JP2011184030A - Lighting fixture for vehicle with built-in camera - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To integrally mount a camera and a light source without deteriorating a lighting function by making it difficult for lights of the light source to be incident on the camera and evenly emitting bright lights to an almost entire region of a translucent cover, in a lighting fixture for a vehicle mounted to a side face of a vehicle body. <P>SOLUTION: In a side turn signal lamp 11 of a vehicle body fender part, a lighting fixture housing 12 is constituted with a chassis 15 and a translucent cover 16. A light source 13 and a camera 14 are held by a holder 17 on the chassis 15, and images are picked up around front wheels and at side and rear parts of a vehicle by the camera 14. A light shielding part 18 is provided to the translucent cover 16, so as to shield an image pick-up part 14a of the camera 14 from the light of the light source 13. An incident port 19 is formed inside the light shielding part 18, so as to make the outside lights incident on the image pick-up part 14a. In a region except for the incident port 19, the translucent cover 16 is formed to spread from a front end to a rear end of the lighting fixture housing 12, so as to brightly illuminate the front, side and rear parts of the vehicle with the lights of the light source 13. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicular lamp in which a light source and a camera are incorporated in a lamp housing mounted on a side surface of a vehicle body.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a technique for installing a camera together with a light source inside a lamp housing in order to eliminate the need for a camera-dedicated housing is known. For example, in Patent Document 1, in a side turn signal lamp mounted on a fender portion of a vehicle body, the interior of a lamp housing is divided into two chambers by a partition wall, a light source is installed in a lamp chamber on the front side in the running direction, and rear side shooting is performed. A technique is described in which a camera is installed in a room and an image of the rear of the vehicle photographed by the camera is displayed on a driver's seat monitor.

JP 2003-31359 A

  According to the conventional vehicular lamp, the lamp housing can be shared by the light source and the camera, and the photographing room can be shielded by the partition wall so that the light from the light source does not easily enter the camera. However, since the photographing room is shielded, the second half of the lamp housing becomes darker than the first half. For this reason, the built-in camera has a problem that the original illumination function of the lamp deteriorates.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicular lamp that can mount a camera together with a light source without deteriorating the illumination function.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides the following means in a vehicular lamp in which a light source and a camera are built in a lamp housing mounted on a side surface of a vehicle body.
(1) The lamp housing includes an emission part that emits light from the light source to the outside, and a light shielding part that shields the camera from the light from the light source. A vehicular lamp device characterized in that the light emitting portion is formed so as to extend from the front end to the rear end of the lamp housing in a region excluding.

(2) The vehicular lamp according to (1), wherein the emission unit emits light from the light source to the front, side, and rear of the vehicle, and the camera enters external light from the rear of the vehicle.

(3) The vehicular lamp according to (1) or (2), wherein the light-shielding part is formed so as to surround the imaging part of the camera, and the entrance is provided inside the light-shielding part.

(4) The emission unit includes a light receiving lens that is close to the light source, and a light guide lens that internally reflects light of the light source incident from the light receiving lens and guides the light in the front-rear direction of the lamp housing (1) to ( The vehicle lamp as described in any one of 3).

(5) The vehicular lamp according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the lamp housing is mounted on a door panel that covers a door opening on a side surface of the vehicle body.

