Patent ID: 8587422
Filing Date: 2013-11-19
Classification: B60N,B60R

Abstract:
1. An occupant sensing system for a vehicle, comprising: a pressure sensitive material installed in a plurality of pressure sensing zones, a first pressure sensing zone being arranged in a vehicle seat and a second pressure sensing zone disposed outside of the vehicle seat, the pressure sensitive material of the first pressure sensing zone configured to provide a first electrical signal to a controller indicative of a force applied to the vehicle seat and the pressure sensitive material of the second pressure sensing zone configured to provide a second electrical signal to a controller indicative of an offloading force applied outside of the vehicle seat, the pressure sensitive material of each of the first and second zones having a respective at least one of a variable resistance and a variable capacitance based on the amount of force that is applied to the pressure sensitive material, wherein the first and second electrical signals include information indicative of the at least one of the variable resistance and the variable capacitance associated with the pressure sensitive material of the first and second zones, respectively, wherein the controller estimates the weight of an occupant based, at least in part, on the force applied to the vehicle seat and the offloading force.