JP6507842B2 - air pump - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air pump.

  As an air pump (electric pump), there is a type provided with a cylindrical cylinder, a piston provided so as to be capable of reciprocating in the cylinder, and a motor unit for reciprocatingly driving the piston (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this air pump, an exhaust valve port and an intake valve port that communicate the inside and the outside of the cylinder are formed in a part of the cylinder, an exhaust valve is provided in the exhaust valve port, and an intake valve is provided in the intake valve port. Then, when the piston is moved forward so as to narrow the space in the cylinder, the air in the cylinder is compressed, the exhaust valve is opened, the compressed air is exhausted from the exhaust valve port, and the piston recovers. When actuated, the intake valve is opened to draw air from the intake port into the cylinder.

JP, 2001-41159, A

  However, in the above-described air pump, a whistling noise may occur at the intake valve port or a fluttering noise of the intake valve may occur when the piston moves back. In the air pump described above, since the intake valve port is formed in a part of the cylinder and the distance to the outside is short, noise such as the whistling noise or rattling noise is externally transmitted when the piston moves back (at the time of intake). There is a problem that it is easy to leak.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object thereof is to provide an air pump capable of making it difficult for noise at the intake valve port generated at the time of the return movement of the piston to leak to the outside. is there.

An air pump that solves the above problems includes a long cylindrical cylinder, a piston provided to be able to reciprocate in the cylinder, and a motor unit disposed on the return side of the piston for reciprocatingly driving the piston. An exhaust valve that opens and closes to open and close an exhaust valve port that communicates the inside and the outside of the cylinder; and an intake valve that opens and closes to open and close an intake valve port that communicates the inside and the outside of the cylinder; When it is moved forward so as to narrow the space in the cylinder, the air in the cylinder is compressed, the exhaust valve is opened, the compressed air is exhausted from the exhaust valve port, and the piston recovers. When it is moved, the air intake valve is opened and air is sucked into the cylinder from the air intake valve port, and the air intake valve port is a piston communication hole provided in the piston An opening, the piston passage and are communicated with the outside via the external communication hole provided in the housing of the motor unit, the intake valve is an umbrella valve, a disc-shaped central support, And an elastically deformable portion extending radially outward from the central support portion, the central support portion being immovably fixed relative to the piston in a state where the elastically deformable portion covers the intake valve port .

  According to the same configuration, the intake valve port is an opening of a piston communication hole provided in the piston, and is communicated with the outside through the piston communication hole and an external communication hole provided in the housing of the motor unit, The distance from the intake valve port to the external communication hole becomes long, and noise such as a whistling noise at the intake valve port and fluttering noise of the intake valve generated at the time of the return movement of the piston can be hardly leaked to the outside.

  In the above air pump, it is preferable that an operating member that pushes the exhaust valve and performs an opening operation by forward movement of the air pump is fixed to the piston, and the intake valve is fixed to the piston by the operating member.

  According to the same configuration, the piston is fixed to the operation member for pushing the exhaust valve and performing the opening operation by forward movement, and the intake valve is fixed to the piston by the operation member. The operation member can also have the function of fixing the intake valve.

  In the above air pump, the damper member is integrally formed with the piston, a forward movement damper portion contacting the forward movement restricting portion at the forward movement end position, and a backward movement damper portion contacting the backward movement restricting portion at the backward movement end position. Is preferably provided.

  According to the same configuration, the damper is integrally formed with the forward movement damper portion that contacts the forward movement restriction portion at the forward movement end position and the backward movement damper portion that contacts the backward movement restriction portion at the backward movement end position. Since the members are provided, it is possible to absorb each impact at the forward movement end position and the backward movement end position while suppressing an increase in the number of parts.

  In the air pump according to the present invention, noise at the intake valve port generated upon return of the piston can be made less likely to leak to the outside.

