Mounting structure for imaging device

Abstract

Provided is a mounting structure for an imaging device that can suppress the generation of wind noise caused by wind while the vehicle is running. [Solution] An imaging device mounting structure (10) includes an imaging device (12) mounted on a roof (2) of a vehicle (1), and a housing (13) that houses at least a portion of the imaging device. The imaging device has a lens (15) that faces forward and outward to the left and right of the vehicle. The housing has a peripheral wall (21) that is disposed on the outer periphery of the lens. The peripheral wall has a front wall (29) that is disposed forward of the optical axis (A) of the lens in a plan view, and a rear wall (30) that is disposed rearward of the optical axis (A) of the lens in a plan view. If the direction parallel to the optical axis of the lens that faces forward and outward to the left and right of the vehicle is defined as the outboard direction, and the tip end in the outboard direction is defined as the outboard side, then in a plan view, an outboard end (29A) of the front wall is located further outboard than an outboard end (30A) of the rear wall.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a mounting structure for an imaging device. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, efforts to provide access to sustainable transport systems that take into consideration vulnerable transport participants have become more active. To achieve this, we are focusing on research and development into preventive safety technologies to further improve road safety and convenience.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle including a pair of roof camera devices on the left and right sides mounted on a roof panel. The roof camera device described in Patent Document 1 includes a telephoto camera unit, a wide-angle camera unit (imaging devices), and a cover (housing) that covers the telephoto camera unit and the wide-angle camera unit from above. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-39110 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] When an imaging device is disposed outside a vehicle as in Patent Document 1, there is a need to provide a peripheral wall portion on the housing that is disposed around the lens of the imaging device to protect the lens. In this case, wind generated by the vehicle's movement forms vortices in the front portion of the peripheral wall, and these vortices strike the rear portion of the peripheral wall. This causes fluctuations in air pressure, which vibrates the air and generates so-called wind noise. This wind noise is amplified by reverberating inside the housing, which may cause discomfort to occupants.

[0006] In view of the above background, the present invention aims to provide an imaging device mounting structure that can suppress the generation of wind noise caused by wind while the vehicle is running, thereby contributing to the development of sustainable transportation systems. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an imaging device mounting structure (10, 100, 200, 300) comprising an imaging device (12) mounted on a roof (2) of a vehicle (1) and a housing (13) that houses at least a part of the imaging device, the imaging device having a lens (15) facing forward and outward to the left and right of the vehicle, the housing having a peripheral wall portion (21, 201, 301) disposed on the outer periphery of the lens, the peripheral wall portion being located forward of an optical axis (A) of the lens in a plan view, and a rear wall portion (30, 203, 302) arranged rearward of the optical axis of the lens in a plan view, and when a direction parallel to the optical axis of the lens toward the front and left and right of the vehicle is defined as an exterior direction, and the tip side in the exterior direction is defined as the exterior side of the vehicle, in a plan view, the exterior end portion (29A, 202A, 303A) of the front wall portion is located closer to the exterior side of the vehicle than the exterior end portion (30A, 203A, 302A) of the rear wall portion.

[0008] According to this aspect, even if a vortex is generated at the front wall portion of the peripheral wall portion due to wind generated when the vehicle is traveling, the vortex is less likely to strike the rear wall portion of the peripheral wall portion, thereby making it possible to suppress wind noise caused by wind generated when the vehicle is traveling.

[0009] In the above aspect, the front wall portion may be formed with a protrusion (31, 101) that protrudes toward the vehicle exterior.

[0010] According to this aspect, the outer end of the front wall portion protrudes farther outward than the outer end of the rear wall portion. Therefore, even if a vortex is generated at the front wall portion of the peripheral wall portion due to the wind generated while the vehicle is moving, the vortex is less likely to strike the rear wall portion of the peripheral wall portion. Therefore, wind noise caused by the wind generated while the vehicle is moving can be more effectively suppressed.

[0011] In the above aspect, the convex portion may be curved in an arc shape around the optical axis of the lens when viewed from the vehicle exterior side.

[0012] According to this aspect, the protrusions are provided over a wider area of ​​the front wall portion, so that wind noise caused by wind generated when the vehicle is traveling can be more effectively suppressed.

[0013] In the above aspect, the convex portion may extend linearly in the vertical direction when viewed from the vehicle exterior side.

[0014] According to this aspect, the protrusions are provided over a wider area of ​​the front wall portion, so that wind noise caused by wind generated when the vehicle is traveling can be more effectively suppressed.

