JPH0150620B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Application of the Invention) The present invention relates to an air wiper for securing a front view of a windshield from rainwater that falls on an automobile while driving in the rain.

(Prior Art) When driving a car during rain, it is very important to quickly and completely remove water droplets that adhere to the windshield in order to drive the car safely. For this reason, in the past, an arbitrary number of wipers were disposed on the windshield, and the water droplets were wiped away by pressing and rotating the wiper plate of the wipers.

However, this method had the following problems.

(1) Water droplets adhering to the windshield cannot be completely wiped away, and the water droplets that fly immediately after wiping stick again, making it difficult to see ahead, and when driving at night, the remaining water droplets The headlights of oncoming vehicles reflected diffusely, making it difficult to see the road ahead, which was the biggest factor in accidents at night when it was raining.

(2) Due to the structure, it is difficult to wipe water droplets from the entire surface of the windshield, leaving a residue after wiping.As a result, it is difficult to see the wiping residue when it rains, and furthermore, when it rains, the muddy water adhering to the wiping residue dries. The muddy surface obstructed visibility, creating blind spots and impeding safe driving.

(3) The physical properties of the wiper plate's rubber material deteriorated significantly due to severe conditions such as the rise in temperature due to the scorching sun in summer or the drop in temperature in winter, resulting in a decline in wiping performance in a short period of time. As a result, some portions remain unwiped, or the wiper rubber must be replaced frequently, which is uneconomical.

(4) When the wiper plate was pressed and rotated, mud, sand, etc. that flew up from the road caused scratches on the glass surface, reducing the visibility of the windshield.

(Objective of the invention) Therefore, this invention eliminates all the above-mentioned drawbacks, forms an air curtain with pressurized air,
The purpose of the present invention is to provide an air wiper configured to cover the entire surface of a windshield with this air curtain.

(Structure of the Invention) The present invention provides an air wiper for an automobile that forms a double air curtain in front of the windshield by two pressurized air jetting means arranged in parallel at the front and back of the lower end of the windshield. In each of the two pressurized air injection means, an air injection hole is formed along the length direction of the outer peripheral surface,
A displacement plate having approximately the same width as the front injection means is provided between these two injection means, and this displacement plate is connected to a vehicle speed detection means to move up and down or rotate in the front and rear direction depending on the vehicle speed. Alternatively, when standing up, the jet air from the front jetting means is applied to the displacement plate to displace the jetting direction upward.

(Effects of the Invention) According to the air wiper for automobiles of the present invention, the following various effects can be expected.

(1) Since the front and rear double air curtains cover the entire surface of the windshield, the windshield remains in the same condition as on a clear day, allowing for optimal forward visibility regardless of rain. Furthermore, since there is no muddy water attached, the muddy water will not dry up and make visibility impossible even after rain.

(2) Since the air curtain is double layered, even if rainwater enters from the second air curtain in front, the water droplets are instantly blown away by the first air curtain on the inside, making it easy to see the front. It does not become an obstacle.

(3) When the vehicle speed increases, the vehicle speed detection means detects the speed of the vehicle, and when the speed increases, the displacement plate automatically rises or stands up to intersect with the air jetted from the jetting means, and this crossing causes the jetting of the second air curtain. The direction is erected upwards and guided.

Therefore, even when the vehicle is running at high speed under strong wind pressure, the second air curtain at the front is not guided by the displacement plate and its performance is less likely to decrease, and an effective air curtain is formed.

(4) Since there is no need for a wiper plate that rotates in pressure contact with the windshield, scratches on the glass surface caused by the wiper plate can be prevented, and there is no reduction in the visibility of the windshield.

(Embodiment of the Invention) An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below based on the drawings.

The compressor 1 of the air wiper has a known structure and supplies pressurized air to the air tank 2, which is generated by being rotated by a pulley attached to the output shaft of the engine via an electromagnetic clutch.

