Method and apparatus for determining deployment of a safety restraint device in an occupant restraining system

• US 6,766,235 B2
• Filed: 01/23/2003
• Issued: 07/20/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive Systems, Inc. (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Seimens VDO Automotive Corporation
• Inventors: McConnell, Douglas, Gleacher, Jeffrey, Kiening, Matthias, Hamperl, Reinhard, Weber, Reinhart, Frimberger, Manfred, Glaser, Telmo
• Primary Examiner(s): Camby, Richard M.
• Application Number:
  US10/349,721
• Publication Number:
  US 20030139866A1
• Time in Patent Office: 544 Days
• Field of Search: 701/38, 701/45, 701/46, 701/41, 701/47, 280/734, 280/735, 180/282
• US Class Current: 701/45
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 28/14 responsive to accident or emergency, e.g. deceleration, tilt of vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01027 Safing sensors
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01327 Angular velocity or angular acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0132 responsive to vehicle motion parameters , e.g. to vehicle longitudinal or transversal deceleration or speed value
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/105 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/125 Lateral acceleration

Abstract

A vehicle occupant restraining system includes a plurality of safety restraint devices and utilizes a main controller and a safing controller to determine whether or not conditions are proper for deploying each safety restraint device. The system discriminates between front, side, rear, and roll-over impact events and determines which safety restraint devices should be deployed in response to an impact event. The system also independently determines whether to activate a fuel cut-off switch in response to an impact event. The main and safing controllers utilize vehicle data from a main center tunnel sensor assembly and various satellite sensors to make deployment decisions. The safing controller is used to independently verify whether or not the safety restraint should be deployed.

Claims

1. An apparatus for determining deployment of a safety restraint device in a vehicle occupant restraining system comprising:

a main sensor assembly for measuring vehicle characteristics as occurring near a central location in a vehicle body wherein said main sensor assembly generates a plurality of central vehicle characteristic signals;

a satellite sensor assembly for measuring vehicle characteristics as occurring at locations in the vehicle body that are remote from said central location wherein said satellite sensor assembly generates a plurality of satellite vehicle characteristic signals;

a main controller for receiving said plurality of central vehicle characteristic signals and said plurality of satellite vehicle characteristic signals and in response to a vehicle impact event using said plurality of central vehicle characteristic signals and said plurality of satellite vehicle characteristic signals to determine whether conditions are proper for deployment of a safety restraint device; and

a safing controller for receiving said plurality of central vehicle characteristic signals and said plurality of satellite vehicle characteristic signals wherein said safing controller communicates with said main controller to verify whether conditions are proper for deployment of said safety restraint device.

2. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein said main sensor assembly includes at least a longitudinal sensor for generating a longitudinal sensor signal, a lateral sensor for generating a lateral sensor signal, and a vertical sensor for generating a vertical sensor signal and wherein said plurality of central vehicle characteristics signals comprises at least said longitudinal sensor signal, said lateral sensor signal, and said vertical sensor signal.

3. An apparatus as set forth in claim 2 wherein said satellite sensor assembly includes at least one front impact sensor for generating a front impact sensor signal and a plurality of side impact sensors for generating a plurality of side impact sensor signals and wherein said plurality of satellite vehicle characteristics comprises at least said front impact sensor signal and said plurality of side impact sensor signals.

4. An apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said safety restraint comprises at least one front impact related safety restraint device and includes at least one primary safing actuator and at least one secondary safing actuator for deploying said front impact related safety restraint device.

5. An apparatus as set forth in claim 4 wherein said primary safing actuator comprises a transistor switch and said secondary safing actuator comprises a deployment enable signal.

6. An apparatus as set forth in claim 4 wherein in response to a front impact event,

said main controller generates an arming threshold based on said longitudinal sensor signal or said front impact sensor signal and subsequently generates a safety restraint device deployment request based on said longitudinal sensor signal and said front impact sensor signal;

said safing controller generates a deployment decision for front impact related safety restraint devices based on said longitudinal sensor signal, said safing controller generating said deployment decision for front impact related safety restraint devices independently from said main controller;

said primary safing actuator and secondary safing actuator being enabled only after said deployment decision for front impact related safety restraint devices and said arming threshold have been generated; and

wherein at least one of said front impact related safety restraint devices is deployed in response to said primary and secondary safing actuators being enabled in combination with said safety restraint device deployment request being generated.

7. An apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said satellite sensor assembly includes at least one rear impact sensor for generating a rear impact sensor signal and wherein in response to a rear impact event,

said main controller generates an arming threshold based on said longitudinal sensor signal or said rear impact sensor signal and subsequently generates a safety restraint device deployment request based on said longitudinal sensor signal and said rear impact sensor signal;

said safing controller generates a deployment decision for rear impact related safety restraint devices based on said longitudinal sensor signal, said safing controller generating said deployment decision for rear impact related safety restraint devices independently from said main controller;

said primary safing actuator and secondary safing actuator being enabled only after said deployment decision for rear impact related safety restraint devices and said arming threshold have been generated; and

wherein at least one of said rear impact related safety restraint devices is deployed in response to said primary and secondary safing actuators being enabled in combination with said safety restraint device deployment request being generated.

8. An apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said safety restraint comprises at least one side impact related safety restraint device and includes at least one primary safing actuator and at least one secondary safing actuator for deploying said side impact related safety restraint device.

9. An apparatus as set forth in claim 8 wherein in response to a side impact event,

said main controller generates an arming threshold based on at least one of said side impact sensor signals and subsequently generates a safety restraint device deployment request based on either said longitudinal sensor signal and at least one of said side impact sensor signals, said lateral sensor signal and at least one of said side impact sensor signals, or at least two side impact sensor signals;

said safing controller generates a deployment decision for side impact related safety restraint devices based on at least one of said side impact sensor signals, said safing controller generating said deployment decision for side impact related safety restraint devices independently from said main controller;

said primary safing actuator and secondary safing actuator being enabled only after said deployment decision for side impact related safety restraint devices and said arming threshold have been generated; and

wherein at least one of said side impact related safety restraint devices is deployed in response to said primary safing actuator and secondary safing actuator being enabled in combination with said safety restraint device deployment request being generated.

10. An apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said main sensor assembly includes a roll angular rate sensor for generating a roll angular rate signal and wherein said safety restraint comprises at least one roll-over impact related safety restraint device with at least one primary safing actuator and at least one secondary safing actuator for deploying said roll-over impact related safety restraint device.

11. An apparatus as set forth in claim 10 wherein in response to a roll-over impact event,

said main controller generates an arming threshold based on said roll angular rate sensor signal or said lateral sensor signal and subsequently generates a safety restraint device deployment request based on said roll angular rate sensor signal and said lateral sensor signal or said vertical sensor signal;

said safing controller generates a deployment decision for roll-over impact related safety restraint devices based on said roll angular rate sensor signal, said safing controller generating said deployment decision for roll-over impact related safety restraint devices independently from said main controller;

said primary safing actuator and secondary safing actuator being enabled only after said deployment decision for roll-over impact related safety restraint devices and said arming threshold have been generated; and

wherein at least one of said roll-over impact related safety restraint devices is deployed in response to said primary safing actuator and secondary safing actuator being enabled in combination with said safety restraint device deployment request being generated.

12. An apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said main controller determines whether to generate a fuel-cut-off signal in response to an impact event and wherein said main controller determines whether to generate said fuel cut-off signal independently from safety restraint device deployment decisions.

13. An apparatus as set forth in claim 12 wherein said main controller compares said lateral and longitudinal sensor signals to a predetermined threshold, generates said fuel cut-off signal if a sum of said lateral and longitudinal sensor signals exceeds a first static threshold.

14. An apparatus as set forth in claim 13 wherein said main controller discriminates between front, side, and rear impact events before generating said fuel cut-off signal, compares the sum of said lateral and longitudinal sensor signals to a second static threshold, lower than said first static threshold, and if said second static threshold is exceeded, determines a velocity direction of said longitudinal sensor signal and activates a fuel cut-off switch if said velocity direction indicates a rear impact event.

15. A method for determining deployment of a safety restraint device in a vehicle occupant restraining system comprising the steps of:

(a) measuring vehicle characteristics as occurring near a central location in a vehicle body and generating a plurality of central vehicle characteristic signals;

(b) measuring vehicle characteristics as occurring at locations in the vehicle body that are remote from the central location and generating a plurality of satellite vehicle characteristic signals;

(c) transmitting the plurality of central vehicle characteristic signals and the plurality of satellite vehicle characteristic signals to a main controller and a safing controller;

(d) determining whether conditions are proper for deployment of a safety restraint device in response to a vehicle impact event with the main controller; and

(e) verifying whether conditions are proper for deployment of the safety restraint device with the safing controller.

16. A method as set forth in claim 15 wherein the main and safing controllers make safety restraint device deployment decisions independently from each other.