[0015] In the above aspect, the front surface of the convex portion may be curved so as to be convex rearward in a plan view.

[0016] According to this aspect, the traveling wind is more likely to flow toward the outside of the vehicle along the front surface of the convex portion, so even if a vortex is generated at the front wall portion of the peripheral wall by the traveling wind, the vortex is less likely to strike the rear wall portion of the peripheral wall, thereby more effectively suppressing wind noise caused by the traveling wind.

[0017] In the above aspect, the peripheral wall portion may protrude in an annular shape toward the vehicle exterior side around the optical axis of the lens.

[0018] According to this aspect, even if a vortex is generated at the front wall portion of the peripheral wall portion due to wind as the vehicle moves, this vortex is less likely to strike the rear wall portion of the peripheral wall portion.

[0019] In the above aspect, the front wall portion and the rear wall portion may be curved in an arc shape toward the vehicle exterior in a plan view, and a radius of curvature of the rear wall portion may be larger than a radius of curvature of the front wall portion.

[0020] According to this aspect, with a simple configuration, the outer end of the front wall portion can be positioned further outward than the outer end of the rear wall portion.

[0021] In the above aspect, if a plane that is perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens and passes through the end of the front wall portion on the vehicle exterior side is defined as a first plane (D1), and a plane that is perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens and passes through the end of the rear wall portion on the vehicle exterior side is defined as a second plane (D2), the first plane may be located further outward from the vehicle than the second plane.

[0022] According to this aspect, vortices generated at the front wall portion of the peripheral wall portion by the wind generated when the vehicle is traveling are less likely to strike the rear wall portion of the peripheral wall portion, thereby making it possible to suppress wind noise caused by the wind generated when the vehicle is traveling. [Effects of the Invention]

[0023] According to the above configuration, it is possible to provide a mounting structure for an imaging device that can suppress the generation of wind noise caused by wind while the vehicle is running. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a vehicle provided with a mounting structure for an imaging device according to a first embodiment; [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a mounting structure for an imaging device according to a first embodiment; [Figure 3] 1 is a cross-sectional view of the mounting structure for the imaging device according to the first embodiment, viewed from the vehicle exterior side; [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a plan cross-sectional view of a main part of a mounting structure for an imaging device according to a first embodiment, viewed from above; [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a plan cross-sectional view illustrating the relationship between the vehicle exterior end of the front wall portion and the vehicle exterior end of the rear wall portion of the mounting structure for the imaging device according to the first embodiment; [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a mounting structure for an imaging device according to a second embodiment; [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a plan cross-sectional view of a main part of the mounting structure for the imaging device according to the second embodiment, viewed from above. [Figure 8]10 is a plan cross-sectional view of a main part of the mounting structure for an imaging device according to a third embodiment, viewed from above; [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a plan cross-sectional view of a main part of the mounting structure for an imaging device according to a fourth embodiment, viewed from above. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] (First embodiment) Hereinafter, a vehicle 1 provided with a mounting structure for an imaging device 12 according to a first embodiment (hereinafter referred to as "mounting structure 10") will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0026] As shown in Fig. 1, the vehicle 1 is, for example, a four-wheeled automobile. The vehicle 1 has an upper structure 2 (roof) that constitutes the upper part of the vehicle 1. The upper structure 2 has, for example, left and right roof side rails 3 that extend in the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as the "front-to-rear direction") and are arranged on both the left and right sides of the vehicle 1, a roof rail 4 that extends in the left-to-right direction of the vehicle 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as the "left-to-right direction") and is bridged between the left and right roof side rails 3, and a roof panel 5 that is arranged above the roof rails 4.

[0027] A through hole 6 (see FIG. 3) that penetrates in the vertical direction is formed in the roof rail 4. An annular grommet 7 (see FIG. 3) is attached to the edge of the roof rail 4 that defines the through hole 6.

[0028] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the mounting structure 10 is a structure for placing an imaging device 12 on an upper structure 2 of a vehicle 1. In this embodiment, the mounting structures 10 are provided at the left and right front portions of the upper structure 2 of the vehicle 1. Since the left and right mounting structures 10 have the same configuration, only one of the left and right mounting structures 10 will be described below.

[0029] In this embodiment, the mounting structure 10 has an imaging device 12 mounted on the upper structure 2 of the vehicle 1, a housing 13 that houses the entire imaging device 12, and a fixing member 14 (see FIG. 3) for fixing the imaging device 12 to the housing 13. In other embodiments, the housing 13 may house only a portion of the imaging device 12.

