US 8,044,614 B2Granted

Wiper apparatus control method and wiper control system

AssigneesMitsuba Corporation, Honda Motor Co., Ltd.

InventorsToshiyuki Amagasa, Taku Suzuki, Takashi Kondo, Toru Namiki

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Abstract

A wiper apparatus includes: a wiper blade driven by a motor; and a wiper blade driven by a motor. The motors are drive-controlled by control microcomputers, respectively. The control microcomputers are connected to each other through a communication line. While exchanging position information of the wiper blades through the communication line, the control microcomputers synchronously drive the motors on the basis of a position relationship between both of the wiper blades. In the case where a communication abnormality occurs when the position relationship between the wiper blades is in a normal state, the wiper blade is stopped after reaching a lower turning position. In the case where the communication abnormality occurs in a state where the position relationship between the blades is inverted, the blade is stopped after reaching an upper turning position.

Claims7

Dependent claims

A control method for a wiper apparatus comprising a first motor that is drive-controlled by a first control circuit, a first wiper blade that is driven by the first motor, a second motor that is drive-controlled by a second control circuit that is connected to the first control circuit through an intermediation of a communication line, and a second wiper blade driven by the second motor, wherein,

in a normal operation of the first and second wiper blades, in a case of wiping from lower turning positions of wiped areas to be wiped by the first and second wiper blades to upper turning positions of the wiped areas, the first wiper blade wipes the wiped area ahead of the second wiper blade, and in a case of wiping from the upper turning positions to the lower turning positions, the second wiper blade wipes the wiped area in a position relationship of going ahead of the first wiper blade, the control method for a wiper apparatus comprising:
stopping the second wiper blade after the second wiper blade reaches the lower turning position when the communication abnormality occurs between the first control circuit and the second control circuit in a case where the position relationship between the first and second wiper blades is in a state of the normal operation;
and
stopping the second wiper blade after the second wiper blade reaches the upper turning position when the communication abnormality occurs between the first control circuit and the second control circuit in a case where the position relationship between the first and second wiper blades differs from the position relationship in the state of the normal operation.

1 more element

A control system for a wiper apparatus comprising a first wiper blade that is driven by a first motor, and a second wiper blade that is driven by a second motor, the control system for the wiper apparatus comprising:

a first control circuit that drive-controls the first motor;
and
a second control circuit that is connected to the first control circuit through an intermediation of a communication line, and drive-controls the second motor,
wherein, in a normal operation, in a case of wiping from lower turning positions of wiped areas to be wiped by the first and second wiper blades to upper turning positions of the wiped areas, the first and second control circuits operate the first wiper blade to wipe the wiped area in a position relationship of going ahead of the second wiper blade, and in a case of wiping from the upper turning positions to the lower turning positions, the first and second control circuits operate the second wiper blade to wipe the wiped area in a position relationship of going ahead of the first wiper blade,
the second control circuit stops the second wiper blade after reaching the lower turning position when a communication abnormality occurs between the first control circuit and the second control circuit in a case where the position relationship between the first wiper blade and the second wiper blade is in a state of the normal operation, and it stops the second wiper blade after reaching the upper turning position when the communication abnormality occurs between the first control circuit and the second control circuit in a case where the position relationship between the first wiper blade and the second wiper blade differs from the position relationship in the state of the normal operation.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.