Vehicle air bag minimum distance apparatus, method and system
First Claim
1. A vehicle safety system for providing a minimum safe clearance distance between a front-seat passenger driver and a front air-bag arrangement in a vehicle, compnsing:
- a position determining arrangement having a distance sensor arrangement to determine distance information for a distance between the passenger driver in a front seat arrangement of the vehicle and the front air-bag arrangement of a steering wheel assembly;
a clearance distance adjusting system to adjust the distance between the front seat driver and the front air-bag arrangement, the front seat arrangement of the front seat driver and the front air bag arrangement being movable, based on the distance information, with respect to one another within the vehicle, the clearance distance adjusting system including at least a front seat position adjusting arrangement that allows relative movement of the front seat arrangement with respect to the front air-bag arrangement to provide the minimum safe clearance distance between the passenger driver in the front seat arrangement and the front air-bag arrangement; and
a pedal adjusting arrangement that includes a positioning arrangement that is movable to move at least one pedal between a first position and a second position, the at least one pedal being forward of the front seat arrangement, wherein a distance between the first position and the second position accommodates a range of passenger leg lengths.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A vehicle safety device includes a seat mounted within a passenger compartment of the vehicle, in which the seat is movably connected to a vehicle frame by a seat position adjusting mechanism that allows the seat to move along an axis between a forward-most position and a rearward-most position. An air-bag is mounted within the passenger compartment in front of the forward-most position of the seat, with the forward-most position of the seat defined as a position of the seat in which a distance between a passenger seated in the seat and the air-bag is equal to a minimum safe clearance. In addition, an exemplary method of maintaining a minimum safe clearance between an air-bag mounted in a vehicle and a vehicle passenger includes the steps of preventing motion of a seat toward the air-bag beyond a forward-most position, in which, when in the forward-most position, a passenger seated in the seat is separated from the air-bag by a predetermined minimum safe clearance, and providing a position adjusting mechanism for at least one vehicle control pedal to allow a passenger seated in the seat to adjust a distance between the seat and the at least one pedal by moving the at least one pedal toward and away from the seat. An automatic seat positioning system, which takes into account both seat to air-bag distance and eye height and automatically, may be used to optimally and automatically position a passenger to maximize safety and comfort.
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Citations
21 Claims
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1. A vehicle safety system for providing a minimum safe clearance distance between a front-seat passenger driver and a front air-bag arrangement in a vehicle, compnsing:
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a position determining arrangement having a distance sensor arrangement to determine distance information for a distance between the passenger driver in a front seat arrangement of the vehicle and the front air-bag arrangement of a steering wheel assembly; a clearance distance adjusting system to adjust the distance between the front seat driver and the front air-bag arrangement, the front seat arrangement of the front seat driver and the front air bag arrangement being movable, based on the distance information, with respect to one another within the vehicle, the clearance distance adjusting system including at least a front seat position adjusting arrangement that allows relative movement of the front seat arrangement with respect to the front air-bag arrangement to provide the minimum safe clearance distance between the passenger driver in the front seat arrangement and the front air-bag arrangement; and a pedal adjusting arrangement that includes a positioning arrangement that is movable to move at least one pedal between a first position and a second position, the at least one pedal being forward of the front seat arrangement, wherein a distance between the first position and the second position accommodates a range of passenger leg lengths. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification