Vehicle roof panel including a roof console

Abstract

Vehicle roof panel comprising a roof console The roof panel (2) comprises at least one roof console (16) extending over said inner surface (14) and comprising: an image acquisition device (24) having an optical axis (O) and arranged to acquire images of the passenger compartment (1) of the vehicle; at least one infrared light source (26) having an illumination axis (I) and arranged to emit light in the infrared range towards the passenger compartment (1) of the vehicle. The illumination axis (I) of the light source (26) forms an angle (α) substantially between 20° and 60° with the optical axis (O) of the image acquisition device (24). Figure for abstract: 2

Description

Title of the invention: Vehicle roof panel comprising a roof console

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle roof panel, of the type defining an internal surface intended to extend above a vehicle passenger compartment, said internal surface extending in a longitudinal direction between a front edge and a rear edge and in a transverse direction, substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, between two lateral edges, said roof panel comprising at least one roof console extending on said internal surface and having an elongated shape extending in the longitudinal direction, said roof console comprising: - an image acquisition device having an optical axis and arranged to acquire images of the vehicle interior; - at least one infrared light source having an illumination axis and arranged to emit light in the infrared range towards the passenger compartment of the vehicle.

[0002] The invention also relates to a vehicle passenger compartment comprising such a vehicle roof panel.

[0003] It is known to equip the roof panel of a vehicle, or vehicle roof, with a roof console making it possible to offer several functions to the occupants of the vehicle, such as one or more light sources, of the ceiling light type, to illuminate all or part of the passenger compartment, and elements for controlling various functions of the vehicle.

[0004] It is also known to provide in the roof console an image acquisition device arranged to acquire images of the passenger compartment, and more particularly of the driver of the vehicle, in order to monitor the state of the occupants of the vehicle, for example their position in the passenger compartment, the wearing of the seat belt, the ability of the driver to drive the vehicle to ensure the safety of the occupants of the vehicle and to verify that the vehicle can be driven safely.

[0005] The image acquisition device is thus placed in the roof console so as to have the largest possible volume of the passenger compartment in its acquisition field.

[0006] More particularly, the acquisition device is for example placed towards the front of the roof console, in the vicinity of an upper edge of the windshield, and is oriented towards the rear of the vehicle to acquire front images of the occupants of the vehicle.

[0007] The image acquisition device is furthermore associated with a light source, for example infrared, making it possible to illuminate the occupants of the vehicle without having to emit light in the visible range inside the passenger compartment, which could disturb the occupants of the vehicle and in particular the driver.

[0008] However, the light emitted by the light source aligned with the optical axis of the image acquisition device is reflected inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle and is returned to the lens of the image acquisition device, which significantly degrades the quality of the acquired images. This degradation is likely to prevent the interpretation of the acquired images by the electronic system of the vehicle and thus make the exploitation of the acquired images ineffective.

[0009] One of the aims of the invention is to overcome these drawbacks by proposing a roof panel comprising a roof console equipped with an image acquisition device acquiring good quality images of the passenger compartment of a vehicle.

[0010] To this end, the invention relates to a roof panel of the aforementioned type, in which the illumination axis of the light source forms an angle substantially between 20° and 60° with the optical axis of the image acquisition device.

[0011] By not aligning the optical axis of the image acquisition device and the illumination axis of the light source, while maintaining an adequate angle between these two axes, disruptive reflections of the light emitted by the light source towards the objective of the image acquisition device are avoided, in particular reflections by the cover element, while maintaining satisfactory illumination of the passenger compartment so that the images acquired by the image acquisition device are of good quality and can be used by the electronic system of the vehicle.

[0012] The roof panel according to the invention may further comprise one or more of the following characteristics, considered alone or in any technically conceivable combination: - the illumination axis of the light source forms an angle substantially equal to 45° with the optical axis of the image acquisition device; - the optical axis of the image acquisition device extends in an elevation direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and to the transverse direction; - the light source is adjacent to the image acquisition device in the transverse direction; - the overhead console comprises at least one mechanical separation element extending between the light source and the image acquisition device; - the roof panel comprises at least two infrared light sources, said light sources extending on either side of the image acquisition device in the transverse direction; - the illumination fields of the light sources are superimposed opposite the image acquisition device and away from said image acquisition device according to the elevation direction; - the cover element comprises at least one illumination zone extending opposite the light source along the illumination axis, said illumination zone extending substantially perpendicular to the illumination axis; - the cover element has a thickness, measured in the direction of the illumination axis, substantially between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.

[0013] According to another aspect, the invention also relates to a vehicle passenger compartment, defining an internal volume receiving at least one seat for an occupant of the vehicle, said internal volume being closed in an elevation direction by a roof panel as described above, the light source of the roof console being arranged to illuminate said internal volume and the image acquisition device being arranged to acquire images of at least a portion of the internal volume including at least a portion of said seat.

[0014] Other aspects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly on reading the description which follows, given solely by way of non-limiting example, and made with reference to the appended drawings in which:

[0015] [Fig-1] - [Fig.l] is a schematic perspective representation of a part of a vehicle interior according to the invention,

[0016] [Fig.2] - [Fig.2] is a schematic perspective representation of a part of a vehicle roof panel according to the invention, and

[0017] [Fig.3] - [Fig.3] is a schematic representation in section along the III-III axis of [Fig.2],

[0018] In the description, a longitudinal direction L is defined, corresponding for example to the front-rear direction of a vehicle, a transverse direction T, substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and corresponding for example to the width of the vehicle, and an elevation direction Z, substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L and to the transverse direction T and corresponding for example to the height of the vehicle.

[0019] The term "substantially" designates a slight variation around a given value to take into account manufacturing tolerances. Thus in the case of an angle, the term "substantially" designates for example a variation of plus or minus 5% around the value of the given angle.

[0020] With reference to Figs. 1 and 2, a vehicle interior 1 is described comprising a roof panel 2.

[0021] The vehicle passenger compartment 1 defines an internal volume 4 intended to accommodate vehicle occupants and delimited in the elevation direction Z by the roof panel 2, also known as the roof. At least one vehicle seat 6 is arranged in the internal volume 4, the seat 6 being mounted on the floor of the vehicle opposite the roof panel 2 in the elevation direction Z. As shown in [Fig.l], several seats 6 may be arranged in the internal volume 4, for example distributed in the longitudinal direction L between front seats and rear seats.

[0022] The roof panel 2 extends, in the longitudinal direction L, between a front edge 8 and a rear edge (not shown) and, in the transverse direction T, between two lateral edges 10. As more particularly visible in [Fig. 2], the front edge 8 extends above a windshield 12 of the vehicle in the elevation direction Z and forms an edge of this windshield 12. As also visible in [Fig. 2], the roof panel is not necessarily flat and may be curved, in particular in the longitudinal direction L, that is to say that the front edge 8 extends for example to a lower height in the elevation direction Z than the height of a central zone of the roof panel 2 extending between the front edge 8 and the rear edge. Alternatively, the roof panel 2 is substantially flat and substantially perpendicular to the elevation direction Z.The roof panel 2 comprises an internal surface 14 extending into the passenger compartment of the vehicle 1, i.e. the internal surface 14 is visible from the passenger compartment of the vehicle 1 and delimits the internal volume 4 of the passenger compartment 1 in the elevation direction Z.

[0023] The roof panel 2 further comprises a roof console 16 extending over the inner surface 14 in the vehicle passenger compartment 1 above the seats 6 in the elevation direction Z. As shown in Figs 1 and 2, the roof console 16 has an elongated shape in the longitudinal direction L. By "elongated shape in the longitudinal direction" is meant that the roof console 16 extends mainly in the longitudinal direction L, that is to say that its largest dimension is measured in the longitudinal direction L and that the dimensions of the roof console 16 in the transverse direction T and in the elevation direction Z are less than the dimension of the roof console 16 in the longitudinal direction L.According to one example, the dimension of the roof console 16 in the longitudinal direction L is substantially 3 to 10 times that in the transverse direction T and 10 to 20 times that in the elevation direction Z. Thus, by way of example, the length of the roof console 16, measured in the longitudinal direction L, is between 1000 and 1500 mm, its width, measured in the . transverse direction T, is between 160 mm and 200 mm and its height, measured along the elevation direction Z, is approximately 100 mm.

