SEAT OCCUPANCY DETERMINATION APPARATUS

• US 20130218487A1
• Filed: 02/20/2013
• Published: 08/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: FUJII, Hiroyuki, Tomatsu, Yoshiaki
• Granted Patent: US 10,035,432 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/41
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/002 Seats provided with an occupancy detection means mounted therein or thereon detection means responsive to presence or absence of children B60N2/266
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0025 by using weight measurement
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0031 mounted on the frame
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/268 detecting or alerting means responsive to the installation of the child seats in the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/272 Buckle lock sensors for child seat safety belts
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2210/42 Strain gauges
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2022/4816 for sensing locking of buckle
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2022/4858 for sensing pressure on seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0152 using strain gauges
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/48 Control systems, alarms, or interlock systems, for the correct application of the belt or harness

Abstract

A seat occupancy determination apparatus includes a seatbelt attachment detection device, a first load detection device and a second load detection device arranged under a vehicle seat and each detecting part of a load acting on the vehicle seat, a control processor obtaining a first load value and a second load value, the control processor including a sum load value calculation portion computing a sum load value, a no-occupancy determination portion, a slope way determination portion determining that a vehicle is stopped on a slope way, a seatbelt attachment determination portion, a tentative determination portion tentatively making a seat occupancy determination, a forward movement determination portion determining that the vehicle starts moving forward and runs steadily on a flat ground, and a definite determination portion determining that an adult is seated and determining that a child safety seat is fastened.

Claims

1. A seat occupancy determination apparatus comprising:

a seatbelt attachment detection device detecting engagement and disengagement of a tongue plate of a seatbelt and a buckle of the seatbelt relative to each other;

a first load detection device and a second load detection device which are arranged under a vehicle seat, at two of support portions each supporting the vehicle seat in a manner that the first load detection device and the second load detection device are spaced away from each other, each of the first load detection device and the second load detection device detecting part of a load acting on the vehicle seat;

a control processor obtaining a first load value and a second load value which are detected at the first load detection device and the second load detection device, respectively and performing calculation, the control processor including;

a sum load value calculation portion computing a sum load value that is computed by adding the first load value and the second load value to each other;

a no-occupancy determination portion determining that the vehicle seat is in a no-occupancy state when the tongue plate is disengaged from the buckle and the sum load value is equal to or smaller than a no-occupancy determination threshold;

a slope way determination portion determining that a vehicle is stopped on a slope way while being inclined in a manner that an attachment position of each of the first load detection device and the second load detection device is positioned at an upper side of an inclination relative to the vehicle seat in a case where it is determined by the no-occupancy determination portion that the vehicle seat is in the no-occupancy state;

a seatbelt attachment determination portion determining that the seatbelt is fastened when it is detected by the seatbelt attachment detection device that the tongue plate engages with the buckle after the determination is made by the slope way determination portion;

a tentative determination portion tentatively making a seat occupancy determination after it is determined by the slope way determination portion that the vehicle is stopped on the slope way while being inclined and it is determined by the seatbelt attachment determination portion that the tongue plate engages with the buckle;

a forward movement determination portion determining that the vehicle starts moving forward and runs steadily on a flat ground; and

a definite determination portion determining that an adult is seated in the vehicle seat when the sum load value computed by the sum load value calculation portion is equal to or larger than an adult determination threshold value that is set in advance and determining that a child safety seat is fastened to the vehicle seat when the sum load value is smaller than a child safety seat determination threshold value that is set in advance, the definite determination portion making the determination after it is determined by the forward movement determination portion that the vehicle starts moving forward and runs steadily on the flat ground.

2. The seat occupancy determination apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first load detection device and the second load detection device are arranged under the vehicle seat at one of left and right sides in a manner that the first load detection device and the second load detection device are spaced away from each other in a front-rear direction of the vehicle.

3. The seat occupancy determination apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the slope way determination portion determines that the vehicle is stopped on the slope way while being inclined in a case where the sum load value of the vehicle seat in the no-occupancy state fluctuates by a first predetermined amount or more relative to the sum load value of the vehicle seat in the no-occupancy state when the vehicle is in a horizontal state.

4. The seat occupancy determination apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the slope way determination portion determines that the vehicle is stopped on the slope way while being inclined in a case where the sum load value of the vehicle seat in the no-occupancy state fluctuates by a first predetermined amount or more relative to the sum load value of the vehicle seat in the no-occupancy state when the vehicle is in a horizontal state.

5. The seat occupancy determination apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an inclination angle sensor configured to detect the inclination of the vehicle, wherein it is detected in the slope way determination portion that the vehicle is stopped on the slope way while being inclined on the basis of a detection value of the inclination angle sensor.

6. The seat occupancy determination apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

an inclination angle sensor configured to detect the inclination of the vehicle, wherein it is detected in the slope way determination portion that the vehicle is stopped on the slope way while being inclined on the basis of a detection value of the inclination angle sensor.

7. The seat occupancy determination apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the forward movement determination portion determines that the vehicle starts moving forward and runs steadily on the flat ground in a case where the sum load value computed when it is determined by the seatbelt attachment determination portion that the seatbelt is fastened increases by a second predetermined amount or more.