TW202113450A - Protection structure for camera module - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention disclosed a protection structure for camera module, comprising: an outer case, an inner case, and a camera module, wherein a rear end of the outer case is provided with an air flow inlet, and a front end of the outer case has an air outlet; the inner case disposed in the outer case, an outer surface of the inner case and the inner side wall of the outer case define a gas flow passage, and the air flow passage connects the air inlet and the air outlet; the camera module accommodated in the inner case, and a front end of the inner case provided with an opening, and the lens of the camera module is placed in the opening and aligned with the air outlet; compressed gas enters the air flow passage through the air flow inlet, and is discharged from the air flow outlet.

Description

Dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of camera module

The invention relates to a dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of a camera module, in particular to a dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of a camera module used in a vehicle imaging system, a self-supporting vehicle system, or an unmanned aerial vehicle or an unmanned vehicle.

Due to the development of vehicle imaging systems (such as reversing cameras and driving recorders) and the development of automated driving unmanned vehicle technology, vehicle camera modules have become important components in vehicle electronic equipment. In addition, unmanned automated aerial vehicles and unmanned underwater vehicles must also rely on camera modules as sensors for environmental situations, which makes the application of camera modules more and more widespread.

Because vehicles and various unmanned vehicles need to travel in harsh weather, the camera module must maintain normal operation under the harsh weather, so the camera module has extremely strict requirements for waterproof performance. In addition, because the lens of the camera module is easy to be attached to rain, sand or mud and other sundries in bad weather such as rain or snow, resulting in a decrease in resolution, the camera module must also be protected by appropriate lenses. Measures.

The lens protection measures commonly adopted by existing camera modules are by providing a protective coating or coating on the lens surface of the lens. The protective coating or coating is generally hydrophobic, so that water droplets cannot adhere to the surface of the lens. Another protective measure is to isolate the lens by placing a protective goggles in front of the lens to prevent water droplets, dust or mud from adhering to the lens.

However, although the protective measures adopted by the existing camera module can reduce the chance of the lens being attached to water droplets or pollutants, the water droplets or pollutants will still briefly contact the lens or protective lens of the camera lens, and if the rain is too heavy, It will make the rain cover the lens, resulting in a decrease in the resolution and even a situation where the image cannot be captured correctly.

Due to the above reasons, the existing camera module cannot effectively protect the camera lens from rain damage and cannot operate normally under bad weather. Therefore, how to overcome the above-mentioned shortcomings through the improvement of structural design has become one of the important issues to be solved by this business.

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to address the problem of insufficient protection performance of the existing camera module and the problem that the resolution of the lens is likely to decrease under bad weather.

In order to solve the above technical problems, the technical principle adopted by the present invention is to use airflow channels to cover the imaging range of the lens of the camera module, and blow water droplets, dust, mud and other substances outward through the high-pressure and high-speed airflow to keep them away from the imaging lens of the camera lens. In order to protect the lens of the camera module from being blocked by contaminants, it can cope with bad weather all-weather and improve the resolution.

A specific embodiment of the present invention provides a protective structure for an image module, which includes: an outer casing having opposite front and rear ends in a central axis direction, and an air flow is provided at the rear end of the outer casing The entrance has an air outlet at the front end; and, an inner casing is accommodated inside the outer casing, and an accommodating space is formed inside the inner casing for accommodating a camera module. The front end has an opening, the center of the opening is aligned with the air outlet, and a lens of the camera module is accommodated in the opening, so that the lens can capture images through the air outlet; Wherein, the diameter of the outer side wall of the inner shell is smaller than the diameter of the inner side wall of the outer shell, and the outer side wall of the inner shell and the inner side wall of the outer shell jointly define an air flow channel, and the air flow channel communicates with At the airflow inlet and the airflow outlet, gas can enter the airflow channel through the airflow inlet, and be discharged from the airflow outlet to the outside of the outer shell.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inner housing is provided with a support ring surrounding the outer side wall of the inner housing, and the outer side wall of the support ring contacts the inner side wall of the outer housing, and the support ring The diameter of the inner side wall is larger than the outer side wall of the inner casing, and a plurality of ribs are arranged between the inner side wall of the support ring and the outer side wall of the inner casing.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the outer shell has a front shell and a rear shell, the front end of the rear shell has a socket part, and the rear end of the front shell has a clamping part, The clamping portion and the sleeve portion can be connected to each other, so that the front shell and the rear shell are sleeved together to form the outer shell.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the diameter of the outer side wall of the clamping portion of the front housing matches the diameter of the inner wall of the socket portion, so that the clamping portion can fit into the socket The inner side wall of the connecting portion, and the outer side wall of the clamping portion and the inner side wall of the socket portion are respectively provided with flanges and grooves that can be engaged with each other, so that the clamping portion and the socket portion It can be locked and positioned together.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the front end of the outer side wall of the inner casing forms a front end surface, the front end of the inner side wall of the outer casing forms a front side wall, and the front side wall and the front end surface jointly define a The outlet part of the air flow channel, and the front end surface and the front side wall are perpendicular to the central axis, so that the outlet part of the air flow channel is perpendicular to the central axis.

The beneficial effects of the present invention are that it can effectively prevent the lens of the camera module from being shielded by rain or other pollutants, and provide effective protection for the camera module.

In order to further understand the features and technical content of the present invention, please refer to the following detailed description and drawings about the present invention. However, the provided drawings are only for reference and description, and are not used to limit the present invention.

The following is a specific embodiment to illustrate the implementation of the “dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of the camera module” disclosed in the present invention. Those skilled in the art can understand the advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification. The present invention can be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and various details in this specification can also be based on different viewpoints and applications, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the concept of the present invention. In addition, the drawings of the present invention are merely schematic illustrations, and are not drawn according to actual size, and are stated in advance. The following embodiments will further describe the related technical content of the present invention in detail, but the disclosed content is not intended to limit the protection scope of the present invention.

It should be understood that although terms such as "first", "second", and "third" may be used herein to describe various elements or signals, these elements or signals should not be limited by these terms. These terms are mainly used to distinguish one element from another, or one signal from another signal. In addition, the term "or" used in this document may include any one or a combination of more of the associated listed items depending on the actual situation.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, an embodiment of the present invention provides a dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure 1 for a camera module, which includes an outer casing 10, an inner casing 20, and a camera module 30.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3, in this embodiment, the outer shell 10 includes a front shell 11 and a rear shell 12. The front end of the rear body 12 has a socket 121, and the rear end of the front shell 11 has A card connector 111. In this embodiment, the outer diameter of the clamping portion 111 and the inner diameter of the socket portion 121 are matched, so that the socket portion 121 can be sleeved on the outside of the clamping portion 111. In addition, a flange is provided on the outer side of the clamping portion 111, and a groove is provided on the inner side of the socket portion 121 corresponding to the position of the flange of the clamping portion 111. When the socket portion 121 is sleeved on the outer side of the clamping portion 111, The flange of the clamping portion 111 can be engaged with the groove of the socket portion 121, so that the clamping portion 111 and the socket portion 121 are fixedly clamped and positioned together. In addition, a gasket 24 can be provided at the joint between the clamping portion 111 and the socket portion 121 to prevent moisture from penetrating into the gap where the clamping portion 111 and the socket portion 121 are joined. Through the relative engagement of the socket portion 121 and the clamping portion 111, the front housing 11 and the rear housing 12 are combined to form a whole.

In addition, the outer casing 11 is provided with an airflow inlet 14 at the rear end in the direction of the central axis C, and an airflow outlet 13 is provided at the front end of the outer casing 11 in the direction of the central axis C. In this embodiment, the air inlet 14 and the air outlet 13 are arranged at the rear end and the front end in the direction of the central axis C of the outer casing 10, and the air inlet 14 can be connected to a gas delivery device (such as a fan, an air compressor, a blower, etc.). , Air pumps, high-pressure gas cylinders, etc.), the gas output by the gas delivery device enters the interior of the outer shell 10 through the air inlet 14 and then is discharged to the outside of the outer shell 10 through the air outlet 13.

