| Title of Invention | VEHICULAR ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT |
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| Abstract | To reduce working man-hours by preventing wiring of an indicator lamp from being lengthened and reducing the number of indicators disposed on a meter panel. [Solution] In a vehicular electronic ccntrol unit having a circuit configured by mounting electronic parts 28 on a substrate 27, an indicator lamp 28a to indicate the operating condition of the circuit is mounted on the substrate 27. The substrate 27, the circuit, and the indicator lamp 28a are covered with a protective cover 31 formed by molding a light transmissive resin. A recess 31a cylindrically recessed from a front surface is formed in a portion of the protective cover 31 opposing the indicator lamp 28a. The vehicular electronic control unit is vertically attached, inside a side fender 32 covering a body frame 2, to a side surface of a battery case 19 such that the indicator lamp 28a faces outward of a body. [Selected Drawing] Fig. 1 |
| Full Text | [Document Name] Specification [Title of the Invention] VEHICULAR ELECTRONIC CONTROL UHIT [Technical Field] [0001] The present invention relates to a vehicular electronic control unit, particularly to a vehicular electronic control unit provided with an indicator to indicate whether the vehicular electronic control unit is operat ing normally. [Background Art] [0002] Vehicles are equipped with many devices, and is also provided with indicators to indicate whether such devices are operating normally. For example, JP-A No. 2005-22528 discloses a vehicular information display system in which, when the ignition key is turned on, indicators corresponding to standard and optional equipment are lit, the indicators being disposed along with a speedometer and a tachon^eter on a combination meter. ap-A No. 2003-220851 discloses an operating condition display system which includes an economy lamp, i.e. an indicator to indicate that economical transmission mode is selected, and in which the way of indication by the econoitiy lamp can be changed when, with the economical transmission mode selected, the rider is not driving the vehicle in a manner appropriate to improve fuel efficiency. The economy lamp is disposed on a combination meter. [Patent Document 1] JP-A No. 2005-22528 [Patent Document 2] JP-A No. 2003-220851 [Disclosure of the Invention] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention] [0003] The indicators described in each of the patent documents 1 and 2 are disposed on a combination meter provided in front of the rider's seat, whereas a vehicular electronic control unit to give a display command to the indicators is installed in a location apart from the combination meter. Particularly, on a small vehicle, for example, a motorcycle on which only a limited space is available for the vehicular electronic control unit, the vehicular electronic control unit is, in many cases, installed far apart from the combination meter. When the distance between a combination meter and a vehicular electronic control unit is far, longer wires are required, so that electric power supply is increased. [0004] Although indicators are provided on a combination meter so that they can be easily viewed by the rider, it is not necessary to constantly monitor all the indicators by the rider. For exarriple, if an FI indicator to indicate the operating condition of an electronic control unit for fuel injection control (FI-ECU) is disposed on a combination meter, it is necessary to open a hole in a front portion of the casing of the combination meter and cover the hole with a light transmissive cover. This complicates the structure of the casing. [0005] To reduce working man-hours for boring a hole and attaching a cover, it is desirable to reduce the number of indicators to be disposed on the combination meter, and the indicators which are not required to be constantly monitored in traveling are moved to locations outside the combination meter. However, it is desirable that the indicators are moved to locations outside the comnbinstion meter with display of the indicators easily confirmed when required. [0006] An object of the present invention made in view of the above consideration is to provide a vehicular electronic control unit attached with an indicator moved from a combination meter. [Means for Solving the Problem] [0007] To address the above problems, according to a first feature of the present invention, there is provided a vehicular electronic control unit having a circuit including electronic parts provided on a substrate. In the vehicular electronic control unit: an indicator lamp to indicate the operating condition of the circuit is mounted on the substrate; and a protective cover formed by molding a light transmissive resin is provided, the protective cover covering the substrate, the circuit and the indicator lamp. [0008] According to a second feature of the present invention, the protective cover has a cylindrically shaped recess formed on an outer surface of a portion thereof opposing the indicator lamp. [0009] According to a third feature of rhe present invention, the vehicular electronic control unit mounted on a motorcycle and having the above-described second feature is vertically attached, inside a side cover covering the body frame, to a side of a battery case such that the indicator lamp faces outward of motorcycle body. [Effect of the Invention] [0010] According to the above first feature of the invention, the indicator lamp is mounted on the substrate, so that no wiring is required between the substrate and the indicator lamp. This simplifies the structure of the vehicular electronic control unit. Also^ the loss in the power supplied to light the indicator lamp is reduced. [0011] According to rhe above second feature of the invention^ the thickness of the light transmissive resin is reduced in the recess, so that the light emitted from the indicator lamp can be transmitted through the protective cover to a greater extent. Also, light emitted from the indicator lamp is reflected from the wall surface of the cylindrical recess into