Vehicle cabin interior cleaning device system

Abstract

To clean a wide range in a vehicle cabin while facilitating post-installation and saving space.SOLUTION: A vehicle cabin interior cleaning system includes: a pair of rail portions 11L and 11R that can be attached to a left and right portion of a vehicle cabin interior roof and having a longitudinal direction being a front and rear direction; a cleaning portion 15 that has a direction is variable and that cleans a vehicle cabin interior; a movable holding portion 20 that holds the cleaning portion 15 so as to be movable in respective directions of a front and rear portion, the left and right portion, and an up and down potion relative to the rail portions 11L and 11R; and a control portion 40 that controls the movable holding portion 20 and the cleaning portion 15.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present technology relates to an in-vehicle cleaning device system.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, devices for cleaning the interior of a vehicle are known. For example, the device of Patent Document 1 includes a blower unit capable of blowing air toward an instrument panel and an air conditioner capable of sucking air inside the vehicle. The device of Patent Document 2 includes a cleaning head attached to the tip of a robotic arm, and sucks and cleans the interior of the vehicle while moving the cleaning head according to a cleaning pattern stored in a memory.

[0003] The device of Patent Document 3 includes a cleaner disposed on the floor of the vehicle compartment for cleaning the floor. The device of Patent Document 4 includes a cleaning device that extends across the width of the floor and is operated by a control device. Cleaning is performed when it is detected that the degree of dirt exceeds a predetermined value.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Patent Document 4

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, the device of Patent Document 2 is not easily miniaturized and occupies a large space. In addition, in the devices of Patent Documents 1, 3, and 4, the cleanable range is limited. Therefore, there is room for improvement from the viewpoint of reducing the occupancy of the space in the vehicle interior and expanding the cleaning range.

[0006] The present technology aims to be easily retrofitted, space-saving, and to clean a wide range of the vehicle interior.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] To achieve the above object, the in-vehicle cleaning device system of the present technology includes a pair of rail portions that can be attached to the left and right of the in-vehicle ceiling and have a longitudinal direction in the front-rear direction, a cleaning portion with a variable orientation for cleaning the in-vehicle interior, a movable holding portion that movably holds the cleaning portion relative to the rail portion in each of the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions, and a control portion that controls the movable holding portion and the cleaning portion.

Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the present technology, it is possible to clean a wide range of the vehicle interior while being easily retrofitted and space-saving.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present technology will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] (First Embodiment) FIGS. 1(a) and (b) are respectively a schematic plan view and a side view of a vehicle to which the in-vehicle cleaning device system according to the first embodiment of the present technology is applied. This vehicle 200 is, for example, a four-wheeled automobile. FIGS. 2(a) and (b) are a schematic plan view and a side view of the vehicle 200.

[0012] In the interior of the vehicle 200, an in-vehicle cleaning device 100 and a floor automatic cleaning device 16 are arranged. Both the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 and the floor automatic cleaning device 16 can be attached to the interior of the vehicle as aftermarket products, but they may also be attached before storing the vehicle. It is not essential that the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 and the floor automatic cleaning device 16 be attached as a set at the same time. The in-vehicle cleaning device system includes at least the in-vehicle cleaning device 100.

[0013] The in-vehicle cleaning device 100 includes a cleaning unit 15 for cleaning the interior of the vehicle. In this embodiment, the cleaning unit 15 is a blower that blows out air, and the blowing direction of the cleaning unit 15 is variable. Due to the strong wind blown out from the cleaning unit 15, dust, dirt or dust (hereinafter referred to as dust, etc.) on the seat (sheet), center console part, instrument panel part, etc. is lifted into the air or dropped onto the floor surface (floor surface).

