Vehicle exterior part

Abstract

To provide an exterior part for a vehicle capable of making a pattern and a character displayed by transmitting irradiation light clearly visible by an outside person.SOLUTION: And a light absorbing film 5 provided on a back side 2a of the base material 2 facing rearward and having an opening 2b that exposes at least a part of the back side 2b, wherein the back side 5a of the base material 2 has a fixed side 2b to which the light absorbing film 5 is fixed and an exposed side 2c exposed at the opening 5a, and the exposed side 2d is rougher than the fixed side 2d. 2c.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an exterior part for a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] Various exterior parts (vehicle exterior parts) are attached to vehicles. These vehicle exterior parts are visible from the outside of the vehicle and have a significant impact on the appearance of the vehicle. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a front grille provided on a vehicle. The front grille disclosed in Patent Document 1 is provided on the front side of the vehicle. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-81034 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Vehicle exterior parts, including the front grille disclosed in Patent Document 1, are attached in positions visible from the outside and are exposed to direct sunlight during the day. On the other hand, vehicle exterior parts are not exposed to direct sunlight at night, etc. For this reason, vehicle exterior parts are illuminated by transmitting visible light when not exposed to direct sunlight. In this case, patterns or letters may be displayed on the surface of the vehicle exterior part by patterning the area through which the irradiated light passes. In vehicle exterior parts, it may be required that such patterns or letters be more clearly visible to outsiders.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide an exterior part for a vehicle that allows patterns and characters displayed by transmitting irradiated light to be clearly visible to outsiders. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention employs the following configuration as a means for solving the above problems.

[0007] A first aspect of the present invention is an exterior part for a vehicle, comprising: a plate-shaped substrate that is translucent and transmits visible light; a surface coating film that covers a surface of the substrate that faces forward; and a light-absorbing layer that is provided on a back surface of the substrate that faces rearward and has an opening that exposes at least a part of the back surface, wherein the back surface of the substrate has a fixing surface to which the light-absorbing layer is fixed and an exposed surface that is exposed at the opening, and the exposed surface is rougher than the fixing surface.

[0008] A second aspect of the present invention is a configuration in which, in the first aspect, there is a bright area that appears bright from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the substrate from behind, and a dark area that appears dark from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the substrate from behind, and the opening is arranged to overlap the bright area when viewed from the front.

[0009] A third aspect of the present invention is the second aspect, which has a configuration in which a transmittance adjusting member is provided on the back surface of the substrate in the bright area and adjusts the transmittance of the light absorption layer in the bright area.

[0010] A fourth aspect of the present invention employs a configuration in which, in the third aspect, there are a plurality of bright regions, and the light absorption layer has different transmittances in the bright regions. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, the surface of the substrate is covered with a surface coating film. When sunlight is irradiated onto such a vehicle exterior part, the sunlight is reflected by the surface coating film, causing the entire vehicle exterior part to appear in the color of the surface coating film from the outside. Furthermore, when visible light is irradiated onto the vehicle exterior part from behind, the illuminating light passes through the openings in the light-absorbing layer and transmits forward. Therefore, for example, in places where sunlight does not reach, the area where the openings in the light-absorbing layer are provided appears bright from the outside and is visible to outsiders as a pattern or lettering. According to the present invention, the exposed surface on the back of the substrate is rougher than the fixing surface to which the light-absorbing layer is fixed, so that light passing through the light-absorbing layer is scattered, thereby making the brightness of the brightly-appearing area uniform. Furthermore, because the fixing surface is smoother than the exposed surface, external light incident on the vehicle exterior part from the outside is less scattered by the fixing surface and is more easily absorbed by the light-absorbing layer. Therefore, according to the present invention, the boundary between the bright and dark areas is clearly defined, and the patterns and characters displayed by the transmitted light can be more clearly seen by outsiders. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic front view of a vehicle exterior part according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a vehicle exterior part according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a vehicle exterior part according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a vehicle exterior part according to a third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a vehicle exterior part according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a vehicle exterior part according to the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.

[0014] (First embodiment) Fig. 1 is a schematic front view of a vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment. Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, which corresponds to the cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Fig. 1. The vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment is a part that is installed on a vehicle, and is arranged in a position that is visible from outside the vehicle.

