Wiper device

Abstract

To provide a wiper device capable of making front wiping of a driver and front wiping of sensors compatible.SOLUTION: A wiper device that wipes a surface to be wiped in which a sensor facing region is provided in an upper portion on a front passenger seat side includes a driver's seat side wiper blade and a front passenger seat side wiper blade that are disposed opposite to each other, a driver's seat side drive unit that causes the driver's seat side wiper blade to operate opposite to the front passenger seat side wiper blade, and a front passenger seat side drive unit that causes the front passenger seat side wiper blade to operate opposite to the driver's seat side wiper blade.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a wiper device. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 listed below discloses an overlapping wiper device that reliably prevents interference between wiper blades that may occur when the operation mode of the wiper motors on the driver's seat and passenger's seat sides is switched from intermittent operation to high-speed operation or from low-speed operation to high-speed operation. In this wiper device, when the setting of each wiper motor is switched from intermittent operation mode or low-speed operation mode to high-speed operation, the wiper motor of the wiper blade that moves first is switched to high-speed operation first. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-126152 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In recent vehicles, sensors such as cameras are sometimes installed in the upper part of the windshield, which is the object to be wiped by the wiper device. For these sensors to function properly, it is necessary to accurately wipe away raindrops that have adhered to the upper part of the windshield, i.e., in front of the sensors, while ensuring the driver's visibility.

[0005] However, in the above background art, when the wiper motors are controlled so that the wiper blades do not interfere with each other, for example, during heavy rain, one wiper blade must be placed in a position where it does not interfere with the other wiper blade, making it difficult to simultaneously wipe the area in front of the driver and the sensors.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and has as its object to provide a wiper device that can wipe the vehicle in front of the driver and the sensors at the same time. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides, as a first solution relating to a wiper device, a wiper device that wipes a surface to be wiped, the sensor opposing area of ​​which is located at the top of the passenger side, and that includes a driver's side wiper blade and a passenger side wiper blade arranged opposite each other, a driver's side drive unit that operates the driver's side wiper blade in opposition to the passenger side wiper blade, and a passenger side drive unit that operates the passenger side wiper blade in opposition to the driver's side wiper blade, and the passenger side drive unit drives the passenger side wiper blade so as to wipe a narrow wiping area including the sensor opposing area when wiping away heavy rain.

[0008] In the present invention, as a second solution related to the wiper device, in the above-mentioned first solution, the passenger side drive unit drives the passenger side wiper blade so that, when wiping away heavy rain, the driver side wiper blade is in the upper inverted position when it passes near the center of the wiped surface, and is in the lower inverted position when the driver side wiper blade is in either the upper inverted position or the lower inverted position.

[0009] The present invention employs a third solution relating to the wiper device, which is the first or second solution, in which the passenger side drive unit drives the passenger side wiper blade so as to wipe at a wiping cycle that is faster than the wiping cycle of the driver side wiper blade.

[0010] The present invention employs, as a fourth solution relating to a wiper device, a solution in which, in any of the first to third solutions described above, the driver's side drive unit and the passenger's side drive unit are directly connected by a communication cable, and drive information for the driver's side wiper blade and the passenger's side wiper blade is transmitted and received via the communication cable. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a wiper device that can wipe the area in front of the driver and the area in front of the sensors at the same time. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a wiper blade of a wiper device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical connection relationship of the wiper device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 3] 4 is a waveform diagram showing a change in the operating angle of the wiper blade in the wiper device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 4] 1 is a first state diagram showing an operating state of a wiper blade in a wiper device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] 5 is a second state diagram showing the operating states of the wiper blade in the wiper device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The wiper device A of this embodiment is a device that is installed in various vehicles such as gasoline-powered vehicles, hybrid vehicles, or electric vehicles, and wipes away rainwater that adheres to the surface of the wiped member, such as the windshield (front windshield) or rear windshield (rear windshield).

[0014] As shown in Fig. 1, this wiper device A operates a pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p, each disposed near the lower center of a member to be wiped, toward both sides of the member to be wiped. The pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p are rod-shaped members placed on a windshield W as shown in the figure. The pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p are connected at their longitudinal centers to one end of wiper arms 3d, 3p, the other ends of which are fixed to wiper shafts 2d, 2p, respectively, and come into contact with the surface (wiped surface W) of the windshield (member to be wiped).

