Passive safety system

• US 6,636,794 B2
• Filed: 11/06/2001
• Issued: 10/21/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamashita, Toshiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Zanelli, Michael J.
• Application Number:
  US09/985,835
• Publication Number:
  US 20020169534A1
• Time in Patent Office: 714 Days
• Field of Search: 701/45, 701/46, 701/47, 280/734, 280/735
• US Class Current: 701/46
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01302 monitoring vehicle body vibrations or noise
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01304 monitoring rough road condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01322 comprising variable thresholds, e.g. depending from other collision parameters
• 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: B60R 21/0133 by integrating the amplitude of the input signal
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01336 using filtering
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0156 by deceleration

Abstract

A passive safety system has a passive safety device mounted on a vehicle, and a passive safety control means having an acceleration sensor detecting acceleration caused by an impact at the time of collision. The passive safety control means receives input an impact acceleration detection signal from the acceleration sensor and operates controllably the passive safety device. Further, the passive safety control means computes a physical quantity based on the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, sets maximum and minimum reference values of the physical quantity in normal driving, performs a computation with respect to addition of a present acceleration inputted from the acceleration sensor to an integrated acceleration value at this point in time when the physical quantity crosses a range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values, and performs a computation with respect to a reset process of the integrated acceleration value when the physical quantity remains within the range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values.

Claims

1. A passive safety system, comprising:

a passive safety device mounted on a vehicle; and

a passive safety control means having an acceleration sensor detecting acceleration caused by an impact at the time of collision, said passive safety control means receiving as an input an impact acceleration detection signal from the acceleration sensor and controllably operating the passive safety device,

wherein the passive safety control means computes a physical quantity based on the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, sets maximum and minimum reference values of the physical quantity in normal driving, performs a computation with respect to addition of a present acceleration inputted from the acceleration sensor to an integrated acceleration value when the physical quantity crosses a range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values, and performs a computation with respect to a reset process of the integrated accelerating value when the physical quantity remains within the range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values.

2. A passive safety system according to claim 1,

wherein the passive safety control means outputs an operational signal operating the passive safety device when an integrated reference value of the integrated acceleration value computed based on the impact acceleration detection signal is inputted from the acceleration sensor.

3. A passive safety system according to claim 1,

wherein the passive safety control means has a high-frequency attenuation means attenuating a high-frequency with respect to an impact signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, the impact signal being a physical quantity operated on the basis of the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, the high-frequency attenuation means including a high-frequency breaking circuit and a sectional balancing process means;

and a feature of processing an operational result passed through the high-frequency attenuation means as an input value.

4. A passive safety system according to claim 1,

wherein the passive safety control means includes a filter means extracting a frequency component being a physical quantity operated on the basis of the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, which is peculiar to a collision of the vehicle from the acceleration signal inputted from the acceleration sensor;

and a feature of processing an operational result passed through the filter means as an input value.

5. A passive safety system according to claim 1,

wherein the passive safety control means has features of dividing a physical quantity operated on the basis of the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor into negative and positive components, setting a required weighted scaling with respect to the negative and positive components, and processing an operational result due to the weighted scaling as an input value.

6. A passive safety system, comprising:

a passive safety device mounted on a vehicle; and

a passive safety control means having an acceleration sensor detecting acceleration caused by an impact at the time of collision, said passive safety control means receiving as an input an impact acceleration detection signal from the acceleration sensor and controllably operating the passive safety device,

wherein the passive safety control means has features of computing a physical quantity based on the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, setting maximum and minimum reference values of the physical quantity in normal driving, performing a computation with respect to addition of a present acceleration inputted from the acceleration sensor to the physical quantity when the physical quantity crosses a range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values, setting a function of operating a subtraction value or an addition value with respect to the present integrated acceleration value when the physical quantity remains within the range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values, and performing a subtraction or an addition of the integrated acceleration value based on the function to modify a reset period of the integrated acceleration value.

