Vehicle occupant restraint system and method for operating a vehicle occupant restraint system

Abstract

The invention relates to a vehicle occupant restraint system (10) having at least one switchable component (24) with an activation time which is variable within a predefined period and a control unit (30) which has an adaptation module (40) which receives and processes current vehicle-occupant-related data (48) and / or restraint-situation-related data (45) for at least two vehicle-occupant-related variables relating to a vehicle occupant (12) to be restrained and / or restraint-situation-related variables. The adaptation module (40) contains, for each restraining and / or switchable component (16, 24), a field spanned by the vehicle-occupant-related variables and / or restraint-situation-related variables, wherein for combinations of the vehicle-occupant-related variables and / or restraint-situation-related variables, support points (54) with activation times determined in advance for the respective restraining and / or switchable component (16, 24) are stored. The adaptation module (40) contains an interpolation function (42) which performs an interpolation between adjacent support points of the field in order to generate further data points lying between the support points, said data points each having the vehicle-occupant-related variables and / or restraint-situation-related variables as coordinates and an activation time as a value, wherein the interpolation function (42) determines a current activation time from the current vehicle-occupant-related data (48) and / or restraint-situation-related data (45). In a method for operating the vehicle occupant restraint system (10), a data point for the current activation time (tA) for the respective current vehicle-occupant-related data (48) for each switchable component (24) is determined using an interpolation method between adjacent known support points of the at least two-dimensional field of vehicle-occupant-related variables and the respective switchable component (24) is activated at the current activation time (tA).

Description

[0001] Vehicle occupant restraint system and method for operating a vehicle occupant restraint system

[0002] The invention relates to a vehicle occupant restraint system and a method for operating a vehicle occupant restraint system.

[0003] As is well known, in a restraint situation, sensors on the vehicle detect the impact and deceleration of the vehicle, and a corresponding module of a control unit processes this data and initiates the activation of various restraint components of the

[0004] Vehicle occupant restraint systems. Typically, one or more gas bags are filled with gas to restrain the respective vehicle occupant, and a belt tensioner is activated to pull a seat belt tight around the occupant's body, thus slowing and reducing their forward displacement.

[0005] In addition to these restraint components, which act directly on the vehicle occupant to catch and decelerate the passenger in the event of an accident, and generally protect them from injury, the vehicle occupant restraint system typically includes additional switchable components that serve to adjust the "firmness" of the restraint components, particularly the airbag or seat belt. These switchable components include, for example, force limiters in the seat belt system or vent valves in the airbag. These switchable components are normally only activated after the restraint effect has occurred and reduce the force that the restraint components exert on the vehicle occupant. For example, an airbag becomes softer when a vent valve is opened, allowing gas to flow out of the airbag while the vehicle occupant is immersed in it.A switched-on force limiter in the seatbelt system allows a controlled forward displacement of the vehicle occupant, thus dissipating some of the kinetic energy exerted on the body. With switchable force limiters, the force limiter properties can also be modified, e.g., reduced, by switching on an additional force limiting component.

[0006] In addition to the type and severity of the respective restraint situation (restraint-situation-related parameters), the necessary restraint effect of the restraint components is also determined by vehicle occupant-related parameters. These include, for example, the weight and size of the vehicle occupant or their position in the vehicle, particularly their distance from the steering wheel or instrument panel.

[0007] The object of the invention is to enable an improved individual adjustment of a vehicle occupant restraint system to the vehicle occupant to be restrained.

[0008] This object is achieved by a vehicle occupant restraint system comprising at least one restraining component and at least one switchable component with an activation time that is variable within a predetermined period of time. Furthermore, a control unit is provided that is designed and programmed to activate the restraining and / or switchable component at a current activation time, wherein the control unit has an adaptation module that is designed to receive and process current vehicle occupant-related data on at least two vehicle occupant-related variables relating to a vehicle occupant to be restrained.The adaptation module contains a field for each switchable component spanned by the vehicle occupant-related variables. At least two output values ​​are specified for each vehicle occupant-related variable. The possible combinations of the output values ​​form support points, and a previously determined activation time for the respective switchable component is stored for each support point. According to the invention, at least two support points are thus formed. The adaptation module contains an interpolation function designed to perform an interpolation between adjacent support points of the field in order to generate additional data points located between the support points, each of which has the vehicle occupant-related variables as coordinates and an activation time as value.The interpolation function is designed to determine a current activation time for the respective restraining and / or switchable component from the current vehicle occupant-related data.

[0009] In this way, an interaction of several vehicle occupant-related variables is taken into account in order to select a suitable activation time for the respective restraining and / or switchable components.

[0010] The reference points are based on activation times determined in advance for the respective vehicle occupant restraint system for combinations of different initial values ​​of the respective vehicle occupant-related variables and / or the restraint-situation-related variables. For example, measurements or simulations are conducted with standard dummies of different sizes and weights (e.g., 5%, 50%, 95%) in different seating positions (e.g., front, middle, or rear relative to a vehicle seat's displacement range). Additionally or alternatively, such measurements can be performed under different restraint situations (type of impact, speed).These initial values ​​of the respective vehicle occupant-related and / or restraint-situation-related variables—in this example, multiple values ​​for the vehicle occupant's height / weight and their seating position—are considered for all possible combinations, and optimal activation times are determined, for example, for force limiters in the seat belt system or a vent valve for an airbag. In addition, optimal activation times for the restraining components, such as a knee airbag or an end fitting tensioner, can also be determined. Thus, the actual conditions for the respective vehicle occupant restraint system are incorporated into the reference points. These reference points, along with the corresponding determined activation times, remain unchanged after being saved in the adaptation module.In particular, two to eight output values ​​can be used per vehicle occupant-related variable, which represents a good compromise between sufficient accuracy and low computing power.

[0011] The interpolation function supplements the areas between the support points by calculating additional data points between adjacent support points using a suitable underlying mathematical function.

[0012] The interpolation can, for example, be implemented in the form of a sufficiently dense grid of additional data points between neighboring support points, which are calculated in advance and stored in the adaptation module. In this case, for example, for the current vehicle occupant-related data, the nearest data point is selected as the current data point in an appropriate manner.

[0013] It is also possible to store the interpolation between neighboring support points as a mathematical function in the adaptation module and to calculate the appropriate data point for the current vehicle occupant-related data.

[0014] There is no limit to the number of usable vehicle occupant-related variables. If more than two variables are used, the dimension of the array increases accordingly. Each of the vehicle occupant-related variables serves as a coordinate axis of the array. Using n vehicle occupant-related variables thus creates an n-dimensional array, and the data points each comprise n values ​​of the vehicle occupant-related variables and a single activation time.

[0015] The current vehicle occupant-related data provided by the sensors—in the above example, height / weight and seat position—normally deviate from the reference points. However, due to the interpolation performed, it is possible to determine a current activation time for the current vehicle occupant-related data, e.g., the current height / weight and the current seat position. This current activation time is used to activate the respective restraining and / or switchable component, so that the force acting on the vehicle occupant is individually adjusted depending on the current vehicle occupant-related data. This results in an optimized restraint strategy.

[0016] The adaptation module preferably contains different fields of this type for different seats in the vehicle, for example for the driver, front passenger and possibly also the rear seats.

[0017] The control unit may be part of a general control of the vehicle occupant restraint system.

[0018] Preferably, in addition to vehicle occupant-related variables, at least one restraint situation-related variable is also considered for determining the current activation time for the respective switchable component.For this purpose, the field can comprise at least one restraint situation-related variable, wherein at least two initial values ​​are specified for each restraint situation-related variable, wherein the initial values ​​of the restraint situation-related variable in combination with the initial values ​​of the vehicle occupant-related variables form further support points and a previously determined activation time for the respective switchable component is stored for each support point, wherein the adaptation module is designed such that it receives current data on the at least one restraint situation-related variable and the interpolation function is designed such that it includes this data when determining the data point for the activation time of the respective switchable component. The respective restraint situation-related variable thus forms a further dimension of the field, which can be treated in particular analogously to the vehicle occupant-related variables.

[0019] As already mentioned above, the at least one switchable component preferably serves to adjust a delay in a displacement of the occupant caused by a restraining component such as a gas bag or a seat belt. Suitable switchable components are, in particular, switchable force limiters in a seat belt system and switchable vent valves in a gas bag. If a force limiter is switched on and / or its force limiting properties are changed by activating it at the time of activation, the force on the vehicle occupant required to achieve a forward displacement against the resistance of the seat belt is reduced. If a vent valve in the gas bag is opened by activating it at an activation time, gas can flow out of the gas bag, making it softer and allowing the vehicle occupant to sink deeper into the gas bag.The kinetic energy of the vehicle occupant is thus dissipated over a longer distance in the restraint situation, which is why the force acting on the vehicle occupant by the restraining components is reduced when the switchable component is activated.

[0020] The gas generators for filling the gas bags and for operating the belt tensioners of the vehicle occupant restraint system can always be activated at the earliest possible time (optionally depending on the restraint situation-related data), regardless of current vehicle occupant-related data.

[0021] In particular, however, it can be provided that in addition to the current activation times of the switchable components, the current activation times of the restraining components are also activated depending on the restraint situation-related data and the vehicle occupant-related data.

[0022] For example, to determine the additional data points between adjacent sampling points, the interpolation function includes a linear regression. If two vehicle occupant-related variables are considered, a bilinear regression can be used. It has been found that a linear approximation between adjacent sampling points usually yields a sufficiently accurate result for optimizing the activation time.

[0023] However, it is also possible to use different mathematical functions in the interpolation function for different vehicle occupant-related and / or restraint-situation-related variables and / or between different sampling points. Any suitable functions, such as polynomials or hyperbolic functions, can be used to enable appropriate fine-tuning of the activation time and, by selecting appropriate mathematical functions between adjacent sampling points, to realize a more precisely adjusted course of the activation time between adjacent sampling points.The vehicle occupant-related variables may include, for example, a weight of the vehicle occupant, a size of the vehicle occupant, a gender of the vehicle occupant, an age of the vehicle occupant, a position of the vehicle occupant in relation to the vehicle seat (for example leaning against the backrest or leaning forward), a position of a vehicle seat in the vehicle and / or a position of a backrest of a vehicle seat, but also any other suitable parameters.

[0024] In particular, for vehicle occupant-related variables that do not change during a journey, such as height, weight and age, a preliminary calculation of the current activation time can be carried out directly at the start of the journey as soon as the relevant vehicle occupant-related data is available.

[0025] During the preliminary calculation, for example, the already known vehicle occupant-related variables are used to preselect a sub-area of ​​the field in which the current activation time lies. In the multidimensional field for the respective switchable component, such a pre-selection already significantly limits the area of ​​the field that can be used to determine the activation time, which reduces the time required for subsequent calculations.

[0026] If a variable vehicle occupant-related parameter, such as the seat position or the position of a backrest, changes, a new determination of the possible range of the current activation time for the individual switchable components can be made directly upon recording such data. If no restraint-related parameters are considered, the complete determination of the current activation time can be made at this point.

[0027] The determined data regarding the respective activation times are stored in the control unit.

[0028] These calculations are preferably performed independently of the current restraint situation, so that in the event of a restraint situation occurring, preliminary calculations for the current activation times for most or all vehicle occupant-related variables are already available. The restraint-related variables include, for example, the type and / or severity of the restraint situation.

[0029] Since data on a restraint situation are naturally only available shortly after it occurs, the restraint situation-related data are preferably taken into account in real time as soon as they are delivered to the control unit and the adaptation module.

[0030] It is also conceivable to consider additional variables, such as vehicle-related variables, in addition to the vehicle occupant- and restraint-situation-related variables, if these influence the activation time of the respective switchable component. According to the principle described above, these variables are integrated into the field by selecting at least two initial values ​​and determining, in advance, sampling points and the corresponding optimal activation time for the respective switchable components for some or all possible combinations. These sampling points are then taken into account during interpolation between neighboring sampling points to determine additional data points.

[0031] Normally, sensors are arranged in the vehicle that record the current vehicle occupant-related and restraint situation-related data, making it easy to transmit this data to the control unit.

[0032] For example, the height of the vehicle occupant can be detected by optical sensors, e.g., a camera, in the vehicle; the weight of the vehicle occupant can be determined by a weight sensor in the vehicle seat; and the seat position and, if applicable, the position of the backrest can be determined by additional sensors in the vehicle seat. It is also conceivable to use user profiles stored in a vehicle control unit, which include, for example, the exact height, gender, and / or age of the vehicle occupant. Optical sensors can also provide data on the clothing of the vehicle occupant as well as the position of the upper body and arms.

[0033] In the case of restraint situation-related data, an additional control module is often connected between the sensor and the adaptation module, which carries out an initial evaluation and, for example, passes abstracted numerical values ​​to the adaptation module that correlate with the type or severity of the restraint situation.

[0034] In general, it is useful to convert all vehicle occupant-related and restraint situation-related variables considered into numerical values ​​in order to simplify the calculation.

[0035] The above-mentioned object is also achieved with a method for operating a vehicle occupant restraint system as described above. The following steps are performed:

[0036] Recording current vehicle occupant-related data,

[0037] Recording a restraint situation,

[0038] Transferring the current vehicle occupant-related data to the adaptation module;

[0039] Determining a data point for the current activation time for the respective vehicle occupant-related data for each switchable component using an interpolation method between adjacent known support points of an at least two-dimensional field of vehicle occupant-related variables, and

[0040] - Activation of the respective switchable component at the current activation time.

[0041] In addition, as already described above, current restraint situation-related data are preferably included in the field and the interpolation method for determining the data point.

[0042] The invention is described in more detail below using an exemplary embodiment with reference to the accompanying figures. The figures show:

[0043] Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a vehicle occupant restraint system according to the invention for carrying out a method according to the invention;

[0044] Figures 2 and 3 are schematic representations of fields each with two vehicle occupant-related variables and the associated activation times for different switchable components of the vehicle occupant restraint system from Figure 1; and

[0045] Figure 4 is a schematic representation of the adaptation of an activation time of a switchable component of the vehicle occupant restraint system as a function of a restraint situation-related variable.

[0046] Figure 1 shows a vehicle occupant restraint system 10 with which a vehicle occupant 12 on a vehicle seat 14 is protected in a restraint situation.

[0047] The vehicle occupant restraint system 10 comprises several restraining components 16, here three gas bags 18, 20, 21 and a belt tensioner 22.

[0048] In addition, the vehicle occupant restraint system 10 includes a plurality of switchable components 24, which serve to reduce the force acting on the vehicle occupant 12 by the restraining component 16, to which the switchable component 24 is assigned. The switchable component 24 adjusts, so to speak, a degree of hardness of the restraining component 16 by influencing a delay in the displacement of the vehicle occupant. One of the switchable components 24 here is a vent valve 26 of the gas bag 18, while another switchable component 24 is a force limiter 28 in the belt tensioner 22. The activation time t of the switchable components 24 can be variably adjusted within a predetermined period of time, e.g., several seconds.

[0049] The vehicle occupant restraint system 10 also includes a control unit 30.

[0050] In addition, various sensors are arranged in the vehicle which transmit their data to the control unit. Shown here as an example is a sensor 32 which detects a current seat position PA with respect to a front of the vehicle and optionally a weight of the vehicle occupant 12 on the vehicle seat 14 and / or a position of a backrest 34 of the vehicle seat 14, as well as an optical sensor 36, e.g. a camera which is aimed at the vehicle occupant 12 and detects their height and optionally their clothing, their arm posture and other suitable parameters, for example tiredness or fitness. In the present exemplary embodiment, the sensors 32 and 36 determine a body height / weight parameter gA, which is referred to simply as body height gA below. A further sensor 38 detects the presence, type and severity of a restraint situation, for example via a vehicle deceleration in one or more spatial directions.All of the sensors 32, 36, 38 mentioned are connected to the control unit 30 and, if necessary after processing, supply their data to the control unit 30.

[0051] The control unit 30 comprises an adaptation module 40, which in this case is implemented as software stored in the control unit 30. The adaptation module 40, in turn, comprises an interpolation function 42, which will be described in more detail below.

[0052] In addition, in this example, a restraint module 44 is implemented in the control unit 30 (here also as software), which receives the data from the sensor 38, evaluates and processes it and forwards it to the adaptation module 40 as current restraint situation-related data 45.

[0053] In the control unit 30, an occupant classification module 46 is additionally implemented, which receives data from the sensors 32, 36 and forwards it to the adaptation module 40 as vehicle occupant-related data 48.

[0054] The vehicle occupant-related data 48 each belong to a vehicle occupant-related variable, in this example, among other things, a body height g and a seating position p of the vehicle occupant 12. In this example, the vehicle occupant-related data 48 include, among other things, a current seating position PA and a current body height gA of the vehicle occupant 12.

[0055] Other possible vehicle occupant-related variables are, for example, a position of the backrest 34, a height, a weight, a gender or an age of the vehicle occupant 12 (or other personal data of the vehicle occupant 12 stored in a user profile in the vehicle), clothing of the vehicle occupant 12 or his current arm, leg, head and / or upper body position.

[0056] When a restraint situation occurs, the restraint module 44 determines activation times for the restraint components 16 based on the data from sensor 38 and activates them at the respective activation time. Alternatively, current activation times for the restraint components 16, determined based on the restraint situation and the vehicle occupant, can also be determined by the adaptation module 40.

[0057] In addition, the restraint module 44 receives current activation times U for the switchable components 24 from the adaptation module 40 and activates them at the respective activation times U.

[0058] The determination of the current activation times U for the switchable components 24 in the adaptation module 40 is carried out according to the principle described below. A possible determination of the current activation times U for the retaining components 16 in the adaptation module 40 is carried out essentially according to the same principle and is therefore not described separately.

[0059] Figure 2 shows a field 50 used for determining the current activation time U for the force limiter 28, while Figure 3 shows a field 52 for determining the activation time U for the vent valve 26.

[0060] For both switchable components 24, the respective associated restraining component 16 becomes “softer” the earlier the current activation time tA is and correspondingly “harder” (ie the component 16 exerts a greater force on the vehicle occupant 12) the later the current activation time tA is set.

[0061] The current activation time tA is determined via the field 50, 52 for the respective switchable component 24, which is spanned by at least two vehicle occupant-related variables g, p and which is stored in the adaptation module 40.

[0062] For clarity, only two vehicle occupant-related variables are shown here, namely occupant height g and seat position p, resulting in a two-dimensional array. If n vehicle occupant-related variables and / or restraint situation-related variables are used, an n-dimensional array 50, 52 results. The underlying principle, however, remains the same. For each of the vehicle occupant-related variables g, p, at least two output values ​​53 are provided. In this example, there are three output values ​​53 each: pi, p2, pa for seat position p and gi, g2, ga for body height g. For example, up to eight output values ​​53 can be used per vehicle occupant-related variable.

[0063] These initial values ​​53 are compiled in all possible combinations for all vehicle occupant-related variables g, p considered, resulting in a grid of support points 54. For each of these support points 54, an optimal activation time t (illustrated as ty in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3) is determined in advance through measurements and / or simulations for the respective vehicle occupant restraint system 10. For example, for a tall vehicle occupant with body size ga sitting centrally in seat position p2, the activation time t23 results.

[0064] In the examples chosen here, three known types of dummies (5%, 50%, 95% with 50 kg, 77 kg and 101 kg weight) are used as initial values ​​53 for the occupant size g, while a vehicle seat 14 set far forward, centrally or far back is considered as initial values ​​for the seating position p (each converted into numerical values ​​related to the actually possible seating positions p).

[0065] The values ​​thus determined for the activation times t are stored in the adaptation module 40 just like the coordinates of the support points 54 (related to the respective vehicle occupant-related size as the coordinate axis) and are not changed during normal operation of the vehicle.

[0066] It is conceivable that there are support points 54 for which no activation time t can be specified. For example, the combination pi, ga, i.e., a tall / heavy vehicle occupant 12 sitting far forward, is physically impossible, so there is no support point 54 for the activation time tia here. It is also conceivable that a combination leads to such high kinetic energy of the vehicle occupant 12 that a reduction in the force exerted by the restraining components 16 is not sensible. In this case, the activation time t in field 50, 52 is appropriately noted to indicate that the switchable component 24 is never triggered, or the corresponding area is excluded from field 50, 52.The interpolation function 42 performs an interpolation between adjacent support points 54 of the respective field 50, 52 and thus generates further data points 56 located between the support points 54, each of which includes values ​​of the vehicle occupant-related variables p, g and an associated activation time t. This is represented in Figures 2 and 3 by the areas that connect the respective activation times ty.

[0067] In the example chosen here, the interpolation function 42 performs a bilinear regression, i.e., neighboring nodes 54 are connected to each other via flat surfaces. The result of the regression procedure is also stored in the adaptation module 40, for example, as a pre-calculated mesh of additional data points 56 with a suitable mesh size, or as a mathematical function that allows a continuous calculation of additional data points 56 between the nodes 54. If the field comprises n dimensions, for example, a regression procedure is performed accordingly in n dimensions.

[0068] To determine a current activation time U for current vehicle occupant-related data 48, the interpolation function 42 determines the most suitable data point 56 from each of the fields 50, 52 for each switchable component 24 for the respective vehicle occupant-related variables g, p for which vehicle occupant-related data 48 is available. If the interpolation function 42 contains mathematical functions for the data points 56, an exact value for the current activation time tA can be determined using the current values ​​PA, gA, which in this example form the current vehicle occupant-related data 48. If the data points 56 are available as a grid, the closest data point 56 for the values ​​PA, gA is determined in a suitable manner, and the associated activation time t is selected as the current activation time tA.

[0069] When a restraint situation occurs, the restraint module 44 activates the switchable components 24 at the appropriate time.

[0070] According to this scheme, further vehicle occupant-related variables and / or restraint-situation-related variables, such as the type and / or severity of the restraint situation, can be integrated into the field 50, 52. The current restraint-situation-related data 45 supplied by the restraint module 44 are then included in the determination of the best-fitting data point 56 analogously to the vehicle occupant-related data 48, whereby the restraint-situation-related variables form further dimensions of the field 50, 52 and are represented by output values ​​53, corresponding support points 54, and in the interpolation.

[0071] For example, a vehicle speed in the event of an impact or an offset of the vehicle relative to an obstacle can be taken into account in the decision as to whether and, if so, at which current activation time U the switchable components 24 are activated in order to reduce the forces acting on the vehicle occupant 12 by the restraining components 16.

[0072] Figure 4 shows a simplified illustration of a possibility for adapting the current triggering time tA of the switchable components 24 in relation to the severity of the restraint situation using restraint situation-related variables.

[0073] In the illustrated embodiment, a time offset Δt, in which a first and a second limit value are reached, is used to determine whether the restraint situation occurs at a high speed or a lower speed, and thus to determine the severity of the restraint situation. In a restraint situation that occurs at a high speed, there is a small time offset Δt (left output value 53 on the Δt axis), whereas in a restraint situation that occurs at a lower speed, there is a larger time offset Δt (right output value 53 on the Δt axis). For improved vehicle occupant restraint, a shorter delay of the current triggering time tA (left output value 53 on the tA axis) of the switchable component 24 is provided in a restraint situation at low speed (larger time offset Δt).In a restraint situation with higher speed (smaller time offset Δt), however, a greater delay of the current triggering time tA (right output value 53 on the tA axis) of the switchable components 24 is provided. The delay of the current triggering time tA describes the time difference between reaching the second limit value and the activation of the switchable components 24. Analogous to the methods already described, the adaptation module 40 can determine further restraint situation-related delays of the current triggering times U using the reference values ​​54 formed by the output values ​​53. In the prior art, however, the delay of the triggering time of the switchable components 24 has a fixed value, for example, and the switchable component is thus always activated with the same delay after reaching the second limit value, regardless of the determined severity of the restraint situation.For reasons of clarity, not all identical components are always provided with reference symbols.

Claims

Patent claims 1. A vehicle occupant restraint system (10) comprising at least one restraining component (16) and at least one switchable component (24) associated with the restraining component (16), said component having an activation time (t) that is variable within a predetermined period of time, and a control unit (30) designed and programmed to activate the component (16, 24) at a current activation time (tA), wherein the control unit (30) has an adaptation module (40) designed to receive and process current vehicle occupant-related data (48) and / or restraint-situation-related data (45) relating to at least two vehicle occupant-related variables (p, g) and / or restraint-situation-related variables relating to a vehicle occupant (12) to be restrained, wherein the adaptation module (40) contains a field (50, 52) for each restraining and / or switchable component (16, 24), which is determined by the vehicle occupant-related variables (p,g) and / or restraint situation-related variables, wherein at least two initial values ​​(53) are predetermined for each vehicle occupant-related variable (p, g) and / or restraint situation-related variable, wherein the possible combinations of the initial values ​​(53) form support points (54) and a previously determined activation time (t) for the respective restraining and / or switchable component (16, 24) is stored for each support point (54), wherein the adaptation module (40) contains an interpolation function (42) which is designed such that it carries out an interpolation between adjacent support points (54) of the field (50, 52) in order to generate further data points (56) lying between the support points (54), which each have the vehicle occupant-related variables (g, p) and / or restraint situation-related variables as coordinates and an activation time (t) as value, and wherein the interpolation function (42) is designed tothat they are derived from the current vehicle occupant-related data (48) and / or, restraint situation-related data (45) determines a current activation time (tA).

2. Vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to claim 1, wherein the field (50, 52) comprises at least one restraint situation-related variable, wherein at least two output values ​​(53) are predetermined for each restraint situation-related variable, wherein the output values ​​(53) of the restraint situation-related variable in combination with the output values ​​(53) of the vehicle occupant-related variables (g, p) form further support points (54), and a previously determined activation time (t) for the respective component (24) is stored for each support point (54), wherein the adaptation module (40) is designed such that it receives current data (45) on the at least one restraint situation-related variable and the interpolation function (42) is designed such that it includes this data in the determination of the data point (56) for the current activation time (tA) of the respective restraining and / or switchable component (16, 24).

3. Vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one switchable component (24) serves to adjust a deceleration of a displacement of the vehicle occupant (12) which is effected by a restraining component (16), wherein the switchable component (24) is in particular a switchable force limiter (28) in a safety belt system or a switchable vent valve (26) in a gas bag (18).

4. Vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the interpolation function (42) comprises a linear regression.

5. Vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the interpolation function (42) uses different mathematical functions for different vehicle occupant-related and / or restraint situation-related variables (p, g) and / or between different support points (54).

6. Vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the vehicle occupant-related variables (p, g) are a weight of the vehicle occupant (12), a size of the vehicle occupant (12), a gender of the vehicle occupant (12), an age of the vehicle occupant (12), a position of a vehicle seat (14) in the vehicle and / or a position of a backrest (34) of the vehicle seat (14).

7. Vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the restraint situation-related variables include a type and / or severity of the restraint situation.

8. Vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein sensors (32, 36, 38) are arranged in the vehicle to detect the current vehicle occupant-related and restraint situation-related data (48, 45).

9. A method for operating a vehicle occupant restraint system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising the steps: Recording of current vehicle occupant-related data (48), Recording a restraint situation, Transferring the current vehicle occupant-related data (48) to the adaptation module (40); Determining a data point (56) for the current activation time (tA) for the respective current vehicle occupant-related data (48) for each switchable component (24) using an interpolation method between adjacent known support points (54) of an at least two-dimensional field (50, 52) of vehicle occupant-related variables (p, g), and - Activating the respective restraining and / or switchable component (24) at the current activation time (tA).

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein current restraint situation-related data (45) are included in the field (50, 52) and the interpolation method for determining the data point (56).

Images