JP3482281B2 - Operating devices for vehicle air conditioners - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an operating device for an air conditioner for a vehicle, and more particularly to an operating device for an air conditioner having a liquid crystal display panel or the like for displaying a setting state of the air conditioner.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an operating device for a vehicle air conditioner of this type has a large display panel such as a liquid crystal display panel instead of lighting a lamp corresponding to an ON / OFF state of a switch operating portion. There is provided a centralized display of various setting states of the air conditioner. The operation device using such a display panel has an advantage that it is easy to recognize the setting state of the air conditioner.

[0003]

However, in the conventional vehicle air conditioner operating device, the durability of the display panel is generally lower than the durability of the operation switch for setting the air conditioner. However, if a part of the display panel fails, there is a problem that not only the display panel but also the entire operation device must be replaced. Further, even if the operating device has the same function, if the specifications of the display panel are changed, the entire operating device has to be recreated.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to improve the maintainability of an operating device for an air conditioner for a vehicle and to effectively utilize its constituent parts.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problem and Its Action / Effect] Means for achieving such an object will be described. A first vehicle air conditioner operating device of the present invention provides a switch operating section for setting an air conditioner and an electric signal indicating a setting state of the air conditioner.
The display panel for receiving and displaying the signal is provided as a separate body, the display panel is detachable, and a connector for electrically connecting to the display panel is inserted in the insertion direction of the display panel. The gist is that it is arranged at a position where electrical connection with the terminals on the display panel side is completed when the display panel is mounted.

In this vehicle air conditioner operating device, the display panel is provided separately from the switch operating portion and is detachable, so that in the event of a failure of the display panel, etc.
This can be exchanged. Moreover, since a new display panel that has been replaced is mounted and the contacts on the display panel side are electrically connected to the connector, the replacement of the display panel is extremely easy. Therefore, it is not necessary to replace the entire operation device due to a failure of the display panel, and it is possible to prevent waste of parts. Further, in the case of operating devices having different specifications of the display panel, only the display panel needs to be changed.

In such an operating device, it is also preferable that a cover for covering the switch operating portion and the display panel is provided, and a detachable mounting member for the display panel is provided at a position shielded by the cover. In this case, the display panel cannot be removed unless the cover is removed, and the display panel is not accidentally removed.

[0008]

Another aspect of the present invention is, for example, a mode in which a display panel having a front surface as a display surface can be attached from above, and a convex portion provided on the display panel when attached from above. Can be considered to be a configuration in which movement in the front-rear direction is restricted by fitting into the concave portion on the main body side, a mode in which the display panel can be attached from the display surface side, or a mode in which the display panel is a liquid crystal display panel. it can.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Next, an embodiment of an operating device for an air conditioner for a vehicle according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings with reference to Examples. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of an operating device for a vehicle air conditioner as an embodiment. As shown in the figure, an operating device 10 for an air conditioner for a vehicle includes a main body 12 including a switch group that constitutes an electronic circuit and an operation panel.
And a liquid crystal display panel 15 corresponding to a display panel, and a cover 18 mounted on the surface of the main body 12.

As shown in the figure, the main body 12 is provided with a knob 20 for setting the temperature and eight operation buttons 21 to 28 on its front surface. The knob 20 is for setting the temperature of the air conditioner by changing the resistance value of the variable resistor in an electronic circuit described later. The set temperature of the knob 20 is written on the surface of the cover 18. Operation button 2
Reference numerals 1 to 28 are for operating switches that turn on and off electrical contacts. The operation button 21 is for switching the blown-off position of the conditioned air, and the blow-out position is changed to a vent, a foot, or both three positions each time the up arrow or down arrow in the figure is operated. The operation button 22 is a button for adjusting the air volume to be blown out, and like the operation button 21, operating the arrow portion increases or decreases the air volume in five steps.

The operation buttons 23 and 24 are used to turn on / off a mode (so-called defroster) for blowing wind on the windshield and to turn on / off the power supply to the heating wire of the rear glass. The operation button 25 turns on and off the operation of the air conditioner (air conditioner). The operation button 26 switches between circulating the air used for air conditioning in the passenger compartment and taking in the outside air. The operation button 27 is for stopping the fan for blowing air. The operation button 28 is for automatically switching the air conditioning operation.