The above-mentioned air tank 2 detects the internal pressure with the installed pressure sensor, and based on the detection, the above-mentioned electromagnetic clutch is connected and connected to the above-mentioned compressor 1.
, and stores pressurized air at a specified pressure inside it, and the pressurized air is sent to the lower end of the windshield 6 through pipes 4 and 5 by opening and closing of a solenoid valve 3 controlled from the driver's seat. The compressed air is fed under pressure to the wiper housing 7 and both or only one of the fixed pipe 8 and the movable pipe 9 as pressurized air blowing means provided therein. In addition, a branch route is provided in the middle of the pressure route of the above-mentioned pressure supply pipe 4, and a solenoid valve 3' controlled from the driver's seat is provided at the branch point, and a solenoid valve 3' that is controlled from the driver's seat is provided on one route. A heating unit 10 configured to heat pressurized air using engine exhaust heat is provided.

A fixed pipe 8, which is a pressurized air jetting means, forms a first air curtain K1, and is held parallel to the lower edge of the windshield 6 on the windshield 6 side of the wiper housing 7, and is attached to the frame 11.
The compressed air or hot air supplied from the above-mentioned pressure pipe 4 is ejected along the windshield 6 from a plurality of injection holes 12 formed linearly on the outer circumferential surface of the windshield. Further, a protective cover 14 is disposed on the outer circumferential surface of the protective cover 14, which is rotatably formed concentrically with both ends pivoted by shafts 13, 13, and this protective cover 14 is provided with a spring wound around the shafts 13, 13. It is configured to be constantly rotated clockwise with a biasing force of 15.

In addition, the fixed pipe 8 is equipped with a washer valve 16 that can be operated by a switch installed in the vehicle interior in order to mix and inject pressurized air or hot air with washer liquid from the injection holes 12 as necessary. This makes it possible to supply washer fluid to a washer tank (not shown).

The above-mentioned injection hole 12 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape and has a V-shaped opening as shown in FIG. It matches the injected pressurized air upward, and covers the entire surface of the windshield 6 without any gaps to form the first air curtain K1.

Further, the V-shape is formed at a somewhat acute angle on the outside of the openings at both ends to prevent both ends of the pressurized hot air from diffusing outward. Further, the opening area thereof is made much smaller than the opening area of the injection hole 16 of the movable pipe 9, which will be described later, so as to save the capacity of the compressor 1 mentioned above.

The above-mentioned protective cover 14 is provided with a rotating tool 18 at the lower center thereof, and this rotating tool 18 is always in contact with a rotating protrusion 20 of an opening/closing tool 19, which will be described later, and is rotated clockwise by the biasing force of the spring 15. When the opening/closing tool 19 rotates in the storing direction, it rotates clockwise due to the biasing force of the spring 15 to cover the upper surface of the injection hole 12, and conversely, the opening/closing tool 19 rotates in the storage direction. When rotated in the operating direction, the rotating protrusion 20 rotates counterclockwise against the urging force of the spring 14 to open the upper surfaces of the injection holes 12.

The above-mentioned opening/closing tool 19 is rotatably attached to the center of the above-mentioned frame 11 by a rotating shaft 21. As shown in FIG. Further, a gear 22 is formed on a portion of its outer periphery, and a gear 24 of an opening/closing motor 23 that rotates in forward and reverse directions is engaged with this gear 22, and the rotation is controlled by this opening/closing motor 23.

That is, when the opening/closing motor 23 rotates in the storage direction, the opening/closing tool 19 rotates counterclockwise, and this rotation causes the aforementioned protective cover 14 to rotate counterclockwise. Moreover, this opening/closing tool 19 has a pressing part 25 that protrudes forward, and the movable frame 27 of the movable pipe 9 is connected to a spring 28 at the tip of the pressing part 25 via a floating frame 26 (described later).
The floating frame 26 and the movable frame 27 are held in the storage position by pushing down against the urging force of the floating frame 26 and the movable frame 27.

The above-mentioned movable frame 27 has a movable pipe 9 fixed to its upper end as a compressed air injection means, and is formed into a box-like body with an open rear side. A pair of bearings 30 and 31 are attached to both sides of the movable frame 27, and the lower part of the inner diameter is a small diameter part 29 and the upper part is a large diameter part 30. 11 is fitted onto the spring 28 which is inserted into the support shafts 32, 32 which stand upright from the upper surface at an inclined angle to the rear, so that an upward biasing force always acts, and the support shafts 32, A stopper 34 is provided at the upper end of the movable frame 27 and engages with the stepped portions 29a of the large diameter portion 30 and the small diameter portion 29 to restrict upward movement of the movable frame 27. Also, the protruding piece 27a on the rear side of the movable frame 27 is fixed with rotating shafts 35, 35 facing each other.
A displacement plate 36 is rotatably supported therebetween.

The above-described floating frame 26 is formed in a substantially U-shape with an open upper part, and is disposed behind the movable frame 27. On both sides of the upper end, fixing plates 38, 38 for attaching and fixing floating plates 37, 37, which utilize wind pressure as vehicle speed detection means, are provided to protrude outward, and at opposing positions on the inner surface, operating pins 3 are provided.
9 and 39 are fixed. Furthermore, bearings 31 and 3 of the aforementioned movable frame 27 are located on the lower end surface thereof.
A pair of bearings 40, 40 is provided at a position corresponding to 1 so as to protrude toward the front of the frame.
The bearing 3 of the movable frame 27 is located within 0.40.
1 and 31 are slidably inserted.

The outer circumferential surfaces of these bearings 31, 31 and the bearings 40, 40 are coated with tetrafluoroethylene resin to further reduce the upward force.

The floating plate 37 is a means for detecting vehicle speed using wind pressure, and in order to easily receive wind pressure from the front, the floating plate 37 is formed into a dish shape with its upper end surface and both side surfaces, excluding the lower part, inclined forward. It is attached using screws and long holes for fine adjustment vertically and horizontally.

The above-mentioned movable pipe 9 has injection holes 17 formed on its outer peripheral surface in the same manner as the injection holes 12 of the above-mentioned fixed pipe 8, and the supplied pressurized air fills the entire surface of the above-mentioned windshield 6 with a gap. A second air curtain K2 is formed to completely cover the air. Further, a protective cover 44 is disposed above the outer circumferential surface of the protective cover 44, which is pivotally supported at both ends by shafts 42, 42, is rotatable concentrically, and is constantly rotated clockwise by the biasing force of a spring 43.

One side of the protective cover 44 has an end extending in a substantially dogleg shape to form a rotating piece 45, which rotates when the movable frame 27 moves upward. It is configured so as to come into contact with the upper bent portion 46a of the open piece 46 which is erected. Therefore, when the movable frame 27 is in the storage position, the protective cover 44 covers the upper surface of the injection hole 17 of the movable pipe 9, as shown in FIG. 4, and when the movable frame 27 is moved upward, it is opened. The rotating piece 45 comes into contact with the bent portion 46a of the piece 46 and is rotated counterclockwise against the biasing force of the spring 43, opening the upper surface of the injection hole 17 as shown in FIG.

The above-mentioned displacement plate 36 is formed of a long transparent synthetic resin material, has approximately the same length as the above-mentioned movable pipe 9, and has an upper portion that is rotated toward the injection holes 17 to release the first air. It intersects with the jet stream of the curtain K2, and due to this intersection, the jet angle of the air curtain K2 is displaced upward from the above-mentioned windshield 6 side.

As shown in FIG. 10, a plurality of rectifying protrusions 36a are formed at appropriate intervals on the front upper part of the displacement plate 36, and these rectifying protrusions prevent the jet flow from flowing away to the side. .

Further, a pair of cam pieces 36b, 36b are formed on the back side of both ends of the displacement plate 36, and when the above-mentioned floating frame 26 is moved upward, the cam pieces 36b, 36b
The actuating pins 39, 39 protruding from the inner surface of the movable frame 27 abut on b, and this abutment causes the displacement plate 3 to
6 is rotated forward. That is, as the displacement plate 36 moves upward, its upright angle becomes close to vertical.

When the air wiper configured as described above is not in use, the opening/closing tool 19 is rotated counterclockwise as shown in FIG. The upper surface of the hole 12 is covered. At the same time, the pressing portion 25 pushes down the floating frame 26, and as a result of this pushing down, the movable frame 27 is also pushed down to its lower limit against the biasing force of the spring 28.

Further, as the movable frame 27 is pushed down, the protective cover 44 of the movable pipe 9 also rotates clockwise to cover the upper surface of the injection holes 17 . For this reason, the injection holes 12..., 17... are all prevented from clogging due to adhesion of sand, mud, etc. during driving, and are also prevented from freezing due to snow accumulation, snowfall, rain, etc. during the winter season.

In this state, the floating plates 37, 37 are connected to the bonnet 4.
It is inserted up to the same level as 9, so it is not affected by wind pressure even when driving on sunny days.

In addition, when operating the air wiper during rain, if you turn on the wiper switch on the driver's seat, the wiper switch rotates the opening/closing motor 23 in the standby direction for a fixed period of time in the first stage of operation, and then stops rotating. . Therefore, the opening/closing tool 19 rotates clockwise and the pressing portion 25 moves upward. For this reason, the fifth
As shown in the figure, the protective cover 14 rotates counterclockwise to open the upper surface of the injection holes 12.

At the same time, both the movable frame 27 and the floating frame 26 are moved upward by the urging force of the spring 33, and eventually the bearings 31, 31 of the movable frame 27
The stopper 34 comes into contact with the stepped portion 29a to restrict the upward movement of the movable frame 27 and maintain that state. With this upward movement, the movable pipe 9 and the floating plates 37, 3
7 protrudes from the top surface of the bonnet 49, and the rotating piece 45 of the protective cover 44 comes into contact with the opening piece 46, and this contact causes the protective cover 44 to rotate counterclockwise and open the top surface of the injection holes 17... and goes into standby mode.

Further, the wiper switch opens the solenoid valve 3 in the second stage at the end of its operation to supply pressurized air to the pressure pipes 4 and 5. Therefore, pressurized air is injected from the injection holes 12 of the fixed pipe 8 to form the first air curtain K1, and pressurized air is ejected from the injection holes 17 of the movable pipe 9 at an angle as shown in FIG. is injected to form a second air curtain K2. Water droplets adhering to the windshield 6 are instantly blown away by the first air curtain K1, and newly falling rainwater is blown away by the second air curtain K2, so that the windshield 6 is not exposed to sunlight on a clear day. The situation is the same as that of the previous model, and you can see the front in the best condition even in rainy conditions. When the switch in the vehicle interior is turned on and the solenoid valve 3' is activated to cause pressurized air to pass through the branched path provided with the heating unit 10 of the pressurized pipe 4, the air will flow from the injection holes 12 of the fixed pipe 4. Hot air blows out. Therefore, the pressurized hot air thaws the surface of the windshield 6 due to snow accumulation, snowfall, rain, etc. when parking on the street at night in winter, which saves time and saves time from the complicated work of pouring boiling water on the surface as in the past. You can start the car with

When the automobile runs in such a standby state, the floating plates 37, 37 receive wind pressure from the front, and the floating plates 37 move upward in proportion to the strength of this wind pressure. Due to this upward movement, the operating pins 39, 39 of the floating frame 26 move upward while contacting the cam pieces 36b, 36b of the displacement plate 36, and due to this upward movement of the contact, the displacement plate 36 moves the injection hole 17 as shown in FIG. ...is turned to the side and made to stand up.

Therefore, the pressurized air injected from the injection holes 17 hits the displacement plate 36 and is guided upward, and the second air curtain K2 is displaced as shown by the dashed line in FIG. It is pushed back by the wind pressure and becomes approximately the same angle as in the standby state as shown by the solid line. That is, the injection direction is shifted upward in response to an increase in vehicle speed to prevent the second air curtain K2 from coming into contact with the windshield 6 due to wind pressure.

