Dual-Chamber Impact Detector for Pedestrian Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pedestrian impact detection systems for motor vehicles are inadequate in accurately determining the lateral location and severity of impacts across the front end, often requiring multiple sensors and complex installations.
Innovation Solution
A dual-chamber impact detection system with opposing tapered shapes and a pressure sensor module at one end, allowing for the discrimination of impact location and severity by comparing pressure wave signals from two pressure sensors, simplifying packaging and manufacturing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If multiple pressure sensors are distributed across the front end of the vehicle to detect impact location and severity, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple pressure sensing functions into a single integrated pressure sensor module. The module uses a single pressure sensor that measures pressure changes in a shared chamber, eliminating the need for multiple distributed sensors while maintaining the ability to detect impact location and severity through pressure wave analysis
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a pressure chamber as an intermediary element between the impactor and the pressure sensor. The chamber translates distributed impact forces across different locations into distinguishable pressure wave patterns that a single sensor can detect and analyze to determine both location and severity
2Measurement precision
If pressure sensors are located at separate locations to detect lateral impact position, then measurement precision is improved, but ease of manufacture deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple sensor locations into a single integrated pressure sensor module with a unified chamber structure. This consolidation simplifies manufacturing and packaging by reducing the number of discrete components that need to be positioned and assembled, while the chamber's geometric design maintains the ability to distinguish lateral impact locations
3Device complexity
If a single pressure sensor is used to detect impacts across the entire front end, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by designing the pressure chamber with non-uniform geometry - specifically, the chamber has different cross-sectional areas at different lateral positions. This creates location-specific pressure wave characteristics when impacted, allowing a single sensor to distinguish impact location based on the unique pressure signature generated at each position
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the pressure chamber - specifically its cross-sectional area varying along its length - to create distinct pressure wave responses for impacts at different locations. This parameter variation enables the single sensor to differentiate between impact positions based on the resulting pressure wave patterns
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables efficient detection of impact location and severity, facilitating the deployment of pedestrian protection countermeasures like hood lifting, with improved packaging and manufacturing efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
an impact anywhere along them will create a different pressure wave or pulse in each chamber
Implementation Method 2
A pressure sensor module incorporating two pressure sensors is disposed at one end of the dual-channel unit
Data Source
AI summary
An impact detection system has two chambers disposed adjacent to one another. The two chambers have opposing tapered shapes, so that an impact anywhere along them will create a different pressure wave or pulse in each chamber. A pressure sensor module incorporating two pressure sensors is disposed at one end of the dual-channel unit, and comparison of the signals from the sensors can be used to discriminate both the location and severity of a pedestrian impact.