Control system for vehicle equipment

• US 4,922,426 A
• Filed: 04/28/1988
• Issued: 05/01/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/1987
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Yanagishima, Takayuki, Obara, Hideo
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Gary
• Application Number:
  US07/187,198
• Time in Patent Office: 733 Days
• Field of Search: 364/424.05, 318/466, 318/467, 318/468, 318/568, 307/10 R, 296/65.1
• US Class Current: 701/49
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0248 with memory of positions
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0256 Arrangements for facilitating the occupant to get in or out of the vehicle, e.g. stowing a seat forward
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/44 with means for reducing belt tension during use under normal conditions not included in the retractor B60R22/19; B60R22/3405 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 1/181 with power actuated adjustment, e.g. with position memory
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 1/183 adjustable between in-use and out-of-use positions, e.g. to improve access

Abstract

In order to provide a seat control which can automatically move a drivers seat and ancillary equipment (e.g. steering wheel) from a set of preselected driving positions to a retracted status in the least disconcerting manner, one of operations (e.g. the steering column tilting operation) is used as a standard for terminating the movement of all of the other movements toward given retracted positions upon the selected operation finishing. Even though the movement of the seat toward its most rearward position may not have been fully completed, the upward tilting of the steering column (viz., the movement incurred with the selected operation) in combination with what rearward movement of the seat has been possible during the tilting, opens up a space sufficient for the driver to easily ingress and egress and positively ensures that all of the various movements terminate simultaneously.

Claims

1. In a method of controlling vehicle equipment the steps of:

memorizing a first seat position wherein ingress and egress from a vehicle is facilitated;

memorizing a second seat position suited to driving in said vehicle;

memorizing a first position for a piece of vehicle equipment which facilitates ingress and egress from said vehicle;

memorizing a second position for said piece of equipment which is suited to driving the vehicle;

moving said piece of equipment from its said second position toward its said first position in response to a first signal, said first signal being indicative of the vehicle in which said vehicle equipment is disposed having assumed a condition suitable for ingress and egress from the vehicle;

moving said seat from said second seat position toward said first seat position in response to said first signal; and

terminating the movement of said seat toward said first seat position in response to the piece of equipment reaching its said first position.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

moving said seat toward said second seat position in response to a second signal, said second signal being generated by a sensing means which senses the vehicle having assumed a condition suitable for driving;

moving said piece of equipment toward its said second position from its said first position in response to said second signal.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

memorizing a plurality of said seat and said equipment second position pairs in a memory;

selecting one of said position pairs;

moving said seat to its said second position of the selected pair in response to a second signal, said second signal being generated by a sensing means which senses the vehicle having assumed a condition suitable for driving; and

moving said piece of equipment to its said second position of the selected pair in response to said second signal.

4. A system as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

means for moving said seat toward said second seat position in response to a second signal, said second signal being generated by a sensing means which senses the vehicle having assumed a condition suitable for driving; and

means for moving said piece of equipment toward its said second position for its said first position in response to said second signal.

5. A system as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

means for memorizing a plurality of said seat and said equipment second position pairs;

means for selecting one of said position pairs;

means for moving said seat to its said second position of the selected pair in response to a second signal, said second signal being generated by a sensing means which senses the vehicle having assumed a condition suitable for driving; and

means for moving said piece of equipment to its said second position of the selected pair in response to said second signal.

6. A vehicle equipment control system which comprises:

means for memorizing a first seat position wherein ingress and egress from a vehicle is facilitated;

means for memorizing a second seat position suited to driving in said vehicle;

means for memorizing a first position for a piece of vehicle equipment which facilitates ingress and egress from said vehicle;

means for memorizing a second position for said piece of equipment suited to driving in said vehicle;

means for moving said piece of equipment from its said second position toward its said first position in response to a first signal, said first signal being indicative of the vehicle in which said vehicle equipment is disposed having assumed a condition suitable for ingress and egress from the vehicle;

means responsive to said first signal for moving said seat from said second seat position toward said first seat position; and

means for terminating the movement of said seat toward said first seat position in response to the piece of equipment reaching its said first position.

7. In a vehicle comprising:

a seat;

a first servo for selectively moving the seat between a predetermined position wherein ingress and egress from said vehicle is facilitated and a selectable driving position;

a steering wheel, said steering wheel being mounted on a steering column;

a second servo for moving said steering column between a predetermined position wherein ingress and egress from the vehicle is facilitated, and a selectable driving position;

a circuit including a memory, said memory retaining said seat predetermined position, said seat selectable driving position, said steering column predetermined position and said steering column selectable driving position, said circuit being operatively connected with said first and second servos, said circuit including control means for inducing said first servo to move said seat toward its said predetermined position from its said selectable driving position and said second servo to move said steering column to its said predetermined position, said control means terminating the operation of said first and second servos upon said steering column reaching its said predetermined position.

8. A method of controlling vehicle equipment comprising the steps of:

using a first servo to selectively move a seat between a predetermined position wherein ingress and egress from a vehicle is facilitated and a selectable driving position;

using a second servo to move a steering column on which a steering wheel is mounted between a steering column'"'"'s predetermined position wherein ingress and egress from the vehicle is facilitated and a steering column'"'"'s selectable driving position;

retaining the predetermined seat and steering column positions and the seat and steering column driving positions in a memory;

inducing said first servo to move said seat toward its said predetermined position from its said first selectable driving position and said second servo to move said steering column to its said predetermined position in response to a first signal, said first signal being indicative of the vehicle in which said vehicle equipment is disposed having assumed a condition suitable for ingress and egress from the vehicle; and

terminating the operation of said first and second servos upon said steering column reaching its said predetermined position.