[0015] For example, as shown in FIG. 2, a vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment has a substrate 2, a surface coating film 3, a protective film 4, and a light-absorbing film 5 (light-absorbing layer). In this embodiment, the substrate 2 is formed in a plate shape. The substrate 2 is arranged so that its front surface (hereinafter referred to as the front surface 2a) faces the outside of the vehicle, and its rear surface (hereinafter referred to as the back surface 2b) faces the inside of the vehicle. The shape of the substrate 2 is not limited to a plate shape.

[0016] The installation posture of the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment is not particularly limited. However, for convenience of explanation, the direction in which the front surface 2a of the base material 2 faces will be referred to as the front, and the direction in which the back surface 2b of the base material 2 faces will be referred to as the rear. The front-to-rear direction of these vehicle exterior parts 1 of this embodiment may or may not coincide with the direction of the vehicle. In other words, the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment may or may not coincide with the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle.

[0017] The substrate 2 is made of resin. In this embodiment, the substrate 2 has translucency that transmits visible light. That is, in this embodiment, the substrate 2 is made of a transparent resin material. For example, the substrate 2 can be made of polycarbonate resin or acrylic resin. For example, the substrate 2 is colorless and transparent. However, the substrate 2 does not necessarily have to be colorless and transparent, and may be colored and transparent. In this way, the substrate 2 is a plate-shaped member that has translucency that transmits visible light.

[0018] The surface coating film 3 is a film formed by drying paint, and is formed so as to cover the surface 2a of the substrate 2. For example, the surface coating film 3 is the body color of the vehicle on which the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment is installed. The surface coating film 3 is formed so as to cover the entire surface 2a of the substrate 2. Note that the surface coating film 3 is not limited to being a single layer. For example, the surface coating film 3 may be formed by laminating multiple layers. Such a surface coating film 3 is formed to a thickness dimension that allows a portion of visible light to transmit therethrough.

[0019] The protective film 4 is a transparent coating film formed to cover the front of the surface coating film 3. This protective film 4 prevents the surface coating film 3 from coming into contact with air and moisture, thereby preventing deterioration of the surface coating film 3. However, if the surface coating film 3 has high weather resistance and deteriorates slowly, the protective film 4 may not be provided.

[0020] The light-absorbing film 5 is provided on the back surface 2b of the substrate 2. The light-absorbing film 5 is a light-blocking film that absorbs visible light and prevents the visible light from passing through. The light-absorbing film 5 is formed, for example, by a coating film containing a black pigment. The light-absorbing film 5 can be formed by applying a paint containing a black pigment and then drying it. Such a light-absorbing film 5 is formed in a black color that is lower in brightness than the surface coating film 3.

[0021] However, the light-absorbing film 5 is not limited to a coating film, and may be a printed film formed by printing. In such a case, the light-absorbing film 5 can be formed by placing a printing material on the back surface 2b of the substrate 2 by a printing method and then drying it. The light-absorbing film 5 can also be formed from a film. In this case, the light-absorbing film 5 can be formed by attaching a pre-formed film to the back surface 2b of the substrate 2.

[0022] As shown in Fig. 2, the light-absorbing film 5 has an opening 5a that exposes a part of the back surface 2b of the substrate 2. A plurality of openings 5a are provided in the light-absorbing film 5. Each opening 5a is formed to penetrate the light-absorbing film 5 in the front-rear direction. In this embodiment, each opening 5a is formed to have a rectangular shape when viewed from the front. However, the shape of the opening 5a is not limited.

[0023] 2, a light-absorbing film 5 having an opening 5a is formed on the back surface 2b of the substrate 2. Therefore, the back surface 2b of the substrate 2 has a fixing surface 2c to which the light-absorbing film 5 is fixed, and an exposed surface 2d exposed at the opening 5a. In other words, the fixing surface 2c of the substrate 2 is the surface of the back surface 2b of the substrate 2 that comes into contact with the light-absorbing film 5. In addition, the exposed surface 2d of the substrate 2 is the surface of the back surface 2b of the substrate 2 that does not come into contact with the light-absorbing film 5.

[0024] As shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 2, the exposed surface 2d is rougher than the bonded surface 2c. In other words, the exposed surface 2d is a surface that is formed rougher than the bonded surface 2c. Here, the fact that the exposed surface 2d is rougher than the bonded surface 2c means, for example, that the numerical value indicating the arithmetic mean roughness of the exposed surface 2d is larger than the numerical value indicating the arithmetic mean roughness of the bonded surface 2c. In this way, the fact that the exposed surface 2d is rougher than the bonded surface 2c means that the bonded surface 2c is a smoother surface than the exposed surface 2d.

