Occupant restraint system for vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11198414-B2
Application number	US-201916598395-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 10, 2019
Priority date	Oct 12, 2018
Publication date	Dec 14, 2021
Grant date	Dec 14, 2021

Abstract

An occupant restraint system for a vehicle includes: a seat belt device configured w restrain an occupant seated on a vehicular seat with a webbing, in which one end of the webbing is wound around a winding device and the other end is fixed to one of the vehicular seat and a vehicle body, and the seat belt device is configured so that a motor provided in the winding device is driven to wind the webbing; and an electronic control unit configured to drive the motor so that a prescribed amount of the webbing is wound, when a first condition is satisfied.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An occupant restraint system for a vehicle, the occupant restraint system comprising:
a seat belt device configured to restrain an occupant seated on a vehicular seat with a webbing, in which a first end of the webbing is wound around a winding device and a second end is fixed to one of the vehicular seat and a vehicle body, and the seat belt device configured such that a motor provided in the winding device is driven to wind the webbing; and
an electronic control unit configured to:
drive the motor such that a prescribed amount of the webbing is wound, when a first condition is satisfied, the first condition being that a vehicle speed is equal to or more than a prescribed vehicle speed threshold, a steering angular speed is equal to or more than a prescribed steering angular speed threshold, and an estimated lateral acceleration that is estimated to act on the vehicle is equal to or more than a prescribed first acceleration threshold; and
reduce a winding amount of the webbing such that the winding amount of the webbing when the steering angular speed is equal to or more than the prescribed steering angular speed threshold due to steering being performed in one direction and then steering being performed in a reverse direction, is smaller than a winding amount of the webbing when the steering angular speed is equal to or more than the prescribed steering angular speed threshold due to steering being performed in one direction and then steering being performed in the same direction.

2. The occupant restraint system for the vehicle according to claim 1 , the occupant restraint system further comprising:
a steering angle sensor configured to detect a steering angle; and
a vehicle speed sensor that detects the vehicle speed, wherein
the steering angular speed is calculated based on the steering angle detected by the steering angle sensor and the estimated lateral acceleration is calculated based on the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor and the steering angle.

3. The occupant restraint system for the vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein:
the electronic control unit is configured to drive the motor such that the prescribed amount of the webbing is wound, when a second condition is satisfied; and the second condition is that an absolute value of the steering angle is larger than a steering angle at which the vehicle is determined to be traveling straight, and an amount of change of the steering angle is large, with reference to a state in which the vehicle speed is equal to or more than the prescribed vehicle speed threshold and the steering angular speed is equal to or more than the prescribed steering angular speed threshold.

4. The occupant restraint system for the vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein:
the electronic control unit is configured to drive the motor such that a prescribed amount of the webbing is wound, when a third condition is satisfied; and
the third condition is that an absolute value of the steering angle is larger than a steering angle at which the vehicle is determined to be traveling straight, and the estimated lateral acceleration is equal to or more than a prescribed second acceleration threshold, the estimated lateral acceleration being calculated based on the vehicle speed and an amount of change of the steering angle after a prescribed period of time has passed, with reference to a state in which the vehicle speed is equal to or more than the prescribed vehicle speed threshold and the steering angular speed is equal to or more than the prescribed steering angular speed threshold.

5. The occupant restraint system for the vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic control unit is configured to set an acceleration threshold for driving the motor when steering is performed in one direction and then steering is performed in the reverse direction to be a value larger than the acceleration threshold when steering is performed in one direction and then steering is performed in the same direction.

6. The occupant restraint system for the vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein:
the electronic control unit is configured to switch a determination element from an amount of change of the steering angle to an absolute value of the steering angle within a prescribed period of time, the prescribed period of time being from when the vehicle is determined to be traveling straight to when steering is performed in one direction and then steering is performed in a reverse direction; and
the electronic control unit is configured to drive a motor to wind the webbing for a prescribed amount when the estimated lateral acceleration that is calculated based on the vehicle speed and the absolute value of the steering angle is equal to or more than a prescribed acceleration threshold.

7. The occupant restraint system for the vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic control unit is configured to wind an amount of the webbing that is smaller than an amount of the webbing that is wound when the estimated lateral acceleration is equal to or more than a prescribed acceleration threshold, when skidding is predicted or detected while the vehicle is traveling.

Assignees

• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Nezaki Takuya
• Sugiyama Motoki
• KOMENO Fumihito
• Matsuzaki Makoto
• Fukuta Kenji

Classifications

• B60R2022/4666

  characterised by electric actuators · CPC title

• B60R22/46 Primary

  {Reels} with means to tension the belt in an emergency {by forced winding up}(electrical circuits for triggering safety arrangements B60R21/01 {; tensioners using reels only guiding the belt during normal use, e.g. splitted reels B60R22/195}) · CPC title

• B60R2021/01313

  monitoring the vehicle steering system or the dynamic control system · CPC title

• B60R2021/01327

  Angular velocity or angular acceleration · CPC title

• B60R22/26

  secured to the seat · CPC title