JP6980690B2 - Vehicle door opening and closing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle door opening / closing device.

Conventionally, as a vehicle door opening / closing device, a device in which a rear seat door opening / closing drive unit is made to open a rear seat door when an obstacle is detected by a detection pattern satisfying a plurality of predetermined conditions is known. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-221982

However, in the conventional vehicle door opening / closing device, since a sensor for detecting an obstacle is mounted on the bumper, it is necessary to make a hole in the bumper. Further, when it is mounted as a separate part other than the bumper, the mounting position is limited and the processing becomes complicated.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle door opening / closing device that can eliminate complicated processing by incorporating a detection means into a lighting means arranged at the rear of the vehicle.

The present invention provides means for solving the above problems.
A drive means that opens and closes the door of the vehicle,
A detection means for detecting an object to be detected located in the detection range outside the vehicle,
A control means that drives and controls the drive means to open and close the door based on the detection result of the detection means.
Equipped with
The detection means is arranged behind a reflector that reflects and diffuses light from a light source provided inside the lighting means arranged at the rear of the vehicle .
The detection means is a capacitance sensor composed of a circuit board having an electrode and a detection circuit.
The electrode includes a transmission electrode electrically connected to the detection circuit and a reception electrode that receives electric lines of force generated from the transmission electrode.
Provided is a vehicle door opening / closing device characterized in that the receiving electrode is a reflector provided inside the lighting means.
Further, the lighting means includes a box-shaped case for accommodating a light source and a reflector, and a lens attached to the front surface of the case.
The electrode may be arranged along the inner surface of the case, or the electrode may be arranged as a transparent electrode on the lens.

With this configuration, by incorporating the detection means into the lighting means arranged at the rear of the vehicle, it is possible to eliminate the need for processing of bumpers and the like.

According to the present invention, since the detection means is incorporated into the lighting means arranged at the rear of the vehicle, complicated processing is not required, and the user can simply arrange the detection means inside the lighting means. Movement can be detected.

The rear view of the vehicle which shows the tail lamp which adopts the detection means which concerns on this embodiment. The front view of the tail lamp of FIG. FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 2A. The block diagram which shows the structure of the door opening / closing device. The flowchart which shows the vehicle door opening / closing process which concerns on this embodiment. The flowchart which shows the infrared trigger processing of FIG. The flowchart which shows the electrostatic trigger processing of FIG. The front view of the tail lamp which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. FIG. 7A is a sectional view taken along line BB. The front view of the tail lamp which concerns on 3rd Embodiment. FIG. 8A is a sectional view taken along line CC. The front view of the tail lamp which concerns on 4th Embodiment. FIG. 9A is a sectional view taken along line DD. The front view of the tail lamp which concerns on 5th Embodiment. FIG. 10A is a sectional view taken along line EE. The front view of the tail lamp which concerns on 6th Embodiment. FIG. 11A is a sectional view taken along line FF.

Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, terms indicating a specific direction or position (for example, terms including "top", "bottom", "side", and "edge") are used as necessary, but the use of these terms is used. Is for facilitating the understanding of the invention with reference to the drawings, and the meaning of those terms does not limit the technical scope of the present invention. Further, the following description is merely an example and is not intended to limit the present invention, its application, or its use. Furthermore, the drawings are schematic, and the ratio of each dimension is different from the actual one.

FIG. 1 is a rear view of a vehicle 1 that employs the vehicle door opening / closing device 2 according to the present embodiment. The vehicle door opening / closing device 2 has tail lamps 3 attached to both sides of the rear of the vehicle as lighting means.

(First Embodiment)
2A and 2B show the tail lamp 3 according to the first embodiment. The tail lamp 3 contains a reflector 5, an LED 6 (light emitting diode) as a light source, a first substrate 7 on which the LED 6 is mounted, an optical sensor 8 as a detection means, and a capacitance sensor 9 in a case 4. It accommodates the second substrate 10 to be mounted.

The case 4 is composed of a case body 11 and a lens 12. The case body 11 is composed of a rectangular portion and a semicircular portion when viewed from the front. Further, the case main body 11 is composed of an upper and lower arcuate portion and an intermediate straight line portion in a vertical cross section. The lens 12 has a flat plate shape and is made of a translucent resin material.

The reflector 5 is formed by molding a synthetic resin material into a recessed shape, and a first opening 13 is formed in an upper portion on a center line, and the reflector 5 is recessed in a spherical shape around the first opening 13. Further, the reflector 5 has a flat portion on the lower side, and a rectangular second opening 14 is formed in the central portion thereof. Further, the surface of the recessed portion of the reflector 5 is coated with a base, a thin film is formed on the surface by sputtering, and then the surface is coated so as to be a mirror surface.

The first substrate 7 on which the LED 6 is mounted is arranged on the upper back surface of the reflector 5 and is fixed to the case main body 11. The LED 6 is exposed from the first opening 13 of the reflector 5 and can irradiate the outside of the vehicle with light through the lens 12.

The second substrate 10 is arranged on the lower back surface of the reflector 5 and is fixed to the case body 11. The optical sensor 8 and the capacitance sensor 9 mounted on the second substrate 10 are arranged in the second opening 14, and the infrared rays emitted from the optical sensor 8 pass through the lens 12 and are applied to the detection range outside the vehicle. It has become like.

The optical sensor 8 includes a light emitting element 15 (infrared LED) and a light receiving element 16 (photodiode). The infrared rays output from the light emitting element 15 are reflected by the object to be detected within the detection range and are received by the light receiving element 16. Here, the detection range is set in a range (first trigger area) in which the distance from the light emitting element 15 and the light receiving element 16 is 5 cm to 30 cm.

The capacitance sensor 9 includes a transmitting electrode 17 arranged on the outer diameter side around the light emitting element 15 and a receiving electrode 18 arranged on the inner diameter side. When the electric lines of force from the transmitting electrode 17 to the receiving electrode 18 are blocked by hand or the like, the charging current to the receiving electrode 18 decreases and the detection voltage decreases. A detection circuit (not shown) formed on the second substrate 10 is connected to the transmitting electrode 17 and the receiving electrode 18. The detection means is composed of the transmission electrode 17, the reception electrode 18, and the detection circuit. In the detection circuit, the object to be detected is detected based on the change of the electric line of force between the transmission electrode 17 and the reception electrode 18. Here, the detection range is set to a range (second trigger area) in which the distance from the transmission electrode 17 and the reception electrode 18 is less than 3 cm.

In this way, it is possible to obtain a configuration for detecting the user as the object to be detected only by adding the second substrate 10 on which the optical sensor 8 and the capacitance sensor 9 are mounted. Moreover, the optical sensor 8 and the capacitance sensor 9 can be mounted on the second substrate 10 and accommodated in the tail lamp 3. Further, even if the optical sensor 8 is housed in the tail lamp 3, there is no problem because the front portion is composed of the lens 12 having translucency. Therefore, it can be dealt with only by slightly changing the design of the tail lamp 3, and complicated processing becomes unnecessary.

As shown in FIG. 3, the optical sensor 8 and the capacitance sensor 9 constitute a vehicle door opening / closing device 2 together with a collating means 19, a door driving means 20, and a control means 21 as detection means.

The collating means 19 includes a transceiver including an external LF (Low Frequency) antenna that receives a signal from a key (portable device). The transmitter / receiver communicates with the key by the LF signal, and is activated in response to a command from a higher-level ECU (Electronic Control Unit) inside the vehicle. As a result, the key authentication process is performed in the upper ECU.

Although not shown, the door driving means 20 includes a motor, a gear mechanism, a damper, and the like that can rotate the door 25 (here, the back door) in the opening direction and the closing direction. The door driving means 20 is communicably connected to the control means 21 by a communication cable. The door driving means 20 and the control means 21 may be wirelessly connected.

The control means 21 includes a controller including a storage unit 22, a measurement unit 23, and a determination unit 24. In the present embodiment, one microcomputer is used as the control means 21, but the measurement unit 23, the determination unit 24, and the setting unit may be configured by individual microcomputers.

The storage unit 22 stores a control program, setting data such as threshold values and determination values used in the control program, and a data table used when calculating the distance from the detection result of the detection sensor.

The measuring unit 23 calculates the distance to the object to be detected based on the detection signal of the optical sensor 8 or the capacitance sensor 9.

The determination unit 24 determines whether or not the user, who is the object to be detected, is located in the first trigger area or the second trigger area based on the calculation result of the measurement unit 23.

Next, the operation of the vehicle door opening / closing device 2 will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 4 to 6.

As shown in FIG. 4, after initializing each data used in the door opening / closing process (step S1), it waits until key authentication is performed (step S2). If the authentication number of the key matches the authentication number registered in the ECU, after waiting for a predetermined time (for example, 0.025 seconds) (step S3), infrared rays are transmitted from the light emitting element 15 (step S4), and light is received. The element 16 receives the reflected light (step S5).