The liquid crystal display panel 15 displays information about the air conditioner setting state set by the above-mentioned various operation buttons, that is, the blown air position of the air-conditioned air, the air volume, and the like. The display is performed by turning on / off a pattern formed in advance. In the present embodiment, the display pattern is set in advance, but it is also easy to adopt a liquid crystal panel of a type that displays a picture by a dot matrix and freely display. Further, instead of the liquid crystal panel, an LED panel, a plasma display, or an EL panel can be used.

The liquid crystal display panel 15 is provided with mounting portions 31 and 32 projecting left and right at the corners of the rear portion of the upper surface. When the liquid crystal display panel 15 is mounted on the mounting portion 16 of the main body 12, the mounting portions 31 and 32 are mounted. Fits into the recesses 41 and 42 provided at corresponding portions on the body 12 side. The bottom portion 16a of the mounting portion 16 has a connector 4 for electrical connection.
5 is provided, and the liquid crystal display panel 15 is attached to the mounting portion 16
Then, the terminal 35 provided on the lower surface of the liquid crystal display panel 15 is coupled to the connector 45, and the electrical connection is completed. After that, screws are inserted into the mounting holes provided in the mounting portions 31 and 32 and screwed into the screw holes on the main body 12 side to firmly fix the liquid crystal display panel 15 to the main body 12.

After fixing the liquid crystal display panel 15 to the main body 12, the cover 18 is covered on the front surface of the main body 12, and screws are screwed into the left and right mounting holes to fix the cover 18 to the main body 12.
This completes the assembly of the vehicle air conditioner operating device 10 of the present embodiment. In this state, the display surface of the liquid crystal display panel 15 can be easily visually recognized through the glass 18a of the cover 18.

Next, the electrical construction of the operating device 10 will be described. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the operating device 10 of this embodiment. As shown, the operating device 10 includes a one-chip microcomputer 50.
A driver circuit 52 which inputs a predetermined display signal from the 1-chip microcomputer 50 and outputs a drive signal for the liquid crystal display panel 15; A driver circuit 54 that lights up, a watchdog timer 55 that resets the one-chip microcomputer 50 for a predetermined time when the power is turned on, and also detects an abnormality of the one-chip microcomputer 50 and resets the operating frequency of the one-chip microcomputer 50. And an external crystal oscillator 56 that determines

The operation buttons 2 described above are connected to the input ports PA0 to PAA of the one-chip microcomputer 50.
The switches 1 to 28 and the switches turned on and off by the switch 61 are connected via resistors R7 to R17. For convenience, in FIG. 2, the contacts of these switches are indicated by the numbers of the corresponding operation buttons. One contact of these switches 21 to 28 and switch 61 is connected to the ground level, and the other contact is pulled up to the power supply voltage by pull-up resistors R19 to R29. Therefore, the switches 21 to 28 and the switch 61 are in the open state (off state).
Then, the input ports PA0 to PAA are at high level, and are low level when the switches 21 to 28 and the switch 61 are closed (on state). The switch 61 connected to the input ports PA9 and PAA is a test contact of the operating device 10,
It is provided on the wiring board and is not exposed to the outside of the main body 12.

The output ports PB0 to PB6 of the one-chip microcomputer 50 are connected to the driver circuit 54. When these ports PB0 to PB6 are activated, the LEDs 1 to LED7 are connected to the current limiting resistors R31 to R37 via the driver circuit 54.
Current flows through the corresponding LED1 to LED7
Lights up. For convenience of illustration, LEDs 2 to LE
D6 and resistors R32 to R36 are not described with reference numerals.

The one-chip microcomputer 50 detects the on / off state of the operation switches 21 to 28, and when any of the switches is turned on, the corresponding L
Turn on the ED. A light guide made of acrylic resin extends from each LED to the surface of the operation buttons 21 to 28, and the lighting state of the LED is reflected on one end of the light guide. Therefore, the user can easily understand the setting state of the operation button.

