×

Apparatus for recording erroneous operations of passenger protecting apparatus for motor vehicles

  • US 4,086,562 A
  • Filed: 02/12/1976
  • Issued: 04/25/1978
  • Est. Priority Date: 02/17/1975
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
Patent Images

1. In a control circuit for confiningly protecting a passenger of a motor vehicle in the event of the collision thereof comprising at least an inflatable cushion provided for protecting the passenger from injury in the event of the collision of the motor vehicle, at least one actuating means having first and second terminals, for actuating said inflatable cushion, a d.c. current source having an anode and a cathode, and a collision force detector means for sensing said collision to connect said actuating means to said d.c. current source to thereby actuate said actuating means upon collision of the motor vehicle, the improvement residing in an apparatus for recording an erroneous operation of said control circuit, which improvement comprisesan actuation detection circuit for producing an actuation detection signal representing the actuation of said actuating means by detecting a state in which a first terminal of an actuating means is at a potential substantially equal to the potential of the anode of said d.c. current source and at the same time a second terminal of an actuating means is at a potential substantially equal to the potential of the cathode of said d.c. current source,a collision detection circuit for detecting the collision of the motor vehicle in response to the actuation of said collision force detector means and storing the occurrence of the collision as a collision signal, anda recorder adapted to be driven only when said actuation detection signal is produced by said actuation detection circuit and said collision signal is not stored in said collision detection circuit, whereby the erroneous operation of said actuating means is recorded when no collision actually occurs, and whereinsaid collision force detector means is composed of first and second collision force detecting switches each having first and second terminals, said first terminals being connected, respectively, to the anode and cathode of said d.c. current source,said actuation detecting circuit is composed of first and second voltage divider resistors respectively connected in parallel to said first and second collision force detecting switches, a third voltage divider resistor connected between the second terminals of said first and second collision force detecting switches, and a plurality of diodes each having cathode connected in common to a junction between said second collision force detecting switch and said third voltage divider resistor and each having an anode connected to the first terminal of a respective actuating means, the second terminal of which is connected in common to a junction between said first collision force detecting switch and said third voltage divider resistor, andsaid recorder is composed of a determining circuit for monitoring a plurality of monitor points formed by the junction between said actuating means and said first collision force detecting switch as well as anode-side junctions of said diodes, respectively, and serving to detect that at least one of said monitor points has a potential greater than a first predetermined reference potential and that at least another one of said monitor points has a potential lower than a second predetermined reference potential, a recording means, and a driving circuit adapted to be actuated by the output of said determining circuit to thereby drive said recording means.

View all claims
  • 0 Assignments
Timeline View
Assignment View
    ×
    ×