Optical lens and vehicle

Abstract

The application provides an optical lens and a vehicle. The optical lens (1) has a lens group (11) and a lens barrel (12), the lens group (11) is at least partially assembled in the lens barrel (12), the lens group (11) comprises a first lens (111) and a second lens (112), the first lens (111), the second lens (112) and the lens barrel (12) form a cavity (13), the optical lens (1) further has a humidity control coating (14) for controlling humidity, and the humidity control coating (14) is partially coated on the cavity.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of camera, in particular, to an optical lens and a vehicle. BACKGROUND

[0002] The fogging of the front end of the optical lens has always been a problem that cannot be ignored. Rain and fog will occur in most places, especially when cold and warm air frequently meet, causing rainy and foggy weather and humid climate, which will cause a large amount of water vapor to be released, diffused, gathered and adhered in the camera area, thereby affecting the camera fogging, and ultimately affecting the camera function.

[0003] With the continuous development of artificial intelligence technology, the technology of unmanned driving is becoming mature. People have always questioned the safety of the technology of unmanned driving. Among them, the unmanned driving technology relying on camera as the main visual solution has not been able to solve the above-mentioned fogging problem. Therefore, solving the problem of fogging of the vehicle-mounted optical camera has always been a pain point in the unmanned driving industry. SUMMARY

[0004] The purpose of the present application is to control the water vapor inside the optical lens, and the control means used occupies less space and requires low space, without the need to change the structure of the camera.

[0005] In addition, the present application also aims to solve or alleviate other technical problems existing in the prior art.

[0006] The present application solves the above-mentioned problems by providing an optical lens and a vehicle. Specifically, according to an aspect of the present application, there is provided:

[0007] An optical lens, wherein it has a lens group and a lens barrel, the lens group is at least partially assembled in the lens barrel, the lens group includes a first lens and a second lens, the first lens, the second lens and the lens barrel form a cavity, the optical lens further has a humidity control coating for controlling humidity, the humidity control coating is partially coated on the cavity.

[0008] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the first lens is the lens at the most front side when the optical lens is used, and the second lens is adjacent to the first lens.

[0009] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the optical lens further has a waterproof ring, the waterproof ring is abutted between a supporting surface of the first lens and an abutting surface of the lens barrel, and the humidity control coating is coated on the supporting surface.

[0010] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the optical lens further has a spacer ring arranged between the support surface of the first lens and the second lens, and the moisture control coating is coated on the inner surface and the outer surface of the spacer ring.

[0011] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the moisture control coating is coated on the barrel from the abutting surface to the contact position of the barrel and the second lens.

[0012] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the second lens supports the spacer ring with the abutting surface, and the moisture control coating is coated on the abutting surface.

[0013] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the optical lens further has a color filter arranged in the barrel and at the end on the rear side when the optical lens is used, and the moisture control coating is coated on the color filter.

[0014] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the thickness of the moisture control coating is 0.003 mm to 0.1 mm.

[0015] According to another aspect of the present application, the present application provides a vehicle, wherein the vehicle has any one of the above optical lenses.

[0016] Optionally, according to an embodiment of the present application, the vehicle is an unmanned vehicle.

[0017] The optical lens and the vehicle provided have the advantages of small footprint, low space requirement, no need to change the structure of the camera, control of the overall humidity in the cavity of the camera, and solution of the fogging problem in the camera. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0018] The above and other features of the present application will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which show:

[0019] Figure 1 a structure diagram of an optical lens according to the present application is shown;

[0020] Figure 2 an example of coating a moisture control coating in an optical lens according to the present application is shown;

[0021] Figure 3 another example of coating a moisture control coating in an optical lens according to the present application is shown;

[0022] Figure 4 another example of coating a moisture control coating in an optical lens according to the present application is shown; and

[0023] Figure 5 Another example of coating a moisture control coating in an optical lens according to the present application is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] It is easily understood that, according to the technical solution of the present application, a person skilled in the art can propose various structural modes and implementation modes that can be replaced with each other without changing the essential spirit of the present application. Therefore, the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings are only exemplary descriptions of the technical solution of the present application, and should not be considered as the whole or as a limitation or restriction on the technical solution of the present application.

