Moisture electrolysis device for headlights

Abstract

Moisture electrolysis device for a headlight, comprising: a first electrode (201) adapted to be connected to an electrode of a power supply, exposed in an interior of a headlight housing (101), and having a surface coated with a dielectric substance (203); a second electrode (205) adapted to be connected to another electrode of the power supply, exposed in the interior of the headlight housing, and arranged to form a gap while being spaced from the first electrode (201) by a preset distance; and a discharge ventilation path (207) configured to be formed between the surface of the first electrode (201) coated with the dielectric substance (203) and the second electrode (205), wherein air circulates within the headlight and moisture in the air is electrolyzed by a discharge phenomenon generated between the first electrode (201) and the second electrode (205).

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONField of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for the basic removal of moisture formed within a headlight by means of electrolysis. Description of related technology

[0002] Generally, when a vehicle headlight generates heat when a light source inside the headlight emits light, the interior of the headlight is heated to a high temperature. The moisture inside the headlight easily reaches freezing point, and a water droplet forms on the inner surface of the lens due to a temperature difference between the outer surface of the headlight, which is cooled by the action of the driving wind or the surrounding environment, and the heated interior of the headlight. When the water droplet forms and flows around the inside of the lens, parts around the lens are corroded and damaged, or when the water droplet repeatedly condenses and evaporates, the surface of the lens is scratched and the lens becomes cloudy, which can reduce the illuminance of the headlight.

[0003] To solve the above problem, conventionally, a method of installing a fan or the like in a headlight to forcibly circulate air in the headlight, or placing the interior of the headlight in a vacuum state and sealing the headlight has been used. However, driving the fan consumes additional energy, and placing the interior of the headlight in a vacuum state may increase costs, and it is necessary to replace a set of headlights even if only the light source needs to be replaced, thereby greatly increasing the cost of repair.

[0004] JP 2016 - 097 339 A describes such a headlight with a ventilation unit arranged at a first opening of a closed housing. The ventilation unit prevents liquid or solid matter from entering the interior of the housing, but allows gas to circulate between the interior and the exterior of the headlight. Furthermore, a dehumidification unit is provided, which is arranged at a second opening of the housing and comprises an electrolysis dehumidification element that releases moisture vapor in the interior to the exterior through electrolysis. SHORT SUMMARY

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a device that solves the problem of moisture condensation within a headlight and prevents the headlight's performance from being reduced. This object is achieved by electrolyzing moisture within a housing of the headlight to remove the moisture.

[0006] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a moisture electrolysis device for a headlight, comprising: a first electrode configured to be connected to an electrode of a power supply, exposed in an interior space of a headlight housing, and having a surface coated with a dielectric substance; a second electrode configured to be connected to another electrode of the power supply, exposed in the interior space of the headlight housing, and arranged to form a gap while being spaced from the first electrode by a preset distance;and a discharge ventilation path configured to be formed between the surface of the first electrode coated with the dielectric substance and the second electrode, wherein air circulates within the headlight and moisture in the air is electrolyzed by a discharge phenomenon generated between the first electrode and the second electrode;

[0007] The first electrode and the second electrode may have a flat shape and be arranged to face each other in parallel.

[0008] The first electrode and the second electrode may each be formed with a plurality of ventilation holes.

[0009] The ventilation holes of the first electrode and the second electrode may be formed to cross each other.

[0010] The power supply can be a DC power supply.

[0011] The first electrode can be a negative electrode.

[0012] The first electrode and the second electrode may be arranged to penetrate through a dust cover to be exposed in the interior of the headlight housing.

[0013] The dielectric substance can be ionomer.

[0014] The dielectric substance may be formed by impregnating ionomer into a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) layer. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a drawing schematically showing a configuration of a moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 are drawings showing an electrode and a dielectric substance of the moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to the embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 is a drawing showing a dust cover of the moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] The accompanying drawings are not necessarily to scale and represent a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrating the basic principles of the invention. The particular embodiments of the present invention as disclosed herein include, for example, specific dimensions, directions, positions and shapes which will be determined in part by the particular application and the environment of the site of use.

[0016] Throughout the figures, like reference numerals refer to like or equivalent parts of the present invention in the different figures of the drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention(s) will be described in connection with embodiments, it should be understood that the present description of the invention(s) is not intended to be limited to those embodiments.

[0018] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0019] Fig. 1 is a drawing schematically showing a configuration of a moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 are drawings showing an electrode and a dielectric substance 203 of the moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to the embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 4 is a drawing showing a dust cover of the moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a first electrode 201 configured to be connected to an electrode of a power supply, exposed in an interior space of a headlight housing 101, and having a surface coated with a dielectric substance 203; a second electrode 205 configured to be connected to another electrode of the power supply, exposed in the interior space of the headlight housing 101, and arranged to form a gap while being spaced from the first electrode 201 by a preset distance;and a discharge ventilation path 207 configured to be formed between the surface of the first electrode 201 coated with the dielectric substance 203 and the second electrode 205, wherein air circulates within the headlight and moisture in the air is electrolyzed by a discharge phenomenon generated between the first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205. The first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 may have a flat shape and be arranged to face each other in parallel.

