Temic Telefunken Microelectronic Gmbh

Messerschmitt-bolkow-blohm Gmbh

Messerschmitt-boelkow-blohm Gmbh

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft

Daimler Chrysler Ag

Daimler-benz Ag

Conti Temic Microelectronic Gmbh

Messerschmitt-boelkow-blohm Gesellschaft MIT Beschraenkter Haftung

Messerschmitt-bolkow-blohm Gesellschaft MIT Beschrankter Haftung

Deutsche Aerospace Ag

Hans Spies

Peter Hora

Gunter Fendt

Alfons Woehrl

Horst Laucht

Guido Wetzel

Martin Spies

Helmut Steurer

Alfons Wohrl

Horst Daxer

Derrick Zechmair

Walter Weishaupt

Manfred Held

Oskar Bschorr

Wolfgang Lauer

Manfred Herz

G&uuml;nter Fendt

Willibald Watzka

Wolfgang Peter

Hans Albrecht

Helmut Rauh

Siegfried Reiniger

Guenther Fendt

Gerhard Lobert

J&ouml;rg Flerlage

Roland Schmidt

Jani Skedelj

Ulrich Weigel

Walter Pfeiffer

Kenneth Francis

Derrik Zechmair

Johannes Drexler

Heinz Bader

Norbert M&uuml;ller

Andreas Bernitt

An accident sensor for a motor vehicle for triggering a safety system is provided. A deformable and radiation transparent synthetic material part is penetrated by a defined quantity of light traveling in a beam path. A radiation sensitive detector optically detects the deformation of the material part by detecting a change in the beam path to determine a position of impact on the motor vehicle based on a signal waveform and a determination of the transit time between the impact and the detection of the signal. The material part is arranged externally on the motor vehicle.

Accident sensor

The invention relates to a method for operating an occupant safety device and a control unit for performing the method. To limit the power supplied to a triggering means from a storage element, the electrical power supplied after operating each triggering means is measured and after a definable power limiting value has been reached the power supplied to the triggering means is interrupted. The known methods based on the voltage at the storage element being the measure of the power supplied prove to be highly prone to error because these depend firstly on the charged state of the storage element and secondly very much on the conductor resistance so that incorrect control action can result. By integrating a variable that is proportional to the square of the current flowing through the triggering means to an integral value and comparing this rather than the voltage with the power limiting value, a simple way of simply and accurately determining the supply of power in the triggering circuit of occupant safety devices is possible irrespective of the conductor resistance.

Method for operating an occupant safety device and control unit

The invention concerns a method for the recognition of insulation defects in a circuit adapted for connection to a low-ohmic current source or sink having off-load voltage U.sub.n0, Towards this end the circuit is initially subjected, in a separated state, to a diagnostic voltage from a current limited current source or sink whose off-load voltage U.sub.h0 corresponds to exceeds or, respectively, is less than the voltage U.sub.n0. A decision is made as to the presence or absence of an insulation defect based on the current and/or voltage dependence during application of the diagnostic voltage. Finally, in the event that a defect is present, an error message is issued and the low-ohmic current source or sink is not connected to the circuit for self-diagnosis. Otherwise, the low-ohmic current source is connected to the circuit, or the sink, in sequential fashion for self-diagnosis testing. In this fashion even hidden insulation defects are recognized. The invention also concerns a system for carrying out this method.

Method and system for the recognition of insulation defects

A vehicle's restraint system for passengers such as airbags, belt tighteners or similar devices to protect the passengers in case of a crash against injury includes a gas generator having a normally closed first housing including a solid fuel as a charge to generate gas. A closed second housing is provided, accommodating each of an evaluating circuit or sensor, triggering element and ignition structure. The closed second housing includes a portion which makes an active contact between the ignition structure in the second housing and the charge in the first housing. The two closed housings facilitate storage, assembly and environmentally safe disposal.

Restraint system for passengers in vehicles

The invention concerns a procedure for selectively connecting a status detection device--from a group of such devices based on different physical action principles, in particular belt buckle status detection, and seat occupation detection, within a passive safety system for motor vehicles, in particular an airbag system, and/or a belt pretensioning system,--to the signal input of a control unit, using a single wire connection, by causing the control unit to activate an appropriate current/voltage supply in accordance with the physical action principle, and by appropriately processing the signals generated by the status detection device, which signals will then be fed to the control unit for evaluation. Furthermore, an interface circuit is specified for implementing the procedure according to the invention.

Procedure for connecting a status detection device of a passive safety

The invention concerns a method for the automatic recognition and correction of an invalid data set stored in a programmable circuit memory which is part of a group of at least three identical stored data sets, wherein the data sets of the group are compared to each other, and in the event that one data set of the group does not agree with the remaining data sets of the group same is recognized as being invalid and the remaining agreeing data sets are recognized as being valid, and the invalid data set is corrected through replacement with a valid data set. The invention is also directed to a system adapted to carry out this method.

Method for automatic recognition and correction of an invalid data set

This invention concerns a test procedure for a safety system in motor vehicles, in particular occupant protection devices such as airbag, belt tightener, or roll bar sensors. As a rule, the associated safety-critical circuit components of such safety systems will be monitored by additional and separate monitoring processors. According to this invention, a test procedure for these safety-critical circuit components requires little expense and which, using a simple-to-implement monitoring unit, will allow the same test quality to be achieved as with an independent monitoring computer.