Further, water droplets adhering to the bonnet 49 during running are prevented from entering the second air curtain K2 by a shielding plate 51 formed below the movable pipe 9.

In addition, when storing the air wiper in the storage position, turn off the wiper switch and operate in the reverse procedure of the drawer described above. In the first step, the solenoid valve 3 is closed and pressure is applied to the pressure pipes 4 and 5. Stop the air supply. Furthermore, in the second stage of the wiper switch's operation, the opening/closing motor 23 is rotated in the storage direction for a predetermined period of time, and then the rotation is stopped. Therefore, the opening/closing tool 19 is rotated counterclockwise and the pressing part 2
5 moves downward. For this reason, the protective cover 14 covers the upper surface of the injection holes 12 with the rotating protrusion 20. At the same time, the pressing portion 25 pushes down the floating frame 26, and as the floating frame 26 is pushed down, the movable frame 27 also moves down to its limit against the biasing force of the spring 28, and is locked at the storage position. This downward movement causes the movable pipe 9 and the floating plates 37, 37 to move toward the bonnet 4.
9, the rotary piece 45 of the protective cover 44 and the bent part 46a of the opening piece come out of contact, and the protective cover 44 covers the upper surface of the injection hole 17 as shown in FIG. Return to original state.

In light rain or the like, the vehicle can travel with only the first air curtain K1, and in this case, the solenoid valve 3 is operated from inside the vehicle to send pressurized air only from the pressure pipe 4 to the fixed pipe 8.

In the above embodiment, a heating unit 10 using exhaust gas heat is provided to send hot air into the fixed pipe 8, but engine cooling heat may also be used, or purified exhaust gas may be introduced. You may also do so.

In the above embodiment, the pressurized air blowing means is fixed,
Although the case where the movable pipes 8 and 9 are used has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and each may be provided with a plurality of ejection nozzles.

Furthermore, although the displacement plate 36 has been described as an example in which it rotates along with vertical movement, it may be a displacement plate that only moves vertically or rotates, and the present invention can be applied as long as it is a means that can change the direction of the injected pressurized air. It is possible to implement

As explained above, in the present invention, a double air curtain is used, and the blowing direction of the second air curtain is made variable according to the vehicle speed, so that it is effective as a perfect air wiper in both high-speed and low-speed driving conditions. Able to demonstrate

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show the air wiper of this invention, and the first
The figure is an overall perspective view of the automobile, Fig. 2 is an overall perspective view of the air wiper, Fig. 3 is a plan view of the air wiper, and Figs. 4 to 6 are cross-sectional views taken along line A-A in Fig. 3. , FIG. 4 shows the inoperative device, FIG. 5 shows the standby state, and FIG. 6 shows the operating state. Fig. 7 is a side sectional view of the fixed pipe, Fig. 8 is a side view showing the injection angle of the air curtain in the standby position, Fig. 9 is a side view showing the injection angle of the air curtain in the operating position, Fig. 10 The figure is a perspective view of the displacement plate. 6... Windshield, 8... Fixed pipe (pressurized air ejection means), 9... Movable pipe (pressurized air ejection means), 12... Injection hole, 17... Injection hole,
36... Displacement plate, K1... First air curtain, K2... Second air curtain.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An air wiper that forms a double air curtain in front of a windshield by two pressurized air jetting means arranged in parallel at the front and rear of the lower end of the windshield, the air wiper forming a double air curtain in front of the windshield, wherein Each of the air injection means has an air injection hole formed along the length direction of the outer circumferential surface, and a displacement plate having approximately the same width as the front injection means is provided between the two injection means, and this displacement plate is adjusted to the vehicle speed. It is connected to a detection means and is moved vertically or rotated in the front-rear direction depending on the vehicle speed, and when moving up or standing up, the injection air from the front injection means is applied to the displacement plate to displace the injection direction upward. The constructed air wiper for automobiles.