JPH1148907A - Occupant protection controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To accurately grasp a relation of working force and the operation of an occupant protective device after the fact by storing a parameter detection value showing an input state of working force on a vehicle when the parameter detection value reaches a second threshold which is lower than a threshold operating the occupant protective means. SOLUTION: A control unit 2 reads a vehicle state at every prescribed time interval, reads acceleration and judges whether the acceleration is a prescribed threshold or more or not. When the acceleration is the threshold or more, navigation data and time data at the time are read and further the acceleration is read. Information on acceleration or an input waveform of acceleration, traveling speed of the vehicle, navigation data, time data are stored in a memory means 10. Thus, data of a changed characteristic of a change of acceleration and prescribed information are stored by being related each other, and the operation of an occupant protection controller and influence on occupants can be traced after the fact.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle occupant protection control device for protecting an occupant in the event of a collision or the like.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION An airbag deployment device is known as a typical device for protecting an occupant in the event of a vehicle collision. The airbag deployment device supplies power to the inflator when the vehicle collides, ejects gas from the inflator to deploy and inflate the airbag, and the inflated airbag before the impact due to the collision is transmitted to the occupant. The occupant is softly contacted to protect the occupant from the impact of a collision. However, in recent years, whether or not the operation or non-operation of the airbag deploying device at the time of a collision has been appropriately determined from the viewpoint of occupant protection has become a problem ex post facto. From such a viewpoint, various proposals have been made to enable the correlation between the operation state of the occupant protection control device and the collision state of the vehicle to be determined afterwards.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-164649 discloses that
There is disclosed a configuration in which acceleration at the time of deployment of an airbag deployment device is stored in a nonvolatile memory. Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-270352 discloses a device in which the maximum acceleration G acting on the vehicle is stored regardless of the operation of the airbag deploying device.

[0004]

However, in the conventional device, it is not always possible to accurately track the correlation between the impact force input to the vehicle and the operation of deploying the airbag. There was a problem that it could not be determined. The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and accurately and accurately determines the relationship between the acting force such as an impact input to a vehicle and the operation of an occupant protection device represented by an airbag deployment device. An object of the present invention is to provide an occupant protection control device which can be grasped and which can clarify the correctness of the operation of the occupant protection means after the fact. Another object of the present invention is to provide an occupant protection control device that can achieve the above object with a relatively small memory capacity.

[0005]

An occupant protection control device according to the present invention for achieving the above object is configured as follows. That is, the present invention provides an input state detecting means for detecting a value of a parameter indicating an input state of an acting force to a vehicle, and the occupant protection means provided that at least the value of the parameter reaches a first threshold value. And a parameter storage means for storing the detected value of the parameter when the detected value of the parameter reaches a second threshold value lower than the first threshold value. . In this case, the parameters include, for example, acceleration G, energy, acceleration G input to the vehicle.
And the like.

The condition for activating the occupant protection means can be based on the value of the parameter itself such as the acceleration G, but other conditions such as a parameter indicating the position of the seat, the posture of the occupant, etc. Can also be based on A representative example of the occupant protection control device may be an airbag deployment device, but is not necessarily limited thereto. For example, when a predetermined condition indicating a collision is satisfied, a seat is knocked down or a seat is defeated. The occupant protection means can be configured by lowering the vehicle height. The information to be stored includes a parameter detection value after the parameter has exceeded a second threshold. However, when an operation is started to store information once the parameter exceeds the second threshold. Is configured to store, in addition to the above parameters, incidental information such as variables obtained by processing the parameters, vehicle speed, vehicle interior temperature, seat position, occupant attitude, vehicle traveling position, traveling time, and the like. be able to.

[0007] By doing so, the situation that may affect the occupant can be grasped as accurately as possible, and the cause of the operation and non-operation of the occupant protection control device can be accurately determined ex post facto. Because. In a preferred aspect, a detection environment storage means for storing at least one of a time at which the stored parameter is detected and a position of the vehicle is provided. In yet another aspect, when a value equal to or greater than a second threshold value of the parameter is detected, the parameter storage unit sequentially and separately stores the detected values. In this case, it is desirable to provide a rewriting means for selecting the detection values stored in the parameter storage means in accordance with a predetermined condition and rearranging and rewriting the stored detection values. As a result, a small memory capacity can be effectively used.

