JP3105066U - Small vehicle camera - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to capture, record, and reproduce a clear moving image that is easy to attach and detach and has no shaking.
A camera body includes a CCD unit integrally including a lens and an image processing circuit, a cylindrical camera case having a lens hole opened at a tip for housing the CCD unit, and a CCD unit floating in the camera case. It is composed of a buffer member supported in a state. From the camera body 1, a cable 6 having a DC plug 8 and a video signal plug 10 branch-connected to the tip thereof is drawn out. The ball portion 3a of the ball stud 3 of the camera body 1 is slidably mounted on the socket 4, and is fixed to a windshield or the like by a suction cup 2 formed integrally with the socket 4.
[Selection diagram] Fig. 1

Description

The present invention relates to a small in-vehicle camera mounted on a windshield or the like of a car and capturing a moving image of a road condition or a driving operation.

  Conventionally, an on-board camera is used to record moving images of the front view and driving operations that can be seen through the windshield mounted on a car and record them on a hard disk type recorder to acquire road data, operation records, driving training records, vehicle test records, etc. Is used.

As such an in-vehicle camera, a commercially available small-sized video camera is usually installed in a vehicle using an appropriate mounting jig, and the camera view is adjusted in a required direction so that a moving image is taken and recorded while moving. ing.

  However, since such a conventional vehicle-mounted camera uses a commercially available small-sized video camera, even the lightest small-sized video camera weighs about several hundred grams and uses a mounting jig. For example, when taking a picture fixed to the headrest in the passenger seat, the small video camera itself shakes due to the inherent vibration in response to the vibration of the running vehicle, and as a result, The problem is that the captured image fluctuates due to camera-specific vibrations, and the reproduced image is extremely difficult to see, and is insufficient for use when it is necessary to accurately analyze and judge the state of the vehicle traveling ahead and the road conditions from the reproduced image. was there.

  In order to eliminate the vibration generated in the small video camera, the rigidity of the mounting jig to be mounted on the car must be increased. Modifications such as installation of a jig mounting section dedicated to mounting were required, and eventually a vehicle dedicated to mounting a camera had to be prepared, and there was inconvenience that it could not be easily used.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a small vehicle-mounted camera which can be easily attached and detached and can record and reproduce a clear moving image without shaking.

  In order to achieve this object, the present invention is configured as follows. The present invention provides a compact vehicle-mounted camera, which includes a CCD unit integrally including a lens and an image processing circuit, a cylindrical camera case having a lens hole opened at a tip for accommodating the CCD unit, and a camera case. A buffer member that supports the CCD unit in a floating state, a cable that is connected to the CCD unit, is pulled out of the camera case, and has a DC plug and a video signal plug branch-connected at the end, and a camera case body. It is characterized by comprising a ball stud attached, a socket slidably housing a ball portion of the ball stud, and a suction cup attached to the socket.

  In another embodiment of the present invention, in addition to the suction cup, a small in-vehicle camera including a mounting member integrally provided with a socket for slidably housing a ball portion of a ball stud may be used.

Here, the small in-vehicle camera of the present invention is characterized in that the weight of the camera body composed of the CCD unit, the camera case and the cushioning member is 50 grams or less. The CCD unit has a rectangular box shape, and floats with a urethane sponge interposed as a cushioning member in each of four peripheral spaces formed when the CCD unit is housed inside a cylindrical camera case. To support. Further, the suction cup is fixed at a predetermined inclination angle with respect to the axis of the socket.

  According to the present invention, the camera body is extremely lightweight, at about 50 grams or less, and therefore can be easily attached by sucking and fixing the suction cup to a position where the view of the corner of the windshield is not obstructed.

  In addition, due to the light weight of the camera body, the camera body does not shake due to the inherent vibration even if it receives the vibration of the car, and the camera body moves together with the car, so that even if you play back the captured moving image image A clear image with very little screen shaking is reproduced, and the analysis judgment based on the reproduced image can be easily and accurately performed.

  Also, since the camera body is installed on the windshield, if the car is parked outdoors in the summer, etc., it may get quite hot due to direct sunlight, but the suction cup can be easily attached and detached, In such a case, the CCD unit may be removed from the windshield and placed in a place where the sun does not shine, so that the influence of the temperature rise on the CCD unit can be prevented.

  Furthermore, when the camera body is fixed to a windshield or the like by a suction cup, the view direction of the camera body needs to be adjusted. Therefore, the camera view direction can be adjusted extremely easily and accurately in a short time.

In addition, the camera body is extremely lightweight, about 50 grams or less, even if it is a mounting member other than a suction cup. Therefore, even with a simple mounting structure, the camera body shakes due to the inherent vibration due to the running vibration of the car. A clear moving image can be recorded and reproduced without causing a wobble.

  FIG. 1 is a side view of the small in-vehicle camera according to the present invention, and FIG. The small in-vehicle camera according to the present invention includes a camera body 1, a mounting suction cup 2, a ball stud 3, a socket 4, and a cable 6. The camera body 1 has a cylindrical shape made of, for example, ABS resin, and has a lens hole 5 on the front surface as shown in FIG.

  The ball stud 3 is adhesively fixed to the upper body of the camera body, and the ball 3a of the ball stud 3 is slidably fitted into a socket 4 formed integrally with the mounting suction cup 2, thereby forming a universal joint. I have.

  Here, the mounting suction cup 2 and the socket 4 are made of a rubber material, and the ball portion 3a of the ball stud 3 made of, for example, an ABS resin is press-fitted into the rubber socket 4 so as to have a universal sliding resistance. A joint can be used, whereby the camera view direction of the camera body 1 can be freely adjusted with respect to the mounting suction cup 2 side, and the adjustment position can be maintained in the adjusted state.

  Further, the suction surface 2a of the mounting suction cup 2 is fixed at a predetermined inclination angle θ with respect to the axis of the socket 4, and when the mounting suction cup 2 is suction-fixed to the windshield of the car, the camera body 1 becomes glass. It is located substantially below the direction of inclination of the surface.

  FIG. 3 shows a swinging state of the mounting suction cup 2 side with the camera body 1 side fixed. In this embodiment, the camera body 1 can swing in a range of 65 ° in the front-rear direction. For this reason, even if the camera is fixed by suction to the inclined glass surface, the camera view direction can be arbitrarily adjusted within a necessary range centering on the horizontal direction.

  Referring again to FIG. 1, the cable 6 pulled out from the upper rear portion of the camera body 1 is divided into a power cable 7 and a signal cable 9 at the distal end, and a DC plug 8 is connected to the power cable 7 and the signal cable 9 is connected. Is connected to a video signal plug 10. The DC plug 8 supplies 12 V DC to the camera body 1 from a cigarette lighter power supply in the vehicle. The video signal plug 10 is connected to an in-vehicle hard disk type record and outputs a moving image signal.

  FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the camera body 1 according to the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. The camera body 1 is composed of a cylindrical camera case 11 with a closed front and a back cover 12, and a lens hole 5 is opened in the front of the camera case 11. A CCD unit 13 is provided inside the camera case 11. The CCD unit 13 has a fixed-focus lens unit 14 mounted on the front, a video signal circuit provided inside, and a cable 6 drawn out.

  The CCD unit 13 has a box-shaped rectangular shape. As shown in FIG. 5, a void is formed at four locations around the camera case 11 in a state where the CCD unit 13 is disposed at the center of the camera case 11, and a block-shaped urethane as a buffer member is provided at the four locations. The sponge 15 is arranged, and the CCD unit 13 is supported in a floating state in the camera case 11 via the urethane sponge 15 by press-fitting the CCD unit 11 into the urethane sponge 15.

  The urethane sponge 15 also has a function as a heat insulating material in addition to a function as a cushioning member, and prevents the propagation of heat to the CCD unit 13 even when the camera case 11 is heated by direct sunlight.

  Here, as the lens unit 14 provided integrally with the CCD unit 13, for example, a lens unit having a focal length of 4.3 mm and an open F3 value of F3.7 is used. The weight of the camera body 1 is about 40 g in this embodiment, excluding the weight of the cable 6. The external dimensions of the camera body 1 are reduced to a length of 33 mm and a diameter of 35 mm.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of the use state of the small in-vehicle camera of the present invention. The camera body 1 is attached to the upper corner of the windshield 16 of the car by the mounting suction cup 2 and the view direction of the camera body 1 is changed to the windshield 16. Is adjusted forward through the vehicle.

