JPH08271709A - Rear view mirror for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To prevent distortion caused when a mirror surface is deformed by holding stress from a holding member holding a mirror main body in a rear view mirror for a vehicle whose mirror surface is constituted of resin. CONSTITUTION: The mirror main body 34 is constituted by integrally forming the mirror surface 44, a peripheral part 46, and a rib 48. A mirror main body holding member 40 is engaged with the rib 48 by the fitting of ruggedness and holds the mirror main body 34 in a state of non-contact with the mirror surface 44.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicular rear-view endoscope whose mirror surface is made of resin, and which prevents distortion on the mirror surface.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A resin mirror whose base material on the mirror surface is made of resin is advantageous in lightness and workability as compared with a glass mirror. The lightness brings about various advantages such as prevention of chattering of the mirror surface and weight reduction by reducing the cross-sectional diameter of the stay for attaching to the vehicle body, and the good workability greatly contributes to the improvement of workability.

As conventional resin mirrors, there are those described in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 4-46403, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-199101 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-226103. This is, for example, as shown in a vertical sectional side view in FIG. 4, in which a transparent mirror base 10 made of a synthetic resin such as acrylic resin has a transparent surface for improving abrasion resistance and water absorption resistance. Is applied, and a metal such as aluminum is formed on the back surface of the mirror substrate 10 by a method such as vapor deposition to form a reflective film 14, and the reflective film 14 is covered with a protective film 16. .

The resin mirror thus constructed is held by a holding member generally called a housing, a mirror holder or the like, and attached to the vehicle body via a stay or the like. In the case of a glass mirror, generally, the entire outer peripheral edge of the mirror surface is fitted into a holding member and firmly held, but if the resin mirror is held by the same method as this, the resin mirror will be compared to the glass mirror. Since the mirror surface is inferior in hardness, the mirror surface is deformed due to the stress caused by holding, and there is a problem that the projected image is distorted.

As a solution to such a problem, the mirror surface can be held without causing distortion, which is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 57-195935. This is as shown in FIG. 5, in which the resin mirror surface 18 is housed in the housing 20, and only the upper and lower portions 22 and 24 in the widthwise center thereof are covered with the housing 20.
The housing 20 is fixed to the housing 20, and the other portion is not in contact with the housing 20 so that the housing 20 is not stressed so much.

As another method, actual fairness 6-373
There was one described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 64. This is as shown in FIG. 6, in which the resin mirror surface 26 is housed in the housing 28, and the resin mirror surface 26 is arranged in the opening edge 30 of the housing 28 and in the housing 28 along the vicinity of the outer peripheral edge portion of the mirror surface 26. With the elastic member 32 provided, the mirror surface 26 is clamped and held in its thickness direction, so that distortion is less likely to occur as compared with the conventional one in which a force is applied and held in the surface direction.

[0007]

5 and 6, the mirror body holding member (housing) 20,
No. 28 is still in contact with and holding the mirror surfaces 18 and 26, and the stress for holding is sometimes applied to the mirror surfaces to cause distortion. Further, in the case of FIG. 5, since only part of the mirror surface 18 is held, chattering of the mirror surface 18 may occur during traveling.

The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems in the prior art and provide a rear endoscope for a vehicle in which distortion is prevented from occurring on a resin mirror surface.

[0009]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A mirror body having a mirror surface having a reflecting surface formed on a resin base, a peripheral edge portion formed around the mirror surface, and a rib formed on the back surface of the peripheral edge portion so as to project rearward, and the mirror main body. And a mirror main body holding member which holds the above-mentioned through the rib and is attached to the vehicle.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the peripheral edge portion is formed to be thicker than the mirror surface so as to project forward from the surface of the mirror surface.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a thin portion is formed in a portion midway from the rib to the peripheral portion.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the rib is divided into a plurality of pieces in the longitudinal direction.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the mirror body holding member includes a stay having one end attached to the vehicle and a plate pivot attached to the other end of the stay, and an outer peripheral portion of the plate pivot. The mirror main body is held by the mirror main body holding member by connecting the inner peripheral portion of the rib.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the mirror main body is held by the mirror main body holding member by fitting the concave and convex portions formed on the outer peripheral portion of the plate pivot and the inner peripheral portion of the rib. .

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, satin-finished concavities and convexities are formed on the surfaces of the peripheral edge portion and the ribs.