[0021] When a vehicle is driven at night, a driver's visibility is secured by using light from the headlight. An inside of the headlight is heated by heat generation from a light source while the headlight is operating, and thus the headlight is maintained at a high temperature. Therefore, even if moisture is present inside the headlight, the inside of the headlight is maintained in a gaseous state, so that no moisture is formed on a surface of the inside of the headlight. However, when the headlight is turned off, an energy source necessary to keep the moisture inside the headlight in a gaseous state disappears, while an outside of the headlight is in a low-temperature state due to heat exchange with the atmosphere, and thus the moisture starts to condense on an inside surface of the headlight.

[0022] On the other hand, when the vehicle is parked outdoors and exposed to direct sunlight, the temperature of the interior of the headlight gradually increases due to a greenhouse effect. Thus, moisture present in a location inside the headlight that is not visible is evaporated, causing moisture to diffuse uniformly inside the headlight. On the other hand, the exterior of the headlight is maintained at a lower temperature than the interior of the headlight by heat exchange with the atmosphere, and therefore, the diffused moisture condenses on the surface of the interior of the headlight, causing moisture to be generated.

[0023] At this point, when the condensed water droplet is formed and flows inside the headlight, relevant parts around the headlight will be corroded and thus may be damaged, and when the water droplet is repeatedly condensed and evaporated, the inner surface of the lens of the headlight will be scratched and the lens will become cloudy (or dull), so that an illuminance of the headlight will be reduced.

[0024] To solve this problem, there is a need to keep the humidity inside the headlight low. To this end, a method can be used to assemble the headlight in a completely dehumidified room to prevent moisture ingress from the beginning. However, moisture can always be admitted under the circumstances where a bulb needs to be replaced later or the headlight needs to be repaired. Therefore, there is a need to reduce the humidity inside the headlight afterward.

[0025] There are two methods for reducing humidity in the air. One is a method that lowers the relative humidity by increasing the air temperature, and the other is a method that lowers the absolute humidity by removing moisture from the air. The method that lowers the relative humidity cannot be considered a fundamental method because the moisture inside the headlight can recondense when the temperature inside the headlight drops.

[0026] Therefore, in the present invention, the moisture in the headlight is removed by electrolyzing the moisture.

[0027] Generally, water is electrolyzed by immersing an electrode in water containing an electrolyte. However, in the case of a headlight, the amount of moisture is insufficient, and therefore no current flows, so the typical electrolysis process cannot be applied to the headlight.

[0028] Accordingly, the present invention is to electrolyze moisture in the air by inducing a discharge at a low voltage.

[0029] Referring to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, a first electrode 210 is connected to an electrode of a power supply and is exposed in an interior of a headlight housing 101, and a second electrode 205 is provided so as to be spaced from the first electrode 201 by a preset distance. Generally, a current flows along a connected electric wire, but when a very high voltage is applied, even in the state where the electric wire is disconnected, electrons directly jump between the disconnected electric wire, and thus a current flows, so that a discharge can be generated. However, it is difficult to secure a high voltage necessary to induce a direct discharge in a vehicle, and it is undesirable to generate a discharge with a high voltage in a vehicle having a large number of electronic components. Therefore, there is a need to generate a discharge at a low voltage.

[0030] A dielectric substance 203 coated on the first electrode 201 serves to generate the discharge at a low voltage. The dielectric substance 203 is coated on a surface of the electrode to generate a uniform discharge across the entire surface of the electrode and to promote electron emission, which serves to induce generation of a discharge even at low voltage.

[0031] A gap is formed between the surface of the first electrode 201 coated with the dielectric substance 203 and the second electrode 205 to form a discharge ventilation path 207 through which the air in the headlight can flow. A discharge is generated in the discharge ventilation path 207, and moisture contained in the headlight is electrolyzed as air in the headlight flows through the space. This can reduce the absolute humidity of the air in the headlight.

[0032] The first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 may each be formed with a plurality of ventilation holes 209, wherein the ventilation holes 209 of the first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 may be formed to cross each other.

[0033] The discharge ventilation path 207 formed between the first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 has a very narrow pitch. If the distance between the electrodes is large, the amount of air corresponding to an insulator becomes correspondingly large, thus increasing resistance, making it difficult to generate discharge at low voltage. Therefore, the pitch is selected to be a narrow distance of several mm or less. In this case, it may occur that the air in the headlight cannot be smoothly supplied to the discharge ventilation path 207.

[0034] Accordingly, according to the embodiment of the present invention, as shown in Fig. 3, the electrode itself is provided with the vent hole 209 to smoothly supply air to the discharge vent path 207. Further, the vent holes 209 in the first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 are not formed to align with each other, but to cross each other to increase a time for the air introduced through the vent holes 209 to stay in the discharge vent path 207 to provide sufficient time for decomposition of moisture.

[0035] According to the embodiment of the present invention, a DC power supply is used as a power supply.

[0036] When a direct current supply is used, a high voltage is required to generate a current flow between the unconnected electrodes. However, this can cause excessive energy loss and damage to peripheral components, which is why low-voltage discharge using alternating current has been used in the industry.