[0008] In another preferred aspect, there is provided notification means for notifying the driver that the parameter storage means has become incapable of storing. Further, in another aspect, the occupant protection control device according to the present invention includes an erasing unit for erasing storage data stored in the parameter storage unit. This erasing means erases the stored data after the occupant protection control device operates, for example. Thereby, the storage location of the parameter can be reproduced, and the parameter can be newly stored. This erasing means can be used in conjunction with the notifying means. In other words, when the amount of data stored in the parameter storage means is full, the notification means notifies the occupant that it is impossible to store more parameters.In this case, the occupant or the dealer The data can be stored again by erasing the stored data using the erasing means.

Further, the vehicle may further include a vehicle status storage means for storing the vehicle status. The vehicle conditions include, for example, the vehicle speed, the presence or absence of a child seat, the number of occupants, the presence or absence of children, and the presence or absence of a seat belt. This is because these situations have a serious relationship with the accuracy of the operation of the occupant protection control. In this case, there is provided an indirect vehicle status detecting means for indirectly detecting and processing the vehicle status and storing the vehicle status.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below based on embodiments.
In the present embodiment, the present invention relates to occupant protection control centering on control of an airbag deploying device, as an example of an occupant protection control device. Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a schematic block diagram of a control mechanism of an occupant protection control device according to one embodiment of the present invention. The occupant protection control device of the present embodiment includes an airbag deployment device 1, and an airbag control unit 2 is provided for controlling the airbag deployment device 1. The control unit 2 is preferably constituted by an electronic control unit having a CPU. The control unit 2 of the airbag deploying device includes a battery 3 as a power supply, a power supply circuit 4 connected to the battery 3, and a safety means 5 connected to the power supply circuit 4. The control unit 2 further includes an acceleration G detection means 6 input to the vehicle, a waveform determination means 7 connected to the acceleration G detection means 6 for processing and determining a detection waveform of the acceleration G, and a deployment operation of the airbag deployment device 1. Output control means 9 for outputting a signal to the inflator 8. The output control means 9 is connected to the battery 3 via the safety means 5 and a power supply circuit. The control unit 2 further includes a memory or the like, and stores various kinds of information.
It has. Further, the control unit 2 includes a monitoring means 11 for monitoring the operation status of other means. The monitoring means 11 outputs a signal to a warning (warning) means 12 when each of the equipped means indicates an abnormal operation, and the warning means 12 displays this by displaying or other method. The crew is notified.

Further, the vehicle control mechanism according to this embodiment includes a vehicle condition sensor 1 for detecting various vehicle conditions.
3, and a signal from the vehicle condition sensor 13 is also inputted to the output control means 9 and the storage means 10. The vehicle condition detected by the vehicle condition sensor 13 includes information on the traveling state of the vehicle, for example,
Vehicle speed, turning situation, acceleration / deceleration situation, road surface situation, seat condition, e.g. angle, position, occupant seating state, e.g. seating position, posture, occupant physique information, e.g. height, weight, furthermore the presence or absence of a child seat, The presence / absence of a seatbelt, the condition of the vehicle interior, for example, the pressure and temperature of the vehicle interior, and the like. Further, the vehicle according to the present embodiment is provided with a navigator unit 14, and information on the traveling position of the vehicle is input from the navigator unit 14 to the storage unit 10 of the control unit 2 and stored.

Further, the vehicle of this embodiment is provided with a take-out means 15 for taking out stored information, and the take-out means 15 is connected to the storage means 10 for the above purpose. Furthermore, in this example, a camera 16 for monitoring the vehicle interior is provided,
The information from the camera 16 is also stored in the storage means 10. The vehicle of the present example further includes an erasing unit 17 so that stored information can be erased when the storage capacity of the storage unit 10 reaches a limit or the like. This erasing means 17 is connected to the storage means 10 so as to achieve the above object. Airbag deployment device 1
Has, for example, a form as shown in FIG. The illustrated airbag deployment device 1 is attached to a passenger seat side of a steering support member 18 via a fixing bracket 19. A steering shaft 2 supporting a steering wheel 20 is provided around the airbag deployment device 1.
1, an air conditioning unit 25 including a blower unit 22, a cooler unit 23, and a heater unit 24 is provided.

