JP7100812B2 - Display device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a display device mounted on a vehicle or the like.

Vehicles such as motorcycles have a display device that displays the speed of the vehicle, the engine speed, the state of the vehicle, and the like. The display device has, for example, a state display unit that is displayed when it is illuminated by a light source as a backlight. The status display unit visually notifies the driver of various notifications such as the operating state of the turn signal and a warning notifying the abnormality of the vehicle (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-23669

The display device is arranged in a limited space on the vehicle. Therefore, as a result of limiting the shape of the housing, the display device may be limited in the number of parts and the installation position of various members in the housing. For example, it may not be possible to arrange a light source in the vicinity of the status display unit.

In such a case, the state display unit is illuminated by guiding the light to a position away from the light source by the light guide. However, in the light guide body, light is not a little transmitted to the outside of the light guide body when the reflection is repeated. Therefore, the amount of light reaching the status display unit may be insufficient, and the visibility of the status display unit may be impaired.

The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a display device having excellent visibility.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the display device according to the present invention includes a light source that emits light, a light receiving surface that receives the light, and a stepped reflective surface that has a step switching portion and reflects the light. Information by having a light emitting surface having a light emitting surface having a concavo-convex pattern that emits light reflected by the reflecting surface and being illuminated by light emitted by the light emitting surface facing the light emitting surface. It is provided with a light-shielding plate having a display unit for displaying.

In the display device according to the present invention, excellent visibility can be realized.

It is an embodiment of the display device which concerns on this invention, and is the front view explaining the whole structure of the display device. Sectional drawing along line II-II of FIG. It is a block diagram of the light guide body provided for an arrow, (A) is a front view, (B) is a sectional view along line BB of FIG. 3 (A). Enlarged view of the light emitting part of the light guide body. The figure which shows the modification of the display device which concerns on this invention.

An embodiment of the display device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The display device according to the present invention is mounted on a vehicle such as a two-wheeled vehicle or an automobile, a ship, an agricultural machine, or a construction machine. In the present embodiment, an example in which the display device according to the present invention is a display device mounted on a two-wheeled vehicle will be described. Further, an example in which the display unit of the display device according to the present invention displays an arrow (indicator) for displaying the state of the blinker will be described.

FIG. 1 is an embodiment of a display device according to the present invention, and is a front view illustrating the overall configuration of the display device 1.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG.

In the following description, the "front side" is the front side in FIG. 1 and the upper side (upper case 43 side) in FIG. 2, and means the side visually recognized by the viewer. The "back side" means the back side in FIG. 1 and the lower side (lower case 42 side) in FIG.

The display device 1 has a speedometer 2, a liquid crystal display screen 3, and a status display unit 4, and various information is displayed via these. The speedometer 2 is a pointer-type instrument and displays the traveling speed of the vehicle. The liquid crystal display screen 3 displays the mileage of the vehicle and the remaining amount of fuel. The status display unit 4 displays a warning such as a vehicle status such as an operating status of the headlight and a decrease in fuel amount. In particular, in the present embodiment, the status display unit 4 has an arrow 4a (display unit) for displaying the status of the blinker (direction indicator), and a status display unit other than the speedometer 2, the liquid crystal display screen 3, and the arrow 4a. It is provided on the left and right end sides of the display device 1 away from 4.

The display device 1 includes a pointer base 10, a pointer 11, a pointer drive unit (not shown), a display panel 12, a dial 13, a circuit board 14, a light source 15, a light guide body 16, and a case. It mainly has 17.

The pointer drive unit rotates the pointer shaft according to the input traveling speed of the vehicle. The pointer 11 is connected to the pointer shaft via the pointer base 10, and points to the scale (design 21) of the dial 13 corresponding to the speed by rotating on a surface parallel to the surface of the dial 13.

The display panel 12 is a segment type liquid crystal display panel, and has a pair of surface glass substrates for enclosing the liquid crystal layer. A transparent electrode is formed on the pair of glass substrates by ITO (Indium Tin Oxide) or the like. Further, the display panel 12 has a pair of surface polarizing plates (polarizing filters) arranged so as to sandwich the pair of surface glass substrates. The display panel 12 is connected to the circuit board 14 via a flexible substrate such as FPC (Flexible Printed Circuits). The display panel 12 is controlled by the control unit of the circuit board 14, so that a drive voltage is applied to the liquid crystal layer via the transparent electrode. As a result, the orientation of the liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer is controlled, and the individual pixels of the display panel 12 are switched to the transmissive state or the opaque state. With such a combination of pixels, the display panel 12 displays predetermined information on the liquid crystal display screen 3.