The inner casing 20 is housed inside the outer casing 10. In this embodiment, the inner casing 20 includes a front section 21 and a rear section 22. The front section 21 and the rear section 22 of the inner casing 20 can be relatively combined in Together, to form a whole. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, an accommodating space is formed inside the inner housing 20 for accommodating the camera module 30, and an opening 211 is provided at the front end of the inner housing 20, and the lens 31 of the camera module 30 is accommodated In the opening 211. The position of the opening 211 is aligned with the air outlet 13 of the outer casing 10, and the diameter of the air outlet 13 is arranged to be larger than the imaging range of the lens 31, so that the lens 31 can be captured to the housing through the opening 211 and the air outlet 13 10External images.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the diameter of the inner casing 20 is smaller than the diameter of the inner side wall of the outer casing 10, so it can be accommodated inside the outer casing 1. In addition, a distance is maintained between the outer side wall of the inner casing 20 and the inner side wall of the outer casing 10, so that the outer side wall of the inner casing 20 and the inner side wall of the outer casing 10 jointly define an air flow channel P. And the air flow channel P communicates with the air flow inlet 14 and the air flow outlet 13.

As shown in Figure 6, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the air inlet 14 can be connected to an air blowing device and a dryer. After the air blowing device pressurizes the air, it is connected to the dryer via a pipeline, and the After the moisture in the compressed air is removed, it is transmitted to the air inlet 14 at the rear end of the outer casing 10 so that the compressed air can flow to the air outlet 13 through the air flow channel P, and then be discharged from the air outlet 13. Since the lens 31 of the camera module 30 is located at the center of the airflow outlet 13, when the compressed gas is discharged to the outside of the outer casing 10 through the airflow outlet 13, the compressed gas can pass through the front side of the lens 31 and quickly blow from the inside to the outside. , The rainwater or impurities entering the air outlet 13 are blown outward to keep the lens surface of the camera lens 31 clean, and to prevent the lens 31 from being shielded and resulting in a decrease in resolution.

In this embodiment, the inner casing 20 is positioned inside the outer casing 10 through a support ring 23 which is arranged at the rear end of the front section 21 of the inner casing 20. The diameter of the outer side wall of the support ring 23 matches the diameter of the inner side wall of the outer housing 10, so as to contact the inner side wall of the outer housing 10, and contact the inner side wall of the outer housing 10 through the support ring 23, thereby positioning the inner housing 20 On the central axis C of the outer housing 10. In more detail, in this embodiment, the position of the support ring 23 corresponds to the position of the clamping portion 111 of the front housing 11, and the inner side wall of the rear end of the front housing 11 is provided with an outer side wall of the support ring 23. In the engagement groove 113, the outer side wall of the support ring 23 can be engaged with the engagement groove 113, so that the support ring 23 is fixed on the inner side of the engagement portion 111 of the front housing 11.

The diameter of the inner side wall of the support ring 23 is larger than the diameter of the outer side wall of the front section 21 of the inner casing 20, so that a distance is maintained between the inner side wall of the support ring 23 and the outer side wall of the front section 21 of the inner casing 20. And a plurality of ribs 231 are connected between the inner side wall of the support ring 23 and the outer side wall of the front section 21, and the plurality of ribs 231 are radially arranged between the outer side wall of the front section 21 of the inner casing 20 and the support ring 23, In addition, sufficient spacing is maintained between the ribs 231 so that the air flow channel P will not be blocked by the support ring 23.

In particular, in this embodiment, the rear end surface of the rear section 22 of the inner casing 20 forms an arc-shaped rear end surface 222, the front side of the inner casing 20 forms a front end surface 212, and the inner casing 20 is located on the rear end surface 222. The outer side wall between the front end surface 212 and the front end surface 212 forms a side arc-shaped surface 223 in a gentle arc shape, so that the inner casing 20 is formed into an approximately oblong shape as a whole. The inner side wall of the outer casing 10 forms a accommodating cavity, which completely covers the inner casing 20 inside the outer casing 10. And the rear end of the inner side wall of the outer housing 10 forms a rear concave surface 123 that matches the rear end surface 222 of the inner housing 20, and the inner side wall of the outer housing 10 forms a part corresponding to the side arc surface 223 of the inner housing 20 The arc-shaped side wall 124 and the front end of the inner side wall of the outer casing 10 form a front side wall 112 adjacent to the front end surface 212 of the inner casing 20.

