JP7544531B2 - Vehicle-mounted antenna device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an in-vehicle antenna device.

A known vehicle-mounted antenna device that is attached to the exterior panel of an automobile body houses an antenna element and other components in an internal space formed by an antenna base that is fixed to the exterior panel of the automobile body and an antenna cover that is attached to the antenna base (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

The antenna base has a fastening protrusion that protrudes toward the inside of the vehicle through an insertion hole opened in the vehicle exterior panel. A metal mounting part with a claw (a part also known as a capture fastener) is attached to the fastening protrusion. The vehicle exterior panel is sandwiched between the antenna base and the mounting part, and the fastener is tightened to fix the vehicle-mounted antenna device to the vehicle exterior panel. The antenna base is also electrically connected to the vehicle exterior panel via the mounting part.

JP 2016-41520 A

Vehicle-mounted antenna devices are often equipped with multiple types of antennas, including not only antennas for receiving AM/FM radio broadcasts, but also antennas for mobile phones, positioning systems, satellite radio broadcasts, and road traffic systems. For this reason, thick connection cables and large connectors are often used to connect to cables inside the vehicle. Below, we will explain a typical example in which a connector is used. When the vehicle-mounted antenna device is fixed to the exterior panel of the vehicle body, the fastening protrusions and connector protrude into the interior of the vehicle.

Figure 6 shows an example of the design of the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10X, and is a side view of the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10X attached to the vehicle body exterior panel 8, viewed from the left. The three orthogonal axes in Figure 6 are a right-handed system in which the positive Z-axis direction is the upward direction, with the front being the positive X-axis direction, the left being the positive Y-axis direction, and the upward direction being the positive Z-axis direction.

The vehicle-mounted antenna device 10X has an outer case 12 attached to a metal base 30 to form an internal space in which an antenna, a circuit board, etc. are housed. The fastening protrusions 32 of the metal base 30 and the connector 21 protrude into the vehicle through an insertion hole in the vehicle body exterior plate 8, and the metal base 30 is fixed to the vehicle body exterior plate 8 by fastening a washer 60 (fastener) having a claw portion 62 to the fastening protrusions 32 with a bolt 70.

When the washer 60 is fastened to the fastening protrusion 32, the body exterior plate 8 is sandwiched between the claws 62 and the metal base 30. It is desirable to arrange the claws 62 evenly on all four sides of the fastening protrusion 32, but in the example of FIG. 6, even if one tries to arrange the claws 62 on all four sides of the fastening protrusion 32, the connector 21 is located on one side of the fastening protrusion 32 (the positive side of the X-axis; the front), so the claws 62 can only be provided on the left, right, and rear.

In FIG. 6, the vehicle body exterior plate 8 is intentionally drawn with an extremely convex shape to make it easier to understand, but the vehicle body exterior plate 8 has a gently convex shape toward the top due to the design of the vehicle. The vehicle body exterior plate 8 is pressed against the metal base 30 by the claws 62 on the three sides (left, right, and rear). However, in the front where the claws 62 are not provided, the force pressing the vehicle body exterior plate 8 against the metal base 30 is weak. Therefore, in some cases, the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10X may float slightly above the vehicle body exterior plate 8.

One example of the objective of the present invention is to propose a technology that can prevent a part of an in-vehicle antenna device from floating up from the exterior panel of the vehicle body.

The first aspect of the present invention is an in-vehicle antenna device that is attached to a vehicle exterior panel, and includes an antenna section and a base section on which at least a portion of the antenna section is placed, the base section having a first seating surface and a second seating surface, and the first seating surface and the second seating surface are at different heights from the vehicle exterior panel when the antenna device is attached to the vehicle exterior panel.

According to the first aspect, the vehicle-mounted antenna device has two types of seating surfaces that are different in height from the vehicle body exterior plate when it is attached to the vehicle body exterior plate. Therefore, when the first seating surface or the second seating surface is placed so as to abut against the vehicle body exterior plate and the vehicle-mounted antenna device is attached to the vehicle body exterior plate, the relative position of the base part with respect to the vehicle body exterior plate can be tilted in a specific direction. By appropriately setting the specific direction, it is possible to prevent a part of the vehicle-mounted antenna device from floating up relative to the vehicle body exterior plate.

The second aspect of the present invention is an in-vehicle antenna device that is attached to a vehicle exterior panel, and that includes an antenna section, a base section, and an elastic member that is interposed between the base section and the vehicle exterior panel when the antenna device is attached to the vehicle exterior panel, and the elastic member has different elasticity depending on the location.

