A system for detecting a living being using electric fields may include sensors configured to generate and receive an electric field. The system may include at least one amplifier connected to at least one electrode of a sensor, a controller to operate the sensors, and a processor connected to the controller. The processor may output a signal representative of the presence or absence of a living being present in the electric fields or representative of a distance between the sensor and the living being. The sensors may be attached to a rigid or flexible substrate forming part of a skin that can be attached to a robot, a vehicle, or another moving or autonomous device to sense the presence of a living being near the device. The device may be configured to stop moving or to move to avoid the living being in the electric field.

A vehicle seat occupancy detection system includes at least one capacitive sensor member having at least one sensing electrode, an impedance measurement circuit for determining a complex impedance or a complex admittance of the at least one sensing electrode, an evaluation unit for generating an output signal based on a determined complex admittance of the at least one sensing electrode and comparison of the determined complex admittance to at least one predetermined value, and at least one electrically conductive ground connecting member that is intentionally electrically connected to the reference electrode and that is arranged in close proximity to the at least one sensing electrode. The at least one ground connecting member and the at least one sensing electrode are galvanically separated such that, when the seat gets wet, the sensing electrode is directly electrically connected to the reference electrode by the at least one ground connecting member.

A microcontroller uses a combination of several synchronized PWM outputs to generate a low distortion sine wave by summing the PWM outputs and filtering the summed signal. The sine wave is used as a guard voltage. The unknown impedance is measured by impinging the guard voltage on the sense electrode by a transistor connected in common base configuration and then transferring the sense current through the common base connected transistor to a transimpedance amplifier made out of a second transistor connected in common emitter configuration. The output voltage at the collector of the second transistor is measured by an ADC input of the microcontroller. The microcontroller translates the ADC output values into the unknown impedance to be measured by doing a software demodulation of the ADC output values. A reference impedance can be connected in parallel to the unknown impeder to eliminate gain errors of the signal sensing circuit.

A capacitive occupancy or proximity detector includes a heating circuit, an impedance measurement circuit connected to the heating element, and a diagnostic circuit configured for determining integrity of the heater element. The heating circuit includes a heating element, a heating current source and a common mode choke having a first and a second winding, the heating element being connectable to the heating current source via the first and second windings. The diagnostic circuit includes at least one controllable switching element coupled across the second winding, circuitry for injecting a DC current into a series connection formed by the first winding the heating element and a parallel connection of the second winding and the at least one controllable switching element, and at least one detection circuit for detecting a voltage variation across the second winding.

A device (1) for temperature control and for recognizing an occupation of certain areas by a person and/or an object are disclosed. The device includes at least one electrically conductive heating line (23) that is designed for releasing heat energy, and at least one electrode (3, 5) adjoining the at least one electrically conductive heating line (23), the longitudinal axis of the electrode extending, at least in sections, along the at least one heating line. The at least one electrode (3, 5) is mechanically coupled to the at least one heating line (23), and is designed as a component of a capacitive sensor system, by means of which a presence of persons and/or objects within a certain area is determinable.

System and method for obtaining and recording information about cargo includes a frame defining a cargo-receivable compartment, a position determining system at least partly on the frame and that allows for determination of position of the frame, an identification system on the frame that obtains information about cargo when present in the compartment, a memory component that receives and records information about position and movement of the frame, and the obtained information about cargo when present in the compartment in association with a unique identification of the frame, and a communications system on the frame to enable communication of information to and from the memory component.

A method for operating a massage device of a seat, in particular of a motor vehicle, having a massage drive with an unbalance which is driven by means of an electric motor, and an electrical line for operating the massage drive. By means of a component of the massage device, a change in capacitance due to a change in occupancy of at least one section of the seat is detected, and based on the change in capacitance, the energization of the electric motor is adjusted. A massage device of a seat and a vehicle seat of a motor vehicle as well as a component of a massage device of a seat are also provided.

A mounted object detection device includes: a load sensor in which a plurality of sensor parts each configured to detect a load are disposed in a matrix shape; and a controller configured to detect a situation of a mounted object on the load sensor on the basis of an output from the load sensor. The controller: detects a load distribution on a detection region of the load sensor on the basis of an output from the load sensor; discerns which of a person or animal and a thing the mounted object is, on the basis of the load distribution; and when having discerned that the mounted object is a thing, discerns whether or not a person or an animal is mounted on the thing, on the basis of temporal change in the load distribution.

A pressure sensing system (24), seat cushion (20) incorporating the pressure sensing system, and method of sensing a weight group associated with an occupant of an automotive seat are described. The pressure sensing system includes a layer of an electrically conductive foam (28) and a flexible printed circuit (26) that includes a flexible substrate (26a) and N horizontal sensing wires (26b) and M vertical sensing wires (26c) securely placed on a top surface of the flexible substrate. The horizontal sensing wires intersect with the vertical sensing wires and form N?M intersections. The layer of an electrically conductive foam is placed on top of the N horizontal sensing wires and the M vertical sensing wires. When a pressure is applied to the layer of the electrically conductive foam, each intersection generates in real time an electric flux density value to reflect a degree of a compression caused by the pressure to a corresponding point of the electrically conductive foam.

A system comprising: a heater located within a steering wheel and a heater located within a vehicle seat; wherein the steering wheel is a first plate and the vehicle seat is a second plate and a shift in a signal is monitored from the first plate, the second plate, or both so that a presence and absence of an occupant is detected, and wherein the heater in the steering wheel and the heater in the vehicle seat are a sensor.