many directions, so that lighting condition of the indicator lamp can be recognized not only from directly above but also from n^iany directions. This increases the degree of freedom in layout of the indicator laiT.p. [0012] According to the above third feature of the invention, the vehicular elecurcnic ccni:rol unit is disposed closely to a battery, so that wires can be shortened. Also, the vehicular electronic control unit is vertically positioned inside a side cover of the motorcycle, so that the cylindrical recess is set vertically to the ground and the recess does not easily collect dirt or dust on its bottom. Also, the indicator is arranged to face outward of the body. Therefore, it is possible to directly confirm the lighting condition of the indicator when the side cover is opened. [Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention] [0013] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to drawings. Fig. 4 is a side view of a motorcycle equipped with a vehicular electronic control unit according to the present embodiment. A motorcycle 1 has a body frame 2. The body frame 2 includes a head pipe 4 rotatably supporting front forks 3, a main frame 5 extending downwardly and rearwardly from the head pipe 4, a pair of left and right pivot frames 6 joined to a rear portion of the main frame 5 and extending downwardly from there, a pair of left and right upper rear frames 1 joined to a rear portion of the main frame 5 and extending upwardly and rearwardly from there, and a pair of left and right lower rear frames 8 disposed downwardly of the upper rear frames 1 end extending upwardly and rearwardly. The front fork 3 supports, at a lower end portion thereof, a front wheel WF and is attached, at an upper end portion thereof, wirh a handlebar 9. The front fork 3 is also attached with a front fender 10 to cover the front wheel WF. The pivot frames 6 vertically swingably support a rear fork 11 to which a rear wheel WR is journaled. Rear cushions 12 are provided between the upper rear frames 7 and rear end portions of the rear fork 11. The body frame 2 has its sides covered by side fenders (side covers) 32. [0014] A power unit 15 integrally including an engine 13 and a transmission 14 is disposed below the main frame 5. The power unit 15 is supported by a hanger plate 16 provided at an intermediate portion of the main frame 5 and the pivot frames 6. [0015] h fuel tank 17 is disposed above the rear wheel WR. A storage box 18 for storing, for example, a helmet and other small items is disposed in front of the fuel tank 17. A vehicular electronic control unit (hereinafter also referred to as the "ECU") being described in detail later is attached to a side surface of the storage box 18. [0016] Fig. 5 is a side view showing an essential part of the body frame 2. Fig. 6 is a front view of the storage box 18. Tn Fig. 5, front ends of the pair of left and right upper rear frames 1 are joined to two sides of the main frame 5, respectively. The rear frames 7 extend therefrom outwardly with respect to the vehicle width direction, then bent therefrom inwardly with respect to the vehicle width direction, and further extend resrwardly in parallel vjith an extended line of the main frame 5. Therefore, a space no accommodate a lower portion of the storage box 18 is formed between the left and right upper rear frames 1. A bracket 20 is welded to an upper rear end portion of the main frame 5. A bracket 21 is welded to an upper portion of each of the upper rear frames 7. [0017] The storage box 18 has a pair of upper stays 22 formed in an upper rear portion thereof so that they oppose the pair of brackets 21 from above. The storage box 18 also has a lower stay 23 formed in a front middle portion of its bottom so that the lower stay 23 opposes the bracket 20 from above. [0018] The storage box 18 is fixed to the body frame 2 in such a manner that the upper stays 22 and lower stay 23 respectively oppose the brackets 20, 21, and each nut 25 is screwed onto each bolt 24 penetrating upward from each side of the brackets 20, 21. [0019] As shown in Figs. 5 and 6, an FI-ECU 25 is attached to a left side surface of the storage box 18. The FI-ECU 26 can be attached by an appropriate known method, for example, by bending cr by screwing. A lower portion of the storage box 18 is forme as a battery case 19. The FI-ECU 26 is preferably attached to a side surface of the battery case 19 cf the storage box 18. Thereby, electric wires for electric supplcan be shortened, [0020] Next, the FI-ECU 26 will be described in detail. Fig. 1 is a sectional side view of the FI-ECU 26. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the FI-ECU 26. The FI-ECU 26 includes a substrate 27, electronic parts 28 disposed on the substrate 21, an input/output terminal 29 for inputting/outputting electric power or signals to/from a circuit including the electronic components 28, and electric wires 30 connecting the input/output terminal 29 and the circuit mounted on the substrate 27. One of the electronic parts 28 is an FI indicator 28a which indicates whether the FI-ECU 26 is operating normally. The FI indicator 28a is a light emitting diode (LED) chip, and is surface-mounted on the substrate 27. [0021] The substrate 27, electronic parts 28, electric wires 30, and part of the input/output terminal 29 are covered by a protective cover 31. The protective cover 31 is formed by molding, under low pressure, a light transmissive, preferably transparent, resin. The protective cover 31 has a recess 31a formed to make its portion covering the FI indicator 28a thinner and thereby allow the light emitted by the LED. The portion where the recess 31a is formed of the protective cover 31 is lower in strength than other portions of the protective cover 31, so that a distance L between the recess 31a and the edge of the substrate 21 is desired to be as large as possible. The surface FB of the prctective cover 31 is attached opposingiy to the side surface of the storage box 18. [0022] Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing an essential part of the protective cover 31. The recess 3la formed in the protective cover 31 is cylindrically shaped. The