A system for a vehicle seat includes: a functional device able to selectively occupy Np states, where Np is a positive integer; an input interface configured for collecting Nm parameters, where Nm is a positive integer, related to the vehicle and/or to the seat and/or to a user of the seat; a control device configured for changing the functional device from one of the Np states to another of the Np states; a control interface enabling the user to set the functional device, via the control device, to the state to be in; and a data storage unit. The system is configured for sending the values of the Nm parameters to the data storage unit each time the user places the functional device in one of the Np states.

The present disclosure relates to an occupancy sensing device for detecting the occupancy of a seat of a vehicle, comprising: a flexible substrate having a first main face and a second main face opposite to the first main face, a capacitive sensor with interdigitated electrodes, capable of detecting the state of occupancy of the seat, conductive tracks connected to the capacitive sensor with interdigitated electrodes, the capacitive sensor with interdigitated electrodes and the conductive tracks being fixed on the first main face of the flexible substrate, wherein the flexible substrate is made of an elastic and impermeable material.

The present disclosure relates to an occupancy sensing mat for a vehicle seat comprising a flexible support and an occupancy detection sensor carried by the flexible support, the occupancy detection sensor being a capacitive transducer with coplanar interdigitated electrodes comprising a first electrode and a second electrode, the first electrode and the second electrode each comprising a rod and fingers integral with the rod.

A vehicle seat system is provided that includes heating, cooling, and occupant sensing functionality in a single unit. The system includes carbon nanotube (CNT) elements disposed adjacent the seat surface. The CNT elements may be woven or stitched to a vehicle seat cover, or may be disposed in a mat that is placed between a seat cushion and the seat cover. The CNT elements may be used for heating, cooling, and occupant sensing, without requiring separate units or circuits. The system may include Peltier elements attached to the CNT elements, with the Peltier elements transferring heat between the CNT elements and a heat bank. The heat bank may be in the form of a heat sink, or the heat bank may be the seat rails of the vehicle seat, with the Peltier elements attached to the seat rails.

A system for improving safety of an occupant by a vehicle seat belt, which can provide adaptive protection for an occupant in different seat positions and different sitting postures is provided. A method for improving safety of an occupant by a vehicle seat belt is also provided, along with a a computer-readable medium. The a system for improving safety of an occupant by a vehicle seat belt includes an in-vehicle observation system, an active seat belt system, and an integrated safety domain control unit. The integrated safety domain control unit formulates a vehicle seat belt protection strategy based on received data from the in-vehicle observation system, and a slack state of an active retractor and a positional state of an active lift buckle in the active seat belt system, to implement selective tightening or loosening of the active retractor and/or selective lifting or lowering of the active lift buckle.

A mat system and method for collecting dynamic comfort data relative to a seat occupied by an occupant, the mat system including a sensor matrix layer configured to be disposed (i) extending along at least a portion of a top surface of a seat bottom and including a first shear force sensor mounted adjacent to the top surface of the seat bottom and configured to measure a first shear force generally parallel to the top surface of the seat bottom, or (ii) extending along a portion of a forward surface of a seat back including a second shear force sensor mounted adjacent to the forward surface of the seat back and configured to measure a second shear force generally parallel to the forward surface of the seat back, or (iii) both. The mat system may also include a temperature sensor, a normal force/pressure sensor or a vibration sensor.

Systems and methods for adapting various autonomous vehicle settings to protect personal information based on the composition of passengers in a vehicle. In particular, sensitive user information is intelligently parsed out or generalized based on user preference and the presence of unknown passengers. In some examples, sensitive user information is routed to more secure channels such as a mobile device application or a personalized display. In some implementations, the position of passengers within a vehicle is determined to identify which displays are in each passenger's field of view. Additionally, pick-up and drop-off locations can be scrambled to nearby destinations to obscure a home address, work address, or other identifiable address information.

An air-conditioning control ECU is an air-conditioning control apparatus mounted in an automated driving vehicle, and includes an occupant determining section that determines whether an occupant is in the automated driving vehicle, and a window operation controlling section that executes a window operation air-conditioning control for performing cabin air-conditioning when a determination result of the occupant determining section indicates the automated driving vehicle is in an unmanned traveling state.

A long rail assembly for use in a vehicle includes a fixed rail, a movable rail, a power strip, a latch power connector, and a channel power connector. The fixed rail extends longitudinally along a floor of the vehicle. The movable rail is slidably coupled to the fixed rail. The power strip is coupled to the fixed rail. The latch power connector is removably coupled to the movable rail. The channel power connector is fixedly coupled to the movable rail and is in constant sliding contact with the power strip. When the latch power connector is coupled to the movable rail, the latch power connector frictionally engages the channel power connector thereby generating an electrical bridge between the power strip and the latch power connector to provide power to the long rail assembly.

A method and a device for controlling door movements of a controllable door of a motor vehicle. A control device and a sensor arrangement are assigned to the door and the door has a controllable motion influencing device. A motion of a door wing of the door is controlled and influenced by the motion influencing device to alternate between a closed position and an open position. The motion influencing device includes a driving device with a drive motor. The sensor arrangement includes a current sensor which detects the motor current of the drive motor. While closing the door wing the control device detects an obstacle when the door wing is not yet closed and the power input of the drive motor rises above a predetermined threshold. Then the control device stops the drive motor.