JPH03248014A - Instrument apparatus for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the so-called window reflection of an auxiliary light source and the direct input of the visible light of the auxiliary light into the driver's eyes by providing the auxiliary light source for generating visible light, and arranging an exciting light source in front of an instrument farther than the auxiliary light source. CONSTITUTION:When a black light 15 is lit in the case wherein natural light is insufficient such as at night and the like, ultraviolet rays are projected, and the fluorescent material on the gradation, characters, pointers 11 and the like on a dial 9 is excited, and the light is emitted. Thus a bright brown light is displayed and can be visually recognized excellently. When the temperature in the cabin is low, the intensity of the emitted light from the black light 15 is decreased. Therefore, an auxiliary lamp 19 is lit, and the visible light ray is projected on the entire body of a display part 7. Thus, the excellent visual recognizing property can be maintained. The head part of the lamp 19 emerges only slightly from an attaching hole 17 of a black-light-tube fixing base plate 13. Since the light 15 is located in front of the lamp 19, the visible light from the lamp 19 is not directly inputted into the driver's eyes even if a front cover 5 is a transparent body. Since the light 15 hides the lamp 19 with respect to a front window in this configuration, the so-called window reflection can be suppressed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a vehicle instrument device that is installed in a vehicle such as an automobile and is equipped with a so-called black light to improve visibility.

(Prior Art) As a conventional vehicle instrument device of this type, there is one described, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 172686/1986.

This vehicle instrument device forms characters, etc. on a display part using a phosphor, and uses a so-called black light as an excitation light source to irradiate the display part with ultraviolet rays to excite the phosphor to emit light, making the characters, etc. stand out brightly. In addition, the visibility of the display unit at night or the like is improved.

(Issues to be solved by the invention lIi> However, black lights use mercury inside, and the freezing point of this mercury is at a low temperature. Therefore, when the temperature inside the vehicle is low, the light rays generated from the black lights are There was a risk that the phosphors for letters, etc. would not be able to emit enough light.

A solution to this problem can be achieved by providing an auxiliary light source that generates visible light.

In other words, when the output light intensity of the black light decreases,
A reduction in visibility is prevented by turning on an auxiliary light source to irradiate a display section with visible light. However, if an auxiliary light source is simply provided, there is a risk that the auxiliary light source will be reflected in the front window and enter the driver's field of vision.

For example, as shown in FIG. 6, visible light from the auxiliary light source 103 of the vehicle instrument 101 is reflected by the front window 105 and reaches the passenger M side.

In order to avoid such so-called front window reflection, it is necessary to lengthen the hood 109 portion of the instrument 107 toward the passenger M side, as shown by the imaginary line in the figure.

This causes a problem in that the degree of freedom in designing the instrument including the hood 107 is restricted.

Therefore, the present invention provides an auxiliary light source that generates visible light in addition to an excitation light source that generates a light beam that excites a phosphor to emit light, and can prevent the auxiliary light source from reflecting on the window even if the instrument hood is shortened. The purpose is to provide instrumentation devices for vehicles.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) In order to solve the above problems, the present invention includes a display section configured with a phosphor, and an excitation light source that generates a light beam that excites the phosphor to emit light. The vehicle meter includes an auxiliary light source that generates visible light, and the excitation light source is arranged closer to the front of the meter than the auxiliary light source. Further, an auxiliary light source is disposed to face the excitation light source, and the rear surface side of the excitation light source is configured as a reflective surface that reflects visible light from the auxiliary light source and irradiates it to the display section.

Further, the reflective surface was constituted by a dimming film provided on the excitation light source.

(Function) According to the above configuration, the auxiliary light source can be provided so as to be hidden by the excitation light source with respect to the front window.

Further, when the rear surface side of the excitation light source is a reflective surface, visible light from the auxiliary light source can be reflected and the visible light can be irradiated onto the display section.

When the reflecting surface is formed of a dimming film provided on the excitation light source, the reflection efficiency of visible light can be increased and the auxiliary light source can be made smaller.

(Example) Examples of this invention will be described below.

FIG. 1 relates to a first embodiment and is a schematic sectional view taken along the line 1--1 of the vehicle instrument device shown in FIG.

First, the overall configuration of this vehicle instrument device will be explained briefly. This vehicle instrument device includes a housing upper 1 and a housing lower 3. A front cover 5 is attached to the front surface of the housing upper 1. A display section 7 is provided between the housing lower 3 and the display section 7 .

Inside the housing lower 3, various instrument units are provided, although not shown.

The front cover 5 constitutes the front surface of the instrument and is made of transparent glass or the like.

The display section 7 includes a dial 9, a pointer 11, and the like.

