GB2127152A - Control unit for remotely adjustable vehicle headlights - Google Patents

Abstract

In a control unit for remotely adjustable headlights, in which a slidable or rotatable handle may be moved into a plurality of different settings, each corresponding to a correct adjustment of the headlights for a given vehicle loading condition, the different settings of the handle (2) - are marked by symbols (13) which may be arranged in precalibrated positions adjacent a graduated panel (3) after the manufacture of the control unit is otherwise complete. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Control unit for a manually operable light-range setting device for vehicle headlights The invention relates to a control unit for a manually operable light-range setting device for vehicle headlights, in which a handle is movable into a plurality of different settings, each setting corresponding to the correct adjustment of the headlights for a predetermined loading condition of the vehicle.

A control unit of this type is known from German Offenlegungsschrift (Laid-Open Specification) 2528 247, in which the different settings of the handle, corresponding to specific loading conditions, are determined by symbols which are arranged at equal intervals on the periphery of a scale and which correspond to the graduation of a cam plate, whose identations of varying depth directly affect the axial position of a rotaty button which acts directly upon the light-range setting mechanism.

In this connection, the known device makes it possible to maintain approximately the correct setting of the headlights for some predetermined loading conditions of the vehicle, but cannot take account of manufacturing tolerances and deviations from the predetermined nominal values.

A control unit of the type described above is known from German Offenlegungsschrift 27 44 232, which is directly connected to an hydraulic actuating device for the light-range setting mechanism of the headlights and which permits a continuous linear setting, but in which there is no mention of the necessary indication of the positions for specific loading conditions.

In practice, control units of this type have been associated with printed graduated discs specific to the vehicle, on which the symbols for the specific positions of various loading conditions of the motor car were provided. Accordingly, a different graduated disc specific to the vehicle had to be made for each individual model of the motor car and care had to be taken during manufacture that the graduated discs were correctly associated with the corresponding vehicles.Since considerable variations occurred within a specific individual model on account of the various optional fittings, in order to avoid the theoretically necessary number of, for example, two hundred and fifty variants of graduated discs specific to the different vehicle options, recourse has been had to indicating relatively wide ranges of the positions for specific loading conditions on graduated discs specific to a vehicle and associated with the various individual models.

For this reason, the legal requirement of as precise a setting as possible of the light-range of headlights on motor cars could only be met within wide tolerances.

With a view to mitigating at least some of the foregoing disadvantages, the present invention provides a control unit for a manually operable lightrange setting device for vehicle headlights, in which a handle is movable into a plurality of different settings, each setting corresponding to the correct adjustment of the headlights for a predetermined loading condition of the vehicle, wherein the different settings of the handle, corresponding to the different loading conditions, are marked by symbols which may be positioned on an adjacent graduated disc after manufacturing of the unit is otherwise completed.

By virtue of the fact that the different settings of the handle, corresponding to specific loading conditions, are marked by symbols which may be arranged in defined positions on a graduated disc after the manufacture of the control unit is otherwise complete, the symbol may be place in the precise position for the correct setting of the headlights by individual calibration. During calibration, the different loading conditions may be applied to the individual vehicle models and the correct position for the symbols along the graduated scale may be established after the light-range has been correctly set, the symbols then being positioned after the control unit assembly has been completed.

In a first embodiment of the invention, the handle is a rotary button or a sliding lever, and the graduated disc in the form of a transparent support disc on which symbols may be fixed at defined postions by adhesion or by fastening means.

In a second embodiment of the invention, the graduated disc adjacent the handle is in the form of an opaque support disc, on which symbols may be made at defined positions by stamping or perforation.

In a third embodiment of the invention, the graduated disc adjacent the handle is constructed in the form of a grooved guide, the groove having slidably disposed therein lockable symbol carriers.

In this embodiment, the symbol carriers may conveniently carry pinions which engage with a rack on the graduated disc whereby the carriers may be moved relative to the disc by rotation of the pinions, for example by the use of a screwdriver.

According to a further embodiment, the graduated disc adjacent the handle is constructed as a transparent graduated foil having graduations and symbols printed thereon, there being arranged below the foil an array of light emitting diodes which are selectively energisable by means of respective switch means to highlight the correct settings under different loading conditions of the vehicle.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front view of a control unit according to the invention, Figure2 is a horizontal section along the line ll-ll in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a vertical section along the line Ill-Ill in Figure 1, Figure 4 is an enlarged view of the area in the circle IV in Figure 2, Figure 5 is a front view of a further embodiment of a control unit, Figure 6 is a horizontal section along the line VI-VI in Figure 5, Figure 7 is a front view of an alternative embodiment of a control unit, Figure 8 is a horizontal section along the line VIII-VIII in Figure 7, and Figure 9 is a front view of a further embodiment of a control unit according to the invention.

The general layout of a control unit 1 is illustrated in Figures 1 to 3. It essentially comprises a handle in the form of a rotary button or knob 2 and an adjacent scale arrangement in the form of a fixed graduated disc 3 on which symbols 4 for different loading conditions of the vehicle are arranged. The disc 3 is preferably provided with illumination 6.

