JP7276406B2 - Near-infrared sensor cover - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a near-infrared sensor cover that covers a near-infrared transmitter and a near-infrared receiver in a near-infrared sensor.

In the field of vehicles, technology is being developed to detect the distance and relative speed to objects including preceding vehicles and pedestrians using a near-infrared sensor having a transmitter and a receiver. The detection is performed by transmitting near-infrared rays from the transmitting unit toward the outside of the vehicle, and receiving the near-infrared rays returned after hitting an object outside the vehicle and being reflected by the receiving unit.

When the near-infrared sensor is attached to a vehicle in an exposed state, the transmitter and receiver are directly visible from the front of the vehicle. For this reason, not only the near-infrared sensor itself, but also the appearance around the near-infrared sensor in the vehicle is spoiled.

Therefore, it is considered to cover the transmitter and the receiver with a near-infrared sensor cover. The near-infrared sensor cover is made of black-colored transparent or semi-transparent resin in order to ensure optical properties such that visible light is difficult to transmit and near-infrared light is easy to transmit.

When the near-infrared sensor cover is mounted on a vehicle, if the color or the like of the design parts arranged around the mounting location is different, the designability is deteriorated. Therefore, various near-infrared sensor covers capable of improving the designability by matching the color and the like to the design parts have been studied (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-198617

However, a near-infrared sensor cover having sufficient decorativeness and near-infrared transmittance has not yet been obtained.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a near-infrared sensor cover capable of improving designability while ensuring the detection function of the near-infrared sensor. It is in.

A near-infrared sensor cover that solves the above problems includes a transmitter that transmits near-infrared rays toward the outside of a vehicle, and a receiver that receives the near-infrared rays that have been reflected back by hitting an object outside the vehicle. A near-infrared sensor cover that is applied to a near-infrared sensor and covers the transmitting part and the receiving part, and is coated with a filler consisting of a core and a shell that covers the core with a material having a different refractive index from that of the core. and has a near-infrared light transmittance of 60% or more and a visible light transmittance of 70% or less, and the filler is a low refractive index material. It consists of the formed core and the shell formed of a high refractive index material having a higher refractive index than the material forming the core, and the content of the filler in the bright layer is 2% by weight or less.

According to the above configuration, when the near-infrared sensor cover is irradiated with light from a light source (sun, electric light, etc.) outside the vehicle, part of the light is reflected by the surface of the shell in the bright layer. Another portion of the light is refracted on the surface of the shell, enters the shell, reflects at the boundary between the shell and the core, and exits the shell again. These two types of light strengthen (interfere) each other by being in phase, and only the light of that color is strengthened. Which color of light is intensified depends on the thickness of the shell. Therefore, by adjusting the thickness of the shell, it is possible to intensify light of a specific color having a wavelength corresponding to the thickness. From the outside of the vehicle, the reflected light appears metallic with a particular color (a color with a metallic luster is visible).

Furthermore, by matching the color of the light reflected and intensified by the shell and core to the color of the design parts around the near-infrared sensor cover in the vehicle, a sense of unity with the design parts is obtained, and the design is enhanced. .

Further, when the design part has metallic luster, the sense of unity with the design part is further enhanced by the metallic luster of the bright layer, and the design property is further improved.
When near-infrared rays are transmitted from the transmitter of the near-infrared sensor, the near-infrared rays pass through the near-infrared sensor cover. The near-infrared rays are reflected by objects including preceding vehicles, pedestrians, etc., then pass through the near-infrared sensor cover again and are received by the receiving section. Since the near-infrared sensor cover has a near-infrared light transmittance of 60% or more, it does not interfere with near-infrared transmission. Therefore, the near-infrared sensor easily exhibits the function of detecting the distance and relative speed between the vehicle and the object.

Preferably, the near-infrared sensor cover further comprises a decorative layer made of a coating film containing at least one of a pigment and a dye as a coloring agent, and the decorative layer is formed on the inner surface of the bright layer. .
According to the above configuration, when the near-infrared sensor cover is irradiated with light from the light source outside the vehicle, part of the light is reflected by the decorative layer. From the outside of the vehicle, the color of the light reflected by the shell and core in the bright layer and enhanced is seen mixed with the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer.
Therefore, the color matching of the near-infrared sensor cover is easier than when matching the color of the design parts around the near-infrared sensor cover in the vehicle only with the color of the light reflected and intensified by the shell and core in the bright layer. easier.
In the above near-infrared sensor cover, the filler may be made of pearl mica in which the core is made of aluminum oxide or titanium oxide and the shell is made of tin oxide or zirconium oxide. Further, the filler may be composed of a glass filler in which the core is made of silicon dioxide and the shell is made of titanium oxide.