  The vehicular lamp according to the present invention shields the camera from the light of the light source by the light-shielding portion so that the image of the camera is clear, and the emission portion is formed to spread from the front end to the rear end of the lamp housing. There is an effect that the camera can be mounted together with the light source without causing the illumination function to deteriorate without causing the entire area to emit light uniformly and brightly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is an external view of the vehicle body which shows the vehicle lamp of Example 1 by this invention. It is a front view which expands and shows the vehicle lamp of FIG. FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the vehicular lamp in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating a modification example of a light shielding portion in the vehicle lamp of FIG. 3. It is an external view of the vehicle body which shows the vehicle lamp of Example 2 by this invention. It is a horizontal sectional view of the vehicular lamp of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the example of a change of the vehicle lamp of Example 2. FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows another example of a change of the vehicle lamp of Example 2.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments in which the present invention is embodied in an automobile STSL (side turn signal lamp) will be described based on two examples. The STSL 11 of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is attached to the fender portion of the vehicle body 2 on the upper side of the front wheel 1. 5 to 8 is replaced with a door mirror 5 (see FIG. 1) in the front seat door panel 4 that covers the door opening 3 on the side surface of the vehicle body 2, and is mounted on the same part. In the first and second embodiments, the same or similar members are denoted by the same reference numerals in the drawings.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the STSL 11 according to the first embodiment incorporates a light source 13 and a camera 14 in a lamp housing 12 attached to a fender portion of the vehicle body 2. The lamp housing 12 includes a chassis 15 attached to the vehicle body 2 and a translucent cover 16 as an emitting part that emits light from the light source 13. The chassis 15 is provided with a holder 17 that holds the light source 13 and the camera 14. The light source 13 includes a light emitting element 13a such as an LED or an incandescent lamp, and a substrate 13b. The light source 13 is disposed at a substantially central portion in the lamp housing 12, and a control circuit for the camera 14 is provided on the board 13 b together with a lighting circuit for the light source 13.

  The camera 14 is held by the holder 17 in a posture in which the imaging unit (lens) 14a is obliquely rearward and downward, photographs the periphery of the front wheel 1, the side of the vehicle, and the rear, and the image is displayed on a monitor (not shown) of the driver's seat. Display. A cylindrical or ring-shaped light shielding unit 18 that shields the imaging unit 14 a of the camera 14 from the light of the light source 13 is provided at the rear part of the translucent cover 16. The light shielding part 18 is molded in two colors on the translucent cover 16 with an opaque resin material so as to surround the imaging part 14a. An entrance 19 is formed on the inner side of the light shield 18 to allow external light to enter the imaging unit 14a from behind and below the vehicle. The translucent cover 16 is formed so as to spread from the front end to the rear end of the lamp housing 12 in a region excluding the entrance port 19, and emits light from the light source 13 to the front, side and rear of the vehicle. .

  Therefore, according to the STSL 11 of the first embodiment, it is possible to monitor the vicinity of the front wheel 1, the side of the vehicle, and the rear with a single camera 14. In particular, since the imaging unit 14 a of the camera 14 is surrounded by the light shielding unit 18 and the entrance 19 is formed inside the light shielding unit 18, the image of the camera 14 is captured by direct light from the light source 13 or indirect light transmitted through the translucent cover 16. There is no risk of adverse effects. Moreover, the light of the light source 13 can be uniformly emitted from almost the entire area of the translucent cover 16, and the front, side, and rear of the vehicle can be illuminated brightly. As shown in FIG. 4, a step-shaped light shielding portion 20 is formed on the translucent cover 16, and the light from the light source 13 is reflected by the light shielding portion 20 and diffused outside the imaging portion 14a. Also good.

  5 to 8 includes a light source 13 and a camera 14 in a lamp housing 22 mounted on the door panel 4. The lamp housing 22 includes a chassis 23 attached to the door panel 4 and a translucent cover 24 as an emitting part that emits light from the light source 13. The chassis 23 is provided with a holder 17 that holds the light source 13 and the camera 14. The translucent cover 24 includes a ring-shaped light receiving lens 24 a adjacent to the light emitting element 13 a of the light source 13, and a thick belt that internally reflects light of the light emitting element 13 a incident from the light receiving lens 24 a and guides it in the front-rear direction of the lamp housing 22. A light guide lens 24b having a shape is formed.

  The light source 13 and the light receiving lens 24a are disposed so as to face each other at the front end portion (see FIG. 6) or the intermediate portion (see FIG. 7) of the lamp housing 22. The camera 14 is arranged at the rear end of the lamp housing 22 in a posture in which the imaging unit 14a faces rearward (opposite or perpendicular to the irradiation direction of the light emitting element 13a), and takes a picture of the rear of the vehicle instead of the door mirror. Display on the driver's seat monitor. At the rear end of the chassis 23, a cylindrical light shielding unit 25 that shields the imaging unit 14a from the light of the light source 13 is provided, and an entrance 26 that allows external light to enter the imaging unit 14a from the rear of the vehicle inside the light shielding unit 25. Is formed.

