System and method for controlling an actuatable occupant protection device
First Claim
1. A system for controlling an actuatable occupant protection device, said system comprising:
- an actuatable headrest device which, when actuated, helps protect an occupant of a vehicle seat;
a crash sensor operative to sense a crash condition of a vehicle and provide a crash sensor signal having an electrical characteristic indicative of the sensed vehicle condition; and
a controller coupled to said actuatable headrest restraint device and said crash sensor, said controller determining a crash velocity value and a crash displacement value based on said crash sensor signal, said controller having a variable threshold value functionally related to said determined crash displacement value, said controller controlling actuation of said actuatable headrest device in response to said determined crash velocity value relative to said threshold value.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system (10) for controlling an actuatable occupant protection device (44, 46, 52, 48, 50, 54) includes an actuatable headrest device (44, 48) which, when actuated, helps protect an occupant of a vehicle seat (42, 43). A crash sensor (22) is operative to sense a condition of a vehicle (20) and provide a crash sensor signal having an electrical characteristic indicative of the sensed vehicle condition. A controller (24) is coupled to the actuatable headrest device (44, 48) and the crash sensor (22). The controller (24) determines a crash velocity value and a crash displacement value based on the crash sensor signal. The controller (24) has a threshold value functionally related to the determined crash displacement value. The controller (24) controls actuation of the actuatable headrest device (44, 48) in response to the determined crash velocity value relative to the threshold value.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A system for controlling an actuatable occupant protection device, said system comprising:
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an actuatable headrest device which, when actuated, helps protect an occupant of a vehicle seat;
a crash sensor operative to sense a crash condition of a vehicle and provide a crash sensor signal having an electrical characteristic indicative of the sensed vehicle condition; and
a controller coupled to said actuatable headrest restraint device and said crash sensor, said controller determining a crash velocity value and a crash displacement value based on said crash sensor signal, said controller having a variable threshold value functionally related to said determined crash displacement value, said controller controlling actuation of said actuatable headrest device in response to said determined crash velocity value relative to said threshold value. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for helping protect a vehicle occupant during a vehicle crash event, said method comprising the steps of:
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sensing vehicle crash acceleration;
determining a crash velocity value as a function of the sensed crash acceleration;
determining a crash displacement value as a function of the sensed crash acceleration;
providing a variable threshold having a value functionally related to the crash displacement value; and
controlling actuation of an actuatable headrest device associated with a vehicle seat in response to the determined crash velocity value relative to the value of the threshold. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A system for controlling an actuatable occupant protection device, said system comprising:
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an actuatable headrest device which, when actuated, helps protect an occupant of a vehicle seat;
an acceleration sensor that senses vehicle crash acceleration and provides a crash acceleration signal having an electrical characteristic indicative of the sensed vehicle crash acceleration; and
a controller coupled to said actuatable headrest restraint device and said acceleration sensor, said controller including processing means for processing said acceleration signal with an occupant spring mass model so as to provide an adjusted crash acceleration signal, said controller determining a crash velocity value and a crash displacement value based on the adjusted crash acceleration signal, said controller having a threshold value functionally related to said determined crash displacement value, said controller controlling actuation of said actuatable headrest device in response to said determined crash velocity value relative to said threshold value. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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21. A method for helping protect a vehicle occupant during a vehicle crash event, said method comprising the steps of:
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sensing vehicle crash acceleration;
processing said acceleration signal with an occupant spring mass model so as to provide an adjusted crash acceleration signal;
determining a crash velocity value as a function of the adjusted crash acceleration signal;
determining a crash displacement value as a function of the adjusted crash acceleration signal;
providing a threshold having a value functionally related to the crash displacement value; and
controlling actuation of an actuatable headrest device associated with a vehicle seat in response to the determined crash velocity value relative to the value of the threshold. - View Dependent Claims (22)
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Specification