Manufacturing method for vehicle parts and heater modules

Abstract

To provide a vehicle component capable of efficiently heating a surface, and a method of manufacturing a heater module.SOLUTION: A vehicle component comprises a base material 15 and a heater module 16 provided on the rear side of the base material 15. The heater module 16 has a heater wire 17 which is electrified to generate heat. The surface area of a first surface 20 of the heater wire 17 on the side of the base material 15 is larger than that of a second surface 21 of the heater wire 17 on the opposite side from the base material 15.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle component having a heater module and a method for manufacturing the heater module.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as this type of vehicle component, for example, a radome for an in-vehicle radar device shown in Patent Document 1 is known. Such a vehicle component has a structure in which a base material layer, a decorative layer, and a heater layer are laminated in order from the surface side. The heater element constituting the heater layer is formed of, for example, a nichrome wire or the like.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, in the vehicle component as described above, a nichrome wire or the like forming the heater element usually has a circular cross-sectional shape. Therefore, when the heater element is energized, heat is released almost evenly from the heater layer. Therefore, the amount of heat released from the heater layer is almost the same on the front surface side and the back surface side of the vehicle component.

[0005] And in the vehicle component as described above, the heat released from the heater layer is for melting the ice and snow adhering to the surface of the base material layer that is the surface of the vehicle component. Therefore, the heat released from the heater layer to the back surface side of the vehicle component is wasted. Therefore, there is room for improvement in efficiently heating the surface of the vehicle component.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The following describes various forms of vehicle components designed to solve the above problems. [Aspect 1] A vehicle part comprising a base material and a heater module provided on the front or back side of the base material, wherein the heater module has a heater wire that generates heat when energized, and the side of the heater wire opposite to the base material side when the heater module is provided on the front side of the base material and the side of the heater wire on the base material side when the heater module is provided on the back side of the base material are designated as a first surface, the side of the heater wire on the base material side when the heater module is provided on the front side of the base material and the side of the heater wire opposite to the base material side when the heater module is provided on the back side of the base material are designated as a second surface, and the surface area of ​​the first surface is larger than the surface area of ​​the second surface.

[0007] According to the above configuration, the surface area of ​​the first surface of the heater wire is larger than the surface area of ​​the second surface, so the amount of heat released by the heater wire is greater on the first surface side than on the second surface side. Therefore, heat from the heater wire can be efficiently supplied to the surface side of the vehicle component. Consequently, the surface of the vehicle component can be heated efficiently.

[0008] [Aspect 2] The vehicle part according to [Aspect 1], characterized in that the ratio of the unfolded area Sdr of the first surface to the second surface is 10% or more. According to the above configuration, the amount of heat released from the first side of the heater wire can be made greater than the amount of heat released from the second side.

[0009] [Aspect 3] The vehicle part according to [Aspect 1] or [Aspect 2], characterized in that the arithmetic mean roughness Sa of the first surface is 0.15 μm or more. According to the above configuration, the amount of heat released from the first side of the heater wire can be made greater than the amount of heat released from the second side.

[0010] [Aspect 4] A method for manufacturing a heater module, which is provided on a vehicle part having a base material, and which has a heater wire provided on the front or back side of the base material and which generates heat when an electric current is passed through it, wherein the surface of the heater wire opposite to the base material side when the heater module is provided on the front side of the base material and the surface of the heater wire on the base material side when the heater module is provided on the back side of the base material are designated as a first surface, the surface of the heater wire on the base material side when the heater module is provided on the front side of the base material and the surface of the heater wire opposite to the base material side when the heater module is provided on the back side of the base material are designated as a second surface, and the method for manufacturing a heater module is characterized by comprising a heater wire forming step of forming the heater wire having irregularities on the first surface by depositing metal using a plating solution that does not have leveling properties.