The output ports PC0 to PCA of the one-chip microcomputer 50 are connected to the driver circuit 52. These output ports correspond to each display of the liquid crystal display panel 15 shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the independently displayed areas are “A / C”, a horizontal arrow,
Down arrow, human symbol, fan mark, "H
There are nine types, "I", ".", "LO", and "OFF".
In the case of the liquid crystal display panel 15, it is not necessary to prepare one electrode pattern and a drive circuit for each symbol to be displayed, and even if it is one area of the liquid crystal, it is necessary to make the display uniform. The display area is divided into several areas so as to be uniform to some extent, and each divided area is driven by corresponding one electrode pattern. Therefore,
While the 1-chip microcomputer 50 outputs the ON / OFF signals of the above 9 types of symbols,
The driver circuit 52 corresponds to a plurality of electrode patterns,
It is configured to output a drive signal. Therefore, the output signal of the driver circuit 52 is 21 lines (two lines are common lines) in this embodiment.

These 21 output signals are connected to the connector 45 provided on the bottom portion 16a of the mounting portion 16. When the liquid crystal display panel 15 is mounted on the mounting portion 16,
The terminal 35 of the liquid crystal display panel 15 is connected to the connector 45, and the wiring from the driver circuit 52 to the electrode pattern of the liquid crystal panel is completed. Therefore, when the one-chip microcomputer 50 attempts to turn on a predetermined symbol (for example, a human body symbol) (displays black on a white background illuminated by a backlight) and activates a predetermined output port, the driver circuit is activated. 52 activates output signals corresponding to a plurality of regions forming a human body symbol. As a result, the driver circuit 52
Thus, a voltage is applied to the corresponding electrode pattern, and the liquid crystal region in which the electrode pattern exists is displayed in black.
In the present embodiment, the driver circuit 52 is provided separately from the one-chip microcomputer 50, but the number of output ports of the one-chip microcomputer 50 is large, and the voltage required for the liquid crystal panel is directly supplied to the one-chip microcomputer 50. If the output from 50 is possible, the liquid crystal display panel 15 may be directly driven from the one-chip microcomputer 50.

The driver circuit 52 is used for the liquid crystal display panel 15
It can also be mounted on the side. In this case, the number of signal lines to be connected can be reduced. On the other hand, in the configuration in which the connector 45 is provided on the output side of the driver circuit 52 as in the present embodiment, although the number of signal lines increases, the connector 45
The advantage is that the current flowing through the contact is increased and the reliability of the contact is improved.

The trigger terminal of the watchdog timer 55 is connected to the input / output port PD1 of the one-chip microcomputer 50. The 1-chip microcomputer 50 outputs a trigger signal to the input / output port PD1 at a predetermined interval between required processes.
Upon receiving the trigger signal, the watchdog timer 55 resets the internal counter again and starts counting from the value 0. Therefore, due to power source noise, etc.
If the chip microcomputer 50 cannot continue normal operation and the watchdog timer 55 does not receive this trigger signal for a predetermined time or more, the counter of the watchdog timer 55 counts up, and the watchdog timer 55 1-chip microcomputer 5
A reset signal is output to 0 to initialize it.
After completion of resetting, 1-chip microcomputer 50
Restarts the process from the initial state.

The input / output ports PD2 to PD5 of the one-chip microcomputer 50 are connected to actuators and sensors outside the operating device 10. As the actuators connected to these ports, there are a fan motor that controls the air flow rate, a damper drive motor or solenoid that changes the air blowing position, a rear window heat ray, or an air conditioning compressor. As the sensor, there are a room temperature sensor that detects the temperature inside the vehicle, a temperature sensor outside the vehicle, and the like.

The analog input port PAD of the one-chip microcomputer 50 has a variable resistor 6 for temperature setting.
3 is connected. This variable resistor 63 is a knob 2
The resistance value can be adjusted by 0, and by reading the voltage divided by the resistance value and the pull-up resistor R40, the one-chip microcomputer 50 causes the resistance value of the variable resistor 63, that is, the resistance value of the variable resistor 63. The set value of the temperature can be read by the knob 20.

According to the vehicle air conditioner operating device 10 of the present embodiment described above, the cover 18 is removed when the liquid crystal display panel 15 is broken or needs to be replaced due to a change in specifications. Then, just remove the two screws,
The liquid crystal display panel 15 can be easily replaced. Moreover, when the liquid crystal display panel 15 is pulled out upward, the electrical connection is canceled, and the liquid crystal display panel to be replaced is attached to the mounting portion 1.
When mounted on 6, the terminal 35 is simultaneously coupled to the connector 45, and the electrical connection is completed. Further, in the liquid crystal display panel 15 mounted on the mounting portion 16, the mounting portions 31 and 32 are recessed 4
Since they are fitted to the screws 1 and 42, the liquid crystal display panel 15 does not come off to the front side of the panel even when the screwing is insufficient or the screw is loosened.

As a result, the liquid crystal display panel 15 can be easily replaced and the maintainability is improved. Also, since there is no need to replace parts that do not need to be replaced,
It is excellent both economically and in terms of resource conservation. Further, when there are devices having the same function as the operation device 10 but different display specifications, it is only necessary to combine different liquid crystal display panels with the same main body 12, and there is an advantage that designing and manufacturing are facilitated. To be

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, the operating device 100 for a vehicle air conditioner of the second embodiment comprises a main body 120, a liquid crystal display panel 150, and a cover (not shown), as in the first embodiment. In this embodiment, the liquid crystal display panel 150 is attached to the main body 120 from its front surface. That is, the terminal 135 for electrical connection is provided on the back surface of the liquid crystal display panel 150, and the connector 14 is provided at a corresponding position on the side surface of the mounting portion 160 of the main body 120.
5 are provided. Mounting portions 131 and 132 are provided on the upper left and right sides of the front surface of the liquid crystal display panel 150. When the liquid crystal display panel 150 is mounted on the mounting portion 160, the mounting portions 131 and 132 are located at the corners of the mounting portion 160. It is fitted in the concave portions 141, 142 provided in the. The liquid crystal display panel 150 is attached to the mounting portions 131 and 132 by
The structure of attaching to the main body with screws is the same as that of the first embodiment. When the cover (not shown) is attached to the main body 120, the attaching screw is shielded by the cover and cannot be loosened or removed with the cover attached.

According to the embodiment described above, the liquid crystal display panel 150 can be easily attached / detached as in the first embodiment. Therefore, the same effect as the first embodiment is obtained.
Further, in this embodiment, since the liquid crystal display panel 150 cannot be attached / detached with the cover attached, there is no fear of accidental removal.

Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the scope of the present invention. Of course.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the configuration of a vehicle air conditioner operating device 10 as a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the same electrical configuration.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of an operating device 100 for a vehicle air conditioner as a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ... Operating device for vehicle air conditioner 12 ... Main body 15 ... Liquid crystal display panel 16 ... Mounting part 16a ... bottom 18 ... Cover 18a ... glass 20 ... Knob 21 to 28 ... Operation buttons (operation switches) 31, 32 ... Mounting part 35 ... Terminal 41, 42 ... Recess 45 ... Connector 52 ... Driver circuit 54 ... Driver circuit 55 ... Watchdog timer 56 ... Crystal oscillator 61 ... Switch 63 ... Variable resistor 100 ... Operating device for vehicle air conditioner 120 ... Main body 131, 132 ... Mounting part 135 ... Terminal 141, 142 ... Recesses 145 ... Connector 150 ... Liquid crystal display panel 160 ... Mounting part

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-7-73661 (JP, A) Actually open 63-16217 (JP, U) Actually open 3-121908 (JP, U) Actually open 3- 84883 (JP, U) (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60H 1/00-3/06

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. An operating device for an air conditioner for a vehicle, wherein a switch operating part for setting the air conditioner and a display panel for displaying a setting state of the air conditioner by receiving an electric signal are separately provided. The display panel is detachable, and a connector for electrically connecting to the display panel is provided in the insertion direction of the display panel when the display panel is mounted. The operating device for the vehicle air conditioner arranged at a position where the electrical connection with the side terminal is completed. 2. A manipulation device of a car dual air conditioner, and a switch operation unit for setting the air conditioner, setting of the air conditioner
A display panel for displaying a constant state is provided separately, and the display panel is detachable , and the display panel is detachable.
Connector for electrical connection to the display panel.
The insertion direction of the display panel, and when the display panel is attached,
Position where electrical connection with terminals on the display panel side is completed
Disposed on, the switch operation portion and provided with a cover for covering said display panel, the attachment member of the detachable display panel, the operation of the vehicle air conditioner provided in a position which is shielded by the cover apparatus.