[0016]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the mirror body holding member does not hold the mirror body on the mirror surface, but forms a peripheral portion on the peripheral edge of the mirror surface, and is formed on the back surface of this peripheral portion. Since the ribs are held via the rib portions, the stress due to the holding is not directly transmitted to the mirror surface, and distortion of the mirror surface is prevented. Further, since the rib is provided, rigidity can be obtained and chattering of the mirror surface can be prevented.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the peripheral edge portion is formed to be thicker than the mirror surface, the rigidity is improved and distortion of the mirror surface is prevented.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the thin portion is formed between the rib and the peripheral portion, the deformation of the rib due to the holding stress is absorbed by the thin portion and the stress is less likely to be transmitted to the mirror surface. Therefore, distortion of the mirror surface is prevented.

According to the invention as set forth in claim 4, since the rib is divided into a plurality of pieces in the longitudinal direction thereof, when the rib is locally stressed, only the stressed rib is deformed to absorb the stress. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the stress from being applied to the other divided portions, which prevents the distortion of the mirror surface.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, since the mirror body is held by connecting the outer peripheral portion of the plate pivot and the inner peripheral portion of the rib, the stress due to the holding is not directly transmitted to the mirror surface, and the stress of the mirror surface is not transmitted. Distortion is prevented.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the plate pivot and the rib are connected by the fitting of the concavities and convexities to hold the mirror body, the holding can be carried out easily.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, since the peripheral edge and the surface of the rib are formed as a satin-finished concave and convex surface, reflection of light from the peripheral edge and the rib is suppressed, and the rear view through the mirror surface is suppressed. It will be easier.

[0023]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an inner mirror will be described with reference to FIGS. In FIG.
(A) is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the mirror body 34, (b) is an overall configuration of an inner mirror 42 in which the mirror body 34 of (a) is held by a mirror body holding member 40 composed of a stay 36 and a pivot plate 38. It is a partially broken perspective view showing. In FIG. 2, (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1 (b), and (b) is an enlarged view of a C portion of (a). In FIG. 3, (a) is a BB sectional view of FIG. 1 (b), and (b) is an enlarged view of a D portion of (a).

The mirror body 34 has a mirror surface 44, a peripheral edge portion 46 formed on the entire outer peripheral edge of the mirror surface 44, and a rear surface of the peripheral edge portion 46 so as to project rearward. Ribs 48, which are formed integrally with each other so as to be continuous with each other. As shown in the sectional views of FIGS. 2 (b) and 3 (b), the mirror body 34 is provided on the surface of the transparent synthetic resin substrate 50 such as acrylic resin to improve the abrasion resistance and the water absorption resistance. Is coated with a transparent cured film 52, a metal such as aluminum is formed on the back surface by a method such as vapor deposition to form a reflection film 54, and the reflection film 54 is covered with a protective film 56.

The mirror surface 44 of the mirror main body 34 is formed in a plate shape, and the field of view behind the vehicle is reflected by the reflection film 54 formed on the back surface of the mirror surface 44 to enter the viewpoint of the driver.
The peripheral edge portion 46 projects forward of the mirror surface 44 and is formed thicker than the mirror surface 44 (see FIGS. 2B and 3B). The rib 48 is formed on the entire circumference of the peripheral portion 46, and forms a space 58 for accommodating the plate pivot 38 inside thereof. The rib 48 has a convex portion 60 formed on the entire inner peripheral surface thereof for fitting with the plate pivot 38. Further, a concave portion 61 is formed on the inner peripheral surface side of the root portion of the rib 48 (substantially the boundary portion between the rib 48 and the peripheral edge portion 46), whereby the rib 48 exerts a stress for holding from the plate pivot 38. A thin portion 62 is formed to absorb the deformation of the rib 48 and prevent it from being transmitted to the peripheral edge portion 46 when received. In addition, slits 64 reaching the thin portion 62 are formed in the ribs 48 on the left and right sides.
(FIGS. 1 and 3) are formed and divided into a plurality of pieces in the longitudinal direction. Furthermore, from the peripheral portion 46 to the rib 48,
A satin-shaped unevenness 66 is formed on the entire surface. The satin-shaped unevenness 66 can be formed by the uneven pattern formed on the mold when the mirror body 34 is molded.

