Patent ID: 8442726

Claim:
A method of lessening consequences of an accident affecting a vehicle occupant in an event of a collision of a vehicle with an obstruction, the method comprising the acts of: detecting an imminent collision of the vehicle; and before the collision occurs, reducing an absolute speed of the vehicle occupant relative to the obstruction independently of a traveling speed of the vehicle by way of a reduction of a speed of the vehicle occupant relative to the vehicle without the vehicle occupant experiencing a first displacement movement against a vehicle movement direction beyond an initial destination-related traveling position, wherein the act of reducing the absolute speed of the vehicle occupant relative to the obstruction further comprises the acts of: accelerating the vehicle occupant in a first time period before the collision to an absolute speed higher than the traveling speed of the vehicle; and braking the vehicle occupant in a second time period before the collision to a speed below the traveling speed of the vehicle during the collision with the obstruction.