[0014] The floor automatic cleaning device 16 is an example of a cleaning device that sucks and cleans dust and the like in the air inside the vehicle cabin, and is attached to, for example, the floor surface of the vehicle cabin. The floor automatic cleaning device 16 sucks the air inside the vehicle cabin, removes dust and the like in the sucked air, and exhausts it. Therefore, when the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 and the floor automatic cleaning device 16 are used in combination, the dust and the like lifted by the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 are removed by the floor automatic cleaning device 16, and clean air is returned to the vehicle cabin. The removed dust and the like are stored in a storage chamber (not shown).

[0015] Note that the floor automatic cleaning device 16 may be configured to discharge the sucked air to the outside of the vehicle. Alternatively, the floor automatic cleaning device 16 may be of the air cleaner type. As the floor automatic cleaning device 16, a configuration disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-91686, Japanese Patent No. 6664543, etc. may be adopted.

[0016] Hereinafter, the directions of each part will be referred to based on the X, Y, and Z coordinate axes shown in FIG. 1 and the like. Here, the vertical direction is the Z direction, the left-right direction is the X direction, and the front-back direction is the Y direction. The upper side is the +Z side, the front side is the +Y side, and the left side in the vehicle width direction is the +X side.

[0017] The in-vehicle cleaning device 100 generally includes a pair of rail parts 11L and 11R and a movable holding part 20. The left rail part 11L and the right rail part 11R can be attached to the left and right of the vehicle cabin ceiling and have the longitudinal direction in the front-back direction (Y direction). In FIGS. 1(b) and 2(b), since the part on the right side of the rail part 11L is shown, the rail part 11L does not appear. The rail parts 11L and 11R are fixed to, for example, pillars and the like in the vehicle cabin with fixtures. The fixing mode of the rail parts 11L and 11R is not limited.

[0018] As will be described in detail later, the movable holding unit 20 holds the cleaning unit 15 so as to be movable relative to the rail units 11L and 11R in the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions. The movable holding unit 20 includes a bridge unit 12 and a telescopic unit 13. The bridge unit 12 extends in the left-right direction (vehicle width direction; X direction) with respect to the rail units 11L and 11R, and has the left-right direction as its longitudinal direction.

[0019] Connecting portions 21L and 21R are provided at the left and right ends of the bridge unit 12 (FIGS. 1(a) and 2(a)). The connecting portions 21L and 21R are engaged with the rail units 11L and 11R. The connecting portions 21L and 21R are each movable in the front-rear direction on the rail units 11L and 11R. As a result, the bridge unit 12 is movable relative to the rail units 11L and 11R in the front-rear direction (also described in FIG. 5).

[0020] The telescopic unit 13 is attached to the bridge unit 12 so as to be movable relative to the bridge unit 12 in the left-right direction. A connecting portion 22 is provided at the upper end of the telescopic unit 13. The bridge unit 12 is a rail member. The connecting portion 22 is engaged with the bridge unit 12 and is movable in the left-right direction on the bridge unit 12. As a result, the telescopic unit 13 is movable relative to the bridge unit 12 in the left-right direction. The telescopic unit 13 is further telescopable in the up-down direction (Z direction) and holds the cleaning unit 15 at its tip (also described in FIG. 6).

[0021] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the in-vehicle cleaning device system. The in-vehicle cleaning device 100 includes a control unit 40, a front-rear drive unit M1, a left-right drive unit M2, a telescopic drive unit M3, a storage drive unit M4, an orientation drive unit 41, a blower motor M7, an operation input unit 44, various detection units 45, and a communication I / F (interface) 42. The communication I / F 42 can communicate with a communication terminal device 46 and a floor automatic cleaning device 16 wirelessly or by wire. The communication standard used here is not limited. The communication terminal device 46 is, for example, a device such as a smartphone held by a passenger such as a driver.

[0022] The control unit 40 includes a processor and a memory (both not shown) and controls the entire in-vehicle cleaning device 100. This control is realized by the processor executing a program stored in the memory.