Wherein, the rear end surface 222 of the inner casing 20 and the rear concave surface 123 of the outer casing 10 jointly define the inlet end of the airflow channel P, while the side arc-shaped surface 223 of the inner casing 20 and the arc-shaped side wall 124 of the outer casing 10 jointly define The middle section of the air flow passage P is formed, and the front end surface 212 of the inner casing 20 and the front side wall 112 of the outer casing 10 jointly define an outlet portion P1 forming the air flow passage P. When the compressed gas enters the outer casing 10 from the gas flow inlet 14, the compressed gas can flow along the gas flow channel P, and flow from the outlet portion P1 of the gas flow channel P to the gas flow outlet 13, and then discharged to the outer casing 10 by the gas flow outlet 13 external.

Wherein, the front end surface 212 of the inner casing 20 and the front side wall 112 of the outer casing 10 are arranged to be perpendicular to the central axis C of the outer casing 10, so that the outlet portion P1 of the airflow channel is also formed perpendicular to the central axis C of the outer casing 10. Therefore, when the compressed gas passes through the outlet portion P1, it can flow in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens 31, pass through the front side of the lens 31, and then be discharged from the airflow outlet 13, thus forming a cover in front of the lens 31 The side air curtain can effectively isolate water droplets and other pollutants.

In addition, the present invention arranges the distance between the rear end surface 222 of the inner casing 20 and the rear concave surface 123 of the outer casing 10 to be greater than the distance between the side arc-shaped surface 223 of the inner casing and the arc-shaped side wall 124 of the outer casing. The distance between the side arc surface 223 of the casing and the arc side wall 124 of the outer casing 10 is arranged to be greater than the distance between the front end surface 212 of the inner casing 20 and the front side wall 112 of the outer casing. Through the above arrangement, the cross-sectional area of the flow channel at the inlet end of the air flow channel P is greater than the cross-sectional area of the middle section, and the cross-sectional area of the middle section is greater than the cross-sectional area of the outlet part P1, so that when the air flow passes through the outlet part P1 of the air flow channel P, Due to the reduction of the flow channel area, the gas flow rate increases and the gas pressure increases, so that water droplets or contaminants can be blown away from the gas flow outlet 13 more effectively.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the present invention is provided with a threading hole 122 at the rear end of the outer housing 10, and a threading tube 221 is provided at the rear end of the inner housing 20 at a position corresponding to the threading hole 122. When the outer casing 10 is assembled together, the threading tube 221 can be aligned with the threading hole 122, and the end of the threading tube 221 and the threading hole 122 are connected together. The threading tube 221 and the threading hole 122 are combined together to form a channel connected from the outside of the outer housing 10 to the inside of the inner housing 20. Therefore, the cable for supplying power to the camera module 30 and transmitting signals can pass through the threading hole 122 The threading tube 221 penetrates into the inner housing 20 and is connected to the camera module 30. In addition, in order to achieve the purpose of waterproofing, the joints of the threading tube 221 and the threading hole 122 are tightly connected to each other, and the joints of the threading tube 221 and the threading hole 122 can also be sealed by dispensing to prevent moisture from passing through the threading tube 221 and the threading hole. The gap between 122 enters the gap between the outer casing 10 and the inner casing 20.

[Beneficial effects of the embodiment]

The beneficial effect of the present invention is that water droplets or other pollutants can be blown away from the lens 31 of the camera module 30 through the airflow discharged from the airflow outlet 13, and the lens 31 of the camera module 30 can be prevented from being shielded by the water droplets or pollutants. A good protective effect is achieved, and the normal operation of the camera module 30 can be maintained under harsh environmental conditions, and the resolution can be improved.

The content disclosed above is only the preferred and feasible embodiments of the present invention, and does not limit the scope of the patent application of the present invention. Therefore, all equivalent technical changes made using the description and schematic content of the present invention are included in the application of the present invention. Within the scope of the patent. In other words, the technology of the present invention is not limited to the protective use of the camera module, nor is it limited to the structure of the embodiment disclosed in the specification and drawings of this case, and any technical application equivalent to the airflow channel and airflow isolation technology of the present invention is used. For the protection of electronic components, it should be included in the scope of the patent application of the present invention.

1: Camera module dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure 10: Outer shell 11: Front shell 111: Card connector 112: front wall 113: Connection slot 12: Rear shell 121: Socket 122: Threading hole 123: Back concave 124: Curved sidewall 13: Air outlet 14: Air inlet 20: inner shell 21: The front part 211: open 212: front face 22: Later part 221: Threading Tube 222: rear face 223: Side curved surface 23: Support ring 231: Rib 24: Washer 30: camera module 31: lens P: Airflow channel P1: Export part C: central axis

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional assembly schematic diagram of an embodiment of the dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of the camera module of the present invention.