According to the second aspect, the elastic member interposed between the base portion and the vehicle body exterior plate elastically deforms according to the elasticity of each part. The elastic member is interposed between the base portion and the vehicle body exterior plate, and serves as a sealing material with different elasticity depending on the part. Therefore, by appropriately setting the elasticity of each part, the relative position of the base portion to the vehicle body exterior plate after installation can be tilted in a specific direction, and a part of the vehicle-mounted antenna device can be prevented from floating up relative to the vehicle body exterior plate.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration example of an in-vehicle antenna device. FIG. 4 is a top view showing an example of the configuration of a seal. FIG. 4 is a bottom view showing an example of the configuration of a metal base. FIG. 4 is a left side view showing an example of the configuration of a metal base. VV cross _- sectional view of Figure 3. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing examples of designs of an in-vehicle antenna device.

Below, examples of preferred embodiments of the present invention are described, but the forms to which the present invention can be applied are not limited to the following embodiments. Each figure shows three orthogonal axes to indicate a common direction. The three orthogonal axes are a right-handed system with the positive Z-axis direction being the upward direction. For the vehicle-mounted antenna device, the front (the side that faces forward when attached to the vehicle body) is the positive X-axis direction, the left is the positive Y-axis direction, and the upward is the positive Z-axis direction.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle antenna device 10 according to the present embodiment.
The vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 has an outer case 12, an outer pad 14, an inner case 16, an antenna section 18 (a TEL antenna 18a, a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) antenna 18b, and an SXM (SiriusXM) antenna 18c), a substrate 20, an inner pad 22, a metal base 30, a seal 40, a temporary fastening holder 50, a washer (fastener) 60, and a bolt 70.

The outer case 12 is made of a synthetic resin that is radio wave transparent. The outer case 12 is designed as a hollow body that is open downward and has a so-called shark fin shape that, for example, slopes downward in the positive direction of the X-axis, i.e., from the rear to the front of the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10, and has left and right sides curved inward.

The outer pad 14 has a central space through which the inner case 16 can be inserted. The outer pad 14 is placed over the lower outer edge of the inner case 16 while the inner case 16 passes through the central space.

The inner case 16 is a synthetic resin part that serves as a structure for three-dimensionally arranging the antenna unit 18 in the internal space of the outer case 12. The inner case 16 has a size and shape that allows it to be inserted into the internal space of the outer case 12. The inner case 16 is designed as a hollow body that opens downward, and covers the antenna unit 18 and the board 20 to accommodate them in the internal space.

The board 20 mounts electronic components related to the antenna unit 18, such as an antenna amplifier that amplifies received and transmitted signals. A connector 21 protrudes from the underside of the board 20 for electrically connecting to an antenna connection cable on the vehicle body side.

The inner pad 22 is a ring-shaped elastic member made of elastomer, rubber, or the like. The inner pad 22 is sandwiched between the inner case 16 and the metal base 30 to seal the gap between the inner case 16 and the metal base 30, preventing water from entering the internal space of the inner case 16.

The metal base 30 is a metal part that serves as a base for mounting the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 to an automobile, and is a part that is attached to the outer surface of the vehicle body exterior panel 8. A fastening protrusion 32 for mounting a temporary fastening holder 50 and a washer 60 is protruded from the underside of the metal base 30. The metal base 30 may be a base part made of metal only, or may be a base part having a resin part and a metal part. At least a part of the antenna part 18 is placed on the metal base 30.

FIG. 2 is a top view showing an example of the configuration of the seal 40. As shown in FIG.
The seal 40 is a ring-shaped elastic member made of elastomer or rubber (e.g., urethane foam). The seal 40 surrounds the area (the area indicated by the dashed line in FIG. 3; the area indicated by the symbol [9] in parentheses) facing the generally rectangular mounting insertion hole 9 opened in the exterior panel 8 of the vehicle body, and is sandwiched between the lower surface of the metal base 30 and the exterior panel of the vehicle body and elastically deforms to fill the gap and prevent water from entering the insertion hole.

The seal 40 has different widths when viewed from above at the front, rear, and the middle. Specifically, the seal 40 has a front portion 41 (the portion hatched with diagonal lines going from the upper right to the lower left in FIG. 2) of a first width W1 forward of the middle between the front and rear. Further rearward of the middle between the front and rear, the seal 40 has a rear portion 42 (the portion hatched with diagonal lines going from the upper left to the lower right in FIG. 2) of a second width W2 wider than the first width W1. Between the front portion 41 and the rear portion 42, there is a connecting portion 43 (the portion not hatched in FIG. 2) that smoothly connects the difference in width between the two portions in the front-to-rear direction.

