Backseat Occupancy Detection for Child Safety Locking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current backseat seatbelt sensors in vehicles do not reliably indicate whether the backseats are occupied by passengers, leading to the risk of children being accidentally left behind when drivers lock the vehicle, as they do not prevent locking when the seatbelts are unbuckled or released during a trip.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system with backseat sensors that detect occupancy and require the driver to open the corresponding backdoor before locking the vehicle, ensuring that the vehicle cannot be locked with occupied backseats, thereby preventing accidental locking of children inside.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If backseat seatbelt sensors are used to detect whether backseats are occupied, then the system can provide indications to drivers about seatbelt status, but the reliability of indicating actual occupancy is poor because seatbelts may be unbuckled accidentally during trips
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple detection methods (seatbelt buckle detection, weight sensing on the seat, and door opening detection) into a unified occupancy detection system. This merging of sensors and detection mechanisms allows the system to reliably determine actual occupancy status rather than just seatbelt status, resolving the contradiction between reliability and complexity by integrating multiple simple sensors rather than relying on a single complex sensor.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary logic layer that processes signals from multiple sensors (seatbelt buckle sensor, weight sensor, door opening sensor) to determine occupancy status. This intermediary processing layer reconciles the unreliable seatbelt sensor data with other sensor inputs to produce accurate occupancy indication, thereby improving reliability without requiring a completely new complex detection system.
2Ease of operation
If the vehicle allows locking without occupancy verification, then the locking operation is simple and quick, but children may be accidentally locked inside the vehicle
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary occupancy detection and verification before allowing the vehicle locking operation. The backseat occupancy sensors detect and verify occupancy status in advance, and the system prevents the locking action from being executed if occupancy is detected. This preliminary verification step eliminates the harmful effect of accidental child confinement while maintaining ease of operation, as the locking process itself remains simple - it is just conditionally blocked when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by continuously monitoring backseat occupancy status and using this information to control the locking function. The occupancy sensors provide real-time feedback to the control system, which then determines whether locking is permitted. This feedback mechanism ensures child safety without complicating the locking operation, as the driver simply attempts normal locking and the system automatically prevents it if children are present.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the system requires opening backdoor to enable locking when occupancy is detected, then child safety is improved by preventing accidental locking, but the operation becomes more complex with additional conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The system inverts the traditional locking logic by making occupancy status the controlling factor rather than the driver's locking intent. Instead of allowing locking and requiring the driver to manually verify no children are present, the system automatically detects occupancy and blocks locking unless the backdoor is opened. This inversion simplifies the overall system by using automatic sensor detection rather than manual verification procedures, reducing operational complexity while maintaining high safety standards.
Data Source
AI summary
A new approach is proposed that contemplates system and method to backseat child safety in a passenger vehicle by preventing locking of the vehicle in a parked state when at least one of its backseats is occupied. Specifically, one or more backseat sensors are each configured to detect if one of the backseats of the vehicle is occupied by a passenger. Upon accepting signals from the backseat sensors indicating that at least one of the backseat is occupied, a vehicle controller is configured to disallow locking of the vehicle in the parked state. The vehicle controller is configured to only enable locking of the vehicle when a backdoor corresponding to the occupied backseat has been opened as detected by one of a plurality of backdoor sensors, which generates and provides a backdoor signal to the vehicle controller when the corresponding backdoor to the occupied backseat is opened.