[0030] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , the imaging device 12 is a device that detects the state of the surroundings of the vehicle 1. The imaging device 12 is disposed above the roof rail 4. The imaging device 12 captures images of objects present around the vehicle 1 (surrounding vehicles such as a vehicle in front, pedestrians, road structures, lane markings, etc.). The imaging device 12 includes, for example, a lens 15 constituting an optical system, an imaging element (not shown) such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor), a casing 16 that houses the lens 15 and the imaging element, and terminals (not shown) connected to the imaging element. The imaging device 12 captures images in front of the vehicle 1 and to the left and right outward. That is, the lens 15 of the imaging device 12 is disposed so as to face in front of the vehicle 1 and to the left and right outward. The optical axis A (see FIG. 4 ) of the lens 15 is inclined outward to the left and right as it faces forward in a plan view. The optical axis angle θ (see FIG. 5), which is the tilt angle of the optical axis A of the lens 15 with respect to the front-to-rear direction, is set, for example, between 30 degrees and 60 degrees. A harness 17 is connected to the above-mentioned terminal of the imaging device 12. As shown in FIG. 3, the harness 17 passes through a grommet 7 attached to the through-hole 6 of the roof rail 4 and is routed below the roof rail 4.

[0031] Hereinafter, the direction parallel to the optical axis A of the lens 15 and directed forward and outward to the left and right of the vehicle 1 will be defined as the exterior direction, and the leading end of the exterior direction will be defined as the exterior side of the vehicle. Similarly, the direction parallel to the optical axis A of the lens 15 and directed backward and inward to the left and right of the vehicle 1 (i.e., the direction opposite to the exterior direction) will be defined as the interior direction, and the leading end of the interior direction will be defined as the interior side of the vehicle. Furthermore, the exterior direction and interior direction will collectively be referred to simply as the interior / exterior direction.

[0032] 2 and 3, the housing 13 has a side wall portion 19 having a generally rectangular cylindrical shape extending upward from the roof panel 5, and an upper wall portion 23 having a generally rectangular plate shape disposed at the upper end of the side wall portion 19. A space S is formed inside the housing 13 by the side wall portion 19 and the upper wall portion 23. The imaging device 12 is accommodated in this space S.

[0033] The side wall portion 19 may be formed integrally with the roof panel 5 or may be formed separately from the roof panel 5. The side wall portion 19 has a front surface portion 25 facing substantially forward, side surface portions 27 facing substantially outward to the left and right, and a peripheral wall portion 21 provided between the front surface portion 25 and the side surface portion 27 and disposed on the outer periphery of the lens 15.

[0034] The peripheral wall portion 21 has an annular shape when viewed from the outside of the vehicle. A through hole 28 that penetrates the peripheral wall portion 21 in the vehicle interior-exterior direction is formed in the peripheral wall portion 21. The through hole 28 is disposed on the outer periphery of the lens 15.

[0035] As shown in Fig. 4, the peripheral wall portion 21 has a front wall portion 29 that is disposed in front of the optical axis A of the lens 15 in a plan view, and a rear wall portion 30 that is disposed behind the optical axis A of the lens 15 in a plan view. The front wall portion 29 is a portion of the peripheral wall portion 21 that is provided on the front surface portion 25 side, and the rear wall portion 30 is a portion of the peripheral wall portion 21 that is provided on the side surface portion 27 side. In a plan view, the front wall portion 29 and the rear wall portion 30 are curved in an arc shape toward the exterior side of the vehicle.

[0036] The front wall portion 29 is formed with a protrusion 31 that protrudes toward the exterior of the vehicle. More specifically, the protrusion 31 protrudes toward the exterior of the vehicle from the exterior surface of the front wall portion 29. The protrusion 31 is preferably provided so as not to interfere with the field of view (FoV) of the imaging device 12. As shown in FIG. 2 , the protrusion 31 is curved in an arc shape about the optical axis A of the lens 15 when viewed from the exterior of the vehicle. The exterior end of the protrusion 31 is located at the outermost part of the front wall portion 29. Hereinafter, the exterior end of the protrusion 31 will be referred to as the "exterior end 29A of the front wall portion 29."

