Vehicle safety system for preventing child abandonment and related methods
OwnerCecil Lee Hunter, JR.inventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A vehicle safety system is for preventing child abandonment in a vehicle. The vehicle safety system may include a flow sensor for fuel in the vehicle, and a controller coupled to the flow sensor and a seat sensor. The controller may be configured to detect when the vehicle is in a fueling state based upon the flow sensor, and detect occupancy of a child safety seat based upon the seat sensor. The controller may be configured to if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a first alert state, and if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a second time period greater than the first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a second alert state.
Claims20
A vehicle safety system for preventing child abandonment in a vehicle, the vehicle safety system comprising:
- a flow sensor for fuel in the vehicle;
- at least one seat sensor respectively associated with at least one child safety seat within the vehicle;
- and
- a controller coupled to said flow sensor and said at least one seat sensor, said controller configured to
- detect when the vehicle is in a fueling state based upon said flow sensor,
- detect occupancy of the at least one child safety seat based upon said at least one seat sensor,
- detect when a driver side door is in an open state based upon a driver side door sensor in the vehicle, and
- when receiving fueling user input from a user menu within the vehicle, when the driver side door has entered the open state, and when the at least one child safety seat is occupied,
- if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a first alert state, and
- if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a second time period greater than the first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a second alert state.
A vehicle with a vehicle safety system for preventing child abandonment therein, the vehicle comprising:
- a flow sensor for fuel in the vehicle;
- a driver side door sensor coupled to a driver side door;
- at least one seat sensor respectively associated with at least one child safety seat within the vehicle;
- and
- a controller coupled to said flow sensor and said at least one seat sensor, said controller configured to
- detect when the vehicle is in a fueling state based upon said flow sensor,
- detect occupancy of the at least one child safety seat based upon said at least one seat sensor,
- detect when the driver side door is in an open state based upon said driver side door sensor in the vehicle, and
- when receiving fueling user input from a user menu within the vehicle, when the driver side door has entered the open state, and when the at least one child safety seat is occupied,
- if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a first alert state, and
- if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a second time period greater than the first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a second alert state.
A method for installing a vehicle safety system for preventing child abandonment in a vehicle, the method comprising:
- positioning a flow sensor for fuel in the vehicle;
- positioning at least one seat sensor respectively associated with at least one child safety seat within the vehicle;
- and
- coupling a controller to the flow sensor and the at least one seat sensor, the controller configured to
- detect when the vehicle is in a fueling state based upon the flow sensor,
- detect occupancy of the at least one child safety seat based upon the at least one seat sensor,
- detect when a driver side door is in an open state based upon a driver side door sensor in the vehicle, and
- when receiving fueling user input from a user menu within the vehicle, when the driver side door has entered the open state, and when the at least one child safety seat is occupied,
- if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a first alert state, and
- if the vehicle does not enter the fueling state within a second time period greater than the first time period, then cause the vehicle to enter a second alert state.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.