[0024] The roof console 16 extends in the longitudinal direction L between a front edge 18, extending in the vicinity of the front edge 8 of the roof panel 2, and a rear edge 20, extending for example in a central zone of the roof panel 2, for example at the level of the space extending between the front seats and the rear seats of the vehicle, as visible in [Fig.l]. The front edge 18 of the roof console 16 extends for example above the windshield 12 in the elevation direction Z forward and above the occupants seated on the front seats 6 of the vehicle.

[0025] In the transverse direction T, the roof console 16 extends for example substantially in the center of the roof panel 2, that is to say substantially equidistant from the lateral edges 10 of the roof panel 2.

[0026] When the roof panel 2 is curved in the longitudinal direction, the roof console 16 is also curved so as to match the shape of the roof panel 2 in the longitudinal direction L.

[0027] The roof console 16 forms a housing extending in projection from the internal surface 14 of the roof panel 2 into the internal volume 4 of the passenger compartment 1. The housing receives the various functional elements of the roof console 16, as well as the electronic connectors making it possible to connect these functional elements to the electronic system of the vehicle. The housing is in particular closed by a cover 22 making it possible to mask the elements which must be masked and the electronic connectors so as to give the roof console 16 a satisfactory appearance. Thus, the housing contains for example one or more sources of visible light making it possible to illuminate the passenger compartment 1 of the vehicle in the manner of a ceiling light and / or control elements for various functions of the vehicle.

[0028] Furthermore, the roof console 16 comprises a passenger compartment observation device received in the housing and which will now be described.

[0029] As shown in [Fig.3], the observation device comprises an image acquisition device 24 and at least one infrared light source 26.

[0030] The image acquisition device 24 is oriented so as to acquire images of a large part of the internal volume 4 of the passenger compartment 1, in particular of the head and part of the body of one or more occupants of the vehicle, more particularly of at least the driver of the vehicle, preferably of at least the persons occupying the front seats 6 of the vehicle, more preferably of the persons occupying the front and rear seats 6 of the vehicle. As a variant, an observation device may be provided for the front seats and another observation device for the rear seats.

[0031] The image acquisition device 24 comprises an objective 28 having an optical axis O and at least one optical sensor receiving the light passing through the objective 28 from the passenger compartment 1. The image acquisition device 24 is arranged to acquire images of the passenger compartment 1 of the vehicle. More particularly, the image acquisition device 24 has a field of view in which the image acquisition device 24 acquires images, this field of view having substantially the shape of a cone whose axis is the optical axis O. The apex of the cone is formed by the lens 28 of the image acquisition device 24, the lens 28 and the optical sensor being connected to an acquisition unit 30, connected to the electronic system of the vehicle, for example by being mounted on a printed circuit 32 forming for example the connection of all the functional elements of the roof console 16.The objective 28 comprises for example an optical lens or a series of superimposed optical lenses, and is chosen to have a wide viewing angle around the optical axis O, for example an angle between 60° and 150°, preferably between 70° and 130°. Such a viewing angle makes it possible to have a wide field of view so as to acquire images of a large part of the internal volume 4 of the passenger compartment 1.

[0032] To acquire images of at least the occupants of the front seats 6, the image acquisition device 24 is positioned in the vicinity of the front edge 18 of the roof console 16 and the optical axis O is oriented towards the rear of the vehicle. The optical axis O is for example substantially perpendicular to the inner surface 14 of the roof panel 2 at the location where the image acquisition device 24 is positioned. Thus, when the image acquisition device 24 is placed in the vicinity of the front edge 18 of the roof console 16 and the inner surface 14 of the roof panel 2 is curved, the optical axis O forms a small angle with the elevation direction Z or is substantially aligned with this elevation direction Z, as shown in [Fig.l], so that the optical axis O is oriented towards the head and / or an upper part of the body of the occupants of the front seats 6 of the vehicle.

[0033] The infrared light source 26 is arranged to illuminate the field of view of the image acquisition device 24 so that the acquired images have sufficient sharpness to be interpreted, for example by the electronic system of the vehicle. For this purpose, the infrared light source 26 is placed adjacent to the image acquisition device 24, for example next to it in the transverse direction T, as shown in [Fig. 3]. The light source 26 is arranged to emit light in the infrared range towards the internal volume 4 of the passenger compartment 1 along an illumination axis I. More particularly, the infrared light source 26 has an illumination field in which the light source 26 emits light in the infrared range, this illumination field having substantially the shape of a cone C ([Fig. 3]) whose axis is the illumination axis I.The apex of cone C is formed by the infrared light source 26 which is formed. for example by an infrared light-emitting diode. The infrared light source 26 is chosen to have a large illumination angle around the illumination axis I, for example an angle between 100° and 160°, preferably between 130° and 150°. Such an illumination angle makes it possible to illuminate a large part of the internal volume 4 of the passenger compartment 1, more particularly a large part, or even the entire field of view of the image acquisition device 24.

[0034] The illumination axis I forms an angle α with the optical axis O substantially between 20° and 60°, preferably substantially equal to 45°. The angle α is measured between the illumination axis I and the optical axis O projected in a plane containing the transverse direction T and the elevation direction Z, the illumination axis I deviating from the optical axis O as shown in [Fig. 3]. Such an angle α makes it possible to effectively illuminate all or part of the field of view of the image acquisition device while avoiding reflections of the infrared light emitted towards the image acquisition device 24, more particularly towards the objective 28 thereof.Indeed, with an angle a less than 20°, the light emitted by the infrared light source 26 is likely to be reflected by the cover element 22 towards the image acquisition device 24, which degrades the quality of the acquired images, and, with an angle a greater than 60°, the emitted light does not sufficiently illuminate the field of view of the image acquisition device 24, which also degrades the quality of the acquired images. Preferably, the angle a is substantially equal to 45°, which forms a good compromise between limiting reflections towards the image acquisition device 24 and the area of ​​the field of view illuminated by the infrared light source 26.

[0035] In order to further limit reflections towards the image acquisition device 24, the observation device comprises, according to one embodiment, a mechanical separation element 34 between the infrared light source 26 and the image acquisition device 24, as shown in [Fig. 3]. Such a mechanical separation element 34 is for example made of a material making it possible to prevent any transmission of light directly or by reflection to the image acquisition device 24.

[0036] According to the embodiment shown in [Fig.3], the observation device comprises at least two infrared light sources 26, as described above.

[0037] In this case, the two infrared light sources 26 are arranged on either side of the image acquisition device 24 in the transverse direction T and are, according to one embodiment, separated from the latter by two mechanical separation elements 34, as described above.

[0038] Advantageously, the infrared light sources 26 are further arranged relative to each other and relative to the image acquisition device 24 of so that their illumination axes I are substantially parallel. In addition, the illumination fields C of the infrared light sources 26 are further arranged to overlap opposite the image acquisition device 24 and away from it in the elevation direction Z. Such overlapping away from the image acquisition device 24 further limits the risks of reflection of the infrared light towards the image acquisition device 24.

