Housing assembly for a heads-up display

Abstract

The invention relates to a housing assembly for a heads-up display (8) for installing over the steering column (10) of a motor vehicle, comprising a housing (13) for accommodating optical components of the heads-up display (8), a rear suspension, and a front suspension which is arranged on the foot (17) of a front wall (15) of the housing (13) and which is formed as a lug (22) that protrudes forwards from the housing (13).

Description

[0001] Housing assembly for a head-up display

[0002] Description

[0003] The present invention relates to a housing assembly for a head-up display, a head-up display and a motor vehicle equipped with the housing assembly or the head-up display.

[0004] A head-up display (HUD) is typically mounted in a motor vehicle between a steering column and the top of a dashboard. It projects information through a window in the top onto a windshield and reflects it from there into the driver's eye. A HUD for mounting in a motor vehicle is known, for example, from DE 10 2018 125 709 A1.

[0005] To meet new pedestrian safety regulations, not only the windshield must be able to deflect in a head impact, but also the upper surface of the dashboard underneath. However, a HUD supported by rigid supports and filling a gap between the supports and the upper surface limits the deflection in such a way that it is difficult to meet these new regulations.

[0006] An object of the invention is to provide a housing assembly for a HUD, a HUD or a motor vehicle with which the legal requirements for pedestrian protection can be met.

[0007] This object is achieved according to one aspect of the invention in that, in a housing assembly for a head-up display for installation above the steering column of a motor vehicle, with a housing for accommodating optical components of the head-up display, a rear suspension, and a front suspension arranged at the base of a front wall of the housing, the front suspension is designed as a tab protruding forward from the housing. This enables the HUD to avoid a head impact as a whole in the event of a load by deforming or even tearing off the tab, without the need to first compress the front wall of the housing, and thus contribute only slightly to the deceleration acting on an impacting head.The housing can therefore have the rigidity required to ensure the precise positioning of the optical components required to project the information, even under the effects of the vibrations unavoidable during ferry operation.

[0008] To facilitate the evasion of the HUD, the housing is preferably connected to the tab via a weak point that can be pivoted or destroyed in the event of a load.

[0009] The tab can be formed in one piece with the housing, in particular it can be injection-molded in one piece with the entire housing or parts thereof.

[0010] The weak point may in particular be a zone of reduced wall thickness elongated in the width direction of the vehicle or a perforation zone elongated in the width direction.

[0011] In order to create sufficient space for the evasive movement of the HUD required in the event of a load, a recess can be formed in the housing at the base of the front wall above the tab, which is dimensioned to provide space for the tab in the event of a load.

[0012] Furthermore, an opening may be formed at the base of the front wall above the tab in the front wall to facilitate deformation of the housing under load. If the width of the opening is at least equal to the width of the tab, the same opening may also be used to allow a mold to pass through during injection molding of the housing assembly or a part thereof for forming a surface of the tab adjacent to the opening.

[0013] The invention further relates to a head-up display having a housing assembly as described above and optical components accommodated in the housing for projecting a display image, as well as to a motor vehicle having a housing assembly or a head-up display as described above, in which the tab is attached to a steering column holder and a bottom of the housing is spaced from the steering column holder.

[0014] Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying figures. They show:

[0015] Fig. 1 shows a schematic section through a front section of a motor vehicle according to the invention;

[0016] Fig. 2 is a view of the HUD housing assembly;

[0017] Fig. 3 a detail of the housing assembly.

[0018] Fig. 1 shows a schematic section through a transition area between a hood 1 and a windshield 2 of a motor vehicle body. Only a rear edge of the hood 1 is visible. A lower front edge of the windshield 2 is supported on a bulkhead 3 separating a passenger compartment from an engine compartment via a sheet metal 4 that is easily deformed by several bends. A dashboard 5 has a visible side facing the driver with a multiple display instrument 6 therein and an upper side 7 facing the windshield 2. The upper side 7 has a spacious opening in the sectional plane of Fig. 1, through which an HUD 8 arranged in front of the display instrument 6 in the dashboard 5 can project information visible to the driver onto the windshield 2. The operation of the HUD 8 is known per se, so that a description of its optical components and their function can be omitted here.

[0019] The dashboard 5 and its components are supported on a cross member 9. A steering column 10, shown only as a small section, is anchored to the cross member 8 and to the bulkhead 3 via a steering column bracket 11. The steering column bracket 11 comprises, in a conventional manner, two metal sheets, each of which is semi-cylindrically bent at its front end to enclose a fastening stud 12 protruding from the bulkhead 3, and which are cut out at their rear end complementary to the cross section of the cross member 8 and welded to the fastening stud 12 and to the cross member 9. The two metal sheets of the steering column bracket 11 run on opposite sides of the section plane and are therefore only shown as dashed outlines in Fig. 1.

