FR3116495A1 - Cover element for disinfecting a vehicle upholstery element - Google Patents

Abstract

Cover element for disinfecting a vehicle trim element The covering element comprises an internal surface (2), the covering element comprising at least: - a radiation layer (6) comprising at least one emitting element (12) of ultraviolet radiation towards the internal surface (2) and/or a heating layer (8) comprising at least one heating element (14) arranged to heat the internal surface (2), and - a reflective layer (10) arranged to reflect the ultraviolet radiation from the radiation layer (6) and/or the heat from the heating layer (8) towards the internal surface (2). Figure for abstract: 1

Description

Cover element for disinfecting a vehicle upholstery element

The present invention relates to a removable cover element intended to be applied to the external surface of a vehicle trim element.

In order to prevent the spread of disease and improve hygiene inside the vehicle, provision may be made to regularly disinfect the trim elements of the vehicle, in particular the external surfaces of the seats, the door panels and/or of the dashboard with which the vehicle's passengers frequently come into contact.

This is more particularly necessary in the case of so-called shared vehicles, such as public transport vehicles, rental vehicles, vehicles with driver, taxis or vehicles shared on public roads. Indeed, in such vehicles, a large number of different passengers are likely to successively use a vehicle, which could favor the transmission of a disease.

Thus, for example, it is planned to clean the passenger compartment of a vehicle at regular intervals, in particular by using disinfectant products. However, cleaning operations are tedious and require relatively significant vehicle downtime. In addition, the use of disinfectant products may be discouraged, in particular because of their potential harmfulness if they are incorrectly used and/or poorly rinsed and because they can degrade the quality of the surfaces cleaned.

One of the aims of the invention is to propose a device making it possible to disinfect the external surface of a vehicle trim element in a simple manner and without risk for the passengers of the vehicle.

To this end, the invention relates to a removable cover element comprising an internal surface intended to be applied to at least part of an external surface of a vehicle trim element, the cover element comprising at least:

- a radiation layer comprising at least one element emitting ultraviolet radiation towards the internal surface and/or a heating layer comprising at least one heating element arranged to heat the internal surface, and

- a reflective layer arranged to reflect ultraviolet radiation from the radiation layer and/or heat from the heating layer towards the internal surface.

Thus, by simply affixing the cover element to the outer surface of a packing element, the outer surface can be heated and/or exposed to ultraviolet radiation, which makes it possible to eliminate any viruses and bacteria that may be present. on this surface. The disinfection operation can thus be carried out efficiently, simply, quickly, without altering the characteristics of the disinfected surface and without risk for the passengers and/or for the operator maneuvering the covering element.

According to other optional characteristics of the hedging item, taken individually or according to any technically possible combination:

- the radiation layer and/or the heating layer and the reflective layer are sewn together;

- the cover element comprises a reversible fixing element of the cover element on a vehicle trim element;

- the cover element comprises a ventilation system arranged to emit a flow of heated air towards the internal surface;

- the element for emitting ultraviolet radiation of the radiation layer is a light-emitting diode emitting light whose wavelength is substantially between 100 and 280 nm;

- the radiation layer comprises a plurality of light-emitting diodes arranged to subject the entire internal surface to ultraviolet radiation;

- the heating element of the heating layer is formed by a metal wire element extending in the heating layer;

- the heating layer comprises a nonwoven, the metal wire element being sewn into said nonwoven;

- the heating layer further comprises at least one thermistor arranged to regulate the heating temperature of the heating element; And

- the cover element comprises a control device for the cover element, said control device being arranged to control the element for emitting ultraviolet radiation of the radiation layer and/or the heating element of the heating layer.

Other aspects and advantages of the invention will appear on reading the following description, given by way of example and made with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

- there is a schematic representation in perspective of a covering element according to one embodiment of the invention arranged on the outer surface of a vehicle seat,

- there is a perspective schematic representation of the cover element of the , And

- there is an exploded schematic representation of the cover element according to one embodiment of the invention showing the structure of the different layers of the cover element.

