Methods for controlling a system in a vehicle using a transmitting/receiving transducer and/or while compensating for thermal gradients

In a motor vehicle having an interior passenger compartment for enclosing at least one occupying item having surfaces, a method for controlling a system in the vehicle based on the at least one occupying item comprising the steps of:

• arranging a transducer in a tube having an opening,
• emitting waves from the transducer to travel through the tube and out of the opening of the tube to impact a location in which the at least one occupying item is likely to be situated;
• receiving reflected waves from the at least one occupying item at the same transducer after the reflected waves pass through the opening into the tube;
• processing the received reflected waves to obtain information about the distance from the at least one occupying item to the transducer;
• and
• controlling the system in the vehicle based on the determined distance from the at least one occupying item to the transducer.

In a motor vehicle having an interior passenger compartment for enclosing at least one occupying item having surfaces, a method for controlling a system in the vehicle based on the at least one occupying item comprising the steps of:

• irradiating at least a portion of the passenger compartment in which the at least one occupying item is situated by driving a first transducer to emit waves;
• receiving reflected radiation from the surfaces of the at least one occupying item within the passenger compartment at a receiver;
• processing the received radiation in order to create at least one electronic signal containing information of the distance from at least one of the surfaces of the at least one occupying item to the receiver;
• providing a compression amplifier to selectively amplify the at least one signal depending on the level of the at least one signal such that the magnitude of at least one larger peak in the at least one signal is reduced relative to the magnitude of at least one smaller peak in the at least one signal;
• starting the compression amplifier only after the first transducer is driven to emit waves;
• and
• controlling the system in the vehicle based on the amplified at least one signal.

In a motor vehicle having an interior passenger compartment for enclosing at least one occupying item having surfaces, a method for controlling a system in the vehicle based on the at least one occupying item comprising the steps of:

• irradiating at least a portion of the passenger compartment in which the at least one occupying item is situated by means of a first transducer;
• electronically reducing motion of a cone of the first transducer to reduce ringing of the first transducer, the step of electronically reducing the motion of the cone of the first transducer comprising the steps of arranging a second transducer to measure motion of the first transducer and obtaining information from the second transducer to enable electronic circuitry to reduce the motion of the cone of the first transducer;
• receiving reflected radiation from the surfaces of the at least one occupying item within the passenger compartment at a receiver;
• processing the received radiation in order to create at least one electronic signal containing information of the distance from at least one of the surfaces of the at least one occupying item to the receiver;
• and
• controlling the system in the vehicle based on the at least one signal.

In a motor vehicle having an interior passenger compartment for enclosing at least one occupying item having surfaces, a method for controlling a system in the vehicle based on the at least one occupying item comprising the steps of:

• irradiating at least a portion of the passenger compartment in which the at least one occupying item is situated by means of a transducer having a cone;
• arranging damping material in the transducer cone to reduce ringing of the transducer;
• receiving reflected radiation from the surfaces of the at least one occupying item within the passenger compartment at a receiver;
• processing the received radiation in order to create at least one electronic signal containing information of the distance from at least one of the surfaces of the at least one occupying item to the receiver;
• and
• controlling the system in the vehicle based on the at least one signal.