JP2018159585A - Radar cover and method for manufacturing radar cover - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow for long-term maintenance of design characteristics of a radar cover in which an inner core including a metal thin film capable of transmitting radio wave is disposed between a colored base member and a transparent member, by suppressing reaching of air or moisture the inner core even if the inner core is disposed in the vicinity of a rim.SOLUTION: A radar cover is provided which is arranged with the back surface thereof directed toward a radar unit detecting peripheral situation of a vehicle and in which an inner emblem 12 including a metal thin film capable of transmitting radio wave is disposed between a colored base member 13 and a transparent member 11. The transparent member 11 includes a covering part 11b covering an outer circumferential surface of the base member 13 from the outside viewed from a direction orthogonal to the back surface.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a radar cover and a method for manufacturing the radar cover.

  In recent years, radar units that detect obstacles and the like around a vehicle using radio waves such as millimeter waves are mounted on the vehicle. Such a radar unit is disposed inside a radiator grill or emblem provided on the front surface of the vehicle, and transmits and receives radio waves that pass through the emblem and the like. For this reason, in a vehicle equipped with a radar unit as described above, an emblem or the like needs to be formed so as to be able to transmit the radio wave while suppressing attenuation of the radio wave.

  On the other hand, since an emblem or the like is disposed on the front surface of the vehicle, it is an extremely important part in the design of the vehicle, and often imparts a metallic glitter to improve the luxury and texture. Conventionally, in order to impart such metallic glitter, it is common to perform plating treatment, but the plating layer does not transmit radio waves. For this reason, for example, in Patent Document 1, by sandwiching an inner core formed with a thin film of indium (In) or aluminum (Al) that can transmit radio waves between a resin-made transparent member and a resin-made base member, A radar cover having metallic glitter is formed.

JP 2011-46183 A

  By the way, in the radar cover of patent document 1, since a base member can be visually recognized from the exterior through a transparent member, the area | region except an inner core will be visually recognized as a color of a base member. For this reason, for example, in order to impart metallic glitter to the edge of the radar cover, it is necessary to arrange the inner core so as to overlap the edge of the base member. However, when such an arrangement is adopted, the inner core is arranged at the edge of the radar cover, so outside air or moisture that has entered the boundary portion between the transparent member and the base member from the outer peripheral surface of the radar cover will enter the inner core. The route to reach is extremely short. For this reason, the thin film of indium (In) or aluminum (Al) is liable to deteriorate due to contact with air or moisture, and the design life of the radar cover may be shortened.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. In a radar cover in which an inner core having a metal thin film capable of transmitting radio waves is disposed between a colored base member and a transparent member, the inner core is positioned near the edge. Even if it is a case where it arrange | positions, it aims at suppressing that air and a water | moisture content arrive at an inner core, and making it possible to maintain the design property of a radar cover over a long term.

  The present invention adopts the following configuration as means for solving the above-described problems.

  A first aspect of the present invention is a radar cover in which an inner core having a metal thin film capable of transmitting radio waves is disposed between a colored base member and a transparent member, the rear surface being disposed toward a radar unit that detects the surrounding situation of the vehicle. And the structure that the said transparent member has a coating | coated part which covers the outer peripheral surface of the said base member from the outer side seeing from the direction orthogonal to the said back surface is employ | adopted.

  A second invention employs a configuration in which, in the first invention, the covering portion covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member over the entire circumference when viewed from a direction orthogonal to the back surface.

  According to a third invention, in the first or second invention, a configuration is adopted in which the covering portion is directly fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the base member.

  According to a fourth invention, in any one of the first to third inventions, a configuration is adopted in which an end portion of a boundary surface between the base member and the transparent member is exposed on the back surface.

  According to a fifth invention, in any one of the first to fourth inventions, the base member has a protruding portion that protrudes outward from the outer peripheral surface and is disposed inside the covering portion. .

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a radar cover in which an inner core having a metal thin film capable of transmitting radio waves is disposed between a colored base member and a transparent member. A transparent member forming step of forming the transparent member having a covering portion that covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member from the outside when viewed from a direction orthogonal to the back surface, and the transparent member The inner core arranging step for arranging the inner core and the base member forming step for forming the base member so that the outer peripheral surface is covered by the covering portion on the transparent member on which the inner core is arranged are employed.

