Vehicular projection device

Abstract

To provide a vehicular projection device which can achieve visibility of images and aesthetic quality of the vehicle.SOLUTION: A vehicular projection device 1 is mounted on a vehicle and includes: a projector which emits display light PL; a screen 20 which reflects the display light PL and causes a viewer to view an image related to the display light PL; and a vehicle instrument panel 30 including a surface 30a facing the viewer, and a back surface 30b which is opposite to the surface 30a, in which the screen 20 is fixed at the back surface 30b, the vehicle instrument panel also has a plurality of passage holes 33 which allow the display light PL to pass toward the screen 20 and allow the light reflected on the screen 20 to pass in a direction toward the viewer.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a projection device for a vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a technique of projecting an image projected from a projector installed in a vehicle onto an instrument panel or the like in the vehicle to provide necessary information to passengers.

Prior Art Document

Patent Document

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] If the instrument panel itself is to be used as a screen, external light such as sunlight may be reflected by the instrument panel, which may reduce the visibility of the image. Also, it may be considered to improve the visibility of the image by arranging a projection screen with a high reflectance on the instrument panel. However, there are cases where the instrument panel must be made of a material on which the screen can be arranged, or there may be a lack of unity in the color tone between the screen such as white or silver and the instrument panel, which may impair the appearance and touch.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a projection device for a vehicle that can achieve both visibility of an image and appearance of the vehicle.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The vehicle projection device of the present disclosure is a vehicle projection device mounted on a vehicle to solve the above-described problems, and includes a projector that emits display light, a screen that reflects the display light and allows a viewer to view an image related to the display light, a surface facing the viewer, a back surface opposite to the surface, an interior part of the vehicle having a plurality of through holes on the back surface where the screen is fixed, allowing the display light to pass through toward the screen and allowing the light reflected by the screen to pass through in the direction of the viewer.

Effects of the Invention

[0007] In the vehicle projection device of the present disclosure, it is possible to achieve both visibility of the image and the appearance and touch feeling of the vehicle.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

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Figure 8

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0009] An embodiment of the vehicle projection device of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The vehicle projection device of the present disclosure can be applied to all vehicles such as automobiles, motorcycles, agricultural machinery, and construction machinery. In the present embodiment, an example in which the vehicle projection device is mounted on an automobile will be used for description.

[0010] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing a configuration example of the vehicle projection device 1 in the present embodiment.

[0011] In the following description, “front (front surface)”, “rear (rear surface)”, “upper”, “lower”, “right” and “left” follow the definitions “Fr.”, “Re.”, “To.”, “Bo.”, “R” and “L” in FIGS. 1 to 8.

[0012] The vehicle projection device 1 (hereinafter referred to as “projection device 1”) emits display light PL and allows a viewer 5 (passenger) inside the vehicle to view an image related to the display light PL reflected by the screen 20. The projection device 1 mainly includes a projector 10, a screen 20, and an instrument panel 30 (an interior part of the vehicle, a so-called dashboard, etc.).

[0013] The projector 10 is a known projector 10 having a light source of single color or multiple colors, an optical system, a display panel, a control circuit, etc. The projector 10 emits (projects) display light PL related to an image toward the screen 20. The projector 10 displays various information such as vehicle information necessary for driving and images for entertainment. The projector 10 is arranged at a position where it can project onto the screen 20, and is attached, for example, to the roof 3, pillar or the vicinity thereof of the vehicle 2.

[0014] The screen 20 is fixed to an interior part of the vehicle 2 at a position visible to the viewer 5. In the present embodiment, it is disposed on the instrument panel 30. Here, the instrument panel 30 has a well-known cross-sectional structure having, in order from the surface 3a (FIG. 3) side facing the viewer 5, a skin layer, a foam layer, and a core material. The skin layer is made of a material such as black or gray soft polyvinyl chloride (PVC) or thermoplastic polyurethane. The screen 20 is disposed between the skin layer and the foam layer of such an instrument panel 30 and is adhered to the back surface 30b (FIG. 3) of the skin layer without a gap using a colorless and transparent adhesive or the like.

[0015] The screen 20 reflects the display light PL and allows the viewer 5 to view the image related to the display light PL. Here, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view along the left-right direction for explaining the layer structure of the screen 20. The screen 20 has a reflective layer 21, a louver layer 22, and a diffusion layer 23. Each layer is adhered, for example, by a colorless and transparent adhesive layer.

[0016] The reflective layer 21 is a layer having a highly reflective mirror surface that reflects the display light PL and allows the viewer 5 to view it. The reflective layer 21 is formed by metal vapor deposition, high-brightness painting, or the like.

[0017] The louver layer 22 suppresses the incidence of external light such as sunlight on the screen 20 from the left-right direction of the vehicle 2 (and the viewer 5) and the reflection to the viewer 5 side. The louver layer 22 has a plurality of louvers 25 having a streak-shaped protrusion shape extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle 2 and arranged in the left-right direction. The louvers 25 have a light-shielding color such as black and are covered with a transparent layer 26 that transmits light.