The airbag deployment device 1 includes a casing 26.
When the output signal from the output control means 9 is received within
An inflator 7 for ejecting a predetermined high-pressure gas is provided. Furthermore, the airbag deployment device is provided with an airbag 1a that receives and inflates gas from the inflator,
The airbag 1a is housed in a casing 26 in a folded state. The operating conditions of the inflator 8 can be appropriately controlled by an output signal from output control means connected to the inflator 8. Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, a seat 27 according to the present embodiment includes a lower rail 29 provided on a vehicle body floor 28 in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body, and the lower rail 29.
The upper rail 31 provided on the seat frame 30 of the seat 27 slidably engaged with the seat 27 is provided on a seat slide mechanism. The vehicle according to the present embodiment includes a slide position detection sensor 32 that indicates the slide position of the seat 27. The slide position sensor 32 is
It is similar to a sliding variable resistor.
A type described in 3-191349 can be used.

Further, in the present embodiment, the seat 27 is provided with a reclining angle detecting sensor for detecting a rotating angle of the reclining mechanism, and the reclining angle detecting sensor 33 is provided on a rotating shaft mounted on a rotating shaft of the reclining mechanism. The reclining angle is detected as a resistance value by converting the operation of the reclining mechanism into rotation of the variable resistor in the same manner as the variable resistor of the formula. Further, the seat 27 of this example is provided with a pressure sensor 34 as a seating posture detecting means for detecting the seating posture. This pressure sensor is used for the seat back 35 of the seat 27 and the seat cushion 3.
The inside of the seat 6 is provided with a plurality thereof at predetermined intervals, and by operating the pressure sensor, it is possible to detect whether the lumbar portion of the occupant is located in front of or behind the seat 27. As the pressure sensor 34, for example, a sensor described in the above-mentioned JP-A-63-191349 can be used.

Further, the vehicle of this embodiment is provided with a seat belt wearing sensor, and the buckle 3 of one belt member 38 is provided.
9 is provided with a seat belt member 38 to which a dang 41 provided on the other belt member 40 is detachably connected.
When the dang 41 is connected, an output is generated. Further, the vehicle of the present example includes an indoor temperature sensor 42, and a plurality of the temperature sensors 42 are arranged in a place where the sun does not shine. In the occupant protection control device having the above structure, the control of the airbag deployment device 1 will be mainly described. With reference to FIG. 6, control of the airbag deployment device of the present example will be described. The control unit first performs an initial check of the system, that is, initializes the system, and checks the state of each component (step S
1). Next, in the present embodiment, the environment of the vehicle when the airbag deploying device 1 is operated, particularly the position of the vehicle when the airbag 1a is deployed, is associated with the time. For this purpose, the control unit 2 reads data of the navigation system and time data at predetermined time intervals, for example, every time this routine is executed (step S).
2). Next, the vehicle status is read (step S3).
The vehicle situation includes the above-described seat slide position, reclining angle, seating position, seating posture, and the like.

Next, the control unit reads the acceleration G (step S4). Then, the control unit determines whether the acceleration G is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, for example, determines whether the acceleration G is equal to or greater than 3 G (step S5). The threshold value in this case is changed according to the remaining memory capacity of the storage means at that time or according to the content of the vehicle situation detection data. Referring to FIG. 7, a flowchart of a memory capacity determination routine is shown. This determination routine is repeatedly executed at a predetermined calculation cycle. The control unit is
It is determined whether or not the memory of the storage means is in a storable state (step SS1). If the state cannot be stored, a warning (warning lamp) is turned on (step SS2). When this warning is turned on, the occupant can recover the memory by erasing the data in the memory by the dealer to have the memory cleared. Also, if means such as a switch for clearing the memory are provided in the vehicle, the warning can be eliminated by operating the occupant, and the storage capacity of the memory can be restored.

