METHOD FOR AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTING A SEAT AND USE THEREOF

• US 20110285186A1
• Filed: 11/11/2009
• Published: 11/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Demmelmeier, Gerhard, Enders, Thomas
• Application Number:
  US13/129,439
• Publication Number:
  US 20110285186A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 297/217.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0248 with memory of positions
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0268 using sensors or detectors for adapting the seat or seat part, e.g. to the position of an occupant
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2002/948 the actuation of the positioning or locking mechanism for one seat part being dependent on the position of another seat part, e.g. the seats floor lock being unlocked when the back-rest is inclined or the backrest can be tilted only when the seat is in its rear position
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2022/4808 Sensing means arrangements therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/48 Control systems, alarms, or interlock systems, for the correct application of the belt or harness
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/4142 for controlling activation of safety devices, e.g. airbag systems electrical circuits for triggering safety arrangements in case of vehicle accidents B60R21/015

Abstract

A method for automatically setting a component of a vehicle that can be automatically set, wherein the vehicle has a seat that can be electrically adjusted has the following steps: adjusting (101, 102) the seat (FS) or a seat part (SL) over a specified adjustment travel or adjustment angle, determining (201) the drive load occurring during adjustment of the seat or seat part and calculating a weight value (W) therefrom, comparing (301) the calculated weight value with weight values (W1, W2, . . . , Wm) calculated and stored in advance, setting (401) the component based on the comparison result. The method is used particularly in vehicles having seats that can be electrically adjusted and having vehicle components that can be adapted automatically, e.g., belt tensioner (G), airbag (AB), steering wheel (L), gas, brake, and clutch pedals (P), interior/exterior mirror, and much more.

Claims

1. A method for automatically setting an automatically settable component of a vehicle having a vehicle seat, comprising the following method steps:

adjustment of the vehicle seat or of a vehicle seat part from an initial position over a predefined adjustment travel or adjustment angle by means of an adjustment drive of the vehicle seat or vehicle seat part,

measurement of at least one of the electrical and the physical variables of the adjustment drive, occurring during the adjustment of the vehicle seat or vehicle seat part, in order to determine the drive load and calculate a weight value,

comparison of the newly calculated weight value with comparison weight values which are determined and stored in advance, and

setting of the automatically settable component on the basis of the comparison result.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein when the newly calculated weight value is within a range, bounded with a respective lower and upper threshold about one of the comparison values which are stored in advance, the component is set with the setting parameters which have been stored in advance in assignment to this comparison weight value.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein when the newly calculated weight value is not in any of the ranges, which are bounded by a respective lower and an upper threshold about the comparison weight values which have been stored in advance, manual setting of the component is brought about by means of a signal, wherein after subsequent manual setting of the component at least one manually newly set setting parameter is stored in assignment to the newly calculated weight value.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one of electrical and physical variables of the adjustment drive which occur during the seat height adjustment, seat longitudinal adjustment, seat transverse adjustment, seat rotational adjustment, seat angle of inclination adjustment, seat base adjustment or seat backrest adjustment are measured in order to determine the drive load or to calculate the weight value.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein in order to calculate the weight value, the strength of the current, the voltage, the duration of the supply of power, the temperature or further variables which are necessary to determine the drive load are measured.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein insertion of a vehicle key into a key receptacle in the vehicle or subsequent deactivation of the electronic immobilizer of the vehicle or starting of the vehicle engine of the vehicle brings about the adjustment of the vehicle seat or of the vehicle seat part from the initial position and over the predefined adjustment travel or adjustment angle.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein when the electronic immobilizer is activated or the vehicle is switched off and the vehicle key is subsequently pulled out of the key receptacle, the vehicle seat or vehicle seat part is reset again automatically to the initial position before the adjustment.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein closing brings about the adjustment of the vehicle seat adjoining this door or of the vehicle seat part thereof from the initial position and over the predefined adjustment travel or adjustment angle.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein when the door, the vehicle seat or the vehicle seat part thereof which adjoins this door is reset again automatically to the initial position before the adjustment.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the settable component is the vehicle seat or the driver seat, itself.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein before the use of the vehicle seat,

or before the use of the vehicle with this vehicle seat, a seat adjustment is carried out in the unloaded state of the vehicle seat over the adjustment travel or adjustment angle in an adaptation run, and the weight values which are calculated in the process from the drive load are stored as reference weight values.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein at least one of the functionality and ageing of the components of the vehicle seat or difficulty of mechanical movement of the seat mechanism components, are monitored automatically by comparing the currently calculated weight value with the reference weight value.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein a seat occupation is determined automatically by comparing the currently calculated weight value with the reference weight value.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the weight of an object located on the vehicle seat or of a person located on the vehicle seat, is determined by comparing the currently calculated weight value with the reference weight value.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein failure to put on a seat belt is detected automatically.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the settable component is the steering wheel, the accelerator pedal, brake pedal or clutch pedal, the seat heating system or seat massage system of a vehicle seat, a headrest, an interior mirror or exterior mirror, the air conditioning system, the cruise control device, or the stereo system of the vehicle.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the settable component is a seat belt or seat belt pretensioner, or an active headrest of the vehicle.

18. The method according to claim 1, wherein the settable component is a navigation system of the vehicle, wherein in this navigation system automatic destination inputting is carried out on the basis of the current geographic position of the vehicle and the comparison result between the newly calculated weight value and the comparison weight values, which have been stored in advance.

19. An apparatus for automatically setting an automatically settable component of a vehicle having a vehicle seat, wherein the device comprises the following features:

a control device for adjusting the vehicle seat or a vehicle seat part from an initial position over a predefined adjustment travel or adjustment angle by means of an adjustment drive of the vehicle seat or vehicle seat part,

a device for measuring at least one of the electrical and physical variables of the adjustment drive occurring during the adjustment of the vehicle seat or vehicle seat part, in order to determine the drive load and calculate a weight value,

a device for comparing the newly calculated weight value with comparison weight values which have been determined and stored in advance, and

a device for setting the automatically settable component on the basis of the comparison result.

20. A vehicle comprising:

a vehicle seat,

an automatically settable component,

an apparatus according to claim 19 for automatically setting the automatically settable component of a vehicle.