CN-121989869-A - Vehicle sensor cleaning device

Abstract

The invention provides a vehicle sensor cleaning device which is configured to clean a cover glass of a sensor portion of a vehicle. The vehicle sensor cleaning device includes a driving portion configured to be rotatable, and a moving portion coupled to the driving portion. The moving part is configured to move along the cover glass by rotation of the driving part to clean the cover glass, wherein the moving part is configured to contact the cover glass and reciprocate to clean a surface of the cover glass.

Inventors

• PU ZHONGMIN
• JIANG XINYUAN
• LI ZHENGJIU

Assignees

• 现代自动车株式会社
• 起亚株式会社
• DYAUTO株式会社

Dates

Publication Date

20260508

Application Date

20250424

Priority Date

20241105

Claims (20)

1. 1. A vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus for a vehicle having a sensor portion, comprising: a rotatable driving part, and A moving part coupled to the driving part and configured to move along the cover glass of the sensor part by rotation of the driving part, thereby cleaning the cover glass, Wherein the moving portion is configured to contact a surface of the cover glass and reciprocate to clean the surface of the cover glass, the surface of the cover glass having (i) a first region corresponding to a sensor provided in the sensor portion of the vehicle, and (ii) a second region provided outside the first region, and Wherein the moving portion is configured to move at a first speed in the first region of the cover glass and at a second speed different from the first speed in the second region of the cover glass.
2. 2. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first speed is a constant speed, the second speed includes an acceleration speed and a deceleration speed, Wherein the moving part is configured to (i) move at the acceleration speed in a first portion of the second region of the cover glass, (ii) move at the first speed in the first region, and (iii) move at the deceleration speed in a second portion of the second region of the cover glass.
3. 3. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a housing defining an accommodation space in which the driving part and the moving part are accommodated, and the accommodation space having an open front side.
4. 4. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving portion includes a motor configured to perform forward rotation and reverse rotation.
5. 5. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the moving portion includes: An arm head rod coupled to the driving part; A holder hinged to the arm head rod in a vertical direction, and And a wiper blade coupled to the holder and configured to be capable of wiping the cover glass.
6. 6. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the blade includes: A blade holder detachably coupled to the holder, and A wiper disposed parallel to a front surface of the blade holder.
7. 7. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the moving portion further includes an elastic member that is provided in parallel with one face of the arm head lever and is configured to pull the moving portion toward the driving portion.
8. 8. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the wiper is located at the blade holder and is configured to contact the surface of the cover glass by using elasticity of the elastic member.
9. 9. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the elastic member includes an extension spring or a compression spring configured to pull the blade toward the driving portion.
10. 10. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the moving portion has a cantilever shape fixed to the driving portion.
11. 11. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a nozzle that is located near the cover glass and is configured to spray a cleaning liquid toward the cover glass.
12. 12. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a cooling fan provided to the housing and configured to circulate and cool air inside the housing.
13. 13. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the arm head lever is one of a plurality of arm head levers, and Wherein the moving part further includes an elastic member coupled to at least one of the plurality of arm head levers.
14. 14. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the moving portion includes: at least two arm head levers branched from a portion coupled to the driving part, and And an elastic member coupled to each of the at least two arm head stems.
15. 15. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the moving portion includes: a plurality of holders hinged to the at least two arm head rods, respectively, and And a plurality of wiper blades coupled to the plurality of holders, respectively, and configured to be capable of wiping the cover glass.
16. 16. A vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus for a vehicle having a sensor portion, comprising: a motor; An arm head lever coupled to the motor and configured to be rotated by rotation of the motor, and A wiper connected to the arm head lever and configured to contact a surface of a cover glass of the sensor portion and reciprocate to clean the surface of the cover glass, the surface of the cover glass having (i) a first region corresponding to a sensor provided in the sensor portion of the vehicle, and (ii) a second region provided outside the first region, Wherein the wiper is configured to move at a first speed in the first region of the cover glass and at a plurality of second speeds in the second region of the cover glass, the plurality of second speeds being different from the first speed.
17. 17. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus of claim 16, wherein the first speed is a constant speed, the plurality of second speeds includes an acceleration speed and a deceleration speed, and Wherein the wiper is configured to (i) move at the acceleration speed in a first portion of the second region of the cover glass, (ii) move at the first speed in the first region, and (iii) move at the deceleration speed in a second portion of the second region of the cover glass.
18. 18. The vehicle sensor-cleaning device of claim 16, further comprising a holder hinged to the arm head stem, wherein the wiper is coupled to the holder.
19. 19. The vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus according to claim 18, further comprising an elastic member disposed in parallel with one face of the arm head lever and configured to pull the holder toward the motor.
20. 20. The vehicle sensor-cleaning device according to claim 16, wherein the arm-head lever is one of a plurality of arm-head levers branched from a portion coupled to the motor.

