JP2012040916A - Washing device of lighting fixture for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide the washing device of a lighting fixture for a vehicle capable of always keeping the opening area of an injection port constant by preventing deformation upon pressing-in of an injection nozzle, attaining stable injection of a washing liquid from the injection port and adjusting the injection direction of the washing liquid with satisfactory operability by easily rotating the injection nozzle using a tool.SOLUTION: In the washing device of the lighting fixture for the vehicle including a cylinder to which the washing liquid is supplied, a piston slidably inserted in the cylinder, a valve case attached to the tip of the piston, a nozzle holder 17 supported by the valve case, and the injection nozzle 4 fitted to and held by the nozzle holder 17, and injecting the washing liquid from an injection port 18 formed in the injection nozzle 4 toward the lighting fixture for the vehicle, a ring-shaped reinforcing rib 4A is integrally erected on the top part of the injection nozzle 4 and a polygonal fitted hole 4d into which a tool T is fitted is formed in the reinforcing rib 4A.

Description

  The present invention relates to a cleaning apparatus for spraying a cleaning liquid onto a vehicle lamp such as a headlamp to clean the surface thereof.

  For example, if the front surface (lens surface) of a vehicle becomes dirty due to adhesion of dust, mud, etc., the amount of light may be insufficient. Therefore, if necessary, the front surface of the headlamp may be sprayed with a cleaning liquid toward the headlamp. A cleaning device is installed on the back side of the front bumper. The cleaning device includes a cylinder to which cleaning liquid is supplied, a piston slidably fitted in the cylinder, a valve case attached to the tip of the piston, and a nozzle holder supported by the valve case. The spray nozzle is fitted and held in the nozzle holder, and the cleaning liquid is sprayed from the spray nozzle toward the vehicular lamp (for example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  In such a cleaning apparatus, the nozzle is stored behind the front bumper when not cleaning, and when the headlamp is cleaned, the injection nozzle is moved forward from the opening formed in the front bumper by the pressure of the cleaning liquid. When the pressure of the cleaning liquid rises above the predetermined value, the check valve opens and the cleaning liquid is supplied to the injection nozzle, and the cleaning liquid is injected from the injection port that opens to the injection nozzle toward the headlamp, and is applied to the front surface of the headlamp. Adhered dust and mud are removed. When the cleaning of the headlamp is completed, the spray nozzle is returned to the storage position on the back side of the front bumper by an urging means such as a return spring and stored.

  Here, an example of the injection nozzle of the conventional cleaning apparatus is shown in FIGS.

  9 is a plan view of an injection nozzle portion of a conventional cleaning apparatus, FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 9, and (a) is a state before assembly, and (b) is after assembly. Each state is shown.

  As shown in FIG. 9, a prism portion 107d is formed at the tip of the valve case 107, and cylindrical portions 107e are formed on the left and right sides of the prism portion 107 in a direction perpendicular to the prism portion 107d. . A nozzle holder 117 is press-fitted into the left and right cylindrical portions 107e, and a cylindrical portion 117b is formed vertically at the outer end of each nozzle holder 117.

  The injection nozzle 104 is fitted and held in the cylindrical portion 117b of each nozzle holder 117 by press-fitting. The top of each injection nozzle 104 is blocked by resin molding as shown in FIG. It is formed in a polygonal cylinder (a regular octagonal cylinder in the illustrated example), and a jet port 118 that is long in the circumferential direction is formed in a part of the outer periphery of the upper part. The injection nozzle 104 is formed with a circular fitting hole 104a, and a fitting recess 104b is formed on the inner periphery of the fitting hole 104a.

