Active suspension of a motor vehicle passenger seat
First Claim
1. An active suspension system for a motor vehicle passenger seat, comprising:
- an actuator that is constructed and arranged to place force on the seat to cause motion of the seat in a first degree of freedom;
a sensor system that detects motor vehicle motion in at least the first degree of freedom; and
a controller, responsive to the sensor system, that provides control signals that cause the actuator to exert forces on the seat in the first degree of freedom so as to counteract unwanted motions of the seat; and
an accident detection system for determining if an accident involving the vehicle in which the active seat resides is imminent,wherein when the accident detection system detects that an accident with another vehicle is imminent, the controller provides control signals that cause the actuator to exert force on the seat in the first degree of freedom, to move a seat occupant to a better location to protect the seat occupant, prior to the impact with the other vehicle.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for controlling the operation of an active suspension system for a motor vehicle passenger seat, where the active suspension system comprises an actuator that is constructed and arranged to place force on the seat in a first degree of freedom and a control system that is responsive to a sensor system that detects motor vehicle accelerations in at least the first degree of freedom, where the sensor system comprises an accident detection system that detects motor vehicle accident conditions, where the control system provides control signals that cause the actuator to exert a force on the seat in the first degree of freedom, wherein in normal active suspension operation mode the actuator is controlled to output forces that reduce acceleration of the seat so as to counteract motions of the seat in the first degree of freedom. In response to the detection of an accident condition, the control system is used to operate the actuator in a crash performance mode where the actuator is controlled to output a force that is proportional to the velocity of the seat in the first degree of freedom.
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Citations
31 Claims
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1. An active suspension system for a motor vehicle passenger seat, comprising:
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an actuator that is constructed and arranged to place force on the seat to cause motion of the seat in a first degree of freedom; a sensor system that detects motor vehicle motion in at least the first degree of freedom; and a controller, responsive to the sensor system, that provides control signals that cause the actuator to exert forces on the seat in the first degree of freedom so as to counteract unwanted motions of the seat; and an accident detection system for determining if an accident involving the vehicle in which the active seat resides is imminent, wherein when the accident detection system detects that an accident with another vehicle is imminent, the controller provides control signals that cause the actuator to exert force on the seat in the first degree of freedom, to move a seat occupant to a better location to protect the seat occupant, prior to the impact with the other vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A method for controlling the operation of an active suspension system for a motor vehicle passenger seat, comprising:
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detecting by an accident detection system that an accident involving the vehicle in which the motor vehicle passenger seat resides is imminent; and causing a controller of the active suspension system to provide control signals to an actuator of the active suspension system to cause the actuator to exert a force on the motor vehicle passenger seat in a first degree of freedom, to move an occupant of the motor vehicle passenger seat to a better location to protect the seat occupant, prior to the impact with the other vehicle; wherein the active suspension system further comprises a sensor system that detects motor vehicle accelerations in at least the first degree of freedom. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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Specification