Windshield heater grid
The windshield heater grid design addresses visibility and diffraction issues by positioning heating elements along the camera's field of view boundary, enhancing clarity and object detection in vehicles.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- JP2025524330
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2022-10-28
- Filing Date
- 2023-10-26
- Publication Date
- 2026-01-27
AI Technical Summary
Conventional windshield heating elements obstruct the driver's view and cause diffraction issues for image sensors by crossing the field of view, affecting the reliability of object detection in vehicles.
A windshield heater grid design that extends along the outer boundary of camera fields of view, minimizing visibility obstruction and diffraction by embedding heating elements between the outer and inner layers of the windshield, with a vertical and horizontal configuration to optimize heating efficiency.
Reduces visibility obstruction and diffraction artifacts, ensuring clear views for drivers and improved object detection by image sensors, while maintaining effective defrosting and anti-fogging capabilities.
Smart Images
Figure 2026502784000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
[Technical Field]
[0001] [CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 420,429, entitled "WINDSHIELD HEATER GRID," filed October 28, 2022, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
[0002] This application relates to a heating solution for a vehicle windshield. More specifically, the heating solution includes a heater grid embedded in the vehicle windshield. [Background technology]
[0003] Low temperatures outside a vehicle can often cause vehicle windows to fog up or freeze. Many vehicles are equipped with heating solutions that heat the vehicle windows to ensure the driver has a clear view through the windshield. Some vehicles implement heating elements located or embedded in the front and / or rear windshield. However, the heating elements are visible and can obstruct the driver's view. Therefore, there remains a need for an improved windshield heating system. Summary of the Invention
[0004] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates generally to heating solutions for vehicle windshields. More specifically, various embodiments of this disclosure relate to heater grids embedded in vehicle windshields.
[0005] One aspect relates to a windshield for a vehicle having one or more cameras configured to sense through the windshield. Each of the one or more cameras has a field of view on the windshield. The windshield includes an outer layer, an inner layer, a middle layer, and a heating element. The heating element is positioned between the outer layer and the inner layer and extends along a boundary of the field of view of the one or more cameras and a portion of the boundary of the windshield.
[0006] In a variation of the above aspect, the heater element extends substantially vertically across the central region of the windshield.
[0007] In a variation of the above embodiment, the one or more cameras include a main camera, a wide camera, and / or a narrow camera.
[0008] In a variation of the above aspect, the field of view includes a main camera field of view, a wide camera field of view, and / or a narrow camera field of view.
[0009] In a variation of the above embodiment, the heating element does not extend across the center of the main camera field of view and the center of the narrow camera field of view.
[0010] In a variation of the above aspect, the heating element comprises at least one heating wire configured to generate heat.
[0011] In a variation of the above embodiment, at least one heating wire has a diameter in the range of 100 microns to 1 mm.
[0012] In a variation of the above embodiment, the heating element is coated with an anti-reflective coating. [Brief explanation of the drawings]
[0013] The present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like elements.
[0014] [Figure 1] 1 shows an example of a vehicle with multiple cameras.
[0015] [Figure 2A] 1 shows an example of a vehicle windshield with a conventional heater design.
[0016] [Figure 2B] 1 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a windshield heater grid design according to the present disclosure.
[0017] [Figure 3] 1 shows a comparison of a baseline image and an improved image produced in accordance with the techniques described herein.
[0018] [Figure 4] 1 is another embodiment of a windshield heater grid design according to the present disclosure.
[0019] [Figure 5A] 2B is a thermal image showing the temperature of the windshield of FIG. 2A when the heater is in use.
[0020] [Figure 5B] 2C is a thermal image showing the temperature of the windshield of FIG. 2B when the heater is in use.
[0021] [Figure 5C] 5 is a thermal image showing the temperature of the windshield of FIG. 4 when the heater is in use. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0022] Generally described, one or more aspects of the present disclosure relate to heating solutions for vehicle windshields. In particular embodiments, the disclosure relates to windshields with embedded heater grids. Certain vehicles, such as autonomous vehicles, may use image sensors to detect objects in the environment in which the vehicle travels. When the image sensor is configured to sense through a windshield with a heating element, the heating element may cause diffraction, affecting the image sensor's ability to reliably determine nearby objects.
[0023] For example, in certain embodiments, vehicle 10 may have imaging system 100 including main camera 101, wide camera 102 (e.g., fisheye), and narrow camera 103, as shown in FIG. 1 . According to various embodiments disclosed herein, the imaging system may have any number of cameras and may include any type of camera. In some embodiments, the imaging system may have only one camera. In some embodiments, one or more cameras of imaging system 100 may be visible light cameras. In some embodiments, one or more cameras of imaging system 100 may be shortwave infrared cameras. Imaging system 100 may be positioned inside front windshield 105 of vehicle 10, proximate an upper edge of windshield 105.
[0024] The field of view ("FOV") of each camera may be shown as in FIG. 2A by projecting each field of view onto the glass surface of the windshield. In certain embodiments, main camera 101 may have field of view 121 that covers a left portion of the windshield area. In certain embodiments, narrow camera 123 may have field of view 123 that covers a right portion of the windshield area. In certain embodiments, wide camera 102 may have field of view 122 that covers substantially the entire windshield area except for the corners proximate to wide camera 102. Each of FOVs 121, 122, and 123 may have a particular field of view angle. For example, FOV 121 may have FOV degrees in the range of 30 to 90 degrees, FOV 122 may have FOV degrees in the range of 90 to 160 degrees, and FOV 123 may have FOV degrees in the range of 10 to 80 degrees.
[0025] A conventional windshield heater grid design, such as that shown in FIG. 2A, can be implemented with multiple parallel horizontal heating elements 110 embedded throughout the windshield. The heating elements 110 can include wires having a wire diameter of, for example, 180 microns. The conventional windshield heater grid 110 can provide uniform defrosting and / or anti-fogging effects because the heating elements are uniformly distributed throughout the windshield. However, as the uniformly distributed heating elements 110 cross the field of view 121-123 at various points, these heating elements cause diffraction and other artifacts in the image shown as the baseline image in the first row of FIG. 3.
[0026] The windshield heater grid design according to this disclosure may be positioned substantially along the outer boundary of a camera's field of view to minimize obstruction of visibility caused by the heating element. For example, a camera's field of view may indicate the degree (e.g., viewing angle) to which a real-world environment can be observed by the camera. Thus, the boundary of the field of view represents the boundary of the viewing angle. As another example, a camera's field of view may indicate the field of view within which the camera can resolve the real-world environment without lens distortion or with lens distortion below a threshold. For example, an image from the camera may be cropped outside the field of view to remove distorted portions.
[0027] In some embodiments, the heater grid design may include heating elements that extend substantially vertically across the center of the windshield and along a portion of the outer boundary of the windshield. For example, the heater grid design may not include multiple horizontal heating elements as in FIG. 2A. For example, heating element 210 may be positioned within the windshield and have a W-shape as shown in FIG. 2B.
[0028] The heating element can be embedded in an interlayer of the windshield. For example, the windshield can include an outer glass layer, one or more plastic interlayers, and an inner glass layer. In some embodiments, the heating element can be embedded in the one or more plastic interlayers. In some embodiments, the heating element can be embedded in or bonded to one of the inner and outer glass layers.
[0029] In some embodiments, the heating element 210 can extend substantially along the left side of field of view 221, the bottom side of field of view 221, the right side of field of view 221, the top side of field of view 222, the left side of field of view 223, the bottom side of field of view 223, and the right side of field of view 223. In some embodiments, the heating element can include a heating wire having a wire diameter slightly larger (e.g., 200 microns) than that of a conventional heating grid due to reduced coverage of the heating wire. In some embodiments, the heating wire can have a wire diameter in the range of 180 to 220 microns. In some embodiments, the heating wire can have a wire diameter in the range of 100 microns to 1 mm. In some embodiments, the heating wire can also be coated with an anti-reflective coating to further reduce diffraction issues.
[0030] As an example, heating element 210 (e.g., at least one heating wire) may extend substantially vertically within field of view 221 or 223. The heating element may then extend horizontally into a different field of view (e.g., field of view 222). Field of view 222 may encompass or substantially encompass fields of view 221 and 223 along with the center of the windshield. The heating element may be substantially close to or substantially flush with the boundary of field of view 222. The heating element may extend horizontally and then vertically into field of view 221 or 223. Thus, the heating element may extend horizontally outside of field of view 221 or 223.
[0031] 3 shows a comparison of a set of baseline images taken from each of the main, narrow, and wide (e.g., fisheye) cameras between a baseline condition using a conventional heater grid design and an improved imaging condition implementing heating element 210. The improved images (second row of FIG. 3) have reduced obstructions from the heating element, thereby reducing diffraction issues, particularly around traffic lights.
[0032] 4 shows another exemplary embodiment of a heater grid design having heating elements 310 that extend substantially vertically across the center of the windshield and along a portion of the outer boundary of the windshield. For example, heater elements 310 can similarly extend substantially along the left side of field of view 321, the bottom side of field of view 321, the right side of field of view 321, the top side of field of view 322, the left side of field of view 323, the bottom side of field of view 323, and the right side of field of view 323, but also extend vertically across the center of field of view 321 and the center of field of view 323. A slight increase in coverage of heater elements 310 can result in better defrost and anti-fogging effects (e.g., faster defrost or anti-fogging).
[0033] 5A-5C are thermal images of different heater grid designs showing how each performs in heating a windshield.
[0034] As shown in FIG. 5A, a conventional horizontally distributed heater grid design provides a uniform heating effect during use, thereby achieving desired temperatures (e.g., green and blue) over most of the windshield area.
[0035] As shown in Figure 5B, the heater grid design shown in Figure 2B may produce a less uniform heating effect in use, thereby achieving a desired temperature only across the central region of each field of view (e.g., main camera, narrow camera, wide camera). Although the heater grid design of Figure 2B may achieve a less uniform heating effect, frost or fog is still removed in the central region, providing an unobstructed view for the driver and / or camera.
