Control system of tilt angle tester for seatbelt retractor and method therefor

• US 6,704,674 B2
• Filed: 02/22/2002
• Issued: 03/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Delphi Corporation (BorgWarner Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Delphi Automotive Systems Sungwoo Corp. (Aptiv PLC)
• Inventors: Kim, Taek Kwang, Choi, Byung Gul, Lee, Dong Sub, Park, Jun Yong
• Primary Examiner(s): Barlow, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sun, Xiuqin
• Application Number:
  US10/079,810
• Publication Number:
  US 20020128761A1
• Time in Patent Office: 746 Days
• Field of Search: 702/113, 702/108, 702/18, 702/19, 702/176, 702/178, 731/61, 242/382.3, 280/806, 701/1, 701/36, 701/45, 180/268, 180/271, 180/270, 180/274
• US Class Current: 702/113
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2022/401 with adjustable sensor
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/405 responsive to belt movement and vehicle movement

Abstract

A control system for a seatbelt retractor for a seatbelt retractor is to perform the operating performance test of the retractor mounted on a holder structure with at least one sensor and a locking device cooperating therewith throughout a wider range of tilt angle using a PLC, in which the control system includes a motor control portion connected to the PLC to control the rotation of motors at a tilt angle to be inputted in advance; a rotary cylinder control portion for controlling the rotating of a rotary cylinder in order to rotate a spool of the retractor; a stamping control portion for controlling the operating timing of a stamping portion; a memory for enabling various control operations of the PLC; a data register for storing digital data code values corresponding to a plurality of tilt angles; and a multi-axle motion controller for computing the digital data values, therefore enabling the tilt angle of the retractor to be tested with the holder structure being slanted.

Claims

1. A control system of a tilt angle test apparatus for a seatbelt retractor comprising:

a motor control connected to a PLC to test the retractor mounted on a holder structure and to control the rotating of servo and step motors at a tilt angle to be inputted;

a rotary cylinder control for controlling the rotating of a rotary cylinder so that a spool of the retractor is rotated;

a stamping control for controlling the operating timing of a stamping portion;

a memory for storing data values necessary for various control operatings of the PLC, previously;

a data register for storing digital code data values corresponding to the tilt angles; and

a control portion including a multi-axle operating controller for computing the digital code data values.

2. The control system of a tilt angle test apparatus for a seatbelt retractor as claimed in claim 1, in which:

the tilt angles are stored into the digital codes at the data register.

3. The control system of a tilt angle test apparatus for a seatbelt retractor as claimed in claim 1, in which:

the control portion is arranged on the upper of a test apparatus, which includes indicating lamps and an angle inputting portion.

4. A control method of a tilt angle test apparatus for a seatbelt retractor comprising the steps of:

turning on a starting switch after the retractor is mounted on a holder structure;

judging whether a basic value corresponding to the tilt angle inputted is set;

judging whether digital code corresponding to the tilt angle is set;

fetching a data value at a digital code corresponding to the data value;

rotating a spool of the retractor by a rotating portion of a rotary cylinder;

stopping the supply of an air pressure before an inner delay time of 0.5 sec upon the operating of the rotary cylinder; and

judging whether web and vehicle sensors of the vehicle are good or not and determining the state of the retractor, and the determining of the state of the retractor further comprises the steps of supplying an air pressure to an actuator of the stamping portion to seal the indication of the retractor.

5. A control method of a tilt angle test apparatus for a seatbelt retractor comprising the steps of:

turning on a starting switch after the retractor is mounted on a holder structure;

judging whether a basic value corresponding to the tilt angle inputted is set;

judging whether digital code corresponding to the tilt angle is set;

fetching a data value at a digital code corresponding to the data value;

rotating a spool of the retractor by a rotating portion of a rotary cylinder;

stopping the supply of an air pressure before an inner delay time of 0.5 sec upon the operating of the rotary cylinder; and

judging whether web and vehicle sensors of the vehicle are good or not and determining the state of the retractor,

the step of fetching a data value at a digital code comprises the steps of coding data values dividing into one-digit and two-digit numbers into binary codes by 4 bits and fetching data values corresponding to the total moving angle of the motors.

6. A control system of a tilt angle tester for a seatbelt retractor comprising:

a motor control portion connected to a PLC to test the retractor mounted on a holder structure and to control the rotating of servo and step motors at a tilt angle to be inputted, in which the PLC includes an interface connected to the angle inputting portion, a memory for storing various control signals necessary for the system control, a data register for storing digital code data values corresponding to a tilt angle within a relative wider range of 0 to 180, a multi-axle drive controller provided with a digital code software to process 8 bit digital code data and a CPU;

a rotary cylinder control portion connected to the indicating lamps through a decoder and for controlling the rotating of a rotary cylinder so that a spool of the retractor is rotated;

a stamping control for controlling the operating timing of a stamping portion, so that a test indication on the plastic cover of the retractor to have passed a test regulation is stamped; and

a control portion including a multi-axle operating controller for computing the digital code data values in a manner to convert the data value corresponding to a tilt angle transferred from the PLC into an operating control signal and for applying it to a step motor and a servo motor.

7. The control system of a tilt angle tester for a seatbelt retractor as claimed in claim 6, wherein the tilt angles are stored into the digital codes at the data register.

8. The control system of a tilt angle tester for a seatbelt retractor as claimed in claim 6, wherein the motor control portion is arranged on the upper of a tester, which includes indicating lamps and an angle inputting portion.

9. A control method of a tilt angle tester for a seatbelt retractor comprising the steps of:

turning on a starting switch after the retractor is mounted on a holder structure and positioning a retractor on a main plate with a spool fixing rode of a rotating portion being inserted into a spool;

judging whether a basic value corresponding to a tilt angle inputted is set at a digit code and controlling a multi-axle operating controller to compute the total moving angle of servo and step motors to be operated;

fetching a data value at a digital code from a memory corresponding to the tilt angle;

transferring the fetched data value to a motor control portion in order to enable a motor control portion to convert it into an electrical signal corresponding to the size of the data value and apply the converted signal to step and servo motors, whereby a holder structure is slanted to correspond to the tilt angle previously set, and then a vehicle sensor is operated by changing the slanting angle of a weight constituted as a part thereof;

controlling the operating of a rotary cylinder control portion according to a timing sequence to rotate a spool of the retractor keeping the supply of an air pressure to the rotary cylinder and then to stop the supply of an air pressure before an inner delay time upon the operating of the rotary cylinder; and

judging whether web and vehicle sensors of the vehicle are good or not within a range of a setting value and determining the state of the retractor.

10. The control method of a tilt angle tester for a seatbelt retractor as claimed in claim 9, wherein the step of determining the state of the retractor further comprises steps of supplying an air pressure to an actuator of the stamping portion to seal the indication of the retractor.

11. The control method of a tilt angle tester for a seatbelt retractor as claimed in claim 9, wherein the step of fetching a data value at a digital code comprises steps of coding data values dividing into one-digit and two-digit numbers into binary codes by 4 bits and fetching data values corresponding to the total moving angle of the motors.