SEAT OCCUPANT SENSING SYSTEM

摘要

An occupant weight sensing system has a seat pan which is rigidly mounted to a seat frame which attaches to a vehicle body. A seat cushion on which the occupant sits is positioned over the seat pan. A rigid frame is positioned above the seat pan and receives and supports the weight of the occupant. The rigid frame is supported on four sensors which in turn are mounted on the seat pan. The sensors collectively measure the weight supported by the rigid frame and thus determine the weight of the seat occupant. The sensors used to measure the weight of the seat occupant can be of two basic types. The first type is a load cell which experiences very little displacement and directly measures the imposed load. The second type of sensor employs a spring, the spring constant of which controls the amount of displacement for a given load. A Magnetoresistive Effect (GMR) displacement sensor measures the amount the spring is compressed.