Preferably, the near-infrared sensor cover further comprises a decorative layer made of a coating film containing at least one of a pigment and a dye as a coloring agent.
According to the above configuration, when the near-infrared sensor cover is irradiated with light from the light source outside the vehicle, part of the light is reflected by the decorative layer. From the outside of the vehicle, the color of the light reflected by the shell and core in the bright layer and enhanced is seen mixed with the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer.

Therefore, the color matching of the near-infrared sensor cover is easier than when matching the color of the design parts around the near-infrared sensor cover in the vehicle only with the color of the light reflected and intensified by the shell and core in the bright layer. easier.

According to the near-infrared sensor cover, it is possible to improve the design while ensuring the detection function of the near-infrared sensor.

1 is a perspective view of a vehicle to which the near-infrared sensor cover of the first embodiment is applied; FIG. FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of a near-infrared sensor in which a near-infrared sensor cover in the first embodiment also serves as a cover; FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged side cross-sectional view of the cover main body in the near-infrared sensor cover of the first embodiment; (a) is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a filler in the first embodiment, and (b) is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 4(a). FIG. 4 is a view showing the near-infrared sensor cover of the second embodiment, and is a partially enlarged side cross-sectional view of the cover main body corresponding to FIG. 3 ; FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view showing a near-infrared sensor configured using a near-infrared sensor cover of a modified example; FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view showing a modified near-infrared sensor cover provided separately from the near-infrared sensor, together with the near-infrared sensor.

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment of the near-infrared sensor cover will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. FIG.

In the description below, the forward direction of the vehicle is defined as the front, and the reverse direction is defined as the rear. The vertical direction means the vertical direction of the vehicle, and the horizontal direction is the width direction of the vehicle, which coincides with the horizontal direction when the vehicle moves forward.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, near-infrared sensors 11 are attached to the four corners (front right, front left, rear right, and rear left) of the vehicle 10 in plan view. Note that FIG. 1 shows only the near-infrared sensor 11 attached to the left front portion of the vehicle 10 . Moreover, the four near-infrared sensors 11 have the same configuration. Therefore, below, only near-infrared sensor 11 attached to the left front part of vehicles 10 is explained, and explanation is omitted about near-infrared sensor 11 of other three places.

The near-infrared sensor 11 is a component that constitutes a part of the near-infrared radar device, and transmits near-infrared rays IR1 toward the front of the vehicle 10, and is reflected by objects outside the vehicle, including preceding vehicles and pedestrians. By receiving near-infrared rays IR2, the distance and relative speed to the object are detected. The detection result is used for collision damage mitigation control, erroneous start suppression control, and the like.

Infrared rays are a kind of electromagnetic waves, and have wavelengths longer than those of visible light (0.36 μm to 0.83 μm). Near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 have the shortest wavelengths (0.83 μm to 3 μm) among infrared rays.

A millimeter-wave radar device has a function similar to that of the near-infrared radar device. The millimeter wave radar device emits millimeter waves toward a predetermined angular range outside the vehicle 10, and calculates the inter-vehicle distance and relative speed from the preceding vehicle based on the time difference between the transmitted wave and the received wave, the intensity of the received wave, and the like. To detect.

A near-infrared sensor 11 in the near-infrared radar device emits near-infrared rays IR1 toward an angular range wider than that of the millimeter wave radar device. Further, the near-infrared sensor 11 detects an object at a shorter distance than the millimeter-wave radar device.

The rear half of the outer shell portion of the near-infrared sensor 11 is constituted by the case 12, and the front half is constituted by the cover. Near-infrared sensor 11 is fixed to the body of vehicle 10 .

The case 12 includes a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 13 and a bottom wall portion 14 formed at the rear end portion of the peripheral wall portion 13, and has a bottomed cylindrical shape with an open front surface. The entire case 12 is made of a resin material such as PBT (polybutylene terephthalate). On the front surface of the bottom wall portion 14, a transmitting portion 15 for transmitting the near infrared rays IR1 and a receiving portion 16 for receiving the near infrared rays IR2 are attached.

