Vehicle opening equipped with an NFC communication interface.

Abstract

The invention relates to a motor vehicle opening (1) comprising a communication interface (2) configured to communicate by an NFC protocol, the interface (2) being fixed on a support (3) mountable in a housing (4), arranged in a frame (5) of the opening (1) to accommodate the support (3), the support (3) comprising fixing means (6) designed to cooperate with complementary means (7) for fixing the housing (4) to form a clip-on fixing of the support (3) in the housing (4). The invention also relates to a motor vehicle comprising at least one opening (1) according to the invention. (Figure 1)

Description

Title of the invention: Vehicle opening equipped with an NFC communication interface.

[0001] The technical field concerns vehicle openings equipped with NFC type communication interfaces and vehicles comprising at least one such opening.

[0002] Motor vehicle manufacturers pay particular attention to controlling access to their vehicles. Usually, access to the vehicle is achieved by means of a remote control associated with a vehicle key. The remote control is capable of communicating by radio frequency, over a distance of the order of a few meters to a few dozen meters, with a security device integrated into the vehicle which manages access authorizations. However, the traditional part of the key is now rarely used to turn on the ignition; in fact, more and more vehicles are equipped with a hands-free mode, which uses a transponder function of the remote control to ensure the presence of the remote control on board the vehicle.

[0003] The key to a motor vehicle is one of the objects frequently carried in a pocket and causes damage to clothing. It is therefore desirable to develop new forms of unlocking devices, less bulky and less likely to damage pockets. In this context, some vehicles are delivered with unlocking devices which take the form of a credit card capable of communicating by near field protocol, commonly called NFC (from the English expression Near Field Communication) using very short-range radio frequencies, of the order of a few centimeters to a few tens of centimeters. In order to unlock the vehicle, the NFC unlocking device must then be brought close to a pillar of the vehicle in which a control unit is integrated to communicate with the vehicle and authorize access on board.

[0004] While such unlocking devices prove to be very interesting, the installation of the control unit is unfortunately complex and expensive.

[0005] Thus, there is a need for a solution, making it possible to implement an NFC protocol to unlock a vehicle, which proves to be simple and inexpensive to implement.

[0006] The present invention aims to overcome the problems set out above. In this technical context, one aim of the present invention is to provide a vehicle opening allowing an NFC protocol to be implemented.

[0007] To this end, the present invention relates to a motor vehicle opening comprising a communication interface configured to communicate by a NFC protocol, the interface being fixed on a support mountable in a housing, arranged in a frame of the opening to accommodate the support, the support comprising fixing means designed to cooperate with complementary means for fixing the housing to form a fixing by clipping the support in the housing.

[0008] The invention finally relates to a motor vehicle comprising at least one opening according to the invention.

[0009] Thus, the opening according to the invention, thanks to the communication interface, is capable of implementing an NFC protocol. The support is easy to install thanks to the implementation of the fixing means and the complementary fixing means. The housing in the opening is easily achieved in the frame of the opening and the installation of the interface in its support is also simple.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the invention, the cooperation of the fixing means and the complementary fixing means requires a rotation of the support in the housing.

[0011] According to one possibility, the fixing means comprise at least one L-shaped hook, each designed to be inserted into a slot of the complementary fixing means to retain the support in the housing.

[0012] In one embodiment, the fixing means comprise an elastically deformable tab forming a clip.

[0013] According to one possibility, absorbent foam is disposed between the support and the housing, when the support is fixed in the housing.

[0014] According to one embodiment, the communication interface is configured to control the locking and / or unlocking of at least one lock of the opening.

[0015] According to one possibility, the communication interface comprises at least one antenna compatible with an NFC protocol.

[0016] The invention will be better understood on reading the detailed description which follows, given solely by way of non-limiting example, and made with reference to the appended drawing in which:

[0017] [Fig.l] [Fig.l] represents a sectional view of an opening according to the invention showing a support fixed in a housing of the opening.