Returning to FIG. 1, the temporary fastening holder 50 is a part that temporarily fastens the metal base 30 to the vehicle body exterior plate 8. Although not shown in FIG. 1, if the vehicle body exterior plate 8 were to be drawn, the vehicle body exterior plate 8 would be drawn below the seal 40.

The washer 60 is a component that is fastened to the fastening protrusion 32 by a bolt 70, and is a fastener that fastens the metal base 30 to the vehicle body exterior panel 8. The washer 60 has three claws 62 (62a, 62b, 62c). Specifically, it has an upwardly facing left front claw 62a, a right front claw 62b, and a rear claw 62c.

Fig. 3 is a bottom view showing an example of the configuration of the metal base 30. The bottom surface of the metal base 30 is the surface that is attached to the vehicle body. Fig. 4 is a left side view of the metal base 30. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line V _- V in Fig. 3.

The metal base 30 has a fastening protrusion 32, a connector insertion hole 34, a seat surface 36 (36a, 36b, 36c), and a fitting groove 38 on its underside.

The fastening protrusion 32 protrudes downward from approximately the center of the underside and has a screw hole for the bolt 70 at its tip.

The connector insertion hole 34 is provided on the front side of the fastening protrusion 32, and when the board 20 is attached to the metal base 30, the connector 21 is inserted downward and protrudes into the vehicle interior.

The fastening protrusion 32 and the connector insertion hole 34 are provided within a range (within the range surrounded by the dashed line in Figure 3) that faces the mounting insertion hole 9 of the vehicle body exterior panel 8 when mounted.

The fitting groove 38 is a groove for fitting the seal 40. The fitting groove 38 includes the fastening protrusion 32, the connector insertion hole 34, and the area that faces the mounting insertion hole 9 of the vehicle body exterior panel 8 when installed.

The seating surfaces 36 (36a, 36b, 36c) are flat surfaces provided on the left, right, and rear of the fastening protrusion 32. When the washer 60 is fastened to the fastening protrusion 32 in a predetermined position, the claws 62 and the seating surfaces 36 face each other in a one-to-one relationship with the vehicle body exterior plate in between.

Specifically, the left front seating surface 36a is located to the left of the fastening protrusion 32, the right front seating surface 36b is located to the right of the fastening protrusion 32, and the rear seating surface 36c is located behind the fastening protrusion 32. The left front seating surface 36a and the right front seating surface 36b are in a symmetrical positional relationship with respect to the X-axis.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, a reference plane G is set that passes through the lower end of the metal base 30. Focusing on the shortest distances La, Lb, and Lc from the reference plane G to each seat surface 36 (36a, 36b, 36c), the shortest distance La of the left front seat surface 36a and the shortest distance Lb of the right front seat surface 36b are the same. However, the shortest distance Lc of the rear seat surface 36c is set to be smaller than the shortest distances La and Lb.

In this embodiment, the rear seat surface 36c is formed at the same height as the reference plane G (shortest distance Lc = 0). The left front seat surface 36a and the right front seat surface 36b are located higher than the reference plane G (La > 0, Lb > 0), and are formed at the same height as, for example, the left and right edges 33 of the metal base 30 (see Figure 5).

The metal base 30 is fixed as follows.
Before being mounted on the vehicle body, the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 has a temporary fixing holder 50 and a washer 60 lightly fastened together with a bolt 70 to the lower end of the fastening protrusion 32. The left front claw portion 62a faces the left front seating surface 36a, the right front claw portion 62b faces the right front seating surface 36b, and the rear claw portion 62c faces the rear seating surface 36c.

Without removing the temporary fastening holder 50 and washer 60, the worker brings the metal base 30 close to the mounting insertion hole 9 from above and pushes it in until the bottom surface of the metal base 30 touches the top surface of the vehicle exterior panel 8. The pushing action causes the temporary fastening holder 50 to elastically deform, and the fastening protrusion 32 passes through the mounting insertion hole 9, ultimately resulting in the connector 21, temporary fastening holder 50, and washer 60 protruding into the vehicle interior.

When the temporary fastening holder 50 is removed from the mounting insertion hole 9, the deformation of the part that was elastically deformed is released. When the elastic deformation is released, the temporary fastening holder 50 abuts against the periphery of the mounting insertion hole 9 from the inside of the vehicle, and the metal base 30 is temporarily fastened.

