Honda Motor Co., Ltd.

Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Kazuo Matsuda

Kazutaka Saito

Junichi Nishimura

Etsuya Miyake

Hiromi Aida

Tatsuya Ishizaki

Yoshitaka Suzuki

Takeshi Kai

Tsutomu Fukui

Kaoru Nagatomi

Daiki Ohara

Hirohito Matsubara

An airbag control apparatus of a vehicle includes an occupant determination device, a deployment determination device, a storage device, an airbag controller, and a voltage variation detector. The airbag controller is configured to control deployment of an airbag based on the deployment/non-deployment information. The voltage variation detector is configured to detect a variation in a voltage of an in-vehicle battery and configured to output voltage variation information to the airbag controller. If the voltage variation information indicates that the voltage detected by the voltage variation detector varies, the airbag controller controls the airbag based on deployment/non-deployment information stored in the storage device immediately before the airbag controller receives the voltage variation information indicating that the voltage detected by voltage variation detector varies.

Airbag control apparatus

An ignition circuit for squib for igniting a squib which has a heat producing portion that includes an electrically conductive portion and a fuel portion, and transmits a heat produced by supplying electrical current to the electrically conductive portion to the fuel portion, the circuit having an electrical current boosting device which steeply boosts electrical current supplied to the electrically conductive portion. The ignition circuit achieves electrical operation with greater reliability and less cost.

Ignition circuit for squib

A charging method for a plurality of squibs which charges up each storage device built in or attached to each squib which is connected to an ignition control device via a common bus, and can be selectively operated by electrical energy and electrical signals which are supplied from the ignition control device, in which, in the case of charging each storage device, the ignition control device carries out a direction of charging initiation, an electric power supply for charging, and a direction of charging stop for each storage device successively, thereby the charging for all storage devices is completed.

Charging method for squib

A squib for bus connection includes a communication and ignition unit which is connected via a pin to a bus line and is received within an inner cap, along with a quantity of a first explosive which does not emit corrosive gas. Furthermore, between this inner cap and an outer cap in which it is received, there is charged a quantity of a second explosive which is of a different type from the first explosive, the second explosive being of a type which is used in a squib in a conventional inflator.

Squib

A squib that is used by being connected to a bus is formed by assembling an explosive unit and a communication/ignition unit that have been constructed as separate components. The communication/ignition unit is provided with an IC substrate for ignition and communication that is electrically connected to a bus wire. The explosive unit is provided with explosive, an ignition element, and a header that is interposed between the ignition element and the IC substrate, and that electrically connects the two. In this IC integrated type of squib that is used for communication and ignition, it is possible to prevent the explosive and the IC from mutually interfering with the performances of each other.

A squib associated with a supplemental restraint system includes an igniting agent positioned above a first pin that is a connecting terminal providing a connection with a two-wire system bus wire, which is an external signal wire, and above a header that is provided with a second pin that is a connecting terminal. The squib also includes an IC substrate that controls communications and ignitions, and is positioned above the igniting agent, an ignition element between the igniting agent and the IC substrate, and joining portions provided in two locations bridging the igniting agent so as to connect the IC substrate with the first pin and the header. The IC substrate, the igniting agent, the pin, and the header are covered by a circular cylinder shaped cap whose top portion is closed off. Furthermore, these are formed integrally by being covered by a resin mold that is made to extend across the portions of the pins using a molding process. When the squib is operated it does not electrically affect the external signal wire.

A plurality of the ignition devices are connected to an ignition control system via a common bus. The ignition devices are selectively operable for actuating a plurality of airbag devices by means of electrical energy and an electrical signal supplied from the ignition control system. Each ignition device includes an ignition package formed integrally from a communication/ignition circuit and an ignition element provided on a silicon chip. Not only can the dimensions of the ignition device be reduced in comparison with a case in which the communication/ignition circuit and the ignition element are separately provided, but also wiring between the communication/ignition circuit and the ignition element can be completed beforehand when the ignition device is produced, thereby decreasing the number of wiring steps during assembly with the ignition control system.

Ignition device for bus connection

A collision determination system of the present invention includes a plurality of acceleration sensors provided in a bumper face of a vehicle for detecting the acceleration of deformation of the bumper face when the vehicle collides with an object. The system also includes an actuation permitter which, even when one of the acceleration sensors detects an acceleration equal to or more than a set value and it is determined that a collision occurs, refers to another acceleration sensor for operation. Under the AND conditions that an actuation permitting signal is supplied from the actuation permitter and a collision detection signal is supplied from a collision detector, an actuating signal output outputs an actuating signal for actuating collision mitigating devices.

Collision determination system

The error determination section determines whether or not an acceleration data set has been received properly with no error. Received data memories store a plurality of the received acceleration data sets. Collision judgment control unit judges a possibility of a collision on the basis of a latest error-free proper data of the received acceleration data sets stored in the received data memories. Further, in case of occurrence of a data deficiency, an error-free proper data set is constantly stored in memory.

Collision judging system

An obstruction inference apparatus for a vehicle, for inferring the type of an obstruction which the vehicle has hit, which comprises a member deformable in correspondence with an impact force with which the vehicle hits the obstruction, deformation rate detecting means for detecting the deformation rate of this deformable member, timer starting means for starting a timer when the deformation rate detected by the deformation rate detecting means reaches a preset first reference rate in the course of increasing, second reference rate generating means for setting as a second reference rate a value equivalent to a value obtained by multiplying the maximum deformation rate by a preset constant, elapsed time calculating means for stopping the timer when the deformation rate reaches the second reference rate and obtaining the elapsed time from the timer being started to the timer being stopped, and inference signal generating means for, when the elapsed time is within a preset time range, inferring that the obstruction is a specified obstruction.

Obstruction inference apparatus for vehicle

When a vehicle collides with an object and the object is thereby thrown into impact on a hood of the vehicle, a vehicle hood apparatus detects the collision and causes actuators attached to the vehicle to operate to lift up a rear end of a hood of the vehicle so as to reduce the impact of the object thereon. The apparatus include a control unit for controlling the actuators. The control unit includes a hood lock determination means for determining whether a hood lock locks a front end of the hood in place. When the hood lock is in an unlocking state, the control unit prevents the actuators from operating. When the hood lock is in a locking state, the control unit operates the actuators.

Vehicle hood apparatus

A method for judging vehicle collision in which an output signal from an acceleration sensor carried on a vehicle, which is obtained from a time of start of judgment on collision, is outputted through interval windows each having a predetermined time width of a plurality of sampling cycles and provided as those successively delayed by one sampling cycle respectively. A waveform of the output signal is Hadamard-transformed and decomposed into frequency components for each of the interval windows by using an Hadamard-transforming unit. A threshold value set for a predetermined frequency component and outputted from a threshold-outputting unit is compared with a level value of the predetermined frequency component selected from the frequency components obtained by the decomposition in the Hadamard-transforming unit, by using a collision-judging unit. Occurrence of collision of the vehicle is judged on the basis of a result of the comparison.

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Wako, Japan

Kazuo Matsuda