Further, a backlight unit is provided on the back surface side of the display panel 12. The backlight unit is an LED (Light Emitting Diode) and a light guide body, and illuminates the display panel 12 from the back surface.

The dial 13 (light-shielding plate) is on the front side of the display panel 12, and is provided on the back side of the pointer 11. The dial 13 has a base material and a design layer. The base material is, for example, a plate-shaped member of a polycarbonate resin having transparency (translucency). The design layer is a printing layer printed with a black light-shielding ink formed on the front side or the back side of the base material.

The design layer has a design 21 such as a scale, a number, a character, and a symbol formed in a punched character shape. The design 21 is lit and displayed by transmitting the light of the light source 15 emitted from the back surface side of the dial 13. In the present embodiment, the dial 13 faces the light emitting surface 63b, and the design that realizes the arrow 4a as a display unit that displays information by being illuminated by the light emitted by the light emitting surface 63b of the light guide body 16. Has 21a. The design 21a is provided outside the circuit board 14. That is, the design 21a does not face the light source 15 provided on the circuit board 14. Further, the dial 13 has an opening 13a that exposes the display panel 12.

The circuit board 14 is provided on the back side of the dial 13. The circuit board 14 mainly includes a driver and a control unit for the display panel 12 and the light source 15, a light source 15, and a pointer driving unit.

The control unit has a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like, and for example, executes a predetermined arithmetic process according to a program written in the ROM. The control unit acquires, for example, various vehicle information from the vehicle's ECU (Electronic Control Unit) via various sensors and the like. Based on the acquired information, the control unit displays the information on the liquid crystal display screen 3 and the status display unit 4, and also drives the pointer driving unit.

The light source 15 is a top view type (top light emitting type) LED provided on the circuit board 14. The light source 15 emits light and illuminates the dial 13 from the back side of the dial 13. The light source 15 is provided corresponding to the position of the design 21 of the dial 13. Specifically, the light source 15 is provided on the circuit board 14 corresponding to the position where the state display unit 4 is provided and the positions of the scales, numbers, and characters of the speedometer 2. In particular, the light source 15 for illuminating the arrow 4a is provided at the end of the circuit board 14.

The light guide 16 guides the light emitted by the light source 15 to the design 21 of the dial 13. The light guide body 16 is provided when the design 21 is away from the light source 15 or as necessary in order to efficiently illuminate the design 21. The light guide 16 is made of a transparent resin such as Polymethylcrylic (PMMA). The light guide 16 has a reflective film on the back surface. The reflective film is a film-like member made of resin or the like and formed in white. The reflective film reflects the light leaked from the light guide 16 and causes the light to enter the light guide 16 again to reduce the loss of light transmitted through the light guide 16. The details of the light guide body 16 provided for the arrow 4a will be described later.

The case 17 is made of a synthetic resin material and has a light-shielding white middle case 41, a light-shielding black lower case 42, and a translucent transparent upper case 43. The middle case 41 fixes and supports the pointer 11, the display panel 12, the dial 13, the light guide 16 and the circuit board 14. The middle case 41 has a light-shielding wall 41a that surrounds the light source 15 and guides the emitted light. The light-shielding wall 41a is a wall that divides the illumination (emission) region of the light source 15 and forms a tubular space, and light passes through the tubular space. One end of the light-shielding wall 41a (the surface of the middle case 41 facing the circuit board 14) is in contact with the circuit board 14, and the other end (the surface of the middle case 41 facing the dial 13) is the back surface of the dial 13. Is in contact with.

The upper case 43 and the lower case 42 form an internal space formed by being fitted, and the pointer driving unit 10, the pointer 11, the display panel 12, the dial 13, the light guide 16 and the circuit are formed in this internal space. Accommodates the substrate 14. The upper case 43 has a partition 43a that divides the dial 13 into a plurality of display areas. As a result, the display device 1 has a main display area 51 provided with a speedometer 2, a display panel 12, and a status display unit 4 other than the arrow 4a, and a sub display area 52 provided with the arrow 4a. The main display area 51 is provided substantially in the center of the display device 1. The sub display area 52 is provided on the left and right end sides of the display device 1 away from the main display area 51.

Next, the details of the light guide body 16 provided for the arrow 4a will be described.

3A and 3B are structural views of a light guide body 16 provided for arrow 4a, FIG. 3A is a front view, and FIG. 3B is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the light emitting portion 63 of the light guide body 16.

The light guide body 16 has a vertical portion 61, a horizontal portion 62, and a light emitting portion 63.

The vertical portion 61 is a portion that is perpendicular to the circuit board 14 (dial plate 13) at the time of installation. The vertical portion 61 has a light receiving surface 61a and a primary reflection surface 61b. The light receiving surface 61a is a surface provided at one end of the vertical portion 61 facing the light source 15, and receives (incidentally) the light emitted from the light source 15. The light receiving surface 61a is subjected to a light diffusion treatment that diffuses the light to be received and guides the light to the inside of the light guide body 16. For example, the light receiving surface 61a is roughened by fine irregularities, dot-shaped protrusions, printing, and the like. The primary reflecting surface 61b is provided at the other end of the vertical portion 61, reflects the light incident from the light receiving surface 61a, and changes the traveling direction of the light by approximately 90 degrees.

The horizontal portion 62 is a portion that is bent and connected to the other end of the vertical portion 61 (the end portion on the primary reflection surface 61b side) at a substantially right angle to the vertical portion 61 and is horizontal to the circuit board 14. The horizontal portion 62 guides the light reflected by the primary reflecting surface 61b to the light emitting portion 63.

The light emitting portion 63 is connected to the end portion of the horizontal portion 62 opposite to the end portion to which the vertical portion 61 is connected. The light emitting unit 63 has a secondary reflection surface 63a and a light emitting surface 63b. The secondary reflecting surface 63a (reflecting surface) reflects the light guided by the horizontal portion 62 (light guide body 16) and changes the traveling direction of the light by approximately 90 degrees. The secondary reflection surface 63a is a stepped surface having a step switching portion 64. The step switching portion 64 is a surface connecting positions where a plurality of steps are switched (the steps become higher) in a staircase shape, and is a slope set at an optimum angle for reflecting light to the light emitting surface 63b. The light emitting surface 63b is a surface facing the design 21a displaying the arrow 4a of the dial 13, and emits light reflected by the secondary reflecting surface 63a to emit light. The light emitting surface 63b is provided with an uneven pattern as a diffusion process for diffusing and emitting the light emitted from the light guide body 16. Specifically, the light emitting surface 63b has a diamond cut pattern 65. The diamond-cut pattern 65 is a concavo-convex shape having a plurality of continuously arranged convex portions 70a that are polygonal and have vertices, and concave portions 65a formed between adjacent convex portions 70a. The diamond cut pattern 65 refracts or reflects the emitted light, diffuses or collects the light, and makes the light emitting surface 63b visually recognized as shining.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, in the light guide body 16, when the light emitting surface 63b is viewed from the arrow 4a (design 21a) side, that is, the front side of the display device 1, the step switching portion 64 is a recess of the diamond cut pattern 65. It almost coincides with the line 65b connecting the vertices of 65a linearly.

Here, in order to increase the brightness of the light and improve the visibility, the light emitting surface 63b has a diamond cut pattern 65. However, if light is randomly emitted from the light emitting surface 63b, the refraction, reflection, diffusion, and condensing action of the light due to the uneven shape of the diamond cut pattern 65 may not be sufficiently exhibited, and the desired brightness may not be obtained. .. In addition, the design of the diamond-cut pattern 65 may be impaired, and a brilliant visual effect may not be obtained.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the secondary reflection surface 63a is formed in a stepped shape having a step switching portion 64. As a result, the light guide 16 can control the reflection (directivity) of light on the secondary reflection surface 63a, and can reach the light emitting surface 63b while maintaining the brightness of the light source 15. Further, even when the arrow 4a is away from the light source 15, the light can be guided to the arrow 4a without impairing the brightness.

Further, when the light emitting surface 63b is viewed from the arrow 4a side, that is, the front side of the display device 1, the step switching portion 64 substantially coincides with the line 65b linearly connecting the vertices of the recess 65a of the diamond cut pattern 65. did. As a result, the light emitting surface 63b can emit light without impairing the design of the diamond cut pattern 65.

Thereby, the display device 1 in the present embodiment can realize excellent visibility.

Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other embodiments, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are also included in the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

For example, although the diamond cut pattern 65 is provided on the light emitting surface 63b of the light guide body 16, the light guide body 16 and the light emitting surface 63b may be separate bodies. That is, a diamond cut pattern 65 may be provided on a member different from the light guide body 16, and this member may be provided so as to face the light emitting surface 63b that does not have the diamond cut pattern 65 of the light guide body 16.

Further, when the light emitting surface 63b is viewed from the arrow 4a side, that is, the front side of the display device 1, the step switching portion 64 substantially coincides with the line 70b linearly connecting the vertices of the convex portion 70a of the diamond cut pattern 65. You may do it.

The shape of the light guide body 16 may have a shape corresponding to the light emission direction of the light source 15. For example, when the light source 15 is a side view type (side light emitting type) LED that emits light in a direction parallel to the surface direction of the circuit board 14, the vertical portion 61 is omitted and the light receiving surface is located at the end of the horizontal portion 62. 61a may be provided.

The diamond cut pattern 65 may be another uneven pattern such as a satin-like uneven pattern or an uneven pattern due to grain processing.

Further, in the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, one design 21 is provided on each side, but when a plurality of designs 21 are provided on the left and right sides, the light guide body 16 and the light source 15 also correspond to the number of designs 21. And multiple are arranged. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a modified example of the display device according to the present invention. For example, when there are three designs 21 on each side, as shown in FIG. 5, three light guide bodies 16 are also arranged on each side. The three light guide bodies 16 are connected by a plurality of connecting portions 66 and are integrally formed. By being formed in this way, the number of parts of the light guide body 16 can be reduced, and the parts cost and the assembly man-hours can be reduced.

The connecting portion 66 is arranged on the side end surface 62a of the horizontal portion 62 and is formed into a rectangular cross section. Further, the connecting portion 66 has a bent portion 66a bent in a substantially V shape when viewed from the front surface side. By being formed in this way, even when the three light sources 15 facing the vertical portions 61 of the three light guide bodies 16 simultaneously emit light in different colors, the bent portion 66a emits light. It can be attenuated, and light of different colors can be reduced from being guided to the horizontal portion 62.

Further, in order to prevent light of different colors from being incident on each of the three light guide bodies 16, a light shielding wall may be formed in the middle case 41 so as to partition each of the three light guide bodies 16.

In FIG. 5, the lengths from the vertical portion 61 to the diamond cut pattern 65 are shown to be substantially the same for each of the three light guide bodies 16, but they may be formed to have different lengths. Further, although each of the three light guide bodies 16 is shown substantially parallel in FIG. 5, they may be formed in different directions.

1 Display device 2 Speed meter 3 Liquid crystal display screen 4 Status display unit 4a Arrow 10 Pointer base 11 Pointer 12 Display panel 13 Dial 13a Opening 14 Circuit board 15 Light source 16 Light guide 17 Case 21, 21a Design 41 Medium case 41a Shading wall 42 Lower case 43 Upper case 43a Partition 51 Main display area 52 Sub display area 61 Vertical part 61a Light receiving surface 61b Primary reflection surface 62 Horizontal part 62a Side end surface 63 Light emitting part 63a Secondary reflecting surface 63b Light emitting surface 64 Step switching part 65 Diamond cut Pattern 65a Concave part 65b Line connecting the vertices of the concave part linearly 66 Connecting part 66a Bending part 70a Convex part 70b Line connecting the vertices of the convex part linearly

Claims (4)

A light source that emits light and
It has a light receiving surface that receives the light, a stepped reflective surface that has a step switching portion and reflects the light, and a light emitting surface that has an uneven pattern that emits the light reflected by the reflective surface. With the light guide
A display device including a light-shielding plate facing the light-emitting surface and having a display unit that displays information by being illuminated by the light emitted by the light-emitting surface. When the light emitting surface is viewed from the display unit side, the step switching portion is substantially a line connecting the vertices of the concave portion of the uneven pattern linearly or a line connecting the vertices of the convex portion of the uneven pattern linearly. The display device according to claim 1, which matches. The display device according to claim 2, wherein the uneven pattern is a diamond-cut pattern having a plurality of convex portions having vertices and concave portions formed between the adjacent convex portions. A substrate provided on the back side of the light-shielding plate and having the light source is further provided.
The display device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the display unit is provided outside the substrate.

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