Cleaning devices for vehicles, cleaning system for vehicles, and control method for cleaning system for vehicles

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2021237693-A1
Application number	US-201917052966-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	May 30, 2019
Priority date	Jun 26, 2018
Publication date	Aug 5, 2021
Grant date	—

Abstract

A vehicle cleaning device removes an extraneous object collected on a cleaning subject of a vehicle. The vehicle cleaning device includes: a cleaning liquid supply device mounted on the vehicle; and a wiper device including a wiper driver and a wiper blade. The wiper driver includes a linear movement portion that produces a linear movement based on supply of a cleaning liquid that is pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device, and a movement converter that converts the linear movement into a pivoting movement. The wiper blade is arranged to be contactable with the cleaning subject. The wiper device is configured to cause the wiper blade to perform a reciprocal wiping operation based on the pivoting movement of the movement converter.

First claim

1 . A vehicle cleaning device that removes an extraneous object collected on a cleaning subject of a vehicle, the vehicle cleaning device comprising:
a cleaning liquid supply device mounted on the vehicle; and a wiper device including a wiper driver and a wiper blade, wherein the wiper driver includes a linear movement portion that produces a linear movement based on supply of a cleaning liquid that is pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device, and a movement converter that converts the linear movement into a pivoting movement, the wiper blade is arranged to be contactable with the cleaning subject, and the wiper device is configured to cause the wiper blade to perform a reciprocal wiping operation based on the pivoting movement of the movement converter.

2 . The vehicle cleaning device according to claim 1 , wherein the linear movement portion and the movement converter are arranged beside each other at a pivot point of the wiper blade.

3 . The vehicle cleaning device according to claim 1 , wherein
the linear movement portion includes an urging spring and is configured to perform a reciprocal linear movement, the linear movement to one side is performed to accumulate urging force in the urging spring based on the supply of the cleaning liquid, and the linear movement to the other side is performed by receiving urging force accumulated in the urging spring based on a stopping of the supply of the cleaning liquid.

4 . The vehicle cleaning device according to claim 1 , further comprising:
an ejection nozzle that ejects and supplies the cleaning liquid, which is pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device, to the cleaning subject.

5 . The vehicle cleaning device according to claim 4 , further comprising:
a switch that switches the supply of the cleaning liquid pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device to the ejection nozzle or to the wiper driver.

6 . The vehicle cleaning device according to claim 4 , wherein the ejection nozzle is located at a vertically lower side of the wiper blade.

7 . The vehicle cleaning device according to claim 1 , wherein the cleaning subject of the vehicle includes a sensing surface of a ranging sensor mounted on the vehicle.

8 . A vehicle cleaning system that removes an extraneous object collected on a cleaning subject of a vehicle, the vehicle cleaning system comprising:
a vehicle cleaning device that includes a cleaning liquid supply device mounted on the vehicle, an ejection nozzle that ejects a cleaning liquid that is pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device to the cleaning subject, a wiper device including a wiper blade arranged in contact with the cleaning subject and a wiper driver that causes the wiper blade to perform a wiping operation based on a supply pressure of the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid supply device, and a switch that switches supply of the cleaning liquid pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device to the ejection nozzle or to the wiper driver; and a controller that controls the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch to control an ejection of the cleaning liquid and the wiping operation of the wiper blade.

9 . The vehicle cleaning system according to claim 8 , further comprising:
a raindrop sensor that is mounted on the vehicle and performs raindrop detection, wherein when it is determined that the ejection of the cleaning liquid to the cleaning subject is unnecessary based on the raindrop detection of the raindrop sensor, the controller controls the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch so that the wiping operation of the wiper blade is mainly performed.

10 . A method for controlling a vehicle cleaning system that removes an extraneous object collected on a cleaning subject of a vehicle, the vehicle cleaning system including a vehicle cleaning device, the vehicle cleaning device including a cleaning liquid supply device mounted on the vehicle, an ejection nozzle that ejects a cleaning liquid pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device to the cleaning subject, a wiper device including a wiper blade arranged in contact with the cleaning subject and a wiper driver that causes the wiper blade to perform a wiping operation based on a supply pressure of the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid supply device, and a switch that switches the supply of the cleaning liquid pressure-fed from the cleaning liquid supply device to the ejection nozzle or to the wiper driver, the method comprising:
controlling the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch to control an ejection of the cleaning liquid and the wiping operation of the wiper blade.

11 . The method according to claim 10 , wherein the controlling the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch includes
controlling the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch so that the cleaning liquid is ejected from the ejection nozzle to the cleaning subject, and subsequently controlling the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch so that the wiper blade reciprocally wipes the cleaning subject.

12 . The method according to claim 10 , wherein
the vehicle cleaning system further includes a raindrop sensor that is mounted on the vehicle and performs raindrop detection, the controlling the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch includes when the raindrop sensor detects a raindrop, controlling the switch to prohibit an ejection of the cleaning liquid from the ejection nozzle to the cleaning subject, and controlling the cleaning liquid supply device and the switch so that the wiper blade reciprocally wipes the cleaning subject.

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Yamauchi Yuusuke
• Aoyama Takahiro

Classifications

• B60S1/566 Primary

  including wiping devices (B60S1/563, B60S1/583 take precedence) · CPC title

• B60S1/481

  the operation of at least part of the liquid supply being controlled by electric means (electrical washing liquid warming-up means B60S1/488) · CPC title

• B60S1/04

  Wipers or the like, e.g. scrapers · CPC title

• B08B13/00

  Accessories or details of general applicability for machines or apparatus for cleaning · CPC title

• B08B3/02

  Cleaning by the force of jets or sprays · CPC title