JP5502641B2 - Vehicle obstacle detection sensor and bumper to which the vehicle obstacle detection sensor is attached - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle obstacle detection sensor and a bumper to which the vehicle obstacle detection sensor is attached.

  Conventionally, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 is provided in a bumper 5 of a vehicle as shown in FIG. 13, and transmits ultrasonic waves intermittently from an ultrasonic microphone to detect obstacles existing in the detection area A. An obstacle is detected by receiving a reflected wave (for example, Patent Document 1). Furthermore, the obstacle detection sensor for vehicles has the characteristics that a detection area can be limited and the distance to the obstacle can be measured.

  FIG. 14 shows a schematic configuration of a conventional vehicle obstacle detection sensor 101. A conventional vehicle obstacle detection sensor 101 includes a housing portion 102 and a fixing member 103. The housing portion 102 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape, and houses the ultrasonic microphone 104 so that the front surface of the ultrasonic microphone 104 is exposed.

  An example of attachment of the conventional vehicle obstacle detection sensor 101 will be described with reference to FIGS. First, as shown in FIG. 15A, the housing portion 102 is inserted into the circular opening 51 provided in the bumper 5 from the front surface 5 a side of the bumper 5. Then, as shown in FIG. 15 (b), the rear surface of the bezel 102 a provided at the front end periphery of the housing portion 102 is brought into contact with the vicinity of the periphery of the opening 41 of the front surface 5 a of the bumper 5. Then, as shown in FIG. 15C, a substantially U-shaped fixing member 103 is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the housing portion 102 on the rear surface 5 b side of the bumper 5. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 15D, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 101 is fixed to the bumper 5 by sandwiching the bumper 5 between the rear surface of the bezel 102 a and the front surface of the fixing member 103.

JP 2008-26231 A

  However, in the conventional vehicle obstacle detection sensor 101, the bezel 102a protrudes from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5, so that the appearance is not conspicuous and the design of the vehicle is impaired.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above reasons, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle obstacle detection sensor capable of easily fixing a vehicle obstacle detection sensor to a bumper without impairing the design of the vehicle, and It is to provide a bumper to which this is attached.

An obstacle detection sensor for a vehicle according to the present invention is fixed to a bumper of a vehicle, transmits an ultrasonic signal, and receives an reflected wave of the ultrasonic signal. A housing portion containing the ultrasonic microphone, a plate-like support plate attached to the housing portion, the front surface of which contacts the rear surface of the bumper, a first surface that contacts the rear surface of the bumper, and a rear surface of the support plate A mounting portion having a second surface; and a fixing means provided on the first surface for fixing the first surface and a rear surface of the bumper. The fixing means fixes the mounting portion to the bumper. The support plate is sandwiched between the mounting portion and the bumper, so that the housing portion is fixed to the bumper, and the transmitting / receiving surface of the ultrasonic microphone is exposed forward from an opening provided in the bumper, Front of bumper There characterized by comprising a substantially same plane.

  In this vehicle obstacle detection sensor, the fixing means is preferably configured by bonding, heat-welding, or screw-fastening the first surface and the rear surface of the bumper.

  In this vehicle obstacle detection sensor, it is preferable that the portion exposed from the opening to the front surface of the bumper is the same color as the color of the front surface of the bumper.

  In this vehicle obstacle detection sensor, the support plate is preferably formed in a non-axisymmetric shape in a predetermined direction.

  In the bumper of the present invention, a contour line along the outer periphery of the support plate formed in a non-symmetrical shape in a predetermined direction included in the vehicle obstacle detection sensor is formed on the rear surface, and the outer periphery of the support plate is aligned with the contour line. A vehicle obstacle detection sensor is fixed.

  As described above, the present invention has an effect that the vehicle obstacle detection sensor can be easily fixed to the bumper without impairing the design of the vehicle.

It is an external appearance perspective view of the obstacle detection sensor for vehicles of Embodiment 1. (A)-(d) It is a figure which shows the attachment method to a bumper same as the above. (A)-(c) It is a figure which shows after attachment to the bumper same as the above. (A)-(c) It is a figure which shows the bumper in which the outline was formed. It is an external appearance perspective view of the obstacle detection sensor for vehicles of Embodiment 2. (A) (b) It is an assembly figure of a support plate and housing part same as the above. (A) (b) It is a figure which shows the convex part of the support plate same as the above, and the penetration hole of an attachment plate. (A)-(c) It is an assembly drawing of a support plate and attachment plate same as the above. (A) (b) It is a figure which shows the protrusion of a bumper same as the above, and the insertion hole of a support plate. (A)-(c) It is a figure which shows after attachment to the bumper same as the above. (A)-(c) It is a figure which shows the structure using the heat welding of the obstacle detection sensor for vehicles of Embodiment 3. FIG. (A) (b) It is a figure which shows the structure using the screw fastening same as the above. It is an attachment figure to the bumper of the obstacle detection sensor for vehicles. It is a block diagram of the conventional obstacle detection sensor for vehicles. (A)-(d) It is a figure which shows the attachment method to a bumper same as the above.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
A schematic configuration of the vehicle obstacle detection sensor of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 according to this embodiment includes an ultrasonic microphone 21, a housing portion 2, a support plate 3, and an attachment plate 4 (attachment portion), and is attached to a vehicle bumper 5. The vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 transmits an ultrasonic signal from the transmission / reception surface 21a of the ultrasonic microphone 21 exposed from the opening 51 provided in the bumper 5, and receives a reflected wave from the obstacle on the transmission / reception surface 21a. Then, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 determines the presence or absence of an obstacle in the detection area using the time difference from the transmission of the ultrasonic wave to the reception of the reflected wave, and the determination result is transmitted to the external device. Output.

  First, the configuration of the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment will be described.

  The housing part 2 is comprised by the substantially cylindrical cylinder part 2a, the substantially rectangular container 2b, and the connector part 2c. The cylindrical portion 2a is provided so as to protrude from the front surface of the vessel body 2b, and ultrasonic waves are provided so that the transmitting / receiving surface 21a of the ultrasonic microphone 21 whose peripheral portion is covered with the holding rubber 21b is exposed from the tip of the cylindrical portion 2a. The microphone 21 is stored. The body 2b accommodates a circuit board (not shown) for controlling the ultrasonic microphone 21 therein. The connector part 2c is provided so as to protrude from one surface of the container body 2b, and the circuit board and an external device are electrically connected via a cable (not shown) connected to the connector part 2c.

  The support plate 3 is formed in a substantially cross shape facing the rear surface 5 b of the bumper 5, and is integrally formed with the housing part 2. The support plate 3 is composed of four support pieces 3a to 3d provided in the vertical and horizontal directions from the peripheral portion of the cylindrical portion 2a. Moreover, the support piece 3a is formed so that the length dimension from the front-end | tip to the cylinder part 2a may become longer than the other support pieces 3b-3d.

  The mounting plate 4 is formed in a rectangular plate shape whose front surface is opposed to the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5, and has a rectangular insertion hole 41 through which the housing portion 2 formed in a substantially central portion is inserted, and an outer periphery of the insertion hole 41. It is comprised with the rectangular-shaped frame 42 which encloses. A double-sided tape 43 (fixing means) is attached to the front surface of the frame body 42, and an adhesive surface 43 a (first surface) is formed on the front surface of the double-sided tape 43. Further, a non-adhesive surface 42a (second surface) to which the double-sided tape 43 is not attached is formed on a part of each side constituting the front surface of the frame body 42. The adhesion surface 43a faces the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5, and the non-adhesion surface 42a faces the rear surfaces of the support pieces 3a to 3d. Further, the double-sided tape 43 has a thickness substantially the same as the thickness of the support plate 3, and the adhesive surface 43 a and the non-adhesive surface 42 a form an uneven shape.