[0018] The diffusion layer 23 is a film that diffuses the transmitted light, and various known films can be used.

[0019] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view along the front-back direction of the instrument panel 30 and the screen 20. In FIGS. 3 to 5, only the skin layer of the screen 20 is shown, and the other layers are not shown. The instrument panel 30 has a surface 30a of the skin layer facing the viewer 5 and a back surface 30b which is the surface opposite to the surface 30a, and the screen 20 is fixed to the back surface 30b of the skin layer as described above. The surface 30a of the instrument panel 30 is made of, for example, natural leather, synthetic leather, resin, or cloth, similar to a known instrument panel 30. The instrument panel 30 has a through hole 33 and a reflecting surface 35 in a region overlapping with the screen 20.

[0020] The through hole 33 is a plurality of holes penetrating the surface 30a and the back surface 30b of the instrument panel 30. The through hole 33 allows the display light PL to pass through toward the screen 20 and also allows the light reflected by the screen 20 to pass through toward the viewer 5. The through hole 33 is formed, for example, by a laser and is a fine hole that is not visible to the naked eye.

[0021] The through hole 33 includes, in the penetrating direction (in space) of the through hole 33, the optical axis (a line connecting the projector 10 and the center position of the image) of the display light PL from the projector 10 toward the screen 20, and is formed in a shape that includes the optical axis (a line connecting the center position of the image and the position of the viewer 5's eyes (the glove box, the eye ellipse of the vehicle 2)) of the display light PL reflected by the screen 20 and directed toward the viewer 5.

[0022] The reflecting surface 35 is an inclined surface formed on the surface 30a. The reflecting surface 35 is mainly formed in a region (non-penetrating portion) of the surface 30a other than the region where the through-hole 33 is formed. The reflecting surface 35 reflects the external light NL that inadvertently enters the surface 30a in a direction different from the direction of the viewer 5. For example, the reflecting surface 35 reflects the external light NL incident from the windshield 4 (windshield in front of the viewer 5) of the vehicle 2 back toward the windshield 4. That is, the reflecting surface 35 reflects light other than the light along the optical axis of the display light PL from the projector 10 that reaches the surface 30a and is directed toward the screen 20. The reflecting surface 35 is, for example, an inclined surface formed by fine grooves 34 (recesses) formed in a V shape along the left-right direction on the surface 30a, facing the external light NL (not facing the viewer 5). The reflecting surface 35 is formed as an inclined surface that becomes higher as it goes from the front to the back of the vehicle 2. The groove 34 is formed in an equal V shape in a front-rear cross-sectional view, for example, when the diameter of the through-hole 33 on the surface 30a is equal to the interval between adjacent through-holes 33 (the width of the non-penetrating portion, which is the length between the through-holes 33). Further, the boundary 38 between the region where the through-hole 33 is formed and the other region is formed to be the peak portion 39a or the valley portion 39b of the groove 34.

[0023] Such a projection device 1 can solve the problems when attempting to project an image onto an interior part such as the instrument panel 30. That is, when attempting to directly project the display light PL onto the instrument panel 30 for viewing, there is a risk that the light of the external light NL other than the display light PL that inadvertently enters the instrument panel 30 will also be viewed together. In this case, the visibility of the image related to the display light PL will decrease.

[0024] Also, the screen 20 may be directly arranged on the instrument panel 30, but the degree of freedom in arrangement cannot be obtained due to limitations on the material of the arrangement destination, etc. Further, when attempting to improve the visibility of the screen 20, it is preferable to make it a light color such as white or silver, but there is a risk that a lack of unity in color tone with the instrument panel 30 will occur.

[0025] In contrast, the projection device 1 in the present embodiment arranges the screen 20 on the back surface 30b of the instrument panel 30 by providing a through hole 33 in the instrument panel 30. For this reason, the projection device 1 does not allow the viewer 5 to visually recognize the screen 20 itself and does not impair the appearance of the instrument panel 30. Further, since the projection device 1 is arranged on the back surface 30b that is not visually recognized by the viewer 5, there is no need to consider the appearance of the back surface 30b. Further, the projection device 1 can suppress a decrease in visibility due to external light NL incident on the instrument panel 30 by providing a reflecting surface 35 on the instrument panel 30. Further, the projection device 1 can further suppress a decrease in visibility based on external light NL from the left and right by having the louver layer 22. Therefore, the projection device 1 in the present embodiment can achieve both the visibility of the image and the appearance and tactile sensation of the vehicle 2.

[0026] Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

[0027] For example, the above-described through hole 33 and reflecting surface 35 are examples, and may be configured as follows.

[0028] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along the front-rear direction of the instrument panel 30 and the screen 20 as a first modification of the projection device 1.

[0029] The projection device 1 can preferably set the shape of the through hole 33 according to the incident angle and reflection angle of the display light PL with respect to the screen 20 based on the shape (inclination) of the instrument panel 30 on which the screen 20 is disposed. For example, when the instrument panel 30 has a region 36 (FIG. 1) composed of a surface orthogonal to the vertical direction and a region 37 composed of a surface inclined such that the rear side is lowered with respect to the surface orthogonal to the vertical direction, the directions of the display light PL reflected by the screen 20 disposed in each of the regions 36 and 37 and directed toward the viewer 5 are different. Specifically, the angle D1 of the display light PL1 emitted from the through hole 33 of the region 36 toward the viewer 5 with respect to the perpendicular line L to the surface 30a is different from the angle D2 of the display light PL2 emitted from the through hole 33 of the region 37 toward the viewer 5 with respect to the perpendicular line L to the surface 30a. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 4, it is preferable that the through hole 33 of the region 36 where the angle D1 of the display light PL1 is large inclines the hole axis of the through hole 33 toward the viewer 5 (projector 10) side with respect to the perpendicular line L. Also, as shown in FIG. 3, it is preferable that the through hole 33 of the region 37 where the angle D2 of the display light PL2 is smaller than the angle D1 aligns the hole axis of the through hole 33 along the perpendicular line L.

[0030] Further, the shape of the through hole 33 may be determined according to the relative arrangement of the projector 10 and the viewer 5. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view along the front-rear direction of the instrument panel 30 and the screen 20 as a second modification of the projection device 1.

[0031] The viewer 5 may be located at a low position relative to the projector 1 and behind the projector 1 so as not to block the display light PL from the projector 1. In such a case, the display light PL3 that travels from the surface 30a (screen 20) toward the viewer 5 will be emitted from the through hole 33 in a more rearward direction than the display light PL that travels from the projector 1 toward the screen 20. For this reason, it is preferable that the opening area of the surface-side end portion 31a of the through hole 33 opens wider toward the rear. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, in the through hole 33, the opening area of the surface-side end portion 31a may be larger than the opening area of the back-side end portion 31b. This makes it easier to emit the display light PL reflected by the screen 20 from the through hole 33 toward the viewer 5, improving the visibility of the image.

[0032] Also, FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the front-rear direction of the instrument panel 30 as a third modification of the projection device 1. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the front-rear direction of the instrument panel 30 as a fourth modification of the projection device 1. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the front-rear direction of the instrument panel 30 as a fifth modification of the projection device 1.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 6, the diameter of the through hole 33 and the interval between adjacent through holes 33 do not necessarily have to be the same as shown in FIG. 3 and may be arbitrarily set. When the boundary 38 between the region where the through hole 33 is formed and the other region (non-penetrating portion) is formed as a mountain portion 39a or a valley portion 39b, the groove 34 is formed in a V shape with uneven side lengths in a cross-sectional view in the front-rear direction.

[0034] Also, as shown in FIG. 7, the groove 34 is not limited to the case where the boundary 38 between the region where the through hole 33 is formed and the other region (non-penetrating portion) is formed as a mountain portion 39a or a valley portion 39b, and may be formed at any position as long as at least the reflecting surface 35 is formed.

[0035] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8, the groove 34 is not limited to a linear V shape and may be formed in a curved V shape.

[0036] The louver layer 22 in FIG. 2 may be optionally arranged and may be omitted.

Explanation of Signs

[0037] 1 Vehicle projection device (projection device) 2 Vehicle 3 Roof 4 Windshield 5 Viewer 10 Projector 20 Screen 21 Reflective layer 22 Louver layer 23 Diffusion layer 25 Louver 26 Transparent layer 30 Instrument panel (interior component) 30a Surface 30b Back surface 31a Surface-side end 31b Back-side end 33 Through hole 34 Groove 35 Reflective surface 36 Region 37 Region 38 Boundary 39a Crest 39b Trough 10 Projector 34 Groove D1, D2 Angles L Perpendicular NL External light PL, PL1, PL2 Display light

Claims

1. A vehicle-mounted projection device for a vehicle, comprising: a projector that emits display light; a screen that reflects the display light and allows a viewer to view an image related to the display light; an interior component of the vehicle having a front surface facing the viewer, a rear surface opposite to the front surface, the screen being fixed to the rear surface, and a plurality of through holes that allow the display light to pass through toward the screen and allow the light reflected by the screen to pass through in the direction of the viewer.

2. The vehicle-mounted projection device according to claim 1, wherein the front surface has a reflecting surface that reflects light other than the light along the optical axis of the display light from the projector reaching the screen to a direction different from the direction of the viewer in a region other than the region where the through holes are formed.

3. The vehicle-mounted projection device according to claim 2, wherein the reflecting surface is formed by a rib-shaped recess formed on the front surface and is an inclined surface that inclines so as not to face the viewer.

4. The vehicle-mounted projection device according to claim 1, wherein the through hole has an opening area at the front surface side that is larger than the opening area at the rear surface side of the end portion.

5. The vehicle-mounted projection device according to claim 1, wherein the interior component is an instrument panel.

Images