[0015] That is, the driver's side wiper blade 1d is rotatably supported on the driver's side wiper shaft 2d via the driver's side wiper arm 3d, and the passenger's side wiper blade 1p is rotatably supported on the passenger's side wiper shaft 2p via the passenger's side wiper arm 3p.

[0016] 1, the symbol Rd denotes the wiping range of the driver's side wiper blade 1d, and the symbol Rp denotes the wiping range of the passenger side wiper blade 1p. The driver's side wiping range Rd is the operating range of the driver's side wiper blade 1d, which rotates around the driver's side wiper shaft 2d, and is a fan-shaped area extending from the lower reversal position Ld to the upper reversal position Ud of the driver's side wiper blade 1d.

[0017] On the other hand, the passenger-side wiping range Rp is the operating range of the passenger-side wiper blade 1p, which rotates around the passenger-side wiper shaft 2p, and is a sector-shaped area extending from the lower reversal position Lp to the upper reversal position Up of the passenger-side wiper blade 1p. A sensor-facing area Rs is provided at the upper part (upper passenger-side area) of the passenger-side wiping range Rp, as shown in the figure. This sensor-facing area Rs faces sensors such as cameras installed in the vehicle, and is an area that requires appropriate wiping during rainy weather.

[0018] The pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p temporarily stop at the lower reversal positions Ld, Lp and the upper reversal positions Ud, Up during their reciprocating motion within the wiping ranges Rd, Rp. Specifically, when the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p move from the lower reversal positions Ld, Lp toward the upper reversal positions Ud, Up, they temporarily stop at the upper reversal positions Ud, Up, and then move from the upper reversal positions Ud, Up toward the lower reversal positions Ld, Lp.

[0019] The pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p also temporarily stop at the lower reversal positions Ld, Lp, and then move from the lower reversal positions Ld, Lp toward the upper reversal positions Ud, Up. That is, the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p in this embodiment repeatedly reciprocate while temporarily stopping at the lower reversal positions Ld, Lp and the upper reversal positions Ud, Up.

[0020] 1, the wiper device A includes a first wiper motor unit 4d and a second wiper motor unit 4p that individually drive a pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p. Of the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p, the first wiper motor unit 4d corresponds to the driver's seat side drive unit in the present invention, and the second wiper motor unit 4p corresponds to the passenger's seat side drive unit in the present invention.

[0021] The first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p are drive units that individually drive the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p and cause the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p to perform opposing wiping. That is, the first wiper motor unit 4d (driver's seat side drive unit) performs opposing wiping of the wiper blade 1d on the driver's seat side relative to the wiper blade 1p on the passenger's seat side, and the second wiper motor unit 4p performs opposing wiping of the wiper blade 1p on the passenger's seat side relative to the wiper blade 1d on the driver's seat side.

[0022] Such a wiper device A has a wiring structure shown in Fig. 2. That is, when viewed as a wiring structure, the wiper device A includes a control unit 5 (BCM), a vehicle battery 6, a power cable 7, a fuse 8, a first communication cable 9, a second communication cable 10, and a third communication cable 11 in addition to the first wiper motor unit 4d (DS MOTOR) and the second wiper motor unit 4p (PS MOTOR) described above.

[0023] 2, the first wiper motor unit 4d (DS MOTOR) has a first terminal, a second terminal, a third terminal, a fourth terminal, and a fifth terminal that function as connection terminals. The second wiper motor unit 4p (PS MOTOR) also has a first terminal, a fourth terminal, and a fifth terminal that function as connection terminals.

[0024] The control unit 5 (BCM) has a first terminal, a second terminal, a third terminal, and a fourth terminal that function as connection terminals. The first terminal of the control unit 5 (BCM) is connected to a power cable 7. The second terminal of the control unit 5 (BCM) is connected to a second terminal of the first wiper motor unit 4d via a first communication cable 9.

[0025] Furthermore, the control unit 5 (BCM) has a third terminal connected to the third terminal of the first wiper motor unit 4d via the second communication cable 10. Furthermore, the control unit 5 (BCM) has a fourth terminal connected to the reference potential (GND). The control unit 5 (BCM) controls the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p by outputting predetermined control signals from the second and third terminals.