[0037] However, a battery, etc., used in a vehicle and using a DC power supply may have a problem that it does not generate high voltage to smoothly discharge. Of course, this problem can be solved by converting the DC power supply to an AC power supply using additional devices including an inverter, but this increases costs and requires layout space for individual components, thus being inefficient.

[0038] Therefore, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the first electrode 201 is coated with the dielectric substance 203 to generate the discharge at low voltage while using a DC power supply.

[0039] According to the embodiment of the present invention, the first electrode 201 coated with the dielectric substance 203 is set to be a negative electrode.

[0040] The dielectric substance 203 uses ionomer, which is described in detail below. The ionomer promotes electron movement, utilizing electrostatic force to assist low-voltage discharge. The negative electrode, where electrons are present, is coated with the dielectric substance to directly promote electron movement, thereby inducing smooth generation of low-voltage discharge.

[0041] The first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 are mounted so that they penetrate through a dust cover 103 and can thus be exposed in the interior of the headlight housing 101.

[0042] The first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 ultimately need to be exposed inside the headlight housing 101, and attaching the first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 to an interior surface of the headlight where moisture condensation is most likely to occur may be most effective. However, this may lead to the problem of obscuring the headlight's light and degrading the appearance of the device due to its external exposure.

[0043] Therefore, the first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 are mounted on a back surface, etc., of a bezel 105 on the top or bottom of the headlight housing 101, which cannot be directly viewed from the outside of the headlight housing 101, and thus can be mounted on a hidden portion after the components are mounted.

[0044] Alternatively, as in Fig. 4, the first electrode 201 and the second electrode 205 are mounted on the dust cover 103, which is mainly used to later replace a lamp inside the headlight. This allows the present invention to be applied to all vehicle models by replacing only the dust cover 103 regardless of the respective vehicle models, thus achieving parts release and saving manufacturing costs.

[0045] The dielectric substance 203 is ionomer.

[0046] The dielectric substance 203 must serve to support the movement of electrons in order to efficiently generate the discharge even at a low voltage.

[0047] An ionomer is a polymer material with a positive or negative charge. More specifically, an ionomer is a thermoplastic material that exhibits both covalent and ionic bonds and has excellent electrostatic force. Basically, an ionomer is a plastic polymer material and exhibits the properties of a dielectric substance, being an insulator, but supporting the movement of electrons, utilizing its excellent electrostatic force to support low-voltage discharge.

[0048] The dielectric substance 203 may be formed by impregnating the ionomer into a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) layer.

[0049] The above dielectric substance 230 substantially has durability to maintain performance over a long period of time when it is mounted inside the headlight of the vehicle, even when it is subjected to various changes in temperature and humidity, vibration, etc.

[0050] Therefore, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the electrode is coated with the ionomer impregnated into the PTFE, that is, a porous Teflon layer that is not easily peeled off even at the time of plating, without changing the chemical properties at high temperatures (300°C or more). This makes it possible to improve the durability of the coating of the dielectric substance 203 while maintaining the excellent electrostatic force of the ionomer.

[0051] As described above, according to the moisture electrolysis device for a headlamp of the present invention, it is possible to prevent a reduction in the performance of the headlamp by reducing the moisture condensed inside the headlamp and preventing the condensation problem of moisture from occurring even though air with high humidity is introduced during the lamp of the headlamp being replaced or the headlamp being repaired.

[0052] For ease of explanation and precise definition, the terms "upper", "lower", "inner", "outer", "top", "bottom", "upper", "lower", "up", "down", "front", "rear", "back", "inside", "outside", "inward", "outward", "inside", "outside", "forward" and "backward" are used in the appended claims to describe features of the embodiments with reference to the positions of those features shown in the figures.

Claims

[1] Moisture electrolysis device for a headlight, comprising: a first electrode (201) adapted to be connected to an electrode of a power supply, exposed in an interior of a headlight housing (101), and having a surface coated with a dielectric substance (203); a second electrode (205) adapted to be connected to another electrode of the power supply, exposed in the interior of the headlight housing, and arranged to form a gap while being spaced from the first electrode (201) by a preset distance; and a discharge ventilation path (207) configured to be formed between the surface of the first electrode (201) coated with the dielectric substance (203) and the second electrode (205), wherein air circulates within the headlight and moisture in the air is electrolyzed by a discharge phenomenon generated between the first electrode (201) and the second electrode (205). [2] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to claim 1, wherein the first electrode (201) and the second electrode (205) have a flat shape and are arranged to face each other in parallel. [3] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first electrode (201) and the second electrode (205) are each formed with a plurality of ventilation holes (209). [4] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to claim 3, wherein the ventilation holes (209) of the first electrode (201) and the second electrode (205) are formed to cross each other. [5] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the power supply is a direct current supply. [6] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first electrode (201) is a negative electrode. [7] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first electrode (201) and the second electrode (205) are arranged to penetrate through a dust cover (103) to be exposed in the interior of the headlight housing (101). [8] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlight according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the dielectric substance (203) is an ionomer. [9] A moisture electrolysis device for a headlamp according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the dielectric substance (203) is formed by impregnating an ionomer into a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) layer.

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