Vehicle occupant restraint with seat pressure sensor

In a vehicle occupant restraint system sensitive to the occupancy of a vehicle seat by an adult and an occupied infant seat including pressure sensors strategically located in the vehicle seat for response to adult occupants and to infant seats, the method of detecting infant and adult presence comprising the steps of:

• establishing a maximum response threshold and a minimum response threshold for occupied infant seats;
• measuring a pressure response of each sensor;
• calculating an occupant weight parameter from measured pressure responses;
• distinguishing between adult presence and an occupied infant seat on the basis of the occupant weight parameter and the maximum response threshold;
• and
• distinguishing between an occupied infant seat and no occupant on the basis of the occupant weight parameter and the minimum response threshold.

A vehicle occupant restraint system sensitive to the occupancy of a vehicle seat by an adult and an occupied infant seat including:

• an array of pressure sensors located on a vehicle seat to respond to the weight of an adult occupant and of an occupied infant seat;
• means for sampling each sensor to determine a plurality of weight parameters;
• and
• means for comparing aggregate weight parameters to first and second thresholds to determine adult presence, occupied infant seat presence, and no occupant.