(A) is a schematic block diagram of the vehicle of one Embodiment. (B) is a schematic diagram of the display of one Embodiment. Sectional drawing of the vehicle-mounted optical sensor unit in one Embodiment. The perspective view of the vehicle-mounted optical sensor unit in one Embodiment. The front view of the vehicle-mounted optical sensor unit in one Embodiment. The rear view of the vehicle-mounted optical sensor unit in one Embodiment. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the in-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket in one embodiment. Sectional drawing of the downward direction of the vehicle-mounted optical sensor attachment bracket in one Embodiment. Sectional drawing of the upper direction of the vehicle-mounted optical sensor attachment bracket in one Embodiment. (A) is a disassembled perspective view of a piston unit. (B) is an exploded perspective view of an introduction side housing member. (C) is a disassembled perspective view of a nozzle unit. (D) is a perspective view of a nozzle unit. Sectional drawing of the nozzle unit of the state of the non-washing position in one Embodiment. Sectional drawing for demonstrating operation | movement of the nozzle unit in one Embodiment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Sectional drawing of the air pump in one Embodiment. (A) And (b) is a partially expanded sectional view for demonstrating the operation | movement of an air pump. The operating time chart of the washer pump and air pump in one embodiment.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of a vehicle will be described according to FIGS. 1 to 14.
As shown to Fig.1 (a), the back door 2 is provided in the back of the vehicle 1, and the vehicle-mounted optical sensor unit 3 is provided in this back door 2. As shown in FIG. The on-vehicle optical sensor unit 3 according to the present embodiment is slightly fixed to the driver's seat side (right side) with respect to the center line C in the width direction of the vehicle 1.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the in-vehicle optical sensor unit 3 includes an in-vehicle camera 5 as an in-vehicle optical sensor, a nozzle unit 6 as an in-vehicle optical sensor cleaning device, and an in-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the on-vehicle camera 5 has a substantially cubic main body 5a in which an imaging device (not shown) is accommodated and a sensing surface (external imaging surface) provided on one surface of the main body 5a. And the lens 5b.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b), for example, when the shift lever SL of the transmission is operated to the reverse position, the on-vehicle camera 5 transmits the captured image of the rear of the vehicle 1 to the display DSP in the vehicle Display. The on-vehicle camera 5 is fixed to the back door 2 via the on-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 so that the lens 5b side is directed obliquely downward so as to image the obliquely downward at the rear of the vehicle 1.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 9 (d), 10 and 11, the entire outer shape of the nozzle unit 6 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape, and from the non-cleaning position (see FIGS. 2 and 10) 11 is a unit having a nozzle member 9 which projects to the outside in the state of being moved to FIG. 11) and ejects fluid from the injection port 8 toward the lens 5b (see FIG. 2).

  Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the in-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 includes a sensor accommodating portion 7 a which accommodates the in-vehicle camera 5 so that the lens 5 b is exposed to the outside, and a nozzle accommodating portion which accommodates the nozzle unit 6. 7b and the vehicle fixing portion 7c are integrally formed.

  More specifically, the on-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 according to the present embodiment includes a square cylindrical portion 7 d in which a sensor accommodating portion 7 a for accommodating the substantially cubic on-vehicle camera 5 is formed, and a substantially cylindrical nozzle unit A nozzle accommodating portion 7b for accommodating 6 has a cylindrical portion 7e formed therein, and they are juxtaposed in such a manner that their side walls are joined to each other. In more detail, the square cylindrical portion 7d is formed with a circular exposure port 7f for exposing the lens 5b of the in-vehicle camera 5 to the outside on the tip end side, and the base end side is opened to allow insertion of the in-vehicle camera 5 . The cylindrical portion 7e is formed such that a nozzle port 7g which allows the nozzle member 9 to be inserted into and withdrawn from the tip end side is continuous with a part of the exposure port 7f, and the base end side is opened to insert the nozzle unit 6 It is made possible. Further, the cylindrical portion 7e is disposed in a state of being inclined with respect to the square cylindrical portion 7d so as to approach the square cylindrical portion 7d toward the tip end side. The cylindrical portion 7e (nozzle accommodating portion 7b) is disposed on the driver seat side (right side) in the width direction of the vehicle 1 with respect to the rectangular cylindrical portion 7d (sensor accommodating portion 7a) (FIG. 1A) reference).

  And as shown in FIG.2 and FIG.5, as for the vehicle-mounted camera 5 accommodated in the said sensor accommodating part 7a, the fixing member 11 engaged with a rear end is fixed to the vehicle-mounted optical sensor attachment bracket 7 by screw 12. At this time, the sensor holder 7a is prevented from coming off and is fixed to the on-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7.

  Further, the nozzle unit 6 accommodated in the nozzle accommodating portion 7b is fixed to the on-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 by means of the screws 14 and the fixing portion 13 projecting from the outer shape of the nozzle unit 6 is prevented from coming off the nozzle accommodating portion 7b.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, in the on-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 according to the present embodiment, the nozzle member 9 in the non-washing position is located at a position corresponding to the injection port 8 (leaked from the injection port 8). Liquid escape portions 7j and 7k are formed as spaces into which the cleaning liquid can flow. In the liquid escape portions 7j and 7k of the present embodiment, the sensor accommodation portion 7a and the nozzle accommodation portion 7b are communicated with each other at a position corresponding to the injection port 8 (a wall to be partitioned is not formed). It is formed in both the part 7a and the nozzle accommodating part 7b. That is, when the cleaning liquid leaks from the injection port 8 of the nozzle member 9 at the non-cleaning position, the cleaning liquid may flow into the liquid escape portions 7j and 7k formed in both the sensor housing 7a and the nozzle housing 7b. It is made possible.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the liquid escape portions 7j and 7k are on the side different from the exposure port 7f (lens 5b) side, and in this embodiment, the gravity direction side (lower side). The discharge ports 7m and 7n are formed in the opening. The discharge ports 7m and 7n of the present embodiment have a discharge port 7m corresponding to the liquid release portion 7j on the sensor storage portion 7a side and a discharge port 7n corresponding to the liquid release portion 7k on the nozzle storage portion 7b side. There is.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a gap (i.e., liquid leakage) between the in-vehicle camera 5 and the in-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 is provided at the inner edge of the tip of the in-vehicle camera 5 at the outlet 7m on the sensor housing 7a side. An inclined surface 7p is formed to enlarge the portion 7j) and guide the cleaning liquid leaking to the liquid release portion 7j to the discharge port 7m.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the cleaning solution led to the discharge port 7m in the liquid release part 7j is provided at both ends of the outer edge of the front end side of the on-vehicle camera 5 in the discharge port 7m on the sensor housing 7a side. An inclined surface 7q for facilitating drainage from the outlet 7m to the outside of the sensor housing 7a is formed substantially along the direction of gravity in the disposed state.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the upper part of the nozzle housing part 7 b is a groove which is a groove engaged with a convex covered part 15 (see FIG. 9 (d)) described later and engaged in the circumferential direction. The portion 16 is formed.

