Patent Application
20250102617
This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0129974, filed on Sep. 27, 2023, which application is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates to a fender cover for mounting of an autonomous driving sensor.
In general, automatic driving is to automatically perform various operations required while a vehicle travels, and for example, an autonomous driving vehicle may travel on a road by itself without a driver's manipulation of a handle, an accelerator pedal, a brake, or the like.
For the autonomous driving, various sensors such as a camera, a radio detecting and ranging (radar), a light detection and ranging (LiDAR), and an ultrasonic sensor are installed to recognize a surrounding environment including a nearby terrain and position of a vehicle and automatically performs the maintenance of a travel lane line, the securement of a safe distance to an adjacent vehicle, the detection and collision evasion of nearby obstacles, and the like.
Since the sensors for autonomous driving, such as a camera, a radar, a LiDAR, and an ultrasonic sensor, are mainly intended to ensure that there are no blind spots of a vehicle, the sensors are usually positioned on the front, rear, and corners of the vehicle.
Therefore, as various sensors need to be mounted on the front and rear of the autonomous driving vehicle, it is necessary to mount the sensors on a structure applied to a body or newly mount a separate exterior part with a protruded shape for fixing the sensors on the body.
In particular, when the sensors for autonomous driving are mounted on a fender and a roof of the vehicle, protrusion from a side surface and an upper surface of the vehicle is excessive compared to the conventional shape, and thus it is necessary to apply a structure for mounting to the exterior of the body while optimizing the shape.
The present disclosure relates to a fender cover for mounting of an autonomous driving sensor. Particular embodiments relate to a fender cover for mounting of an autonomous driving sensor, which can achieve the same sensor performance as before while improving a shape of an exterior of a body by separately mounting a plurality of covers in mounting a plurality of sensors for autonomous driving on a fender for a vehicle.
Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a fender cover for mounting of an autonomous driving sensor, which can achieve the same sensor performance as before while improving a shape of an exterior of a body by dividing a plurality of covers and mounting the sensor by the covers in mounting radio light detection and ranging (radar) and light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensors for autonomous driving on a fender having no separate mounting space and an entirely protruded shape.
A fender cover for mounting of an autonomous driving sensor according to embodiments of the present disclosure includes a first cover part fastened to a fender for a vehicle in which a mounting area is machined and configured to guide a first sensor to be mounted in a protruded state in the mounting area, a second cover part coupled to the first cover part and configured to guide a mounting position of the first sensor to be fixed, and a third cover part coupled to the second cover part and fastened to the mounting area, disposed to support the second cover part and a second sensor mounted in the mounting area, and including a mounting guide hole with a shape corresponding to a shape of the second sensor.
Here, the mounting area in addition to a plurality of mounting holes may be formed to be pre-machined in the fender.
The first cover part may include a bracket for mounting of the first sensor and may be formed to have a rounded one side to surround an outer circumferential surface of the first sensor.
Preferably, the first sensor may be formed as a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor.
In addition, the second cover part may include a seating groove with a shape corresponding to a shape of the first sensor and guide the mounting position of the first sensor to be fixed in a state in which the first sensor is exposed to the outside through the seating groove.
Here, the second cover part may include a latching hook at one side facing the first cover part and allow one side of the facing first cover part to be positioned by being caught on the latching hook as the second cover part is coupled to the first cover part.
In addition, the second cover part may be disposed so that one side in which the seating groove is formed faces one side of the first cover part and includes a latching hook therein so that the one side of the first cover part is positioned by being caught on the latching hook.
Meanwhile, the second cover part may include a clip member mounted therein to be inserted into a fastening hole formed in the first cover part.
Here, the clip member may be formed in a wedge shape and provided in a structure that is positioned by being caught due to an expanded width as the clip member is inserted into the fastening hole.
In addition, the second cover part may be provided on a mounting member formed to extend toward the second sensor and may include a mounting hole formed so that the third cover part is coupled by being disposed to overlap.
The third cover part may include coupling guide members formed to be inserted into a pair of mounting holes disposed to be spaced apart from each other in a vertical direction in the mounting member.
In addition, the third cover part may include a first cover member including the mounting guide hole and a second cover member extending integrally from the first cover member to support a lower portion of the second cover part and mounted in the mounting area.
Here, the second cover member may include a plurality of coupling protrusions inserted into mounting holes of the mounting area and allowing one side of the third cover part to be fixed, and the first cover member may include a hook member positioned by being caught on a mount for mounting of the second sensor and allowing the other side of the third cover part to be fixed.
Preferably, the second sensor may be formed as a radio detecting and ranging (radar) sensor coupled at different mounting angles in a vertical direction.
Meanwhile, the fender cover for mounting of the autonomous driving sensor according to embodiments of the present disclosure may further include a fourth cover part formed to shield an inside of the first cover part on which the first sensor is mounted from the outside as the first sensor is mounted to be inclined on the first cover part.