[0026] The control unit 5 (BCM) has a plurality of control modes, and is set to a predetermined control mode based on an operation signal input from an operation switch of the vehicle to control the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p.

[0027] The first control mode is a normal mode, in which the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p perform opposing wiping operations (normal wiping) in a standard wiping cycle. The second control mode is a heavy rain mode, which corresponds to rainfall heavier than normal rainfall (heavy rain). In this heavy rain mode, of the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p, the wiper blade 1d on the driver's seat side performs opposing wiping operations in a standard wiping cycle, i.e., a wiping cycle faster than normal wiping.

[0028] In the heavy rain mode, the passenger side wiper blade 1p performs an opposing wiping operation (heavy rain wiping) at a faster wiping cycle than the driver side wiper blade 1d in a narrow wiping range (heavy rain wiping range) that is narrower than the passenger side wiping range Rp and includes the sensor opposing area Rs. In the heavy rain mode, the passenger side wiper blade 1p performs an opposing wiping operation (heavy rain wiping) at a faster wiping cycle than the driver side wiper blade 1d. The wiping cycle of the passenger side wiper blade 1p in the heavy rain mode is set to, for example, twice that of the driver side wiper blade 1d.

[0029] As shown in the figure, the vehicle battery 6 has a positive electrode connected to a power cable 7 and a negative electrode connected to a reference potential (GND). The vehicle battery 6 is the vehicle's main power source (voltage source) that outputs DC power of a predetermined voltage, and supplies DC power to the first wiper motor unit 4d, the second wiper motor unit 4p, and the control unit 5 via the power cable 7 and a fuse 8.

[0030] As shown in the figure, the power cable 7 interconnects the positive electrode of the vehicle battery 6 with the first terminals of the first wiper motor unit 4d, the second wiper motor unit 4p, and the control unit 5. The power cable 7 supplies DC power output from the positive terminal of the vehicle battery 6 to the first wiper motor unit 4d, the second wiper motor unit 4p, and the control unit 5.

[0031] The fuse 8 is provided in a location midway along the power cable 7. This fuse 8 melts and blows when the DC current that can flow through the power cable 7 to the first wiper motor unit 4d, the second wiper motor unit 4p, and the control unit 5 becomes abnormally large, thereby cutting off the supply of DC power to the first wiper motor unit 4d, the second wiper motor unit 4p, and the control unit 5.

[0032] As shown in the figure, one end of the first communication cable 9 is connected to the second terminal of the control unit 5, and the other end is connected to the second terminal of the first wiper motor unit 4d. The first communication cable 9 is a signal line that mediates wired communication between the control unit 5 and the first wiper motor unit 4d, and transmits communication signals of the first method.

[0033] The first method is, for example, an in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network). That is, the control unit 5 and the second wiper motor unit 4p transmit and receive communication signals conforming to the in-vehicle LAN, that is, LIN signals, via the first communication cable 9.

[0034] One end of the second communication cable 10 is connected to the third terminal of the control unit 5, and the other end is connected to the third terminal of the first wiper motor unit 4d. The second communication cable 10 is a signal line that mediates wired communication between the control unit 5 and the first wiper motor unit 4d, and transmits communication signals of the first method, just like the first communication cable 9.

[0035] One end of the third communication cable 11 is connected to the fifth terminal of the first wiper motor unit 4d, and the other end is connected to the fifth terminal of the second wiper motor unit 4p. The third communication cable 11 is a signal line that mediates wired communication between the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p, and transmits a communication signal (CLN signal) of a second method that is different from the first method.

[0036] The first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p mutually share drive information regarding the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p by transmitting and receiving CLN signals using the third communication cable 11. This drive information is information necessary for the synchronous rotation of the pair of wiper shafts 2d, 2p, i.e., the synchronous drive of the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p.

[0037] Here, we will explain the detailed configurations of the first wiper motor unit 4d, the second wiper motor unit 4p, and the control unit 5. The first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p each include a motor (power source), a drive control circuit, and a communication circuit.

