Integrated automotive system, nozzle assembly and remote control method for cleaning an image sensors exterior or objective lens surface

Abstract

An external lens washing system has an aiming fixture configured to support and constrain an external lens which is exposed to the elements and apt to become soiled with debris. A nozzle assembly is configured to be supported and aimed toward the external lens by the aiming fixture and has at least one laterally offset washing nozzle projecting from the aiming fixture to a spray washing fluid toward the external lens surface, spraying at a shallow, glancing spray aiming angle to impinge upon and wash the lens external surface. Optionally, an integrated image sensor and lens washing assembly is configured for use with a remote control method for cleaning an exterior objective lens surface and includes a sealed image sensor housing assembly including an integral, remotely controllable lens cleaning system with an optimized configuration for aiming one or more cleansing sprays from one or more laterally offset fluidic oscillators.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A remotely controllable image sensor washing system with a low-profile nozzle assembly for cleaning a vehicle's external wide-angle image sensor's objective lens surface and washing off accumulated image distorting debris, comprising:
 (a) a display mounted within the vehicle's interior and connected to the vehicle's data communication network to receive image signals for display to the driver;   (b) an external image sensor configured to generate an external image sensor signal for said display and having an image sensor housing which supports an external objective lens surface aimed toward the vehicle's exterior and having a selected field of view, said image sensor being substantially exposed to the ambient environment and accumulated image distorting debris when the vehicle is in use;   (c) an image sensor lens washing system configured with a compact, low-profile nozzle assembly to selectively spray washing fluid onto said image sensor's objective lens surface at a narrow, glancing angle, said spray being aimed across said field of view along an aiming angle which is aimed at a selected aiming angle that within the range bounded by 1° and 20° in relation to said external objective lens surface, and said spray being actuated in response to a momentary wash control signal; and   (d) a washing system actuation switch mounted within the vehicle's interior and configured to selectively and momentarily generate the wash control signal when actuation of the lens washing system is desired by the driver, while viewing the display,   wherein said low-profile nozzle assembly includes a low-profile conformal housing fixture being configured to wrap around or encircle and support said image sensor housing and having a fluid inlet in fluid communication with a laterally offset washing nozzle head which is supported and aimed by said conformal housing fixture to spray washing fluid toward said external objective lens surface and across said image sensor's field of view at said selected aiming angle when activated.   
     
     
         2 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 1 , wherein said low-profile conformal housing fixture has a distal side surface opposing a proximal side surface, wherein said distally projecting low-profile nozzle head projects from said housing's distal surface;
 said low-profile conformal housing fixture being configured to wrap around or encircle said image sensor housing so that said distally projecting nozzle head is positioned beside and aimed to spray along a transverse spray axis aimed at the center of said distal objective lens surface; wherein said low-profile nozzle head is configured to aim a spray issuing from the nozzle's outlet orifice along the spray axis toward the periphery of objective lens' external surface, and   wherein the lateral offset distance between said nozzle's outlet orifice and the periphery of objective lens' external surface is selected to be in the range of 2 mm to 10 mm, in order to provide a compact, visually unobtrusive image sensor and washing system assembly.   
     
     
         3 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 1 , wherein said integral nozzle assembly's low-profile nozzle head is configured with a compact fluidic oscillator which, when pressurized with washing fluid, generates a high velocity spray with a very wide fan angle and so can be placed very near the periphery of the lens surface while remaining out of the camera's view, to provide a very compact and low profile image sensor and washing system assembly. 
     
     
         4 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 3 , wherein said low-profile nozzle head's compact fluidic oscillator includes an interaction chamber in fluid communication with opposing lateral inlets or fluid feeds configured to operate on a selectively actuated flow of pressurized washing fluid flowing through the oscillator's chamber to generate an exhaust flow of fluid droplets through said outlet spray orifice, said oscillator being supported with the oscillator's orifice centered on a spray axis aimed at the lens surface, wherein said compact fluidic oscillator has an axial length along the spray axis of about 3 mm. 
     