  On the other hand, a fitting projection 117c is formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 117b of each nozzle holder 117, and the fitting hole 104a of the injection nozzle 104 is formed in the cylinder of the nozzle holder 117 as shown in FIG. When fitted into the portion 117b from above and pressed downward, the fitting projection 117c formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 117b of the nozzle holder 117 is fitted into the fitting hole 104 of the injection nozzle 104 as shown in FIG. Therefore, the injection nozzle 104 is fitted and held in the nozzle holder 117. Here, the injection nozzle 104 is held so as to be horizontally rotatable about an axis (vertical axis) in the press-fitting direction to the nozzle holder 117, and by changing the direction of the injection port 118 formed in the injection nozzle 104. The jet direction of the cleaning liquid is adjusted.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-123347 JP 2005-178568 A

  However, when the resin injection nozzle 104 is press-fitted into the nozzle holder 117 in the conventional cleaning apparatus shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the top of the injection nozzle 104 is strongly pressed downward, so that the top deforms and the injection There is a possibility that the injection port 118 opened to the nozzle 104 is also deformed and its opening area is changed, so that the cleaning liquid is not stably jetted.

  Therefore, the first object of the present invention is to prevent the deformation at the time of press-fitting of the injection nozzle, keep the opening area of the injection port constant, and realize stable injection of the cleaning liquid from the injection port. An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle lamp cleaning device.

  Further, the direction in which the cleaning liquid is ejected from the ejection port 118 of the ejection nozzle 104 is different for each vehicle type, and the adjustment of the ejection direction is made for each vehicle type by turning the ejection nozzle 104 relative to the nozzle holder 117. Since a large force is required to turn the small injection nozzle 104 once press-fitted, there is a problem that adjustment work of the injection direction is not easy.

  Accordingly, a second object of the present invention is to provide a vehicular lamp cleaning apparatus capable of adjusting the spray direction of the cleaning liquid with good workability by simply turning the spray nozzle with a tool. .

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 includes a cylinder to which cleaning liquid is supplied, a piston slidably fitted in the cylinder, a valve case attached to the tip of the piston, A vehicle lamp having a nozzle holder supported by the valve case and an injection nozzle fitted and held in the nozzle holder, and for injecting a cleaning liquid from the injection port formed in the injection nozzle toward the vehicle lamp. In the apparatus, a ring-shaped reinforcing rib is integrally protruded from the top of the injection nozzle.

  The invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that, in the invention according to claim 1, a polygonal fitting hole into which a tool is fitted is formed in the reinforcing rib.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the fitting hole is a regular octagonal hole.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the ring-shaped reinforcing rib is integrally projected on the top of the injection nozzle, the rigidity of the top of the injection nozzle is enhanced by the reinforcing rib, and the injection nozzle is pressed against the top. When press-fitting into the nozzle holder, the top of the injection nozzle is prevented from being deformed, and since the opening area of the injection port formed in the injection nozzle does not change, the cleaning liquid is stably injected from the injection port.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the injection direction of the cleaning liquid from the injection port is adjusted for each vehicle type by turning the injection nozzle, the wrench is inserted into the fitting hole of the reinforcing rib protruding from the top of the injection nozzle. If the tip of a tool is inserted and turned, the injection nozzle press-fitted into the nozzle holder can be easily turned with a small force, and the adjustment of the washing liquid injection direction for each vehicle type can be performed efficiently and efficiently. It can be carried out.

  According to the invention of claim 3, since the fitting hole formed in the reinforcing rib of the injection nozzle is a regular octagonal hole, a general-purpose tool such as a hexagon wrench cannot be fitted into the fitting hole. Without using a special tool such as an octagon wrench, which is a tool, the injection nozzle cannot be turned easily, and there is no inconvenience that even a third party can turn the injection nozzle without permission.

It is a side view of the washing | cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a top view of the washing | cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a top view of the injection nozzle part of the washing | cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention. FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 3. It is a disassembled perspective view of the principal part of the washing | cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a front sectional view of the spray nozzle portion of the cleaning device according to the present invention. (A), (b) is a plane sectional view of a check valve mechanism part and an injection nozzle part of a cleaning device concerning the present invention. It is the BB sectional view taken on the line of Fig.7 (a). It is a top view of the injection nozzle part of the conventional washing | cleaning apparatus. It is CC sectional view taken on the line of FIG. 9, (a) is a state before an assembly | attachment, (b) is a figure which shows the state after an assembly | attachment, respectively.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  1 is a side view of a cleaning apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the cleaning apparatus, FIG. 3 is a plan view of an injection nozzle portion of the cleaning apparatus, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the main part of the cleaning apparatus, FIG. 6 is a front sectional view of an injection nozzle part of the cleaning apparatus, and FIGS. 7A and 7B are a check valve mechanism part and an injection nozzle part of the cleaning apparatus. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG.

  A cleaning device 1 according to the present embodiment is a device for spraying cleaning liquid toward a front surface (lens surface) of a headlamp (not shown) of a vehicle to clean the front surface, and includes a front bumper (not shown). Located on the back side. Although the cleaning device 1 is installed for each of the left and right headlamps, the configuration and operation thereof are the same for the left and right, and therefore only one cleaning device 1 will be described below.

  A cleaning device 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 has a piston (not shown) slidably inserted into a cylindrical cylinder 2 and a pair of left and right injection nozzles via a check valve mechanism 3 at the tip of the piston. 4 is attached.

  The cylinder 2 is supplied with cleaning liquid from a washer tank (not shown), and a plug 5 is provided at the rear end thereof. The inside of the cylinder 2 is connected to a pipe (not shown) connected to the plug 5. To the washer tank. A bracket 6 is attached to the outer periphery of the front end of the cylinder 2, and the cleaning device 1 is attached to the back side of a front bumper (not shown) via the bracket 6. Although not shown, a return spring is interposed between the cylinder 2 and a piston that is slidably inserted in the cylinder 2 as a biasing means that biases the piston in a direction in which the piston is pulled into the cylinder 2. ing.

  Next, the details of the structure of the check valve mechanism 3 and the holding structure of the injection nozzle 4 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the check valve mechanism 3 includes a valve 8 inside the valve case 7, a valve guide 9 that slidably holds the valve 8, and urges the valve 8 in the closing direction. The spring 10 is accommodated, and the entire cross-sectional shape is an elliptical shape that is flat in the horizontal direction.

  The valve case 7 is configured by joining and integrating case halves 7A and 7B which are divided into two parts in the front and rear, and one case half 7A is formed by combining a cylindrical portion 7a and a flat elliptic cylinder portion 7b. A rectangular engagement hole 11 (only the upper two are shown in FIG. 5) is formed at four positions on the entire circumference of the elliptic cylinder portion 7b, and a part of the opening end surface of the elliptic cylinder portion 7b ( A V-shaped fitting groove 12 is formed in the upper part). And as shown in FIG. 7, the cylindrical valve seat 14 is formed in the center part of the wall 13 which partitions off the cylindrical part 7a and the elliptical cylinder part 7b of case half 7A.

  The other case half 7B is composed of a flat oval cylindrical portion 7c and a rectangular column portion 7d connected to the tip of the oval cylindrical portion 7c. The oval cylindrical portion 7c has a small outer diameter and a thin small diameter portion 7c1. And a thick large-diameter portion 7c2. The engagement claws 15 (shown in FIG. 5) are provided at four locations on the outer periphery of the small diameter portion 7c1 of the elliptic cylindrical portion 7c (locations corresponding to the engagement holes 11 formed in the elliptic cylindrical portion 7b of the other case half 7A). (Only the upper two are shown) project. Further, a part of the boundary (step part) between the large diameter part 7c2 and the small diameter part 7c1 of the elliptic cylinder part 7c (part corresponding to the fitting groove 12 formed in the elliptic cylinder part 7b of the other case half body 7A). A V-shaped fitting projection 16 is formed on the.