[0023] The operation input unit 44 receives operation inputs from the passengers and sends the received operation input information to the control unit 40. The various detection units 45 detect the presence or absence of passengers, the amount of movement in the front-rear direction of the bridge unit 12, the amount of movement in the left-right direction of the telescopic unit 13, the amount of expansion and contraction of the telescopic unit 13, etc. The various detection units 45 may detect the driving amount by each driving unit. Alternatively, the various detection units 45 may detect the dirt of the air in the interior. The detected information is sent to the control unit 40.

[0024] The control unit 40 controls the movable holding unit 20 and the cleaning unit 15. In addition to the above-described bridge unit 12 and telescopic unit 13, the movable holding unit 20 includes, as driving units, a front-rear driving unit M1, a left-right driving unit M2, a telescopic driving unit M3, a storage driving unit M4, and an orientation driving unit 41. The control unit 40 controls these driving units to control the relative position and orientation of the cleaning unit 15 with respect to the pair of rail units 11L and 11R.

[0025] The front-rear driving unit M1, the left-right driving unit M2, the telescopic driving unit M3, and the storage driving unit M4 are all electric motors. The orientation driving unit 41 includes electric motors M5 and M6. The orientation driving unit 41 controls the orientation of the cleaning unit 15 by combining the operations of the motors M5 and M6. The control unit 40 controls the blower motor M7 to control the air blowing from the cleaning unit 15. The passengers can instruct the start or end of the operation of the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 by the operation input unit 44 or the communication terminal device 46. Note that a mechanism for detecting the getting on / off of the passengers may be provided, and the control unit 40 may control the start / end of the operation of the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 according to the detection result of the getting on / off of the passengers.

[0026] The control unit 40 performs in-vehicle cleaning according to an instruction by the in-vehicle cleaning device 100. When the floor automatic cleaning device 16 is used in combination, the control unit 40 performs in-vehicle cleaning by the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 and the floor automatic cleaning device 16 according to an instruction. Note that a plurality of cleaning modes may be provided, and in-vehicle cleaning may be performed in a designated mode. Further, the control unit 40 may determine a cleaning route according to a mode or a designation from an occupant, and control the cleaning unit 15 to move according to the determined route.

[0027] In FIGS. 4 to 7, the configuration of the drive system of the in-vehicle cleaning device 100 will be described.

[0028] FIG. 4 is a left side view of the engaging portion between the connecting portion 21R and the rail portion 11R. Note that the configuration of the engaging portion between the connecting portion 21L and the rail portion 11L is the same as the configuration of the engaging portion between the connecting portion 21R and the rail portion 11R, and thus the engaging portion between the connecting portion 21R and the rail portion 11R is shown representatively.

[0029] The front and rear drive units M1 are provided on each of the connecting portions 21L and 21R. Each front and rear drive unit M1 relatively moves the connecting portions 21L and 21R in the front and rear directions with respect to the rail portions 11L and 11R. Accordingly, the connecting portions 21L and 21R and the bridge portion 12 integrally move in the front and rear directions with respect to the pair of rail portions 11L and 11R. Note that the front and rear drive unit M1 may be provided on either one of the connecting portions 21L and 21R.

[0030] FIG. 5 is a schematic front view of the main part of the movable holding unit 20. A left and right drive unit M2 is provided on the connecting portion 22. The telescopic portion 13 is connected to the connecting portion 22. The left and right drive unit M2 relatively moves the connecting portion 22 in the left and right directions with respect to the bridge portion 12. Accordingly, the connecting portion 22 and the telescopic portion 13 integrally move in the left and right directions with respect to the bridge portion 12.