[0038] That is, the first wiper motor unit 4d includes a first motor that rotates the wiper shaft 2d on the driver's seat side, a first drive circuit that outputs a drive signal to the first motor, and a first communication circuit that outputs a control signal to the first drive circuit by communicating with the control unit 5 via wired communication.

[0039] On the other hand, the second wiper motor unit 4p includes a second motor that rotates the wiper shaft 2p on the passenger side, a second drive circuit that outputs a drive signal to the second motor, and a second communication circuit that outputs a control signal to the second drive circuit by communicating with the control unit 5 via a wired connection.

[0040] The first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p rotate the pair of wiper shafts 2d, 2p based on control signals received from the control unit 5. That is, the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p synchronously rotate the pair of wiper shafts 2d, 2p at a predetermined rotational speed, thereby causing the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p to reciprocate on the surface W to be wiped.

[0041] The control unit 5 is, for example, a one-chip microcomputer, and includes at least a storage unit, a calculation unit, and a communication unit as functional components. The storage unit stores a predetermined wiper control program (application program) in advance. The calculation unit generates a control signal by executing the wiper control program. The communication unit transmits the control signal to the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p.

[0042] That is, the control unit 5 is a software control device that synchronously controls the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p through cooperation of hardware resources and software resources. By synchronously controlling the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p, the control unit 5 controls the opposing movement of the pair of wiper blades 1d, 1p, i.e., the wiping operation of the wiped surface W.

[0043] Next, the operation of the wiper device A according to this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to Figures 3 to 5. Note that times t1 to t8 in Figure 3 (waveform diagram) correspond to states 1 to 8 in Figures 4 and 5 (state diagrams).

[0044] In normal mode, this wiper device A has a first wiper motor unit 4d (driver's side drive unit) and a second wiper motor unit 4p (passenger's side drive unit) that move the driver's side wiper blade 1d and the passenger side wiper blade 1p in opposing directions in a predetermined reciprocating cycle (normal wiping cycle).

[0045] In the heavy rain mode, the first wiper motor unit 4d and the second wiper motor unit 4p drive the driver's side wiper blade 1d and the passenger side wiper blade 1p as shown in Fig. 3. That is, the first wiper motor unit 4d moves the driver's side wiper blade 1d in an opposing direction in a wiping cycle (heavy rain wiping cycle) that is faster than the normal wiping cycle. In Fig. 3, the waveform of the first wiper motor unit 4d is shown by a dotted line, and the waveform of the second wiper motor unit 4p is shown by a solid line.

[0046] 4 and 5, the second wiper motor unit 4p switches the wiping range Rp of the passenger-side wiper blade 1p to a narrow wiping range Rp1 (heavy rain wiping range) that includes the sensor opposing area Rs and extends between the upper reversal position Up and the lower reversal position Ld1.The second wiper motor unit 4p then causes the passenger-side wiper blade 1p to perform the opposing operation (heavy rain wiping) with a wiping cycle that is twice the heavy rain wiping cycle.

[0047] As shown in Figures 3 to 5, the positional relationship between the driver's side wiper blade 1d and the passenger's side wiper blade 1p in heavy rain mode is such that when the driver's side wiper blade 1d passes near the center of the wiped surface W, the passenger's side wiper blade 1p is in the upper reversal position Up1, and when the driver's side wiper blade 1p is in either the upper reversal position Ud or the lower reversal position Ld, the passenger's side wiper blade 1p is in the lower reversal position Lp1.

[0048] Such a wiper device A wipes a wiped surface W in which a sensor opposing area Rs is provided at the upper part on the passenger side, and is equipped with a driver's side wiper blade 1d and a passenger side wiper blade 1p arranged opposite each other, a first wiper motor unit 4d (driver's side drive unit) that operates the driver's side wiper blade 1d in opposition to the passenger side wiper blade 1p, and a second wiper motor unit 4p (passenger side drive unit) that operates the passenger side wiper blade 1p in opposition to the driver's side wiper blade 1d, and the second wiper motor unit 4p (passenger side drive unit) drives the passenger side wiper blade 1p to wipe a narrow wiping area Rp1 including the sensor opposing area Rs in heavy rain mode (when wiping in heavy rain).

