Sensor cleaning

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11279325-B2
Application number	US-201916450196-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 24, 2019
Priority date	Jun 24, 2019
Publication date	Mar 22, 2022
Grant date	Mar 22, 2022

Abstract

An apparatus includes a sensor lens defining an axis, a first nozzle and a second nozzle positioned a same perpendicular direction from the axis and spaced along a direction parallel to the axis, and an air source fluidly connected to the nozzles. The nozzles are oriented to emit respective airstreams intersecting the axis and directed apart at an acute angle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a sensor lens defining an axis;
a first nozzle opening and a second nozzle opening, the nozzle openings being positioned a same radial direction from the axis, the nozzle openings being spaced from each other along a direction parallel to the axis, the nozzle openings being oriented to emit respective airstreams in respective airstream directions, the airstream directions intersecting the axis, and the airstream directions diverging from each other at an acute angle; and
an air source fluidly connected to the nozzle openings.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first nozzle opening is positioned to emit the airstream at the sensor lens.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second nozzle opening is positioned to emit the airstream substantially perpendicular to the axis.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second nozzle opening is farther from the sensor lens than the first nozzle opening, and a cross-sectional area of the second nozzle opening is greater than a cross-sectional area of the first nozzle opening.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the nozzle openings are elongated, and a direction of elongation of the nozzle openings is substantially parallel.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein a length of the first nozzle opening along the direction of elongation and a length of the second nozzle opening along the direction of elongation are substantially equal.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein a width of the second nozzle opening perpendicular to the direction of elongation is greater than a width of the first nozzle opening perpendicular to the direction of elongation.

8. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the direction of elongation of the nozzle openings is oriented substantially vertically.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a liquid nozzle directed at the sensor lens.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , further comprising a liquid source fluidly connected to the liquid nozzle, and a controller communicatively coupled to the air source and the liquid source and programmed to increase a pressure from the air source upon ceasing to activate the liquid source.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the controller is further programmed to decrease the pressure from the air source at a preset time after increasing the pressure from the air source.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a controller communicatively coupled to the air source and programmed to activate the air source in response to receiving data indicating that a vehicle including the controller is in a key-on state.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising an exterior panel including an aperture in which the sensor lens is positioned.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , further comprising a nozzle shell on the exterior panel, the nozzle shell including the nozzle openings extending therethrough.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the nozzle shell includes a nozzle panel facing the aperture, the nozzle panel including the nozzle openings extending therethrough.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the nozzle shell includes a rounded shell panel bordering the nozzle panel and the exterior panel.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the shell panel includes a first edge and a second edge, the first edge extends along the nozzle panel away from the exterior panel and then back to the exterior panel, and the second edge extends along the exterior panel away from the nozzle panel and then back to the nozzle panel.

18. The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the exterior panel includes an outside surface, and the nozzle shell is disposed on the outside surface.

19. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the nozzle openings are elongated along respective directions of elongation, and the directions of elongation are substantially parallel to a portion of the exterior panel along which the nozzle openings are elongated.

20. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the second nozzle opening is positioned to emit the airstream substantially parallel to a plane orthogonal to the axis.

Assignees

• Ford Global Tech Llc
• Valeo North America Inc

Inventors

• Sykula Andre
• Krishnan Venkatesh
• Baldovino Segundo
• Marshall Steven
• Whitney Michael

Classifications

• B60S1/52 Primary

  Arrangement of nozzles; {Liquid spreading means}(nozzles per se B05B) · CPC title

• B08B3/02

  Cleaning by the force of jets or sprays · CPC title

• B60S1/50

  Arrangement of reservoir · CPC title

• G05D1/021

  specially adapted to land vehicles · CPC title

• B08B5/02

  Cleaning by the force of jets, e.g. blowing-out cavities {(airguns or nozzles per se B05B1/005)} · CPC title