9. A method as claimed in claim 8 further comprising the steps of:

inducing said first servo to move said seat to its said selectable driving position and said second servo to move said steering column from its said predetermined position to its said selectable driving position in response to a second signal, said second signal being generated by a sensing means which senses the vehicle having assumed a condition suitable for driving.

10. A method as claimed in claim 9 further comprising the steps of:

memorizing a plurality of pairs of first and second selectable driving positions, each pair comprising one seat selectable driving position and one steering column selectable driving position;

selecting one of said pairs;

using the selectable driving positions of the selected pair in response to a second signal, said second signal being generated by a sensing means which senses the vehicle having assumed a condition suitable for driving.

11. In a method of controlling vehicle equipment the steps of:

memorizing an ingress/egress position for a first piece of vehicle equipment, said first equipment'"'"'s ingress/egress position being selected to facilitate ingress and egress from a vehicle;

memorizing a driving position for said first piece of equipment, said first equipment'"'"'s driving position being suited to driving the vehicle;

memorizing an ingress/egress position for a second piece of vehicle equipment, said second equipment'"'"'s ingress/egress position being selected to facilitate ingress and egress from said vehicle;

memorizing a driving position for said second piece of equipment, said second equipment'"'"'s driving position being suited to driving the vehicle;

moving said first and second pieces of equipment from their said respective driving positions toward their said respective ingress/egress positions in response to a first signal, said first signal being indicative of the vehicle in which said first piece of vehicle equipment is disposed having assumed a condition suitable for ingress and egress from the vehicle; and

terminating the movement of said first and second pieces of equipment toward their said respective ingress/egress positions in response to one of said first and second pieces of equipment reaching its respective ingress/egress position.

12. A vehicle equipment control arrangement comprising:

means for memorizing an ingress/egress position for a first piece of vehicle equipment, said first equipment'"'"'s ingress/egress position being selected to facilitate ingress and egress from a vehicle;

means for memorizing a driving position for said first piece of equipment, said first equipment'"'"'s driving position being suited to driving the vehicle;

means for memorizing an ingress/egress position for a second piece of vehicle equipment, said second equipment'"'"'s ingress/egress position being selected to facilitate ingress and egress from said vehicle;

means for memorizing a driving position for said second piece of equipment, said second equipment'"'"'s driving position being suited to driving the vehicle;

means for moving said first and second pieces of equipment from their said respective driving positions toward their said respective ingress/egress positions in response to a first signal, said first signal being indicative of the vehicle in which said first piece of vehicle equipment is disposed having assumed a condition suitable for ingress and egress from the vehicle; and

means for terminating the movement of said first and second piece of equipment toward their said respective ingress/egress positions in response to one of said first and second pieces of equipment reaching its said respective ingress/egress position.

13. In a method of controlling vehicle equipment the steps of:

memorizing an ingress/egress seat position wherein ingress and egress from a vehicle is facilitated;

memorizing a driving seat position suited to driving in said vehicle;

memorizing an ingress/egress position for a piece of vehicle equipment, said equipment'"'"'s ingress/egress position being selected to facilitate ingress and egress from said vehicle;

memorizing a driving position for said piece of equipment, said equipment'"'"'s driving position being suited to driving the vehicle;

moving said piece of equipment from its said driving position toward its said ingress/egress position in response to a first signal, said first signal being indicative of the vehicle in which said vehicle equipment is disposed having assumed a condition suitable for ingress and egress from the vehicle;

moving said seat from said driving seat position toward said seat ingress/egress position in response to said first signal; and

terminating the movement of said seat and said piece of equipment toward their respective ingress/egress positions in response to one of said seat and said piece of equipment reaching its ingress/egress position.

14. A vehicle equipment control arrangement comprising:

means for memorizing an ingress/egress seat position wherein ingress and egress from a vehicle is facilitated;

means for memorizing a driving seat position suited to driving in said vehicle;

means for memorizing an ingress/egress position for a piece of vehicle equipment, said equipment'"'"'s ingress/egress position being selected to facilitate ingress and egress from said vehicle;

means for memorizing a driving position for said piece of equipment, said equipment'"'"'s driving position being suited to driving the vehicle;

means for moving said piece of equipment from its said driving position toward its said ingress/egress position in response to a first signal, said first signal being indicative of the vehicle in which said vehicle equipment is disposed having assumed a condition suitable for ingress and egress from the vehicle;

means for moving said seat from said driving seat position toward said seat ingress/egress position in response to said first signal; and

means for terminating the movement of said seat and said piece of equipment toward their respective ingress/egress positions in response to one of said seat and said piece of equipment reaching its ingress/egress position.

15. In a method of controlling vehicle equipment which includes a first piece of equipment and a second piece of equipment, each of said first and second pieces of equipment having first and second positions respectively, said first positions facilitating ingress and egress from a vehicle, said second positions being suited to driving the vehicle, the steps comprising:

moving said first and second pieces of equipment from their respective second positions to their respective first positions; and

terminating the movement of said first and second pieces of equipment when the first piece of equipment reaches its first position.