With reference to the figures, a cover element 1 intended to be removably applied to at least part of the outer surface of a vehicle trim element is described. Such a trim element can be any element covering or placed in the passenger compartment of a vehicle, such as a vehicle seat, a door panel, a dashboard, a center console or the like. On the example of the , the covering element 1 is thus applied to the seat cushion and to the backrest of a vehicle seat in order to cover the surfaces of this seat on and against which a passenger rests when he is seated on the seat.

The cover element 1 is flexible so as to be able to match the shape of the outer surface of the trim element on which it is applied and so as to be able to be folded in order to be stored, for example in the vehicle. Thus, the cover element 1 is similar to a cover made of textile material which can cover all or part of an object or can be folded to be stored. The covering element 1 comprises an internal surface 2, which is the surface intended to be applied against the external surface of a packing element, and an external surface 4, visible on the , which is opposite to the inner surface 2 and which faces the passenger compartment of the vehicle. In other words, when the covering element 1 is arranged on a trim element, the external surface 4 is visible from the passenger compartment of the vehicle, while the internal surface 2 faces the trim element on which coverage element 1 is applied.

As more particularly visible on the , the covering element 1 comprises at least one radiation layer 6 and/or one heating layer 8 and one reflective layer 10.

Thus, according to a first embodiment, the cover element 1 comprises a radiation layer 6 and a reflective layer 10. According to a second embodiment, the cover element 1 comprises a heating layer 8 and a reflective layer 10. According to a third embodiment shown in the figures, the covering element 1 comprises a radiation layer 6, a heating layer 8 and a reflective layer 10.

The radiation layer 6 or the heating layer 8 forms the internal surface 2 and the reflective layer 10 forms the external surface 4 of the cover element 1. In other words, according to an embodiment shown in the , the cover element 1 comprises, from the inside out, the radiation layer 6, the heating layer 8 and the reflective layer 10. According to another embodiment not shown, the cover element 1 comprises, from the inside out, the heating layer 8, the radiation layer 6 and the reflecting layer 10.

The three layers are flexible so that the cover element 1 is flexible, as described above, and are assembled together, for example by sewing.

The radiation layer 6 comprises at least one element 12 for emitting ultraviolet radiation towards the internal surface 2. Such an emission element 12 is for example formed by a light-emitting diode emitting a light whose wavelength is substantially between 100 and 280 nm. Such a diode therefore emits ultraviolet C radiation and is also known by the term UVC LED (for UVC Light Emitting Diode). According to one embodiment, the radiation layer 6 comprises a plurality of emission elements 12 distributed over the entire surface of the radiation layer 6 so that the entire internal surface 2 of the covering element 1 is subjected to the ultraviolet radiation. Thus, the radiation layer 6 is for example formed by a layer of light-emitting diodes or by one or more garlands of light-emitting diodes. The garland or garlands are for example each fixed to the heating layer 8 and/or to the reflective layer 10. As a variant, the radiation layer 6 comprises a textile web on which the garland or garlands are fixed. When the radiation layer 6 comprises a garland of light-emitting diodes, the latter is for example folded over itself to form several rows of light-emitting diodes distributed over the entire surface of the radiation layer 6. When several garlands are provided, those -these each form, for example, one or more rows distributed over the entire surface of the radiation layer 6.

The heating layer 8 comprises at least one heating element 14 arranged to heat the internal surface 2 of the covering element. The heating element 14 is for example arranged to heat the internal surface 2 to a temperature chosen to allow the destruction of viruses and/or bacteria on the external surface of the packing element on which the cover element 1 is placed. The temperature is for example between 35°C and 70°C.

According to one embodiment, the temperature is variable, for example depending on the application time of the covering element 1 on the external surface of a packing element or depending on the type of disinfection that one wishes to carry out. . To this end, according to this embodiment, the heating layer 8 further comprises a thermistor (not shown) arranged to regulate the heating temperature of the heating element 14 according to a control signal emitted by a control device. control 16, as will be described later.

The heating element 14 is for example formed by a metallic wire element extending in the heating layer 8 and emitting heat by dissipation when a current passes through it. The metallic wire element is for example a copper wire. According to one embodiment, the heating layer 8 further comprises a nonwoven 15 forming a support for the heating element 14. Thus, the metal wire element is for example sewn into the nonwoven 15, which allows to simply integrate it into the heating layer 8. The metal wire element is for example sewn so as to follow a path in the nonwoven 15 arranged so that the heat emitted by the heating element 14 is distributed over the entire internal surface 2 of cover element 1, as is more particularly visible on the . Alternatively, the heating layer 8 comprises for example a fabric and the metal wire element is sewn with the fabric.

The reflective layer 10 is arranged to reflect the ultraviolet radiation emitted by the radiation layer 6 and/or the heat emitted by the heating layer 8 towards the internal surface 2 of the covering element 1. Thus the reflective layer 10 makes it possible to maximizing the quantity of ultraviolet radiation and/or heat on the internal surface 2 so as to transmit this radiation and/or this heat to the external surface of the packing element on which the covering element 1 is applied. In other words, the reflective layer 10 prevents ultraviolet radiation and/or heat from passing to the side of the external surface 4 of the covering element 1, which makes it possible to protect an operator handling the covering element or a passenger taking place on the cover element 1. The reflective layer 10 is formed by or comprises at least one layer of reflective material arranged to reflect ultraviolet rays whose wavelength is substantially between 100 and 280 nm and/or to reflect heat at least in the range between 35°C and 70°C. say on the side of the radiation layer 6 and / or the heating layer 8, opposite the outer surface 4. In this case, an appearance layer can for example be provided to form the outer surface 4 of the hedging element, in order to improve its appearance.

According to one embodiment, the cover element 1 further comprises a ventilation system (not shown) arranged to emit a flow of heated air towards the internal surface 2 of the cover element. This heated air can be supplied from the air conditioning system of the vehicle or be air heated by the heating element 14 of the heating layer 8 by positioning the ventilation system in an adequate manner with respect to the different layers of the heating element. cover 1. Thus, the ventilation system can be placed between the heating layer 8 and the reflective layer 10 for example.

As mentioned above, the cover element 1 further comprises a control device 16, represented schematically in the . The control device 16 makes it possible to control the ultraviolet radiation emitted by the radiation layer 6 and/or to control the heating element 14 of the heating layer 8 via the thermistor. Thus, the control device 16 makes it possible to switch on or off the light-emitting diodes of the radiation layer 6 and/or to regulate the temperature of the heat emitted by the heating layer 8. Such a control device 16 is for example formed by an electronic control unit and is connected to a connection element 18, also shown schematically in the , making it possible to connect the cover element 1 to a current source to supply electricity to the radiation layer 6 and/or the heating layer 8 and any other elements of the cover element 1 requiring such a supply. The current source is for example part of the electrical system of the vehicle.

The controller 16 can be pre-programmed to apply predetermined disinfection cycles to the outer surface of different trim elements. Such a disinfection cycle is characterized by an application duration and/or by a heating temperature or a heating temperature profile of the heating layer 8. Thus, when a cycle is selected, the emission elements 12 of the radiation layer 6 emit ultraviolet radiation during the application time and/or the heating element 14 is heated to the heating temperature or the heating temperature profile during the application time. The disinfection cycles vary for example according to the nature of the surface to be disinfected (textile surface, leather, plastic material for example) and/or according to the dimensions of the surface to be disinfected. Light or sound indicators can be associated with the control device 16 to warn an operator that a cycle is in progress (red indicator for example) or has ended (green indicator for example). One or more control elements are associated with the control device 16 to allow the operator to select the desired disinfection cycle. As a variant or in addition, the operator can manually choose the application duration and/or the heating temperature. Further, the cover element may include a sensor arranged to determine whether the cover element is applied to the outer surface of a trim element and the control device 16 may then be arranged to only apply a disinfection only if the sensor indicates that the cover element 1 is indeed applied to the outer surface of a packing element and to emit an error signal in the opposite case.