[0025] In the present specification, the orientation terms such as up, down, left, right, front, back, front surface, back surface, top, bottom, etc. mentioned or possibly mentioned are defined with respect to the structure shown in the drawings, and they are relative concepts, so they can be changed accordingly according to different positions and different use states. Therefore, these or other orientation terms should not be interpreted as restrictive terms. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third" or the like or similar expressions are only used for description and differentiation purposes, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying the relative importance of the corresponding members.

[0026] Reference Figure 1 which shows a structural schematic diagram of an optical lens according to the present application.

[0027] The optical lens 1 has a lens group 11 and a lens barrel 12, the lens group 11 is at least partially assembled in the lens barrel 12, the lens group 11 includes a first lens 111 and a second lens 112 (5 lenses are exemplarily shown in the figure), the first lens 111, the second lens 112 and the lens barrel 12 form a cavity 13, the optical lens 1 further has a moisture control coating 14 for controlling humidity, the moisture control coating 14 is partially coated in the cavity 13.

[0028] It should be noted that the optical lens can be understood as the head part of the whole camera device, and can also be understood in a broad sense as a camera. The optical lens can be, for example, a vehicle-mounted camera, a surround-view camera, a sports camera, a film and television camera, a camera for a drone, etc. "The lens group 11 is at least partially assembled in the lens barrel 12" means that at least part of the lens group 11 is located in the lens barrel 12, and the whole lens group 11 does not need to be located in the lens barrel 12. For example, in the embodiment shown in the figure, the left half of the leftmost lens (i.e. the first lens 111) is outside the lens barrel 12, the right half is inside the lens barrel 12, and the remaining lenses are arranged inside the lens barrel 12.

[0029] The first lens 111, the second lens 112 and the lens barrel 12 form a cavity 13 means that the boundary of the cavity 13 is defined by these parts, so that the moisture control coating 14 coated on the cavity 13 means that the moisture control coating 14 can be coated on the boundary surface of the above-mentioned parts, and also covers that the moisture control coating 14 can be coated on any part arranged in the cavity 13, including the gasket 16 mentioned below. The moisture control coating 14 is partially coated on the cavity 13 means that the moisture control coating 14 is coated on a part of the cavity 13. In the embodiment as shown in the figure, the moisture control coating 14 is not coated on the first light-transmitting part 1112 on the right side of the first lens 111, nor on the second light-transmitting part 1122 on the left side of the second lens 112, because these light-transmitting parts are used for light transmission during the shooting process and are sensitive to light, so this design avoids that the moisture control coating (even if it is transparent) may affect their optical properties such as light transmission.

[0030] In addition, it should be understood that the moisture control coating is used to control humidity, that is, to perform the functions of moisture absorption and moisture release in the case of excessive humidity and excessive dryness, respectively, and has good durability and does not lose these functions after repeated use. Such a moisture control coating can be a natural coating (natural zeolite, natural diatomite, natural attapulgite, montmorillonite, sepiolite, kaolin, gypsum, etc.), or an inorganic coating (including calcium silicate, artificial zeolite, silica gel, etc.), or an organic coating (starch, cellulose or synthetic resin with a three-dimensional network of low cross-linking degree). It should also be understood that the coating of the moisture control coating can be performed during the manufacturing stage of the optical lens 1, enabling the manufacture of an optical lens with humidity control function in one step without coating the moisture control coating after the optical lens is manufactured.

[0031] The previous invention often controls the water vapor inside the camera through some heating or large-volume water absorption devices. Through the above technical solutions of the present application, the water vapor inside the optical lens can be controlled, and the moisture control coating has a small footprint and low space requirement, without the need to change the structure of the camera, achieving the effect of camera anti-fog in an extremely simple way.

