Hybrid method and apparatus for detecting a vehicle/pedestrian impact
First Claim
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1. An apparatus for detecting a vehicle/pedestrian impact comprising:
- a least one acceleration sensor mounted near a forward location of a vehicle for providing an associated acceleration signal indicative of an impact event;
at least one pressure sensor mounted near the forward location of the vehicle for providing an associated pressure signal indicative of an impact event; and
a controller for determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact event has occurred in response to the acceleration signal and the pressure signal and for providing an actuation control signal in response thereto, the controller determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact event has occurred by determining an impact energy value from the acceleration signal and comparing a determined moving average value of the pressure signal as a function of the impact energy value against an associated threshold value;
wherein the at least one acceleration sensor comprises a plurality of acceleration sensors each mounted near a forward location of a vehicle for providing associated acceleration signals indicative of a vehicle/pedestrian impact event; and
wherein said at least one pressure sensor is a multi channel pressure sensor having a plurality of pressure hoses connected thereto, said plurality of pressure hoses being mounted near the forward location of the vehicle for providing an associated pressure signal indicative of an impact event.
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Abstract
An apparatus detects a vehicle/pedestrian impact event by sensing impact events near a forward location of a vehicle using both acceleration sensors and pressure sensors and providing associated signals indicative thereof, determining metric values for each of the sensor signals, and determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact has occurred in response to the determined metric values.
21 Citations
19 Claims
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1. An apparatus for detecting a vehicle/pedestrian impact comprising:
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a least one acceleration sensor mounted near a forward location of a vehicle for providing an associated acceleration signal indicative of an impact event; at least one pressure sensor mounted near the forward location of the vehicle for providing an associated pressure signal indicative of an impact event; and a controller for determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact event has occurred in response to the acceleration signal and the pressure signal and for providing an actuation control signal in response thereto, the controller determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact event has occurred by determining an impact energy value from the acceleration signal and comparing a determined moving average value of the pressure signal as a function of the impact energy value against an associated threshold value; wherein the at least one acceleration sensor comprises a plurality of acceleration sensors each mounted near a forward location of a vehicle for providing associated acceleration signals indicative of a vehicle/pedestrian impact event; and wherein said at least one pressure sensor is a multi channel pressure sensor having a plurality of pressure hoses connected thereto, said plurality of pressure hoses being mounted near the forward location of the vehicle for providing an associated pressure signal indicative of an impact event. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 19)
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13. An apparatus for detecting a vehicle/pedestrian impact comprising:
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a least one acceleration sensor mounted near a forward location of a vehicle for providing an associated acceleration signal indicative of an impact event; at least one pressure sensor mounted near the forward location of the vehicle for providing an associated pressure signal indicative of an impact event, wherein said at least one pressure sensor includes a dual channel pressure sensor and two pressure tubes connected to the dual channel pressure sensor, both pressure tubes having a closed distal end and mounted to a forward structure of the vehicle so that one pressure tube is mounted on a left portion of the forward structure of the vehicle and the other pressure tube is mounted on a right portion of the forward structure of the vehicle; and a controller for determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact event has occurred in response to the acceleration signal and the pressure signal and for providing an actuation control signal in response thereto.
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14. An apparatus for detecting a vehicle/pedestrian impact comprising:
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a least one acceleration sensor mounted near a forward location of a vehicle for providing an associated acceleration signal indicative of an impact event; at least one pressure sensor mounted near the forward location of the vehicle for providing an associated pressure signal indicative of an impact event, wherein said at least one pressure sensor includes a multi channel pressure sensor and more than two pressure tubes each connected to an associated channel of the multi channel pressure sensor, each of the pressure tubes having a closed distal end and each mounted to an associated portion of the forward structure of the vehicle; and a controller for determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact event has occurred in response to the acceleration signal and the pressure signal and for providing an actuation control signal in response thereto.
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17. An apparatus for detecting a vehicle/pedestrian impact comprising:
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at least one acceleration sensor mounted near a forward location of a vehicle for providing an associated acceleration signal indicative of an impact event; at least one multi-channel pressure sensor having a plurality of pressure hoses connected thereto, the plurality of pressure hoses being mounted at associated different locations along a forward structure of the vehicle, each pressure hose providing an associated pressure indication to the multi-channel pressure sensor of an impact event, the multi-channel pressure sensor providing an associated electrical signal indicative of an impact event encountered by any of the pressure hoses; and a controller for determining if a vehicle/pedestrian impact event has occurred in response to the acceleration signal and the associated electrical signal from the multi-channel pressure sensor and for providing an actuation control signal in response thereto. - View Dependent Claims (18)
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Specification