  Next, a method for attaching the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment to the bumper 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. First, as shown in FIG. 2A, the position of the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 on the rear surface 5b side of the bumper 5 so that the transmission / reception surface 21a of the ultrasonic microphone 21 is exposed forward from the opening 51 of the bumper 5. Align. Then, as shown in FIG. 2B, the front surface of the support plate 3 and the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5 are brought into contact with each other, and the positioning of the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 is completed. Next, as shown in FIG. 2C, the housing portion 2 is inserted through the insertion hole 41 of the mounting plate 4. Then, as shown in FIG. 2 (d), the attachment plate 4 is attached by bringing the adhesive surface 43 a of the double-sided tape 43 provided on the frame body 42 of the attachment plate 4 into contact with the rear surface 5 b of the bumper 5. It is attached to the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5. At this time, a part of each of the support pieces 3a to 3d of the support plate 3 is sandwiched between the non-adhesive surface 42a of the frame body 42 and the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5, so that the housing part 2 integrally formed with the support plate 3 5 can be securely fixed to the rear surface 5b.

  By the above method, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 can be fixed to the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5 as shown in FIGS. As described above, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment is integrally formed with the housing portion 2 by the non-contact surface 42a of the mounting plate 4 fixed to the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5 and the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5. The support plate 3 is clamped to be fixed to the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5. Therefore, a bezel protruding from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5 as in the prior art is not required (see FIG. 11). Furthermore, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment is formed such that the length from the transmission / reception surface 21 a of the ultrasonic microphone 21 to the front surface of the support plate 3 is substantially the same as the thickness of the bumper 5. Yes. Therefore, the front surface 5a of the bumper 5 and the transmission / reception surface 21a of the ultrasonic microphone 21 can be made substantially flush with each other, and the structure protruding from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5 is not provided.

  With the above configuration, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment does not protrude from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5, and therefore can be attached to the bumper 5 without impairing the design of the vehicle.

  Further, the colors of the transmitting / receiving surface 21 a and the holding rubber 21 b of the ultrasonic microphone 21 exposed from the opening 51 of the bumper 5 are the same as the colors of the front surface of the bumper 5. Thereby, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 can be made less noticeable in appearance, and the design of the vehicle can be further improved.

  In the present embodiment, the mounting plate 4 is fixed to the rear surface 5 b of the bumper 5 using the double-sided tape 43, but an adhesive may be used instead of the double-sided tape 43.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C, a convex contour along the outer periphery of the support plate 3 is provided on the rear surface of the bumper 5 to which the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment is fixed. A line 52 is formed. And when aligning the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 with respect to the bumper 5, the positioning accuracy is improved by aligning the outer periphery of the support plate 3 with the contour line 52, and the assembly workability is facilitated. it can. In the present embodiment, the convex contour line 52 is formed. However, it is sufficient that the user can visually confirm the contour along the outer periphery of the support plate 3, and the concave shape, the marking, or the line is simply drawn. Also good.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, the length dimension from the front-end | tip of the support piece 3a to the cylinder part 2a is formed so that it may become longer than the length dimension of the other support pieces 3b-3d. Therefore, by aligning the outer periphery of the support plate 3 with the contour line 52, positioning in the rotational direction is performed, so that the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 can be prevented from being attached in the wrong direction. In the present embodiment, the support plate 3 is formed in an asymmetric shape in the left-right direction by forming the support piece 3a long. However, the support plate 3 is formed in an asymmetric shape in a predetermined direction. If so, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

(Embodiment 2)
In the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the first embodiment, the housing portion 2 and the support plate 3 are integrally formed, whereas the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment is configured as shown in FIG. The housing part 2 and the support plate 30 are configured separately. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the structure similar to Embodiment 1, and description is abbreviate | omitted.

  The support plate 30 of the present embodiment is formed in a substantially cross shape, and a circular insertion hole 31 through which the cylindrical portion 2a is inserted is formed. FIGS. 6A and 6B show assembly views of the support plate 30.

  First, the tip of the cylindrical portion 2 a is inserted through the insertion hole 31 of the support plate 30. Then, on the rear surface of the support plate 30, the two ribs 32 provided at the periphery of the insertion hole 31 at intervals of 180 ° are fitted into the notches 2 d provided at the periphery of the cylindrical portion 2 a at intervals of 180 °. Thereby, the support plate 30 is positioned with respect to the housing portion 2. And the support plate 30 and the housing part 2 are integrated by welding the periphery of the penetration hole 31, and the peripheral part of the cylinder part 2a. By configuring the support plate 30 and the housing part 2 separately as in the present embodiment, the shape of both parts can be simplified, and the manufacturability (formability) of both parts becomes easy. .

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, a convex portion 33 is formed on the rear surface of each of the support pieces 3 a to 3 d of the support plate 30. An insertion hole 42 b through which the convex portion 33 is inserted is formed in the non-adhesion surface 42 a of the frame body 42 of the mounting plate 4. FIG. 8A shows an external perspective view of the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 in a state where the convex portion 33 is inserted into the insertion hole 42b, and FIG. 8B shows a rear view thereof. A sectional view of A is shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 8A to 8C, the positioning accuracy of the mounting plate 4 with respect to the support plate 30 is improved by inserting each convex portion 33 of the support plate 30 into each insertion hole 42 b of the mounting plate 4. Can be made. Further, the support plate 30 is formed in a non-symmetrical shape in the left-right direction, and the insertion hole 42b through which the convex portion 33 provided in the support pieces 3b, 3c is inserted is at a position shifted from the center in the left-right direction. Accordingly, since the mounting plate 4 is positioned in the rotational direction with respect to the support plate 30, it is possible to prevent the mounting plate 4 from being attached in an incorrect direction.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 9A, a protrusion 52 may be formed on the rear surface 5 b of the bumper 5, and an insertion hole 34 through which the protrusion 52 is inserted may be formed in the support plate 30. The protrusions 52 are formed at intervals of 180 ° in the vicinity of the opening 51, and the insertion holes 34 are formed in the support pieces 3a and 3c. And as shown in FIG.9 (b), the positioning accuracy of the support plate 30 with respect to the bumper 5 can be improved by inserting each protrusion 52 in each insertion hole 34. As shown in FIG. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 10A to 10C, the protrusion 52 of the bumper 5 is inserted into the insertion hole 34 of the support plate 30, and the convex portion 33 of the support plate 30 is inserted into the insertion hole 42a of the mounting plate 4. By doing so, the positioning accuracy of the bumper 5, the support plate 30, and the mounting plate 4 can be improved.

(Embodiment 3)
In the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the first and second embodiments, the mounting plate 4 and the bumper 5 are fixed by the double-sided tape 43, whereas the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment is shown in FIG. As shown in a) to (c), the mounting plate 40 and the bumper 5 are fixed by welding. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the structure similar to Embodiment 1, and description is abbreviate | omitted.

  The mounting plate 40 of the present embodiment is formed with a welding surface 43b corresponding to the bonding surface 43a of the mounting plate 4 in the first embodiment and a non-welding surface 42c corresponding to the non-bonding surface 42a. Therefore, the welding surface 43 b faces the rear surface 5 b of the bumper 5, and the non-welding surface 42 c faces the rear surface of the support plate 3. Further, the thickness of the welding surface 43b is formed to be greater than the thickness of the non-welding surface 42c, and the welding surface 43b and the non-welding surface 42c form an uneven shape. Further, the length from the welding surface 43 b to the non-welding surface 42 c is formed to be substantially the same as the thickness of the support plate 3. Further, a heat-welding boss 53 made of resin or the like protrudes from the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5, and a boss insertion hole 44 through which the heat-wearing boss 53 is inserted is formed in the welding surface 43b.