  The vehicle fixing portion 7c is formed in a flange shape so as to protrude from the base end portions of the square cylindrical portion 7d and the cylindrical portion 7e, and is fixed to the vehicle 1 by a fixing pin (not shown) penetrating the fixing hole 7r. It will be.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 9 to 11, the nozzle unit 6 includes an elongated cylindrical cylinder housing 21, a piston unit 28, an introduction side housing member 22 and the like.
As shown in FIGS. 9 (c) and 9 (d), the cylinder housing 21 is formed in an elongated cylindrical shape, and is fitted on the outer circumferential stop 16 (see FIG. 8) on the outer peripheral surface thereof in the circumferential direction. The non-rotating portion 15 engaged with the projection is convexly provided. Further, a cylindrical elastic member R is externally fitted on the outer periphery of the cylinder housing 21, and the cylinder housing 21 is accommodated while being in pressure contact with the inner surface of the nozzle accommodation portion 7 b via the elastic member R. Further, a holder support portion 21a extending radially inward and engaged with a spring holder 23 (see FIGS. 2, 9 (a) and 9 (c)), which will be described later, is formed at the tip of the cylinder housing 21. ing.

  As shown in FIGS. 9A and 10, the piston unit 28 includes the nozzle member 9, a compression coil spring 27 and the like. The nozzle member 9 has a long cylindrical tubular portion 24a and a nozzle portion 24b which is bulged radially outward from the tip end of the tubular portion 24a and the injection port 8 is formed at the tip thereof. A piston nozzle member 24 and a flange member 25 fixed to the proximal end side of the piston nozzle member 24 are provided. In the present embodiment, the inside (the inside of the injection port 8) of the tip end side of the piston nozzle member 24 of the nozzle member 9 constitutes a common introduction chamber D into which the cleaning liquid and the air can be introduced. The flange member 25 is a proximal end flange 25b projecting radially outward from the proximal end of the outer fitting cylindrical portion 25a and the outer fitting cylindrical portion 25a which are fitted and fitted to the proximal end of the cylindrical portion 24a. And.

  As shown in FIG. 10, in the proximal end flange portion 25b, a packing fitting recess 25c opened to the outside in the radial direction is formed on the entire circumference. A lip packing 26 is fitted in the packing fitting recess 25c. The lip packing 26 has an annular fitting portion 26a to be fitted into the packing fitting recess 25c, and a lip portion 26b extending in one axial direction (proximal direction) from the radially outer end of the fitting portion 26a. An annular sliding contact portion 26c which protrudes in a circular arc shape in cross section from the outer peripheral surface on the tip end side of the lip portion 26b and slidably contacts the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder housing 21. Further, in the packing fitting recess 25c of the present embodiment, a retaining groove 25d recessed in the axial direction is formed. The retaining grooves 25d of the present embodiment are (a pair) formed on both axial end surfaces of the packing fitting recess 25c, and are respectively recessed in an annular manner along the packing fitting recess 25c. Further, in the fitting portion 26a of the lip packing 26, there are formed (one pair) retaining projections 26e to be fitted into the retaining grooves 25d.

  The nozzle member 9 is externally fitted to the cylindrical portion 24 a by a spring holder 23 which is externally fitted to the cylindrical portion 24 a to allow axial sliding of the cylindrical portion 24 a and to restrict relative rotation around the axis. And a compression coil spring 27 held in a compressed state between the spring holder 23 and the proximal end flange portion 25b is assembled to constitute a piston unit 28. That is, in the piston unit 28, the spring holder 23 and the compression coil spring 27 are externally fitted from the base end side of the cylindrical portion 24a of the piston nozzle member 24, and in that state, the base end portion of the cylindrical portion 24a The outer fitting cylinder part 25a is fitted and comprised.

  The piston unit 28 assembled in advance is inserted from the proximal end side of the cylinder housing 21, and the nozzle portion 24 b protrudes from the distal end of the cylinder housing 21 to the outside, and the spring holder 23 is at the distal end of the cylinder housing 21. By engaging with the holder support portion 21a, further movement is restricted and assembled. Incidentally, as shown in FIGS. 9A and 10, the spring holder 23 has a disc portion 23a having a diameter larger than that of the holder support portion 21a formed at the tip of the cylinder housing 21. The cylinder housing 21 is prevented from rotating by having a fitting portion 23b which is fitted inside the holder support portion 21a and engaged in the circumferential direction. The nozzle member 9 arranged in this manner can be moved forward and backward while being accommodated in the cylinder housing 21. When the proximal end flange portion 25b is urged toward the injection port 8 by the fluid delivery pressure, the compression coil is formed. It moves forward to the cleaning position (see FIG. 11) against the biasing force of the spring 27 and moves backward to the non-cleaning position by the biasing force of the compression coil spring 27 when the feeding pressure is lost. Become.

Then, the introduction side housing member 22 is assembled to the proximal end portion of the cylinder housing 21.
As shown in FIGS. 9B and 10, the introduction side housing member 22 has an inlet member 31, an introduction member 32, a cleaning solution side check valve 33, and an air side check valve 34.

  The inlet member 31 has a substantially cylindrical outer fitting portion 31a to be fitted and fitted to the proximal end portion of the cylinder housing 21 and a proximal end axially extending from the proximal end portion of the outer fitting portion 31a. A side flow passage portion 31b, an inner extending portion 31c extending inward from a proximal end portion of the outer fitting portion 31a, and a cylindrical inlet portion extending from the inner extension portion 31c to the opposite side to the base end side flow passage portion 31b. 31d. The proximal end side flow passage portion 31 b is formed in an oval cylindrical shape formed of parallel lines and an arc connecting the parallel lines when viewed from the extending direction (axial direction). As shown in FIG. 10, the inward extending portion 31c is formed to be inclined so as to be farther from the proximal end side flow passage portion 31b as it is inside. Further, the inward extending portion 31 c forms a space SP between the proximal end flange portion 25 b and the inside of the cylinder housing 21. The outer diameter of the inlet portion 31 d is set to be slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the cylindrical portion 24 a so as to be loosely fitted to the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 24 a from the base end side of the nozzle member 9. Further, at the proximal end of the outer fitting portion 31a of the inlet member 31, the fixing portion 13 (see FIG. 5) which protrudes radially outward and is fixed to the on-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 by the screw 14 is formed. It is done.

  The introducing member 32 is axially inserted from an outer fitting portion 32a which is externally fitted and fitted to the proximal end side flow passage portion 31b of the inlet member 31 and a bottom portion 32b of the proximal end side of the outer fitting portion 31a. It has the cylindrical washing | cleaning-liquid introduction path 32c and the air introduction path 32d which extend in parallel. Specifically, the outer fitting portion 32a is formed into an oval cylindrical shape corresponding to the oval cylindrical cylindrical base end side flow passage portion 31b (possible external fitting), and the bottom portion 32b is an oval shape It is formed in plate shape. Further, an air-side penetrating portion 32e is formed at a position at the axial center of one arc of the base end side flow passage portion 31b in the bottom portion 32b, and the air introducing path 32d communicates straight with the air-side penetrating portion 32e. It is formed to be. Further, the cleaning solution side penetrating portion 32f is formed at the center of the bottom arc 32b at the axis center of the other arc of the proximal end flow passage portion 31b, and the cleaning solution introduction path 32c is located outside the cleaning solution side penetrating portion 32f (see FIG. 10, they are formed so as to be shifted and communicated with the air introduction path 32d on the opposite side). That is, while the interval between the cleaning solution introduction path 32c and the air introduction path 32d is a sufficient interval for connecting the cleaning solution hose H1 and the air hose H2, the interval between the cleaning solution side penetrating portion 32f and the air side penetrating portion 32e The size of the proximal end flow passage 31b of the inlet member 31 and the size of the externally fitted portion 32a of the introduction member 32 are reduced. The cleaning solution side check valve 33 communicates with the cleaning solution side penetrating portion 32 f inside the proximal end flow passage portion 31 b of the inlet member 31 between the cleaning solution introduction path 32 c and the common introduction chamber D. It is provided in the position. Further, the air-side check valve 34 communicates with the air-side penetration portion 32 e inside the proximal end flow path portion 31 b of the inlet member 31 between the air introduction path 32 d and the common introduction chamber D. It is provided in the position. The cleaning solution-side check valve 33 and the air-side check valve 34 of the present embodiment are duckbill-type check valves whose opening on the downstream side (the common introduction chamber D side) is collapsed, and are positioned downstream Allow the flow of fluid and prevent the flow of fluid upstream.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 10, the washer pump WP is connected to the cleaning solution introduction path 32c via the cleaning solution hose H1, and the air pump AP is connected to the air introduction path 32d via the air hose H2.

  As shown in FIG. 1 (a), the washer pump WP is capable of delivering the cleaning fluid as the fluid stored in the tank T, and when the internal pump motor (not shown) is driven, the cleaning fluid hose H1. The cleaning liquid is fed (introduced) to the nozzle unit 6 (specifically, the cleaning liquid introduction path 32c) via

  Further, the air pump AP can discharge the compressed high pressure air instantaneously, and when driven, air is fed to the nozzle unit 6 (specifically, the air introduction path 32d) via the air hose H2. It will be paid (introduced).

