Device for deriving information about displacement of a vehicle component

• US 20080030312A1
• Filed: 07/17/2007
• Published: 02/07/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Takata Corporation (Ningbo Junsheng Investment Group Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Takata Corporation (Ningbo Junsheng Investment Group Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Aoki, Hiroshi
• Application Number:
  US11/826,639
• Publication Number:
  US 20080030312A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/436
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0002 Type of accident
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0136 responsive to actual contact with an obstacle , e.g. to vehicle deformation, bumper displacement or bumper velocity relative to the vehicle monitoring crash strength in combination with passenger seat detection B60R21/01558

Abstract

A collision detecting device which is installed in a vehicle comprises a coil sensor provided with a plurality of detecting sections having different distances relative to a door outer panel, respectively, in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the door outer panel.

Claims

1. A displacement information deriving device comprising:

a coil arranged to face a metallic vehicle component, wherein the vehicle component extends in a predetermined extending direction and can be displaced in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction by a vehicle collision;

a coil sensor, wherein the coil sensor applies an AC magnetic field to the vehicle component when the coil is energized with alternative current, and the coil sensor detects impedance when energized through the coil; and

a deriving unit for deriving information about displacement of the vehicle component based on variations in impedance detected when the vehicle component is displaced toward the coil sensor in the event of a vehicle collision, wherein

said coil sensor has a setting mode in which a plurality of detecting sections are formed to have different distances relative to the vehicle component, respectively, in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the vehicle component.

2. A displacement information deriving device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the coil sensor has a second setting mode in which the distances between the vehicle component and the detecting sections are made constant when the vehicle component comes closer to the coil sensor from said setting mode.

3. A displacement information deriving device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the coil sensor has an integral structure having the plurality of detecting sections arranged on a sensor surface thereof in a slant.

4. An occupant restraint system comprising:

a displacement information deriving device comprising;

a coil arranged to face a metallic vehicle component, wherein the vehicle component extends in a predetermined extending direction and can be displaced in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction by a vehicle collision;

a coil sensor, wherein the coil sensor applies an AC magnetic field to the vehicle component when the coil is energized with alternative current, and the coil sensor detects impedance when energized through the coil; and

a deriving unit for deriving information about displacement of the vehicle component based on variations in impedance detected when the vehicle component is displaced toward the coil sensor in the event of a vehicle collision, wherein said coil sensor has a setting mode in which a plurality of detecting sections are formed to have different distances relative to the vehicle component, respectively, in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the vehicle component;

an occupant restraint device for restraining a vehicle occupant during a vehicle collision; and

a control device for controlling the occupant restraint device according to the information derived by the deriving unit.

5. An occupant restraint system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the coil of the displacement information deriving device is arranged to face a door outer panel of a vehicle door as the vehicle component, and wherein the occupant restraint device is adapted to restrain the vehicle occupant in the event of a lateral vehicle collision.

6. A vehicle comprising:

an engine/running system;

an electrical system;

an actuation control device for conducting the actuation control of the engine/running system and the electrical system;

a metallic vehicle component which can be displaced by a vehicle collision;

a sensor device for deriving information about displacement of the vehicle component; and

a control signal output device for outputting control signal to an object to be controlled based on the information derived by the sensor device, wherein

the sensor device comprises a displacement information deriving device comprising;

a coil arranged to face a metallic vehicle component, wherein the vehicle component extends in a predetermined extending direction and can be displaced in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction by a vehicle collision;

a coil sensor, wherein the coil sensor applies an AC magnetic field to the vehicle component when the coil is energized with alternative current, and the coil sensor detects impedance when energized through the coil; and

a deriving unit for deriving information about displacement of the vehicle component based on variations in impedance detected when the vehicle component is displaced toward the coil sensor in the event of a vehicle collision, wherein

said coil sensor has a setting mode in which a plurality of detecting sections are formed to have different distances relative to the vehicle component, respectively, in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the vehicle component.

7. A displacement information deriving method comprising:

using a coil which is arranged to face a metallic vehicle component which extends in a predetermined extending direction and can be displaced in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction by a vehicle collision, wherein the coil is provided with a plurality of detecting sections having different distances relative to the vehicle component, respectively, in the direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the vehicle component, and

energizing the coil with alternative current to apply an AC magnetic field to the vehicle component and detecting variation in impedance through the coil when the vehicle component is displaced toward the detecting sections during a vehicle collision, whereby

detection characteristics which are linearized to have substantially constant variation in impedance relative to the distance between the vehicle component and the detecting sections are obtained and information about displacement of the vehicle component is derived according to the detection characteristics.