[0037] As shown in FIG. 3, the fixing member 14 has an upper bracket 33 fixed to the housing 13, a lower bracket 35 located below the upper bracket 33 and fixed to the imaging device 12, and a fastener 36 that fastens the upper bracket 33 and the lower bracket 35 together.

[0038] The upper bracket 33 is formed from a metal plate-like member and has a main surface portion 37 extending along the lower surface of the upper wall portion 23 of the housing 13, legs 38 extending downward from the ends of the main surface portion 37, and bent portions 39 bent horizontally from the lower ends of the legs 38.

[0039] The upper surface of the main surface portion 37 of the upper bracket 33 is adhered to the lower surface of the upper wall portion 23 of the housing 13 by, for example, an adhesive. In this way, the upper bracket 33 is fixed to the housing 13.

[0040] The bent portion 39 of the upper bracket 33 faces the upper wall portion 23 of the housing 13 at a distance in the vertical direction. The bent portion 39 is formed with a plurality of fastening holes 39A (only one is shown in FIG. 3) that penetrate in the vertical direction.

[0041] The lower bracket 35 is formed from a plate-shaped member. The lower bracket 35 has a main surface portion 40 facing the interior and exterior of the vehicle, a leg portion 41 extending from a part of the edge of the main surface portion 40 toward the interior of the vehicle, and a bent portion 42 bent horizontally from the upper end of the leg portion 41. The imaging device 12 may be fixed to the main surface portion 40 of the lower bracket 35 by a fastener such as a bolt, for example.

[0042] A plurality of fastening holes 42A (only one is shown in the figure) that penetrate in the vertical direction are formed in the bent portion 42 of the lower bracket 35. The central axis of each fastening hole 42A formed in the bent portion 42 of the lower bracket 35 is aligned with the central axis of the corresponding fastening hole 39A formed in the bent portion 39 of the upper bracket 33.

[0043] The fastener 36 has a plurality of weld nuts 44 (only one is shown in FIG. 3 ) provided on the upper surface of the bent portion 39 of the upper bracket 33, and a plurality of bolts 45 (only one is shown in FIG. 3 ) that pass through the fastening holes 39A of the upper bracket 33 and the fastening holes 42A of the lower bracket 35. The upper bracket 33 and the lower bracket 35 are fastened to each other by threading each bolt 45 into the corresponding weld nut 44. In this way, the imaging device 12 is fixed to the housing 13 via the fixing member 14.

[0044] 4 and 5, in the mounting structure 10, in a plan view, the vehicle-exterior end 29A of the front wall portion 29 is located further outward from the vehicle-exterior end 30A of the rear wall portion 30. Specifically, a first plane D1 (see FIG. 5) that is perpendicular to the optical axis A of the lens 15 and passes through the vehicle-exterior end 29A of the front wall portion 29 is located further outward from the vehicle-exterior end 30A of the rear wall portion 30.

[0045] 5, in an orthogonal coordinate system with the front-rear direction as the X axis and the left-right direction as the Y axis, the coordinates of the outer end 29A of the front wall 29 are (x1, y1), and the coordinates of the outer end 30A of the rear wall 30 are (x2, y2). Note that θ in the figure is the optical axis angle θ described above.

[0046] A horizontal line that is perpendicular to the optical axis A of the lens 15 and passes through the outer edge 29A of the front wall portion 29 (that is, a horizontal line within the first plane D1) is expressed by the following formula (1). Y = tan(θ + 90°) X + b1 (1) where tan(θ+90°) is the slope of this line, and b1 is the intercept of this line on the Y axis. By substituting the coordinates (x1, y1) of the outer side end 29A of the front wall portion 29 into the above formula (1), the following formula (2) is obtained. y1=tan(θ+90°)·x1+b1···(2)

[0047] A horizontal line that is perpendicular to the optical axis A of the lens 15 and passes through the outer end 30A of the rear wall portion 30 (ie, a horizontal line within the second plane D2) is expressed by the following formula (3). Y = tan(θ + 90°) X + b2 (3) where tan(θ+90°) is the slope of this line, and b2 is the intercept of this line on the Y axis. By substituting the coordinates (x2, y2) of the outer end 30A of the rear wall portion 30 into the above equation (3), the following equation (4) is obtained. y2=tan(θ+90°)·x2+b2···(4)