  Here, as shown in FIG. 12, the air pump AP of the present embodiment is a positive displacement air pump that discharges a fixed volume of air, and can reciprocate in the long cylindrical cylinder 41 and the cylinder 41. A piston 42 is provided, and a motor portion 43 disposed on the backward movement side (left side in FIG. 12) of the piston 42 for reciprocatingly driving the piston 42 is provided.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B, the air pump AP is operated to open and close an exhaust valve port 44 which communicates the inside and the outside of the cylinder 41, and the inside and outside of the piston 42. And an intake valve 47 that opens and closes so as to open and close an intake valve port 46 that communicates the When the air pump AP is moved forward so as to narrow the space (pump chamber P) in the cylinder 41, the air in the cylinder 41 is compressed, and then the exhaust valve 45 is opened to operate the exhaust valve AP. When the compressed air is exhausted from the port 44 and the piston 42 is returned, the intake valve 47 is opened to suck air from the intake valve port 46 into the cylinder 41.

  More specifically, the cylinder 41 is formed in a substantially bottomed cylindrical shape, and a central hole 41b is formed at the center of the bottom 41a (the right end in FIG. 13), and the opening outside the central hole 41b is an exhaust valve. It is considered as the mouth 44. A substantially bottomed cylindrical valve housing 49 having a valve chamber 48 communicating with the exhaust valve port 44 is fixed to the outside of the bottom portion 41 a of the cylinder 41. At the bottom of the valve housing 49, an air lead-out passage 49a projecting in a cylindrical shape is formed in communication with the valve chamber 48, and the air hose H2 is connected to the air lead-out passage 49a.

  The exhaust valve 45 extends in the axial direction (right side in FIG. 13) from the disc portion 51 along the inner peripheral surface of the valve chamber 48 and the outer peripheral edge of the disc portion 51. An exhaust valve main body 54 integrally formed with a cylindrical portion 52 for guiding the movement in the axial direction and an operation convex portion 53 projecting to the inner side of the cylinder 41 from the center of the disc portion 51; It has the disk shaped rubber member 55 fitted outside by the part. An exhaust communication hole 51 a penetrating in the axial direction is formed in a part of the disc portion 51 in the circumferential direction. The exhaust valve 45 is movable along the reciprocation direction of the piston 42, and the rubber member 55 is closed in a direction in which the rubber member 55 is in close contact with the exhaust valve port 44 (blocks the exhaust valve port 44). An opening operation in a direction away from the exhaust valve port 44 (opening the exhaust valve port 44) is enabled. The exhaust valve 45 is biased toward the inside (the left side in FIG. 13) of the cylinder 41 by a coil spring 56 supported by the bottom of the valve housing 49. The coil spring 56 is set such that the exhaust valve 45 does not open (only the spring constant and the like) only by compressed air described later.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the piston 42 has a substantially disc-like piston main body portion 62 in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 41 via a seal ring 61 externally fitted on the outer periphery, and the outer periphery of the piston main body portion 62 It has a pair of pillars 63 extending in the axial direction from a part of the side, and a substantially disc-shaped disk part 64 connected to the tip of the pillars 63 and formed into a flange shape. Further, a piston communication hole 65 penetrating in the axial direction is formed in a part of the circumferential direction of the piston main body 62, and the opening inside the piston communication hole 65 (the side of the bottom 41 a of the cylinder 41) is the intake valve port 46. It is assumed. The piston communication hole 65 is formed at a position (angle) at which the pillar portion 63 in the piston main body 62 is not formed. Further, also in the disc portion 64, a communicating portion 66 communicating in the axial direction is formed.

  The intake valve 47 of the present embodiment is an umbrella valve, and includes a disk-shaped central support portion 47a and an elastic deformation portion 47b extending radially outward from the central support portion 47a. The central support 47 a of the intake valve 47 is fixed to the piston main body 62 by the operation member 67 so that the elastically deformable portion 47 b covers the intake valve port 46. Specifically, a cylindrical large-diameter portion 62a is axially protruded at the center of the piston main body 62, and a small-diameter cylindrical small-diameter portion 62b is further axially convex at the center of the large-diameter portion 62a. It is set up. The central support 47a of the intake valve 47 is externally fitted to the small diameter portion 62b and is interposed between the large diameter portion 62a and the disk plate 68 in the axial direction, and the central hole of the small diameter portion 62b and the large diameter portion 62a. The disc plate 68 is fixed by the head portion 67a of the operation member 67 screwed or press-fitted to the 62c, so that it is held between the large diameter portion 62a and the disc plate 68. The operation member 67 pushes the operation convex portion 53 of the exhaust valve 45 by the forward movement of the piston 42 to open the exhaust valve 45 (see FIG. 13B).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 12, the piston 42 has a forward movement damper portion 71a that abuts on the forward movement restriction portion 70 at the forward movement end position, and a return movement damper that abuts on the reverse movement restriction portion 72 at the return end position. A damper member 71 formed integrally with the portion 71b is provided. Specifically, in the disk portion 64 of the piston 42, a plurality of fixing holes 64a penetrating in the axial direction are formed in the circumferential direction. The damper member 71 includes a shaft portion 71c housed in the fixing hole 64a, a forward motion damper portion 71a formed at one end of the shaft portion 71c, and a reverse motion damper portion 71b formed at the other end of the coaxial portion 71c. And. The forward motion damper portion 71a and the backward motion damper portion 71b of the present embodiment are formed in a hemispherical shape having a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the shaft portion 71c, for example, passing through the fixing hole 64a while crushing the forward motion damper portion 71a. Thus, the shaft 71 c is disposed and fixed in the fixing hole 64 a. Then, on the inner surface of the cylinder 41, a forward movement restricting portion 70 is formed so as to project inward so as to abut on the forward movement damper portion 71a at the forward movement end position of the piston 42. Further, an end housing 73 as a housing of the motor unit 43 is fixed to the opening of the cylinder 41 so as to close the opening, and the end face of the end housing 73 reciprocates at the return end position of the piston 42 The back movement restricting portion 72 is in contact with the damper portion 71 b.