[0039] Opposite the observation device, the cover 22 is arranged to allow the passage of infrared light emitted by the infrared light source(s) 26 and to allow the acquisition of images by the image acquisition device 24 through the cover 22, so that the observation device can perform its function without being visible from the passenger compartment of the vehicle. For this purpose, the cover 22 comprises at least one cover element made of a material absorbing light in the visible range and being transparent to light in the infrared range. Thus, the cover element is for example made of polycarbonate (PC), polymethyl methacrylate acrylic (PMMA), for example black or opaque in color. The at least one cover element 22 extends opposite the image acquisition device 24 and the light source 26.According to one embodiment, the cover element is made in one piece with the rest of the cover 22 or is fixed, for example in a removable manner, to the rest of the cover 22.

[0040] Furthermore, at least opposite the or each infrared light source 26 along the illumination axis I, the cover element 22 advantageously comprises an illumination zone 36 extending substantially perpendicular to the illumination axis I. Such an illumination zone 36 allows direct transmission of the light through the cover element without reflection thereon, which makes it possible to further limit the risks of reflections on the images acquired by the image acquisition device 24.

[0041] The cover element is further arranged to have a thickness as reduced as possible so as not to obstruct the transmission of light to the internal volume 4 of the passenger compartment 1 through the cover element. For this purpose, the cover element has for example a thickness, measured in the direction of the illumination axis I, substantially between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.

[0042] The roof panel 2 described above and its roof console 16 make it possible to acquire usable images of the passenger compartment of the vehicle, in particular by allowing adequate lighting thereof and by preventing the emitted light from creating disturbing reflections on the acquired images. In addition, the observation device is integrated harmoniously into the roof console 16, in particular by not being visible to the occupants of the vehicle.

Claims

Claims

1. Vehicle roof panel (2), said panel defining an internal surface (14) intended to extend above a vehicle passenger compartment (1), said internal surface (14) extending in a longitudinal direction (L) between a front edge (8) and a rear edge and in a transverse direction (T), substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (L), between two lateral edges (10), said roof panel comprising at least one roof console (16) extending on said internal surface (14) and having an elongated shape extending in the longitudinal direction (L), said roof console (16) comprising: - an image acquisition device (24) having an optical axis (0) and arranged to acquire images of the passenger compartment (1) of the vehicle; - at least one infrared light source (26) having an illumination axis (I) and arranged to emit light in the infrared range towards the passenger compartment (1) of the vehicle;- at least one cover element (22) extending opposite the image acquisition device (24) and the light source (26), characterized in that the illumination axis (I) of the light source (26) forms an angle (a) substantially between 20° and 60° with the optical axis (0) of the image acquisition device (24).;

2. Roof panel according to claim 1, in which the illumination axis (I) of the light source (26) forms an angle (a) substantially equal to 45° with the optical axis (O) of the image acquisition device (24).

3. Roof panel according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the optical axis (O) of the image acquisition device (24) extends in an elevation direction (Z) substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (L) and to the transverse direction (T).

4. A roof panel according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the light source (26) is adjacent to the image acquisition device (24) in the transverse direction (T).

5. A roof panel according to claim 4, wherein the roof console (16) comprises at least one mechanical separation element (34) extending between the light source (26) and the image acquisition device (24).

6. Roof panel according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising at least two infrared light sources (26), said light sources (26) extending on either side of the image acquisition device (24) in the transverse direction (T).

7. A roof panel according to claim 6 when dependent on claim 3, wherein the illumination fields of the light sources (26) are superimposed opposite the image acquisition device (24) and away from said image acquisition device (24) in the elevation direction (Z).

8. A roof panel according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the cover element (22) comprises at least one illumination zone (36) extending opposite the light source (26) along the illumination axis (I), said illumination zone (36) extending substantially perpendicular to the illumination axis.

9. A roof panel according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the cover element has a thickness, measured in the direction of the illumination axis (I), substantially between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.

10. Vehicle passenger compartment (1) defining an internal volume (4) receiving at least one seat (6) for an occupant of the vehicle, said internal volume (4) being closed in an elevation direction (Z) by a roof panel (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 9, the light source (26) of the roof console (16) being arranged to illuminate said internal volume (4) and the image acquisition device (24) being arranged to acquire images of at least a portion of the internal volume (4) including at least a portion of said seat (6).

Images