US-20260125031-A1 - VEHICLE SENSOR CLEANING DEVICE

Abstract

A vehicle sensor cleaning device is configured to clean a cover glass of a sensor section of a vehicle. The vehicle sensor cleaning device includes a driving part configured to rotate and a movement part coupled to the driving part. The movement part is configured to clean the cover glass while moving along the cover glass based on rotation of the driving part, where the movement part is configured to contact the cover glass and perform a reciprocating motion for cleaning a surface of the cover glass.

Inventors

• Jong Min Park
• Sin Won Kang
• Jeong Goo Lee

Assignees

• HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY
• KIA CORPORATION
• DY AUTO CORPORATION

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20250410

Priority Date

20241105

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A vehicle sensor cleaning device for a vehicle having a sensor section, comprising: a driving part configured to rotate; and a movement part coupled to the driving part and configured to clean a cover glass of the sensor section by moving along the cover glass based on rotation of the driving part, wherein the movement part is configured to contact a surface of the cover glass and to perform a reciprocating motion for cleaning the surface of the cover glass, the surface of cover glass having (i) a first area corresponding to a sensor that is disposed in the sensor section of the vehicle and (ii) a second area disposed outside the first area, and wherein the movement part is configured to move at a first speed in the first area of the cover glass and to move at a second speed in the second area of the cover glass, the second speed being different from the first speed.
2. 2 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 1 , wherein the first speed is constant, and the second speed comprises an accelerated speed and a decelerated speed, wherein the movement part is configured to (i) move at the accelerated speed at a first portion of the second area of the cover glass, (ii) move at the first speed in the first area, and then (iii) move at the decelerated speed at a second portion of the second area of the cover glass.
3. 3 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 1 , further comprising: a case defining a housing space that accommodates the driving part and the movement part therein, the housing space having an open front side.
4. 4 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 1 , wherein the driving part comprises a motor configured to perform a forward rotation and a reverse rotation.
5. 5 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 1 , wherein the movement part comprises: an arm head rod coupled to the driving part; a retainer hingedly connected to the arm head rod in a vertical direction; and a blade coupled to the retainer and configured to wipe the cover glass.
6. 6 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 5 , wherein the blade comprises: a blade holder detachably coupled to the retainer; and a wiper disposed parallel to a front surface of the blade holder.
7. 7 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 6 , wherein the movement part further comprises an elastic member disposed parallel to one side surface of the arm head rod and configured to pull the movement part toward the driving part.
8. 8 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 7 , wherein the wiper is located at the blade holder and is configured to contact the surface of the cover glass by elasticity of the elastic member.
9. 9 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 7 , wherein the elastic member comprises a tensile spring or a compression spring configured to pull the blade toward the driving part.
10. 10 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 1 , wherein the movement part has a cantilever shape fixed to the driving part.
11. 11 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 1 , further comprising a nozzle located adjacent to the cover glass and configured to spray cleaning fluid toward the cover glass.
12. 12 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 3 , further comprising a cooling fan disposed at the case and configured to circulate and cool internal air of the case.
13. 13 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 5 , wherein the arm head rod is one of a plurality of arm head rods, and wherein the movement part further comprises an elastic member coupled to at least one of the plurality of arm head rods.
14. 14 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 1 , wherein the movement part comprises: at least two arm head rods that are branched from a portion coupled to the driving part; and an elastic member coupled to each of the at least two arm head rods.
15. 15 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 14 , wherein the movement part comprises: retainers hingedly connected to the at least two arm head rods, respectively; and blades coupled to the retainers, respectively, and configured to wipe the cover glass.
16. 16 . A vehicle sensor cleaning device for a vehicle having a sensor section, comprising: a motor; an arm head rod coupled to the motor and configured to rotate based on rotation of the motor; and a wiper connected to the arm head rod and configured to contact a surface of a cover glass of the sensor section and to perform a reciprocating motion for cleaning the surface of the cover glass, the surface of cover glass having (i) a first area corresponding to a sensor that is disposed in the sensor section of the vehicle and (ii) a second area disposed outside the first area, wherein the wiper is configured to move at a first speed in the first area of the cover glass and to move at a plurality of second speeds in the second area of the cover glass, the plurality of second speeds being different from the first speed.
