Safety electronic device for presence detection inside a vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10814744-B2
Application number	US-201816222569-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 17, 2018
Priority date	Dec 22, 2017
Publication date	Oct 27, 2020
Grant date	Oct 27, 2020

Abstract

An electronic device for detecting the presence of an occupant on board a vehicle includes an audio sensor to acquire sound-sensing signals on board the vehicle. A movement sensor acquires movement-sensing signals associated with movement of the vehicle and an environmental sensor acquires environmental-sensing signals on board the vehicle. A processing unit is coupled to the audio sensor, movement sensor, and environmental sensor processes the respective sound-sensing signals, movement-sensing signals, and environmental-sensing signals to monitor the presence on board the vehicle of the occupant and the absence of a responsible person to determine a situation of danger and to activate a corresponding alarm warning.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electronic device, comprising:
an audio sensor configured to acquire sound-sensing signals in a vehicle;
a movement sensor configured to acquire movement-sensing signals indicating movement of the vehicle itself;
an environmental sensor configured to acquire environmental-sensing signals in the vehicle; and
a processing unit coupled to receive the sound-sensing signals, the movement-sensing signals, and the environmental-sensing signals from the audio sensor, the movement sensor, and the environmental sensor, respectively, and configured to determine presence of an occupant on board the vehicle based on the sound-sensing signals, movement-sensing signals, and environmental-sensing signals and to activate a corresponding alarm warning based on that the presence of the occupant being determined;
wherein the processing unit is configured to evolve in a state of alert starting from a wait state in response to processing of at least the sound-sensing signals detecting the presence of the occupant on board the vehicle; and configured to evolve from the state of alert into a state of danger of a first level of danger in response to the processing detecting the presence of the occupant for a time interval longer than a time threshold, and
wherein the corresponding alarm warning includes a first warning at the first level of danger and a second warning, the first warning including at least a remote communication directed to a responsible person, the second warning including in addition to the remote communication directed to the responsible person an activation of one or more of a sound or a light signals at the vehicle.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the audio sensor comprises a MEMS microphone sensor; and wherein the processing unit is configured to process the sound-sensing signals in a time domain and/or in a frequency domain to identify in the sound-sensing signals patterns indicative of the presence of the occupant on board the vehicle.

3. The electronic device according to claim 2 , wherein the movement sensor includes a MEMS accelerometer sensor and a MEMS gyroscope sensor and the movement-sensing signals include linear-acceleration signals and angular-acceleration signals; and wherein the processing unit is configured to process the movement-sensing signals to identify, in the signals, patterns indicative of a state of movement, or a state of stopping, of the vehicle.

4. The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the environmental sensor includes a temperature sensor, and the environmental-sensing signals include a temperature signal indicative of a temperature on board the vehicle; and wherein the processing unit is configured to process the environmental-sensing signals to determine a situation of danger as a function of the temperature.

5. The electronic device according to claim 1 , further comprising a communication unit configured to be controlled by the processing unit to transmit the alarm warning.

6. The electronic device according to claim 5 , wherein the communication unit comprises a mobile data-communication module and an associated identification module configured to access to a cellular network.

7. The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the processing unit is configured to evolve in the state of danger from the first level of danger to a second level of danger in response to processing of the environmental-sensing signals detecting the presence of an environmental condition that is at least potentially harmful for the occupant.

8. The electronic device according to claim 7 , wherein the harmful environmental condition is associated with a temperature on board the vehicle higher than maximum first threshold or lower than a second threshold.

9. The electronic device according to claim 8 , wherein the processing unit is further configured to evolve again into the wait state in response to the processing of at least the movement-sensing signals detecting a condition of movement of the vehicle.

10. The electronic device according to claim 9 , wherein the second warning is issued in response to the second level of danger.

11. The electronic device according to claim 1 , further comprising an electronic-circuit board to which a number of chips are coupled, each chip being provided with a corresponding package, and the number of chips integrating the audio sensor, the movement sensor, the environmental sensor and the processing unit on the electronic-circuit board.

12. The electronic device according to claim 11 , wherein the electronic-circuit board is configured to be integrated in a safety and restraint device for the occupant on board the vehicle.

13. The electronic device according to claim 11 , wherein the electronic-circuit board is configured to be integrated in an on-board electronic system of the vehicle.

14. The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the occupant is a child.

15. A device, comprising:
an electronic detection circuit including:
an audio sensor that in operation senses sound signals in a passenger compartment of a vehicle;
a movement sensor that in operation senses movement signals indicating movement of the vehicle itself;
an environmental sensor that in operation senses environmental signal of an environmental condition of the passenger compartment; and

a processing circuit coupled to the audio, movement and environmental sensors and that in operation processes the sound, the movement, and the environmental signals to determine a presence of an occupant in the passenger compartment, and that in operation activates an alarm warning the based on the detected presence of the occupant;
wherein the processing circuit is configured to evolve in a state of alert starting from a wait state in response to processing of at least the sound signals detecting the presence of the occupant on board the vehicle; and configured to evolve from the state of alert into a state of danger of a first level of danger in response to the processing detecting the presence of the occupant for a time interval longer than a time threshold; and
wherein the alarm warning includes a first warning at said first level of danger and a second warning, the first warning including at least a remote communication directed to a responsible person, the second warning including in addition to said remote communication directed to the responsible person an activation of one or more of a sound or a light signals at the vehicle.

16. The device of claim 15 wherein the electronic detection circuit is attached to a baby seat.

17. A method, comprising:
acquiring sound-sensing signals on board a vehicle;
acquiring movement-sensing signals indicating the movement of the vehicle itself;
acquiring environmental-sensing signals on board the vehicle;
processing the sound-sensing signals, the movement-sensing signals, and the environmental-sensing signals to detect a presence of an occupant on board the vehicle;
determining a situation of danger responsive to the processing of the sound-sensing, the movement-sensing, and the environmental-sensing signals;
activating an alarm warning in response to the determining indicating the situation of danger;
starting from a wait state, transitioning into a state of alert based on the processing of at least the sound-sensing signals detecting the presence of the occupant on board the vehicle; and
transitioning from the state of alert into a state of danger having a first level of danger based on the processing detecting the presence of the occupant on board

Assignees

• St Microelectronics Srl

Inventors

• Labombarda Andrea
• Borlini Eleon
• Gasparetto Livio

Classifications

• B60Q5/005 Primary

  automatically actuated · CPC title

• B60N2/274

  characterised by the communication means between the child seat and another entity, e.g. vehicle or portable device · CPC title

• B60N2/267

  alerting means responsive to presence or absence of children · CPC title

• B60N2210/50

  Inertial sensors · CPC title

• B60N2/0026

  for distinguishing between humans, animals or objects · CPC title