  According to the present invention, the covering portion of the transparent member covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member from the outside. For this reason, according to this invention, compared with the case where the transparent member does not have a coating | coated part, the path | route from the edge part of the boundary surface of a transparent member and a base member to an inner core can be ensured long. Therefore, according to the present invention, in the radar cover in which the inner core having the metal thin film capable of transmitting radio waves is disposed between the colored base member and the transparent member, the inner core is disposed in the vicinity of the edge. Air and moisture can be prevented from reaching the inner core, and the design of the radar cover can be maintained over a long period of time.

(A) is a front view of a radiator grill provided with the emblem in one embodiment of the present invention, and (b) is an enlarged front view of the emblem in one embodiment of the present invention. (A) is sectional drawing of the emblem in one Embodiment of this invention, (b) is an expanded sectional view of the emblem in one Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the manufacturing method of the emblem in one Embodiment of this invention. It is a front view of a radiator grill provided with the modification of an emblem in one embodiment of the present invention. It is an expanded sectional view of the modification of the emblem in one Embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a radar cover and a method of manufacturing the radar cover according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following drawings, the scale of each member is appropriately changed in order to make each member a recognizable size.

  Fig.1 (a) is a front view of the radiator grill 1 provided with the emblem 10 which consists of a radar cover of this embodiment. FIG. 1B is an enlarged front view of the emblem 10 of the present embodiment. 2A is a cross-sectional view of the emblem 10 of the present embodiment, and FIG. 2B is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the emblem 10 of the present embodiment.

  The radiator grill 1 is provided on the front surface of the vehicle so as to close an opening that leads to the engine room of the vehicle, and ensures ventilation to the engine room and prevents foreign matter from entering the engine room. An emblem 10 is provided at the center of the radiator grill 1 so as to face the radar unit R (see FIG. 2A) disposed in the engine room. The radar unit R includes, for example, a transmission unit that transmits millimeter waves, a reception unit that receives reflected waves, and a calculation unit that performs calculation processing. The radar unit R transmits and receives radio waves that pass through the emblem 10 and detects the surrounding conditions of the vehicle based on the received radio waves. For example, the radar unit R calculates and outputs the distance to the obstacle, the relative speed of the obstacle, and the like.

  The emblem 10 is disposed so as to cover the radar unit R when viewed from the front side of the vehicle (in a direction orthogonal to the back side of the emblem 10). That is, the emblem 10 is arranged with the back surface facing the radar unit R. As shown in FIG. 1 (b), the emblem 10 improves the visibility of the shining area 10A representing a figure, characters, or the like indicating the emblem of the vehicle maker and the visibility of the shining area 10A as viewed from the front side of the vehicle. It is a component having a black region 10B. As shown in FIG. 2A, the emblem 10 includes a transparent member 11, an inner emblem 12 (inner core), and a base member 13.

  The transparent member 11 is a part formed of a substantially rectangular transparent material (including colored transparent) disposed on the outermost side of the vehicle. The transparent member 11 has a smooth surface on the front side in order to improve the visibility of the inner emblem 12 from the outside of the vehicle. In addition, a recess 11 a in which the inner emblem 12 is disposed is formed on the back surface of the transparent member 11.

  The recessed portion 11a is a portion into which the inner emblem 12 is fitted, and makes it possible to visually recognize the accommodated inner emblem 12 from the front side of the vehicle. The recess 11a is provided along the shape of a figure such as an emblem of a vehicle manufacturer or a character. By accommodating the inner emblem 12 in such a recess 11a, the above-described glitter region 10A is formed.

  Moreover, in the emblem 10 of this embodiment, the transparent member 11 has the coating | coated part 11b which covers the outer periphery of the base member 13 from the outer side. When the transparent member 11 is viewed from the front side, the covering portion 11 b is continuously provided along the entire periphery of the transparent member 11 along the edge of the transparent member 11. The covering portion 11b protrudes to the back side with respect to other portions of the transparent member 11, and is provided in an annular shape so as to cover the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 from the outside. As shown in FIG. 2 (b), the protruding dimension L1 from the other part of the covering portion 11b is set equal to the thickness dimension of the base member 13, and the distance from the outer peripheral surface of the transparent member 11 to the inner emblem 12 is set. It is set larger than the dimension. The covering portion 11 b is directly fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 by welding the inner peripheral surface to the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13.

