Human body sensor for seat

• US 6,271,760 B1
• Filed: 04/05/1999
• Issued: 08/07/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Iwasa, Takashi, Watanabe, Yoshiaki, Ogino, Hiroyuki, Inoue, Masahiro, Yoshinaga, Kenji
• Primary Examiner(s): TRIEU, VAN THANH
• Application Number:
  US09/269,993
• Time in Patent Office: 855 Days
• Field of Search: 340/665, 340/666, 340/667, 340/668, 340/457.1, 340/425.5, 340/438, 280/732, 280/735, 180/273, 180/268, 600/587, 600/595
• US Class Current: 340/667
• 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

Abstract

A human body detector for a seat which does not deteriorate comfort of sitting even when it is disposed on the seat, has a high sensitivity and can be easily fitted to the seat. Vibration detection means (5) is disposed in such a manner that even when a person is seated, the means (5) comes into contact with the bottom surface of a seat pad (16) of a seat (19) and accordingly the person does not feel the means (5). According to this construction, the human body does not easily feel the means (5) by the provision of the seat pad (16), the existence of the vibration detection means (5) is hardly felt even when the hardness and the shape are changed, and various measures for improving the sensitivity of the vibration detection means (5) can be taken. The vibration detection means (5) may be merely bonded to the seat pad (16) or may be fixed to a seat spring (17) or a seat frame (18), and can be fitted more easily to the seat (19) than when it is disposed below a surface cloth (15) of the seat (19).

Claims

1. A human body detector for a seat having a top surface above padding, said detector comprising:

vibration detection means for detecting vibrations;

signal processing means for processing the output of said vibration detection means; and

judging means for judging presence or absence of a human body on said seat by the output of said signal processing means;

said vibration detection means is disposed below said padding and a sufficient distance from a top surface of said seat so that a reactive force of said vibration detection means reaching said surface, to a human body seated on said seat is substantially zero.

2. A human body detector for seat of claim 1, wherein the signal processing means has plural filter means for dividing the output signal of the vibration detection means into plural signals differing in frequency components and issuing.

3. A human body detector for seat of claim 1, wherein the seat has a seat spring, and the vibration detection means is disposed as being fixed to said seat spring.

4. A human body detector for seat of claim 1, wherein said seat has a seat pad, and the vibration detection means is disposed in contact with the bottom of said seat pad.

5. A human body detector for seat of claim 4, wherein the seat has a seat frame for holding the seat pad, the vibration detection means comprises a piezoelectric element for generating an electric charge by external force and a tension applying unit for applying a tension to said piezoelectric element, and said tension applying unit couples between said piezoelectric element and said seat frame, so that a tension depending on the load from said seat pad is applied to said piezoelectric element.

6. A human body detector for seat of claim 5, wherein the vibration detection means includes a tension controller for limiting the tension applied to the piezoelectric element.

7. A human body detector for seat of claim 6, wherein the tension controller is composed of a member longer in dimension than the piezoelectric element and smaller in extension than said piezoelectric element, and its both ends are coupled to both ends of said piezoelectric element.

8. A human body detector for seat of claim 6, wherein the tension controller is composed of an elastic member for coupling the end of the piezoelectric element and the seat frame.

9. A human body detector for seat of claim 6, wherein the tension controller is composed of an elastic member for coupling the end of the piezoelectric element and the seat spring.

10. A human body detector for seat of claim 4, wherein the seat has a seat spring for holding the seat pad, the vibration detection means comprises a piezoelectric element for generating an electric charge by external force and a tension applying unit for applying a tension to said piezoelectric element, and said tension applying unit couples between said piezoelectric element and said seat spring, so that a tension depending on the load from said seat pad is applied to said piezoelectric element.

11. A human body detector for seat of claim 10, wherein the vibration detection means includes a tension controller for limiting the tension applied to the piezoelectric element.

12. A human body detector for seat of claim 4, wherein the vibration detection means is composed of a vibration detector for issuing an electric signal depending on the applied vibration, and a buffer for absorbing the applied vibration, and said vibration detector is held between the bottom of the seat pad and said buffer.

13. A human body detector for seat of claim 12, wherein the vibration detector is fixed on the surface of the buffer, and the side for fixing the vibration detector of said buffer is fixed to the bottom of the seat pad together with said vibration detector.

14. A human body detector for seat of claim 12, wherein the seat has a seat frame for holding the seat pad, the vibration detector is fixed to the surface of the buffer, and the side for fixing the vibration detector of said buffer is disposed so that said vibration detector may contact with the seat pad, and is also disposed on said seat frame.

15. A human body detector for seat of claim 12, wherein the seat has a seat spring for holding the seat pad, the vibration detector is fixed to the surface of the buffer, and the side for fixing the vibration detector of said buffer is disposed so that said vibration detector may contact with the seat pad of the seat, and is also disposed on said seat spring.

16. A human body detector for seat of any one of claims 12, 13, 14 and 15 wherein the buffer has a space for allowing the vibration detector fixed on its surface to vibrate, thereby composing sensitivity enhancing means.

17. A human body detector for seat of claim 16, wherein the space is a recess formed at one side of the buffer, the vibration detector is disposed at a position facing said recess at the opposite side of said recess of said buffer, and the side for disposing said vibration detector of said buffer is disposed in contact with the bottom of the seat pad of the seat together with said vibration detector.

18. A human body detector for seat of claim 17, wherein the space includes plural spaces.

19. A human body detector for seat of claim 16, wherein the space is a through-hole provided in the buffer, the vibration detector is disposed so as to cover said through-hole of said buffer, and the side for disposing said vibration detector of said buffer is disposed in contact with the bottom of the seat pad of the seat together with said vibration detector.

20. A human body detector for seat of claim 19, wherein the space includes plural spaces.

21. A human body detector for seat of claim 19, wherein the space includes plural spaces.

22. A human body detector for seat of claim 16, wherein the space includes plural spaces.

23. A human body detector for seat of claim 16, wherein the buffer is not uniform in structure, but is constituted so that the side for contracting with the vibration detector is more unlikely to absorb the vibration than its opposite side, thereby composing sensitivity enhancing means.

24. A human body detector for seat of any one of claims 12, 13, 14 and 15 wherein the buffer is not uniform in structure, but is constituted so that the side for contracting with the vibration detector is more unlikely to absorb the vibration than its opposite side, thereby composing sensitivity enhancing means.

25. A human body detector for seat of claim 24, wherein the buffer is composed of at least two different materials, and the side for contacting with the vibration detector is composed of a material more likely to absorb the vibration than the opposite side.

26. A human body detector for seat of claim 24, wherein the buffer is composed of a foamed material, and the side for contracting with the vibration detector is smaller in the foam density than the opposite side, thereby composing sensitivity enhancing means.

27. A human body detector for seat of claim 24, wherein the buffer is composed of materials difference in hardness, and the side for contacting with the vibration detector is higher in hardness than the opposite side, thereby composing sensitivity enhancing means.

28. A human body detector for seat of claim 1, wherein the seat has a seat pad and a seat frame for holding said seat pad, the vibration detection means is disposed in a band element installed beneath said seat pad, and said band element is coupled to said seat frame, so that a tension is applied depending on the load from the seat pad.

29. A human body detector for seat of claim 1, wherein the seat has a seat pad and a seat spring for holding said seat pad, the vibration detection means is disposed in a band element installed beneath said seat pad, and said band element is coupled to said seat spring, so that a tension is applied depending on the load from the seat pad.