The worker further tightens the bolt 70 from this provisionally fastened state, completely fastening the washer 60 to the fastening protrusion 32 and completing the fastening work. When the fastening work is completed, the upper surface of the vehicle body exterior plate 8 becomes the reference surface G. Since the washer 60 approaches the fastening protrusion 32 even more closely than in the provisionally fastened state, the claw portion 62 further increases its elastic deformation, and the vehicle body exterior plate 8 is more firmly clamped between the washer 60 and the metal base 30.

The vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 is clamped such that the left edge of the mounting insertion hole 9 is sandwiched between the left front claw portion 62a and the left front seating surface 36a, the right edge is sandwiched between the right front claw portion 62b and the right front seating surface 36b, and the rear edge is sandwiched between the rear claw portion 62c and the rear seating surface 36c.
The vehicle body exterior panel 8 is clamped at three locations, one on each of the left side, right side, and rear side of the mounting insertion hole 9, so that the periphery of the left side, right side, and rear side of the mounting insertion hole 9 is aligned with the flatness of the metal base 30 so as to be approximately flat.

However, the left front seat surface 36a and the right front seat surface 36b are positioned relatively higher than the rear seat surface 36c, which is at a different height. Therefore, when the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 is fastened with the washer 60 and attached to the vehicle body exterior plate 8, the left front seat surface 36a and the right front seat surface 36b are more strongly attracted to the vehicle body exterior plate 8 than the rear seat surface 36c, i.e., they are subjected to a stronger downward pushing force. Therefore, the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 takes a more forward-leaning position relative to the vehicle body exterior plate 8 than if the three seat surfaces 36 were at the same height.

The seal 40 has a larger width in top view at the rear portion 42 than at the front portion 41. Therefore, when the seal 40 is sandwiched between the metal base 30 and the vehicle body exterior plate 8 and elastically deforms, the rear portion 42 has a larger vertical thickness after deformation than the front portion 41. In other words, due to the difference in top view width, the elasticity of the rear portion 42 is relatively greater than that of the front portion 41. When the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 is attached to the vehicle body exterior plate 8 and the seal 40 elastically deforms, the vertical thickness after elastic deformation is greater at the rear portion 42 than at the front portion 41. Therefore, the elastic deformation of the seal 40 acts to tilt the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 forward relative to the vehicle body exterior plate 8.

The vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 attached to the vehicle exterior panel 8 is inclined toward the side (forward) where the claw portion 62 is not provided, so that the side where the claw portion 62 is not provided can be prevented from lifting up from the vehicle exterior panel 8.

The seal 40 has a similar effect. The width of the seal 40 in top view is smaller at the front portion 41 than at the rear portion 42. Therefore, the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 attached to the vehicle body exterior panel 8 is inclined toward the front portion 41 (forward), preventing the front portion from lifting up from the vehicle body exterior panel 8.

[Modification 1]
In this embodiment, the configuration in which the connector 21 is disposed in front of the fastening protrusion 32 has been exemplified, but the connector 21 may also be disposed behind the fastening protrusion 32 .

In this case, the configuration around the fastening protrusion 32 illustrated in FIG. 3 may be configured such that the arrangement inside the fitting groove 38 is reversed front to back (left to right when viewed in FIG. 3).
Specifically, one front seating surface is provided in front of the fastening protrusion 32, and a left rear seating surface and a right rear seating surface are provided on the left and right sides of the fastening protrusion 32. The front seating surface is provided at a position higher than the reference plane G, and the left rear seating surface and the right rear seating surface are provided at the same height as the reference plane G.

The washer 60 used in this configuration has a configuration in which the claw arrangement of the washer 60 in the above embodiment is reversed front to back. Specifically, the washer 60 has three claws: a front claw that corresponds to the front seat surface at the front, a left claw that corresponds to the front seat surface at the left, and a right claw that corresponds to the right rear seat surface at the right.

When the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 having this configuration is attached, the front edge of the attachment insertion hole 9 is sandwiched between the front claw portion and the front seat surface, the left edge is sandwiched between the left rear claw portion and the left rear seat surface, and the right edge is sandwiched between the right rear claw portion and the right rear seat surface, so that the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 is held at three points. The front seat surface is relatively higher than the left rear seat surface and the right rear seat surface. Therefore, when the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 is attached to the vehicle body exterior plate 8, the front seat surface is more strongly attracted to the vehicle body exterior plate 8 than the left rear seat surface and the right rear seat surface, that is, the downward pushing force is stronger. Therefore, the vehicle-mounted antenna device 10 takes a forward-leaning posture with respect to the vehicle body exterior plate 8 than when the three seat surfaces are at the same height. This makes it possible to prevent the front of the vehicle body exterior plate 8 from floating up from the vehicle body exterior plate 8.

[Modification 2]
In the above embodiment, the seal 40 has a different width in top view as a method for increasing the elasticity of the rear portion 42 more than that of the front portion 41. Alternatively, the difference in elasticity may be realized by making the front portion 41 and the rear portion 42 different in any one of the vertical height, cross-sectional area, and cross-sectional shape.

[Summary]
The disclosure of this specification, including the above-described embodiments and their modifications, can be summarized as follows.

The first aspect of the present disclosure is an in-vehicle antenna device that is attached to a vehicle exterior panel, the in-vehicle antenna device comprising an antenna section and a base section on which at least a portion of the antenna section is placed, the base section having a first seating surface and a second seating surface, the first seating surface and the second seating surface being at different heights from the vehicle exterior panel when attached to the vehicle exterior panel.

According to the first aspect, the vehicle-mounted antenna device has two types of seating surfaces that differ in height from the vehicle body exterior plate when it is attached to the vehicle body exterior plate. Therefore, when the first seating surface or the second seating surface is placed so as to abut against the vehicle body exterior plate and the vehicle-mounted antenna device is attached to the vehicle body exterior plate, the relative position of the base part with respect to the vehicle body exterior plate can be tilted in a specific direction. By appropriately setting the specific direction, it is possible to prevent a part of the vehicle-mounted antenna device from floating up relative to the vehicle body exterior plate.

The fastener may further include a fastener for mounting to the vehicle body exterior plate, the fastener having a claw portion that sandwiches the vehicle body exterior plate between the first seating surface when fastened, and a claw portion that sandwiches the vehicle body exterior plate between the second seating surface when fastened.

The device may further include an elastic member that is interposed between the base portion and the vehicle body exterior panel when attached to the vehicle body exterior panel, and the elasticity of the elastic member may vary depending on the location.

This helps to prevent parts of the vehicle-mounted antenna device from floating up relative to the exterior panel of the vehicle body.

A second aspect of the present disclosure may be an in-vehicle antenna device that is attached to a vehicle exterior panel, the in-vehicle antenna device comprising an antenna section, a base section, and an elastic member that is interposed between the base section and the vehicle exterior panel when attached to the vehicle exterior panel, the elastic member having different elasticity depending on the location.

According to the second aspect, the elastic member interposed between the base portion and the vehicle body exterior plate elastically deforms according to the elasticity of each part. The elastic member is interposed between the base portion and the vehicle body exterior plate, and serves as a sealing material with different elasticity depending on the part. Therefore, by appropriately setting the elasticity of each part, the relative position of the base portion to the vehicle body exterior plate after installation can be tilted in a specific direction, and a part of the vehicle-mounted antenna device can be prevented from floating up relative to the vehicle body exterior plate.

The elastic member may have different elasticity depending on the location by varying any of the width, height, cross-sectional area, and cross-sectional shape.

Description of the Preferred Embodiments 8...Vehicle body exterior plate 9...Mounting insertion hole 10...In-vehicle antenna device 21...Connector 30...Metal base 32...Fastening protrusion 34...Connector insertion hole 36...Seat 36a...Left front seat 36b...Right front seat 36c...Rear seat 38...Fitting groove 40...Seal 41...Front portion 42...Rear portion 43...Connection portion 60...Fastener 62...Claw portion 62a...Left front claw portion 62b...Right front claw portion 62c...Rear claw portion 70...Bolt G...Reference surface La...Shortest distance Lb...Shortest distance Lc...Shortest distance W1...First width W2...Second width

Claims (3)

An in-vehicle antenna device that is attached to a vehicle body exterior panel,
An antenna portion;
a base portion on which at least a portion of the antenna portion is placed;
Equipped with
The base portion is
A first bearing surface relative to a predetermined reference surface ;
A second seating surface relative to the reference surface ;
having
the first seating surface and the second seating surface have different heights from the vehicle body exterior panel when attached to the vehicle body exterior panel,
and a fastener for attachment to the body exterior panel;
The fastener comprises:
a claw portion that sandwiches the vehicle body exterior plate between the claw portion and the first seating surface when fastened;
a claw portion that sandwiches the vehicle body exterior plate between the claw portion and the second seating surface when fastened;
having
Vehicle-mounted antenna device. an elastic member interposed between the base portion and the vehicle body exterior panel when the vehicle body is attached to the vehicle body exterior panel;
The elasticity of the elastic member varies depending on the part.
The vehicle-mounted antenna device according to claim 1 . The elastic member has different elasticity depending on the portion by varying any one of width, height, cross-sectional area, and cross-sectional shape.
The vehicle-mounted antenna device according to claim 2 .

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