Referring to FIG. 8, there is shown a flowchart of a vehicle condition determination routine. In the figure, the control unit 2 inputs a vehicle situation (step T1). As described above, this information includes the sliding position of the seat 27, the reclining angle, the sitting position, the sitting posture, the presence or absence of a child seat, the vehicle speed, and the like. Based on this information, the control unit determines and determines the threshold value of the acceleration G, the target pressure value of the inflator, the target deployment timing, and whether or not the airbag 1a can be deployed, that is, whether or not the deployment is possible (step T2). . Then, the result is stored in the storage means (step T3). In step S5,
If it is determined that the acceleration G has exceeded the threshold value, the control unit reads the navigation data and time data at that time (steps S6 and S7). Then, the acceleration G is read (step S8). in this case,
When the acceleration G input to the vehicle exceeds a predetermined threshold, the acceleration G detected thereafter is changed to a predetermined time interval (for example, 0.5 m) for a predetermined time (for example, 100 ms).
Read in s). For example, when the acceleration G is input to the vehicle with the characteristics shown in FIG.
The value of the acceleration G is read every time. Next, the control unit calculates a parameter v having a velocity dimension by integrating the detected acceleration G, and calculates a parameter 1 by integrating the parameter v (step S9). Next, the control unit 2 determines whether the parameters v and l are larger than the predetermined values v1 and l1 (step S10).

This determination is used as a determination as to whether or not to deploy the airbag deployment device 1 in this embodiment.
When the parameters v and l are larger than the predetermined values v1 and l1, the control unit sets a deployment condition of the airbag deployment device 1 and performs a process of storing the deployment condition. That is, the control unit 2 first controls the airbag 1a.
Is set (step S11), the operating pressure p1 of the airbag 1a is set (step S12), and a freeze flag is set to stop reading the acceleration G and the like (step S13). Then, the airbag deployment condition including the parameters v and l is stored (step S14). In response,
The output control means is adapted to output the inflator 8 when other conditions are satisfied in consideration of the output from the vehicle condition detection means.
, A signal is output to perform the airbag deployment operation under predetermined conditions (pressure, timing, etc.).

On the other hand, in step S10, if the parameters v and l are not larger than the predetermined values v1, l1, it is determined that the airbag is not to be deployed. In this case, the operation is performed to store information such as the acceleration G or the input waveform of the acceleration G, the traveling speed of the vehicle, the navigation data, the time data, and the like as long as there is a storage location. In this case, the control unit 2 selects a memory address of the information to be stored (step S14) and stores predetermined information in a predetermined memory (step S15). As described above, according to the control of the present embodiment, when the acceleration G input to the vehicle exceeds a predetermined threshold, the subsequently detected acceleration G is reduced for a predetermined time (100 ms in this example). Reading is performed at a predetermined time interval (in this example, 0.5 ms). In this case, the control unit determines the maximum value G of the detected acceleration G.
The value of max is stored in each address in association with the data of 0.5 ms relating to the change characteristic of the acceleration G, the navigation data, and the time data.

Therefore, every time the acceleration G exceeds a predetermined value, data relating to the change characteristics of the change of the acceleration G and predetermined information related thereto are stored in an image as shown in FIG. If it is determined in step S14 that the memory is full in storing the information as described above, the control unit sets the data set stored in the memory each time the predetermined threshold value is exceeded. Are selected and deleted as appropriate. In this case, as one method, the control unit 2 deletes the oldest data first. Also, the data is erased in ascending order of the maximum value Gmax. Or the maximum value Gmax
The data is erased according to the chart shown in FIG. By performing such processing, even if the airbag deploying device 1 is not deployed, information that is likely to affect the occupant among impacts input to the vehicle is preferentially selected. The Rukoto. Therefore, the relationship between the operation of the occupant protection control device and the effect on the occupant can be accurately tracked after the fact.