Description

Vehicle sensor cleaning device Technical Field The present invention relates to a vehicle cleaning device, and more particularly to a cleaning device configured to clean a cover glass covering a sensor portion of a vehicle, and clean and remove foreign substances (e.g., contaminants that cause deterioration of sensor performance) attached to an exposed outer surface of the cover glass. Background The autonomous vehicle may be configured to recognize an external environment of the vehicle and a condition of the driver without the driver participating in the operation of the vehicle, recognize and judge the surrounding environment using a recognition/judgment algorithm, and control the vehicle based on information obtained by the recognition/judgment algorithm without the driver participating, thereby reaching a destination of the vehicle. For example, an autonomous vehicle may utilize a plurality of sensors and a Global Positioning System (GPS) to identify surrounding objects in the fore-aft direction and the left-right direction of the vehicle. Examples of sensors used in autonomous vehicles include cameras, radio detection and ranging (radar) sensors, and light detection and ranging (lidar) sensors. Since each of these sensors has different features, advantages and disadvantages, in an autonomous vehicle, autonomous driving can be achieved by combining various sensor systems with each other. In some examples, the autonomous vehicle may include various integrally mounted sensors such as cameras, lidar sensors, and radar sensors. For example, a camera sensor may be mounted to the roof of a vehicle to identify the forward state of an autonomous vehicle. In some cases, the external lens of the sensor mounted on the outside of the vehicle may be contaminated with foreign substances such as dust, dirt, asphalt, and the like, and may be further contaminated by insect corpses, bird droppings, rainwater, and snowfall caused by natural phenomena. When the lens is contaminated, the sensor may recognize erroneous information or malfunction. When the sensor cannot be operated normally or external conditions cannot be recognized accurately, serious vehicle accidents may occur due to the malfunction of the sensor. Disclosure of Invention The present invention describes a device that enables intuitive and efficient cleaning of a protective glass covering a vehicle sensor. According to one aspect of the presently described subject matter, a vehicle sensor cleaning device for a vehicle having a sensor portion includes a driving portion configured to be rotatable, and a moving portion coupled to the driving portion and configured to move along a cover glass of the sensor portion by rotation of the driving portion, thereby cleaning the cover glass. The moving portion is configured to contact a surface of the cover glass and perform reciprocating motion to clean the surface of the cover glass, the surface of the cover glass having (i) a first region corresponding to a sensor provided in a sensor portion of the vehicle, and (ii) a second region provided outside the first region. The moving part is configured to move at a first speed in a first region of the cover glass and at a second speed different from the first speed in a second region of the cover glass. Implementations in accordance with this aspect can include one or more of the following features. For example, the first speed is a constant speed, and the second speed includes an acceleration speed and a deceleration speed, wherein the moving portion is configured to (i) move a first portion of the second region of the protective glass at the acceleration speed, (ii) move the second portion of the second region of the protective glass at the first speed, and (iii) move the second portion of the second region of the protective glass at the deceleration speed. In some embodiments, the vehicle sensor cleaning apparatus can further include a housing defining an accommodating space in which the driving part and the moving part are accommodated, the accommodating space having an open front side. In some examples, the drive portion can include a motor configured to perform forward rotation and reverse rotation. In some examples, the moving part can include an arm head lever coupled to the driving part, a holder hinged to the arm head lever in a vertical direction, and a wiper blade coupled to the holder and configured to be capable of wiping the cover glass. In some embodiments, among others, the wiper blade can include a wiper blade holder detachably coupled to the holder, and a wiper disposed parallel to a front surface of the wiper blade holder. In some examples, the moving portion may further include an elastic member disposed in parallel with the arm-head lever side surface and configured to pull the moving portion toward the driving portion. In some examples, the wiper is located at the blade holder and is configured to contact the surface of the cover glass using the ela