Method and apparatus for sensing a rollover
First Claim
1. A vehicle with an occupant safety system for use in a crash involving the vehicle, comprising:
- an actuatable occupant protection device;
an inertial measurement unit (IMU) arranged to measure acceleration of the vehicle in three orthogonal directions and angular velocity of the vehicle about three orthogonal axes, the accelerations and angular velocities being measured at a substantially common location; and
a processor coupled to said IMU for receiving the measured acceleration of the vehicle and the measured angular velocity of the vehicle and determining whether the vehicle is experiencing a rollover and if so, determining whether actuation of said occupant protection device is beneficial, and if so, generating a signal to actuate said occupant protection device.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Vehicle with an occupant safety system for use in a crash involving the vehicle includes an occupant protection device, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) arranged to measure acceleration of the vehicle in three orthogonal directions and angular velocity of the vehicle about three orthogonal axes, the accelerations and angular velocities being measured at a substantially common location, and a processor coupled to the IMU for receiving the measured acceleration of the vehicle and the measured angular velocity of the vehicle. The processor determines whether the vehicle is experiencing a crash, and specifically, a rollover, and if so determines whether actuation of the occupant protection device is beneficial. If actuation is deemed beneficial, the processor generate a signal to actuation of the occupant protection device. The occupant protection device may be an inflatable airbag.
185 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A vehicle with an occupant safety system for use in a crash involving the vehicle, comprising:
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an actuatable occupant protection device; an inertial measurement unit (IMU) arranged to measure acceleration of the vehicle in three orthogonal directions and angular velocity of the vehicle about three orthogonal axes, the accelerations and angular velocities being measured at a substantially common location; and a processor coupled to said IMU for receiving the measured acceleration of the vehicle and the measured angular velocity of the vehicle and determining whether the vehicle is experiencing a rollover and if so, determining whether actuation of said occupant protection device is beneficial, and if so, generating a signal to actuate said occupant protection device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method for controlling actuation of an inflatable occupant protection device in a vehicle, comprising:
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arranging an inertial measurement unit (IMU) on the vehicle; measuring acceleration of the vehicle in three orthogonal directions via the IMU; measuring angular velocity of the vehicle about three orthogonal axes via the IMU, the accelerations and angular velocities being measured at a substantially common location; and determining whether the vehicle is experiencing a rollover based on the measured acceleration and angular velocity of the vehicle and if so, determining whether actuation of the occupant protection device is beneficial, and if so, generating a signal to initiate inflation of the occupant protection device. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A vehicle with an occupant safety system for use in a crash involving the vehicle, comprising:
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a seat; an actuatable occupant protection device for protecting an occupant of said seat; an inertial measurement unit (IMU) arranged to measure acceleration of the vehicle in three orthogonal directions and measure angular velocity of the vehicle about three orthogonal axes, the accelerations and angular velocities being measured at a substantially common location; an occupant weight sensor for measuring pressure applied by the occupant to said seat and providing a value representative of the measured pressure applied by the occupant to said seat; and a processor coupled to said IMU, said occupant weight sensor and said occupant protection device for receiving the measured angular velocity and the value representative of the measured pressure applied by the occupant to said seat and determining whether the measured angular velocity is indicative of a rollover involving the vehicle, said processor also being arranged to determine whether actuation of said occupant protection device is beneficial based on the measured angular velocity of the vehicle and the value representative of the measured pressure applied by the occupant to said seat, and when actuation of said occupant protection device is determined to be beneficial, said processor generating a signal to actuate said occupant protection device. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification