Seat

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11932147-B2
Application number	US-201916978601-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 28, 2019
Priority date	Mar 5, 2018
Publication date	Mar 19, 2024
Grant date	Mar 19, 2024

Abstract

Disclosed is a seat including: sensors which includes a first cushion sensor provided at a seat cushion in a position corresponding to buttocks of an occupant, a second cushion sensor provided at the seat cushion and located farther frontward than the first cushion sensor, a first back sensor provided at a seat back and located in a lower position thereof, and a second back sensor provided at the seat back and located above the first back sensor; and a controller connected to the sensors and thereby allowed to acquire pressure values from the respective sensors. The controller is configured to identify the motion of the occupant based on outputs of at least two sensors of the first cushion sensor, the second cushion sensor, the first back sensor, and the second back sensor.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A seat comprising:
a seat body;
sensors configured to acquire measurement values for use in identifying motion of an occupant seated on the seat body, the measurement values including values of pressure from the occupant seated on the seat body; and
a controller connected to the sensors and thereby allowed to acquire the measurement values from the sensors,
wherein the seat body comprises a seat cushion and a seat back,
wherein the sensors comprise:
a first cushion sensor provided at the seat cushion in a position thereof corresponding to buttocks of the occupant,
a second cushion sensor provided at the seat cushion and located farther frontward than the first cushion sensor,
a first back sensor provided at the seat back and located in a lower position thereof, and
a second back sensor provided at the seat back and located above the first back sensor,

wherein the controller is configured to:
identify the motion of the occupant based on a combination of changes of outputs of at least two sensors selected from a group consisting of the first cushion sensor, the second cushion sensor, the first back sensor, or the second back sensor, the controller comprising:
a motion instruction unit configured to give the occupant an instruction to perform a predetermined motion; and
a motion determination unit configured to:
identify the motion of the occupant based on changes of outputs of the at least two sensors compared to measurement values of the at least two sensors acquired when the occupant is in a reference posture,

determine, after the motion instruction unit gives the instruction, whether or not the occupant is performing the predetermined motion,
wherein the changes of outputs of the at least two sensors are determined by comparing the outputs of the at least two sensors with stored threshold values, and
wherein the threshold values are set for each occupant, and

wherein the motion that the controller is configured to identify includes a motion of the occupant lifting a heel or foot up from a floor.

2. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to:
determine that a heel lift motion has been performed if a pressure value of the first cushion sensor increases to be greater than a pressure value of the first cushion sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture and if a pressure value of the second cushion sensor decreases to be less than a pressure value of the second cushion sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture.

3. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to:
determine that a foot lift motion has been performed if pressure values of the first cushion sensor and the first back sensor increase to become greater than the pressure values of the first cushion sensor and the first back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture and if a pressure value of the second cushion sensor decreases to become less than a pressure value of the second cushion sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture.

4. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to:
determine that a sit-up-straight motion has been performed if a pressure value of the first cushion sensor increases to become greater than a pressure value of the first cushion sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture and if a pressure value of the first back sensor decreases to become less than a pressure value of the first back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture.

5. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to:
determine that a scapulae press-against-seat-back motion has been performed if pressure values of the first cushion sensor and the second back sensor increase to become larger than pressure values of the first cushion sensor and the second back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture and if a pressure value of the first back sensor decreases to become less than a pressure value of the first back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture.

6. The seat according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first back sensor comprises at least one right first back sensor and at least one left first back sensor,
wherein the first cushion sensor comprises at least one right first cushion sensor and at least one left first cushion sensor,
wherein the second back sensor comprises at least one right second back sensor and at least one left second back sensor, and
wherein the controller is configured to:
determine that an upper-body-right-turn motion has been performed if pressure values of the right first cushion sensor and the right first back sensor increase to become larger than pressure values of the right first cushion sensor and the right first back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture and if pressure values of the left first back sensor and the left second back sensor decrease to become less than pressure values of the left first back sensor and the left second back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture, and
determine that an upper-body-left-turn motion has been performed if pressure values of the left first cushion sensor and the left first back sensor increase to become larger than pressure values of the left first cushion sensor and the left first back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference posture and if pressure values of the right first back sensor and the right second back sensor decrease to become smaller than pressure values of the right first back sensor and the right second back sensor acquired when the occupant is in the reference postures.

7. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the second back sensor is located above a position distanced 300 mm upward from a seat surface of the seat cushion as measured along a seat surface of the seat back.

8. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the second cushion sensor is located frontward of a position distanced 280 mm frontward from a seat surface of the seat back as measured along a seat surface of the seat cushion.

9. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the motion instruction unit is configured to give the occupant an instruction to perform the predetermined motion by at least one signal from a group consisting of sound, light, image, moving image, textual characters, vibrations, warmth sensation, and coldness sensation.

10. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein if the motion determination unit determines that the occupant is not performing the predetermined motion, the motion instruction unit then gives the instruction again to perform the predetermined motion.

11. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein if the motion determination unit determines that the predetermined motion the occupant is performing is deficient in scale, the motion instruction unit then gives the occupant an instruction to perform the predetermined motion on a larger scale.

12. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein if the motion determination unit determines that a motion the occupant is performing is different from the motion instructed by the motion instruction unit, the motion instruction unit then notifies the occupant of a proper way to perform the motion.

13. The seat according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is:
connected to and thus allowed to communicate with an on-board device, which is to be operated, the on-board device being located in a vehicle in which the seat body is installed; and
configured to output, based on the measurement values, a signal for operating the on-board device.

Assignees

• Ts Tech Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kaku Hiroyuki
• Kusano Atsushi
• Numajiri Hiroyuki
• Fujita Satoshi
• Miyoshi Takako
• Kowa Munetaka
• Hirose Ryuichiro
• Ito Yoshikazu
• Higashi Yosuke
• Suzuki Satoshi
• Sato Ryosuke
• UETAKE Kento
• Otsuka Yasuharu
• Kaneda Satoru

Classifications

• A61B2560/0223

  of calibration, e.g. protocols for calibrating sensors · CPC title

• B60N2/0034

  in, under or on the seat cover · CPC title

• B60N2210/40

  Force or pressure sensors · CPC title

• B60N2/0029

  for detecting the motion of the occupant · CPC title

• H04W4/48

  for in-vehicle communication · CPC title