  By arranging such a covering portion 11b so as to cover the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 from the outside, in the cross section along the thickness direction of the transparent member 11 (for example, the cross section shown in FIG. 2B), A boundary surface S between the covering portion 11 b and the base member 13 is generated along the thickness direction of the emblem 10. As a result, the end of the boundary surface S is exposed on the back surface of the emblem 10. That is, in the present embodiment, the boundary surface S between the covering portion 11 b and the base member 13 is not exposed on the outer peripheral surface (side surface) of the emblem 10.

  Since the covering portion 11 b of the transparent member 11 is a part of the transparent member 11, it transmits light. For this reason, the area | region in which the coating | coated part 11b was formed turns into a transparent area | region (henceforth the transparent area | region 10C) for those who visually recognize from the outside. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the covering portion 11 b of the transparent member 11 forms an edge portion of the emblem 10 of the present embodiment. For this reason, in the emblem 10 of this embodiment, as shown in FIG.1 (b), the edge part becomes the transparent area | region 10C.

  Such a transparent member 11 is made of a transparent synthetic resin such as colorless PC (polycarbonate) or PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate resin), and has a thickness of about 1.5 mm to 10 mm. Further, the front side surface of the transparent member 11 is subjected to a hard coat treatment for preventing scratches or a clear coat treatment of a urethane-based paint as necessary. In addition, if it is transparent synthetic resin provided with scratch resistance, these damage prevention processes are unnecessary.

  As shown in FIG. 2B, the inner emblem 12 includes a base 12a and a bright layer 12b. The base 12a is a strength member that serves as a skeleton of the inner emblem 12, and supports the glitter layer 12b. The base 12a is formed by injection molding or the like, and is formed of a synthetic resin such as ABS, PC, or PET. The base portion 12 a has a convex shape that embeds the concave portion 11 a of the transparent member 11 and is fitted into the concave portion 11 a of the transparent member 11.

  The glitter layer 12b is a layer that is formed on the surface on the front side of the base portion 12a (the surface on the transparent member 11 side) and has metallic glitter arranged so as to cover the base portion 12a. The bright layer 12b has a metal thin film made of indium (In) or aluminum (Al). This metal thin film is a discontinuous film in which indium (In) and aluminum (Al) are formed in a sea-island shape with minute gaps, and radio waves can be transmitted. Such a metal thin film is formed by sputtering, for example. In addition to the metal thin film, the bright layer 12b includes a top coat layer that covers the metal thin film and a bottom coat layer that is disposed between the metal thin film and the base 12a as necessary.

  Such an inner emblem 12 is fixed by welding to the surface of the base member 13, but is not fixed to the inner wall surface of the concave portion 11 a of the transparent member 11, but is only in contact therewith. It is. That is, the inner emblem 12 is supported by the base member 13 in contact with the inner wall surface of the recess 11 a of the transparent member 11.

  In the emblem 10 of the present embodiment, a part of the inner emblem 12 is disposed at a position overlapping the outer edge of the base member 13 when viewed from the front side. For this reason, in the emblem 10 of the present embodiment, when viewed from the front side, the outer edge portion excluding the transparent region 10C is the glitter region 10A. That is, the emblem 10 of the present embodiment is a design that is not a black edge.

  The base member 13 is a part that is fixed to the back side of the transparent member 11 and is formed of a black resin material. The base member 13 functions as a support member that is fixed to the transparent member 11 and supports the inner emblem 12 from the side opposite to the transparent member 11. Further, the base member 13 may have an engagement portion (not shown) that protrudes toward the engine room. Thus, the base member 13 fixed to the back surface of the transparent member 11 is visible from the outside of the transparent member 11, and forms the above-described black region 10B. The base member 13 visually recognizes the region other than the bright region 10A in black, and relatively improves the visibility of the bright region 10A.

  Such a base member 13 includes ABS (acrylonitrile / butadiene / styrene copolymer synthetic resin), AES (acrylonitrile / ethylene / styrene copolymer synthetic resin), ASA (acrylonitrile / styrene / acrylate), PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), It is made of synthetic resin such as colored PC, PET (polyethylene terephthalate), or a composite resin thereof, and has a thickness of about 0.5 mm to 10 mm.

  Then, the manufacturing method of the emblem 10 of this embodiment is demonstrated with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic view for explaining a method for manufacturing the emblem 10 of the present embodiment. First, as shown in FIG. 3A, the transparent member 11 is formed. For example, the transparent member 11 is formed by injection molding. Since the transparent member 11 having the recess 11a and the covering portion 11b can be formed by this injection molding, it is not necessary to form the recess 11a and the covering portion 11b in a subsequent process. If necessary, the surface of the transparent member 11 (the surface facing the outside of the vehicle) or the entire surface may be subjected to a hard coat treatment for improving durability and the like. Such a process shown in FIG. 3A corresponds to a transparent member forming process. That is, the transparent member 11 having the covering portion 11b that covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 from the outside is formed by the process shown in FIG.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, the base portion 12a of the inner emblem 12 is formed. For example, the base 12a is formed by injection molding. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3C, a bright layer 12b is formed on the surface of the base 12a. Note that the metal thin film included in the bright layer 12b is formed in a vacuum atmosphere in the vacuum chamber, for example, by sputtering. The metal thin film formed in this way is formed as a discontinuous film having a plurality of gaps due to a difference in wettability of the base portion 12a.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 3 (d), the inner emblem 12 is fitted into the recess 11 a of the transparent member 11. The process shown in FIG. 3D corresponds to an inner core arrangement process. That is, the inner emblem 12 is arranged with respect to the transparent member 11 by the process shown in FIG.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 3E, the base member 13 is formed. Here, the transparent member 11 in which the inner emblem 12 is installed in the recess 11a is placed inside the injection mold, and insert molding is performed by injecting molten resin to the back side of the transparent member 11, Base member 13 is formed. Such a base member 13 is welded to the transparent member 11 by heat at the time of insert molding, and is disposed so as to cover the inner emblem 12. As a result, the inner emblem 12 is fixed to the transparent member 11 while being in contact with the inner wall surface of the recess 11a. The process shown in FIG. 3E corresponds to a base member forming process. That is, by the process shown in FIG. 3E, the base member 13 is formed on the transparent member 11 on which the inner emblem 12 is disposed so that the outer peripheral surface is covered with the covering portion 11b.

  The emblem 10 of this embodiment is manufactured by the process as described above. According to the manufacturing method and emblem 10 of the emblem 10 of this embodiment, the covering portion 11b of the transparent member 11 covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 from the outside. According to such an emblem 10 of this embodiment, compared with the case where the transparent member 11 does not have the coating | coated part 11b, the inner emblem 12 from the edge part of the boundary surface S of the transparent member 11 and the base member 13 is shown. A long route can be secured. Therefore, according to the emblem 10 of the present embodiment, even when the inner emblem 12 is arranged in the vicinity of the edge portion, air and moisture are prevented from reaching the inner emblem 12 and the design of the emblem 10 is extended for a long time. It becomes possible to maintain over it.

  Moreover, in the emblem 10 of this embodiment, the coating | coated part 11b has covered the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 over the perimeter seeing from the front side of the emblem 10. FIG. For this reason, it is possible to suppress air and moisture from reaching the inner emblem 12 in the entire circumferential direction of the emblem 10, and to reliably maintain the design of the emblem 10 over a long period of time.

  In the emblem 10 of the present embodiment, the covering portion 11 b is directly fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13. For example, it is also possible to employ a design in which a metal layer is disposed between the covering portion 11b and the base member 13 so that the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 is not visually recognized from the side. On the other hand, when adopting a configuration in which the covering portion 11 b is directly fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13 as in this embodiment, air is applied to the boundary surface S between the transparent member 11 and the base member 13. It is possible to more reliably prevent moisture and moisture from entering, suppress air and moisture from reaching the inner emblem 12, and more reliably maintain the design of the emblem 10 over a long period of time. .