  In the STSL 21 shown in FIG. 8, the light source 13 and the light receiving lens 24 a are disposed relative to the rear end portion of the lamp housing 22. The camera 14 is disposed in the inner part of the lamp housing 22 so that the imaging unit 14a is oriented at a right angle to the irradiation direction of the light source 13a. The holder 17 is provided with a bracket 27 that holds the camera 14 and a mirror 29 that reflects external light taken from the optical filter 28 of the entrance 26 toward the imaging unit 14a. 6 to 8, the light guide lens 24b of the translucent cover 24 extends from the front end to the rear end of the lamp housing 22 in a region excluding the entrance 26, and the light from the light source 13 is transmitted to the front and side of the vehicle. And it comes out to back.

  Therefore, according to the STSL 21 of the second embodiment, the camera 14 can function as a rear confirming means instead of the door mirror 5, a camera-specific waterproof housing is unnecessary, and the lamp housing 22 can be shared by the light source 13 and the camera 14. The housing 22 can be miniaturized and the air resistance can be reduced, thereby contributing to improvement in fuel consumption. Further, the orientation of the light source 13 and the camera 14 can be made different, and the image capturing unit 14a can be shielded by the light shielding unit 25, so that the image of the camera 14 can be reliably protected from the light of the light source 13. In particular, the translucent cover 24 can brighten the light guide lens 24b in a stripe shape with the light incident from the light receiving lens 24a, and can create a novel design near the belt line of the door panel 4.

  As described above in detail in the first and second embodiments, according to the vehicular lamp of the present invention, the light source and the camera are arranged side by side before and after the vehicle traveling direction. The downsizing of the lamp housing can be realized in the left and right or up and down directions). Even when the light source and the camera are arranged side by side in the vehicle traveling direction, a mirror or a light guide lens can be used to emit light uniformly and brightly over almost the entire area of the translucent cover without impairing the camera function. It becomes possible.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said Example, For example, STSL11 of Example 1 can also be functioned as a back confirmation means to replace the door mirror 5, and STSL21 of Example 2 is incorporated in the housing of the door mirror 5. In addition, the shape and configuration of each part can be appropriately changed and embodied without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

2 Car body 3 Door opening 4 Door panel 11 Side turn signal lamp (Example 1)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 Lamp housing 13 Light source 14 Camera 14a Image pick-up part 16 Translucent cover 18 Light-shielding part 19 Entrance 20 Light-shielding part 21 Side turn signal lamp (Example 2)
22 Lamp housing 24 Translucent cover 24a Light receiving lens 24b Light guiding lens 25 Light shielding part 26 Entrance

Claims (5)

  In a vehicular lamp in which a light source and a camera are incorporated in a lamp housing mounted on a side surface of a vehicle body, the lamp housing includes an emitting unit that emits light from the light source to the outside, and a light shielding unit that shields the camera from the light from the light source. A vehicle lamp characterized in that an entrance for allowing external light to enter the camera is provided in the light-shielding portion, and the exit portion is formed to extend from the front end to the rear end of the lamp housing in a region excluding the entrance aperture.   The vehicular lamp according to claim 1, wherein the emission unit emits light from a light source to the front, side, and rear of the vehicle, and the camera receives external light from the rear of the vehicle.   The vehicular lamp according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the light shielding part is formed so as to surround an imaging part of a camera, and the incident port is provided inside the light shielding part.   4. The vehicular lamp according to claim 1, wherein the light emitting lens includes a light receiving lens that is close to the light source and a light guide lens that internally reflects light of the light source incident from the light receiving lens and guides the light in a front-rear direction of the lamp housing. .   The vehicular lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the lamp housing is attached to a door panel that covers a door opening on a side surface of the vehicle body.

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