JP-2026074721-A - In-car camera

JP2026074721AJP 2026074721 AJP2026074721 AJP 2026074721AJP-2026074721-A

Abstract

[Problem] To remove different types of foreign matter, such as snow or moisture, adhering to the first lens using a heater and a piezoelectric element. [Solution] The in-vehicle camera comprises a lens barrel 30 having a lens 35 including at least a first lens 35a and a second lens 35b, an image sensor 50, and a circuit board 40 on which the image sensor is arranged. The lens barrel includes a ring-shaped heater portion 10 positioned between the first lens and the second lens, along the first edge of the first lens; a ring-shaped piezoelectric element 20 positioned between the first lens and the second lens, along the first edge of the first lens; and a ring-shaped resin member 70 positioned between the first lens and the second lens, along the second edge of the second lens. The resin member is positioned closer to the second lens than the heater portion and closer to the second lens than the piezoelectric element, and supports the heater portion and/or the piezoelectric element. The first thermal conductivity of the lens barrel is greater than the second thermal conductivity of the resin member. [Selection Diagram] Figure 10

Inventors

上野善弘
水澤和史
清水太

Assignees

パナソニックオートモーティブシステムズ株式会社

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20241021

Claims (19)

A lens barrel having a first cylindrical shape along the optical axis, a first end of the first cylindrical shape, a second end opposite to the first end, and a lens comprising at least a first lens and a second lens arranged along the optical axis, An image sensor positioned on the optical axis, closer to the second end than the first end of the first cylindrical shape of the lens barrel, A circuit board comprising a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface, wherein the image sensor is arranged on the first surface, A circuit board connector arranged on the aforementioned circuit board, A housing comprising a second cylindrical shape aligned with the optical axis, a third end of the second cylindrical shape, and a fourth end opposite to the third end, positioned further away from the third end of the second cylindrical shape than the first end of the first cylindrical shape of the lens barrel, with the third end of the second cylindrical shape supporting the lens barrel and housing the circuit board, The housing comprises a connector located at least a portion of the fourth end and connected to the circuit board connector, The first lens is adjacent to the second lens and is positioned further away from the second lens in a direction along the optical axis, with reference to the first surface of the circuit board. The aforementioned lens barrel is Between the first lens and the second lens, a first ring-shaped heater portion is arranged along the first edge of the first lens, A second ring-shaped piezoelectric element is positioned between the first lens and the second lens, so as to be aligned with the first edge of the first lens, The device comprises a third ring-shaped resin member positioned between the first lens and the second lens, arranged along the second edge of the second lens, The resin member of the lens barrel is positioned closer to the second lens than the heater portion of the lens barrel. The resin member of the lens barrel is positioned closer to the second lens than the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel. The resin member of the lens barrel supports the heater portion and/or the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel. The first thermal conductivity of the lens barrel is greater than the second thermal conductivity of the resin member. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The piezoelectric element of the lens barrel is positioned closer to the image sensor than the heater portion of the lens barrel in the direction along the optical axis. In-car camera.
The in-vehicle camera according to claim 2, The heater portion of the lens barrel is positioned in contact with the first edge of the first lens of the lens barrel. The piezoelectric element of the lens barrel is positioned in contact with the heater portion of the lens barrel. The resin member of the lens barrel is positioned in contact with the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The heater portion of the lens barrel is positioned closer to the image sensor than the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel in the direction along the optical axis. In-car camera.
The in-vehicle camera according to claim 4, The piezoelectric element of the lens barrel is positioned in contact with the first edge of the first lens of the lens barrel. The heater portion of the lens barrel is positioned in contact with the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel. The resin member of the lens barrel is positioned in contact with the heater portion of the lens barrel. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The first cylindrical shape of the lens barrel comprises an inner surface and an outer surface, The first outer peripheral edge of the heater portion of the lens barrel is arranged along the inner surface of the lens barrel. The second outer edge of the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel is arranged along the inner surface of the lens barrel, The third outer peripheral edge of the resin member of the lens barrel is arranged along the inner surface of the lens barrel. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The first lens of the lens barrel is the lens furthest from the image sensor, The heater portion of the lens barrel is capable of heating the first lens of the lens barrel. The piezoelectric element of the lens barrel is capable of vibrating the first lens of the lens barrel. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The heater portion of the lens barrel is A first conductor comprises a first conductor end and a second conductor end opposite to the first conductor end, wherein the first conductor end is connected to the heater section and the second conductor end is connected to the circuit board, The piezoelectric element of the lens barrel is A second conductor comprising a third conductor end and a fourth conductor end opposite to the third conductor end, wherein the third conductor end is connected to the piezoelectric element and the fourth conductor end is connected to the circuit board, In-car camera.
The in-vehicle camera according to claim 8, At least a portion of the first conductor of the heater portion of the lens barrel and at least a portion of the second conductor of the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel are connected to the circuit board, passing outside the first cylindrical outer surface of the lens barrel. In-car camera.
The in-vehicle camera according to claim 8, At least a portion of the first conductor of the heater portion of the lens barrel and at least a portion of the second conductor of the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel are connected to the circuit board, passing inside the first cylindrical inner surface of the lens barrel. In-car camera.
The in-vehicle camera according to claim 8, The first conductor of the heater section of the lens barrel and the second conductor of the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel are both flexible printed circuit boards. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 11, The flexible printed circuit board for the first conductor of the heater section of the lens barrel and the flexible printed circuit board for the second conductor of the piezoelectric element of the lens barrel are integrated. In-car camera.
The in-vehicle camera according to claim 8, After the first power is supplied to the heater section via the first conductor, the second power is supplied to the piezoelectric element via the second conductor. In-car camera.
The in-vehicle camera according to claim 13, The first power and the second power are supplied from the connector and the circuit board connector, In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The connector is a pin connector and/or a coaxial connector. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The heater unit is a PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) heater. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The aforementioned connector is The first connector end connected to the circuit board connector, A second connector end, opposite to the first connector end, is connected to a vehicle cable, In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The circuit board comprises a first circuit board and a second circuit board. In-car camera.
An in-vehicle camera according to claim 1, The circuit board connector is located on the second surface of the circuit board. In-car camera.