[0025] 1, the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment has a bright region Ra and a dark region Rb when viewed from the front. The bright region Ra is a region that appears bright from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the base material 2 from behind. The dark region Rb is a region that appears dark from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the base material 2 from behind.

[0026] The bright region Ra is a region where, when the substrate 2 is illuminated from behind, the illumination light passes through the openings 5a in the light-absorbing film 5 and is transmitted forward via the substrate 2, the surface coating film 3, and the protective film 4. Because the illumination light passes through such a bright region Ra, it appears bright when viewed from the front. In other words, the openings 5a in the light-absorbing film 5 are arranged to overlap the bright region Ra when viewed from the front.

[0027] On the other hand, the dark region Rb is a region where the illumination light is absorbed by the light-absorbing film 5 and does not transmit through even when the substrate 2 is illuminated from behind. Since the illumination light does not transmit through such a dark region Rb, it appears dark when viewed from the front. In other words, the openings 5a of the light-absorbing film 5 are arranged so as not to overlap with the dark region Rb when viewed from the front.

[0028] When illumination light is irradiated from behind onto the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, a pattern is displayed on the front surface of the vehicle exterior part 1 due to these bright areas Ra and dark areas Rb. By changing the shapes of the bright areas Ra and dark areas Rb, it is possible to display desired patterns or characters on the front surface of the vehicle exterior part 1.

[0029] When manufacturing such a vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, for example, a paint containing a material for forming the light-absorbing film 5 is applied to the entire back surface 2b of the substrate 2, and after drying, a portion of the coating film is peeled off using a laser beam, thereby forming the light-absorbing film 5. At this time, the back surface 2b of the substrate 2 can be roughened by adjusting the output of the laser beam for peeling off the coating film from the substrate 2. In other words, the back surface 2b can be roughened simultaneously with the peeling off of the coating film. By roughening a portion of the back surface 2b with the laser beam in this manner, the exposed surface 2d can be formed.

[0030] However, the step of roughening the exposed surface 2d may be carried out after the step of peeling off the coating film. That is, the step of roughening the exposed surface 2d may be carried out simultaneously with the step of peeling off the coating film, or may be carried out after the step of peeling off the coating film.

[0031] The vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment as described above includes a substrate 2, a surface coating film 3, and a light-absorbing film 5. The substrate 2 is formed in a plate shape and is translucent, allowing visible light to pass through. The surface coating film 3 is formed to cover the front surface 2a of the substrate 2, which faces forward. The light-absorbing film 5 is provided on the rear surface 2b of the substrate 2, which faces rearward. The light-absorbing film 5 has an opening 5a that exposes at least a part of the rear surface 2b. The rear surface 2b of the substrate 2 has a fixing surface 2c to which the light-absorbing film 5 is fixed, and an exposed surface 2d that is exposed at the opening 5a. The exposed surface 2d is rougher than the fixing surface 2c.

[0032] According to the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the surface 2a of the base material 2 is covered with the surface coating film 3. When sunlight is irradiated onto such a vehicle exterior part 1, the sunlight is reflected by the surface coating film 3, and the entire vehicle exterior part 1 appears to have the color of the surface coating film 3 from the outside.

[0033] Furthermore, when visible light is irradiated from behind onto the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the illumination light passes through the openings 5a of the light-absorbing film 5 and is transmitted forward. Therefore, for example, in places where there is no sunlight, the area where the openings 5a of the light-absorbing film 5 are provided appears bright from the outside, and is visible to outsiders as patterns or letters.

[0034] At this time, according to the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the exposed surface 2d of the back surface 2b of the base material 2 is rougher than the fixing surface 2c to which the light-absorbing film 5 is fixed, so that light that passes through the light-absorbing film 5 is scattered, making it possible to make the brightness of the area that appears bright uniform. Furthermore, because the fixing surface 2c is smoother than the exposed surface 2d, external light that enters the vehicle exterior part 1 from the outside is less likely to be scattered by the fixing surface 2c, and is more likely to be absorbed by the light-absorbing film 5. Therefore, according to the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the boundary between the bright area (bright area Ra) and the dark area (dark area Rb) is clear, and it becomes possible for patterns and characters displayed by the transmitted irradiated light to be more clearly visible to outsiders.

[0035] The vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment has a bright region Ra and a dark region Rb. The bright region Ra is a region that appears bright from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the base material 2 from behind. The dark region Rb is a region that appears dark from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the base material 2 from behind. The opening 5a is arranged to overlap the bright region Ra when viewed from the front.

