Occupant protection device

• US 7,853,381 B2
• Filed: 10/26/2006
• Issued: 12/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Iyoda, Motomi
• Primary Examiner(s): Keith; Jack
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dager; Jonathan M
• Application Number:
  US11/793,236
• Publication Number:
  US 20080004775A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,510 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 701 29- 36, 701 45- 49, 248/118, 297/61, 297/216, 297/391, 297/404, 180271-275, 180/282, 180/286
• US Class Current: 701/45
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/888 with arrangements for protecting against abnormal g-forces, e.g. by displacement of the head-rest
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0134 responsive to imminent contact with an obstacle , e.g. using radar systems

Abstract

A vehicle occupant protection device comprising a headrest configured to be movable forward with respect to a vehicle, and an actuator configured to implement the forward movement is disclosed. The device is configured to protect a vehicle occupant by operating the actuator to move the headrest forward in a pre-crash stage in the course of an object crashing into the vehicle from backside of the vehicle. The headrest is provided with an electrical capacitance sensor. The device is configured to control an amount of the forward movement of the headrest according to a variation manner of electrical capacitance, which electrical capacitance is detected by the electrical capacitance sensor when the headrest moves forward.

Claims

1. A vehicle occupant protection device comprising:

a headrest configured to be movable forward with respect to a vehicle;

a processor configured to determine whether a collision can be avoided;

an actuator configured to receive collision information from the processor and to implement the forward movement of the headrest in a pre-crash stage before an object crashes into a backside of the vehicle, the pre-crash stage indicating that a crash cannot be avoided; and

an electrical capacitance sensor disposed in the headrest and connected to the processor, and

wherein the processor is configured to control an amount of the forward movement of the headrest during the pre-crash stage according to an electrical capacitance change gradient, which is derived from a change in a ratio of a detected electrical capacitance and a reference electrical capacitance with respect to a change in time, and

wherein said detected electrical capacitance is detected by the electrical capacitance sensor when the headrest moves forward.

2. A vehicle occupant protection device, comprising:

a headrest;

a processor configured to determine whether a collision can be avoided; and

a driving mechanism configured to receive collision information from the processor and to drive the headrest forward with respect to a vehicle at a collision pre-stage before collision of an object with a back of the vehicle to protect an occupant of the vehicle,

wherein an electrostatic capacity sensor is arranged in the headrest, and

wherein the processor is configured to control an amount of forward movement of the headrest during the collision pre-stage according to a change gradient of the electrical capacitance detected by the electrostatic capacity sensor upon forward movement of the headrest.

3. The vehicle occupant protection device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said device is configured to control the amount of the forward movement of the headrest according to the change gradient in the electrical capacitance and a forward moving speed of the headrest, which is determined by an operating speed of the driving mechanism.

4. The vehicle occupant protection device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said device has movement stop means for stopping the forward movement of the headrest if the change gradient of the electrical capacitance exceeds a predetermined threshold.

5. The vehicle occupant protection device as claimed in claim 4, wherein said device is configured to correct at least one of the predetermined threshold and the change gradient of the electrical capacitance according to a forward moving speed of the headrest, which is determined by an operating speed of the driving mechanism.

6. The vehicle occupant protection device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said device is configured to control the amount of the forward movement of the headrest according to the change gradient of the electrical capacitance and at least one of an operating voltage and an operating current of the driving mechanism.

7. The vehicle occupant protection device as claimed in claim 4, wherein the headrest is provided with a touch sensor as another movement stop means for stopping the forward movement of the headrest if contact between the headrest and a head of the occupant is detected by the touch sensor.

8. The vehicle occupant protection device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said device has a voltage control means for controlling at least one of an operating voltage and an operating current of the driving mechanism to be maintained constant.

9. The vehicle occupant protection device as claimed in claim 4, wherein said device is configured to correct at least one of the predetermined threshold and the change gradient in the electrical capacitance according to at least one of an operating voltage and an operating current of the driving mechanism.

10. The vehicle occupant protection device according to claim 2, wherein said device is configured to stop the forward movement of the headrest in a non-contact position with respect to a back of a head of the occupant.

11. The vehicle occupant protection device according to claim 2, wherein the collision pre-stage indicates that a crash cannot be avoided, and wherein the change gradient is derived from a change in a ratio of a detected electrical capacitance and a reference electrical capacitance with respect to a change in time.