Activation control apparatus of occupant safety system

• US 6,371,515 B1
• Filed: 12/01/1999
• Issued: 04/16/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/02/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Sawada, Masahide, Fujishima, Hiromichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Rice, Kenneth R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): BUCHANAN, CHRISTOPHER R
• Application Number:
  US09/445,032
• Time in Patent Office: 867 Days
• Field of Search: 280/735, 180/282, 701/46, 701/47, 701/45
• US Class Current: 280/735
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01006 Mounting of electrical components in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01322 comprising variable thresholds, e.g. depending from other collision parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/013 including means for detecting collisions, impending collisions or roll-over
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0132 responsive to vehicle motion parameters , e.g. to vehicle longitudinal or transversal deceleration or speed value

Abstract

An activation control apparatus of an occupant safety system has a floor sensor 32 disposed at a predetermined position in a vehicle and arranged to detect impact on the vehicle and an activation control 40 of the occupant safety system for activating the occupant safety system when an operation value obtained based on a detection value detected by the floor sensor 32 exceeds a predetermined threshold, and the activation control apparatus further has satellite sensors 30A, 30B disposed more to the front than the floor sensor 32 in the vehicle and arranged to detect a level of the impact on the vehicle to detect values of at least two different magnitudes according to the level of the detected impact, and a threshold changer 42 for changing the predetermined threshold in accordance with a detection value of the satellite sensors 30A, 30B.

Claims

1. An activation control apparatus of an occupant safety system comprising:

a first sensor disposed at a predetermined position in a vehicle, for detecting a first detection value according to an impact on the vehicle;

activation control means of the occupant safety system for activating the occupant safety system when a first operation value obtained based on the first detection value detected by said first sensor exceeds a predetermined threshold;

a second sensor disposed more to the front than said first sensor in said vehicle, for detecting a second detection value of at least two different magnitudes according to a level of the impact on the vehicle; and

threshold changing means for decreasing said predetermined threshold by a change amount according to the second detection value of said second sensor,

wherein said threshold changing means comprises threshold change amount increasing means for increasing the change amount of said predetermined threshold with increase in a second operation value obtained based on the second detection value detected by said second sensor.

2. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein the value based on the detection value of said second sensor is a value resulting from integration of the detection value of said second sensor over a predetermined duration.

3. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said threshold change amount increasing means is arranged to subtract a value based on an operation value resulting from integration of the detection value of said second sensor over a predetermined duration, from said predetermined threshold.

4. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein the operation value obtained based on the detection value of said first sensor is a value resulting from integration of the detection value of said first sensor over a predetermined duration.

5. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said second sensor is comprised of two sensors and the greater of detection values detected by the two sensors is defined as the detection value of said second sensor.

6. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said second sensor is disposed in a front center part of the vehicle.

7. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 2, wherein said second sensor is arranged to detect levels of the impact on the vehicle and output detection values thereof as linear values.

8. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said second sensor is a mechanical sensor which detects levels of the impact on the vehicle and which outputs detection values thereof as values of two different kinds.

9. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said threshold changing means comprises threshold change amount decreasing means for decreasing the change amount of said predetermined threshold corresponding to an initial increase state of the operation value based on the detection value of said first sensor.

10. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said threshold changing means is arranged not to change said predetermined threshold corresponding to an initial increase state of the operation value based on the detection value of said first sensor when the operation value based on the detection value of said second sensor exceeds a predetermined value.

11. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said second sensor comprises a right sensor and a left sensor placed right and left in the front part of said vehicle and said threshold changing means changes said predetermined threshold in accordance with magnitude of a difference between impacts detected by said right sensor and by said left sensor.

12. The activation control apparatus of the occupant safety system according to claim 1, wherein said second sensor comprises a right sensor and a left sensor placed right and left in the front part of said vehicle and said threshold changing means changes said predetermined threshold in accordance with magnitude of a difference between impacts detected by said right sensor and by said left sensor or a ratio of the impacts detected by said right sensor and by said left sensor.