Electronic car bumper

• US 5,394,292 A
• Filed: 04/23/1992
• Issued: 02/28/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tsuden Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Tsuden Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Hayashida, Tatekazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Pellinen, A. D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Elms, Richard T.
• Application Number:
  US07/872,909
• Time in Patent Office: 1,041 Days
• Field of Search: 361/179-181, 307/10.1, 180/271, 180/274, 180/275, 180/277, 340/904, 340/436, 340/437, 340/903, 340/905, 340/435, 340/433
• US Class Current: 361/179
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 19/483 with obstacle sensors of electric or electronic type
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9314 Parking operations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93275 in the bumper area
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/955 using a capacitive detector

Abstract

A plurality of sensitive high-frequency proximity switches are provided in the bumper of a car and obstacles can be accurately identified. The electronic car bumper includes: a plurality of sensor portions each having sensor plates, first loading coils, and a divided capacitor, and a reference resonance circuit having a reference capacitor, a second loading coil and a divided capacitor. An oscillator drives each of the sensor portions and the reference resonance circuit through switching devices, and a detector detects an output of the oscillator. A discrimination portion discriminates an output of the detector and provides a discriminated signal to an output portion corresponding to the sensors and the reference resonance circuit. A synchronous device switches the switching device and the discriminator portion in synchronization. A direct current amplifier has an output which is adjusted to a point at zero as a reference voltage for the output corresponding to the reference resonance circuit, and a comparator is adjusted to a threshold reference according to the reference voltage.

Claims

1. An electronic car bumper comprising:

a plurality of sensors, provided in a car bumper, each including sensor plates, a first loading coil coupled to one of said sensor plates, and a first divided capacitor coupled to said loading coil;

a reference resonance circuit including a reference capacitor, a second loading coil coupled to said reference capacitor and a second divided capacitor coupled to said second loading coil;

an oscillator which selectively drives any one of said sensors and said reference resonance circuit through a switch device;

a detector for detecting an output of said oscillating portion;

a discriminator for discriminating an output of said detector and providing a corresponding discriminating signal as a first output associated with said sensors and a second output associated with said reference resonance circuit;

a synchronous means for switching said switch device and said first and second outputs of said discriminator in synchronization;

a direct current amplifier for amplifying the first output of said discriminator associated with said sensors, in which an output of the amplifier is adjusted to a point at zero as a reference voltage according to the second output of said discriminator portion associated with said reference resonance circuit; and

a comparator which compares an output of said direct current amplifier with a threshold reference which is adjusted according to said reference voltage.

2. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 1, further including a smoothing circuit for smoothing the output from said detector corresponding to each of said sensors.

3. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 2, further including a voltage follower connected in front of said smoothing circuit.

4. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 3, wherein two of said sensors are mounted at a front bumper and two of said sensors are mounted at a rear bumper.

5. An electronic car bumper comprising:

a plurality of sensors, located in a car bumper, each comprising sensor plates and a first loading coil connected to one of said sensor plates;

a reference resonance circuit comprising a reference capacitor and a second loading coil connected to said reference capacitor;

a plurality of oscillators respectively connected to said plurality of sensors and said reference resonance circuit;

a plurality of first switches respectively connecting said plurality of oscillators to a power supply;

a discriminating portion for discriminating and gating outputs of said plurality of oscillators corresponding to said plurality of sensors and said reference resonance circuit through a plurality of second switches;

a synchronous means for switching said first and second switches in synchronization; and

comparators which are connected to said plurality of second switches and which compare outputs corresponding to said plurality of sensors with a reference voltage corresponding to an output from said reference resonance circuit.

6. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 5, further including detectors which detect the respective outputs of said oscillators.

7. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 6, further including direct current amplifiers which amplify outputs from said detectors corresponding to said sensors.

8. An electronic car bumper employing a high-frequency proximity switch including sensor plates comprising:

parallel first and second plate electrodes which confront each other and are mounted in a bumper of a car, said first plate electrode confronting an object to be detected and including at least spaced apart first and second sub-plate electrodes each being parallel to and confronting said second plate electrode;

an oscillation circuit and a tuning circuit respectively connected to said first and second sub-plate electrodes;

a detector which detects a high-frequency output generated from said tuning circuit caused by a high-frequency current flowing in said oscillation circuit; and

a means for detecting an obstacle according to a change of the high-frequency output.

9. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 8, further including:

a reference circuit having a reference capacitance;

first switches connecting said second sub-plate electrode and said reference circuit to said tuning circuit;

direct current amplifiers adjusting the output of said reference circuit to a reference voltage set at a point zero and inputting outputs corresponding to said second sub-plate electrodes from said detector through second switches;

comparators for comparing respective outputs from said direct current amplifiers with the reference voltage so as to detect an obstacle; and

a synchronous means for switching said first and second switches in synchronization.

10. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 9, further comprising a voltage follower connected between said detector and said second switches and a smoothing circuit connected at output portions of said second switches.

11. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 10, wherein said first and second switches are analog switches and said synchronous means is a ring counter.

12. An electronic car bumper as claimed in claim 8, wherein said second sub-plate electrode connected to said tuning circuit is formed by at least two spaced apart plate electrodes.

13. An electronic car bumper employing a high-frequency proximity switch, which comprises:

a main sensor portion having sensing plates composed of parallel plate electrodes directed toward an object sensing area; and

a sub-sensor portion having sensing plates composed of parallel electrodes directed either vertically downward or obliquely downward relative to the object sensing area;

wherein said main sensor portion and said sub-sensor portion are arranged such that a part of a ground surface within a sensitivity distribution range of said main sensor portion is included within a sensitivity distribution range of said sub-sensor portion after movement of said electronic car bumper along the ground surface so as to remove, from a detection signal obtained from an oscillation output of said main sensor portion, noise caused by unevenness of the ground surface and obtained from an oscillation output of said sub-sensor portion.

14. An electronic car bumper employing a high-frequency proximity switch, which comprises:

a main sensor portion having sensing plates composed of parallel electrodes directed toward an object sensing area and being mounted in a car bumper;

a sub-sensor portion having sensing plates composed of parallel electrodes directed either vertically downward or obliquely downward relative to the object sensing area and being mounted in the car bumper;

a first oscillator connected to said main sensor portion;

a second oscillator connected to said sub-sensor portion;

a first detector for detecting an output of said first oscillator;

a second detector for detecting an output of said second oscillator;

a first automatic resetting-type amplifier for amplifying an output of said first detector;

a second automatic resetting-type amplifier for amplifying an output of said second detector;

a first comparator outputting a detection signal by comparing the output from said first automatic resetting-type amplifier with a first reference signal; and

a second comparator outputting a reset pulse by comparing the output from said second automatic resetting-type amplifier with a second reference signal so as to input the reset pulse to said first automatic resetting-type amplifier.