Description

This disclosure relates to in-vehicle cameras. In recent years, driven by demands for improved vehicle safety and the introduction of autonomous driving functions, the development of in-vehicle cameras that capture images both inside and outside vehicles has become increasingly active (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Japanese Patent Publication No. 2017-170303Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-181702International Publication No. 2023/127197Japanese Patent Publication No. 2024-53065 An example of a vehicle, a top view of a vehicle equipped with an on-board camera.Block diagram showing an example of the connection of an in-vehicle camera, camera ECU, and display installed in the vehicle shown in Figure 1.Another example of a vehicle: a schematic diagram of the interior of a vehicle equipped with an onboard camera.Top view of the vehicle in Figure 3Block diagram showing an example of the connection of an in-vehicle camera, camera ECU, and display unit installed in the vehicle shown in Figure 3.Front perspective view of an in-vehicle camera according to the first embodiment.Rearward perspective view of an in-vehicle camera according to the first embodiment.Exploded perspective view of an in-vehicle camera according to the first embodiment.Top view of an in-vehicle camera according to the first embodimentCross-sectional view along line I-I in Figure 9Exploded perspective view of an in-vehicle camera according to the second embodiment.In the in-vehicle camera according to the second embodiment, a cross-sectional view along the line I-I in Figure 9.Exploded perspective view of an in-vehicle camera according to the third embodiment.In the in-vehicle camera according to the third embodiment, a cross-sectional view along the line I-I in Figure 9.Circuit diagram of a circuit boardA flowchart illustrating the power supply procedure for in-vehicle cameras.In an in-vehicle camera according to an embodiment having two circuit boards, a cross-sectional view along line I-I in Figure 9. The following description details embodiments of the in-vehicle camera disclosed herein, with appropriate reference to the drawings. However, unnecessarily detailed explanations may be omitted. For example, detailed explanations of already well-known matters and redundant explanations of substantially identical configurations may be omitted. This is to avoid unnecessarily verbose explanations and to facilitate understanding for those skilled in the art. The accompanying drawings and the following description are provided to enable those skilled in the art to fully understand this disclosure and are not intended to limit the subject matter of the claims. (Vehicles equipped with onboard cameras) Figure 1 shows an example of a vehicle, a top view of a vehicle equipped with onboard cameras. Vehicle V is equipped with onboard cameras 100A, 100B, 100C, and 100D. Onboard camera 100A is a front camera, onboard camera 100B is a rear camera, onboard camera 100C is a right side camera, and onboard camera 100D is a left side camera. Onboard cameras 100A to 100D are wide-angle cameras with a field of view of approximately 180°, for example, and are arranged so that the entire circumference of vehicle V is captured. For example, the in-vehicle camera 100A is mounted on the front grille of the vehicle V and captures images of the area in front of the vehicle, looking diagonally downwards towards the ground. The in-vehicle camera 100B is mounted on the roof spoiler of the vehicle V and captures images of the area behind the vehicle, looking diagonally downwards towards the ground. The in-vehicle cameras 100C and 100D are each mounted on the side mirrors of the vehicle V and capture images of the area to the sides, looking diagonally downwards towards the ground. Figure 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the connection between the in-vehicle cameras 100A-100D, the camera ECU 111, and the display 7 installed in the vehicle V shown in Figure 1. The camera ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 111 shown in Figure 2 synthesizes the images captured by the in-vehicle cameras 100A-100D and displays the synthesized image on the display 7 of the navigation system, for example, located on the instrument panel. The occupants can view the display 7 to check the surroundings of the vehicle V. Figure 3 is another example of a vehicle, a schematic diagram of the passenger compartment of a vehicle equipped with an on-board camera, and Figure 4 is a top view of the vehicle in Figure 3. Vehicle V is the front portion of the passenger compartment 2 between the driver's seat 3 and the passenger seat 4, and is equipped with a display unit 5 (e.g., an electronic rearview mirror) at the rear mirror mounting position. Furthermore, vehicle V is equipped with an on-board camera 100 at the rear of the vehicle body. Figure 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the connection of the on-board camera 100, camera ECU 111, and display unit 5 installed in vehicle V shown in Figur