[0049] According to this embodiment, in heavy rain mode (when wiping in heavy rain), the wiper blade 1p on the passenger side wipes a narrow wiping area Rp1 including the sensor-opposing area Rs, making it possible to provide a wiper device A that can both wipe in front of the driver and wipe in front of sensors.

[0050] In addition, in the wiper device A, the second wiper motor unit 4p (drive unit on the passenger side) drives the wiper blade 1p on the passenger side in the heavy rain mode (when wiping in heavy rain) so that the wiper blade 1d on the driver side is in the upper reversal position Up1 when the wiper blade 1d passes near the center of the wiped surface W, and is in either the lower reversal position Lp1 when the wiper blade 1d on the driver side is in the upper reversal position Ud or the lower reversal position Ld. This embodiment makes it possible to effectively wipe the area in front of the driver and the area in front of the sensors.

[0051] In addition, in this wiper device A, the second wiper motor unit 4p (drive unit on the passenger side) drives the passenger side wiper blade 1p so that it wipes at a wiping cycle faster than the wiping cycle of the driver side wiper blade 1d. According to this embodiment, it is possible to effectively wipe the area in front of the driver and the area in front of the sensors.

[0052] In addition, in this wiper device A, the first wiper motor unit 4d (driver's seat side drive unit) and the second wiper motor unit 4p (passenger's seat side drive unit) are directly connected by a third communication cable 11, and drive information for the driver's seat side wiper blade 1d and the passenger's seat side wiper blade 1p is transmitted and received via the third communication cable 11. According to this embodiment, it is easy to obtain drive information when the first wiper motor unit 3d (driver's seat side drive unit) breaks down.

[0053] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the following modifications are possible. (1) In the above embodiment, the positional relationship between the driver's seat side wiper blade 1d and the passenger seat side wiper blade 1p in the heavy rain mode (when wiping away heavy rain) is shown in Figures 3 to 5, but the present invention is not limited to this. The positional relationship shown in Figures 3 to 5 is merely an example.

[0054] (2) In the above embodiment, the wiping cycle of the passenger side wiper blade 1p in heavy rain mode (when wiping in heavy rain) is set to twice the wiping cycle of the driver side wiper blade 1d (heavy rain wiping cycle), but the present invention is not limited to this. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] A...Wiper device, Ld, Lp, Lp1...Lower inverted position, Ud, Up...Upper inverted position, Rd, Rp...Wiping range, Rp1...Narrow wiping range, W...Wiping surface, 1d, 1p...Wiper blade, 2d, 2p...Wiper shaft, 3d, 3p...Wiper arm, 4d...First wiper motor unit (drive unit), 4p...Second wiper motor unit (drive unit), 5...Control unit (BCM), 6...Vehicle battery, 7...Power cable, 8...Fuse, 9...First communication cable, 10...Second communication cable, 11...Third communication cable

Claims

1. A wiper device that wipes a wiped surface in which a sensor facing area is provided in an upper portion on the passenger seat side, a wiper blade on a driver's seat side and a wiper blade on a passenger's seat side that are arranged opposite each other; a driver's seat drive unit that moves the driver's seat side wiper blade in opposition to the passenger's seat side wiper blade; a passenger-side drive unit that moves the passenger-side wiper blade in opposition to the driver-side wiper blade; The wiper device is characterized in that the drive unit on the passenger's seat side drives the wiper blade on the passenger's seat side so as to wipe a narrow wiping area including the area facing the sensor during heavy rain wiping.

2. 2. The wiper device according to claim 1, wherein the drive unit on the passenger side drives the wiper blade on the driver's side so that, during wiping in heavy rain, the wiper blade is in the upper inverted position when it passes near the center of the wiped surface, and is in the lower inverted position when the wiper blade on the driver's side is in either the upper inverted position or the lower inverted position.

3. 3. The wiper system according to claim 1, wherein the drive unit on the passenger's side drives the wiper blade on the passenger's side so as to wipe at a wiping cycle that is faster than the wiping cycle of the wiper blade on the driver's side.

4. 3. The wiper device according to claim 1, wherein the driver's side drive unit and the passenger's side drive unit are directly connected by a communication cable, and drive information for the driver's side wiper blade and the passenger's side wiper blade is transmitted and received via the communication cable.

Images