VEHICLE BATTERY SAFETY SYSTEM

• US 20120150393A1
• Filed: 09/04/2009
• Published: 06/14/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Veoneer Sweden Safety Systems AB
• Original Assignee: Autoliv AB (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Knight-Newbury, Heath, Chausseron, Frederic
• Granted Patent: US 8,983,733 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/45
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0007 Measures or means for preventing or attenuating collisions
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0015 Prevention of collisions
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0092 with use of redundant elements for safety purposes
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/04 Cutting off the power supply under fault conditions protective devices and circuit arrangements in general H01H; H02H
• CPC Class Codes: H02H 5/04 responsive to abnormal temperature specially adapted for electric machines H02H7/0852
• CPC Class Codes: H02H 5/08 responsive to abnormal fluid pressure, liquid level or liquid displacement, e.g. Buchholz relays
• CPC Class Codes: H02H 7/18 for batteries; for accumulators

Abstract

A safety arrangement (1) for a motor vehicle having an electric battery (2) and an occupant safety device (6) such as an airbag (7) or seat-belt pre-tensioner. The arrangement (1) having a crash sensor (10) responsive to acceleration, a battery sensor (13-17) arranged to monitor a battery parameter indicative of the condition of the battery, an actuator (8) for activating the occupant safety device (6), and a control unit (9) operable to receive and process signals (x,b) from both the crash sensor (10) and the battery sensor (13-17). The control unit (9) is operable to issue an actuating command to the actuator (8) to activate the occupant safety device (6) in response to a signal x from the crash sensor. In a preferred embodiment, there is provided a second actuator (23,24,25) for activating a battery safety device (20,21,22); the control unit (9) being operable to issue an actuating command to the second actuator to activate the battery safety device upon receipt of both: i) a signal (x) from the crash sensor exceeding a predetermined threshold value X₁ and a ii) a signal b from the battery sensor satisfying a predetermined criterion.

Claims

1. A safety arrangement (1) for a motor vehicle having a battery (2) and an occupant safety device (6), the arrangement comprising;

a crash sensor (10) responsive to acceleration, a battery sensor (13-17) arranged to monitor a battery parameter indicative of the condition of the battery, an actuator (8) for activating the occupant safety device, and a control unit (9) operable to receive and process signals (x,b) from both the crash sensor (10) and the battery sensor (13-17), the control unit (9) being operable to issue an actuating command to the actuator (8) to activate the occupant safety device (6) in response to the signal from the crash sensor (10).

2. A safety arrangement according to claim 1 further comprising a second actuator (23,24,25) for activating a battery safety device (20,21,22);

the control unit (9) being operable to issue a second actuating command to the second actuator to activate the battery safety device upon receipt of both the signal from the crash sensor (10) exceeding a predetermined threshold value (X₁) and the signal from the battery sensor satisfying a predetermined criterion.

3. A safety arrangement according to claim 2, wherein the control unit (9) is further operable to perform a step of processing the signal from the battery sensor (13-17) in accordance with an algorithm effective to calculate the rate of change value of a battery parameter.

4. A safety arrangement according to claim 3, wherein the control unit (9) is further operable to perform a step of comparing the calculated rate of change value to a predetermined rate of change threshold value (R), the predetermined criterion being met when the calculated rate of change value exceeds the rate of change threshold value (R).

5. A safety arrangement according to claim 4, wherein the control unit (9) is further configured to perform steps of processing and comparing in response to the receipt of the signal from the crash sensor (10) exceeding the predetermined threshold value (X₁).

6. A safety arrangement according to claim 4, wherein the control unit (9) is configured to perform said the steps of processing and comparing in response to the receipt of the signal (b) from the battery sensor (13-17) representative of the battery parameter exceeding a predetermined battery parameter threshold value (B), and the control unit being operable to issue the actuating command to the second actuator (23,24,25) to activate the battery safety device (20,21,22) in response to the rate of change value exceeding the rate of change threshold value (R), even in the absence of the signal (x) from the crash sensor (10) exceeding the predetermined threshold value (X₁).

7. A safety arrangement according to claim 2, wherein the control (9) unit is further configured to compare the signal received from the crash sensor (10) to a second threshold value (X₂), the second threshold value (X₂) being higher than the predetermined threshold value (X₁), the control unit being operable to issue the second actuating command to the second actuator (23,24,25) effective to activate the battery safety device (20,21,22) upon receipt of a signal from said the crash sensor (10) exceeding the second threshold value (X₂), regardless of the signal received from the battery sensor (13-17).

8. A safety arrangement according to any one claim 7, wherein the control unit (9) is configured to continue monitoring the battery sensor (13-17) after issuance of the second actuating command to the second actuator (23,24,25) to activate the battery safety device (20,21,22).

9. A safety arrangement according to claim 1, further comprising the battery sensor in the form of a gas sensor (13) configured to detect the presence of carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide in the battery (2) and to generate the signal from the battery sensor indicative of the level of carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide detected.

10. A safety arrangement according to claim 1, further comprising the battery sensor in the form of a temperature sensor (15) configured to measure the internal temperature of the battery (2) and to generate the signal from the battery sensor indicative of the temperature.

11. A safety device according to claim 1, further comprising the battery sensor in the form of a pressure sensor (14) configured to measure the internal gas pressure within the battery (2) and to generate the signal from the battery sensor indicative of the pressure.

12. A safety device according to claim 1, further comprising the battery sensor in the form of an electric current measuring device (16) configured to measure the electrical current provided by the battery (2) and to generate the signal from the battery sensor indicative of the current.

13. A safety device according to claim 1, further comprising the battery sensor (17) in the form of a discharge monitor configured to measure the rate of discharge of the battery (2) and to generate the signal from the battery sensor indicative of the rate of discharge.

14. A safety arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the control unit (9) is electrically connected to an independent power supply (9a).