7. A passive safety system according to claim 6,

wherein the passive safety control means computes a physical quantity based on the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, sets maximum and minimum reference values of the physical quantity in normal driving, performs a subtraction of an integrated acceleration value when the integrated acceleration value at the time the physical quantity crosses a range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values is positive, and performs an addition of the integrated acceleration value when the integrated acceleration value at the time the physical quantity remains within the range defined between the maximum and minimum reference value is negative.

8. A passive safety system according to claim 6,

wherein the acceleration sensor is set to detect the acceleration in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and

wherein when any one of front and rear sides is defined as the positive component of the acceleration sensor, the other side is defined as the negative component of the acceleration sensor, the passive safety control means has features of operating controllably the passive safety device arranged at a positive component side when the integrated acceleration value based on the acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor exceeds a reference value of the integrated acceleration value set as the positive component, and operating controllably the passive safety device arranged at a negative component side when the integrated acceleration value based on the acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor does not attain a reference value of the integrated acceleration value set as the negative component.

9. A passive safety system according to claim 6,

wherein the acceleration sensor is set to detect the acceleration in a lateral direction of the vehicle, and

wherein when any one of right and left sides is defined as the positive component of the acceleration sensor, the other side is defined as the negative component of the acceleration sensor, the passive safety control means has features of operating controllably the passive safety device arranged at a positive component side when the integrated acceleration value based on the acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor exceeds a reference value of the integrated acceleration value set as the positive component, and operating controllably the passive safety device arranged at a negative component side when the integrated acceleration value based on the acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor does not attain a reference value of the integrated acceleration value set as the negative component.

10. A passive safety system, comprising:

a passive safety device mounted on a vehicle; and

a passive safety control leans having an acceleration sensor detecting acceleration caused by an impact at the time of collision, said passive safety control means receiving as an input an impact acceleration detection signal from the acceleration sensor and controllably operating the passive safety device,

wherein the passive safety control means has features of computing a physical quantity based on the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, setting maximum and minimum reference values of the physical quantity in normal driving, performing a computation with respect to addition of a present acceleration inputted from the acceleration sensor to an integrated acceleration value when the physical quantity crosses a range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values, measuring a period of time after the physical quantity exceeds the range, and postponing a reset process of the integrated acceleration value when the measured time period is shorter than a required period.

11. A method of providing passive vehicle safety via a passive safety device and an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration caused by an impact at a time of a collision, comprising the steps of:

computing a physical quantity based on an acceleration signal inputted from the acceleration sensor;

setting maximum and minimum reference values of the physical quantity in normal driving;

performing a computation with respect to addition of a present acceleration inputted from the acceleration sensor to an integrated acceleration value when the physical quantity is not within a range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values; and

performing a computation with respect to a reset process of the integrated acceleration value when the physical quantity is within the range defined between the maximum and minimum reference values, wherein said acceleration sensor outputs an impact acceleration detection signal that controls operation of the passive safety device.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

outputting an operational signal for operating the passive safety device upon receiving an integrated reference value of the integrated acceleration value computed based on the impact acceleration detection signal.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said outputting is performed by a passive safety controller, and said integrated reference value is received from said acceleration sensor.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

attenuating a high-frequency, via a high-frequency attenuator with respect to a received impact signal, the impact signal being said physical quantity, which is operated on the basis of the impact acceleration detection signal, wherein said attenuating step includes high-frequency breaking and sectional balancing; and

processing an operational result passed through the high-frequency attenuator as an input value.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

extracting a frequency component that comprises said physical quantity, via a filter operated based on the impact detection signal, which is peculiar to a collision from acceleration the acceleration signal; and

processing an operational result passed through the filter as an input value.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

dividing the physical quantity which is operated based on the impact acceleration detection signal inputted from the acceleration sensor, into negative and positive components;

setting a required weighted scaling with respect to the negative and positive components; and

processing an operational result due to the weighted scaling as an input value.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

setting a function that operates a subtraction value or an addition value with respect to the present integrated acceleration value when the physical quantity remains within said range; and

performing a subtraction or an addition of the integrated acceleration value based on the function to modify a reset period of the integrated acceleration value.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising postponing a reset process of the integrated acceleration value when the measured time period is shorter than a required period.