     
         5 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 4 , wherein said compact fluidic oscillator with opposing lateral inlets comprises a lateral feed reverse mushroom fluidic oscillator. 
     
     
         6 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of claim  43 , wherein said compact fluidic oscillator with opposing lateral inlets comprises a two-sided lateral feed mushroom fluidic oscillator. 
     
     
         7 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 6 , wherein said compact fluidic oscillator has a fluid channel inlet segment in fluid communication with at least a pair of power nozzles configured to accelerate the movement of pressurized fluid that flows through said power nozzles so as to form a jet of fluid that flows from each said power nozzle, all being part of a fluid channel pathway that connects and allows for the flow of said fluid between said inlet and said power nozzles;
 wherein said fluid channel pathway is defined between boundary surfaces that include a pair of sidewalls, said interaction chamber attached to said nozzles and which receives said jet flows from said nozzles, wherein said outlet orifice exhausts spray from said interaction chamber, and   wherein said fluid channel pathway also includes a flow instability inducing feature configured to increase the instability of said flow from said power nozzles, said flow instability inducing feature being configured within said pathway at a location upstream of said power nozzles.   
     
     
         8 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 7 , wherein said flow instability inducing feature comprises a pair of protrusions that extend inward from said fluid pathway boundary surface, said protrusions configured to cause a flow separation region downstream of said protrusions. 
     
     
         9 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 3 , wherein said fluidic oscillator is configured to generate an oscillating spray of high velocity fluid droplets in a flat, fan-shaped spray pattern having a selected fan angle so that said droplets impact substantially the entire external objective lens surface. 
     
     
         10 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 9 , wherein said oscillating spray's selected fan angle is selected to be in the range 50° to 90° so that said droplets impact substantially the entire external objective lens surface. 
     
     
         11 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 3 , wherein said distally projecting low-profile nozzle head defines a cavity in fluid communication with said conformal housing's internal fluid transmission lumen and providing fluid communication from a conformal housing fixture fluid inlet; and
 wherein said nozzle head cavity has first and second lateral openings which are in fluid communication with said housing's internal fluid transmission lumen.   
     
     
         12 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 11 , wherein said compact fluidic oscillator is configured as a removable insert having a first surface, a second surface opposing the first surface, a left side surface and a right side surface; and
 wherein said fluidic circuit oscillator's interaction chamber and other features are defined in at least one of said insert's surfaces.   
     
     
         13 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 12 , wherein said interaction chamber has opposing lateral inlets or fluid feeds defined in said inserts left side surface and said right side surface; and
 wherein said nozzle head cavity's first and second lateral openings are in fluid communication with said insert's opposing lateral fluid feeds defined in said insert's left side surface and said right side surface when said insert is installed in said cavity; and   wherein said nozzle head is configured to provide a selectively actuated flow of pressurized washing fluid through the oscillator's chamber when said insert is installed in said cavity and said oscillator being supported with the oscillator's orifice centered on the spray axis.   
     
     
         14 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 13 , wherein said oscillator insert has an axial length along the spray axis of about 3 mm. 
     
     
         15 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 14 , wherein said oscillator insert comprises a lateral feed reverse mushroom fluidic oscillator with the lateral inlets and the interaction chamber defined in either the first surface or the opposing second surface of the insert. 
     
     
         16 . The remotely controllable image sensor washing system of  claim 15 , wherein said oscillator insert comprises a two-sided lateral feed mushroom fluidic oscillator having the interaction chamber defined in the insert's first surface;
 wherein the opposing lateral inlets or fluid feeds defined in said inserts left side surface and said right side surface which are in fluid communication with a fluid channel inlet segment defined in the insert's second surface; and   wherein said fluid channel inlet segment defined in said second surface is in fluid communication with said interaction chamber defined in said top surface when said insert is installed in said cavity.