Vehicle occupancy-monitoring system
AssigneeAptiv Technologies AG
InventorsDouglas L Welk, Timothy A. Suda
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The techniques of this disclosure relate to a vehicle occupancy-monitoring system. The system includes a controller circuit that receives occupant data from an occupancy-monitoring sensor of a vehicle. The controller circuit determines an occupancy status of respective seats in a cabin of the vehicle based on the occupancy-monitoring sensor. The controller circuit indicates the occupancy status of the respective seats on a display located in a field of view of occupants of the vehicle. The display is integral to one of a roof light module, a door panel, or a headliner of the cabin. The system can improve passenger safety by alerting the operator and other occupants about the occupancy status of the passengers.
Claims20
A method, comprising:
- receiving, with a controller circuit and from at least one occupancy monitoring sensor of a vehicle including a radar sensor, occupant data for a plurality of rows of seats in a cabin of the vehicle;
- determining, based on the occupant data, a respective occupancy status at each individual seat in the rows of seats;
- determining whether the occupant data relates to a person or an inanimate object;
- and
- controlling, based on the occupant data relating to a person, a light bar positioned in a door panel or as a heads-up display (HUD) to illuminate light at each seat position in all the rows of seats, the light being indicative of the respective occupancy status determined at each individual seat in the rows of seats.
A system comprising a vehicle having:
- a cabin including a plurality of rows of seats;
- a light bar positioned in a door panel or as a heads-up display (HUD) and configured to illuminate light at each seat position in all the rows of seats;
- at least one occupancy monitoring sensor, including a radar sensor, configured to generate occupant data for the rows of seats;
- and
- a controller circuit comprising:
- means for receiving the occupant data from the occupancy monitoring sensor;
- means for determining, based on the occupant data, a respective occupancy status at each individual seat in the rows of seats;
- means for determining whether the occupant data relates to a person or an inanimate object;
- and
- means for controlling, based on the occupant data relating to a person, the light bar to illuminate the light to be indicative of the respective occupancy status determined at each individual seat in the rows of seats.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.