  Then, the housing portion 2 is positioned on the bumper 5, the housing portion 2 is inserted into the insertion hole 41 of the mounting plate 40, the hot boss 53 is inserted into the boss insertion hole 44, and the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 is bumped. Temporarily fix to 5. Then, by applying heat to the hot boss 53 protruding from the boss insertion hole 44 to the rear surface of the mounting plate 40, a welded portion 53 a is formed at the periphery of the boss insertion hole 44 on the rear surface of the mounting plate 40. In this way, the mounting plate 40 is fixed to the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5 by thermally welding the bumper 5 and the mounting plate 40 using the heat-fitting boss 53 protruding from the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5. And the obstacle detection sensor 1 for vehicles can be reliably fixed to the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5 by pinching the support plate 3 between the rear surface 5b of the bumper 5 and the non-adhesive surface 42a of the mounting plate 40. Therefore, a bezel protruding from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5 as in the prior art is not required (see FIG. 11). Further, similarly to the first embodiment, the length from the transmission / reception surface 21 a of the ultrasonic microphone 21 to the front surface of the support plate 3 is formed to be substantially the same as the thickness of the bumper 5. In other words, the front surface 5a of the bumper 5 and the transmission / reception surface 21a of the ultrasonic microphone 21 can be made substantially flush with each other, and the structure protruding from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5 is not provided.

  Therefore, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 of the present embodiment does not protrude from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5, and can be attached to the bumper 5 without deteriorating the design of the vehicle.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 12A and 12B, the bumper 5 and the mounting plate 40 may be fixed to each other by screwing. On the rear surface 5 b of the bumper 5, a screw fastening boss 54 in which a screw hole 54 a is formed is provided instead of the hot-wearing boss 53. The frame body 42 of the mounting plate 40 is provided with a recess 45 in which the screw fastening boss 54 is fitted, and a screw insertion hole 45 a is formed on the bottom surface of the recess 45. Then, the housing portion 2 is inserted into the opening 41 of the mounting plate 40, and the screw 46 is fixed to the screw hole 54a from the rear via the screw insertion hole 45a in a state where the screw fastening boss 54 and the recess 45 are fitted. Let

  Accordingly, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 can be reliably fixed to the rear surface 5 b of the bumper 5 by sandwiching the support plate 3 formed integrally with the housing portion 2 between the mounting plate 40 and the bumper 5. . Similarly to the above, the vehicle obstacle detection sensor 1 does not protrude from the front surface 5a of the bumper 5, and therefore can be attached to the bumper 5 without impairing the design of the vehicle.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle obstacle detection sensor 2 Housing part 2a Cylinder part 2b Body 2c Connector part 3 Support plate 3a-3d Support piece 4 Mounting plate 5 Bumper 21 Ultrasonic microphone 21a Transmission / reception surface 41 Insertion hole 42 Frame body 42a Non-adhesive surface 43 Double-sided tape 43a Adhesive surface

Claims (5)

A vehicle obstacle detection sensor fixed to a vehicle bumper,
An ultrasonic microphone that transmits an ultrasonic signal and receives a reflected wave of the ultrasonic signal on a front surface;
A housing portion containing the ultrasonic microphone;
A plate-like support plate attached to the housing part and having a front surface in contact with a rear surface of the bumper;
A mounting portion having a first surface that contacts the rear surface of the bumper and a second surface that contacts the rear surface of the support plate;
A fixing means provided on the first surface for fixing the first surface and a rear surface of the bumper;
The mounting portion is fixed to the bumper by the fixing means, and the support plate is sandwiched between the mounting portion and the bumper, whereby the housing portion is fixed to the bumper.
The vehicle obstacle detection sensor, wherein the transmission / reception surface of the ultrasonic microphone is exposed forward from an opening provided in the bumper, and the transmission / reception surface and the front surface of the bumper are substantially flush with each other.   The vehicle obstacle detection sensor according to claim 1, wherein the fixing unit is configured by bonding, heat-welding, or screw-fastening the first surface and a rear surface of the bumper.   The vehicle obstacle detection sensor according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a portion exposed from the opening to the front surface of the bumper has the same color as that of the front surface of the bumper.   The obstacle detection sensor for a vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the support plate is formed in a non-axisymmetric shape in a predetermined direction.   A contour line along the outer periphery of the support plate provided in the vehicle obstacle detection sensor according to claim 4 is formed on a rear surface, and the vehicle obstacle detection sensor is fixed by aligning the outer periphery of the support plate with the contour line. Bumper characterized by being made.

Images