Denso Corporation

Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Hitachi Cable, Inc.

Ryotaro Kachu

Hiroyuki Takahashi

Yujiro Miyata

Motomi Iyoda

Tetsuya Takafuji

Akira Suzuki

Takashi Inamoto

Shigenori Kobayashi

Yasuyuki Hishida

Yoshiyuki Hattori

Toshio Hosokawa

Yoji Kobayashi

Kyojiro Suzuki

Koji Ohtaka

Morihisa Fukushi

In a vehicle bumper structure, an optical fiber sensor () is provided in a vehicle width direction on the front surface of a front-bumper reinforcement (). A front-bumper absorber () is provided in front of the optical fiber sensor (), the front-bumper absorber () formed of a soft absorber () and a hard absorber (). The hard absorber is disposed at the bumper center region where the thickness of the bumper is increased. Accordingly, the thickness of the soft absorber () becomes substantially uniform in the vehicle width direction, so that a substantially uniform load is inputted to the optical fiber sensor () regardless of the collision position of the bumper with an object. As a result, variations in the output of the load-sensing unit are reduced.

Vehicle bumper structure

A collision detection device is provided with a load detection memberfor detecting a collision load in a collision, and a mold memberwhich is molded to be integral with the load detection memberThe mold membercovers at least the surface of a collision side of the load detection memberto absorb at least a part of impact energy in the collision by a resilient deformation of the mold memberThus, the collision detection device is substantially resistant to an impact in the collision, while being simply manufactured.

Collision detection device and method of manufacturing the same

In a vehicle bumper structure, an optical fiber sensor () is provided on the upper portion of the front surface of a front wall portion (A) of a front-bumper reinforcement (). A front-bumper absorber () is provided before the optical fiber sensor () and a load transfer plate () is disposed between the front-bumper absorber () and the optical fiber sensor (). The vertical width (B) of the front-bumper absorber () and the load transfer plate () are greater than the vertical width (B) of the optical fiber sensor (), and a lower end portion (A) of the load transfer plate () extends below the lower end of the optical fiber sensor (). Accordingly, when the optical fiber sensor () is offset to the upper portion of the front-bumper reinforcement (), the front-bumper absorber () will not topple down and the impact load is input to the optical fiber sensor () even if the input direction of the impact load is slightly inclined.

A colliding object determination device for a vehicle having a bumper reinforcement member () includes a sensor () and a determination circuit (). The sensor () is located in a front portion of a vehicle for measuring a collision state quantity correlating with a collision load generated in a collision of a colliding body with the vehicle. The determination circuit () determines whether the colliding body is a pedestrian based on the measured collision state quantity. The sensor () is located on an upper half region of a front end face of the bumper reinforcement member (). Thus, accuracy of discriminating the pedestrian from other objects can be improved.

Colliding object determination device and collision information detector for vehicle

A vehicular bumper structure includes plural load detection sensors () disposed at predetermined intervals in a vehicle body vertical direction between a load transmitting plate () disposed with a bumper touch sensor and a front wall portion (C) of a bumper reinforcement. The load transmitting plate () is configured so as to be displaced towards a vehicle body rear side with respect to the front wall portion (C) of the bumper reinforcement ().

Vehicular bumper structure

A load sensor includes a optical fiber sensor that provides output analog signals in response to shocks of various magnitudes caused by hits by a vehicle on various objects, two or more amplifiers each of which approximates a non linear function of the analog signals and a unit that converts the linear functions into digital data. Therefore, each analog signal either in a lower magnitude range or a higher magnitude range can be amplified by one of the amplifiers that has a more suitable gain, so that the magnitude of the shock can be accurately converted into digital data for a pedestrian protection airbag system.

Load sensor, method of detecting load and pedestrian protection system

A method for fabricating an optical fiber impulse sensor having an optical fiber and a molded portion molded around the perimeter of the optical fiber. The method forms, in the molded portion, an optical fiber insertion hole and an optical fiber insertion slit for inserting the optical fiber into the optical fiber insertion hole. The method inserts the optical fiber from the slit into the optical fiber insertion hole.

Optical fiber impulse sensor fabricating method

A load sensing device comprise an inner member provided at a front part of a vehicle and a load sensor provided at a position before a front of the inner member, in addition to an outer member and a load transfer member. The outer member is provided at the front part of the vehicle so as to be located more frontward than the load sensor so that a space is formed between the outer member and the load sensor. The outer member is in charge of allowing the load sensor to sense, via the outer member, a load applied to a front of the vehicle. The load transfer member, made of a hard material, is disposed adjacently to the load sensor within the space between the outer member and the load sensor. The load sensor is allowed to move along the inner member in the back-and-forth direction of the vehicle.

Load sensing device for automobiles

An optical fiber is optically coupled to a light-receiving/emitting element contained in an interface box. The coupling structure is composed of a cylindrical ferule water-tightly inserted into a through-hole formed in a wall of the interface box, a resilient grommet coupled to the ferule and a coupler having the light-receiving/emitting element. An optical fiber is inserted into coaxially formed center holes of the ferule and the grommet, and an axial end of the optical fiber is exposed at an axial end of the ferule. The coupler is coupled to the ferule so that the light-receiving/emitting element directly faces the exposed end of the optical fiber to establish an optical connection at a minimized connection loss.

Structure for connecting optical fiber

From a collision load, a one-time integration value and a two-time integration value are computed. The one-time integration value and two-time integration value are then used for obtaining a mass and rigidity of a collision object as two primary parameters. The obtained two primary parameters are used for determining whether or not the collision object is a pedestrian. This achieves accuracy in determining the collision object that is remarkably superior to a conventional method that uses a collision load waveform.

Vehicular collision object determining system

A seat belt device () including an obstacle detection portion for detecting an obstacle in an area surrounding a vehicle, a collision prediction portion () for predicting a probability of a collision between the vehicle and the obstacle based on a detection signal from the obstacle detection portion, a pretensioner device (), and a pretensioner control portion () which controls, when a collision prediction is received from the collision prediction portion (), the operation of the pretensioner device () such that seat belt is retracted prior to the collision. Multilevel tensions for retraction of the seat belt are set for the pretensioner device (), and furthermore, the tension of the seat belt can be change by the pretensioner control portion () in accordance with a collision prediction level determined by the collision prediction portion ().

Growing community of inventors

Nishikamo-gun, Japan

Ryotaro Kachu