The vehicle of the present embodiment is provided with a camera 16 for photographing the interior of the vehicle, and the information photographed by this camera is also stored when the above threshold value exceeds a predetermined value. It is possible to more accurately grasp the incidental conditions related to the operation and non-operation of the airbag deployment device.

[0022]

According to the present invention, when the occupant protection control device such as the air bag deploying device is operated as described above, various information at the time of the operation is recorded, so that the periphery of the operation is recorded. The situation can be accurately tracked after the fact, and it is possible to accurately determine whether the operation or non-operation of the occupant protection control device is appropriate from the viewpoint of occupant protection. Further, in the present invention, if the storage capacity of the storage means becomes insufficient due to the stored information, the information is erased as appropriate in the order in which the influence on the occupant is small or the information becomes old in order to reduce the memory capacity. Therefore, it is possible to configure an efficient occupant protection control device while preventing an increase in the size of the device.

Further, the threshold value of the parameter for storing information is appropriately changed according to the vehicle condition.
Those that have a high degree of importance, that is, those that are likely to affect the accuracy of the operation of the occupant protection control device from the viewpoint of occupant protection, are mainly stored in memory, and the acceleration G that is unnecessarily low in importance is stored. Can be prevented from being stored.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a control mechanism of an occupant protection control device according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the periphery of an airbag deployment device in a vehicle compartment;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an airbag deployment device;

FIG. 4 is an elevation view showing the vicinity of a seat;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a slide mechanism at a lower portion of the seat.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the contents of control of the control unit,

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the contents of a memory capacity determination routine;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the contents of a routine for determining a threshold value for determining whether to store information on occupant protection control;

FIG. 9 is a graph showing an example of an input waveform of an acceleration G;

FIG. 10 is an image diagram showing a situation where stored information is formed;

FIG. 11 is a graph showing an example of a chart used for erasing stored information.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Airbag deployment apparatus 2 Airbag control unit 3 Battery 4 Power supply circuit 5 Safety means 6 Acceleration G detection means 6 7 Waveform judgment means 8 Inflator 9 Output control means 10 Storage means 11 Monitoring means 12 Warning (warning) means 13 Vehicle condition sensor 14 Navigator unit 15 Removal means 16 Camera 17 Erasing means 18 Steering support member 19 Fixed bracket 20 Steering wheel 21 Steering shaft 22 Blower unit 23 Cooler unit 24 Heater unit 25 Air conditioning unit 26 Casing 27 Seat 28 Body floor 29 Lower rail 30 Seat frame 31 Upper Rail 32 Slide position sensor 33 Reclining angle detection sensor 34 Pressure sensor 35 Seat back 36 Seat cushion 7 seat belt wearing sensor 38 seat belt member 41 dangling.

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An input state detecting means for detecting a value of a parameter indicating an input state of an acting force to a vehicle, and the occupant protecting means provided that at least the detected parameter has reached a first threshold value. Actuating means for actuating a second parameter, wherein the detected value of the parameter is lower than the actuation threshold.
An occupant protection control device, comprising: parameter storage means for storing a detected value of the parameter when the threshold value is reached. 2. The occupant protection control device according to claim 1, further comprising: detection environment storage means for storing at least one of a time at which the stored parameters are detected and a position of the vehicle. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the parameter storage means detects a value equal to or greater than a second threshold value of the parameter, the parameter storage means sequentially stores the detected values separately. Occupant protection control device. 4. The occupant according to claim 3, further comprising rewriting means for selecting the detection values stored in the parameter storage means according to a predetermined condition and rearranging and rewriting the stored detection values. Protection control device. 5. The occupant protection control device according to claim 1, further comprising: notification means for notifying a driver that the parameter storage means has become unstorable. 6. The occupant protection control device according to claim 1, further comprising an erasing unit for erasing storage data stored in the parameter storage unit. 7. The occupant protection control device according to claim 1, further comprising a vehicle status storage means for storing a vehicle status. 8. The occupant protection control device according to claim 7, further comprising an indirect vehicle status detecting means for indirectly detecting and processing the vehicle status and storing the vehicle status.