[0036] According to the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the bright region Ra can be easily formed by the openings 5a in the light-absorbing film 5. Therefore, by adjusting the position and shape of the openings 5a, it becomes possible to display any desired pattern or character.

[0037] Furthermore, in the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the light-absorbing film 5 is formed by a coating film obtained by drying paint. According to such a vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the light-absorbing film 5 can be easily formed.

[0038] Furthermore, in the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, the light-absorbing film 5 is black, which has a lower brightness than the surface coating film 3. Therefore, when forming the openings 5a, the coating film is more likely to absorb the laser light, and it becomes possible to form the openings 5a even with low-power laser light.

[0039] The vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment also includes a transparent protective film 4 that covers the front of the surface coating film 3. According to the vehicle exterior part 1 of this embodiment, it is possible to protect the surface coating film 3 from outside air and rainwater.

[0040] (Second embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 3. In the description of this embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first embodiment will be omitted or simplified.

[0041] 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a vehicle exterior part 1A of this embodiment. As shown in this figure, the vehicle exterior part 1A of this embodiment includes island-shaped members 6 (transmittance adjusting members) that adjust the transmittance of the light-absorbing film 5 in the bright region Ra.

[0042] A plurality of island-shaped members 6 are provided so as to be fixed to the back surface 2b of the base material 2, and are arranged so as to overlap with the bright region Ra when viewed from the front. Note that although each island-shaped member 6 is schematically illustrated large in Fig. 3, in reality, each island-shaped member is formed small enough that a person outside the vehicle cannot distinguish each individual island-shaped member.

[0043] Each of these island-shaped members 6 absorbs a portion of the illumination light that attempts to pass through the vehicle exterior part 1A of this embodiment in the bright region Ra. Therefore, the island-shaped members 6 change the transmittance of the light-absorbing film 5 in the bright region Ra. Note that the transmittance here refers to the ratio of the amount of light transmitted through the bright region Ra when the island-shaped members 6 are provided to the amount of light transmitted through the bright region Ra when the island-shaped members 6 are not provided. In other words, the transmittance of the bright region Ra decreases as the size of the island-shaped members 6 per unit area increases or as the number of island-shaped members 6 per unit area increases. As the transmittance of the bright region Ra decreases, the brightness of the bright region Ra when illuminated with illumination light decreases.

[0044] As described above, the vehicle exterior part 1A of this embodiment includes island-shaped members 6. The island-shaped members 6 are provided on the back surface 2b of the substrate 2 in the bright region Ra, and adjust the transmittance of the light-absorbing film 5 in the bright region Ra. According to the vehicle exterior part 1A of this embodiment, it is possible to adjust the brightness of the bright region Ra when illuminated with illumination light.

[0045] The island-shaped members 6 can be formed from the same material as the light-absorbing film 5. For example, when a coating film made of the material that forms the light-absorbing film 5 is peeled off from the substrate 2 by laser light, part of the coating film can be left behind to form the island-shaped members 6. For example, by making the scanning pitch of the laser light larger than the diameter of the laser light spot, part of the coating film can be left on the substrate 2. In this way, by forming the island-shaped members 6 simultaneously with the light-absorbing film 5, there is no need to perform a separate step of forming the island-shaped members 6, and the manufacturing process for the vehicle exterior part 1A of this embodiment can be simplified.

[0046] (Third embodiment) Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 4. In the description of this embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first or second embodiment will be omitted or simplified.

[0047] 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a vehicle exterior part 1B of this embodiment. As shown in this figure, the vehicle exterior part 1B of this embodiment has two bright areas Ra. One bright area Ra is provided with an island-shaped member 6, and the other bright area Ra is not provided with an island-shaped member 6.

[0048] That is, the vehicle exterior part 1B of this embodiment has bright areas Ra with different transmittances. According to such vehicle exterior part 1B of this embodiment, it is possible to perform display with different brightnesses of the bright areas Ra.

[0049] (Fourth embodiment) Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 5. In the description of this embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first embodiment will be omitted or simplified.

[0050] 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the vehicle illumination unit 10 of this embodiment. As shown in this figure, the vehicle illumination unit 10 of this embodiment includes the vehicle exterior part 1 of the first embodiment, a lighting device 20, and a housing 30.

[0051] The lighting device 20 is disposed behind the vehicle exterior part 1, and emits illumination light toward the vehicle exterior part 1. The housing 30 supports the vehicle exterior part 1 and the lighting device 20.