In the mirror body holding member 40, the stay 36 is made of metal, for example, and the upper end thereof is fixed to the ceiling inside the vehicle, and the plate pivot 38 is attached to the pivot 67 formed at the lower end thereof at a freely attachable angle. The plate pivot 38 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin, and is formed in a substantially rectangular plate shape with a size such that it is entirely accommodated in the space 58 surrounded by the ribs 48 of the mirror body 34. The pivot 6 of the stay 36 is provided substantially at the center of the rear surface of the plate pivot 38.
A pivot bearing 68 for housing 7 is formed. Further, on the outer peripheral surface of the plate pivot 38, the concave portion 7 that fits with the convex portion 60 formed on the inner peripheral surface of the rib 48.
0 is formed all around.

The mirror main body 34 and the plate pivot 38 are connected to each other by fitting the convex portion 60 formed on the inner peripheral surface of the rib 48 and the concave portion 70 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the plate pivot 38, thereby connecting the mirror main body 34 and the plate pivot 38 to each other. 34 is mounted and held on the mirror body holding member 40. In this case, since the ribs 48 are formed with the slits 64 and the thin portions 62, the ribs 48 can be easily deformed outward, and the plate pivot 38 can be easily deformed.
It can be easily mounted by pushing into the space 58 surrounded by the rib 48 with a hand or the like. In the mounted state, the engagement between the pivot 67 and the pivot bearing 68 causes
The angle of the mirror body 34 can be freely adjusted.

According to the above construction, the mirror body holding member 40 and the mirror body 34 are in contact with each other only at the outer peripheral portion of the plate pivot 38 and the inner peripheral portion of the rib 48, and the plate pivot 38 and the mirror surface 44 are brought into contact with each other. Since there is no contact, the stress caused by holding the plate pivot 38 is not directly transmitted to the mirror surface 44. In particular, since the thin portion 62 is formed at the base of the rib 48, the deformation of the rib 48 due to the stress of holding the plate pivot 38 is absorbed by the thin portion 62 (that is, the rib 48 rotates around the thin portion 62). It does not easily reach the mirror surface 44. In addition, the fact that the peripheral edge portion 46 is formed thick and has high rigidity (hard to bend) also contributes to making stress less likely to be transmitted to the mirror surface. Further, since the rib 48 is divided by the slit 64, when the rib 48 is locally stressed, it is possible to deform only the stressed divided portion to absorb the stress (especially, the slit 64 has a thin wall). Since the rib 48 is formed so as to reach the portion 62, the divided portions of the rib 48 are easy to move individually.), So that stress is prevented from being applied to the other divided portions. For these reasons, the stress due to holding on the mirror surface 44 is suppressed as much as possible, and the distortion on the mirror surface 44 is prevented. In addition, since the satin-finished irregularities 66 are formed on the peripheral edge portion 46 and the rib 48, reflection of light from the peripheral edge portion 46 and the rib 48 is suppressed, and the mirror surface 4 is formed.
It becomes easy to visually recognize the rear view through 4. Also,
Since the mirror body 34 is made of a transparent resin substrate,
If the surfaces of the peripheral edge portion 46 and the ribs 48 are smooth, the inside of the inner mirror 42 can be seen through, or can be seen by being colored due to the refraction of light, resulting in poor appearance. On the other hand, when the surface-roughened irregularities 66 are provided, the surface becomes a light-scattering state (simply white), which improves the appearance. Alternatively, the entire surface of the peripheral edge portion 46 and the rib 48 (the entire surface of the satin-finished irregularities 66) may be painted in black or the like.

In the above-described embodiment, the slits 64 are provided on both the left and right sides of the rib 48, but the ribs 48 may be provided with slits on the upper and lower sides of the rib 48 instead of or together with the slits 64. Further, only the upper and lower surfaces or only the left and right surfaces of the outer peripheral surface of the plate pivot 38 can be fitted and held by the ribs 48. Further, in the fitting structure, the concave portion 70 is formed on the plate pivot 38 and the convex portion 60 is formed on the rib 48, but the convex portion may be formed on the plate pivot 38 and the concave portion may be formed on the rib 48. The reflection film 54 of the mirror body 34 is not limited to being formed on the back surface side of the synthetic resin substrate 50, but may be formed on the front surface side. In that case, it is desirable to form a hard transparent protective film on the reflective film 54. Further, the thin portion 62 is not limited to the root of the rib 48 (that is, the boundary portion with the peripheral portion 46), but may be formed in the middle portion of the rib 48. In that case, the slit 64 does not have to be formed to the base of the rib 48,
It is sufficient to form the thin portion 62. Further, the present invention can be applied to vehicle rearview endoscopes other than the inner mirror.

