Patent ID: 7684914
Filing Date: 2010-03-23
Classification: B60R

Abstract:
1. A collision determining apparatus for a vehicle having an air-bag apparatus and a seatbelt-pretensioner, comprising: a first acceleration measuring device configured to measure an acceleration acting on an outer peripheral portion of the vehicle; a second acceleration measuring device configured to measure an acceleration acting on a position further to an inner portion side of the vehicle than the first acceleration measuring device; a first movement amount calculating device configured to calculate a distance of movement of an occupant based on the acceleration which is measured by the second acceleration measuring device; a first change in movement speed calculating device configured to calculate a change in movement speed of the occupant based on the acceleration which is measured by the second acceleration measuring device; a first collision-determining threshold-value-setting device configured to set at least first collision determining threshold values for a correlation between the distance of movement of the occupant and the change in movement speed of the occupant based on the acceleration which is measured by the first acceleration measuring device so that operation for the seatbelt pretensioner is facilitated more than operation for the air-bag apparatus when a predetermined significance of collision is detected by the first acceleration measuring device, the first collision determining threshold values are different between the air-bag apparatus and the seatbelt pretensioner; a first collision-determining device configured to determine whether or not the correlation exceeds the first collision determining threshold value; a change in acceleration calculating device configured to calculate a change in acceleration based on the acceleration which is measured by the second acceleration measuring device; a second collision-determining threshold-value-setting device configured to set at least second collision determining threshold values for a correlation between the distance of movement of the occupant and the change in acceleration based on the acceleration which is measured by the first acceleration measuring device, the second collision determining threshold values are different between the air-bag apparatus and the seatbelt pretensioner; a second collision-determining device configured to determine whether or not the correlation exceeds the collision determining threshold value; and a control signal generating device configured to generate a control signal which controls operations of an occupant protection apparatus, in accordance with a result of a determination by the first and second collision determining devices and a safing signal that is put out from a safing sensor which detects an acceleration having a predetermined value or greater, wherein second collision-determining threshold-value-setting device sets the second collision determining threshold values that are different between the air-bag apparatus and the seatbelt pretensioner so that operation for the seatbelt pretensioner is facilitated more than operation for the air-bag apparatus when the predetermined significance of collision is detected by the first acceleration measuring device.