[0018] An opening 1 of a motor vehicle, illustrated in [Fig.l], comprises a communication interface 2, configured to communicate by an NFC protocol. Thus, the communication interface 2 comprises at least one antenna, not illustrated, compatible with an NFC protocol.

[0019] In one embodiment of the invention, the communication interface 2 is configured to control the locking and / or unlocking of at least one lock, not illustrated, of the opening 1.

[0020] The interface 2 is fixed on a support 3 mountable in a housing 4, arranged in a frame 5 of the opening 1 to accommodate the support 3. As illustrated in the figure, the housing 4 has, for example, a substantially parallelepiped shape. The support 3 is, for example, made of molded plastic material.

[0021] The support 3 comprises fixing means 6 designed to cooperate with complementary means 7 for fixing the housing 4, to form a clip-on fixing of the support 3 in the housing 4.

[0022] The fixing means 6 comprise, on the one hand, at least one L-shaped hook 8, each designed to be inserted into a slot 9 of the complementary fixing means 7, to retain the support 3 in the housing 4. In this case the support 3 comprises two hooks 8 and the housing 4 comprises two slots 9 formed in a wall 10 of the housing 4. Each hook 8 extends from the support 3 towards a free end 11.

[0023] The fixing means 6 further comprise an elastically deformable tab 12 forming a clip. The tab 12 and the hooks 8 are arranged on the support 3 so as to ensure adequate fixing. Thus, in the example illustrated in the figure, the tab 12 is opposite the hooks 8.

[0024] Advantageously, the cooperation of the fixing means 6 and the complementary fixing means 7 requires a rotation of the support 3 in the housing 4: thus, the support 3 is positioned in the housing 4 so that the free end 11 of each hook 8 can be introduced into a corresponding slot 9. The support 3 is then substantially perpendicular to its position in which it is fixed in the housing 4. The support 3 is then rotated to bring the tab 12 into a clipping slot 13 formed in the housing 4 and forming part of the complementary means 7. The periphery of the clipping slot 13 and the tab 12 then form a clipping.

[0025] In the embodiment illustrated in the figure, the opening 1 comprises absorbent foam 14 arranged between the support 3 and the housing 4, when the support 3 is fixed in the housing 4.

[0026] Thus, the housing 4 and the support 3 make it easy to obtain an opening 1 according to the invention. The fixing of the interface 2, thanks to the support 3, is simple and the changing of the interface 2, in the event of maintenance, is rapid. The opening 1 according to the invention therefore represents a saving in assembly and maintenance time. The opening 1 is also less expensive to implement than existing solutions.

[0027] The invention is not limited to the embodiment of the opening described above, only by way of example, but other embodiments can be designed by those skilled in the art, without departing from the framework and scope of the present invention.

Claims

Claims

1. Motor vehicle opening (1) comprising a communication interface (2) configured to communicate by an NFC protocol, the interface (2) being fixed on a support (3) mountable in a housing (4), arranged in a frame (5) of the opening (1) to accommodate the support (3), the support (3) comprising fixing means (6) designed to cooperate with complementary means (7) for fixing the housing (4) to form a clip-on fixing of the support (3) in the housing (4), characterized in that the cooperation of the fixing means (6) and the complementary fixing means (7) requires a rotation of the support (3) in the housing (4), the fixing means (6) comprising at least one L-shaped hook (8), each designed to be inserted into a slot (9) of the complementary fixing means (7) to retain the support (3) in the housing (4) and an elastically deformable tab (12) forming a clip.

2. Opening (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that absorbent foam (14) is arranged between the support (3) and the housing (4), when the support (3) is fixed in the housing (4).

3. Opening (1) according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the communication interface (2) is configured to control the locking and / or unlocking of at least one lock of the opening (1).

4. Opening (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the communication interface (2) comprises at least one antenna compatible with an NFC protocol.

5. Motor vehicle comprising at least one opening (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4.

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