[0030]

As described above, according to the invention described in claim 1, the mirror main body holding member does not hold the mirror main body at the mirror surface portion, but forms the peripheral edge portion on the peripheral edge of the mirror surface, Since the holding is performed via the ribs formed on the back surface of the peripheral portion, the stress due to the holding is not directly transmitted to the mirror surface, and the distortion of the mirror surface is prevented. Further, since the rib is provided, rigidity can be obtained and chattering of the mirror surface can be prevented.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the peripheral edge portion is formed thicker so as to project forward than the mirror surface, rigidity is improved and distortion of the mirror surface is prevented.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the thin portion is formed between the rib and the peripheral portion, the deformation of the rib due to the holding stress is absorbed by the thin portion and the stress is less likely to be transmitted to the mirror surface. Therefore, distortion of the mirror surface is prevented.

According to the invention as set forth in claim 4, since the rib is divided into a plurality of pieces in the longitudinal direction thereof, when the rib is locally stressed, only the stressed rib is deformed to absorb the stress. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the stress from being applied to the other divided portions, which prevents the distortion of the mirror surface.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, since the mirror body is held by connecting the outer peripheral portion of the plate pivot and the inner peripheral portion of the rib, the stress due to the holding is not directly transmitted to the mirror surface, and the stress of the mirror surface is not transmitted. Distortion is prevented.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, since the plate pivot and the rib are connected by the fitting of the concavities and convexities to hold the mirror body, it is possible to easily hold the mirror body.

According to the invention described in claim 7, since the peripheral edge and the surface of the rib are formed in a satin-finished uneven surface, reflection of light from the peripheral edge and the rib is suppressed, and the rear view through the mirror surface is suppressed. It will be easier.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing an appearance of a mirror body 34,
(B) is a partially cutaway perspective view showing the entire structure of an inner mirror 42 in which the mirror body 34 of (a) is held by a mirror body holding member 40 composed of a stay 36 and a pivot plate 38.

2A is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1B, and FIG. 2B is an enlarged view of a C portion in FIG.

3A is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 1B, and FIG. 3B is an enlarged view of a D portion of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing an example of a resin mirror.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a conventional resin mirror.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing another example of a conventional resin mirror.

[Explanation of symbols]

 34 Mirror Main Body 36 Stay 38 Plate Pivot 40 Mirror Main Body Holding Member 42 Inner Mirror (Vehicle Rearview Mirror) 44 Mirror Surface 46 Peripheral Edge 48 Rib 50 Synthetic Resin Base Material (Resin Base Material) 54 Reflective Film (Reflecting Surface) 62 Thin Wall Part 66 Satin texture

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A mirror body having a mirror surface having a reflecting surface formed on a resin base, a peripheral edge portion formed around the mirror surface, and a rib formed so as to project rearward on the back surface of the peripheral edge portion. And a mirror body holding member that holds the mirror body via the ribs and attaches the mirror body to the vehicle. 2. The rear endoscope for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the peripheral edge portion is formed to have a thickness larger than that of the mirror surface so as to project forward from the surface of the mirror surface. 3. The rear endoscope for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein a thin portion is formed in a portion on the way from the rib to the peripheral portion. 4. The rear endoscope for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the rib is divided into a plurality of pieces in the longitudinal direction thereof. 5. The mirror body holding member includes a stay having one end attached to a vehicle and a plate pivot attached to the other end of the stay, and an outer peripheral portion of the plate pivot and an inner peripheral portion of the rib. The vehicle rearview endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the mirror body is held by the mirror body holding member. 6. The rear view for a vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the mirror main body is held by the mirror main body holding member by fitting concave and convex portions formed on an outer peripheral portion of the plate pivot and an inner peripheral portion of the rib. mirror. 7. The vehicle rear endoscope according to claim 1, wherein satin-finished concavities and convexities are formed on surfaces of the peripheral edge portion and the ribs.