Patent ID: 7526120
Filing Date: 2009-04-28
Classification: B60R,G06K

Abstract:
1. A method to determine deployment level of an airbag in a vehicle, the method comprising the following steps: (a) disposing in said vehicle a sensor system that emits optical energy toward a scene and includes an array of detection pixels in which each pixel captures three-dimensional depth information of a corresponding location of said scene using a reflected fraction of said emitted optical energy, each said pixel further capturing intensity of said reflected fraction of said emitted optical energy as well as capturing intensity of ambient optical energy, to repeatedly capture a plurality of frames of time-of-flight (TOF) three-dimensional depth images of said scene, said scene including a region of a seat in said vehicle, from which plurality of frames data representing occupancy of said seat may be determined with a confidence level greater than if data from a single frame were used; and b) repeatedly determining occupancy information using confidence enhancing plurality of frames captured at step (a), wherein determined said occupancy information is useable to determine deployment level to intelligently control deployment of said airbag.