SEE-THROUGH ASSEMBLY FOR AN ENVIRONMENT SENSOR OF A MOTOR VEHICLE

Abstract

A see-through assembly for an environment sensor of a motor vehicle, the see-through assembly having at least one see-through area, a control feature, and a cleaning feature for cleaning the see-through area. The cleaning feature has a membrane spaced apart from an outer surface of the see-through area by a layer, or the see-through area has a shape-changing and/or volume-changing and/or thickness-changing excitation layer at least on its outer surface, the control feature being configured to cause the membrane to move in a predetermined manner relative to the outer surface of the see-through area or to cause the shape-changing and/or volume-changing and/or thickness-changing excitation layer to move in a predetermined manner so that foreign particles located on an outer surface of the membrane can be loosened and/or detached and/or removed.

Claims

1. A see-through assembly for an environment sensor of a motor vehicle, the see-through assembly comprising: at least one see-through area, a control feature, and a cleaning feature for cleaning the see-through area, wherein the cleaning feature has a membrane which is spaced apart from an outer surface of the see-through area by a layer, or in that the see-through area comprises a shape-changing and/or volume-changing and/or thickness-changing excitation layer at least on its outer surface, the control feature being configured to cause the membrane to move in a predetermined manner relative to the outer surface of the see-through area or to cause the shape-changing and/or volume-changing and/or thickness-changing excitation layer to move in a predetermined manner so that foreign particles located on an outer surface of the membrane can be loosened and/or detached and/or removed.

2. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the layer comprises a gas and/or a liquid and/or a liquid/solid mixture and/or a gas/solid mixture and/or a flexible and/or elastic and/or foamy and/or spongy solid and/or a shape memory solid which is/are introduced into a space between the see-through area and the membrane.

3. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the control feature is configured to cause the membrane to move in an alternating and/or pulsed and/or cycled and/or frequent and/or oscillating and/or vibrating manner, which causes at least part of the membrane to curve convexly and/or concavely relative to the see-through area, or to cause the excitation layer to move in an alternating and/or pulsed and/or cycled and/or frequent and/or oscillating and/or vibrating manner so as to convexly and/or concavely curve at least part of the excitation layer.

4. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the control feature is configured to control the movement of the membrane or the excitation layer, partially selectively, as a function of a foreign particle quantity and/or a foreign particle distribution.

5. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning feature comprises at least one cleaning nozzle and/or a wiper element configured to remove foreign particles which are located on the outer surface of the membrane or on the outer surface of the excitation layer and which have been loosened by the movement of the membrane or the movement of the excitation layer.

6. The see-through assembly according to claim 5, wherein the control feature is configured to activate the at least one cleaning nozzle and/or the wiper element as a function of a foreign particle quantity and/or a foreign particle distribution on the outer surface of the membrane or on the outer surface of the excitation layer.

7. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the foreign particles comprise organic and/or inorganic particles, dirt particles and/or insects and/or water droplets and/or snow and/or ice crystals.

8. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the see-through assembly comprises a heating feature configured to heat the see-through area, the control feature configured to control the heating feature as a function of a foreign particle quantity and/or a foreign particle distribution and/or a membrane movement and/or an excitation layer movement and/or to control the membrane movement or the excitation layer movement as a function of a heating capacity and/or a heating time of the heating feature.

9. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning feature comprises at least one pump and/or at least one control valve and/or at least one compressor, and the control feature is configured to actuate the at least one pump and/or the at least one control valve and/or the at least one compressor so as to move a fluid forming the fluid layer within the space.

10. The see-through assembly according to claim 9, wherein the fluid-filled space comprises at least one inlet and at least one outlet, and the control feature is configured to move the fluid through the space so as to cause the membrane to move.

11. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning feature comprises at least one piezoelectric and/or magnetic-stroke-based and/or vibration-inducing excitation feature coupled to the membrane and/or the layer or the excitation layer in a movement-transmitting manner, the control feature configured to cause the at least one piezoelectric and/or magnetic-stroke-based and/or vibration-inducing excitation feature to execute a predetermined movement which causes the predetermined movement of the membrane and/or the layer or the excitation layer.

12. A roof module for forming a vehicle roof on a motor vehicle, the roof module comprising: a panel component which at least partially forms a roof skin of the vehicle roof, the roof skin serving as an outer sealing surface of the roof module, at least one see-through assembly according to claim 1, and at least one environment sensor configured to send and/or receive electromagnetic signals at least through the see-through area so as to detect a vehicle environment, the see-through area being disposed on the panel component or integrated in the panel component, or the see-through area being disposed on or integrated in a housing of the at least one environment sensor.

13. A motor vehicle comprising a vehicle body and a roof module according to claim 12, the roof module being disposed on the vehicle body as a structural unit.

14. A motor vehicle comprising at least one see-through assembly according to claim 1 and at least one environment sensor configured to send and/or receive electromagnetic signals at least through the see-through area so as to detect a vehicle environment.

15. A method for cleaning at least one see-through area of a motor vehicle using a cleaning feature comprising a movable membrane spaced apart from an outer surface of the see-through area by a layer, or that the see-through area comprises a shape-changing and/or volume-changing and/or thickness-changing excitation layer at least on its outer surface, the method comprising at least the step of: causing the at least one membrane to move in such a manner that it moves according to a predetermined movement profile relative to the outer surface of the see-through area, or causing the at least one shape-changing and/or volume-changing and/or thickness-changing excitation layer to move in such a manner that it moves according to a predetermined movement profile relative to the outer surface of the see-through area so as to loosen and/or detach and/or remove foreign particles located on an outer surface of the membrane.

16. The see-through assembly according to claim 1, wherein the excitation layer comprises a shape memory material.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein the excitation layer comprises a shape memory material.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] Embodiments of the invention are schematically illustrated in the drawings and will be discussed as examples below.

[0033] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a motor vehicle with a vehicle body and a roof module with a see-through assembly according to the invention;

[0034] FIG. 2 shows an illustrative example of a cleaning feature according to the invention;

[0035] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative example of a cleaning feature according to the invention;

[0036] FIG. 4 is a detailed view of a cleaning feature according to the invention;

[0037] FIG. 5 is a detailed view of a cleaning feature according to the invention;

[0038] FIG. 6 is a detailed view of a cleaning feature according to the invention; and

[0039] FIG. 7 is an illustration according to the state of the art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] FIG. 1 shows a vehicle roof 100 of a motor vehicle 1000 comprising a roof module 10. The roof module 10 comprises a panel component 12 for forming a roof skin 14 of the vehicle roof 100. An environment sensor 16 is disposed symmetrically to a longitudinal vehicle direction x in a front area of the vehicle roof 100 or the roof module 10 as viewed in the longitudinal vehicle direction x. The environment sensor 16 is disposed directly behind a front transverse rail 102, which defines a header at the roof of the vehicle. The roof module 10 is preferably disposed in a roof frame 104 of the vehicle 1000 or placed on two transverse rails 102 and two longitudinal rails 106, which form the roof frame 104, as a structural unit. The roof module 10 in the embodiment shown has a panoramic roof 108. The longitudinal vehicle direction x is oriented orthogonally to a vehicle width direction y, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0041] According to the invention, the roof module 10 or the motor vehicle 1000 comprises a see-through assembly 11. The environment sensor 16 looks through a see-through area 18 of the see-through assembly 11. The see-through area 18 is provided on a housing 17 of the environment sensor 16. Alternatively or additionally, such a see-through area 18 may be disposed on or formed by the panel component 12 (see FIGS. 2 to 6). The see-through area 18 can be made of a preferably shatter-proof plastic or glass or another (partially) transparent material, for example. According to FIG. 1, the environment sensor 16 is disposed in an opening of the roof skin 14 and can be retracted and deployed together with its housing 17, the drive mechanism used not being described in detail. In the case at hand, the environment sensor 16 is a lidar sensor configured send and/or receive electromagnetic signals so as to detect the vehicle environment through the see-through area 18. Other sensor types, e.g., (multidirectional) cameras, ultrasonic sensors, laser sensors, radar sensors, etc. can also be used. The see-through assembly 11 according to the invention can also be used for other electrical and/or electromagnetic and/or electromechanical components, such as a light source and/or an antenna and/or an antenna module, alternatively or in addition to the environment sensor 16. The environment sensor 16 is aligned along an optical axis 20, which is aligned parallel to the longitudinal vehicle direction x in the case of FIG. 1. The environment sensor 16 comprises a field of view 21 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) which extends in an essentially conical shape around the optical axis 20 and in which the environment sensor 16 can detect the environment of the vehicle 1000. In the present case, the environment sensor 16 is disposed on a frame structure 110.

[0042] According to the invention, the see-through assembly 11 comprises a cleaning feature 22. According to the invention, the cleaning feature 22 comprises a membrane 23 and advantageously at least one cleaning nozzle 24 and an evaluation and control feature 26.

[0043] Furthermore, the see-through assembly 11 comprises a control feature 26, which is communicatively connected to the at least one cleaning nozzle 24 and to the environment sensor 16 via one or more cables or wirelessly in the case at hand. In this way, sensor signals and/or control commands can be communicated between the respective components, for example. The control feature 26 is configured to cause the membrane 23 to move in a predetermined manner relative to the see-through area 18 so that foreign particles 28 located on an outer surface 30 of the membrane 23 can be loosened and/or detached and/or removed. The foreign particles 28 may be organic and/or inorganic particles, in particular dirt particles and/or insects and/or water droplets and/or snow and/or ice crystals, for example. In FIG. 2, the foreign particles 28 form a layer of ice on the see-through area 18, that is, the outer surface 30 of the membrane 23. Due to this ice layer, the view through the see-through area 18 is disturbed and possibly no longer possible for the environment sensor 16, which means cleaning and/or de-icing of the see-through area 18 is necessary.

[0044] In the state of the art, a heating feature 32 is used for this purpose (see FIG. 7), for example. In the state of the art, this heating feature 32 comprises a large number of heating wires which run within the see-through area 18 and basically act as a disturbance variable for the environment sensor 16. However, this is a necessary evil which had to be accepted since otherwise the see-through area 18 could not be de-iced.

[0045] According to the invention, the heating feature 32 can comprise significantly fewer heating wires 33 compared to the state of the art since the movable membrane 23 of the cleaning feature 22 is available for cleaning and/or de-icing in addition to the heating feature 32. In the case of FIGS. 2 and 3, heating wires 33 are provided only in a peripheral area of the see-through area 18 and do not interfere with the field of view 21 of the environment sensor 16. The heating capacity is nevertheless sufficient since the ice only needs to be thawed. Afterwards, the ice can be shaken off and preferably removed by the excitation of the membrane movement. The removal of the ice can be supported, for example, by the optional cleaning nozzle 24, which particularly preferably sprays a heated cleaning fluid onto the ice layer and thus thaws it further and/or even removes the loosening ice pieces. The control feature 26 is preferably also connected to the heating feature 32. In FIG. 3 shows a cleaning stage at which the ice layer has dissolved and only the foreign particles 28 have yet to be removed from the see-through area 18, that is, the outer surface 30 of the membrane 23. This removal can also be done by a position-specific actuation of the cleaning nozzle 24. For this purpose, the cleaning nozzle 24 can, for example, be rotated about or moved along one or more axes in order to spray a predetermined position on the see-through area 18 or even outside the see-through area 18 with cleaning fluid (see FIG. 3, for example). This location-specific control of the cleaning nozzle 24 can preferably be performed in feedback with the evaluation of the sensor signal generated by the environment sensor 16, in which the foreign particles 28 are preferably detected as location-specific interference signals. Since it is possible to evaluate from the sensor signal where exactly a contamination is located on the see-through area 18, it is possible to direct the cleaning fluid sprayed by the at least one cleaning nozzle 24 at this location in a location-specific manner so as to remove the foreign particles 28 in question. Such a location-specific control is preferably also provided with respect to the control of the membrane movement, which will be discussed in further detail below.

[0046] FIGS. 4 to 6 each show detailed views of the see-through assembly 11 according to the invention with the cleaning feature 22 according to the invention. The preferably provided heating feature is not shown in the Figures, but may be present in other exemplary embodiments. The cleaning feature 22 comprises the membrane 23, which is spaced apart from a surface of the see-through area 18 by means of a layer 34, presently a fluid layer. Alternatively, the see-through area may also comprise an excitation layer at least on its outer surface, the excitation layer being configured to undergo a shape and/or volume and/or thickness change in response to a control signal. Alternatively, the see-through area may also be formed by the excitation layer. The control feature 26 is configured to impart a predetermined movement to the membrane 23 relative to the see-through area 18 so that the foreign particles 28 located on the outer surface 30 of the membrane 23 can be loosened and/or detached and/or removed. The movability of the membrane 23 is exemplified by means of a double arrow. The fluid layer 34 comprises a gas and/or a liquid and/or a liquid/solid mixture, which is introduced into a space 35 between the see-through area 18 and the membrane 23 and forms the fluid layer 34 there. Alternatively or additionally, the layer 34 may comprise an elastic and/or very soft, movable material. Alternatively or additionally, the layer 34 may comprise a solid/fluid mixture and may in particular be foamy and/or spongy and/or porous.

[0047] The control feature 26 is configured to cause the membrane 23 to undergo an alternating and/or pulsed and/or cycled and/or frequent and/or oscillating and/or vibrating and/or abrupt and/or erratic and/or explosive movement, which preferably causes the membrane 23 to curve relative to the see-through area 18 at least regionally and/or multiply convexly and/or multiply concavely. The control feature 26 is configured to control the movement of the membrane 23 as a function of a foreign particle quantity and/or a foreign particle distribution, in particular partially selectively.

[0048] The movement of the membrane 23 relative to the unmoved see-through area 18 according to the invention can be enabled in various ways. For example, the cleaning feature 22 may comprise at least one piezoelectric and/or magnetic-stroke-based and/or vibration-inducing excitation feature 36 coupled to the membrane 23 and/or the fluid or the fluid layer 34 in a movement-transmitting manner. The control feature 26 is configured to cause the at least one piezoelectronic and/or magnetic-stroke-based and/or vibration-inducing excitation feature 36 to execute a predetermined movement and/or a predetermined movement profile, which in turn causes the predetermined movement of the membrane 23 indirectly via the fluid being set in motion or directly via the movement coupling with the excitation feature 36. In the present case, the membrane 23 is connected to the see-through area 18 via a frame element 37 at the edge, but can move relative to the see-through area 18 in at least one degree of freedom in the remaining free area.

[0049] FIG. 4 shows an example of a piezoelectronic excitation feature 36 which can directly excite the membrane 23 to move. The excitation feature 36 is shown enlarged. In FIG. 5, a magnetic-stroke-based excitation feature 36 is shown, by which the fluid or the fluid layer 34 can be set in motion, thereby exciting the membrane 23 to move.

[0050] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the cleaning feature 22 includes at least one pump 38. The control feature 26 is configured to actuate the at least one pump 38 so as to move a fluid forming the fluid layer 34 within the space 35. Alternatively or in addition to the pump 38, at least one control valve and/or at least one compressor may be used. The fluid-filled space 35 may comprise at least one inlet 39 and at least one outlet 40. The control feature 26 is designed to move the fluid through the space 35 so as to cause the movement of the membrane 23.