  Further, a screw hole 64 b is formed at the center of the disc portion 64 of the piston 42. A screw shaft 74 rotated by the drive of the motor unit 43 is screwed into the screw hole 64b, and when the screw shaft 74 is driven to rotate, the piston 42, which has been locked against rotation, is driven to reciprocate by screw action. Specifically, the motor unit 43 has a substantially bottomed cylindrical yoke housing 75 and the end housing 73 for closing the opening (the right end in FIG. 12) of the yoke housing 75. The motor unit 43 is fixed to the magnet 76 fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the yoke housing 75, the rotating shaft 77 rotatably supported at the axial center of the yoke housing 75, and the rotating shaft 77 (winding Are wound), an armature core 78, a commutator 79, and the like. The screw shaft 74 is connected to the rotation shaft 77 so as to be integrally rotatable.

  Here, in the end housing 73 of the motor unit 43, a communication hole 73a is formed which penetrates in the axial direction and connects the inside of the motor unit 43 and the space in which the piston 42 in the cylinder 41 is accommodated. Further, in the end housing 73, an external communication hole 73b is formed which penetrates in the radial direction (vertical direction in FIG. 12) to communicate the inside of the motor portion 43 with the external space. Thus, the intake valve port 46 in which the intake valve 47 is disposed is communicated with the outside through the piston communication hole 65, the communication portion 66, the communication hole 73a and the external communication hole 73b.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 1A, the air pump AP and the washer pump WP configured as described above are electrically connected to the control unit 81 and driven and controlled by the control unit 81.

Next, the operation of the control unit 81 of the in-vehicle optical sensor cleaning system (in-vehicle optical sensor cleaning device) configured as described above and the operation thereof will be described.
First, when the washer pump WP and the air pump AP are not driven, in the nozzle unit 6, the nozzle member 9 is moved backward to the non-washing position by the biasing force of the compression coil spring 27 (see FIG. 10). The member 9 is housed in the nozzle housing portion 7b of the in-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 and does not protrude from the in-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7. The injection port 8 (the tip of the nozzle member 9) is out of the imaging range of the in-vehicle camera 5. Will be placed. Therefore, when not performing cleaning and imaging, the injection port 8 (the tip of the nozzle member 9) does not interfere with imaging. Moreover, the nozzle unit 6 including the nozzle member 9 is neatly housed in the on-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7.

  Then, the control unit 81 starts washing, for example, when the switch SW (see FIG. 1A) provided in the vehicle is operated, or when the shift lever SL of the transmission is operated to the reverse position. When a signal to the effect is input, drive control of the washer pump WP (pump motor) and the air pump AP (motor unit 43) is performed to eject fluid from the injection port 8.

  Specifically, the control unit 81 first stores the cleaning solution in the common introduction chamber D inside the nozzle member 9 so as to close the injection port 8, and supplies air to the nozzle member 9 in that state, so that the cleaning solution is stored. The washer pump WP and the air pump AP are controlled so as to inject the gas-liquid mixed fluid in which the air and the air are mixed. Further, the control unit 81 controls the air pump AP so as to inject only air after injecting the gas-liquid mixed fluid.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 14, the control unit 81 first drives the washer pump WP (pump motor) for a preset time T1. Then, the cleaning liquid from the washer pump WP is supplied to the cleaning liquid introduction path 32 c through the cleaning liquid hose H 1, and the cleaning liquid introduced from the cleaning liquid introduction path 32 c is the inside of the nozzle member 9 through the cleaning liquid side check valve 33. Supplied to At this time, the nozzle unit 6 is housed and fixed in the nozzle housing portion 7b by the in-vehicle optical sensor mounting bracket 7 with the injection port 8 positioned lower than the common introduction chamber D in the direction of gravity. The cleaning liquid supplied to the nozzle 8 is stored in the common introduction chamber D so as to close the injection port 8 (to a degree that it slightly leaks from the injection port 8). At this time, the cleaning liquid also flows into the space SP on the side of the proximal end flange portion 25b from the clearance due to the loose fitting between the cylindrical portion 24a and the inlet portion 31d.

