Vehicle Sensor Cleaning Bypass for Pump Failure Backup
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing motor vehicle sensor cleaning systems are vulnerable to malfunction due to dirt accumulation, and a failure in one cleaning device can impair the operation of sensors, especially critical for autonomous vehicles.
Innovation Solution
A cleaning system with a bypass device connecting multiple cleaning devices through fluid distribution circuits, utilizing solenoid valves and non-return members to redirect cleaning liquid from operational devices to failed devices, ensuring continued operation in degraded mode.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple independent cleaning devices are installed on different parts of the vehicle, then all sensors can be cleaned to ensure optimum operation, but the system becomes vulnerable to malfunction when one pump fails
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes each cleaning device capable of serving dual functions: its own local sensor cleaning and backup support for other cleaning devices. The fluid distribution circuit is designed to allow cross-supply between devices, so any cleaning device can function as both a primary cleaner and a backup source for others, reducing overall system vulnerability without adding redundant components
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the fluid distribution circuits of multiple cleaning devices into a connected system through bypass lines. This allows the cleaning devices to share a common fluid supply network, enabling one device to compensate for another's failure while maintaining the physical independence of each cleaning unit at its respective vehicle location
2Reliability
If a bypass device with solenoid valves is added to connect cleaning devices, then operation can continue in degraded mode during pump failure, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces solenoid valves as intermediary components in the bypass lines that automatically control fluid redirection. These valves act as mediators between the primary and backup cleaning devices, opening or closing pathways based on system needs without requiring complex manual intervention or additional control mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The bypass lines and solenoid valves are pre-configured in the system during installation, with the backup pathways already in place but inactive during normal operation. When a pump failure occurs, the solenoid valves automatically activate the pre-prepared bypass routes, enabling immediate degraded-mode operation without requiring system reconfiguration or manual setup
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Ensures continued operation of sensors by redirecting cleaning liquid from operational devices to failed devices, maintaining sensor functionality even when one cleaning device malfunctions.
Implementation Method 1
a solenoid valve placed on the backup line controlled as a function of the failure state of a pump
Implementation Method 2
each cleaning device comprising a non-return member between its reservoir and a point of connection to the bypass device
Implementation Method 3
a pump arranged to inject the cleaning liquid contained in the reservoir into the fluid distribution circuit
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a cleaning system suitable for being mounted on a motor vehicle and comprising at least one first and one second cleaning devices, each cleaning device comprising a cleaning liquid reservoir, at least one cleaning nozzle for spraying the cleaning liquid, a fluid distribution circuit arranged to convey cleaning liquid from the reservoir to the cleaning nozzle and a pump arranged to inject the cleaning liquid contained in the reservoir into the fluid distribution circuit, the cleaning system further comprising a bypass device connecting at least two cleaning devices by their respective fluid distribution circuits, comprising a backup line and a solenoid valve placed on the backup line, controlled as a function of the failure state of a pump, and arranged to supply the cleaning nozzle of one cleaning device from the reservoir of another cleaning device, each cleaning device comprising a non-return member between its reservoir and a point of connection to the bypass device.