Patent ID: 7052038

Claim:
A vehicle having a longitudinal axis between a front and rear of the vehicle such that a lateral direction is defined perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and an outer skin along sides of the vehicle, comprising: a side impact crash sensor arranged inward from the outer skin and to react to lateral acceleration of the outer skin of the vehicle resulting from an impact of an object with the outer skin along a side of the vehicle; means interposed between the outer skin along the side of the vehicle and said sensor for transferring the lateral acceleration to said sensor; and an occupant restraint device connected to said sensor and arranged to deploy an occupant restraint based on the lateral acceleration, said sensor including a housing defining an interior and a mass arranged in said interior of said housing and movable in said interior of said housing relative to said housing in response to lateral acceleration of said sensor housing resulting from the transference of the lateral acceleration of the outer skin of the vehicle through said means to said sensor, movement of said mass being monitored such that said sensor initiates deployment of said occupant restraint based on movement of said mass.