  Then, the control unit 81 drives the air pump AP (motor unit 43) after stopping the washer pump WP (pump motor). Specifically, the control unit 81 first drives the motor unit 43 by normal rotation (see time T2 in FIG. 14). Then, the screw shaft 74 rotates forward with the rotation shaft 77 to move the piston 42 forward so as to narrow the space (pump chamber P) in the cylinder 41, and the air in the space (pump chamber P) is compressed. Go.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 13B, the operation member 67 of the piston 42 reaches the operation convex portion 53 of the exhaust valve 45 and presses the operation convex portion 53, whereby the exhaust valve 45 is opened and compressed. The high pressure air is instantaneously exhausted (discharged) from the air lead-out passage 49a via the exhaust valve port 44 and the exhaust communication hole 51a. Then, the air from the air pump AP is fed to the air introduction passage 32d of the nozzle unit 6 via the air hose H2, and the air introduced from the air introduction passage 32d is the nozzle member via the air-side check valve 34 It is supplied to the inside of 9, mixed with the cleaning liquid stored in the common introduction chamber D, and injected from the injection port 8 as a gas-liquid mixed fluid. At this time, the main flow of the fluid (air) is directed straight toward the tip side (the injection port 8 side) of the nozzle member 9 by the inlet 31d. Further, the branch of the fluid (air) also goes around the space SP on the side of the proximal end flange portion 25b from the gap formed by the loose fitting of the cylindrical portion 24a and the inlet portion 31d, and the nozzle member 9 is advanced by the feeding pressure ( See Figure 11). Thereby, as shown in FIG. 1B, the injection port 8 of the nozzle member 9 moves from the non-washing position (see FIG. 10) to the washing position (see FIG. 11) so as to approach the imaging range center X of the on-vehicle camera 5. Move to In addition, the imaging range of this embodiment is a range which a vehicle-mounted camera 5 (its image pick-up element) images via the lens 5b, Comprising: It is a range displayed on display DSP. Further, in FIG. 1 (b), while the landscape displayed on the display DSP and the injection port 8 (the tip of the nozzle member 9) disposed within the imaging range are illustrated, the image is at the non-cleaning position and imaged The injection port 8 (the tip of the nozzle member 9) disposed outside the range is schematically illustrated by a two-dot chain line. Also, at this time, the air pressure of the introduced air is instantaneously further increased because the cleaning liquid remains so as to block the injection port 8 and the high pressure pushes the cleaning liquid and mixes with the air. It is injected. Therefore, the gas-liquid mixed fluid is jetted at a higher pressure, and the lens 5b is cleaned well.

  Then, the control unit 81 drives the motor unit 43 by reverse rotation (see time T3 in FIG. 14). Then, the screw shaft 74 is reversely rotated with the rotation shaft 77 so that the piston 42 is returned to widen the space (pump chamber P) in the cylinder 41, and the space (pump chamber P) becomes negative pressure. The intake valve 47 is opened to draw air from the intake valve port 46 into the cylinder 41 (pump chamber P). More specifically, this air flows from the outside of the air pump AP to the inside of the cylinder 41 (pump chamber P) through the external communication hole 73b, the communication hole 73a, the communication portion 66 and the piston communication hole 65 (intake valve port 46) of the motor unit 43. Inhaled by At this time, when the operation member 67 of the piston 42 is separated from the operation projection 53 of the exhaust valve 45, the exhaust valve 45 is closed, and the exhaust valve port 44 is closed.

  Then, next, the control unit 81 drives the motor unit 43 of the air pump AP by normal rotation as described above without driving the washer pump WP (pump motor) in order to inject only air (as shown in FIG. 14). See time T4). Then, the air from the air pump AP is fed to the air introduction passage 32 d via the air hose H 2, and the air introduced from the air introduction passage 32 d is fed to the inside of the nozzle member 9 via the air side check valve 34. The air is supplied, and the nozzle member 9 is advanced (the cleaning position) as described above, and only air is injected from the injection port 8. As a result, the cleaning liquid attached to the lens 5b by the jet of the gas-liquid mixed fluid is blown off by the jet of air only.

  Then, next, the control unit 81 drives the motor unit 43 of the air pump AP by reverse rotation as described above (see time T5 in FIG. 14), and the air is sucked into the cylinder 41 (pump chamber P). End control.

Next, characteristic effects of the above embodiment will be described below.
(1) The intake valve port 46 is an opening of the piston communication hole 65 provided in the piston 42, and the piston communication hole 65 and the outside through the external communication hole 73b provided in the end housing 73 of the motor portion 43 It is communicated. Therefore, the distance from the intake valve port 46 to the external communication hole 73b becomes long, and noise such as a whistling noise at the intake valve port 46 and a fluttering noise of the intake valve 47 generated when the piston 42 moves backwards hardly leaks outside be able to.

  (2) The piston 42 is fixed to the operating member 67 which pushes the exhaust valve 45 to open the piston by forward movement, and the intake valve 47 is fixed to the piston 42 by the operating member 67. The operation member 67 for pressing can also have the function of fixing the intake valve 47.

