Vehicle occupant weight detection system with occupant position compensation

Apparatus for determining whether deployment of an inflatable restraint for an occupant of a vehicle seat should be allowed or suppressed, comprising:

• a polymeric bladder disposed in or under a bottom cushion of said seat, said bladder having a plurality of individual fluid-filled chambers arranged in different regions of said cushion to be responsive to occupant weight in at least forward, rearward, inboard and outboard regions of said cushion, with no fluid flow between such chambers;
• pressure sensors for sensing fluid pressures in said individual fluid-filled chambers;
• and
• a controller responsive to pressure signals developed by said pressure sensors for determining a composite pressure representative of a weight of the occupant, determining a position of said occupant on said bottom cushion based on relative magnitudes of said pressure signals, adjusting said composite pressure in a direction that favors allowing deployment of said inflatable restraint when it is determined that the occupant is primarily positioned on said forward, rearward, inboard or outboard regions of said bottom cushion, and determining if deployment of the inflatable restraint should be allowed or suppressed based on the adjusted composite pressure.