[0031] A storage drive unit M4 is provided at the connecting portion 22 or at the engaging portion between the connecting portion 22 and the left and right drive units M2. The storage drive unit M4 rotates the telescopic portion 13 around an axis parallel to the Y direction with respect to the connecting portion 22. The telescopic portion 13 can take a use posture and a storage posture. As shown by the solid line, the posture in which the longitudinal direction of the telescopic portion 13 is perpendicular to the bridge portion 12 is the use posture. As shown by the dashed-dotted line, the posture in which the longitudinal direction of the telescopic portion 13 is parallel to the bridge portion 12 is the storage posture (indicated by reference numeral 13-3). Cleaning is performed in a state where the telescopic portion 13 is in the use posture. In the storage posture, since the telescopic portion 13 is folded toward the bridge portion 12 side, the telescopic portion 13 does not get in the way when not in use.

[0032] Note that from the viewpoint of fulfilling the functions of use and storage, the use posture may be a posture in which the telescopic portion 13 is closer to perpendicular than parallel to the bridge portion 12, and the storage posture may be a posture in which the telescopic portion 13 is closer to parallel than perpendicular to the bridge portion 12.

[0033] FIG. 6 is a left side view of the connecting portion 22 and the telescopic portion 13. A telescopic drive unit M3 is provided at the connecting portion 22 or at the engaging portion between the connecting portion 22 and the telescopic portion 13. The telescopic portion 13 incorporates a telescopic mechanism 14. The telescopic mechanism 14 is a known multi-stage telescopic pole as an example. Two or more rod members are connected by a screw shaft, a nut, and a rotation transmission mechanism (all not shown), and the telescopic drive unit M3 rotates the screw shaft so that the relative positions of adjacent rod members in the vertical direction change. Thereby, the telescopic drive unit M3 can expand and contract the telescopic portion 13 in the vertical direction. Note that the structure for expanding and contracting the telescopic portion 13 is not limited to the illustrated example.

[0034] In FIG. 6, the shortest and longest telescopic portions 13 are indicated by reference numerals 13-1 and 13-2, respectively. A cleaning portion 15 is held at the lower end portion of the telescopic portion 13. A motor M6 is provided at the telescopic portion 13 or at the engaging portion between the telescopic portion 13 and the cleaning portion 15.

[0035] FIG. 7 is a plan view of the engaging portion between the cleaning unit 15 and the telescopic unit 13. A motor M5 is provided in the telescopic unit 13 or at the engaging portion between the telescopic unit 13 and the cleaning unit 15.

[0036] The motor M6 (FIG. 6) rotates the cleaning unit 15 around an axis parallel to the X direction. The motor M5 (FIG. 7) rotates the cleaning unit 15 around an axis parallel to the Z direction. Therefore, by rotating the cleaning unit 15 around two mutually perpendicular axes (X-axis and Z-axis) by the motors M5 and M6, the orientation of the cleaning unit 15 can be made variable around two axes.

[0037] Therefore, in combination with the movement of the telescopic unit 13 in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and further the expansion and contraction of the telescopic unit 13, the cleaning unit 15 can blow air at any position and in any orientation in three dimensions.

[0038] According to the present embodiment, the movable holding unit 20 holds the cleaning unit 15 with a variable orientation so as to be movable relative to the pair of rail portions 11L and 11R in the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions. And the control unit 40 controls the movable holding unit 20 and the cleaning unit 15.

[0039] Since the pair of rail portions 11L and 11R can be attached to the left and right of the ceiling in the vehicle interior, they are easy to install retroactively. Since the cleaning unit 15 does not require ducts for intake and exhaust, the occupied space is not large, it is easy to miniaturize, and the cleaning range is wide. Therefore, it is easy to install retroactively, saves space, and can clean a wide range in the vehicle interior.

[0040] Also, the cleaning effect can be enhanced by using the floor automatic cleaning device 16 in combination. For example, the cleaning unit 15 blows off the dust on the seat or the like onto the floor surface, and the floor automatic cleaning device 16 sucks the dust dropped on the floor surface, so that the dust is efficiently removed.