2 is a three-dimensional exploded schematic diagram of an embodiment of the dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of the camera module of the present invention.

3 is a partial three-dimensional exploded schematic diagram of the dustproof and rainproof protective structure of the camera module of the present invention.

4 is a schematic diagram of a three-dimensional assembly of the dust and rain protection structure of the camera module of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a schematic front view of the inner shell used in the dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of the camera module of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a combined dust and rain protection structure of the camera module of the present invention.

1: Camera module dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure

10: Outer shell

11: Front shell

111: Card connector

112: front wall

113: Connection slot

12: Rear shell

121: Socket

122: Threading hole

13: Air outlet

14: Air inlet

20: inner shell

21: The front part

211: open

212: front face

22: Later part

221: Threading Tube

23: Support ring

231: Rib

24: Washer

30: camera module

31: lens

P: Airflow channel

P1: Export part

C: central axis

Claims (8)

A dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure for a camera module, which includes: An outer shell, the outer shell has a front end and a rear end opposite to each other in a central axis direction, the rear end of the outer shell is provided with an air inlet, and the front end has an air outlet; and An inner housing, the inner housing is accommodated inside the outer housing, an accommodating space is formed inside the inner housing for accommodating a camera module, and the front end of the inner housing has an opening, The center of the opening is aligned with the air outlet, and a lens of the camera module is accommodated in the opening, so that the lens can capture images through the air outlet; Wherein, the diameter of the outer side wall of the inner shell is smaller than the diameter of the inner side wall of the outer shell, and the outer side wall of the inner shell and the inner side wall of the outer shell jointly define an air flow channel, and the air flow channel communicates with At the airflow inlet and the airflow outlet, gas can enter the airflow channel through the airflow inlet, and be discharged from the airflow outlet to the outside of the outer shell. According to the dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of the camera module according to the first item of the scope of patent application, the inner housing is provided with a support ring surrounding the outer side wall of the inner housing, and the outer side wall of the support ring contacts The inner side wall of the outer shell, the inner side wall of the support ring has a larger diameter than the outer side wall of the inner shell, and a plurality of ribs are arranged between the inner side wall of the support ring and the outer side wall of the inner shell . As described in the second item of the scope of patent application, the camera module has a dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure, wherein the outer shell has a front shell and a rear shell, and the front end of the rear shell has a socket, the The rear end of the front housing has a clamping part, and the clamping part and the socket part can be connected to each other, so that the front case and the rear case are relatively sleeved together to form a combination The outer shell. The camera module dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure as described in item 3 of the scope of patent application, wherein the diameter of the outer wall of the clamping portion of the front housing matches the diameter of the inner wall of the socket portion, so that the The clamping portion can be sleeved on the inner side wall of the sleeve portion, and the outer side wall of the clamping portion and the inner side wall of the sleeve portion are respectively provided with flanges and grooves that can be engaged with each other, and The clamping part and the socket part can be locked and positioned together. As described in the second item of the scope of patent application, the camera module has a dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure, wherein the front end of the outer side wall of the inner casing forms a front end surface, and the front end of the inner side wall of the outer casing forms a front side wall. The front side wall and the front end surface jointly define an outlet portion forming the air flow channel, and the front end surface and the front side wall are perpendicular to the central axis, so that the outlet portion of the air flow channel and the The central axis is perpendicular. According to the dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of the camera module according to the fifth item of the scope of patent application, the cross-sectional area of the outlet portion of the air flow channel is smaller than the cross-sectional area of the inlet end and the middle section of the air flow channel. As described in the first item of the scope of patent application, the camera module has a dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure, wherein a threading hole is provided on the rear side of the outer shell, and a threading hole is provided on the rear side of the inner shell corresponding to the position of the threading hole. A threading tube, the end of the threading tube is connected to the threading hole, and the cable connected to the camera module passes through the threading hole and the threading tube into the inner housing and connects to the Camera module. According to the dust-proof and rain-proof protective structure of the camera module as described in item 7 of the scope of patent application, the end of the threading tube and the threading hole are closely attached to each other to form a sealed state.

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