  Further, cylindrical portions 7e are formed on the left and right sides of the prism portion 7d formed at the tip of the case half 7B, and the nozzle holder 17 is formed in these cylindrical portions 7e. Each is press-fitted. Here, as shown in FIG. 6, a spherical fitting portion 17a is formed at the base end portion of each nozzle holder 17, and the inner diameter of the cylindrical portion 7e of the valve case 7 to which the spherical fitting portion 17a is fitted. A concave spherical bearing 7f is formed in the portion, and the spherical holder 17a of the nozzle holder 17 is press-fitted into the concave spherical bearing 7f, so that the nozzle holder 17 is three-dimensional with respect to the valve case 7. It is held so as to be rotatable in the direction (all directions).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a cylindrical portion 17b is formed vertically at the outer end portion of each nozzle holder 17, and the injection nozzle 4 is press-fitted into the cylindrical portion 17b from above. As shown in FIG. 4, a fitting recess 4 b is formed on the inner periphery of the circular fitting hole 4 a of the injection nozzle 4. And the fitting convex part 17c is formed in the outer periphery of the cylindrical part 17b of each nozzle holder 17, and the fitting hole 4a of the injection nozzle 4 is engage | inserted from the upper part to the cylindrical part 17b of the nozzle holder 17, and this is moved below. When pressed, the fitting convex portion 17c formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 17b of the nozzle holder 17 is press-fitted into the fitting concave portion 4b formed in the fitting hole 4a of the injection nozzle 4 as shown in FIG. The injection nozzle 4 is fitted and held in the nozzle holder 17.

  By the way, each injection nozzle 4 is integrally formed in an octagonal cylinder shape whose top is closed as shown in FIG. 4 by resin molding, and a slit-like injection port that is elongated in the lateral direction on the outer periphery of the upper part. 18 is formed. Here, the injection port 18 opens obliquely upward toward the front surface of the headlamp (not shown). In the present embodiment, the injection nozzle 4 includes an injection port as shown in FIGS. The anti-scattering rib 4c is integrally formed along the upper edge of 18 and the left and right side edges.

  Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, octagonal cylindrical reinforcing ribs 4 </ b> A are erected integrally at the top of each injection nozzle 4, and each reinforcing rib 4 </ b> A has a regular octave. A fitting hole 4d which is a square hole is formed. Here, the injection nozzle 4 is held so as to be horizontally rotatable about an axis (vertical axis) in the press-fitting direction to the nozzle holder 17, and by changing the direction of the injection port 18 formed in the injection nozzle 4. The jet direction of the cleaning liquid is adjusted.

  Thus, the elliptic cylinder portion 7b of one case half 7A shown in FIG. 5 is fitted into the outer periphery of the small diameter portion 7c1 of the elliptic cylinder portion 7c of the other case half body 7B, and is formed on the outer periphery of the small diameter portion 7c1. When the engaging claw 15 is engaged with the engaging hole 11 formed in the elliptical cylindrical portion 7c, the fitting protrusion 16 on the case half 7B side is fitted in the fitting groove 12 on the case half 7A side. The two case halves 7A and 7B are joined while being positioned to assemble one flat oval cylindrical valve case 7.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the valve 8 is composed of a disc-shaped valve body 8a and a valve shaft 8b extending integrally from the center of the valve body 8a in the direction perpendicular to the axis, as shown in FIG. A ring-shaped seal member 19 is assembled to a portion of the valve body 8a that is seated on the valve seat 14.

  The valve guide 9 is composed of a small-diameter cylindrical portion 9A and an elliptical plate-like flange portion 9B integrally formed at the tip thereof, and as shown in FIG. 8, the cylindrical portion of the flange portion 9B of the valve guide 9 A crescent-shaped opening 9a communicating with the injection nozzle 4 is formed on the left and right of the portion 9A.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the triangular prismatic valve shaft 8 b of the valve 8 is slidably fitted in the cylindrical portion 9 </ b> A of the valve guide 9. The central portion is supported so as to be movable in the front-rear direction (left-right direction in FIG. 7), and the valve 8 is urged by the spring 10 in the closing direction (direction in which the valve seat 14 is seated). Here, the spring 10 is inserted into the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 9 </ b> A of the valve guide 9, and is contracted between the valve body 8 a of the valve 8 and the flange portion 9 </ b> B of the valve guide 9. The spring constant of the spring 10 is set larger than the spring constant of the return spring (not shown).