[0052] The vehicle illumination unit 10 of this embodiment includes the vehicle exterior part 1 of the first embodiment. Therefore, the patterns and characters displayed on the vehicle exterior part 1 can be more clearly seen by outsiders by transmitting the irradiated light.

[0053] In the vehicle illumination unit 10 of this embodiment, the vehicle exterior component 1 of the first embodiment may be replaced with the vehicle exterior component 1A of the second embodiment or the vehicle exterior component 1B of the third embodiment.

[0054] While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. The shapes and combinations of the components shown in the above-described embodiments are merely examples, and various modifications can be made based on design requirements, etc., without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0055] For example, in the above embodiment, the vehicle exterior part has a rectangular outer shape. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The outer shape of the vehicle exterior part may be triangular or circular.

[0056] Furthermore, the present invention can employ the configurations described in the following supplementary notes.

[0057] (Appendix 1) a plate-shaped substrate having a translucency that transmits visible light; a surface coating covering a forward-facing surface of the substrate; a light-absorbing layer provided on a rear surface of the substrate facing rearward and having an opening exposing at least a portion of the rear surface; Equipped with The back surface of the substrate is a fixing surface to which the light absorption layer is fixed; an exposed surface exposed at the opening; and The exposed surface is rougher than the fixing surface. An exterior part for a vehicle.

[0058] (Appendix 2) a bright region that is visually recognized brightly from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the base material from behind; a dark region that appears dark from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the substrate from behind; and The opening is disposed so as to overlap the bright area when viewed from the front. 2. A vehicle exterior part according to claim 1.

[0059] (Appendix 3) 3. The vehicle exterior part according to claim 2, further comprising a transmittance adjusting member provided on the back surface of the base material in the bright area, the transmittance of the light absorption layer in the bright area being adjusted.

[0060] (Appendix 4) The bright area includes a plurality of bright areas, The light absorbing layer has a bright area having different transmittances. 4. A vehicle exterior part according to claim 3.

[0061] (Appendix 5) 5. The vehicle exterior part according to claim 3, wherein the transmittance adjusting member is made of the same material as the light absorbing layer.

[0062] (Appendix 6) 6. The vehicle exterior part according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the light absorbing layer is formed of a coating film obtained by drying a paint.

[0063] (Appendix 7) 7. The vehicle exterior part according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the light-absorbing layer is black and has a lower brightness than the surface coating film.

[0064] (Appendix 8) 8. The vehicle exterior part according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a transparent protective film that covers the surface coating film from the front.

[0065] (Appendix 9) An exterior part for a vehicle according to any one of appendices 1 to 8; a lighting device that is disposed behind the vehicle exterior part and is capable of irradiating illumination light toward the vehicle exterior part; Equipped with A vehicle illumination unit characterized by: [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] 1... Vehicle exterior part, 1A... Vehicle exterior part, 1B... Vehicle exterior part, 2... Base material, 2a... Surface, 2b... Back surface, 2c... Fixing surface, 2d... Exposed surface, 3... Surface coating film, 4... Protective film, 5... Light-absorbing film (light-absorbing layer), 5a... Opening, 6... Island-shaped member (transmittance adjusting member), 10... Vehicle illumination unit, 20... Lighting device, 30... Housing, Ra... Bright area, Rb... Dark area

Claims

1. a plate-shaped substrate having a translucency that transmits visible light; a surface coating covering a forward-facing surface of the substrate; a light-absorbing layer provided on a rear surface of the substrate facing rearward and having an opening exposing at least a portion of the rear surface; Equipped with The back surface of the substrate is a fixing surface to which the light absorption layer is fixed; an exposed surface exposed at the opening; and The exposed surface is rougher than the fixing surface. An exterior part for a vehicle.

2. a bright region that is visually recognized brightly from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the base material from behind; a dark region that is visually perceived as dark from the front when illumination light is irradiated onto the substrate from behind; and The opening is disposed so as to overlap the bright area when viewed from the front.

2. The vehicle exterior part according to claim 1.

3. 3. The vehicle exterior part according to claim 2, further comprising a transmittance adjusting member provided on the back surface of the base material in the bright region, for adjusting the transmittance of the light absorption layer in the bright region.

4. The bright area includes a plurality of bright areas, The light absorbing layer has a bright area with different transmittances.

4. The vehicle exterior part according to claim 3.

Images