[0032] As can also be seen from the figure, the optical lens 1 also has a retaining ring 18. The retaining ring 18 has a vertical extension on the left side for engaging the first lens 111. Furthermore, the retaining ring 18 has a horizontal extension on the right side for connecting with the lens barrel 12, for example, through threaded locking. The retaining ring 18 is located on the outermost radial side of the entire optical lens 1, serving to protect the internal components and for assembly and stabilization. In addition, all components of the optical lens 1, except for the retaining ring 18, are assembled in a stacked manner. Therefore, the entire optical lens 1 is very compact, requires little space, and has a stable overall structure. The stacking manner means that for each component, there is always at least one adjacent component in direct contact with it.

[0033] Furthermore, the first lens 111 can be the foremost lens when the optical lens 1 is used (the leftmost lens in the figure, that is, the side in contact with the external environment), and the second lens 112 is adjacent to the first lens 111 (the second lens from the left in the figure). This design takes into account that in actual use, most of the lens fog of the optical lens 1 is concentrated on the inner surface of the outermost lens. Therefore, the moisture-control coating 14 can be applied to the cavity between the outermost lens and the adjacent lens to achieve targeted humidity control for actual applications, while keeping the cost of moisture control low, resulting in a high cost-performance ratio.

[0034] refer to Figures 2 to 5 These examples illustrate various ways of applying a moisture-controlling coating inside an optical lens according to the present invention.

[0035] The optical lens 1 also has a waterproof ring 15, which abuts against the support surface 1111 of the first lens 111 and the abutment surface 121 of the lens barrel 12. The moisture-controlling coating 14 is applied to the support surface 1111, which, for example, can... Figure 2 As can be seen schematically, the support surface 1111 in the embodiment shown in the figure is the entire rightmost vertical surface of the first lens 111, serving to provide support for adjacent components (such as the waterproof ring 15 and the spacer 16 mentioned below). The abutment surface 121 is also a vertical surface of the lens barrel 12 and provides support. In this embodiment, since the support surface 1111 is the necessary transition area between the outside air and the inner cavity between the lens, applying the moisture-controlling coating 14 here can specifically control humidity and achieve a significant control effect.

[0036] Coincidentally, Figures 3 to 5The design can also achieve similar technical effects, which will not be elaborated here. For example, the optical lens 1 also has a spacer 16, which is arranged between the support surface 1111 of the first lens 111 and the second lens 112, and the moisture-controlling coating 14 is applied to the inner and outer surfaces of the spacer 16. It should be understood that corresponding spacers can be provided between each lens of the lens group 11 to provide corresponding fixing and separation functions for each lens, and the shapes of each lens and each spacer do not necessarily need to be completely consistent, but can be varied according to actual needs. For this purpose, corresponding support portions (such as the support surface 1111 of the first lens 111 and the abutment surface 1121 of the second lens 112, which will be mentioned below) can be provided on the surface of each lens for the assembly of the corresponding spacers. In addition, the number of optical lenses and spacers can be variable, for example, it can include n+1 optical lenses and n spacers.

[0037] For example, the moisture-controlling coating 14 is applied to the lens barrel 12 starting from the abutment surface 121 and continuing until the contact point between the lens barrel 12 and the second lens 112. This can be achieved, for example, from... Figure 4 As can be seen from the diagram, the moisture-controlling coating 14 is applied to the contact surface 121 of the lens barrel 12, and continues to be applied to the horizontal transition surface of the lens barrel 12 in a horizontal rightward direction, finally being applied diagonally downward to the right to the contact point. Viewed from this planar perspective, this contact point is the left endpoint of the contact line between the second lens 112 and the lens barrel 12 (taking the left side as the front side when using the optical lens 1 as an example). This allows for maximum coverage of the transition area from the outside to the inside of the air and the resulting humidity control effect.

[0038] As mentioned earlier, from Figure 4 As can be seen, the second lens 112 supports the spacer 16 with its contact surface 1121, and the moisture-controlling coating 14 is applied to the contact surface 1121. It should be understood that the specific shape of the contact surface 1121 can be matched with the shape of the corresponding spacer to achieve a better support effect.