  Thus, the valve guide 9 also has a function as a spring guide. In the valve case 7, the valve guide 9 is pressed against the wall in the valve case 7 by the reaction force of the spring 10 as shown in FIG. The position has been fixed.

  In the cleaning apparatus 1 configured as described above, when the headlamp is not cleaned, a piston (not shown) is drawn into the cylinder 2 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 by the urging force of the return spring. At this time, the valve 8 of the check valve mechanism 3 is pressed against the valve seat 14 by the spring 10 as shown in FIG. The injection nozzle 4 is stored on the back side of a front bumper (not shown).

  Thus, when the headlamp is cleaned by the cleaning device 1, a high-pressure cleaning liquid is supplied from a washer tank (not shown) to a cylinder 2 of the cleaning device 1 via a pipe (not shown). Then, the piston (not shown) slides forward in the cylinder 2 due to the pressure of the cleaning liquid, and pushes the injection nozzle 4 provided at the tip thereof from the opening (not shown) formed in the front bumper to the front of the vehicle. . In this case, since the spring constant of the spring 10 is set larger than the spring constant of the return spring as described above, the valve 8 of the check valve mechanism 3 remains closed as shown in FIG. The cleaning liquid is not supplied to the injection nozzle 4.

  As described above, after the piston moves forward due to the pressure of the cleaning liquid, the pressure of the cleaning liquid rises above a predetermined value, and the force based on the pressure of the cleaning liquid acting on the valve 8 of the check valve mechanism 3 is greater than the biasing force of the spring 10. When the valve 8 becomes larger, the valve body 8a moves forward along the valve guide 9 and moves away from the valve seat 14 as shown in FIG. 7 (b). As shown by the arrows in FIG. 7B, the valve case 7 flows forward, passes through the left and right openings 9a formed in the flange portion 9B of the valve guide 9, and branches left and right. It is supplied from the nozzle holder 17 to each injection nozzle 4. The cleaning liquid supplied to the jet nozzle 4 is jetted from the jet port 18 (see FIG. 4) toward the headlamp, and the dust, mud and the like adhering to the front face of the headlamp are washed away.

  Thus, when the cleaning of the headlamp is completed as described above, a piston (not shown) is drawn into the cylinder 2 by the return spring, so that the injection nozzle 4 is returned to the retracted position on the back side of the front bumper, and the check valve The valve 8 of the mechanism 3 is closed again as shown in FIG.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, since the ring-shaped reinforcing ribs 4A are integrally protruded from the tops of the respective injection nozzles 4, the rigidity of the tops of the respective injection nozzles 4 is enhanced by the reinforcing ribs 4A. When the top portion is pressed and press-fitted into the nozzle holder 17, the top portion of the injection nozzle 4 is prevented from being deformed, and the opening area of the injection port 18 formed in the injection nozzle 4 does not change. The cleaning liquid is stably jetted.

  Further, in the present embodiment, when adjusting the jet direction of the cleaning liquid from the jet port 18 for each vehicle type by turning the jet nozzle 4, the fitting hole of the reinforcing rib 4 </ b> A protruding from the top of the jet nozzle 4 is provided. When the tip of a tool T such as a wrench is fitted into 4d and rotated as shown in FIG. 4, the injection nozzle 4 press-fitted into the nozzle holder 17 can be easily rotated with a small force, and the cleaning liquid injection direction The adjustment for each vehicle type can be performed efficiently with good workability. In the present embodiment, since the fitting hole 4d formed in the reinforcing rib 4A of the injection nozzle 4 is a regular octagonal hole, a general-purpose tool such as a hexagon wrench cannot be fitted into the fitting hole 4d. Without using a special tool T such as an octagon wrench, which is a special tool, the injection nozzle 4 cannot be rotated easily, and there is no inconvenience that even a third party can rotate the injection nozzle 4 without permission.