[0048] When the vehicle 1 is traveling, the wind generated by the traveling of the vehicle 1 may strike (attach) the peripheral wall portion 21 provided on the side wall portion 19 of the housing 13, thereby generating so-called wind noise. Specifically, the traveling wind forms a vortex at the front wall portion 29 of the peripheral wall portion 21, and this vortex attaches to the rear wall portion 30 of the peripheral wall portion 21. At this time, air pressure fluctuations occur, causing the air to vibrate and generating wind noise. To suppress this wind noise, the outer end 29A of the front wall portion 29 needs to be located further outboard than the outer end 30A of the rear wall portion 30 in a plan view. That is, the first plane D1 needs to be located further outboard than the second plane D2. Therefore, the following formula (5) is satisfied. |b1|-|b2|>0 (5)

[0049] The following formula (6) is obtained from the above formulas (2), (4), and (5). |y1-tan(θ+90°)·x1|-|y2-tan(θ+90°)·x2|>0···(6)

[0050] When, in a plan view, the outer-side end 29A of the front wall portion 29 is located closer to the interior of the vehicle than the outer-side end 30A of the rear wall portion 30 (when |b1|-|b2|≦0), air that separates from the front wall portion 29 (vortices generated at the front wall portion 29) is likely to adhere to the rear wall portion 30. This makes it easier for wind noise to occur. However, by creating a height difference between the front wall portion 29 and the rear wall portion 30 as shown in equation (6) (the outer-side end 29A of the front wall portion 29 is located closer to the exterior of the vehicle than the outer-side end 30A of the rear wall portion 30 in a plan view), the air that separates from the front wall portion 29 is less likely to adhere to the rear wall portion 30, which is advantageous for reducing wind noise.

[0051] In the above mounting structure 10, even if a vortex is generated at the front wall portion 29 of the peripheral wall portion 21 due to wind generated when the vehicle 1 is moving, this vortex is unlikely to hit the rear wall portion 30 of the peripheral wall portion 21. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the generation of wind noise caused by wind.

[0052] The front wall portion 29 is formed with a convex portion 31 that protrudes toward the exterior of the vehicle, so that the exterior end portion 29A of the front wall portion 29 protrudes farther toward the exterior of the vehicle than the exterior end portion 30A of the rear wall portion 30. Furthermore, the convex portion 31 is curved in an arc shape about the optical axis A of the lens 15 when viewed from outside the vehicle, so that it is provided over a wider area of ​​the front wall portion 29. As a result, even if a vortex is generated in the front wall portion 29 of the peripheral wall portion 21 by the wind while the vehicle is traveling, this vortex is less likely to hit the rear wall portion 30 of the peripheral wall portion 21. Therefore, the generation of wind noise caused by the wind while traveling can be more effectively suppressed.

[0053] (Second embodiment) A mounting structure 100 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 6 and 7. The mounting structure 100 according to the second embodiment differs from the mounting structure 10 according to the first embodiment only in the shape of the protrusion 101 provided on the front wall 29. Differences from the first embodiment will be described below. Elements that are the same as or similar to those in the first embodiment will be given the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations will be omitted.

[0054] As shown in Fig. 6, the convex portion 101 extends linearly in the vertical direction when viewed from outside the vehicle. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 7, the front surface of the convex portion 101 is curved so as to be convex toward the rear in a plan view. This allows the wind to easily flow toward the outside of the vehicle along the front surface of the convex portion 101, so that even if a vortex is generated at the front wall portion 29 of the peripheral wall portion 21 by the wind, this vortex is less likely to hit the rear wall portion 30 of the peripheral wall portion 21. This makes it possible to more effectively suppress wind noise caused by the wind.

[0055] (Third embodiment) A mounting structure 200 according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to Figure 8. The mounting structure 200 according to the third embodiment differs from the mounting structure 10 according to the first embodiment only in the shape of the peripheral wall portion 201. Differences from the first embodiment will be described below. Elements that are the same as or similar to those in the first embodiment will be given the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations will be omitted.

[0056] The peripheral wall portion 201 protrudes in an annular shape toward the exterior of the vehicle around the optical axis A of the lens 15. The peripheral wall portion 201 has a front wall portion 202 that is disposed forward of the optical axis A of the lens 15 in a plan view, and a rear wall portion 203 that is disposed rearward of the optical axis A of the lens 15 in a plan view. An exterior end portion 202A of the front wall portion 202 of the peripheral wall portion 201 protrudes toward the exterior of the vehicle relative to the front surface 25 of the housing 13. Furthermore, an exterior end portion 203A of the rear wall portion 203 of the peripheral wall portion 201 protrudes toward the exterior of the vehicle relative to the side surface 27 of the housing 13. In this case, the exterior end portion 202A of the front wall portion 202 is located further outward than the exterior end portion 203A of the rear wall portion 203. As a result, even if a vortex is generated at the front wall portion 202 of the peripheral wall portion 201 due to wind while the vehicle is traveling, the vortex is less likely to hit the rear wall portion 203 of the peripheral wall portion 201.