[0041] Note that even in a mode where only the cleaning unit 15 is used without using the floor automatic cleaning device 16, a certain cleaning effect can be obtained. For example, after using the cleaning unit 15, the floor mat with dust on it can be manually replaced and cleaned. By collecting the dust on the floor surface, the cleaning man-hours can be shortened. Alternatively, a ventilation function may be provided to blow off dust and the like with the cleaning unit 15 and discharge it outside the vehicle by the ventilation function.

[0042] In addition, since the cleaning unit 15 can change its orientation by rotating around two axes, it can blow air in all directions and blow off a wide range of dust.

[0043] In addition, since the telescopic part 13 can take the posture during use and the posture during storage, while ensuring the cleaning function, by setting it to the posture during storage, the cleaning unit 15 can be prevented from interfering with the occupants, and good habitability can be ensured.

[0044] Note that a torque sensor may be provided at the engagement part between the cleaning unit 15 and the telescopic part 13 to detect contact with an obstacle.

[0045] (Second Embodiment) FIG. 8 is a schematic left side view of the cleaning unit in the second embodiment of the present technology.

[0046] In this embodiment, instead of the cleaning unit 15, a cleaning unit 15-2 is provided compared to the first embodiment. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0047] The cleaning unit 15-2 includes a winding motor M8 instead of the blower motor M7. In addition, various detection units 45 (FIG. 3) include a winding sensor 34 and a contact sensor 35. The illustration of the orientation drive unit 41 (motors M5, M6) is omitted.

[0048] The cleaning unit 15-2 further includes a take-up roller 31 and a grounding roller 32. An adhesive tape 36 is wound around the grounding roller 32. At the start of cleaning, the operator places one end of the adhesive tape 36 in a state where it is wound around the take-up roller 31. The outer peripheral surface of the adhesive tape 36 wound around the grounding roller 32 becomes the adhesive surface 36a. The adhesive surface 36a comes into contact with the surface to be cleaned 33 and adsorbs dust. The cleaning unit 15-2 is an adhesive cleaning device with a renewable adhesive surface 36a. Examples of the surface to be cleaned 33 include seats, center console parts, instrument panel parts, etc.

[0049] The take-up motor M8 winds up the adhesive tape 36 by rotating the take-up roller 31 in the take-up direction. The take-up sensor 34 detects the amount of the adhesive tape 36 wound around the take-up roller 31. The contact sensor 35 is, for example, a pressure sensor, and detects that the adhesive surface 36a has come into contact with the surface to be cleaned 33 when the adhesive surface 36a receives a pressure equal to or greater than a predetermined value from the surface to be cleaned 33. These detection results are sent to the control unit 40. Note that the contact sensor 35 may be a torque sensor.

[0050] Cleaning is performed as follows. With the adhesive surface 36a of the adhesive tape 36 wound around the grounding roller 32 exposed, the control unit 40 controls the movable holding unit 20 and the cleaning unit 15-2 to position the cleaning unit 15-2 at an appropriate position. At this time, the control unit 40 controls the orientation drive unit 41 to control the orientation of the adhesive surface 36a in the cleaning unit 15-2. Then, the control unit 40 brings the adhesive surface 36a into contact with the surface to be cleaned 33 for a certain period of time, and then separates the adhesive surface 36a from the surface to be cleaned 33. Thereby, dust is adsorbed. At this time, when the contact sensor 35 detects non-contact between the adhesive surface 36a and the surface to be cleaned 33, the control unit 40 controls the take-up motor M8 to wind up a certain amount of the adhesive tape 36 around the take-up roller 31.

[0051] Next, after the control unit 40 positions the cleaning unit 15-2 at the next appropriate position, it performs the dust adsorption operation by contact and separation and the winding operation in the same manner as described above. In this way, the adhesive surface 36a is updated for each dust adsorption operation.

[0052] According to the present embodiment, it is easy to retrofit, saves space, and can achieve the same effect as the first embodiment with respect to cleaning a wide range inside the vehicle cabin.

