Occupant detecting system

• US 6,424,268 B1
• Filed: 09/06/2000
• Issued: 07/23/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Ishii, Naoto, Koyota, Nobuhiro, Isonaga, Kazutomo, Fukui, Tsutomu, Kamiji, Koichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Trieu, Van Thanh
• Application Number:
  US09/656,381
• Time in Patent Office: 685 Days
• Field of Search: 340/573.1, 340/573.7, 340/438, 340/562, 340/666, 340/667, 200/85.A, 200/86.R, 156/269, 280/735, 307/10.1, 180/271, 180/272, 180/273
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0024 for identifying, categorising or investigation of the occupant or object on the seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/003 characterised by the sensor mounting location in or on the seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0035 characterised by the sensor data transmission, e.g. wired connections or wireless transmitters therefor; characterised by the sensor data processing, e.g. seat sensor signal amplification or electric circuits for providing seat sensor information
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01536 using ultrasonic waves
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0154 in combination with seat heating

Abstract

A sheet-shaped sensor body includes a first protective layer formed of a resist paste layer, an antenna film formed of a PET film, a first conductive layer formed of a silver layer, a second conductive layer formed of a carbon layer, a second protective layer formed of a resist paste layer and a hot-melt film, which are laminated one on another in sequence. When the hot-melt film of the sensor body is brought into abutment against a front surface of a wadding previously adhered to a pad of a seat back and is then heat-pressed, the sensor body is fixed firmly and reliably to the wadding by an adhesive force generated by the melted hot-melt film once it again cools and solidified. Thus, the sensor of an occupant detecting system for detecting the physical constitution and the attitude of an occupant sitting on a seat can be fixed easily and reliably to the seat back.

Claims

1. An occupant detecting system comprising at least one sheet-shaped sensor fixed to a seat back to detect the sitting attitude and the physical constitution of an occupant, wherein said sensor is bonded to the seat back with a hot-melt film interposed therebetween.

2. An occupant detecting system according to claim 1, wherein said hot-melt film is temporarily bonded in advance to said sensor, and said sensor and said hot-melt film are then jointly fixed to said seat back by pressing said sensor and hot-melt film against said seat back, while heat is applied to said sensor.

3. An occupant detecting system according to claim 1, wherein said heat is applied to said sensor at temperatures of ≦

200°

C.

4. An occupant detecting system according to claim 1, wherein said sheet-shaped sensor comprises a conductive layer printed on the surface of a film material.

5. An occupant detecting system according to claim 4, further including a protective layer, and at least one of the surface of said film material and said conductive layer is covered with the protective layer.

6. An occupant detecting system according to claim 5, wherein said film material, said conductive layer, said protective layer and said hot-melt film are laminated together as a sheet-shaped sensor body.

14. An occupant detecting system according to claim 4, wherein said conductive layer forms an electrode of said sheet-shaped sensor.

15. An occupant detecting system according to claim 5, wherein said protective layer is a permanent component of said sheet-shaped sensor.

7. An occupant detecting system comprising at least one sheet-shaped sensor fixed to a seat back to detect the sitting attitude and the physical constitution of an occupant, wherein said sensor comprises a conductive layer printed on a surface of a film material and a protective layer, at least one of the surface of said film material and said conductive layer is covered with said protective layer, and said sensor is bonded to the seat back with a hot-melt film interposed therebetween.

8. An occupant detecting system according to claim 7, wherein said film material, said conductive layer, said protective layer and said hot-melt film are laminated together as a sheet-shaped sensor body.

9. An occupant detecting system according to claim 7, further including another conductive layer, a pair of protective layers covering the surface of said film material and one of said conductive layers, respectively.

10. An occupant detecting system according to claim 9, wherein said film material, said conductive layers, and said protective layers are laminated together as a sheet-shaped sensor body.

16. An occupant detecting system according to claim 7, wherein said conductive layer forms an electrode of said sheet-shaped sensor.

17. An occupant detecting system according to claim 7, wherein said protective layer is a permanent component of said sheet-shaped sensor.

11. A sheet-shaped sensor for being fixed to a seat back in an occupant detecting system, the sensor comprising:

a sheet-shaped sensor body, and a hot-melt film bonded to a surface of said sensor body.

12. A sheet-shaped sensor according to claim 11, wherein said sensor body and said hot-melt film are jointly fixed to said seat back by pressing said sensor body and hot-melt film against said seat back, while heat is applied to said sensor body.

13. An occupant detecting system according to claim 12, wherein said heat is applied to said sensor body at temperatures of ≦

200°

C.

18. An occupant detecting system according to claim 11, wherein said sheet-shaped sensor is a laminated body and said hot-melt film bonds said sensor to the seat back.