The dial 9 displays scales, characters, etc., and these scales and characters are coated with a fluorescent material, such as Z, which is dark gray under natural light and light brown when exposed to ultraviolet light.
nS: A fluorescent paint containing Sn as a main component is applied. Furthermore, a predetermined pattern is printed on the ground color portion of the dial plate 9 using dark gray paint that exhibits substantially the same color as the fluorescent paint under natural light.

Further, the pointer 11 is made of, for example, a fluorescent substance that is white under natural light and emits red when exposed to ultraviolet light, such as Y2O3.
A fluorescent paint containing Eu as a main component is applied.

Therefore, the scales, characters, etc. of the display section 7 are made of fluorescent material.

On the other hand, a blacklight tube fixing board 13 is provided on the lower surface of the upper housing 1 . A black light 15 as an excitation light source is attached to the front cover 5 side of the black light tube fixing substrate 13. The black light 15 generates ultraviolet light as a beam, and irradiates it onto the display section 7 to excite fluorescent substances such as scales and characters to emit light.

This black light 15 has a length spanning almost the entire width of the upper housing 1 (left and right in FIG. 2), and is formed in the shape of a right circular tube. Electrodes at both ends of this black light 15 are connected to a power source integrated with the housing lower 3 or an external power source.

On the other hand, the black light tube fixing board 13 is provided with a mounting hole 17 behind the black light 15. A plurality of mounting holes 17 are provided along the black light 15 at predetermined intervals.

An auxiliary lamp 19 is attached to each attachment hole 17 as an auxiliary light source. Therefore, the black light 15, which is an excitation light source, is arranged closer to the front side of the instrument than the auxiliary lamp 19, which is an auxiliary light source. This auxiliary lamp 19 emits, for example, white visible light. The auxiliary lamp 19 is attached to the black light tube fixing board 1 along with the wiring board 21.
3, and is connected to a power source inside the housing lower 3 or an external power source via this wiring board 21.

The head of the auxiliary lamp 19 installed in this way is attached to the mounting hole 1.
7 into the housing upper 1. Therefore, the black light 15 is arranged at a slight inclination with respect to the front black light 15, and the black light 15 shields the auxiliary lamp 19 from the front window (not shown).

Note that the manner in which the black light 15 and the auxiliary lamp 19 are arranged differs depending on the inclination angle of the front window, and can be selected in various ways.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained.

When the black light 15 is not turned on during the day, the display section 7 is illuminated by natural light, so the pointer 11 etc. is white.
The ground color portions of the dial 9 each exhibit a dark color scheme, and the display portion 7 can be clearly viewed due to the contrast of the shading.

On the other hand, when natural light is insufficient, such as at night, when the black light 15 is turned on, ultraviolet rays are irradiated over the entire surface of the dial 9, and fluorescent substances such as the scale, letters, and hands 11 of the dial 9 are excited. It glows and turns bright brown. Therefore, the scale etc. stand out clearly due to the contrast with the ground color of the dial plate 9 and can be clearly recognized visually.

On the other hand, when the temperature inside the vehicle is low, the black light 15
The auxiliary lamp 19 is turned on because the emission intensity of the auxiliary lamp 19 decreases.

By lighting the auxiliary lamp 19, the entire display section 7 is irradiated with visible light, and good visibility of the display section 7 can be maintained. The auxiliary lamp 19 is turned on, for example, by detecting the temperature inside the upper housing 1, and when this temperature falls below a predetermined value, the auxiliary lamp 19 is turned on. Moreover, a vehicle interior temperature sensor of an air conditioner can also be used for temperature detection. Furthermore, by detecting the emission intensity of the black light 15 in addition to temperature detection, it is also possible to configure the auxiliary lamp 19 to be turned on when the intensity falls below a predetermined value.

The head of the auxiliary lamp 19 only slightly protrudes from the mounting hole 17 of the black light tube fixing board 13, and the black light 15 exists in front of it, so even if the front cover 5 is transparent, it cannot be used as an auxiliary lamp. The visible light of the lamp 19 does not directly enter the driver's eyes. Further, since the black light 15 is arranged to hide the auxiliary lamp 19 on the front window (not shown), so-called window reflection can be suppressed.

Further, since the black light 15 is placed closer to the front of the instrument than the auxiliary lamp 19, the black light 15 can be placed as far away from the dial 9 as possible. This makes it possible to make the intensity of ultraviolet rays from the black light 15 as uniform as possible across the top and bottom of the dial 9, suppressing problems such as the lower part of the dial 9 being brighter than the upper part, and improving visibility. can be improved.

3 to 5 show second to fourth embodiments of the present invention, and the same components as in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals and detailed explanations will be omitted.

First, in the second embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the rear side of the black light 15 is used as a reflecting surface for reflecting visible light from an auxiliary lamp. In other words, No 1 Uzing Upper 1
A bracket 1a for attaching an auxiliary lamp is integrally provided at the bottom of the lamp. An auxiliary lamp 19 is attached to the bracket 1a.
is installed. An eaves 23 is integrally provided at the upper end of the bracket 1a and is configured to cover the upper part of the auxiliary lamp 19. The auxiliary lamp 19 is located approximately horizontally behind the black light 15 and faces the rear surface of the black light 15, that is, the reflective surface 15a.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the visible light from the auxiliary lamp 19 is reflected by the reflective surface 15a of the black light 15 and is irradiated onto substantially the entire dial 9. At this time, the reflective surface 15a has a predetermined curvature, and this curvature prevents the reflection of visible light from appearing on the dial 9.
It is made sure to move upwards.

Further, the eaves 23 prevent visible light from the auxiliary lamp 19 from leaking upward.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the visible light from the auxiliary lamp 19 does not reach the front window, and window reflection can be suppressed more effectively. Furthermore, by lengthening the optical path of the auxiliary lamp 19, the irradiation intensity of visible light across the top and bottom of the dial 9 can be made as uniform as possible, and visibility can be further improved.

Furthermore, since the eaves 23 cover the auxiliary lamps 19, the auxiliary lamps 19 are not directly visible through the front cover 5.

FIG. 4 shows a third embodiment in which the eaves 23 is integrated with the 71 housing upper 1. Therefore, this embodiment has substantially the same effects as the second embodiment, and
By molding the eaves 23 integrally with the nozzle flange 1, costs can be reduced.

FIG. 5 shows a fourth embodiment, in which the reflective surface 15a is formed of a light control film, such as a light control tape 25. This light control tape 25 is made of aluminum tape and is attached to the rear side of the black light 15. This dimming tape 25 may or may not be necessary, and is mainly used to control the light so that the intensity of ultraviolet rays on the lower side of the dial 9 does not become too strong. In addition, this fourth embodiment can achieve substantially the same effects as the second embodiment, and when the auxiliary lamp 19 is turned on, the visible light is reliably reflected on the aluminum surface of the dimming tape 25, and the letters The entire board 9 is irradiated. Therefore, the reflection intensity of the reflective surface 15a is high,
Visibility can be further improved. Note that instead of using the light control tape 25, the reflective surface 15a may be formed by vapor deposition or the like.

Note that this invention is not limited to the above embodiments.

For example, a display constructed with phosphor means that in addition to coating the scale, letters, etc. with a fluorescent substance, the scale, letters, etc. are printed with non-fluorescent white paint, etc., and the background color of the dial plate is coated with a fluorescent substance. When the fluorescent substance is excited and emits light, the scale is
It is also possible to configure the text so that it appears to be visually recognized as having changed color to black due to a silhouette effect.

Further, in the above embodiment, a combination meter has been described, but the present invention can be similarly applied to a case where a speedometer or the like is independent.

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above, according to the configuration of the present invention, the excitation light source is placed closer to the front of the instrument than the auxiliary light source, so the auxiliary light source is not visible to the front window or the driver. It is now possible to set it to hide with
This prevents so-called window reflections and visible light from an auxiliary light source from directly entering the driver's eyes. Furthermore, since window reflection can be suppressed without making the instrument hood long, the degree of freedom in designing the instrument can be increased.

When the rear side of the excitation light source is used as a reflective surface, visible light from the auxiliary light source can be reliably irradiated to the entire display area, and the irradiation intensity in the vertical direction can be made as uniform as possible, further improving visibility. can be done.

When the reflective surface is formed of a dimming film, visible light from the auxiliary light source can be reflected more reliably, and visibility can be further improved.

[BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS] FIG. 1 is a sectional view taken along the line 1-1 in FIG. 2, which shows a cross section of a vehicle instrument device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an example of a vehicle instrument device. 3 is a front view of the combination meter, FIGS. 3 to 5 are sectional views according to the second to fourth embodiments, and FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of the window reflection. 7... Display section 15... Black light (excitation light source) 19... Auxiliary lamp (auxiliary light source) 15a... Reflective surface 25... Dimming tape (film body)

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) In a vehicle instrument comprising a display section configured with a phosphor and an excitation light source that generates a light beam that excites the phosphor to emit light, an auxiliary light source that generates visible light is provided, and the excitation light source A vehicle instrument device characterized by being arranged closer to the front side of the instrument than an auxiliary light source. (2) Claim (1) characterized in that the light source is arranged opposite to the excitation light source, and the rear side of the excitation light source is a reflective surface that reflects the auxiliary light from the auxiliary light source and irradiates it to the display section. ) vehicle instrumentation device. (3) The vehicle instrument device according to claim (2), wherein the reflective surface is constituted by a dimming film provided on the excitation light source.