A near-infrared sensor cover 17 constitutes a cover of the near-infrared sensor 11 . The near-infrared sensor cover 17 includes a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 18 and a plate-like cover body portion 19 formed at the front end portion of the peripheral wall portion 18 . The peripheral wall portion 18 of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is adjacent to the front side of the peripheral wall portion 13 of the case 12 . A peripheral portion of the cover main body portion 19 is expanded outward from the peripheral wall portion 18 . The cover body portion 19 is curved so as to bulge forward. Most of the cover body 19 is located in front of the bottom wall 14 and covers the transmitter 15 and receiver 16 from the front.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , the thickness direction of the cover body 19 substantially coincides with the longitudinal direction of the vehicle 10 . The near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 pass through the cover main body 19 in the thickness direction. The near-infrared sensor cover 17 functions not only as a cover for the near-infrared sensor 11 but also as a garnish that decorates the front portion of the vehicle 10 .

A rear portion of the cover main body portion 19 in the thickness direction is constituted by a base material 21 . The base material 21 is made of a resin material such as AES (acrylonitrile-ethylene-styrene copolymer) resin.

In the thickness direction of the cover main body portion 19 , a portion of the front portion of the base material 21 is formed of a transparent member 22 . The transparent member 22 is made of PC (polycarbonate), which is a transparent resin material, but may also be made of other transparent resin materials such as PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate) and COP (cycloolefin polymer). good too.

A hard coat layer 23 having higher hardness than the transparent member 22 is formed on the front surface of the transparent member 22 . The hard coat layer 23 is formed by coating the front surface of the transparent member 22 with a known surface treatment agent for resin. Examples of surface treatment agents include organic hard coating agents such as acrylate, oxetane, and silicone, inorganic hard coating agents, and organic-inorganic hybrid hard coating agents.

Between the transparent member 22 and the base material 21, a bright layer 24, a decorative layer 31, and a concealing layer 32 are formed in order from the front to the rear in a laminated state.
In FIG. 3, the thicknesses of the hard coat layer 23, the bright layer 24, the decorative layer 31, and the masking layer 32 are exaggerated from their actual thicknesses for easy understanding.

The bright layer 24 is formed on the rear surface of the transparent member 22 to provide a metallic luster (shiny appearance). In order to obtain a bright appearance, it is necessary to reflect and scatter a large amount of visible light. In this respect, it is suitable to make the bright layer 24 contain a metal filler such as aluminum. However, when metal is contained in the bright layer 24, not only visible light but also near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 are reflected (not transmitted). Therefore, in the first embodiment, a filler 25 that reflects part of visible light and transmits near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 is dispersed in the coating film in order to provide a bright appearance without using a metal material. A layer 24 is formed.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4(a) and (b), each filler 25 is formed by coating a core 26 with a shell (film) 27 having a refractive index different from that of the core 26. It is Both the core 26 and the shell 27 are made of a material that transmits near infrared rays IR1 and IR2. In the first embodiment, each filler 25 is composed of a core 26 made of a low refractive index material and a shell 27 made of a high refractive index material.

As each filler 25, for example, pearl mica in which the core 26 is made of aluminum oxide, titanium oxide, or the like and the shell 27 is made of metal oxide, such as tin oxide or zirconium oxide, can be used. can. As each filler 25, a glass filler in which the core 26 is made of silica (silicon dioxide) and the shell 27 is made of metal oxide such as titanium oxide can be used.

As materials for forming the core 26 and the shell 27, it is desirable to select materials having a large difference in refractive index. This is because more light is reflected as the difference in refractive index increases.

As the content (concentration) of the filler 25 in the bright layer 24 increases, the light transmittance of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 decreases. From the viewpoint of achieving a light transmittance of 60% or more for near infrared rays IR1 and IR2, the density of the filler 25 is desirably 2 weight percent (wt %) or less.

When the concentration of the filler 25 in the bright layer 24 is constant, the light transmittance of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 differs depending on the type of the filler 25. FIG. When a glass filler is used as the filler 25, the transmittance of near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 tends to be higher than when pearl mica is used.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the decorative layer 31 is formed on the rear surface of the bright layer 24 . The decorative layer 31 contains a pigment as a coloring agent. As the colorant, a dye may be used in place of or in addition to the pigment.

