SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR WIRELESS COMMUNICATION FOR SEAT BELTS

Abstract

Wireless seatbelt communication system comprising: Detection units (A) provided in the respective seats and configured to detect whether or not seat belts should be fastened; electronic sub-control units (ECUs) (B) provided in the respective seats and configured to transmit, via wireless communication, signals indicating whether or not the seat belts should be fastened, which are detected by the detection units (A); and a main electronic control unit (ECU) (C) provided in a vehicle and configured to perform wireless communication with the respective sub-ECUs, to wake up the sub-ECUs by wireless communication, to determine whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs after waking up the sub-ECUs, and to determine that the corresponding sub-ECU has failed when the main ECU (C) does not receive a corresponding signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs (B), wherein the sub-ECUs (B) transmit the signals detected by the detection units (A) indicating whether the seat belts should be fastened or not between the sub-ECUs (B) by wireless communication.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention relates to a wireless seat belt communication system and method. In the wireless seat belt communication system and method, signals indicating whether or not seat belts should be fastened in a seat belt reminder system are transmitted through a wireless communication scheme to implement various seat functions and reduce battery power consumption. BACKGROUND

[0002] A seat belt reminder (SBR) system generates a warning light or alarm to prompt a passenger sitting in a seat to fasten their seat belt if the passenger fails to fasten the seat belt while a vehicle is traveling at a certain speed or higher.

[0003] In such an SBR system, seat belt buckles and an integrated central control unit (ICU) are electrically connected by wiring. When the seat belt is locked with the buckle, a buckle locking signal is transmitted to the ICU, and the ICU communicates with a vehicle control unit, informing a user that the corresponding seat belt is fastened.

[0004] Traditionally, the conventional SBR system is configured to transmit the signals indicating whether or not the seat belts should be fastened via a wired communication method.

[0005] The conventional SBR system is operated by cables, which may cause problems in handling the cables, and a reception rate is reduced due to the occurrence of an obstacle or the positions of the seats, so it may be difficult to determine whether the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened or not by receiving the signals indicating whether the corresponding seat belts should be fastened.

[0006] In addition, in the conventional SBR system, a main control unit (ECU) and sub-control units of the vehicle are constantly connected to each other, so that the sub-control units are always switched on, thus increasing the power consumption of the sub-control units' batteries.

[0007] From DE 10 2020 203 537 A1, a wireless seat belt communication system is already known, comprising: detection units provided in the respective seats and configured to detect whether seat belts should be fastened or not; electronic sub-control units (ECUs) provided in the respective seats and configured to transmit signals indicating whether the seat belts should be fastened or not, which are detected by the detection units, via wireless communication;and a main electronic control unit (ECU) provided in a vehicle and configured to perform wireless communication with the respective sub-ECUs, to wake up the sub-ECUs through wireless communication, to determine whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs after waking up the sub-ECUs, and to determine that the corresponding sub-ECU has failed when the main ECU does not receive a corresponding signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs;

[0008] DE 10 2021 202 245 A1 further discloses a wireless seatbelt reminder device comprising a tunnel element arranged parallel to a seat rail and in which a passage is formed. A sub-transmitting and receiving unit transmits an electromagnetic wave signal in the longitudinal direction of the passage when a seatbelt is fastened to a buckle, and a main transmitting and receiving unit receives the electromagnetic wave signal transmitted by the sub-transmitting and receiving unit within the passage to transmit the electromagnetic wave signal to an integrated controller.

[0009] The above information in the "Background" section is provided only to facilitate understanding of the background of the invention and should not be interpreted as conventional technology already known to those skilled in the art. OVERVIEW OF THE INVENTION

[0010] It is an object of the present invention to provide a wireless communication system for seat belts and a method in which signals indicating whether or not seat belts should be fastened in a seat belt reminder system are transmitted by a wireless communication method. Specifically, data is transmitted by infrared signals, and specific structures are combined to implement various seat functions, such as a solution for reducing a reception rate due to the occurrence of an obstacle and seat positions.

[0011] The object is achieved by a wireless safety belt communication system having the features of claim 1 and by methods for wireless communication for safety belts having the features of claims 7 or 11. Advantageous further developments can be found in the subclaims.

[0012] In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless seatbelt communication system including: detection units provided in the respective seats and configured to detect whether or not seatbelts should be fastened, sub-ECUs provided in the respective seats and configured to transmit signals indicating whether or not the seatbelts should be fastened, which are detected by the detection units, by wireless communication, and a main ECU provided in a vehicle and configured to perform wireless communication with the respective sub-ECUs to wake up the sub-ECUs by wireless communication, to determine whether or not the seatbelts of the respective seats should be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs after waking up the sub-ECUs, and to determinethat the corresponding sub-ECU has failed if the main ECU does not receive a corresponding signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs. The sub-ECUs transmit the signals detected by the detection units, which indicate whether the seat belts should be fastened or not, between the sub-ECUs via wireless communication.

[0013] The sub-ECUs can transmit the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts by wireless communication using an infrared communication scheme, and the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts are infrared signals.

[0014] The sub-ECUs and the main ECU can be arranged on a floor of the vehicle provided with flow path channels of a closed dark chamber.

[0015] The sub-ECUs may be located outside the darkroom flow path channels and slide along the darkroom flow path channels.

[0016] The wireless communication system for seat belts may further include measuring units configured to measure the temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs when the main ECU determines whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs indicating whether or not the seat belts should be fastened.

[0017] The measuring units can measure the temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs via transistors in the measuring units.

[0018] In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for wireless communication of seat belts, which includes detecting whether or not seat belts should be fastened, transmitting signals indicating whether or not the seat belts should be fastened by wireless communication, and performing wireless communication with sub-ECUs by a main ECU, waking up the sub-ECUs by wireless communication, determining whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs after waking up the sub-ECUs, and determining, when the main ECU does not receive a corresponding one of the signals from at least one of the sub-ECUs, that the corresponding sub-ECU has failed.When transmitting the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts, the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts are transmitted between the sub-ECUs via wireless communication.

[0019] The wireless seat belt communication method may further include measuring the temperature of the batteries of the sub-ECUs after determining whether or not to fasten the seat belts by receiving the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts from the sub-ECUs.

[0020] When measuring battery temperatures, if the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs meet a reference value, voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs can be measured, and if at least one of the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs does not meet the reference value, the measurement of the voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs can be postponed.

[0021] When measuring the temperatures of the batteries, if the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs correspond to a reference value, the voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs can be measured, and then if at least one of the measured voltages of the batteries corresponds to a low voltage, the main ECU can issue a warning to replace the corresponding battery, and if the measured voltages of the batteries do not correspond to the low voltage, the main ECU can shut down the sub-ECUs.

[0022] In another aspect of the present invention, a wireless seat belt communication method is provided, including detecting changes in the closed or opened state of seat belts, turning on sub-ECUs to transmit seat belt state change signals when the changes in the closed or opened state of the seat belts are detected, and receiving the seat belt state change signals by a main ECU. The seat belt state change signals are transmitted between the sub-ECUs via wireless communication.

[0023] The wireless communication method for seat belts may further include determining whether or not the main ECU responds to the state change signals after receiving the state change signals of the seat belts.

[0024] The method for wireless communication of the seat belts may further include, in determining whether or not the main ECU responds to the state change signals, if the main ECU responds to the state change signals, turning off the sub-ECUs, and if the main ECU does not respond to the state change signals, turning on the sub-ECUs to transmit the state change signals of the seat belts.

[0025] A vehicle is also provided that includes the wireless safety belt communication system described herein.

[0026] Further aspects of the invention are described below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will become more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings: Fig. 1 shows an exemplary wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 shows an exemplary wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 3 shows an exemplary method for operating the Fig. 1 shown wireless seatbelt communication system; and Fig. 4 shows an exemplary method of operating a wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Specific structural or functional descriptions in embodiments of the present invention set forth in the following description are given by way of example to describe embodiments of the present invention. However, the present invention may be embodied in many alternative forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

[0029] Unless otherwise stated, all numbers, values ​​and / or expressions relating to amounts of ingredients, reaction conditions, polymer compositions and formulations shall in all cases be modified by the term "approximately", since such numbers are by nature approximate, reflecting, among other things, the various measurement uncertainties that occur in obtaining such values.

[0030] Unless expressly stated or evident from the context, the term "approximately" is understood herein to mean within a normal range of tolerance, e.g., within 2 standard deviations of the mean. "Approximately" can be understood as within 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, 0.1%, 0.05%, or 0.01% of the stated value. Unless the context otherwise indicates, all numerical values ​​stated herein are modified by the term "approximately."

