Side Pressure Sensor Crash Discrimination Logic
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle occupant restraint systems face challenges in accurately discriminating between deployment and non-deployment crash events, particularly in side impacts, due to the limitations of relying solely on crash acceleration sensors, which can be affected by extraneous signals and noise.
Innovation Solution
The system employs a combination of crash acceleration sensors and side pressure sensors, using moving averages of acceleration and pressure changes to determine thresholds for actuating the occupant restraint device, thereby enhancing the accuracy of deployment decisions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If only crash acceleration sensors are used to control the restraint device, then the system structure is simple, but the measurement precision and reliability of crash event discrimination deteriorate due to extraneous signals and noise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines crash acceleration sensors and side pressure sensors into an integrated sensing system. The controller receives signals from both sensor types and processes them together to make deployment decisions, merging multiple sensing modalities to improve measurement precision while managing system complexity through unified control logic.
Solution Approach 2:
The side pressure sensor acts as an intermediary element that provides additional information about side impact events. By measuring pressure changes in the side impact chamber, it mediates between the primary acceleration sensors and the deployment decision, enhancing discrimination accuracy by filtering out false positives from extraneous signals.
2Reliability
If crash acceleration sensors are used alone, then the device complexity is low, but the reliability of deployment decisions worsens due to inability to distinguish true crash events from noise
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges acceleration-based crash detection with pressure-based side impact detection. The controller evaluates both signal types simultaneously, combining their strengths to make more reliable deployment decisions that are less susceptible to false triggers from noise or extraneous signals.
Solution Approach 2:
The side pressure sensor provides feedback information about actual side impact conditions to the controller. This feedback mechanism allows the system to cross-validate acceleration signals and make more reliable deployment decisions by comparing multiple independent measurements of the crash event.
3Measurement precision
If multiple sensors and processing thresholds are implemented, then the discrimination accuracy improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is segmented into distinct functional components: acceleration signal processing, pressure signal processing, threshold comparison logic, and deployment control. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently while maintaining overall system precision, managing complexity through modular architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs dynamic threshold adjustment and multi-stage decision logic that adapts to different crash scenarios. The controller dynamically evaluates signals against multiple thresholds and combines results through logical operations, providing adaptive discrimination accuracy that manages complexity through intelligent control algorithms rather than fixed rigid structures.
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
This approach improves the discrimination between crash events requiring deployment and those that do not, leading to more precise and effective activation of the occupant restraint system, enhancing occupant safety in side impacts.
Implementation Method 1
a crash accelerometer that senses crash acceleration at a vehicle location and that provides a first acceleration signal indicative
Implementation Method 2
a side pressure sensor that senses pressure in a chamber disposed at a side of the vehicle and that provides a side pressure signal indicative
Data Source
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AI summary
An apparatus for controlling an actuatable occupant restraint device of a vehicle comprises a central crash accelerometer that senses crash acceleration at a vehicle location and that, provides a first crash acceleration signal indicative thereof. A side pressure sensor senses pressure in a chamber disposed at a side of the vehicle and provides a side pressure signal indicative thereof. A controller actuates the actuatable occupant restraint device in response to the first crash acceleration signal and the side pressure signal The controller determines a first moving average of acceleration value comprising a moving average of acceleration in a direction generally perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the vehicle determined from the first crash acceleration signal. The controller determines a change in pressure value comprising a change in pressure In the chamber determined from the side pressure signal. The controller actuates the actuatable occupant restraint device when both the first moving average of acceleration value exceeds a first threshold and the change in pressure value exceeds a second threshold.