A vehicle control system includes a setting unit to sense a plurality of forward vehicles positioned ahead of a subject vehicle in a driving direction, to classify each of the forward vehicles as a far-away vehicle or a near-by vehicle, and to set each of the far-away vehicles as an interest vehicle, a receiving unit to receive braking information of each of the interest vehicles from the respective interest vehicles, and a control unit to control braking of the subject vehicle based on the braking information of each of the interest vehicles received by the receiving unit.

A method for activating a passenger protection device of a vehicle. A relative velocity value, which represents a relative velocity between the vehicle and an object, and at least one correction value are read in. In a further step, a velocity reduction value, which represents a decrease of a velocity of the vehicle when the vehicle collides with the object, is ascertained using the relative velocity value and the correction value. Finally, an activation signal for activating the passenger protection device is generated using the velocity reduction value.

An occupant protection device for a vehicle includes a seat, a three-point seatbelt device, and a belt airbag device. An occupant to board the vehicle is to sit on the seat. The three-point seatbelt device includes a seatbelt extendable across a front of an upper body of the occupant sitting on the seat. The belt airbag device includes a belt airbag that is provided at a shoulder belt section, which is extendable from a shoulder to a waist of the occupant, of the seatbelt, and that is configured to be deployed when a collision occurs. The belt airbag includes a belt-direction deployment section extendable and deployable along the shoulder belt section, and an intersecting-direction deployment section extendable and deployable in a direction intersecting the shoulder belt section. The sections are configured to form a single bag by being coupled to each other below a head of the occupant sitting on the seat.

A method and vehicle control system for controlling stiffness of at least one support structure of a vehicle includes at least one of an acceleration sensor, a braking sensor and a corner sensor for providing a driving condition of the vehicle. A controller obtains information from the sensors to determine the driving condition and control the stiffness of a support structure of the vehicle. A magnetic field generator provides a magnetic field to control the stiffness of the support structure having a magnetorheological fluid or elastomer. An electrical source provides electrical current to a support structure including an electrorheological fluid or a support structure including a meta-material. When a vehicle collision is predicted no energy is provided to the support structure to minimize the stiffness and maximize energy absorbance by the support structure in a collision.

The disclosure relates to a method for triggering an occupant protection device in a vehicle with a parking brake, wherein for the case in which a deceleration of the vehicle is demanded by operating the parking brake while travelling, the occupant protection device is triggered automatically and displaced from an initial position into a protective position.

A vehicle and a method of controlling an airbag of a vehicle enhances the efficiency in airbag deployment by predicting the possibility of collision of the vehicle in advance from a driving manipulation pattern of a driver and actively and variably adjusts a threshold value for deploying an airbag on the basis of a result of the prediction of the possibility of collision. The method of controlling an airbag of a vehicle includes determining a possibility of collision of the vehicle from a driving manipulation pattern of the vehicle, and variably adjusting a threshold value for deployment of the airbag on the basis of a result of the determination of the possibility of collision.

A brake system having a wheel brake and being operable under a non-failure normal braking mode and a manual push-through mode. The system includes a master cylinder operable by a brake pedal during the manual push-through mode to provide fluid flow at an output for actuating the wheel brake. A first source of pressurized fluid provides fluid pressure for actuating the wheel brake under the normal braking mode. A second source of pressurized fluid generates brake actuating pressure for actuating the wheel brake under the manual push-through mode.

A vehicle may include a vehicle detector configured to detect an obstacle and a condition of the inside and the outside of the vehicle; and a controller, when a front obstacle is detected by the vehicle detector, configured to determine a required braking distance or a time to collision (TTC) with respect to the obstacle, configured to determine whether a door side collision with the obstacle is estimated, when a collision with the obstacle is estimated according to the result of the determination, and configured to open a door in emergency or convert the door into a manual opening mode when the door side collision is estimated.

A vehicle and a method of controlling an airbag of a vehicle enhances the efficiency in airbag deployment by predicting the possibility of collision of the vehicle in advance from a driving manipulation pattern of a driver and actively and variably adjusts a threshold value for deploying an airbag on the basis of a result of the prediction of the possibility of collision. The method of controlling an airbag of a vehicle includes determining a possibility of collision of the vehicle from a driving manipulation pattern of the vehicle, and variably adjusting a threshold value for deployment of the airbag on the basis of a result of the determination of the possibility of collision.

The occupant restraining device for a vehicle has a seatbelt, a collision predicting sensor, a braking device that enlarges a gap between a vehicle occupant and a seatback of a vehicle seat, an explosive-type pretensioner and electric motor that retract the seatbelt, and a control section that, in a case in which a front collision of the vehicle is sensed in advance by the collision predicting sensor, enlarges the gap between the vehicle occupant and the seatback by the braking device and starts retracting of the seatbelt by the explosive-type pretensioner and the electric motor, and at least until forward movement of the vehicle occupant starts after occurrence of the front collision, continues to input load to the vehicle occupant from the seatbelt and continues to move the vehicle occupant toward a vehicle rear side.