Sensor system and cleaner

Abstract

This sensor system comprises a sensor (6f) and a cleaner (103) that is capable of cleaning a to-be-cleaned surface (132) of the sensor (6f). The cleaner (103) has a nozzle (121) that is equipped with a jet orifice (123) through which a cleaning medium is sprayed onto the to-be-cleaned surface (132). When the sensor (6f) is operating, the nozzle (121) is capable of turning about the rotation axis (122) extending along a given direction that is other than the plane-orthogonal direction (V) of the to-be-cleaned surface (132).

Description

Sensor System and Cleaner

[0001] The present disclosure relates to sensor systems.

[0002] The present disclosure also relates to a cleaner.

[0003] A headlamp cleaner for a vehicle is known from, for example, Patent Document 1.

[0004] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2016-187990

[0005] Recently, efforts have been made to develop autonomous vehicles. To achieve autonomous driving, it is necessary to maintain the sensitivity of various sensors, such as LiDAR. Therefore, there is a demand for a sensor cleaner that can clean the sensors and remove foreign matter adhering to the sensors.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a sensor system equipped with a cleaner that can effectively clean a sensor with a small amount of cleaning medium.

[0007] Another object of the present disclosure is to provide a cleaner that can effectively clean a sensor using a movable nozzle.

[0008] In order to achieve at least one of the above-mentioned objects, a sensor system according to one aspect of the present disclosure comprises: a sensor; and a cleaner capable of cleaning a surface of the sensor to be cleaned, wherein the cleaner has a nozzle with an injection port for injecting a cleaning medium onto the surface to be cleaned, and when the cleaner is in an operating state, the nozzle is rotatable around a rotation axis extending along a predetermined direction that is not perpendicular to the surface of the surface to be cleaned.

[0009] In order to achieve at least one of the above-mentioned objects, a cleaner according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a cleaner having a movable nozzle with a plurality of spray nozzles for spraying a cleaning medium onto a surface of a sensor to be cleaned, wherein the movable nozzle has an internal structure that can switch between opening and closing the plurality of spray nozzles in accordance with the movement of at least a portion of the movable nozzle.

[0010] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a sensor system equipped with a cleaner that can effectively clean a sensor with a small amount of cleaning medium.

[0011] Furthermore, according to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a cleaner that can effectively clean a sensor using a movable nozzle.

[0012] 1 is a top view of a vehicle equipped with a sensor system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a vehicle system incorporating the sensor system of FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a cleaner unit according to a first embodiment equipped with the sensor system of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a front view showing a sensor (front LiDAR) and a nozzle of a cleaner (front SC) according to the first embodiment equipped with the sensor system of FIG. 3. FIG. 4 is a side view of the sensor and cleaner nozzle shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a change in the position of the jet orifice when the cleaner nozzle rotates. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a change in the position of the jet orifice when the cleaner nozzle rotates. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a specific example of the sensor and cleaner nozzle shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a cleaner system according to a second embodiment equipped with the sensor system of FIG. 1. FIG. 8 is a diagram explaining the configuration and operation of a nozzle according to the second embodiment, which is provided in the cleaner included in the cleaner system of FIG. 3. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view explaining the internal structure of the nozzle shown in FIG. 9. FIG. 10 is a diagram explaining the opening and closing of the jet orifice of the nozzle shown in FIG. 10. FIG. 11 is a diagram explaining the opening and closing of the jet orifice of the nozzle shown in FIG. 11. FIG. 12 is a diagram explaining the opening and closing of the jet orifice of the nozzle shown in FIG. 12. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the opening and closing of the nozzle port shown in FIG. 9. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a nozzle according to a first modified example of the second embodiment. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a nozzle according to a second modified example of the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the internal structure of a nozzle according to a third embodiment. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the spraying of a cleaning medium in the nozzle shown in FIG. 14. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating the spraying of a cleaning medium in the nozzle shown in FIG. 14. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating the spraying of a cleaning medium in the nozzle shown in FIG. 14. FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating the spraying of a cleaning medium in the nozzle shown in FIG. 14. FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating the spraying of a cleaning medium in the nozzle shown in FIG. 14. FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating the internal structure of a nozzle according to a fourth embodiment.

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. For the sake of convenience, descriptions of components having the same reference numerals as those already described in the description of the embodiments will be omitted. Furthermore, for the sake of convenience, the dimensions of each component shown in the drawings may differ from the actual dimensions of each component.

[0014] Furthermore, in the description of an embodiment of the present disclosure (hereinafter referred to as the present embodiment), for convenience of explanation, the terms "left-right direction," "front-rear direction," and "up-down direction" will be referred to as appropriate. These directions are relative directions set for the vehicle 1 shown in FIG. 1 . Here, the "up-down direction" is a direction that includes the "upward direction" and the "downward direction." The "front-rear direction" is a direction that includes the "forward direction" and the "rearward direction." The "left-right direction" is a direction that includes the "leftward direction" and the "rightward direction."

[0015] 1 is a top view of a vehicle 1 equipped with a sensor system 100 according to this embodiment. The vehicle 1 is an automobile capable of running in an autonomous driving mode in which vehicle driving control is performed automatically. The vehicle 1 is equipped with a sensor system 100 for cleaning objects (e.g., on-board sensors, various lamps, windshields, etc.) installed outside the vehicle cabin.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a vehicle system 2 incorporating a sensor system 100. First, the vehicle system 2 of the vehicle 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle system 2 includes a vehicle control unit 3, an internal sensor 5, an external sensor 6, lamps 7, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 8, a GPS (Global Positioning System) 9, a wireless communication unit 10, and a map information storage unit 11. The vehicle system 2 further includes a steering actuator 12, a steering device 13, a brake actuator 14, a brake device 15, an accelerator actuator 16, and an accelerator device 17. The sensor system 100, which includes a cleaner control unit 113 and a sensor control unit 114, is communicatively connected to the vehicle control unit 3 of the vehicle system 2.

[0017] The vehicle control unit 3 is configured with an electronic control unit (ECU). The vehicle control unit 3 is configured with a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory) in which various vehicle control programs are stored, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) in which various vehicle control data are temporarily stored. The processor is configured to load a program specified from the various vehicle control programs stored in the ROM onto the RAM and execute various processes in cooperation with the RAM. The vehicle control unit 3 is configured to control the driving of the vehicle 1.

[0018] The internal sensor 5 is a sensor capable of acquiring information about the vehicle itself. The internal sensor 5 is, for example, at least one of an acceleration sensor, a speed sensor, a wheel speed sensor, a gyro sensor, etc. The internal sensor 5 is configured to acquire information about the vehicle itself, including the running state of the vehicle 1, and output the information to the vehicle control unit 3. The internal sensor 5 may include a seating sensor that detects whether the driver is sitting in the driver's seat, a face direction sensor that detects the direction of the driver's face, a human presence sensor that detects whether there is a person in the vehicle, etc.

[0019] The external sensor 6 is a sensor capable of acquiring information about the outside of the vehicle. The external sensor is, for example, at least one of a camera, a radar, a LiDAR, etc. The external sensor 6 is configured to acquire information about the outside of the vehicle 1, including the surrounding environment of the vehicle 1 (other vehicles, pedestrians, road shapes, traffic signs, obstacles, etc.), and output the information to the vehicle control unit 3 and the sensor control unit 114. Alternatively, the external sensor 6 may include a weather sensor that detects weather conditions, an illuminance sensor that detects the illuminance of the surrounding environment of the vehicle 1, etc. For example, the camera is a camera that includes an imaging element such as a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor). The camera is a camera that detects visible light, or an infrared camera that detects infrared light. The radar is a millimeter-wave radar, a microwave radar, a laser radar, etc. LiDAR is an abbreviation for Light Detection and Ranging or Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging. LiDAR is a sensor that generally emits invisible light in front of it and acquires information such as the distance to an object, the direction of the object, the shape of the object, and the material of the object based on the emitted light and the returned light.

[0020] The lamp 7 is at least one of a headlamp or a position lamp provided at the front of the vehicle 1, a rear combination lamp provided at the rear of the vehicle 1, a turn signal lamp provided at the front or side of the vehicle, or various other lamps that inform pedestrians and drivers of other vehicles of the vehicle's situation.

[0021] The HMI 8 is composed of an input unit that accepts input operations from the driver and an output unit that outputs driving information, etc. to the driver. The input unit includes a steering wheel, an accelerator pedal, a brake pedal, a driving mode changeover switch that changes the driving mode of the vehicle 1, etc. The output unit is a display that displays various driving information.

[0022] The GPS 9 is configured to acquire current location information of the vehicle 1 and output the acquired current location information to the vehicle control unit 3. The wireless communication unit 10 is configured to receive driving information of other vehicles around the vehicle 1 from the other vehicles and transmit driving information of the vehicle 1 to the other vehicles (vehicle-to-vehicle communication). The wireless communication unit 10 is also configured to receive infrastructure information from infrastructure facilities such as traffic lights and marker lights and transmit driving information of the vehicle 1 to the infrastructure facilities (road-to-vehicle communication). The map information storage unit 11 is an external storage device such as a hard disk drive that stores map information and is configured to output the map information to the vehicle control unit 3.

[0023] When the vehicle 1 is traveling in the autonomous driving mode, the vehicle control unit 3 automatically generates at least one of a steering control signal, an accelerator control signal, and a brake control signal based on traveling state information, surrounding environment information, current position information, map information, etc. The steering actuator 12 is configured to receive the steering control signal from the vehicle control unit 3 and control the steering device 13 based on the received steering control signal. The brake actuator 14 is configured to receive the brake control signal from the vehicle control unit 3 and control the brake device 15 based on the received brake control signal. The accelerator actuator 16 is configured to receive the accelerator control signal from the vehicle control unit 3 and control the accelerator device 17 based on the received accelerator control signal. In this way, in the autonomous driving mode, the traveling of the vehicle 1 is automatically controlled by the vehicle system 2.

[0024] On the other hand, when the vehicle 1 is driven in the manual driving mode, the vehicle control unit 3 generates a steering control signal, an accelerator control signal, and a brake control signal in accordance with the driver's manual operation of the accelerator pedal, the brake pedal, and the steering wheel. In this way, in the manual driving mode, the steering control signal, the accelerator control signal, and the brake control signal are generated by the driver's manual operation, so that the driving of the vehicle 1 is controlled by the driver.

[0025] Next, the driving modes of the vehicle 1 will be described. The driving modes include an automated driving mode and a manual driving mode. The automated driving modes include a fully automated driving mode, an advanced driving assistance mode, and a driving assistance mode. In the fully automated driving mode, the vehicle system 2 automatically performs all driving control, including steering control, braking control, and accelerator control, and the driver is not in a state where he or she can drive the vehicle 1. In the advanced driving assistance mode, the vehicle system 2 automatically performs all driving control, including steering control, braking control, and accelerator control, and the driver is in a state where he or she can drive the vehicle 1 but does not drive the vehicle 1. In the driving assistance mode, the vehicle system 2 automatically performs some driving control, including steering control, braking control, and accelerator control, and the driver drives the vehicle 1 with the driving assistance of the vehicle system 2. On the other hand, in the manual driving mode, the vehicle system 2 does not automatically perform driving control, and the driver drives the vehicle 1 without the driving assistance of the vehicle system 2.

[0026] The driving mode of the vehicle 1 may also be switched by operating a driving mode selector switch. In this case, the vehicle control unit 3 switches the driving mode of the vehicle 1 among four driving modes (fully automated driving mode, advanced driving assistance mode, driving assistance mode, and manual driving mode) in response to the driver's operation of the driving mode selector switch. The driving mode of the vehicle 1 may also be automatically switched based on information about drivable sections where autonomous vehicles are allowed to drive and prohibited sections where autonomous vehicles are prohibited from driving, or information about external weather conditions. In this case, the vehicle control unit 3 switches the driving mode of the vehicle 1 based on this information. Furthermore, the driving mode of the vehicle 1 may also be automatically switched using a seating sensor, a face direction sensor, or the like. In this case, the vehicle control unit 3 switches the driving mode of the vehicle 1 based on output signals from the seating sensor and the face direction sensor.

[0027] Returning to Fig. 1, the sensor system 100 of the vehicle 1 has a front LiDAR 6f, a rear LiDAR 6b, a left LiDAR 6l, and a right LiDAR 6r as external sensors 6. The front LiDAR 6f is configured to acquire information in front of the vehicle 1. The rear LiDAR 6b is configured to acquire information behind the vehicle 1. The left LiDAR 6l is configured to acquire information to the left of the vehicle 1. The right LiDAR 6r is configured to acquire information to the right of the vehicle 1.

[0028] 1 shows an example in which the front LiDAR 6f is provided in the front of the vehicle 1, the rear LiDAR 6b is provided in the rear of the vehicle 1, the left LiDAR 6l is provided in the left of the vehicle 1, and the right LiDAR 6r is provided in the right of the vehicle 1, but the present disclosure is not limited to this example. For example, the front LiDAR, rear LiDAR, left LiDAR, and right LiDAR may be arranged together on the ceiling of the vehicle 1.