17. A method as set forth in claim 16 wherein step (a) further includes measuring a longitudinal vehicle characteristic and generating a longitudinal data signal, measuring a lateral vehicle characteristic and generating a lateral data signal, and measuring a vertical vehicle characteristic and generating a vertical signal;

and

wherein step (b) further includes measuring a front crash vehicle characteristic and generating a front crash data signal and measuring a plurality of side crash vehicle characteristics and generating a plurality of side crash data signals.

18. A method as set forth in claim 17 wherein in response to a front impact event, the steps (d) and (e) further include the steps of

(1) the main controller generating an arming threshold based on the longitudinal data signal or the front crash data signal;

(2) the main controller generating a safety restraint device deployment request based on the longitudinal data signal and the front crash data signal;

(3) generating a deployment decision for front impact related safety restraint devices from the safing controller based on the longitudinal data signal;

(4) enabling at least one primary safing actuator and at least one secondary safing actuator once steps (1) and (2) are completed; and

(5) deploying at least one of the front impact related safety restraint devices when steps (3) and (4) are completed.

19. A method as set forth in claim 18 wherein step (3) always follows step (2) and wherein step (1) is independent of steps (2) and (3).

20. A method as set forth in claim 18 wherein the primary safing actuator comprises a transistor switch and the secondary safing actuator comprises a deployment enable signal.

21. A method as set forth in claim 17 wherein in response to a side impact event, the steps (d) and (e) further include the steps of

(1) the main controller generating an arming threshold based on at least one of the side crash data signals;

(2) the main controller generating a safety restraint device deployment request based on either at least one of the side crash data signals and the longitudinal data signal, at least one of the side crash data signals and the lateral data signal, or two side crash data signals;

(3) generating a deployment decision for side impact related safety restraint devices from the safing controller based on the side crash data signal;

(4) enabling at least one primary safing actuator and at least one secondary safing actuator once steps (1) and (2) are completed; and

(5) deploying at least one of the side impact related safety restraint devices when steps (3) and (4) are completed.

22. A method as set forth in claim 21 wherein step (3) always follows step (2) and wherein step (1) is independent of steps (2) and (3).

23. A method as set forth in claim 17 wherein step (a) further includes measuring a roll angular rate characteristic and generating a roll angular rate data signal and wherein in response to a roll-over impact event, the steps (d) and (e) further include the steps of

(1) the main controller generating an arming threshold based on the roll angular rate data signal or the lateral data signal;

(2) the main controller generating a safety restraint device deployment request based on the roll angular rate data signal and the lateral data signal or the vertical data signal;

(3) generating a deployment decision for roll-over impact related safety restraint devices from the safing controller based on the roll angular rate data signal;

(4) enabling at least one primary safing actuator and at least one secondary safing actuator once steps (1) and (2) are completed; and

(5) deploying at least one of the roll-over impact related safety restraint devices when steps (3) and (4) are completed.

24. A method as set forth in claim 23 wherein step (3) always follows step (2) and wherein step (1) is independent of steps (2) and (3).

25. A method as set forth in claim 17 wherein step (b) further includes measuring a rear crash vehicle characteristic and generating a rear crash data signal and wherein in response to a rear impact event, the steps (d) and (e) further include the steps of

(1) the main controller generating an arming threshold based on the longitudinal data signal or the rear crash data signal;

(2) the main controller generating a safety restraint device deployment request based on the longitudinal data signal and the rear crash data signal;

(3) generating a deployment decision for rear impact related safety restraint devices from the safing controller based on the longitudinal data signal;

(4) enabling at least one primary safing actuator and at least one secondary safing actuator once steps (1) and (2) are completed; and

(5) deploying at least one of the rear impact related safety restraint devices when steps (3) and (4) are completed.

26. A method as set forth in claim 25 wherein step (3) always follows step (2) and wherein step (1) is independent of steps (2) and (3).

27. A method as set forth in claim 17 including the steps of the main controller determining whether to generate a fuel-cut-off signal in response to an impact event independently from the determination of whether safety restraint device deployment conditions are proper.

28. A method as set forth in claim 27 including the steps of the main controller comparing the lateral and longitudinal data signals to a predetermined threshold and generating the fuel cut-off signal if a sum of the lateral and longitudinal data signals exceeds a first static threshold.

29. An apparatus as set forth in claim 28 including the steps of the main controller discriminating between front, side, and rear impact events before generating the fuel cut-off signal, comparing the sum of the lateral and longitudinal data signals to a second static threshold that is lower than the first static threshold, and if the second static threshold is exceeded, determining a velocity direction of the longitudinal data signal and activating a fuel cut-off switch if the velocity direction indicates a rear impact event.