According to the embodiment shown in the , the cover element 1 further comprises at least one reversible fixing element 20 of the cover element 1 on a vehicle trim element. Such a fixing element 20 can be of any suitable nature to allow simple and rapid fixing and uncoupling of the cover element 1 on a trim element. Thus, the fixing element 20 is for example formed by an elastic band provided to surround a part of a packing element, as shown in the , or by a self-gripping element, for example by hooks and loops, or by a magnetic element or by a snap-fastening element or by a suction device arranged to press the internal surface 2 of the cover element 1 onto the outer surface of the packing element or the like.

A cover element 1 as described above thus makes it possible to effectively and simply disinfect the external surface of a trim element, for example between two uses of a vehicle. To do this, it suffices to place the covering element 1 on the outer surface to be disinfected and to supply electricity to the radiation layer 6 and/or the heating layer 8 in order to subject the outer surface to ultraviolet radiation and/or or to heating, for example according to a predetermined disinfection cycle. The covering element 1 can be used without risk due to the reflective layer 10 and the disinfection does not require any additional step after the application of the covering element 1, such as a rinsing step or the like. The vehicle does not necessarily have to be immobilized to use the covering element 1, a passenger being able to take place without risk on the covering element 1, for example when the latter is used on a seat, as shown in the , or the covering element being able to be applied to an unoccupied seat while the external surface of an occupied seat is left free. When the cover element is not in use, it can be folded and stored, for example in a vehicle trunk, so as to always be available in the vehicle. According to one embodiment, the cover element 1 is arranged in a storage space provided between two adjacent seats, for example the rear seats, and can be deployed from this storage space to cover one of the two seats or the two seats when it needs to be used. It is then folded back inside the storage space when no longer in use. In this case, the cover element 1 can be provided to remain permanently in the same vehicle. As a variant, the same cover element 1 can be used in several different vehicles, for example forming part of a fleet of vehicles of a company.

Claims (10)

Removable covering element (1) comprising an internal surface (2) intended to be applied to at least part of an external surface of a vehicle trim element, the covering element comprising at least:
- a radiation layer (6) comprising at least one element (12) emitting ultraviolet radiation towards the internal surface (2) and/or a heating layer (8) comprising at least one heating element (14) arranged to heat the inner surface (2), and
- a reflective layer (10) arranged to reflect ultraviolet radiation from the radiation layer (6) and/or heat from the heating layer (8) towards the inner surface (2). Covering element according to Claim 1, in which the radiation layer (6) and/or the heating layer (8) and the reflective layer (10) are sewn together. Covering element according to Claim 1 or 2, comprising at least one reversible fixing element (20) of the covering element (1) on a vehicle trim element. Covering element according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, comprising at least one ventilation system arranged to emit a flow of heated air towards the internal surface (2). A covering element according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the ultraviolet radiation emitting element (12) of the radiation layer (6) is a light emitting diode emitting light whose length of wave is substantially between 100 and 280 nm. Covering element according to claim 5, in which the radiation layer (6) comprises a plurality of light-emitting diodes arranged to subject the entire internal surface (2) to ultraviolet radiation. Covering element according to any one of claims 1 to 6, in which the heating element (14) of the heating layer (8) is formed by a metal wire element extending into the heating layer (8). Covering element according to claim 7, in which the heating layer (8) comprises a nonwoven (15), the metal wire element being sewn into said nonwoven (16). Covering element according to any one of Claims 1 to 8, in which the heating layer (8) further comprises at least one thermistor arranged to regulate the heating temperature of the heating element (14). Cover element according to any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising a control device (16) of the cover element, said control device (16) being arranged to drive the transmitting element (12 ) ultraviolet radiation from the radiation layer (6) and/or the heating element (14) of the heating layer (8).