Vehicle sensor mounting structure

Abstract

To provide a sensor fitting structure for a vehicle which protects a bolt used when attaching a sensor to a roof corresponding to the magnitude of the load at the time of collision of the vehicle.SOLUTION: A sensor fitting structure for a vehicle comprises: a sensor 14 arranged on an upper side of a roof 12 and detecting outside environment of a vehicle 10; and a bracket 16 including a roof stationary part 22 which is fixed to the roof 12, a bolt fastening part 24 which is fastened with the sensor 14 by a bolt 20. The bracket 16 has a shape expanding in a vehicle width direction as going to a front side from the bolt fastening part 24 in a vehicle front-back direction, and has a notch part 26 extending from a front edge to a rear side at an inner side in the vehicle width direction relative to the bolt fastening part 24.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an attachment structure for sensors mounted on a vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] In a structure for attaching a sensor for detecting the external environment to the roof of a vehicle, a structure is required that can prevent deformation of the roof and detachment of the sensor from the roof during a vehicle collision, and further, does not reduce the detection accuracy of the sensor. Therefore, various techniques regarding the attachment position and attachment structure of sensors have been proposed conventionally.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle sensor device that can move a sensor to the end side of the roof by a movable mechanism. This vehicle sensor device is capable of detecting a region according to the driving state of the vehicle while suppressing the occurrence of dead angles in the sensor.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Incidentally, when a heavy sensor is mounted on the roof, for example, in the event of a frontal collision (hereinafter referred to as "frontal collision"), the sensor's inertial force is generated forward, causing it to detach from the roof. In particular, in the case of a collision that inflicts a large impact on the vehicle (hereinafter referred to as "major collision"), the sensor may detach from the roof, and furthermore, it may become difficult to reuse the vehicle. To prevent such detachment, countermeasures can be taken, such as increasing the number of fastening points to secure the sensor or increasing the number of bolts used to secure the sensor. However, such countermeasures may lead to increased material costs and mass.

[0006] Furthermore, to prevent the sensor from falling off the roof, there are structures that protect the bolts fastened to the sensor. For example, there are structures that deform the bracket used to attach the sensor to the roof in advance to absorb the impact, so that the bolt does not break during a vehicle collision (i.e., to reduce the load on the bolt during the collision). However, even when such a configuration is adopted, the bracket needs to have a certain degree of rigidity. In particular, in collisions that occur when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds, the impact on the vehicle is relatively small (hereinafter referred to as "minor collisions"), so it is better if the impact can be absorbed by the rigidity of the bracket without deforming it. In other words, a structure is desired in which the method of protecting the bolts used to mount the sensor to the roof is appropriate according to the magnitude of the load applied during a vehicle collision.

[0007] Therefore, this specification provides a vehicle sensor mounting structure that protects the bolts used when mounting sensors on the roof, corresponding to the magnitude of the load applied during a vehicle collision. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The vehicle sensor mounting structure disclosed herein comprises a bracket having a sensor provided above the roof for detecting the external environment of the vehicle, a roof fixing portion fixed to the roof, and a bolt fastening portion fastened to the sensor by bolts, wherein the bracket has a shape that widens in the vehicle width direction as it extends forward in the vehicle longitudinal direction from the bolt fastening portion, and has a notch that extends from the front end toward the rearward direction toward the inside of the vehicle width direction toward the bolt fastening portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the vehicle sensor mounting structure disclosed herein, the bracket has a shape that widens in the vehicle width direction as it extends forward, so that in the event of a frontal collision or minor collision, the widened portion can absorb the impact. Furthermore, in the event of an oblique collision or minor collision, the load is concentrated on the outside of the vehicle, but the portion of the bracket without a notch and the front portion that widens in the vehicle width direction can absorb the impact on the outside. In other words, the bracket can be made rigid enough to withstand the input load during a minor collision.

[0010] Furthermore, in the event of a frontal collision or a major impact, stress can be concentrated at the notch in the bracket, causing the bracket to deform before the bolt breaks. In other words, the bolt fastened to the sensor is protected, and as a result, the sensor can be prevented from falling off the roof. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This is a schematic plan view of a vehicle to which the vehicle sensor mounting structure according to the embodiment is applied. [Figure 2] This is a schematic side view of Figure 1. [Figure 3] This is a plan view of the bracket. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] The vehicle sensor mounting structure will be described below with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, "Fr," "Up," and "Rh" indicate the front, top, and right side of the vehicle, respectively.

[0013] Figure 1 is a schematic plan view of a vehicle to which the vehicle sensor mounting structure according to the embodiment is applied. More specifically, Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing the front portion of the upper surface of the roof 12 of the vehicle 10. In this example, the vehicle 10 to which the vehicle sensor mounting structure according to the embodiment is applied is an autonomous driving vehicle. A sensor 14 is mounted on the vehicle 10 above the roof 12, which is provided above the passenger compartment. Although detailed illustrations are omitted, the sensor 14 has a sensor cover and a group of sensors for autonomous driving inside the sensor cover. The group of sensors consists of multiple sensors that detect the external environment of the vehicle 10. Autonomous driving is performed by a control device (not shown) of the vehicle 10 controlling the driving using various information detected by the group of sensors.

[0014] As shown in Figure 1, a bracket 16 is positioned below the sensor 14 on the vehicle 10. In this example, four brackets 16 are shown as hidden lines with dashed lines, but the number is not limited to this. The vehicle sensor mounting structure according to this embodiment, including the brackets 16, will be further explained with reference to Figure 2.

[0015] Figure 2 is a schematic side view of Figure 1. Figure 2 is a partial side view of the vehicle 10 as seen from the left. Figure 2 shows the two left brackets 16 of the four brackets 16 that are fixed to the roof 12 and fastened to the sensor 14. The sensor 14 is supported by a frame 18 fixed to its underside. That is, as shown in Figure 2, the sensor 14 is supported by a roughly rectangular plate-shaped main body of the frame 18 and columnar parts protruding from the four corners of the main body. Through holes (not shown) are formed in the main body of the frame 18 through which bolts 20 pass. The sensor 14 and the brackets 16 are fastened together by the bolts 20 passing through the frame 18 and a part of the bracket 16 that is fixed to the sensor 14.

[0016] Next, with reference to Figure 3, the details of the bracket 16 and the mounting of the sensor 14 to the roof 12 using the bracket 16 will be described. Figure 3 is a plan view of the bracket. The area enclosed by the dashed line in Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view AA of the bracket 16 shown in Figure 3. The bracket 16 has a roof fixing portion 22 that is fixed to the roof 12 and a bolt fastening portion 24 that is fastened to the sensor 14 by bolts 20. More specifically, as shown in Figure 3, the bracket 16 is composed of a roughly rectangular plate-shaped central portion on which the bolt fastening portion 24 is provided, and a front portion and a rear portion that extend diagonally downward from the front and rear of the central portion and bend near the end to form the roof fixing portion 22.

[0017] The bracket 16 has a shape that widens in the vehicle width direction as it extends forward from the bolt fastening portion 24. Furthermore, the bracket 16 has a notch 26 extending rearward from its front end, located inward in the vehicle width direction from the bolt fastening portion 24. The widening towards the front increases the area of ​​the bracket 16 that can be fixed to the roof 12. Therefore, the bracket 16 can have sufficient rigidity to withstand input loads during minor collisions. Additionally, in the event of a major frontal collision, stress can be concentrated at the notch 26. As a result, before a load is applied to the bolt 20 (i.e., before a load strong enough to cause fracture is applied to the bolt 20), the bracket 16 deforms so that the notch 26 opens. This protects the bolt 20 fastened to the sensor 14, and consequently prevents the sensor 14 from falling off the roof 12.

[0018] It should be noted that the above description is merely an example, and in the vehicle sensor mounting structure disclosed herein, the bracket fixed to the roof and fastened to the sensor by bolts may have a shape that widens in the vehicle width direction as it moves forward, and may have a notch that extends from the front end toward the rear on the inside in the vehicle width direction from the bolt fastening portion. Therefore, other components of the vehicle sensor mounting structure may be modified as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0019] 10 Vehicle, 12 Roof, 14 Sensor, 16 Bracket, 18 Mounting frame, 20 Bolt, 22 Roof fixing part, 24 Bolt fastening part, 26 Notch.

Claims

[Claim 1] A sensor located on the roof detects the external environment of the vehicle, A bracket having a roof fixing portion fixed to the roof and a bolt fastening portion fastened to the sensor by bolts, Equipped with, The aforementioned bracket is The shape widens in the vehicle width direction as it moves forward in the vehicle's longitudinal direction from the bolt fastening portion. It has a notch that extends from the front end toward the rear, located on the inside in the vehicle width direction from the bolt fastening portion, A vehicle sensor mounting structure characterized by the following features.

Images