The color reflected by the bright layer 24 and the decorative layer 31 and visible from the outside of the vehicle 10 matches the color of the design parts around the near-infrared sensor cover 17 in the vehicle 10 .
The concealing layer 32 is formed between the decorative layer 31 and the base material 21 . The concealing layer 32 is mainly for suppressing things located behind the decorative layer 31 from being seen through the decorative layer 31, and is coated with a paint such as black or silver. It is formed by For coloring, dyes may be added to the paint, pigments may be added, or both dyes and pigments may be added. Carbon, iron oxide, and the like are generally mixed in the shielding layer 32. However, in the first embodiment, carbon, iron oxide, and the like are not used because they absorb and scatter infrared rays.

The base material 21, the transparent member 22, the hard coat layer 23, the bright layer 24, the decorative layer 31, and the concealing layer 32, which constitute the cover main body 19, are all impervious to visible light and near infrared rays IR1 and IR2. has the property of being easily permeable to The near-infrared sensor cover 17 has a transmittance of near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 of 60% or more and a transmittance of visible light of 70% or less.

Next, the operation and effects of the first embodiment configured as described above will be described.
When the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is irradiated with light from a light source (sun, electric light, etc.) outside the vehicle 10 , so-called thin film interference occurs in the bright layer 24 . That is, part of the irradiated light is reflected by the surface of the shell 27, as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 4(b). Another portion of the light is refracted on the surface of the shell 27, enters the shell 27, is reflected at the boundary between the shell 27 and the core 26, and exits the shell 27 again. These two types of light strengthen (interfere) each other by being in phase, and only the light of that color is strengthened. Which color of light is intensified depends on the thickness of shell 27 . Therefore, by adjusting the thickness of the shell 27, it is possible to intensify light of a specific wavelength (structural color) according to the thickness.

Further, when the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is irradiated with light from the light source as described above, part of the light is reflected by the decorative layer 31 (see FIG. 3).
Therefore, from the outside of the vehicle 10, the color that is intensified by the glitter layer 24 as described above and has a metallic shine is mixed with the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer 31. It will be visible.

The bright layer 24, the decorative layer 31, and the concealing layer 32 are members arranged in the near-infrared sensor 11 behind the near-infrared sensor cover 17, such as the case 12, the transmitter 15, the receiver 16, and the like. function to hide the Therefore, when the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is viewed from the outside of the vehicle 10, it is difficult to see the transmitter 15 and the receiver 16 positioned behind it. Therefore, the appearance (design) is improved as compared with the case where the transmitter 15 and the receiver 16 can be seen through the near-infrared sensor cover 17 .

Furthermore, the color of the light reflected and intensified by the shell 27 and the core 26 of the bright layer 24 and the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer 31 are used as the design parts around the near-infrared sensor cover 17 in the vehicle 10. By matching the color, you can get a sense of unity with the design parts and enhance the design.

In particular, in the first embodiment, in addition to the color of light reflected and intensified by the shell 27 and the core 26, the color of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is determined by the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer 31. is in line with Therefore, the color matching of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is easier than in the case of matching the color of the design component only with the color of the light reflected and intensified by the shell 27 and the core 26 in the bright layer 24 .

In addition, when the design component has metallic luster, the sense of unity with the design component is further enhanced by the metallic luster of the bright layer 24, resulting in a more favorable design.
Moreover, in the near-infrared sensor cover 17 , the hard coat layer 23 formed on the front surface of the transparent member 22 enhances the impact resistance of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the front surface of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 from being damaged by flying stones or the like. Also, the hard coat layer 23 enhances the weather resistance of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the near-infrared sensor cover 17 from deteriorating or deteriorating due to sunlight, wind and rain, temperature changes, and the like.

By the way, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , when near-infrared rays IR<b>1 are transmitted from the transmitting unit 15 , the near-infrared rays IR<b>1 pass through the cover main body 19 of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 . This near infrared ray IR1 hits and is reflected by objects including preceding vehicles, pedestrians, and the like. The reflected near-infrared rays IR2 pass through the cover main body portion 19 again and are received by the receiving portion 16 . Since the light transmittance of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 in the cover main body portion 19 is 60% or more, the cover main body portion 19 hardly interferes with the transmission of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2. Of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2, the amount attenuated by the cover main body 19 can be kept within the allowable range. Therefore, the near-infrared sensor 11 can appropriately exhibit the function of detecting the distance and the relative speed between the vehicle 10 and the object.

