US 7,071,812 B2 · Detector and lock controller using same

Abstract

A lock controller for automatically unlocking and locking a lockable part such as a vehicle door uses a detector for detecting a hand approaching inside a plurality of detection areas. Such a detector is not only arranged to transmit electromagnetic waves and to receive the reflected waves from a target object of detection such as a person's hand but also provided with a plurality of wave detection circuit parts for mixing wave detection signals corresponding to said transmission waves with signals received by said reception antenna at different sampling timings and outputting the mixed signals. A plurality of judging circuit parts each correspond to different one of the wave detection circuit parts and serve to switch on a detection output based on the outputted signals from said wave detection circuit parts to indicate that said target object is approaching and at a speed within a specified range. The detection areas have different sizes for each of the judging circuit parts corresponding to the different sampling timings of the wave detection circuit parts.

Claims19

Dependent claims

A detector for detecting a target object approaching inside detection areas, said detector comprising:

a wave outputting device for outputting waves at a specified transmission timing;
a transmission antenna for transmitting transmission waves outputted by said wave outputting device as electromagnetic waves into space;
a reception antenna for receiving the electromagnetic waves transmitted from said transmission antenna and reflected from said target object;
a plurality of wave detection circuit parts with delay circuits for setting different sampling timings with delays from said specified transmission timing according to distances between said detector and specified detection areas, mixing wave detection signals corresponding to said transmission waves with signals received by said reception antenna at said different sampling timings and outputting the mixed signals;
and
a plurality of judging circuit parts each corresponding to different one of said wave detection circuit parts and serving to switch on a detection output based on the outputted signals from said wave detection circuit parts to indicate that said target object is approaching;
wherein said detection areas have different sizes for each of said judging circuit parts corresponding to said different sampling timings of said wave detection circuit parts.

4 more elements

A detector for detecting a target object approaching inside a detection area, said detector comprising:

a wave outputting device for outputting waves at a specified transmission timing;
a transmission antenna for transmitting transmission waves into air as electromagnetic waves by said wave outputting device;
a reception antenna for receiving the electromagnetic waves transmitted from said transmission antenna and reflected from said target object;
a wave detection circuit part with delay circuits for setting a plurality of sampling timings with delays from said specified transmission timing based on input signals, mixing wave detection signals corresponding to said transmission waves with signals received by said reception antenna at said sampling timings and outputting the mixed signals;
and
a judging circuit part serving to switch on a detection output based on the outputted signals from said wave detection circuit part to indicate that said target object is approaching;
wherein the size of said detection area changes corresponding to said specified sampling timing.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Detector and lock controller using same

Life of this patent

Detector and lock controller using same

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims19