FR3096627A1 - CAMERA MOUNTING STRUCTURE IN A VEHICLE - Google Patents

Abstract

In-vehicle camera mounting structure for mounting, in the passenger compartment of a vehicle, an in-vehicle camera (130) comprising an image capture unit configured to capture images towards the front of the vehicle and a heater (140) for preventing fogging of the lens of the image capture unit, comprising: a windshield mounting portion (112) inclined along a windshield on the front side of the on-board camera, and configured to be attached to the windshield; a support portion (114) formed integrally with the windshield mounting portion, supporting the on-board camera; an opening (120) formed above the lower end of the windshield mounting portion, and exposing the onboard camera image capture unit; and a heater attachment portion (116) extending from the lower edge of the opening to the lower end of the camera image capture unit. Abstract figure: Fig. 2

Description

FIXING STRUCTURE FOR ON-BOARD CAMERA IN A VEHICLE

The present invention relates to a camera mounting structure on board a vehicle.

In a vehicle, an in-vehicle camera and a heater for preventing fogging of the lens of the in-vehicle camera and the inner surface of a windshield may be provided on the inner side of the windshield. Patent Document 1 describes, for example, a heater comprising a heater which forms part of an electrical circuit and is configured by a heating wire. The heater described in Patent Document 1 further comprises: a heated part which applies radiant heat to its surroundings by receiving heat from the heater; and a current limiting element which forms part of the electric circuit and which is arranged in the heated part so that it is heated by the heat of the heater.

[Prior art documents]

[Patent documents]

[Patent Document 1] JP 2018-142542A

Technical problem

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

As also exemplified in Patent Document 1, in the typical configuration, the in-vehicle camera and the heater are supported by separate brackets. With such a configuration, the number of components increases, which leads to an increase in costs and the number of processes. Another problem is that, in order to eliminate the position shifts of the on-vehicle camera, it is necessary to develop a structure capable of transmitting loads applied to the on-vehicle camera to another element.

In view of these problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle camera mounting structure which can reduce the number of components and which can appropriately transmit loads applied to an in-vehicle camera.

[Means to solve the problems]

In order to resolve the questions posed above, a representative configuration of an in-vehicle camera fixing structure according to one aspect of the present invention is an in-vehicle camera fixing structure for fixing, in the passenger compartment of a vehicle, an in-vehicle camera comprising an image capture unit configured to capture images in front of the vehicle and a heater to prevent fogging of a lens of the image capture unit images and the inner surface of a windshield, the in-vehicle camera mounting structure includes: a windshield mounting portion which is inclined along the windshield from the front side of the in-vehicle camera vehicle, and which must be attached to the windscreen; a support part which is formed as a body with the windshield mounting part, and which supports the on-board camera in the vehicle; an opening which is formed above the lower end of the windshield mounting portion, and which exposes the image pickup unit of the on-vehicle camera; and a heater fixing part which extends from the lower edge of the opening toward the lower end of the in-vehicle camera image pickup unit, and to which the heater is fixed on its lower side.

The following features can be optionally implemented, separately or in combination with each other:

- the camera mounting structure on board the vehicle, further comprises:
an extension part which extends from the heater fixing part in the width direction of the vehicle and towards the rear side of the vehicle,
wherein the extension part is connected to the windshield mounting part directly or indirectly;

- the support part is a member which covers the side surface of the in-vehicle camera on the opposite side to the heating fixing part of the extension part, and
the on-vehicle camera mounting structure, further comprising:
a camera support hole which is formed by cutting out the support part to be opened rearward, and which supports a predetermined fixed axis which extends from the side surface of the in-vehicle camera;
a camera abutment portion which extends upward from the rear edge of the extension portion, which is connected to the windshield mounting portion, and which abuts the front surface of the in-vehicle camera the vehicle ; and
an elastic member which is disposed in the camera support hole and which elastically holds the axis fixed;

- the camera support hole is adjacent to the extension part in the width direction of the vehicle;

- the camera support hole is arranged between the upper end and the lower end of the camera stopper part in a vertical direction.

[Effect of Invention]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an in-vehicle camera mounting structure which can reduce the number of components and which can appropriately transmit a load applied to an in-vehicle camera.

Other characteristics, details and advantages of the invention will appear on reading the detailed description below, and on analyzing the appended drawings, in which:

Fig. 1

is an overall view of an in-vehicle camera mounting structure according to the present embodiment;

Fig. 2

is a drawing showing a fixing element of the on-board camera fixing structure in the vehicle of FIG. 1;

Fig. 3

is a drawing showing a state in which the fixing member of FIG. 2 is observed from the side;

Fig. 4

is a drawing showing a state in which the fixing member of FIG. 2 is observed from the front and the back;

Fig. 5

is a perspective view showing a state in which the fixing member of FIG. 2 is observed from below.

An in-vehicle camera mounting structure according to an embodiment of the present invention is an in-vehicle camera mounting structure for mounting, in the passenger compartment of a vehicle, an in-vehicle camera comprising a an image capture unit configured to capture images forward of the vehicle and a heater to prevent fogging of a lens of the image capture unit and the interior surface of a windshield, the An in-vehicle camera mounting structure comprising: a windshield mounting portion which is inclined along the windshield on the front side of the in-vehicle camera, and is to be attached to the windshield; a support part which is formed as a body with the windshield mounting part, and which supports the on-board camera in the vehicle; an opening which is formed above the lower end of the windshield mounting portion, and which exposes the image pickup unit of the on-vehicle camera; and a heater fixing part which extends from the lower edge of the opening toward the lower end of the in-vehicle camera image pickup unit, and to which the heater is fixed on its lower side.

According to the above configuration, by heating the heater attachment part with the heater and heating the space in front of the in-vehicle camera lens, fogging due to condensation on the image pickup unit and the windshield can be avoided. Accordingly, deterioration of the performance of the in-vehicle camera due to temperature conditions can be appropriately prevented. In this state, the in-vehicle camera is supported by the bracket part, and the heater is attached to the heater fixing part which is formed at the lower edge of the opening of the windshield mounting part which is formed of the body with the support part. Therefore, as the number of components can be reduced, the cost and the number of processes can be reduced.

In the above configuration, the windshield mounting portion is attached to the windshield. With this configuration, when the vehicle is running normally, the weight of the in-vehicle camera and the heater is transmitted to the windshield via the bracket part and also the windshield mounting part. Therefore, positional shifts of the in-vehicle camera can be appropriately suppressed.

In addition, when the in-vehicle camera is installed in the vehicle for the first time, the bracket part and the heater mounting part may be subjected to excessive load including not only the weight of the in-vehicle camera and heating but also the force applied by an operator. By this load, the inclined windshield mounting part is pivotable so that the upper end of the windshield mounting part is separated from the windshield with the lower edge of the opening as the axis of rotation.

However, according to the present invention, the opening is formed above the lower end of the windshield mounting portion. In other words, the windshield mounting portion which slopes along the windshield is continuous also below the opening. When an excessive load is applied, the lower end of the windshield mounting portion interferes with the windshield. Therefore, excessive load which is applied when the in-vehicle camera is installed can be effectively transmitted to the windshield, and positional offsets of the in-vehicle camera can be suppressed appropriately.

The in-vehicle camera mounting structure may further include an extension part which extends from the heater mounting part in the width direction of the vehicle and towards the vehicle rear side, and the The extension can be connected to the windshield mounting part directly or indirectly. With this configuration, the rigidity of the heater fixing part can be increased by the extension part.

In addition, since the extension portion extends from the heater attachment portion, a load applied along the heater attachment portion can be effectively transmitted to the windshield. In addition, because the extension portion is connected to the windshield mounting portion, a load applied to the in-vehicle camera is transmitted to the windshield via the extension portion. Accordingly, a load can be transmitted to the windshield more efficiently, and the effects mentioned above can be enhanced.

The above bracket part can be a member that covers the side surface of the in-vehicle camera on the opposite side to the heating fixing part of the extension part, and the in-vehicle camera fixing structure may further comprise: a camera support hole which is formed by cutting out the support part to be opened rearward, and which supports a predetermined fixed axis which extends from the side surface of the in-vehicle camera; a camera abutment portion which extends upward from the rear edge of the extension portion, which is connected to the windshield mounting portion and which abuts the front surface of the in-vehicle camera ; and an elastic member which is disposed in the camera support hole and which elastically holds the axis fixed.

By elastically holding the fixed axis of the in-vehicle camera in the camera support hole by means of the elastic member, excessive penetration of the fixed axis of the in-vehicle camera can be prevented. In addition, by abutting the camera stopper part on the front surface of the in-vehicle camera, a load which is applied when the fixed axis of the in-vehicle camera is inserted into the camera support from the rear of the vehicle can be transmitted to the windshield via the camera stopper part.

The aforementioned camera support hole may be adjacent to the extension part in the width direction of the vehicle. With this configuration, the rigidity in the region of the camera support hole can be increased.

The aforementioned camera support hole may be disposed between the upper end and the lower end of the camera stopper part in a vertical direction. With this configuration, a load applied to the in-vehicle camera can be effectively transmitted to the windshield via the camera stopper portion.

embodiment

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The dimensions, materials and other specific numerical values indicated in these embodiments are only examples intended to facilitate the understanding of the present invention and should not be interpreted as a limitation of the invention, unless otherwise indicated. It should be noted that elements performing functions and having substantially identical configurations are designated by identical reference numerals in this description and in the drawings, and redundant descriptions have therefore been omitted. Further, illustrations of items not directly relevant to the present invention have been omitted.

Fig. 1 is an overview of an in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 according to the present embodiment. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an attachment element 110 of the in-vehicle camera attachment structure 100 of FIG. 1. As illustrated in FIG. 1, in the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 of the present embodiment, an in-vehicle camera 130 and a heater 140 (see Fig. 2) are attached to the vehicle cabin side of a windshield 102 of a vehicle 100a by the fixing element 110.

As illustrated in Fig. 2, in the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 of the present embodiment, the in-vehicle camera 130 includes a camera main body 132 and an image pickup unit 134 which is disposed on the front side of the camera main body 132 and captures images in front of the vehicle. In addition, in the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100, the heater 140 (shown by a broken line) which prevents the lens of the image pickup unit 134 from fogging up is attached to the side of the camera. vehicle interior of the windshield 102 by the fixing element 110.

Fig. 3 is a drawing showing a state in which the fastener 110 of FIG. 2 is observed from the side. Fig. 4 is a drawing showing a state in which the fastener 110 of FIG. 2 is observed from the front and the back. Fig. 4(a) is a drawing showing a state in which the fastener 110 of FIG. 2 is viewed from the front, and Fig. 4(b) is a drawing showing a state in which the fastener 110 of FIG. 2 is observed from the rear.

As illustrated in Fig. 2, 3 and 4, the attachment member 110 includes a windshield mount portion 112, a support portion 114, and a heater attachment portion 116. As shown in FIG. 3, the windshield mounting portion 112 is a portion which is inclined along the windshield 102 from the front side of the in-vehicle camera 130, and can be attached to the windshield 102 at mounting points 112a.

As illustrated in Fig. 3, the bracket portion 114 is a portion which is formed integrally with the windshield mounting portion 112, and which supports the in-vehicle camera 130. As shown in FIG. 4(a) and 4(b), an opening 120 which exposes the image pickup unit 134 of the in-vehicle camera 130 is formed above the lower end of the bumper mounting portion. breeze 112. The heater attachment portion 116 extends from the lower edge of the opening 120 to the lower end of the image pickup unit 134 of the in-vehicle camera 130, and the heater 140 is attached to the bottom side of the heater attachment portion 116.

Because the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 includes the heater 140 together with the in-vehicle camera 130 as described in the above configuration, the heater mounting portion 116 can be heated by the heater 140, the space formed between the image pickup unit 134 and the windshield 102 is heated, and fogging due to condensation can be prevented. Accordingly, deterioration of the performance of the in-vehicle camera 130 due to temperature conditions can be appropriately prevented. In this state, the in-vehicle camera 130 is supported by the support part 114, and the heater 140 is fixed to the heater fixing part 116 which is formed at the lower edge of the opening 120 of the heating part. windshield mount 112 which is formed as a body with the support part 114. Therefore, as the number of components can be reduced, the cost and the number of processes can be reduced.

