Sensor pad for controlling airbag deployment and associated support

Inactive Publication Date: 2005-08-25
METHODE ELETRONICS INC
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  • Summary
  • Abstract
  • Description
  • Claims
  • Application Information

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0012] In one embodiment, the bladder is configured to be placed within the seat portion of a state of the art automobile seat. While, the bladder can be supported by a seat cushion, the bladder is preferably secured to a support member that is suspended on the seat frame. The bladder includes a pressure tube connected to a pressure activated electronic transducer that is in electronic communication with the air bag control module. As will be described in more detail below, the preferred transducer is digital and sends an arming signal to the airbag control module upon detection of a preselected pressure. The bladder further includes a plurality of securement regions for securing the bladder to the seat cushion or the support member. The bladder is formed by two urethane panels that are perimetrically sealed to each other. In the preferred embodiment, the two panels are additionally secured to one another by a plurality of relatively small, preferably circular spot welds configured to form, preferably, hexagonal-like cells that are in fluid communication with each other. Alternatively, the spot welds can be configured to form substantially triangle-like cells, that are in fluid communication with each other or can be placed randomly. In an alternate embodiment, relatively large approximately octagonal spot welds are used to form small fluid cell areas, (about thirty-three percent cell area to about sixty-seven percent weld area), thus reducing the overall weight of the liquid in the bladder.

Problems solved by technology

However, a small number of highly publicized incidents have highlighted a serious risk of potentially catastrophic injury to small adults, children or infants in rear-facing child-safety seats.
While it is certainly advisable to place small children or infants in rear-facing child-safety seats in a rear seat, in certain types of vehicles, namely pick-up trucks, this is simply not an option.
However, these types of manual controls, or overrides, also carry an inherent risk.
Namely the inadvertent failure to re-arm the restraint for an adult passenger, or the failure to deactivate the restraint in the event that the passenger seat is occupied by a child or safety seat.
Further, the state of the art airbag deployment system does not detect whether the passenger seat is unoccupied and in the event of a collision fires the airbag, needlessly resulting in the unnecessary expense of replacing the dash and airbag mechanism.

Method used

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  • Sensor pad for controlling airbag deployment and associated support
  • Sensor pad for controlling airbag deployment and associated support
  • Sensor pad for controlling airbag deployment and associated support

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Embodiment Construction

[0023] A sensor pad for controlling the deployment of an automobile airbag, constructed in accordance with the present invention, is illustrated generally as 10 in the figures. As seen in FIGS. 4 and 5, in the preferred embodiment, weight sensing pad 10 is used in the seat 54 of an automobile, (not illustrated), to detect the presence of an occupant on the seat. Weight sensing pad 10 is used in conjunction with the vehicle's airbag control module in order to allow deployment of the airbag, in the event of a collision, only if the seat is occupied by a person of above a preselected weight. Weight sensing pad 10 is defined by a bladder member 15 having an interior volume subdivided into a plurality of individual cells 42 in fluid communication with each other and that is filled with a non-compressible fluid 18, such as silicone or a silica gel of medium viscosity. In the preferred embodiment, fluid 18 should have a very low freezing point, preferably below the temperature of reasonabl...

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PUM

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Abstract

A sensor pad for controlling the deployment of an automobile airbag. Weight sensing pad 10 is used in the seat 54 of an automobile, (not illustrated), to detect the presence of an occupant on the seat. Weight sensing pad 10 is used in conjunction with the vehicle's airbag control module in order to allow deployment of the airbag, in the event of a collision, only if the seat is occupied by a person of a preselected weight. Weight sensing pad 10 is defined by a bladder member 15 having an interior volume subdivided into a plurality of individual cells 42 in fluid communication with each other and that is filled with a non-compressible fluid 18, such as silicon or a silica gel of medium viscosity. A pressure tube 22 is in fluid communication with bladder 15 and is in further fluid communication with a pressure activated electronic transducer 26 which in turn is in electronic communication with the airbag controller 30. When a person sits upon weight sensing pad 10, there is a volumetric displacement of fluid 18 that provides a pressure change in the bladder member. If there is a sufficient pressure change due to the volumetric displacement of fluid to activate transducer 26, transducer 26 sends a signal to air bag controller 30. Electronic transducer 26 is selected to generate a signal upon detection of pressure resultant from the volumetric displacement of fluid 18 from bladder 15 expected from the average size adult of approximately one hundred pounds or heavier.

Description

[0001] This application in part discloses and claims subject matter disclosed in my earlier filed pending applications, Ser. No. 29 / 085,897, which was filed on Apr. 1, 1998; Ser. No. 09 / 072,833, which was filed on May 5, 1998 and Ser. No. 09 / 146,677, which was filed on Sep. 3, 1998.TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] This invention relates to the field of weight sensing pads. More particularly, it relates to a sensor pad, and associated sensor pad support, for detecting both the presence and weight of a passenger for controlling deployment of an automobile airbag. BACKGROUND ART [0003] In recent years, airbags or self-inflating restraints, have proven to be effective in preventing injury resulting from head-on and near head-on collisions, when used correctly in conjunction with the shoulder-lap restraints. However, a small number of highly publicized incidents have highlighted a serious risk of potentially catastrophic injury to small adults, children or infants in rear-facing child-safety seats...

Claims

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Application Information

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IPC IPC(8): B60R21/01B60R21/015
CPCB60N2/002B60R21/01516G01L1/02B60N2/7035B60R21/01522
InventorSPECKHART, FRANK H.BAKER, ROBERT SCOTT
OwnerMETHODE ELETRONICS INC