Vehicle safety system

• US 6,256,565 B1
• Filed: 06/01/2000
• Issued: 07/03/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Joyson Safety Systems Japan K.K.
• Original Assignee: Takata Corporation (Ningbo Junsheng Investment Group Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Fukazawa, Shinji, Yanagi, Eiji
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): ARTHUR JEANGLAUDE, GERTRUDE
• Application Number:
  US09/584,349
• Time in Patent Office: 397 Days
• Field of Search: 701/45, 701/46, 701/47, 701/48, 701/70, 701/71, 180/65.1, 180/232, 180/268, 280/734, 280/735, 297/468, 297/483
• US Class Current: 701/45
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0004 Frontal collision
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0006 Lateral collision
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/165 reusable, e.g. in case of multiple collisions
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/013 including means for detecting collisions, impending collisions or roll-over
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0134 responsive to imminent contact with an obstacle , e.g. using radar systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/015 including means for detecting the presence or position of passengers, passenger seats or child seats , and the related safety parameters therefor, e.g. speed or timing of airbag inflation in relation to occupant position or seat belt use
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/18 the inflatable member formed as a belt or harness or combined with a belt or harness arrangement

Abstract

A vehicle safety system includes an obstacle detecting device for detecting an obstacle around a vehicle; a vehicle state detecting device for detecting states of a speed, acceleration, turning sideways, sudden braking, sudden revolving, sideslipping and the like of the vehicle; a dangerous degree determining device for determining a dangerous level of the obstacle with respect to the vehicle or dangerous level of the vehicle itself by receiving information from the obstacle detecting device and/or the vehicle state detecting device; a seat belt device for changing a shape, including an area of a belt, of a touching portion where the belt touches an occupant according to dangerous level information from the dangerous degree determining device; and an occupant identifying device for storing physical characteristics of the occupant sitting on a seat corresponding to the seat belt device. The seat belt device receives information from the occupant identifying device, and changes the shape of the touching portion according to the physical characteristics of the occupant on the seat. Thus, the vehicle safety system provides the occupant with a warning and more suitable protection by estimating a dangerous degree of the obstacle or problem.

Claims

1. A vehicle safety system comprising:

an obstacle detecting device for detecting an obstacle around a vehicle;

a vehicle state detecting device for detecting a running state of the vehicle;

a dangerous degree determining device electrically connected to the obstacle detecting device and the vehicle state detecting device, said dangerous degree detecting device determining a dangerous level of the vehicle by receiving information from at least one of the obstacle detecting device and the vehicle state detecting device; and

a seat belt device provided in the vehicle and having a belt with a touching portion, and a belt controlling device electrically connected to the dangerous degree determining device, said belt controlling device changing a shape of the touching portion of the belt touching an occupant according to a dangerous level information from the dangerous degree determining device.

2. A vehicle safety system according to claim 1, wherein said vehicle state detecting device detects a speed, acceleration, rolling, sudden braking, sudden turning, side-slipping of the vehicle, and said dangerous degree determining device detects the dangerous level with respect to the obstacle and the own vehicle.

3. A vehicle safety system according to claim 1, further comprising an occupant identifying device for providing physical characteristics of the occupant sitting on a seat corresponding to the seat belt device, said belt controlling device changing the shape of the touching portion according to the physical characteristics of the occupant sitting on the seat by receiving an information from the occupant identifying device.

4. A vehicle safety system according to claim 3, wherein said belt controlling device includes a device for changing a tensile strength of the belt according to the dangerous level information from the dangerous degree determining device.

5. A vehicle safety system according to claim 4, wherein said seat belt device controls at least one of the tensile strength of the belt, and the shape of the belt including an area of the touching portion where the belt touches the occupant to notify the occupant of a dangerous degree according to a collision dangerous level information and a vehicle dangerous level information generated by the dangerous degree determining device.

6. A vehicle safety system according to claim 4, wherein said seat belt device selects a combination of the tensile strength of the belt and the shape of the belt including an area of the touching portion where the belt touches the occupant according to the physical characteristics of the occupant obtained from the occupant identifying device and information of the dangerous level generated by the dangerous degree determining device.

7. A vehicle safety system according to claim 3, wherein said occupant identifying device includes an individual identifying device for identifying the occupant sitting on each seat;

a data base for storing information about the physical characteristics of individuals registered beforehand; and

a reading device for reading the information about the physical characteristics of the occupant identified by the individual identifying device from the data base.

8. A vehicle safety system according to claim 3, wherein said belt includes a bag-shape portion held in a belt-shape at a normal time provided at at least a part of the touching portion where the belt touches the occupant;

and said belt controlling device further includes a belt expansion-contraction device for expanding the bag-shape portion by introducing a gas thereinto and discharging the gas to restore the bag-shape portion to the belt-shape.

9. A vehicle safety system according to claim 8, wherein said belt controlling device further includes a gas pressure controlling device for controlling a pressure of the gas to be introduced into the bag-shape portion.

10. A vehicle safety system according to claim 8, wherein said bag-shape portion of the seat belt device is partitioned into at least two inner portions, said expansion-contraction device including a device for expanding or contracting the respective inner portions, and a device for controlling a flow speed and a pressure of the gas when the gas is introduced or discharged.

11. A vehicle safety system according to claim 10, wherein said gas pressure controlling device includes a gas storing portion, an inner pressure of said gas storing portion being generally held higher than a predetermined value so that when the inner pressure becomes lower than the predetermined value, a gas is introduced from an exterior to increase the inner pressure and is stopped when the inner pressure becomes higher than the predetermined value.

12. A vehicle safety system according to claim 1, wherein said obstacle detecting device includes a device for detecting a distance and a relative speed between the obstacle and the vehicle, said dangerous degree determining device calculating a time until the vehicle collides with the obstacle based on an approaching state of the vehicle and determining a dangerous level according to the time.

13. A vehicle safety system according to claim 1, wherein said vehicle state detecting device has a sensor for measuring at lease one of accelerations in front-rear directions, left-right directions and upper-lower directions of the vehicle, and angular speeds around axes of the respective directions, and said dangerous degree determining device determines a normal running state including start, acceleration, turning and braking of the vehicle;

an unstable state including a sudden braking, sudden turning and side-slipping of the vehicle;

a dangerous state which may cause a collision, rolling and spin of the vehicle; and

an accident state where an accident of the vehicle occurs.

14. A vehicle safety system according to claim 13, wherein said dangerous degree determining device has a recording portion for tracking and recording a start and completion of at least the accident state.