[0039] In addition, the optical lens 1 also includes a color filter 17, which is disposed within the lens barrel 12 and positioned at the rear end when the optical lens 1 is in use. The moisture-controlling coating 14 is applied to the color filter 17. It should be understood that the color filter 17 can be a colored transparent sheet that absorbs, reflects, and transmits colored light; it can also be referred to as a color filter or color filter lens. In this example, the color filter 17 is constructed in a plate shape and embedded in a groove created for this purpose in the lens barrel 12. This design is intended to provide comprehensive humidity control.

[0040] It should also be understood that the various coating methods for the aforementioned moisture-control coating 14 are not exclusive, but can be combined and used simultaneously. The specific method can be determined based on actual needs and cost budget.

[0041] Furthermore, the thickness of the moisture-control coating 14 can be from 0.003 mm to 0.1 mm. Therefore, the thickness of this moisture-control coating is very thin, which has no substantial impact on the structure of the existing parts of the optical lens 1, as well as their connection and positional relationships. The coating time and cost are low, and it will not substantially affect the entire optical lens production process, while still achieving the desired moisture control effect.

[0042] It should be understood that the optical lens 1 of the present invention can be installed on various vehicles, including gasoline vehicles, diesel vehicles, cars, trucks, buses, hybrid vehicles, pure electric vehicles, etc. Therefore, the subject matter of this invention also aims to protect various vehicles equipped with the optical lens 1 of the present invention. For example, the vehicle can be an autonomous vehicle. This is because the safety of autonomous driving technology is paramount, and it relies primarily on cameras for vision. Therefore, solving the fogging problem of vehicle-mounted optical cameras is crucial for the autonomous driving industry.

[0043] In summary, the technical solution of this invention keeps the humidity and water vapor content inside the cavity between the optical lenses at a low level, suppresses the generation of fog inside the camera, and greatly improves the phenomenon of fogging inside the optical lens.

[0044] It should be understood that all the above preferred embodiments are exemplary and not restrictive, and various modifications or variations made by those skilled in the art to the specific embodiments described above under the concept of the present invention should be within the legal protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An optical lens (1), characterized in that, It has a lens group (11) and a lens barrel (12), the lens group (11) being at least partially assembled inside the lens barrel (12), the lens group (11) including a first lens (111) and a second lens (112), the first lens (111), the second lens (112) and the lens barrel (12) forming a cavity (13), the optical lens (1) also having a humidity-controlling coating (14) for controlling humidity, the humidity-controlling coating (14) being partially coated on the cavity (13). The optical lens (1) also has a spacer (16) arranged between the support surface (1111) of the first lens (111) and the second lens (112). The moisture-controlling coating (14) is applied to the inner and outer surfaces of the spacer (16). The optical lens (1) also has a waterproof ring (15) abutting between the support surface (1111) of the first lens (111) and the abutting surface (121) of the lens barrel (12).

2. The optical lens (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first lens (111) is the lens that is at the front when the optical lens (1) is used, and the second lens (112) is adjacent to the first lens (111).

3. The optical lens (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The moisture-controlling coating (14) is applied to the support surface (1111).

4. The optical lens (1) according to claim 3, characterized in that, The moisture-controlling coating (14) is applied to the lens barrel (12) starting from the abutting surface (121) and continuing until the lens barrel (12) contacts the second lens (112).

5. The optical lens (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The second lens (112) supports the spacer (16) with its contact surface (1121), and the moisture-controlling coating (14) is applied to the contact surface (1121).

6. The optical lens (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, It also has a color filter (17) disposed inside the lens barrel (12) and arranged at the rear end when the optical lens (1) is used, and the moisture-controlling coating (14) is applied to the color filter (17).

7. The optical lens (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The thickness of the moisture-control coating (14) is 0.003 mm to 0.1 mm.

8. A vehicle, characterized in that, It has an optical lens (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. The vehicle according to claim 8, characterized in that, It is an unmanned vehicle.

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