[0031] When a range is described for a variable in this specification, it is assumed that the variable includes all values, including the described endpoints, within the specified range. For example, the range "5 to 10" includes all subranges such as 6 to 10, 7 to 10, 6 to 9, 7 to 9, etc., as well as individual values ​​of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, and also includes all values ​​between valid integers within the specified range, such as 5.5, 6.5, 7.5, 5.5 to 8.5, 6.5 to 9, etc. The range "10% to 30%" includes subranges such as 10% to 15%, 12% to 18%, 20% to 30%, etc., as well as all integers with values ​​from 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, etc. up to 30%, and also includes any value between valid integers within the specified range, such as 10.5%, 15.5%, 25.5%, etc.

[0032] It is understood that the term "vehicle" or "vehicle-based," or a similar term, as used herein, encompasses motor vehicles in general, such as passenger cars, including sport utility vehicles (SUVs), buses, trucks, various commercial vehicles, watercraft, including a variety of boats and ships, aircraft, and the like, as well as hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, hydrogen-powered vehicles, and other alternative-fuel vehicles (e.g., fuels derived from resources other than petroleum). A hybrid vehicle is a vehicle that has two or more sources of power, such as both gasoline-powered and electric-powered vehicles.

[0033] Fig. 1 shows an exemplary wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 shows another exemplary wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 3 shows a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method for operating the Fig. 1 shown wireless seatbelt communication system. Fig. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method of operating a wireless seatbelt communication system according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] Fig. 1 shows an exemplary wireless seatbelt communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wireless seatbelt communication system includes, for example, detection units A provided in the respective seats and configured to detect whether the seatbelts should be fastened or not, sub-ECUs B provided in the respective seats and configured to transmit signals indicating whether the seatbelts should be fastened or not, detected by the detection units A, via wireless communication, and a main ECU C provided in a vehicle and configured to perform wireless communication with the respective sub-ECUs B to wake up the sub-ECUs B through wireless communication to determine whether the seatbelts of the respective seats should be fastened or not.by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs B after waking up the sub-ECUs B, and to determine that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed if the main ECU C does not receive a corresponding signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs B.,

[0035] Specifically, signals indicating whether or not to fasten seat belts in a seat belt reminder (SBR) system are transmitted through a wireless communication scheme, and specific structures are combined to solve a reduction in reception rate due to the occurrence of an obstacle and the positions of the seats. To this end, it is necessary to create a situation in which the signals indicating whether or not to fasten seat belts are transmitted through wireless communication, wherein it is determined by reception of the signals whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats, and if the signal is not received from at least one of the sub-ECUs B after the sub-ECU B is awakened, it is determined that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed.

[0036] The seat belt is known to be the most important and effective safety device in vehicles. In South Korea, seat belt wearing rates, especially those of rear seat passengers, are low while driving. According to recent surveys, the seat belt wearing rate of rear seat passengers is around 20%. The seat belt reminder (SBR) system, which is configured to inform the driver whether or not to fasten seat belts, generates a warning light or alarm to prompt a seated passenger to fasten the corresponding seat belt if the passenger fails to fasten the seat belt while the vehicle is traveling at a certain speed or higher. In such an SBR system, the seat belt buckles and an integrated central control unit (ICU) are electrically connected by wiring.When the seat belt is locked with the corresponding buckle, a buckle lock signal is transmitted to the ICU, and the ICU is connected by communication with a vehicle control unit and notifies that the corresponding seat belt is fastened. The conventional SBR system is operated via wires, which may cause problems in handling the wires, and a reception rate is reduced due to the occurrence of an obstacle or the positions of the seats. Thus, it may be difficult to determine whether the seat belts of the corresponding seats should be fastened by receiving the signals indicating whether the respective seat belts should be fastened or not. It may also be difficult to prompt a driver to fasten the seat belt by generating a warning light or a warning alarm when the driver fails to fasten the seat belt.In addition, a main electrical control unit (ECU) and sub-ECUs of the vehicle are constantly connected, so the sub-ECUs are always powered on, increasing the power consumption of the sub-ECUs' batteries. While the conventional SBR system operates via a wired connection, the present invention is characterized in that the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts are transmitted via a wireless communication method to implement various seat functions.

[0037] However, in an SBR system configured to transmit signals indicating whether or not to fasten seat belts through wireless communication while a vehicle is moving, the signal reception rate may be reduced due to interference from an obstacle, or the signal reception rate may be reduced due to a large distance between the positions of the respective seats in the vehicle. Recently, wireless communication has been using technologies that transmit data via radio waves, such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, and generally, wireless communication methods other than wired communication methods can be performed via infrared light, ultra-wideband, etc. In optical wireless communication, although visible light can be used, infrared light is often used as the transmission medium instead of visible light.Infrared communication using infrared light allows data to be transmitted at high speeds because infrared light has longer wavelengths than visible light, allowing it to easily penetrate fine particles suspended in the air and providing a wide bandwidth compared to radio waves when the distance between devices is short. Due to this advantage, most of the optical wireless communication devices in recent use use an infrared communication method. The main disadvantages of infrared communication are that the communication distance is several meters, i.e., short, and that the transmitters and receivers must face each other. However, these disadvantages can actually increase security because communication is only possible within a short distance and at a certain angle.

[0038] Therefore, a wireless seat belt communication system is provided such that the sub-ECUs B are woken up by wireless communication by a wireless communication method using infrared light, whether the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened or not is determined by receiving the signals indicating whether the seat belts should be fastened or not from the sub-ECUs B after waking up the sub-ECUs B, and when the signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs B is not received after waking up the sub-ECUs B, it is determined that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed, to implement various seat functions such as solving a reduction in a reception rate due to the occurrence of an obstacle and the positions of the seats by preparing flow path channels of a closed dark room.

[0039] Specifically, detection units A are provided in the respective seats in the vehicle and detect whether the corresponding seat belts should be fastened or not. The detection units A are arranged in coupling units of the seat belts, and thereby a driver can detect whether the seat belts should be fastened or not. Furthermore, sub-ECUs B are provided in the respective seats and transmit the signals indicating whether the seat belts should be fastened or not, which are detected by the detection unit A, via wireless communication. The sub-ECUs B are arranged in the respective seats and can transmit the signals received by the detection units A between the sub-ECUs B or to the main ECU C via wireless communication.The sub-ECUs B arranged in the respective seats can transmit the signals indicating whether the seat belts should be fastened or not to the main ECU C or between the sub-ECUs B via sub-modules E by wireless communication.

[0040] Furthermore, the main ECU C is provided in the vehicle and configured to perform wireless communication with the respective sub-ECUs B, wake up the sub-ECUs B through wireless communication, determine whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs B after waking up the sub-ECUs B, and determine, when the main ECU C does not receive the signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs B, that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed. When the vehicle is started, the main ECU C and the sub-ECUs B are turned on in turn. The main ECU C provided in the vehicle is woken up first, and when the main ECU C is woken up, it is diagnosed whether or not the main ECU C has failed. After that, the main ECU C can perform wireless communication with the sub-ECUs B.

[0041] When the main ECU C performs wireless communication with the sub-ECUs B, the main ECU C controls the wake-up of the sub-ECUs B through wireless communication, receives the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats from the respective sub-ECUs B, and determines whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats. When the main ECU C determines whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats by receiving the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts, the main ECU C transmits the signals to the outside.If the main ECU C does not receive the signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs B after waking up the sub-ECUs B, the main ECU C determines that the corresponding sub-ECU B is unable to transmit the signal indicating whether or not to fasten the corresponding seat belt through wireless communication, and thus determines that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed. The main ECU C receives the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats from the sub-ECUs B, the signals are transmitted from the sub-ECUs B to the main ECU C, and then the main ECU C transmits a seat belt fastening signal to an integrated central control unit.

[0042] When the main ECU C determines whether the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened or not by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs B indicating whether the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened or not and transmitting the seat belt fastening signal, the main ECU C may turn off the sub-ECUs B to reduce the power consumption of the sub-ECUs B. Furthermore, if the main ECU C does not receive the signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs B, the main ECU C may determine that the corresponding sub-ECU B is unable to transmit the signal indicating whether the corresponding seat belt should be fastened or not, may determine that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed, and may transmit a failure signal. The seat belt fastening signal and the failure signal transmitted from the main ECU C may be transmitted repeatedly.The main ECU C can determine whether the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened or not by receiving the signals indicating whether the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened or not from the sub-ECUs B, and can transmit the seat belt fastened signal. If the main ECU C does not receive the signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs B, the main ECU C can determine that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed and can transmit the failure signal. In particular, to prepare for the case where the driver is unable to recognize the seat belt fastened signal and the failure signal due to signal failures, the main ECU C can repeatedly transmit the seat belt fastened signal and the failure signal.

[0043] Fig. 2 shows an exemplary wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[0044] As in Fig. 2, for example, the sub-ECUs B are characterized by transmitting the signals indicating whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened, which are detected by the detection units A, between the sub-ECUs B through wireless communication. The sub-ECUs B are provided in the same number as the seats in the vehicle. The signals transmitted from the sub-ECUs B indicating whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened can be received by the main ECU C or transmitted between the sub-ECUs B provided in the respective seats through wireless communication.Consequently, in the system in which the sub-ECUs B and the main ECU C are connected, when one of the sub-ECUs B is diagnosed as faulty, another sub-ECU B can receive the signal indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belt corresponding to the sub-ECU B diagnosed as faulty or failure, and can transmit the signal indicating whether or not to fasten the corresponding seat belt to the main ECU C.

[0045] The sub-ECUs B may transmit the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the corresponding seat belts by wireless communication using an infrared communication scheme, and the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts may be infrared signals.

[0046] The infrared communication scheme uses light as a medium and can transmit data at high speeds. Infrared light has longer wavelengths than visible light, thus ensuring a wide bandwidth compared to radio waves when the distance between devices is short. Therefore, the infrared communication method using infrared signals is suitable when the distance between devices is short, and the distance between the seats of a vehicle is suitable for the infrared communication method, allowing data to be transmitted at high speeds.

[0047] The sub-ECUs B and the main ECU C can be arranged on the floor of a vehicle provided with flow path channels of a closed dark chamber.

[0048] The infrared communication scheme using infrared signals has the disadvantage that the reception rate of infrared signals is significantly reduced when there is an obstacle between the vehicle seats. In this case, if the main ECU C fails to receive the signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs B, the main ECU C cannot determine whether the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened or not, and determines that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed, thus preventing the seat belt reminder functions from fully functioning. Since an infrared observation device or sensor can only effectively detect infrared light when its own temperature is low, it is very important to cool the infrared observation device or sensor.Therefore, the reduction of the reception ratio of the signals received by the sub-ECUs B can be solved by preparing the flow path channels of the closed darkroom.

[0049] The sub-ECUs B can be arranged outside the flow path channels of the darkroom and can slide along the flow path channels of the darkroom.

[0050] The sub-ECUs B can transmit the signals indicating whether the seat belts should be fastened or not through the flow path channels of the closed darkroom.

[0051] The sub-ECUs B may be arranged outside the flow path channels of the dark room, the sub-ECUs B at the lower parts of the flow path channels may transmit / receive the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts, and the sub-ECUs B at the upper parts of the flow path channels may transmit the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts received from the detection units A between the sub-ECUs B or to the main ECU C.

[0052] Since the seats of the vehicles are arranged in a straight line so that passengers can easily access the seats, the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts can be transmitted using infrared signals by allowing the sub-ECUs B to slide along the flow path channels of the dark chamber. The sub-ECUs B provided in the respective seats can transmit the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the corresponding seat belts to the main ECU C through the sub-modules E via wireless communication, or they can mutually transmit the signals between the sub-ECUs B via wireless communication.Here, the sub-ECUs B are provided in the respective seats outside the flow path channels of the darkroom. In this case, the sub-ECUs B are arranged so that they are spaced outward from the flow path channels of the darkroom by the positions of the respective seats and are arranged continuously. Wireless communication of the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts using the infrared communication scheme is suitable when the distance between the devices is short, and the distance between the seats of the vehicle is suitable for the infrared communication scheme, so that data can be transmitted at high speed.

[0053] The wireless seat belt communication system may further include measuring units configured to measure the temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B when the main ECU C determines whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats are fastened by receiving the signals indicating whether the seat belts are fastened or not from the sub-ECUs B.