Based on the reception result, it is determined whether or not the distance to the object to be detected is in the range of 5 cm to 30 cm, that is, whether or not the object to be detected is located in the first trigger area (step S6). Then, if the object to be detected is located in the first trigger area, the infrared trigger process is executed (step S7).

As shown in FIG. 5, in the infrared trigger process, it is determined whether or not the door 25 is open (step S7-1). If the door is open, the door is closed (step S7-2), and if the door is closed, the door is opened (step S7-3). Then, based on the output signal of the door closing output or the door opening output, the door driving means 20 is driven and controlled to automatically open and close the door.

When the lens 12 is dirty and the optical sensor 8 cannot respond, the user may not be detected by the optical sensor 8. Therefore, when it cannot be detected that the user is located in the trigger region, the capacitance sensor 9 determines whether or not the object to be detected is located in the second trigger area. Here, the second trigger area is defined as a range in which the distance from the capacitance sensor 9 is less than 3 cm.

If the object to be detected is located in the second trigger area, the electrostatic trigger process of FIG. 6 is executed in the same manner as the infrared trigger process. This corresponds to the case where the electrostatic trigger process is started by bringing the hand close to the tail lamp 3 when the user does not respond even if he / she moves to the first trigger region. That is, in the same manner as the infrared trigger processing, it is determined whether or not the door 25 is open (step S10-1), and if the door 25 is open, the door closing output is performed (step S10-2). If the door 25 is closed, the door is opened and output (step S10-3). Then, based on the output signal of the door closing output or the door opening output, the door driving means 20 is driven and controlled to automatically open and close the door 25.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, the optical sensor 8 and the capacitance sensor 9 can detect the user who is the object to be detected both in the distance and in the vicinity. Therefore, even if there is a problem such as dirt on the tail lamp 3, the user can be reliably detected. Further, even if the lens 12 becomes dirty, the detecting means itself is not directly affected. Further, by providing the detecting means, the lighting of the LED 6 is not adversely affected.

Subsequently, other embodiments will be described. In each of the following embodiments, the configurations relating to the case 4, the reflector 5, and the LED 6 are the same as those in the first embodiment. Hereinafter, the same members as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

(Second Embodiment)
7A and 7B show the tail lamp 3 according to the second embodiment. In this tail lamp 3, the substrate is only the first substrate 7 on which the LED 6 is mounted, and the second substrate 10 is not provided. Further, the first substrate 7 extends downward as compared with the first embodiment. A capacitance sensor 9 including a transmitting electrode 17 and a receiving electrode 18 is mounted on the lower portion of the first substrate 7, and an optical sensor 8 is not provided.

According to the second embodiment, the user is not detected only by approaching the tail lamp 3, but is detected only when the user touches the tail lamp 3 or holds his / her hand in the vicinity thereof. Therefore, in the flowchart of FIG. 4, there are no steps S4 to S7, and only the electrostatic trigger processing is executed when the user is detected by the capacitance sensor 9 in step S9. Further, no additional processing to the reflector 5 is required, and the reflector 5 can be manufactured at low cost as a simpler configuration.

(Third Embodiment)
8A and 8B show the tail lamp 3 according to the third embodiment. In the tail lamp 3, a transmission electrode 17 is provided on the back surface of the first substrate 7. Further, the reflector 5 is composed of a receiving electrode 18.

According to the third embodiment, the detection area of the capacitance sensor 9 can be set wider than that of the second embodiment. Therefore, it is possible to detect the user in a wide range in the vicinity of the tail lamp, which is convenient. Further, the electrode and the reflector 5 can be shared, and the number of parts can be suppressed to make the configuration simplified.

(Fourth Embodiment)
9A and 9B show the tail lamp 3 according to the fourth embodiment. In the tail lamp 3, the transmitting electrode 17 and the receiving electrode 18 are arranged on the inner surface on the right side and the inner surface on the left side of the case body 11 with the tail lamp 3 viewed from the front.

According to the fourth embodiment, similarly to the third embodiment, the detection area of the capacitance sensor 9 is set wide so that the user can be easily detected.

(Fifth Embodiment)
10A and 10B show the tail lamp 3 according to the fifth embodiment. In the tail lamp 3, transmission electrodes 17 and reception electrodes 18 constituting the capacitance sensor 9 are arranged on both sides of the back surface of the lens 12, respectively. Here, both the transmitting electrode 17 and the receiving electrode 18 are made of a translucent material, and are devised so as not to block the light emitted from the LED 6. By arranging the capacitance sensor 9 in the vicinity of the lens, the configuration can be made even more sensitive.

By forming the transmitting electrode 17 and the receiving electrode 18 in a matrix (the electrodes adjacent to each other in the grid are the transmitting electrode 17 and the receiving electrode 18), it is possible to read the operation performed on the touch screen. For example, it is possible to open the back door in one operation and open the side door in another operation.

(Sixth Embodiment)
11A and 11B show the tail lamp 3 according to the sixth embodiment. In the tail lamp 3, the capacitance sensor 9 uses a separate component in which the transmitting electrode 17 and the receiving electrode 18 are integrally molded in a resin case by an insert mold or the like. Therefore, the capacitance sensor 9 can be attached to the outside of the case body 11 by adhesive or the like. Therefore, the capacitance sensor 9 can be attached to the tail lamp 3 regardless of the difference in the shape of the tail lamp 3.

The present invention is not limited to the configuration described in the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made.

In the above embodiment, the lighting state of the LED 6 is not particularly mentioned, but by performing key authentication, the LED 6 is blinked and displayed, and when the user is detected by the detection means, the lighting state is changed. , It is also possible to inform the user of the operation status.

In the above embodiment, the optical sensor 8 is provided separately from the LED 6, but both can be used in combination. That is, the LED 6 may be used instead of the light emitting element 15 of the optical sensor 8, and the distance to the object to be detected may be measured by emitting a pulse from the LED 6 and receiving the light by the light receiving element 16.

In the above embodiment, the optical sensor 8 is used to drive and control the door driving means 20 only depending on whether or not the user is located in the trigger area. However, in addition to the trigger area, a start area farther away from the trigger area is used. It may be set and the door driving means 20 may be driven and controlled by detecting that the user has moved from the trigger area to the start area.

In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the optical sensor 8 and the capacitance sensor 9 are adopted in the tail lamp 3 has been described, but the configuration may be adopted not only in the tail lamp but also in a brake lamp or a hazard lamp arranged at the rear of the vehicle. ..

1 ... Vehicle 2 ... Vehicle door opening / closing device 3 ... Tail lamp (lighting means)
4 ... Case 5 ... Reflector 6 ... LED (light source)
7 ... 1st substrate 8 ... Optical sensor 9 ... Capacitance sensor 10 ... 2nd substrate 11 ... Case body 12 ... Lens 13 ... 1st opening 14 ... 2nd opening 15 ... Light emitting element 16 ... Light receiving element 17 ... Transmit electrode 18 ... Receiving electrode 19 ... Collation means 20 ... Door driving means 21 ... Control means 22 ... Storage unit 23 ... Measurement unit 24 ... Judgment unit 25 ... Door

Claims (4)

A drive means that opens and closes the door of the vehicle,
A detection means for detecting an object to be detected located in the detection range outside the vehicle,
A control means that drives and controls the drive means to open and close the door based on the detection result of the detection means.
Equipped with
The detection means is arranged inside the lighting means arranged at the rear of the vehicle .
The detection means is a capacitance sensor composed of a circuit board having an electrode and a detection circuit.
The electrode includes a transmission electrode electrically connected to the detection circuit and a reception electrode that receives electric lines of force generated from the transmission electrode.
A vehicle door opening / closing device characterized in that the receiving electrode is a reflector provided inside the lighting means. A drive means that opens and closes the door of the vehicle,
A detection means for detecting an object to be detected located in the detection range outside the vehicle,
A control means that drives and controls the drive means to open and close the door based on the detection result of the detection means.
Equipped with
The detection means is arranged inside the lighting means arranged at the rear of the vehicle.
The detection means is a capacitance sensor composed of a circuit board having an electrode and a detection circuit.
The lighting means includes a box-shaped case for accommodating a light source and a reflector, and a lens attached to the front surface of the case.
A vehicle door opening / closing device characterized in that the electrodes are arranged along the inner surface of the case. A drive means that opens and closes the door of the vehicle,
A detection means for detecting an object to be detected located in the detection range outside the vehicle,
A control means that drives and controls the drive means to open and close the door based on the detection result of the detection means.
Equipped with
The detection means is arranged inside the lighting means arranged at the rear of the vehicle.
The detection means is a capacitance sensor composed of a circuit board having an electrode and a detection circuit.
The lighting means includes a box-shaped case for accommodating a light source and a reflector, and a lens attached to the front surface of the case.
The electrode as a transparent electrode, a car both door openers you characterized in that arranged in the lens. The control means determines from the distance change detected by the detection means whether the drive means has an operation pattern for performing door opening / closing control, and if it is determined to be a predetermined operation pattern, the drive means. The vehicle door opening / closing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the door is opened / closed by driving and controlling the door.

Images