Test procedure for a safety system in a motor vehicle

A trigger circuit for occupant protection systems in motor vehicles comprises a control unit which will effect the triggering of a means of restraint such as an airbag, depending on sensor signals generated by one or more external sensor units. To achieve a degree of triggering certainty, data interrogation must take place in very short time intervals. A safe transmission of data between the control unit and the sensor units will be ensured if, in accordance with this invention, the information units to be transmitted will each be encoded by means of a PWM signal with a certain period duration. The control unit will check the period duration of the PWM signal received, and, in the event of this actual period duration not matching the specified nominal value, it will not accept the relevant unit of information.

Data transmission process within a data processing system suitable for

A data transmission method in a real-time data processing system, comprising a control unit and at least one function unit linked to this control unit through a data line, is described that permits noise-free and noise-insensitive transmission of data. In accordance with the invention, the data is stored in a buffer memory made up of a shift register and an intermediate storage, before being loaded into a main memory of the function unit. Transfer to the intermediate storage takes place only if certain conditions are satisfied that identify transmission faults. Before the data is stored in the main memory, the data is read-back into the control unit memory for the purposes of checking and there it is compared with the original data. If there is no correspondence, data transmission is performed again. The method in accordance with the invention can be applied advantageously in local networks, and in particular for motor vehicles, where a central control unit is applied for controlling operational sequences through various function units such as triggering circuits for passenger restraint systems or control circuits concerning motor management.

Data transmission method in a real-time data processing system

Increasingly, motor vehicles are being equipped with safety systems for vehicle occupants and where these safety systems are controlled by electrically actuated triggering means such as ignition pills for airbags that in turn are controlled from an output stage. The invention demonstrates a method that ensures safe and uninterrupted operation of these triggering means and which protects the output stage from being destroyed should a fault occur as a result of, for example, an ignition pill by-pass.

Method for activating an output stage for safety systems in a motor

A method and apparatus for recognizing a crash, in a vehicle by measuring vehicle speed change continuously within a limited time periods and comparing the measured values with those determined in prior time periods. Acceleration can be differentiated out by means of the above-mentioned process/arrangement and can be evaluated if, in the case of a high-speed and low-speed crash, it should not be possible to differentiate sufficiently by means of the partial speed difference. Different partial speed differences (by means of observation periods of different durations) can be measured and compared in order to permit ignition in the case of slower (oblique) crashes only within a limited time window in the initial phase of the crash.

Process and apparatus for detecting vehicle impact

To trigger driver and passenger airbags as well as side airbags, the sensor signals generated by collision sensors will be fed into a central control unit for processing. According to this invention, side airbags will be activated by evaluating sensor signals generated by a collision sensor for detecting head-on and side collisions, centrally located within the motor vehicle, as well as by a left-hand and right-hand collision sensor each detecting side collisions, by the control unit generating a triggering signal whenever the centrally located collision sensor and at least one of the two side collision sensors generate a collision signal, with one of these two collision sensors having a greater value, or if the centrally located collision sensor as well as one of the two side collision sensors provide a signal of equal value, with the other side collision sensor simultaneously generating a collision signal with a value either equal or lower than the value of the collision signal generated by the central collision sensor. The process according to this invention will lead to a very high degree of triggering certainty for the entire occupant protection system, and advantageously does not require the use of a mechanical safety switch to trigger the side airbags.

Process for triggering side airbags of a passive safety device for motor

Acceleration sensors in a vehicular safety system with at least two acceleration sensors are stimulated by an electrical or sound excitation so that one of the sensors functions as a body sound transmitter, while the other(s) receive(s) these signals and vice versa. The performance which includes a calibration check, and the coupling to the housing structure are evaluated through a signal processing circuit. The safety system including its output trigger stage, remains switched-on during testing.

Apparatus for performance testing acceleration sensors

A vehicle's restraint system for passengers such as airbags, belt tighteners or similar devices to protect the passengers in case of a crash against injury including an electronic sensor circuit for the release of the restraint system, only upon the occurrence of predetermined conditions. An energy supply is provided for supply of the electronic sensor circuit with a proper and set voltage value to be monitored at least from time to time and compared with a reference voltage wherein at least an emergency voltage supply is to be held in a steady state such as at the set voltage value to provide power to electrically ignite a pyrotechnic or propellant charge if triggered by said electronic sensor circuit, in the case that one or more of said predetermined conditions evaluated in said electronic sensor circuit by comparing it with chosen threshold values are fulfilled, indicating that a crash event is detected by an acceleration responsive signal generator in said electronic sensor circuit. An electric cell is provided in communication with said energy supply for recharging at least the emergency source thereof to said steady state. An optical connection is provided for optical connection to said opto-electric cell including a light emitting element connected to a light receiving element via a light guide so arranged as to achieve said recharging of one of the sources being accumulateable when a light source emits light.

Restraint system for passengers in vehicles with opto-electric trigger

A device for triggering a passive safety system in a vehicle upon detection of an impact. At least two acceleration sensors, the sensitivity axes of which are aligned for detecting an angle of a frontal impact, are each assigned to a signal channel which, in series with the respective impact sensor, comprises an evaluation circuit, particularly an integrator circuit for its output signals, and a threshold value circuit. During the formation of the speed integral, the physical signal course and the course of the signal edges is evaluated by several logic units in a logical unit (LOG) in order to obtain factors which influence the integration constant of integrators (by multiplication and reduction) to enlarge the area that can be evaluated.

Device for triggering a passive safety system

Growing community of inventors

Pfaffenhofen, Germany

Hans Spies