Additionally, in the above configuration, the attachment member 110 is attached to the windshield 102 at attachment points 112a and 112b of the windshield mounting portion 112. With this configuration, during vehicle operation normal vehicle, the weight of the in-vehicle camera 130 and the heater 140 is transmitted to the windshield 102 via the support portion 114 and also the windshield mounting portion 112. Accordingly, the position shifts of in-vehicle camera 130 can be appropriately removed.

Further, when the in-vehicle camera 130 is installed in the vehicle 100a for the first time, the bracket portion 114 and the heater attachment portion 116 may be subjected to excessive load including not only the weight of the in-vehicle camera 100a. in the vehicle 130 and the heater 140 but also a force applied by an operator. When such a load is applied, the inclined windshield mounting portion 112 is pivotable so that the upper end of the windshield mounting portion 112 is separated from the windshield 102 along with the lower edge. of the opening 120 as the axis of rotation.

However, in the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 of the present embodiment, the opening 120 is formed above the lower end of the windshield mounting portion 112, and the mounting portion windshield 112 which slopes along windshield 102 is also continuous below opening 120. Attachment points 112a and 112b of windshield mounting portion 112 are bonded (glued in the embodiment) to the windshield 102, and the lower end 118 of the windshield mounting portion interferes with the windshield 102 if an excessive load is applied. Therefore, the excessive load which is applied when the in-vehicle camera 130 is installed is effectively transmitted to the windshield 120, and the positional offsets of the in-vehicle camera 130 can be suppressed appropriately.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the fastener 110 of FIG. 2 is observed from below. To simplify the illustration, the in-vehicle camera 130 of FIG. 2 is not shown in Fig. 5. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the mounting member 110 of the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 of the present embodiment includes an extension portion 122 which extends from the heater mounting portion 116 in the width direction. of the vehicle and to the rear side of the vehicle. With this configuration, the rigidity of the heater fixing part 116 can be increased by the extension part 122. In addition, since the extension part 122 extends from the heater fixing part 116, the Loads applied along the heater mounting portion 116 can be effectively transmitted toward the windshield 102 (see Fig. 1).

The aforementioned support part 114 covers the side surface of the in-vehicle camera (see Fig. 2) on the opposite side to the heating fixing part 116 of the extension part 122. A camera stopper part 124 which abuts on the front side of the in-vehicle camera extends upward from the rear end of the extension part 122, and the camera stopper part 124 is connected to the windshield mounting part 112 In the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 of the present embodiment, the extension portion 122 is indirectly connected to the windshield mounting portion 112 via the camera stopper portion 124.

Since the extension portion 122 is connected to the windshield mounting portion 112 as mentioned above, loads applied to the in-vehicle camera 130 can be transmitted to the windshield 102 via the extension portion 122 Accordingly, loads can be transmitted to the windshield 102 more efficiently, and the effects mentioned above can be enhanced.

It is pointed out that in the present embodiment, a configuration is illustrated in which the extension part 122 is indirectly connected to the windshield mounting part 112 via the camera stopper part 124, but the configuration is not not limited to this configuration. The same effects can also be obtained by adopting a configuration in which the extension part 122 is directly connected to the windshield mounting part 112.

Fig. Reference is again made to FIG. 3. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the in-vehicle camera mounting structure 100 of the present embodiment includes a camera support hole 126 which is formed in the mounting member, and an elastic member 150. The camera support hole 126 is formed by cutting the support portion 114 of the fixing member 110 to be opened rearwardly, and supports a predetermined fixed axis 110 which extends from the side surface of the in-vehicle camera 136. The elastic member 150 is disposed in the camera support hole 126 and elastically holds the fixed axis 136 of the in-vehicle camera 130. A leaf spring can be suitably used to be the elastic member 150, for example.

The fixed axle 136 of the in-vehicle camera 130 is inserted into the camera support hole 126 from the rear of the vehicle and is held by the elastic member 150. With this configuration, excessive penetration of the axle fixed 136 of the in-vehicle camera 130 can be prevented. In addition, as mentioned above, the camera abutment portion 124 abuts the front surface of the in-vehicle camera 130. Accordingly, a load which is applied when the fixed axis 136 of the in-vehicle camera vehicle 130 is inserted into the camera support hole 126 from the rear of the vehicle can be transmitted to the windshield 102 via the camera stopper part 124.

Furthermore, as illustrated in Fig. 5, the camera support hole 126 is disposed at a position adjacent to the extension part 122 and the camera stopper part 124 in the width direction of the vehicle. With this configuration, the rigidity in the region of the camera support hole 126 can be increased by the extension part 122 and the camera stopper part 124.

Moreover, as illustrated in Fig. 3, the camera support hole 126 is disposed between the upper end and the lower end of the camera stopper part 124 (shown by a broken line) in a vertical direction. With this configuration, the rigidity in the region of the camera support hole 126 can be further increased, and a load which is applied to the in-vehicle camera 130 can be effectively transmitted to the windshield 102 via the abutment portion of camera 124.

Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, it will be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims, and that such modifications and variations are to be considered to be within the technical scope of the present invention.

The present invention can be used for an onboard camera mounting structure in a vehicle.

- 100… mounting structure for on-board camera in a vehicle;
100a… vehicle;
102… windscreen;
110… fixing element;
112… windscreen mounting part;
112a and 112b… fixing points;
114… supporting part;
116… heating attachment part;
118…lower end of windscreen mounting part;
120… aperture;
122… extension part;
124…camera stopper part;
126…camera bracket hole;
130… camera embedded in a vehicle;
132… camera main body;
134… image capture unit;
136… fixed axis;
140… heating;
150… elastic element.

For convenience, the following patent document(s) is (are) cited:
- [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-142542A.

Claims (5)

In-vehicle camera mounting structure (100) for mounting, in the passenger compartment of a vehicle (100a), an in-vehicle camera (130) comprising an image capture unit (134) configured to capture images towards the front of the vehicle (100a) and a heater (140) to prevent fogging of a lens of the image capture unit (134) and the inner surface of a windshield (102 ), the vehicle camera mounting structure (100) comprising:
a windshield mounting portion (112) which is inclined along the windshield (102) on the front side of the in-vehicle camera (130), and which is to be attached to the windshield (102);
a support portion (114) which is integrally formed with the windshield mounting portion (112), and which supports the in-vehicle camera (130);
an opening (120) which is formed above the lower end (118) of the windshield mounting portion (112), and which exposes the image capture unit (134) of the on-board camera in the vehicle (130); and
a heater attachment portion (116) which extends from the lower edge of the opening (120) to the lower end of the in-vehicle camera image capture unit (134) (130), and to which the heater (140) is fixed on its lower side. An in-vehicle camera mounting structure (100) according to claim 1, further comprising:
an extension part (122) which extends from the heater fixing part (116) in the direction of the width of the vehicle and towards the rear side of the vehicle,
wherein the extension portion (122) is connected to the windshield mounting portion (112) directly or indirectly. An in-vehicle camera mounting structure (100) according to claim 2, further comprising:
wherein the support portion (114) is a member which covers the side surface of the in-vehicle camera (130) on the side opposite to the heater attachment portion (116) of the extension portion (122), and
the in-vehicle camera mounting structure (100), further comprising:
a camera support hole (126) which is formed by cutting the support portion (114) so as to be rearwardly open, and which supports a predetermined fixed axis (136) which extends from the side surface of the in-vehicle camera (130);
a camera stopper portion (124) which extends upward from the rear edge of the extension portion (122), which is connected to the windshield mounting portion (112), and which abuts on the front surface of the in-vehicle camera (130); and
an elastic member (150) which is disposed in the camera support hole (126) and which resiliently maintains the fixed axis (136); A vehicle camera mounting structure (100) according to claim 3:
wherein the camera support hole (126) is adjacent to the extending portion (122) in the direction of the width of the vehicle. Vehicle camera mounting structure according to claim 3 or 4,
wherein the camera support hole (126) is disposed between the upper end and the lower end of the camera stopper portion (124) in a vertical direction.