17. 17 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 16 , wherein the first speed is constant, and the plurality of second speeds comprise an accelerated speed and a decelerated speed, wherein the wiper is configured to (i) move at the accelerated speed at a first portion of the second area of the cover glass, (ii) move at the first speed in the first area, and then (iii) move at the decelerated speed at a second portion of the second area of the cover glass.
18. 18 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 16 , further comprising a retainer hingedly connected to the arm head rod, wherein the wiper is coupled to the retainer.
19. 19 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 18 , further comprising an elastic member disposed parallel to one side surface of the arm head rod and configured to pull the retainer toward the motor.
20. 20 . The vehicle sensor cleaning device of claim 16 , wherein the arm head rod is one of a plurality of arm head rods that are branched from a portion coupled to the motor.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims, under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a), the benefit of priority from Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0154920, filed on Nov. 5, 2024, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a vehicle cleaning device, and more particularly, to a cleaning device configured to clean a cover glass covering a sensor section of a vehicle and to clean and remove foreign substances (e.g., contaminants causing deterioration in sensor performance) attached to the exposed outer surface of the cover glass. BACKGROUND An autonomous vehicle may be configured to recognize the external environment of the vehicle and the driver's condition without driver involvement in operating the vehicle, to use a recognition/determination algorithm so as to recognize and determine the surrounding environment, and to control the vehicle based on information obtained through the recognition/determination algorithm without driver involvement so as to reach a destination of the vehicle. For example, an autonomous vehicle may utilize a plurality of sensors and a global positioning system (GPS) so as to recognize objects around the vehicle in the forward-and-rearward direction and the leftward-and-rightward direction of the vehicle. Examples of the sensors used in the autonomous vehicle include a camera, a radio detection and ranging (radar) sensor, and a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor. Since each of these sensors has different characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages, autonomous driving may be performed by integrating various sensor systems with each other in the autonomous vehicle. In some examples, an autonomous vehicle may include various sensors such as a camera, a LiDAR sensor, and a radar sensor integrally installed therein. For example, the camera sensor may be installed on the roof of the vehicle so as to recognize the front state of the autonomous vehicle. In some cases, external lens of the sensor installed on the outside of the vehicle may be contaminated by foreign substances such as dust, dirt, and asphalt and may be further contaminated by insect carcasses, bird droppings, rain, and snowfall caused by natural phenomena. When the lens is contaminated, the sensor may recognize incorrect information or may malfunction. When the sensor is not normally operated or is not capable of accurately recognizing the external situation, serious vehicle accidents may occur due to malfunction of the sensor. SUMMARY The present disclosure describes a device capable of intuitively and effectively cleaning a cover glass covering a sensor of a vehicle. According to one aspect of the subject matter described in this application, a vehicle sensor cleaning device for a vehicle having a sensor section includes a driving part configured to rotate and a movement part coupled to the driving part and configured to clean a cover glass of the sensor section by moving along the cover glass based on rotation of the driving part. The movement part is configured to contact a surface of the cover glass and to perform a reciprocating motion for cleaning the surface of the cover glass, the surface of cover glass having (i) a first area corresponding to a sensor that is disposed in the sensor section of the vehicle and (ii) a second area disposed outside the first area. The movement part is configured to move at a first speed in the first area of the cover glass and to move at a second speed in the second area of the cover glass, the second speed being different from the first speed. Implementations according to this aspect can include one or more of the following features. For example, the first speed can be constant, and the second speed comprises an accelerated speed and a decelerated speed, where the movement part is configured to (i) move at the accelerated speed at a first portion of the second area of the cover glass, (ii) move at the first speed in the first area, and then (iii) move at the decelerated speed at a second portion of the second area of the cover glass. In some implementations, the vehicle sensor cleaning device can further include a case defining a housing space that accommodates the driving part and the movement part therein, the housing space having an open front side. In some examples, the driving part can include a motor configured to perform a forward rotation and a reverse rotation. In some examples, the movement part can include an arm head rod coupled to the driving part, a retainer hingedly connected to the arm head rod in a vertical direction, and a blade coupled to the retainer and configured to wipe the cover glass. In some implementations, wherein the blade can include a blade holder detachably coupled to the retainer and a wiper disposed parallel to a front surface of the blade holder. In some examples, the movement part can further include an elastic member disposed parallel to one side surface of