[0057] (Fourth embodiment) A mounting structure 300 according to a fourth embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 9. The mounting structure 300 according to the fourth embodiment differs from the mounting structure 10 according to the first embodiment only in the shape of the peripheral wall portion 301. Differences from the first embodiment will be described below. Elements that are the same as or similar to those in the first embodiment will be given the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations will be omitted.

[0058] The peripheral wall portion 301 has a front wall portion 303 that is disposed forward of the optical axis A of the lens 15 in a plan view, and a rear wall portion 302 that is disposed rearward of the optical axis A of the lens 15 in a plan view. In a plan view, the front wall portion 303 and the rear wall portion 302 are curved in an arc shape toward the exterior of the vehicle. The radius of curvature of the rear wall portion 302 of the peripheral wall portion 301 is larger than the radius of curvature of the front wall portion 303 of the peripheral wall portion 301. This allows, with a simple configuration, the exterior end portion 303A of the front wall portion 303 to be positioned further outward than the exterior end portion 302A of the rear wall portion 302. This makes it possible to suppress wind noise caused by wind while the vehicle is traveling.

[0059] Although the description of the specific embodiments has been completed above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and can be widely modified and implemented. In the first embodiment, one protrusion 31 is provided on the front wall 29, but, for example, multiple protrusions 31 may be arranged at intervals. Also, in the first embodiment, the protrusion 31 is rod-shaped, but the shape of the protrusion 31 is not particularly limited, and, for example, the protrusion 31 may be formed in a hemispherical shape. [Explanation of symbols]

[0060] 1: Vehicle 2: Superstructure (roof) 10, 100, 200, 300: Mounting structure 12: Imaging device 13: Housing 15: Lens 21, 201, 301: Peripheral wall part 29, 202, 303: Front wall 29A, 202A, 303A: The outer edge of the front wall 30, 203, 302: Rear wall 30A, 203A, 302A: Outer end of rear wall 31, 101: Convex part A: Optical axis of the lens D1: 1st plane D2: 2nd plane

Claims

1. A mounting structure for an imaging device, an imaging device mounted on the roof of a vehicle; a housing that accommodates at least a portion of the imaging device, the imaging device has a lens facing forward and outward to the left and right of the vehicle; the housing has a peripheral wall portion disposed on an outer periphery of the lens, The peripheral wall portion is a front wall portion disposed forward of an optical axis of the lens in a plan view; a rear wall portion disposed rearward of the optical axis of the lens in a plan view, When the direction parallel to the optical axis of the lens toward the front and left and right of the vehicle is defined as the outboard direction, and the tip side in the outboard direction is defined as the outside of the vehicle, the outboard end of the front wall portion is positioned further outboard than the outboard end of the rear wall portion in a plan view.

2. The mounting structure for an imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the front wall portion is formed with a convex portion that protrudes toward the exterior of the vehicle.

3. The mounting structure for an imaging device according to claim 2 , wherein the convex portion is curved in an arc shape around the optical axis of the lens when viewed from outside the vehicle.

4. The mounting structure for an imaging device according to claim 2 , wherein the protrusion extends linearly in the vertical direction when viewed from the vehicle exterior.

5. The mounting structure for an imaging device according to claim 4 , wherein a front surface of the convex portion is curved so as to be convex rearward in a plan view.

6. The mounting structure for an imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the peripheral wall portion projects in an annular shape toward the vehicle exterior around the optical axis of the lens.

7. In a plan view, the front wall portion and the rear wall portion are curved in an arc shape toward the vehicle exterior side, The mounting structure for an imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the radius of curvature of the rear wall portion is larger than the radius of curvature of the front wall portion.

8. 7. The mounting structure for an imaging device according to claim 1, wherein a plane that is perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens and that passes through the end of the front wall portion on the vehicle exterior side is defined as a first plane, and a plane that is perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens and that passes through the end of the rear wall portion on the vehicle exterior side is defined as a second plane, and the first plane is located closer to the vehicle exterior side than the second plane.

Images