The fourth cover part may include hook members inserted into hook fastening holes formed along upper edges of the first cover part and the third cover part.
Preferably, the hook member may be provided as a plurality of hook members and inserted into each of a plurality of hook fastening holes disposed to be spaced a 90° interval from each other to restrict movements of the fourth cover part in a longitudinal direction and a width direction.
In addition, the fourth cover part may further include a clip member inserted into a detachment hole spaced apart from the hook fastening hole and formed along the upper edge of the first cover part.
According to embodiments of the present disclosure, it is possible to achieve the same sensor performance as before while improving the shape of the exterior of the body by dividing the plurality of covers and mounting the sensors by the covers in mounting the radar and LiDAR sensors for autonomous driving on the fender having no separate mounting space and the entirely protruded shape.
In addition, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, since the separate hole machining for mounting of the sensors is not required, it is possible to easily mount the sensors, and since the mounting is made by the assembly of the cover, even when the sizes of the sensors increase, the effective response and mounting are possible.
In addition, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, by performing the selective fastening or the surface matching with the nearby parts in order to improve the sense of heterogeneity with the nearby parts with respect to the divided covers, it is possible to improve assemblability and exterior quality.
It is understood that the term “automotive”, vehicle, or “vehicular” or other similar term as used herein is inclusive of motor vehicles in general such as passenger automobiles including sports utility vehicles (SUVs), buses, trucks, various commercial vehicles, watercraft including a variety of boats and ships, aircraft, and the like, and includes hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, hydrogen-powered vehicles and other alternative fuel vehicles (e.g., fuels derived from resources other than petroleum). As referred to herein, a hybrid vehicle is a vehicle that has two or more sources of power, for example both gasoline-powered and electric-powered vehicles.
The above and other features of embodiments of the disclosure are discussed infra.
The above and other features of embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to certain exemplary examples thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings which are given herein below by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and wherein:
It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various preferred features illustrative of the basic principles of embodiments of the disclosure. The specific design features of embodiments of the present disclosure as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particular intended application and use environment.
In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent sections of embodiments of the present disclosure throughout the several figures of the drawings.
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments according to the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Advantages and features of embodiments of the present disclosure and methods for achieving them will become clear with reference to embodiments described below in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
However, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the embodiments disclosed below but will be implemented in various different forms, these embodiments are merely provided to make the disclosure of the present disclosure complete and fully inform those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains completely of the scope of the present disclosure, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are only defined by the scope of the appended claims.
In addition, in the description of embodiments of the present disclosure, when it is determined that related known technologies may obscure the gist of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.
In addition,
In addition,
In addition,
Since a fender 1 for a vehicle has a structure that is formed to protrude from a side surface of a body, when a first sensor 10, for example, a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor is mounted on the structure of the fender 1, the LiDAR sensor inevitably protrudes excessively to the outside due to the structural characteristics of the LiDAR sensor with a predetermined height, and it may be difficult to secure an area in which a second sensor 20, for example, a radio detecting and ranging (radar) sensor required for autonomous driving together with the first sensor 10 is mounted due to a spatial restraint.
In addition, since the fender 1 has no separate mounting space due to the structural characteristics, has an entirely curved shape, and protrudes from a side surface of the vehicle, it may be difficult to fix and mount the LiDAR sensor and the radar sensor together.
To this end, although a separate exterior part made of plastic or the like may be newly applied, not only hole machining or the like for mounting of the exterior part is essential, but also a shape of the exterior of the fender 1 may be inevitably degraded in a process of the hole machining or the like.
Therefore, as illustrated in
First, the first cover part 100 is fastened to the fender 1 in which a mounting area A is machined and guides the first sensor 10 to be mounted in a protruded state in the mounting area A.
Here, as illustrated in
In addition, as illustrated in
Preferably, as illustrated in
The second cover part 200 is coupled to the first cover part 100, and as illustrated in
Specifically, as illustrated in
Here, as illustrated in
In other words, the second cover part 200 includes the latching hook 202, and the first cover part 100 includes the latching hook 104 with a shape corresponding to the latching hook 202 at one side thereof, and thus, it is possible to prevent a problem in which a step difference occurs as the first side 100a of the first cover part 100 is opened from the second cover part 200.
This intends to structurally prevent a problem in which when a position of the first sensor 10 mounted on the first cover part 100 needs to be adjusted, for example, when the position of the first sensor 10 needs to be adjusted to the first side 100a of the first cover part 100, the first sensor 10 presses the first side 100a of the first cover part 100 while a position of the first sensor 10 is adjusted, and at this time, the first side 100a of the first cover part 100 is opened while protruding to the outside of the second cover part 200 through structures of the latching hooks 104 and 202 with corresponding shapes, and thus it is also possible to prevent degradation of the shape of the exterior.
