Vehicle Occupant Detection Using Existing Door Sensors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle safety systems for detecting non-self-sufficient passengers, such as children, often require costly hardware installations and direct measurement methods, leading to operational inefficiencies and increased implementation costs, while failing to account for indirect detection using existing vehicle components.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing existing vehicle sensors, including door sensors and a processing unit, calculates the probability of a non-self-sufficient occupant's presence by measuring door opening and closing times, and activates an alarm if the probability exceeds predetermined limits, thereby alerting the driver without the need for additional hardware.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If direct measurement sensors are installed on vehicle seats to detect passenger presence, then detection reliability is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system utilizes existing vehicle components (door sensors, ignition sensors, locking sensors) to perform the detection function, eliminating the need for dedicated passenger presence sensors. The existing sensors serve dual purposes: their original functions plus passenger presence detection, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining detection reliability
Solution Approach 2:
Existing vehicle sensors are made multi-functional by using them for both their original purposes and for detecting passenger presence. The door sensors, ignition sensors, and locking sensors are repurposed to infer passenger presence, allowing one set of components to serve multiple detection needs
2Measurement precision
If direct measurement sensors are installed on vehicle seats to detect passenger presence, then detection precision is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses inexpensive existing sensors rather than expensive dedicated passenger detection sensors. By repurposing standard vehicle sensors (door, ignition, locking) for dual purposes, the solution achieves detection functionality at minimal additional cost, making the system economically viable for widespread implementation
Solution Approach 2:
The vehicle's existing sensor infrastructure is leveraged to perform passenger presence detection, eliminating the need for additional expensive hardware. The system achieves detection precision by intelligently processing data from existing sensors rather than investing in new expensive detection devices
3Reliability
If complex sensor combinations (vibration, sound, temperature) are used to detect passenger presence, then detection reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts and utilizes only the necessary detection signals from existing vehicle sensors (door opening/closing, ignition on/off, locking status) rather than implementing a complex multi-sensor system. By selecting and processing relevant signals from existing components, the system achieves reliable detection with minimal complexity
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of adding multiple sensors to detect passenger presence directly, the system inverts the approach by using the absence of certain actions (door not opened, ignition turned off, vehicle locked) to infer passenger presence. This indirect detection method reduces complexity while maintaining reliability
Data Source
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AI summary
System and method for detecting the presence of non-self-sufficient occupants at the back seat of vehicles Indirect detection of passenger, especially child, on back seat by using sensors and computing capability already on board of a typical vehicle, namely door sensors, locked doors sensor, ignition sensor and board computer. The system identifies the possibility that an occupant has been introduced inside the vehicle when the opening time of the rear door is longer than time T1, and identifies the possibility that said occupant has been forgotten in the vehicle by means of the information collected by the sensors, namely the sequence and duration of front and rear door opening and closing events as well as engine running/shutdown events. A reminder alarm is triggered informing the driver.