[0053] In addition, since the need to provide the floor automatic cleaning device 16 is reduced, it becomes even easier to retrofit and install the vehicle cabin cleaning device 100.

[0054] Note that the dust adsorption operation was an operation by the contact and separation of the adhesive tape 36, but the cleaning unit 15-2 may be moved so that the grounding roller 32 is accompanied by a rotational operation. For example, the cleaning unit 15-2 is moved in a direction corresponding to the winding direction (in the posture of FIG. 8, it does not move in the X direction but moves in the +Y direction). In that case, a constant tension is always applied to the adhesive tape 36 between the winding roller 31 and the grounding roller 32 by the winding motor M8 in the winding direction, and the adhesive tape 36 may be wound around the winding roller 31 in conjunction with the rotation of the grounding roller 32. Note that the element that always biases in the winding direction may be an elastic biasing member instead of the winding motor M8. In addition, a rotation sensor or a torque sensor may be provided to detect the rotation of the grounding roller 32.

[0055] Note that for the technology of automatically winding up the adhesive tape to update the adhesive surface, known technologies such as Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 1-118768, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-227375, and Registered Utility Model Publication No. 3054179 may be adopted. Note that it is not essential to use a motor for automatic winding.

[0056] As described above, the present technology has been described in detail based on its preferred embodiments. However, the present technology is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various forms within the scope not departing from the gist of this technology are also included in the present technology. Some of the above-described embodiments may be appropriately combined.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0057] 11L and 11R rail parts, 12 bridge part, 13 telescopic part, 15 cleaning part, 16 automatic floor cleaning device, 20 movable holding part, 40 control part, 41 orientation drive part, 100 in-vehicle cleaning device, M1 front and rear drive part, M2 left and right drive part, M3 telescopic drive part

Claims

1. A pair of rail parts that can be attached to the left and right of the ceiling inside the vehicle cabin and have the longitudinal direction in the front-rear direction, A cleaning part with a variable orientation for cleaning the interior of the vehicle cabin, A movable holding part that holds the cleaning part so as to be movable relative to the rail part in each of the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions, A control part that controls the movable holding part and the cleaning part, and a vehicle interior cleaning device system.

2. The movable holding part includes A bridge part spanning in the vehicle width direction with respect to the pair of rail parts, A telescopic part that is attached to the bridge part so as to be movable in the vehicle width direction relative to the bridge part, is telescopic in the up-down direction, and holds the cleaning part at its tip, A front-rear drive part that moves the bridge part in the front-rear direction with respect to the pair of rail parts, A left-right drive part that moves the telescopic part in the vehicle width direction with respect to the bridge part, A telescopic drive part that expands and contracts the telescopic part in the up-down direction, An orientation drive part that changes the orientation of the cleaning part, and includes, The control part controls the front-rear drive part, the left-right drive part, the telescopic drive part, and the orientation drive part to control the relative position and orientation of the cleaning part with respect to the pair of rail parts. The vehicle interior cleaning device system according to Claim 1.

3. The cleaning part changes its orientation variably by rotating around two axes. The vehicle interior cleaning device system according to Claim 2.

4. The telescopic part can take a use posture that is closer to perpendicular than parallel with respect to the bridge part and a storage posture that is closer to parallel than perpendicular with respect to the bridge part. The vehicle interior cleaning device system according to Claim 3.

5. The cleaning part is a blower that blows out air, and the blower has a variable air blowing direction. The vehicle interior cleaning device system according to any one of Claims 1 to 4.

6. The vehicle interior cleaning device system according to Claim 5 further includes a cleaning device that sucks and cleans dust in the air inside the vehicle cabin or dirt on the floor surface.

7. The cleaning part is an adhesive cleaning device having an adhesive surface for adsorbing dirt on the cleaning target surface, and the adhesive surface of the adhesive cleaning device is variable in orientation. The vehicle interior cleaning device system according to any one of Claims 1 to 4.

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