[0011] According to the above method, a heater wire with irregularities on the first surface can be formed using the plating itself (deposited metal). Therefore, since there is no need to form irregularities on the first surface in a subsequent process, a heater wire with a larger surface area on the first surface than on the second surface can be easily manufactured. Consequently, heater modules can be easily manufactured. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] This invention has the effect of efficiently heating the surface of vehicle parts. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0013] [Figure 1] This is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a millimeter-wave transmission cover in one embodiment. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the manufacturing process of a heater module. [Figure 3] This graph compares the relationship between energization time and temperature between the first and second surfaces of a heater wire formed by copper plating. [Figure 4]This graph compares the relationship between energization time and temperature between the first and second surfaces of a heater wire formed by nickel plating. [Figure 5] This graph shows the relationship between the arithmetic mean roughness Sa on the first surface of the heater wire and the heating characteristics when the second surface is set to 1. [Figure 6] This graph shows the relationship between the development area ratio Sdr of the first surface of the heater wire relative to the second surface, and the heating characteristics when the second surface is set to 1. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0014] The following describes one embodiment of a millimeter-wave transmitting cover as a vehicle component, with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the forward direction of the vehicle will be referred to as "forward," and the reverse direction as "rear."

[0015] As shown in Figure 1, a millimeter-wave radar device 12 for forward monitoring is mounted on the front end of the vehicle 11 as an example of a radar device that transmits and receives electromagnetic waves. The millimeter-wave radar device 12 has the function of transmitting millimeter waves in electromagnetic waves toward the front outside the vehicle and receiving millimeter waves that have hit objects outside the vehicle and been reflected. Millimeter waves are radio waves with a wavelength of 1 mm to 10 mm and a frequency of 30 GHz to 300 GHz.

[0016] As described above, since the millimeter-wave radar device 12 transmits millimeter waves toward the front of the vehicle 11, the direction of transmission of millimeter waves by the millimeter-wave radar device 12 is from the rear to the front of the vehicle 11. The front in the direction of transmission of millimeter waves roughly coincides with the front of the vehicle 11, and the rear in the direction of transmission of millimeter waves roughly coincides with the rear of the vehicle 11. For this reason, in the following description, the front in the direction of transmission of millimeter waves will be simply referred to as "front," "forward," etc., and the rear in the direction of transmission of millimeter waves will be simply referred to as "rear," "back," etc.

[0017] <Millimeter-wave transparent cover 13> As shown in FIG. 1, in front of the millimeter-wave radar device 12, a plate-shaped millimeter-wave transmission cover 13, which is an example of a vehicle part, is arranged. The millimeter-wave transmission cover 13 is applied to, for example, the emblem or front grille of the vehicle 11. The millimeter-wave transmission cover 13 is arranged in an upright state such that the front surface, which is the surface, faces the front of the vehicle 11 and the rear surface, which is the back surface, faces the rear of the vehicle 11. The front surface of the millimeter-wave transmission cover 13 constitutes the design surface 14 of the millimeter-wave transmission cover 13. The millimeter-wave transmission cover 13 includes a base material 15 and a plate-shaped heater module 16 provided on the rear surface side, which is the back side of the base material 15.

[0018] <Base material 15> As shown in FIG. 1, the base material 15 is formed into a plate shape by, for example, injection molding using a synthetic resin material having millimeter-wave transmissivity. The front surface, which is the surface of the base material 15, constitutes the front surface of the millimeter-wave transmission cover 13, that is, the design surface 14 of the millimeter-wave transmission cover 13. The synthetic resin material used for forming the base material 15 may be transparent or opaque.

[0019] The synthetic resin material used for forming the base material 15 is, for example, polypropylene (PP) resin, polycarbonate (PC) resin, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer (ABS) resin, acrylonitrile-ethylene-propylene-diene-styrene (AES) resin, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) resin, acrylonitrile-styrene-acrylate copolymer (ASA) resin, PMMA resin containing ASA resin, and the like.

[0020] <Heater module 16> As shown in FIG. 1, the heater module 16 is arranged adjacent to the rear surface, which is the back surface of the base material 15. The heater module 16 includes a heater wire 17 and a pair of films 18 that hold the heater wire 17 therebetween. The heater wire 17 is formed in a strip shape by a metal such as copper or nickel.

[0021] The heater wire 17 is wired to form a predetermined pattern between a pair of films 18. The heater wire 17 is electrically connected to a power supply circuit 19. The heater wire 17 generates heat when energized by the power supply circuit 19. The side of the heater wire 17 facing the base material 15 is designated as the first surface 20. The side of the heater wire 17 opposite to the base material 15 is designated as the second surface 21.

[0022] The first surface 20 is composed of an uneven surface with numerous bumps and dips. The second surface 21 is composed of a flat surface. Therefore, the surface area of ​​the first surface 20 is larger than the surface area of ​​the second surface 21. The unfolded area ratio Sdr of the first surface 20 to the second surface 21 is set to be 10% or more. The unfolded area ratio Sdr is a parameter measured in accordance with ISO 25178 that represents how much the unfolded area (surface area) of the defined region increases relative to the area of ​​the defined region.

[0023] Surface 1, 20, is set so that its arithmetic mean roughness Sa is 0.15 μm or greater. Arithmetic mean roughness Sa is a value representing the height parameter measured in accordance with ISO 25178.

[0024] The pair of films 18 are heat-resistant. The pair of films 18 are made of, for example, polyimide film. The pair of films 18 protect and insulate the heater wire 17.

[0025] <Manufacturing method for heater module 16> As shown in Figure 2, the heater module 16 is manufactured by sequentially going through a heater wire formation process and a joining process.

[0026] <Heater wire formation process> In the heater wire formation process, a heater wire 17 with irregularities on the first surface 20 is formed by depositing plated metal using a plating solution (electrolyte) that does not have leveling properties. Specifically, a direct current is passed through the plated metal, which is the anode, and the metal to be plated, which is the cathode, while they are immersed in the plating solution. As a result, at the anode, the plated metal dissolves into the plating solution due to an oxidation reaction, and at the cathode, the plated metal is deposited and grows into a plating film due to a reduction reaction.

[0027] At this time, the shape of the metal to be plated, which is the cathode, is set so that the plating film is formed in a predetermined pattern to become the heater wire 17. Furthermore, since the plating solution does not have leveling properties, a large number of irregularities are formed on one surface of the plating film that will become the first surface 20 of the heater wire 17. That is, a heater wire 17 having a first surface 20 composed of irregularities is formed on the surface of the metal to be plated, which is the cathode. In this case, it is preferable to include an additive in the plating solution beforehand to facilitate the formation of irregularities on one surface of the plating film.

[0028] <Joining process> In the joining process, first, a pair of films 18 are prepared. Next, the heater wire 17 formed on the surface of the plated metal, which is the cathode, in the heater wire formation process described above is transferred onto one of the films 18, and the other film 18 is placed on top of the heater wire 17. This results in the heater wire 17 being sandwiched between the pair of films 18. After that, the heater wire 17 sandwiched between the pair of films 18 is heat-pressed. This causes the pair of films 18 to weld and join together, thereby obtaining the heater module 16.

[0029] The heater module 16 obtained in this manner is joined to the rear surface (back surface) of the base material 15 such that the first surface 20 side of the heater wire 17 faces the base material 15. This forms the millimeter-wave transparent cover 13. In this case, the joining of the base material 15 and the heater module 16 may be done by insert molding of the base material 15 with the heater module 16 as an insert, or by using a millimeter-wave transparent adhesive or double-sided adhesive tape.

[0030] <Function of millimeter-wave transmission cover 13> The millimeter-wave radar system 12 performs object recognition and detection of the distance and relative speed between the object and the vehicle 11 based on transmitted and received millimeter waves. However, if ice and snow adhere to the design surface 14 of the millimeter-wave transparent cover 13, the millimeter waves transmitted and received by the millimeter-wave radar system 12 are attenuated, which reduces the detection performance of the millimeter-wave radar system 12.