  In addition, in this embodiment, since the anti-scattering ribs 4c are integrally formed along the upper edge and the left and right edges of the injection nozzle 18 of each injection nozzle 4, the cleaning liquid injected from the injection nozzle 18 is shown in FIG. It can be sprayed toward the front surface of the headlamp at an angle α. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the cleaning liquid from being ejected in an unnecessary direction that deviates upward from the angle range of α toward the headlamp, and most of the cleaning liquid ejected from the ejection port 18 of the ejection nozzle 4 is directed toward the headlamp. Can be injected. For this reason, dust, mud, etc. adhering to the headlamp can be washed away with the cleaning liquid to efficiently clean the front surface of the headlamp, and the cleaning liquid sprayed away from the direction toward the headlamp is used as a vehicle bonnet. Occurrence of the problem of being caught on a windshield or a pedestrian or the like is prevented.

  Further, in the cleaning apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the spherical fitting portions 17a of the left and right nozzle holders 17 can be rotated in a three-dimensional direction on the concave spherical bearing 7f of the valve case 7 as described above. Since the press fitting is performed, the spraying direction of the cleaning liquid from the spray nozzle 4 held in the nozzle holder 17 can be freely adjusted in the three-dimensional direction (all directions), and the entire area of the headlamp surface can be reliably secured by the cleaning liquid. Can be washed. For this reason, it is possible to cope with cleaning of headlamps with different designs, and it is not necessary to prepare many cleaning devices with different angles of injection nozzles for headlamps with different designs, reducing manufacturing costs and facilitating mass production management. Can be achieved.

  In the above, the embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a cleaning device used for cleaning a headlamp has been described. However, the present invention is applied to a cleaning device used for cleaning any other vehicular lamp. Of course, the present invention can be similarly applied.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cleaning apparatus 2 Cylinder 3 Check valve mechanism 4 Injection nozzle 4A Reinforcement rib of injection nozzle 4a Injection nozzle fitting hole 4b Injection nozzle fitting recess 4c Injection nozzle scattering prevention rib 4d Reinforcement rib fitting hole 5 Plug 6 Bracket 7 Valve case 7A, 7B Case half 7a Cylindrical portion of case half 7b, 7c Elliptical cylindrical portion of case half 7c1 Small diameter portion of elliptic cylindrical portion 7c2 Large diameter portion of elliptic cylindrical portion 7d Square column portion of case half 7e Square column Cylindrical concave portion 7f Cylindrical concave spherical bearing 8 Valve 8a Valve body 8b Valve shaft 9 Valve guide 9A Valve guide cylindrical portion 9B Valve guide flange portion 9a Flange portion opening portion 10 Spring 11 Engagement hole 12 Fitting Groove 13 Wall in valve case 14 Valve seat 15 Engaging claw 16 Engaging projection 17 Nozzle holder 17a Spherical shape of nozzle holder Fitting convex portion 18 injection port 19 sealing member T tool of the cylindrical portion 17c a nozzle holder engagement portion 17b nozzle holder

Claims (3)

A cylinder to which cleaning liquid is supplied, a piston slidably inserted in the cylinder, a valve case attached to the tip of the piston, a nozzle holder supported by the valve case, and a nozzle holder In a vehicular lamp cleaning apparatus that includes an injection nozzle that is fitted and held, and that injects a cleaning liquid from an injection port formed in the injection nozzle toward the vehicular lamp.
An apparatus for cleaning a vehicular lamp, wherein a ring-shaped reinforcing rib is integrally provided on the top of the injection nozzle.   2. The vehicular lamp cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a polygonal fitting hole into which a tool is fitted is formed in the reinforcing rib. 3. The vehicular lamp cleaning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the fitting hole is a regular octagonal hole.

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