the vehicle and the control system of the vehicle-mounted camera device or the vehicle-mounted camera assembly, the camera 10 stops working, and the light adjusting plate 20 is switched to the second state.

When the vehicle runs in the auxiliary driving or automatic driving mode, the vehicle needs to sense the external environment around the vehicle, and the camera 10 is relied on, at this time, the light modulation board 20 is controlled to be in the first state, the camera 10 can acquire the image of the environment outside the vehicle, and the acquired image data can be used for realizing auxiliary driving or automatic driving.

It is noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second," and the like, may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. Also, the terms "comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising an … …" does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.

The foregoing are merely exemplary embodiments of the present invention, which enable those skilled in the art to understand or practice the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. The vehicle-mounted camera device is characterized by comprising a camera and a light adjusting plate;

the light modulation plate has a first state and a second state, wherein the light modulation plate is transparent in the first state, and the light modulation plate is in a set color in the second state;

the lens direction of the camera faces the light adjusting plate.

2. The in-vehicle camera device according to claim 1, wherein the set color of the light modulation panel in the second state corresponds to a body color of an area adjacent to the light modulation panel on the vehicle.

3. The in-vehicle camera device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the light modulation panel is a dye liquid crystal light modulation glass.

4. The vehicle-mounted camera device according to claim 3, wherein the dye-liquid crystal dimming glass comprises a first substrate and a second substrate arranged in a box, a liquid crystal layer is formed between the first substrate and the second substrate, and dichroic dyes with set colors are mixed in the liquid crystal layer;

a first electrode is formed on the first substrate, and a second electrode is formed on the second substrate; a first signal line and a second signal line are formed on the first substrate, and the first signal line is connected with the first electrode; conductive adhesive is formed between the first substrate and the second substrate, one end of the conductive adhesive is connected with the second signal line, and the other end of the conductive adhesive is connected with the second electrode.

5. The vehicle-mounted camera device according to claim 4, wherein a partial region of the projection of the second electrode on the surface of the first electrode is located outside the first electrode, and the projection of the conductive adhesive on the surface of the first electrode is located in the partial region;

the second signal line extends to the partial area and is connected with the conductive adhesive.

6. The vehicle-mounted camera device according to claim 4, wherein the dichroic dye mixed in the liquid crystal layer comprises one of red, green, blue, orange and yellow dichroic dyes or is formed by mixing at least two of the red, green, blue, orange and yellow dichroic dyes according to a set proportion;

7. The vehicle-mounted camera device according to claim 4, wherein the light modulation plate further comprises two tempered glass layers, and the two tempered glass layers are respectively located on a side of the first substrate facing away from the second substrate and a side of the second substrate facing away from the first substrate.

8. A vehicle-mounted camera assembly, characterized in that the vehicle-mounted camera assembly comprises the vehicle-mounted camera device of any one of claims 1 to 7;

the vehicle-mounted camera assembly comprises a shell, the shell is provided with a cavity with an opening facing one side, the camera is arranged in the cavity, and the light adjusting plate covers the opening of the cavity.

9. The vehicle camera assembly of claim 8, wherein the light adjusting plate is fixedly connected to the housing, and a support post is disposed in the cavity and abuts against the light adjusting plate.

10. The vehicle-mounted camera assembly according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the housing is provided with an opening communicating with the cavity, and an external signal line connected to the camera and the light modulation panel passes through the opening.

11. A vehicle comprising the on-board camera device of any one of claims 1 to 7 or the on-board camera assembly of any one of claims 8 to 10.

12. The vehicle of claim 11, wherein the light modulation panel is in a first state when the vehicle is reversing; and/or

The light adjusting plate is in a first state when the distance between the vehicle and the surrounding objects is smaller than a set value; and/or

The light modulation panel is in a first state when the vehicle is operating in a driver assistance or automatic driving mode.

13. The vehicle of claim 11, characterized in that the vehicle comprises a plurality of said onboard camera devices or onboard camera assemblies;

the vehicle-mounted camera devices or the vehicle-mounted camera assemblies are respectively arranged on a front vehicle body and/or a rear vehicle body and/or a side vehicle body and/or an external rear view mirror of the vehicle.