[0031] Therefore, when ice or snow adheres to the design surface 14 of the millimeter-wave transmitting cover 13, the heater wire 17 is energized by the power supply circuit 19. As a result, the heater wire 17 generates heat due to the energization by the power supply circuit 19. At this time, since the surface area of ​​the first surface 20 of the heater wire 17 is larger than the surface area of ​​the second surface 21, the following occurs.

[0032] Figure 3 is a graph comparing the relationship between energizing time and temperature between the first surface 20 and the second surface 21 of a heater wire 17 formed by copper plating. Figure 4 is a graph comparing the relationship between energizing time and temperature between the first surface 20 and the second surface 21 of a heater wire 17 formed by nickel plating. In both graphs, Figure 3 and Figure 4, it can be seen that the temperature of the first surface 20 is higher than that of the second surface 21.

[0033] Furthermore, Figure 5 is a graph showing the relationship between the arithmetic mean roughness Sa of the first surface 20 of the heater wire 17 and the heating characteristics (ease of temperature increase) when the second surface 21 is set to 1. From the graph in Figure 5, it can be seen that if the arithmetic mean roughness Sa of the first surface 20 is 0.15 μm or more, the heating characteristics of the first surface 20 improve by approximately 1.5 to 1.8 times compared to the heating characteristics of the second surface 21.

[0034] Furthermore, Figure 6 is a graph showing the relationship between the undeveloped area ratio Sdr of the first surface 20 of the heater wire 17 and the heating characteristics (ease of temperature increase) when the second surface 21 is set to 1. From the graph in Figure 6, it can be seen that if the undeveloped area ratio Sdr of the first surface 20 to the second surface 21 is 10% or more, the heating characteristics of the first surface 20 improve by approximately 1.5 to 1.8 times compared to the heating characteristics of the second surface 21.

[0035] Therefore, the amount of heat emitted by the heater wire 17 is significantly greater on the substrate 15 side (first surface 20 side) than on the opposite side of the substrate 15 (second surface 21 side). As a result, most of the heat emitted from the heater wire 17 is transferred to the design surface 14 of the millimeter-wave transmitting cover 13, which is the front surface of the substrate 15. In other words, the design surface 14 is efficiently heated by the heat emitted from the heater wire 17. This causes ice and snow adhering to the design surface 14 to melt quickly, thereby suppressing the attenuation of millimeter waves due to ice and snow. As a result, the detection performance of the millimeter-wave radar device 12 is maintained.

[0036] <Effects of the Embodiment> According to the embodiments described in detail above, the following effects are achieved. (1) In the millimeter-wave transmitting cover 13, the surface area of ​​the first surface 20, which is the side of the heater wire 17 facing the substrate 15, is larger than the surface area of ​​the second surface 21, which is the side of the heater wire 17 facing the substrate 15.

[0037] According to the above configuration, the amount of heat emitted by the heater wire 17 is greater on the first surface 20 side than on the second surface 21 side. Therefore, the substrate 15 located on the surface side of the millimeter-wave transparent cover 13 can be efficiently heated by the heater wire 17. Consequently, the surface of the millimeter-wave transparent cover 13 can be efficiently heated.

[0038] (2) In the millimeter-wave transmitting cover 13, the Sdr ratio of the unfolded area of ​​the first surface 20 to the second surface 21 is 10% or more. With the above configuration, as can be seen from the graph in Figure 6, the amount of heat released from the first surface 20 side of the heater wire 17 can be made greater than the amount of heat released from the second surface 21 side.

[0039] (3) In the millimeter-wave transmission cover 13, the arithmetic mean roughness Sa of the first surface 20 is 0.15 μm or more. With the above configuration, as can be seen from the graph in Figure 5, the amount of heat released from the first surface 20 side of the heater wire 17 can be made greater than the amount of heat released from the second surface 21 side.

[0040] (4) The method for manufacturing the heater module 16 includes a heater wire forming step in which a heater wire 17 having irregularities on the first surface 20 is formed by depositing metal using a plating solution that does not have leveling properties.

[0041] According to the above method, a heater wire 17 with irregularities on the first surface 20 can be formed by the plating itself (deposited metal). Therefore, since there is no need to form irregularities on the first surface 20 in a subsequent process, a heater wire 17 in which the surface area of ​​the first surface 20 is larger than the surface area of ​​the second surface 21 can be easily manufactured. Consequently, a heater module 16 can be easily manufactured.

[0042] <Example of changes> The above embodiment can be implemented with the following modifications. Furthermore, the above embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that they do not contradict each other technically.

[0043] The heater module 16 may be provided on the front side of the base material 15, which is the surface side. In this case, the heater module 16 is arranged such that the first surface 20 of the heater wire 17 is on the side opposite to the base material 15, and the second surface 21 of the heater wire 17 is on the side facing the base material 15.

[0044] The arithmetic mean roughness Sa of the first surface 20 of the heater wire 17 does not necessarily have to be 0.15 μm or greater. • In the heater wire 17, the ratio of the unfolded area of ​​the first surface 20 to the second surface 21, Sdr, does not necessarily have to be 10% or more.

[0045] At least one of the pair of films 18 may be omitted. The heater wire 17 may be made of, for example, a metal wire with a circular or polygonal cross-section. In the manufacturing method of the heater module 16, the heater wire 17 may be formed by placing a film 18 on the surface of the plated metal which is the cathode, thereby directly depositing the plated metal onto the film 18.

[0046] The vehicle component is not limited to the millimeter-wave transmitting cover 13; it may also be an infrared transmitting cover that transmits infrared rays, or a rear window. The millimeter-wave radar device 12, which transmits and receives millimeter waves (electromagnetic waves) for detecting objects outside the vehicle, may be used for rearward monitoring as well as forward monitoring.

[0047] The radar device may also be an infrared radar device that transmits and receives infrared (electromagnetic) waves. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0048] 11…Vehicles 12…Millimeter-wave radar equipment 13. Millimeter-wave transparent cover as an example of a vehicle component. 14…Design surface 15...Base material 16… Heater module 17… Heater wire 18…film 19…Power supply circuit 20… Page 1 21… Page 2

Claims

1. A vehicle component comprising a base material and a heater module provided on the front or back side of the base material, The heater module has a heater wire that generates heat when electricity is applied, When the heater module is provided on the surface side of the substrate, the side of the heater wire opposite to the substrate side, and when the heater module is provided on the back side of the substrate, the side of the heater wire facing the substrate, are designated as the first surface. When the heater module is provided on the surface side of the substrate, the surface of the heater wire facing the substrate, and when the heater module is provided on the back side of the substrate, the surface of the heater wire opposite to the substrate side, are designated as the second surface. The surface area of ​​the first surface is larger than the surface area of ​​the second surface. The heater wire has an uneven surface on its first surface. A vehicle component characterized by the following features.

2. The vehicle part according to claim 1, characterized in that the ratio of the unfolded area Sdr of the first surface to the second surface is 10% or more.

3. The vehicle part according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the arithmetic mean roughness Sa of the first surface is 0.15 μm or more.

4. A method for manufacturing a heater module, which is provided on a vehicle component having a base material, and which has a heater wire provided on the surface or back side of the base material and which generates heat when an electric current is passed through it, When the heater module is provided on the surface side of the substrate, the side of the heater wire opposite to the substrate side, and when the heater module is provided on the back side of the substrate, the side of the heater wire facing the substrate, are designated as the first surface. When the heater module is provided on the surface side of the substrate, the surface of the heater wire facing the substrate, and when the heater module is provided on the back side of the substrate, the surface of the heater wire opposite to the substrate side, are designated as the second surface. A method for manufacturing a heater module, characterized by comprising a heater wire forming step, in which the heater wire having irregularities on the first surface is formed by depositing metal using a plating solution that does not have leveling properties.

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