[0036] Finally, as shown in FIG. 5C, the heater grid design shown in FIG. 4 may result in a less uniform heating effect during use compared to conventional heater designs. However, the heater grid design of FIG. 4 may achieve a desired temperature over a large portion of the windshield area due to the additional heating elements across the central region of the main and narrow fields of view. In some embodiments, the desired temperature may substantially remove (e.g., melt) the fog or frost. In some embodiments, the desired temperature may melt the frost to the extent that windshield wipers can substantially remove any remaining frost.
[0037] As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the heater grid designs disclosed herein can be adjusted according to a variety of other factors, such as particular camera systems having different fields of view, different numbers of cameras, or different windshield shapes.
[0038] The foregoing disclosure is not intended to limit the present disclosure to the precise form or particular field of use disclosed. Accordingly, it is contemplated that various alternative embodiments and / or modifications to the present disclosure, whether expressly described or implied herein, may be envisioned in light of the present disclosure. While embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in this manner, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the present disclosure is limited only by the scope of the claims.
[0039] In the foregoing specification, the present disclosure has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the various embodiments disclosed herein can be modified or embodied in various other ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, this description should be considered illustrative and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art how to make and use various embodiments of the disclosed glove box actuation assembly. It should be understood that the forms of the disclosure shown and described herein should be construed as representative embodiments. Equivalent elements, materials, processes, or steps may be substituted for those typically shown and described herein. Furthermore, certain features of the present disclosure may be utilized independently of the use of other features, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art after having the benefit of this description of the present disclosure. The terms "including," "comprising," "incorporating," "consisting of," "have," "is," and the like, used to describe and claim the present disclosure, are intended to be construed in a non-exclusive manner, i.e., to allow for the presence of items, components, or elements not expressly described. Also, references to the singular are to be construed as relating to the plural as well.
[0040] Furthermore, the various embodiments disclosed herein should be construed in an exemplary and explanatory sense and in no way as limiting the present disclosure. All joint references (e.g., attached, fastened, coupled, connected, etc.) are used solely to aid the reader's understanding of the present disclosure and do not create limitations with respect to the position, orientation, or use of the systems and / or methods disclosed herein in particular. Accordingly, any reference to a joint should be interpreted broadly. Furthermore, such a reference to a joint does not necessarily mean that two elements are directly connected to one another. Furthermore, all numerical terms, such as, but not limited to, "first," "second," "third," "primary," "secondary," "main," or any other conventional and / or numerical terminology, should be construed solely as identifiers to aid the reader's understanding of the various elements, embodiments, variations, and / or modifications of the present disclosure and, in particular, may not create any limitations with respect to the order or preference of any element, embodiment, variation, and / or modification relative to or over other elements, embodiments, variations, and / or modifications.
[0041] It is also understood that one or more of the elements depicted in the drawings / diagrams may be implemented in a more separated or integrated manner as may be useful according to a particular application, or may even be removed or rendered inoperable in certain cases.
Claims
1. 1. A windshield for a vehicle having one or more cameras configured to sense through the windshield, each of the one or more cameras having a field of view on the windshield, the windshield comprising: An outer layer; The inner layer and The middle class and a heating element between the outer layer and the inner layer, the heating element positioned to extend substantially along a boundary of a portion of the field of view of the one or more cameras and a portion of a boundary of the windshield; A windshield equipped with
2. The windshield of claim 1 , wherein the heater element extends substantially vertically across a central region of the windshield.
3. The windshield of claim 1 , wherein the one or more cameras comprise a main camera, a wide camera, and / or a narrow camera.
4. The windshield of claim 1 , wherein the fields of view include a main camera field of view, a wide camera field of view, and / or a narrow camera field of view.
5. The windshield of claim 4 , wherein the heating element does not extend across a center of the main camera field of view and a center of the narrow camera field of view.
6. The windshield of claim 4 , wherein the heating element does not extend horizontally across a center of the main camera field of view and a center of the narrow camera field of view.
7. The windshield of claim 1 , wherein the heating element comprises at least one heating wire configured to generate heat.
8. 7. The windshield of claim 6, wherein the at least one heating wire has a diameter in the range of 100 microns to 1 mm.
9. The windshield of claim 6, wherein the at least one heating wire has a diameter in the range of 180 to 220 mm.
10. The windshield of claim 1 , wherein the heating element is coated with an anti-reflective coating.
11. The windshield of claim 1 , wherein the heating element forms a W-shape.
12. The windshield of claim 1 , wherein the windshield does not include horizontal heating wires.
13. 10. The windshield of claim 1, wherein the heating element comprises at least one heating wire, the at least one heating wire extending substantially vertically within a field of view of a particular one of the one or more cameras.
14. 14. The windshield of claim 13, wherein outside the field of view of the particular camera, the at least one heated wire extends horizontally into a different field of view of a different camera.
15. 2. The windshield of claim 1, wherein the camera includes a plurality of cameras, a first camera having a first field of view that includes a left portion of the windshield, a second camera having a second field of view that includes a right portion of the windshield, and a third camera having a third field of view that substantially includes a central portion of the windshield as well as the left and right portions of the windshield, and the heating element extends horizontally proximate an upper or lower boundary of the central portion.