[0029] The sensor system 100 also has, as lamps 7, a left headlamp 7l provided on the left side of the front of the vehicle 1 and a right headlamp 7r provided on the right side of the front of the vehicle 1. The sensor system 100 also has, as windshields, a front window 1f and a rear window 1b.

[0030] The sensor system 100 also includes a cleaner unit 110 (described in detail in FIG. 3 ) that removes foreign matter such as water droplets, mud, and dust from an object to be cleaned or prevents foreign matter from adhering to the object to be cleaned. For example, in this embodiment, the cleaner unit 110 includes a front window washer (hereinafter referred to as the front WW) 101 that can clean the front window 1 f and a rear window washer (hereinafter referred to as the rear WW) 102 that can clean the rear window 1 b. The cleaner unit 110 also includes a front sensor cleaner (hereinafter referred to as the front SC) 103 that can clean the front LiDAR 6 f and a rear sensor cleaner (hereinafter referred to as the rear SC) 104 that can clean the rear LiDAR 6 b. The cleaner unit 110 also has a right sensor cleaner (hereinafter referred to as the right SC) 105 that can clean the right LiDAR 6r, and a left sensor cleaner (hereinafter referred to as the left SC) 106 that can clean the left LiDAR 6l. The cleaner unit 110 also has a right headlamp cleaner (hereinafter referred to as the right HC) 107 that can clean the right headlamp 7r, and a left headlamp cleaner (hereinafter referred to as the left HC) 108 that can clean the left headlamp 7l. Each of the cleaners 101 to 108 has one or more nozzles that spray a cleaning medium such as high-pressure air or cleaning liquid toward an object from multiple nozzles provided in the nozzle.

[0031] 3 is a block diagram of a cleaner unit 110 according to a first embodiment provided in the sensor system 100. The cleaner unit 110 has a tank 111, a pump 112, and a cleaner control unit 113 in addition to the cleaners 101 to 108.

[0032] The front WW 101, rear WW 102, front SC 103, rear SC 104, right SC 105, left SC 106, right HC 107, and left HC 108 are connected to a tank 111 via a pump 112. The pump 112 sucks in the cleaning medium stored in the tank 111 and transfers it to the front WW 101, rear WW 102, front SC 103, rear SC 104, right SC 105, left SC 106, right HC 107, and left HC 108.

[0033] Each of the cleaners 101 to 108 is provided with an actuator (not shown) that opens a nozzle provided in each cleaner to spray the cleaning medium onto the object to be cleaned. The actuator provided in each of the cleaners 101 to 108 is electrically connected to a cleaner control unit 113. The pump 112 is also electrically connected to the cleaner control unit 113. The operations of the cleaners 101 to 108, the pump 112, etc. are controlled by the cleaner control unit 113.

[0034] The cleaner control unit 113 is electrically connected to the sensor control unit 114 and the vehicle control unit 3. Information acquired by the cleaner control unit 113, information acquired by the sensor control unit 114, and information acquired by the vehicle control unit 3 is transmitted and received between the respective control units.

[0035] The sensor system 100 configured as described above operates, for example, as follows: The sensor control unit 114 determines whether or not a front cover provided on the front side of the external sensor 6 is dirty, based on image information about the vehicle surroundings acquired by the external sensor 6. The cleaner control unit 113 receives dirt information about the front cover of the external sensor 6, which is the object to be cleaned, from the sensor control unit 114, and operates the cleaners 101 to 108 based on the dirt information to clean the front cover of the external sensor 6.

[0036] Next, the cleaners 101 to 108 of the cleaner unit 110 will be described in detail with reference to Figures 4 to 7. In the example shown below, of the cleaners 101 to 108, only the front SC 103 that cleans the front LiDAR 6f will be described. The front WW 101 that cleans the front windshield 1f, the rear WW 102 that cleans the rear windshield 1b, the rear SC 104 that cleans the rear LiDAR 6b, the right SC 105 that cleans the right LiDAR 6r, the left SC 106 that cleans the left LiDAR 6l, the right HC 107 that cleans the right headlamp 7r, and the left HC 108 that cleans the left headlamp 7l have the same configuration as the front SC 103, and therefore their description will be omitted.

[0037] FIG. 4 is a front view showing the front LiDAR 6f and the front SC 103 that cleans the front LiDAR 6f. FIG. 5 is a side view of FIG. 4. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the front SC 103 according to the first embodiment has a nozzle 121 capable of spraying a cleaning medium onto a front cover 131 provided on the front side of the housing 130 of the front LiDAR 6f. The nozzle 121 is provided so as to face the direction of a surface 132 to be cleaned, which is part of the front area of ​​the front cover 131 of the front LiDAR 6f. This allows the nozzle 121 to spray a cleaning medium onto the surface 132 to be cleaned. The nozzle 121 is provided at a central position in the left-right direction of the surface 132 to be cleaned.

[0038] The cleaning target surface 132 is a glass surface that is the light-emitting unit (laser emitting unit) of the front LiDAR 6f and the light-receiving unit of the reflected light, and functions as a sensing surface. The cleaning target surface 132 is provided, for example, in approximately the center of the front cover 131. In the example shown in Figure 4 etc., the cleaning target surface 132 is formed in a rectangular shape, but is not limited to this example.

[0039] The nozzle 121 is disposed above the front LiDAR 6f. The nozzle 121 has a rotation axis 122 and is configured to be rotatable around the rotation axis 122. The nozzle 121 in the example shown in FIG. 4 etc. is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape, and the rotation axis 122 is provided along the length of the cylinder. The rotational movement of the nozzle 121 is controlled by the cleaner control unit 113. The nozzle 121 is rotatable clockwise and counterclockwise around the rotation axis 122. Note that the nozzle 121 may be configured to be movable in the front-rear direction along the rotation axis 122, or may be configured to be fixed in the position shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

[0040] The rotation axis 122 of the nozzle 121 is configured to extend in a direction that is not perpendicular to the surface-orthogonal direction V relative to the surface 132 to be cleaned. Specifically, the rotation axis 122 is configured to extend in a direction inclined relative to the surface 132 to be cleaned (for example, the direction indicated by the arrow H1). The inclined direction of the rotation axis 122 is, for example, a direction in which the inclination angle θ1 formed between the upper side 133 of the housing 130 of the front LiDAR 6f and the rotation axis 122 becomes acute.

[0041] The nozzle 121 has an injection port 123 for injecting the cleaning medium. The injection port 123 is provided at the tip of the nozzle 121. The cleaning medium injected from the injection port 123 proceeds in a substantially straight line toward the surface 132 to be cleaned. The cleaning medium is injected near the upper edge 134 of the surface 132 to be cleaned, i.e., toward the upper region of the surface 132 to be cleaned. The angle of incidence θ2 of the cleaning medium with respect to the surface 132 to be cleaned when the cleaning medium is injected toward the surface 132 to be cleaned is configured to be, for example, 90° or less.

[0042] 6A to 6C are diagrams showing changes in the position of the jet nozzle 123 of the nozzle 121 when the nozzle 121 rotates around the rotation axis 122. Note that the nozzle 121 shown in FIGS. 6A to 6C is a diagram showing the front and bottom of the nozzle 121 as viewed from the side of the surface 132 to be cleaned. FIG. 6A is a diagram showing the position of the jet nozzle 123 when the nozzle 121 is not rotating (initial state). FIG. 6B is a diagram showing the position of the jet nozzle 123 when the nozzle 121 rotates clockwise from the initial state. FIG. 6C is a diagram showing the position of the jet nozzle 123 when the nozzle 121 rotates counterclockwise from the initial state.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 6A , when the nozzle 121 is not rotating, the nozzle 123 is positioned so as to overlap the rotation axis 122. In this state, the cleaning medium sprayed from the nozzle 123 is sprayed to approximately the center in the left-right direction in the upper region of the surface 132 to be cleaned. As shown in FIG. 6B , when the nozzle 121 rotates clockwise as viewed from below the nozzle 121, the nozzle 123 moves to the right in accordance with the amount of rotation. Therefore, the cleaning medium sprayed from the nozzle 123 is sprayed to the right in the upper region of the surface 132 to be cleaned. When the nozzle 121 rotates counterclockwise as viewed from below the nozzle 121 as shown in FIG. 6C , the nozzle 123 moves to the left in accordance with the amount of rotation. Therefore, the cleaning medium sprayed from the nozzle 123 is sprayed to the left in the upper region of the surface 132 to be cleaned. In this way, the rotation angle of the nozzle 121 is set so that the cleaning medium jetted from the jet port 123 is jetted over the entire upper region of the surface 132 to be cleaned, from the right to the left.

[0044] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of the front SC 103 that cleans the front LiDAR 6f shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 . As shown in FIG. 7 , the nozzle 121 of the front SC 103 is disposed a distance D1 above the upper edge 133 of the housing 130 of the front LiDAR 6f. The distance D1 is, for example, 15 mm. In this case, the nozzle 121's ejection port 123 is disposed a distance D2 forward of the surface 132 to be cleaned. The distance D2 is, for example, 13 mm. The nozzle 121 is also configured so that the inclination angle θ1 of the rotation axis 122 with respect to the direction V perpendicular to the surface 132 to be cleaned is, for example, 20°. The nozzle 121 is also configured so that the angle of incidence θ2 of the cleaning medium with respect to the surface 132 to be cleaned when the cleaning medium ejected from the ejection port 123 strikes the surface 132 to be cleaned is, for example, 20°. The direction of the cleaning medium sprayed from the nozzle 123 of the nozzle 121 is set at a spray angle θ3 = 90° with respect to the rotation axis 122. Furthermore, by rotating the nozzle 121, the cleaning medium sprayed from the nozzle 123 can be sprayed over the entire area of ​​the surface 132 to be cleaned, from the right to the left in the left-right direction, as shown by arrows R and L.

[0045] The rotation axis 122 of the nozzle 121 is not limited to the example described above as long as it extends in a direction other than the plane-orthogonal direction V relative to the surface 132 to be cleaned. Specifically, the nozzle 121 is not limited to a configuration in which its rotation axis 122 extends in a direction inclined relative to the surface 132 to be cleaned (the direction of arrow H1 in FIG. 5 ). For example, as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 5 , the nozzle 121 may be configured so that the rotation axis 122 extends in a direction parallel to the surface 132 to be cleaned (the direction of arrow H2 in FIG. 5 ). In this case, the inclination angle formed by the upper edge 133 of the housing 130 of the front LiDAR 6f and the rotation axis 122 is approximately a right angle.

[0046] As described above, the sensor system 100 of this embodiment includes the front LiDAR 6 f (an example of a sensor) and the front SC 103 (an example of a cleaner) capable of cleaning the cleaning target surface 132 of the front LiDAR 6 f. The front SC 103 has a nozzle 121 equipped with an injection port 123 that injects a cleaning medium toward the cleaning target surface 132. When the front LiDAR 6 f is in an activated state, the nozzle 121 is rotatable about a rotation axis 122 that extends along a predetermined direction that is not the direction orthogonal to the surface V of the cleaning target surface 132. With this configuration, the cleaning medium is injected toward the cleaning target surface 132 of the front LiDAR 6 f while the nozzle 121 of the front SC 103 is rotating, thereby enabling the entire area of ​​the cleaning target surface 132 to be efficiently cleaned with a small amount of cleaning medium. Furthermore, because the rotation axis 122 of the nozzle 121 extends along a predetermined direction that is not the direction V perpendicular to the surface 132 to be cleaned, the cleaning medium can be sprayed from the nozzle 121 at a right angle or an acute angle to the surface 132 to be cleaned of the front LiDAR 6f. Therefore, compared to, for example, when the cleaning medium is sprayed in a direction parallel to the surface 132 to be cleaned, the Coanda effect of the cleaning medium on the surface 132 to be cleaned can be enhanced, and the cleaning medium can more easily adhere to the surface 132 to be cleaned. This enables the surface 132 to be cleaned more efficiently.

[0047] In this embodiment, the predetermined direction other than the direction V perpendicular to the surface 132 to be cleaned, which is the extension direction of the rotation shaft 122, is a direction parallel to the surface 132 to be cleaned, or a direction inclined with respect to the surface 132 to be cleaned. With this configuration, the direction in which the cleaning medium is sprayed from the nozzle 121 toward the surface 132 to be cleaned is perpendicular or at an acute angle to the surface 132 to be cleaned, thereby enabling more effective cleaning.

[0048] In this embodiment, the incident angle θ2 of the cleaning medium sprayed from the spray port 123 of the nozzle 121 with respect to the surface 132 to be cleaned is 90° or less. In order to efficiently clean the surface 132 to be cleaned, it is preferable that the incident angle θ2 of the cleaning medium be 90° or less.

[0049] In this embodiment, the nozzle 121 of the front SC 103 is disposed above the front LiDAR 6 f. The cleaning medium is sprayed near the upper edge 134 of the surface to be cleaned 132. Therefore, the cleaning medium sprayed near the upper edge 134 of the surface to be cleaned 132 moves downward due to gravity, making it possible to clean the entire surface to be cleaned 132 with a small amount of cleaning medium.

[0050] The cleaning medium sprayed from the nozzle 121 includes water or detergent. The cleaning medium sprayed onto the front and rear windows 1f and 1b, the headlamps 7l and 7r, and the LiDARs 6f, 6b, 6l, and 6r may be different or the same.

[0051] Second Embodiment Next, a second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 8 to Fig. 13. Fig. 8 is a block diagram of a cleaner system 210 according to the second embodiment provided in the sensor system 100. In addition to cleaners 201 to 208, the cleaner system 210 includes a tank 111, a pump 112, a cleaner control unit 113, and air pumps 115 to 118.

[0052] The front WW 201, rear WW 202, right HC 207, and left HC 208 are connected to a tank 111 via a pump 112. The pump 112 sucks in a cleaning liquid (an example of a cleaning medium) stored in the tank 111 and transfers it to the front WW 201, rear WW 202, front SC 203, rear SC 204, right SC 205, left SC 206, right HC 207, and left HC 208.

[0053] Air pumps 115 to 118 are connected to the front SC 203, rear SC 204, right SC 205, and left SC 206, respectively. Each of the air pumps 115 to 118 generates high-pressure air (an example of a cleaning medium) and sends the generated high-pressure air to the front SC 203, rear SC 204, right SC 205, and left SC 206.

[0054] Each of the cleaners 201 to 208 may be provided with an actuator (not shown) that opens a nozzle provided in each of the cleaners 201 to 208 to spray the cleaning medium onto the object to be cleaned. The actuator provided in each of the cleaners 201 to 208 is electrically connected to the cleaner control unit 113. The pump 112 and the air pumps 115 to 118 are also electrically connected to the cleaner control unit 113. The operations of the cleaners 201 to 208, the pump 112, the air pumps 115 to 118, etc. are controlled by the cleaner control unit 113.

[0055] The cleaner control unit 113 is electrically connected to the vehicle control unit 3 and the sensor control unit 114 (see FIG. 2). Information acquired by the cleaner control unit 113, information acquired by the sensor control unit 114, and information acquired by the vehicle control unit 3 is transmitted and received between the respective control units.

[0056] Next, an example of the operation of the cleaners 201 to 208 in the cleaner system 210 configured as described above according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 16. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the configuration and operation of the nozzle 141 of the cleaners 201 to 208 according to the second embodiment. In the example shown in FIG. 9, of the nozzles of the cleaners 201 to 208, the nozzle 141 mounted on the front SC 203 that cleans the front LiDAR 6fA provided at the front of the vehicle 1 will be described. Note that the nozzles mounted on cleaners other than the front SC 203 have the same configuration and operation as the nozzle 141, and therefore will not be described here.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 9 , the nozzle 141 of the front SC 203 is provided in the upper center of the front LiDAR 6fA. The front LiDAR 6fA has a rectangular shape when viewed from the front, and the windshield 136f, which is the surface to be cleaned, is provided in the front center. The nozzle 141 has, for example, a rectangular shape when viewed from the front, and multiple nozzles 143 for spraying high-pressure air are provided on its outer periphery. The nozzle 141 is a movable nozzle that is rotatable around a rotation axis X (an axis extending in the direction of the paper surface of FIG. 9 ). The nozzle 141 can rotate around the rotation axis X in only one direction: clockwise (right-handed) or counterclockwise (left-handed). In this example, the nozzle 141 has two nozzles: a first nozzle 143a and a second nozzle 143b. The nozzle 141 is configured to rotate about the rotation axis X, thereby being able to spray high-pressure air from each of the nozzles 143a, 143b across the left and right end regions of the windshield portion 136f.

[0058] Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of the nozzle 141. As shown in Fig. 10, the nozzle 141 has a cylindrical conduit 150 and a rotary nozzle part 160 provided at the front end of the conduit 150.

[0059] The conduit 150 is a passage through which the high-pressure air supplied from the air pump 115 passes, and extends along the rotation axis X. The conduit 150 is a fixed, i.e., non-rotatable, member in the structure of the nozzle 141. The high-pressure air that passes through the conduit 150 is supplied to the rotary nozzle portion 160.

[0060] The rotary nozzle unit 160 is provided rotatably around the duct 150, which extends along the rotation axis X. The rotary nozzle unit 160 is formed in a rectangular shape and has a storage unit 161 that stores high-pressure air, and a first injection port 143a and a second injection port 143b that spray the high-pressure air toward the windshield unit 136f. The rotary nozzle unit 160 is electrically connected to the cleaner control unit 113, and its rotation is controlled by the cleaner control unit 113.

[0061] The reservoir 161 is connected to the pipeline 150, and stores therein the high-pressure air supplied from the pipeline 150. A first jet port 143a and a second jet port 143b are provided on the outer periphery of the reservoir 161. The first jet port 143a and the second jet port 143b are each provided so as to be continuous with the reservoir 161. The first jet port 143a and the second jet port 143b are provided, for example, at opposing positions on the outer periphery of the reservoir 161. In other words, the first jet port 143a is provided on the opposite side of the rotation axis X from the second jet port 143b.

[0062] A first solenoid valve 162a is provided at the boundary between the first injection port 143a and the storage portion 161. A second solenoid valve 162b is provided at the boundary between the second injection port 143b and the storage portion 161. The first solenoid valve 162a is a valve for opening and closing the boundary between the first injection port 143a and the storage portion 161, i.e., a valve that can switch between opening and closing the first injection port 143a. The second solenoid valve 162b is a valve for opening and closing the boundary between the second injection port 143b and the storage portion 161, i.e., a valve that can switch between opening and closing the second injection port 143b. The first solenoid valve 162a and the second solenoid valve 162b are electrically connected to the cleaner control portion 113, and the opening and closing of the valves is controlled by the cleaner control portion 113. The cleaner control unit 113 switches between opening and closing the solenoid valves 162a and 162b in response to changes in the positions of the injection ports 143a and 143b relative to the windshield portion 136f based on the rotation of the rotary nozzle unit 160.

[0063] 11A to 11F are diagrams illustrating the opening and closing of the nozzles 143a and 143b as the nozzle 141 rotates. The nozzle 141 shown in FIGS. 11A to 11F is shown in cross section along line A-A in FIG. 10. The rotary nozzle portion 160 of the nozzle 141 rotates, for example, clockwise, transitioning from the state shown in FIG. 11A to the state shown in FIG. 11B, and then from the state shown in FIG. 11B to the state shown in FIG. 11C. The rotary nozzle portion 160 then transitions to the state shown in FIG. 11D, then to the state shown in FIG. 11E, and then from the state shown in FIG. 11E to the state shown in FIG. 11F. In the example shown in FIGS. 11A to 11F, the windshield portion 136f, which is the surface to be cleaned, is located below the rotary nozzle portion 160.

[0064] As described above, the first and second injection ports 143a and 143b are provided opposite each other on the outer periphery of the reservoir 161, with the conduit 150 sandwiched between them. When the rotary nozzle unit 160 changes from the state shown in Fig. 11A to the state shown in Fig. 11C, the cleaner control unit 113 opens the first solenoid valve 162a and closes the second solenoid valve 162b, thereby controlling the high-pressure air to be injected only from the first injection port 143a. On the other hand, when the rotary nozzle unit 160 changes from the state shown in Fig. 11D to the state shown in Fig. 11F, the cleaner control unit 113 opens the second solenoid valve 162b and closes the first solenoid valve 162a, thereby controlling the high-pressure air to be injected only from the second injection port 143b. That is, the cleaner control unit 113 controls the nozzle 141 so that, in accordance with the rotation of the rotary nozzle unit 160, the solenoid valve of the nozzle closer to the windshield unit 136f, either the first nozzle 143a or the second nozzle 143b, is opened, and the high-pressure air supplied to the storage unit 161 of the rotary nozzle unit 160 is sprayed from the nozzle closer to the windshield unit 136f.

[0065] 9 to 11F, the rotary nozzle unit 160 is described as having a rectangular shape, but the shape is not limited to this. The shape of the rotary nozzle unit may be, for example, a cylindrical shape that is circular when viewed from the front. Furthermore, the number of injection ports provided in the rotary nozzle unit 160 is not limited to two.

[0066] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the configuration of a nozzle 141A according to a first modified example of the second embodiment. In the first modified example shown in FIG. 12, the rotary nozzle portion 160A included in the nozzle 141A has a circular shape when viewed from the front. In this example, three injection ports 143a to 143c are provided in the rotary nozzle portion 160A. The three injection ports 143a to 143c are provided radially at equal intervals on the outer periphery of the storage portion 161, with the conduit 150 at the center. In addition, solenoid valves 162a to 162c are provided at the boundaries between the injection ports 143a to 143c and the storage portion 161, respectively.

[0067] According to the configuration of nozzle 141A shown in Figure 12, the cleaner control unit 113 controls the high-pressure air supplied to storage unit 161 of rotary nozzle unit 160A to be sprayed from the nozzle closest to windshield unit 136f by opening the solenoid valve of the nozzle closest to windshield unit 136f out of the three nozzles 143a to 143c and closing the solenoid valves of the other nozzles in accordance with the rotation of rotary nozzle unit 160A.

[0068] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the configuration of a nozzle 141B according to a second modified example of the second embodiment. In the second modified example shown in FIG. 13, the shape of a rotary nozzle portion 160B included in the nozzle 141B is also circular in front view. In this example, four injection ports 143a to 143d are provided in the rotary nozzle portion 160B. The four injection ports 143a to 143d are provided radially at equal intervals on the outer periphery of a storage portion 161 with a pipe line 150 at the center. Furthermore, solenoid valves 162a to 162d are provided at the boundaries between each of the injection ports 143a to 143d and the storage portion 161.

[0069] According to the configuration of nozzle 141B shown in Figure 13, the cleaner control unit 113 controls the high-pressure air supplied to storage unit 161 of rotary nozzle unit 160B to be sprayed from the nozzle closest to windshield unit 136f by opening the solenoid valve of the nozzle closest to windshield unit 136f out of the four nozzles 143a to 143d and closing the solenoid valves of the other nozzles in accordance with the rotation of rotary nozzle unit 160B.

[0070] In some cases, the distances from the windshield 136f to the multiple nozzles may be equal, in which case the high-pressure air may be injected from the nozzle on the front or rear side in the direction of rotation. Furthermore, the time for which the high-pressure air is injected from each nozzle needs to be at least long enough to inject the high-pressure air from the left end region to the right end region of the windshield 136f.

[0071] Furthermore, in the above-described operational example, the rotating nozzle unit 160 rotates clockwise, but this is not limited thereto. The rotation direction of the rotating nozzle unit 160 may differ depending on the positions at which the nozzles of the cleaners 101 to 108 are attached. For example, the nozzle of the right HC 107 that cleans the right headlamp 7r and the nozzle of the right SC 105 that cleans the right LiDAR 6r may rotate counterclockwise (left-handed). The nozzle of the left HC 108 that cleans the left headlamp 7l and the nozzle of the left SC 106 that cleans the left LiDAR 6l may rotate clockwise (right-handed). This allows the high-pressure air sprayed from the nozzles to be efficiently directed at the cleaning target surfaces of each sensor in accordance with the surrounding wind flow caused by the vehicle 1 traveling.

[0072] As described above, the front SC 203 (an example of a cleaner) of this embodiment has a nozzle 141 equipped with a plurality of jet ports 143 (first jet port 143a, second jet port 143b) that spray high-pressure air toward the windshield portion 136f, which is the surface to be cleaned of the front LiDAR 6fA (an example of a sensor). The nozzle 141 has an internal structure that allows the plurality of jet ports 143 to be switched between open and closed states in accordance with the movement of at least a portion of the nozzle 141. With this configuration, the front SC 203 can be effectively cleaned by switching the opening and closing of the plurality of jet ports 143 provided in the nozzle 141 in accordance with the movement of the nozzle 141.

[0073] In this embodiment, the internal structure includes a fixedly disposed cylindrical conduit 150 and a rotary nozzle unit 160 that is rotatable around conduit 150. The high-pressure air supplied from conduit 150 to rotary nozzle unit 160 is sprayed from a predetermined one of a plurality of nozzles 143 provided in rotary nozzle unit 160 in accordance with the rotation of rotary nozzle unit 160. With this configuration, the plurality of nozzles 143 provided in rotary nozzle unit 160 can be opened and closed with a simple configuration in which rotary nozzle unit 160 is rotated around conduit 150.

[0074] In this embodiment, the rotary nozzle unit 160 can rotate in only one direction. This configuration allows the rotation mechanism of the rotary nozzle unit 160 to be realized with a simpler configuration than, for example, a swiveling nozzle in which the nozzle unit rotates back and forth in the left and right direction.

[0075] Moreover, in this embodiment, the internal structure further includes solenoid valves 162a, 162b that can switch between opening and closing the multiple injection ports 143 (143a, 143b) in accordance with changes in the position of each injection port 143 (143a, 143b) relative to the windshield portion 136f based on the rotation of the rotary nozzle portion 160. With this configuration, the opening and closing of each injection port 143a, 143b provided in the rotary nozzle portion 160 can be easily achieved by switching between opening and closing of each solenoid valve 162a, 162b.

[0076] In this embodiment, the first injection port 143a and the second injection port 143b are provided on opposite sides of the conduit 150. The solenoid valves 162a, 162b switch the opening and closing of the solenoid valves 162a, 162b so that the first injection port 143a is opened and the second injection port 143b is closed when the first injection port 143a is closer to the windshield portion 136f than the second injection port 143b. With this configuration, by switching the opening and closing of the two injection ports 143a, 143b provided in the rotary nozzle portion 160 at optimal positions, continuous injection of high-pressure air without any gaps is possible.

[0077] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the multiple jet ports 143 may be configured with at least three jet ports 143a to 143c arranged radially from the duct 150. In this case, the cleaner control unit 113 switches the opening and closing of each of the solenoid valves 162a to 162c so as to open the jet port closest to the windshield 136f and close the other jet ports in accordance with the rotation of the rotary nozzle unit 160. With this configuration, even when three or more jet ports are provided in the rotary nozzle unit 160, continuous jetting of high-pressure air without gaps is possible by switching the opening and closing of the jet ports at optimal positions.

[0078] 14 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of a nozzle 223 according to a third embodiment. As shown in Fig. 14, the nozzle 223 has a cylindrical conduit 250 and a rotary nozzle part 260 provided at the front end of the conduit 250.

[0079] The conduit 250 is provided to extend along the rotation axis X and has a rear conduit 250a and a front conduit 250b having a diameter larger than that of the rear conduit 250a. The conduit 250 is a fixedly disposed component in the structure of the nozzle 223. A medium passage 251 through which high-pressure air passes is provided in the center of the rear conduit 250a and the front conduit 250b. The front conduit 250b further has a discharge passage 252 extending radially outward from the center and continuous with the medium passage 251.

[0080] The rotary nozzle unit 260 is provided rotatably around the front duct 250b, centered on the medium passage 251 extending along the rotation axis X. A first injection port 243a and a second injection port 243b for injecting high-pressure air are provided on the outer periphery of the rotary nozzle unit 260. The first injection port 243a and the second injection port 243b are provided in opposing positions across the front duct 250b. In other words, the first injection port 243a and the second injection port 243b are provided opposite the outer periphery of the rotary nozzle unit 260, with the front duct 250b in between.

[0081] The first injection port 243a and the second injection port 243b are configured to inject high-pressure air when they are connected to the discharge passage 252 of the front duct 250b as the rotary nozzle part 260 rotates. The rotary nozzle part 260 is electrically connected to the cleaner control part 113, and its rotation is controlled by the cleaner control part 113.

[0082] 15A to 15F are diagrams illustrating the injection of high-pressure air from each injection port 243a, 243b as the nozzle 223 rotates. The nozzle 223 shown in FIGS. 15A to 15F is shown in cross section along line B-B in FIG. 14. The rotary nozzle portion 260 of the nozzle 223 rotates clockwise about the rotation axis X, sequentially changing state in the directions of the arrows from the state in FIG. 15A, transitioning from the state in FIG. 15B to the state in FIG. 15C, then from the state in FIG. 15D to the state in FIG. 15E, and finally transitioning to the state in FIG. 15F. The windshield 136f, which is the surface to be cleaned, is located below the rotary nozzle portion 260.

[0083] 15A to 15F, a discharge passage 252 extending radially outward from the center is provided in the lower region of the front duct 250b. The outer peripheral side of the front duct 250b where the discharge passage 252 is provided is an opening 253 without a peripheral wall, and is configured to be able to communicate with the first injection port 243a and the second injection port 243b formed in the rotary nozzle section 260. As the rotary nozzle section 260 rotates around the front duct 250b, when the position of the first injection port 243a or the second injection port 243b of the rotary nozzle section 260 overlaps the position of the opening 253 of the front duct 250b and the two are in communication with each other, high-pressure air is sprayed from the communication port.

[0084] For example, when the rotary nozzle unit 260 is in the state shown in FIG. 15A or the state shown in FIG. 15B, the first outlet 243a of the rotary nozzle unit 260 is in communication with the opening 253 of the front duct 250b. In this case, the high-pressure air that has passed through the medium passage 251 and the discharge passage 252 is sprayed from the first outlet 243a toward the windshield 136f. Specifically, when the rotary nozzle unit 260 is in the state shown in FIG. 15A, the high-pressure air is sprayed almost directly downward. Furthermore, when the rotary nozzle unit 260 is in the state shown in FIG. 15B, the high-pressure air is sprayed slightly downward and to the left.

[0085] 15C, neither the first injection port 243a nor the second injection port 243b communicates with the opening 253 of the front duct 250b. Therefore, high-pressure air is not injected from either of the injection ports.

[0086] Furthermore, when the rotary nozzle unit 260 changes from the state shown in FIG. 15D to the state shown in FIG. 15F, the second outlet 243b is in communication with the opening 253. Therefore, the high-pressure air is sprayed from the second outlet 243b toward the windshield 136f. Specifically, when the rotary nozzle unit 260 is in the state shown in FIG. 15D, the high-pressure air is sprayed in a downward and right direction. When the rotary nozzle unit 260 is in the state shown in FIG. 15E, the high-pressure air is sprayed in a substantially downward direction. When the rotary nozzle unit 260 is in the state shown in FIG. 15F, the high-pressure air is sprayed slightly in a downward and left direction.

[0087] As described above, according to nozzle 223 of front SC 203 in the third embodiment, opening 253 is formed in a portion of the circumferential direction of front conduit 250b of conduit 250, and high-pressure air is sprayed toward windshield 136f from one of outlets 243a, 243b that communicates with opening 253 in accordance with the rotation of rotary nozzle portion 260. With this configuration, each of outlets 243a, 243b can be switched between open and closed using only conduit 250 and rotary nozzle portion 260, which is a small number of parts, and therefore the overall size of nozzle 223 can be made compact.

[0088] (Fourth Embodiment) Fig. 16 is a diagram showing the internal structure of a nozzle 323 according to a third embodiment. In the second and third embodiments, the nozzles 141 and 223 rotate around the rotation axis X, but this is not limiting. For example, as shown in Fig. 16, the nozzle 323 may be configured to slide left and right along the upper edge T1 of the front LiDAR 6fA.

[0089] The nozzle 323 of the fourth embodiment has a long housing 350 arranged along the upper edge T2 of the windshield portion 136f at the top of the front LiDAR 6fA, and a middle nozzle 360 ​​(an example of a medium supply portion) housed inside the housing 350.

[0090] A plurality of (seven in this example) jet ports 343 are formed in parallel on one surface of the housing 350 on the windshield 136f side in the longitudinal direction. Each jet port 343 is formed to face the windshield 136f, and high-pressure air is jetted from all of the jet ports 343, so that high-pressure air can be jetted from the left end region to the right end region of the windshield 136f.

[0091] The medium nozzle 360 ​​is configured to be able to move parallel to the longitudinal direction (left-right direction) of the housing 350 within the housing 350. The medium nozzle 360 ​​has an outlet 361 for releasing high-pressure air. The outlet 361 is formed at the bottom of the medium nozzle 360. The medium nozzle 360 ​​is provided such that the outlet 361 of the medium nozzle 360 ​​faces one surface of the housing 350 on which the injection ports 343 are formed. The outlet 361 is configured to be able to communicate with each of the injection ports 343 of the housing 350 when the medium nozzle 360 ​​moves parallel to the housing 350. The outlet 361 is in an open state when it communicates with the injection ports 343, and is in a closed state when it is located between the injection ports 343.

[0092] As described above, the nozzle 323 of the front SC 203 in the fourth embodiment includes a long housing 350 and a medium nozzle 360 ​​that is housed inside the housing 350 and supplies high-pressure air into the housing 350. A plurality of injection ports 343 are formed in parallel on one longitudinal surface of the housing 350, and the medium nozzle 360 ​​moves parallel along the longitudinal direction within the housing 350, thereby injecting high-pressure air toward the windshield portion 136f from the injection port 343 that is in communication with the discharge port 361 of the medium nozzle 360 ​​among the plurality of parallel injection ports 343. With this configuration, when the discharge port 361 of the medium nozzle 360 ​​and each injection port 343 are not in communication, the pressure of the high-pressure air in the medium nozzle 360 ​​increases, and therefore the injection speed of the high-pressure air injected from each injection port 343 can be increased even when a small pump is used.

[0093] In the second to fourth embodiments, the front WW 201, the rear WW 202, the right HC 207, and the left HC 208 spray cleaning liquid, while the front SC 203, the rear SC 204, the right SC 205, and the left SC 206 spray high-pressure air. However, the present invention is not limited to this example. Whether each of the cleaners 201 to 208 uses cleaning liquid or high-pressure air as a cleaning medium can be changed as appropriate depending on the type of object to be cleaned and the desired cleanliness.

[0094] Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, it goes without saying that the technical scope of the present disclosure should not be interpreted as being limited by the description of the present embodiments. The present embodiments are merely examples, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications of the embodiments are possible within the scope of the invention described in the claims. The technical scope of the present disclosure should be determined based on the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents.

[0095] In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the sensor system 100 is mounted on a vehicle capable of autonomous driving has been described. However, the sensor system 100 may also be mounted on a vehicle that is not capable of autonomous driving.

[0096] In the above embodiment, the vehicle control unit 3, the cleaner control unit 113, and the sensor control unit 114 are provided as separate components, but this is not limiting. For example, the vehicle control unit 3 and the sensor control unit 114 may be integrally configured, the vehicle control unit 3 and the cleaner control unit 113 may be integrally configured, or the vehicle control unit 3, the cleaner control unit 113, and the sensor control unit 114 may be integrally configured.

[0097] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a cleaner for cleaning an on-board sensor mounted on the vehicle 1 has been described, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. The cleaner of the present disclosure may be used, for example, as a cleaner for cleaning surveillance cameras, LiDARs, and the like installed in infrastructure such as roads and railways. Even when the nozzle having the above configuration is used in a sensor system for such infrastructure equipment, the sensor can be cleaned efficiently and at low cost.

[0098] This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-154362 filed on September 22, 2021, and Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-171531 filed on October 20, 2021, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Claims

1. A sensor, and a cleaner capable of cleaning the surface to be cleaned of the sensor. The cleaner has a nozzle provided with an injection port for injecting a cleaning medium onto the surface to be cleaned, and the nozzle is rotatable about a rotation axis extending along a predetermined direction that is not perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned in the operating state of the cleaner. A sensor system.

2. The sensor system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined direction is a direction parallel to the surface to be cleaned or a direction inclined with respect to the surface to be cleaned.

3. The sensor system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an incident angle of the cleaning medium injected from the injection port with respect to the surface to be cleaned is 90° or less.

4. The nozzle is disposed above the sensor, and the cleaning medium is injected near the upper side of the surface to be cleaned. The sensor system according to claim 1 or 2.

5. A cleaner having a movable nozzle provided with a plurality of injection ports for injecting a cleaning medium onto the surface to be cleaned of the sensor, wherein the movable nozzle has an internal structure capable of switching the opening and closing of the plurality of injection ports according to at least a part of the movement of the movable nozzle. A cleaner.

6. The internal structure includes a fixed cylindrical pipeline and a rotating nozzle part rotatably provided around the pipeline, and according to the rotation of the rotating nozzle part, the cleaning medium supplied from the pipeline to the rotating nozzle part is injected from a predetermined injection port among the plurality of injection ports provided in the rotating nozzle part. The cleaner according to claim 5.

7. The cleaner according to claim 6, wherein the rotating nozzle part is rotatable in only one direction.

8. The internal structure further includes a solenoid valve capable of switching the opening and closing of the plurality of injection ports according to a change in the position of each injection port with respect to the surface to be cleaned based on the rotation of the rotating nozzle part. The cleaner according to claim 6 or 7.

9. The plurality of injection ports are composed of a first injection port and a second injection port provided on the opposite side of the pipeline from the first injection port, and the solenoid valve opens the first injection port and closes the second injection port when the first injection port approaches the surface to be cleaned more than the second injection port. The cleaner according to claim 8.

10. The plurality of injection ports are composed of at least three injection ports provided radially around the pipeline. The electromagnetic valve according to claim 8, which opens the injection port closest to the surface to be cleaned among the at least three injection ports in accordance with the rotation of the rotary nozzle unit and closes the other injection ports.

11. An opening is formed in a part of the circumferential direction of the pipeline, The cleaner according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the cleaning medium is jetted toward the surface to be cleaned from the injection port communicating with the opening among the plurality of injection ports in accordance with the rotation of the rotary nozzle unit.

12. The movable nozzle has a long casing and a medium supply unit housed inside the casing for supplying the cleaning medium into the casing. A plurality of the injection ports are formed in parallel on one surface in the longitudinal direction of the casing. The cleaner according to claim 5, wherein the cleaning medium is jetted toward the surface to be cleaned from the injection port communicating with the medium supply unit among the plurality of injection ports by the medium supply unit moving parallel along the longitudinal direction in the casing.

13. The cleaner according to any one of claims 5 to 7 and 12, wherein the sensor is an in-vehicle sensor mounted on a vehicle.