[0020] The HUD 8 has a plastic injection-molded housing 13 in the form of a substantially cuboid box with a base plate 14, a front wall 15 facing the hood 1, and a rear wall 16 facing the driver. The rear wall 16 is supported on the cross member 8. A recess 18 is formed in the base plate 14 and the front wall 15 approximately in the middle of a common edge 17. The position of the recess 18 in the front wall 15 can be seen in particular in Fig. 2, which shows a view of the housing 13 from a direction approximately perpendicular to the windshield 2.

[0021] Fig. 3 shows the recess 18 in detail, viewed approximately horizontally from the front. A sloping roof surface 19 can be seen, which merges into the front wall 15 at its front upper edge and borders an opening 20 at its rear lower edge. Side walls 21, one of which is hidden in Fig. 3, extend from the front wall 15 to a right or left edge of the opening 20. A tab 22 is integrally connected to the base plate 14 via an elongated zone of reduced wall thickness 23, similar to a foil hinge, and extends forward from the zone of reduced wall thickness 23 under the roof surface 19. A stiffening web 24 extending along an edge of the tab 22 is locally interrupted to form a space 25 at which a clamping nut (not shown) can be pushed onto the tab 22 into a position overlapping a central hole 26.

[0022] Below the tab 22, spaced apart from it, is an L-shaped support 27 made of sheet steel. A vertical leg 28 of the support is intended to be welded to one of the sheets of the steering column bracket 11 in a position in which, when the HUD 8 is inserted into the dashboard 5 as shown in Fig. 1, the tab 22 rests on a horizontal leg 29 of the support 27 and the hole 26 overlaps with a hole 30 of the leg 29. The tab 22 is fixed to the support by means of the clamp nut and a screw inserted into the hole 30 from below. If, in a collision, the head of a pedestrian hits the windshield 2, the HUD 8 can move downwards by the tab 22 tearing off from the housing 13 along the zone 23 and the housing 13 pivoting downwards about an axis defined by the support of its rear wall 16 on the cross member 8 and the leg 29, together with the torn-off tab 22, engaging the recess 18.

[0023] Reference symbol

[0024] 1 hood

[0025] 2 Windshield

[0026] 3 front wall

[0027] 4 deformable sheet

[0028] 5 Dashboard

[0029] 6 Multi-display instrument

[0030] 7 Top

[0031] 8 HUD

[0032] 9 cross members

[0033] 10 Steering column

[0034] 11 Steering column holder

[0035] 12 mounting brackets

[0036] 13 housings

[0037] 14 Base plate

[0038] 15 front wall

[0039] 16 rear wall

[0040] 17 edge

[0041] 18 recess

[0042] 19 roof area

[0043] 20 Opening

[0044] 21 Side wall

[0045] 22 tab

[0046] 23 Zone of reduced wall thickness

[0047] 24 jetty

[0048] 25th place

[0049] 26 holes

[0050] 27 carriers

[0051] 28 vertical leg

[0052] 29 horizontal leg

[0053] 30 holes

Claims

Claims 1. Housing assembly for a head-up display (8) for installation above the steering column (10) of a motor vehicle, comprising a housing (13) for accommodating optical components of the head-up display (8), a rear suspension and a front suspension arranged at the base (17) of a front wall (15) of the housing (13), characterized in that the front suspension is designed as a tab (22) projecting forward from the housing (13).

2. Housing assembly according to claim 1, wherein the tab (22) is connected to the housing (13) via a weak point which can be pivoted or destroyed in the event of a load.

3. Housing assembly according to claim 2, wherein the tab (22) is formed integrally with the housing (13) and the weak point is a zone of reduced wall thickness (23) elongated in the width direction or a perforation zone elongated in the width direction.

4. Housing assembly according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein a recess (18) is formed on the base (17) of the front wall (15) above the tab (22), which recess is dimensioned to accommodate the tab (22) in the event of a load.

5. Housing assembly according to one of the preceding claims, wherein an opening (20) is formed at the base (17) of the front wall (15) above the tab (22) in the front wall (15), and optionally wherein the width of the opening (20) corresponds at least to the width of the tab (22).

6. Head-up display with a housing assembly (13, 22) according to one of the preceding claims and optical components accommodated in the housing (13) for projecting a display image.

7. Motor vehicle with a housing assembly or a head-up display according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the tab (22) is attached to a steering column holder (11) and a bottom (14) of the housing (13) is spaced from the steering column holder (11).

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