  The cable 6 drawn from the camera body 1 is drawn into the vehicle through the space between the sun visors above the window frame without obstructing the front view, and is connected to a cigar lighter and a hard disk type recorder.

  Here, the distance from the lens unit located in the lens hole on the front surface of the camera body 1 to the windshield 16 can be sufficiently short, for example, several centimeters. It is possible to reliably prevent shooting.

  Shooting with the small in-vehicle camera of the present invention is basically a video shooting of the front view through the windshield, but in addition to this, it is possible to shoot a video of driving operation by pointing the camera view to the driver, which is a driving training It can be used for recording of rally driving. Further, for recording and photographing of the traveling test vehicle, a plurality of small in-vehicle cameras of the present invention are installed at necessary places so as to photograph and record moving images during traveling.

  The small vehicle-mounted camera of the present invention may be mounted on any of the front, side, and rear glass surfaces, and may be mounted on an arbitrary position in the vehicle compartment as long as there is a smooth surface on which the mounting suction cup 2 can be used. Can be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, the attachment using the suction cup is taken as an example, but the camera body may be attached using an appropriate attachment jig other than the suction cup. Also in this case, since the camera body is extremely light at about 50 g or less, even with a simple mounting jig, the camera body does not generate vibration different from the traveling vibration of the car during traveling, and No clear moving image can be obtained.

Further, the present invention includes appropriate modifications without impairing the object and advantages thereof, and is not limited by the numerical values shown in the above embodiments.

Side view of the compact vehicle camera according to the present invention Front view of the compact vehicle camera according to the present invention Explanatory drawing of the swing range of the mounting suction cup and the camera body in the small in-vehicle camera of the present invention Sectional view of the camera body in the present invention AA sectional view of FIG. Explanatory drawing of the use state of the small vehicle camera according to the present invention

Explanation of reference numerals

1: Camera body 2: Mounting suction cup 2a: Suction surface 3: Ball stud 3a: Sphere 4: Socket 5: Lens hole 6: Cable 7: Power cable 8: DC plug 9: Signal cable 10: Video signal plug 11 : Camera case 12: back cover 13: CCD unit 14: lens unit 15: urethane sponge 16: windshield

Claims (5)

A CCD unit integrally provided with a lens and a video processing circuit,
A cylindrical camera case having a lens hole opened at a tip for storing the CCD unit;
A buffer member for supporting the CCD unit in a floating state in the camera case;
A cable connected to the CCD unit, pulled out of the camera case to the outside, and branched and connected to a DC plug and a video signal plug at an end thereof;
A ball stud attached to the body of the camera case,
A socket that slidably houses the ball portion of the ball stud,
A suction cup attached to the socket,
A compact vehicle-mounted camera comprising:
A CCD unit integrally provided with a lens and a video processing circuit;
A cylindrical camera case having a lens hole opened at a tip for storing the CCD unit;
A buffer member for supporting the CCD unit in a floating state in the camera case;
A cable connected to the CCD unit, pulled out of the camera case, and branched and connected to a DC plug and a video signal plug at a tip thereof;
A ball stud attached to the body of the camera case, and a mounting member integrally provided with a socket that slidably accommodates the ball of the ball stud,
A compact vehicle-mounted camera comprising:
3. The small vehicle-mounted camera according to claim 1, wherein a weight of a camera body including the CCD unit, the camera case, and the cushioning member is 50 g or less.
3. The small vehicle-mounted camera according to claim 1, wherein the CCD unit has a rectangular box shape, and four peripheral spaces are formed when the CCD unit is housed inside a cylindrical camera case. A small vehicle-mounted camera, which is supported in a floating state with a urethane sponge interposed therebetween as a buffer member.
  3. The small vehicle-mounted camera according to claim 1, wherein the suction cup is fixed at a predetermined inclination angle with respect to an axis of the socket.

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