A method for controlling at least one safety function for a motor vehicle includes: a step of determining seat occupancy information, which indicates whether a seat of the vehicle is occupied by a child or not, based on sensor signals originating from a seat belt buckle sensor of the seat and from a weight sensor in the seat; and a step of applying a control signal, which includes child safety settings, depending on the seat occupancy information, to an interface for at least one vehicle safety device.

Aspects of the disclosure relate to determining and responding to an internal state of a self-driving vehicle. For instance, an image of an interior of the vehicle captured by a camera mounted in the vehicle is received. The image is processed in order to identify one or more visible markers at predetermined locations within the vehicle. The internal state of the vehicle is determined based on the identified one or more visible markers. A responsive action is identified action using the determined internal state, and the vehicle is controlled in order to perform the responsive action.

A child safety seat includes a base, a seat body and a notifying system. The seat body is movable relative to the base between a first position and a second position. The notifying system includes an actuated device, an actuating component and a notifying device. The actuated device is disposed on one of the base and the seat body. The actuating component is disposed on another one of the base and the seat body and configured to actuate the actuated device when the seat body reaches the first position or the second position. The notifying device is electrically connected to the actuated device and configured to generate a notifying signal in response to the actuated device when the seat body reaches the first position or the second position. The notifying signal indicates a child information for allowing a caregiver to determine whether the seat body is correctly used.

A universal reminder device in the form of a series circuit including a power source, a warning indicator, a pressure-sensitive normally closed momentary switch, and a pressure-sensitive normally open momentary switch.

Load sensors are disposed on four corners of a seat cushion. An occupant decision section of an occupant detection ECU decides a type of an occupant on a vehicle seat based on loads detected by the load sensors. A CRS changing section that prohibits the occupant decision section from changing a decision to a decision result that an adult is seated in the vehicle seat and changes the decision to a decision result that a child seat is attached on the vehicle seat when an engagement of a tongue plate with a buckle of a seat belt device is detected by a buckle switch and a buckle load calculated by buckle load calculation section is less than a predetermined buckling load threshold in a case where the occupant decision section decides that an adult is seated in the vehicle seat.

A vehicle seat has a seatback and a seat bottom defining an occupant-seating area. An inflatable device is fixed to the seatback and is inflatable from the seatback vehicle-forward along the occupant-seating area from an uninflated position to an inflated position. The inflatable device has an inflation chamber. The inflatable device is a thermoplastic elastomer. The vehicle includes a computer including a processor and a memory storing instructions executable by the processor to: detect a removeable child-restraint system on the occupant-seating area; and based on the detection of the removeable child-restraint system on the occupant-seating area, inflate the inflatable device in response to detection of certain vehicle impacts.

A method includes obtaining by an image-recording device of a vehicle first and second images that respectively represent first and second shadings on an object in the vehicle generated by illumination of the object by an illumination device of the vehicle at first and second illumination settings, respectively; processing the images, thereby identifying the first shading and the second shading; based on the identified first shading and second shading, detecting at least one of a surface structure and a position of the object; and based on the detected at least one of the surface structure and position, a least one of controlling a restraint and outputting a warning.

An occupant determination apparatus includes a weight sensor configured to detect a weight on a seat in a vehicle, a lateral acceleration sensor configured to detect lateral acceleration being acceleration in a width direction of the vehicle and having a positive or negative sign based on the width direction, a processing unit, and a storage unit configured to store a lateral acceleration threshold and a table in which an occupant region for use in the occupant determination is set. The lateral acceleration threshold indicates whether occupant determination for an occupant on the seat is to be conducted and has a positive or negative sign. The table is based on the weight and the lateral acceleration. The processing unit is configured to conduct the occupant determination on the basis of the weight, the lateral acceleration, and the table when the lateral acceleration is higher than the lateral acceleration threshold.

A vehicle includes a vehicle seat having a seatback and a seat bottom defining an occupant-seating area. The vehicle includes an airbag housing having a first arm fixed to the seatback and a second arm rotatable from the seatback toward the seat bottom adjacent the occupant-seating area. An airbag extends from the first arm to the second arm. The airbag is fixed to the first arm and the second arm. The vehicle includes a computer including a processor and a memory storing instructions executable by the processor to detect a removeable child-restraint system (CRS) on the occupant-seating area, and based on the detection of the removeable CRS on the occupant-seating area, inflate the airbag in response to detection of certain vehicle impacts.

A child seat occupancy warning device for warning a driver of an occupied child seat includes an alarm. The alarm is configured to couple to a child safety seat that is positioned in a vehicle. The alarm is reversibly and operationally couplable to a driver's side seatbelt of the vehicle. The alarm is activated upon coupling to the driver's side seatbelt. The alarm is compelled to issue a warning upon decoupling of the alarm from the driver's side seatbelt. The alarm is positioned to couple to the driver's side seatbelt such that the driver's side seatbelt is fixed in an extended configuration. Decoupling of the alarm from the driver's side seatbelt is required for a driver to exit the vehicle. Decoupling of the alarm from the driver's side seatbelt compels the alarm to issue a warning to the driver that there is an occupied child safety seat in the vehicle.