The rotary button 2 is directly connected to an actuating device 5 of a hydraulic light-range setting mechanism, the design of which is known and need not therefore be further explained.

The construction of the graduated disc 3 will now be explained with reference to Figure 4, in which it is shown to an enlarged scale.

An actuating mechanism or setting means 7, which may be either hydraulic or electrical in nature, is provided with an operating shaft 8, to which a rotary button 9 is non-rotatably secured. Afixed graduated disc 11 with a regular graduation printed thereon is disposed on a fixed hub portion 10 on actuating mechanism 7. For this purpose, the graduated disc 11 may be provided with an arcuate slot 12, into which coloured, light-conducting pointers 13 may be pressed and fixed in defined positions. The graduated disc 11 with the pointers 13 is covered on the outside by a cover 14 and a viewing window 15, so that subsequent displacement of the pointer is not possible once it has been set.

In the present embodiment a marking or an arrow is not put on the rotary button 9 in conventional manner, but a light-conducting indicator 16, which permits a more precise checking of the correspondence of the rotary button 9 to the selected pointer 13, is secured to the operating shaft 8 of mechanism 7.

As is evident from Figure 1, the pointer 13 can only fix the defined position, whereas the corresponding symbol for loading condition may be printed on the fixed graduated disc 11. On the other hand it is likewise possible to make the pointer somewhat broader and to form the corresponding symbols for the various loading conditions directly thereon.

As an alternative to the embodiment with pointers which may be clamped on, as illustrated in Figure 4, embodiments with leaf pointers which may be stuck on are also of course possible, and it is likewise possible to fix the corresponding symbols required in defined positions for example by stamping or perforating a graduated disc constructed accordingly.

A further embodiment of the invention is shown in Figures 5 and 6 in which a sliding lever 18 is arranged in a casing 17 to actuate a slide resistance 19 for an electrical light-range setting mechanism.

Adjacent the sliding lever 18 there is arranged a transparent graduated disc in the form of a grooved guide 20, in the groove 21 of which sliding blocks 22 acting as symbol carriers are disposed so as to be self locking but displaceable and the said sliding blocks 22 may be moved into the defined positions where they remain by virtue of their self locking nature - by being turned by means of a screwdriver 25 via adjustment pinions 24 supported on a guide rack 23.

An embodiment of the invention which is particularly attractive for future application is shown in Figures 7 and 8, in which a sliding lever 18' is again arranged in a casing 17 to actuate for example a layered slide resistance 19foran electrical lightrange setting mechanism. A transparent graduated disc in the form of a graduated foil 26 with a regular graduation 27 and symbols 28 printed thereon is disposed adjacent the sliding lever 18', and an of light emitting diodes 29 with a corresponding microswitch panel 30 is set below the said graduation 27 in such a way that the effective graduations for the defined positions may be highlighted by energising the appropriate diodes 31.

A further embodiment attractive for application in the future is shown in Figure 9, in which adjacent a handle in the form of a sliding lever 18" there is associated a scale arrangement in the form of a graduated disc 26" which is constructed as a liquid crystal display and comprises a plurality of initially clear liquid crystal cells 32, of which individual specified cells 33 corresponding to selected loading conditions of the vehicle may be energised accordingly.

Claims (8)

1. Acontrol unitfora manually operable lightrange setting device for vehicle headlights, in which a handle is movable into a plurality of different settings, each setting corresponding to the correct adjustment of the headlights for a predetermined loading condition of the vehicle, wherein the different settings of the handle, corresponding to the different loading conditions, are marked by symbols which may be positioned on an adjacent graduated disc after manufacture of the unit is otherwise completed.

2. A control unit as claimed in Claim 1,wherein the handle is a rotary button or a sliding lever, and the graduated disc in the form of a transparent support disc on which symbols may be fixed at defined positions by adhesion or by fastening means.

3. A control unit as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the graduated disc adjacent the handle is in the form of an opaque support disc, on which symbols may be made at defined positions by stamping or perforation.

4. A control unit as claimed in Claim 1,wherein the graduated disc adjacent the handle is constructed in the form of a groove guide, the groove having slidably disposed therein lockable symbol carriers.

5. A control unit as claimed in claim 4, wherein the symbol carriers carry pinions which engage with a rack on the graduated disc whereby the carriers may be moved relative to the disc by rotation of the pinions.

6. A control unit as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the graduated disc adjacent the handle is constructed as a transparent graduated foil having graduations and symbols printed thereon, there being arranged below the foil an array of light emitting diodes which are selectively energisable by means of respective switch means to highlight the correct settings under different loading conditions of the vehicle.

7. A control unit as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the graduated disc disposed adjacent the handle is constructed in the form of a liquid crystal display individual cells of which are energisable by respective switching means to highlight the correct settings under different loading conditions of the vehicle.

8. A control unit constructed substantially as herein described with reference to any of the embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings.