JP2010030419A - Wheel cover - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wheel cover which solves the switching instability of an energizing circuit for turning on a light source part and has a longer battery life while offering a high ornamental effect. <P>SOLUTION: The wheel cover puts one of its rotary switches 5, when a cover body 2 stops rotating or in a low-speed region below a prescribed rotation speed, into a connection state different from the other rotary switches 5 to shut off the connection of a relay switch 6 not to turn on the light source part 3 and, when the cover body 2 reaches the prescribed rotation speed and all the rotary switches 5 enter the same connection state, connects the relay switch 6 to turn on the light source part 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to, for example, a wheel cover that covers a side surface of a tire wheel of a vehicle, and more particularly to a wheel cover that includes a light source unit.

  In ordinary vehicles, the vehicle travels with the small light on in the evening, and the vehicle travels with the headlight on when it gets darker. Also, when the driver steps on the brake, the brake lamp lights up. Or, as an option, when the visibility such as dense fog is poor, the fog lamp or the like may be lit to travel.

  In recent years, when purchasing a new or used car from Diller, only the minimum necessary genuine products have been purchased and customized according to customer preferences. In particular, around the tire, the wheel and the wheel cover are made into a desired form, but it is not so often practiced to light the undercarriage to have a decorative effect.

As a supplement to the three-dimensional display lamp of the vehicle, the light sensor detects that the light in the surrounding environment has become weak, and the energization circuit that connects the light emitting diode and the battery is made conductive by a centrifugal switch attached to the wheel cover. There has been proposed a light-emitting device that emits light from a light-emitting diode.
Noto 3057486

In the light-emitting device described above, a battery is used as the power supply unit, and not only the power supply unit of the light emitting diode but also the power supply unit of the optical sensor, the battery is consumed heavily, and the battery is constantly replaced for long-term use. Will be forced.
Further, the centrifugal switch has a structure in which the steel balls accommodated in the sliding groove are moved radially outward by centrifugal force to bring the conductive pieces into contact with each other. For this reason, depending on the stop position of the tire, the steel ball remains falling radially outward in the sliding groove, and the light-emitting diode remains lit even when the vehicle is stopped, leading to a problem of expediting battery consumption. is there.
Further, although related to the rotational speed of the wheel, an unstable switching operation in which the light emitting diode is turned on or off is accompanied depending on the behavior of the steel ball in the sliding groove.

  The present invention has been made to solve these problems. The object of the present invention is to eliminate the instability of switching of the energizing circuit for lighting the light source unit and to extend the battery life to make a decoration. It is to provide a wheel cover with high performance.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises the following arrangement.
A light source unit that emits light outward from the outer surface of the cover body, a chargeable / dischargeable battery unit that supplies power to the light source unit, and a series connection between the light source unit and the battery unit, to the light source unit A relay switch that is controlled to be opened and closed to allow power supply, and is equiangularly arranged along the rotational radius direction of the cover body, and the movable body reciprocates in the radial direction in accordance with the rotation of the cover body. A plurality of rotation switches in which energization to the excitation coil is controlled and the relay switch is controlled to open and close, and in the low speed region where the cover body stops rotating or less than a predetermined rotation speed, any one of the rotation switches The connection state of the relay switch is cut off due to a connection state different from that of the other rotation switches, and the light source unit is not turned on, and the cover body is kept at a predetermined rotation speed. Reached the relay switch when the connection state of all of the rotary switch to match, characterized in that turning on the light source unit is connected.

  Further, the rotary switch is fixed so that the opening portions at both ends of the cylindrical insulating housing are closed by conductive lid portions, and the cylindrical conductive guide is electrically connected to one lid body portion within the insulating housing. A conductive movable body is housed in the conductive guide so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the conductive guide, and the movable body is moved by its own weight or centrifugal force in the conductive guide depending on the rotation state of the cover body. The relay switch is controlled to be opened and closed by sliding against the inner cover or the outer cover and disconnecting or connecting the rotary switches.

  Further, the battery unit is provided at a rotation center portion of the cover main body, and the rotation switch is radially arranged at an equal angle in at least three places.

If the above-described wheel cover is used, in the low-speed rotation region where the cover body stops rotating or less than the predetermined rotation speed, one of the rotation switches is in a different connection state with the other rotation switches, and the relay switch is disconnected and the light source The part does not light up. Therefore, the light source unit does not continue to be lit when the vehicle stops or during the stop. Further, when the cover main body reaches a predetermined rotation speed and the connection states of all the rotation switches coincide, the relay switch is connected and the light source unit is turned on. This eliminates the instability of switching of the energization circuit for lighting the light source unit, maintains a stable lighting operation of the light source unit, and obtains a decorative effect associated with the rotation operation of the wheel cover at a predetermined rotation speed or higher.
In addition, since the battery part can be charged and discharged, if it is charged using midnight power or the like with a contactless charger, a long life can be realized at low cost, and a highly convenient wheel cover can be provided.

In addition, the rotary switch slides in the conductive guide by its own weight or centrifugal force depending on the rotation state of the cover body, and comes into contact with either the inner cover or the outer cover so that each rotary switch Since the connection is cut off or connected and the relay switch is controlled to open and close, the connection state of all the rotary switches does not match due to centrifugal force unless a predetermined rotational speed is reached. In this way, the light source unit can be turned on by controlling the opening and closing of the relay switch in accordance with the connection state of all the rotary switches, so that a stable switching operation can be performed.
Also, if the battery part is provided at the center of rotation of the cover body, the balance of rotation is good, and if the rotation switch is radially arranged at least at three locations, it must be either at low speed or when the vehicle is stopped. Since the rotary switch is in a connection state different from the connection state of the other rotary switches, it is possible to prevent the light source unit from being lit inadvertently by keeping the relay switch open in this state.

  Hereinafter, the best embodiment of the wheel cover concerning the present invention is described, referring to an accompanying drawing.

A schematic configuration of the wheel cover will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an explanatory view seen through the inner side from the outer side of the wheel cover.
In FIG. 1, a wheel cover 1 is integrally provided with a hook portion (not shown) that elastically locks with a wheel on an inner surface of a cover body 2 made of resin, for example. The wheel cover 1 is mounted so as to cover the wheel exposed on the side surface of the tire.

  On the outer surface of the cover body 2, light emitting diodes (LEDs) 3, which are light source parts, are arranged so as to be exposed along radial lines that are arranged equiangularly from the center of the cover body 2, for example. The light emitting diodes 3 may be individually assembled to the cover body 2, for example, but may be mounted on the light emitting substrate and assembled together with the light emitting substrate on the inner surface of the cover body 2.

  In addition, a chargeable / dischargeable battery unit 4 for supplying power to the light emitting diode 3 is provided at the center of the cover body 2. When the battery unit 4 is provided at the center of rotation of the cover body 2, the rotation balance is good. As the battery unit 4, a chargeable / dischargeable secondary battery such as a lithium ion battery or a nickel metal hydride battery is used.

  Further, rotation switches 5 are provided at three locations along the light emitting diodes 3 that are equiangularly arranged 120 degrees along the rotation radius direction of the cover body 2. The rotation switch 5 controls the opening and closing of the relay switch 6 by controlling the energization of the excitation coil 7 described later from the battery unit 4 as the movable body 9a reciprocates in the radial direction according to the rotation of the cover body 2. 2).

Next, a configuration example of an energization circuit for lighting the light emitting diode 3 in FIG. 2 will be described. The relay switch 6 is connected in series between the light emitting diode 3 and the battery unit 4 and is controlled to be opened and closed to allow power supply to the light emitting diode 3. As the relay switch 6, for example, a closed type relay in which the normal switch lever 6a is closed at the contact point is used.
When the power is supplied from the battery unit 4 and the exciting coil 7 is excited, the switch lever 6a is opened, and the switch lever 6a is closed by cutting off the energization. The energization circuit that connects the exciting coil 7 and the battery unit 4 is provided with a rotation switch 5.

When the cover body 2 shown in FIG. 1 is in the rotation stop or low-speed rotation region, one of the rotation switches 5 is in a different connection state (on state and off state) with the other rotation switches 5, and at this time, the relay switch 6 is disconnected. Thus, the light emitting diode 3 is not lit.
Further, when the cover body 2 reaches a predetermined rotational speed, all the rotary switches 5 are disconnected by the centrifugal force and the relay switches 6 are connected, so that the light emitting diode 3 is lit.

Here, a configuration example of the rotary switch 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.
In the rotary switch 5, for example, a conductive guide 9 b made of a cylindrical conductive metal material and a movable body 9 a made of a cylindrical conductive metal material are housed inside a cylindrical insulating housing 8 made of resin. Both end openings of the insulating housing 8 are closed by a conductive inner peripheral cover 10a and outer peripheral cover 10b, respectively. The inner peripheral lid body 10a and the outer peripheral lid body 10b are connected to each other by an energization circuit (see FIG. 2) to the exciting coil 7 of the relay switch 6 and a lead wire 9c. The conductive guide 9b is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the insulating housing 8 so that the outer cover 10b and the end surfaces come into contact with each other and are electrically connected. As the cover body 2 rotates, the movable body 9a slides along the inner peripheral surface of the conductive guide 9b to the both sides in the longitudinal direction of the conductive guide 9b by its own weight or centrifugal force, and the inner peripheral cover 10a or the outer peripheral cover. The body 10b is moved toward and away from the body 10b.
The conductive guide 9b may be fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the insulating housing 8 so that the inner peripheral side lid 10a and the end surface are in contact with each other. The movable body 9a may be columnar, but is preferably cylindrical because air resistance increases.

  Each rotary switch 5 is excited when the movable body 9a slides in the conductive guide 9b by its own weight or centrifugal force depending on the rotation state of the cover body 2 and comes into contact with either the inner peripheral cover 10a or the outer peripheral cover 10b. Energization to the coil 7 is controlled, and the relay switch 6 is controlled to open and close. In this embodiment, as shown in the upper rotary switch 5 in FIG. 4, when the movable body 9a is lowered by its own weight and contacts the inner peripheral lid body 10a, the rotary switch 5 is turned on, and the lower switch in FIG. As shown in the rotation switch 5, when the movable body 9a comes into contact with the outer lid 10b by its own weight or centrifugal force, the rotation switch 5 is turned off.

  When the cover body 2 stops rotating or is in a low-speed rotation region where the rotation speed is less than a predetermined rotation speed, one of the rotation switches 5 is connected differently from the other rotation switches 5 and the connection of the relay switch 6 is cut off, and the light-emitting diode 3 lights do not do. Therefore, the light emitting diode 3 does not continue to be lit when the car stops or while the car is stopped. Further, when the cover body 2 reaches a predetermined rotational speed and the connection states of all the rotary switches 5 match (in this embodiment, all the rotary switches 5 are in the OFF state), the relay switch 6 is connected and the light emitting diode 3 is connected. Lights up. With this configuration, the instability of switching of the energization circuit for lighting the light emitting diode 3 is eliminated, and a stable lighting operation of the light emitting diode 3 is maintained, and an expected decoration effect can be obtained.

  Moreover, although the rotation switch 5 is not restricted to providing in three places every 120 degree | times, it is desirable to arrange radially equiangularly at least three places or more. This is because when the cover main body 2 rotates at a low speed or stops, the movable body 9a of any one of the rotation switches 5 must be lowered by its own weight to turn on the switch. As a result, the relay switch 6 remains open, and the light emitting diode 3 can be prevented from being inadvertently lit.

  Further, the battery unit 4 can be repeatedly charged by connecting to a terminal of a charger (not shown) through an opening 2a provided in the cover body 2 in the charging terminal unit 4a (see FIG. 2) (see FIG. 1).

The number and layout of the light emitting diodes 3 are not limited to the line shape, but may be other forms such as being provided in the circumferential direction, and the number of the rotary switches 5 may be provided more than three.
Further, as the relay switch 6, an open type switch in which the switch lever 6a is always open at a contact point may be used. As a configuration example of the rotary switch 5 in this case, the connection state of one of the rotary switches 5 is set when the vehicle is stopped or in a low speed region less than a predetermined rotational speed by reversing the (position where the conductive guide 9b is provided with respect to the insulating housing 8) Are not matched, the relay switch 6 is opened (the light emitting diode 3 is not lit), and when a predetermined rotational speed is reached, all the rotary switches 5 are turned on to match and the relay switch 6 is connected (the light emitting diode 3). May be lit).

It is explanatory drawing which saw through the inner surface side from the outer surface of the wheel cover. It is a circuit block diagram which shows an example of the electricity supply circuit which makes a light source part light. It is explanatory drawing of a rotation switch. It is sectional explanatory drawing which shows the operation state of a rotation switch.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wheel cover 2 Cover main body 2a Opening 3 Light emitting diode 4 Battery part 5 Rotation switch 6 Relay switch 6a Switch lever 7 Excitation coil 8 Insulating housing 9a Movable body 9b Conductive guide 9c Lead wire 10a Inner peripheral side cover 10b Outer peripheral side cover

Claims (3)

A light source that emits light outward from the outer surface of the cover body;
A chargeable / dischargeable battery unit for supplying power to the light source unit;
A relay switch connected in series between the light source unit and the battery unit and controlled to open and close to allow power supply to the light source unit;
The relay switch is equiangularly arranged along the rotation radius direction of the cover body, and the relay body is controlled by the reciprocating motion of the movable body in the radial direction according to the rotation of the cover body so that the energization from the battery unit to the excitation coil is controlled. A plurality of rotary switches controlled to open and close;
In the low speed region where the cover body stops rotating or less than the predetermined rotational speed, one of the rotary switches is connected differently from the other rotary switches, and the connection of the relay switch is cut off and the light source unit is not turned on. The wheel cover is characterized in that when the cover body reaches a predetermined rotational speed and the connection states of all the rotary switches coincide with each other, the relay switch is connected to light the light source unit.   The rotary switch is configured such that both ends of the cylindrical insulating housing are closed by conductive lids, and the cylindrical conductive guide is fixed in the insulating housing so as to be electrically connected to one lid, A conductive movable body is accommodated inside the conductive guide so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the conductive guide, and the movable body slides in the conductive guide by its own weight or centrifugal force depending on the rotation state of the cover body. 2. The wheel cover according to claim 1, wherein the relay switch is controlled to be opened and closed by moving and abutting on either the inner peripheral cover or the outer cover and disconnecting or connecting each rotary switch.   The wheel cover according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the battery part is provided at a rotation center part of the cover body, and the rotation switch is radially arranged at least at three positions.

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