Automatic sun visor device

• US 7,568,751 B2
• Filed: 03/06/2007
• Issued: 08/04/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ASMO Company Limited (DENSO Corporation)
• Original Assignee: ASMO Company Limited (DENSO Corporation)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Hidetoshi, Suzuki, Hiromi
• Primary Examiner(s): Gutman; H
• Application Number:
  US11/682,386
• Publication Number:
  US 20070222252A1
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• Field of Search: 296/97.1, 296/97.4, 296/97.5, 296/97.8, 296/97.9, 296/97.11
• US Class Current: 296/97.5
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 3/0204 Sun visors

Abstract

An incident intensity L is categorized into a low illuminance range A1 for immediately moving a sun visor body toward a retracted position, a high illuminance range A2 for immediately moving the sun visor body in a target direction set based on an incident angle, and an intermediate illuminance range A3 set between the two regions A1 and A2. When the incident intensity is in the region A3 and after the target position is continuously set closer to the retracted position or the projected position than the present position for a predetermined time, the sun visor body moves toward the target position. That is, there is a range between an illuminance threshold L1 for immediately moving the sun visor body toward the retracted position and an illuminance threshold L2 for immediately moving the sun visor body in the target direction based on the incident angle.

Claims

1. An automatic sun visor device including a sun visor body for blocking incident light entering a passenger compartment from the exterior and a driving device for moving the sun visor body, wherein the sun visor body is movable between a retracted position at which the sun visor body is retracted into the passenger compartment and a projected position at which the sun visor body is most projected frontward from the retracted position, the device comprising:

an incident light detector for detecting incident intensity and incident angle of the incident light;

a position detector for detecting a position of the sun visor body; and

a controller for controlling movement of the sun visor body with the driving device, wherein;

the controller moves the sun visor body toward a target position that is set based on the incident angle when the incident intensity is in a high illuminance range that is above a predetermined value;

the controller moves the sun visor body toward the retracted position when the incident intensity is in a low illuminance range that is below the predetermined value;

the controller sets an intermediate illuminance range between a first threshold for determining whether or not the incident intensity is in the low illuminance range and a second threshold for determining whether or not the incident intensity is in the high illuminance range; and

the controller moves the sun visor body toward the target position after the target position is continuously set closer to the retracted position or the projected position than the position of the sun visor body for a predetermined time when the incident intensity is in the intermediate illuminance range.

2. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 1, wherein:

the controller sets a third threshold between the first and second thresholds to divide the intermediate illuminance range into a first intermediate illuminance range that is above the third threshold and a second intermediate illuminance range that is below the third threshold;

the controller moves the sun visor body after the target position is continuously set closer to the retracted position than the position of the sun visor body for a predetermined time and the target position is set closer to the retracted position than the present position when the incident intensity is in the first intermediate illuminance range;

the controller immediately moves the sun visor body when the target position is set closer to the projected position than the position of the sun visor body when the incident intensity is in the first intermediate illuminance range; and

the controller moves the sun visor body after the target position is continuously set closer to the retracted position or the projected position than the position of the sun visor body for a predetermined time when the incident intensity is in the second intermediate illuminance range.

3. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 1, wherein the controller determines the target position based on a minimum value of the incident angle of the incident light detected during a period when the sun visor body is being held at a present position, when the incident intensity is in the intermediate illuminance range.

4. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a vehicle velocity detector for detecting vehicle velocity;

wherein the controller sets the predetermined time in accordance with the vehicle velocity.

5. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a storing device for storing the incident intensity and the incident angle;

a deviation calculator for calculating deviation of the incident intensity and deviation of the incident angle based on the incident intensity and the incident angle stored in the storing device

an estimated incident angle calculator for calculating an estimated incident angle based on the deviation of at least one of the incident intensity and the incident angle,

wherein the controller moves the sun visor body based on the estimated incident angle.

6. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 5, wherein the deviation calculator obtains a standard deviation of plural pieces of data indicating the incident intensity and obtains a standard deviation of plural pieces of data indicating the incident angle.

7. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 5, further comprising:

a candidate value calculator for calculating an estimated incident intensity candidate and an estimated incident angle candidate based on the incident intensity and the incident angle stored in the storing device, and storing the estimated incident intensity candidate and the estimated incident angle candidate in the storing device; and

a determining device for determining whether a latest one of the incident intensity or the incident angle is temporarily changing based on the deviation obtained by the deviation calculator;

wherein when the determining device determines that the incident intensity or the incident angle is changing temporarily, the estimated incident angle calculator sets the incident angle or the estimated incident angle candidate stored in the storing device prior to the change as the estimated incident angle.

8. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 7, wherein the candidate value calculator calculates an average of plural pieces of data indicating the incident intensity as the estimated incident intensity candidate and calculates an average of plural pieces of data indicating the incident angle as the estimated incident angle candidate.

9. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 7, wherein the estimated incident angle calculator sets a latest one of the estimated incident angle candidate stored in the storing device as the estimated incident angle when the determining device determines that the incident intensity and the incident angle are not temporarily changing.

10. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 5, wherein the controller moves the sun visor body based on the estimated incident angle calculated by the estimated incident angle calculator when the incident intensity is greater than or equal to a preset high illuminance threshold and less than or equal to a preset incident intensity threshold, while the deviation of the incident angle is less than or equal to a preset incident angle threshold.

11. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 10, wherein the controller moves the sun visor body toward the retracted position when the incident intensity is less than a preset low illuminance threshold and the deviation of the incident intensity is less than or equal to the incident intensity threshold.

12. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 5, wherein the controller moves the sun visor body toward the retracted position after holding the sun visor body at the present position for a predetermined time in at least one of cases in which the incident intensity is a value between a preset low illuminance threshold and a preset high illuminance threshold, the deviation of the incident intensity is greater than a preset incident intensity threshold, and the deviation of the incident angle is greater than a preset incident angle threshold.

13. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 5, further comprising:

a vehicle velocity detector for detecting vehicle velocity; and

a interval changing controller for changing a control interval for controlling movement of the sun visor body in accordance with the vehicle velocity.

14. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 13, wherein the interval changing controller sets the control interval to be shorter as the vehicle velocity increases.

15. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 13, wherein the interval changing controller changes the number of times the incident intensity and the incident angle are calculated per unit time.

16. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a vehicle velocity detector for detecting vehicle velocity; and

a changing device for changing the amount of data in accordance with the vehicle velocity.

17. The automatic sun visor device according to claim 16, wherein the changing device increases the amount of data as the vehicle velocity increases.