[0054] To prevent a low-voltage warning from occurring even when the sub-ECU B is in its normal operating state, such as a rise or fall in battery temperature from an extremely low temperature at which a person is unable to sit shortly after a passenger gets into the vehicle, the battery voltage check of the corresponding sub-ECU B may be postponed until the battery temperature of the sub-ECU B enters a certain temperature state. When the main ECU C determines whether or not to fasten the seat belts by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs B indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts and transmitting the seat belt fastening signal, the measuring units may measure the battery temperatures of the sub-ECUs B.If the battery of at least one of the sub-ECUs B is detected to have low voltage, a warning to replace the battery of the corresponding sub-ECU B or the main ECU C may be issued, and if the capacities of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B are detected to be sufficient, the sub-ECUs B may be turned off to reduce power consumption.

[0055] The measuring units can measure the temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B via transistors in the measuring units.

[0056] The transistor is a semiconductor device that adjusts the current or voltage flow, thus acting as a switch, and can be used to measure the battery temperature in the wireless seatbelt communication system according to the present invention. The reference temperature of the transistor provided in the wireless seatbelt communication system is set to prevent the occurrence of a low-voltage warning even in the actual operational state of the sub-ECU B, such as a rise or fall in the battery temperature shortly after a passenger enters the vehicle. The reference temperature set by the transistor is in the range of approximately -30 to 80 degrees Celsius, and the battery voltage check is delayed until the battery temperature reaches the set temperature state.

[0057] Fig. 3 shows an exemplary method for operating the Fig. 1 shown wireless seatbelt communication system.

[0058] As in Fig. 3, a wireless seat belt communication system includes detecting whether or not seat belts should be fastened (S10), transmitting signals indicating whether or not the seat belts should be fastened (S20) by wireless communication, performing wireless communication with respective sub-ECUs B by a main ECU C, waking up the sub-ECUs B by wireless communication and determining whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats are to be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs B after waking up the sub-ECUs B (S30), and determining, when the main ECU C does not receive a corresponding one of the signals from at least one of the sub-ECUs B, that the corresponding sub-ECU B has failed (S25).

[0059] In transmitting the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts by wireless communication (S20), the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts detected by the detection units A are transmitted between the sub-ECUs B by wireless communication.

[0060] The wireless seat belt communication method may further include measuring the temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B (S40) after determining whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs B (S30).

[0061] When measuring the temperatures of the batteries (S40), if the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B meet a reference value, the voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B may be measured (S50), and if at least one of the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B does not meet the reference value, a measurement of the voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B may be put into a standby state (S45).

[0062] When measuring the temperatures of the batteries (S40), if the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B correspond to the reference value, the voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs B are measured (S50), and then, if at least one of the measured voltages of the batteries corresponds to a low voltage (Yes in S60), the main ECU C issues a warning to replace the corresponding battery (S65), and if the measured voltages of the batteries do not correspond to the low voltage (No in S60), the sub-ECUs B are turned off (S70).

[0063] Fig. 4 shows an exemplary method of operating a wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[0064] As in Fig.4, a wireless seatbelt communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes detecting changes in the fastened or unfastened state of seatbelts (S80), turning on sub-ECUs B to transmit state change signals of the seatbelts when the changes in the fastened or unfastened state of the seatbelts are detected (S90), and receiving the state change signals of the seatbelts by a main ECU C (S100).

[0065] The wireless communication method for seat belts according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may further include determining, after receiving the state change signals of the seat belts (S100), whether or not the main ECU C responds to the state change signals (S110).

[0066] The seat belt wireless communication method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may further include, in response to the state change signals (S110), when the main ECU C responds to the state change signals, turning off the sub-ECUs B (S70), and, when the main ECU C does not respond to the state change signals, turning on the sub-ECUs B (S90) to transmit the seat belt state change signals. In this case, when the main ECU C receives and responds to the seat belt state change signals, the main ECU C turns off the sub-ECUs B, thereby reducing the power consumption of the sub-ECUs B and thus increasing energy efficiency compared to the conventional seat belt reminder system.

[0067] According to various embodiments of the present invention, in a wireless seat belt communication system and method, signals indicating whether or not to fasten seat belts are transmitted in a seat belt reminder system through a wireless communication scheme, and specific structures are combined to implement various seat functions, such as a solution for reducing a reception rate due to the occurrence of an obstacle and the positions of seats and for reducing power consumption of batteries.

Claims

[1] Wireless seatbelt communication system comprising: Detection units (A) provided in the respective seats and configured to detect whether or not seat belts should be fastened; electronic sub-control units (ECUs) (B) provided in the respective seats and configured to transmit, via wireless communication, signals indicating whether or not the seat belts should be fastened, which are detected by the detection units (A); and a main electronic control unit (ECU) (C) provided in a vehicle and configured to perform wireless communication with the respective sub-ECUs, to wake up the sub-ECUs by wireless communication, to determine whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs after waking up the sub-ECUs, and to determine that the corresponding sub-ECU has failed when the main ECU (C) does not receive a corresponding signal from at least one of the sub-ECUs (B), wherein the sub-ECUs (B) transmit the signals detected by the detection units (A) indicating whether the seat belts should be fastened or not between the sub-ECUs (B) by wireless communication. [2] A wireless seat belt communication system according to claim 1, wherein the sub-ECUs (B) transmit the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts by wireless communication using an infrared communication scheme, and the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts are infrared signals. [3] A wireless seat belt communication system according to claim 1, wherein the sub-ECUs (B) and the main ECU (C) are arranged on a vehicle floor provided with flow path channels of a closed dark chamber. [4] A wireless seat belt communication system according to claim 3, wherein the sub-ECUs (B) are arranged outside the flow path channels of the dark chamber and slide along the flow path channels of the dark chamber. [5] A wireless seat belt communication system according to claim 1, further comprising measuring units configured to measure the temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) when the main ECU (C) determines whether or not to fasten the seat belts of the respective seats by receiving the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts from the sub-ECUs (B). [6] A wireless seat belt communication system according to claim 5, wherein the measuring units measure the temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) by transistors provided in the measuring units. [7] Wireless communication method for seat belts: Detecting whether or not seat belts should be fastened; Transmitting signals indicating whether or not the seat belts should be fastened by wireless communication; and Performing wireless communication with sub-electronic control units (ECUs) (B) by a main electronic control unit (ECU) (C), waking up the sub-ECUs (B) by wireless communication, determining whether or not the seat belts of the respective seats should be fastened by receiving the signals from the sub-ECUs (B) after waking up the sub-ECUs (B), and determining that the corresponding sub-ECU (B) has failed if the main ECU (C) does not receive a corresponding one of the signals from at least one of the sub-ECUs (B), wherein, in transmitting the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts, the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts are transmitted between the sub-ECUs (B) by wireless communication. [8] A method for wireless communication for seat belts according to claim 7, further comprising: Measuring temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) after determining whether or not to fasten the seat belts by receiving the signals indicating whether or not to fasten the seat belts from the sub-ECUs (B). [9] A wireless communication method for seat belts according to claim 8, wherein, in the measurement of the temperatures of the batteries, when the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) satisfy a reference value, voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) are measured, and when at least one of the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs does not satisfy the reference value, the measurement of the voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) is reset. [10] A wireless communication method for seat belts according to claim 8, wherein, in measuring the temperatures of the batteries, when the measured temperatures of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) satisfy a reference value, voltages of the batteries of the sub-ECUs (B) are measured, and then, when at least one of the measured voltages of the batteries corresponds to a low voltage, the main ECU (C) issues a warning to replace the corresponding battery, and when the measured voltages of the batteries do not correspond to the low voltage, the main ECU (C) turns off the sub-ECUs (B). [11] A method for wireless communication for seat belts, comprising: Detecting changes in the closed or opened states of the seat belts; Switching on electronic sub-control units (ECUs) (B) to transmit seat belt state change signals when changes in the closed or unclosed states of the seat belts are detected; and Receiving the status change signals of the seat belts by a main electronic control unit (ECU) (C), where the seat belt status change signals are transmitted between the sub-ECUs via wireless communication. [12] A method for wireless communication for seat belts according to claim 11, further comprising: Determine whether or not the main ECU (C) responds to the state change signals after receiving the state change signals of the seat belts. [13] A wireless communication method for seat belts according to claim 12, wherein, in determining whether or not the main ECU (C) responds to the state change signals, when the main ECU (C) responds to the state change signals, the sub-ECUs (B) are turned off, and when the main ECU (C) does not respond to the state change signals, the sub-ECUs (B) are turned on to transmit the state change signals of the seat belts.

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