Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Aisin Seiki Kabushiki Kaisha

Takaaki Enomoto

Satoshi Nakagawa

Morio Sakai

Kunihito Sato

Koji Aoki

Masaki Mori

Hideki Kato

Hiroaki Sekiyama

Minoru Izawa

Yoshihide Nakane

Minoru Kato

Yasunori Hasegawa

Kazuo Ogawa

Takayuki Yamaguchi

Shigeo Onogi

Junya Kaneko

Masato Kawai

A data-to-be-recorded generating section generates a piece of data-to-be-recorded by associating an emotion level of a user estimated through an emotion level estimating section with a piece of lifelog data obtained through a lifelog data obtaining section. A log managing section manages whether the piece of data-to-be-recorded should be stored in a memory device based on a selectivity based on the emotion level.

Lifelog recording system

A vehicle alertness control system that executes alertness control to increase an alertness level of a driver of a vehicle includes an alertness level determination unit, an alertness controller, and a conversation controller. The alertness level determination unit is configured to determine an alertness level of the driver. The alertness controller is configured to select a level of a stimulus applied to the driver based on the determined alertness level. The conversation controller is configured to select a conversation category corresponding to the selected stimulus level from conversation categories categorizing a content of utterance in correspondence with each stimulus level and control conversation with the driver through a speaker and a microphone.

Vehicle alertness control system

A dialogue system that provides a driver with driving advice includes driving performance evaluation means for evaluating a driving performance of the driver estimated based on driving performance information using a normative driving performance as a reference; response evaluation means for evaluating a driver's response to the provided driving advice based on a change in the driving performance of the driver after provision of the driving advice; and output control means for adjusting contents of the driving advice provided to the driver based on the result of evaluation of the driving performance of the driver and setting a mode of expressing the driving advice based on the result of evaluation of the driver's response to the provided driving advice.

Dialogue system

In the seat belt apparatus of the invention, a belt retracting motor is operated so as to retract the seat belt by a predetermined amount when it is determined that the vehicle will roll over based on a lateral acceleration, a roll rate and a roll angle which are detected and calculated by a lateral acceleration sensor and a roll rate sensor, according to a predetermined first determination condition. Also, a pretensioner is operated so as to retract the seat belt by a predetermined amount when it is determined that the vehicle will roll over according to a second determination condition indicating that there is a higher possibility of rollover. When it is determined that the vehicle will not roll over, operation of the belt retracting motor is cancelled, and the seat belt is permitted to be pulled out.

Seat belt apparatus for vehicle

An occupant protection apparatus appropriately protects occupants of a vehicle, when a vehicle crush occurs, without requiring a troublesome task to the occupants. The occupant protection apparatus is provided with a steering angle sensor, a distance sensor and a brake depressing amount sensor. An electronic control unit predicts a vehicle crash based on the detection signals of each sensor so as to set a tension applied to a driver seat seatbelt to be smaller than a tension applied to passenger seat seatbelts. Additionally, the electronic control unit increases the tension applied to the seatbelts when a temperature detected by an outside-temperature detection sensor and/or an inside-temperature detection sensor is low.

Vehicle occupant protection apparatus

An occupant protection system activates at least one reversible occupant protection device installed in a vehicle and allowed for a repetitive operation. The occupant protection system includes an obstacle detector that detects a presence of an obstacle around the vehicle and a controller connected to the at least one reversible occupant protection device. The controller makes a prediction of a collision of the vehicle with the obstacle on the basis of a detection signal of the obstacle detector, makes a confirmation of the collision of the vehicle with the obstacle subsequent to the prediction of the collision, and activates the at least one reversible occupant protection device subsequent to the prediction, and cancels activation of the at least one reversible occupant protection device when no confirmation of the collision of the vehicle with the obstacle is made.

Occupant protection system, vehicle using same and occupant protection method

An occupant weight detecting apparatus for detecting an occupant weight on a seat includes a load sensor mounted on the seat to detect a load on the seat and output a load signal. A detected load value is calculated periodically based on the load signal and an average is calculated based on the detected load values calculated during a period in which the detected load value is less than a first predetermined. The average of the detected load values is set to a zero point, and the occupant weight is detected based on the detected load value and the zero point when the detected load value exceeds a second predetermined value.

Occupant weight detecting apparatus

A suspension control system of the present invention varies a damping force according to a velocity ratio of a mass-body velocity to a relative velocity, while ensuring both a comfortable drive and stable cruising. In the suspension control system, a CPU calculates a mass-body velocity Zd and a relative velocity Yd based on detection signals from sensors and determines a velocity ratio Zd/Yd (steps S110 and S120). A small skyhook damping coefficient is set for a small vehicle speed V to reduce a damping force according to the velocity ratio Zd/Yd (step S130). In the process of varying the damping force, a stepping motor used for the variation in damping force is driven at a low driving frequency for a small vehicle speed V (step S180). While the vehicle runs at a relatively low speed, the suspension control system of the invention restricts the degree of variation in damping force and lowers the rate of variation in damping force, thereby relieving shocks or uncomfortableness due to a delayed control of damping force, which is caused by a delayed detection of the relative velocity or a delayed response of devices and substantially maintaining a drive.

Growing community of inventors

Anjo, Japan

Takaaki Enomoto