(Second embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 will be described with reference to FIG.
Similar to the first embodiment, the near-infrared sensor cover 17 functions as a garnish that decorates the front portion of the vehicle 10 and also functions as a cover for the near-infrared sensor 11 . Further, similar to the first embodiment, the near-infrared sensor cover 17 includes the peripheral wall portion 18 and the cover main body portion 19, and the base material 21 constitutes the rear portion of the cover main body portion 19 in the thickness direction. be.

In the second embodiment, the transparent member 22 is arranged adjacent to the front side of the substrate 21 . The transparent member 22 and the base material 21 are curved so as to bulge forward. A film body 41 is arranged on the front surface of the transparent member 22 . The film body 41 is deformed along the front surface of the transparent member 22 by vacuum forming, TOM forming, or the like.

A main portion of the film body 41 is composed of a transparent film 42 . A hard coat layer 43 is formed on the front surface of the transparent film 42 . In the second embodiment, a surface hardness improvement film (product name: DF02PU) manufactured by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company, Inc. is used as the laminate 44 in which the hard coat layer 43 is formed on the front surface of the transparent film 42 . This surface hardness-improved film, also called a hard coat film, has high surface hardness and enables thermoforming, and is excellent in thermoformability, scratch resistance, weather resistance, and the like.

A decorative layer 45 , a bright layer 46 and a concealing layer 47 are laminated in this order on the rear surface of the transparent film 42 . In FIG. 5, the thicknesses of the hard coat layer 43, the decorative layer 45, the bright layer 46, and the concealing layer 47 are exaggerated from their actual thicknesses for easy understanding.

The decorative layer 45 is a layer that produces colors (tones) such as red, blue, and yellow. In the second embodiment, decorative ink (product name: MIX-HF) manufactured by Teikoku Ink Mfg. Co., Ltd. is used as the decorative layer 45 .

The bright layer 46 is for providing metallic luster (shiny appearance) without using a metallic material. In the second embodiment, a resin film (product name: PICASUS) manufactured by Toray Industries, Inc. is used as the bright layer 46 . This resin film is made by laminating several hundred to several thousand layers of two kinds of polymer resin materials (low refractive index polymer and high refractive index polymer) with mutually different refractive indices, that is, organic optical multilayer film. be. The bright layer 46 expresses a metallic tone and transmits near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 by reflecting visible light by interference reflection.

The masking layer 47 is formed of infrared transmitting ink (IR ink) known as a material having high light transmittance for near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 and low light transmittance for visible light. As the concealing layer 47, in the second embodiment, binder ink (product name: IMB-HF 006) manufactured by Teikoku Ink Mfg. Co., Ltd., which has a binder function in addition to the concealing function of making the transparent member 22 difficult to see, is used. .

The color reflected by the decorative layer 45 and the bright layer 46 and visible from the outside of the vehicle 10 is matched with the color of design parts around the near-infrared sensor cover 17 in the vehicle 10 .
A film body 41 is composed of the transparent film 42 , the hard coat layer 43 , the decorative layer 45 , the bright layer 46 and the concealing layer 47 . The film body 41 is adhered to the transparent member 22 at the concealing layer 47 .

The base material 21, the transparent member 22, the hard coat layer 43, the transparent film 42, the decorative layer 45, the bright layer 46, and the concealing layer 47, which constitute the cover main body 19, are all impermeable to visible light and It has the property of easily transmitting infrared rays IR1 and IR2. The near-infrared sensor cover 17 has a transmittance of near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 of 60% or more and a transmittance of visible light of 70% or less.

Elements similar to those described in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and overlapping descriptions are omitted.
Next, the operation and effects of the second embodiment configured as described above will be described.

When the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is irradiated with light from a light source (sun, electric light, etc.) outside the vehicle 10 , part of the light is reflected by the decorative layer 45 .
Also, in the bright layer 46, so-called multi-layer interference occurs. That is, refraction, diffraction, and reflection (interference reflection) of light occur in multiple layers, reflecting visible light and enhancing colors with metallic luster. By changing the thickness of the film, the number of layers, the arrangement of the layers, etc., it is possible to intensify the color light of a specific wavelength.

