3-D Video Sensor for Dynamic Out-of-Position Sensing, Occupant Classification and Additional Sensor Functions

A 3-D video sensor designed for in-vehicle operation is presented in this paper. This sensor enables improved occupant protection according to the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 and beyond. Interior sensors integrated in current occupant protection systems are especially designed for Occupant Classification (OC). However, these interior sensors do not measure the distance between the head and the air bag module. As a result, the air bags deploy independently from the occupants' Out-Of-Position (OOP) status in crash situations. On the contrary, the sensor presented in this paper overcomes this shortcoming by providing dynamic Out-Of-Position Sensing (OOPS) capabilities in addition to occupant classification. The requirements of dynamic OOPS are discussed and an appropriate test device and test procedure are described. Furthermore, the paper presents the sensor principle, the hardware architecture and algorithms for image data processing. The performance of the sensor prototype will be discussed based on several test results. The sensor provides high quality 3-D data and images for both the driver and passenger side, thus enabling numerous additional sensor functions.