thickness of the resin material of the protective cover 31 is reduced in the portion to face the FI indicator 28a, that is, between a cylindrical bottom and the FI indicator 28a. This enables the light emitted from the LED, i.e. the FI indicator 28a, to be transmitted through the protective cover 31 to a greater extent. As indicated by arrows LD, light emitted from the LED is radiated to the outside while hitting the wall of the recess 31a to be reflected, so that lighting of the FI indicator 28a can be recognized clearly also from angled directions other than the front side of the FI indicator 28a. [0023] Since the FI-ECU 26 is vertically attached such that the surface FB of the protective cover 31 is positioned vertically, dust and dirt do not easily collect on the bottom of the recess 31a. To protect the electronic parts 28, the surfaces of portions excluding the recess 31a may be color-painted, or the portions other than the recess 31a may be molded out of a colored resin. [0024] The recess 31a need not necessarily be shaped cylindrically. It may be shaped, for example, semi-scherically like a recess 31b as shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a sectional view cf an essential part of the protective cover 31 according to a modified embodiment. In this drawing, light LD emitted from the LED 26a is transmitted through the recess 31b to a favorable extent and diffused by being diffracted at the boundary between the recess 31b and the atmosphere, so that lighting of the FI indicator 28a can be recognized from a wide ranges. [0025] Although, in the present embodiment, the FI-ECU 26 is attached, in a vertical position, to a side of the battery case 19 provided in a lower portion of the storage box 18, the present invention is not limited to such an installation. The FI-ECU 26 may be attached to an arbitrary portion of the body frame 2 through an auxiliary member. What matters is that the FI indicator 28a is mounted on the substrate 27 of the FI-ECU 26 and that at least a portion of the FI-ECU 26 including the FI indicator 28a is covered by the protective cover 31 formed by molding a light transmissive resin under low pressure. The FI-ECU may be formed by molding two kinds of resins, i.e. a light transmissive resin and a colored resin. [0026] In the present embodiment, based on the assumption that an FI-ECU for fuel injection control is used as an ECU, an indicator to indicate the condition of the FI-ECtJ is mounted on a substrate. The application of the configuration according to the present invention, however, is not limited to a fuel injection device. The configuration can also be used in cases where a different type of a vehicular electronic control unit is used with the control unit having an integral indicator to indicate its operating condition. What is required according to the present invention is that an indicator is mounted on the vehicular electronic control unit to give a lighting command to the indicator such that electric wires for supplying the lighting command to the indicator is shortened and a protective cover is formed by molding a light transmissive resin. More preferably, the thickness of the protective cover is reduced in the portion to cover the position where the indicator is mounted. [Brief Description of the Drawings] [0027] [Fig. 1] Fig. 1 is a sectional side view of the vehicular electronic control unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Fig. 2] Fig. 2 is a plan view of the vehicular electronic control unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Fig. 3] Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing an essential part of a protective cover provided for the vehicular electronic control unit. [Fig. 4] Fig. 4 is a side view of a motorcycle mounted with the vehicular electronic control unit. [Fig. 5] Fig. 5 is a side view showing the body frame and storage box of the motorcycle. [Fig. 6] Fig. 6 is a front view of the storage box. [Fig. 7] Fig. 7 is a sectional view of an essential part of the protective cover according to a modified embodiment of the present invention. [Description of Reference Numerals] [0028] 1... Motorcycle 2... Body frame 5... Main frame 7... Upper rear frame 18... Storage box 19... Battery case 26... FI-ECU 27... Substrate 28... Electronic parts 28a... FI indicator (indicator lamp) 29... Input/output terminal 30... Electric wires 31... Protective cover 31a.. . Recess 32... Side fender [Document Name] Scope of Claims [Claim 1] A vehicular electronic control unit comprising a circuit including electronic parts provided on a substrate, wherein: an indicator lamp to indicate an operating ccnditicn of rhe circuit is mounted on the substrate; and a protective cover formed by molding a light transmissive resin is provided, the protective cover covering the substrate, the circuit and the indicator lamp. [Claim 2] The vehicular electronic control unit according to Claim 1, wherein the protective cover has a cylindrically shaped recess formed on an outer surface of a portion thereof opposing the indicator lamp. [Claim 3] The vehicular electronic control unit according to Claim 2, the vehicular electronic control unit being mounted on a motorcycle, wherein the vehicular electronic control unit is vertically attached, inside a side cover covering a body frame, to a side of a battery case such that the indicator lamp faces outward of a body. |
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| Patent Number | 268671 | ||||||||||||
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| Indian Patent Application Number | 3187/CHE/2008 | ||||||||||||
| PG Journal Number | 37/2015 | ||||||||||||
| Publication Date | 11-Sep-2015 | ||||||||||||
| Grant Date | 10-Sep-2015 | ||||||||||||
| Date of Filing | 18-Dec-2008 | ||||||||||||
| Name of Patentee | HONDA MOTOR CO., LTD. | ||||||||||||
| Applicant Address | 1-1, MINAMIAOYAMA 2-CHOME, MINATO-KU, TOKYO | ||||||||||||
Inventors:
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| PCT International Classification Number | B60Q 1/00 | ||||||||||||
| PCT International Application Number | N/A | ||||||||||||
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