In addition, as illustrated in
In other words, as illustrated in
Here, the clip member 210 may be formed in a wedge shape and may be formed in a structure that is positioned by being caught due to an expanded width as the clip member 210 is inserted into the fastening hole 110, and thus the second cover part 200 may be easily coupled to the first cover part 100.
As a result, in the embodiment, it is possible to provide an improved exterior having no step difference between the first cover part 100 and the second cover part 200 through the structures of the latching hooks 104 and 202 with the corresponding shapes and the clip member 210, and it is also possible to provide convenience according to coupling.
As illustrated in
The mounting hole 230a is for guiding the coupling of the third cover part 300, and thus the third cover part 300 may allow a coupling guide member 300a to be inserted into each of the pair of mounting holes 230a and coupled to the second cover part 200 (see
Through the above coupling structure, the third cover part 300 supports the second cover part 200 for fixing the first sensor 10 and supports the second sensor 20 mounted in the mounting area A together using a mounting guide hole 312 with a shape corresponding to the shape of the second sensor 20.
To this end, as illustrated in
The first cover member 310 includes the pair of mounting guide holes 312 for supporting the second sensor 20 mounted to be spaced apart in the vertical direction in the mounting area A by a plurality of mounts 22 together and at the same time, allowing the second sensor 20 to be exposed to the outside.
The first cover member 310 includes hook members 314 and allows each of the hook members 314 to be positioned by being caught on one of the plurality of mounts 22, for example, ten mounts 22 (see a portion marked in a circular shape in
In addition, the second cover member 320 extends integrally from the first cover member 310 to support a lower portion of the second cover part 200 and is mounted in the mounting area A.
In other words, as illustrated in
As a result, the third cover part 300 has a first side and a second side fixed through the first cover member 310 and the second cover member 320 in a state in which the coupling guide member 300a is inserted into the mounting hole 230a to fix the center of the third cover part 300, and thus may effectively support the second sensor 20 together with the first sensor 10 fixed by the second cover part 200.
Meanwhile, as illustrated in
In an embodiment, as the first sensor 10 is mounted on one side of the first cover part 100 with a predetermined inclination in order to secure a detection angle, the first cover part 100 is exposed in a state in which an inside is opened at the other side corresponding thereto, and the fourth cover part 400 is provided to block the inside of the first cover part 100 exposed to the outside by this structure.
Preferably, the fourth cover part 400 is formed in a shape corresponding to the corresponding portion in order to completely shield the portion exposed to the outside.
In addition, as illustrated in
In other words, as the hook members 402 and 404 are provided as a plurality of hook members and are respectively inserted into the plurality of hook fastening holes H1 and H2 spaced at a 90° interval from each other, the hook members 402 and 404 may restrict the movements of the fourth cover part 400 in the longitudinal direction and the width direction.
When the hook member 402 is inserted into the hook fastening hole H1 of the third cover part 300 to restrict the movement in the longitudinal direction, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
The clip member 406 is formed in the same structure as the clip member 210 of the second cover part 200 (see
More specifically, since the clip member 406 has a relatively weaker restricting force acting in an inserted direction, when a problem such as failure of the first sensor 10 occurs, one side of the fourth cover part 400 may be partially detached from the first cover part 100 by pulling the clip member 406 in a direction opposite to the inserted direction from the detachment hole H3.
In comparison, although the hook members 402 and 404 have strong restricting forces in a direction inserted into the hook fastening holes H1 and H2, when the fourth cover part 400 is pulled in an oblique direction in a state in which one side of the fourth cover part 400 is partially detached from the first cover part 100, the hook members 402 and 404 may be relatively easily separated from the hook fastening holes H1 and H2 due to a direction positioned by being caught, and thus the other side of the fourth cover part 400 may also be detached from the first cover part 100 and the third cover part 300.
Therefore, since the fourth cover part 400 may be easily detached from the first cover part 100 and the third cover part 300 for maintenance or the like of the first sensor 10, it is possible to provide a user with convenience.
According to embodiments of the present disclosure, it is possible to achieve the same sensor performance as before while improving the shape of the exterior of the body by dividing the plurality of covers and mounting the sensors by the covers in mounting the radar and LiDAR sensors for autonomous driving on the fender having no separate mounting space and the entirely protruded shape.
In addition, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, since the separate hole machining for mounting of the sensors is not required, it is possible to easily mount the sensors, and since the mounting is made by the assembly of the cover, even when the sizes of the sensors increase, the effective response and mounting are possible.
In addition, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, by performing the selective fastening or the surface matching with the nearby parts in order to improve the sense of heterogeneity with the nearby parts with respect to the divided covers, it is possible to improve assemblability and exterior quality.
Embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, but it will be understood that this is only illustrative, and various modifications can be made from the present disclosure by those skilled in the art, and all or some of the above-described embodiments may also be configured in selective combination thereof. Therefore, the true technical scope of the present disclosure should be determined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2023-0129974 | Sep 2023 | KR | national |