  (3) The piston 42 is integrally formed with a forward movement damper portion 71a contacting the forward movement restricting portion 70 at the forward movement end position and a backward movement damper portion 71b contacting the backward movement restricting portion 72 at the backward movement end position. The damper member 71 is provided. Therefore, for example, as compared with the configuration in which the forward movement damper portion and the backward movement damper portion are separate bodies, absorbing each impact at the forward movement end position and the backward movement end position while suppressing an increase in the number of parts. Can.

The above embodiment may be modified as follows.
In the above embodiment, although the intake valve port 46 is communicated with the outside through the external communication hole 73 b provided in the end housing 73 of the motor unit 43, the external communication hole is formed in another housing of the motor unit 43. The yoke housing 75 may be provided with an external communication hole, and may be communicated with the outside through the external communication hole.

In the above embodiment, the operation member 67 for pushing the exhaust valve 45 has the function of fixing the intake valve 47. However, the present invention is not limited to this and may be configured independently.
In the embodiment described above, the piston 42 is provided with the damper member 71 in which the forward motion damper portion 71a and the backward motion damper portion 71b are integrally formed. However, the invention is not limited thereto. The dynamic damper unit may be provided separately.

  In the above embodiment, the control unit 81 controls the air pump AP to inject only the air after injecting the gas-liquid mixed fluid, but the invention is not limited to this, and the gas-liquid mixed fluid is injected ( The control may be ended without injecting only air.

  In the above embodiment, after stopping the washer pump WP (pump motor), the control unit 81 starts driving the air pump AP (motor unit 43) to eject the gas-liquid mixed fluid. If cleaning fluid is stored in the inside (shared introduction chamber D) of the nozzle member 9 so as to close 8 and air is supplied to the nozzle member 9 in that state, other control may be performed.

  For example, the driving of the air pump AP (motor unit 43) may be started before the washer pump WP (pump motor) is stopped. More specifically, for example, the washer pump WP (pump motor) and the air pump AP (motor unit 43) are simultaneously started to drive, and the operation member 67 of the air pump AP is exhausted after the washer pump WP (pump motor) is stopped. Control may be performed such that the exhaust valve 45 is opened by pressing the operation projection 53 of the valve 45. In this way, the time until the gas-liquid mixed fluid is jetted can be shortened.

In the above embodiment, the air pump AP is used as a part of the in-vehicle optical sensor cleaning system. However, the invention is not limited thereto, and may be an air pump used for another system.
Technical ideas that can be grasped from the above embodiment will be described below.

  (A) An elongated cylindrical cylinder and a piston reciprocably provided in the cylinder, and when the piston is moved forward so as to narrow a space in the cylinder, air in the cylinder Is compressed, the compressed air is exhausted, and the air is drawn into the cylinder when the piston is reciprocated, wherein the piston has a forward movement restricting portion at a forward movement end position. What is claimed is: 1. An air pump comprising: a damper member integrally formed with a forward movement damper portion in contact with the backward movement damper portion and a backward movement damper portion in contact with the backward movement restriction portion at the backward movement end position.

  According to the same configuration, the damper is integrally formed with the forward movement damper portion that contacts the forward movement restriction portion at the forward movement end position and the backward movement damper portion that contacts the backward movement restriction portion at the backward movement end position. Since the members are provided, it is possible to absorb each impact at the forward movement end position and the backward movement end position while suppressing an increase in the number of parts.

  Reference Signs List 41 cylinder, 42 piston, 43 motor portion 44 exhaust valve port 45 exhaust valve 46 intake valve port 47 intake valve port 65 piston communication hole 67 operation member 70 forward movement Regulating part, 71 ... Damper member, 71a ... Forward damper part, 71b ... Reverse damper part, 72 ... Reverse regulation part, 73b ... External communication hole, AP ... Air pump.

Claims (3)

A long cylindrical cylinder,
A piston reciprocably provided in the cylinder;
A motor unit disposed on the return side of the piston for reciprocatingly driving the piston;
An exhaust valve that opens and closes so as to open and close an exhaust valve port that communicates the inside and the outside of the cylinder;
And an intake valve that opens and closes to open and close an intake valve port that communicates the inside and the outside of the cylinder, and when the piston is moved forward so as to narrow a space in the cylinder, air in the cylinder is compressed. When the exhaust valve is opened to exhaust the compressed air from the exhaust valve port and the piston is returned, the intake valve is operated to open the air from the intake valve port in the cylinder. An air pump that is drawn into the
The intake valve port is an opening of a piston communication hole provided in the piston, and is communicated with the outside through the piston communication hole and an external communication hole provided in the housing of the motor unit ,
The intake valve is an umbrella valve, and has a disk-shaped central support portion and an elastic deformation portion extending radially outward from the central support portion, the elastic deformation portion covering the intake valve port An air pump characterized in that the central support is immovably fixed relative to the piston . In the air pump according to claim 1,
An operating member is fixed to the piston for performing an opening operation by pushing the exhaust valve by forward movement of the piston,
An air pump characterized in that the intake valve is fixed to the piston by the operation member. The air pump according to claim 1 or 2
The piston is provided with a damper member integrally formed with a forward movement damper portion in contact with the forward movement restricting portion at the forward movement end position and a backward movement damper portion in contact with the backward movement restriction portion at the backward movement end position. An air pump characterized by