  Further, in the emblem 10 of the present embodiment, the end portion of the boundary surface S between the base member 13 and the transparent member 11 is exposed on the back surface of the emblem 10. In general, since the back surface of the emblem 10 is not easily exposed to rainwater or the like, according to the emblem 10 of the present embodiment, air and moisture can be more reliably prevented from entering the boundary surface S between the transparent member 11 and the base member 13. It is possible to prevent the air and moisture from reaching the inner emblem 12 and to maintain the design of the emblem 10 more reliably over a long period of time.

  As mentioned above, although preferred embodiment of this invention was described referring an accompanying drawing, it cannot be overemphasized that this invention is not limited to the said embodiment. Various shapes, combinations, and the like of the constituent members shown in the above-described embodiments are examples, and various modifications can be made based on design requirements and the like without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

  For example, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the base member 13 of the emblem 10 of the above embodiment employs a configuration having a protruding portion 13 a that protrudes outward from the outer peripheral surface and is disposed inside the covering portion 11 b. It is also possible. FIG. 4 is an enlarged front view of a modification of the emblem 10. FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged sectional view of the emblem 10. As shown in these drawings, the protruding portion 13a protrudes outward from the outer peripheral surface of the base member 13, and is arranged in a state of entering the inside of the protruding portion 13a. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of protrusions 13 a are provided discretely in the circumferential direction of the emblem 10. By providing such a protruding portion 13a, the bonding strength between the transparent member 11 and the base member 13 can be increased.

  Further, the protrusion 13a is formed with a hole in a region where the protrusion 13a is formed in the transparent member 11 before the base member 13 is formed by injection molding as described above, and then the base member 13 is injected. It can form easily by forming by shaping | molding. In addition, since the bonding strength between the transparent member 11 and the base member 13 can be increased by the protrusion 13a, the base member 13 is peeled from the transparent member 11 even when the base member 13 contracts due to cooling immediately after injection molding. Can be prevented.

  Further, instead of the protrusion 13a, a knurled irregularity may be formed on the inner peripheral surface of the transparent member 11. In such a case, the boundary surface S between the transparent member 11 and the base member 13 is uneven, and the same effect as that obtained when the protrusion 13a is provided can be obtained.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Radiator grille, 10 ... Emblem, 10A ... Bright area, 10B ... Black area, 10C ... Transparent area, 11 ... Transparent member, 11a ... Recessed part, 11b ... Covering part, 12 ... Inner Emblem (inner core), 12a: Base, 12b: Bright layer, 13: Base member, 13a: Projection, R: Radar unit, S: Interface

Claims (6)

A radar cover in which an inner core having a metal thin film capable of transmitting radio waves is disposed between a colored base member and a transparent member, the rear surface being disposed toward a radar unit that detects a surrounding situation of the vehicle,
The radar cover according to claim 1, wherein the transparent member has a covering portion that covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member from the outside when viewed from a direction orthogonal to the back surface.   The radar cover according to claim 1, wherein the covering portion covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member over the entire circumference when viewed from a direction orthogonal to the back surface.   The radar cover according to claim 1, wherein the covering portion is directly fixed to an outer peripheral surface of the base member.   The radar cover according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an end of a boundary surface between the base member and the transparent member is exposed on the back surface.   The radar cover according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the base member has a protruding portion that protrudes outward from the outer peripheral surface and is disposed inside the covering portion. A method of manufacturing a radar cover, wherein an inner core having a metal thin film that is arranged with a rear surface facing a radar unit that detects a surrounding state of a vehicle and is capable of transmitting radio waves between a colored base member and a transparent member. ,
A transparent member forming step of forming the transparent member having a covering portion that covers the outer peripheral surface of the base member from the outside as seen from the direction orthogonal to the back surface;
An inner core arranging step of arranging the inner core with respect to the transparent member;
And a base member forming step of forming the base member so that an outer peripheral surface is covered by the covering portion on the transparent member on which the inner core is disposed.

Images