Therefore, from the outside of the vehicle 10, the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer 45 and the color strengthened by the bright layer 46 and accompanied by metallic shine appear mixed together. .
The decorative layer 45, the bright layer 46, and the concealing layer 47 exhibit the function of hiding the case 12, the transmitting section 15, the receiving section 16, etc., which are the members in the rear portion. Therefore, when the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is viewed from the outside of the vehicle 10, it is difficult to see the transmitter 15 and the receiver 16 positioned behind it. Therefore, the appearance (design) is improved as compared with the case where the transmitter 15 and the receiver 16 can be seen through the near-infrared sensor cover 17 .

Furthermore, the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer 45 and the color enhanced by the bright layer 46 and accompanied by metallic shine are the design elements around the near-infrared sensor cover 17 in the vehicle 10. By matching the color of the parts, a sense of unity with the design parts can be obtained, and the designability can be enhanced.

In particular, in the second embodiment, the color of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is matched with the color of the design part by the color of the light reflected by the decorative layer 45 in addition to the color of the light intensified by the bright layer 46 . Therefore, compared with the case where the color of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is matched with the color of the design component only by the color of the light intensified by the bright layer 46, color matching becomes easier.

In addition, when the design component has metallic luster, the sense of unity with the design component is further enhanced by the metallic luster of the bright layer 46, resulting in a more favorable design.
Further, in the near-infrared sensor cover 17 , the hard coat layer 43 formed on the front surface of the transparent member 22 enhances impact resistance and weather resistance of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 .

Also in the second embodiment, the near-infrared rays IR1 transmitted from the transmitter 15 pass through the cover main body 19 . After being reflected by the object, the near-infrared rays IR1 pass through the cover body 19 again and are received by the receiver 16 . Since the light transmittance of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2 in the cover main body portion 19 is 60% or more, the cover main body portion 19 hardly interferes with the transmission of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2. Of the near infrared rays IR1 and IR2, the amount attenuated by the cover main body 19 can be kept within the allowable range. Therefore, according to the second embodiment as well, the near-infrared sensor 11 can appropriately exhibit the function of detecting the distance and the relative speed between the vehicle 10 and the object.

According to the second embodiment, the following effects are obtained in addition to the above.
The film body 41, which is obtained by laminating the decorative layer 45, the bright layer 46, the concealing layer 47, etc. on the laminated body 44, is formed along the curved shape of the transparent member 22 by vacuum forming, TOM forming, or the like. It is bent like Therefore, the film body 41 has good shape followability and can be applied to the curved transparent member 22 as well.

As a method for integrating the film body 41 and the transparent member 22, a film insert method including a film processing step and an injection molding step may be employed. Film insert molding is a resin molding method that integrates the film body 41 and the resin material by placing the film body 41 in a mold and pouring the molten resin material into the mold under pressure and cooling and solidifying it. This is one aspect.

- Since the bright layer 46 is made of a resin film, it is more flexible than when it is made of an inorganic material. Therefore, it becomes easier to deform along the curved shape of the transparent member 22 .

In addition, each embodiment mentioned above can also be implemented as a modification which changed this as follows.
<Matters Concerning the First Embodiment>
- The positional relationship between the bright layer 24 and the decorative layer 31 may be reversed. That is, the decorative layer 31 may be formed on the rear surface of the transparent member 22 and the bright layer 24 may be formed on the rear surface of the decorative layer 31 . Even if it is changed in this way, the same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained.

Contrary to the first embodiment, the filler 25 may be composed of a core 26 made of a high refractive index material and a shell 27 made of a low refractive index material.

- The decorative layer 31 may be omitted. In this way, the color of the near-infrared sensor 11 visible from the outside of the vehicle 10 is determined by the color of the light reflected by the bright layer 24 and intensified by interference. By adjusting the thickness of the shell 27, it is possible to intensify light of a specific color having a wavelength corresponding to the thickness. From the outside of the vehicle 10, the reflected light appears to be tinged with a specific color and shines like metal (a color with metallic luster is seen).

Furthermore, by matching the color of the light reflected and intensified by the shell 27 and the core 26 with the color of the design parts around the near-infrared sensor cover 17 in the vehicle 10, a sense of unity with the design parts can be obtained. sexuality is enhanced.

In addition, when the design component has metallic luster, the sense of unity with the design component is further enhanced by the metallic luster of the bright layer 24, resulting in a more favorable design.
<Matters Concerning Second Embodiment>
- The bright layer 46 in the second embodiment may be changed to have the same configuration as the bright layer 24 in the first embodiment.

<Matters common to the first and second embodiments>
- A water-repellent layer may be formed on the front surfaces of the hard coat layers 23 and 43 . The water-repellent layer is composed of, for example, an organic coating film, a silicone film, or the like. This water-repellent layer repels water adhering to the front surface of the near-infrared sensor cover 17 and makes the near-infrared sensor cover 17 less likely to get wet, thereby forming a film of water on the front surface of the near-infrared sensor cover 17. can be suppressed.

- As the hard coat layers 23 and 43, those having a water-repellent function may be used.
- Unlike 1st and 2nd embodiment, the function as a garnish which decorates the front part of the vehicle 10 from the near-infrared sensor cover 17 may be abbreviate|omitted. In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, the near-infrared sensor cover 17 includes a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 18 and a plate-like cover body portion 19 formed at the front end portion of the peripheral wall portion 18. This is common with the first and second embodiments. However, the cover main body portion 19 is smaller in size than the cover main body portion 19 in the first and second embodiments, more specifically, formed in the minimum size that can close the front end open portion of the peripheral wall portion 13. It is Moreover, the base material 21 is not used in the near-infrared sensor cover 17 of the modification of FIG. Note that the layer structure of the cover body portion 19 is the same as that of the first or second embodiment. Therefore, also in this case, the same actions and effects as in the first or second embodiment can be obtained.

- In the first embodiment, the second embodiment, and the modification of FIG. 6, the near-infrared sensor cover 17 constitutes a part of the near-infrared sensor 11. An infrared sensor cover 17 may be provided separately from the near-infrared sensor 11 .

That is, the near-infrared sensor 11 is composed of a case 12 to which a transmitter 15 and a receiver 16 are assembled, and a cover 51 arranged on the front side of the case 12 and covering the transmitter 15 and the receiver 16 .

In the modified example of FIG. 7, a near-infrared sensor cover 17 having the same configuration as that described in the first or second embodiment is arranged in front of the cover 51 of the near-infrared sensor 11 . In this case, the near-infrared sensor cover 17 is fixed to the body of the vehicle 10 separately from the near-infrared sensor 11 . Also in this case, the same actions and effects as in the first or second embodiment can be obtained.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Vehicle, 11... Near-infrared sensor, 15... Transmitting part, 16... Receiving part, 17... Near-infrared sensor cover, 24, 46... Bright layer, 25... Filler, 26... Core, 27... Shell, 31, 45... Decorative layer, IR1, IR2...near infrared rays.

Claims (5)

The present invention is applied to a near-infrared sensor comprising a transmitting unit that transmits near-infrared rays toward the outside of a vehicle, and a receiving unit that receives the near-infrared rays that have been reflected back by hitting an object outside the vehicle, and the transmitting unit and A near-infrared sensor cover covering the receiving unit,
At least one of a pigment and a dye is contained as a coloring agent, and at least one of a pigment and a dye is formed by dispersing a filler in a coating film, which consists of a core and a shell covering the core with a material having a refractive index different from that of the core. and a concealing layer formed by applying paint, the near-infrared light transmittance from the inside to the outside of the vehicle is 60% or more, and the inside of the vehicle The light transmittance of visible light from to the outside is 70% or less,
The filler consists of the core made of a low refractive index material and the shell made of a high refractive index material having a higher refractive index than the material forming the core,
A near-infrared sensor cover, wherein the content of the filler in the bright layer is 2% by weight or less. The near-infrared sensor cover according to claim 1 , wherein the bright layer has a metallic luster . The near - infrared sensor cover according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the decorative layer is formed on the inner surface of the bright layer. The near-infrared sensor cover according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the filler is made of pearl mica in which the core is made of aluminum oxide and the shell is made of tin oxide or zirconium oxide. . The near-infrared sensor cover according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the filler is made of glass filler in which the core is made of silicon dioxide and the shell is made of titanium oxide.

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